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R L: Minister of state petroleum resources, Timipre sylva; Director department of petroleum resources, DPR, Eng. Sariki Auwalu; Head of operations DPR, Garba Salihu during an Investigative hearing on the circumstances surrounding the revocation and Award of Oil Mining leases (OML) at the national assembly, yesterday in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa
PDP announces guidelines for Lagos LG poll By Ikechukwu Okaforadi
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he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State has released guidelines for aspirants contesting on its platform for the July 24 Local Government election in the state. The PDP Chairman in Lagos, Adedeji Doherty, who made this known in a statement released on Thursday said sales of nomination forms for the Chairmanship, Vice Chairmanship and Councillorship positions will begin on May 7 and end on May 14, while May 18 is the last day for the submission of the forms. According to him, the party’s screening exercise for the chairmanship and
councillorship aspirants would hold on May 20, while ward congresses/councillorship primaries, have been scheduled for May 25. He also noted that May 28 has been scheduled for Local Government congresses/ chairmanship primaries. “The submission of Names of candidates to the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) would be May 31. “Male chairmanship aspirant would pay a sum of N150,000 while male vicechairmanship aspirant and would pay a sum of N100,000. “Male councillorship aspirants are to pay a sum of N50,000 while female chairmanship, vice-chairmanship and councillorship
aspirants would pay a sum of N25,000, N20,000 and 15,000 respectively for the Nomination forms. “Also, payments for Expression of Interest and Nomination forms would be made by all male aspirants for posts of chairmen, vice chairmen and councillors. “However, only those who come out tops at the respective primaries would go ahead to make payments for the LASIEC forms,” he said. Doherty further noted that all female aspirants in line with LASIEC directives, would only be making payments for expression of interest forms for the position they intend vying for.
Why I defended MASSOB, Avengers, Asari Dokubo in Courts - Keyamo By Ikechukwu Okaforadi
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he Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, has explained why he represented in Courts Niger Delta militants like Asari Dokubo and groups like the Niger Delta Avengers, Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra
(MASSOB) in the past. He said it was not because he believed in Nigeria’s breakup, but because he believed in the right to self-determination. Keyamo stated this while speaking on an NTA flagship programme titled, ‘One-on-One’. He said, “No one can stand before me and tell me about human rights. I have seen
everything. I represented almost all separatist groups in this country like MASSOB, Niger Delta Volunteers Force, the Niger Delta Avengers. “I represented all of them in court. When Asari Dokubo was arrested, when he was calling for a division at that time, I did not support the division, of course, let me be clear. I was only
talking about the right to selfdetermination.” In January 2003, Keyamo was designated a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International, because of his activities as the leader of Movement for the Actualisation of the Future Republic of the Niger Delta.
Ogun LG polls: PDP leader slams Abiodun as OGSIEC demands N200,000 from candidates By Musa Baba Adamu
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leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olumide Aderinokun, has asked Governor Dapo Abiodun, not to turn the Ogun State Independent Electoral Commission (OGSIEC) into a revenue generation agency. Recall that the Ogun electoral commission, saddled with the responsibility of conducting elections into the local governments of the state, has demanded N200,000 from chairmanship candidates. OGSIEC, through its Chairman, said Tuesday that those contesting the councillorship posts must pay a non-refundable deposit of N100,000 each, saying it was in
accordance with the law of the commission. But the Akinruyiwa of Owu Kingdom, Aderinokun told Governor Dapo Abiodun “not to use the forthcoming local government elections in Ogun State as an avenue to increase the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the State.” It will be recalled that a report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) stated that the IGR of the state dropped from N70 billion in 2019 to N50 billion in 2020. In a statement made available to journàlists on Thursday, the Ogun House of Representatives candidate described the amount charged by the commission as “barbaric”. According to the statement
signed by his media aide, Taiye Taiwo, the politician said, “Governor Abiodun and his team should look elsewhere for revenue collection and not through the local government election. The amount charged for nomination forms is barbaric. It is not necessary.” He accused Abiodun and the All Progressives Congress (APC) of making democracy expensive in Ogun, saying it was a ploy to disenfranchise some candidates. He added that many young aspirants would not be able to participate in the elections as they would not be able to afford the OGSIEC nomination fee. “He (Gov Abiodun) is making democracy expensive by charging N200,000 and N100,000 for chairmanship and councillorship
forms respectively. “The All Progressives Congress (APC) is trying to disenfranchise candidates from the opposition parties. We are talking about election that will usher in our servant leaders at the grassroots and not State Assembly election. Why demanding that huge amount from candidates? Ogun State Independent Electoral Commission (OGSIEC) is not supposed to be a revenue generation agency. The governor should know this. “The high fee charged by OGSIEC will discourage younger aspirants from participating in the election,” he lamented. Meanwhile, the Ogun local government election is scheduled to hold on July 24, 2021.
