Abisayo Busari-Akinnadeju has confirmed that the Democratic
Leadership Alliance (DLA) has refunded the Presidential nomination fee she paid to the Party in April 2026, in respect of her aspiration for the Office of President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the 2027 general election.
The refund was received by bank transfer on 3rd of June 2026.

Mrs. Busari-Akinnadeju resigned from the DLA on 28 May 2026, citing, among other matters, the imposition of a
consensus candidate by means that did not comply with the Electoral Act 2026 and the use of a disciplinary process to remove her as a cleared aspirant when she would not endorse that
consensus.
In response to the refund, Mrs. Busari-Akinnadeju issued the following statement.
“I acknowledge receipt of NGN 10,800,000 of the Presidential nomination fee I paid in April 2026, and I note that a further NGN 1,200,000, also paid in April, remains outstanding.

I am grateful that the Party has chosen to do the right thing in this respect.”
“It is important, however, that the meaning of this refund is not misunderstood.
The return of the money does not return the integrity of the process. It is an
acknowledgement that the original collection was indefensible. It is not a remedy for what was done in the weeks between the collection and the return.”
“The systemic questions raised by my experience remain open. An intentional
attempt to debar me from being screened, a disciplinary action to complete the process after screening, the State Chairmen of the Party were directed not to attend the Presidential primary at the Headquarter, but to transmit figures to the National Secretariat so that a candidate could be produced by a purported
consensus.

The Electoral Act 2026 does not permit this without the written
consent of every cleared aspirant.

My removal, through a disciplinary process convened on three days notice and conducted without particulars, was the route by which that statutory obstacle was cleared.

Those facts are not undone by a bank transfer.”
“My concern is no longer about my own money. It is about the next aspirant, in
this Party or any other, whose money may not come back so quickly because
she does not have the standing or the platform to demand it.

The right to a fair
contest is not a privilege of the well-resourced. It is a constitutional entitlement of every Nigerian who participates in the political process, and it must be enforceable by every one of them.

“I thank the Nigerians who stood with me through the past week, who read, who watched, who shared, who wrote, and who made it impossible for this story to be treated as private.

The strength of public attention is what made this refund possible.

The same strength will be needed for the larger work.

“The Office of the Nigerian Citizen is open. The Dare Agenda is in motion. The country cannot wait until 2027, and I will not be waiting until then to do the work I am here to do.”

Mrs. Busari-Akinnadeju confirmed that she remains in non-partisan public life and that the citizens’ platform she announced on 29 May 2026, the Office of the Nigerian Citizen, continues its work under the Dare Agenda framework.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has strongly rejected recent comments by Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo SAN, regarding the party’s decision to affirm former President Goodluck Jonathan as its candidate for the 2027 presidential election.

In a strongly worded press statement issued on Tuesday, the PDP declared that Keyamo lacks the moral authority to lecture the opposition party or its potential candidate.

The party noted that while it would ordinarily ignore such remarks, the growing desperation and anxiety within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) over the rising clamour for Jonathan’s return necessitated a firm response.

The full statement reads:

“The attention of the Peoples Democratic Party has been drawn to the recent comments by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo SAN, concerning the Party’s affirmation of President Goodluck Jonathan as its candidate for the 2027 presidential election.

Ordinarily, the PDP would not have dignified such comments with a response. However, the desperation and anxiety that have increasingly characterised reactions from the ruling APC to the growing national clamour for President Jonathan’s return to leadership make it necessary to set the record straight.

It is rather ironic that Festus Keyamo, a man who built his public profile through relentless criticism of governments and public office holders, now seeks to deny others the very democratic space he once occupied with such enthusiasm. Nigerians remember the Keyamo who challenged those in power, spoke against perceived injustices, and approached the courts in defence of democratic principles.

Instead of concerning himself with the internal affairs of the PDP, the Minister would do well to devote his energy to addressing the numerous challenges confronting the aviation sector and the wider administration of which he is a part. Nigerians are far more interested in solutions to the worsening economic hardship, persistent insecurity, declining purchasing power, and the growing insecurity across the country than in unsolicited political advice directed at President Jonathan.

Under the APC administration, Nigerians have witnessed unprecedented economic difficulties, repeated collapse of critical infrastructure, rising unemployment, and corruption scandals that continue to raise serious concerns about transparency and accountability in government. These are the issues deserving of the Minister’s commentary and advice to the incumbent president.

The obvious nervousness that has greeted President Jonathan’s candidacy is understandable, because Nigerians have not forgotten that under his administration, the country enjoyed political stability, sustained economic growth, increased foreign investor confidence, and a more inclusive national atmosphere.

We can assure Keyamo and the APC that no amount of intimidation, blackmail, or scaremongering can prevent Nigerians from freely expressing their political preferences or supporting leaders they believe can help reposition the country.

If Festus Keyamo truly wishes to offer advice, he should begin by advising the APC-led administration to address the challenges confronting ordinary Nigerians. Until then, his attempts to lecture others on governance and political judgment will continue to ring hollow.

Finally, if any political party has exemplified cluelessness in public administration, it has been the APC-led federal government since 2015. So if Keyamo is attempting to point a finger of cluelessness, he should look at the four pointing back at him.”

President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio on Tursday pacified
Senators who failed to secure their political parties ‘ tickets in the recently concluded primary elections across the country, raising the hope of helping some of them to secure their parties’ ticket and return to the senate.

AKPABIO gave the hint while welcoming senators back from their three weeks holiday to enable them participate in their respective party primaries.

While Akpabio and a few others in the leadership won their tickets unopposed; there has been a few upsets; leaving at least 40 senators unable to secure their tickets.

In all, only 60 serving senators were successful at the primaries conducted across party lines.

Akpabio congratulates the winners and their political parties even as he admonished those who failed to secure their tickets to take solace in the overall victory that democracy stands for in Nigeria.

“I know that there will always be victories and disappointments, yet above every individual triumph stands a greater triumph, the triumph of democracy itself”.

To further pacify the 40 who lost their tickets; Akpabio told senators that the Senate leadership was assured that there will not be as much casualties in the primaries as it has now been recorded.

He told them that the Senate Leader, OPEYEMI BAMIDELE is working to reduce the level of casualties and ensure that some of them secure their parties’ tickets.