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Uzodinma Bemoans Death Of AMAA Founder, Peace Anyiam-Osigwe

By
The Source
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Peace Anyiam Osigwe

Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State has expressed shock over the reported sudden death of Nigeria’s foremost film producer and entertainment icon, Ms. Peace Anyiam-Osigwe, bemoaning the fact that the Nigerian film and entertainment industries would be badly affected by her passing.

Ms. Anyiam-Osigwe, lawyer, philanthropist, entertainment executive and founder of the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) in 2005, and famously known as Queen of Nollywood films,  reportedly died on Tuesday, according to in a statement from her family –  the Emmanuel Onyechere Osigwe Anyiam-Osigwe clan.

The family described her as an epitome of creative transcendence, an outstanding personality, trailblazer, titan, pathfinder, go-getter, humanitarian, one-of-a-kind creative, and visionary leader in the film and television industry.

“Peace left indelible imprints on the sands of time. We as a family and clan will continue to do all that is necessary to ensure that her legacy lives on,” the family said.

A statement by the Chief Press Secretary and Media Adviser to Governor Uzodimma, Oguwike Nwachuku, said his principal could not agree less with the Emmanuel Onyechere Osigwe Anyiam-Osigwe family that Peace was God’s gift to humanity in general and the creative industry in particular, and that while she was alive, she acquitted herself creditably, giving proper account of her creative ingenuity.

The Governor said Peace was passionate  about giving back to the society and worked hard to serve God through humanity.

Governor Uzodimma noted that with the Africa Movie Academy Awards,  the Africa Film Academy, among other bodies that the deceased birthed, Peace impacted lives in Imo State, Nigeria, Africa, and even took the international community by storm with the harvest of talents from the black race at her disposal who competed favourably with their counterparts in Europe and America.

The Governor regretted that Peace died when her services were needed most, but urged the family, friends, well wishers, as well as the film and entertainment industries, to take solace in the numerous positive variables she was associated with that will outlive her.

“It is therefore not for fun that the Federal Government found her worthy to be honoured with the Member of the Order of the Federal Republic in appreciation of her contribution to the entertainment industry,” Governor Uzodimma noted, and prayed God to console those Peace has left behind to mourn her death while also granting her soul a repose.

“I Don’t Have One Square Inch Outside Nigeria” – Buhari; Applauds Self, Says Boko Haram Now History

By
Akinwale Kasali
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By Akinwale Kasali

With less than five months to leaving office, President Muhammadu Buhari has showered encomiums on himself for bringing an end to the insecurity in the North Eastern region of the country.

Buhari said he has fulfilled his inaugural promise to Nigerians to frontally and courageously defeat the Boko Haram insurgency by bringing normalcy to the region that had been a theatre of war.

The President added that nobody can blackmail him on inexplicable wealth and illicit enrichment while in office, stating that he did not have “one square-inch outside Nigeria.”

A statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina on Tuesday stated that, “President Muhammadu Buhari says nobody can blackmail him on inexplicable wealth and illicit enrichment while in office, saying ‘’I do not have one square-inch outside Nigeria.

“Speaking at a State banquet, Monday night, organised in his honour in Damaturu, the Yobe State capital, the President restated his vow to serve God and Nigeria until his last day in office and beyond.

“He advised Nigerians to remain patriotic, saying ‘as I said more than 30 years ago, we have no other country than Nigeria, we must all stay here and salvage it together.’

“Noting that the most critical security challenge inherited by the administration nearly eight years ago was the potent and pervasive threat of terrorism, the President expressed delight that normalcy has returned to affected States in North-East Nigeria.

“He recounted that the threat was particularly pervasive across the North-East geopolitical zone with Yobe State as one of the most hit by the terrorists.

“He, therefore, declared that he has fulfilled the commitment made to Nigerians in his May 29, 2015 inaugural address to frontally and courageously tackle Boko Haram terrorists and stabilize the country.

“In the North-East, God has helped us to clear Boko Haram, the economy has picked up and some people are asking me about the achievements of my promise to fight corruption.

“Well, under this system fighting corruption is not easy. When I was in the military, as Head of State, I locked up some people because the Constitution says you must declare your assets and people who couldn’t explain the differences in their assets, I locked them up.

“In the end, I was also locked up. So, if you want to serve this country you must be prepared for the worst. But one thing that I am grateful to God for is that nobody can blackmail me. I ‘do not have one-square inch outside Nigeria and I intend to stay in Nigeria when I retire from public office.

