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Sekibo, Ideozu Win Senatorial Polls …As PDP, Others Reject Abe’s Declaration …Urges INEC To Release Other Results
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called for the immediate release of the results of last Saturday’s elections in Rivers State, saying that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was withholding the results in order to allow the All Progressives Congress (APC) manipulate the results.
In a statement issued in Abuja, before midday, yesterday, the spokesman of the party, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, said the party was in possession of all the results as announced at the polling units and it was clear that the PDP had won.
The party also rejected the declaration of Senator Magnus Abe as the winner of Rivers South East Senatorial District, saying, no election was held in the area.
“The only result that has been released which declared Magnus Abe of the APC winner, is an unprecedented massive manipulation of the electoral process in active connivance with the security agencies. The whole world knows that elections did not take place in the Rivers South East Senatorial District.
“We, therefore, reject the declaration of Magnus Abe with the fabricated results, and demand INEC to conduct election in that constituency. We promise to avail ourselves every opportunity to seek redress on this matter in the interest of democracy and that of the constituents who are denied their right to vote” the statement noted.
Making further clarification on results still being awaited, Adeyeye said they include those of Rivers West and East Senatorial Districts, Andoni/Opobo-Nkoro Federal Constituency and Andoni State House of Assembly Constituency.
“We have the results declared at the various polling units which show that, Senator George Abiye Sekibo of the PDP won the Rivers East Senatorial District while Senator Osinakachukwu Ideozu also of the PDP won the Rivers West Senatorial District, respectively.
“Equally, we make bold to state that Hon. Abiante and Ikunyi Ibani both of the PDP won their respective elections into Andoni/Opobo-Nkoro Federal Constituency and Andoni State Constituency, respectively.
“INEC is currently withholding these results in cohort with security agencies to pave way for the APC to manipulate the outcome of the elections. We urge INEC to immediately release the affected results intact.
“Anything short of this is unacceptable and the INEC, security agencies and the Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi should be held responsible in whatever manner the people of Rivers State decide to react for robbing them of their votes.
“We again condemn in totality, the adverse role of the Nigerian Army, the Police Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and other security agencies during this rerun elections in Rivers State. It was a nightmare and a complete reversal of their constitutional mandates of safeguarding the territorial integrity of the country and the protection of lives and properties.
“There are incontrovertible evidences that the security agencies worked for the APC against the interest of the Rivers people. They followed the directives of the APC Chairman, John Odigie-Oyegun and Governor Ganduje of Kano State during the mega rally of the APC.
“They killed, they maimed, they harassed all in the desperate need to help the APC win at all cost. Very sad!
“It is trite that the Army dishonourably left their primary assignments and worked assiduously with INEC in collusion with the APC leaders in Rivers State led by the Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, and mindlessly wrote the results that produced Senator Magnus Abe in Rivers South-East Senatorial District. This action depicts sheer rape on democracy.
“It is no gainsaying that this rerun elections in Rivers State was not only a contest between political parties but mostly the PDP in contest with the Army, the Police, the INEC, the APC, and the Federal Government of Nigeria represented by the Honourable Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi and cohorts.
“We, therefore, call on all Nigerians to rise up to this challenge and stop the Federal Government, the APC and INEC from organizing undemocratic elections as witnessed in most part of Rivers State and other previous elections in the country since the assumption of this government. If Nigerian elections travesty continues, it is goodnight to democracy”, the statement noted.
But shortly after the statement, INEC declared the senatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for Rivers East Senatorial District, Senator George Sekibo, winner of the Rivers East Senatorial District seat contested in the December 10th rerun elections.
INEC stated that Sekibo defeated his rival, Chief Andrew Uchendu of the All Progressives Congress, to claim the seat.
The returning officer for the senatorial district, Orji Onu Okumenkama, said Sekibo polled 93,098 votes to defeat Uchendu who scored 34,193 votes.
Sekibo’s victory was followed by a protest by APC leaders in the state, who maintained that they would not accept the result.
