TheNewsGuru

Tag: election

  • 2015 elections: Indicted INEC officials have refunded bribe money – Chairman

    2015 elections: Indicted INEC officials have refunded bribe money – Chairman

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday said some of its staff accused of benefiting from a N3.4 billion bribe money in the 2015 general elections have refunded their share.

    The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmud Yakubu, disclosed this when he visited the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ibrahim Magu, in Abuja.

    A statement by spokesman of the EFCC, Mr Wilson Uwujaren, quoted the INEC chairman as saying that 70 of the affected staff in three states were still in denial.

    Yakubu, according to Uwujaren, said they would be referred to the EFCC for further investigation.

    The INEC chairman also said about five INEC political appointees, who are either National Commissioners or Resident Commissioners, were found wanting.

    Also indicted, he said, are 21 retired staff mostly acting under the aegis of WANEO (West African Network of Election Observers).

    Yakubu said 21 retirees had been blacklisted from monitoring elections and other activities organised by INEC in the future, according to Uwujaren.

    “If we get our election right, we get our democracy right as the right people will be elected and once we get our democracy right we will get national progress and development on track.

    “INEC is on the same page with the EFCC in this big responsibility of sanitising the country,’’ the INEC chairman was quoted saying.

    Responding, Magu was said to have expressed the anti-graft agency’s readiness to prosecute all the indicted INEC staff.

    “We are already prosecuting some of the INEC staff, we have started in Lagos and we are in the process in Port-Harcourt, Kano and Gombe,’’ Magu reportedly said.

    While expressing satisfaction with the collaboration between both agencies, Magu commended the INEC boss for supporting the investigation involving some of his staff members.

    He said: “What you have done will change the course of electioneering in this country, by bringing in sanity and credibility.

    “It will send a signal and serve as deterrent to any person who may wish to perpetrate fraud in the electoral process whether as a monitor or staff of INEC.’’

    Magu assured INEC of continued support from the EFCC, noting that the agency’s functions are central to the future of the country, and that the next election must be different.

    Uwujaren said the INEC boss was accompanied on the visit by other management staff of the commission, including Hajiya Amina Zakari, Mr Baba Shetima and Prof. Okey Ibeanu.

     

     

    NAN

  • Ebonyi SIEC fixes April 22 for LG election

    The Ebonyi State Independent Electoral Commission (EBSIEC) says it will conduct Local Government elections on April.22.

    Chief Jossy Eze, Chairman of the commission, disclosed this on Friday when he released the timetable and other guidelines for the elections to stakeholders in the elections.

    According to him, the election notice is pursuant to the provisions of the 1999 Constitution of (as amended) and the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended).

    “The notice is also pursuant to the Ebonyi state Electoral and Related Matters Law No.001 of 2017 and all powers enabling her in respect thereof.

    “The elections will take place on April 22, 2017 throughout the state and the nomination papers are to be delivered at EBSIEC headquarters in Abakaliki.

    “We are also distributing to relevant stakeholders, the election guidelines, manuals, time-tables and materials needed to ensure a hitch-free election,” he said.

    The EBSIEC chairman remarked that the meeting was convened to inform the stakeholders on the provisions and regulations of the elections, to ensure a hitch free exercise.

    “We assure all political parties of a level-playing ground during the election as all contributions and inputs will be welcome.

    “We also solicit the cooperation of securities agencies to ensure adequate security before, during and after the elections and give it the much desired credibility.

    “We are desirous to ensure that incidences of voting malpractices, thuggery, snatching of ballot boxes, among others are eradicated to ensure that the best candidates are elected,” he said.

    Mr Useni Abdulah, the Director of Department of State Services (DSS) in Ebonyi, noted that the directorate would ensure adequate security during the election.

    The director represented by Mr Chika Eze, called on the political parties to abide by the rules to make the job of providing security at the polls easy.

    Chief Ben Nwaobashi, Factional Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, noted that the party would participate effectively at the elections and record tremendous success.

    “We appeal to EBSIEC to create a condusive environment for all parties to thrive and ensure that the deserving candidates are declared winners irrespective of their parties,” he said.

     

    NAN

  • Gambia shuts down borders to ECOWAS delegations over election dispute

    Gambia shuts down borders to ECOWAS delegations over election dispute

    Gambian authorities have refused entry to the chair of regional body ECOWAS, Ellen Sirleaf Johnson, Senegal’s foreign minister said on Saturday.

    Such move is dampening hopes for a political solution after President Yahya Jammeh rejected the results of elections that he lost on Dec. 1.

    Jammeh on Friday called for another election in the tiny West African country after narrowly losing to opposition leader Adama Barrow. He had already conceded defeat publicly last week.

    The announcement on state television threw Gambia’s future into doubt after the unexpected election result ended Jammeh’s 22-year rule and was widely seen as a moment of democratic hope.

    The streets of Banjul were calm on Saturday, although some residents said they were staying at home for fear of violence.

    Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) chair Ellen Johnson Sirleaf had hoped to put back on track Gambia’s first democratic transition of power in over 50 years.

    However, those plans appeared thwarted on Saturday when her plane was denied landing access at Banjul.

    “Johnson Sirleaf was supposed to fly in today, but Jammeh said ‘not at the moment,” Senegal foreign minister Mankeur Ndiaye told media.

    It was not clear if the plane had already taken off.

    Sirleaf’s camp was not immediately available for comment.

    A spokesman for Jammeh’s government could not be reached.

    As Gambians brace for a tense standoff, international criticism of Jammeh’s claim came in fast.

    Following the United States and Senegal, the African Union on Saturday weighed in, calling Jammeh’s statement “null and void”.

    Reuters/NAN

  • Push, slap anyone that does same to you on election day – Oyegun tells APC supporters

    Push, slap anyone that does same to you on election day – Oyegun tells APC supporters

     

    Nation Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, on Thursday called on members of the party to retaliate to whatever action directed at them from opposing political parties during the Rivers re-run elections scheduled to hold on Saturday, December 10.

    Addressing supporters at the party’s political rally in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Oyegun said “If they slap you, slap them back, If they push you, push them back.”

    Oyegun, who stated that the party was on a recovery mission in the state said, “I am very pleased with the turnout here today. It shows you are truly ready. As you can see, we came in force. The whole federal might is here. You have the governors of this nation here today.

    “We are sending one message, and that message is clear. It is that we respect you the people of Rivers state. We respect the courage of our members in this state. We want to let you know that we have heard your cry; we have seen your anguish; enough is enough. This is the beginning of a rescue mission.

    “I was here during the time of our beautiful governor, Rotimi Amaechi. He drove me round Port Harcourt; we strolled in the city, but can you do so today? We now have a blood-thirsty regime in Rivers state.

    “I am glad with what I am hearing here today; very glad. If they push you, push them back. If they slap you, slap them back.

    “We cannot allow them. The APC came on a rescue mission, unfortunately they are fighting back, the same way they have always done. Are you going to allow them? It is within your powers to return the members of the house of assembly.

    “Return the members of house of representatives and senators because we need them. When you do that, it will be the beginning of the end.

    “Go and cast your vote, and if they snatch the result sheet, give me the answer.”

  • Anxiety as Ghana goes to poll in keenly contested presidential election

    Anxiety as Ghana goes to poll in keenly contested presidential election

    …The race is tight with President John Mahama and his rival Nana Akufo Addo running neck and neck in opinion polls

    Ghanaians are casting their ballots in neck and neck presidential and parliamentary polls, held at a time of economic woes and corruption scandals that have eroded President John Mahama’s lustre.

    Mahama’s main rival is veteran politician and former foreign minister, Nana Akufo-Addo. The winner of Wednesday’s (today) election will serve a four-year term in a formerly booming country that has seen its economy sputter, currency deteriorate and inflation soar.

    There are some 15 million registered voters. Polling started at 07:00 GMT and will close at 17:00 GMT across the West African country.

    An exporter of gold and cocoa, and one of Africa’s most successful oil exporters, Ghana was once hailed as a regional growth model but has now taken on too much debt.

    There are seven candidates battling for the top job and, if the smaller parties perform well and deny either man a majority, a presidential run-off will be held later in December.

    Mahama, 58, is running for a second term, with Akufo-Addo, 72, making his third, and likely last, bid for the highest office.

    Leaving nothing to chance on the last day of campaigning on Monday, Mahama held three rallies in the major swing regions of Brong-Ahafo, Ashanti and Greater Accra.

    Mahama has announced several infrastructure projects during the campaign.

    “Throughout the election campaign, the president approved a series of major and eye-catching infrastructure projects to prove to voters that government spending was not going to waste or being stolen,” said Al Jazeera’s Nicholas Haque, reporting from Accra.

    “But the trouble is Ghana is spending more than it can afford. There are hospitals left half built. Despite pressing need for medical staff, the state can’t afford to pay nurses or doctors any more.”

    Corruption scandals

    Akufo-Addo, on the other hand, has campaigned on Ghana’s poor economic growth, the slowest rate in two decades, at 3.3 percent in 2016, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and has outlined detailed plans to get the economy back on track.

    He has lambasted Mahama’s ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) government over a series of corruption scandals in which scores of judges have been implicated. Critics say he squandered the country’s commodity wealth and turned a blind eye to graft within his inner circle.

    During his tenure, the Bank of Ghana controversially bought half a million dollars worth of gold Swiss watches for some of its staff.

    The leader of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has also alleged that the ruling party is fomenting violence, a claim Mahama denies.

    But tension is rising in advance of the high-stakes election.

    Police said an NPP supporter was beaten to death, with six others left in critical condition, in clashes between supporters of the two main parties after a rally in the north on Monday.

    Elections in Ghana are famously closely fought, with Mahama narrowly winning in 2012 with 50.7 percent.