Won’t Step Down, INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu Replies Opposition Parties

 Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has said the call for his resignation by the Labour Party (LP) and the People’s Democratic Democratic Party (PDP) is misplaced.

Daily Trust had reported how some parties said they had lost confidence in the ongoing election process over the non-use of electronic transmission of results as stipulated by the Electoral Act.

At a briefing in Abuja, the opposition parties alleged that Saturday’s elections had been manipulated.

But responding through Rotimi Oyekanmi, his Chief Press Secretary, the INEC Chairman, said contrary to the insinuation by both parties, results emanating from the States point to a free, fair and credible process.

The commission also said allegation by Senator Dino Melaye that the INEC Chairman allocated scores to parties is unfounded and irresponsible.

“To be sure, aggrieved parties are free to approach the courts to ventilate their concerns and wait for the matter to be resolved. Making inciting comments capable of causing violence or unrest is unacceptable.

“The 2023 General election processes are in their final stages of completion. It is only fair for aggrieved parties to allow the conclusion of the process and approach the courts with their evidences to pursue their cases

“There are laid down procedures for aggrieved parties or candidates to follow when they are dissatisfied about the outcome of an election. Such procedures do not include calling on the INEC Chairman to resign or for the election to be cancelled.”

NNPP Joins PDP, LP, To Demand Outright Cancellation Of Election Result

 The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) on Tuesday asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to cancel the 2023 general election.

Rufa’i Alkali, the National Chairman of the NNPP, stated this while addressing a press conference in Abuja.

According to him, Alkali, the elections were characterized by intimidation, voter suppression, and vote buying.

The NNPP chieftain also asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to announce a new date for fresh elections.

Earlier, Datti Baba-Ahmed and Ifeanyi Okowa, vice-presidential candidates of the Labour Party and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), also asked INEC to cancel the general election.

Speaking on Tuesday at a media briefing held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja, they accused INEC of breaching the law by not uploading the election results to its online portal.

They described the elections as “a sham”, and that it was “neither free nor fair”.

Tinubu Files Suit To Stop LP, PDP From Halting Results’ Collation

 The All Progressives Congress (APC) and its presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, have instituted a suit to restrain the Labour Party (LP) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) from doing anything to stop the collation and announcement of the results of the February 25 presidential election.

In the suit filed before the Federal High Court in Kano and marked FHC/KN/CS/43/2023, the Action Alliance and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were joined as defendants while the Vice Presidential of the APC, Kashim Shettima, was also listed as plaintiff.

The plaintiffs in a motion on notice filed alongside the originating summons, asked the court to make the order restraining the defendants from stopping the collation and announcement of the results because “damages will not adequately compensate for the injury that may be occasioned on the Plaintiffs if by the Defendants stop the collation of the result.”

APC National Assembly Candidates In Rivers East Demand Election Cancellation

 The National Assembly candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers East Senatorial District have called for the cancellation of Saturday’s Senatorial and House of Representatives elections in the area.

The candidates made their position known during a press briefing at the APC Secretariat in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital on Tuesday.

The APC Candidates for the Ikwerre/Emouha Federal Constituency, Ezemonye Ezekiel Amadi who spoke on behalf of his colleagues, alleged the elections were fraught with irregularities which he noted discredited the outcome.

He alleged that the results declared by INEC is not a reflection of what transpired at the various polling units on Saturday.

Abaribe Defeats Gov Ikpeazu To Win Senatorial Election In Abia State

 The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Tuesday declared the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Enyinnaya Abaribe, the winner of Saturday’s senatorial election in Abia South District.

The Returning Officer for Abia South National Assembly elections, Georgina Ugwuanyi, announced this before party agents at the collation centre in Aba.

Mrs Ugwuanyi, a professor of Banking and Finance at the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, said she had to return to declare results for the election because she was asked by INEC office in Abuja to announce winners in the election.