Jagaban: Fela’s family hints at lawsuit against APC
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he relative of the Afrobeat pioneer, Fela Anikulapo Kuti, has condemned the use of the music legend’s name/image on clothes bearing ‘Jagaban’. Jagaban is one of the nicknames of a prominent politician and former Lagos Governor, Bola Tinubu. The traditional title was conferred on the All Progressives Congress (APC) leader by the Emir of Borgu in Niger State, Haliru Dantoro Kitoro. Ahead of the 2023 presidential election, campaign materials bearing the Tinubu or Jagaban or Asiwaju (Tinubu’s traditional title in Lagos) have appeared in circulation. In a statement, Fela’s son, Femi said he saw the tweet by the APC and confirmed Fela’s name on the T-shirts bearing ‘Jagaban’ was never authorized. Femi declared that the family owns the trademark and the use of it constitutes an infringement and disregard of their legal rights. The Afrobeat star warned the party to desist from using Fela’s image, adding that the family does not align with any political party in Nigeria or beyond. “We are carefully assessing the situation and failure to comply with this demand will leave us with no other option but to explore any legal options that are available to us”, he added.
Lawan condoles with Pastor Adeboye over son’s death By Musa Baba Adamu
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he President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has commiserated with the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye, on the death of his son, Pastor Dare Adeboye. In a statement issued yesterday by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ola Awonoyi, Lawan also condoled with the entire Adeboye family and members of the Redeemed Christian Church of God worldwide over the sudden death of one of their shepherds. The statement said “I share their deep grief over the loss of a beloved son, husband, father and committed labourer in the Lord’s Vineyard. “May God Almighty comfort the highly respected Pastor, his family and the entire members of his flock over this great loss and repose the soul of the deceased in eternal bliss,” Lawan said.
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Nationalism struggle behind Nigeria’s insecurity - South Korean Ambassador By Ikechukwu Okaforadi
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mbassador of the Republic of Korea to Nigeria, Kim Young-chae, has said that the struggle by the political class to evolve Nigeria into a true nation State is behind the ongoing security challenges confronting the country. Kim Young-chae stated this in Abuja while fielding questions from journàlists on the insecurity in the country and sundry issues, during which he said the issues in Nigeria is a family affair which will only take Nigerian politicians to resolve. He said however that Korean Republic is mulling assistance through intelligence, education and training for the military to assist
them in adequately confronting the terrorism dimensions in the conflict as been masterminded by the ISIS and ISWAP. On how Nigeria can benefit from Korean military strength, he pointed out that the Republic of Korea is the world’s fifth military power, which exports military hardware to many developed countries of the world, hence Nigeria can benefit from the opportunity. According to the Ambassador, what Nigeria is going through today can only become resolved permanently if the citizens can prioritise nationality above tribal and religious leaning. He said the Koreans went through a similar struggle, which led to the emergence of both
South and North Korea today, even though he said it will be very dangerous for Nigeria to contemplate division. He said Nigeria has fought a civil war and remained united, hence there should not be another civil war, which he cautioned will bring about lots of bloodshed which will last for too long. Speaking further, the Ambassadors expressed concern over the high level of killings across the country, warning that if Nigeria eventually divides, the various fragments would lose their voice and reputation in the Committee of nations unlike today when Nigeria is highly respected and appreciated by other countries. Young-chae also blamed reckless population explosion that has brought about twenty million more
people over a period of ten years, observing that it simply means there will be more mouths to feed and more hands to engage by the government, which according to him, does not come easily. While explaining the potentials of intelligence sharing between Nigeria and Republic of Korea, he said for such to take place, there must be a memorandum of understanding between governments of both countries, which he said is above his authority and office. Meanwhile, he said the Minister of Defence from Korea will visit Nigeria next year, promising to link both the Nigerian Defence team with the Republic of Korean team for better security relations, adding that peace and security remain the bedrock of every development.
