Category: Lead

The Federal Government has declared Friday, April 21 and Monday, April 24 as public holidays to mark this year’s EIdil-Fitr Celebration.

The Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, made the declaration on behalf of the Government.

Aregbesola, in a statement signed by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr Shuaib Belgore, congratulated all Muslims for the successful completion of the holy month of Ramadan.

He called on them to imbibe and practice the virtues of kindness, love, tolerance, peace, self-denial, sacrifice and good neighborliness, as exemplified by the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon Him).

Read Also: Buhari vows to respect rule of law on Ararume’s/NNPCL judgement

“The self-restrain, self-denial, sacrifice and deep spiritual consciousness that accompanied the fasting period should not end but be maintained and improved upon, in order to be a better person and true worshipper,” the Minister advised

He said President Muhammadu Buhari is fully committed to peaceful transition of government following successful elections. 

He assured of the government’s commitment to the provision of security for the life and property of every citizen and foreigners in the country.

The Minister commended all security agencies for the successes recorded in the fight against criminals across the country.

He urged Nigerians to be part of the nation’s security architecture by being vigilant and report suspicious individuals and activities to law enforcement agencies nearest to them, noting that security is everybody’s responsibility.

He admonished Nigerians also to report suspicious activities and persons to the N-Alert application.

Daniel Ogoshi, the official driver of Nasarawa Deputy Governor Dr Emmanuel Akabe, has been kidnapped by gunmen.

The Nation gathered Ogoshi was taken from the residence of his friend around 9:30 pm at Ombi 2, college of Agric, Kwandere road Lafia,  leaving his phone and car behind.

A family friend, who confirmed the incident, said he received a call around 9 pm his brother had been taken away by kidnappers. 

Read Also:Kidnappers demand N70m ransom for abducted Ex-Nasarawa deputy gov

The family friend immediately alerted the police who rushed to the scene but the kidnappers had already fled with the victim.

The media officer to the Deputy Governor, Emmanuel Eyima, confirmed the incident, saying he was informed about the situation but did not have adequate information on what had transpired. 

The police public relations officer of the Nasarawa Police command, DSP Ramhan Nansel, also confirmed the incident and said that the police were on top of the matter. 

He, however, stated that he will not comment further on the issue until proper verification had been done.

Details Shortly…

• •Fintiri is Adamawa governor-elect
• •Binani: I didn’t pay N2b bribe

By Yusuf Alli, Eric Ikhilae, Tony Akowe, Gbade Ogunwale, Gbenga Omokhunu, Jide Orintunsin, Abuja and Alao Abiodun

There was a flurry of actions yesterday to put the nation’s electoral process back on track after Sunday’s setback in Adamawa State.

Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) put up its Adamawa Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) Hudu Yunusa-Ari for the police to prosecute for his illegal action.

Inspector-General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, recalled Adamawa State Election Commissioner Mohammed Barde, replacing him with Gombe State Commissioner of Police Etim Equa.

All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate Senator Aishatu Dahiru-Ahmed Binani failed to get the court to stop INEC from proceeding with the collation and announcement of the result.

Results were fully collated and Adamawa State Governor Ahmadu Fintiri was declared governor-elect.

Yunusa-Ari on Sunday announced Senator Binani winner of the governorship election while collation was still ongoing.

INEC invalidated the announcement and suspended Yunusa-Ari indefinitely because the REC usurped the responsibility of the Returning Officer (RO).

The commission reported the REC to the appointing authority, the Presidency, through the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha.

Only President Muhammadu Buhari can recommend any erring REC to the National Assembly for removal from office.

INEC said in a statement: “At its meeting today (yesterday), the Commission discussed matters arising from the Adamawa governorship election and decided to write to the Inspector-General of Police for the immediate investigation and possible prosecution of the REC, Barr. Hudu Yunusa Ari.”

The commission said it would “request the SGF to draw the attention of the appointing authority to the unwholesome behaviour of the REC for further action”.

After days of drama and intrigues, INEC declared Fintiri of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) the winner.

He scored 430,861 votes to defeat Binani, who got 398,738.

The Federal High Court in Abuja halted her bid to obtain a judicial endorsement of her controversial declaration as the winner.

Justice Inyang Ekwo ordered her lawyer, Mohammed Sheriff, to address the court on whether it has the jurisdiction to hear the motion.

INEC suspended the collation of results after Saturday’s supplementary election.

Binani, in the motion numbered FHC/ABJ/CS/510/2023 filed on April 17, is seeking to restrain INEC and its agents from taking any further steps on the declaration of the winner of the governorship election held in Adamawa on March 18 and the supplementary election held on April 15 pending the determination of her application for judicial review.

She and the APC are listed as applicants, while INEC, the PDP and Fintiri are the respondents.

