Politics
Rivers, PDP State – Wike
The solidarity visit by the newly elected Executive Council
of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) took the lead among other prominent events that took place in Government House last week.
But before the events, Governor Nyesom Wike attended the wedding ceremony of the first daughter of former Deputy national Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus. The governor who was Special Guest of honour called on the married couples to pay attention in building their families as the revival of the country depends on well matured families.
Last Monday Governor Wike through his Special Assistant on Electronic Media announced the re-constitution of the state Basic Education Board. The board is led by Ven. Fyneface Akah as Chairman. Others are Dr. William Nzidee, Barrister Opuada Willie-Pepple and Mr. Kio Tams.
The governor also approved the appointment of Mr. Chulendi Dimkpa as the Acting Managing Director of Rivers State Signage and Advertising Agency.
Also, last Monday, a Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt upheld the new Caretaker Committee executive Council as appointed at the National Convention on May 21st, 2016.
The court held that the CTC Exco was duly constituted. Justice Liman said Article 31 (1) of the PDP Constitution vested the powers to commence a national convention of the National Executive Committee of the party. It then described the action of sacked National Chairman, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff as ultravires and of no consequence after he was disqualified at the screening ahead the convention.
The visit of the State Executive Council of the PDP took the day.
But before the visit, the governor had assented to three newly passed bills at the State House of Assembly. The bills are Rivers State Taxes and Levies Miscellaneous Provisions law No. 2, 2016, Rivers State Hotel Occupancy and Restaurants Consumption Law N0. 3, of 2016 and Rivers State Polytechnic law Number 4 of 2016.
Addressing the leadership of the PDP who paid a solidarity visit Chief Wike said Rivers State is a traditional PDP State. He said, “Rivers State is a traditional PDP State. If they like let them bring American Marines or the American Navy Seals, PDP will win in Rivers State”.
He urged INEC to always work toward elections in the state to further deepen democracy, assuring that they are willing to support security agencies to conduct peaceful elections.
The governor, on Tuesday evening, felicitated with Muslims in the state over the completion of the Ramadan fast and celebration of Eidel-Fitri. Though the holidays were extended by one day due to delay in sighting the moon, Chief Wike congratulated Muslim faithful and called on all Nigerians to draw the lessons of piety, love, Justice fairness, equity, peaceful co-existence with others which the teachings of Prophet Mohammed exemplified.
Deputy Governor, Dr. Ipalibo Harry-Banigo also within the week called on residents to support the State Government onslaught against crime by reporting criminals and all forms of suspicious movement in their viscidity to the security agencies.
Last Thursday, the State Government donated additional 20 patrol vehicles to the Police to strengthen their surveillance and patrol in the state to curb crime. This is coming after the State and Local Government Areas, had released 110 patrol vans to security agencies in the state.
Ogoni people, last Friday, reiterated their support to the Governor Nyesom Wike led administration. In separate interviews, the people expressed happiness over the Bori/Sakpenwa Road and the total rehabilitation of Birabi Memorial Grammar School, Bori.
In a statement signed by its Chairman, Emeka Nwankpa, and Secretary, Dapo Okubanjo, the group described the swift assent as a clear demonstration of political will to strengthen Nigeria’s electoral process ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“We see the decision by President Bola Tinubu to sign the reworked 2022 Electoral Act into law within a few hours of its passage as a demonstration of political will to ensure an improved electoral process which the new law envisages,” the group said.
The TMSG expressed confidence that the development would enable the Independent National Election Commission (INEC) to quickly align its operations with the new provisions in preparation for the 2027 polls.
The group noted that the provision for electronic transmission of results had been contentious but described its codification in the law as a significant step forward.
“So, for the first time, the country’s electoral law would be recognising the use of the Bi-modal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the result viewing portal, IREV, which were just INEC guidelines in 2023,” it stated.
