The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC and the Trade Union Congress, TUC, have been charged to focus mainly on the survival and sustenance of the nation’s fledgling democracy.
Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, made this call, Thursday, at the 2022 Independence Day Anniversary Lecture with the theme ‘Nigeria in search for an enduring political structure: imperative of structural reform’ held at the NLC Ogun State headquarters.
According to him, Nigeria can only advance positively if the various unions and individuals play roles to keep the country’s democracy thriving.
Obasa who was Chairman of the event, said that the country is seen as practising democracy because there are legislative arms of government in place both at the national and sub-national levels.
He, however, lamented the attempts by some individuals in position of authority to ‘pocket’ these lawmaking arms of States citing how, in some instances, principal officers of Houses of Assembly are removed at the whims and caprices of single individuals in authority.
“It is hightime we all rose to protect Nigeria’s political institution, the parliament. We have seen cases where the civil society looked away while democracy faces danger from some individuals.
“We have seen cases where the parliament was closed and where a governor carried inauguration of legislature by midnight.
“When you have a legislature that is answerable to a single person, you can’t progress or meet collective goals or say we are practising democracy. We have heard of a state that already has four Speakers in less than four years.
“It is also surprising that even among the elite, you find that there are some people who do not know their representatives at the parliament. Yet, these parliamentarians make the laws that guide their activities and actions.
“As a union, our concern should not be about where we work, our salaries and welfare alone; we should also protect our institutions. I am not saying you should be partisan, but at least, play a role in guiding our democracy.
“In that way, it would be difficult for individuals to determine how the parliament, which is the true symbol of democracy, should operate,” Obasa said.
In his short remark, Rt. Hon. Olakunle Oluomo, Speaker of Ogun State House of Assembly, noted that Nigeria simply practises civil rule and not democracy.
“If you have a vibrant legislature, you have democracy,” he said.
In his address, Comrade Abinbola Bankole, chairman of the NLC in Ogun State, said though Nigeria faces many challenges, “as a labour movement, it is our considered opinion that blame-game shall take us nowhere as a people.”
He said if Nigeria must work, citizens must be interested in how their country is governed.
Guest lecturer at the event, Chief Mike Ozekhomhe (SAN), noted that the problems with Nigeria are fundamental and systemic. He suggested a new constitution for the country.
“No president who rules Nigeria will do well. Until we do serious structural adjustment or realignments, none of those who would rule Nigeria can make any spectacular difference,” Ozekhomhe said while expressing optimism that Nigeria will be successful again.
On his part, Nafiu Aiyedun, Ogun State Head of Service, who represented Governor Dapo Abiodun, promised that the government would continue to focus on the welfare of workers.
As electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, announced the commencement of 2023 Electioneering Campaign on Wednesday, 28th, September, 2023, President Muhammadu Buhari has urged Politicians to stop fanning the embers of hate that could heat up the polity.
He, on Thursday, appealed to contestants and their media representatives to commit to issue-based campaigns and avoid insults and personal attacks as the election campaigns begin.
“I appeal to the contestants, especially their publicity agents and media advisers to shun personal attacks, avoid insults and incitement, reject the spread of fake news, and commit to issue-based campaigns and political rallies,” the President said in a video message to the signing of the 2023 election Peace Accord by the presidential candidates, organised by the National Peace Committee in Abuja.”
This was contained in a statement signed by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media, and Publicity Garba Shehu, titled ‘2023: President Buhari wants issue-based campaigns, urges political actors to shun personal attacks, incitements.’
While commending the initiative undertaken by the National Peace Committee to commit all political actors to issue-based campaigns devoid of incitement, personal insults and attacks, Buhari warned that the rise of fake news and misinformation have continued to pose a significant threat to democracy in Nigeria.
Buhari said fake news and misinformation have shifted focus away from issue-based campaigns to amplifying the potential for personal attacks, insults and incitements.
He lamented that this has significantly diminished the civility and decency in public discourse and debate.
Re-echoing the words of the Chairman of the Peace Committee, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, Buhari said “The 2023 election is more than an election, it is an opportunity to serve Nigeria, to defend Nigeria and to uphold her unity and progress.”