Sheriff informed the court about the ex-parte motion and sought the court’s permission to move it.

He said although he was ready to hear the motion, it was important that the applicants’ lawyer first address the court on the issue of jurisdiction.

He then ordered Sheriff to file a written address which the court intends to hear along with the motion on April 26.

A lawyer, Afeez Matanmi, had announced an appearance for Fintiri and said they got wind of the case through social media and decided to enter an appearance for their client.

When asked by the judge if he was served any processes in respect of the suit, Matanmi said no, but that he has filed a counter motion.

Justice Ekwo declined to entertain any submissions by Matanmi because the motion was filed ex-parte.

Dahiru-Ahmed hinged her application for judicial review on the ground that after the collation of results, INEC declared her as the winner, but the PDP and its candidate (Fintiri) resorted to fighting and causing a public disturbance which led to the alleged beating and manhandling of an INEC staff.

She stated that the crisis led INEC to cancel the initial declaration, which it had no power to do, arguing that it is only the election petition tribunal that is vested with such powers.

Dahiru-Ahmed argued that by cancelling her declaration as the winner, INEC usurped the powers of the election petition tribunal, which is the only court vested with the powers to make declarations on electoral disputes

She stated that a judicial review exists to enable the superior court to checkmate the actions and decisions of inferior courts as well as the legislative and administrative arm of government, including agencies and public officers.

Binani added that INEC, being an agency of the government, can have its actions, records, and decisions scrutinized by the court, adding that only a court possesses the power to nullify the actions of an INEC official but not INEC itself.

More condemnation trailed the REC’s actions.

The PDP said Yunusa-Ari’s action was “reckless”.

Acting National Chairman, Umar Damagum, said: “The action of the Adamawa State REC is a reckless, inexcusable and unpardonable assault on our democracy, the Constitution, the Electoral Act, 2022, INEC Guidelines and the manifest will of the people of Adamawa State, which they expressed in voting en masse for the PDP.

“This action by Mallam Hudu Yunusa Ari amounts to a ’civilian coup’ to take control and install an illegal government in Adamawa State contrary to the provision of Section 1 Sub-section 2 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic Nigeria 1999 (as amended).

“For clarity, Section 1 Sub-section 2 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) provides that: The Federal Republic of Nigeria shall not be governed, nor shall any person or group of persons take control of the government of Nigeria or any part thereof, except in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution”.

The PDP said the conduct of the Adamawa REC was a subversion of democracy which must not be allowed to go unpunished.

“We restate our demand that INEC should without further delay hand over Yunusa-Ari to the police for investigation and prosecution,” the party said.

Atedo Peterside, president of the Anap Foundation, speaking on Arise TV, said the action of the REC was a representation of “impunity” by the INEC leadership

He said: “If you have gone to the INEC IREV to see what happened in the presidential election in some states, there was impunity there.

“And there is impunity here. We have to get serious in this country about whether to tackle all issues of impunity or just tackle them in Adamawa state. What is the difference?’

An election monitoring group, Yiaga Africa, in a statement by the Chair, Watching The Vote Working Group Dr Hussain Abdu, and its Executive Director Samson Itodo, urged President Buhari and the Senate to initiate removal proceedings against the REC.

It said doing so would be in defence of the Constitution, the independence of INEC, and the overall integrity of the electoral process.  

Yiaga Africa condemned the illegal declaration of Binani as governor-elect mid-way into the exercise.

It said: “Yiaga Africa unequivocally condemns the irresponsible conduct of the REC, Hudu Yunusa-Ari, who, in utter disregard for the Constitution…made an illegal declaration when only the results of 10 out of 21 LGAs had been collated.

“Apart from this, the REC lacks the power to make a declaration as this is an exclusive power of the Returning Officer appointed by INEC.

“The fact that the REC committed this dastardly act in the company of security operatives is unfortunate and unacceptable.  

“Consequently, the conduct of the REC, which is criminal and unbecoming of an electoral officer, is inimical to democratic norms and ethos.

“The action of the REC portends danger for democracy in Nigeria as it signals that the Constitution and other laws can be subverted, thereby opening a floodgate of lawlessness and anarchy in the face of such crass disregard for the rule of law.

“This gross misconduct is an ominous sign of democratic backsliding and INEC capture, which was highlighted in Election Manipulation Risk Index (EMRI) published before the 2023 general elections.’

The Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC) called for the sack and prosecution of Yunusa-Ari and other accomplices over what it described as an illegal, unconstitutional and unwarranted declaration.

Its National Chairman, Yabagi Yusuf Sani, an engineer, said: “It (declaration while collation of results was in progress) is outrageous and a mockery of the nation’s emerging democracy which has caused undue tension in the polity. 

