 Well, it's Friday and we love it right here. Have you heard of Friday because G.D. Johnson joins us on Off The Press. G.D. it's good to have you join us. It's a pleasure to be with you Masi and Kofi. Good morning to you. Good morning to you G.D. Johnson. It seems you're already in the October 1st spirit. Either that or you are... G.D. Johnson joins us on the weekend. I'm just catching my goods. This isn't the weekend. You have to complete the weekend look. You have to go with dark shades and I think that will be completed. G.D. Johnson actually took it out for me. Kofi joins the conversation right here. It's good to have you on the set. Fantastic. Yes indeed. We started off with a punch newspaper this morning. We have all the papers but the punch would be the first for us and like I mentioned we'll be sharing the thoughts of G.D. G.D. Johnson joins us on the weekend. We have all the papers but the punch is the first for us and like I mentioned we'll be sharing the thoughts of G.D. Johnson. We have all the papers but the punch is the first for us and like I mentioned we'll be sharing the thoughts of G.D. Johnson. Agree to NWC members nominee added to campaign list and away from that you find PDP NWC members write are you and reject housing allowance? Well that's not even it. I mean you have some quarter saying a hundred million or thereabout was rejected. And we're saying have we gotten to a point where people are rejecting money now? It might just be very commendable or this might just be an act. We really don't know. But we're waiting to share the thoughts of G.D. Power sector loses 420 billion dollar annual revenue. That's what Gensko has quoted to say. An economist forecast Naira's slide inflation as campaign begins. Reps raise the alarm over possible Ebola outbreak as Uganda has also said you know you have about 20% who have been infected with thereabout. Federal government makes fresh offer as soon as it's on UTAs. That is the problem. To Nubu Absent article or the side piece parts Buhari demands non-violent polls. A delicate wins at Supreme Court hometown PDP celebrates. There's a lot going on. And two feared dead in RTEN clash. Sungolu suspends the union. I was talking about association of road transport employees. That's what you find there. Three EFCC lawyers 59 orders makes SAN list. That's the much we can take on the punch. We move over to the nation newspaper with some interesting headlines this morning. And of course no surprises there. They're looking at the People's Democratic Party and the situation. Even though I think the situation the APC demands more attention. Candle Rock PDP National Working Committee has members returned 122.4 million. Now is that a bigger story than the letter written by Adamu Abdulai to the party's presidential candidate you tell me. But anyway it says Candle Rock PDP National Working Committee has members returned 122.4 million Naira. A Rappaja Obi adu Adha Gunnodo Faa Ato reject strange rent stipends. Outrage of a curious payments party cash. Party cash meant for 15,000 allowance. Talked in the bottom left corner is a picture of Abdulai Adamu Chairman of the APC with a headline. No rifts over APC campaign. Council says spokesman, party chair, candidate on the same page. But we'll read that letter. It seemed well written. The more Abdulai is a very intelligent man, very intelligent, good with his words. And he put up a letter that anyone should study. He wants to speak better English to study. Really well written. I've read some of his statements from yes to yes. And he seems to be very, very well educated and has a good grasp of the English language. So what would the party say to that? 62 lawyers are now S.A.N.s. Where they put Tahiru on list. Developing countries face currency depreciation. Marking the autom. Innovate 110 kilometer road. Supreme Court upholds a delicacy nomination 2023. 2023 that is. Buhari Abdul Salami worried of a spread of fake news. Fake news. Party's presidential candidate signed peace pact. Like the nation put it. There was one auspicious absentee. ADC rules out of place out of ADC rules out peace deal with presidential candidates. Right. And we have. I think those are the ones on the front page for now. Oh, before I forget. Law and Surrenders to Court Ruling and Legal Suspense RTA. EA and Excos. So he has given him to China being the senatorial candidate. He's not an American. Well, the daily son talks about the presidential candidate. The presidential candidate signed in the peace accord. I mean, Buhari's caution. Presidential candidate signed peace accord. Shatima stands in for tunable and place Nigeria above regional and sectional interests. That's what the president is urging. You know, those who are vying for the office of the president. Place Nigeria above regional sectional interests. Buhari's quoted. In 2023, I will remove structures retarding Nigeria's progress. Or be. That's Peter will be. How will be the question that those who are entrusted should be asking. APC withdrawal of letter to tunable tears national working committee apart. Members want Buhari presidential candidate served. Supreme Court affirms or shown governor-elect valid PDP candidates. I