There was commotion at the Port Harcourt Local Government Secretariat before the result was announced as security agents shot sporadically into the air.
It was gathered that a PDP collation agent, who is the state Commissioner for Urban Development, Chinyere Igwe, was arrested at the secretariat by the police.
INEC also declared Senator Osinakachukwu Ideozu of the PDP as winner the Rivers West Senatorial District rerun election.
Ideozu was certified winner yesterday afternoon with 107,166 votes to defeat Otelemaba Amachree of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who garnered 48,898 votes.
With the development, PDP now has two senatorial districts – Rivers East and West.
Rivers West Senator-elect, Ideozu, was a member of the Rivers State House of Assembly, representing Ahoada West between 1999 and 2003.
Afterwards, between 2003 and 2007, he represented Abua-Odual/Ahoada East Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives before his appointment as commissioner for education.
Earlier, Senator Magnus Abe of the All Progressives Congress (APC) had been declared winner of the Rivers South East Senatorial District rerun election.
He was on Sunday night declared winner after Saturday’s rerun by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)
The senatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress in Rivers South-East, Senator Magnus Abe, has won the legislative rerun election in his senatorial District.
The Returning Officer, Prof. Gideon Onukwuisi, declared Abe winner on Sunday after announcing the result at the collation centre in Bori, Khana Local Government Area.
Abe polled 125,938 votes to beat his opponent from the Peoples Democratic Party, Olaka Wogu, who got 25,394 votes.
Onukwuisi explained that out of the 154,703 votes cast, 152,706 votes were valid while 2,627 votes were invalid.
Dedicating his victory at the poll to God, Abe, who later addressed journalists, expressed satisfaction with the outcome of the election.
The senator-elect also expressed gratitude to his party supporters for having confidence in him and pledged to give them a better representation.
Also, a House of Representatives candidate of the APC for Khana/Gokana Federal Constituency, Maurice Pronem, was declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
Pronem won the election with 68,219 votes to beat his closest rival, Dumnamene Deekor, who polled 20,329 votes.
The Returning Officer, Prof. G.G. Osuagwu, stated that out of the 91,533 total votes cast, 90,485 came out valid while 1,048 were rejected.
Friday Nkeeh has been declared winner of the Rivers State House of Assembly seat for Khana Constituency 2.
Nkeeh polled 15,000 votes to defeat Dinebari Loolo of the PDP who scored 4,000 votes.
For House of Representatives, Maurice Pronen of the APC scored 68,219 votes while Dum Deekor of the PDP scored 20,329 votes for Khana/Gokana constituency.
Prof. G.G Osuagu of Michael Opara University is the returning officer for Khana Local Government.
Dr. Innocent Barikor of the APC has been declared winner of the election with 24,624 votes in Gokana State Constituency.
Also, Dr. Barry Mpigi of the APC declared winner of Tai/Oyigbo/Eleme Federal Constituency. Mpigi won with 48,760 votes while his opponent, Jacobson Nbina of the PDP polled 11,737 votes.
A PDP candidate for Bonny State Constituency, Abiye Pepple, was declared the winner of the election with 6,610 votes to beat the APC candidate, Henry Amangi, who got 2,330 votes.
In Omuma LGA, PDP won in the House of Representatives election with 6,100 votes while the APC came second with 3,100. For the Senate, the PDP polled 6,000 while the APC had 3,050.
But in Rivers East Senatorial District, the results released in six local government areas indicated that PDP won in Etche, Obio/Akpor, Ogu/Bolo, Okrika, Omuma and Port Harcourt.
The results from Andoni, Eleme, Emohua and Ikwerre local government areas were still being expected as of the time of filing this report.
Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State says it vehemently rejects the results as announced by the presiding officers of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declaring APC candidates, Magnus Abe, Barry Mpigi, Friday Nke-Ee, Innocent Barikor and others, winners of their respective offices in Rivers South East Senatorial District.
A statement by the state Chairman of the party, Bro. Felix Obuah and signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Jerry Needam, said the rejection of the results stems from the fact that election never took place in the whole of the Rivers South East District.
