Politics
Rivers Sends Flood Alerts To 14 LGAs
Activities in Government House was on the low last
week, however governance activities continued as usual. One Ministry that took the centre stage last week was that of Special Duties following a flood alert in about 14 local government areas in the riverine axis.
Commissioner for Special Duties, Barrister Dickson Umunakwe invited local government chairmen in the affected areas to alert and brief them on modalities on tackling the menace headlong.
Though about five caretaker chairmen attended the meeting, it was agreed among others that emergency committees be set up in the councils in Ahoada-East, Ahoada West, Bonny and Ogba-Egbema/Ndoni.
The Ministry of Environment last week Saturday corroborated plans by that of the Ministry of Special Duties to tackle flooding. In short last weekend, Environmental Sanitation exercise provided a platform for Environmental Health Officers to inspect the city.
Head of Environmental Health/Monitoring who represented the Commissioner for Environment, Dr Nyema Weli warned residents and property owners to avoid building on water ways to avert flooding as predicted by the Nigerian Metrological Agency (NIMET).
The Environmental expert warned that henceforth the Ministry will start enforcement to deter others. He also announced plans by the Ministry of Environment to beef up its monitoring and enforcement in all parts of the state.
Also within the week under Review, the authorities of Akuku Toru Local Governmetn Area were joltted by a threal by one Ajagidi Asawari on Governor Amaechi over his planned visit to Kula Community.
Chairman of the Caretaker Committee of AKULGA, Hon Stanley Denebo in responding to the statement by Asawari urging the governor and his entourage to learn swimming skills before embarking on any visit to Kula said that does not represent the view of the Kula people, but that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Hon. Benebo further noted that Asawari was sponsored to make such statement, since the people of Kula hold the governor in high esteem and have benefitted immensely from his developmental strides.
In the words of the AKULGA Chairman, “the governor has the right to visit any community to familiarise himself with the people he governs”.
Hon. Benebo also added, “the appointment of the caretaker chairman, a Kula son for the first time is an indication of Governor Amaechi’s love and interest in Kula Kingdom. He has given Kula sons scholarships, built schools and health centres and rehabilitated the Kula Water Scheme”.
Hon. Benebo therefore called on the security agencies not to treat Asawari’s threat with kid gloves but to investigate him, since he (Asawari) has been linked to criminal activities in the past and has been terrorising the Oceania communities with his group.
Governor Amaechi was in the United States of America (USA) at the weekend for the continuation of his “Meet the People Tour”. The forum enabled the governor to explain his policy objectives, his challenges and success so far in government. He had already visited Ikwerre Local Government Area before heading to the USA.
An empowerment scheme organised by the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area held last weekend with over 250 women being provided with skills acquisition equipment. The women were trained in crafts such as bead making, hat making, soap and cosmetics making .
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has insisted on the conclusion of the Continuous Voter Registration exercise yesterday (Sunday) despite calls by some opposition political parties and civil society organisations for an extension over concerns that millions of citizens could be excluded from the 2027 general elections.
In a notice issued on its X (formerly Twitter) handle on Saturday, the commission reminded the public that the exercise would end on Sunday, July 26, with designated registration centres open from 9am to 3pm.
“Your future won’t wait. Neither should you. The Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise ends Sunday, 26 July 2026,” the Commission stated.
INEC also reminded prospective voters that they could complete the registration process online through its dedicated CVR portal or visit designated INEC offices and registration centres nationwide for physical assistance.
The new Electoral Act stipulates that INEC is required to stop voter registration, updating and revision of the voters’ register 90 days before an election to allow for data clean-up, the printing of Permanent Voter Cards and other logistical preparations.
The law also requires the Commission to display the voters’ register for claims and objections within the stipulated period to enable eligible Nigerians to challenge omissions and errors and help ensure the credibility of the final register for the polls.
The INEC National Commissioner on Information and Voter Education, Mr Mohammed Haruna, told The Tide source that the Commission would not extend the deadline, stressing that the registration exercise had to close to allow the electoral body to begin cleaning the data already collected.
“By midnight on Sunday, voter registration ends. There won’t be any extension. There are so many things that we need to do at the back end. We have to draw a line; otherwise, we won’t be able to produce a clean copy of what has been posted,” he said.