“IPAC demands the immediate sack and prosecution of the REC and his accomplices in this deliberate assault on our hard-earned democracy to serve as a deterrent to others who would contemplate such heinous crime against the fatherland.”

Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike yesterday avoid the church to avoid leaders who use their congregation for politics during elections.

The governor observed that some politicians only remember the church during elections when they visit worship centres to profess their Christian faith.

Wike gave the advice at the inauguration of Archdeacon Crowther Memorial Girls School (ACMGS) Road and Adjoining Roads in Elelenwo Town of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area yesterday.

The governor said he had remained committed to his pledge of standing with the church at all time, defending, supporting the growth and expansion of its missionary activities.

He explained that his position was borne out of his conviction that the church’s consistent and fervent prayers to God had helped his administration to succeed.

The governor said: “The church should always identify with those who from the beginning had always worked with them. Not with those, when election comes, they come and talk to you that they are Christians.

“Christianity is not only during election. Christianity should be done from the outset; you have to show that you’re a Christian.”

Wike thanked the church for its ceaseless prayers for his administration and for supporting the emergence of the Rivers governor-elect, the deputy governor-elect, National Assembly and State Assembly members-elect during the 2023 general election.

He said: “The church should understand those who believe in them, who trust them, who will work with them, not only when it comes to politics that people will now run to the church, no. That is why I’ve told the church to be careful of politicians who will want to use the church.”

Wike recalled how deplorable the road leading to Archdeacon Crowther Memorial Girls School was and how it had frustrated socioeconomic activities in the area.

He said the church leadership persistently drew his attention to the need to rehabilitate the road, pointing out: “But I’m happy that businesses have come back here. Tenants have come back. No house is empty, they’ve all occupied them. Again, this is promise made, promise fulfilled.”

Wike said that though ACMGS is owned by the Anglican Communion, his administration would totally  rehabilitate its structures and learning materials to restore the school to path of glory.

“We are donating to the school, the sum of N500m so that we can bring up the school because ACMGS is a prominent school in this State and in this country,” he said.

The governor also announced the reconstruction of internal roads within Elelenwo Town to serve as a parting gift to the community and to appreciate their unwavering support to his administration since inception.

The governor described House of Representative member Kingsley Chinda (Obio Akpor Federal Constituency) as a dependable political representative, who had demonstrated uncommon loyalty.

He said: “He will never fail you. He is not one of these people whose one leg is here, the other is there. Okey Chinda is not like that and I am proud to recommend him to anywhere in this world because he is somebody you depend on and then go home and sleep with your two eyes closed. It is rare to get people like that.”

Special Projects Commissioner Deinma Iyalla gave the length of the road as 2.25km and its width as 6.8 meters with 2.2 kilometres long drains.

•Governor threatens to prosecute poll officer, police chief

By Emmanuel Badejo, Onimisi Alao, Yola; Gbade Ogunwale, Abuja and Damola Kola-Dare

We won, Adamawa won, democracy won.” 

These were the words of Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Fintiri, following his declaration as the winner of the governorship poll by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The governor, who promised not to take people’s support for granted, said he will serve the state at all times.

There was wild jubilation in Yola, the state capital, following the announcement of the results by the Returning Officer, Prof. Mohammed Mele.

Fintiri, who scored 430,861 votes defeated his main rival, Senator Aishatu Binani of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who got 398,788 votes.

Supporters stormed the Government House to rejoice with the governor, who dedicated his victory to the people.

Fintiri, who late spoke on Channels Television Politics Today, threatened to prosecute the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) Hudu Yunusa-Ari for falsely declaring Binani as the winner.

He said: “I am satisfied and I feel happy that God has spoken through the Adamawa people and Adamawa has won.

“I don’t think I have run against any woman in Adamawa State. I ran against enemies of democracy outside Adamawa State. For now, we give God the glory.”

The governor said he won the election based on his performance, promising to surpass his achievement during his second term.

Fintiri, who applauded INEC for correcting the shenanigans that took place last Sunday, however, threatened to prosecute all culprits.

He added: “I think everybody has learnt his lessons and the electoral umpire has corrected their wrongs to protect the institution.

“The police that was supposed to protect democracy were also caught up in the whole saga. It is unfortunate and a disgrace.

“I think everybody is trying to correct their wrongs and time will tell if these people will be properly prosecuted. “But if they are not prosecuted with the height of criminality that took place in Adamawa State, I am going to prosecute them. 

“I did not contest against a woman or the APC, I contested against the whole system. 

‘I contested against those who feel they can control Adamawa from Abuja. God is more than them. You can now see that our people have spoken clearly.

“Adamawa people know what they should expect. We have started well and by the grace of God, we are going to do more than what we did in our first term.”