Reflecting on his journey to the presidency and re-election, the President said: Between 2003 and 2019, I visited all the local government areas in this country. In 2019 when I attempted a re-election, I visited every state and the number of people that came out to see who this Buhari is and was is more than what anybody can pay or force.

“‘So, I thank God that Nigerians understood me and I made a promise that I will serve God and Nigerians.’

“President Buhari commended Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State for taking advantage of the return of peace and security in the state to execute people-oriented projects.

“Describing the governor as very competent and courageous, the President said he was lucky to have him in the saddle as the political leader in the state, supporting the federal efforts to decimate Boko Haram terrorist group.

“The President also acknowledged the cooperation of Nigeria’s neighbours in the fight against insurgency, recalling that his first visit outside the country in 2015 was to Niger and Chad, to garner support on tackling the misguided sect.

“President Buhari thanked the Governor and people of Yobe State, including Senate President Ahmed Lawan, for their warm reception during the State visit.

“In his remarks, Governor Buni expressed delight at the President’s inauguration of landmark projects in the state, including the Yobe International Cargo Airport, Damaturu ultra-modern market, Maternal and Child Health Complex at the Yobe State University Teaching Hospital, the 2,600 Housing Estate in Potiskum and the Damaturu Mega School at new Bra-Bra.

“He appealed to the President to approve the takeover of the Yobe State International Cargo airport by the Federal Government and the refund of N38 billion expended by the State government on the project.

“Equally, he requested the takeover of the State University Teaching Hospital, including the Maternity and Child Health Complex.

“The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Usman Baba Alkali, thanked the President for inaugurating a purpose-built, ultra-modern, and fully furnished State Command Headquarters; Police Secondary School; and Tertiary Police Hospital during the State Visit.

“The IGP assured the President and Nigerians that the Nigeria Police are fully prepared for the upcoming 2023 general election and would remain apolitical in compliance with the presidential directive.

“He disclosed that newly passed out Constables are being posted on field operations to their Local Government Areas in line with Mr. President’s directives and ahead of their deployment for the general election.

“‘In furtherance to this, we have exposed our personnel to specialized election security management trainings, developed Code of Conduct Handbook to guide the Police and other national security agencies that will be involved in the exercise.

“He added that the Force has also perfected the logistics and manpower mobilization framework, and fine-tuned the Election Security Operational Action Plan in conjunction with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the Military, Intelligence Community, and other Sister Security Agencies.

“The IGP thanked the President for the annual recruitment of ten thousand police Constables over a five-year period, adding that the Presidential consideration has significantly bridged the manpower gap in the Force and broadly strengthened their capacity to effectively police the electoral process.”

The Presidential election will hold on February 25, 2023. Whoever wins will succeed Buhari at the end of his tenure on May 29, 2023.

Group Clamours For State Policing, Condemns Killings Of Agitators For Yoruba Nation

By
Akinwale Kasali
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Area Boys and Police at Ojota

By Akinwale Kasali

A Group under the aegis of Social Reform Group, SRG, has joined the call for State Policing following the tragic outcome of the protest by agitators for Yoruba Nation. It led to the death of two persons in Ojota, Lagos, on Monday.

Condemning the killings of the protesters in its entirety, the National Coordinator of the Group, Charles Oludare, in a statement signed on his behalf by its National Publicity Secretary Group, Kayode Fasua, said that the fracas wouldn’t have resulted to death of innocent protesters, and stressed the need for State Policing.

He added that having state police in the country would  curb excesses from security agencies, who have turned shooting sporadically to disperse peaceful protesters as  a norm.

Oludare in the Statement said that, “The police standing between us and chaos should not be landing all of us in chaos.

“This is a sad reminder of the refusal of the Nigerian state to adopt the state police architecture for interior security.

“I commiserate with families of victims of the attack, however urging Nigerians to seize the occasion of next month’s presidential election to vote for a candidate that would advance the cause of true federalism.

“If we had operated state police in concert with other federal investigative and intelligence agencies, a peaceful protest would not have turned bloody, especially  as prospective leaders of the protesters would have been legally profiled by the state police apparatus, whose men and officers are members of the community.

“In our community, despite our differing culture and ethnicity, we know each other, as it is the case in every community in the Nigerian federation.

“The police will know the people living in that community, root out outside crisis actors and protect the peaceful protesters from the community, wherein they will mount the stump, address their gathering, and return home without any incident.