mean, a deal has been going through a lot of, you know, trials right there. The PDP crisis takes new twisters for National Working Committee members. Refund 122.4 million Naira, purportedly given to them by IU. I next threatens party with fresh sanctions over hate speech and campaign funding. And you also have another one. Neco releases 2022 SSC internal result records 70% pass in maths and English. And you have that's it this morning. Just before move away, tension as soldiers invade a number of community and kill one injure for others. That's it on the daily sun. Very quickly. The daily trust. Don't fight dirty. Buhari tells to the article be others. We're at critical stage. Jonathan fake news misinformation to threat to poll out this alarming. Good to see him back and doing what he knows how to do best. We'll monitor candidates, parties, conduct and spending. Do they really mean that to us? It's just all back and no bite. Governors rejects FG's plan to privatize five power plants. India tops importation of Nigerian goods in Q2. Father demanded for a tempting to sell daughter for 20 million Naira in Benwe. You may not allowance bow signals and of 24 year journey national assembly. It's not a bad time to take a bow and go and take a rest. Are you bribed us with millions six PDP and WC members alleged Nigeria air questions doubts as FG unveils Ethiopian Airlines as core investor. And we see pictures of the presidential candidates. Some of the presidential candidates. The signing of that national peace accord. Of course, we come over to you. This signing of the national peace accord. Does it mean anything? We've been having these sightings before. In fact, the one we did in River State in 2015, I think so they cut a cake. But that was one of the worst years on record. As far as Nigerian elections are concerned. River said a lot of bloodshed. That's the first question I have for you regarding this. Second question, Julie Johnson. The auspicious afternoon tea. Of course, I didn't see. Maybe they want to tell the candidates missing, but the auspicious one. The conspicuous one rather was the presidential candidate of the Progressive Congress was represented by his running mate. And there's talk, of course, online that. Tilibu is place order for the team. Which is more of the main man on that ticket. So what are your thoughts on this? Over to you, sir. Well, first, where did the peace committee always wait for the electoral side to show their face? There have been a lot of issues that have affected Nigeria, the peace and tranquility of Nigeria. We have this bit of kidnap in the present center. We have various abduction. I think the scope of the work of the peace committee should not be limited only to the signing of peace accord during the electoral cycle. It should get involved in a lot of issues in promoting peace across the length and breadth of Nigeria. As far as I'm concerned, it's just for the optics. I might be wrong. It's my opinion. I'm entitled to it. So it's just for the optics because I don't see any significance at all. What's the authority or what's the legitimacy of this peace committee, headed by the former military head of state that bestowed this present democratic experiment on us? So some of the diligence which that decision needs to have done with respect to providing structural institution to strengthen this democracy were not done, it was quickly done and then we have found ourselves. We have found ourselves. That's why we see the presidential candidate of the Labor Party saying that it's going to restructure things that have retarded the good of Nigeria and may see acts pointedly, which is with the question of what should be action, not what you want to do now. How do you want to do what you want to do? Because you have listened to a lot of what, what, what, what from politicians. It's just pure retribution. With respect to the absence, Kofi, you actually used the appropriate word. It's auspicious. It's auspicious because if you look at it as becoming a pattern, when the Nigerian Bar Association hosted its annual conference in Lagos, the presidential Lagos, the value is just some few kilometers away from the residence of the EPC presidential candidate. It was not, it was not there. Well, now we have designed of the peace accord. It was also not there. These are significant events. Significant events that you expect the presidential candidate to be present. If indeed it's like somebody not coming for a job interview and he's sending someone else to come to the job interview. And from some of these we have even heard that the presidential candidate of EPC has told us allegedly that it is not, it's not applying to be the head of a media organization. So what should we do interview? I think the media holds us a responsibility to apply to this issue. Beyond this absence, what is responsible, what I'm expecting to think and what I'm expecting from today moving forward is what is responsible for its absence in all of this. Where is he? What is really going on? I wish we have the English tabloid in Nigeria now. We have that error and I wish we had the error of guerrilla journalism that we had under Abacha's