The Police Service Commission and the Nigeria Police Force are set to conclude the 2022/2023 recruitment of Police Constables into the Nigeria Police Force.
The Medical screening for this batch is scheduled to commence from February 26th and end on March 12th 2025.
Applicants who took the Computer Based Tests (CBT) on 5th – 6th March, 2024 but were not listed in the first stream of successful candidates called up for training are to log onto the recruitment portal https://apply.policerecruitment.gov.ng to check their application status and print invitation slip.
The exercise is scheduled to hold at designated Police Hospitals in the 17 Police Zonal Headquarters spread across the country on date and time indicated on applicants invitation slip.
The Portal will open today, Saturday, February 22nd, 2025 at 12noon. Invited applicants are to ensure they appear for the medical screening exercise on the date and time indicated on their invitation slip.
Invited applicants, according to a release by Ikechukwu Ani, Head, Press and Public Relations, PSC, are also to appear in clean white T-shirts and short with the following; invitation slip, form submission slip and NIN slip.
Despite a subsisting court order restraining it from disrupting power supply services to its millions of customers, the Aba Power Limited, on Friday, February 21, 2025, embarked on a massive disconnection exercise in Aba and other parts of its area of operations.
This is even as the Management of the Power Distribution giant insisted that they have not been served any Court order.
The disconnection exercise was reportedly carried out simultaneously in all the nine Local Councils of Abia state that make up the Aba Ring Fence, the operational area of APL.
According to this Magazine’s findings, the operation has resulted in the disruption of power supply services to thousands of homes and business outfits.
The Source reports that an Abia High Court, Isiala Ngwa Division, had on Thursday, February 20, 2025 issued the restraining order in a motion ex-parte filed by the Aba Electricity Consumers Forum AECF, against the APL.
The trial Judge, Justice Enyinnaya Okezie had, in addition, directed all relevant court papers, including the restraining order to be served on the defendants – APL, and its parent body, Geometric by substituted means.
Similarly, Justice Okezie also ordered the defendants not to tamper with the power supply services to their consumers pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.
The claimants in their application argued that the planned mass disconnection exercise by the defendants, if allowed to go on, will have severe negative consequences on consumers and their businesses.
The Court adjourned to March 19, 2025, for the commencement of hearing on the motion notice.
But the APL in a statement issued on Thursday by its Management, shockingly described the Court order as fake ,which was equally secured by a non-existent group.
According to the Management, no Interim Court order has been served on the Company purportedly stopping it from either disconnecting its consumers or providing legitimate services under its licensed terms and conditions.
The Company described the claimants, the Aba Electricity Consumers Forum as “a faceless group of individuals ,parading an equally fake court order”.
Consequently, the power distribution outfit enjoined the public to disregard the recent radio announcements/news items ,and other related media publications, insisting they were sponsored by the “faceless group”.
The company further noted that as a law abiding organization, it will abide by any lawful order of a constitutionally constituted Court, calling on its customers to ignore what it described as as nothing other than an inciting propaganda.
The APL Management accused some people of only trying to hide under a nebulous entity to incite violence, and bring physical harm to the Aba Power staff and Assets.
It assured consumers of its readiness and commitment towards improved service delivery.
“Aba Power will continue to supply reliable and constant electricity to its customers within the nine Local Government Areas of Abia state (Ring Fence Area).
“The recent uninterrupted power supply for 1 month ,December 17, 2024 to January 16, 2025, remains a watershed in the history of power supply in Aba, and the rest of the Ring Fence Area and even Nigeria”, the APL Management stated.
However, despite the authenticity of its claim of remarkable improved service delivery, the Company may have been economical with the truth as regards the existence of the restraining court order and that of the claimants.
For one, the claimants, this magazine can authoritatively confirm, had, before now, been engaged in many troubling-shooting efforts with NEPA-EEDC and APL after inheriting EEDC.
It is therefore surprising for such a pressure group which activities predated APL to be described as non existent and fake.
Furthermore, checks by this medium equally confirmed the existence of the said Court order.
