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Senators tackle Akpabio over choice of Senate minority leaders

There was an uproar in the Senate on Tuesday following the announcement of two minority leaders by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

The seats of the Senate Minority Leader and Minority Whip became vacant after the Court of Appeal sacked the former occupants, Senator Simon Davou Mwadkwon (PDP, Plateau North) and Darlington Nwokocha (LP, Abia Central) respectively.

The courts nullified the election of Mwadkwon and ordered a rerun while Nwokocha was removed as Augustine Akobundu of the PDP was declared as the authentic winner of the 25 February election in the senatorial district.

The PDP senators had, last week, held an emergency crucial meeting on the replacement for the principal positions of Senate Minority Leader and Minority Whip. Senator Garba Maidoki (PDP, Bauchi), who briefed journalists after the closed-door meeting, had said the opposition lawmakers settled for the North Central geo-political zone to produce the Minority Leader.

During Tuesday’s plenary, Akpabio announced the duo of Abba Moro (PDP, Benue South) as minority leader and Osita Ngwu (PDP, Enugu West) as minority whip.

The Senate President said the new minority leaders had the majority support of their colleagues in the opposition.

He said 41 minority senators signed the document endorsing Moro as minority leader while 30 backed Ngwu for the minority whip seat. The announcement did not sit well with other parties in the minority caucus, especially the Labour Party.

Raising a point of order, Senator Okechukwu Ezea (LP, Enugu North), protested the absence of his party in the minority leadership, describing the arrangement as an injustice against other minority parties.

“How can the PDP take three minority leadership seats? This is unfair, unjust, and unacceptable,” he said.

The Senate after that degenerated into a rowdy session with LP lawmakers rejecting their party’s exclusion in the minority leadership.

Amid the uproar, Senator Tony Nwoyi (LP, Anambra North) “How can you be choosing minority leaders for us? Are we your slaves?” Nwoyi tackled the Senate President. Lawmakers from the ruling party made frantic efforts to pacify their colleagues from LP, some of whom approached Akpabio for consultation.

After about 15 minutes of rowdy session, the Senate President addressed the opposition lawmakers and dismissed the claim of his interfering in the affairs of the opposition.

Akpabio said he only announced the names forwarded to him by the opposition caucus and that it would be unfair not to respect the voice of the majority.

accused Akpabio of picking minority leaders for the opposition parties.

He, therefore, urged the opposition caucus to always put their house in order before forwarding any name to him.

He said, “All we need to produce a leader is a simple majority. What’s the reason for not agreeing with the position of the majority?

“41 minority senators signed for Abah Moro and 30 signed for Osita Ngwu. They have the majority. It will be unfair for me not to announce them after getting a majority of support. My job is not to work with individual opinion but with the majority of positions.

“Efforts by Senator Adamu Aliero (PDP, Kebbi) to convince Akpabio to stay action on the seat of the minority whip failed as the Senate President ruled him out of order.

Aliero explained that the opposition caucus resolved that Abba Moro should be the minority leader but was yet to decide on the position of the minority whip.

But Akpabio referred him to Senate Standing Rule 52(6), which says it shall be out of order for any senator to speak on any issue that has already been decided.

Akpabio, therefore, ruled Aliero out of order.

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Politics

Our Chairman not in contempt of court – INEC replies SERAP

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has refuted accusations by the Socio-economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, that its chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu flouted a court order regarding the prosecution of electoral offenders.

INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, said this in a statement Wednesday in Abuja.

Olumekun said the commission’s attention was drawn to media reports attributed to SERAP accusing the Commission of failure or neglect to prosecute electoral offenders arising from the 2023 General Election.

Recall that SERAP had specifically accused the Commission of failure to engage independent counsels to prosecute unnamed Governors and Deputy Governors for sundry violations of electoral laws.

SERAP also accused the Commission of failing to engage private lawyers to prosecute other electoral offences, including vote buying during the same election. These allegations are untrue in the face of facts already in the public domain, the agency said.

