The Nation Newspaper

Tag: ONDO

  • Ondo students seek increased bursary

    THE National Association of Ondo State Students (NAOSS) has urged the State government to increase their bursary allowances from N10,000 to N50,000 to help them meet financial demands.

    The association noted that due to the increase of school fees by various institutions, the N10,000 can no longer cover their needs.

    At a press conference in Akure, the state capital, the President of the association, Comrade AFolayan Awodola assured students that the newly-elected executives would continue to protect the interest of the students.

    “From our quarters, we are demanding for increase in the bursary allowances from N10,000 to N50,000. This will enable students to meet their welfare demands in their various institutions. We advised the governor to work with the association to ensure favourable learning conditions for all students of Ondo origin in various tertiary institutions in Nigeria and Diaspora.

    “We will make available our programmes that will be of impact to Ondo State students. The association will be coming up with it monthly editorial to show case the works done by the executive, educational, social and impactful programme that will be organized by the association to impact on the students,” he said.

    On the Academic Staff Union of Nigeria Universities’ (ASUU) strike, the President urged the Federal Government to meet the demands of the union rather than playing lip service to education.

     

  • Flawed Ondo verdict

    Flawed Ondo verdict

    •The Supreme Court did not sufficiently interrogate the basic questions of the appeal

    It did not seem to us that the Supreme Court of Nigeria which delivered its judgment on the disputed governorship election in Ondo State did justice to the matter. The Justices dismissed the appeals filed by the candidate of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN), and also that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Olusola Oke. In dismissing Mr. Akeredolu’s petition, the court held that he failed to prove his case beyond reasonable doubt, while in the other judgment it also held that Mr. Oki was not able to prove the alleged illegal insertion of over 100,000 voters into the voter register.

    The apex court was reported to further hold that both appellants could not prove their cases which they found to be substantially criminal in nature, beyond reasonable doubt. The court further held that the parties could not substantiate that the alleged unlawful injection of over 100,000 voters into the register affected the outcome of the election; considering that Governor Olusegun Mimiko of the Labour Party (LP) won the election by more than the disputed number of votes. In our view, the exertion of proof beyond reasonable doubt for election petitions and question of what effect the unlawful insertion had, are mere legal sophistry.

    Indeed, while the summations of the court may be tenable under our legal system, more so being the judgment of the apex court; we doubt if it satisfies the sociological requirement of law acting as a deterrent against impunity. For, if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), as alleged, truly inserted as many as 100,000 unlawful voters into the register, then the election ought to have been voided, without any further ado. While the winner may have won with more than the disputed votes, the fact of that impunity and the debilitating effect it may have had on even potential voters before the election, should, in our view, be enough reason to call for a fresh election by lawful voters.

    Furthermore, the fact of whether unlawful voters were added on the list or not, should be one that a trial court could easily have found out, if the officials of the electoral body were put in the witness box. Unfortunately, the society is the loser for that, as the matter was muddled up in the foggy determination of whether that important question was a pre-election matter or not. Having been denied that opportunity, it is a double whammy for the appeal court to yet again hold that the appellant should be required to prove the allegation beyond reasonable doubt, failing which, it dismissed the appeal.

    With due respect to the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal, the loss of the opportunity to hold the electoral body accountable does not serve our electoral system better. We however appreciate that the appellate court acted to have the matter determined within the period provided by the electoral act. While we have argued for election petitions to be determined within a time frame to stop election losers serving out full term while the matter is litigated, it is also important that the tribunals are compelled to hear all cases on merit, including interlocutory applications, so as to avail the appellate court the opportunity to have all the facts and material evidence before it.

    As Governor Mimiko savours his judicial victory, he must ponder the averment of Charles Titiloye, counsel to Mr. Akeredolu that the judgment “is a tacit judicial endorsement of electoral fraud; that is the illegal injection of voters perpetuated by the electoral body.” That allegation, unfortunately, also puts a question mark on our electoral and judicial processes.

  • Ondo JCC elects leaders

    The Ondo State chapter of Joint Campus Committee (JCC) of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has held its convention, which culminated into the election of new executive. The event was held at Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA).

    Adewunmi Rufai, a student of the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) was elected as the chairman, while Olasunkanmi Pelebe, a student of Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo (RUGIPO) became the vice chairman. Oluwasanmi Akinboboye, a student of AAUA is the General Secretary.

    The election was presided over by the outgoing chairman, Abiodun Owonola and was witnessed by presidents of Students’ Union Governments (SUGs) from the institutions across the state.