The Anambra State Police Command, on Friday, February 21, disclosed that the two suspects involved in the killing of Anambra State Lawmaker, Hon. Justice Azuka, were neither in handcuffs nor leg chains when they escaped.
Instead, he disclosed to the shock of not a few, that to lure their accomplice out, the suspects were allowed to drive a car, on their own, to give the impression that they brought another stolen car. Apparently with no Policemen in the car with them, they sped off as soon as they arrived their destination, and disappeared till date. Two weeks after, nobody has seen them.
However, the Police assured that there is no need to press the panic buttons over the escape of the two suspects because they are not the prime suspects.
The new Police Commissioner, CP Ikioye Orutugu, noted that the unfortunate development pre-dated his assumption of office.
The State Police Command’s latest reaction is coming on the heels of the continued public criticisms that have been trailing the escape from custody of two suspects in the kidnap and subsequent murder of the Labour Party LP Lawmaker.
Honourable Justice Azuka
Since announcing the escape of the suspects on Tuesday February 18, the police has been facing mounting condemnation from all quarters ,with not a few suggesting a possible underhand dealings from within the police hierarchy .
But at a media briefing on Friday, CP Orutugu noted that the escapees are not principal suspects in the gruesome murder.
According to him, the two suspects, now at large are secondary suspects who, unfortunately, escaped while leading operatives to some receivers of items from the main hoodlums .
Similarly, the CP explained that the two suspects had already escaped before he was posted to the state.
According to him, contrary to public perceptions that the suspects escaped while in custody, CP Orutugu noted that they escaped while leading operatives to arrest receivers of stolen items.
” When I took over as the Commissioner, I said I am here to give insight into the recent case of the escape of two suspects arrested in connection with the killing of a Lawmaker.
“The incident happened two days before I assumed office .By this, I mean that the incident had occurred before I arrived.
“A lot of information has been out there, and people have had their opinions ,and there is nothing wrong with that as this is a democracy.
“However, there is a need to keep facts straight. My findings have shown that the incident happened on February 8, 2025 in Obosi .
The two suspects Ikemefuna Ossai, and Chinedu Okoli, are among 11 suspects who confessed and already paraded.
“The two are not the principal suspects. They are drivers that drove vehicles for the suspects, and that is not to say they have a right to escape.
“The Principal suspects are intact. The two were taken out for further arrests. A suspect, Tochukwu Okolisa, from Anambra, was identified as the buyer of the jeep and belongings of the Lawmaker, so to lure him in, the suspects were allowed to drive, and also tell him they had another vehicle for sale.
“It was during the operation to arrest Tochukwu, that the suspects drove off, abandoned the vehicle and escaped into the bush”, CP Orutugu narrated.
The State Commissioner of Police, however, reaffirmed the commitment of the Command towards re-arresting the escaped suspects.
In a strategic move to bolster surveillance and enhance revenue generation, the Surveillance Unit of the Shipping Development Department at the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, has been granted single-user access to the Windward tool of the C4i intelligence system.
This development extends the application of the C4i facility previously focused on safety and security into shipping development and revenue optimization. By leveraging advanced technology, NIMASA aims to strengthen intelligence gathering, improve maritime surveillance, and block revenue leakages, ensuring a more efficient and transparent system.
The Management of NIMASA, under the leadership of Dr. Dayo Mobereola, has reiterated its commitment to improving internal processes to achieve optimal performance across all operational areas.
The C4i Centre, which stands for Command, Control, Communication, Computer, and Intelligence, is a critical component of the Deep Blue Project. It plays a key role in intelligence gathering and data collection, contributing significantly to securing Nigeria’s maritime domain. As a result of these efforts, the country has maintained zero piracy incidents for over 24 months.
This latest integration of C4i intelligence tools into NIMASA’s surveillance operations is expected to further enhance maritime security, regulatory compliance, and economic efficiency within the sector.
The altercation in the Senate Chamber between Senate President, Godswill Akpabio and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has continued to generate mixed comments.
