Benue Guber: Supreme Court affirms Rev Alia’s election

The Supreme Court has affirmed the election of Hyacinth Alia of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as governor of Benue State after the Apex Court dismissed the appeal of Titus Uba of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). A five-member panel of the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal after counsel for the PDP governorship candidate, Sebastian Hon, SAN withdrew the appeal challenging APC victory in the March 18 governorship election. Hon, a Senior Advocate, withdrew the appeal after getting a hint from the Apex Court panel that the matter before it was one bordering on nomination and as such a pre-election matter. Consequently, the Apex court five-man panel, presided by Justice Inyang Okoro upheld the governorship election that produced Rev Hyacinth Alia, as the Benue state governor legal. Details later…

INEC Implements FG Retirement Policy: Four Directors set to Retire

In compliance with the government’s reviewed policy on retirement from the federal public service, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has approved the retirement of four directors of Election Management Body. Based on circular number HSCF/SPSO/268/T3/2/37 issued on July 27, 2023, it becomes mandatory for a director who has put in eight years of service on the rank to retire. Sam Olumekun, the National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, revealed that INEC will comply with the government’s directive requiring Directors with eight or more years of service to retire from the public sector. This decision will result in four directors proceeding on terminal leave. Notably, two of these directors hold pivotal roles as heads of departments at the National Headquarters, while the remaining two occupy the positions of Administrative Secretaries within the State offices. However, an exemption clause under Circular MH. 7205/T/31 dated September 7, 2023, exempts Clinical Officers within the medical cadre from this retirement policy. Olumekun conveyed the Commission’s well-wishes to the affected Directors as they prepare to conclude their tenure and retire from their roles within the Commission.

APC, PDP Unveil Timetable, Costs for  Bye-Elections

The All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have each revealed their timelines and expenses for the upcoming 2024 bye-elections in accordance with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) directives. For the Senate race, the APC set the expression of interest form at N3 million and the nomination form at N17 million. House of Representatives aspirants will pay N1 million for expression of interest and N9 million for nomination.  As for the House of Assembly, the expression of interest form stands at N500,000, while the nomination form is priced at N1,500,000.  The party encouraged female aspirants and people living with disabilities to obtain the expression of interest form, with the nomination form available for free.  Additionally, youths aged 25 to 40 can obtain the expression of interest form at a 50% discount on the nomination form. The PDP, on the other hand, outlined its costs differently.  The expression of interest form for the Senate is set at N500,000, with the nomination form at N3,000,000.  House of Representatives hopefuls will pay N500,000 for expression of interest and N2,000,000 for nomination.  For the State House of Assembly, the expression of interest form costs N100,000, while the nomination form is priced at N500,000.  Similar to the APC, the PDP stated that female aspirants and individuals living with disabilities will pay for nomination forms only.  Furthermore, individuals below 40 years old will receive a 50% discount on the nomination form after purchasing the expression of interest form.

Adamawa Guber: Binani loses petition against Gov Fintiri

The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Monday dismissed the petition by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its governorship candidate, Senator Aisha Dahiru Binani seeking to invalidate the election of Umar Ahmadu Fintiri as the duly elected governor of Adamawa State. The Appellate Court held that the iFintiri of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP was lawfully declared winner of the poll by the Adamawa State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal. A judgment written by Justice Tunde Oyebanji Awotoye threw out the case of Binani and APC on various grounds of abnormalities. Among the grounds, the Appeal Court held that Binani and APC failed to call Polling Agents who participated in the conduct of the election as witnesses but unfortunately called Campaign Coordinators who were not at the election venue. Justice Awotoye said that the three witnesses called to establish malpractices in 27 Local Government Areas who were Campaign Coordinators are mere hearsay witnesses having not been party agents. The Court held that it is against the law to attach probate values to the testimony of the Campaign Coordinators since such is worthless in the face of the law. Besides, Justice Awotoye said that the brief of argument filed by Binani and APC was in contravention of the law, hence, incompetent and deserved to be ignored. Also, Justice Awotoye held that the records of appeal transmitted to the Court of Appeal by Binani and APC were not complete and in law mot icompetent for the Court to make any finding. The Court declared as illegal act, the declaration of Binani and APC as winners of the election adding that the only authority to make declaration is the Returning Officer. The Court also said that it was wrong for Binani to be taking Panadol for the headache of the Resident Electoral Commissioner REC who opted to take laws into his own hand. “In the eyes of the law, the Resident Electoral Commissioner is on his own. He should be allowed to take responsibility for his illegal and unlawful act” The unanimous judgment dismissed the appeal in its entirety and award a cost of N1M to be paid to Fintiri and PDP by Binani and APC. The Adamawa State Governorship Electoral Petitions Tribunal had, in October, dismissed the petition filed by Binani seeking Fintiri’s sack from office.