administration that through spotlights it's unfortunate that magazine has suffered in here and there. These are areas which magazines, when we talk about tempo, tell, news, what, these are areas which we explore in those days. These are opportunities for the online media platforms. Those are online media platforms that have come to replace, provide the services being offered by magazine in those days. To explore what is the reason behind the continuous absence of the EPC presidential candidate in some certain flagship event towards 2023 election. We need answers. That's what, that's the beauty of democracy. Democracy is government of the people and the media represent the people. The people deserve the right to know about everything that is going on with whoever has offered himself to serve them. They are not offering themselves to serve themselves, they are offering to serve Nigerians. The other is the placeholder, the placeholder. That's just simplifying the issue. It's politically the issue which you go deeper and not the reason, the reason why the presidential candidate of the EPC has not attended. You left out the LCCI event as well, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry event where he acts for postponement of his appearance till October whilst the likes of Attico and Obie appear in September, so I don't know. We hear like the point that we cannot afford to allow any presidential candidate to play hide and seek. It is the destiny of you and I, the destiny of millions of Nigerians that is at stake. Now, if my people used to this publicity that the way Saturday we look like, you look at it, you get to know about it from Friday. Now, the money tells you how the day is going to look like. Now, if in the course of seeking for the office, you are playing hide and seek, the simplest conclusion, the logical conclusion you can come up with is that if you eventually secure the mandate of the people, you play hide and seek with governance. Those are the kind of questions. Is this the pattern you are going to use to run the country if you elected the president? These are the kind of questions I expect journalists when they have the opportunity to throw their microphone in front of the presidential candidate of all political parties. Specifically, the EPC presidential candidate questions they need to ask him and we need to ask them to ask questions. It's about what will happen to Nigeria in the next four years. We are lamenting about what happened in the last eight years. Now, lamentation should stop. Questioning should start and spotlight should be thrown to the activities. Well, let's move away from that. Take a look at the nation. Candle rocks the PDP National Working Committee as members return 122.4 million. That's what the nation is reporting, of course, every other time if it's like, you know, the report the opposite. Well, I'm getting to know the storm in the tick off in PDP. The storm in the tick off in PDP is coming in to be on hand. I don't know whether it's this program or this program I attended earlier this week. Where I said that, look, the party offices in Nigeria, particularly at the national level, the national chairman is so powerful, he's so powerful that he sits on periods of error that are not audited to my knowledge appropriately by agencies of government because if you look at the nomination fees they collected, the nomination fees they collected across the length and breadth of Nigeria for people seeking political offices, you will be shocked at the amount of money they have and the relevance of that office, the visibility of that office. How often do you see Adam Toshimwell in the news after he left the national chairman of APC? How often have you seen the governor of UBC, the former chairman of the Keatika Committee and the Special Convention Committee that was the superintendent of APC for more than two years, my Malabuni, how often do you see him in the news compared to when he was the Keatika chairman of the APC? So we have seen the power that is, and if you situate that with what is happening in APC, it's where some NYC members, national working committee members are insisting that the letter that is written, that has not been served to the presidential candidate of APC, should be served to the presidential candidate of the APC as well as the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria who are supposed to be the national leader of the party presently. So you have terminated in PDP, you have peace in the graveyard, you have peace in the graveyard of the APC that seems to be some palpable silence. That silence has been broken now with this letter that shows that the presidential candidate of the party is running a one-man show. Two, that we've also seen in the report, I think it was the point in the newspaper that reported that the presidential candidate of the APC promised to pacify the NYC, the national working committee members and go down to 2,000 appointments. What is really good is that it can be started. The sword that has been in the sheet and the knives that have been inside the pocket, you will be brought up now as you move towards the main election. Just grab your popcorn, grab