Tag: LG

Sule Dismisses Claims Of Sacking Nasarawa LG Chairmen

A file photo of Governor Abdullahi Sule.

 

 

Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State says contrary to reports circulating on social media, his administration has no plan to dissolve the 13 elected local government chairmen.

The governor stated this on Monday while receiving the council chairmen at the Government House.

Sule who dismissed the report said that as a law-abiding citizen, he will not be found wanting by breaching the law.

“I saw a report that this administration was going to dissolve the local and institute new chairmen. The way you saw it was the way I saw it.

“I never heard of it, I never even thought of anything like that. It has never crossed my mind, nobody ever advised us on anything in that line. And I never dreamt of it and if the deputy governor dreamt of it, he never told me,” he said.

While calling on the council chairmen to ignore the claims, Sule assured them that his administration will not short-change the mandate given to them by the people.

Speaking further he said: “You are working with us as a team in order for us to work towards developing this state and taking this state to the next level. If the law said you are taking ten years, A. A Sule will allow you to spend your ten years.”

He, however, appealed to members and supporters of opposing political parties to avoid acts capable of breaching the existing peace in the state.

The governor warned that for the state to develop, the citizens must learn to accept outcomes of judgments from ongoing cases at the various election petition tribunal without recourse to acts that are inimical to peace.

Governor Sule’s remarks come days after the governor returned to the state after attending the 74th United Nations General Assembly in New York as part of the delegation who accompanied President Muhammadu Buhari to the event.

Abducted Ekiti LG Workers Regain Freedom

 

The two local government workers abducted in Ekiti State have regained their freedom.

Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Caleb Ikechukwu, confirmed this to Channels Television on Saturday.

He also said the new Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Amba Asuquo, visited the two officials at their homes after they were released by their abductors.

Ikechukwu, however, could not confirm if any ransom was paid.

He explained that the captives were released when it became obvious to the abductors that the police were trailing them.

The gunmen had killed one Abayomi Ajayi, an accounting officer working at Emure Local Government Area (LGA) of the state.

The victim was shot dead by the gunmen on Wednesday along Ikere-Ise Road while returning from work and, thereafter, abducted the two men who were released after three days.

Meanwhile, the state government stated that it was stepping up its fight against criminal elements in the state.

Oyo Govt Holds LG Elections, Restricts Movement

 

The Oyo State Government has said that the Local Government elections will hold today as earlier scheduled which will restrict movement from 8 am to 3 pm.

The state’s Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice, Mr. Oluseun Abimbola said that the supposed legal impediment towards the conduct of the election has been vacated as a Federal High Court in Ibadan on Friday struck out the suit filed by some persons from Eruwa against Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC) and others challenging elections into newly created wards in Oyo state.

Mr. Abimbola said that in the suit FHC/IB/CS/47/2018 (Olugbenga Adeyemi & Others V INEC, OYSIEC and OYSG, the presiding judge, Hon. Justice Joyce Abdul Malik of the Federal High Court in Ibadan held that the subject matter of this suit is clearly on the powers of OYSIEC being challenged by the plaintiffs, and not the powers of INEC joined as a federal agency.

“She agreed with the submissions of the Oyo State Attorney General, Oluseun Abimbola Esq, that the joinder of a federal agency will not automatically confer jurisdiction on the court if the subject matter contested is outside the jurisdiction of the Court.

Mr. Ambimbola explained, “The court then held that the suit was not for the Federal High Court, but for the State High Court and accordingly struck out the suit in its entirety along with any previously made orders”.

He added, “It will be recalled that the court had earlier made an order of injunction restraining defendants from using the new ward delineation for the elections. That order is equally now vacated. With this ruling, the coast is clear for the exercise of democratic rights by all residents of the State to elect Chairmen and Councilors into all Local Government Councils, Local Council Development Area (LCDAs) and their constituent wards on Saturday, May 12.”
The State Government said that there will be vehicular restriction between 8 am and 3 pm on Saturday, May 12, 2018, during the conduct of the local government election in the state.

The State Commissioner for Information, Culture, and Tourism, Mr. Toye Arulogun said that Students sitting for National Board of Technical Examination (NABTEB) with proof of evidence will be allowed to move to their examination centres.

Mr. Arulogun said that election will hold in 33 local government areas and the 35 local council development areas, urging the general public to troop out en masse to cast their votes for candidates of their choice.

He appealed to the citizens to bear with the commission on the restriction.

Edo Holds LG Polls

The Edo Local Government polls earlier experienced late arrival of voting materials as voting across the 18 LG commenced.

The ongoing election which is conducted by state Independent Electoral Commission (EDSIEC) is for the position of the chairman and councillorship in the state.

Ten political parties are partaking in the exercise.

The main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state is alleged to  boycot the election and has already filed a suit in court challenging the conduct of the exercise by the state electoral body.

Rivers LG Dispute: Appeal Court Adjourns Case To November 6

Trouble Ahead As Caretaker Chairmen Seek To Stop Rivers LG Polls

The Court of Appeal sitting in Port Harcourt today fixed November 6, 2017, to hear all pending applications rising from an appeal challenging the sack of the elected local government chairmen and councillors on the platform of the All Progressives Congress in 2015.

The former chairmen and councillors who were elected during the administration of Rotimi Amaechi were sacked by the decision of the Federal High Court on the grounds that they allegedly participated in an election against the rule of law.

They are, however, appealing the judgement of the lower court.

FG Must Investigate Corruption Allegations Against Police – PDP

Hearing could not proceed on Wednesday after the counsel to the Rivers State governor and the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, as well as the Peoples Democratic Party, informed the court that all respondents had yet to be served with the court processes.