Amidst other reactions, a Pan-African Women’s Advocacy Group has called for the suspension of Akpoti-Uduaghan from the Senate.
The Group under the auspices of Africa Arise for Change Network, criticised Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan over the altercation with Akpabio, and described her behaviour as “disgraceful and unbefitting of a public office holder.”
In a statement issued on Friday by Patricia Idoko, the Country Representative of the organisation, the group said Akpoti-Uduaghan’s actions on the Senate floor during Thursday’s plenary session undermined the principles of leadership and decorum expected of women in governance.
The controversy erupted after Akpoti reportedly defied a directive from the Senate Chief Whip regarding sitting reassignments, following the defection of two Senators.
While others complied, the Kogi Senator refused to vacate her previous seat, leading to an exchange with the Senate President.
According to Africa Arise for Change Network, her conduct, which included raised voices and aggressive gestures, was a violation of Senate rules and an attempt to manipulate the situation for personal gain.
The group accused her of “political immaturity” and “reckless defiance” of parliamentary procedures.
“We take immense pride in seeing more African women take up leadership positions and break barriers, but we do not support any woman who undermines the values of discipline, respect, and decorum in public service,” the statement read.
The organisation further called for Akpoti’s long-term suspension from the Senate, arguing that disciplinary action was necessary to preserve order in the Red Chamber. It also suggested that she seeks professional counselling to address what it described as a “lack of emotional restraint”.
The group maintained that Akpoti’s actions did not reflect the true strength and resilience of African women in leadership, adding that she had done a disservice to the cause of female representation in politics.
Her continued presence in the Senate, the group warned, could damage the reputation of women in governance, urging the Senate leadership to take “decisive action” to prevent a recurrence of such incidents.
“Being a leader is a privilege, not a platform for unruly behaviour,” the statement concluded, insisting that Akpoti owed the Senate, the people of Kogi State, and Nigerians an unreserved public apology.
On Thursday, February 20, 2025 a piece was forwarded to me by someone quite close but who never sees anything good in what the Governor of Imo State, Dist. Sen. Hope Uzodimma does. His, is a typical case of hate without cause.
So, whenever I see a forwarded item from the person in question I am not deceived about his intention.
As was expected, he was the same person who forwarded to me the article written by Dr. Sam Amadi, the former Chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) that was circulated on social media same day, knowing full well it contained lines that cast aspersions on my principal.
Smart Sam had captioned his piece: “If I were Hope Uzodimma,” as if he doesn’t know he cannot be him.
Because I know to a large extent, who Sam is, including his mindset, I didn’t want to waste my time, his or that of our audience, before informing him that he cannot be Hope Uzodimma.
In the first place, Sam knows that no two individuals can be the same, no matter the method one wants to use to evaluate their anatomy and physiology, including their state of wisdom or foolishness.
Now, let us hazard a guess of who Sam Amadi is for the benefit of those who may be hearing his name for the first time.
I already said Sam was the former Chairman of NERC, a trained lawyer, who was at a time a fellow at the Care Center for Human Rights Policy at the Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.
He once held the position of Special Adviser to the President of the Senate of Nigeria, was Director of the Centre for Public Policy and Research in Lagos, Nigeria and Senior Legal Officer at The Human Rights Law Service in Nigeria.
Sam once worked as a Senior Counsel at Gani Fawehinmi Chambers and is an Associate with Olisa Agbakoba and Associates.
He holds a doctoral degree of law from Harvard, a LLB from University of Calabar, BL from Nigerian Law School, LLM from Harvard Law School and MPA from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, and teaches law in the University as as Associate Professor.
He has been this and that including a fellow of the Society of Project Management and Development Professionals International where he serves as a Member of Advisory Board.
Sen. Hope Uzodimma as the current Governor of Imo State is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and began his political career in the Second Nigerian Republic, joining the ruling National Party of Nigeria (NPN), where he became the Imo State youth leader in 1983.