your ice cream, take a ringside position. We need space to be created. And enjoy the drama because this is just the beginning of the drama. Let me be an American, you haven't seen nothing yet. It's just the beginning, it's just the beginning of the drama. Gideon, we need space to be, you know, some sort of space so I can come with my popcorn and ice cream. That's on a lightened note, but I'm sure that Kofi will stand by, you know, with the next question. Have we talked about the PNP situation yet? Yes, we have. Kofi, let me quickly add something to that. How can an individual have the power to allocate $122 million to other members of the national working committee, the body that is made to superten on the running, on the day-to-day running of the party. Now, it's not dispensing, the chairman on his own is not dispensing money to call members, deputy national chairman from the south and other members of the national working committee, the employed members, quote unquote, the members that are entitled to, so you see the resources. That's why some of them don't want to resign. You know, you took the intervention of the president to make my body to conduct the APC, APC Convention to elect that elected Adamu as the national, as not chairman, and then you could see all the pressure that had been exerted on how you to resign. He has not resigned. Just a quick one now. I mean, we're very concerned also. It's surprising that, you know, you have members of the party rejecting money, returning money. I mean, since when these things started happening, could these just be an act or where are we again? Because they will be consumed. They will be consumed whether you like it or not. Are you willing to leave? You could see the voter phase that have been put up by weekend, autumn, market day, and the rest of PDPR, their own inauguration. Five out of the 13 governors didn't attend. That's close to about, that's about 45 percent. 45 percent can a bird fly with half of its, half with one of its wings. That's, it's a challenge. So you see that these members that have returned the money, when they collected the money initially, did they tell you and I, why we took it? It's because they've seen the undercurrent or what is coming. You know, they want them not to be consumed. That's why they have come out to Nigeria. I mean Nigerians, only very few Nigerians return money. When they collected the money, they didn't tell you and I. Now they are not telling us. They are not running to the press to see that we are returning the money. Why did they collect the money in the first instance? That's the question we need to ask. All right, let's go over to the punch and interesting story. FG makes fresh offer. ASU insists on Utah. Now, I want to look at this also in the light of a theory in my head that it seems like the federal government is working against itself. You have a minister of labor and productivity and employment who has been leading the negotiations with ASU. And then the president, during the meeting they had at ASU, we stakeholders in the education sector said, okay, minister of education at the modern will lead the negotiations. And then the minister of labor and employment comes out to tell the entire country that the president gave at the modern for two weeks. And the model now addresses the press at ASU, at the presidential, at the Meet the Press event by the presidential communications team. He says, oh, it's not true. He actually said it's a lie. The president never told him it was two weeks. The president told him to sort the issue out in the nearest possible time. Then it comes out, oh, that Adamo is the one who raised his hand at the meeting and said he needs two weeks. Then Adamo invites ASU, sorry, the enemy breaks committee, sits down with them and with some stakeholders and then decides to form a 14-month committee to look into the recommendations of the enemy breaks committee which negotiated with ASU, chaired by him on 15 September. Five days later, the federal government takes ASU to court. These things don't match. And whilst they're in court, the ministry is still negotiating and we hear FG makes fresh over to ASU. To me, it seems like there's some sort of their divergent interest in all of this. That's what I think. In fact, the president of the Senate Speaker, Fermi Bajabi Amila, met with ASU just when the court was about to sit and he said he was going to meet the president when he comes back. It's Mr. President really on top of the situation because if he's on top of the situation, why do we have the ministry seems to be doing one thing of education and then the minister of labor employment doing another thing which is taking the union to court? These things do not match. Sir? Since the beginning of this crisis, how is the relationship between the minister of labor and the bank of activity or have you interpreted the relationship between the minister of the bank of activity and the minister of education? I've had costs to attend two meetings when I was deputy provost of Nigerians of journalism, time policy meeting where the minister was present. As far back as 2016, I've said it, that this character does not deserve to be