    Abiodun, who conducted the ceremony on a wheelchair due to the accident that left some members of the body dead a few weeks after their inauguration last year, thanked God for the successful completion of his tenure.

    He advised the incoming officers to be accountable to students and be good ambassadors of their various institutions and the state. He also urged the state government and institutions to support the body.

    Adewunmi commended the outgoing executive for a “job well done” and promised to promote the interest of students.

  • Ondo is broke, says PDP

    Ondo is broke, says PDP

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ondo State has said the state is broke.

    It said this was responsible for the “sack” of over 10,000 council workers.

    PDP faulted the government’s “so-called staff auditing” and its statement that no worker was sacked.

    In a statement by its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Wale Ozogoro, PDP alleged that the government sacked over 10,000 workers to reduce the wage bill.

    PDP said: “The government has continued to deceive the people that the sacked workers are ghosts. The commissioner for information said before the staff audit, the number of council workers was 24,000, but it has dropped to 14,000.

    “Some people have been servicing corruption by collecting money on behalf of the 10,000 ghost workers.

    “The government needs to answer the following questions: How many of those indicted of collecting the ghost workers’ salary have been prosecuted by the government? How long will this audit last?

    “What of those who were sacked because they were below 10 years when they left Primary School? Are they also ghost workers? Why is there no development at the local government level?

    “The government is broke and therefore embarked on inflicting pain on workers. The commissioner was economical with the truth. He painted a picture of a virile economy and an unprecedented recovery, which is contrary to the truth.

    The party said the government is owing workers about three months salary, adding that it is reckless in the appropriation of public funds.

    It said: “The state government has been the sole runner and user of council funds. It has continued to parade its stooges as caretaker chairmen and executive members as against elected officers, thereby breaching the country’s constitution.

    “The council caretaker executives are at the whim and caprices of the governor, who controls their finances, thereby denying the third tier of government even development.

    “Council election has been avoided over the years by this administration because of this free fund at its disposal.

    “Most painful is the latest justification the administration is giving to its anti-people stands, rather than admitting that its frivolities, misplaced priorities, vulgar spending, excruciating debt burden and maladministration are responsible for the reduction of the work force.

    “The LP controlled government has continued to deceive the populace by portraying itself as a progressive party. The running of this government has proved otherwise.

    “To shield the fact that the state is broke, they have embarked on a futile mission of screening and unmasking ghost workers while surreptitiously making them pay N5,000 at the Ministry of Education for Primary School Leaving Certificate, all aimed at generating fund to run the government. When this method was not yielding much, it sacked them.

    “We have maintained that Dr. Olusegun Mimiko has plunged this state into unprecedented debt, which generations unborn will remember it for. Accountability, which is the fulcrum of stewardship, has eluded this administration.”

     

     

     

  • Killer policemen arrested in Ondo

    Policemen attached to the Ondo State police command who were allegedly involved in the killing of the driver of an unregistered truck along the Benin/Ore road have been arrested.

    The State Commissioner of Police, Patrick Dokumor, disclosed this while speaking with reporters in Akure, the state capital.

    He said the corpse of the deceased identified as Friday Igbinedion, who was allegedly shot in the early hours of Friday has been deposited at the mortuary.

    The CP explained that the corpse would remain in the mortuary pending the outcome of the command’s investigation

    According to him, the killer cops would be prosecuted according to the law.

  • More trouble for deposed Ondo chiefs

    The crisis over the deposition of three chiefs in Mahin Kingdom in the coastal area of Ondo State has taken a new twist with the constitution of a new Oloja-in-Council for Kofawe community by the Alapetu of Mahin kingdom.

    The new Oloja-in-Council has Prince Oluwole Omowole as its chairman, Hon. Kolawole Ogoh and Prince Omowole Kehinde as members.

    The Amapetu said his decision to constitute a new Oloja-in-Council followed the deposition of Chief Juwon Shemudara as the Oloja of Kofawe community by the Mahin Council of chiefs

    Explaining the rationale behind his action, the monarch said it was imperative to constitute an interim Oloja-in-Council to fill the vacuum created by the deposition of Chief Shemudara as the head of the community.

    He explained that the new Oloja-in-Council will oversee the affairs of the community pending when a substantive Oloja will be put in place.

    The monarch added that he had no regret for deposing the Chiefs, who he alleged had ascribed undue authorities to themselves.

    The deposed Chiefs are the Oloja of Kofawe, Chief Juwon Shemudara; Baale of Agbeni community, Chief Estrome Agbeni and the Baale of Lerenren community, Chief Charles Temitan.

