Parties
Kaduna in total blackout as workers begin strike
Kaduna State on Sunday was thrown into total blackout ahead of the five-day warning strike directed by the Nigeria Labour Congress to commence from midnight of Sunday in the state. The total blackout followed a warning by the National Union of Electricity Employees, an affiliate of the NLC, directing its workers to join the strike action in Kaduna beginning on Midnight Sunday. But the state government said it won’t bow to the intimidation of the NLC over its planned ‘rightsizing’ of the state workforce. While speaking at a press conference in Kaduna on Saturday, the Commissioner of Local Government Affairs, Malam Jafaru Sani, said it uncovered a plot by the NLC to recruit hoodlums from other states of the federation to cause mayhem under the pretext of embarking on strike. Sani, therefore,...
Oyo council polls: OYSIEC to refund nomination fees to candidates
Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC), has expressed its readiness to refund the sum of N50,000 for Councillorship candidates and N250,000 for Chairmanship candidates as stated on Time-Table and guidelines released for local government council elections, coming up in the state. The Commission also released the names of screened and qualified Chairmanship and Councillorship Candidates of 17 political parties who have signified their intentions to participate in the election, slated for May 22, 2021. These were contained in a statement issued and signed by the Electoral Commissioner in charge of Voter Education, Prince Afeez Adeniyi, on behalf of the commission and made available to journalists in Ibadan . Similarly,the statement stated that the commission has resolved to refun...
Nigerian farmers raise alarm as insecurity threatens food availability
Some concerned parties in the agriculture sector have appealed to the federal government to intensify efforts in curbing banditry, kidnapping and terrorism, as these can threaten food security. The parties made the appeal in separate interviews with newsmen on Friday in Abuja. They noted that the recent increase in kidnapping and banditry had made a lot of farmers run from their farmlands in search of safe hideouts. The Executive Secretary, National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA), Paul Ikonne, said there was a need to urgently address the insecurity challenges in the country in order to overcome the challenge of food shortage. Ikonne noted that dialogue remained critical in addressing issues of insecurity and herders, adding that a peaceful dialogue between farmers and her...
Lagos recovers N50 million over fraudulent real estate activities
The Lagos State Government on Tuesday said it had recovered more than N50 million from parties involved in illegal real estate transaction activities. Mrs Toke Benson-Awoyinka, Special Adviser to Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Housing, made the disclosure during a news conference in Ikeja. It was to give account of activities in the housing sector for the 2nd year anniversary of the Sanwo-Olu-led administration of the Governor. Benson-Awoyinka said that the agency had successfully mediated in about 55 out of 150 petitions/complaints between property developers, landlords, potential tenants and tenants. She said that 50 cases were adjourned for further mediation while 40 were referred to appropriate agencies, with five cases in courts in Ketu, Ajah, Ikorodu, Gbagada and Yaba. The special advise...
Deregistration: INEC colluding with politicians to undermine court processes – ADC
The African Democratic Congress, ADC, Tuesday, alleged that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, was playing some tricks by colluding with some party leaders and politicians in an attempt to undermine court processes. The National Chairman of ADC, Chief Ralphs Okey Nwosu, who made the allegation, while reacting to the Supreme Court’s judgment which affirmed the deregistration of the National Unity Party, NUP, described alleged moves by the electoral empire as pitiful. Chief Nwosu noted that while the NUP’s case was not of much consequence, the case to watch and which INEC was trying to use NUP to undermine is that involving 22 political parties. According to Chief Nwosu, who is also the interim President of Inter-Party Advisory Council of Nigeria, IPAC, “The Supreme Court j...
Oyo council poll: Police, OYSIEC collaborate to ensure hitch-free elections
The Oyo State Police Command on Monday showed its commitment towards ensuring free and fair local government elections in the state. The Command, in its efforts to secure hitch-free before, during and after the poll, has disclosed its partnership with the Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC), engaged the stakeholders involved, stressing that all hands must be on deck to ensure free, fair and credible elections. The development according to a press release that was made available to pressmen in Ibadan, the State capital, stated that the Command, in conjunction with the Management of Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC), today Monday 10th May 2021, played host to principal political actors and critical stakeholders in the state in readiness for the 22nd May 2021...
