News

We Can Conduct LG Elections If Given Responsibility – INEC Boss

Published

5 months ago

July 25, 2024

Gloria Ikibah

…reiterate readiness of commission for Edo, Ondo Gubernatorial elections

By Gloria Ikibah

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has disclosed that it can comfortably conduct local government elections if given the responsibility.

Chairman of the Commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, stated this when he appeared before the Joint Senate and House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters on preparations for the upcoming governorship elections in Edo and Ondo States on Thursday in Abuja.

He explained that INEC has the capacity to handle the local government elections but that would only be possible pending when the law is amended to permit it to do so.

He highlighted that the Commission had been conducting area council elections in the Federal Capital Territory which has been devoid of the problems associated with the conduct of local government elections.

Prof. Yakubu noted that some advantages of INEC handling elections includes the conduct of elections as and when due, stability of tenure, and also that there has never been a caretaker committee in the FCT.

The INEC chairman also noted that there has never been a time one political party has won all the seats at the elections as is common in the states.

He said if INEC handles the election, it would be better for democracy.

But however this he said can only happen if the constitution is amended to take the responsibility from State Electoral Commissions.

Yakubu also said it was more challenging to conduct off-cycle elections than general elections.

He also raised security concerns in the Edo State election with the likely deployment of the Edo State Security Network for the polls.

The INEC boss said the flood that affected the Edo office soaked their BVAS machines but that they recover most of them.

He also pointed out that the power of incumbency was a major challenge against the conduct of elections.

He said, “You wanted to know the position of the Commission on issues surrounding the Supreme Court judgement and local government elections, the position of the Commission. So far we have had three broad positions canvassed. One, the transfer of responsibility for the conduct of local government elections to INEC. The question is if that is done, can INEC cope? The second proposition we have had is that there should be a new federal electoral commission for local government elections and thirdly there is another argument that says leave the state electoral commission to conduct local government elections in the spirit of federalism but find a way of ensuring that they improve on the conduct of local government elections.

“Right now the law has not been amended. The same Constitution that creates INEC also creates the States Electoral Commissions. So it is up to the National Assembly to amend the law to transfer that responsibility to the INEC. If the responsibility for the conduct of local government election is transferred to INEC, can INEC cope? The answer is yes! INEC can cope.

“What are we? By definition, INEC is the Independent National Electoral Commission but right now we do national elections, we do state elections, we do local government elections. A national electoral commission may be expected to handle only the Presidential and National Assembly elections but we also do governorship elections, we do State Assembly elections and do the Area Councils Elections in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the only part of the country where INEC conducts local government elections.

“So, if we are asked to do these elections, yes we can and actually our track record actually proves that we can do it. Check the case of FCT and I would like to say one or two things about the FCT local government elections. There are six Area Councils in the FCT. Like I said there are six chairmen in the FCT, there are 62 wards in the FCT. Each Ward is a councillorship Constituency for the election of Councilors and this is one part of the country that INEC has conducted local government elections and it has resulted in the following:

“Number one, it is perhaps only part of the country where local government elections are held regularly as at when due, elections are held in the FCT. Number two, there has never been a Caretaker Committee for any Area Council in the FCT, INEC has been conducting the election regularly. Number three, there is stability of tenure, it used to be three years but in 2022, the National Assembly amended the Electoral Act to provide for a four year tenure for Area Councils in the FCT. Number four, no single political party has ever won elections in all the constituencies in the FCT. In fact, what is interesting now is that out of the six chairmen of the FCT; APC had three Area Councils, PDP has three Area Councils. So there is no election where one party has dominated.

“Perhaps this is what has been encouraging many Nigerians to say that if INEC is saddled with the responsibility of conducting local government elections the same thing will be replicated and it is good for our democracy. But as I said, the same section of the Constitution that creates INEC also creates the SIECs so until the Constitution is amended and it transfers the responsibility to the commission, this is what our position is.

“In any case, if you transfer local government elections to INEC what it means is that you are going to transfer almost 10,000 Constituencies to INEC. We have 8,809 wards, each ward is a councillorship constituency. We have 774 local government areas and each local government has a chairman. So if you add this to the existing 1, 591 constituencies where INEC conducts elections is well over 11,000 constituencies but the election may not be held all in one day.

“So, in terms of capacity to do it, INEC can do it. We have been doing it in the Federal Capital Territory, we have no issues. But if the decision of the National Assembly is to amend the Constitution to saddle INEC with that responsibility, then we need an engagement with the National Assembly. There are certain consequential amendments that have to be done for us to handle those additional responsibilities. For instance, who is going to fund the 10,000 new Constituencies that INEC will be saddled with? There is a need for a discussion to determine who is going to fund it. Or will the Federal government continue to fund for the states?

You have to do something about the bye-elections. If INEC is saddled with additional 10,000 Constituencies we will probably be doing bye-elections every week.

“But broadly speaking, if you ask us if we can handle local government elections, yes we can handle the local government elections. When is it going to happen? When you amend the law and empower the commission to do so”, Yakubu stated.