Earlier, Mrs Ugwuanyi had told party agents that a substantial number of polling units, totaling about 108, had irregularities requiring a reschedule of the Abia South elections.

She said Mr Abaribe got the highest number of votes in the election, having scored 49,903 votes.


She further announced that the Labour Party (LP) candidate, Chinedu Onyeizu, scored 43,903, while Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of the Peoples Democratic Party scored 28,422 votes to come third.


The returning officer also announced the results of the Aba South and North Federal Constituency, with the LP candidate Emeka Nnamani polled 35,502 to clinch the seat.

She said that Alex Ikwecheghi of APGA polled 22,465 votes, while the incumbent Representative, Chimaobi Ebisike, of the PDP scored 13,388 votes.


Mrs Ugwuanyi, therefore, declared Mr Nnamani the winner of the House of Representatives election.

Obasanjo Lacks Credibility - Sowore Slams Obasanjo For Condemning Poll Result

 Obasanjo Lacks Credibility - Sowore Slams Obasanjo For Condemning 2023 Election Result

Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, has tackled former president of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo after he wrote an open letter to President Buhari, asking him to order the cancellation of any result that the credibility is in doubt and order a fresh election in places where elections were disrupted for next Saturday, March 4th 2023, IGBERETV reports.

Reacting to Obasanjo's letter, Sowore said he has no “credibility” to talk about fraudulent elections, alleging that the former president organised some of the most fraudulent elections during his 8 year tenure as president of Nigeria. 

Sowore wrote on his Twitter handle;

"Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has no credibility to talk about fraudulent elections, Ex Pres Obasanjo organised some of the most fraudulent elections during his 8 year tenure as President of Nigeria. He laid the foundation for the shambolic elections that has become Nigeria’s lot now!"

Peter Obi Wins FCT Presidential Election

 The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has emerged as the winner of the presidential election in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

Mr Obi, a former Governor of Anambra State, secured 281,717 votes, Bola Tinubu of the ruling APC polled 90,902 votes while Atiku Abubakar of the PDP got 74,199 votes.

The Labour Party candidate defeated his closes challenger with 190815 votes.

The Federal Capital Territory has six area councils—Gwagwalada, Abaji, Kwali, Gwagwalada, Bwari and Abuja Municipal.

Out of the six area councils, Labour Party won four, while the APC won two.

Mr Obi’s largest victory was in Abuja Municipal (AMAC), where he secured over 70 per cent of the votes cast and defeated his closest challenger with over 140,000 votes.

25% In FCT Not A Requirement To Emerge President – Falana

 Legal luminary, Femi Falana says a presidential candidate does not need to win the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to be declared winner of the February 25, 2023 poll.

“It is not a requirement that you must win the FCT,” the Senior Advocate of Nigeria said on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme on Tuesday.

“Today, the courts have ruled that pursuant to Section 299 of the constitution, that the FCT should be treated as a state. That is the law.

"You don’t have to win the FCT; if you meet the requirement; that is two-thirds of the majority of states in the country. You don’t have to win the FCT,” the rights activist stressed.

Collation Officer Suspends Rivers Result Announcement Over Threat To Life

 The collation officer appointed by the Independent National Electoral Commission for the Presidential election in Rivers State, Prof Charles Adias, has suspended the collation of results over alleged threats to life.

Prof Adias who is also the Vice Chancellor of the Federal University, Otuoke in Bayelsa State, said this at the resumption of collation at the INEC headquarters in Port Harcourt on Tuesday morning, saying the threats were from supporters of a particular political party.

He stated, “I have been receiving threats, messages and calls to my life and that of my family for two days now. My picture is all over the social media that I was sent to rig the elections in Rivers State.


“Every one hour, I receive more that one million calls of threats to my life and other things. I hereby stand down collation until the INEC and security agencies can guarantee my safety to continue this national assignment.”

INEC, Actually Told Us, Results Will Be Collated Manually

 The Independent National Electoral Commission has said the collation of results of the 2023 general elections will be done manually despite the adoption of electronic transmission of results.

INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, stressed that the commission would transmit results from polling units to its result-viewing portal, IReV, as witnessed in recent elections, but that the Electoral Act was clear on how collation should be done.

Okoye said in an interview with our correspondent on Saturday, “There is a marked difference between the transfer/transmission of results and the collation of results. Section 50(2) of the Electoral Act, 2022 gives the commission the absolute discretion to determine the mode and procedure of voting in an election and the transmission of election results.

“Sections 60 and 62 of the Electoral Act govern post-election procedure and collation of election results. Section 60(1) of the Act provides that the presiding officer shall, after counting the votes at a polling unit, enter the votes scored by each candidate in a form to be prescribed by the commission

Section 60(5) of the Act makes it mandatory that the presiding officer shall transfer the results, including total number of accredited voters and the results of the ballot in a manner prescribed by the commission. Thereafter, the presiding officer shall after recording and announcing the results deliver the same along with election materials under security and accompanied by the candidates or their polling agents, where available to such person as may be prescribed by the commission.

“The implication of this is that the collation process of results is still essentially manual, but the collation officer must collate subject to his verification and confirmation that the number of accredited voters stated on the collated result are correct and consistent with the number of accredited voters recorded and transmitted directly from polling units.”

He explained that while the collation of results would “essentially” be done manually, where there was a dispute regarding a collated result or the result from any polling unit, the collation or returning officer would use the original of the disputed collated result, accreditation data from the BVAS device and the results transmitted directly from the polling unit to determine the correctness of the result.

#nigeriadecides2023: Natasha Akpoti Loses Kogi Central Senatorial Seat To APC

 Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has lost her bid to represent Kogi central senatorial district in the national assembly.

Akpoti-Uduaghan was defeated by Abubakar Sadiku-Ohere of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in the just concluded national assembly election.

Rotimi Ajayi, INEC returning officer for Kogi central senatorial district, announced the result on Tuesday, in the Okene area of the state.

He said Sadiku-Ohere garnered 52,132 votes to beat Natasha who had 51,763 votes.


“Engineer Abubakar Sadiku-Ohere of the APC having scored the highest votes in the election for the Kogi central senatorial seat is hereby declared winner, and is therefore returned elected,” Ajayi said.

Supporters of the APC candidate were seen in jubilation after the result was declared, chanting “we have won”.

On Thursday, Akpoti-Uduaghan accused the Kogi government of trying to disenfranchise voters in the state

She alleged that the government carried out a road excavation around Ihima, Okehi LGA of the state to influence voters’ turnout for the just-concluded presidential and national assembly elections.

But the Kogi government had said the excavation was a security measure.

INEC Moves Results Collation, To Resume 3:30 Pm

 

2023 Presidential: Peter Obi Floors Atiku, Tinubu, Kwankwaso In Anambra

 APC - 5111

LP - 584621
NNPP - 1967
PDP - 9036

Obasanjo To Buhari: Tension Is Building, Let Compromised Polls Be Redone

 Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has advised President Muhammadu Buhari to take urgent steps to address the concerns raised over the disruptions recorded at some polling units across the country.

Presidential and national assembly election results are currently being announced, but some areas have recorded disruptions, with polls rescheduled in some areas.

There have also been concerns and protests on and off social media platforms over attacks at polling units, non-functionality of the bimodal voter verification system (BVAS), among other incidents recorded.

In a letter on Monday, Obasanjo said Buhari cannot afford to ignore the concerns raised over the electoral process, adding that immediate steps — including rescheduling polls in affected areas — need to be taken.

“Nigerian Brothers and Sisters, greetings to you all. I am constrained to speak at this point. I crave the indulgence of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency General Muhammadu Buhari, to make this statement because I have had opportunity to keep him aware of what I know is happening and the danger looming ahead,” the letter reads.

“On many occasions in the past, I have not hesitated to point out lacuna in the action of the President and his government. But as far as the election issues are concerned, the President has proved beyond reasonable doubt that he will want to leave a legacy of free, fair, transparent and credible elections.

