₦airaland Forum

The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Southeast zone has rejected the 8,000 polling booths allocated to the entire south by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, who made this known to journalists at the end of their meeting in Umuahia on Saturday, described the allocation as “disservice to the nation”.

“The people of the South-East reject the alleged allocation of polling booths by INEC. We view it as a great disservice to the unity and progress of this country if the entire south will have 8,000 polling booths and the north has 21,000 polling booths.

“We demand that this should be suspended forthwith as it is completely against the spirit of one Nigeria, the unity and progress of our dear country.
“This country belongs to all Nigerians; the South-East should be given its fair share.”

Metuh said that the people and leadership of the party in the zone had resolved to support the re-election bid of President Goodluck Jonathan.

“Our people have demanded that Jonathan should contest in 2015 and the South-East has resolved to support him unequivocally and unconditionally.

“We are, therefore, joining millions of Nigerians to ask the president to declare for the 2015 presidential election,” he said.
The PDP spokesman said that Nigerians were convinced that the country had witnessed great transformation in the last three-and-a-half years.

He commended the Federal Government, especially the Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, for taking `bold initiatives’ to contain the spread of Ebola Virus Disease in the country.
He said that Nigerians were satisfied with the measures so far adopted by the Federal Government to tackle the disease.

Metuh demanded the extension of the period of the continuous voter registration, especially in areas where the exercise was marred by inadequate materials, personnel and mal-functional equipment.

He expressed concern over the recent postings and promotions in the Nigeria Police Force.

He called on the Inspector-General of Police, Mr Suleiman Abba, and the Police Service Commission “to revisit this appointments and promotions with a view to balancing the position”.

The meeting was attended by the governors of Abia and Ebonyi, Theodore Orji and Martin Elechi, respectively, as well as the Deputy Senate President, Chief Ike Ekwerenmadu.

Also in attendance were: Prof. Onyebuchi Cukukwu, Minister of Health; Chief Osita Chidoka, Minister of Aviation; Chief Emeka Wogu, Minister of Labour and Productivity; and PDP chairmen in the five states in the zone.

I mean, there was one person in the fold of APC who even said I was the child of a same-sex marriage just because I pointed out to him that his criticism of President Jonathan was unfair. Today, he is one of the leading defenders of President Jonathan.

One of the most used words by the opposition or people who don’t like Jonathan is that he is “clueless.” Looking back, from what you have said about the president’s achievement, how do you respond to that?

I have had cause to respond to those people on many occasions. It is very obvious now that it is those people criticizing President Jonathan who are totally clueless. They have no idea whatsoever. You are beginning to see it now. The thing around their neck is beginning to play out. Some of their key spokespersons who used to criticize President Jonathan are now all rushing to come to the President’s party. They are in fact gate-crashing.

I mean, one of the key figures in the APC has declared for the PDP in his home state in Adamawa. And that is a man who was once famously quoted as saying that Nigeria under President Jonathan is a sinking ship. The same man is joining that ship because he has seen that the ship is not sinking at all and that the captain of the ship is a good captain who is providing quality leadership. He has seen the light and the light has set him free. That is the kind of illumination that has been happening to many of these persons. They suddenly see the light and they recant and I am very happy.

Even a former governor and a former Minister have also joined the PDP. These are people who used to criticize the ruling government, these are people who used to criticize President Jonathan but they keep seeing the light. We welcome such people.

So, the same people you are quoting, many of them are coming into the PDP. Many of them are joining President Jonathan. And I believe that as we move towards 2015, you will find more and more people like that. We don’t need to say anything anymore. The Lord Almighty is winning the battle for us.

These are the people who championed the various abuses and they are turning to our side now and supporting us.

I mean, there was one person in the fold of APC who even said I was the child of a same-sex marriage just because I pointed out to him that his criticism of President Jonathan was unfair. Today, he is one of the leading defenders of President Jonathan. The thing speaks for itself, then.