Minister of Science and Technology Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu (2nd left), Minister of State for Science and Technology Barr. Mohammed H. Abdullahi (2nd right), Permanent Secretary Federal Ministry of Science and Technology Mr. Edet Sunday Akpan (left), President Nigerian Institute of Welding Dr. Solomon Iyobosa Edebiri (right), during the Inauguration of the Committee on Drafting of National Policy on Welding and its Related Fields & the National Status Survey on Welding and Related Fields, held yesterday in Abuja. Photo : Justin Imo-owo
Expansion of polling units will discourage voter apathy – Osun INEC REC By Lateef Ibrahim with agency report
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or the remaining 753 Voting Points in Osun to be converted to Polling Units, the national headquarter of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has to ratify the reports of the expansion of voter access to Polling Units. This was revealed in an address delivered by the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Olusegun Agbaje at the stakeholders meeting on expansion of voter access to Polling Units held Thursday, 6th May 2021 in Osogbo. Agbaje said the ongoing expansion exercise though geared towards the 2023 General Elections can still be used for the 2022 gubernatorial election in Osun State.
The REC explained that the reason for embarking on the expansion of voter access to Polling Units was done to address the issue of inadequate Polling Units and its attendant challenges as prescribed by the Electoral Act 2010, Section 42. Agbaje who said that presently, Osun has 3,010 Polling Units with a voting population of 1,680,498 registered voters added that the current polling units in the state are inadequate for the available voters as a result of population growth and the establishment of new settlements in many areas across the state. He said the situation has contributed to the apathy that characterised past elections conducted by the Commission. Agbaje states that the objectives of the exercise include; “expansion
of voter access to Polling Units by converting existing voting points and voting point settlements into full Polling Units and where necessary, relocating new and existing ones to places where they are closer to and more accessible for voters and the Commission. “Decongest existing Polling Units by reducing the number of voters per Polling Units, improve health and safety conditions at Polling Units during elections to comply with COVID-19 protocols, address declining voter turnout at elections due to lack of access to Polling Units and continue to improve the quality of access to electoral services provided to all Nigerian voters by the Commission, including better access at Polling Units for Persons With Disability (PWD).” He noted that INEC has decided
to take the polling units very close to the homes of the electorate since that has always been one of the complaints, that the Polling Units are far from the places of abode. In his goodwill message, the Osun State Commissioner of Police, Olawale Olokode accused the political players of sponsoring violence during elections which leads to voter apathy on the part of the electorate. While calling on stakeholders to play a major role in making the exercise a success, he expressed fear that open space arrangements may lead to issues during elections. The representative of Oba AbdulRasheed Akanbi, Oluwo of Iwo, Chief Imran Moruf called on politicians to support the efforts of INEC in the state adding that it is God that assigns persons to positions.
Exiting national budget with mere overheads, not impactful Finance Minister By Musa Baba Adamu
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he much celebrated success made by the Senate Committee on Finance as regards facilitation of some revenue generating government agencies to exit the National budget , was punctured by the Minister of Finance , Zainab Ahmed at an interactive session with the committee on Thursday . This is even as she countered the Accountant General of the Federation , Ahmed Idris on using the Audited reports of the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government ( MDAs) , as basis for reconciliation of their accounts on yearly basis . The Senate Committee on Finance headed by Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola ( APC Lagos West), had last week announced that federal agencies like the National Agency for Food, Drugs Administration and Control ( NAFDAC) , NIGCOMSAT and Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission, (NERC ) , had agreed to exit the National budget as far as their overhead costs were concerned. The move as stated by Senator Adeola after an interactive session with heads of the agencies last week , is targeted at reducing yearly budget deficits and getting more revenue to fund budgets. But the Minister of Finance in her reaction to the move , said since the overhead components of National budget is the smallest , such move will not give the required impacts as far as budget deficits and funding are concerned .“The 2021 budget is N13.8 trillion with overhead components of just about N380billion. “So, if any revenue generating government agency, is exiting the national budget with just overhead component, it will not bring about any difference. “The components that can bring about significant difference or differences , are recurrent and capital components , which none of the said agencies included in their exit plan from the National budget”, she said. On using Audited reports of the various MDAs, for basis of their account reconciliation on yearly basis as suggested by the Accountant General of the Federation to the Committee, the Minister said “ rather than helping to ensure accountability and transparency , it will frustrate it. “Since Audited reports of the various agencies are not made available until four or five years after any year in focus , such document cannot be recommended to be used as basis for account reconciliation of the agencies on yearly basis. “If such report is used as basis for accounts reconciliation, the agencies will drag their feet in making it available”, she said.