Politics
Assemblyman Laments Lack Of Access Road To S’Ijaw
A member of Baye1sa State House of Assembly, Mr Kobowei Benson, has lamented that after 50 years of Independence and 14 years, since Bayelsa state was created by late General Sani Abacha on October 1, 1996, more than 90 per cent of comunities in Southem Ijaw local govemment area are yet to be accessed by road.
The chairman, House Committee on Information, Culture and Tourism, in the Assembly, Mr. Benson, stated this during a courtesy call on him by a socio-political group, the Southern Ijaw Initiative for Equal Co-existence, at the Assembly Complex. According to the lawmaker, representing Southem Ijaw Constituency IV, dividends of democracy should be evaluated based on the standard of living of the electorate and not necessarily on the number of physical structures in an area.
He, therefore, called on political office holders to always put the collective interest of the people above their personal gains, while assuring that he would remain focused in his development initiative for the people of the constituency.
The honourable member stressed that his develomental initiative for his constituency go beyond the normal constituency projects, adding that he was using part of his allowances to embank on people-oriented projects in the area in a bid to give the people a sense of belonging.
He also called on the federal govemment to commence massive infrastructural development in the Niger Delta region in line with the amnesty programme, to give the people at the grassroots the assurance of govemment’s sincerity in implementing the amnesty programme for ex-militants.
Mr Benson maintained that only a well crafted development agenda could assuage the younger citizens of the nation from anti social vices, adding that the period of militancy brought a lot of set back to the country, resulting in the dwindling oil revenue.
He regretted that after fifty years of political independence, most rural communities in the Niger Delta were still wallowing in abject poverty, even as there were not commensurate social amnesties to show for the huge oil revenue that was being generated from the region.
He commended the leadership of the Southern Ijaw Initiative for Equal Co-existence, for the visit and promised to carry every body along in this political agenda.
Earlier, the leader of the group, Mr Kemepaomene Fawei, had declared the group’s support for the Lawmaker, in his bid to contest for the state House of Assembly seat, come 201l.
According to him, findings by the group about Mr. Benson showed that he was the most reliable among the aspirants that have indicated interest to contest the Southern Ijaw Constituency IV House of Assembly seat.
He added that despite the daunting challenges, the lawmaker was still able to attract several development projects to communities in the constituency.
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.
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