He said so far out of 13 activities outlined and leading to the election as required by law from publication of notice for elections to conduct of election, eight has been implemented.

He stated: “We are on the ninth activity and not one activity has been shifted by one day. We have implemented those activities in Edo and Ondo seamlessly. The ninth activity is the submission of names of polling agents by political parties. For Edo, by the end of this month 30th July but for Ondo would be 30th of September.

“The Commission is prepared for the election. We are prepared. In terms of preparation we don’t anticipate much problems in spite of the unfortunate case of flooding in our Edo office. Not for the first time. In 2020 we actually operated from a rented facility but this time around thank God the act of God came early so we have enough time to respond and to conduct the election in our facilities.

“What is our concern for the Edo State governorship election is security.

When we were there one of the political parties raised an issue in Edo about the likely deployment of the ESSN. The Edo State Security Network. But immediately we received the complaint, we headed to the office of the Commissioner of Police and summoned a meeting with all security agencies in Edo state. We agreed to meet with all political parties and at that meeting we agreed to meet with all the political parties which we did the following day and the Commissioner of Police told us and the party leaders that he would take up the matter with the state government.

“The issue at that time was the ongoing continuous voter registration and since then I am not aware of any official complaints from any party or candidate on the role of the ESSN. I believe that the Commissioner of Police must have spoken to the leadership of the ESSN so far so good.

“We have conducted the continuous voter registration. A few of the registered voters require validation. We have 82 in Edo and 164 in Ondo. We started validation for these voters on Monday. As at yesterday we achieved 72 percent success for the validation.

“We are doing so because after the registration we are required by law to display the registers for claims and objections by citizens and also to do the Automated Biometrics Identification System.

“We are not happy with the quality of the biometrics for this 246 registered voters in the states out of over 260, 000 voters. So the number is actually 0.03 percent. It is the right of every registered Nigerian to be able to vote seamlessly during the election and it is our responsibility to ensure that every citizen is given the opportunity. By next week we would publish for Edo State, the final outcome of the continuous voter registration.

“The second concern is what we often grapple with. For the Commission it is more difficult to conduct off-cycle governorship elections than it is to conduct general elections. These off-cycle elections are very difficult and very challenging for us. For the simple reason that you have one stage conducting governorship elections and all the political parties would form their campaign councils and would deploy all the governors, all the honourable members in support of their colleagues.

“It becomes very challenging for us. But in the Nigerian election, all of you would be in your various constituencies fighting your own battles. But this one you would descend on a small constituency which makes the management of the process extremely difficult. Even accommodation becomes very difficult. In Osun for instance I was stranded because the politicians actually took over all the hotels when we went for the signing of the peace accord. I managed to get one room. The following day I had to rush to Akure to get back to Abuja. So it is more difficult because there is pressure on all facilities.

“Thirdly, the power of incumbency is used to the advantage or disadvantage of parties and candidates and this is a clear violation of the provision of the electoral act that prohibits the use of the power of incumbency to the advantage or disadvantage of any political party or candidate whether it is outdoor advertisement or campaign in the state media or the use of state facilities like stadia and public spaces.

“It has been an issue in previous elections. So far so good but it is now the campaign is heating up and this matter is likely to come up. Outside these concerns we have been doing well. For Edo there are 17 political parties fielding candidates. Only one female candidate. Others are male. There is no person with a disability in Edo State.

“In Ondo State we have 17 candidates. No female candidate. There is one person with disability in Ondo and that is the governorship candidate of the ADC. In Edo we have approved the names of 134 observers to cover the election. 124 are domestic observers and 10 are international observers. We’ll soon start printing the voter register for the two states.

“In Edo in terms of election technology we had a challenge when our office was flooded. The BVAS machines deployed were substantially soaked in water. The good thing is that we were able to recover well over 3500 of a little over 4000 BVAS machines in Edo State. They are all in working order. We are lucky that this is an odd cycle election so we can rely on resources from neighbouring states. So we have called for additional machines from Abia and they arrived in Edo yesterday, 58 days before the election. So we are very good to go on that score,” he added.

News

Three Nigerians make Forbes 50 wealthiest Black Americans list 2024

Published

3 minutes ago

December 21, 2024

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

Forbes has unveiled its 2024 ForbesBLK 50 list, celebrating the achievements of the wealthiest and most influential Black Americans.

Among the honorees are three Nigerians—Adebayo Ogunlesi, Tope Awotona, and Wemimo Abbey—whose groundbreaking contributions and entrepreneurial successes have earned them places on this prestigious list.

The Forbes BLK 50 is a reimagining of Forbes’ 2009 Wealthiest Black Americans list, which then featured figures like Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jordan, and Magic Johnson.

While net worth remains a core metric, the new list also highlights innovation, societal impact, and leadership across diverse industries.

What Forbes said

Adebayo Ogunlesi, with a net worth of $1.7 billion, stands out as a pioneering force in global infrastructure investment. As chairman and cofounder of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), Ogunlesi led the private equity firm through a transformative acquisition by BlackRock in 2024 for $12.5 billion.

Ogunlesi, a Harvard-educated lawyer and banker, previously spent over two decades at Credit Suisse before launching GIP in 2006.