The PDP challenged the APC, INEC, Army, Police or other security agencies to show proof that there was election in the zone, adding that whoever lays claim to results in the area or claims that election took place was a criminal.
Obuah explained that what happened on Saturday, December 10, 2016 was nothing short of war declared on the people of the Rivers South East by Magnus Abe, Barry Mpigi, Army, SARS, policemen and APC thugs dressed in Army uniform.
The state PDP chairman further added that what happened on the Saturday rerun election was like scenes from a classical movie where military might was brazenly deployed to over-run a hapless and defenseless people.
The PDP said the situation became most unfortunate when it recalled the series of outcry raised by the party on Saturday on the unwholesome activities of some chieftains of the APC in Ogoni including Executive Director Finance/Administration of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Derrick Mene, who connived with the INEC, military, SARS and APC thugs to hijack the process, regretting that these outcries fell on deaf ears as the same INEC, police and military, who were expected to arrest the situation turned blind eye.
Painfully retrospecting on the events of last Saturday, Obuah said the PDP had raised alarm over the invasion of some communities in Tai Local Government Area of the State by the combined forces of the army, police and scores of identifiable thugs imported by the All Progressives Congress (APC).
He lamented the arrest of over 200 innocent citizens while scores were shot at and one killed by the army allegedly sponsored by Barry Mpigi, candidate of the APC for Tai/Eleme/Oyigbo Federal Constituency.
Obuah also recalled that in Barako, Gokana LGA, army invaded the community on the orders of the Senatorial candidate of the APC for Rivers South East, Magnus Abe, and whisked away scores of persons including one Chief Awindi Dughor, a chieftain of the PDP to an unknown destination.
Another disturbing case, according to the PDP, was that of the Director of Finance and Administration of the NDDC, Derrick Mene, who with the connivance of security agencies stationed along the road at School- to- Land axis of Wiiyaakara in Khana Local Government Area, hijacked materials meant for Wards 8, 9, 18 and other wards.
Obuah said Mene took the hijacked materials to his hotel at Wiiyaakara where they thump-printed and wrote results, and that he called on the Inspector-General of Police and the army authorities to move in immediately and recover those materials.
The PDP also recalled that the private residence of Magnus Abe was used as the Collation Center for collating of Gokana results.
The PDP chairman stated that the party having reviewed the entire exercise last Saturday came to the conclusion that there was no election in Khana LGA, calling on INEC to cancel the rerun elections in the LGA as it was been marred by irregularities and orchestrated violence by the All Progressives Congress (APC) against members of the PDP.
The PDP drew the attention of INEC, APC and its collaborators namely Army, SARS and police, which mortgaged its conscience to declare Magnus Abe, Barry Mpigi and the other APC candidates in Rivers South East winner to the consequences of going to equity with unclean hands.
“If Magnus Abe knows God, he cannot lay claim to stolen results. Thieves are not Christians, unless he is telling us that he is a thief. It’s very ungodly to steal. Magnus Abe and his cohorts have robbed the people”, Obuah declared.
The House of Representatives Committee on Constitution Review has proposed the creation of 31 new states in the country.
If the proposal scales through, the Nigerian state will be made up of 67 sub-national governments.
The proposal for new states was contained in a letter read during yesterday’s plenary session by the Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, who presided over the session in the absence of the Speaker, Mr Tajudeen Abbas.
The committee chaired by Kalu proposed six new states for North Central, four in the North East, five in the North West, five in the South East, four in the South-South and seven in the South West.
The letter read in part, “The committee proposes the creation of 31 new states. As amended, this section outlines specific requirements that must be fulfilled to initiate the process of state creation, which include the following:
New state and boundaries
“An act of the National Assembly for the purpose of creating a new state shall only be passed if it requires support by at least the third majority of members.
“The House of Representatives, the House of Assembly in respect of the area, and the Local Government Council in respect of the area are received by the National Assembly.
