Politics
We Will Cooperate With The Youth –Wike
Despite spending two days outside Rivers State, gov
ernance in the state did not slow down with inspection of ongoing construction works and new ones being commissioned by Governor Nyesome Wike in the course of last week.
On Monday, Governor Wike through the Chief of Staff Government House addressed youths who marched to Government House as part of activities to herald the annual international youth week celebrations.
Governor Wike charged the youths to support government’s efforts to revamp the state through infrastructure provision and strengthening security.” Let me once again, assure you that as a government we are prepared to cooperate and collaborate with you, to ensure peace generate employment and make Rivers State free of social vices,” Wike said through Chief Emeka Woke.
On Tuesday, the governor conducted a marathon inspection of projects stretching from Rumuokurusi-Eneka Road, to the dipapidated New Road in Old Port Harcourt Township. The governor was mobbed by excited residents of the area, who lamented that for over five years, they have suffered untold hardship due to the state of the road.
Governor Wike assured them that government was ready to reduce their plight as he directed Julius Berger handling road-rehabilitation in the Old Port Harcourt Town axis, to extend works to the New Road area.
After inspecting the New Road area, the governor branched to inspect the promises of the famous Government Comprehensive – Secondary School in Borokiri and expressed displeasure with the level of decay and encroachment in the school compound. He therefore announced new measures set up by government to revitalize all abandoned government schools across the State.
Before the inspection, Barrister Wike had paid a condolence visit to the palace of the Nyeweli Oropotoma, Eze Wobo Weli Onunwor, and urged the family and community to take solace in the legacies of the late traditional ruler.
The governor was represented by the deputy governor, Dr Ipalibo Harry-Banigo on Wednesday at the grand finale of the international youth day held at Isaac Boro Park in Port Harcourt.
On Friday, Governor Wike returned back to the state and continued another pahse of inspection of construction works. Immediately he arrived, he drive to the Rumolemeni/Rumueprikon Road.
While expressing satisfaction with the progress of work done on the route, he warned that government will wield the big stick on any contractor that fails to meet his side of contract, “I want to tell you that if I find any contractor wanting, the law will take its course.”
On returning from the inspection, Governor Wike hosted the new Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok Ekwe Ibas and pledged the State Government’s resolve to partner with security agencies to tackle security challenges.
On the same Friday, the State Chief Executive played host to the Irish Ambassador to Nigeria, Sean Hou assured the readiness of Ireland to help the country in fight against terrorism and oil theft.
On Saturday, while attending funeral service of Late Eze Wobo Weli at St Michael’s Church Rumuomasi, Governor Wike was represented by Secretary to the State Government, Hon Kenneth Kobani represented by governor at graduation ceremony of Naval School Onne.
Kevin Nengia
The Commission disclosed the figure in its weekly update for week 14 of the second phase of the exercise, which ended on Friday, April 17, 2026.
According to the breakdown, 2,259,288 Nigerians completed their registration through the online pre-registration portal, while 1,489,416 finalized their registration physically at designated centres nationwide.
INEC noted that the figures remain preliminary and are subject to further verification and data cleaning processes to ensure accuracy ahead of the consolidation of the national voter register.
With the conclusion of the registration phase, the Commission has now shifted focus to the display of the Register of Voters for Claims and Objections, a statutory stage aimed at strengthening the credibility and integrity of the voters register.
The display exercise is scheduled to hold from April 29 to May 5, 2026, across designated centres nationwide, providing citizens the opportunity to verify their details and raise objections where necessary.
The Commission urged all registered voters from the concluded phase to take advantage of the exercise to confirm the accuracy of their information and assist in identifying ineligible entries, including duplicate registrations, deceased persons, and non-citizens.
INEC explained that the Continuous Voter Registration exercise is being conducted in phases, with the first phase running from August 18 to December 10, 2025, while the second phase commenced on January 5, 2026 and ended on April 17, 2026.
The Commission further stated that the date for the commencement of the third phase will be announced in due course.
Reaffirming its commitment to credible elections, INEC stressed that maintaining a clean and accurate voter register remains central to ensuring free, fair, and transparent electoral processes in Nigeria.
The Executive Director of IPC, Mr Lanre Arogundade, informed the journalists that the dialogue was sponsored by the European Union, under the auspices of the EU-Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN II), Component 4: Support to Media.
According to the veteran media practitioner, the programme is aimed at strengthening the capacity of the media to promote credible elections through factual, accurate and fair reporting.
He explained that the programme is part of a broader five-year intervention designed to support democratic governance and improve the role of the media in Nigeria’s electoral process, stressing that fact-checking and inclusive reporting are critical responsibilities for journalists, especially during electioneering.
He described the media as a central role agent with regard to upholding transparency and accountability in the democratic process.
A resource person and Director of Journalism Clinic, Lagos, Mr Taiwo Obe, enjoined journalists to embrace the evolving technology so that they would not be in the backwaters in the practice of the profession.
He advised journalists not to downplay Artificial Intelligence (AI) in their bid to remain relevant in the media environment by being abreast of the changing patterns of news consumption.
The journalism teacher explained that with digital transformation of the media industry, it had become imperative for journalists to constantly upgrade and update their skills, stressing the fundamental place of attitude and self-development and underscored the dynamic nature of media consumption in the digital age, thereby compelling journalists to embrace tools and platforms, but without much reliance on AI.
In his lecture, a Professor of Mass Communication at the Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), Adebola Aderibigbe, advised journalists in Ekiti State to ensure that coverage of the upcoming governorship poll is issue-based rather than dwelling on personalities.
He added that sensationalism should not occupy the front-burner of any discussions concerning the 2026 election, admonishing that sustenance of democracy is anchored on responsible journalism.
”Journalists must prioritise accuracy, fairness and balance in their reports by verifying facts and giving all parties involved in political matters the opportunity to present their views”, he said.
According to the university don, the election will not be defined by personalities, but by issues. ”Let issues be the pivotal ring upon which every discussion should be made. Sensationalisation of issues should not be the bedrock of discussions in the 2026 election”, he added.
“Do not hear from Party A without hearing from Party B, otherwise the report will be skewed to one side and once issues of elections are skewed, problems will naturally arise”, he stressed.