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Tag: ECOWAS

  • Reps pass bill to regulate peace-keeping for Armed Forces, others

    The House of Representatives on Thursday passed through second reading a bill to regulate the participation of Nigerian Armed Forces and others in peace-keeping missions.

    “Nigerian Peace Keeping (Support & Participation) Bill, 2018” was sponsored by Hon. Oluwole Oke, Chairman House Committee on Public Procurement.

    It is expected to strengthen the Nigerian experience in future peace-keeping operations and to define the boundaries as well as set out the regulatory framework for such.

    The bill, which has 18 sections specifically, speaks to members of the Armed Forces, Nigeria Police, the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps and other security organisations.

    While arguing for the second reading of the bill, Hon. Oke said: “Since its independence, Nigeria has been a frontline State and major contributor to United Nations (UN) and NON-UN peace-keeping initiatives.

    “It is worthy of note that in 1960, Nigeria deployed the first set of individual Police officers in Africa.

    “It is estimated Nigeria has spent over US$ 8 billion in peacekeeping missions it has provided within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

    “Some of the ECOWAS countries that Nigeria has provided such missions are –Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali and Sierra Leone.”

    The lawmaker said despite the nation’s contributions to peacekeeping missions, Nigeria does not have a regulatory framework that guides the deployment and withdrawal of troops and security personnel from conflict zones.

    He said similarly, the constitution is silent on the issue as the power of the President to deploy troops is restricted to the boundaries of the country.

    According to him, when the need arises, “the President simply gives his approval for involvement in peacekeeping mission(s).”

    The bill addresses aspects like organisation, chain of command, internal order and authority, budgeting, training, discipline of personnel on peace keeping and composition, appointment of Commander and terms of service amongst others.

    When Speaker Yakubu Dogara called for a voice vote, members passed the bill through Second reading without dissent.

  • INEC uncovers plan to use food vendors for vote-buying

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said it had uncovered plans by some political actors to use food vendors around polling units for vote-buying in the forthcoming general elections.

    Chairman of the commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, disclosed this when he received a delegation European Union (EU) Observation Team, led by Chief Observer, Mrs Maria Arena, on a visit to INEC on Monday, in Abuja.

    Yakubu said that in INEC’s determination to improve elections and ensure that votes counted, the commission had taken steps to address the disturbing trend of vote-buying by politicians.

    He said that the steps included modification of the administration of polling units to make it difficult for voters to expose their marked ballot papers on day of election.

    He said that the commission had also introduced partial ban on the use of mobile phones and other electronic devices by voters while in the voting cubicles.

    “We are also introducing the rolling and flattening of ballot papers by voters on day of election.

    “We are training our election duty staff, in addition to voter education and sensitization, on this new innovation. We will leave no stone unturned in ensuring the sanctity of the ballot.’’

    The chairman explained that political actors planned to use food vendors “around polling units with large voter populations as collection points for cash-for-votes as well as other forms of material inducement to voters on election day’’.

    “We are aware of this trick. It will not work,” he, however, said.

    Yakubu also denied the claim that INEC had outsourced the recruitment of election duty staff to partisan actors.

    He said that the Commission had established clear criteria for recruiting its ad hoc staff and Collation and Returning Officers, which, according to him, has been the practice over several electoral cycles.

    “In addition, there is a clearly established system of vetting all election duty staff before they are engaged.

    “Therefore, the claim that the Commission has outsourced the recruitment of election duty staff to partisan actors is the usual allegation on the eve of elections and should be disregarded.

    “With 25 days to the 2019 General Elections, the Commission’s attention is firmly focused on the conduct of credible elections. We will not be distracted into a fatuous debate.’’

    Yakubu stated that complaints arising from the collection of the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) were being addressed.

    “We are committed to ensuring that all voter cards are made available for collection by registered voters who should collect the cards in person.

    “There will be no collection by proxy.”

    Read Also: We are not under pressure to rig – INEC

    He said that the commission had enhanced the functionality of the Smart Card Reader that would be used for the elections.