In the 1990s, with the aborted transition to the Third Nigerian Republic, Uzodimma featured prominently as a member of the United Nigeria Congress Party (UNCP). In 1999, after the return to democracy, he joined the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), where he served as a member of the Party’s National Caucus, National Executive Committee and on the Board of Trustees, at various times between 1999 and 2017.
Mind you, in 2003, Uzodimma was the Imo State governorship candidate of the Alliance for Democracy (AD), a platform he used in contesting that year’s election when the then PDP denied him ticket.
Uzodimma was elected Senator for Imo West in April 2011 and served until June 2019. While in the Senate, he served as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Customs and Excise as well as a member of several other committees including Banking and Finance; Culture and Tourism; Aviation; Police Affairs; and Power.
On January 14, 2020, Uzodimma was declared the rightful winner of the 2019 governorship poll in Imo State by the Supreme Court of Nigeria after the nullification of the election of Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha.
Uzodimma has several national, state, and local government honours and recognitions, including the Commander of the Order of Nigeria, CON, Chairman of Progressives Governors’ Forum, Chairman of South East Governors Forum, to name but a few.
Uzodimma holds a Bachelor’s in International Studies and Diplomacy from the Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, United States and an Advanced Diploma in Maritime Management Technology from the Federal University of Technology Owerri, Imo State.
An accomplished private sector player with incredible knowledge in project management and execution, Uzodimma has not failed to bring his private sector competence and experience to bear in the way and manner he conducts the affairs of the State under his watch as a tested and experienced politician of more than 40 years.
He has authored many books and delivered several lectures in reputable institutions in and outside the country.
Now that we have an idea of who both Sam Amadi and Governor Uzodimma are, and why it is practically impossible for the former to dream of being the latter, can we then examine the intent in the piece in question credited to Sam?
First, Sam’s recourse to the caption, “If I were Hope Uzodimma,” was not only pejoratively couched to deceive, but he craftily tried to hide under it as pieces of advice, knowing full well that it oozes contradiction and subtle demeaning characterisations aimed at smearing Governor Uzodimma.
Governor Hope Uzodimma
Now, assuming but without conceding that Sam was out to provide sincere advice to the Governor he claims to respect, how come he digressed from the core reason for the advice if he was well intentioned, and delved into the politics of the Imo APC where a perceived crisis is only exiting in his imagination?
Does the manner Sam repeatedly emphasised on the governor being a lame duck, running a transactional government, the turn of Ngor Okpala person to succeed the governor having not produced one or a senator or ambassador, the need for the governor to dissolve his cabinet as condition for enduring legacy and for redeeming his tenure, among others, not suggest the intention of a man working Nicodemously towards a project where he appears, but economical with the truth in his so-called advice?
Truth is that Sam acted true to type – deliberately chose a convenient headline that he hid under to discredit the current government of Imo State and cast aspersions on the governor as lacking in development ideas, intellectual and managerial prowess to transform Imo and probably get a successor.
Part of the contradiction in Sam’s social media memoir is that he claims to know the governor’s strength and weaknesses, but I really doubt if he truly knows Uzodimma’s strength. Suffice it to say, therefore, that Sam is obviously one of those fellows who under rate Uzodimma, and at their own peril.
It is unfortunate that those struggling to grab power have found in the use of the word “transactional” in describing the way government of the day is run as the most potent tool to discredit their political opponents, but the reality is that when they have the ear of such persons in power that popular lexicon – transactional – is hardly remembered talk-less of being uttered by them.
If you read Sam’s piece between the lines, you must come to the conclusion about a man whose agitation is borne out of lack of unfettered access to Governor Uzodimma.
A man who thinks he is assumed to be good upstairs, but has not been brought too close by the powers that be. Don’t forget that Sam is used to the corridors of power in the years past, despite being a rights activist, social crusader and analyst.
If Sam thinks he wants to succeed Governor Uzodimma, it is his right to ascribe to such highest office in Imo State, but must he deploy blackmail, no matter how subtle, to achieve that? Will it not amount to the same transactional government he claims to be preaching against if Uzodimma covertly endorses him as his likely successor without taking into consideration his other equally very good friends from the same zone, including from Ngor Okpala?
