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YIAGA Africa urges reforms toward credible LG polls in Nigeria
Youth Initiative for Advocacy, Growth and Advancement (YIAGA) Africa, a non-profit organisation, has called for constitutional reforms to strengthen the State Independence Electoral Commissions (SIECs) toward enhancing the quality of local government elections in the country.
The Executive Director of the organisation, Mr Samson Itodo, made the call at a book launch in honour of Prof. Nnamdi Aduba, one of its Board Members, on Saturday in Jos.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the book launch titled “Building a Virile Nation: Law, Economy and Good Governance”, was organised to honour Aduba, who recently retired from the University of Jos, having clocked the age of 70.
Itodo lamented that 90 per cent of the local government elections recently conducted in the country were marred by irregularities.
According to him, the SIECs lacked the constitutional reforms that will enable them conduct credible elections.
“Our position in YIAGA Africa has been that 90 per cent of the local government polls conducted in 17 states were not credible.
“They do not meet the integrity test and this because these institutions are not independent; there has been a lot of political interference in their operations.
“You, however, cannot call for the scrapping of SIECs because the reforms that have taken place in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have not been implemented for SIECs.
“SIECs are not financially and operationally independent; their regulations and guidelines are subject to the approval of the governor.
“These are some of issues that needed to be addressed if we want credible elections at the local government level,”he said.
On budget increment being demanded by INEC, Itodo explained that conducting general elections in Nigeria required huge funding.
The executive director, who also blamed the political class for regularly subverting the efforts of INEC to deliver credible elections, called for attitudinal change among Nigerians.
“Nigerians need to understand that elections are expensive – on general elections day, each voter will have not less than five ballot papers. It cost a lot to produce them.
“I think what Nigerians should worry about is the fact that as we spend more money for elections, the quality of our elections is declining.
“If our politicians aren’t subverting the efforts of INEC toward conducting credible elections just for their personal gains, we won’t be investing so much funds on technology to ensure every vote counts,”he said.
Earlier, Aduba, thanked the management of the university of Jos and his former colleagues in the Law Faculty, for organising the book launch in his honour.
Aduba, a professor of constitutional law promised to continually contribute his quota toward the growth of democracy in Nigeria, even in retirement.
“I’m retired but not tired. Teaching and research has been part of me; that is what I have been doing in the last 46 years of my life.
“I started from the University of Maiduguri and moved to the university of Jos 33 years ago.
“So, I will continue to mentor the young ones, particularly those who are serious about shaping the future of this country for the better,” he said.(NAN)
A coalition of conscientious citizens has called on Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, the sole administrator of Rivers State, to publicly declare his assets.
This demand comes after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu proclaimed a state of emergency in Rivers Stateh and suspended te governor, Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, and the Rivers State House of Assembly for six months.
The Coalition of Conscientious Citizens (3Cs), at a press conference in Abuja on Sunday, March 30, 2025, urged Vice Admiral Ibas to comply with Section 185 (1) of the Constitution.
This section requires individuals elected to the office of governor to declare their assets and liabilities before taking office.
The coalition’s executive director, Dr. Gabriel Nnaji, expressed concerns that Vice Admiral Ibas’s failure to declare his assets could lead to self-enrichment at the state’s expense.
He also cited reports of Rivers State’s coffers being depleted within two weeks of the sole administrator’s tenure.
“Our concerns have been further heightened by the reports we are getting from inside the administration. There are suggestions that Rivers State’s coffers have been bled dry in under two weeks of the Sole Administrator being in office,” the statement said.
“It is especially concerning given the speed with which the withheld allocations for local governments were released without further changes in the judicial status of the excuses earlier given for withholding them.
“There were also hints that the suspension of Governor Fubara’s political appointees was done to ensure that they were not around to witness the industrial-scale looting of the state’s resources taking place under the Sole Administrator.
“Arising from the foregoing, we urge Vice Admiral Ibas not to complicate issues for himself. He must immediately declare his asset to remedy his failure to fulfil the constitutional requirement to do the same before taking the oath of office as Sole Administrator of Rivers State.
“Given that Vice Admiral Ibas does not enjoy the mandate of Rivers State electorates being the product of a fiat, there is an additional burden on him to publicly declare his assets. This will ensure he does not enrich himself at the expense of the state.”
The coalition, therefore, issued Vice Admiral Ibas seven days to publicly declare his assets, failing which they will initiate legal action to compel him to do so.
They also vowed to scrutinize his tenure and ensure that any misuse of state resources attracts legal consequences.
“We are consequently giving Vice Admiral Ibas seven days from today to publicly declare his assets, failing which we shall activate the appropriate legal processes to compel him to declare his assets.