De-registration: Supreme Court judgement binding only on NUP – CUPP
The Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) has insisted that the recent Supreme Court judgement affirming the de-registration of 74 political parties is only binding on the National Unity Party (NUP). CUPP maintained that the judgment does not, in any way, bind on the 22 political parties which got victory at the Court of Appeal as they are not parties before the Supreme Court in NUP’s case and their prayers before the courts are also different. On August 10, 2020, the Court of Appeal in Appeal No. CA/ABJ/CV/507/2020, between Advanced Congress of Democrats (ACD) & 21 others, and Attorney General of the Federation & INEC ruled that the de-registration of the 22 political parties was unconstitutional and ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to relist the...
NNPC begins work on Port Harcourt refinery
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has kicked off construction work in the Port Harcourt Refinery rehabilitation project with a firm commitment not to fail Nigerians. A statement on Friday by the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of the NNPC, Dr Kennie Obateru, quoted the NNPC Chief Operating Officer, Refineries & Petrochemicals, Engr Mustapha Yakubu, as saying that everything was being done to ensure that the project is delivered hitch-free and on schedule. Speaking at the Technical Kick-off Meeting for the project held at the Port Harcourt Refinery Complex, Alesa Eleme, Rivers State, Engr Yakubu said everything about the project had been carefully worked out to ensure that the target of at least 90% refining capacity is achieved when operational. “I...
Supreme Court upholds INEC’s deregistration of 74 political parties
The Supreme Court on Friday upheld an earlier judgment of the Court of Appeal which okayed the deregistration of National Unity Party and 73 others. Newsmen had earlier reported that the Independent National Electoral Commission last year deregistered the political parties over their inability to win any election during the 2019 general elections. In the judgment delivered by Justice Adamu Jauro, the Supreme Court, on Friday, said the deregistration of NUP, one of the 74 parties, was done in line with the laws and compliance with the extant provisions of the Constitution and Electoral Act. Get more stories like this on Twitter You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Bea...
Bayelsa government wades into communal crisis, warns against gunrunning
The Bayelsa State Government has read the riot act to those engaged in gunrunning in the state and warned such persons to desist from the unwholesome activity or they would face the full wrath of the law. Deputy Governor Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo gave the warning while addressing the chiefs and people of Peretoru community in the Ekeremor Local Government Area of the state during a resumed meeting in the Government House, Yenagoa, on Saturday. Among those also present at the meeting were the representatives of the state Command of Nigeria Police, Department of State Services (DSS) and Joint Task Force (JTF). A statement on Sunday by the deputy governor’s Senior Special Assistant on Media, Mr Doubara Atasi, said the meeting was part of ongoing efforts by the state government to resolve the leade...
LASIEC unveils guidelines for forthcoming council election
The Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) has unveiled guidelines for the forthcoming local government election scheduled for July 24. LASIEC Chairman, Retired Justice Ayotunde Philips, in the guidelines issued on Saturday, said the commission had fixed N150, 000, N100, 000 and N75, 000 as nomination forms fees for the chairmanship, vice-chairmanship and councillorship candidates, respectively. “Political parties are required to obtain the following LASIEC Forms: LASIEC 001, LASIEC 002, and LASIEC 008 for their candidates as from May 4. This ends at 12 noon, May 5 at the commission’s headquarters, Sabo-Yaba, Lagos. “LASIEC form 001 must be completed and returned to the commission by the political parties not later than June 4,” Philips said. She said that each candidate was...
ASEAN changed Myanmar statement on release of political detainees – sources
A draft statement circulating the day before a Southeast Asian leaders’ summit on the Myanmar crisis included the release of political prisoners as one of its “consensus” points, said three sources familiar with the document. But in the final statement at the end of Saturday’s meeting, the language on freeing political prisoners had been unexpectedly watered down and did not contain a firm call for their release, two of the sources said. The absence of a strong position on this issue caused dismay among human rights activists and opponents of the coup, fuelling criticism by them that the meeting had achieved little in the way of reining in the country’s military leaders. read more Activist monitors say 3,389 people have been detained in a crackdown on dissent by the military since the Feb....