“Therefore, I call on all Nigerians, political parties, politicians, security agencies, the Independent National Electoral Commission, and all stakeholders to ensure that Nigeria is placed first above regional and sectional claims.
“I appeal to the contestants, especially their publicity agents and media advisers to shun personal attacks, avoid insults and incitement, reject the spread of fake news, and commit to issue-based campaigns and political rallies,” he added.
Reiterating his commitment to peaceful, credible and transparent elections, President Buhari said what the Peace Committee, led by its chairman and a former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, has been doing over the years, aligns with his belief that Nigeria needs peace in order to achieve credible elections.
“Once again, let me emphasise that everything must be done to support the National Peace Committee in its work to ensure peaceful elections in Nigeria,” Buhari said
Senate President, Ahmad Lawan has resigned to fate. He has vowed not to appeal the judgment delivered on Wednesday by the Federal High Court, Damaturu, in Yobe State, in respect of the forthcoming Yobe North Senatorial district election.
Lawan in a Statement Thursday, September 29th, 2022, signed by him said he has accepted the judgment of the Court which disqualified his candidature and participation in the election.
Lawan said, “Yesterday, Wednesday, September 28, 2022, the Federal High Court in Damaturu delivered judgment on the rightful candidate for Yobe North Senatorial District for the 2023 National Assembly elections.
“The said judgement disqualifies my candidature and, therefore, my participation in the elections.
“After due consultations with my political associates, supporters and well-wishers, I have decided not to appeal against the judgement. I accept the judgement.”
He appreciated his Governor and his constituency members for their support. He added:
“I deem it appropriate to thank His Excellency, Senator Ibrahim Gaidam for the leadership role in the APC political family in Yobe State. I also thank His Excellency, Governor Mai Mala Buni for the support and brotherhood.
“To my constituents, I thank you all for your unflinching support, loyalty and unreserved commitment to the course of building our people and Yobe North Senatorial District and indeed Yobe State.
“I want to assure you that I will continue to serve you in my personal and any other capacity at all times.”
“We journeyed together for a long time, and this journey will remain a life long journey. It has been a wonderful relationship and it can only get stronger. I am indebted to you all. Alhamdulillah,” he added.
Justice Fadima Aminu at a Damaturu Federal High Court on Wednesday ordered the All Progressives Congress to forward the name of Machina to the Independent National Electoral Commission as the authentic winner of the primary, which was held on the 28/05/2022
Aminu described the primary election where Lawan emerged as the candidate as “phantom.”
The continuity of Lawan’s 23 years sojourn as a lawmaker was laid to rest after over four months battle over the controversial ticket of the All Progressive Congress ticket.
As a fallout of the Supreme Court judgement which upheld victory of the Osun state Governor elect, Ademola Adeleke in the primary election conducted by the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) the party has declared plaintiff in the suit, Dotun Babayemi as persona non grata.
The party on Thursday announced the expulsion of Dotun Babayemi after the Supreme Court judgment that ruled in favour of Ademola Adeleke as the party’s candidate in the gubernatorial primary election.
Babayemi had sought the court’s intervention in appealing against the PDP gubernatorial primary election which produced Adeleke.
This is as the party also praised the judiciary for living up to its expectation as the house of justice.
A statement signed by Adekunle Akindele, the Osun PDP caretaker chairman in Osogbo, said that Babayemi had since ceased to be a member of the PDP.
The party also warned against any accommodation of the expelled politician in PDP matters.
The statement reads “As we are rejoicing, we must note very strongly that a mole among us who was an active agent of the APC had since lost his membership of PDP.
“No organ or affiliates of the party should accommodate him or his agenda again within this party.
“Any member of the party who continues to romance the expelled member risks being charged with anti-party activities and may face appropriate sanctions. “We must get rid of fifth columnists by descending heavily on them. We must uproot them and cut down their branches.”
It was celebration galore in the camp of the Governor-elect of Osun State, Ademola Adeleke, as the Supreme Court dismissed a suit filed against him by Dotun Babayemi.