Those to be served include the Inspector General of Police and the Department of State Services who are the fourth and fifth respondents in the matter.

The three-man panel of the appellate court led by justice M. B. Dongba-Mensen adjourned the matter to allow all respondents to be duly served and to hear all pending motions that are ready by the date for the next hearing.

Meanwhile, no mention was made about the concern raised by the caretaker committeee chairmen of the 23 local government areas in the state that the panel should be terminated due to an alleged pending matter at the Supreme Court.

Kwara Govt Tasks LG Chairmen To Improve States IGR

The Kwara State Government has drawn up new strategies and plans targeted at meeting up some of its economic challenges especially the payment of salaries.

Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed has asked all the Local Government chairmen in the state to come up with ideas that would help improve their internally generated revenue rather than depend on allocation alone.

He has also called for installing of a new culture and financial discipline on Local Government Administration in the state.

Enugu PDP Fixes Date For Ward, LG Primaries

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Enugu chapter, has fixed September 9 and 16, 2017, for Ward and Local Government primaries ahead of November 4, 2017, Local Government elections in the state.

The chairman of the party in the state Mr. Augustine Nnamani, while briefing journalist on the outcome of the party meeting said the election will be conducted by the Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission.

He said the sale of expression of interest and nomination form begins on August 15, 2017, and ends August 25, 2017.

The chairman also announced that the party passed a vote of confidence on the state governor and unanimously endorsed the governor for the second term in office come 2019.

Court Dissolves Akwa Ibom LG Caretaker Committees

Governor Udom Emmanuel

A State High Court in Akwa Ibom has declared the setting up of the local government caretaker committees in the state as illegal.

The court declared on Tuesday that the process which led to the constitution of the caretaker committees was unlawful as there were no provisions for such procedure within the Nigerian Constitution.

The ruling comes about two years after the state governor Udom Emmanuel appointed the chairpersons to run the affairs of the 31 local governments in the state.

In his ruling on Tuesday, Justice Ezekiel Enang of the State High Court at the Abak Judicial Division ordered the governor to dissolve the caretaker committees immediately.

A lawyer, Mr Nsikak Akai, who filed the suit against Governor Emmanuel and the state government, lauded the judgement as a victory for democracy.

The Commissioner of Justice in the state, Mr Uwemedimo Nwoko, however, vowed that the government would appeal the judgment.

Akwa Ibom LG Retirees Protest Non-payment Of Pensions

Akwa Ibom LG Retirees Protest Non-payment Of PensionsHundreds of Local Government (LG) retirees in Akwa Ibom State have protested against the non-payment of their pensions for the past four months.

The pensioners displayed placards with various inscriptions requesting for the intervention of the state government in ensuring the prompt payment of their entitlements.

The leader of the retirees, Obong Etta, recounted the ordeal of the senior citizens in an interview with Channels Television in Uyo, the state capital in southeast Nigeria.

In a swift response, the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Mr Victor Antai, appealed to the pensioners to be patient with the state government.

He explained that the Ministry had not been able to meet its obligations due to the shortfall in financial allocation to the local governments.

Mr Antai promised that the government would offset the debt as soon as its finances improve, stressing that money had already been released to settle one month.

He stated that the issue was strictly a local government affair as all state pensioners have been paid up to date.

OGSIEC Fixes October 8 For Ogun LG Elections

OGSIEC, Elections, OgunThe Ogun State Independent Electoral Commission (OGSIEC) has announced October 8 for the conduct of the Local Government (LG) elections in the state.

The Chairperson of the OGSIEC, Mrs Risikat Ogunfemi, made the disclosure at a media briefing held at the commission’s office in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital in southwest Nigeria.

She added that the commission would also conduct elections into the 37 newly created Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) across the 20 local government areas.

Mrs Ogunfemi assured political parties and politicians of a level playing field in the conduct of the elections to the third tier of government.

However, she admonished politicians to play by the rules of the game, just as she asked youths in the state not to allow themselves to be used as instrument of violence by politicians.

House Of Reps To Investigate $470 Million CCTV Contract

reps-2015-budget-house of repsAn ad-hoc committee of the Nigerian House of Representatives is to investigate the $470 million contract for the installation of CCTVs in Lagos and Abuja, which was awarded in 2010. The committee is expected to report back to the house in four weeks time.

This is in the wake of recent bomb blast in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Lawmakers, during a debate, said this investigation is necessary considering the security concerns confronting the nation.

The motion is urging the Federal, State and Local Governments to install CCTVs and other security gadgets across the country.

The House also resolved to mandate all business establishments in Abuja, both Federal, State and Local Governments, to install CCTV cameras and other security gadgets in their premises.

INEC Ready For Elections In Kwara State

Osun ElectionThe Presidential and National Assembly elections in Nigeria is in less than 24 hours and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Kwara State has expressed its readiness to conduct a hitch free exercise, assuring electorates in the state that all the necessary materials are ready.

Addressing reporters in Ilorin, the state’s capital, the Kwara State Commissioner of Police, Mr Salihu Garba, on his part, also promised to provide security during the election.

A visit to the INEC office in Ilorin showed that the Ad-Hoc staff of the commission, had been given letters to their locations across the state.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state, Dr Emmanuel Onucheyor, explained that all materials had been delivered to their respective places across the 16 Local Government Councils in the state. “Both the sensitive and non-sensitive materials have arrived their locations,” he said.

Mr Garba while addressing a Press Conference assured residents of the readiness of Police to ensure a hitch free election. He warned people to conduct themselves peacefully.

As the state prepares for the election on Saturday, it is hoped that the people will adhere to the rules and regulations. Politicians have also been tasked on ensuring that the election was peaceful.