His influence extends beyond business, as he has become a key figure in reshaping infrastructure investment on a global scale.

Also, Nigerian entrepreneur, Tope Awotona, the founder and CEO of Calendly, has redefined efficiency in scheduling and holds a net worth of $1.4 billion.

Born in Lagos, Awotona moved to Atlanta as a teenager and pursued business and management information studies at the University of Georgia. After early entrepreneurial setbacks, he launched Calendly in 2013, driven by frustration with cumbersome meeting coordination. The platform, which raised $350 million in 2021, is now valued at $3 billion and serves millions of users worldwide.

Although not a ranking, Wemimo Abbey, at just 32, is the youngest Nigerian on the list and cofounder of Esusu, an African fintech company addressing financial inclusion.

Esusu helps renters build credit by reporting rent payments to credit bureaus, a service utilized by more than 20,000 properties and benefiting 1.8 million Americans.

In 2022, Esusu achieved a $1 billion valuation following a $130 million funding round. Abbey, who grew up in Lagos, has a background in mergers and acquisitions consulting and a passion for leveraging technology to drive social impact.

These three Nigerians show innovation, resilience, and the drive to address pressing global challenges. Their inclusion on the ForbesBLK 50 list is a foretelling of their entrepreneurial vision and the increasing influence of Nigerians on the global stage.

The ForbesBLK 50 list, launched under ForbesBLK, aims to go beyond net worth to measure impact and influence within the Black community and beyond.

[Nairametric]

News

Ex-Gov Yahaya Bello leaves Kuje prison after satisfying bail condition

Published

8 minutes ago

December 21, 2024

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

Former Kogi State governor, Yahaya Bello was, on Friday evening, released from the Kuje Custodial Centre after meeting the bail conditions set by the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja.

Spokesperson for the Nigerian Correctional Service, FCT Command, Adamu Duza, confirmed the development.

According to Duza, “Yahaya Bello has been released after meeting the bail conditions. He was released this evening (Friday).

“The Controller of NCoS FCT, Ajibogun Olatubosun, was on the ground to ensure his smooth release and that all protocols were observed.”

On Thursday, Justice Maryanne Anenih granted Bello bail in the sum of N500m.

The bail conditions included providing three sureties, each owning property in select high-value areas of Abuja, such as Maitama, Guzape, or Asokoro.

Justice Anenih also ordered Bello to surrender his passport and restricted his travel outside Nigeria without prior permission.

The former governor, along with Shuaibu Oricha and Abdulsalam Hudu, faces a 16-count charge of conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, and unlawful possession of property, brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

All three have pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The Court had rejected Bello’s initial bail application on procedural grounds but granted bail to his co-defendants.

But on Thursday, Bello’s fresh application was approved, resulting in his release on Friday.

News

Insecurity! Troops arrest Bello Turji’s ally Bako, silence 211 terrorists in 7 days

Published

9 hours ago

December 20, 2024

Austin Ojomah

A suspected terrorist has been nabbed by the troops in the North West theatre of operation.

The arrested high profile and notorious terrorist was identified as Bako Wurgi. The terror leader is linked to the murder of the Sokoto Monarch and a staunch ally of wanted high profile terrorist Bello Turji’s.

In a statement made available to journalists on Friday in Abuja, the Defence Director Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba said the arrested terrorist leader, Bako Wurgi, eventually succumbed to gun shot injuries sustained during the fire fight.

According to General Buba, the terrorist leader Wurgi provided valuable intelligence to support troops operations before he eventually passed on.

General Buba also disclosed that another two high profile terrorists identified as Hamisu Sale (aka Master) and Abubakar Muhammad were arrested during seperate operations conducted in North Central theatre of operation.

In his words, the duo are cooperating and providing valuable intelligence on the terror network.

The DHQ spokesman was deadpan when he said that, “Troops are on high alert and have increased readiness to protect the country from further terrorist aggression, particularly during the yuletide.

Accordingly, robust operations targeted at terrorist leadership are being conducted across the various theatres of operations.”

He disclosed that during the week under review, troops neutralised 212 and arrested 272 persons.

The DHQ publicist informed that troops recovered 247 assorted weapons and 6,174 assorted ammunition.

Giving the breakdown, General Buba said 2 RPG UXO4, 110 AK47 rifles, 56 fabricated rifles, 36 dane guns and 2 FN rifles were recovered during the week under review.

Others include, 2 baretta pistols, 15 locally made pistols, 2 revolver pistols, 12 pump action guns, 2 double barrel guns, one single barrel gun, one RPG bomb, one RPG tube, 2 exploded RPG chargers, one PKM link, one link of GPMG and 70 AK47 magazines.

Also recovered are 3,235 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 1,583 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 130 rounds of 7.62 x 51mm ammo, 400 rounds of 7.62 x 39mm ammo, 92 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm ammo, 107 rounds of 9mm ammo, 311 live cartridges, one FN magazine, 3 bandoliers, 5 baofeng radios, 8 vehicles, 51 motorcycles and 103 mobile phones amongst other items.