    “Clause 10 of the Regulations and Guidelines recently released by the Commission make the use of Card Readers mandatory. It is an offence to accredit a voter by any other means.”

    Yakubu described the EU as one of the long-standing partners of INEC in deepening Nigeria’s electoral democracy, through the EU-Support for Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN).

    “We have implemented all the recommendations made by the EU Mission in 2015 that are within the powers of the Commission to do.

    “These include simultaneous accreditation and voting system which we introduced on Jan. 9, 2016 and used it to seamlessly conduct off-season elections into 194 constituencies.

    “We have similarly introduced the continuous registration of voters. Over a period of 16 months, from April 27, 2017 to Aug. 3, 2018, over 14 million new voters were registered,” he said.

    He assured the EU that INEC preparation for the 2019 general election was on course.

    Earlier, the leader of the delegation, Arena, had said that EU would deploy 40 observers to all states of the federation during the elections.

    Arena added that the EU would also have its Parliamentary observation mission on ground during the exercise.

    “We will issue two preliminary reports after the elections. We will work strongly with all the stakeholders of this country.

    “We will also have the final reports two months after the elections, with recommendations.

    “We really appreciate the work that INEC has done with the previous recommendations after the 2015 elections,” Arena said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Yakubu also received a delegation of the ECOWAS Observers Mission led by former Chairperson of Electoral Commission, Ghana, Ms Charlotte Osei.

    Osei said that the mission was to let INEC know that ECOWAS would be deploying long-term and short-term observer missions for the elections.

    She added that the mission would focus on legal, media, operations, gender and disabilities during the elections.

    NAN

  • ECOWAS Youth Council tasks politicians on peaceful elections

    Politicians in the country have been advised to eschew actions that are capable of causing crisis in the forthcoming general elections.

    The Senior Special Adviser to the president of ECOWAS Youth Council (EYC) on Conflict Resolution and Diaspora Matters, Ambassador ‘Tosin Adebuji, made the appeal while also calling on security agencies to be impartial in carrying out their duties before and after the elections.

    Adebuji advised politicians to emulate other African leaders who have served in various capacities and now referred to as peace ambassadors with global recognition.

    Read also: ECOWAS Youth Council tasks politicians on peaceful elections

    Speaking on the forthcoming summit organised by the EYC, he said:  The theme of this year’s summit is “The Role of African Leaders in Sustainable Peace and Security in West Africa. The summit will bring together community leaders, faith leaders, political leaders, youth leaders and security agencies from around the world with diverse backgrounds and different points of view to advance the conversation about what community leadership in action means today.

    “The summit will hold on February 9, 2019 at the Merit House, Abuja, Nigeria. The summit is a step towards building a global network of change makers that will help  in eradicating these issues of violence, conflict and insecurity in our various communities, and Africa as a whole. Several hundred of participants from other leadership forum across West Africa region and across the globe are billed to attend.”

  • Blame politicians for farmers/herders crisis ­- Dambazau

    Minister of Interior, Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau, (rtd) on Thursday disclosed that it is not possible to stop the free movement of cattle across borders and within countries.

    He said this is because Nigeria is signatory to ECOWAS protocol and free movement.

    He blamed the problem on the effect of climate change, which he said has forced some farmers to abandon their traditional farming areas to traditional routes for the cattle.

    The minister said that the problem is also being aggravated by some politicians for selfish interests.

    Dambazau, who spoke in Abuja on his stewardship at a ministerial press briefing, said change in climate and growth in population were majorly responsible for movement of cattle.

    It would be recalled the herders/farmers clashes had, in the last two years, led to destruction of lives and property majorly in Benue, Plateau, Taraba and other states in the North-central part of the country.

    As a result of the loss, Ministry of interior under Dambazau as Minister, which is constitutionally responsible to provide internal security said it has held top meetings with affected state governors on how to end the problem.

    He said part of the resolutions at the meeting last year was establishment of an international clearance certificate for the herders moving from one country to another.

