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Guber Polls:  RMFAC Boss, Community, Reject Endorsement of Ebonyi Speaker 

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From Godwin Okeh, Abakaliki

The executive chairman of the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Engr. Elias Mbam and over 17 other prominent stakeholders of Izzi clan at the weekend rejected the purported endorsement of Speaker of Ebonyi State House of Assembly, Francis Nwifuru as the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2023 general elections.

DAILY ASSET gathered that, a select group of traditional rulers from Izzi clan had recently endorsed Nwifuru to succeed Governor David Umahi come 2023.

But Mbam and other stakeholders of Izzi clan who spoke with newsmen in Abakaliki capital of Ebonyi state, rejected the endorsement of Nwifuru, and inferred that the monarchs are on their own.

 

According to Mbam: “Whatever anyone is saying, he or her is saying it on his or her personal interest. it does not represent the opinion of Izzi people. The governor met with us, directed that we look and bring to him, on whom we will like to be considered to run for governorship. But, while we are yet to choose, the traditional rulers went and made statement that they have endorsed him.
Are traditional rulers politicians? are they supposed to choose candidates for the party?

“After, they made their statements followed by the local government appointees. I have decided to disassociate myself from this process. I have lost confidence in it, because that represents the opinion of our people. I’m still consulting, very soon I will make my statement” he stated.

Also, the stakeholders of APC, in Izzi local government area of Ebonyi State, has called on the National Chairman of the party, Senator Abdulahi Adamu to save the party from collapse in Ebonyi, especially as the 2023 election general election approaches.

The stakeholders alleged that there was a concluded plan to impose one of  governorship aspirants and a prominent lawmaker from the area on the people and avowed that they won’t tolerate it.

The stakeholders who included a former Ambassador, Chief Alex Nwofe, Chief Michael Udenwe, Chief Nick Ochigbo, Uchenna Nshi, Godwin Nwamkpuma and many others, described the plot as undemocratic.

According to them: “We the concerned APC stakeholders of Izzi clan/extraction hereby disassociate ourselves from further deliberation on the matter as we have lost confidence in the fairness and impartiality of the members of the Committee to achieve the target as mandated to us by His Excellency, the Governor.

“These processes are contrary to the democratic norms and practices of due process as applicable to the democratic world, the Electoral Act 2022 as amended and APC Constitution. 

“We therefore call on the National Chairman of the APC, Senator Abdullahi Adamu and all the National executives of our party to intervene and nip the crisis in the bud before it escalates to ruin the chances of our party in winning the forthcoming general elections”, they stated.

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POLITICS

2027: APC Kicks As Opposition Backs Single Day Polls 

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A major political storm is brewing over a fresh proposal to amend the 1999 Constitution to allow all elections in Nigeria to be conducted on the same day in 2027.

While leading opposition parties — the Peoples Democratic Party, Labour Party, African Democratic Congress, and New Nigeria People’s Party — have thrown their weight behind the move, the ruling All Progressives Congress has rejected it, warning of dire consequences.

The proposal, spearheaded by the House of Representatives Committee on Constitution Review, chaired by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, is being considered as part of broader constitutional amendments following zonal consultations across the six geo-political zones.

If passed, the amendment would mandate the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct presidential, governorship, National Assembly, and state assembly polls in a single day — a move touted to drastically cut costs and reduce post-election bandwagon effects.

Backing the initiative, the National Publicity Secretary of the NNPP, Ladipo Johnson, argued that same-day polls would be both cost-effective and efficient.

He said, “The costs of elections are too high, just like those of governance. And any reasonable thing to reduce the costs should be looked at. Even for the political parties, it is cheaper and more efficient for them to do their elections in one day.”

On concerns over rigging, Johnson dismissed fears, saying, “If these people are going to rig, they will rig. But if you have all your elections in one day, all your candidates are able to pool together resources so that the polling unit is properly manned.”

The Labour Party also gave its full backing. National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, said the proposal would eliminate staggered elections and reduce bandwagon effects.