Babayemi had prayed the Apex Court to set aside the decisions of the lower courts and declare him the PDP candidate for the July 16, 2023 Governorship election in Osun State.
The five-member Justices of the apex court, presided over by Justices Amina Augie held that the appeal, as filed by the appellant was filed out of time as a pre-election matter is time-bound.
While stating that “a pre-election matter has a period of 14 days, and like a rock of Gibraltar, cannot be moved”, the court added that there was nothing before the court to invoke its jurisdiction.
Efforts by Counsel to the appellant, Adebayo Adelodun (SAN), to convince the Panel to take a look at the merits of the appeal proved abortive as the court held that it lacks jurisdiction to entertain the matter.
The Appeal, having been withdrawn by the counsel to the appellant, the court consequently dismissed it.
It would be recalled that prior to the Osun Guber polls, different primaries produced Babayemi and Adeleke but the National Working Committee of the PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission recognised Adeleke as the authentic candidate of the party.
Babayemi challenged the recognition of Adeleke as the candidate of the party before the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal Court but lost and he approached the Supreme Court after Adeleke emerged the authentic candidate of the party because right delegates voted for him.
In his judgment on the matter on May 18, Justice Nathaniel Ayo-Emmanuel of a Federal High Court, sitting in Osogbo, upheld the governorship primary that produced Adeleke.
Also, the Court of Appeal, Akure Division, in its judgment of July 20 on the appeal filed against the decision of the Federal High Court, Osogbo, aligned with the lower court and dismissed Babayemi’s appeal.
Babayemi then, appealed to the Supreme Court, asking it to set aside the judgments of the lower courts and declare him the governorship candidate of the PDP for the Osun state governorship election.
His appeal has now been declared dead on arrival by the Justices of the Supreme Court in a unanimous decision of the five-member panel of the court that was delivered by Justice Amina Augie.
When the row between Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, and his party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), spilled onto the streets after the party’s presidential primaries in May, I argued that to solve Wike, one had to first fix the candidate, Atiku Abubakar.
In light of Wike’s no-holds-barred interview last Thursday, things may have fallen apart, irretrievably. That interview, perhaps only comparable in seismic scale and onomatopoetic resonance with Julian Assange’s WikiLeaks, has shaken the PDP to its foundations.
The fallouts may well remain the biggest threat to the PDP’s electoral chances next year.
But what was the point, really? Was it to set the records straight? To take his pound of flesh? To avenge the betrayal of his ancestor – Peter Odili – sold down the river under similar circumstances? Or just to bring the roof down and, if possible, escape with the rubble as a trophy?
Wike is not done yet. Still, even in the midst of the wreckage left behind by his last interview, the inescapable question would be: what is his endgame?
I’m not sure his interview would significantly damage either party Chairman Iyorchia Ayu or Atiku. Verbal attacks that would damage politicians will kill them first. And their gift for taking disasters in their stride gets even better during campaign sessions when, to use the title of Simon Kolawole’s imaginative new book, most people would simply say, “It’s all politics!”
But even if Wike’s targets feel any discomfort at all, it still doesn’t answer the question: what is his endgame?
My guess is that his objective is to severely damage both the candidate and the party that neither would be worth anything at next year’s poll. This might sound ridiculous, since the state PDP has fielded at least 48 candidates, believed to be his close allies, for next year’s election under the party’s flag.
Wike is not a fool. If he thought he would be unable to survive and make something for himself or his supporters from the party – whole or in ruins – it’s unlikely that he would play hardball.
Since it’s too late to switch parties at this time, my guess is that he would secure his base in Rivers State where he appears to be very much in control at this time. After the elections, he might for his spectacular labours of sitting in and pissing in, then use his base to negotiate with the party at the centre. That, of course, is assuming the APC wins the presidency, otherwise he would be dead meat.
We saw this arrangement work before when Bola Tinubu’s Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) made a deal with Goodluck Jonathan in 2011 to turn a blind eye during the presidential election while securing Lagos during the state election. For parties not separated by ideology or principles, how Wike manages his post-election affairs, even if he succeeds, might yet leave him with a permanent label of “buyer beware.”
