Politics
LG Polls: Ex-Kwara Speaker condemns glaring irregularities, scores electoral body low
Stephen Olufemi Oni, Ilorin
Former Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly and Professor of Constitutional Law, Ali Ahmad, has condemned the widespread irregularities, particularly shortage of sensitive materiels in several polling units across the State during the last Saturday local government election orchestrated by the State Independent Electoral Commission.
This is as he lauded the resilience of all the Peoples Democratic Party’s Chairmanship and Councillorship candidates across the 16 local government areas and the 193 political wards, describing them as “heroes of democracy”.
The former Speaker, in a statement on Monday by the spokesman of his media office, Steve Makinde, eulogised all PDP members in the State for their peaceful conduct and commitment to salvaging the State from the grip of the ruling APC during the September 21, 2024, local government election despite the provocation by the KWSIEC”.
He said: “I am optimism about the real-time outcomes of last Saturday’s local government elections in Kwara State, and I know that the people aligned with PDP and its candidates across the 16 local government areas as well as the 193 political wards over the ruling APC at the polls based on the authentic results from our polling agents.”
Professor Ahmad also commended the Kwara PDP executives for their “high-level preparedness, resilience, and mobilisation efforts amid provocations from the ruling APC throughout the voting exercise. The resilience encouraged eligible voters to turn out in large numbers to support the party’s candidates at the polls”.
The professor of constitutional law noted that the actual election results from various polling units across the State reflected the overwhelming confidence Kwarans have in the PDP, while lamenting the unwarranted challenges faced during the elections, including irregularities by the State Independent Electoral Commission.
“Kwarans have always spoken through the ballots, but last Saturday’s local government elections in the State provided another avenue for eligible voters to express their overwhelming confidence in our great party, the PDP. To our dogged and ever conscious Chairmanship and Councillors candidates across the 16 local government areas and 193 political wards in the State, I salute your courage and good outings at the polls, no doubt you’re all the true heroes of the democracy Kwarans have been yearning for.
“If anyone still believes there is another way around elections than allowing the people’s will to prevail, it is high time such people woke up from their slumber and embraced the real-time realities of a one man, one vote democratic process. The people have spoken louder through the ballots, and we’ve heard them,” the former Speaker said.
The former Speaker also mentioned his participation in the Saturday elections, where he won his polling unit in a landslide with APC having only one vote,
highlighting the strong support for the PDP in his community, as evidenced by the results for both the Chairmanship and Councillorship ballots.
“Despite the glaring irregularities by the State Independent Electoral Commission amid insufficient and nonavailability of sensitive materials in some parts of the State during the Saturday elections, Kwarans, in their numbers, still trooped out to their various polling units to exercise their franchise by voting our party candidates across the board. That’s a strong signal that the people are tired of complaining and ready to join hands with our great party to bring the desired changes to the grassroots.”
During a tour of various polling units and the KWASIEC office in Pake, Prof. Ali Ahmad raised concerns about the choice of the collation centre and emphasised the importance of protecting the integrity of the electoral process.
“What is happening here today has never happened before. This is a local government election where every ward and local government has its designated collation centres to announce the real-time results from various polling units. As you can see, we are peaceful people, what we are saying is that our votes must be protected away from the reports of shenanigans allegedly happening at the homes of a serving state lawmaker and a commissioner of the Kwara government,” the former Speaker added.
The overwhelming crowds of Kwarans who took turns to hail the former Speaker during his tour of various polling units and the Pake office of KWASIEC “expressed confidence in his capability as a true servant-leader and true son of the soil in Ilorin South local government area of Kwara state”.
Professor Ahmad lauded the overwhelming support he received from the people and their “confidence in his leadership as a true community representative”.
Politics
Tinubu Assures Investors Nigeria Is Open for Business, Welcomes Coca-Cola’s $1bn Plan
By Francis Wilfred
President Bola Tinubu has assured local and international investors that Nigeria remains open for business, saying his administration is implementing reforms aimed at creating a more predictable, competitive and investment-friendly environment.