Guber Elections Underway In Bayelsa, Imo, Kogi As INEC Conducts Off-Cycle Polls

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Saturday initiated the first off-cycle elections since the 2023 general elections, with residents of Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi states casting their votes to determine their governors for the next four years. A total of 46,084 regular and ad-hoc staff have been deployed across the three states, and 126 national and international organizations, along with 11,000 observers, are accredited for the elections. Additionally, 80 media organizations have applied to deploy 1,203 personnel, including journalists and technical/support staff. Security measures are robust, with 92,565 police personnel mobilized, including helicopters and gunboats. The Federal Road Safety Corps has also deployed 1,500 operatives and 105 vehicles. INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, revealed that the elections will be held in 10,470 polling units across 649 electoral wards in 56 local government areas. Voting commenced around 08:30 am in observed polling units, following the arrival of INEC officials with sensitive and non-sensitive materials. Over five million voters are expected to participate in the elections, with the outcome potentially influenced by the significant representation of youths and middle-aged individuals, comprising over 60% of the total PVCs collected in the three states. In Imo State, registered voters are 2,419,922, with 2,318,919 PVCs collected. In Kogi, there are 1,932,654 registered voters, and 1,833,160 PVCs collected, while Bayelsa has 1,056,862 registered voters and 1,017,613 PVCs collected. Sixteen political parties are sponsoring candidates in Bayelsa, and 18 in both Imo and Kogi, with elections taking place in 10,470 polling units across the 56 local government areas in the three states. INEC has deployed nine Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) and two national commissioners to each state, with 46,000 staff overseeing the elections. The Result Viewing Portal (IReV) is assured to work smoothly despite previous glitches experienced in the technology during the February 25, 2023 presidential poll.

2m Voters Registered Voters Set For Kogi Guber Election –INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said two million registered voters are expected to vote in the Saturday off-cycle governorship election in Kogi. The election will hold in 3,508 poling units, spread across the 21 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state. The LGAs included Adavi, Ajaokuta, Ankpa, Bassa, Dekina, Ibaji, Idah, Igalamela/Odolu, Ijumu, Kabba-Bunu, Kogi, Lokoja, Mopamuro, Ofu, Ogori-Magongo, Okene, Okehi, Olamaboro, Omala, Yagba-East, and Yagba-West. Speaking on preparations for the election, Dr Gabriel Longpet, the state Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), said that the commission was 100 per cent ready. Longpet said that the commission had recruited over 15,000 ad hoc staff to help it in the smooth conduct of the poll. “We have 3,508 polling units and each of these units will be manned by four ad hoc staff aside the security personnel that will be around to ensure peaceful conduct of the election. “We shall deploy more staff and BVAS in densely populated polling units to complement those we are going to use. “To be precise, we are going to use more than 900 back-up BVAS. “This is because some polling units have more than 1,000 to 2,000 registered voters, and we have to split the number by creating more voting points for easy voting. “This becomes imperative as we don’t want to give room for anything that will delay the process. “As soon as there is a report of any BVAS failure or challenge, we shall provide another one and configure it to that polling unit for smooth continuation of voting,” he said. Longpet said that the BVAS had been deployed to the 21 local government areas of the state in readiness for the election. Also speaking, the state Commissioner of Police (CP), Mr Bethrand Onuoha, said over 40,000 policemen would be deployed across the state to ensure peaceful conduct of the election. Onuoha said that the planned deployment of large number of personnel was due the past experiences in the state, where violence was recorded during elections. “As it is, we have marked out some security flash points for more vigilance even though recent happenings signaled to us that the whole Kogi is a flashpoints. “From the number of security personnel we are deploying for this election, it’s an enough testimony to tell you that the state needs more security checks. “With the presence of adequate security personnel in Kogi, we are calling on every body to come out and exercise his or her civic right in the Saturday governorship election. “We are going to swam the state with enough security personnel and by the special grace of God, with our actions and sanctions, we are going to confound our detractors,” he said. Onuoha added: “God is telling me that this election is going to be better than all the elections ever held here in Kogi. “We have directed our personnel to be fair to everybody because we come here to serve the people and not any particular individual.” The CP urged politicians to play according to the rules of the game, saying that election would come and go, while the people would remain. “We expect that they should adopt politics without bitterness. Your brother is your brother, no matter where he belongs politically, ” he said. Onuoha warned trouble makers especially political thugs, not to try any thing funny as regard the election as security operatives are battle ready to deal with them. “In election, you don’t use matches and guns to force people to give you votes. Such people will meet the wrath of the law. “What we want in Kogi is a peaceful and successful election. Therefore, politicians must play according to the rules of the game or be dealt with. “The traditional rulers should help us talk to their subjects to maintain peace throughout the election period because it will come and go and we will all remain as residents,” said the police chief. Eighteen political parties featuring in the election on Wednesday signed a peace accord, ahead of the poll.Some of the parties were the All Progressives Congress (APC), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Social Democratic Party (SDP), the Labour Party (LP) and the Action Alliance (AA). Others are the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP), the Action Democratic Congress (ADC), the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), the National Rescue Movement and the Action Democratic Party (ADP).