It is most scandalous that someone of Sam’s standing will claim to be advising the Governor on what legacy he should leave behind after seeing and feeling all the legacy projects that Uzodimma has, so far, tirelessly laboured to bring about in Imo in the past five years.
Only those the devil has condemned to perpetual blindness will pretend not to have seen Governor Uzodimma’s massive road infrastructure that has redefined the status of Imo.
May be Sam has not been coming home and should be reminded that Owerri-Orlu, Owerri- Okigwe, Owerri-Mbaise-Umuahia, Mgbidi- Oguta, Orlu-Mgbe-Akokwa-Uga roads, to name but a few are now motorable. When he finds time to visit his Imerienwe community in Ngor Okpala, I am sure he plies through the Bola Tinubu Drive from the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport. Does that corridor look like manna from heaven to Sam?
Too many city roads in Owerri have since worn new looks. The Assumpta flyover is few months away from commissioning. Same as the Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu International Conference Centre. Please, can someone take Sam to the Imo State House of Assembly Complex to see whether the edifice qualifies as a legacy project or not. I believe he must have heard about the brand New Exco Chambers built by Governor Uzodimma.
Governor Uzodimma is working day and night to light up the entire Imo State before he leaves office in 2028 using the Orashi Electricity Company of Imo State, and methinks that if NERC under Sam’s Chairmanship had done her job properly the scarce resources the government is deploying to the power sector today to give the people light could have been diverted to another infrastructure.
But unfortunately, in Sam’s epistle of advice, I did not read anywhere he singled out one project executed by Governor Uzodimma in five years for commendation, typical of critics and agitators for political office.
To him, the governor has not done anything. He is lacking in the depth of ideas and policy acumen that can only be found in a transformative leader like Sam, no more no less as the long awaited Messiah the people of Imo State need.
The pull him down syndrome (PHDS) which many so-called leaders in Imo State wear like a cloth is so nauseating and should be discouraged by all men of good will, including Sam Amadi.
The last time I checked, Sam has not given-in on his interest to be the governor of our dear State. In 2019 he tried his luck under APGA where they fleeced him to the pants his savings. Again, in 2023 his hope of leveraging his relationship with then presidential candidate, Peter Obi to clinch the Labour Party ticket got complicated.
I don’t know whether he is still in Labour Party today, what his relationship with Obi looks like, whether he has joined the others who are daily jumping out of the Labour Party, using every available space to defect to the other political parties. But whatever is the case, should there not be decorum in the way of conducting political activities?
Sam still believes, like others in his mould, that he is the best thing that can happen to Imo State, hence, no other person(s) serving or aspiring may be qualified. His hunch tells him he should be secretly crowned by Uzodimma, not by the people of Imo State whose right it is to elect who they want.
The fact that one is a good television analyst, lawyer, teacher, rights activist, does not mean the person can also be a good politician and governor. It goes without saying, also, that there are other fellows with competencies that are far better than what you may think you have and because they have refused to be willfully exposed to the kleig light, you think you are delivered from heaven to be adored.
In the build up to the 2023 governorship election, Sam was quoted to have said he will not give any delegate a kobo to vote for him, a comment which, to his supporters, was a recipe for disaster and failure.To such supporters, the bigger implication is that he is not the type who can make sacrifices for them. Yet, he sees himself as the best man for the job without knowing that being the best in politics could be relative.
By the way, who tells Sam that Governor Uzodimma is not conscious of who will competently take Imo State to the next level after him? Or does Sam think that after working so hard to restart Imo State on the current trajectory of economic prosperity and growth, Governor Uzodimma will close his eyes to who will succeed him and not fritter away the gains he has worked so hard to record?
Make no mistake about it, Governor Uzodimma will be alive to his responsibility till January 14, 2028. You can take that to the bank if you so wish. It is in your interest and the interest of your fellow political office agitators and critics to perish the thought of the governor being a lame duck, barely one year into his second term in office. Don’t even try to force him, using subterfuge, into such position the way most of you are wont to doing in the past because you will not succeed with Hope Uzodimma.
