General News
APC, PDP Bicker over Fresh Plot to Shift Elections
All Progressives Congress (APC), has raised the alarm over the relentless scheming by the Jonathan Administration and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to push for another postponement of the 2015 general elections.
But the PDP said that the comment by the APC that the PDP is plotting to scuttle the general election could only be a product of hallucinating mind of the opposition.
APC however insisted that the renewed plot must be sanctioned by the international community, while warning that the consequences of another postponement will be dire, especially because it will create a constitutional crisis that is capable of endangering the country’s democracy and destabilising the polity.
Alhaji Lai Mohammed, national publicity secretary, APC, in a statement said the multi-pronged efforts to prevent the elections from holding as rescheduled include the use of some 23 portfolio political parties to seek a further shift in the election dates and the destabilisation of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) election plan through the orchestrated removal of Prof. Attahiru Jega, its chairman.
It said the same 23 satellite parties of the PDP that were used to push for the six week postponement have again started testing the waters by pushing for a further shift in the elections in the six-states of the Northeast, ostensibly to allow the conclusion of the counterinsurgency battle and also to allow those displaced to return home.
“The plan is to use the same bogey of insecurity in the North-east to push for another postponement in the elections. The signs are ominous indeed.
“The body language of the President and his party does not support the holding of elections. They are mortally afraid of losing because the use of PVCs and Card Readers have thwarted their rigging plans,” APC said.
The party said while the 23 parties are pushing for the elections to be further postponed, the Jonathan administration and the PDP are simultaneously forging ahead with their plan to remove Prof. Jega and replace him with a malleable acting Chairman whom, they believe, will do their bidding.
“Once they remove Jega, his replacement will either seek more time to organise the polls or simply jettison the plan to use Card Readers, thereby opening the door for those who have been buying up PVCs to use them.
“Is it not interesting that the same administration that has been flaunting free and fair elections as a key achievement has now gone for the jugular of the same man who organised those polls?
“Is the man they don’t want not the same person who organised the 2011 polls which the administration has described as free, fair and credible?
“What has now gone wrong between them and their poster boy for successful elections? It queried.¬
The party called on Nigerians, especially the civil society, to be vigilant in the days ahead, as the cloud of uncertainty becomes thicker and the vultures begin to circle.
It also called on the international community to consider imposing stiff sanctions on key members of the Jonathan administration if they force another postponement or scuttle the polls.
“We believe that Nigerians themselves bear the utmost responsibility for the success of their nation’s democracy and the survival of their country, and we commend those who have stood up to be counted in the ongoing battle to have free and fair elections.
“However, we also believe that the international community has a role to play in helping to check the desperadoes who are using the Laurent Gbagbo rule book as if it was made for them, and who will not hesitate to bring the whole system crashing down on all if that is what it will take for them to perpetuate themselves in power.
“Nigeria is too important to be toyed with or allowed to go under. For example, Nigerians make up more than 56 per cent of the estimated ECOWAS population of 300 million.
“A destabilised Nigeria, therefore, is a destabilised West Africa and, indeed, a hobbled Africa!
“That is why we believe a travel ban and tough economic sanctions from the international community against these agents of destabilisation will be in order. This is a patriotic call,” APC said.
But the PDP in its reaction yesterday denied the postponement allegation, even as it expressed confidence that it is coasting to victory in the elections with the level of its campaign so far.
At a press briefing in Abuja, Femi Fani-Kayode, the director of the PDP Presidential Campaign, Chief said that the comment by the APC that the PDP is plotting to scuttle the general election could only be a product of hallucinating mind of the opposition.
He said: “With the level of preparation from the party, from the campaign office and all the notable leaders of the party who are toiling day and night to re-elect President Goodluck Jonathan, it sounds unbelievable that anyone could still be talking of scuttling the election.
“The APC is only hallucinating and I can tell you that the party has only seen their defeat and that is why they are putting out that information.”
