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Insecurity: Senate okays ranching, demands review of security arrangement
The Senate has called for an end to open grazing of cows, which has repeatedly led to conflicts between farmers and herders.
They have therefore asked all the state governors to implement the 2018 Federal Government’s National Livestock Transformation Plan (NLTP) to curb the conflicts across the country.
The senators who spoke Wednesday on the security issue through a motion sponsored by Ajayi Boroffice and co-sponsored by 105 others, said leaders could no longer continue to pretend as if all was well.
They urged President Muhammadu Buhari to direct the National Security Adviser (NSA) and the nominated service chiefs to overhaul the country’s security architecture.
The Senate had scheduled the bill for debate on Tuesday, but stepped it down, following the death of a member of the House of Representatives, Ossy Prestige.
A former governor of Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Adamu, accused Ondo State Government of ordering Nigerians from other parts of the country to vacate the state
“We’re mixing up issues. I find it hard to believe that in the 21st century, a governor will ask people who are not from the state to leave. We need to find out these allegations of killings or otherwise,” he claimed.
His claims were rebuffed by the Minority Leader of the Senate, Enyinnaya Abaribe.
He said those who were ordered to leave Ondo State were criminals and not citizens doing legitimate business.
Abaribe, who warned against misleading information, said practical solutions must be worked out and the criminals flushed out wherever they were hiding in any part of the country.
Abaribe said, “But we need to clear certain things. I want to address the issue of whether people were sent away. Nigerians were not sent away. Criminals were sent away. We shouldn’t send out the wrong message. The IGP has said that these criminals aren’t from Nigeria. If we want to find solutions, let’s do that. Those criminal elements from anywhere they’re coming from must be flushed out.”
Senate Committee Chairman on Army, Ali Ndume, urged the Senate to set up an ad hoc committee and involve experts during the public hearing to bring a lasting solution.
He said, “We should take responsibility as leaders. We are in government. We are part of the government. These people are criminals. They don’t settle in one place. We can set up an ad-hoc committee to look at all the issues raised.”
Former minority leader, Biodun Olujimi, wondered why a national emergency was declared at the peak of COVID-19 but the government had not deemed it fit to declare a national security emergency.
He said, “We are all in denial. Otherwise, we would have declared it a national emergency. Right now, Nigerians are endangered species. We have spoken and nothing is being done. We must do something. Posterity will not forgive us if we do nothing.”
A lawmaker from Adamawa State, Binos Yero, said Nigerians of Fulani extraction were being encouraged to roam the country freely unchallenged.
“This must stop,” he said.
Tolu Odebiyi from Ogun State said Nigeria was at the precipice of a civil war.
He said President Muhammadu Buhari could sign an executive order and ban open grazing in the country.
He said, “I visited a border community in my place and herdsmen had destroyed their sources of livelihood. They burnt their houses and we are talking about confirming former service chiefs who couldn’t fix our security challenges. What are we doing?”
Smart Adeyemi from Kogi State said, “Whenever we talk about insecurity, there’s an international conspiracy. If things are getting out of hand, there’s nothing wrong if the president asks for foreign support. There’s need for an international support. We don’t need N500 billion on purchase of drugs for COVID-19. We should spend that on insecurity.”
Suleiman Kyari from Kaduna State said: “This country has sunk to a level where it it seen as a failed country. Service Chiefs must address the morale of their troops. We should coordinate security intelligence. That has been failing.”
Deputy Senate Whip, Abdullahi Sabi said: “Niger State has joined the league of states that are daily attacked by bandits. Two local government councils stand out. There were several attacks and people were killed. We are definitely facing the heat.”
Michael Opeyemi Bamidele from Ekiti State, said: “Section 43 of our Constitution grants every Nigerian the right to live in any part of the country. This is different from land ownership. Even if I have the right to live in any part of Nigeria, I don’t have the right to trespass on the property of others. Governors must be able to take charge of their domains. Criminals must be arrested. Let no one be afraid of being called a tribalist.”
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[UPDATED] [Breaking] APC’s Lucky Aiyedatiwa wins Ondo governorship election
[UPDATED] [Breaking] APC’s Lucky Aiyedatiwa wins Ondo governorship election
Lucky Aiyedatiwa, the All Progressive Congress (APC) candidate, has emerged victorious in the Ondo governorship election.
Olayemi Akinwumi, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) returning officer, disclosed the results in Akure, Ondo’s capital, on Sunday.
Aiyedatiwa, the incumbent governor, secured 366,781 votes, surpassing Agboola Ajayi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who garnered 117,845 votes.
Nejo Adeyemi, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate, trailed behind with 4,138 votes.
The APC dominated the election, winning all 18 local government areas, while the PDP failed to secure any victories.
The off-cycle election in Ondo, contested by 17 candidates, took place peacefully, with minimal violence reported.
Prior to the election, Aiyedatiwa expressed confidence in his victory, citing his impressive record in office.
Aiyedatiwa emphasized that he was the sole candidate to have visited all 18 local government areas, adding that he’s willing to concede defeat if the election is free from manipulation.
