News
Senate Yields To Pressure, Amends Electoral Act …To Allow Elected Govt, Party Officials Vote At Congresses, Primaries …Passes Four Bills For Concurrence
The Senate, yesterday, amended the Electoral Act, 2022, to allow all elected persons ‘statutory delegates’ at all levels of government to participate and vote in the conventions, congresses or meetings of political parties.
This is even as the Senate passed a Bill to enact the Arbitration and Mediation Act to provide for a unified legal framework for the settlement of commercial disputes.
Also passed were other bills for concurrence from the House of Representatives by the chamber after a clause-by-clause consideration by the Committee of the Whole.
The upper chamber, in an accelerated legislative process, considered the bill for the Amendment of 2022 Electoral Act No 13, at plenary where the bill scaled first, second and third readings, and was passed by the Committee of the Whole.
The bill to amend the 2022 Electoral Act No. 13 was sponsored by the Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege (Delta Central).
Those identified as ‘statutory delegates’ include the President, Vice President, members of the National Assembly, governors and their deputies, members of the state Houses of Assembly, chairmen of local government councils, councillors, National Working Committee (NWC) of political parties, party chairmen in the 774 local government areas, state party chairmen and secretaries, amongst others.
Presenting the bill, the sponsor and Deputy President of the Senate, Ovie Omo-Agege, said the bill seeks to amend the provision of Section 84(8) of the Electoral Act.
According to him, the provisions of the section “does not provide for the participation of what is generally known as ‘statutory delegates’ in the conventions, congresses or meetings of political parties.
“The extant section only clearly provides for the participation of elected delegates in the conventions, congresses or meetings of political parties held to nominate candidates of political parties.
“This is an unintended error, and we can only correct it with this amendment now before us”, Omo-Agege said.
In his remarks after the passage of the bill, President of the Senate, Dr Ahmad Lawan, said that the amendment became imperative in view of the deficiency created by the provision of Section 84(8) of the extant Act.
He said, “The amended Electoral Act of 2022 that we passed this year, has a deficiency that was never intended, and that deficiency will deny all statutory delegates in all political parties from participation in congresses and conventions.
“And, therefore, such a major and unintended clause has to be amended before the party primaries start in the next eight days. This is an emergency legislation, so to speak.
“Our expectation is that the National Assembly – the two chambers – would finish with the processing of the amendment of this bill, between today (in the Senate) and tomorrow (in the House of Representatives), and then, the Executive will do the assent.
“That is so important to enable every statutory delegate to participate in the party primaries right from the beginning that will start on May18, 2022.
“So, this is an emergency effort to ensure that nobody is denied his or her rightful opportunity as a delegate, especially the statutory delegates, and these are those who are elected.”
The Senate president commended the efforts of his colleagues, and expressed belief that the amendment bill would be signed into law to grant the political parties hitch-free primaries in respect to who is a delegate to the conventions, primaries and who is not.
Similarly, the Senate, yesterday, passed a Bill to enact the Arbitration and Mediation Act to provide for a unified legal framework for the settlement of commercial disputes.
Also passed were other bills for concurrence from the House of Representatives by the chamber after a clause-by-clause consideration by the Committee of the Whole.
The bills include Federal Medical Centre, Ogoja, Cross River State (Establishment) Bill, 2022; Federal Medical Centre, Igboora, Oyo State (Establishment) Bill, 2021; and Advertising Regulatory Council Bill, 2022.
The four bills for concurrence were sponsored by the Senate Leader, Yahaya Abdullahi (Kebbi North).
In his lead debate, Abdullahi said the Arbitration and Mediation Act, 2022, seeks to repeal the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, Cap A18, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
He disclosed that the piece of legislation recognises and enforces the New York convention on foreign arbitration awards to any award made in Nigeria or any contracting state arising out of international commercial arbitration.
Abdullahi added that it also seeks the application of the Singapore convention on the international settlement agreements resulting from mediation.
The four bills for concurrence were passed by the Senate after a clause-by-clause consideration by the Committee of the Whole.
Meanwhile, a bill to repeal the National Secondary Education Commission Act, yesterday, scaled second reading in the Senate.
The bill seeks to enact the National Senior Secondary Education Act, 2022, to prescribe minimum standards for senior secondary education in Nigeria.
The sponsor of the bill, Senator YahayaAbdullahi, in his lead debate on the general principles, said the bill makes provision for the management of the National Senior Secondary Education Commission Fund – as a source of government intervention toward the repositioning of Senior Secondary Schools in Nigeria.
The bill, after consideration, was referred by the Senate President, Dr Ahmad Lawan, to the Committee on Education (Basic and Secondary) for further legislative work.
The committee was given four weeks to report back to the chamber in plenary.
By: Nneka Amaechi-Nnadi, Abuja
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted 1.63 million pills of tramadol concealed in two long trailers heading for Kano as it intensified efforts to dismantle a transnational drug trafficking syndicate operating along the Togo-Benin Republic-Nigeria corridor.
The agency also arrested an 80-year-old suspected drug dealer in Rivers State, a businesswoman linked to cannabis shipments from Canada, a Chadian woman, a couple and other suspects in coordinated operations across Lagos, Edo, Kogi and Rivers states.
The NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement, yesterday.
According to the statement, the latest intelligence-led operation came barely one week after NDLEA operatives recovered 558,900 pills of tramadol concealed in the false-bottom compartment of a truck that entered Lagos through the Togo-Benin Republic route.