The conversation has, of course, not been framed in the stark terms I have used here. Wike, who might have been an excellent opposition leader in a parliamentary system, has said that this is not about himself.
According to him, he feels obliged to compel the party to honour its constitution on zoning, particularly since Ayu (a Northerner) accepted that he would step down, if a northerner emerged presidential candidate.
Those on the other side say that was not exactly how Ayu put it. According to them, he said he would step down if the party (meaning the NEC) asked him to do so. In any case, they argue, why is Wike complaining or, to use campaign spokesman Daniel Bwalya’s phrase, playing God? After all, not only did he bring former Chairman Uche Secondus and later also instigate his removal, he also brought Ayu!
Nyesom Wike
Now, that is where the story gets interesting. Inside sources informed me that Wike indeed brought Ayu, but it was an assignment executed for him by his ally and Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom. A source familiar with what happened said Ayu had assured Wike at the meeting in his house in Abuja that not on his watch as chairman “will one Fulani succeed another”.
At that point, well before the primaries of course, Wike had obviously told himself that he had the party exactly where he wanted it: he would be the inevitable PDP presidential candidate. But the last politician who kept his word was the one who never gave it.
When the sale of the party’s form started in March, it became an open sesame. To forestall a Northern coup, pro-Wike forces set up the Bala Mohammed committee which then took on a life of its own. It spent months looking for a secret in plain sight: that regardless of what the constitution said, it would be an “open contest!”. The rest, of course, is history.
But was there a chance that Wike and Atiku may have patched things up, especially after the famous but highly secretive London meetings? Improbable.
Sources familiar with the outcome of the meetings said even though Atiku seemed disposed to ditch Ayu, he was concerned about a) the impact, especially so close to elections, and b) that he might be unable to get the NEC to do it.
Of course, Wike allegedly assured him it wouldn’t be a problem. He, Wike, had done it before and the head of Secondus on a platter was proof. In case there was any question about a viable replacement this time, however, former Ondo State Governor, Dr. Segun Mimiko, was on standby.
But there was an elephant in the room – the disposition of the “owners” of the party. When Atiku returned to Abuja from the London meetings and broached the matter, the “owners” declined. They expressed the view that Wike had crossed the line. He would be tackled at the “appropriate time”. No deal.
Two credible sources said the “owners” in question were former military head of state, General Abdulsalami Abubakar; former National Security Adviser, General Aliyu Gusau; a former Director General of the State Security Services, suspected to be Lawal Daura; and a shadowy but immensely consequential figure at the Villa likely to be Mamman Daura (President Muhammadu Buhari’s relation). A media mogul in the PDP also lent his voice.
Ayu is saved for another day not only by the vital intervention of some of the “owners” of the party but also by his “old boys’” network, reinforced by the promise that either himself or former Senate President Bukola Saraki could become the next Secretary to the Government of the Federation, if the PDP wins.
Now, back to the question: what is Wike’s endgame? To avenge his displacement from within while securing the positions of his allies who are already carrying the PDP flag into the next election. His destination – if not by words, but by conduct – is APC. Everything in-between is in translation.
And my guess is that he might not be a total stranger there. Not only because the main parties are largely different only in name, but also because some members of his cabinet and allies are refugees from APC, a party that has downgraded its funder-in-chief of yesterday, Rotimi Amaechi, from Buhari’s campaign DG to Tinubu-Shettima’s “adviser on infrastructure.”
Pundits may worry about the possible consequences of Wike’s actions on the fortunes of the PDP in Rivers State, and perhaps elsewhere that he may have clout. My guess is that the combined effect of Labour Party’s Peter Obi and Wike activities would prove quite daunting, especially in the South East and South South that have been the mainstay of the party in about two decades.
If we have seen anything in Nigeria’s politics in the last 23 years, however, we know that in the end, feuding parties know where their interests lie, whatever pundits may think. And, as we say in my neck of the woods, they will be alright!
The Minister of Transportation, Mu’azu Jaji Sambo, has said that proliferation of sea ports in Nigeria will afford the country opportunity to export its rich minerals.
The Minister reiterated the commitment of the Federal Government to in no distant time, make a ‘Port Declaration’ of the proposed Ondo Deep Sea Port to herald commencement of other processes at the port.