He noted, “The Labour Party aligns itself with the position that all elections should hold the same day… It’s also going to help reduce the cost of funding elections, logistics, and bandwagon effect where some voters, after knowing who wins the presidential poll, will start moving towards that direction in subsequent elections.”

For the PDP, Deputy National Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor, welcomed the idea but warned against manipulation.

“It is a welcome development if it is done with sincerity, clear intent and purpose. The truth is that the bogus amount that the government spends on elections is mind-boggling. There’s no rational reason why we spend over $350 billion conducting elections in this country, where at the end of the day, you don’t get value for the outcome of such votes,” he said.

The ADC, through its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, also declared support but with a caveat.

“Our support for doing the election on the same day is contingent on INEC logistics being top notch. At the moment, we don’t see any evidence that INEC is committed to improving its logistics,” he said.

But not all stakeholders are convinced. The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) warned that the logistics could be chaotic.

APGA spokesman, Ejimofor Okpara, declared that “As laudable as it sounds, we believe it will be chaotic. Our elections, as they are, already appear too cumbersome, logistics-wise, for INEC. One can only imagine the outlook if these major elections are held in one day.”

Lawmakers are also split. North-West caucus leader, Sada Soli (APC, Katsina), backed the bill, describing it as “an idea whose time has come.”

But Osun lawmaker, Oluwole Oke, disagreed, insisting, “It’s INEC’s prerogative to decide which date to conduct elections.”

Lagos lawmaker, Babajimi Benson, added, “I strongly believe that this decision should be included only in the INEC Act so as to make amendments easy… This (proposed) amendment in the constitution may make it very difficult in the future.”

The APC formally opposed the proposal, describing staggered elections as the better option.

Deputy National Organising Secretary, Nze Chidi Duru, warned, “To hold all elections on the same day puts a lot of pressure on the institution that is governing elections in Nigeria.

“You’re going to be holding elections at the State Assembly, House of Reps, Senate, governors, and the President. After those four years, INEC now sits back and literally does nothing.”

He added that staggered polls would keep INEC “active year-round” and reduce the risk of system collapse.

Also reacting, a former Director of Voter Education at INEC, Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, condemned the plan, recalling that a similar attempt in 2003 was rejected by the courts.

“This is not a new idea. They tried this before when we were in INEC, and we actually went to court before the 2002 and 2003 elections. We won the case then,” he said, warning that Nigeria lacked the logistics and literacy levels required for such an exercise.

However, prominent lawyers see merit in the idea.

Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Lekan Ojo, argued: “From the economic perspective, it is a cost-saving measure… But it may be very clumsy. The electoral officers may be overwhelmed and that may lead to a floodgate of litigations.”

Another SAN, Wale Balogun, was more sceptical: “If our experience is anything to go by, then I’m afraid for Nigeria. I don’t think we have the capacity to do so.”

For Adedayo Adedeji (SAN), the move would “drastically reduce the cost of conducting elections,” though he warned of doubts over INEC’s capacity.

Civil society leaders, including Auwal Musa Rafsanjani of the Transition Monitoring Group and Debo Adeniran of the Centre for Accountability and Open Leadership, endorsed the proposal, insisting it would cut costs and make elections more transparent.

Adeniran said, “There is nothing stopping us from conducting all the elections in one day, except for those who are thinking of how to manipulate elections.”

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POLITICS

2027: No Vacancy in Aso Rock – APC Chairman 

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The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda has said he is very confident that the opposition parties including the African Democratic Congress (ADC) will fail in their bid to unseat President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the forthcoming 2027 election.

Yilwatda who was addressing hundreds of supporters of the ruling party under the aegis of the APC league of Professionals, who were on a solidarity visit at the national secretariat of the party on Tuesday in Abuja, said the gains recorded already under the Renewed Hope Agenda of the President Tinubu led administration as basis for his position.