Instead, I urge you to pray to God for his good health and that of his team, because by the end of this year, the tendency is that you may not recognise Imo State, including Ngor Okpala based on the ongoing development initiatives lined up that will affect the lives of Imo people positively.
Imo people, particularly the Elders Council, are happy and grateful to the Governor for accepting their proposal for power to shift to Owerri zone from 2028. Everyone is also happy with the governor the way he is working hard to actualise the desire of the people regarding power shift. And Owerri zone, you and I know, is not only Ngor Okpala.
One thing you can be rest assure is that at the appropriate time, the right person from Owerri zone, with the support of our brothers/sisters from Orlu and Okigwe zones, who is a real and committed member of the APC, and who understands the policy framework and development blueprint of Imo State from the time Governor Uzodimma took over, and more than prepared to take the State to another level, will emerge.
But under no circumstances will those who never wished Governor Uzodimma well during his tenure, or those who covertly or overtly sabotaged his government through their actions or deeds, will be considered.
My own advice – use your tongue to count your teeth.
Nwachuku is Chief Press Secretary/ Special Adviser Media to the Governor
Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji has thanked President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the establishment of Federal University of Technology and Environmental Sciences in Iyin-Ekiti.
President Tinubu, had on Thursday in Abuja, assented to two separate bills establishing the Federal University of Agriculture and Development Studies, Iragbiji, Osun State and the Federal University of Technology and Environmental Sciences, Iyin, Ekiti State.
The Governor, in a statement, signed by his Special Adviser on Media, Olayinka Oyebode, on Friday, hailed the President for approving the establishment of the Federal University of Environmental Sciences, Iyin-Ekiti.
He said would further enhance educational and technological advancement of the state and the country through manpower development.
Oyebanji said the state government would give maximum support and cooperation for the smooth take off of the new university.
He also thanked President Tinubu for his sundry support for Ekiti State, which he said has aided the socioeconomic and infrastructural development of the state.
The Governor also commended the Senate Leader, Michael Opeyemi Bamidele for his tenacity that culminated in the establishment of the institution.
“Our profound appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for approving the establishment of the Federal University of Technology and Environmental Sciences, Iyin- Ekiti, and for his sundry support for the state which has helped in the socioeconomic and infrastructure development of Ekiti State.
“We commend the Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele for his tenacity which led to the establishment of the university. We also congratulate all sons and daughters of Iyin- Ekiti and Ekiti State in general for this historic achievement.
“The Government of Ekiti State would give maximum support to ensure effective take off of the institution in line with the education and human capital development agenda of the administration.”
An Abia State High Court sitting in Isiala Ngwa, on Thursday, February 20, 2025, granted an interim injunction restraining the authorities of Aba Power Limited from disconnecting electricity supply to its consumers within its area of operational jurisdiction – the Aba Ring Fence which covers nine Council Areas including Isiala Ngwa North.
Ruling in an ex-parte motion filed by Comrades Ike Opigwe, Ojukwu Imo, and Leonard Onyemesiri, on behalf of the Aba Electricity Consumers Forum, AECF, Justice Enyinnaya Okezie, also, issued an order allowing the claimants to serve all necessary court papers on the defendants through substituted means.
The defendants include Aba Power Limited Electric, Geometric Power Limited and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission NERC.
The Claimants, in their application, argued that the planned mass disconnection exercise by the Aba Power Limited, if allowed to go on, will have severe negative consequences on consumers and their businesses.
They, therefore, prayed the Court to halt the planned disconnection exercise pending the hearing and determination of a motion on notice before it.
The Source reports that the relationship between the APL and its millions of customers within Aba and environs has suffered severe strain since January 2025.
This followed the decision of the power distribution giant to effect an over 100 % increase in its monthly tariffs .
