News
Kogi, Bayelsa Gov Primaries: INEC Tasks Parties On Guidelines
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has asked political parties wishing to participate in the forthcoming governorship election in Kogi and Bayelsa states to adhere strictly to its guidelines and timetable as there will be no extension of time for latecomers.
The National Commissioner in charge of Voter Education and Publicity, Barrister Festus Okoye, who gave the charge in a statement yesterday recalled that on May 16, 2019, INEC released the revised Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the November 16, 2019 Governorship Elections in Bayelsa and Kogi states.
“We wish to remind all political parties that conducted party primaries to choose their governorship candidates that September 5, 2019, is the last day for the conduct of party primaries while September 9, 2019, is the last day for the submission of the list of nominated candidates.
“The commission will receive all nominations at its Media Centre, INEC Headquarters, Maitama, Abuja and all nominations must be received latest 6 pm on Monday, September 9, 2019.
“Political parties that conducted party primaries shall submit to the commission on or before September 8, 2019, the name of their Liaison Officers and who must be introduced through a letter jointly signed by the national chairman and national secretary of the party.
“The commission shall publish the names and votes scored by all the candidates that participated in the primaries monitored by our officials in the two states.
“We enjoin all the political parties participating in the election to strictly comply with the timelines earlier released by the commission and will not entertain any late submission under any circumstances”, he declared.
However, the National Working Committee (NWC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has named three-member Appeal Committees for the recently conducted primaries for the Kogi and Bayelsa Governorship elections.
A statement, yesterday, by the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, disclosed the appeal committee for the Kogi indirect primary consists of Senator Abdulahi Umar Yandoma (chairman), Hajia Amina Muhammed (secretary) and Tony McFoy (member).
For Bayelsa, it said the membership of the committee includes: Barrister Shuaibu Aruwa (chairman), Edith Newman Amadi (secretary) and Hon. Abdul Malik El-Yakub (member).
However, the Bayelsa State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described Diri as the only candidate with the capacity and competence to succeed Governor Seriake Dickson.
The party, while congratulating Diri on his emergence as the PDP candidate, further referred to him as a committed public official with years of exemplary service to the development of Bayelsa, the Ijaw Nation and the country.
The State Secretary of the party, Chief Godspower Keku, said in a statement on the PDP was happy with the emergence of Diri as its flag bearer after the keenly contested transparent and credible party primaries.
The party’s secretary noted that Bayelsa was in need of a leader with vast experience in public service explaining that Diri had been a commissioner, a principal executive secretary to the governor and a member of the House of Representatives, and currently a senator, among others.
The PDP scribe commended the other 20 aspirants of the party who contested the election with Diri for their display of maturity and respect for the overall interest of the party.
Keku called on the aspirants to support the candidate of the party stressing that the primaries could only produce one candidate out of the 21 aspirants, who indicated interest in the governorship of the state.
He flayed the APC over the emergence of Chief David Lyon as its candidate describing him as a pipeline security surveillance contractor.
Keku alleged that the leader of the APC in the state and Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, schemed out all the qualified contestants from the APC to impose Lyon on them.
He said that Lyon lacked the requisite credentials, experience and pedigree to become governor of Bayelsa State.
Keku, who described the APC primaries which produced Lyon as a sham, noted that Lyon was Sylva’s personal imposition.
He condemned the calculated humiliation of Lokpobiri, who was made prominent by the PDP, and urged those humiliated by Sylva to rethink their political future.
Similarly, an All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirant in Bayelsa State, Preye Aganaba, has described the party’s primary election in the state as a mockery of the democratic process.
Aganaba rejected the outcome of the party’s direct primaries and referred to the primaries that produced David Lyon as the candidate of the party as a political hoax and lacking any semblance of credibility.
He further alleged that the results were written in a hotel in Yenagoa, the state capital.
“The process leading to the direct primary election was rife with irregularities and has set a bad precedent for a political party that prides itself as a progressive which is supposed to lead by example.
“Engr. Preye Aganaba did not partake in the September 4th APC governorship primary election because there was no election. The degrading votes allotted to him is a complete fabrication and designed to ridicule him and his supporters,” he told reporters, yesterday.
The politician further recalled that few issues were raised by the aspirants to ensure a credible process during a stakeholders’ meeting with the Returning Officer and Chairman of the state Primary Election Committee, Mai-Mala Buni, the Governor of Yobe state.
According to him, the stakeholders had agreed that the names of returning officers should be published at ward levels; result sheets should be available in the various local government areas and also that tags should be provided for the eight local government agents and 105 ward agents.
