Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has threatened to put fire in states controlled by the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) if the governor supports the embattled Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara.
You may wish to recall that The PDP Governors Forum led by Bala Mohammed after its meeting in Taraba State, recently declared it support to the Rivers governor.
But Wike after voting at a factional State Congress of Rivers PDP in Port Harcourt organized by Wike’s loyalists at the weekend, threatened to make the states governed by any state governor backing Fubara, ungovernable.
The Minister boasted that with the successful congress that was boycotted by the Fubara camp, his loyalists have taken control of the PDP structure in Rivers. He also vowed that he will not leave the party for anybody.
“We are party members, we have taken over our party members. We will not leave for anybody or allow anybody to take the party from us,” the FCT Minister boasted.
“Some governors say they will take the structure from us and give it to somebody. I hear that they have given them assurance that they will take the party from us. I pity those governors because I will put fire in their states.
“When God has given you peace, you say you don’t want peace. Whether you are in Bauchi or wherever, your hands will get burnt. You will never see peace again,” Wike said while expressing his happiness that the congress was witnessed by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
He also described his successor as ‘unstable character’ noting that there have been speculations that he is going to join the APP. ‘Let them wait for us during the election,’ the FCT Minister said.
The controversial PDP Congress was held at the party’s Secretariat along Port Harcourt-Aba Expressway, Port Harcourt under tight security and despite different court orders for and against holding it.
A Rivers High Court presided over by Justice Charles Wali had last month prohibited PDP, its National Chairman Iliya Damagum, and National Secretary Senator Samuel Anyanwu, or their agents, from gathering anywhere in Rivers State to hold ward, local government, and state congresses until it hears and determines the suit before it.
The suit was filed by representatives of PDP members from each of the 23 Local Government Areas of Rivers State.
Before Justice Wali’s order, Justice Sobere Biambo also of the state high court, had issued an order in a suit filed by David Omereji and 10 others stopping the PDP, its national chairperson, national financial secretary, and national organizing secretary from conducting the congress.
However, a Federal High Court in Abuja was said to have countered the first order and allowed the party to proceed with its congresses. Justice Peter Lifu stopped the DSS, the police, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and seven others from stopping, or disrupting the congresses.
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Anambra LG Poll: APGA flays Soludo’s LG poll laws as undemocratic
The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) says the recent amendment of elecieal laws guiding local government councils in Anambra State by the government of Governor Chukwuma Soludo, is worrisome and a blatant violation of the rule of law and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
A press statement on Sunday, from the National Secretariat of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) described the move as a slap on Nigeria’s democracy and an attempt to circumscribe the Nigerian Constitution through some ambiguous provisions in the State’s Local Government Council Law as it apparently clashes with certain provisions of the 1999 Constitution.
The party wondered why the Soludo administration is toeing “the path of dishonour and disdain for rule of law”, in view of the glaring recognition of Chief Edozie Njoku, by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the authentic National Chairman of APGA.
The Chief Edozie Njoku-led national leadership of APGA in the statement said the amendment of the State Electoral Law by the Anambra State House of Assembly, was hasty and a promotion of undemocratic tactics, aimed at frustrating and politically ambushing opposition parties in the State.
“It has long been established that the devious clauses suggested for inclusion in the Anambra State’s Local Government Council Act were intended to sideline the Chief Edozie Njoku leadership of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, which was elected at the Owerri Convention of the party and affirmed by the Supreme Court”, the party said.
It recalled that the Anambra State House of Assembly, recently amended the electoral laws, which slashed the notice period for local government elections from 60 days to just 30 days.
Amongst other enactments, the new amendment sought by the Anambra State Government was to the effect that National or State House of Assembly lawmakers should endorse the nomination forms of candidates of the Local Government Council Councillorship and Chairmanship positions instead of the State or National Chairmen of political parties.
“The amendment, wherein anti democratic, illegal and unconstitutional clauses were smuggled into the electoral laws for the conduct of local government elections in the State is an aberration that will not stand the test of time”, the APGA statement warned.
The party noted that the National Assembly is vested with the power to make laws relating to voter registration and election procedures for local government councils, as stipulated in Paragraph 12 of Part II of the Second Schedule of the 1999 Constitution as amended and Section 150 of the Electoral Act 2022.
It was the contention of the party that Section 23(1) of the Anambra State Electoral Law 2024, which mandates a 30-day notice period for local government council elections in the State, is invalid as it offends Section 103(3) of the Electoral Act 2022, which is a crucial aspect of the election process to council positions.
APGA posited that for Anambra State Independent Electoral Commission (ANSIEC) to hold valid elections for the 21 local government councils in Anambra State, it must comply strictly with the provisions of Section 103(3) and Section 150 of the National Electoral Act 2022.
According to the party, going ahead with the September 28, Local Government elections under the amended law could raise questions on the validity of the local government election being planned by the ANSIEC.
“In as much as the Anambra State House of Assembly is conferred with the power to make laws for the organization of local government election or undertake all elections to local Government councils through the Anambra State Independent Electoral Commission (ANSIEC), it does not operate in isolation, and those laws are not expected to be inconsistent with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution, APGA posited.
According to APGA, Section 4(5) of the 1999 Constitution is clear and unambiguous on this. It states: “If any Law enacted by the House of Assembly of a State is inconsistent with any law validly made by the National Assembly, the law made by the National Assembly shall prevail, and that other Law shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be void”.
