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National Publicity Secretary, All Progressives Congress, Alhaji Lai Mohammed | credits: File copy

The All Progressives Congress has raised the alarm over the rising cases of killing and maiming of its members in Rivers State, in the run up to next Saturdays governorship and House of Assembly elections.

The National Publicity Secretary of the party, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said this at a press briefing in Abuja, on Monday.

He said the APC was worried that the Peoples Democratic Party and its governorship candidate, Mr. Nyesom Wike, aided by the security agencies, had continued to kill and maim its members and supporters.

Mohammed said that last week, nine members of the APC were killed in cold blood, while many others were injured, when suspected armed PDP thugs invaded Obrikom and Obor communities in Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni local government of Rivers state.

The APC also alleged that these same thugs set ablaze the residence of Vincent Ogbagu, a candidate for the House of Assembly elections.

The statement read, APC members have been subjected to persistent harassment and intimidation across the state, using the police in Rivers and the Zone 6 in Calabar. Over 150 prominent members have been victims of this unprovoked persecution.

Just today (Monday), we received sad news from Rivers. An APC chieftain, Christopher Adube, was reportedly shot dead over the weekend. Adube, who hails from the Egbema Local Government Area, was said to have been shot dead at his residence

These are just some of the instances of what APC members and supporters in Rivers State have been subjected to in recent days.

However, Wike denied the allegations.

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APC laments attacks against supporters in Rivers

The All Progressives Congress has stepped up campaign in Delta State, wooing political leaders and the electorate with their message on the need for the state to remain in alignment with the Federal Government.

Since 1999, Delta State has been under the control of the Peoples Democratic Party, which has been in charge of the Federal Government in the past 16 years.

Following the defeat of the PDP at the presidential election by the APC, the Publicity Secretary of the APC in Delta, Prof. Isaac Adakpo, told our correspondent that it was also time for change in the state.

Adakpo said the partys campaign in the past one week had focused on the need for the state not to in opposition with the centre and the need for change.

He said, We have been moving into the communities speaking to the people, giving them the reasons why Delta State should not be in opposition with the centre and the need to have a change.

Since the centre has given us the impetus for change, we need the change too because the 16 years of the PDP administration in Delta State has not paid off. We are trying our best to sell all our candidates, particularly the governorship candidate. We hope the people will respond positively to us.

Adakpo added that the APC in Delta had not received politicians defecting openly from the PDP in large numbers because of the political complexity of the state.

He said, We havent received such defections openly. Delta is a very complex state. People have been with the PDP administration all these years. A few PDP leaders in the Ndokwa nation and parts of Urhobo are making overtures. We are welcoming them with open arms. Nobody wants to come out in the open but of course they will be good moles for us on April 11.

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Delta cant afford to be in opposition

analysis

The governorship candidates of the major political parties are squaring up for the battle of the states on April 11, 2015. Except in few states, the contest is expected to be fierce between the newly elected governing party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which has been leading the government since 1999.

In view of the outcome of the presidential elections which saw retired Major General Muhammadu Buhari of the APC emerging winner in an election contested by 14 candidates, including the incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan of the PDP, we have decided to look at the likely "Winners and Losers" at the forthcoming Governorship Election in 29 states of the federation.

LAGOS: A ding-dong battle of wills

The Lagos State gubernatorial election is already throwing up signs of a close contest between the two main political parties- the PDP and the APC.

Political pundits who have been keen on the development in the state are finding it difficult to place a bet on any of the candidates, Mr Jimi Agbaje, the PDP gubernatorial candidate and Mr Akinwunmi Ambode of the APC. Indeed, the two candidates, through their campaigns, have thrown up a number of issues, many of which might eventually become the determining factors on who either wins or loses.

Before the election, both Agbaje and Ambode made it a habit to campaign vigorously for their respective parties' presidential candidates. During Ambode's political campaigns across the 20 local governments in the state, his campaign and those of his party leaders, including a former Governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the current Governor, Babatunde Fashola, the slogan had always been: "Vote Buhari, vote Ambode". While looking at the state incumbency machinery that has been deployed in mobilizing supporters and Lagosians alike, not a few disagree that the victory of Gen. Buhari might positively affect the chances of Ambode.

Agbaje has also not done badly in this regard. Against all odds and the perceived lethargy that first rocked his efforts at selling the candidacy of Mr President at the early stage of the campaign, Agbaje, backed with funds from the supporters of President Jonathan, succeeded in using "Vote Jonathan, vote Agbaje" to win the hearts of many people from the South South and South East living in Lagos. But this political calculation may change since President Jonathan has lost his election to the APC candidate.

KANO: Buhari's victory weighs down Takai, raises Ganduje

Out of all the 22 candidates contesting the seat of Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and Mallam Sagir Saliu Takai are viewed as the most likely occupiers of the Kano Government House on May 29.

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Nigeria: The Battle of the States

Michael Adams is president of the Environics Institute for Survey Research.

