SenateRecoversMace,InsistsPerpetratorsofAttackMustbePunished Summons IG, DSS DG as court stops them from arresting Omo-Agege Damilola Oyedele, Paul Obi and Alexander Enumah in Abuja Despite the return of the mace less than 24 hours after it was stolen from the
upper legislative chamber, the Senate yesterday insisted that the plotters and perpetrators of the invasion of its chamber must not go unpunished. It also resolved to summon the Inspector General of
Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, and the Director-General of the Department of State Services, Mr. Lawal Daura to brief it on investigations into the incident. The Senate on Wednesday
was invaded by thugs loyal to suspended Senator Ovie Omo-Agege during plenary. The hoodlums carted away the mace, the symbol of authority of the Senate. The invasion, which lasted
for a few minutes, caused commotion in the National Assembly and sent shock waves across the country. The plot to invade the chambers and cart away the mace was allegedly
concluded on Monday night at a meeting by the now proscribed Parliamentary Support Group (PSG) made up of ardent supporters of Continued on page 10
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Buhari Under Fire over Comment on Nigerian Youths, Presidency Clarifies Remarks #LazyNigerianYouths trends on social media
Omololu Ogunmade in London, Chiemelie Ezeobi in Lagos and Victor Ogunje in Ado-Ekiti with agency reports
Queen Elizabeth II (sixth right) and leaders of Commonwealth countries, when the ongoing Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (GHOGM) was formally declared open by the queen in London… yesterday. Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari is seated in the second row behind British PM, Theresa May
President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday came under attack over his remarks on Nigerian youths, forcing his media team in the presidency into overdrive as it tried to clarify what the president meant to say. Buhari, who is in the habit of committing cringe-worthy gaffes when he doesn’t have a written script before him, had on Wednesday in London at Continued on page 9
Concerns Mount over Integrity of 2019 Polls on Re-introduction of New Polling Units Davidson iriekpen As the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) prepares for the 2019 general election, indications have emerged that the ghost of the creation of 30,000 new polling units in the run up to the 2015 elections has resurfaced, with the move by the commission to re-introduce new polling units, but this time disguised
as Voting Point Settlements. Should INEC adopt the format used in 2014 when it attempted to create precisely 30,062 new polling units, with more units allocated to the states in Northern Nigeria than the South, this could compromise the integrity of
the 2019 elections. Pointers that there were surreptitious moves to reintroduce the initiative was let out of the bag last month when the former INEC chairman, Prof Attahiru Jega, congratulated the current chairman, Prof. Mahmood
Yakubu, for among other achievements, what he called the “review of the polling units, registration areas...” as part of the commission’s “significant, commendable progress made to sustain, deepen and defend the integrity of the Nigerian
electoral process”. However, when further investigations were conducted to verify the development from some internal stakeholders, the remark by Jega came as a surprise to many of them who seemed unaware that INEC had initiated, let
A'Court Upholds EFCC's Decision to Freeze Fayose’s Account ... Page 50
alone concluded a review of the polling unit arrangement under any guise whatsoever. Curiously, those who have sighted an internal memo on the introduction of Voting Point Settlements further revealed that it was targeted at re-introducing the controversial 30,000 polling units that were rejected by the public before Continued on page 9