“Until last Saturday night, February 25, 2023, the good and noble plan and preparation for the elections seemed to be going well. For the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), a lot of money was spent to introduce Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), and the Server for immediate transmission of results from polling units.

“It is no secret that INEC officials, at operational level, have been allegedly compromised to make what should have worked not to work and to revert to manual transmission of results which is manipulated and the results doctored.

“The Chairman of INEC may claim ignorance but he cannot fold his hands and do nothing when he knows that election process has been corrupted and most of the results that are brought outside BVAS and Server are not true reflection of the will of Nigerians who have made their individual choice.

“At this stage, we do not need wittingly or unwittingly to set this country on fire with the greed, irresponsibility and unpatriotic act of those who allegedly gave money to INEC officials for perversion and those who collected the blood money.

“Let me appeal to the Chairman of INEC, if his hands are clean, to save Nigeria from the looming danger and disaster which is just waiting to happen. If the Chairman can postpone elections four days to the election, he can do everything to rectify the errors of the last two days – no BVAS, no result to be acceptable; and no uploading through Server, no result to be acceptable.

“Whereas, BVAS and Servers have been manipulated or rendered inactive, such results must be declared void and inadmissible for election declaration. Chairman INEC, I have thought that you would use this wonderful opportunity to mend your reputation and character for posterity.

“Your Excellency, President Buhari Muhammadu, tension is building up and please let all elections that do not pass the credibility and transparency test be cancelled and be brought back with areas where elections were disrupted for next Saturday, March 4, 2023, and BVAS and Server officials be changed.”

Nokia Changes Iconic Logo To Signal Strategy Shift

 BARCELONA, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Nokia (NOKIA.HE) announced plans on Sunday to change its brand identity for the first time in nearly 60 years, complete with a new logo, as the telecom equipment maker focuses on aggressive growth.

The new logo comprises five different shapes forming the word NOKIA. The iconic blue color of the old logo has been dropped for a range of colours depending on the use.

"There was the association to smartphones and nowadays we are a business technology company," Chief Executive Pekka Lundmark told Reuters in an interview.

He was speaking ahead of a business update by the company on the eve of the annual Mobile World Congress (MWC) which opens in Barcelona on Monday and runs until March 2.

After taking over the top job at the struggling Finnish company in 2020, Lundmark set out a strategy with three stages: reset, accelerate and scale. With the reset stage now complete, Lundmark said the second stage is beginning.

While Nokia still aims to grow its service provider business, where it sells equipment to telecom companies, its main focus is now to sell gear to other businesses.

Nokia plans to review the growth path of its different businesses and consider alternatives, including divestment.

Peter Obi Wins Edo State, Tinubu Comes Second

 The Labour Party candidate in Saturday’s presidential election, Peter Obi, has been declared winner in Edo State.

The Independent National Electoral Commission’s state collation officer, Prof. Nyaudoh Ndaeyo, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom said Obi polled a total of 331,163 to win the state.

Candidate of All Progressive Congress, Bola Tinubu, scored 144,471 to finish second, Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Atiku Abubakar, had 89,585, while Rabiu Kwakwanso of the NNPP scored 2,743, while the ZLP scored 4082.


There was voter apathy in the state as 603, 894 voters were accredited, while 2,501,081 were registered for the exercise. Also, the total valid votes were 581,266, rejected votes were 19,129, and the total votes cast were 600,395.

LP won the presidential election in 12 Local Government Areas of Igueben, Esan Central, Esan North-East, Egor, Esan South-East, Esan West, Uhunmwonde, Orhionmwon, Ovia South-West, Oredo, Ikpoba-Okha and Ovia North-East, while APC won in six LGAs of Owan West, Owan East, Akoko-Edo, Etsako Central, Etsako West and Etsako East.

At the end of the collation, agents of LP, PDP and APC, of the 18 participating political parties, signed the collated results.