“Our presidential system is ordinarily a carry-over of the American system, but local circumstances have given us a perverted version and we are all suffering for it.”

Oludare also reinforced the group’s belief in restructuring, which he said  does not mean secession, but devolution of power to constituent states and local councils of the federation for effective administration.

“If the people feel empowered that they have the rights to self determination within the Nigerian state, these secessionist groups would have lost the locus of their regional agitations, hence they die a natural death.”

The statement called on the Police Service Commission, PSC, to adopt a culture of regular orientation courses for footmen in the police service.

Buhari Approves Reconstituted NDIC Board

By
Uche Mbah
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Buhari-independence Day

By Uche Mbah

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the reconstitution of the Board of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC).

The new Board includes some old board members and appointment of new ones.

The Board enjoys a four year mandate, and the last tenure became effective 9th December 2018,  terminating on 9th December 2022.

The appointment of the existing members of the Board whose four-year term became effective on 9th December 2018 expired on 9th December 2022, after which date the Board stands dissolved.

A statement from the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning listed the new appointees as Dr. Abdulhakeem Mobolaji Abdullateef, (Chairman) from Southwest zone; Prof. Osita Ogbu, from Southeast Zone; Umar Gambo Jibrin from Northcentral Zone; Mohammed Attahiru Haruna from Northeast Zone; Yasmin Zabath Dalhatu from Northwest zone; Simon Ogie from Southsouth Zone; Abimbola Olashore Southwest Zone.

The following represents their institutions on the NDIC Board: Muhammed Ali, Director Home Finance, member (Rep of Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning); Haruna B. Mustapha, Director Banking Supervision Department, member (Rep of Central Bank of Nigeria).

The following  members are reappointed: Bello Hassan, Managing Director; Mustapha M. Ibrahim, Executive Director Operations; and Mrs. Emily Osuji, Executive Director Corporate Services.

“The appointment of the existing members of the board whose four-year became effective on 9th December, 2018 expired on 9th December, 2022. It is noteworthy that irrespective of the tenure of the appointment, NDIC operates a semester system for its board. Therefore, the board stands dissolved at the end of the tenure of first appointment.”, the statement read.

“The board has five other members whose membership is by virtue of institutional or office representation in line with the provision of Section 5 (2 c and d) of the NDIC, Act, 2006.

“It becomes imperative to reconstitute the governing board the NDIC to avoid vacuum, ensure smooth operations of the corporation and ultimately boost the confidence of stakeholders and clients within the financial and banking sectors of the nation’s economy.

“In the light of this, the new governing board is reconstituted through the appointment of five new members including the chairman to form a new board of directors to oversee the affairs of the corporation for the next four years.”

We Remain On Our Stand – PDP G5 Governors

By
Ayodele Oni
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Any Atiku Supporter Is An Enemy – Governor Ortom

By Ayodele Oni

The aggrieved five Governors of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) tagged G5 Governors have clarified that they have not shifted on their stand to correct the inbalance in the party, which culminated in their opposition to Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the party.

Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom who spoke on behalf of his colleagues in the G-5, denied a media report claiming that they have resolved to work for the presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar to win the 2023 election.

In a statement, Special Adviser, Media and Publicity to Governor Ortom, Terver Akase, said the report was not only false, but also mischievous, as it was targeted at embarrassing the five Governors who had chosen the path of justice, fairness and equity.

He said manufacturers of the said report were apparently on a desperate mission to score a cheap political point.

“The report could not mention the place and date of the said meeting of G-5 Governors. The writers only sought to take advantage of the crisis within the PDP for their selfish purposes.

“Governor Ortom and other members of the G-5 have not endorsed the said presidential candidate.

“When the Governor met with the expanded state caucus of PDP yesterday, January 9, 2023 at the Benue Peoples House, Makurdi, his message to them was crystal clear that the national leadership of PDP has failed to utilize its internal conflict resolution mechanism which has led to the crisis rocking the party.

“The Governor said during the meeting that if the crisis is not resolved before the elections, he would be left with no other option than to take a stand on the matter.

“He added however that he wouldn’t impose his decision on members of the party in the state.

“Stakeholders present at the meeting commended the Governor for his patriotic disposition and pledged to line up behind him.

Those who spoke on behalf of the Stakeholders as well as for women and youths, said Governor Ortom has shown the character of a dependable leader who puts the interest of his people first.