Speaking through the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, at the 75th anniversary celebration of the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) in Abuja on Monday, the President said the government is addressing key challenges facing businesses under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
“Our message to investors, both Nigerian and international, is clear: Nigeria is open for business,” Tinubu said,
He noted that reliable infrastructure, efficient logistics, access to foreign exchange, stable regulations and a supportive tax system are critical to attracting investment and expanding production.
According to Yomi Odunuga, the President said ongoing economic reforms are designed to build a more productive and competitive economy, reduce dependence on imports, strengthen local manufacturing and create jobs for Nigerians.
Tinubu welcomed the Coca-Cola System’s proposed $1 billion investment in Nigeria over five years, announced in 2024, describing it as a strong vote of confidence in the country’s economy.
He said the administration is focused not only on the volume of investment attracted but also on its impact on employment, skills development, technology transfer and local sourcing.
“We are interested not only in the amount of capital that comes into Nigeria, but in what that capital does here,” he said.
The President also praised NBC’s continued expansion of production capacity, including new production lines in Oyo and Kano states, describing such investments as vital to strengthening Nigeria’s industrial base.
He reaffirmed the government’s commitment to improving policies, infrastructure and regulations to support businesses, while urging the private sector to complement government efforts through investment, innovation and job creation.
Tinubu further highlighted the importance of human capital development, commending NBC’s Supply Chain Academy for training over 1,400 young Nigerians and supporting women’s empowerment and community development initiatives.
He urged investors to take advantage of opportunities across Nigeria, expressing confidence that the country can build a stronger economy driven by local production, exports and globally competitive industries.
Politics
Kano Governorship: Accord Party Governorship Candidate Gashash Getting More Endorsement From Kano Electorates.
By Jabiru Hassan.
The movement for Democratic Protection and good governance (MDSG) declared it's full support to the Accord Party Governorship Candidate Ambassador Dr. Mukhtar Gashash in the forthcoming general elections.
In a chat with our correspondent in kano, the national president of the movement, Alhaji Dauda Mohammed Ali, stated that it is time for the people of kano state to bring new steward who is seriously planning to transform the state with highest regard.
He expressed his confidence that Ambassador Dr Mukhtar Gashash will do his best to ensure that kano state becomes more examplary at both sector without bias which is the task previous administrators failed to achieve.
Alhaji Dauda Mohammed Ali reiterated that " this time around, our movement is working day and night to make sure that Kano people mostly youths remained Committed to actualize real change in the state's politics, leadership and transformation under the Accord Party government".
He called on the people of kano state especially the eligible voters to vote Ambassador Dr Mukhtar Gashash due to his Transformation plans for the progress of kano state and it's citizens at both Urban and rural settlements.
Responding to a question about Accord party's strength in kano state, Dauda Mohammed Ali disclosed that in today's democracy, competent candidates should be tipped for an elective positions not the popularity of the political parties stressing that Ambassador Dr Mukhtar Gashash has been found to be the best option for kano state due to his track record on competency, transparency as a real democrat.
Politics
Caught in the middle: Ortom’s silent dance between two camps.
There are growing questions about where Mr. Samuel Ortom, a former Governor of Benue State and a prominent figure in the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), truly stands politically ahead of 2027.
Ortom was a key figure in the divisions within the PDP before the 2023 general elections and was widely associated with support for Mr. Peter Obi, who finished third in that contest. More recently, however, he has publicly expressed support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.
The latest discussion began after a visit by Mr. Peter Obi to Benue State. Reports indicate that a vehicle said to belong to Ortom was used to receive Obi at the Air Force Base airport in Makurdi. It is not clear who authorized the use of the vehicle, and Ortom has not commented publicly on the matter.
During the same visit, Obi was reportedly prevented from travelling to Yelewata, where he had intended to condole with families affected by violence. Obi’s team attributed the blockage to supporters of Governor Hyacinth Alia.
The Governor’s spokesman, Sir Tersoo Kula, denied any involvement by the Governor. He suggested the incident may have been staged to damage the Governor’s reputation, or that it could have resulted from disagreements within Obi’s own support base.
Ortom has not issued a statement clarifying his position on the 2027 elections or on the vehicle in question. Attempts to reach him were unsuccessful at the time of reporting.
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