POLITICS
Reps Propose Six-year Single Term For President, Govs
By Ubong Ukpong, Abuja
A group of 30 lawmakers in the House of Representatives known as Reform Minded Lawmakers across Political Parties (G-30), on Monday, said that its proposal of six years single term for the office of President and Governors, as well as power Rotation amongst others, have passed first reading in the House.
The lawmakers are also advocating the conduct of Presidential, National Assembly, Governorship, State Houses of Assembly and Local Government as well as FCT Area Councils elections in one day.
The Reform Minded Lawmakers disclosed this during a press conference on the 50 Bills they jointly sponsored, which passed first reading in the House of Representatives in Abuja on Monday.
Reading the text of the press conference, Co-sponsor of the Bills and member representing Ideato North/South Federal Constituency of Imo State, Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere, said they were proposing alterations to the 1999 constitution (as amended) to provide for the rotation of executive powers among the six geopolitical zones of the country to ensure equal representation and reduce the desperation and tempo of agitation for the creation of new states.
Ugochinyere also the Bills were seeking the amendment of the Constitution to create the office of two vice presidents from the southern and northern parts of Nigeria with the 1st vice being a succession Vice president, while the 2nd Vice president being a Minister in charge of the Economy, and both being Ministers.
He further said the Bills were seeking constitutional amendments to provide that the President and the 1st Vice President shall come from the same part of the country (North or South) and the 1st Vice President shall become President whenever the President becomes incapacitated.
“We, the reformers elected representatives of the people of Nigeria, are concentrated on proving that we are fully capable of managing our affairs together as a nation. Hence, as the first step in our commitment, we are presenting to the public Bills and proposals, which will are pushing on the floor floor of the 10th Assembly. These Bills will touch on every aspect of development in all sectors of our Economy and well-being as a nation.
“These Bills which are 50 in numbers have gone through first reading but today we are starting with public unveiling of about 6 of them while the remaining will come in the weeks ahead. It ranges from governance, economic, security, and justice sector reforms to social bills that will target unifying our nation and ensuring long-lasting peace and national cohesion.
“Therefore, the bills presented today will address that proposal
On Governance, we are proposing:
Constitutional Alteration to provide for the rotation of executive powers among the six geopolitical zones to ensure equal representation and reduce the desperation and tempo of agitation for the creation of states.
“To amend section 3 of the Constitution to provide for the recognition of the division of Nigeria into six geopolitical zones. To amend the Constitution to provide for a single tenure of six years for the President and Governors of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The reduction in government spending and wastage, efficiency in governance, and national stability by providing a single term of six years for the President and Governors.
“Amend the Constitution to create the office of two vice presidents from the southern and northern parts of Nigeria. The 1st vice shall be a succession Vice president, while the 2nd Vice president shall be a Minister in charge of the Economy, and both shall be Ministers.
“Constitutional Amendment to provide that the President and the 1st Vice President shall come from the same part of the country (north or south) and the 1st Vice President shall become President whenever the President becomes incapacitated, i.e., V.P. (Succession), V.P. (Administration and Economy)
“The financial autonomy and accountability of Local Government Councils by prescribing an independent Consolidated Local Government Council Account solely superintended by Local Councils and prescribing long-term imprisonment for any misuse of Local Government funds.
“To amend section 162(5) of the 1999 Constitution to provide that where a State Government fails to remit to the Local Government Councils within its jurisdiction (or within the State), the amounts standing to the credit of that Local Government in the allocation from the Federation account, such State Government shall not be entitled to receive a future allocation from the Federal Government.
“Elections remain our only democratic means of bringing back sanity in our polity, so we must get our selection processes right. We are proposing Bills to address capture and corruption in our electoral processes to include; Amending the relevant sections of the Electoral Act to ensure that all elections (presidential, governorship, National Assembly, state houses of Assembly, and local governments) are held on the same day.
“Amending the relevant sections of the Electoral Act to provide that no declaration of a winner of an election shall be done by the relevant INEC Officials until such officer has compared the results with the list of accredited voters and ensured that the results to be declared are in tandem with the list of accredited voters and the B-VAS machine or any other electronic device.
“Amend the Electoral Act to provide that any INEC Officer who declares a false result will be liable for civil and criminal action personally brought against him by parties in the elections. An Amendment to the Electoral Act to provide that all election-related litigations must be resolved and determined by the Elections Petitions Tribunal, Appeal Courts, etc., before the winners are sworn into the respective elective offices.
“An Amendment of the Electoral Act to make provision for the conduct and conclusion of all elections and election-related litigation within a period of six months before the swearing into office of the validly elected person for the office contested. An Amendment of the Electoral Act to provide that all election-related documents and materials must be made available to those who participated in elections and who have reasons to question/petition the elections at the Elections Tribunal.
“We want to conclude this press conference by greeting all Nigerians of all walks of life on this historic day: our men and women in the different sectors of the Economy, our vibrant young people, persons with disabilities, our law enforcement agencies, our traditional rulers, fathers of our communities and custodians of our cultural heritage, our religious leaders, custodians of faith and morals, our effective civil society organizations.
“This task ahead of us is huge and cannot be achieved without you. It is a task for all of us. Our work does not go beyond taking the initiative to get them into Parliament,” he added.
President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has petitioned the Department of State Services (DSS) over a purported anti-North statement allegedly attributed to him.