They even now make my job easier because those people that I used to fight with, they are coming to our side one by one. We are waiting for Nasir el-Rufai, Lai Muhammed, Oby Ezekwesili, Dino Melaye, and the Jagaban (Bola Tinubu) and their Northern godfathers: may they all see the light, and may the light set them free.

And that tells you something, that we have a president who is a true leader who in the fullness of time, you find his worst critics, becoming his strongest promoters. And that is our point; this whole thing should not be about ego, it is about doing the best in all circumstances for our country. Nigeria must and will prevail. We welcome everybody who is willing to be part of that national agenda of progress and transformation.

The widow of late Patrick Sawyer, the Liberian who brought Ebola into Nigeria, has defended her husband’s decision to travel to Africa’s most populous country, saying he did so in desperate search for a country with better healthcare system than his own country.
In an article published earlier today, TMZ Liberia Magazinequoted Decontee Sawyer, who is a radio host in New York, as explaining that Mr. Sawyer had no trust in the healthcare system in Liberia and had possibly headed to Nigeria with the hope of receiving better treatment for his ailment.
Mrs. Sawyer shared her thoughts on her Facebook profile from which TMZ Liberia sourced it for publication.

Nigeria has recorded two new Ebola cases, the Minister of Health, Onyebuchi Chukwu, announced Friday.

Mr. Chukwu, a professor, said the new cases are spouses of the primary contacts of the index case, Patrick Sawyer, the Liberian-American who brought the virus to Nigeria.

He said the new cases are the first secondary contacts to test positive to the deadly virus that has killed five people in Nigeria.

The secondary contacts had been under surveillance since the outbreak of the disease in Nigeria, Mr. Chukwu added.

At a press conference in Lagos Wednesday, Jide Idris, the state’s Health Commissioner, told journalists that five new suspected Ebola virus cases were brought to the isolation ward of the Yaba Mainland Hospital in Lagos on Tuesday.

Mr. Idris added that two of those five cases were from secondary contacts linked to the Liberian-American, Patrick Sawyer, who brought the virus to Nigeria.

“Till date, we have recorded eight suspected cases, five of which came in yesterday (Tuesday), 12 confirmed,” said Mr. Idris. “On the whole, five have died (including the index case). We are currently following up 213 contacts, and 62 have completed the two-day follow-up.”

But barely two hours after the press conference ended, Health Minister, Mr. Chukwu, issued a terse statement telling the public to “disregard” Mr. Idris’ figures.

“The Honourable Minister of Health, Onyebuchi Chukwu, wishes to reiterate that at present, Nigeria has only two confirmed cases of Ebola Virus Disease,” Mr. Chukwu said in a statement by Dan Nwomeh, his Special Assistant on Media and Communication.

It is not clear whether the two new cases are part of those Commissioner Idris announced.

Nigeria was free of Ebola until July 20 when Mr. Sawyer arrived. He became terribly ill on his flight and was rushed to the First Consultant Hospital Obalende, Lagos, where he died on July 24.

Nigeria’s Health Minister, Onyebuchi Chukwu, said last week that although the Liberian government has apologized for the incidence, it was pertinent to note that Nigeria was free of Ebola Virus until its importation by the Liberian-American.

Mr. Sawyer’s action, he said, has placed unnecessary stress on Nigeria’s health system.

comos: rome was not built in a day, lets take it gradually.

Public Finance/Revenue Allocation

2014: That the sharing of the funds to the Federation Account among the three tiers of government should be done in the following manner: Federal Government – 42.5%, State Governments – 35% and Local Governments 22.5% [/quote

Local Government
2014 NC: Local Government will no longer be the third tier of government. The federal and states are now to be the only tiers of government. States can now create as many local governments they want. The Joint State/Local Government Account be scrapped and in its place the establishment of a State RMAFC with representatives of LG and a Chairman nominated by the Governor. The Constitution should fix the tenure for Local Government Councils at three years. Conference recommends the scrapping of State Independent Electoral Commission, SIECs.

ayusco85: It has now turn to Family business. Turn. Y turn. U can only find that in APC state

Donmarrius: Hahahahahahaha
APC and nepotism.

