By Joseph Edegbo

Nigeria’s main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP has
urged President Muhammadu Buhari to as a matter of urgency sign the Electoral Act Amendment Bill
so as to avert political crisis in the country.

The National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Hon. Debo Ologunagba, made the call at a news briefing Tuesday in Abuja following what he calls continued withholding of assent by the President against the will of Nigerians.

The PDP, he said, is alerting “Nigerians and the International Community of a dangerous design by the Buhari Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC) to trigger serious political crisis that has the capacity to derail our electoral system, truncate our democracy, subvert our corporate existence *.

HERE UNDER IS THE FULL TEXT OF THE PRESS BRIEFING

Gentlemen of the Press!

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is addressing this World Press Conference today to alert all Nigerians and the International Community of a dangerous design by the Buhari Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC) to trigger serious political crisis that has the capacity to derail our electoral system, truncate our democracy, subvert our corporate existence and turn our nation into another ‘axis of concern’ to the world.

As you are aware, President Buhari continues against the Will of Nigerians to withhold assent to the Electoral Act Amendment Bill re-transmitted to him since Monday, January 31, 2022 (clear 22 days ago) by the National Assembly. This was after the Legislature had acceded to and incorporated all his requests in the newly transmitted version of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill.

The refusal to sign the Electoral Act Amendment Bill is nothing short of a premediated and contrived “political abortion” of the Will of the people as represented by the elected 109 Senators and 360 members of the House of Representatives who unanimously passed the Amendment Bill in the first instance.

The current stance of Mr. President further validates our Party’s position that the Buhari-led APC government is averse to free, fair, transparent and credible elections in our country, particularly the 2023 general elections.

The PDP wants to draw the attention of Nigerians and the International Community to this. On Thursday, February 17, 2022, President Buhari addressed the EU-AU Summit in Brussel, Belgium, whereupon he called on the European Union (EU) to impose weighty sanctions on those engaged in “unconstitutional change of governments” as well as those influencing the “process and outcomes of elections”

In President Buhari’s words, “We also call for stronger support from the European Union in the condemnation and imposition of weighty sanctions on countries that engage in unconstitutional change of governments as well as manipulation of constitutions in favour of extension of term limits…

“It is therefore imperative for our partnership to also focus on strengthening election processes in Africa and prevent interference to influence the process and outcomes of elections…”

We urge the President to practice what he preaches.

Mr. President’s refusal to sign the Electoral Act Amendment Bill constitutes an obstruction to democratic principle of credible elections. Any electoral process which does not guarantee the free, fair and transparent transmission of election results from the polling units can only result in a government that lacks credibility and legitimacy which amounts to an “unconstitutional change of government” against the Will of the people.

The Manipulations

As you know, President Buhari premised his withholding of assent to the previous version of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill on Section 84 of that Amendment Bill which provided that party candidates for elections can only emerge through direct primaries.

In trying to justify his decision, Mr. President stated among other reasons in his letter dated December 13, 2021 to the National Assembly that “the amendment as proposed is a violation of the underlying spirit of democracy which is characterised by freedom of choices. Political party membership is a voluntary exercise of the constitutional right to freedom of association”

According to Mr. President, “several millions of Nigerians are not card-carrying members of any political party. Thus, the emphasis should be on enabling qualified Nigerians to vote for the candidate of their choice during general elections as a means of participation in governance and furtherance of the concept of universal adult suffrage or universal franchise…”

If indeed the President and the APC mean and believe in the statement above, then there can be no justification for the continuing delay in assenting to the re-worked Electoral Act Amendment Bill which has adequately taken care of Mr. President requests and now sitting on his desk. Voting by citizens should be made easier not harder as the President and the APC are doing.

It is clear that President Buhari and the APC are erecting road blocks to the passage of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill due mainly to the provision for electronic transmission of election results from the polling units which will eliminate APC’s plans to manipulate the system, militarize the process, alter election results at collation centers and foist itself again into power against the Will of Nigerians.

