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Tag: Osogbo

  • Osun rerun: Commotion in Osogbo unit over gunshots

    There was commotion at Unit 17, Ward 5 in Osogbo where a rerun election is taking place.

    Everything was calm until about 11.50am when gunshots rang out.

    The sounds came from behind a building near the polling unit.

    But a policeman said the gunshots came from across the road.

    It started with what sounded like fireworks.

    As more shots rang out, voters on queue, electoral observers and journalists scampered for safety.

    The Police shot into the air in response and everyone around took cover under roofs and behind buildings.

    The Police said they were on the alert and that the shots may have been fired by thugs trying to gain access to the unit.

    The electoral officers have resumed the polling process and voters have returned to the queues.

    Voting is still ongoing and the early morning downpour has been replaced with mild sunshine.

    Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Osogbo Branch chairman Bamidele Ajibade said he heard real gunshots before police responded.

    He said he was informed that the Police are in hot pursuit of the hoodlums who may have fired the shots.

    No one sustained injuries although there is uneasy calm in the unit.

  • Osun rerun: Police arrest suspected thug with charms, marijuana

    The Police have arrested three suspected thugs near Unit 17, Ward 5, in Osogbo where a rerun election is ongoing.

    They were caught with charms and wraps of Indian Hemp (marijuana).

    They were arrested in a building just by the polling unit where a rerun was ordered due to disruptions.

    The three young men in their 20s could not explain their mission around the unit but claimed they were not thugs.

    They said they were going about their normal business.

    According to them, they did not mean to harm anyone with the charms.

    Read Also: Osun rerun: No cause for alarm, says REC

    They said it was for their own protection.

    The three protested their innocence as they were asked to lie on the floor before being taken away.

    Another middle-aged man was caught with what was suspected to be a fake Permanent Voter Card (PVC).

    It had no photograph on it.

    The Police led him away for further interrogation.

  • Osun 2018: 435,015 registered voters yet to collect PVCs – INEC

    The Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC ) says 435,015 registered voters in Osun are yet to collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).

    Mr Olusegun Agbaje, the Resident Electoral Commissioner in Osun, made this known on Friday at a press conference in Osogbo.

    Agbaje said 1,246,915 PVCs were collected from INEC by registered voters in the state as at Wednesday when collection of the cards for the election ended.

    The commissioner, who said 1,682,495 voters were registered, warned that those who had yet to collect their PVCs would not be allowed to vote.

    Read Also: Osun poll: Oluwo cautions against violence

    He gave an assurance that the uncollected PVCs were safe in the commission’s custody, adding that a credible election would hold on Saturday.

    Agbaje also warned against vote selling and buying, saying those caught risk imprisonment of one year or N500,000 fine.

    He also said those caught violating the secrecy of their votes may be jailed for six months or fined N100,000 or both.

    Agbaje, who thanked the media for its support, however, insisted that only INEC could announce election results.

  • Osun debate: Oyetola, others promise education, health revolution 

    Plans to revolutionize education, health and other sectors were laid bare by candidates of some of the political parties participating in the Osun State governorship election in the final debate Thursday.

    The debate, which was organized by the TVC in conjunction with some civil society groups, was held at the WOCDIF Centre, Osogbo, the Osun State capital.

    The participants are Gboyega Oyetola of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Olugbenga Akintola of Alliance for Democracy (AD), Babatunde Loye of Labour Party (LP), Mercy Ayodele of Reformation Party of Nigeria (RPN) and Oluseyi Fabiyi of KOWA party.

    Candidates of the remaining four major parties – Social Democratic Party (SDP), African Democratic Party (ADP), People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and African Democratic Congress (ADC) were absent.

    The organizers said they all promised to attend but failed to show up.

    On education, Oyetola said the Rauf Aregbesola administration has done well in education but that he would focus more on the technological aspect of education, give scholarships, train and retrain teachers and also sustain the free meal for students.

    Akintola promised to promote functional literacy and numeracy skills, improve funding for education and improve welfare of teachers.