Time will tell what this association of long beared and unshaven evil men has for Nigerians.but that day will never come.

the
Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Ade Ipaye
said that the new Chief Judge was recommended by the
National Judicial Council and appointed by the State Governor,
Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, and that her appointment has
been reviewed, found worthy and confirmed by the Lagos State
House of Assembly.

As the country heads for the 2015 general elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has put the current total number of registered voters in Nigeria at 70,383,427, of which Lagos with 5,426,391 has the highest number of registered voters in the country.
Nigeria’s commercial capital is followed by Kano with the second highest number of registered voters of 4,751,818.

Releasing the list of registered voters yesterday in Abuja, INEC also created 30,027 new polling units in all the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), as part of efforts to decongest polling units (PUs) across the country, bringing the total number of units nationwide to 150,000.

According to an INEC bulletin circulated to the press and signed by the director in charge of the commission’s secretariat, Ishiaku A. Gali, the commission said the decision to create the additional polling units was taken at the INEC meeting on Tuesday, August 12, 2014.
Before the decision to create more polling units, there were 119,973 of them across the 774 local governments.

According to the 2010 Electoral Act, each PU is expected to have not more than 500 voters, but during elections there are PUs that have more than 500 voters.

A glance at the approved re-allocation of 150,000 PUs nationwide showed that Lagos is leading in terms of proportional distribution.

Lagos with 5,426,391 registered voters got an additional 2,870 PUs, bringing its total to 11,565 polling units.

It is followed by Kano with a voting strength of 4,751,818, which was allocated 2,053 new PUs, bringing the total number to 9,809.

INEC, in the statement, said Kano State, which has 10,127 PUs based on proportional distribution of 150,000 and 9,809 based on approved new PU allocation.

Kaduna State has registered voters of 3,743,815 and got 2,878 new PUs, increasing its total number of units to 7,485.

Katsina State with 2,928,046 voters got 1,339 PUs more to bring the total number of PUs in the state to 3,818.
In the same vein,

Jigawa State with a voting strength of 1,817,087 got an additional 346 PUs, making a total of 3,677 units in the state,

Ogun State with 1,796,024 registered voters was allocated 569 new PUs, increasing its total to 3,818.

Baylsa State, with the lowest number of registered voters of 590,679, got 121 new units, increasing its total to 1,925. (See detailed table on pages 1 and …).

Also, the commission yesterday ruled out the possibility of Nigerians in the Diaspora voting during the 2015 elections, just as it indicated that it is making preparations to ensure that security officials on election duty are not disenfranchised during the exercise.

Chairman of the commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega, admonished federal lawmakers at a public hearing organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters to amend the Electoral Act.

This is just as the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, said next year's general election would be a historical landmark in Nigeria's history, thus urging politicians to be cautious.

According to Jega, even if the Electoral Act is amended to allow Nigerians overseas, to vote the commission lacks the logistics to involve them in the exercise in 2015, but added that Nigerians who are abroad might be considered to participate in future elections.

He added that electronic voting would also not be possible in 2015.

He said: “I must be sincere with you. Even if the constitution is amended now, it will be practically impossible for Nigerians in the Diaspora to vote in 2015. It is practically impossible for us to commence that next year, but the amendment should be done before the 2015 elections for future elections.

“The issue of electronic voting should also be accommodated before the 2015 elections, but we cannot conduct elections electronically next year. It will be for future elections.”

He however requested an extension of the seven days set aside for run-off elections for the offices of the president and governors as provided in the Electoral Act to at least 21 days, “because it is technically impossible to do a run-off in seven days”.