Aganaba lamented that though the chairman and secretary of the committee agreed to the demands, they failed to honour them during the process that led to the primaries.
He added, “The Returning Officer, Mai-Mala Buni was not present during the primary election, having travelled back to Abuja the same night after the meeting, never to return.
“In the morning, the secretary disappeared and his phones switched off, thus thwarting any effort by the aspirants to address these discrepancies.
“The above actions clearly cast a huge doubt on the neutrality of the election committee members and its commitment towards conducting a free and fair election as they have breached every trust reposed on them.
“One wonders how a Returning Officer and chairman of a Governorship Primary Election Committee can endorse a process he never witnessed and since when did a Collation Officer substitute the powers of the chairman of a Governorship Primary Election Committee and declare a winner?
“It is shocking and impossible to believe the election results can be announced from a hotel without evidence of elections having held; a simple process which is validated by the presence of election results sheets signed by ward returning officers as well as ward agents to the aspirants.
“This single-minded desperation is inimical to the doctrines of the APC. The All Progressives Congress is being inexorably drawn towards an absolutism system, where complete power is held by one man who has no qualms to claiming rights over virtually everything.
“This political fraud perpetrated in the name of direct primaries is a vindication of the earlier assertion of Engr Preye Aganaba at the September 3 stakeholders meeting, about the path the party is being driven by some politicians.
“The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should distance themselves from this scam and reject the result completely. This sham with fake results written in hotel rooms cannot stand.
“The collation officer is not the chairman of the Election Committee to declare a winner. This rape on democracy will be contested in a competent court of law, if the party fails to look into our appeal.
“True progressives and lovers of a free, fair, credible process should be reassured that appropriate steps are being taken to seek redress.
“Finally, it is clear that the disposition of those who wrote this shameful result in a hotel room is not about winning the general elections, sadly it’s about ridiculing other stakeholders in the party who don’t align with them, in preparation of a possible governorship run in 2023.
“It is clear that this is all about settling old political scores and disagreements that have bedevilled the Bayelsa State chapter since 2013. We will approach the arena for settling disputes, knowing that justice will be done at the end of the day”.
Similarly, the lawmaker representing Kogi West Senatorial District, Senator Dino Melaye and Abubakar Ibrahim, son of former Kogi State governor, Ibrahim Idris, yesterday, kicked against the emergence of Engineer Musa Wada as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), governorship election in Kogi State slated for November 16.
The duo stormed the party’s national secretariat, Wadata Plaza, yesterday, where they met with the National Working Committee behind closed doors.
While Abubakar polled a total of 710 votes to finish as runner up, Senator Dino garnered a total of 70 votes to finish fourth on the log in the primary election which held in Lokoja, the Kogi state capital, last Wednesday.
The lawmaker confided in Vanguard that his rejection of the outcome of the exercise was because the entire votes cast in his favour were not counted before gunmen disrupted the exercise.
He submitted his petition to the National Secretary of the party, Senator Ibrahim Tsauri questioning why only votes from two (2) out of ten (10) ballot boxes were counted for him in the just concluded primaries.
Abubakar on the other hand is questioning the credibility of the process and was still in a meeting with the party’s leadership at the time of filing this report.
Wada, who clinched the ticket after garnering a total of 748 votes, made a surprise appearance at the party’s secretariat, accompanied by a mammoth crowd of supporters and political associates.
The Rivers State Chief judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi has granted pardon to six inmates standing awaiting trial at the Port Harcourt maximum correctional center.
The six lucky inmates granted pardon on Tuesday by the state Chief Judge included Nwekeala Chizoba, Samuel Emmanuel, Aniete Kelvin, Ebube Fubara and Goddey Okpara who were on awaiting trial as murder suspects and have all spent between 10 years to seven years in the custody without a proper information filed against them in the court.
Justice Amadi during a special gaol delivery exercise last Tuesday at the Port Harcourt Maximum Correctional Centre opined that the special gaol delivery was part of activities lined up to commomerate the 2024/2025 legal year in the State and restated the commitment of the state judiciary in decongesting the correctional centre and ensuring that those inmates who are not supposed to be there are removed from the custody.
The state chief judge stressed the need for all stakeholders to work together to build a society that supports rehabilitation and gives a second chance to anyone or group of people who have fallen short of the expectation of the law and have been punished accordingly.
He stressed that the National Judicial Council(NJC) encourages judges to pay more attention to criminal matters to enable them to decongests the correctional facilities, noting that since his assumption into office, his administration has been able to reduce the number of inmates in Nigerian Correctional Centres and the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre in particular, to less than 2,000 as against the over 4,000 inmates previously in the faculty.