“We are also putting Vice Admiral Ibas on notice that the Coalition of Conscientious Citizens (3Cs) will lead an amalgamation of willing Nigerians and organisations to place his tenure under constant scrutiny and ensure that any misuse or personalisation of the resources of Rivers State shall attract legal consequences.”
The 2023 presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Adewole Adebayo, says he is willing to step down his presidential ambition in the 2027 elections for a better politician to emerge as the flag bearer of his party.
The lawyer stated this on the Sunday edition of Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, a socio-political programme aired on Channels Television.
“Everybody knows that I have an aspiration. I’m working on it but God is the author of tomorrow; we don’t even know who is going to be around in 2027,” Adebayo said.
“It is my prayer to God that if there is a person who God thinks is better than me to fix the problem of Nigeria, my ambition should not stop that person because we want a country that works. That is the kind of thing we are working on at this time.”
Adebayo said the SDP would give Nigerians a candidate that all citizens would be proud of and be ready to give a chance to unseat President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the next presidential election.
The politician said the SDP won’t divide Nigerians along the delicate lines of religion and ethnicity.
He said, “What used to be an easy discussion – with religion and ethnicity – has become explosive now. So, we will not use the SDP forum to try to bifurcate our people into different zones.
“What we are looking for now is a system where when we make a choice in the SDP, there will be resounding joy outside the SDP and Nigerians will say: ‘Okay, finally, this platform has given the country a chance’.”
The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has announced that it is actively working to ensure prompt compensation for depositors of the defunct Heritage Bank, specifically those whose account balances surpass the N5 million insurance cap.
Following the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) revocation of Heritage Bank’s operating license on June 3, 2024, the NDIC was designated as the liquidator in accordance with the provisions of Section 12(2) of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) 2020, alongside Sections 55(1 & 2) of the NDIC Act 2023.
In a recent update regarding the payment of uninsured amounts to Heritage Bank depositors (currently in liquidation), the corporation indicated that it has commenced the liquidation process, which includes verifying and reimbursing insured deposits to all depositors.
The NDIC reported significant advancements in the reimbursement of insured deposits up to the N5 million maximum per depositor. This clarification addresses concerns raised by depositors regarding the payment process.
According to the NDIC management, the depositors who have yet to receive their insured amounts mostly lack a Bank Verification Number (BVN) or do not have alternative accounts in other banks, which would enable the corporation to retrieve their information from the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) database for payment processing. Additionally, some accounts are subject to post no debit (PND) restrictions, while others face Know Your Customer (KYC) limitations, including Tier 1 accounts that restrict the maximum deposit amount, and issues with name discrepancies that need resolution.
Furthermore, some depositors who have received payments may not be aware due to the absence of mobile transaction alerts on their alternate accounts where the insured funds were deposited by the NDIC. The corporation advises these depositors to review their other bank accounts, as some payments may have been processed without their immediate knowledge.
Regarding the initiation of payments for uninsured depositors, the NDIC confirmed that while depositors with balances exceeding N5 million have received the initial insured amounts, the remaining balance above the N5 million insurance limit will be disbursed as liquidation dividends in line with the corporation’s statutory obligations.
The statement highlighted that the corporation has made significant progress in liquidating physical assets and recovering debts from the failed bank to expedite payments to depositors with balances above the insured threshold.
The NDIC emphasized, “To showcase our commitment, the corporation has initiated the liquidation of physical assets and investments while concurrently pursuing aggressive debt recovery, alongside the verification and payment of insured sums.”
“To ensure transparency and adherence to legal standards, the NDIC has extensively publicized the asset disposal process on its official website, social media channels, major national newspapers, and through radio and television broadcasts.”
The corporation’s strategy of simultaneously compensating insured depositors while aggressively pursuing asset liquidation and debt recovery aims to hasten the liquidation process, ensuring all depositors receive their funds without unnecessary delays.
The NDIC further stated, “With significant progress in asset realization, we plan to announce the first tranche of liquidation dividends in April 2025, which will be allocated to uninsured depositors on a pro-rata basis, in accordance with Section 72 of the NDIC Act 2023 addressing the priority of claims.”
For clarity, this section specifies: “In the event that an insured institution is unable to fulfill its obligations or suspends payments, or if its management is taken over by the Central Bank of Nigeria following the revocation of its license, the assets of the insured institution shall be utilized to meet its deposit liabilities, which take precedence over all other liabilities.”
Therefore, other claimants of the defunct Heritage Bank, including creditors and shareholders, will only be considered for liquidation dividends after all depositors have been fully reimbursed.
The NDIC reiterated its commitment to safeguarding depositors’ funds in all licensed banks, urging the public to engage in banking activities without apprehension, as all other banks remain stable and secure.
Affected depositors with further inquiries are encouraged to reach out to the Claims Resolution Department of the NDIC for additional clarification.