As this years federal election approaches, the Conservative government is increasingly crystallizing its offer to voters around a single promise: security. The economy has been removed from the partys display window, replaced by the global fight against ISIS and its sympathizers, some abroad, some next door.

For the government, a focus on keeping Canadians safe from terror is a strong play: fear may well be humans most powerful emotion. Academics such as Jonathan Haidt and George Lakoff have argued that conservatives and liberals have distinct sensibilities and seek different kinds of emotional satisfaction from politics. Lakoff, for instance, describes a conservative mindset that values leadership from strong, paternal figures and keeping the brood safe is an essential part of the job description for any strong papa. (In exchange, dad gets loyalty, deference to his authority, and in some cases a tie or patterned socks at Christmas.)

One drawback of the Conservatives laser-like focus on terror and security, however, is that it cedes so much other territory to challengers. It gives an opening for the Liberals and the NDP to make noise not only about their own traditional issues (social programs, the environment, and so on) but also about some issues that the Conservatives usually claim as their own. How might the Liberals or NDP show that they should be taken seriously not only by their own stalwarts but by Canadians who have voted Conservative in recent elections, especially those who gave Stephen Harpers party its surprising majority in 2011?

How about advocating for veterans?

The Harper government embraces military symbolism, and a robust armed forces that can fight evil and keep Canadians safe is certainly part of the Conservatives strong-father model of leadership. But in recent years many Canadian veterans have expressed dissatisfaction with the governments handling of their services and supports. For many, the highway of heroes seems to lead to a less exalted place at the end of the road.

Most Canadians would wish to see their military personnel honoured not only when theyre deployed, but also when they return from doing what the country has asked of them, especially if they have been injured physically or psychologically in the course of their duties. An opposition party that demonstrated a concrete commitment to meeting veterans health care and employment needs even if it were not a party that voters associated automatically with fighting capabilities might well appeal to conservative-leaning Canadians disappointed by recent headlines.

How about celebrating old-fashioned citizenship?

Civic education and pride in citizenship were once rather conservative ideals. They were connected to the patriotism and loyalty to country that right-leaning people have often claimed as special virtues. Recently, however, Canadas immigration program has taken on a more transactional character. It has become more strongly associated with short-term labour trends than with long-term nation-building. And indeed, a recent analysis has indicated that the rate at which immigrants become citizens has declined.

Despite some concerns about cultural integration (a process that citizenship and belonging only help), Canadians remain positive about immigration and take pride in multiculturalism. Shifting the immigration frame away from this quarters want ads and toward meaningful citizenship, civic participation, and inclusive nation-building might just appeal to some Canadian patriots who believe countries and their citizens do best when their responsibilities toward each other are durable and deeply felt.

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Three ways Liberals and NDP can win over conservative voters

Lawrence Summers has no wish to become embroiled in this years federal election. He may anyway.

The former treasury secretary to Bill Clinton is preaching a gospel of inclusive prosperity. Justin Trudeau is listening.

His ideas are in the mix, said a senior Liberal, speaking on background. If those ideas which emphasize increased government investments rather than the Conservative mantra of balanced budgets and lower taxes become part and parcel of the Liberal platform, they will offer a stark either/or contrast between the two parties in the election slated for Oct. 19.

Mr. Summers was in Toronto on Monday to speak at the Rotman School of Management at an event hosted by Canada 2020, a progressive think tank. The former director of the National Economic Council in the first Obama administration repeated a message he has been delivering on both sides of the border over the past couple of years.

In an era of low growth, rising income inequality and bargain-basement interest rates, it makes no sense for governments to shy away from needed investments in physical and social infrastructure, he believes.

While Mr. Summers stressed he didnt want to get involved in partisan Canadian politics, he advised against the balanced budget that Finance Minister Joe Oliver has committed to delivering later this month come hell or cheap oil.

The case for surpluses is greater when economic growth is accelerating than when it is decelerating, he said in a sit-down with The Globe and Mail. To the extent that the present moment is one of transitorily bad conditions because of the collapse of oil prices, coupled with low demand, low interest rates and deflationary rather than inflationary pressures, this would not seem the moment to elevate fiscal discipline, he maintained.

But the Conservatives are determined to impose exactly that discipline. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has repeatedly chastised provincial governments, especially the Ontario Liberal government of Kathleen Wynne, for running deficits at a time when the economy is not in recession.

At a speech in Davos, Switzerland, in 2012, Mr. Harper offered a rebuttal to Mr. Summerss way of thinking by warning political leaders against falling into the trap of too much sovereign debt, too much general willingness to have standards and benefits beyond our ability or even willingness to pay for them.

But Mr. Summers argues, as Mr. Trudeau has also argued, that combatting climate change, upgrading infrastructure, investing in education and training and other government programs will not only increase demand and create jobs, but bolster confidence in the future among stressed middle-class taxpayers.

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Liberals looking closely at inclusive prosperity in contrast to federal Tories