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APC’s Restructuring Report, Ungodly Deception – ECA …Ruling Party, Pathological Liar – ADP
The Eastern Consultative Assembly, ECA has picked holes in the report of the All Progressives Congress, (APC)backing restructuring of the country, resource control and state police, among others.
Dissecting the report of the committee led by Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai at a meeting in Enugu, the ECA in a communique by its Deputy Leader, Mrs. Maria Okwor and Secretary, Evang. Elliot Ugochukwu-Uko said the APC report on restructuring is a red herring, a smoke screen and an ungodly deception designed solely to buy time, to deceive and to mislead the masses of the country into voting in, this tasteless, ruthless and unworthy cabal into office for a second term.
“The deliberate effort to pretend that they are willing to restructure, designed only for the elections a year away is from the pit of hell.
The designers of this evil strategy know that they have no intention to yield to the sensible clamour to restructure Nigeria.
They know, they made four attempts to grab power for only one purpose: to impose their agenda on 180 million Nigerians.
That agenda is dutiful being driven by their militia wing: the Fulani herdsmen.
That agenda is also glaring enough for the blind to see the nauseating nepotism in the lopsided appointments that has divided the country.
“Turning around to attempt to appeal to the sensibilities of Nigerians who yearn for a genuine restructuring of the polity by pretending they now believe in the same restructuring they claim not to understand what it means, is a clear sign that this ruthless cabal that has destroyed Nigeria in three years, has probably become jittery, after realizing that Nigerians have rejected them.
They, therefore, foolishly hope to deceive Nigerians, by pretending they have become born again apostles of restructuring. A ploy they used successfully just before the last elections.
’ “Whereas, returning Nigeria to true fiscal federalism, regional autonomy and resource control, consensually affirmed through a referendum and a new constitution, remains the only way to salvage Nigeria, infantile ploys by vicious elements to continue to hold us all hostage through guile, albeit, making public a deceptive report on restructuring, which they have no intention whatsoever to implement, just so they could fool the people yet again shows how desperate the oppressive cabal destroying Nigeria today, has suddenly become.”
Meanwhile, the Action Democratic Party (ADP) has taken a swipe at the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on the restructuring position recently made public by the El-Rufai Committee, describing it as a political gimmick designed to deceive Nigerians and to shift public attention from condemnations trailing the Buhari administration.
In a statement released by the Director Media, Kayode Jacob, yesterday, in Abuja, ADP’s
National Chairman, Engr. Yabagi Sani said that APC might be taking Nigerians for granted in much the same way PDP did before it was swept from power in ‘Change’ election of 2015.
According to him, the restructuring proposal by the APC is deceptive, going by the track record of the party.
“They rode on the back of great promises in 2015 without clearly fulfilling any till date,” he said.
“Now, again, as we enter election year, they are coming up with what many of them strongly condemn and oppose”
Sani argued that the restructuring report was cooked up by hired persons to portray APC on the side of the people and shift focus away from the content of Obasanjo’s letter.
“APC itself lacks structure and is not functioning; the government is confused and clueless and their majority at the National Assembly is uncoordinated and without respect,” he said.
“Instead of trying to deceive and hoodwink Nigerians again, the APC should rather apologise to ex-President Jonathan for getting him changed on a phantom promise of ‘change’”, Yabagi Sani insisted.
“Nigerians should not believe them. APC does not believe in state merger, resource control or state police. They are pathological liars.”
He, however, wants Nigerians to stop lamenting, urging them to team up with Action Democratic Party as the credible alternative to sweep APC and all its unfulfilled promises into history and pilot a greater tomorrow.
Similarly, the three main socio-cultural groups in Benue State – Mdzough-u-Tiv, Idoma National Forum and Omi Ny’Igede – have called for the immediate resignation of the Minister of Defence, Alhaji Mansur Dan-Ali, whom they accused of compromising his office by failing to send the military to Benue State since the latest crisis started, while he was quick to advice the deployment of troops to other parts of the country.
Alternatively, the groups would want President Muhammadu Buhari to sack and prosecute Dan-Ali for alleged complicity in the murder of innocent Benue State citizens.
In a press statement issued in Abuja yesterday, the Benue State groups further demanded that should Buhari fail to sack the Defence Minister, the National Assembly should immediately investigate the President’s role in the Benue State killings with a view to possibly impeaching him if found wanting in the performance of his duties by failing to avert the killings of the Benue State people after several complaints and official report by the State Governor, Samuel Ortom and the three socio-cultural organisations.