    The Amapetu warned the deposed chiefs to steer clear of their communities in order not to incur the wrath of the law.

     

  • ‘Ondo has embraced APC’

    Ondo State All Progressives Congress (APC) leader Dr. Akerele Adu has said that the people of the state have embraced the party as a credible alternative platform.

    He congratulated the members for their commitment and loyalty to the progressive bloc, urging them not to waiver in their support.

    Adu, an associate of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, advised the party members to disregard any publications or invitation from anybody or group of persons, except the directive from the national secretariat of the APC comes through him.

    The 84 years old politician told party members in Ijare, Ondo State, that the progressives have made history, with the registration of the APC.

    He added: “We should expect unprecedented challenges, crisis, problems, and “buckle – up” to resolve all these with sincerity as they come.”

     

  • ‘APC has bright future in Ondo’

    ‘APC has bright future in Ondo’

    Ondo State Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) chieftain Hon. Femi Adekanmbi spoke with LEKE AKEREDOLU on the prospects of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in the next general elections.

     

    How is life outside politics?

    Well, I have not really been out of politics because, if you remember I was the Director of Security for ACN during the last governorship election in the State.I Just decided to face my business, my family and have enough time for myself. Politics has come to be part of me, having mastered the “ABC Alphabet” in politics of how to love the people, loyal to your party and never fail in your promises to the masses. With these, it shows that I am active in politics. Mind you, I contested during the last 2011 general election for Owo/Ose Federal constituency, but lost. I am not stopping there in my political career, I will definitely contest the House of Representatives seat in my constituency in 2015, if my party picks me.

    How prepared is the opposition for the challenge of merger in Ondo State?

    I want to assure you that we are fully prepared for the merger. All Progressives Congress (APC) is a new party entirely and we have welcome everybody and I can assure you that the political terrain of this country will never remain the same again, once APC is registered.

    So, we in Ondo State are fully prepared. Our leader, Asiwaju BolaTinubu has directed all the state leaders to go back to their state and preach the gospel of APC to the masses and also ensure that all our members embrace the merger. No division must take place and we all must follow the agreement reached by our leaders with other merger groups. Let me tell you this. By 2015, the PDP will be shocked by the massive vote APC will garner during the election.

    We are aware about their plans to destabilise us, frustrate the registration of the party, use their usual illegal ways to win election. But, don’t worry, it is now clear that Nigerians are tired of the PDP government; they are all clamouring for a change of power. 14 years in power, Nigeria as a nation has been retrogressing but only witnessed development in poverty, hunger, unemployment, poor infrastructures, poor power supply, corruption, insecurity and others. I believe, by 2015 general elections, Nigerians will rise up to vote against PDP’s administration.

    Why is politics a do-or-die affair in the country?

    To me, I have seen desperate moves of the Nigerian politicians to occupy positions of power and where those who are in power are making all frantic efforts to remain in power. This has already started again, we are in 2013, when the President and all governors are supposed to be busy on how to fulfill their promises to the electorate who voted them in, they are now focusing on an election which will be held on 2015 neglecting their primary role why they were voted for.

    The President is already warming up for 2015 re-election, making a clearing way for himself to remain in power, wielding his big stick on those members of his party who refused to support him. The atmosphere is now tensed. Governors are divided; some of them have political ambitions to contest higher posts. Political godfathers still want to remain relevant in the politics at all cost. Imagine, if 35 governors could not conduct a free and fair election, that is an indication that Nigerian politics is retrogressing on daily basis. What a shame among just 35 governors! They could not agreed on who won the poll. Like I have earlier said that is the implication of what we should be expecting by 2015. But we in the APC are ready for the game and will fight the battle for the poor masses.

    In 2011 and 2012 elections, your party failed to win any seat. What is your assurance that the party will win in 2015?

    I disagree with you on this. The PDP occupied the same percentage of what you mentioned now before Labour Party took over from them. So, that is not a basis for winning an election. The most important thing is work with the grassroots people, show them your love and sincerity of serving them. Presently, in the state, the ACN has come to stay. Presently, we have two federal lawmakers, Senator Ajayi Boroffice and Hon. Ifedayo Abegunde who defected from LP to our party before the election and I can assure you that, with the ongoing merging, the Party will win more seats.

     

  • You can’t remove us, deposed Ondo chiefs tell monarch

    THREE deposed Chiefs in Mahin Kingdom in Ilaje Local Government area of Ondo State have faulted their purported depositions by the Chairman of the Traditional Rulers of Oil Producing Communities in Nigeria (TROPCON) and the Amapetu of Mahin Kingdom, Oba Lawrence Omowole.

