Politics
2023: Make Statement With Your Votes, Lawyer Urges Nigerians
As the build up to the 2023 general elections gathers momentum, a Port Harcourt based legal practitioner and Public Affairs analyst, Barr Precious Dike, has urged Nigerians to consider making a definite statement of how to run going forward with their votes.
Barr Dike, who stated this in an exclusive interview with The Tide in Port Harcourt advised the electorate to jettison the practice of allowing sentiments to dictate their choice of leaders.
On the contrary, he urged Nigerians to be purposeful, clear minded and focused in deciding who gets their mandate to run the affairs of the country in next year’s general elections, adding that their choice should reflect their yearnings and aspirations.
“As much as we do have the right to vote whoever we like to vote, there should be necessary indices that should inform our decision”, he said, noting that “Number one, we should look at the antecedents of those who are vying for various offices”.
Barr Dike, who is also the Publicity Secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Port Harcourt Branch, urged the electorate to be guided by information already in the public domain about the candidates in making up their minds.
“In fact, we know them; we know that it’s been a recycling thing, so I expect that the voters should look at the content of character; look at their position on issues prior to their requesting for this office; and look at their position currently on trending or contemporary issues”, he emphasised.
“These are the kind of things we should look at. We should not look at any body who has stolen enough to waste millions of naira in purchase of presidential form. That is not the qualification. The qualification should be what have you done prior to this time? How have you been able to serve this country when you did not have political power? When you were saddled with power, what positive change did you bring into the system?”, he said.
“So, I caution Nigerians, this particular election should be such that our vote should reflect our true yearnings in the corners of our streets; we should use our vote to make a statement in the coming elections. I want to recommend that Nigerians should be well guided in voting; let it not be business as usual”, he reiterated.
The legal practitioner, while congratulating the nation on the occasion of this year’s Democracy Day celebration, called on leaders at all levels to strictly adhere to the rule of law and the strengthening of institutions to deliver democratic dividends to the people.
“As the country is celebrating yet another day of democracy, let us allow the people to indeed feel the impact of democracy; let the dividends of democracy trickle down the lane.
“ We have reports of persons embezzling huge amounts of money. Let them be prosecuted. There shouldn’t be political prisoners. There shouldn’t be clamping down on judges and the judiciary. Those are not tenets of democracy we’re yearning for. Democracy is about the rule of law. Let them allow the law to rule over us and not by the whims and caprices of individual leaders”, he submitted.
On the unprecedented number of persons that indicated interest and also bought forms as presidential aspirants in the various political parties, the legal practitioner blamed the development on the performance of President Muhammadu Buhari in office.
This is a manifest pointer to the fact that President Muhammadu Buhari has failed woefully; he has brought governance and administration to it’s lowest ebb. Never have we witnessed it this low in the history of this country. That is why every Tom, Dick and Harry are jostling to come and correct the anomaly.
“I mean, if the president had taken administration to a standard, it would have been difficult for anyone to say I want to succeed him, I want to improve because it would be a very Haculean task; he would have been leaving a bogus shoe for anyone to succeed him. But as it stands now, everything is in disarray; anybody can come and start making amends”, he pointed out.
By: 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.
