News
Bill to Strengthen Local Government Administration Passes Second Reading In House
By Gloria Ikibah
A proposed amendment to Nigeria’s Constitution aimed at improving governance, efficiency, and accountability in local government administration has passed its second reading in the House of Representatives on Wednesday at plenary.The bill, one of 42 considered during Wednesday’s plenary, is sponsored by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu and eight other lawmakers.According to its explanatory memorandum, the bill seeks to restructure the legal and administrative framework governing local councils. Its goal is to establish a stronger system that enhances local government operations, ensures efficient service delivery, and promotes transparency and democratic values at the grassroots level.
A copy of the draft indicates that Section 7 of the Constitution will be revised, replacing the existing provision with a new framework to support these objectives., “There shall be for each Local Government a democratically elected Chairman and a Vice-Chairman, who shall be qualified for election if he is an indigene of the local government; has attained the age of 25 years; and has been educated up to at least the first degree certificates or its equivalent.
“(2) A person elected to the Office of Chairman shall not begin to perform the functions of that Office until he has declared his assets and liabilities as prescribed in this Constitution and has subsequently taken and subscribed, before the Chief Judge of the State or his nominee, the Oath of Allegiance and the Oath of Office as prescribed in the Seventh Schedule to this Constitution.”
Election of Chairman
The bill provides in Section 7 (1b) that “An election to the Office of Chairman shall be held on a date to be appointed by the responsible electoral body which shall be held on a date not earlier than 150 days and not later than 30 days before the expiration of the term of Office of the last holder of that Office.
“(2) A candidate for election to the Office of Chairman shall be deemed to have been duly elected where the candidate is the only person whose name was submitted to the electoral body for election; and there is more than one candidate, the candidate with the majority valid votes cast at the election.
Tenure
The tenure of the Chairman, Vice-Chairman and the Council shall be four years, and they may be eligible for a second term of four years and no more, as the bill provides in Section 7C.
Procedure for removal of Chairman and Vice-Chairman from Office
In Section 7D, the bill provides that “The Chairman or Vice-Chairman of a Local Government may be removed from office in accordance with the provisions of this Clause.
“(2) Whenever a notice of any allegation in writing signed by not less than one-third of the members of the Local Government Legislative Council, is presented to the Speaker of the Local Government Legislative Council, stating that the holder of such office is guilty of gross misconduct in the performance of the functions of his office, detailed particulars of which shall be specified.
“The Speaker of the Local Government Legislative Council shall within seven days of the receipt of the notice, cause a copy of the notice to be served on the holder of the office and on each member of the Local Government Legislative Council, and shall also cause any statement made in reply to the allegations by the holder of the office to be served on each member of the Local Government Legislative Council.”
“(3) Within 14 days of the presentation of the notice to the Speaker of the Local Government Legislative Council (whether or not any statement made by the holder of the office in reply to the allegation contained in the notice), the Local Government Legislative Council shall resolve by motion without any debate whether or not the allegation shall be investigated.
“(4) A motion of the Local Government Legislative Council that the allegation be investigated shall not be declared as having been passed unless it is supported by the votes of not less than two-thirds majority of all the members of the Local Government Council.
“(5) Within seven days of the passing of a motion under the foregoing provisions, the Chief Judge of the State shall at the request of the Speaker of the Local Government Legislative Council appoint a panel of seven persons who in his opinion are of unquestionable integrity, not being members of any public service, legislative house or political party, to investigate the allegation as provided in this clause.
“(6) The holder of an office whose conduct is being investigated under this Clause shall have the right to defend himself in person or be represented before the Panel by a legal practitioner of his own choice.”
“(7) A panel appointed under this clause shall have such powers and exercise its functions in accordance with such procedure as may be prescribed by the Local Government Legislative Council; and within three months of its appointment, report its findings to the Local Government Legislative Council.
“(8) Where the panel reports to the Local Government Legislative Council that the allegation has not been proved, no further proceedings shall be taken in respect of the matter.
“(9) Where the report of the panel is that the allegation against the holder of the office has been proved, then, within 14 days of the receipt of the report, the Local Government Legislative Council shall consider the report and if by a resolution of the Local Government Legislative Council supported by not less than two-thirds majority of all its members, the report of the panel is adopted, then the holder of the office shall stand removed from office as from the date of the adoption of the report.”