Chief Fani-Kayode also said that Gen. Muhammadu Buhari’s appearance at Chatham House last week was a last-minute decoy to divert the attention of Nigerians and the whole world from the fact that his trip to London was mainly to seek medical attention and care.
He said: “The point we are making is that Gen. Buhari was not originally scheduled to go to Chatham House but in order to divert attention from the real purpose of the trip, the Chatham House speaking engagement was hurriedly put in place.
“The desperation of the APC leaders to grab power at all costs and by any means has resulted in them committing the most abominable and unimaginable form of fraud such as attempting to pass off an old interview which took place at the Abuja Transcorp Hilton Hotel by a known sympathiser of the APC whose name is Kemi Fadojutimi and who works for the USA-based TV show ‘All Eyes on Africa’, as one that took place in the United Kingdom and that was conducted by a so-called London based journalist.
“The APC propaganda machinery facilitated the publication of a picture of the interview, which they claimed took place in London, on the front pages of some newspapers.
“Indeed, despite desperate attempts by the APC propaganda machinery to coerce newspapers from retracting the fraudulent picture of Gen. Buhari’s purported London interview, The Guardian, one of the most respected newspapers on the African continent, who had printed the picture on its front page edition on Sunday, 22nd February, 2015, was quick to publish a retraction on page 2 of the newspaper’s Monday, 23rd February, 2015 edition.”
Kuwait’s Criminal Security Sector has dismantled an international cybercrime ring composed of Nigerians responsible for coordinated attacks on telecommunications towers and banks, the Ministry of Interior announced on Sunday.
According to Arabic-language daily Al Qabas, the case was initiated after the Communication and Information Technology Regulatory Authority reported cyber intrusions targeting local telecom networks.
Specialised security teams quickly launched an investigation, discovering that the suspects used advanced electronic devices to breach networks and distribute mass phishing messages impersonating banks, aiming to steal account information and siphon funds.
Signal-tracking technology led investigators to a vehicle in the Salmiya area.
When authorities attempted to stop the vehicle, the driver tried to flee, colliding with several cars before being apprehended following a fierce struggle.
A search of the vehicle uncovered sophisticated electronic equipment and various technical tools.
Upon investigation, the suspect confessed to collaborating with an accomplice to hack telecom networks and send fraudulent messages posing as banks and telecommunications companies.
Police subsequently located and arrested the second suspect, and a search of their residence uncovered additional devices used to analyse the stolen data.
Both suspects, along with the seized equipment, have been handed over to the relevant authorities for prosecution.
The Ministry of Interior reaffirmed its commitment to protecting the nation’s cybersecurity and intensifying efforts to combat electronic fraud targeting both citizens and residents.
Space in Africa, the Lagos-based firm Oniosun founded, is expecting its Egusi melon seeds to splash down in the Pacific Ocean Saturday—fresh from a trip to the International Space Station.
Once Earthside, experiments will begin on what is being hailed as the first food native to West Africa to be sent to space.
As Oniosun told AFP on Friday, it could herald an era where space exploration reflects the planet’s diversity.
“When we talk about humans colonizing other planets, this is not just an American mission or a European mission—this is a global mission,” he told AFP.
And future African space explorers might enjoy a taste of home.
Experiments on extraterrestrial food, which is to say tested in space, have been going on for years.
Growing food in space is seen as a crucial part of long-distance space flight and long-term missions, where frequent resupply won’t be feasible.
Scientists at the University of Florida in the United States, and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, in the southwestern Nigerian city of Ibadan, will examine the seeds “to see the effects of exposure to space” and zero gravity, including on the seeds’ DNA.
Once planted, researchers will monitor their post-space performance and germination.
The seeds went up to the ISS on a SpaceX flight last week, as part of NASA’s partnership with private firms.
Oniosun said the inclusion of Egusi seeds marked an important step forward, both for those on Earth as well as future astronauts.