Having been rejected by Nigerians because of its colossal failure in governance, especially in the areas of security, economy and fight against corruption, the APC is in mortal fear of electronic transmission of results because it cannot survive the inevitable crushing verdict of the ballot box in the 2023 general elections.

This ostensibly informed the conspiracy by the APC leadership of the National Assembly to inject the controversy of the mode of primaries by political parties as a camouflage to scuttle the entire Electoral Act Amendment Bill in the first place.

Nigerians can recall that the PDP had earlier alerted of plots by the APC to deploy all manner of shenanigans to delay the Presidential assent until few months to the 2023 elections to enable the President again cite being too close to the elections as reason to withhold assent just as he did on December 6, 2018 after respectively turning down the then Electoral Act Amendment Bill on flimsy grounds in March and September of that year.

In President Buhari’s words on December 6, 2018, “I am declining assent to the Bill principally because I am concerned that passing a new Electoral Bill this far into the electoral process for the 2019 general elections which commenced under the 2015 Electoral Act, could create some uncertainty about the applicable legislation to govern the process.

“This leads me to believe that it is in the best interest of the country and our democracy for the National Assembly to specifically state in the Bill, that the Electoral Act will come into effect and be applicable to elections commencing after the 2019 General Elections”.

With that, President Buhari set the stage for the APC and its agents to ferociously desecrate the sanctity of the ballot box by brazenly attacking polling centers, altering election results at collation centers, allocating fictitious votes to the APC, destroying electoral data, announcing losers as winners and ending up foisting the APC into power in 2019 against the Will of the people as reflected by the actual votes cast at the polling units.

Our Concerns

Gentlemen of the press, less than a year to the 2023 general elections, President Buhari and the APC are at it again! Expectedly, the current anti-people scheme against the Electoral Act Amendment Bill by the APC administration is heightening apprehensions across the country of furtive plots by APC leaders to orchestrate a constitutional impasse that can railroad our democracy into an emergency tenure elongation, induced election postponement, self-succession or worst still an interim government situation.

This growing tension calls for concern as it has the capacity to spawn widespread restiveness with consequential violence, bloodletting and attendant humanitarian crisis in the country that may affect the entire West Africa subregion, Europe, America and other parts of the world if not addressed.

This is because Nigerians, especially the youths have become more politically aware and involved, with well-founded and implacable aversion to injustice, oppression, manipulations and undemocratic tendencies as being witnessed under the APC administration. Evidence of this mood became manifest in the EndSARS protest of October 2020.

The situation is being worsened by the arrogant utterances of some officials of the Buhari-led APC administration particularly the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami SAN, who is now subjecting the decision of the generality of Nigerians through the National Assembly to personal parochial and partisan whims.

Our Party also has information about how some selfish unelected cabinet ministers, advisers and other top government functionaries with ambitions for presidential, governorship and other elective positions are mounting pressure on President Buhari not to sign the Electoral Act Amendment Bill to enable them remain longer in office so as to continue to use public funds to corruptly pursue their personal political interests.

It is appalling that President Buhari who claims to be fighting corruption is condoning and encouraging this inordinate access to public funds in pursuit of private ambitions. The only way Mr. President can extricate himself is to sign the Electoral Act Amendment Bill immediately.

The PDP strongly advise President Buhari and APC leaders to stop toying with the aspiration of Nigerians to entrench democracy in our country through the process of free, fair, transparent and credible elections in 2023.

It is even most distressing that President Buhari, who is the biggest beneficiary of credible, free and fair elections conducted by the PDP in 2015 is now in the vanguard to frustrate genuine effort for credible elections in 2023, not minding the huge negative consequences such portends for our dear nation.

Call for Action

Given the precarious political situation in the country today, the PDP calls on all Nigerians, the Organized Labour, Civil Society, Student Bodies, Professional Bodies, Trade Unions and all lovers of democracy across the world to rise up and impress it upon President Buhari to immediately sign the Electoral Act Amendment Bill so as to assure Nigerians and avert an impending crisis in our country.