Babafemi said, “Ongoing efforts to dismantle a transnational drug trafficking syndicate smuggling tramadol from Togo, through Benin Republic into Nigeria have yielded another success with the interception of two long trailers used to move One Million Six Hundred and Thirty (1,630,000) pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in fabricated compartments of the trucks across multiple borders into Lagos.”
He added that one of the two trailers was intercepted on July 2 along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, where operatives recovered 853,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor.
Babafemi said, “One of the two trucks already heading to Kano was tracked and located on 2nd July 2026 along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway where NDLEA officers recovered 853,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor of the trailer and arrested the 22-year-old driver Jabir Kabiru.”
He further disclosed that another trailer was intercepted two days later on the same route.
“Two days later, 4th July, NDLEA operatives acting on processed intelligence successfully tracked and recovered the second trailer from the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway while heading to Kano. A total of 777,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor of the truck were evacuated and the 22-year-old driver Muhammed Nuhu arrested,” the statement read.
According to Babafemi, investigations established a link between the three intercepted consignments.
He said, “Investigations revealed that all three trucks and consignments intercepted on 21st June, 2nd July and 4th July belong to the same transnational drug trafficking syndicate operating along the Togo-Benin Republic-Nigeria axis.”
The agency also intercepted 4.70 kilograms of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.
Babafemi said, “Two consignments of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, with a combined weight of 4.70 kilograms have been intercepted at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos. The cargoes, which arrived the Lagos airport from Canada in cartons with ‘Odugwu’ boldly written on them, came aboard British Airways and Ethiopian Airlines flights on 24th June and 3rd July respectively.”
He said two cargo agents, Ali Rotimi Samson and Orimolade Oluwagbenga, were initially arrested in connection with the shipments, while another suspect, Edeh Onyeamachi Stanislus, was apprehended after arriving at a logistics company to take delivery of the consignments.
The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction has denied claims that it has commenced registration for a purported ?50,000 National Support Allowance.
The ministry, in a public notice posted on its official X handle, yesterday, described messages, links and websites advertising the alleged programme as fraudulent.
It urged Nigerians to disregard such claims and verify information only through official government channels.
“The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction has NOT commenced registration for any ?50,000 National Support Allowance,” the ministry said.
It added, “Disregard fraudulent messages, links and websites claiming otherwise. Verify any info only through official govt channels.”
The alert is in response to a circulating scam flyer that falsely claims the program is ongoing under President Bola Tinubu’s directives.
The fake advertisement, which includes text in Hausa and English, directs victims to a suspicious website (kluspz.com) for applications.
The ministry’s warning comes amid heightened concerns over digital fraud targeting vulnerable populations seeking social support.
Similar scams have previously surfaced around programs like N-Power, prompting questions from citizens in replies to the official post.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has expressed its preparedness for a major national struggle for a comprehensive review of the national minimum wage.
NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, hinted at this while making his remarks at the commissioning of the Comrade Godwin Abumisi Pensioners Legacy House and Multipurpose Hall in Abuja.
Ajaero said it is no longer acceptable to discuss the welfare of workers without also discussing the welfare of those who have completed their active years of service.
He advised workers and pensioners to get prepared for the ideological and economic battles that lie ahead.
According to the NLC president, “The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) is one of the proud affiliates of the Nigeria Labour Congress. Therefore, your struggle is our struggle, and your welfare remains a priority for the organised labour movement.
“We are currently in the preparatory stages for a major national struggle for a comprehensive review of the national minimum wage.
“However, let me state unequivocally that it is no longer acceptable to discuss the welfare of workers without also discussing the welfare of those who have completed their active years of service.
“Accordingly, the Nigeria Labour Congress will not only push for a new national minimum wage but will also demand the establishment of a national minimum pension. It is a historical injustice that men and women who devoted their youth, strength and productive years to the service of this nation should be condemned to live below the poverty line after retirement.”
Ajaero noted that the cost of living has risen astronomically as food, healthcare and transportation have become increasingly unaffordable.
“We cannot continue to allow our senior citizens to survive on pensions that have become poverty wages. Every retiree deserves to live with dignity after decades of faithful service to the nation,” he said.
He urged pensioners across the country to remain united and prepared as the process begins, adding: “This Legacy House should not merely be seen as a physical structure; it should become a centre for mobilisation, strategic engagement and solidarity as we prepare for the struggles ahead.”
The NLC president pointed out that the working class has always understood that “those who exploit workers are united in advancing their interests. We too must remain united in defending our collective interests and ensuring that government fulfils its obligations to both serving workers and retirees.”
He urged pensioners across the country to remain united and prepared as the process begins, adding: “This Legacy House should not merely be seen as a physical structure; it should become a centre for mobilisation, strategic engagement and solidarity as we prepare for the struggles ahead.”
The NLC president pointed out that the working class has always understood that “those who exploit workers are united in advancing their interests. We too must remain united in defending our collective interests and ensuring that government fulfils its obligations to both serving workers and retirees.”
He said the completion of the project should serve as a clarion call to all workers and lovers of the masses.
“We must not only build physical structures but also build a strong movement capable of compelling government to honour its commitments,” he said.
Ajaero further stated: “We will continue to demand the immediate payment of all outstanding pension arrears and the implementation of a pension regime that guarantees every retiree a life of dignity and security.
“Together, we shall continue to fight until every Nigerian worker and pensioner receives the justice, respect and welfare they deserve.”
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