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National Assembly Appeal Judgement Against Electoral Act

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Sign Electoral Act

By Adedapo Adesanya

Lawmakers in the Senate and House of Representatives have resolved to appeal the judgement which directed the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) to delete Section 84 (12) of the newly signed Electoral Act.

This followed a deliberation on the court order during Wednesday’s plenary in both chambers of the National Assembly in Abuja.

At the Senate, Mr George Sekibo led some other senators to move a motion on the urgent need to appeal the judgement of the Federal High Court in Umuahia on the suit on the controversial section of the Act.

In seconding the motion, Mr Sabi Abdullahi described the move as a timely intervention, saying its content was straightforward.

Mr Gabriel Suswam, who also supported the motion, said he believes time is of the essence and the motion is straightforward for the appropriate channel to appeal.

“In making an appeal, we do not necessarily need the guidance of the Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters.

“I think we should just go ahead and pass this motion as presented,” he said.

The lawmakers, in their resolution, agreed to appeal the judgement in a suit marked FHC/MU/SC/26/2022 to set aside the decision of the court.

For members in the lower chamber, they claimed that the clause in question was directed at political appointees and not civil servants,  insisting that the court passed a judgement on a matter which was not included in the Electoral Act passed by the National Assembly.

The lawmakers questioned why the National Assembly was not joined as a respondent to the suit, stressing that the action of the judge was an aberration.

Responding, the Speaker of the House, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, said he would not allow the National Assembly to be ridiculed.

He queried why the judgement was obtained in Abia State, insisting that only the National Assembly has the constitutional authority to alter any part of the legislation which it passed.

Mr Gbajabiamila, therefore, appealed to the AGF not to hastily implement the court judgement, and not to get into the legitimate functions of the parliament.

President Muhammadu Buhari assented to the Electoral Act 2022 on February 25 following a series of attempts by the National Assembly to amend the nation’s electoral laws.

Business Post had reported last week that Justice Evelyn Anyadike of the Federal High Court in Umuahia, Abia State ordered the AGF to delete the section from the Act.

She held that the section was unconstitutional, invalid, illegal, null, void and of no effect whatsoever and could not stand, saying it was in violation of the clear provisions of the Constitution.

Adedapo Adesanya is a journalist, polymath, and connoisseur of everything art. When he is not writing, he has his nose buried in one of the many books or articles he has bookmarked or simply listening to good music with a bottle of beer or wine. He supports the greatest club in the world, Manchester United F.C.

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Adelabu Calls for Calm After 100 Days of UCH Power Outage

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UCH Power Outage

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Minister of Power, Mr Bayo Adelabu, on Monday addressed students of the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan who are staging a peaceful protest on the lingering power cut at the school.

Business Post reports that the outage has lasted over 100 days, with Monday making it 101 days since the hospital was disconnected from the grid in October 2024 by Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) over an outstanding debt of about N500 million.

The Student Union of the University of Ibadan in conjunction with the College of Medicine staged a peaceful protest to draw the attention of the Federal Government to the development but nothing has been done to the effect.

The protesters demanded an immediate reconnection of UCH and the implementation of a 50 per cent tariff reduction they claim the Minister promised the hospital.

Meanwhile, Mr Adelabu appealed to the students to allow for dialogue while proposing a truce between the IBEDC and UCH.

The students carried placards with different inscriptions such as +100 Days of Darkness: Save UCH; Save ABH Hall; Save Falade Hall; Give Us Light; This Is Not How We Want To Live; Medical School Is Hard Enough—Give Us Light; All We Are Saying, Give Us Light, among others.

The students had protested on January 26, 2025, to the State and Federal Secretariats, Agodi, Ibadan, with the hope that the management would fix the issue, but with the 100-day milestone, the new protest hopes there will be resolution

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Regional Imbalance: CNPP Proposes Creation of Five States

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Conference of Nigeria Political Parties CNPP

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The National Assembly has been advised to consider the creation of five additional states to address regional imbalance in the number of states in the country’s six geopolitical zones to ensure equity, fairness, and justice in the distribution of resources and opportunities among various regions.

Over the weekend, the nation was busy with proposal from some Nigerians on the creation of additional 31 states to bring the total to 67 states.

Reacting to this, the Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) submitted that instead of creating almost double of what the country currently has, five fresh states should be created from four regions.

In a statement signed by its Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Mr James Ezema, the CNPP argued that, “Democracy does not support injustice. The basic principles of democracy derive from free, fair, justice, and equitable distribution of resources, and the rule of law.”

The group emphasized that addressing the imbalance in the number of states in each geopolitical zone was crucial for promoting unity, stability, and progress in Nigeria.

“The CNPP proposes that each of the six geopolitical zones should have seven states each, based on economic viability and other relevant factors for the new states to be created.

“Specifically, the North Central and North West zones already have seven states, while the rest of the zones have six states each, except the South East region with only five states.

“There is the need to create one additional state each for the South West, North East, and South-South zones and two additional states should be created in the South East zone.

“Once this is achieved, the National Assembly can consider creating additional states in each of the six geopolitical zones.

“The CNPP believes that this is a necessary step towards ensuring that every region in Nigeria has an equal opportunity to develop and contribute to the growth and prosperity of the nation.

“We urge the National Assembly to take this matter seriously and work towards creating a more just and equitable society for all Nigerians.

“The CNPP has consistently advocated for good governance, transparency, and accountability in Nigeria. The CNPP as the umbrella body of all registered political parties and political associations in Nigeria remains committed to promoting the principles of democracy and ensuring that the rights and interests of all Nigerians are protected and advanced,” it noted.

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Nigeria, Bahrain to Strengthen Trade, Investment Ties

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virtual free trade zones

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigeria and Bahrain are working to strengthen diplomatic ties, focusing on trade, investment, and oil and gas cooperation.

The two countries recently engaged in bilateral discussions aimed at facilitating foreign direct investment, enhancing trade and investment opportunities and equally fostering cooperation in the oil and gas sectors.

A statement on Sunday by the spokesman of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Alkasim AbdulKadir, said his boss, Mr Yusuf Tuggar, recently visited Manama in the Kingdom of Bahrain and engaged in bilateral discussions with his Bahraini counterpart, Mr Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani.

It was revealed that the meeting focused on strengthening diplomatic relations, facilitating foreign direct investment from Bahrain, enhancing trade and investment opportunities, and fostering cooperation in the oil and gas sectors, with particular emphasis on onshore projects and the development of the 8th train LNG.

Train 8 is part of efforts for Nigeria to boost its Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) capacity but it hasn’t been able to do so because of low investments and insecurity with its energy infrastructure.

The Ministry also said the both parties also deliberated on the training of Nigerian diplomats and collaboration within multilateral forums.

He disclosed that both ministers signed a Joint Communiqué, officially establishing diplomatic relations between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Kingdom of Bahrain, noting that this agreement marks a significant milestone in fostering closer ties and mutual cooperation between the two nations.

He said this development aligns with Bahrain’s ongoing efforts to strengthen international partnerships, stating that recently, Mr Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, chaired the third meeting of the national committee for monitoring the implementation of the outcomes of the Bahrain Summit Initiatives, underscoring the kingdom’s commitment to global collaboration.

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