    The other candidates also promised to train and retrain teachers and pay salaries regularly.

    On health, the APC candidate promised to embrace the National Health Insurance Scheme for workers, upgrade facilities of primary health centres, equip them with drugs and motivate medical workers.

    Other candidates also promised to motivate health workers, build mega hospitals whose services will be paid for as well as embrace health insurance.

    On job creation, Oyetola pledged to sustain the Osun State Youths Employment Scheme dubbed OYES, create five new farm settlements and give incentives to youths to go into agriculture. He further promised to look at exploring the value chain in agriculture that includes processing, transportation and storage, among others.

    Fabiyi promised to build technology village in the three senatorial zones to harness the skills of artisans for development.

    For Loye, the way to succeed in job creation in times like this is to encourage youths to go into technology related businesses.

     

  • Osun 2018: Coalitions call for sensitatisation of security personnel

    With the Osun gubernatorial election days away, a coalition of INEC and Civil Society groups have called on the various security agents chiefs to ensure that personnel on duty are well sensitized on their conducts and relationship with the people and other election duty personnel during election.

    This, according to them would help the security agents not to remain resolute in safeguarding lives and property during and even after the elections.

    The civil society domestic observer groups commended the various Security Agencies in the State for the assurances of providing a secure and peaceful environment for the elections come Saturday.

    Speaking while addressing Newmen today in Osogbo, the Team leader, Comorade Kalu Victor, urged Political parties to commit to training their electoral field officers with relevant electoral laws and code of conduct during election, adding that they should also ensure adequate presence of their party agents in all the polling units for effective party representation during the election.

    Kalu who observed that the challenges of vote buying remain a big concern to all stakeholders advised the electorates should resist the temptations of selling their conscience to overzealous politician ready to buy votes by all means.

    While commending the actions and conducts of INEC said they have been so far guided by the Electoral Acts. He stressed that priority should be given to the difficult terrains in the State in terms of distribution of sensitive election materials to ensure quick and timely commencement of election in such areas.

  • Osun 2018: Security beef up in Osogbo

    As the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) put finishing touches to its preparation for Saturday’s governorship election in Osun state, security is being beefed up within Osogbo, the state capital and some of its adjourning towns.

    Earlier Thursday morning, at the commission’s office located on the Gbongan/Ibadan road, security men who were deployed to the state on election duties were seen arriving to be accredited and briefed on their involvement in the election process. Accreditation of security and other officials, including pressmen and election monitors was still ongoing as at the time of filing this report.

    Expectedly, security has been beefed up at and around the INEC office. Some other locations within the state capital, including the state secretariat at Abere and the Central Bank of Nigeria building on Ede road, among others, are also being manned by security operatives.

    Not less than two armoured personnel carriers (APC) were sighted by our correspondent at the entrance of INEC office while another one was noticed around the Olaiya axis of the state.

    Read Also: Osun: INEC’s ban on phones will reduce vote buying – CSO

    Men of the Counter Terrorism Unit as well as mobile and regular policemen are involved in the task of providing security for lives and properties as the people of Osun prepare to elect a new governor on Saturday.

    The Nation also learnt that the security beef up in the town may not be unconnected with the arrival of sensitive materials meant to be used during Saturday’selection, earlier in the day. Sources who spoke to our reporters said the commission took early delivery of the materials to avoid any delay in the distribution of the materials for the election.

    “With the sensitive materials in town, one can understand the security beef up around town. It is all to forestall any attempt by any person or group to act funny. Don’t forget that 18, 426 policemen were deployed to be part of this election process. We are taking the issue of security very serious as we go along,’ he said.

  • Osun guber poll: Lasun campaigns for Oyetola

    Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Yussuff Lasun campaigns for Gboyega Oyetola at the grand rally for the All Progressives Congress (APC) Candidate in Saturday’s governorship election.

    The rally is ongoing and will be addressed by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    Buhari who is presently in a meeting with Osun traditional rulers, is expected at the venue shortly.

    Lasun told the crowd at the Osogbo stadium venue that APC will rule Nigeria forever because it is made up of men of credible character and its laudable programme.