Our Party also calls on the International Community and friends of Nigeria including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, United Arab Emirates, Russia, France among others; the European Union (EU), African Union (AU), Commonwealth of Nations and the United Nations (UN) to immediately bear diplomatic and political pressure on President Buhari, APC leaders and senior government officials who are intent on derailing our democracy.

Finally, the PDP charges the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to stand on the side of democracy, resist the APC and get prepared to use technology that abound to ensure the direct transmission of election results from the polling units in the 2023 elections.

Thank you for listening.

*Hon. Debo Ologunagba*
February 22, 2022

By Joseph Edegbo

North Central Women Forum(NCWF)  converged on Kaduna Tuesday and  resolved to work with their hard earned  resources to ensure that Enugu State Governor, Mr. Ifeanyi  Ugwuanyi is elected President, come 2023.

The Women Forum said the decision to declare support for Governor  Ugwuanyi, popularly called “Gburugburu” is the manner he has been able to  entrench peace and  good governance in Enugu as well as assisting women and the downdroden to grow their businesses.

The women Forum with members drawn from Niger, Kwara,  Nasarawa ,Plateau,  Benue, Kogi States and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) held a “Crucial Meeting on Who to Support during the forthcoming 2023 election” at Epitome Hotel ,Barnawa , Kaduna  with a call on all Nigerians  to support power shift to the Igbos, saying it is long overdue.

According to the Forum, the decision to hold the meeting in Kaduna was strategic for the  mothers, who expressed  worries over threats of political divisions; insecurity, high rate of poverty and unemployment , and socio-ecomomic problems militating progress and development of Nigeria under the President Buhari led APC administration.

In a Communique jointly signed by the Coordinator of the Forum after the crucial  meeting , the North Central Women Forum resolved to throw their weight behind Governor Ugwuanyi, whom they  described  as the most women friendly governor and detribalised leader .

The nine point communique jointly  signed by Coordinator and Secretary of the North Central Women Forum,  Christian Solomon Azege and Secretary Hajiya Amina Kure, stated:  ” He is currently the only governor of a state, who came on board and remembered the welfare of the women , traders and the downtrodden .

“One of the  reasons we resolved to endorse  Governor Ugwuanyi as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria come 2023 is  because of his far reaching  Traders Empowerment Scheme launched in 2017 to assist genuine women traders and various businesses, irrespective of state of origin, religion or ethnicity.

“We have searched through all States and have discovered that Enugu State Governor amongst other Governors and  political leaders in the country have carved a niche for himself as a true  democrat with a rare approach to governance ,peace and development of all citizens and residents, especially Northerners in Enugu State.

“We also ready to move to the other geo-political zones to canvass for support for Igbo Presidency and Governor Ugwuanyi  and with God on our side victory is assured .

By Iliya Kure

Nigeria says it embark on national enlightenment initiative against the upward scourge of money ritual acts, already claiming lives of its citizens, especially women and girls.

“Gentlemen, our visit today is coming at a time of great concern across the country over the rising cases of ritual murders by unscrupulous people, most of them very young, who are seeking to get rich at all cost. We have therefore decided to use this opportunity to begin the process of raising national awareness on this scourge,” Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said on Monday in Abuja when he paid a visit to the corporate headquarters of the Media Trust Limited, owners of Daily Trust group of newspapers and Trust Television.

”For those who may still be in doubt, ritual killings have assumed a worrisome dimension in recent years. According to an NGO, Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND), 150 women and girls were killed for ritual purposes between January 2018 and December 2021,” he said, while also citing recent ritual killings in other parts of the country.

The Minister said the National Orientation Agency (NOA) is already partnering with religious and traditional organizations as well as NGOs to forge behavioural change, especially among the youth, some of whom, he said, are afflicted by the get-rich-quick syndrome.

He also announced that he has directed the National Film and Video Censors Board, the regulatory body for films and videos in the country, to take the issue of ritual killings into consideration while censoring and classifying films and videos, in addition to engaging with stakeholders in the industry to express the concerns of the government and Nigerians on the need for Nollywood producers to eschew money ritual content in their movies.

While calling on the media to lend its strong voice to the efforts to stamp out the growing menace of ritual killings, the Minister commended a newspaper that has already written an editorial against the menace.