APGA stated that since certain provisions of the ANSIEC amendment law are in contrast with the Electoral Act 2022, enacted by the National Assembly, the local government election, which the ANSIEC is about to conduct will not stand the test of legal proceedings, a situation which the party is entirely opposed to.
The party insisted that the ANSIEC cannot operate under a different Constitution, stressing that the legislative powers to enact electoral laws to govern the local governments are vested in the Federal and State governments.
The party called on all opposition parties, civil society organizations and democratic institutions to rise and challenge the law in court to in a bid to restore sanity in the democratic process of Anambra State and the country at large, stressing that the Supreme Court had long decided on this affront on the nation’s democracy by desperate politicians in many of it’s judgments.
The party expressed dismay that the law, particularly Section 24(11), unfairly altered the nomination process for candidates by political parties, arguing that the Anambra Law highlights the problems associated with SIECs.
Therefore, APGA has called for the repeal of the law to prevent further disruption and confusion in Nigeria’s political landscape, while underscoring the importance of nurturing and protecting democracy from the jaws of retrogressive politicians who are hell-bent to brazenly violate the Constitution for personal aggrandizements.
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Slashing lawmakers’ pay will save N258m per State, says Apo-6 lawyer, Nzelu
The principal partner, Chinenye Chambers, Abuja, Barr Amobi Nzelu has said that a cutdown of the salaries and allowances of each legislator at the National and State Assemblies will yield N258 million for each State.
In a letter he wrote to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, the constitutional lawyer observed that at Nl150,000.00 per month, the cut in salaries and allowances of both the National and State Assemblies will give employment to 1,718 graduates per State.
The 1,718 per state employees, according to him will yield 61,848 employees for the country less FCT, even as he added that the removal of constituency project from the budget of National Assembly at N250 million per person will yield N117.25 billion. This amount of N117.25 billion, he went on would give 65,138 graduates employment at N150,000.00 per month for a year.
According to the letter, the total number of graduates to be employed by the cut down on salaries and allowances of the National and State Assembly legislators and the removal of constituency projects in the budget of the National Assembly will be 126,986.
Nzelu therefore said that devolution of power is a sina qua non to the economic growth in Nigeria, lamenting that, Jonah in the State ship otherwise called corruption must be thrown overboard for the State ship to stabilize.
Hear him in details: “Cut down on the salaries and allowances of both the National and State Assemblies will yield #258 million per State. At Nl150,000.00 per month, the cut down on salaries and allowances of both the National and State Assemblies will give employment to 1,718 graduates per State. The 1,718 per state employees will yield 61,848 employees for the country less FCT and removal of constituency projects from the budget of National Assembly at N250 million per person will yield N117.25 billion. This amount of N117.25 billion will give 65,138 graduates employment at N150,000.00 per month for a year.”
He continued: “The total number of graduates to be employed by the cut down on salaries and allowances of the National and State Assemblies and the removal of constituency projects in the budget of the National Assembly will be 126,986, and devolution of power is a sina qua non to the economic growth in our country. The ‘Jonah’ in the State ship otherwise called corruption must be thrown overboard for the State ship to stabilize.”
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Dumping presidential system for parliamentary won’t solve Nigeria’s challenges – Tafawa-Balewa
Dr Abdul-Jhalil Tafawa Balewa, a former PDP presidential aspirant ,says adoption of parliamentary system of government is not the answer to the nation’s current socio-political and economic challenges.
Tafawa-Balewa, son of Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Nigeria’s former Prime Minister, expressed the view in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Lagos.
The politician was reacting to calls for a shift from the presidential system of government to the parliamentary system of government,to solve the country’s challenges.
NAN reports that Nigeria practised the parliamentary system of government,modelled after the British Westminster system,from 1960 to 1966.
“No(adoption of parliamentary system), but I think democracy has to be modified in Nigeria to be able to represent us.
“To introduce something somewhat new,something radically different will be too costly for us, and it won’t make much sense at this time,” Tafawa-Balewa said.
Instead ,he said the country should be urgently restructured to allow for devolution of power from the centre to the federating zones.
The politician said this would make the zones to develop along their comparative advantage ,adding it would make most of the country’s challenges disappear.
“Honestly, I feel that each zone can specialise in particular ideas.
“To develop the different zones for what their specialties are will make Nigeria a much better country, I believe,” he said
According to him, South-West can concentrate on the service industry, South East on marine industry, manufacturing and commerce.
He said that the South-South could stay with just the petroleum manufacturing derivatives ,while the North could concentrate on agriculture.
“If we are able to invest properly in those areas, Nigeria will be better. The standard of living will be better.
“We need to be able to do innovation on all those things to be able to keep up with the rest of the world,” he said.
The politician stated he was not advocating a confederacy ,but a “zonal specialisation system” with a centre to be responsible for only the military, the foreign service, maintenance of national integrity, representation at the United Nations and other bodies.”
Decrying cost of governance, Tafawa-Balewa said that the National Assembly had been over-bloated and over-strained.
“I don’t think that we actually need that (bloated NASS). Maybe, we need very few representatives from the different systems that can now join the federal, a much slimmed-down federal body.
“I think it is over-bloated, especially in a country where the average citizen earns less than a dollar a day, and food is so expensive, and just staying alive is so expensive,” he said.
Tafawa-Balewa said that a new constitution for the country would simplify a lot of things for the nation and promote a better relationship relationship between the zones and the federal government.
He added: “If we have a new, different type of federation-a Nigerian type of federation-where there is equal opportunity for each zone to develop at their own pace, I think we will all be better”.