Permanent incapacity of Chairman and Vice-Chairman
The Chairman or Vice-Chairman shall cease to hold Office if, “By a resolution passed by a two-thirds majority of all the members of the Local Government Legislative Council, it is declared that the Chairman or the Vice-Chairman is incapable of discharging the functions of his Office; and the declaration is verified, after such medical examination as may be necessary, by a medical panel established under this part of the Constitution.”
“(2) The panel shall be appointed by the Speaker of the Local Government Legislative Council and shall comprise three medical practitioners in Nigeria, one of whom may be a medical practitioner of the choice of the concerned Chairman or Vice-Chairman and two other medical practitioners.
“(3) Where the medical panel certifies in its report that in its opinion, the Chairman or Vice-Chairman is suffering from such infirmity of body or mind which renders him permanently incapable of discharging the functions of his office, a notice thereof signed by the Speaker of the Local Government Legislative Council shall be published in a Journal of the Local Government.
“(4) The Chairman or Vice-Chairman shall cease to hold office from the date of publication of the notice of the medical report.
“(5) Where the office of the Chairman becomes vacancy by reason of death or removal, the Vice-Chairman of the Local Government Council shall hold the Office of Chairman and in the absence of the Vice-Chairman, the Speaker of the Council shall hold office for a period of not more than 3 months, during which there shall be an election of a new Chairman, who shall hold Office in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.
“(6) Where the office of Vice-Chairman becomes vacant by reason of death or resignation or removal or for any other reason, the Chairman shall nominate a candidate to the Local Government Legislative Council and upon the confirmation by two-thirds all the Members of the Local Government Legislative Council, such candidate shall take office as the Vice-Chairman to complete the unexpired term of office.”
Death of Chairman-Elect before Oath of Office
In 7G, the bill provides that “If a person duly elected as Chairman dies or withdraws before taking and subscribing to the Oath of Allegiance and the Oath of Office, the person elected with him as Vice-Chairman shall be sworn in as Chairman who shall then nominate, and with the approval of a majority of the members of the Local Government Legislative Council, appoint a new Vice-Chairman.”
Recall
“A member of a Local Government Legislative Council may be recalled if there is presented to the electoral body a petition on that behalf signed by more than one-half of the persons registered to vote in that member’s constituency alleging their loss of confidence in that member, and the petition is thereafter approved in a referendum conducted by the electoral body within 90 days of the date of the receipt of the petition.”
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo has been confirmed as Governor by the Edo Petition Tribunal in Abuja.
He had earlier won on September 21, 2024 on the political cum electoral turf when he clinched the first prize.
He defeated Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, his closest competitor, who was banking on the power of incumbent PDP administration in the state to win.
Ighodalo and the PDP had filed their petition at the Tribunal challenging Okpebholo and APC’s victory at the poll.
But delivering its judgement in the petition on Wednesday, the Edo Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal ruled that PDP petition failed for lack of competent witnesses
The Tribunal said that the PDP petition challenging the outcome of the 2024 governorship election also failed, because of insufficient evidence to substantiate claims of electoral malpractice.
The petitioners had alleged that the failure to properly record electoral materials prior to the election had affected the results.
However, the Tribunal found that while documents were submitted, no witnesses were called to properly authenticate them, rendering the evidence inadmissible.
Of the 19 witnesses presented by the petitioners, 14 were ward and local government agents, while their star witness, who claimed to be a director of strategy, played no direct role in the conduct of the election.
The Tribunal noted that none of these witnesses provided testimony on the alleged failure of prior recording of electoral materials, deeming them incompetent to testify on the matter.
Furthermore, the Tribunal emphasized that for allegations of over-voting to be proven, petitioners must provide oral evidence, in line with the precedent set by the Supreme Court.
It stressed that it was bound to adhere strictly to the Supreme Court’s roadmap in adjudicating election disputes.
According to the statement, the arrests took place on Monday, March 31, 2025, following credible intelligence.
The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has said that its officers arrested 51 illegal migrants from Mali in New Nyanya, Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa State.