The policy which commenced in January 2025, has seen the monthly payable tariffs for a one room living apartment or shop, rising to over N54 ,000 .
Similarly, a block of flats, and modest bungalows are being slammed with a monthly estimated bill of between N80,000 and N100,000.
Business concerns, corporate entities and Governmental/Public institutions are given as much as between N500,000 and 1.5 million monthly bills.
The astronomical estimated bills were excruciating enough to force no few than three public protest marches by consumers between January and early February 2025 .
The protesters are particularly miffed by the seemingly insensitive bills and the refusal of the APL to provide its consumers with pre-paid meters as enjoined by regulatory authorities.
Although there has been a remarkable improvement in service delivery since December 2024, the protesting consumers are insisting that the new and arbitrary tariff regime will sooner than later drive them out of business if not checked.
However, the APL and its parent body, Geometric Power has insisted on the necessity of the new tariffs regime.
In an official leaflet availed consumers while officially flagging off the new tariff regime January ending 2025, the power distribution giant cited the rising cost of operations and maintenance of operational materials as some of the major reasons driving the tariff increase.
“Effective January 1,2025, our electricity tariff has been adjusted in accordance with regulatory guidelines.
“This adjustment is essential to maintaining a reliable and sustainable power supply amidst increasing economic pressures.
“While many other DISCOs adjusted their tariffs as early as April 2024, we kept our tariffs unchanged for months to shield our customers from rising economic pressures. Even now, our tariffs remain within reasonable range even as a100% privately owned business.
“We have been importing power from the National Grid due to lack of reliable gas supply to our sister Company GPAL
“The wholesale tariff we have been paying for power importation from the NDPHC since inception reached N136/KWh,while our highest tariff to customers up to December 2024 was N117/kWh for MD and 106/kwh for NMD .This resulted in a deficit”, APL stated.
The Court has adjourned till March 19, 2025 for hearing of the motion on notice.
General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, IBB, the man at the centre of the annulment of the June 12, 1993, Presidential election, has disclosed that he made “a consolatory” offer to Chief Moshood Abiola, presumed winner (then)of the election, to head an Interim National Government, while the intrigues which concerned the annulment were being sorted out.
IBB said he made the offer to Abiola after series of brainstorming meetings and consultations, including with Traditional Rulers and Abiola and his family members. But Abiola, IBB disclosed, flatly rejected the offer for two reasons.
One, Abiola already knew he won the Election fair and square. So, why an Interim Head? Why not the main thing? But the second reason, and most important, according to IBB, was late former Head of State, General Sani Abacha, who IBB said deceived Abiola.
Pretending to be Abiola’s friend, even though, said IBB, Abacha had a deep rooted hatred for him (Abiola), he convinced him to reject the offer, and instead, gave him the impression that once he, IBB, is removed from office, he, Abacha, would de-annul June 12, and install Abiola as President.
What Abiola did not know, said IBB, is that Abacha was, literally, the main brain behind the annulment as he, Abacha, was hell bent on the Military not handing over to a Civilian Government.
He, also, said that Abacha and his group were those who deceived Abiola into proceeding on exile, and, arrested and detained him as soon as he came back to Nigeria. Abiola’s absence, he said, gave Abacha and Co. the opportunity to consolidate their plans and position.
These revelations, like claps of thunder, came as IBB tried to explain exactly the intrigues that surrounded the annulment of the June 12, 1993, Presidential Election which his regime annulled.
32 years after the annulment of the election considered free and fair, General Babangida, the man who announced the annulment, finally, has the courage to publicly admit that indeed, Chief Moshood Abiola, won the Election.
Abiola of the Social Democratic Party, had slugged it out with Bashir Tofa of the National Republican Convention, NRC.
Writing in his autobiography, “A Journey In Service” which was presented to the public in Abuja, on Thursday, February 20, IBB said at a point, he told Abiola that both their lives were on the line.
He wrote:
“At one of my several meetings with Abiola, arranged this time by some traditional leaders, I offered Abiola an interim position pending when we could resolve the situation. Not surprisingly, Abiola turned down my offer.