Ajayi, Aiyedatiwa’s closest rival, expressed concerns regarding INEC’s capability to ensure a fair electoral process.
The PDP candidate also criticized the commission’s sluggish pace, alleging that it constitutes a “deliberate attempt to rig the polls”.
ONDO STATE GUBERNATORIAL ELECTION RESULTS (UPDATED)
1– Akure North
APC 14, 451
PDP 5, 787
2–Okitipupa
- APC 26, 811
- PDP 10, 233
3—Akoko Northeast
APC 25, 657
News
Ondo election: Again, INEC shifts collation of results to noon
Ondo election: Again, INEC shifts collation of results to noon
The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has shifted the collation of results for the Ondo State governorship election from 5am to noon.
The Returning Officer, Prof Olayemi Akinwunmi, had earlier announced that collation of the remaining five council areas will resume by 5 a.m. (Sunday), but later said it commences by noon.
Prof Akinwunmi is the Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Lokoja.
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Akinwunmi, who announced the recess, said it is to give room for the arrival of results from the remaining council areas.
He said: “We have five more local governments but we are going to take our recess now until 5am to receive some receive from Akure North, Okitipupa and Odigbo, then Ilaje and Eseodo. We resume 5am for these local governments.”
According to results from 13 of the 18 local government areas announced so far by INEC, Aiyedatiwa has polled 259,851 votes ahead of his closest rival and candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Agboola Ajayi, who scored 81,031 votes.
Ondo election: Again, INEC shifts collation of results to noon
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Ondo gov: PDP, APC bought votes, says rights group
Ondo gov: PDP, APC bought votes, says rights group
The Centre for Democracy and Development West Africa (CDD-West Africa), through its Election Analysis Centre (CDD-EAC), has said that the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) bought votes from the electorate for as low as N3,000 and N5,000 respectively during the Saturday’s off-cycle governorship election in Ondo State.
Prof. Victor Adetula, Lead, CDD-EAC Observation Mission Ondo 2024; and Dr. Dauda Garuba, Director, CDD-West Africa, said this in CDD’s EAC preliminary statement on the conduct of the 2024 Ondo State governorship election, presented by Ms Oluseyi Awojulugbe, a member of the CDD-EAC.
The report also said that the election recorded lower incidents of disinformation and information manipulation, also referred to as fake new compared to the recently concluded off-cycle September 21 governorship election in Edo State.
“CDD-EAC notes a lot of instances of vote buying. In Okitipupa LGA, Ward 09, Unit 003 (Irowa, Ilutitun 3), voters were solicited for their votes, with APC allegedly offering ₦10,000 per voter and PDP ₦3,000.
“In Odigbo LGA, Ward 01, Unit 001 (Oja Baale, Agbabu), reports of vote-buying were noted, with APC allegedly offering ₦10,000 and PDP ₦5,000 per voter.
“Our observers also noted that some party agents started transferring money to voters to circumvent having to hold cash. In Ese-Odo, Ward 07, Unit 013 (Tari Ama Zion Ugo Community, Arogbo Ward 2), Vote-buying was observed at this polling unit, with PDP offering ₦3,000 and APC offering ₦5,000 to voters.
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“CDD observers watching the process in Ward 5, PU 001, located at St Johns Primary School, Iba Akoko South East spotted APC leaders writing down the names of those who voted for their candidate.
“Subsequently, a card was given to them and they were instructed to converge at an agreed location where cash would be disbursed to them.
“In Ward 005, PU 001, St Barnabas Primary School, Ifon, CDD-EAC observers saw policemen arguing over money shared by a party stalwart.
“The policemen reportedly frowned that about 10 of them were given N100,000 while only one official from another branch of the armed services allegedly got N15,000,” the report said.
The CDD-EAC said that the vote buying incidents and behaviour of party agents sparked multiple conflicts during the voting process, listing Idanre LGA, Ward 06, PU 004 (Methodist High School), where APC agents were accused of strategically monitoring voters’ choices, a move initially defended by security officials but later curtailed after protests.
The report, however, commended the prompt arrival of electoral officials at polling units (PUs), with 99% of CDD-EAC observers reporting that the INEC officials were at their stations before 8:30am.
Observers also reported cases of rowdiness in the polling environment with some youths disagreeing in some cases about the initiative by poll officials to allow elderly voters to cast their ballots first, leading to the disruption of the process, despite the intervention of the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) at Post Office Premises, Akungba Akoko, Akoko South West.
On disinformation and information manipulation, the report said that the numbers of false narratives, claims and counter claims in the Ondo State governorship election have been relatively low, compared to other recent polls.
It said, “In the campaign period, and on Election Day, 13 claims have so far been reported and fact checked by CDD War Room.
“This is low, compared to the 61 claims reported during the same period in the Edo election, representing a 79% increase between the two elections. While 12 of these claims have been assessed to be either false or misleading, the sole claim peddled on voting day was adjudged to be true.”
Ondo gov: PDP, APC bought votes, says rights group
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