He also asked for an extension of the days for the transfer of voters from the approved 45 days by the lawmakers to 60 days due to the technicalities involved, even though the Electoral Act provides for 35 days.

To him, the amendment of Section 25, which provides for a by-election whenever there is vacancy in a position would be appropriate so that all by-elections would be conducted twice every year instead of once.

He endorsed the amendment to Section 29 ( on the deployment of “the Nigerian Armed Forces only for the purpose of securing the distribution and delivery of election materials”.

On his part, Tambuwal admonished all stakeholders, especially members of the National Assembly to tidy up every aspect of the regulations governing the conduct of elections, saying: “If our electoral law is technically and morally sound, it will go a long way in ensuring that we have free and fair elections in 2015 and beyond.”

According to him, it is the desire of lawmakers “to ensure a level playing field for all participants in the electoral process and for a more transparent process of conducting elections in Nigeria”.

“The 2015 elections will no doubt mark a watershed in our nation's history. As participants in this hearing, you have an opportunity and a duty to ensure that you contribute to making the elections the best that they can be,” he said.

fyneguy: It looks like my secondary school in Ibadan, back in the day.

Yes, unfortunately it's true. Just confirmed from a family source.Dr. Ameyo Stella Adadevoh, theSenior Consultant Physician and Endocrinologist who was one of the doctors who attended to Patrick Sawyer at First Consultant Hospital has died from the Ebola virus which she contractedfrom Sawyer.

Dr. Ameyo died this afternoon Tuesday August 19th at the isolationunit of the Mainland Hospital in Lagos where she'd been quarantined. She died a hero because she was the doctor who refused to let Patrick Sawyer, the man who brought the Ebola virus to Nigeria, leave the First Consultant Hospital in Obalende, Lagos, when he attempted to leave.

She saved many lives by doing this. Her death is so heartbreaking.
She's survived by a son and her husband. May her beautiful soul rest in peace...Amen.
Posted by Linda Ikeji

obailala: Is it the illegality of Jonathan in setting up the conference or is it the recommendations of the conference itself that is the problem of the southwest??..

Me thinks the recommendations of the conference are perfectly in line with the clamour of the southwest right from the onset, so why the opposition?... When will the SE, SS and SW every learn to dump their madness and understand that they need to unite if they must achieve any progress against the setback of the North?

PhockPhockMan: Ok, true federalism, state police, additional state for South East, upward review of derivation etc.

PhockPhockMan: If only south west will support the move. The so called north has held the country hostage for long period, and it will never continue. On referendum we stand.

A doctor at the First Consultant Hospital, Lagos, Ladi Okubadejo, on Thursday appealed to the U.S. government to urgently send whatever medication in its possession on Ebola virus to Nigeria.

Mr. Okubadejo said his colleague was trying to save Patrick Sawyer’s life and does not deserve to die.
A doctor at the First Consultant Hospital, Lagos, Ladi Okubadejo, on Thursday appealed to the U.S. government to urgently send whatever medication in its possession on Ebola virus to Nigeria.
Mr. Okubadejo, who spoke at a news conference in Ikeja, said his appeal was aimed at saving the life of his infected colleague, A. S. Adadevoh, and other Nigerians at risk of the disease.
The First Consultant Hospital was where the late Patrick Sawyer, the Liberian-American, was diagnosed with the deadly Ebola disease.
Mr. Okubadejo said that Ms. Adadevoh, a Senior Consultant Physician and Endocrinologist, was one of those who diagnosed and was treating Mr. Sawyer of the ailment when he was first brought into First Consultant.

“She treated Patrick Sawyer because she was patriotic only for her to be infected with the virus. I am appealing to the U.S. government to send whatever medication they have to Nigeria fast to save Adadevoh. She does not deserve to die. So, this is the reason for this appeal,” Mr. Okubadejo said.
The U.S. had used the experimental drug, Zmapp, to treat two of its citizens infected with the virus.
(NAN)