“The stakeholders pledged to find ways of resolving the internal crisis rocking the party while assuring the Governor that they would continue to stand with him through thick and thin.”

Terver Akase said Governor Ortom did not address the press after the meeting, adding that the online report was therefore fake and should be disregarded.

Postponement Of 2023 Poll: FG Douses Tension, Says No Cause For Alarm

By
Ayodele Oni
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Lai Mohammed

By Ayodele Oni

The Federal Government on Tuesday assured Nigerians that the present administration will hand over on 29th May as scheduled.

Minister of information, Lai Mohammed who disclosed this in Abuja on Tuesday, also promised that 2023 general elections will hold as planned.

Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Prof Mahood Yabuku had raised the alarm on Monday that if insecurity persists, the election might be postponed.

The Minister when speaking at the 17th edition of the “President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) Administration Scorecard Series (2015-2023)” maintained that there is no cause for alarm over the fake report as all hands are on deck to ensure peaceful and credible conduct of the polls.

“The position of the Federal Government remains that the 2023 elections will be held as planned. Nothing has happened to change that position.

“We are aware that INEC is working with the security agencies to ensure that the elections are successfully held across the country.

“The security agencies have also continued to assure Nigerians that they are working tirelessly to ensure that the elections are held in a peaceful atmosphere.”

The scorecard series was launched by the Ministry of Information and Culture in October, last year to showcase the achievements of the Buhari Administration.

Since the series started, 16 Ministers had featured and presented the achievements of their ministries and the parastatal agencies under them

The 17th edition featured the Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire who also presented the strides that have been made in the country’s critical health sector.

Daily Trend Publisher Wins NIMASA DG Media Award

By
James Orji
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Dapo Olawuni has won the prestigeous Dr Bashir Jamoh Prize for Best Maritime Reporter of the Year award. The prolific journalist received the award on Monday during a cremony organised by the Maritime Media Limited in Lagos.

The yearly award comes with a N1 million cash prize.

A young journalist with many years of reporting the nation maritime sector in his kitty, Dapo has published exclusive stories promoting the sector, most times drawing policy maker’s attention to the ills in one of Nigeria’s most important, but highly neglected sectors.

“Dapo is a well-trained journalist with the nose for news. He’s a goal getter. I think he will go higher if he continues on this path,” a top industry player who did not want to court controversy from other reporters, said.

A graduate of the Lagos State University, LASU, he made his mark as a former Assistant Editor of Shipping Position, an industry – based newspaper before moving to his new position.

He’s married to his beautiful wife, and blessdd with children.
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Banks Blame CBN For Scarcity Of New Naira Notes, Customers Lament

By
James Orji
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Godwin Emefiele

Commercial Banks in Nigeria are facing a serious scarcity of the new redesigned naira notes, few days to the January 31, 2023 set by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN to phase out the old banknotes of N1000, N500 and N200.

CBN had last week responed to customer’s complaints about the scarcity of the new notes by directing the money banks and other fiancial institutions, OFIs, to stop the on-the-counter dispensing of the redesigned denominations from Monday 8.

The Godwin Emefiele-led apex bank also directed the banks to load their ATMS with the new notes in other to make it available to customers.

In spite of the directive, there is no respite yet as bank customers continue to lament the unavailability of the new notes.

Those who spoke to the magazine on Tuesday said many ATMS are still not dispensing the new notes.
“When I went to my branch today, I thought I will be able to get the new notes, so that I can at least show it to my kids. But, what I got was the old notes some of which are very dirty and smelling,” Bola Iyiola, an engineer in Ikeja said.

Another customer who did not want his name in print told the magazine that “it’s not funny that when I went to the ATM to cash some money today, I was surprised that not even a single new note was among what I got from the machine. I thought the CBN said the new notes will be available on ATMS from Monday this week.”

The customers are wondering why the new notes are yet to circulate when the old banknotes would stop being a legal tender by end of the month.

One of the banks, United Bank for Africa, UBA had earlier in an email informed customers that the new naira noes are now available in all their ATMS across the country.

“We are happy to inform you that the newly redesigned naira notes are now available at all UBA ATMs nationwide,” the commercial bank said in an email to customers, adding that “the maximum daily cash withdrawal limit for these notes at our ATMs is N100,000.”

Speaking on the issue, sources in banks who spoke with the magazine said they are yet to receive supply from the apex bank. They aid the commercial should not be blamed for the problem.