Atiku: No way ‘anti-democratic forces’

PDP presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar congratulated Fintiri, saying that he deserved re-election.

On his Twitter page, he said the lessons from the exercise underscored the need for vigilance to prevent anti-democratic forces itching to undermine the people’s mandate.

He wrote: “Congratulations, Gov Ahmadu Fintiri, on your deserved reelection as governor of Adamawa State. 

‘Thank you to the people of Adamawa and men and women of goodwill for staying the course in resisting coupists and enemies of democracy from having their way.

“The lesson from this exercise and others is the need for Nigerians to be vigilant and never give in to anti-democratic forces, whose objective is to snatch, run with and undermine the mandate of the people as freely expressed in their votes.

“By the way, it is not yet Uhuru as we still have one more major mandate to reclaim, and together as one, we shall accomplish the task for the good of our country and its people.”

PDP, governors, rejoice

PDP expressed joy over the victory, describing it as the triumph of democracy.

It said in a statement: “The spontaneous jubilation of citizens in Adamawa State and across our nation at the official declaration of Governor Fintiri as the rightful winner of the election irrespective of the nefarious schemes by the rejected APC is a confirmation that the PDP and its candidate are indeed the choices of the people.

“Governor Fintiri’s overwhelming victory is a validation that the will of the people cannot be subdued no matter the plot by a tyrannic, domineering and power-grabbing few who, with over-bloated ambition, desperately sought to subvert our democracy, scuttle the electoral process, compromise the judiciary, subjugate the people and impose an unconstitutional regime in the polity.

“The PDP salutes the courage, resilience and determination of the people of Adamawa in resisting the defeated APC and compromised REC in their bid to destabilise the state.

“Our party also lauds the Adamawa State Returning Officer, Mohammed Mele, for his courage in standing on the side of justice, due process and democracy in the discharge of his duty.”

Also, the PDP Governors Forum, in a statement by the Director General of the PDP Governors Forum, CID Maduabum, said Nigeria has just been rescued from descent into the abyss, adding: “We have just dodged another bullet”.

The statement added: “We commend INEC for redeeming itself and hope that this is a harbinger of things to come. 

‘It is in this regard that the Commission is requested to promptly re-visit all other elections where infractions have been identified. 

“Where the matters have been taken to the Tribunal, INEC should assume a garb and toga of neutrality and inform the Tribunals of the actual events that transpired in the elections.

“It has been shown by today’s development that INEC can reverse itself where mistakes have been made. We call on Gov. Fintiri to continue to justify this huge mandate and trust of the people of Adamawa.”

NIGERIA has failed to fully service its debt to China which has accumulated to N110.31 billion in the last two years.

According to a Debt Management Office (DMO) Report, the China debt stock included the principal and repayment charges.

The DMO put the principal fee from January 2021 to December 2022 at N69, 009,417,500 ($153.85 million). It said the interest charges amounted to N41, 311,455,000 ($92.1 million).

The Federal Government were incurred for the completion of the Idu-Kaduna section of the Nigeria Railway Modernisation Project; the Lagos-Ibadan section of Nigeria Railway Modernisation Project and the Abuja Light Rail Project.

A breakdown of the data showed that in 2021, the Idu-Kaduna section’s principal fee was $38.46 million (about N17.25 billion) with $9.5 million (about N4.26 billion) as its interest. The Lagos-Ibadan section’s principal was not indicated, but the interest stood at $ 24.07 million (about N10.80 billion).

During the period, the Abuja Light Rail Project had its principal fee at $38.46 million (N17.25 billion) with an accumulated interest at $11.45 million (N5.14billion).

As at last year, the principal on Idu-Kaduna section was $38.46 million (N17.25 billion). The interest fee stood at $8.52 million (N3.82 billion).

The interest fee on the Lagos-Ibadan section was the highest. It stood at $28.06 million (N12.59 billion) with the principal amount not indicated. The Abuja Light Rail Project principal was $38.46 million (N17.25billion), with accumulated interest charges of $10.48 million (N4.70 billion).

The Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) has been able to generate N11, 606,737,070 in two years, despite not being able to service its N41.31 billion debt.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said the sector realised N5,570,998,908 as revenue, which fell by N464,739,254 compared to the N6,035,738,162 generated in 2021.

In 2021, railway services generated revenue of N5, 697,512,095 from passengers, with goods realizing the sum of N299, 805,884 and other income receipts earmarked N38,420,183.

However, last year’s revenue indicated that N4,546,342,056 came from passengers, N416,856,190 was realized from goods and N607,800,662 was generated from other income.

While revenue generated from passengers fell last year,  the goods and other income increased in productivity. Earlier, the NRC had identified insecurity as major impediment to the growth of rail services.