“Local government advocates for the creation of additional local government areas are only reminded that Section 8 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, applies to this process.
“Specifically, in accordance with Section 8 (3) of the Constitution, the outcome of the votes of the State Houses of Assembly in the referendum must be forwarded to the National Assembly for fulfillment of state demands.
“Proposals shall be resubmitted in strict adherence to the stipulations. Submit three hard copies of the full proposal of the memoranda to the Secretariat of the Committee at Room H331, House of Representatives, White House, National Assembly Complex, and Abuja.
“Sub-copies must also be sent electronically to the Committee’s email address at info.hccr.gov.nj. For further information or contact, please contact the Committee Clerk at 08069-232381.
“The committee remains committed to supporting the implementing efforts that align with the Constitutional provisions and would only consider proposals that comply with the stipulated guidelines. This is coming from the Clerk of the Committee on Constitutional Review.”
The proposed new states are Okun, Okura and Confluence states from Kogi; Benue Ala and Apa states from Benue; FCT State; Amana State from Adamawa; Katagum from Bauchi State; Savannah State from Borno, and Muri State from Taraba.
Others are New Kaduna and Gujarat from Kaduna State; Tiga and Ari from Kano; Kainji from Kebbi State; Etiti and Orashi as the 6th state in the South East; Adada from Enugu, Orlu and Aba from the South East.
Also included are Ogoja from Cross River State; Warri from Delta; Ori and Obolo from Rivers; Torumbe from Ondo; Ibadan from Oyo; Lagoon from Lagos; Ijebu from Ogun State, as well as Oke Ogun/Ijesha from Oyo/Ogun/Osun States.
The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, (TUC), yesterday, opposed the plans by the Federal Government to toll selected federal roads in the country, as a means of revenue generation.
The TUC also kicked against any attempt to increase telecom tariff, saying it will compound the present economic hardship Nigerians are going through.
President of TUC, Comrade Festus Osifo, while presiding over the 1st Quarter 2025 National Administrative Council (NAC) of the Union in Abuja, yesterday, condemned the proposed reintroduction of toll gates on some federal highways without first of all ensuring that the roads are in good condition.
Osifo, who blamed the hardship in the country as a result of the government policies like the flotation of the naira, wondered why the Federal Government should initiate policies bothering on the citizens without due consultations with relevant stakeholders.
He said its is annoying that most of the roads which are unpaved, dilapidated, and riddled with potholes should be open for collecting tolls.
A communique issued at the end of the meeting partly read: “NAC deliberated on the proposed introduction of toll gates on selected federal roads and strongly condemned it in its entirely. While we acknowledge that tolling is a globally recognized method of generating revenue for road maintenance, it is unacceptable to impose tolls on roads that are unpaved, dilapidated, and riddled with potholes.
“The NAC views this as an insult to Nigerians, who are being asked to pay tolls on roads that are in total disrepair. Our highways are death traps unsafe, abandoned, and filled with potholes. Rather than fulfilling its responsibility to fix and maintain these roads, the government is resorting to shameless extortion.
“The Congress, therefore, demands that all roads earmarked for tolling must first be fixed, properly tarred, and repaired to international standards before any discussion on tolling can be entertained”.
Although the Federal Government recently debunked plans to increase electricity tariff by 65 percent, TUC said it was alarming that the government even considered the hike in the first instance.
Osifo lamented that the previous increment already inflicted severe hardship on citizens.
He said, “This proposed increase is not only ill-timed but also a deliberate act of economic oppression against Nigerians, who are already struggling under unbearable economic conditions.
“The improved service quality promised during the last tariff hike, particularly for consumers under the so-called “Band A” category, has not been realized. Most consumers, regardless of their tariff band, continue to live in perpetual darkness”.
TUC observed that the root cause of escalating prices and galloping inflation was the devaluation of the Naira.
Going down memory lane, Osifo said in February 2024, the TUC addressed a world press conference, where it clearly stated that the excessive devaluation of the naira was the primary cause of rising inflation and the continuous increase in the prices of goods and services.