He further assured that the party would ensure that the entire candidates of the party contesting for governorship, National and State Assemblies seats across the country were victorious.

The Plateau state born academic who described himself as the bridge between the old and the young gave example with the students loan, and several other empowerment programmes being undertaken by the President Tinubu led administration that has impacted on the lives of Nigerians positively.

“The child of the poorest man in Nigeria can now go to school to the peak without borrowing from anywhere. The government has made provision for that. This is the only time we’ve had that in the history of Nigeria. Government has dropped N1.5 billion Naira in Bank of Agriculture (BOA) to support young men that want to go into agriculture.

“Never before, never before, never before have we had this opportunity. We have the youths fund being given for the youths. Never before has any government done this. And I can tell you that the opportunity for the young people is right under our President.

What I can show you first is a thank you for this support, a thank you for standing by our party, a thank you for believing in this party.

“Our manifesto targets people like you. The Renew Hope Agenda targets people like you. And I look forward to working with you to ensure that 2027 will deliver the President, will deliver the Governors, will deliver the Senators, House of Assemblies and House of Representatives members.”

Earlier in his address, leader of the group and the pioneer Secretary of the Bayelsa state chapter of the APC, Hon. Marlin Daniel said was confident that Prof. Yilwatda will take the party to the next level of development.

Daniel also expressed gratitude to President Tinubu and the Sen. Hope Uzodinma led Progressives Governors Forum (PGF) over the choice of Yilwatda as the National Chairman of the party.

He expressed optimism that the Chairman will deliver candidates of the party at the coming elections given his experience as a technocrat and politician of several years standing.

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POLITICS

Edo PDP Demands Redeployment of INEC REC

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By Mike Odiakose, Abuja

Ahead of local government council election in Edo State, the State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has demanded for the immediate redeployment of the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Dr. Anugbum Onuaha, for his role in the last governorship election.

According to the PDP, the actions of the REC during the last gubernatorial polls undermined the credibility and integrity of the electoral process, and “we cannot allow such a tainted official to oversee the forthcoming bye-elections in Edo State.
Dr. Tony Aziegbemi, Chairman, Edo PDP Caretaker Committee, stated this in Benin City while briefing journalists on the preparation of the party for the fourth coming by- election.
”We however want to express displeasure that some electoral officers whom we are aware of, from their antecedent, have been compromised”.”His actions during the last gubernatorial polls undermined the credibility and integrity of the electoral process, and we cannot allow such a tainted official to oversee the forthcoming bye-elections in Edo State.The party urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and its Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, a matter of urgency meets this demand and boosts voters confidence and assures the credibility of the process. They also demanded that the Electoral Officers (EOs) during the 2024 gubenaotiral who were in Oredo, Ikpoba-Okha, Egor, Etsako West, Etsako East, and Akoko Edo steer clear of the bye-elections. Their involvement in the alleged irregularities that marred the last governorship election makes their participation unacceptable.According to Aziegbemi, “Having completed this pre election process, our party in Edo State is highly prepared for the polls and are confident that we will emerge victorious. The areas in the contest are traditional strongholds of the PDP and with the quality and credential of our candidates and the support of the people, including our party supporters and members, we are sure of victory at the polls”. He stated.The mantra, “One Man, One Vote”, remains our slogan and this we will uphold during the forthcoming bye-elections. As a party, we will not tolerate any form of electoral manipulation. We insist on a fair, credible, and transparent election and urge INEC, security agencies, and all stakeholders to ensure that every citizen’s vote counts and is protected.”To those who have chosen to defect from our great party, we wish them the best in their future endeavors.However, we remind them that the natural laws of nature also apply to politics. “As we go into the elections, we remain focused on winning the National Assembly seats and as a formidable political party that enjoys the love and support of the people especially at the grassroots, we are confident of coming out victorious.”We urge voters in the various constituencies to remain vigilant, participate actively by coming out enmasse to vote the PDP and its candidates who have the capacity and ability to deliver the dividends of democracy to the people, he said.

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