“The problem is not from us. We have not been supplied by the CBN. Apart from this, we also need to reconfigure the ATMS to be able to dispense the new banknotes. There are other logistics we also have to take care of when the new notes eventually arrive. This will take time, but things will get better in matter of days,” a source said.

On its part, a source in another new generation bank said their machine are now dispensing the new notes: ” I can confirm that our ATM machines have been loaded with the new notes,” she said.

Another top source in a bank said “we are currently experiencing scarcity. Besides we have more branches than any other bank in th3 country. I have not seen the new notes myself. I think th3 CBN is trying to manage the supply so that we don’t have too much of it in circulation like we currently have with the old naira notes.”

On Monday, Ahmed Umar, CBN Director, Currency Operations said the apex bank will penalise commercial banks which tried to frustrate it’s efforts to ensure that the new currencies are well circulated, by failing to load their ATMS with the new redesigned notes.

Umar said the purpose of the CBN directive was to implement the January 31 deadline for the withdrawal of old naira notes in circulation.

“We want to use this training session to pass a message that CBN has enough currency notes to go round the general public,” NAN quoted Umar as saying.

“We, CBN management, have mandated banks to stop putting old notes in their ATM machines. They should only put the new notes.

“And there is a serialisation of the policy that they can put either N500, N1000 or N200 note whichever denomination they have or combination of any of those notes, they should just put a new note in their machines.

“We are going to monitor to ensure that the banks comply and if they don’t, we have a penalty for non-compliance.”

Peace Anyiam Osigwe, AMAA Founder Is Dead

By
Akinwale Kasali
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Peace Anyiam Osigwe

By Akinwale Kasali and Uche Mbah

The Nation and African entertainment industry as a whole has once again been thrown into mourning as one of its pillars, Peace Anyiam Osigwe has died.

The founder of the African Movie Academy Awards, AMAA, passed-on Monday, 9th January, 2023, having  been in coma at St. Nicholas Hospital, Lagos, since Saturday, according to reliable sources.

Veteran Actor, Zik Zulu broke the news of her demise, which has thrown the movie industry Into mourning as they are yet to come terms with the shocking news.

Zulu wrote, “ Our President, Peace, has passed. As at Saturday, she was reported to be in coma at Saint Nicholas. But now her family has confirmed her transition. May the memory of her life be a blessing. Rest in peace, dear Peace”, he had written.

Obi Emelonye, award winning producer couldn’t hold back tears as he also confirmed the transition of Osigwe on his Social Media Platform.

Her family has confirmed her death. In a statement issued on Tuesday, the family said:

“The Emmanuel Onyechere Osigwe Anyiam-Osigwe clan in thanksgiving to God and in the belief that God is good and everything He does is good and in accordance with His divine will, pattern and plan, announce the passing to eternal glory of our illustrious beloved daughter, sister, aunt and great aunt Ms. Peace Maria Ogechi Anyiam-Osigwe (MFR)

“Peace, the Ada of the Anyiam-Osigwe family, was an outstanding personality, trailblazer, titan, pathfinder, go-getter, humanitarian, one-of-a-kind creative, and visionary leader in the film and television industry. Peace left indelible imprints on the sands of time.

“We as a family and clan will continue to do all that is necessary to ensure that her legacy lives on – the Africa Movie Academy Awards and the Africa Film Academy, along with their training programmes across Nigeria and the African continent will carry on seamlessly by institutions she set up and with the full support of the Osigwe Anyiam-Osigwe Foundation and other Institutions and Government Agencies with whom she had worked over the years.

Her numerous charities across different religious denominations and other communities will also be continued.

“We will miss the love and companionship we shared with her and we pray “that your Chi guide you on the path to God’s everlasting love into the light of his consciousness.”

“We also pray God our Father of all mercies to grant you eternal rest in his heavenly kingdom where his perpetual light will continue to shine on

“We believe you are alive in the life of God because as our father said “ALL IS LIFE AND LIFE ALONE”. And you continue to live in the hearts of all who love you.

“The family will announce the details of her rites of passage in due course.

” Meanwhile, the Family respectfully asks, at this time, for the public to respect the privacy of the family as we contemplate God’s love for his children

The late Osigwe was not only the Founder of the African Movie Academy Awards, AMAA, she was also the President of the Association of Movie Producers, AMP and one of the most prominent figures in Nollywood.