minister of education in Nigeria. There's a seeming arrogance about, I might be wrong in terms of my opinion. You're not far from the generally held view. I might be wrong that there is this overwhelming arrogance about the minister of education with respect to his disposition, to his address of it. And that's why you have seen these various policies so much so. Sometimes that he has contradicted what the president said and you see different types of countervailing moves that are nullifying each other being taken by. There's no coherent direction with respect to it and I think that it costs for leadership, leadership from the head of the government who are supposed to be depressed there. And now when people talk about the head, they have seen the intervention of the speaker of ours of bread. They have not seen the intervention of the Senate. The Senate has not said, if it's about oil subsidies, about raising supplementary budget to deal with some other issues, quickly government will come up with policies on how to raise supplementary budget and the budget will be quickly passed by the National Assembly. Now you have an issue affecting the lives of our children, the future of our nation because education is the future of any nation. The youths who are presently, as presently constituted, majority of them are the universities and tertiary institutions, they are out of school, then you are mortgaging the future leaders of this nation. So you are going to have big leaders being trained through a default system that is perpetrated as a result of arrogance, infighting between ministers and countervailing policies from the same government. The government is talking with one voice. So how do you think that ASU will take further government to be serious? We attended the meeting, we come out of the meeting, we agree in the meeting, then we came out in view, we are seeing something contrary to what we agreed on. So that's why you have seen that ASU has insisted on calling off the strike. There's no way you go to court. You see the best way to resolve industrial problem, industrial crisis is for you to go to negotiation and resolution other than go to court. Now when the court rule, what effect has it had on ASU? That's one. Two, when the government directed pieces to open the university and the same government said, okay, we are not directing them to open the university. You see this policy flip flop, we're not there. And if indeed we are a democratic society and a better organized society, I think the minister of legal productivity and the minister of education who would have resigned. Yes, G.D. Johnson quickly, because we're being told that we have little time to be here. But on the nation, there's also a headline that's really interesting, especially when you talk about Africa and knowing that Niger is a giant of Africa. I don't know if we're still maintaining that status. Now developing countries facing currency depreciation. My question is why Africa, why is it that the African currencies are struggling? Well, you see the impact of COVID-19 locked out. The consequences of it, we still see it for the next. But it was a global issue. No, about this one. The narrative of, look, the dollar is struggling. The powers telling is struggling, the euro is struggling. I think the Chinese yen is struggling. The only currency that seems to be a bit stable, and it's because of the country that Russia has over supply of energy to euro, is the Russian rubble that I refuse to be rubbled through the war that is going on between Russia and euro. And now, that will even be affected with the bombing of the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipeline that supplies gas from Russia to European countries. By passing, going through the sea, by passing Poland, Ukraine, and the rest of it. So, as far as I'm concerned, it's not only Portugal. It's the United States of IMF, of World Bank, talking about issues happening in Africa. The world is facing global economic crisis. The world is facing crisis, food crisis. The world is facing crisis, the global chain supply. So, it is not peculiar to Africa alone. However, it affects Africa more because in this other part of the world, government comes up with intervention policies. But in Nigeria, in Africa, you are left on your own, on your own alone. And just like a dissident president would be on his own with the ruling in Yubi, by the further I caught in Yubi that Machina is the aesthetic APC candidate in Yubi. So, that's the way for our government and the government in Nigeria leaves all of us all alone. Alright, Ginny Janssen, it's interesting to have had you on the programme this morning. And of course, we look forward to having you next time on Off The Press. Thank you so much and... Thank you very much. Happy independence. Happy independence to you. Happy independence and happy independence. Yes indeed, yes indeed. Thank you so much for your time and have a fantastic holiday. And after the short break, of course, we look at our first major conversation. We're talking about very important issues. The aviation sector and the energy crisis facing it. Stay with us till the breakfast on Plus TV Africa.