According to the TMSG, although the Act provides for electronic transmission of results from polling units to the IREV portal, it also makes room for manual transmission of Form EC8A result sheets as a backup in the event of technological failure.
“Unlike some Nigerians, we do not see anything wrong with the fallback plan but we agree with the President that no matter how beautiful a process is with improved technology, the onus lies on the people manning it to show good faith and ensure that the votes of the people really count at the end of the day,” the statement added.
The group highlighted other key provisions in the amended law, including the streamlining of party primaries to either consensus or direct primaries, early release of funds to INEC, reinforced measures against over-voting, and stiffer sanctions for electoral offences such as falsification of results.
It also pointed out that the mandatory notice period for elections has been reduced from 360 days to 300 days, giving INEC more flexibility in adjusting the timetable for the 2027 elections, especially where it may clash with Ramadan.
The TMSG further observed that the President’s decision to sign the bill days before the forthcoming Area Council Election in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) underscores his desire for the law to take immediate effect.
“And by signing the amendment bill a few days before the Area Council Election in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), it is obvious that the President is keen on ensuring that the 2026 Electoral Act takes immediate effect.
“Nigerians would also have an opportunity to see some of the key provisions of the new electoral law become operational, especially the electronic transmission of results,” it said.
The group expressed optimism that the current INEC leadership would leverage the new legal framework to deliver a more credible and widely acceptable electioneering process than in previous electoral cycles.
A senator who represented Taraba Central, Mr Abubakar Yusuf, has declared that the economic policies of President Bola Tinubu are not yielding the expected results.
His comment is one of the strongest internal critiques yet from within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The comment underscores the growing dissatisfaction within sections of the ruling party over the direction and impact of the administration’s economic reforms amid rising living costs and fiscal pressures across the country.
Mr Yusuf, who served in the Senate between 2015 and 2023 under the platform of the APC, made the remarks during an appearance on national television.
Responding to a question on whether the administration’s economic direction, often referred to as Tinubunomics, was working, Mr Yusuf answered in the contrary.
“For me, it is not working. I am a member of the APC. I would be the last person to hide the facts”, he said.
He said while the government might be operating diligently within its policy structure, the framework itself is ill-suited to Nigeria’s current realities
“Within the policy framework, yes, they are doing their best, but it is not the framework that is suitable for Nigeria at the point in time that President Asiwaju came into power,” he said.
Mr Yusuf criticised the immediate removal of fuel subsidy on the day the president was sworn in, arguing that the decision lacked sufficient consultation and planning.
“I am one of those who say President Asiwaju ought to have waited. Not on the day he was sworn in to say subsidy is gone. On what basis?”, he asked.
He urged broader engagement before major fiscal decisions are taken.
“Sit down with your cabinet, sit down with your ministers, sit down with your advisers,” he said, dismissing the argument that subsidy removal was justified solely on grounds of corruption.
The former lawmaker identified “structural flaws” in the country’s budgeting system, particularly the envelope budgeting model.
“One of the basic problems is that before you budget, you should have a plan. The envelope system we have been operating has been you budget before you plan. That has been a major issue”, he said.
He argued that allocating spending ceilings without aligning them to concrete development strategies inevitably weakens implementation and delivery.
“If you give me an envelope which is contrary to my plan, whether it is plus or minus, there is no way I am going to implement my plan. It is bound to fail,” he said.
Mr Yusuf called for the scrapping of the envelope budgeting system, noting that he had consistently opposed it even during his years in the National Assembly.
“It is not good for us. It is not going to work well for us,” he said.
He further blamed poor capital releases and persistent deficit financing for undermining budget performance over the years.
“We could not meet 60 percent of our capital budget in all these years. No releases. If you make a budget and the release is very poor, there is no way the budget will be executed”, he stated.
According to him, weak fund disbursement mechanisms and reliance on deficit financing have entrenched a cycle of underperformance.
“Our budget ought to have been a surplus budget, but all our budgets have always been deficit financing budgets,” Mr Yusuf added.
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