The statement, jointly signed by Chief Edward Ujege, the President-General, Mdzough-u-Tiv; Amale Adoya Amale, the President-General, Idoma Nation Forum; and Chief Ode Enyi, the President-General, Omi Ny’Igede, was in response to what the groups described as the reckless, highly provocative, unstatesmanly and divisive comments by Dan-Ali on the “sustained senseless and organised killings of Benue people by the Fulani herdsmen”.
They were miffed that the Defence Minister “in his comments attributed the unprovoked barbaric murder of innocent and defencelss children, pregnant women and the aged in Benue State to the enactment of the Anti-Open Grazing Law by the Government of Benue State.
“We are extremely saddened by the public show of partiality, partisanship by the Minister of Defence whose oath of office requires of him to defend the territorial integrity and all peoples of Nigeria including the good people of Benue state from both internal and external aggression.
“We hasten to ask this critical question: If the killings in Benue were as a result of the anti-Open Grazing law, to what will the Minister attribute the killings of farmers by Fulani Herdsmen and wanton destruction of farms and property in Adamawa, Plateau, Ondo, Edo, Nasarawa and other states of the Federation in recent weeks where such a law is not in place?.
“The Minister has by his statements on a national Television network clearly demonstrated that he has grossly compromised the oath of his office by openly endorsing the blood-letting in Benue.
“We hasten to declare that there can be no justification to take human life under any circumstance in the manner the Minister shamelessly justified in the Television programme.”
They contended that the Defence Minister’s provocative statement, which came shortly after an equally condemnable remark by the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, that the January 1, 2018 cold blooded killings of over 70 people in Guma and Logo LGAs of Benue State were results of communal clash, “has reinforced our earlier held suspicion that the Fulani Herdsmen have been acting with the full backing of top government officials in the Buhari-led administration”.
They called on the international community to wade into the gross violation of the right to life of hapless Benue State people and the unwholesome destruction of their farms and other means of livelihood.
The statement said: “We are grateful to the various socio-cultural groups across the country notably the Afenifere, Ohaneze Nd’Igbo, the South-South People, human rights and pro-democracy activists and organisations, religious groups, Elder statesmen, opposition political parties, state Governors, members of the National Assembly, Traditional Rulers, the Media and other well-meaning Nigerians, who have resolutely stood by us by opening condemning the genocide against Benue people.”
Nigeria’s crude oil production has surged to an 11-month high in May, 2026, with the country exceeding its Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) production quota.
The average crude oil production recorded during the month of May represents 102 per cent of Nigeria’s 1.5mbpd of production quota allocated by the OPEC.
The production report released by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), yesterday, disclosed that Nigeria’s oil production averages 1,530,354 barrels of crude oil and 170,446 barrels of condensates per day (bpd).
According to the report, this brings the total combined production to 1, 700, 800 barrels per day and consolidating Nigeria’s position as Africa’s largest oil producer.
The report said the production performance during the review period remained robust, with combined crude oil and condensate output ranging between a low of 1.51 million bpd and a peak of 1.86 million bpd.
It said the May 2026 production figures represented the highest recorded by Nigeria since July 2025, when output surged to 1,712,282.
“In strict crude oil terms (excluding condensates), the 1.53 million barrels recorded in May 2026 represents the highest Nigeria has witnessed since January 2025 when crude oil production hit 1.538mbpd.
“The latest crude oil production statistics thus represents a 15-month high on a month on month basis, production rose by 2.77 per cent in May 2026 as against 1.48mbpd in April,” it said.
The report said the broader production trend over the last five months had also remained positive.
It said combined crude oil and condensate output increased from 1.48 million bpd in February to 1.54 million bpd in March, 1.66 million bpd in April, and then 1.7 million bpd in May, underscoring sustained growth in Nigeria’s hydrocarbon production levels.
According to the report, among production streams, Bonny Terminal led the pack with a total blend of 293,870 bpd, closely followed by Forcados Terminal at 289,900 bpd, Qua Iboe ranked third with 173,360 bpd, while Escravos Oil Terminal contributed 135,470 bpd.
It said the Odudu (Amenam Blend) completed the top five production streams, accounting for 63,250 bpd during the month under review.
The NUPRC attributes the rise in production to a sustained positive momentum as operations remained stable throughout the reporting period with no significant pipeline or facility outages recorded.
Additionally, all previously scheduled turnaround maintenance activities had been successfully completed, contributing to improved operational reliability and production efficiency.