“How could anyone blame him? Since he was convinced that he had won the elections that the annulment had denied him, it seemed overtly inappropriate to accept an interim arrangement. For him, it was a matter of once bitten, twice shy!
“At another meeting, this time a more private meeting of both families, I articulated that our lives were in danger of being snuffed out by lurking forces that wished both of us ill.
“Unfortunately, Abiola turned his back on rapprochement with me and embraced the gimmicks of deceitful ‘friends’ who hid their real intentions from him. I read somewhere, I believe, in one of Abiola’s newspapers, that Abiola thought that the moment these ‘friends’ overthrew me, the elections would be de-annulled and that he would be installed as President by his ‘coup plotting friends.
“As it turned out, Abiola was advised by these same ‘friends’ to leave the country to avoid death threats from fictitious military elements. Abiola’s departure paved the way for his ‘friends’ to consolidate their conspiratorial positions, eventually leading to another military takeover.
“Without question, one of my biggest headaches at this time was Sani Abacha. I knew that Abacha was ambivalent about a return to civil rule. But I thought, in retrospect now, naively, that he would support our transition to civil rule programme.
“As I said earlier, Abacha and I had come a long way. We were good friends, and he had indeed been nice to me. As I have said elsewhere, he saved my life once and also risked his life to ensure that I took over in 1985. I could never forget those details.
“But it’s also correct that he was a complex character. He was capable of bottling up a lot inside without giving a hint of where he was. And then, suddenly, the bottle bursts, and we begin to see a different person. I obviously didn’t know everything about him!
“For instance, I was alarmed to discover that he and a handful of others mobilised negative opinions against me within the military, portraying me as the problem.
“That campaign was geared towards a violent military coup to remove me as President forcefully. But even more bizarre for me was my discovery of the loathing that Abacha had for the person of Abiola, whom I thought had a good relationship with him.”
The day Babangida stepped aside, August 15, 1993, he handed over to Chief Ernest Shonekan as the Interim Head of Government.
But in November, 1993, Abacha overthrew the Interim Government set up by Babangida.
He, it was, who arrested Abiola, clamped him into detention for declaring himself President in April 1994, and charged him for treason.
Both men died suddenly in 1998. Abacha in June 1998, inside Aso Rock, and Abiola, in July, at his detention centre.
Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has waved aside Federal Government’s order to cancel Saturday’s Local Government Election, insisting that the election will proceed as planned.
The Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC), despite objections from the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi affirmed that the poll will hold on Saturday.
The AGF had, in a statement, urged the governor to halt the election, citing a Court of Appeal judgement.
On Thursday, Fagbemi argued that elected local government chairpersons must be reinstated following the appellate court’s decision, which overturned a lower court’s ruling that had removed them.
Governor Adeleke maintained that the election must proceed on Saturday, dismissing the AGF’s position and demanding further clarification on the court’s ruling concerning the legality of the sacked local government chairpersons and councillors.
Speaking on Friday while receiving a delegation from a Civil Society Coalition in the state to monitor the elections, Adeleke affirmed that Osun voters are prepared to exercise their franchise.
He also expressed satisfaction with OSSIEC’s level of preparedness.
“I welcome you all to Osun State. Our people are ready for the election tomorrow. They are eager to choose their chairpersons and councillors.
“OSSIEC has done a commendable job in its preparations, according to reports at my disposal. Several political parties are participating, and I believe there will be a level playing field for all to test their popularity.”
Addressing concerns surrounding the election, Adeleke stressed that democracy thrives on the rule of law and that no individual or institution should assume the authority of the courts.
“My advice to all parties, including local and national stakeholders, is to adhere to democratic norms. As for me and my people, we stand by the rule of law, not illegal self-help.
“The election will hold, and its outcome will spur rapid development at the grassroots. I urge our people to remain peaceful. Osun is a truly peaceful state.”
Earlier on Friday, a statement purportedly signed by the governor’s spokesman, Olawale Rasheed announced cancellation of the election.