Mr Haruna explained that the commission’s Information Technology team and the Voter Registration Department would begin processing the data immediately after the closure of the registration window.
He said INEC would deploy its Automated Biometric Identification System to detect and remove multiple registrations before the provisional voters’ register is displayed for public scrutiny.
“We have this automatic biometric system that will check whether somebody has registered more than once. They will publish the register for claims and objections. That is, if anybody thinks a name shouldn’t be on the register, or if he has some claims, for instance, that his name has been omitted or some of his details are incorrect,” he said.
According to him, the final number of newly registered voters would only be known after the biometric verification and the claims and objections process.
“So, it’s after all that has been done that we will have a final figure, which we will now add to the existing 93 million or so. That will then become the voters’ register. We are mandated to give every political party a copy ahead of the election,” Mr Haruna added.
Responding to concerns over the number of Nigerians who may be excluded from the 2027 electoral process by the closure, the national commissioner said INEC could only account for eligible citizens who presented themselves for registration.
He added that the commission had recorded registrations through its online platform, physical registration centres and INEC offices across the 774 local government areas.
According to a public announcement signed by Mr Ariyo Rufus, Head of Department, Voter Education, Publicity, Gender and Inclusivity on behalf of Mr Oluwatoyin Babalola, the INEC Osun State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), the said exercise is aimed at assessing its operational readiness and testing the efficiency of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) ahead of the governorship poll.
INEC stated that the exercise would simulate Election Day accreditation procedures but clarified that no voting would take place during the exercise.
The commission explained that “the mock accreditation would be conducted in selected polling units spread across the three senatorial districts of Osun State, covering Osun Central, Osun East and Osun West.
“In Osun Central Senatorial District, the selected local government areas are Osogbo, Olorunda, Ifelodun and Boripe, with designated polling units identified for the exercise.
“For Osun East Senatorial District, the exercise will take place in selected polling units across Ilesa West, Ilesa East, Oriade and Obokun local government areas.”
INEC also listed Egbedore, Ede North, Ede South and Ejigbo local government areas as the selected councils for the mock accreditation exercise in Osun West Senatorial District.
The commission urged all registered voters whose polling units were selected to participate in the exercise, stressing that only holders of valid Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) would be accredited.
“This exercise is designed to test the functionality and efficiency of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) under conditions similar to Election Day. There shall be no voting during the exercise,” the Commission stated.
INEC reaffirmed its appreciation to residents of Osun State for their continued cooperation and support throughout the electoral process.
INEC also assured political parties, the media, civil society organisations and other stakeholders of the Commission’s commitment to conducting a free, fair, credible, transparent and inclusive governorship election in Osun State.
Mr Dare made the remark while criticizing Alhaji Abubakar for hiring a United States of America lobbyist with $1.2 million, in preparation for the 2027 elections.
In a statement he personally signed, Mr Dare said the former vice president can’t take Nigeria down the path of self-destruction.
The statement read in part: “Worse still, for a man who presumes to offer leadership to Africa’s most populous nation, his recent resort to grievance offshoring, outsourcing political warfare to Washington and reportedly paying $1.2 million to an American lobbying firm to peddle petitions against a sitting Nigerian President, stands as an affront to Nigeria’s sovereignty and a vote of no confidence in its democratic institutions.
“It is also a stinging slight, an implicit condescension directed at generations of Nigerian journalists, policy analysts, academics, and public intellectuals who have spent decades analysing, critiquing, and carrying the burden of the nation’s democratic evolution.
“The Atiku Abubakar of today cuts a pitiable figure, a grotesque portrait of what a politician becomes when ambition overwhelms judgment and every political faculty becomes programmed for self-destruction.
“No, Atiku cannot take Nigeria down that path with him. He must travel it alone. But first, Nigerians deserve Atiku Abubakar’s report card. Charity, they say, begins at home, not in Washington.
“Nigerians deserve to know whether the Atiku Abubakar who has long presented himself as a democrat is, in reality, a politician of many colours. He has erected for himself a throne built simultaneously on sand and bayonets. It is time to explode the bayonets.”
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