    He reaffirmed his membership if the APC.

  • Osun 2018: YIAGA Africa raises alarm over voters’ inducement

    Osun 2018: YIAGA Africa raises alarm over voters’ inducement

    As September 22 Osun governorship poll draws close, an election monitoring group, the Youth Initiative for Advocacy, Growth and Advancement (YIAGA Africa), has raised an alarm over voters inducement.

    The group said voters are visibly induced by politicians to influence them to vote to their political parties.

    Addressing journalists on Thursday in Osogbo, the state capital, the Project Director of the group, Cynthia Mbamalu, disclosed that pre-election observation findings and election observation of YIAGA Africa revealed that cash and other gifts are visibly being distributed by politicians among prospective voters to influence their decisions.

    Describing the trend as worrisome, Mbamalu said the development must be discouraged.

    Read Also: Osun 2018: APC will emerge victorious – Ajimobi

    According to her, stakeholders, particularly the electoral actors should intensify campaign to discourage the act of voter bribery before and during the election.

    However, she advised political parties to take the lead in curbing the trend.

    She also said political parties and their candidates must act within the ambits of the law by promoting a positive political culture that can guarantee peaceful election.

    Mbamalu further advised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the Civil Society Organization (CSOs) the National Orientation Agency (NOA) to sustain voter’s education among the people.

    While calling on the electorate yet to collect their permannent voter cards to enable them to perform their civil duty on the day of the election, Mbamalu said her group had trained 60 trainers to be deployed to all the 30 Local Government Areas.

    She said the trainers would in turn train 500 watching the Vote Polling Units observers and 32 roving observers.

  • Aregbesola appoints new Chief of Staff, LGSC boss

    Gov. Rauf Aregbesola of Osun has appointed Mr Abdulrasak Salinsile as his new Chief of Staff.

    Mr Sola Fasure, the Media aide to Gov. Aregbesola, made this known on Thursday in Osogbo.

    Fasure said that the appointment was approved during the State Executive Council meeting, adding that that the new chief of staff was sworn-in immediately.

    Salinsile replaced Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola, who is now the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for Sept. 22 governorship election in the state.

    Oyetola scored 127,017 votes during the APC primary held on July 20, to defeat 16 other aspirants.

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    Fasure said in a statement that the State Executive Council also approved the appointment of Mr Tunde Adedeji as the Chairman, Local Government Service Commission.

    Adedeji is to replace Mr Peter Babalola, who resigned his appointment on Aug. 23.

    Babalola, who was one of the 17 aspirants that contested the APC primary, defected to Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Aug. 24.

  • Low turnout of workers in Osun after Isese, Eid-el-Kabir holidays

    There was low turnout of state government workers in Osogbo, Osun State capital, on Thursday after the long holidays for Isese Day and Eid-el-Kabir celebrations in the state.

    The Isese Day holiday was declared by Osun Government for traditional religion worshipers to celebrate their religion.

    The Isese holiday was observed on Monday, Aug. 20, while the two-day Eid-el-Kabir holiday, declared by the Federal Government, were observed on Tuesday and Wednesday.

    A visit by our reporters to the state government secretariat in Abere and Olorunda as well as Osogbo Local Government secretariat, all in Osogbo, revealed that many of the workers were yet to resume.

    Some of the secretariat staff, who spoke under anonymity, said that the situation might be because the week was nearly over.

    One of the officers said: “Normally, when we get holidays that extend to Wednesday and Thursday, the week is already over, so there is no need rushing back from where you travel to.

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    “It is not easy to be rushing back to work on a Thursday or Friday to resume work when the next day is weekend, so the best is to just roundoff the week.”

    On why he was back to work contrary to his explanation, he said he was on essential duty “as some people had to be on duty to keep the work going.”

    Banks were, however, opened to customers. Some shops have equally re-opened for business.

    The NYSC Secretariat staff were all back to work and normal daily activities were in full gear.

    Some of the staff were seen having meeting in their departments.

    NAN