He said Congress also warned that this trend would worsen inflation in 2024, impacting virtually every sector of the economy and severely affecting the social and economic well-being of Nigerian workers and the masses if the solutions it canvassed were not adopted.
The TUC President said 12 months later, the Congress position remained unchanged, alleging that the symptoms of the root cause have manifested clearly.
According to him: “These include the skyrocketing prices of essential goods, the escalating costs of social services, the proposed hike in telecom tariffs, the increase in electricity tariffs (with plans for further increments), the rising prices of petroleum products amongst others.
“The TUC remains focused on addressing the root cause of these economic challenges rather than merely reacting to the manifested symptoms. To this end, the TUC demands a better foreign exchange (FX) management regime from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as the naira is currently undervalued, as confirmed by both local and international experts.”
He warned that if the policies were not reviewed to favour the citizens, the TUC may be compelled to mobilise for mass protest.
“The NAC, on behalf of the Congress, strongly advises the government to refrain from introducing policies that would further exacerbate the current economic hardship faced by hardworking Nigerians.
“If the administration insists on implementing these policies, the TUC will have no choice but to mobilize the working class, civil society, and the oppressed masses for a nationwide action. This level of exploitation is unacceptable. A stitch in time saves nine,” he warned.
President Bola Tinubu has charged African leaders to stop clinging to their old habit of depending on foreign plans, saying the continent is in dire need of leaders who wield policy as a surgical blade instead of a slogan.
Tinubu lamented what he described as “the tragedy of our time” whereby African leaders do not only confine themselves to foreign blueprints but refused to emancipate themselves from client-state mentalities and governance by hashtag activism.
The President made these remarks in Abuja, yesterday, during the Dr. Kayode Fayemi commemorative symposium and launch of the Amandla Institute for Policy and Leadership Advancement, with the theme “Renewing the Pan-African Ideal for the Changing Times: The Policy and Leadership Challenges and Opportunities.”
The symposium was organised to commemorate the 60th birthday of the former Governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi.
Represented at the event by the Vice-President, Senator Kashim Shettima, the President said, “Whatever our differences across the continent, one fact that can’t be eroded by our infighting is that we are in the age of machines, and we can’t fight our development dilemma with spears and arrows while the rest of the world is fighting the same battle with missiles and tanks. The world is not waiting for Africa to catch up.
“While we parse political rivalries, others parse datasets. While we litigate history, others engineer futures. The train of progress accelerates, yet too many of our leaders cling to old carriages. These are our client-state mentalities, our dependency on foreign blueprints, and our governance by hashtag activism. This is the tragedy of our time.
“The founding of Amandla Institute emerges as an antidote to this paralysis. We are here not only to generate more ideas but to create executors. We need leaders who wield policy as a scalpel, not a slogan. We need visionaries who see AI as a collaborator, not a competitor. We need a generation of Africans who recognise that Pan-Africanism, renewed for this age, must be rooted in actionable sovereignty.”
Tinubu pointed out that it would be wishful thinking to hope that the renaissance of Africa will happen as a gift, maintaining that it must be built.
He regretted that for too long, leaders in Africa have outsourced their thinking, relying on institutions and ideologies that treat countries on the continent “as consumers, not creators,” just as he insisted that the youth must be empowered to innovate in tech hubs across the continent.
“But the post-idea world dissolves excuses. With the democratisation of knowledge, we must empower our youth to innovate in tech hubs across the continent, from Cairo, down through Nairobi, to Lagos, building unicorns without the permission of any gatekeepers. What they lack is not ideas but ecosystems—systems where policy, funding, and political will converge to scale their genius,” he noted.
The Nigerian leader further urged African leaders to “evolve from custodians of power to architects of platforms,” adding that their “imagination of Africa must be one where every government ministry houses.
“AI strategists, where continental trade policies are drafted by homegrown think tanks like Amandla Institute, not foreign consultants, and where “Made in Africa” signifies not raw materials but algorithms, green tech, and cultural capital.”
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