Politics
Youth Petition Assembly Over Marginalization
Last week, the Rivers State House of Assembly resumed from its two-month recess. The House had taken a break few weeks to the State local government elections, as it afforded lawmakers the opportunity to participate in campaigns and consultations with their constituents.
On resumption, the floor was opened with the screening of a commisioner-nominee, Hon. John Bazia, who was a one time House member, and is having his second missionary journey into the State Executive Council.
Though Bazia was asked to take a bow, as a former lawmaker, he spoke to newsmen shortly after leaving the hallowed chambers, assuring that the appointment will afford him an opportunity to contribute to the state and at the same time root for good governance under the able leadership of the Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike.
After the screening of the commissioner-nominee, the House proceeded into the business of the day with the petition from Rumuadaolu Community youth presented by member representing Obio/Akpor Constituency II, Hon. Okechukwu Chinda.
Hon. Chinda argued that the petition was as a result of continuous marginalization of the youths by companies operating in their community stretching from Rumuola to some parts of the Government Reserved Area (GRA) covering Hotel Presidential, Port Harcourt.
The petition signed by Chinedu Aguma and Comrade Okekwu Achizie specifically accused an oil firm, Cylopeg Nigeria Limited of not engaging the youth from the community.
The lawmaker submitted that the attitude of the companies was capable of instigating crisis, but that the youths have remained law-abiding and would not take laws into their hands.
The petition was later sent to the House Committee on Public Petitions for further hearing.
Immediately after the youth petition was heard, the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Ikuinyi Owaji-Ibani called on lawmaker representing Port Harcourt Constituency I, Hon. Victoria Nyeche to present her bill. The bill titled is “Rivers State Thanksgiving Day Bill 2018 (HA 13)”.
According to Hon. Nyeche, the bill was presented as a private member bill to seek a special day set aside for thanking and appreciating God for His mercies on the state.
She recalled that similar days are being celebrated in the United States of America and Canada, where the citizens dedicate their countries to God and appreciate God.
Nyeche proposed 27th May as “Thanksgiving Day” as it falls on the day the state was created. She sought the support of her fellow lawmakers and the general public to ensure the bill is passed into law.
Also last week, member representing Bonny State Constituency, Hon. Blessing Pepple inaugurated sub-publicity committee ahead the planned “State Power Summit” . The summit is to review and chart a course for the state power sector and is expected to witness attendance from industry stakeholders.
Prof. Amupitan gave the warning on Saturday, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, during the South-South Zonal Readiness Assessment and Interactive Staff Engagement organised ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He said insecurity remained a potential challenge to the electoral process but stressed that the Commission would not allow threats against its personnel to undermine its constitutional responsibilities.
“Insecurity may pose a challenge, but our collective constitutional resolve is far stronger. Let me again send a clear message from Port Harcourt: anyone who attempts to threaten, intimidate, or harm our ad-hoc staff, NYSC members, or permanent personnel will be brought to justice under the full weight of the law,” he said.
The INEC Chairman, who was accompanied by National Commissioners, directors and technical aides, disclosed that the South-South engagement was the fifth in a series of zonal assessments, following similar exercises in the South-West, North-West, South-East and North-East.
He explained that his physical presence across the geopolitical zones reflected the Commission’s field-first approach, emphasising that electoral integrity must be established through effective operations at the grassroots.
According to him, the assessment would cover operational preparedness across the 123 Local Government Areas in the six South-South states.
On election security, Prof. Amupitan said INEC had moved away from reactive security arrangements traditionally activated around election day to a proactive, intelligence-driven framework known as the “ICCES Tentacle”.
He explained that the framework was designed to extend inter-agency security coordination from national and state headquarters to local government areas and Registration Area Centres, including remote communities.
He identified three critical pillars of the framework as mapping and mitigating security threats, protecting electoral personnel and infrastructure, and guaranteeing safe access to polling units.
The INEC boss said the security arrangement would provide comprehensive protection for electoral personnel, technological infrastructure, including Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) devices and server infrastructure, as well as voters.
He added that the framework was intended to ensure that every polling unit, irrespective of its geographical location or history of security challenges, remained safe and accessible for the exercise of democratic rights.
Prof. Amupitan disclosed that the South-South security architecture comprised approximately 60 major operational formations, headquarters and state commands operating under the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES).
The network, he said, brings together military, naval, air, police and other security and intelligence agencies across the six states.
“Together, this integrated multi-agency network represents the operational backbone that guarantees intelligence-led protection across every riverine creek, coastal axis, and land-based polling unit in the Niger Delta,” he stated.
Providing an overview of the region’s electoral significance, the INEC Chairman said the South-South had the fourth-largest voting bloc in the country, with 15,823,550 registered voters, representing 15.30 per cent of the national register.
Rivers State alone, he said, accounts for 3,736,434 registered voters spread across the 23 local government areas.
Alhaji Abubakar made the demand following revelations that some INEC registration officers allegedly abused their access to the voter registration system to introduce irregular records into the database.
In a statement issued by his Director of Strategic Communications, Mr Phrank Shaibu, the former vice-president described the development as a serious breach of the Commission’s internal safeguards and raised concerns about the integrity of the electoral process.
He urged INEC to identify the officials implicated in the alleged misconduct and explain what disciplinary or legal measures had been taken against them.
Alhaji Abubakar also called for an independent forensic audit of the preliminary voters’ register to establish the scale of the alleged manipulation, identify affected records and determine how the questionable entries were introduced into the system.
He further insisted that INEC preserve all relevant voter records, image files, system access logs and electronic audit trails to prevent the destruction or alteration of evidence before an independent examination could be conducted.
The former vice-president also demanded that the Commission disclose the identities of companies contracted to produce sensitive election materials ahead of the 2027 polls, arguing that transparency was essential to building public confidence in the electoral process.
INEC’s Director of Information and Communication Technology, Dr Lawrence Bayode, had earlier disclosed during a television interview that some registration officers across the country allegedly used their official login credentials to introduce irregularities into the voters’ database.
Dr Bayode explained that the Commission’s Automated Biometric Identification System helped identify questionable records and establish how some irregularities entered the system.
He, however, clarified that not all suspicious photographs were AI-generated, as some resulted from poor registration procedures.
The development followed public concerns over suspected AI-generated photographs, alleged duplicate entries and other inconsistencies discovered in the preliminary voters’ register published online on October 26, 2026.
INEC has maintained that the published document is a preliminary register and that it is reviewing questionable records ahead of the certification of the final Register of Voters.
The controversy has intensified calls for greater transparency and accountability in the management of the voters’ register as preparations gather momentum for the 2027 general elections.
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