A viral statement allegedly quoted Akpabio as threatening that Northerners would suffer if President Bola Tinubu lost the 2027 presidential election.
Special Assistant to the President of the Senate on Media, Jackson Udom, disclosed this in a statement issued on Wednesday in Abuja.
Udom said the petition, signed by the Akpabio’s Chief of Staff, Chinedu Akubueze, urged the DSS to urgently investigate the dissemination of the alleged false, inflammatory and divisive statement.
He said the graphic, bearing Akpabio’s photograph and designation, attributed the following words to him: ‘Northerners you will be the ones to suffer the most if you allow Tinubu to lose the election.’
“Unequivocally, the President of the Senate did not make this statement.
“No date, venue, speech, interview, video, audio recordings, official statement or credible news report has been produced to authenticate it.
“The graphic carries no identifiable publisher’s mark or verifiable source,” he said.
Udom said the statement appeared to have been deliberately manufactured and presented as an authentic quotation for the purpose of deceiving unsuspecting members of the public.
He said those behind the scheme intended to provoke regional resentment against Akpabio and portray him as threatening people in the Northern part of the country.
According to him, preliminary examination of publicly accessible Facebook records identified some persons as among the earliest traceable amplifiers of the purported fabricated graphic.
He listed the persons as Abdullai Musa, who posted the graphic in a Facebook group styled ‘Sheik Muhammad bin Uthman Group 24”.
Others were Uzoma Chilaka, whose Facebook post allegedly reproduced the graphic commentary expressly credited to him, and Ibrahim Ammar, a verified Facebook account that subsequently reproduced the graphic and similar commentary.
“These persons should not be presumed guilty before investigation.
“Nevertheless, their early and substantial roles in circulating the material make them persons of interest, who may possess information capable of identifying the graphic designer, original uploader, sponsors, intermediaries and distribution network,” he said.
Udom said their publication records, devices, communications and the provenance of the image should therefore be investigated in accordance with the law. (NAN)
By David Torough, Abuja
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, has commended the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) for its strides in innovation and technological development, assuring the agency of the Federal Government’s continued support.
Akume gave the commendation on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, in Abuja when he received NASENI’s Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Khalil Suleiman Halilu, members of his management team and winners of the agency’s Innovation Assessment and Award Competition.
The SGF described NASENI’s inter-agency and intra-agency innovation competition for federal civil and public servants and Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) as a significant milestone in efforts to develop home-grown solutions to Nigeria’s challenges.
He said the innovative products emerging from the competition could have significant implications for national security, food sovereignty and healthcare, adding that the achievements demonstrated the depth of talent and ingenuity among young Nigerians.
“Nigeria has talents. I don’t doubt about that. Wherever you go in the world, Nigerians are recognized as people with lot of talents and people with a great future,” Akume said.
He also praised NASENI for adopting what he described as a transparent and non-partisan process in selecting and assessing the innovations, saying the credibility of the competition would encourage more Nigerians to come forward with innovative ideas.
Akume expressed optimism that sustained government support could enable Nigeria to attain greater technological heights, including developing advanced aerospace capabilities.
“Tomorrow, who knows, Nigeria can manufacture rockets that can send people to the moon. And this can be the courtesy of NASENI,” he said.
Earlier, Halilu said the award programme was designed to identify and recognise outstanding contributions by civil and public servants through both inter-agency and intra-agency competitions.
He said NASENI’s innovation strategy goes beyond developing technological products to equipping innovators with skills needed to commercialise their ideas successfully.
According to him, technical and engineering expertise must be complemented by competencies in accounting, marketing and business development for innovations to achieve their full potential.
Halilu disclosed that NASENI had, in about two years, facilitated the establishment of 20 factories across the country and developed more than 40 products as part of efforts to transform research and innovation into commercially viable solutions.
He added that the agency had also introduced programmes aimed at identifying and nurturing innovators from an early age. One of the initiatives, the Future Makers Programme, targets children between five and 15 years to stimulate interest in science, technology, engineering and innovation.
The meeting also featured demonstrations by representatives of two of the six winners of the innovation competition.
A team from the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) showcased a security jacket equipped with technology designed to facilitate real-time communication with the command-and-control centres of security agencies, potentially improving coordination and response.
The winning team from NASENI, meanwhile, presented a commercial electronic platform designed to serve as a digital marketplace through which MDAs can promote and market their goods and services.
Akume congratulated NASENI and the winners of the competition, reaffirming the Federal Government’s commitment to creating an enabling environment for research, innovation and technological development in Nigeria.
From Ayinde Akintade, Osogbo
The All Progressives Congress has taken Osun state Governor Ademola Adeleke’s re-election to court as the petition is now on the notice board of the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Osogbo.
The papers went up on Monday, 7 September.
Tribunal secretary Pefe Belemore had said the notices would be displayed before noon. Secretariat staff were already in the courtroom as preparations for sitting continued.Two petitions challenge the 15 August result that returned Adeleke for another term.
The APC case, marked EPT/OS/GOV/01/2026, was filed by its candidate, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, against Adeleke, the Accord Party and the Independent National Electoral Commission.
The Peoples Democratic Party case, marked EPT/OS/GOV/02/2026, was filed by Adebayo Olugbenga Adedamola against Adeleke, INEC and Accord.
Display of the petitions is a procedural step. The parties must still be served before full hearing begins. Adeleke remains the declared winner. The detailed grounds of each petition have not been published. The tribunal has not issued a ruling.
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