Politics
‘Oshiomhole, Serial Liar – St Franklyn
The Senior Special Assistant to
the Rivers State Governor, Barr. Oraye St. Franklyn, has advised the public to disregard and discountenance the allegation by the Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole that Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State had sponsored thugs to disrupt the postponed Edo State gubernatorial poll because of his (Oshiomhole’s) track record of misleading statements to the public in the past.
Barr. St. Franklyn who stated this in an interview with The Tide in his office in Port Harcourt said that this was not the first time the Edo State governor had made public claims that were totally misleading.
He recalled that the Edo State chief executive had told Nigerians after visiting the United States of America with an All Progressives Congress (APC) delegation that they had been told in Washington that an individual in the Goodluck Jonathan administration had stolen six trillion Naira without mentioning any particular name till date.
“It’s quite unfortunate that this has been the trend of the APC”, he said, adding that the allegation was not a big issue for many who have come to know the character of the Edo State governor.
“It’s not a big issue for a lot of people because it’s in his nature to mislead the public, it’s in his nature to bear false witness; it’s in his nature to lie”, he averred and advised the governor to concern himself more with how to “clear the gray areas about his educational background”.
The SSA to the Rivers State governor described Governor Wike as a clean and serious-minded governor who is committed to promoting democracy and abhors thuggery to either achieve political ends or to influence the will of the people.
“Rivers people can bear testimony to the fact that Governor Wike has remained committed to the ethos of good governance and democracy”, he said, reiterating that “Governor Wike is a clean and responsible governor. Governor Wike is committed to promoting democracy. Governor Wike does not believe in thuggery”.
The governor’s aide described INEC as an organisation that is now burdened with a credibility crisis and advised the Chairman of the electoral body to be sufficiently disturbed to deliver on the mandate of the Commission.
He said INEC has given Nigerians so much to worry about with its trail of inconclusive elections and urged the Chairman, Prof. Mahmud Yakubu and his Commissioners to be consciencious in carrying out their duties so that they do not jeopardize the future of the country.
“If the INEC Chairman is not disturbed enough about the raging crisis that bedeviles INEC, I don’t know what else will be enough motivation for him to do what is right”, he said, and encouraged Prof. Yakubu to renew the faith of Nigerians in the Commission by insisting on being independent and refusing to pander to any party or sectional interest in the conduct of the Commission’s business.
That, he said, will not only launder the electoral umpire’s image but will strengthen democracy and lead the country out of the socio-political and economic woods it presently finds itself.
Opaka Dokubo
The Senate yesterday received the 2026-2028 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper from President Bola Tinubu, marking the formal launch of the 2026 federal budget cycle.
In a letter addressed to the upper chamber, Tinubu said the submission complies with statutory requirements and sets out the fiscal parameters that will guide the preparation of the 2026 Appropriation Bill.
He explained that the MTEF/FSP outlines the macroeconomic assumptions, revenue projections, and spending priorities that will shape Nigeria’s fiscal direction over the next three years.
The letter was read during plenary by the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin (APC, Kano North), who urged lawmakers to expedite consideration of the document.
“It is with pleasure that I forward the 2026 to 2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper for the kind consideration and approval of the Senate.
“The 2026 to 2028 MTEF and FSP were approved during the Federal Executive Council meeting of December 3, 2025, and the 2026 budget of the Federal Government will be prepared based on the parameters and fiscal assumptions therein,” the President stated.
Last week, the Federal Executive Council approved the fiscal projections, pegging the oil benchmark price at $64.85 per barrel and adopting a budget exchange rate of ?1,512/$1 for 2026—figures expected to significantly shape revenue forecasts and expenditure planning.
After reading the President’s letter, Jibrin referred the document to the Senate Committee on Finance, chaired by Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East), with a directive to submit its report by Wednesday, December 17.
The Senate adjourned shortly after to allow committees to commence scrutiny of the fiscal framework and continue the ongoing screening of ambassadorial nominees.
Tinubu’s communication to the Senate came less than 24 hours after he transmitted the same MTEF/FSP documents to the leadership of the House of Representatives.
The letter was read on the House floor by the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, who also urged timely legislative action as required by law.
The MTEF and FSP are statutory instruments mandated by the Fiscal Responsibility Act and serve as the blueprint for Nigeria’s annual budgets.
They outline the government’s fiscal stance, macroeconomic assumptions, revenue frameworks, projected deficits, and sectoral priorities over a three-year period.
The Tide reports that approval by the National Assembly is a prerequisite for the executive to present the Appropriation Bill for the next fiscal year.
In a statement on Saturday, the former Senate Leader stated that the allocation of nominees across states and geopolitical zones falls short of the constitutional requirement for fair representation in the composition of the Federal Government.
The ex-Senate Whip warned that allowing the list to pass could deepen ethnic suspicion at a time when the administration should be consolidating national unity.
He highlighted disparities in the spread of nominees, noting that while some states have three or four slots, others have none. He also cited the inclusion of Senator Adamu Garba Talba from Yobe, who reportedly died in July.
“The entire North-East states have seven nominees in the list. Further checks revealed that the South-West geo-political zone has 15 nominees, while North-West and South-East have 13 and 9, respectively.
“North-Central region has 10 nominees in the list of career and non-career ambassadorial nominee while South-South parades 12 nominees,” Senator Ndume said.
According to him, such imbalances could heighten tensions and undermine Section 14(3) of the Constitution.
“My sincere appeal to President Tinubu is to withdraw this list. At this critical juncture in his administration, he should avoid missteps that could undermine national unity and foster ethnic distrust.
“I know him to be a cosmopolitan leader who is at home with every segment and stakeholder in the country. He should withdraw that list and present a fresh set of nominees that will align with the spirit of the Constitution on the Federal Character Principle,” Senator Ndume added.
He accused the legislators of undermining the sanctity of the legislature and acting as instruments of destabilization.
“The members of the Rivers State House of Assembly have, by their actions since they assumed office, shown that they are political puppets and a clog in the wheels of democratic progress,” Comrade Ememobong stated, adding that “They will go down in history as enemies of democracy and those who made mockery of the legislature.”
“So the easiest way to describe their action is a defection from APC to APC,” he said.
Comrade Ememobong announced that the party would deploy constitutional provisions to reclaim its mandate from those who have “ignobly and surreptitiously” abandoned the platform on which they were elected.
“Consequently, the PDP will take legal steps to activate the provision of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999 as amended) to recover the mandate gained under the banner of our party which these people have now switched to another platform,” he said.
He urged party members in Rivers State to remain calm and steadfast.
“We urge all party members in Rivers State to remain faithful and resolute, as efforts are underway to rebuild the party along the path of inclusiveness, fairness and equity,” Comrade Ememobong assured.
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