    His words: “When he (herder) enters into a country there must be a check point area where the cattle will be inspected, there must be international clearance certificate, know the number of cow is moving with, ensure that he does not carry weapon of any kind, show him the route he must follow and so on.

    “So in doing that all these clashes between herders and farmers will be completely reduced if not eliminated because what is happening is that harders along the routes go into farms and somehow destroy the crops.”

    While blaming climate change and high population for the problem, the Minister also said some failed politicians do take advantage of the clashes to score some points.

    Read Also: Dambazau decorates new DCG Immigration

    He said: “Part of the problems is that there have been cattle routes over the years but because population growth and climate change even farmers are moving from their traditional communities, moving elsewhere because of climate change, so now they are occupying the routes created for cattle.

    “Now, population growth has made it possible for people to also built homes along those routes, so when those herders are moving, they now have to look for alternative routes, in the event they destroy farm. So, this is what is happening.

    “And we (Nigeria) is signatory to ECOWAS protocol and free movement. What is happening is that we cannot stop the free movements. About 60-65 percent of ECOWAS is here and we also move en-mass to ECOWAS countries.

    “We move our goods to ECOWAS countries. This is why I said it is a complex issue abd it is a regional issue which must be tackle accordingly.

    “The second issue is that certain politicians also politicize this issue for their own benefits, particularly when the election is approaching and they have not been able to do well in their states, so they politicize it.

    “So at that meeting we discussed with the Governors that politicizing this crisis is of no benefit to anyone rather it endanger the public.”

    Dambazau, who was giving stewardship of leadership as a Minister in the last three years, listed some reforms he brought to the ministry to include:Automation of citizenship and business department, Prison reform, reforms of the Federal Fire Service, Police reforms, Immigration Service reforms among others.

  • 2019: We are good to go – INEC

    The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu has said that INEC is good to go as far as the 2019 general elections are concerned.

    Yakubu also reassured the international community and the country that the 2019 general elections will be credible, free, fair and transparent.

    He spoke on Wednesday when he received the delegation of the European Union (EU), United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US)

    He also stressed that 2019 elections will be credible, as the commission will jealously guide the processes. Yakubu also assured Nigerians that the outcome of the polls will meet the expectations of all as all votes will count.

    “We are good to go for the 2019 general elections. We are aware that the election is going to be an intense media event but only that international community will also intensely watch the processes as they have always done and I want to assure you that we will not fail the international community and will not fail the nation. We are aware that the long term EU observation mission is on ground, and also the ECOWAS observation mission, so the international community is already in Nigeria for the elections.

    “2019 elections will be credible, we will jealously guide the processes, we will ensure that the processes lead to the outcome that all Nigerians expect. Nothing but free, fair, credible elections will be good enough for the commission,” he said.

    He also reiterated the assurance that “vote will count in 2029 general elections. We are ready for free, fair and transparent process such that will confirm the position of Nigeria in international community as a nation that conducts credible elections. 2015 is not a fluke, it was a product of deliberate planning and 2019 is going to be the same

    Yakubu who also briefed his guest on the preparation of the commission towards the elections said, “we are at the moment outing finishing touches to our preparation for the elections. The first election will hold on 16th February with the national elections, presidential and National Assembly and the second election will hold on the 2nd of March, which is the state elections. The governorship, state assembly and election into area councils in the Federal capital territory. All the heavy items for the elections are being procured in addition to ballot boxes, voting cubicles, replacement smart card readers. The permanent voter cards have also been delivered to the states for collection by citizens.”

    He also revealed that the commission is recruiting and will soon commence training for adhoc staff for the elections.

    Read Also: No voting with temporary voter card- INEC

    Speaking earlier, David Young, Charge D,Affairs of the US embassy in Abuja pointed to the expected neutrality of the security agencies during the elections.

    He stressed that they must stick to their role of protecting the electorates and ballot materials and avoid any form of interference with the voting process.