Media aide in the ministry, Ebenezer Adeniyan disclosed that the Minister, gave the indication when he received the Governor of Ondo State, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN, in Abuja.
He commended the steps so far taken by the state government to prepare for the port declaration.
After listening to a technical presentation by the Consultants to the Ondo State Government, the Minister said once all the prerequisites established by the extant laws are met, the federal government will not hesitate to make Port Ondo Declaration, pursuant to Section 30 of the Ports Act.
“We want to see this port come to life before the end of this administration”, adding that having another deep sea port will do a lot of good to the blue economy policy of the federal government.
Addressing those who posit that there’s a flurry of sea ports in the country, Sambo said it is actually a positive thing, as the presence of the atlantic ocean, the Rivers Niger and Benue, puts the country on a better pedestal to harness, explore and export its rich minerals to other countries.
The Minister stressed that there are only two deep sea ports in Nigeria, while all others are river ports, including Apapa and Tin-Can ports, adding that the development of the Deep Sea Port in Ondo is a welcome development to the country at large.
Speaking earlier, the Governor of Ondo State, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu SAN, said the reason for the visit was to acquaint the Transport Ministry with the vision of the State Government on the development of deep seaport in Ilaje area of Ondo in accordance with the federal government’s module of Public Private Partnership.
Akeredolu, who said the port will bring enormous socio economic benefits to the Federal Government, the State and the host communities, added that Dubai Port, China Habour are among the many international partners who have signalled their interest in developing the port.
Also speaking at the event, the Minister of State for Transportation, Prince Ademola Adegoroye, said the Ondo State Government has made a compelling case for the port and thanked the Transport Minister, Mu’azu Jaji Sambo, for his support.
According to Adegoroye, the Minister is a seasoned technocrat having been ventured across board the Nigerian Ports Authority and the National Inland Waterways and does not need the conviction of others as to the importance of the Port Ondo project.
Adegoroye assured the Ondo governor that Transport Ministry will attach priority to the project as he himself had earlier stated that he would like to see the Port come to life before the end of tenure as Minister.
The All Progressive Congress, (APC) has explained that the relationship between the National Chairman of the party, Senator Abdullahi Adamu and Presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu is cordial.
“The National Chairman of our Party and our Presidential Candidate maintain cordial and effective communication channels, and enjoy full liberty of open and frank conversations on matters of interest to the Party and our Presidential Campaign. “
National Publicity Secretary of APC, Felix Morka, in a statement on Thursday, maintained there is no rift between the two leaders of the party.
There is a report in the Social Media to the effect that Adamu and Tinubu disagreed over the list of Campaign Council Members, which led to postponement of the inauguration of the council.
Morka, in the statement said: “Our attention has been drawn to a “DRAFT” letter in circulation purportedly written by His Excellency, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, the National Chairman of our great Party, addressed to His Excellency, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Presidential Candidate of our great Party, expressing dissatisfaction over the recently released list of the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC).
“To be clear, the “DRAFT” letter did not emanate from the Party. An UNSIGNED letter that marks itself as a ‘DRAFT’ cannot and should not be attributed to its purported author.
“The National Chairman of our Party and our Presidential Candidate maintain cordial and effective communication channels, and enjoy full liberty of open and frank conversations on matters of interest to the Party and our Presidential Campaign.
“As such, an unsigned “DRAFT” letter of the kind in circulation is patently unnecessary and of no qualitative value to engagement between the Party and the PCC.
“We will not be distracted by the wishes and actions of detractors that wait gleefully but in vain for some kind of crisis to erupt between the Party and the PCC.
“We stand united, as a Party, in our resolve and commitment to execute a focused and issue driven campaign to persuade Nigerians to renew our mandate in next year’s general election.”
Ahead of the April 2023 national headcount by the National Population Commission, Governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodimma has appealed to all citizens of the State to make themselves available to be counted.
He has also appealed to the National Population Commission to ensure that the integrity and proficiency of the technology to be deployed for the exercise is accurate and reliable.
