Politics
I’ll Encourage Uzodinma To Develop Imo, Buhari Assures – As PDP Mocks President Over Visit
President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, said he would encourage the Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma, to develop the state within the limit of the law.
The President said this in Owerri while commissioning the Egbeada Bypass Road in Owerri.
He also commissioned Balloon Technology erosion tunnel to control the erosion in Egbu, D-Tiger, Egbu Federal Housing, Aladimma, Chukwuma Nwaoha, among others.
He also commissioned the Naze junction improvement.
The president, who spoke shortly said, “I have gone round and I have seen enough I have seen Uzodinma integrity in working hard, I am impressed with what I have seen. This is what I am facing at the centre, I want to say this, from the centre, I will encourage Imo in the ongoing infrastructure development within the limits of the law.
“A society without security and infrastructure will not progress, and luckily, this is where my vision has tallied with the governor of Imo State. I will use my power as enshrined by the constitution to make the governor achieve more.”
The President said the projects would boost economic activities in the state and ease traffic congestion.
He said all projects commissioned were in line with his administration policy, and pledged to help Uzodinma fight insecurity.
The president also pledged to help Uzodinma deal with infrastructural deficits of the state.
It was learnt that despite the heavy presence of security operatives in every part of Owerri, the Imo State capital, mammoth crowd were on ground to receive President Muhammadu Buhari during his one-day working visit to Imo State.
The President, who flew into the heartland city of Owerri from the seat of power in Abuja, yesterday morning, also held a town hall meeting with South-East leaders.
Ebonyi State Governor, Engr Dave Umahi, and Abia State deputy governor were present at the event.
Buhari had earlier at about 09:30am, arrived in Imo State amid tight security.
The President had landed at Sam Mbakwe, Imo Airport where he was received by a mammoth crowd of Imo citizens and South-East leaders.
However, economic activities in Owerri and other parts of the state were shut down following the arrival of the President in the state.
Buhari’s decision to visit the state had stimulated tension in the entire Southeastern region following the declaration of sit-at-home by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), in solidarity for its leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, who is currently in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).
Although the secessionist group had subsequently denied issuing the order, places such as banks and shops have been shut over fear of attacks by the unknown gunmen wreaking havoc in the region.
Contrary to calls by some separatists and critics of Buhari, the President received a warm welcome by some citizens of the state upon his arrival.
Meanwhile, the Imo State chapter of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), has faulted President Muhammadu Buhari’s planned visit to the state.
The state Publicity Secretary of PDP, Ogubundu Nwadike, said Buhari’s visit is a mockery on the people of the state.
The state Governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma, had recently disclosed that the President would visit the state.
Uzodinma said Buhari would commission significant projects during his official visit to the state.
But reacting, Nwadike accused Buhari and Uzodinma of causing war in Imo State.
In a statement by Nwadike, he said, “In recent months, Imo, once a land of peace, was forcibly turned into a theatre of war. Today, Imo knows no peace principally because the governor is on the warpath.
“Imo under Governor Hope Uzodinma is a police state. Basic freedoms of the people have been curtailed while an army of occupation reigns and rules in the land. The entire scenario leaves a bitter taste in the mouth.
“For us in PDP, the presidential visit is a deliberate ploy to mock the people of the state to their very face. This is callous and inhuman.”
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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