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JUST IN: I know there’s hardship,Tinubu finally admits
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
President Bola Tinubu has finally admitted that there is hardship in the land, blaming it on some actions of the past.
At a meeting with the Forum of Former Presiding Officers of the National Assembly, led by former Senate President Ken Nnamani, the President expressed confidence that Nigeria can progress through collaboration and inclusiveness.
”Regardless of party differences of the past and difficulty of the present, you still believe in me and what we all plan for this country.”
”I thank you very much; no one will do it better than us. I have travelled the world and seen how developed countries have done it for themselves through collaboration, inclusiveness and financial structure.
”Yes, there is hardship, but how did we get here? What did we do when we had very high crude production?
“We neglected our communities; we neglected the goose that lays the golden eggs; we forgot even to give them a good standard of living.
”We forgot to educate our children. Go round and look at the dilapidated schools. The education environment must be decent enough for pupils to want to learn.
”We can complain from now till eternity that the school enrolment is low. But did we do anything to encourage the enrolment process? We must ask ourselves because it is a matter of conscience,” he said.
The removal of petrol subsidy on the president’s first day in office had tripled pump price of fuel.
Additionally, the move to to unify exchange rate windows, also a day one policy, pushed the naira to an all-time low, trading at above N1,600 to a dollar from N600 to one dollar he met on May 29, 2023.
Inflation also worsened under Tinubu, making some of his supporters to turn their backs on him as stakeholders continued to ask his government to find lasting solutions.
Earlier this week, former military Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, took a critical look at the living condition of most Nigerians and concluded that “the hardship in the land is getting out of control”.
Abdulsalami spoke in Minna, the Niger State capital, when he received the leadership of the Campaign for Democracy (CD), led by Abdullahi Mohammed Jabi, who paid him a birthday visit.
The CD delegation had asked him to prevail on Tinubu to find a solution to the hunger in the land.
The former head of state had lamented, “Everybody is crying of this hardship and it seems to be getting out of control. People cannot afford three square meals, the issue of transportation, the hike in fuel price, the hike in school fees for the children and the lack of funds in everybody’s pocket is making life difficult for everybody.”
However, Tinubu told his visitors on Friday that his administration is focused on delivering tangible results and making a positive difference in the nation’s infrastructure, food and energy security, education and long-term economic stability.
By Gloria Ikibah
The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of Edo State, Anugbum Onuoha has said that the ongoing governorship election in Edo State will feature electronic result transmission, pending network reliability.
Onuoha made this statement during an interview with ARISE Television on Saturday.
Onuoha emphasized that poor network connectivity is the only factor that could disrupt the electronic transmission of results.
“We have a total of 4,519 polling units across the 18 Local Government Areas and have deployed 4,622 BVAS units, with an additional 660 as backup,” he explained.
He also noted that operators for the BVAS have been adequately trained.
“The BVAS will be used to accredit voters and determine the total number of voters at each polling unit. After voting, results will be counted and uploaded to our IReV system.
“We are committed to conducting an election we can be proud of”, he stated.
When asked if all results would be transmitted electronically, he affirmed, “Yes, unless there’s no network. Otherwise, we will transmit them”, Onuoha reassured.
By Gloria Ikibah
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has extended voting hours in some parts of Edo State following delays caused by rainfall and logistical issues.
ANational Commissioner with INEC, Mohammed Haruna, announced the decision in a statement on Saturday.
“We are closely monitoring the Edo State governorship election from our situation room at the National Headquarters in Abuja.
“While voting started early in many polling units, there are reports of late commencement in certain areas”, Haruna said.
To prevent voter disenfranchisement, Haruna emphasized that voting would continue in affected areas beyond the official closing time.
“As per our regulations, voting will be extended in locations where it started late, and will continue until the last person in line by 2:30 p.m. has cast their vote”, he added.
INEC also assured that backup power generators would be deployed to polling units or collation centers facing power issues.
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Olumide Akpata, Labour Party (LP) candidate in the ongoing Edo State Governorship Election has been beaten in his polling unit (P Akpata voted at Ward 6, PU 11 in Oredo local government area of the State.
Akpata’s polling unit was won by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) with 41 votes. The Labour Party candidate polled 32 votes while the All Progressives Congress (APC) polled 19 votes at the PU.
Akpata after casting his vote had adjudged the process at the polling unit as credible. Speaking with journalists after voting at about 10:30 am, Olumide said “I voted according to the voting process and everything went well.
“I want to hope that this is the experience of every Edo voter. I cannot make assumptions standing here. I am going to wait for feedback from around the different units and 192 wards in the state. We are hopeful that this will be the experience of every Edo voter
“I am calling on INEC that the playing field should remain level. Nobody should be given any undue advantage. All party agents should be allowed into the collation centres, so that we can all witness the process.
“Edo election is an off cycle election so INEC should have the luxury of deploying it’s resources to show the world that they can do it well. The playing field should be totally levelled to allow the best man or women to win.
“I am hearing some concerning feedback from around the state but I cannot make any statement until I verify the source of my information. We have crossed one hurdle, I have voted and my supporters should be allowed to vote, he said”.
He added that the deployment of tight security personnel was good, but he however expressed concerns if the security were for the voters or certain individuals.
Edo REC Promises Real-Time Electronic Result Transmission
INEC Extends Voting Time in Parts of Edo Due to Rainfall and Logistics Challenges
Just in: Akpata beaten in his polling unit
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