    “I would want express the concern that we have and that is the neutrality of the security services. For us it is very important in the ongoing season that the security services are very smart, provide security for the elections. Security in the safety of the process. It should be done in such a way that it does not interfere with people getting to the polls, poll watchers, civil society organization and other to have access to ensure the voting goes freely both in February 16th and March 2nd. This is something we have been deliberating strongly about. The neutrality of the security services is one is one of the very very important issues for credible elections,” he said.

    Young also spoke on the need for a better synergy among the three arms of government, saying that the executive, legislature and judiciary are crucial to democracy.

    He said, “I also want to say that we appreciate very much the important the role judiciary plays in Nigeria.”

    Stressing the collaborative role the legislature, executive and judiciary plays in democracy, Young therefore warned that there should be no interference with the role of judges and judiciary in democracy.

    He also stressed that the US is very supportive of Nigeria and is therefore looking forward to playing a supporting role as a fellow democratic partner.

    The EU Head of Delegation to Ketil Karlsen said the delegation was in INEC to receive briefing on the preparedness of the commission towards the forthcoming general polls.

    EU he said regards itself as good friend of the country and would do everything possible to support the success of the democratic process. He also noted that EU long term observe is already in the country.

    He also reiterated that EU does not have any preferred candidate or party or ideology in the elections, rather the interest of the delegation is in the conduct of free, far and transparent elections.

    He also noted that the success of the 2015 general poll in Nigeria has already set the benchmark in Africa and it is expected that the 2019 general elections will follow the same pattern.

    EU stressed that it will only partner with whosoever emerged from the polls.

    German Minister Counsellor/Deputy Head of Mission, Regine Hess urged all the stakeholders to ensure violence free elections come February and March polls.

    She also commended the peace committee, while urging the stakeholders to abide by the peace pact.

    The delegation also joined the commission in inaugurating the Election Monitoring Support Centre, where all the elections will be monitored. The office is essentially an ICT driven.

     

     

  • Buhari seeks respect for democracy in Gabon

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday called for respect for democracy in the oil-rich west-central African nation of Gabon.

    He made the call following reports of attempted military takeover in the country.

    According to him, the era of coups in Africa is over.

    Buhari, in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Garba Shehu, said “The military officers in Gabon should understand that the era of military coups and governments in Africa and indeed worldwide, is long gone.

    “Democracy is supreme and the constitutional stipulations on the peaceful change of administration must be respected.

    Read Also: Buhari: Tinubu’ll be fully in charge of my campaign

    “That is the only way we can ensure peace and stability not only within the country but also in the region.” he said

    President Buhari, who is also the ECOWAS Chairman, urged military officers with political ambitions to resign or face their constitutional role.

    He also enjoined the people of Gabon to remain on the side of peace, security, stability and democracy in their country.

  • ILO to ECOWAS: adopt unified qualification for employment

    The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has called on the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) member countries to adopt a unified qualification framework as a yardstick to curb unemployment.

    ILO Director Mr. Dennis Zulu made the call during a two-day “Technical Regional Workshop” on National Qualification Frameworks (NQFs) in ECOWAS Region, in Abuja, during the week.

    Zulu said adopting the unified framework would create more employment as well as equip workers with both formal and informal skills to enable them work without restrictions in ECOWAS member countries. He said it would also facilitate the dialogue between the private sector and training institutions on curriculum upgrade as well as accommodate training students in different vocations while still in school.

    According to him, training undergraduates while in school would bypass retraining them by the private institution that requires their services after graduation.

    ”We have a lot of unemployed people in ECOWAS countries including Nigeria, so we need to be talking to the private sector that states the qualification they need.

    ”The private sector needs to have input in the curriculum of training institutions that want to train graduates and not the private institutions having to retrain them,’’ Zulu said.

    The National Qualification Frameworks (NQFs) was part of a new initiative to strengthen the recognition of skills and qualifications within and between ECOWAS countries, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and the ECOWAS. A similar regional workshop on NQFs was held in Dakar, Senegal in June to highlight the complexity of conducting certification.