Guber Elections: We’re Not Extending Deadline For Polling Agents, Says INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has told political parties that it has no plans to extend the October 10 deadline for uploading of the list of their agents for polling units and collation centres for the November 11 Bayelsa, Kogi and Imo governorship elections. Mr Sam Olumekun, INEC National Commissioner and the Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee said this in a statement on Sunday in Abuja. Olumekun said that with less than 72 hours to deadline, only 55 per cent of expected agents for polling units and collation centre had been uploaded on its portal by political parties for the governorship election. He advised parties yet to comply to do before the deadline.Olumekun said that INEC notified all parties of the opening of its online portal for the upload of the list of polling units and collation centre agents, which commenced on August 24. He added that the commission thereafter engaged party representatives on the methodology for a seamless process. Olumekun said that in spite of the notice and subsequent reminders, parties were yet to substantially comply by submitting the list of their agents. “For Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi, only 55 per cent of the expected total of 189,180 polling unit agents have been uploaded to the designated INEC Portal. “Specifically, 29,278 out of the expected 40,372 (72.5 per cent for Bayelsa; 51,681 out of 85,644 (60.3 per cent) for Imo, and 23,720 out of 63,144 (37.6 per cent) for Kogi State have been uploaded. “Similarly, only 25.1 per cent of the expected 15,804 Collation Agents in the three States have been uploaded: 1,246 (26.0 per cent) out of 4,806 for Bayelsa; 1,638 (27.3 per cent) out of 5,994 for Imo, and 1,095 (21.9 per cent) out of 5,004 for Kogi. “The commission hereby wishes to further remind political parties that the portal will automatically shut down at 12:00 midnight on Tuesday Oct. 10. “There shall be no extension. Consequently, all parties sponsoring candidates for the elections that are yet to upload the list of their agents should do so before the deadline for the exercise,” Olumekun said. On the online accreditation of journalists for the election, Olumekun said that late applications would not be entertained after the Oct. 22 deadline and there shall be no provision for manual accreditation. He said that so far 45 media organisations had applied for the online accreditation of journalists which commenced on Aug. 24 and shall close on Oct. 22. “The commission also wishes to use this medium to encourage all interested Media organisations to take advantage of the remaining window to apply on imap.inecnigeria.org before the deadline on Oct. 22,” he said. Olumekun expressed the commission’s dismay on the spate of insecurity and violence, including clashes among supporters of political parties and candidates in the forthcoming elections. He appealed to all political parties and candidates to avoid utterances and acts that might heat up the polity or jeopadise peaceful conduct of the election. “In our engagement with political parties, the commission has constantly called on parties to rein in their supporters from actions capable of jeopardising the peaceful conduct of elections in Nigeria. “INEC earnestly appeal to all Political Parties and candidates to avoid utterances and acts that may heat up the polity. “The commission will continue to closely monitor the situation and sustain its engagement with security agencies and stakeholders to ensure a peaceful conduct of elections in the three states,” he said. 

Kogi Guber: INEC Tasks Media On Ethics, Professionalism

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has tasked media practitioners to ensure ethics in their reportage, ahead of the November 11 Kogi governorship election. Prof. Mahmud Yakubu, the Chairman, INEC, said this at a meeting with Kogi media executives in Lokoja as part of preparation for the election. Yakubu, who was represented by his media aide, Mr Rotimi Olakanmi, said that the appeal became imperative because of the reoccurring cases of fake news in the media in recent times. “As stakeholders, the media should refuse the temptation to move away from facts as being seen in the social media, where fake news has become the order of the day. “Let’s practice in accordance with the ethics of the profession and the laws of the land to help INEC succeed in its task of conducting credible, peaceful and successful election in Kogi come November 11,” he said. Earlier, Dr Gabriel Longpet, the state INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), described the media as critical partner and stakeholder in the hitch-free conduct of the November 11 governorship election. Longpet said that INEC was prepared and ready for the conduct of the election devoid of rancour. “All we want is for the people of the state to demonstrate a change of attitude toward election and ensure that the election is credible and peaceful. “Therefore, political actors should not do anything that will negatively affect the election, but to support the commission to succeed for the good of the state,” he said. Alhaji Mommoh Jimoh, the chairman of the state council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), lauded INEC for organising the meeting, which he said was the first of its kind since the creation of the state. Jimoh pleaded with INEC to provide journalists with accreditation cards and other materials needed for the smooth coverage of the poll. He assured INEC of journalists’ readiness to give the November 11 election the desired coverage for posterity.