She would be sorely missed in the industry and in Africa for her role that  distinguished her as one of the pillars of the continent’s movie industry.

An industrious Woman par excellence according to colleagues, she would be remembered as one of those who shaped the face of the new Nollywood, as her contributions to the industry can not be over-emphasized.

The Late Anyiam was  born into the notable Anyiam-Osigwe family in Nkwerre, Imo State, and is a niece to Dr Paschal  Dozie, renowned Banker, businessman,  entrepreneur and founder of the defunct Diamond Bank PLC.

She was the only female in a family of eight children. She had a degree in Law and Political Science from Oxford Brookes University.

Anyiam-Osigwe founded the Africa Film Academy, a body that governs the film ceremony since 2005. The award ceremony is reputed to be one of the most recognized awards for Africans in film-making.

At the 10th edition, she stepped down as CEO of the AMAAs. In 2015, she began the AfricaOne initiative to commemorate Africans in the entertainment industry.

In 2020, she emerged as the National President of The Association of Movie Producers (AMP).

This made her the seventh to hold that post succeeding Ralph Nwadike.

Anyiam Osigwe was the Initiator of 100 Films Project aimed at improving the quality of films produced in Nigeria.

As the President, she had worked on building capacity of film producers in the country through seminars and trainings.

She was, also, an author and a poet. She had three books to her credit.

In an interview with Alana Herro, she described poetry as one of the avenues for expressing her perception and understanding of things around her.

Prior to entering the university, she published a magazine, Clicks, specifically written to accommodate the black population in England. Her works were centered on advocacy causes.

Anyiam-Osigwe’s career on television began with her discussion show, Piece off my mind, that focused on people’s reaction to societal issues that are not regularly seen in the mainstream media.

Her talk show was centered on issues of advocacy for individuals that the society usually gave little attention or neglected.

She cited the African caste system, child trafficking and women equality as areas of interest to her in film and television.

At the early stage of music duo, P-Square’s career, Anyiam-Osigwe was responsible for managing them.

In 2019, She was honoured with African Film Pioneer Award at the African Film Festival, TAFF.

Her mother, Dorothy Chinyere Anyiam-Osigwe is a recipient of the Officer of the Officer of the Order of the Niger, OON, given to her by the President, Olusegun Obasanjo for her philanthropic activities in Nigeria.

2023: INEC Mulls Postponement Of Election

By
James Orji
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0

There is no longer guarantee that this year’s general election will hold, according to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

Barely two months into the polls, the current posture of the Electoral umpire is different from the assurance Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, INEC Chairman gave last year when he said the election will go ahead despite the security challenges facing the court.

The Electoral umpire has now capitulated, citing security situation in the country as the reason why the election could be cancelled or delayed.

Prof. Abdullahi Abdullahi Zuru, Chairman, Board of The Electoral Institute, TEI, made the observation on Monday in Abuja at the validation of election security training resources.

He challenged security agencies to ensure that a conducive environment is provided for Nigerians to vote nest month, adding that INEC on its part is doing every to protect its staff and other election officials during the election.

He said; “We all appreciate the fact that Election Security is vital to democratic consolidation through provision of enabling environment for the conduct of free, fair, credible and inclusive elections and thus strengthening the electoral process.

If the insecurity is not monitored and dealt with decisively, it could ultimately culminate in the cancellation and/or postponement of elections in sufficient constituencies to hinder declaration of elections results and precipitate constitutional crisis,” Prof. Zuru said.

“This must not be allowed to happen and shall not be allowed to happen. Therefore, Security Personnel in particular and all election officials in general must be security conscious and alert to unusual activities in their environment and must be fully equipped to deal with any challenge at all times.

“To this end, the National Security Adviser, Gen. Mohammed Babagana Monguno and the Chairman, INEC have jointly assured the nation that conducive environment will be provided for successful conduct of the 2023 general Election.

“Similarly, the Inspector General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba, has conducted Election Security Management Workshops across the Six Geopolitical Zones.

“On its part the Commission, through The Electoral Institute, has institutionalized the development and implementation of a cascaded training mechanism for security personnel as a critical component of its training plan”.

Those watching the political situation in the country said what happened during the President Goodluck Jonathan administration is likely to recur if the current security problem in the country persists.

In 2015, the administration postponed the pesidential election by six weeks, from February 14 to March 18 citing lack of security personnel to protect voters. The former president was criticised for postponing the election by people who accused him of trying to perpetuate himself in power.

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