Politics
Andoni Chairman Tasks Councillors On Capacity Dev
A two-day capacity development programme organised for members of Andoni Legislative Assembly ended over the weekend with the council chairman urging the trainees to imbibe knowledge that would enable them discharge their legislative duties effectively.
The chairman of Andoni Local Government Council, Bar Erastus Awortu gave the advice while declaring the programme opened in Port Harcourt last Friday.
The workshop with the theme ”Strengthening the Legislative Institutional Framework for Effective Service Delivery in Andoni Local Government Area” was aimed at enhancing the individual and collective performance of the councilors as well as motivating them to be resourceful, creative and innovative while discharging their duties as elected representatives of the people.
According to the council chairman, “the training is apt, very crucial and timely, given the sorry state of affairs of our Local Government Area which we inherited and the urgent need to right the many wrongs of Andoni to herald a turnaround and a watershed moment in our dear Local Government Area.
“Your role as councillors of the Legislative Arm is critical because you serve as Vanguards of the people and their common interest. The essence of this training is to enable you understand your role as councillors, to impart legislative knowledge and skills in you, build your legislative capacity and competencies, improve your efficiency and enhance your performance individually and collectively as a Legislative Assembly.
“The objective of the training is also to motivate you to be creative and innovative as elected representatives of the people from the 11 Wards of Andoni Local Government so that you can make valuable contribution for the good governance of the people”.
The council boss expressed optimism that the training would educate the lawmakers on the rudiment and basics of legislation at the grassroots and and as well enlighten the councillors on the strategies of strengthening the relationship between the Council Executive and the Legislative Assembly with a view to reducing friction between the two arms of government.
He also expressed hope that the Training will deepening the legislative knowledge in line with legislative best practices and in consistent with the Local Government Laws of Rivers State and the 1999 Constitution as amended which the grundnorm”.
Awortu said the Councillors would through the workshop gained the requisite legislative knowledge to make good bye-laws and contribute positively to the implementation of the policies and programmes of his government for the general good of the people of Andoni.
He urged the Councillors to galvanize and synchronize their energies towards the pursuit of the good of the people while shunning partisanship and divisive tendencies capable of truncating collective efforts at rebuilding Andoni Local Government and changing its ugly narrative.
Awortu further stressed the need for the lawmakers and the Staff of the Council to equip themselves with the necessary modern day skills of Local Government Administration devoid of lack of commitment to work, nonchalant attitude, lukewarmness and unnecessary bureaucracy and red-tapism.
The Council Boss also charged them to take the advantage of the training to inculcate Discipline, Integrity, Honesty, Diligence and Responsiveness, which are the core values of leadership in them.
On his part, the Facilitator, Mr. Solomon Seiyefa said the training is an orientation workshop targeted at strengthening democratic traditions at the Local Government level and equip the Councillors and Support Staff core values on how to enhance their proficiency on the job.
He said it is expected that at the end of the training the Councillors would know the purpose of their election and discharge their role dutifully and diligently.
“The overview of the training is that we intend to achieve a good working relationship between the Executive, the Councillors and Support Staff of the Council. There is a link between them, their functions are interwoven, none can operate in isolation.
“The Local Government cannot be effectively administered without a synergy and harmoniously working relationship between Executive, Staff of the Council and the Legislative Arm.
“Without a good Legislature the Executive cannot function, the Council Chairman needs the Councllors to enact functional bye-laws, to enact acceptable bye-laws, the Councillors also need the Executive to function efficiently. Also, without the Support Staff the Legislative Arm cannot make bye-laws and without the Legislative Arm the Support Staff cannot function effectively.
“So this training is also aimed at bridging the gap of misunderstanding between the Councillors and the Support Staff of the Andoni Local Government” he said.
The Leader of the Andoni Legislative Assembly Sheila Jacob Nte who spoke to newsmen at the training commended the Council Chairman for the initiative. She said they are now well enlightened on their role as Councillors and adequately equipped with the basic legislative skills of lawmaking at the third tier of Government.
She promised that the knowledge acquired in the training would be put to good use in their day-to-day legislative business.
Also, the Councillor representing Ward 5 Andoni Gogo Ikuru who described the training as the first of its kind said they are better equipped to deliver on their mandate as elected representatives of the people. He thanked the Council Chairman for developing their legislative capacity on the job.
The package of the 2-day Training for the Councillors and Support Staff of Andoni Local Government Council includes:
– An overview of the Local Government System in Nigeria: Creation, Structure and Function.
– The Role and functions of the Local Government Legislative Assembly under the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria, as amended, and the Rivers State Local Government Law No. 5 of 2018, as amended.
– The Conduct of Business in a Legislative Chamber: Ethics, Rules and Procedures.
– The Role of Support Staff in Legislative Process.
– The Role of Bureaucracy and Legislative Aides in the Legislature.
– Budgeting and Budgetary Process in Local Government Council.
– The Role of the Legislative Assembly in advancing accountability and good governance in Local Government Administration.
By: Enoch Epelle
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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