Headlines
Guber Polls: Jandor Accuses Sanwo-Olu of Fake WAEC Result, Files Petition Against Gov, Rhodes-Vivour
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has submitted a petition before the governorship election tribunal of Lagos, challenging the outcome of the state guber election.
Abdul-Azeez Adediran, the PDP governorship candidate, said he is calling for the disqualification of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Labour Party (LP) candidates in the election for “non-compliance” with the Electoral Act 2022 as well as the guidelines of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
In the petition marked EPT/LAG/GOV/01/2023 dated April 7, the petitioners said APC did not comply with the INEC timetable and schedule of activities for the 2023 general election which stipulated that all political parties must give 21 days notice to INEC before the conduct of the primary election.
While INEC is the first respondent, Babajide Sanwo-Olu; Obafemi Hamzat, his deputy governorship candidate; APC; Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, LP governorship candidate, and the LP respectively are the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th respondents.
Besides the allegation of non-compliance with relevant provisions of the Electoral Act 2022, Adediran added that at the time of the governorship election, Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat, and Rhodes-Vivour were not qualified to contest the election.
Adediran asked that all votes cast for them in the election be declared wasted.
“The 2nd and 3rd respondents, although not duly sponsored and not qualified, contested along with the 1st petitioner and others for the office of governor of Lagos state, the subject matter of this petition,” the petition reads.
“Similarly, the 5th and 6th respondents, although not duly sponsored and not qualified, contested along with the 1st petitioner and others for the office of governor of Lagos state, the subject matter of this petition.
“The 1st respondent, upon the conclusion of the election, declared the 2nd respondent who was not properly sponsored by the 4th respondent as the winner of the election to the office of governor of Lagos state.
“The 5th respondent who was similarly not properly sponsored by the 6th respondent, was declared by the 1st respondent as having scored the second highest number of votes at the election to the office of governor of Lagos state.”
‘NON-COMPLIANCE WITH ELECTORAL ACT’
According to the petition, the APC also failed to comply with the requirement of the Electoral Act 2022 which states that every political party sponsoring a candidate in the general election shall submit the nomination form of such candidate(s) not later than 180 days before the conduct of the general election in forms EC9.
Adediran and the PDP added that Sanwo-Olu failed to attach a copy of the GCE O’Level result he claimed to have sat for in 1981 along with his form EC9 as required by the Electoral Act 2022.
“This development sparked a curiosity, with Adediran and PDP applying for the CTC of Sanwo-Olu 2019 from CF001,” the petition reads.
“It was then discovered that a statement of result issued by Ijebu Ife Community Grammar School, Ijebu-Ife for May/June 1981 GCE O’ Level examination with examination number 17624/118 which he submitted for his first term election as governor of the state was not confirmed by WAEC.
“When JANDOR and PDP approached WAEC for confirmation, they were directed to purchase the scratch card for verification of WAEC result scratch card, which then confirmed the results as not emanating from WAEC, it came back to be a fake result.”
‘RHODES-VIVOUR WAS MEMBER OF PDP WHILE UNDER LP’
The petitioners also hinged the disqualification of LP’s Rhodes-Vivour on alleged non-compliance of the party with the requirements of the Electoral Act in the conduct of the primary election that produced the candidate.
Adediran said Rhodes-Vivour was still a member of the PDP as of June 18, 2022 when he claimed under oath to having registered as a member of the LP
“Documentary evidence and newspaper report establishing his participation in the screening exercise for the running mate to the governorship candidate of the Lagos PDP, Abdul-Azeez Olajide Adediran (JANDOR), on the June 22, 2022 was provided in the petition,” the document reads.
“In line with the provision of the Electoral Act, the candidate for the office of governor of Lagos state is not allowed to be a member of more than one political party at the time of being sponsored as a candidate for the general election, therefore his nomination is invalid.”
Sanwo-Olu polled 762,134 votes to defeat Rhodes-Vivour, his closest rival who scored 312,329 votes in the election.
Adediran garnered 62,449 votes to come third in the poll.
The LP candidate had, however, rejected the results.
TheCable
US President Donald Trump has signed a federal spending bill, officially ending the longest government shutdown in American history.
The legislation, passed by the House of Representatives in a 222–209 vote, followed narrow approval in the Senate just two days earlier. The bill restores funding to federal agencies after 43 days of closure, bringing relief to millions of government employees and citizens affected by halted services.