    Other areas discussed were system reforms, the necessary combination of technical, conceptual and policy actions and the importance of regional cooperation as a driver of change.

  • Women farmers kick against use of GMOs

    Female farmers from some African countries have kicked against the use of genetically modified crops.
    The smallholder farmers under the umbrella of Kilimanjaro women Farmers initiative also called on the ECOWAS parliament to assist them in the campaign against the commercialization of GMO crops in Africa.
    Chairperson of the group, Lovelyn Ejim, during a briefing after a two-day meeting to celebrate the second anniversary of the initiative, explained that their experiences  have shown that any soil where GMO seeds were planted could not be used for the cultivation of indigenous crops.
    She added that the GMO seeds were only used once for planting by her members and  could not be recycled.
    According to her, the consumption of GMO foods are cancerous and dangerous to human health, adding that there was high cases of post harvested loses.
    She said: “We are pushing very had to raise awareness among women farmers and that is why we appeal to the government ECOWAS parliamentarians to help campaign against GMO because the more they deploy efforts to campaign against it the more aware awareness that would be created.”

    Read Also: I’ll compensate farmers affected by flooding – Buhari

    Also, the group, in a communique issued at the end of their meeting, said there was urgent need to reduce the influence of GMOs to the rural women farmers Agro processes.
    A member of the Steering Committee of Kili Women, Tiwonge Gondwe, who read the communique, urged governments in the African region to implement the Maputo declaration that encourages  countries to allocate 10percent and beyond of their public budget to agriculture.
    The communique reads: “The countries should effectively deploy the funds allocated to farmers especially to grassroot women farmers and to non-recurrent expenditure.
    “The Kilimanjaro Initiative women urged the ECOWAS countries to set up policies and laws that will allow market access beyond the borders of African countries to the global market.
    “Member countries of the ECOWAS region need to invest in infrastructures that promotes value addition in rural areas, especially electricity and renewable energy, roads, adaptable technologies and storage facilities.
    “There is a crucial need to setup infrastructure and technologies for value addition programmes in the rural areas.
    “The Kilimanjaro women articulated the need for massive country and regional advocacy visits to governments for increased political will.
    “The women of Kilimanjaro initiative agrees that there is the urgent need to reduce the influence of GMOs to the rural women farmers Agro process.
    “The women called on African countries and regions to have policies and laws that promotes land access, ownership and control.
    “In recognizing rural women struggle in accessing adequate financial credit, the Kilimanjaro initiative agrees that a trust fund or an affirmative action fund should be set up for the rural women economic empowerment.
    “Collectively, the women agreed on the urgent need to address insecurities in the region to allow women work on their farms since without rural women farmers, no food, no nation, no Africa.”
    The Kilimajaro Initiative was put together by rural women during a meeting with civil society organisations in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, in 2012.
    It had the mandate to mobilize rural women across Africa for a symbolic moment at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro in October 2016 to capture the attention of African leaders and make their voices heard.

  • 2019:’Presidential election not matter of life or death for Buhari’

    Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, says 2019 election is not a matter of `life or death’ for President Muhammadu Buhari ­ because he will be happy to accept the verdict of the electorate.

    Onyeama in an interview the News Agency of Nigeria said that the entire president wants to do is to create a level playing field for all the political parties.

    “He is fully committed to ensuring that the next election in 2019 is free, fair and transparent and that each vote should count.

    “ I think most importantly for him, it is not a matter of life or death. That is where he is coming from. He is very happy to accept whatever the outcome is and the will of the people.

    “He doesn’t want to interfere with the process; he wants INEC to be totally independent for them to do the right thing.

    “He is ready to invest and provide all the resources for them to be totally independent,” he said.

    He recalled that Buhari almost did not purchase the nomination form but for the intervention of well-wishers.

    Onyeama gave the assured Nigerians that Buhari is going to practice what he preache.