According to him, “as they release the deserving inmates, they affirm their commitment to justice, compassion and rule of law but that they must not forget the fundamental principles of justice delivery system which is truth and fairness, integrity and equality before the law.”
I encourage you all the released inmates to return to your families and become better citizens. You must not engage in action that will return you all back to prison. Let me say that while the judges show empathy to you all, it does not absolved individuals from being held accountable for actions against individuals, corporate organisations and state which the law frowns at, ”he stated
The Chief Judge thereafter stood down the exercise to enable the DPP to intervene to case files following the fact that majority of the persons listed to benefit from the exercise are facing murder charges and adjourned to a date that will come before December.
Earlier in his goodwill message, the outgoing state Comptroller of Nigerian Correctional Centre, Port Harcourt, Felix Lawrence, who was recently promoted to the rank of Assistant Controller General, commended the state judiciary led by Chief Judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi for their continuous effort aimed at ensuring justice and decongesting the facilities.
Other activities lined up for the event included special church service at St Paul’s Cathedral , Anglican Communion, Rebisi Port Harcourt, inspection of guard of honour by the state Chief Judge mounted by officers of the Nigerian police and a special court session held at the ceremonial court hall.
By: AkujobiAmadi
The Director General of Rivers State Bureau on Public Procurement (RBoPP), Dr. Ine Briggs, has explained that the Sir Siminalayi Fubara administration plans to enforce transparency in governance through public procurement.
Speaking at a one-day Public Procurement Enlightenment workshop organised in collaboration with the State Local Government Service Commission for newly elected chairmen, vice chairmen, secretaries and leaders of legislative assemblies, Dr. Briggs said it is key for grassroot development.
She stated that the Sir. Fubara administration plans to reduce wastage and at same time infuse efficiency in public expenditure.
The RSoPP DG said the local government political office holders remain key drivers in the new vision hence the workshop is to arm them with knowledge on how to execute projects in tandem with needs of the people.
“ Your role in the prudent management of public resources is, therefore, not just administrative it’s the cornerstone of delivering the dividends of democracy. Every procurement decision you make must reflect a commitment to fairness, transparency and accountability” Dr. Briggs submitted.
One of the key goals of the administration she further reminded the participants was to use their offices to foster economic growth through public procurement.
She warned that the law establishing the agency empowers it to penalise defaulters, but that what is more important is voluntary compliance to the laws.
In addition to that, she said urged the local government council leaders that champion the practice and implementation of public procurement law.
On his part, Acting Chairman of Local Government Service Commission, Pastor GoodLife Ben Iduoku averred that the aim of the workshop is to arm key stakeholders in the local government system to generate new ideas, innovation and strategies in tandem with government policies and programmes.
The workshop dealt on various topics on procurement planning, methods, Understanding Bid Process, including types of Construction Contracts and law.
Some participants were awarded excellence and meritorious awards as part of the programme.
By: Kevin Nengia
The 19th anniversary of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), Rivers State Chapter, recently ended in Port Harcourt in grand style, with participants from various schools including proprietors, the academia, civil society groups and top government functionaries charting the way forward for educational improvement.
The 19th NAPPS anniversary christened, ‘Innovation and Adaptation: Transforming Challenges Into Opportunities’ was held at Casoni Hotels, Port Harcourt.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Rivers State Chapter of the association, Dr. Jaja Adafe Sunday expressed gratitude to the members and executives for their untiring efforts towards the achievements of the body.
He sought the intervention of government on the lingering crisis on the economy as it is affecting the running of schools.
He decried high cost of things including fuel and raw materials which has adversely affected the running of schools and payment of teachers.
Dr. Sunday hinted that the current economic situation in the nation is biting hard on the operations of schools, saying inflation, removal of fuel subsidy, fuel scarcity, poor electricity supply, tariffs and lack of government grants are some of the challenges faced by schools, and urged the members to brace up to the challenges, as it is the panacea to building a brighter future.
Guest speakers from the health sector and the academia thrilled the gathering on the essence of basic education which they said is the key to national development.
Former Dean of the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Professor Azuru and the Chief Medical Director of Meridian Hospitals, Dr. Odo Iyke were some notable guest speakers who delivered lectures at the occasion.
Some distinguished proprietors also got special recognitions and awards.
The 19th anniversary cake was cut by the Rivers State NAPPS Chairman with representatives of the state government assisting.