“I implore the Daily Trust, and indeed all media organizations, to join the campaign against the scourge,” he said

Mr Mohammed said the fact that some ritual killers said they learned the money-making tricks from some social media platforms has further given a fillip to the Federal Government’s campaign to rid social media of unwholesome content.

By Joseph Edegbo

Northern based religious group under aegis of United Muslim Ummah League(UMUL) has thrown it’s weight behind Igbo Presidency come 2023 .

The Muslim group also said it is high time the other five geo-political zones in the interest of equity, fairness and Justice, agree to support the Igbos for the seat of the President of Nigeria.

According to the group, now that out of the three major tribes in Nigeria , two, namely the Yoruba and Hausa have had their fair share of taste of power , it would be only fair for all political parties to equally zone power to Eastern region to avoid unnecessary tension and agitation for secession ahead of the election.

The United Muslim Ummah League ,which made this submissions in a Statement jointly signed by its National Coordinator, National Secretary and Publicity Secretary, Mallam Abubakar Mustapha , Sheikh Sanda Almisry and Mallam Jamil Arafat explained : “As a religious group with concerns for unity progress and development of Nigeria, we resolved to make case for Igbo Presidency with hope that all the Biafra agitations threatening our existence as a sovereign nation will stop immediately.

“It Is against this background that we have picked the former House of Representatives Member and current Governor of Enugu State, Chief Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi “Gburugburu” as one of the most receptive leader and unifying factor in the South-East geo-political zone to heed to our clarion call and agree to come out and contest.

“Nigeria is bleeding and needs a bridge builder and Leader with reputation for sound leadership prowess, economic knowledge and requisite experience to ensure even development across all States of the federation.

“From our records, we discovered that it is only Enugu State that the Governor has deliberately worked assiduously to ensure that Christians and Muslims live in peace. We have discovered too that our Northern brothers in Enugu are protected each time there were threats of breach of peace in the east.”

The group however stressed, “We will not forget how Governor Ugwuanyi immediately used his powers as the Chief Security Officer of the State to deploy security agencies to restore peace after a religious crisis broke out in Nssuka area last year.

“Though two mosques were destroyed following the protest, he didn’t waste to give order for immediate rebuilding of the two affected mosques ,which were handed over to the Nsukka Muslim community.”

While reiterating the call for Nigerians across other geo-political zones to join the cry for Igbo Presidency come 2023, the Muslim group disclosed, ” Part of our reasons for rooting for Governor Ugwuanyi are his high level of compassion, tolerance, resilience, dedication, commitment, bridge-building spirit.

“We also strongly believe that Governor Ifeanyi Ugwunayi if elected, will replicate the steps taken in Enugu State to promoting peace, security, national unity and good governance.” the statement concludes.

By Ugo Willies

Communities of Nyuwar and Jessu in Balanga Local Government Area of Gombe State, northeast Nigeria are expecting the State Government to put in more punitive and preventive measures that will bring to an end the incessant attacks on them.

Leaders of the communities bore their minds when Save Nigeria Africa Project (SNAP-Care Foundation) in conjunction with the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) took relief materials worth millions of naira to displaced persons Friday afternoon.

The two communities, largely dominated by Lunguda tribe, have in recent months experienced unprovoked attacks and in this February, 2022. Nyuwar community was allegedly attacked Tuesday (08/02/2022) afternoon by a neighbouring tribe, where a soldier was shot and a civilian killed.

National Chairman of Nyuwar Community Development Association (NCDA) Mr. Galiyos Zulum and the District Head of Nyuwar Mr. James Pisagih, who was represented by the village head of Gulyimora, Mr. Yohana Istifanus appreciated Gombe State Government’s concern since the beginning of the attacks but said their best was still needed.

According to Mr. Galiyos, the two communities, Nyuwar and Jessu, want the State Government to constitute a commission of inquiry so as to get the cause and perpetrators of the attacks as they had expected that immediately after Governor Inuwa Yahaya’s visit, a commission of Inquiry would be set up.

