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Mass Protest Looming over fake election, tanker drivers raise alarm
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
A prominent member of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers Union, PTD, Comrade Olaitan Idris, during the week, raised an alarm over looming crisis by its members over the continued parading of some disgruntled elements of the union as their elected executive officers in total breach of recent court order that a genuine election should be conducted and credible officers elected to fill vacant positions in the union.
Comrade Olaitan said that those people claiming to be elected officers sat in a private meeting and arrogated themselves positions in the union in disobedience of a subsisting court order and took laws into their hands believing that they will use money to buy their ways into the leadership of the union stating that their action must be urgently stopped in order to avert serious riot amongst members of the union.
Tracing the genesis of the division in the union, Comrade Olaitan said that trouble started after a former National Chairman of the union, Otunba Salmon Akanni Oladiti (now NUPENG Trustee) completed his tenure but refused to give way to his deputy, Lucky Osesua.
“He insisted on signing the union cheques and control activities at the Lagos zone where he was a former chairman. “In fact, he skillfully orchestrated willful plans to remain relevant and found allies in engaging top officials of NUPENG especially the General Secretary, Afolabi Olawale with a view to getting their support.
“The first thing they did was to change our bye laws without a memorandum to suit his ill conceived ambitious goal to be the forthcoming NUPENG President.
They continued their personal agenda in total breach of our bye laws and they disorganized the entire PTD. NUPENG is a mother body of over 150 branches. Why should they pitch their tent in PTD if they don’t have a wicked and vicious motive?
“There was supposed to be election in 2022 after the end of the tenure of PTD leadership in Lagos state and the next Warri Zone but instead of conducting a peaceful transition to take over because Lagos tenure has terminated, the next tenure is Warri Zone which Otunba has no say as a member like others, they connived with a member from Warri and challenged the eligibility of Osesua.
They went to court and the eligibility of Lucky Osezua was confirmed. Unfortunately, this did not go well with the opposers and they connived with NUPENG and took over the affairs of PTD.
“ I am calling on all relevant government agencies including law enforcement agencies, particularly DSS, Police, NSCDC, EFCC etc, to step into the matter because these people are holding our teeming members to ransom. There should be proper election according to the order of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria and that all the suspended officers should return to their various duties.
The law of labor does not permit all these nonsense and lawless election and malpractices they are doing is politicizing the union unnecessarily. They think they can pocket the judiciary.
“Peace will be restored if the right penalty could be awarded to those who messed up the court order. The court cannot rule the union but the court can correct every lawless act in the Union. I foresee riot, massive protest and violence, let us reason together in the interest of our nation.
“The situation in Nigeria now is terrible and all the arms of the government are trying their possible best to fix things but in PTD, a group of vicious cabals are sabotaging the life and income of people. A hungry man is an angry man. If tanker drivers should be allowed to troop into the streets in protest, the economy will suffer.
“We are, therefore, crying out for justice because I know that the cabal has denied means of livelihood to a lot of our members and they have not been able to feed their families for upwards of two years now.
“They have lost their properties, living from hand to mouth and many of them are now bankrupt. What they are doing now is to mislead members of the public and relevant authorities to believe that there was an election. It is criminal and must be treated as such.”
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed the date for the Anambra governorship election.
Addressing representatives of political parties at the INEC headquarters in Abuja on Thursday, October 17, INEC national chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu said the election will be held on Saturday 8th November 2025.
Hear him: “As you are aware, the last governorship election in Anambra State was held on 6th November 2021. By the effluxion of time, the governorship election is due next year.
In compliance with the mandatory requirement of 360 days, the formal notice for the election will be published on 13th November 2024. Party primaries will be held from 20th March 2025 to 10th April 2025.
“The candidate nomination portal will open at 9.00 am on 18th April 2025 and close at 6.00 pm on 12th May 2025. The final list of candidates will be published on 9th June 2025.
“Campaign in public by political parties will commence on 11th June 2025 and end at midnight of Thursday 6th November 2025. Voting will take place in all the 5,720 Polling Units across the State on Saturday 8th November 2025.
In compliance with the mandatory requirement of 360 days, the formal notice for the election will be published on 13th November 2024. Party primaries will be held from 20th March 2025 to 10th April 2025.
“The candidate nomination portal will open at 9.00 am on 18th April 2025 and close at 6.00 pm on 12th May 2025. The final list of candidates will be published on 9th June 2025.
“Campaign in public by political parties will commence on 11th June 2025 and end at midnight of Thursday 6th November 2025. Voting will take place in all the 5,720 Polling Units across the State on Saturday 8th November 2025.
The candidate nomination portal will open at 9.00 am on 18th April 2025 and close at 6.00 pm on 12th May 2025. The final list of candidates will be published on 9th June 2025.
“Campaign in public by political parties will commence on 11th June 2025 and end at midnight of Thursday 6th November 2025. Voting will take place in all the 5,720 Polling Units across the State on Saturday 8th November 2025.
“In the coming weeks, the Commission will provide details of other electoral activities, including the registration of new voters, transfer of voters and the replacement of lost or damaged PVCs.
“The detailed Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2025 Anambra State Governorship election will be uploaded to our website and social media platforms before the end of this meeting.”
News
Despite heavy hunger, World Bank Tells Nigerians Not To Oppose, Reverse Tinubu’s Economic Reforms
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Despite hunger, World Bank has urged Nigerians to support the ongoing economic reforms, warning that opposing or reversing them could have serious negative consequences for the country.
Speaking at the launch of the Nigeria Development Update (NDU) report in Abuja, the World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, Dr. Ndiame Diop, emphasized that while the reforms may be challenging, they are crucial for the nation’s long-term stability.
Dr. Diop cautioned that rolling back these reforms would be detrimental, saying, “Reversing the reforms would spell doom for Nigeria.”
In the same vein, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, reiterated the importance of staying committed to the reforms. He stated, “Any effort that is not sustained will be a waste. Together with the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Minister of Budget and National Planning, we’ve been discussing how to stay on course.”
Edun further explained that the government’s focus is on reducing inflation while ensuring investments flow into critical sectors such as industry, where jobs can be created. “We are prioritizing market pricing and sat down with labor unions to explain why we cannot afford to let this opportunity slip.”
On the removal of subsidies, Edun noted, “Every day without subsidies means more funds available for education, healthcare, and other essential expenditures.”
Also speaking, Central Bank Governor Mr. Olayemi Cardoso highlighted the importance of promoting exports in light of the exchange rate adjustments. “The moderation in the FX rate should make our goods more competitive for export and discourage the importation of unnecessary goods,” he said
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