Television Nigerian

INEC (Independent National Electoral Commission) has explained why certain groups of people will be unable to vote in the upcoming by-elections in Cross River State.

On February 26, 2022, by-elections for the federal constituency of Ogoja/Yala and the state constituency of Akpabuyo will be held.

Only eligible voters whose names appear in the INEC Register of 2019 are qualified to participate in the by-elections, according to a statement signed by the state Resident Electoral Commissioner, Dr. Cyril Omorogbe, and the administrative secretary, Mrs Irene N. Nghuma.

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“New registrants who enrolled between the start of the Continuous Voter Registration CVR in June 2021 and the present should be aware that they will be unable to vote in this election.”
“All eligible voters whose names appeared in the INEC Register 2019 are qualified to participate in the forthcoming Bye-election in Ogoja/Yala Federal Constituency and Akpabuyo State Constituency which is scheduled to hold on Saturday, February 26, 2022.”

INEC also spelt out guidelines for the elections to eligible voters in the Ogoja/Yala and Akpabuyo areas.

Biometrics Voters Authentication System BVAS will be used for accreditation. Accreditation and Voting will take place simultaneously between 8 o’clock in the morning to 2:30 in the afternoon.

“Remember that only your Permanent Voter’s Card PVC is your power to vote. Please note that Permanent Voter’s Card PVC no matter the year issued does not expire.”

The INEC administrative officer said, “The training is focused on Polling and counting procedures and other election processes.”

She added that ‘the two-day training was organized by the Electoral Institute TEI.

Declaring the training open, the Head of Electoral Operations, in the State, Mr. Fred Emezu, urged the participants not to take the training for granted.

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“This training is one of those election trainings that require maximum concentration, concentrate, as there’s always something new to learn like the new technology of Bimodal Voter Authentication System BVAS device which will be unveiled to the participants and voters in the State for the conduct of elections for the first time”.

The Senate confirmed five nominees for Commissioners of the National Population Commission nominated by President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday.

Four other nominees for the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission Commissioners were also confirmed.

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The nominees were confirmed after the Committees on National Identity and National Population; and Power considered two separate reports.

Senators Ya’u Sahabi Alhaji (Zamfara North) and Gabriel Suwam (Zamfara South), who both chair the respective Committees, made two separate presentations.

Following consideration of the reports, the nominees were confirmed.
The nominees confirmed as Commissioners of the National Population Commission include: Chief Engr. Benedict Ukpong Effiong (Akwa-Ibom), Mrs. Gloria Fateya Izonfo (Bayelsa), Barr. Kupchi Patricia Ori Iyanya (Benue), Dr. Haliru Bala (Kebbi), and Dr. Eyitayo Oyekunle Oyetunji (Oyo).

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In addition, the four nominees confirmed as Commissioners of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission were Dr. Yusuf Ali (North Central), Engr. Chidi Ike (South East), Mr. Nathan Rogers Shatti (North East), and Mr. Dafe Akpeneye (South-South).

The House of Representatives has demanded that the Department of State Security (DSS) and the police thoroughly investigate the circumstances surrounding the assassination of Abubakar Abdulkadir Rano, a Divisional Police Officer (DPO), in Jibia Division, Katsina State, by terrorists.

While condemning the killing of the police officer and others, the House also directed the DSS and police to look into similar cases across the country and assist the victims’ families.

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The lawmakers’ resolutions came after the plenary on Tuesday approved a motion of urgent public importance sponsored by Hon. Kabiru Alhassan Rurum.
Moving the motion, Rurum said the late Rano, in charge of Jibia Division was brutally killed by bandits while attempting to rescue a kidnapped woman.

According to him, the police officer had recorded successes in confronting and fighting bandits in the area, which helped in reducing attacks on communities.

He lamented that since the incident, nothing has been done to investigate the circumstances leading to his killing.

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Adopting the motion, the House observed a minute silence for the late DPO and other police officers who died while serving the nation.

Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), counsel to the proscribed Indegeneous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), has expressed concern that the detained leader of the IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu’s, vision has deteriorated.

Kanu, who is currently in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS), may go blind if nothing is done urgently to restore his sight, Ozekhome told a Federal High Court in Abuja.

He told Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako that his client’s eyeglasses were taken from him in 2015, when he was arrested by DSS operatives after returning to Nigeria from the United Kingdom.

He also told the court that a new pair of shoes Kanu had purchased had been seized during his extradition from Kenya.
Ozekhome said despite an express order of the court, the DSS declined to allow the IPOB leader to have a change of clothing.

He alleged that the secret police refused to allow Kanu to receive new clothes that were brought to him by his younger brother, Emmanuel.

“My Lord will still see the defendant in the same uniform which my Lord warned against in the last proceedings.
“It will be recalled that they had on that day alleged that he said that he preferred to wear the same cloth because it is designers.

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“However, since that time, the younger brother of the defendant, his lawyer and sister have gone three times with materials for him to change, but they refused collecting them.

“So bad was it that Ejiofor had to call the Director of Legal Services and complained to him,” Ozekhome stated.

Distinguished Senator Mukhail Adetokunbo Abiru, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Industries and the Senator representing the Lagos East Senatorial District in the National Assembly, has assured that he will not relent in his efforts to ensure that the people of the district receive quality representation.

At his residence in Ikorodu, the Senator gave this assurance when he met with the Chairmen and Secretaries of the Community Development Committee (CDC) in the Lagos East Senatorial District.

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Senator Abiru’s unprecedented achievements were recognized by the CDC Executives, led by their chairman, Chief R.O. Ajayi, across the 98 wards in the district’s 16 Local Governments and Local Council Development Areas, LCDAs.
Specifically, the grassroot leaders thanked the Senators for the facilitation electricity transformers for rural communities and the resumption of work on the Ikorodu/ Sagamu Highway which was sequel to the motion and other legislative interventions made by Senator Abiru.

In his remarks, Senator Abiru thanked the CDC leaders and acknowledged the important role they played in complementing the role of the government in community development at the grassroot. Abiru reiterated that his approach is premised on equity across the entire wards in the district.

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According to him, the award of bursaries to 600 higher institution students, Capacity development training for 1000 MSMEs, grants to business people, facilitation of schools, mini-stadium, Hospitals, remodelling of markets, Street lights and lot more are in consonant with his mantra of providing greater good to the larger number of the people.

In the siting of projects and other social interventions, the Senator noted that he was guided by the NEEDS ASSESMENTS he conducted to know the pressing needs of various communities. According to him, this informed the choice of projects facilitated to respective communities in the district.

The Senator also intimated his guests of the efforts that had gone into the Ikorodu/Sagamu Highway. He informed that the funding for the critical road is already secured under SUKUK financing plan noting that the road will be completed within projected time.

Senator Abiru said his COVID-19 Financial Assistance Scheme for the vulnerable people in the Lagos East which has been in operation since January 2021 has created relief for many households in the district. He disclosed that Batch A beneficiaries in the 2500 pool got direct credit transfers for January 2022 last week.

Also, the N300 Million Constituency Intervention Revolving Loan for MSMEs in the district is expected to take off end of April 2021, the Senator disclosed.

Abiru also spoke on Senator Abiru Innovation Lab (SAIL) where young people in the district will be trained in high-demand digital skills.

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He said it was high time to prepare youth for the challenges of the future by equipping them with the requisite skill-set required for survival in the digital age.

Abiru who has been calling on the people to register for Permanent Voter Card with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC asked the CDC Executives to urge CDAs under them to mobilize residents to get their PVCs.