Reacting, INEC said Governors and Deputy Governors have constitutional immunity from prosecution and that SERAP cannot be unaware of this constitutional provisions.

The electoral umpire further stated that in any case, it has no record that any of them has been arrested, or investigated and a prima facie case was established to initiate their prosecution.

“Furthermore, if SERAP had done a basic fact check, it would have known that at the end of the 2023 General Election, the Commission announced that it received 215 case files from the Nigeria Police following the arrest and investigation of alleged violators of the electoral laws across the country.

These include 52 files involving 238 alleged offenders during the Presidential and National Assembly elections and 163 files in respect of 536 suspects for the Governorship and State Assembly elections.

“It is important to also inform the public that the Commission’s commitment to the prosecution of electoral offenders is not limited to persons who are outside the Commission.

Indeed, officials of the Commission, some of them highly placed, have been affected, including a Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) currently being prosecuted in a High Court in Yola,” INEC said.

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Ondo guber: Parties to sign peace accord November 8

The various political parties participating in the forthcoming Ondo State governorship election will sign a Peace Accord on November 8.

The National Peace Committee and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, coordinated the initiative aimed at securing a peaceful election process.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, announced this on Thursday in Abuja, saying the Commission has identified potential flashpoints in Ondo and alerted security agencies for effective conflict mapping.

Speaking during the fourth quarterly meeting with Civil Society Organizations, CSOs, Yakubu noted that INEC would conduct a final readiness assessment next week, involving stakeholders, officials, security agencies, and transport providers.

The INEC boss also shared that the Permanent Voter’s Cards, PVC collection period concluded recently, with 64,273 out of 89,777 PVCs distributed—a collection rate of 71.6%.

He credited CSOs with helping mobilize voters for card collection and indicated that INEC would publish cumulative PVC collection figures by polling unit on its website.

Yakubu expressed satisfaction with improvements to the voter accreditation process and result upload procedures, as well as enhancements in media and observer accreditations.

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Fubara appeals court judgement stopping Rivers government allocation

The Rivers State Government on Wednesday, October 30, officially filed an appeal against the recent Federal High Court ruling that restrained the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from disbursing federal allocations to the state.

The judgment, issued by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, restricts Governor Siminalayi Fubara from accessing allocations until the state’s 2024 budget is presented before a legitimate Rivers House of Assembly.

Justice Abdulmalik’s ruling declared that Fubara’s previous budget presentations were unconstitutional, as they bypassed the Martin Amaewhule-led Rivers House of Assembly, which is aligned with FCT Minister Nyesom Wike. Fubara, a former political ally of Wike, is alleged to have authorized disbursements without proper legislative approval.

The ruling also restrains the CBN, the Accountant-General of the Federation, and the state’s bank partners from enabling access to the state’s funds until compliance with constitutional guidelines is established.

Rivers State’s Commissioner for Information and Communications, Joseph Johnson, expressed confidence that the Appeal Court would overturn the ruling. He highlighted issues within the High Court’s procedures, including the judge’s refusal to allow certain council chairmen to join the case as defendants. Johnson emphasized the government’s position that the judgment, if upheld, could affect local government workers and essential services across the state.

Following the judgment, prominent political figures, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and representatives from the Peoples Democratic Party, expressed concern over the judiciary’s increasing involvement in political disputes. Atiku condemned what he described as politically influenced rulings, cautioning that the judiciary’s reputation was at risk.

Pro-Wike factions and supporters of the Amaewhule-led Assembly celebrated the decision as a reinforcement of the rule of law.

Meanwhile, civil society organizations also weighed in, with the Centre for Accountability and Open Leadership arguing that Fubara’s unilateral budget actions undermined democratic principles.

As Rivers State moves to appeal the decision, the judiciary’s role in political crises continues to stir debate nationwide. Both sides await the Appeal Court’s response, which is expected to clarify the balance of power between state governments and the federal judiciary.

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