Speaking after signing the measure on Wednesday night, Trump described the deal as a political victory, asserting that Democrats unnecessarily prolonged the shutdown.
“They didn’t want to do it the easy way. They had to do it the hard way, and they look very bad,” he said.
The temporary funding bill maintains government operations only through 30 January, creating a new deadline for lawmakers to negotiate a long-term budget solution.
As part of the agreement, Senate leaders committed to an early December vote on Obamacare subsidies, a key priority for Democrats during the shutdown standoff.
In addition to reopening federal offices, the bill provides full-year funding for the Department of Agriculture, military construction projects, and several legislative branch offices.
It also ensures retroactive pay for federal workers affected by the shutdown and allocates funding to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, SNAP, which helps about one in eight Americans access food.
The shutdown, which began in October, forced the suspension of many government services, leaving an estimated 1.4 million federal employees either furloughed or working without pay. It also disrupted food assistance programmes and caused widespread delays in domestic air travel.
With federal operations now resumed, attention in Washington has turned to whether Congress and the White House can reach a longer-term funding agreement before the new deadline at the end of January.
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), on Thursday, announced discontinuation of the planned 15 per cent duty on imported petroleum products.
NMDPRA’s Director, Public Affairs Department, George Ene-Ita, conveyed the development in a statement while warning the public to shun panic buying.
President Bola Tinubu, on October 29, approved an import tariff on petrol and diesel, a policy expected to raise the landing cost of imported fuel.
The President’s approval was conveyed in a letter signed by his Private Secretary, Damilotun Aderemi, following a proposal submitted by the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji.
The proposal sought the application of a 15 per cent duty on the cost, insurance, and freight value of imported petrol and diesel to align import costs with domestic market realities.
Implementation was slated to take effect on November 21, 2025.
The policy aimed to protect and promote local refineries like the Dangote Refinery and modular plants by making imported fuel more expensive.
While intended to boost local production, it is also expected to increase fuel costs, which could lead to higher inflation and transportation prices for consumers.
Experts have argued that the move could translate into higher pump prices for consumers, with some estimating an increase of up to N150 per litre or more.
In an update, however, NMDPRA said the government was no longer considering going ahead with implementing the petrol import duty.
“It should also be noted that the implementation of the 15% ad-valorem import duty on imported Premium Motor Spirit and Diesel is no longer in View,” the statement read in part.
Meanwhile, the NMDPRA also assured all that there is an adequate supply of petroleum products in the country, within the acceptable national sufficiency threshold, during this peak demand period.
“There is a robust domestic supply of petroleum products (AGO, PMS, LPG, etc) sourced from both local refineries and importation to ensure timely replenishment of stocks at storage depots and retail stations during this period.
“The Authority wishes to use this opportunity to advise against any hoarding, panic buying or non-market reflective escalation of prices of petroleum products.
“The Authority will continue to closely monitor the supply situation and take appropriate regulatory measures to prevent disruption of supply and distribution of petroleum products across the country, especially during this peak demand period.
“While appreciating the continued efforts of all stakeholders in the midstream and downstream value chain in ensuring a smooth and uninterrupted supply and distribution, the public is hereby assured of NMDPRA’s commitment to guarantee energy security,” the statement added.
The Senate has approved President Bola Tinubu’s request to raise N1.15 trillion from the domestic debt market to cover the unfunded portion of the 2025 budget deficit.
The approval followed the adoption of a report by the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debt during plenary on Wednesday.
The committee noted that the 2025 Appropriation Act provides for a total expenditure of N59.99 trillion, representing an increase of N5.25 trillion over the N54.74 trillion initially proposed by the Executive.
This expansion created a total budget deficit of N14.10 trillion. Of this, N12.95 trillion had already been approved for borrowing, leaving an unfunded deficit of approximately N1.15 trillion (N1,147,462,863,321).
In a related development, a motion by Senator Abdul Ningi was adopted, directing the Senate Committee on Appropriations to intensify its oversight to ensure that the borrowed funds are properly implemented in the 2025 fiscal year and used strictly for their intended purposes.
President Tinubu had on November 4th requested the approval of the National Assembly for a fresh ₦1.15 trillion borrowing from the domestic debt market to help finance the deficit in the 2025 budget.
The President’s request was conveyed in a letter. According to the letter, the proposed borrowing is intended to bridge the funding gap and ensure full implementation of government programs and projects under the 2025 fiscal plan.