The House of Representatives, yesterday passed a landmark constitutional amendment bill to establish state police nationwide, marking a significant milestone in Nigeria’s decades-long debate over decentralising policing and strengthening internal security.
The bill, titled “A Bill for an Act to Alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to Provide for the Establishment of State Police and for Related Matters (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026,” was approved during consideration at the Committee of the Whole, presided over by Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas.
Voting commenced after the Deputy Speaker and Chairman of the House Committee on Constitution Review, Hon. Benjamin Kalu, presented the report on the proposal and canvassed support from lawmakers, stressing the need for a more decentralised policing framework to effectively address the country’s growing security challenges.
The exercise was conducted manually, with members raising their hands to indicate their positions. At the end of the voting, 289 lawmakers voted in support of the bill, one member abstained, while none voted against it, reflecting overwhelming bipartisan backing for the far-reaching reform.
The proposed amendment seeks to fundamentally restructure Nigeria’s policing architecture by creating both Federal and State Police formations.
One of the bill’s key provisions amends Section 214 of the 1999 Constitution to formally establish the Federal Police and the State Police. Under the proposal, the National Assembly would be empowered to prescribe the structure, organisation, administration and powers of the Federal Police, while also providing the legal framework and minimum standards for the establishment and operation of state police services.
The bill stipulates that no state police formation shall commence operations unless it is established by a law enacted by the relevant State House of Assembly and certified as complying with national minimum standards prescribed by an Act of the National Assembly.
It further provides that until a state police force becomes operational, the Federal Police shall continue to exercise policing powers and responsibilities within such states.
In a bid to preserve the autonomy of state police formations and prevent undue federal interference, the bill limits federal intervention in states’ internal security affairs. Under the proposal, the Federal Police may intervene only where there is a complete breakdown of law and order, upon the request of a governor or where a state police force becomes unable to function due to administrative, financial or other operational challenges.
The amendment also proposes significant changes to the police’s appointment and command structure.
Under the amended Section 215 of the Constitution, the Inspector-General of Police would be appointed by the President on the advice of the Nigeria Police Council from among serving members of the Federal Police, subject to confirmation by the National Assembly.
Similarly, a State Commissioner of Police would be appointed by a governor on the advice of the Nigeria Police Council from among serving officers of the State Police, subject to confirmation by the respective State House of Assembly.
The bill empowers governors to issue lawful directives to State Commissioners of Police on matters relating to public safety and the maintenance of law and order. However, where a commissioner considers such directives unlawful or inconsistent with accepted policing standards, the matter may be referred to the Nigeria Police Council, whose decision shall be final.
The proposal also amends Section 84 of the Constitution by replacing references to the “National Police Council and the Federal Police Service Commission” with the “Nigeria Police Council and the Police Service Commission.”
The passage of the bill by the House represents one of the most far-reaching security reforms contemplated since the return to democratic rule in 1999 and is expected to rekindle nationwide debate on issues relating to funding, accountability, operational control and safeguards against abuse.
With the House’s approval, the constitutional amendment bill will now proceed to the Senate for concurrence. Thereafter, it must secure the endorsement of at least two-thirds of the State Houses of Assembly and receive presidential assent before becoming part of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
If eventually enacted, the legislation would usher in a new era of multi-layered policing in Nigeria and could redefine the country’s approach to tackling banditry, terrorism, kidnapping and other forms of violent crimes through a more localised security architecture.
The Federal Government has declared today, public holiday to commemorate Nigeria’s 27 years of unbroken democratic rule.
This is contained in a statement in Abuja, by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Magdalene Ajani.
Ajani said that the Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the declaration on behalf of the federal government.
Tunji-Ojo reaffirmed the federal government’s commitment to the preservation of democratic ideals, rule of law, transparency, accountability and inclusive governance.
He assured that the ministry in collaboration with relevant security agencies woulsd continue to take appropriate measures in maintaining and strengthening Nigeria’s internal security.
The minister noted that a secured and stable environment was essential to democracy and national development.
He urged Nigerians to see the holiday as an opportunity for civic reflection.
“As we mark this historic day, every Nigerian is encouraged to remain law-abiding, uphold the institutions that sustain our democracy, and remember that the strength of any democracy lies ultimately in the character of its citizens,” he said.
He also said that June 12 every year remained a significant day in Nigeria’s history in honour of the courage, resilience and sacrifices of Nigerians whose efforts made democratic governance possible.
“Their legacies continue to inform the values and responsibilities of the Nigerian state,”Tunji-Ojo added.
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