Many people see the Governor’s appeal as a call to avoid a repeat of the disastrous situation in the South-east during the last Census. At the time, MASSOB, one of the Groups agitating for an independent Biafra Republic from the Federal Republic of Nigeria, had prevailed on the Igbo not to present themselves to be counted. Quite a number of people, especially in Anambra and Imo State, adhered to it. The result is that the Igbo came out as the least populated ethnic group among the major ethnic groups in Nigeria. This has affected the Zone in no small way in the distribution of Nigeria’s commonwealth.
Governor Uzodimma made the call while flagging off a Stakeholders Summit on the 2023 Population and Housing Census in Owerri on Wednesday, September 28 2022.
He said that he is pleased with the NPC and considered the summit “germane to the realization of our future plans as a government and as a people.”
The Governor bemoaned a situation where citizens see census as “a mere collection of data and the number of human beings and sometimes houses,” emphasising that “National Census includes the collection of demographic, social and economic data which the government uses to formulate economic policies.”
He noted: “The data generated serve as a useful guide in the distribution of social amenities and infrastructural projects. In other words, population census is at the heart of the planning for the future by government based on the figure obtained during the census exercise.”
“A properly conducted population census, therefore, saves the government from planning blindly.”
The Governor went said that “the importance of National Census cannot be over emphasized because it helps in planning for the health, demography, social welfare, infrastructure and general sustainability of the society, it serves as a road map towards the orderly planning and implementation of government policies and programmes.”
The Governor informed that statistics got from population census helps to formulate sartorial polices for good governance and expressed delight that the current administration led by President Muhammudu Buhari has resolved to hold the National Population Census in April next year, notwithstanding the capital outlay and human resources involved.
Governor Uzodimma then urged the people to be more prepared for the exercise appealing to them to be proactive and ready to participate actively in the exercise.
He regretted the facts that “in the previous exercises our people were either nonchalant or indifferent and therefore refuse to participate in the exercise based on ignorance.”
“For us to come out from complaints of marginalization, low revenue income, and social amenities we must participate effectively in the upcoming population census.”
He reminded the citizens: “The outcome of any census is bound to impact on us positively or negatively. This is because the Federal government uses the figures derived from census for revenue allocation, and allocation of social infrastructure needed for the welfare of the people.”
The Governor went philosophical: “When we fail to participate fully in a census exercise the consequence is that we are undercounted. And when we are undercounted we are short changed in the distribution of national resources. It is therefore our civic responsibility as stakeholders to carry the message down to our people in the rural areas and encourage them to participate fully in the national population census exercise.
“A reliable census figure will guide the government in policy making and economic planning. When we know the exact number of youths in the State and what percentage of them are unemployed it will help the government in designing more effective youth empowerment programmes.”
The Governor, therefore, directed the Sole Administrators of the LGAs, the Town Union Presidents and their Traditional Rulers and all Leaders in the State to take up the challenge of sensitizing the people and the need to participate in this all important exercise.
He noted that “unlike voter registration exercise which has age limit of 18 years and above, the population census is for everyone including a day old baby. What this means is that nobody should be excluded as it is neither political nor sectional.”
He therefore assured the National Population Commission in the State that his government will give them every support they need to ensure that the exercise turns out to be a huge success and wished all participants on the summit a successful outing.
In his goodwill message, the Speaker Imo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Emeka Nduka who described the theme of the census “2023: Getting People Involved” as relevant and timely called on the politicians, the Academics, and Captains of industries to join hands to create the awareness and shun all cultural, religious, political or ethnic reasons and participate fully in the exercise.
The Speaker assured that “effective participation will save the South East from marginalization as the 2023 census offers another opportunity for the people of Imo State and other South Eastern States to stand up and be counted to prove their numerical strength which is key in planning, political representation and allocation of resources.”
Nduka recommended that “any individual, group of persons, association or organization that discourages our people from active participation and housing census should be seen as an enemy of the State and Zone who is doing a great disservice to us as a people.”
He finally submitted that Imo people are anxiously looking forward to a generally acceptable exercise come 2023.