    “He has been to Supreme Court to challenge election, he has been on the other side; he appreciates more than anyone else the importance of free, fair and transparent election.

    Read Also: Buhari: I’ll not complain again about Nigeria’s problems

    “He always said that the electronic process that has been introduced helping to take away the human element has been the game changer, something that he loves, so he believes in free and fair election,” he said.

    Onyeama said that Buhari would show good example to West African and other countries by practicing what he preaches.

    He said that the president led the intervention of ECOWAS in the Gambia and sent special envoys to Mali, Guinea Bissau and Togo to ensure democratically elected government in those countries

    “He has sent me as a special envoy to ensure that the electoral process in Guinea Bissau is on course; he sent me as a special envoy to Mali gets the opposition to accept the court ruling after the election.

    “He sent me as envoy to Togo to help them to push for a transparent and fair process as they are also preparing for legislative election.

    “He went to the International Criminal Court as a special guest of honour and delivered a speech to the world about the importance and the rule of law and fair election,” he said.

  • Falana to Buhari, other ECOWAS leaders: obey court orders

    RIGHTS lawyer Mr. Femi Falana, SAN has called on President Muhammadu Buhari and other Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) leaders to “comply with judgments and orders of municipal courts and regional tribunals in the interest of public accountability and political stability”.

    He spoke yesterday at the ongoing “ECOWAS Consultative Meeting on Access to Justice and Respect for the Rule of Law” in Accra, Ghana.

    A statement by Tayo Soyemi of Falana and Falana Chambers quoted the lawyer as tracing “the lack of respect for court orders to prolonged years of military rule and the belief of African leaders that they are as powerful as the emperors and kings who ruled many communities in Africa before colonialism”.

    Falana said: “The intervention of the President is a welcome development in view of the growing culture of impunity in Nigeria. But with respect to the President, it is not sufficient to recognise the court as a civilised forum for the amicable resolution of disputes in a democratic society. The aggrieved litigants require a firm assurance that the party leadership will not follow the bad example of the Federal Government by treating the judgments and orders of the court with contempt.

    “Having now embraced the rule of law, President Buhari ought to direct the State Security Service to release Sheik Ibraheem Elzakzaky and his wife from custody in line with the orders of Federal High Court of December 2, 2016.

    “In the same vein, the orders of the Nigerian courts and the ECOWAS Court for the release of Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd) on bail pending trial should be complied with without any further delay.”

    The senior lawyer also called on Buhari to obey other high-profile judgments, including at least four judgments obtained by Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP).

    He said: “Nigeria has a duty to show leadership by example in the region since President Muhammadu Buhari is the current chairman of the Authority of Heads of State and Governments of the ECOWAS. Such leadership has just been demonstrated by the Nigerian leader, who has been reported to have distanced himself from the decision of the ruling party in Nigeria, the All Progressive Congress (APC), to expel its aggrieved members who sued the party in court over their grievances against the outcome of the recently concluded primaries of the party.

    “President Buhari should equally show leadership in the region by ensuring that all judgments of the ECOWAS Court against Nigeria are fully and unconditionally obeyed.”

    Falana added: “The hostile disposition of African states to courts is essentially the same. African governments, including Nigeria are yet to move away from the era of military and apartheid regimes when martial law was the order of the day. The rule of law is substituted for the rule of rulers. Not only are orders of courts disregarded, judges who rule against governments are harassed by security forces. The same attitude has been extended to regional and international courts.

    “Even though majority of African States have ratified the Rome Statute, the African Union (AU) recently attempted to pull Africa out of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in order to prevent the court from holding leaders accountable for gross human rights abuse, aggression, crimes against humanity and genocidal acts. The ICC has been accused of targeting African leaders notwithstanding that most cases of crimes against humanity were referred to the Prosecutor of the ICC by the governments of some African states.

    He advised that Nigeria and other African governments should emulate the governments of Benin, Cote D’ivoire, Ghana, Mali and The Gambia that have empowered their citizens to access the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights sitting in Arusha, Tanzania.