The NIS made this known in a statement issued on Wednesday by its Public Relations Officer, ACI A.S. Akinlabi.
According to the statement, the arrests took place on Monday, March 31, 2025, following credible intelligence.
A breakdown of the arrested migrants revealed that 11 were female, while 40 were male, with ages ranging between 16 and 19 years.
Akinlabi stated that preliminary investigations revealed that the arrested illegal migrants may have been victims of Trafficking in Persons (TIP) and Smuggling of Migrants (SOM), as they were found without valid travel documents or residence permits.
“Preliminary investigations conducted by the Service suggest that the migrants may have been victims of Trafficking in Persons (TIP) and Smuggling of Migrants (SOM), as they were found without valid travel documents or residence permits,” Akinlabi stated.
The statement further noted that the detained individuals have been taken into the custody of the Service for further profiling and investigation.
“The arrested individuals have been taken into the custody of the Service for further profiling and investigation to determine the circumstances of their migration and any potential involvement of trafficking or smuggling networks or syndicates,” Akinlabi added.
Akinlabi further stated that the NIS would determine the circumstances surrounding their migration and uncover any potential involvement of trafficking or smuggling syndicates.
The statement added, “The Nigeria Immigration Service remains committed to ensuring that Nigeria’s borders are protected against illegal migration while upholding the rights of migrants who comply with the country’s immigration laws.
“The Service continues to work closely with relevant authorities and stakeholders to combat smuggling of migrants and counter trafficking in persons effectively.
“The NIS reassures the general public of its unwavering commitment to National Security and Migration Management while encouraging citizens to report suspicious migration activities to the nearest NIS Commands and Formations.”
The remains of an engineer, Chigozie Udalu, have been exhumed from a shallow grave in Akwukwu-Igbo, the headquarters of Oshimili North Local Government Area in Delta State.
Recall that the engineer, who was contracted to construct offices in Akwukwu-Igbo, was murdered and buried in a shallow grave.
Though the incident occurred in December 2024, details only emerged recently after two suspects were arrested in connection with the crime.
Assailants Murder Construction Engineer In Delta State Community, Bury In Shallow Grave
A community source revealed that the suspects, identified as Tiv youths from Benue State, allegedly killed the engineer and concealed his body on a farm.
“Two Tiv boys from Benue State have been arrested in connection with the crime. They buried the engineer’s remains in a shallow grave on a farm,” the source stated.
The Delta State Police Command confirmed the incident, with spokesman Edafe Bright acknowledging that an investigation was ongoing.
“We are aware of the incident, and our men are working to ensure others involved are apprehended,” Bright revealed.
On Wednesday, the remains of the victim were exhumed by the police and the Delta State government.
A police source revealed that the arrested suspects alleged the engineer owed them money and often verbally abused them.
“They had also intended to steal cement from the site but perceived the engineer as an obstacle. On December 10, 2024, they planned to strike him with a 2×2 plank but assumed he was physically strong and might overpower them.
“On December 11, the Tiv boys put a rope around his neck from behind, causing strangulation. Upon his death, they buried him in a shallow grave on the farm,” the source explained.
“Following the murder, the suspects reportedly completed their contract at the site and stole the victim’s phone, making several attempts to transfer money via a mobile app.
“Additionally, the landlord of the construction site was accused of being involved in money rituals. In an attempt to clear his name, he was taken to shrines to swear an oath before the victim’s family.
“The landlord recounted his ordeal, stating that he nearly gave up on the case due to the challenges he faced with the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) in Asaba.
“However, a police officer suggested he visit Ekpan Divisional Police Officer (DPO), CSP Aliyu Shaba. The officer assured him that within 30 days, the truth would be uncovered.
“Upon arrival at Ekpan, the landlord briefed the DPO, who assembled his team and employed sophisticated investigative techniques, leading to the arrest of two suspects.
“One of the suspects later confessed to knowing the location where the engineer was buried,” the source said.
A young man was also arrested and transferred to the SCID for openly threatening the victim in the presence of the landlord, further highlighting the brutality of the crime.
Of the four individuals arrested, two are considered principal suspects. Meanwhile, a manhunt is ongoing for the remaining suspects who are still at large.
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