In his welcome address earlier, the Federal Commissioner National Population Commission Imo State, Prof. Uba Nnabue said that the goal of the State Stakeholders summit is to broaden state level support base for the successful conduct of the 2023 census.
“The specific objectives are; to create public awareness on the conduct of the 2023 census. To promote robust and informed conversation on the processes and procedures for the census.
“Other objectives include: to solicit the cooperation and support of the State level Stakeholders for the conduct of the census and to promote a platform to offer clarification and receive feedback and suggestions and salient issues and concerns related to the conduct of the 2023 National Population and Housing Census.”
Nnabue thanked the Governor for all the support his Commission has received from the State and assured Nigerians, especially Imo people and the development partners, that “the Commission remains committed to the conduct of a credible and acceptable census that will be transforming and meets international standards.”
He promised that “based on the technology to be deployed in the 2023 census everyone will be counted in the right way, at the right place and time, and for the benefit of all persons resident in Nigeria.”
The Chairman Imo State Council of Traditional Rulers thanked the Commission for factoring the Traditional Rulers as major stakeholders of the summit and urged them to always give them early information on what they want to do so that they will start early to mobilize and sensitize the people at the community level.
There were also goodwill messages from the National Orientation Agency, and the Catholic Archdiocese of Owerri at the summit where they commended the commission for embarking on the laudable project and pledged their support in mobilizing the people towards the laudable exercise.
Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, on Wednesday, presided over the valedictory session of the state Executive Council, with clarification that members will remain in office till last day, which is October 15.
The session, which was attended by members of the Council as well as members who served between 2010 and 2014, took place at the state executive council chamber, Governor’s Office, Ado- Ekiti. Some former members also participated virtually via Zoom.
Governor Fayemi thanked all past and current members of the Council for their sacrifices, patriotism, diligence and committment to the development of the state.
He said Ekiti State made appreciable improvement in all aspects of development, through the collective contributions of members of the Council.
“Let me thank all of us, this is a historic day and we must start by thanking God Almighty for making this day possible.
“We’ve worked hard for the success of our state, for the development and growth of our people over the past few years and all of us have contributed immensely in the various capacities we have served Ekiti and I am glad that everybody was able to honour the invitation extended by the cabinet secretariat to this valedictory Executive Council meeting.
“ I thank all of you, yes, the Governor takes all the credits and also takes all the blames, but the reality is that there is nothing we were able to do in government that I have done alone. You have all contributed your quota to the development of our dear state.
“This certainly is not the Ekiti we met when we came in October 2010. Things have improved, the GDP per capital in our state has gone up to about $3Billion, population has also gone up.
“We see some evidence of significant progress on maternal mortality, child mortality, school enrolment, school performance record and on a whole range of indices that clearly depict that we have made significant progress.
“I must thank you for your service, your sacrifice to Ekiti State and to our people, some of them may not be recognized now but in future they will be recognized.
“We also have to thank Ekiti people for giving us the opportunity to serve and for also rendering the services to the best of our ability.
“Resources are not always unlimited and as a matter of fact we have to struggle over the years to maintain all of what we have done. Be that as it may, we’ve delivered on our own task, posterity would judge us one way or the other.” He said.
EXCO members spoke glowingly about their experiences as members of the highest decision making body in the state and saluted Fayemi’s visionary and exemplary leadership.
The Governor later adjourned the council meeting sine die after a motion to that effect was moved, thus marking the end of the weekly meetings of the state executive council for the tenure which ends on October 15th.
Ekiti State Governor-elect, Mr Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji, who was the immediate past Secretary to the State Government and Cabinet Secretary, was in attendance at the valedictory session.
He also lauded the visionary leadership of Governor Fayemi as well as his commitment to the development of the State, declaring that ” I will follow in JKF footstep.”
Former Deputy Governor, Prof Modupe Adelabu, who led members of the 2010- 2014 EXCO to the meeting, also praised Governor Fayemi for the giant strides recorded in the last four years, which she said dwarfed the achievements of the JKF first administration.
Meanwhile, while Wednesday’s valedictory session marked the end of executive Council meetings for the administration, which winds down on October 15th, commissioners and cabinet members would continue with government activities till the very last day of the administration.