He said, while that was not done, only three months after, 26th and 27th July, 2021, there was another attack and eleven months after, the fourth and recent attack was carried out, all because no commission of Inquiry was set up.

Apart from the commission of Inquiry, Mr. Galiyos called for a Technical Assessment Committee to be put in place to assess the level of destruction and those affected be compensated accordingly adding that 21 lives were lost since the attacks began last year.

However, making the distribution of the relief materials, Jazeel Jamil Ibrahim, MD/CEO of SNAP-Care Foundation, said the foundation was worried by the crises and felt the pain of the people in the unfortunate incident that claimed some lives, destroyed properties, foodstuffs and displaced many.

He said the assistance which is intended to provide succour to the affected persons is with the knowledge of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs as as well as the Presidency.

Abubakar Mohammed Alkali, who represented the Gombe State Head of Operations, NEMA, said about 1,700 persons were said to have been displaced after an assessment.

He gave items to be distributed to include, 400 bags of rice, 400 bags of beans, 399 bags of maize, 49 cartons of tomatoes, 100 cartons of Maggi cubes, 12 roles of blankets, 40 roles of mats, 47 bags of salt and 799 pieces of mattresses.

By Joseph Edegbo

After organizing for them, one month of intensive practical training on entrepreneurship, Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum on Friday presented N100m to 152 reformed youths who were prominent members of a violent political thuggery group code named ‘ECOMOG’ in Maiduguri.

Zulum made the presentation at the Ramat Polytechnic in Maiduguri, venue of the one month training.

The 152 youths had renounced thuggery in response to Governor Zulum’s ban, announced at the end of 2019. Following that announcement, the Governor in August 2019, directed the enrollment of 2,762 youths into a ‘waste for cash’ sanitation programme in which the youths cleaned the drainages to earn monthly stipends.

Satisfied with the improving conducts of the youths, Governor Zulum directed selection of leaders and most prominent persons who were engaged in thuggery since the 90s, before renouncing the practices.

152 persons were then selected and made to undergo one month of training on business enterprises, fishery, animal rearing and animal fattening.

The training was coordinated by the directorate of entrepreneurship at the Ramat Polytechnic, where Professor Zulum was an engineering diploma student from 1986 to 1988, and rector from 2011 to 2015.

Declaring the training closed on Friday, Governor Zulum said 16 prominent leaders of the repentant political thugs will each receive N2m amounting to N32m, while remaining 136 persons will each receive N500,000 amounting to N68m. The combination made up N100m.

The Governor said the Government’s support is under the condition that none of them ever returns to political thuggery, while also, they be required to repay half of what they receive as the State Government is waving 50%.

Commissioner for Sports and Youths Empowerment, Saina Buba described the programme as a bold effort by Zulum, in stamping out violent political thuggery, especially from Maiduguri, at which youths had in previous years (between 2002 to 2008) reached the extent of rival killings.

… Borno to sponsor their 152 children in schools

As part of strategy to prevent children from towing the paths of parents, Governor Babagana Zulum announced that the State Government will shoulder the education of 152 children, one each to be nominated by the 152 repentant political thugs.

Zulum charged the youths that it was in their best interest to accord dignity to themselves by being self reliant rather return to thuggery.

He reminded them to never allow themselves to be used because those who use them do not allow their children to become thugs.

“Some of you here have been in political thuggery for more than 20 years and nothing seriously changed in your lives, and this should remind you that political thuggery is not a good thing, and if it was a good thing, why is it that our own children, those of us who are political leaders, our Commissioners, Advisers and other top Government officials, are not part of you here? Why is it you alone are in this kind of business?” Zulum charged in local languages.

The Governor promised that Government will continue go support the youths and train more of them, so long as they remain out of thuggery.

Leaders of the youths, speaking in Hausa and Kanuri, said Zulum had proved his genuine love for them by not only setting them up for businesses, but also promising to educate their children.

“There is no better way for Zulum to prove that he genuinely means well for us. By the grace of God, we will not allow anyone to even look at us as thugs because our appearances alone will indicate that we are changed persons” one of the leaders said.