    The deposed chiefs are the Oloja of Kofawe, Chief Juwon Shemudara; the Baale of Lerenren, Chief Charles Kehinde Temetan and the Baale of Agbeni, Chief Estrome Agbeni.

    The Amapetu in letters he personally signed and sent to the chiefs, he accused them of insubordination and failure to attend meetings of Mahin Council of Chiefs.

    But the chiefs, who spoke to newsmen at Mahin over the weekend, said they remain the prescribed authorities of their respective communities and advised the Amapetu to steer clear of their territories in the interest of peace.

    They said the action of the Amapetu to depose them contradicts the tradition and customs of Mahin Kingdom and Ondo State Chieftaincy Laws, adding that they would soon institute legal action against the monarch.

    They also pointed accusing fingers at the state Commissioner for Environment, Chief Sola Ebiseni, who hails from the area as the brain behind their ordeal.

    The chiefs explained that their purported deposition is a calculated attempt by the monarch and his cohorts to distract and frustrate them from pursuing the allegation of a murder case against the Olu of Igbokoda, Oba Afolabi Odidiomo, and some other unnamed suspects over the gruesome killing of Prince Lebi Titilayo by people suspected to be palace guards of the Olu of Igbokoda early this year.

    The Olu of Igbokoda had earlier been questioned by the police over the death of Prince Lebi following a petition written to the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, by Chief Juwon Shemudara.

    Oba Odidiomo, however, denied killing or sponsoring people to kill the deceased, describing his ordeal as a set-up.

    Narrating his ordeal, Chief Juwon Shemudara, a legal practitioner, said his curiosity to know why the Amapetu allegedly sold part of his land at Kofawe to the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs at the cost of N93m without his consent upon which he was convicted by the Chief Magistrate Court at Okitipupa in 2011. The conviction, he added, was later quashed by a higher court.

    Shemudara said he later petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over what he described as the fraudulent sales and conversion of his land, which according to him was given to him by the Mahin community in appreciation of his selfless and legal services for the Kingdom for over two decades.

    Shemudara stated that his position as the counsel to the slain Prince Lebi’s family and the support of the Baale of Agbeni, Chief Estrome, who also doubles as the head of the family and their determination to pursue the case to a logical conclusion brought about their predicaments.

    The chiefs said the Amapetu and the Olu of Igbokoda had allegedly been mounting pressure on them to withdraw from the case to enable the Olu of Igbokoda and other suspects be left off the hook.

    Also speaking, the Baale of Agbeni Chief Estrome Agbeni, who is a son-in-law to the Amapetu, said his purported deposition came to him as a surprise and shock.

     

  • Intrigues as Ondo, Bayelsa battle for NDDC top job

    Intense lobbying has begun over which state will produce the next Executive Director (Projects) of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), The Nation has learnt.

    The plum job, it was gathered, has been zoned to Ondo and Bayelsa states.

    Sources disclosed President Goodluck Jonathan is currently in a dilemma on which of the two states will produce the next Executive Director of Projects (ED/P) of the NDDC.

    The Nation further gathered that Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, has recommended a retired director of the commission, Mr. Benson Obayelu, for the position, while his Bayelsa State counterpart, Seriake Dickson, has nominated a younger brother of former governor of the state for the plum job.

    Mimiko has also forwarded the names of the current state representative on the board, Dele Citizen Omogbemi, and former NBA Chairman, Okitipupa zone, Barrister Amuwa Benson, as the state representative on the new board to the Presidency for consideration out of which one of the nominees’ names will be sent to the National Assembly for ratification.

    The source said, “President Jonathan is under serious pressure to appoint an indigene of Bayelsa State as the next ED/P of NDDC and preferably the younger brother of a former governor of his home state.

    Other sources said Jonathan may have decided to pacify the loser state with the position of Executive Director, Finance and Administration (EDFA) of the commission, while the chairman of the new Board may come from Cross River State based on the statutory alphabetical arrangement for the appointments of the Chairman of the board among the oil producing states.

    “Ordinarily, if the president wants to follow the list of the appointments of past board members and their positions, the new ED/P should have come from Ondo State, because Bayelsa State has produced the former MD, Chairman and EDFA of the commission in the past,” a source said.

    For the nominee from Rivers State, sources said some forces within and outside the state are putting pressure on Jonathan not to accept any nominee of the Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi.

    This development may not be unconnected with the current face-off between the governor and the Presidency.