High in protein, they are typically used to prepare soups and stews across West and Central Africa.
Africa’s most populous country has a small space industry, but the launch of the seeds seemed to generate more excitement on social media and in newspapers than previous launches of Nigerian satellites, he said.
“The moment that we’re sending food that they love, a food that holds significant cultural contexts to Nigeria… everybody starts getting interested in the subject,” Oniosun told AFP.
“The launch of Egusi melon seeds into space is more than a symbolic gesture,” he added.
“The future of humanity among the stars must reflect the diversity and richness of life on Earth.”
Whether pounded yam—the key dish served alongside Egusi soup—will make its way to the final frontier remains to be seen.
In a powerful demonstration of its commitment to the Renewed Hope Agenda of the present administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has launched the second cohort of the IgniteHer Bootcamp for Women Entrepreneurs, a strategic initiative aimed at accelerating gender inclusion and economic empowerment through digital innovation.
The bootcamp, themed “Empowering Women Entrepreneurs for Growth and Innovation”, was launched in partnership with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and brought together selected women entrepreneurs from across Nigeria, both physically and virtually, for rigorous training in digital skills, innovation management, business development, and investor readiness.
The NITDA Director General, Kashifu Inuwa CCIE, who declared the bootcamp open, reaffirmed the Agency’s role in aligning Nigeria’s digital development with the national priorities of reforming the economy for sustained inclusive growth and accelerating economic diversification through industrialisation and digitisation.
“Through IgniteHer, we are actualising President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda by expanding women’s access to technology and economic opportunity,” he stated.
The DG, who was represented by the agency’s Acting Director of the Digital Literacy and Capacity Building department, Dr. Ahmed Tambuwal, noted that inclusive innovation is a cornerstone of NITDA’s Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan (SRAP 2.0: 2024–2027), which supports national aspirations for inclusive growth, poverty eradication, and youth empowerment.
“We are not merely imparting skills; we are creating self-reliant entrepreneurs, change-makers, and leaders,” he added.
Inuwa disclosed that the IgniteHer Bootcamp is also a key component of the National Gender Digital Inclusion Strategy (NGDIS), through which NITDA is working to empower 12.7 million Nigerian women with digital literacy skills by 2027. He averred that the programme complements broader government efforts to bridge gender gaps, enhance productivity, and reduce unemployment, especially among young women.
Citing a report by the World Wide Web Foundation, the DG emphasised that closing the digital gender gap in Nigeria could unlock an estimated $13 billion in GDP growth over the next decade.
“This training is a step towards harnessing this economic potential and ensuring that women play an integral role in shaping the digital landscape of Nigeria,” he noted.
He therefore called on participants selected from over 12,000 applicants to seize the moment and shape the future of Nigerian entrepreneurship.
While highlighting NITDA’s leadership in strategic partnerships, the DG commended JICA and the Government of Japan for their ongoing collaboration in supporting digital empowerment through programmes like IgniteHer and the iHatch Incubation Programme, which provides startup support, mentorship, and innovation development to early-stage entrepreneurs.
“At NITDA, we believe that inclusive innovation is not just an ideal but a critical strategy that ensures the growth of a stronger economy, the development of smarter solutions, and the existence of more resilient communities. Through IgniteHer, we are dismantling barriers and replacing them with pathways to opportunity,” he concluded.
In his remarks, the Japanese Ambassador to Nigeria, Matsunaga Kazuyoshi, reaffirmed Japan’s long-standing commitment to innovation and gender inclusion in Nigeria. He announced that Japan, through JICA, is currently supporting two grant projects worth $30.9 million, focused on improving Nigeria’s startup ecosystem, strengthening the investment climate, and building an inclusive innovation hub.
The Ambassador also referenced the upcoming Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9), themed “Co-create Innovative Solutions with Africa”, as further testament to Japan’s dedication to deepening Africa-Japan cooperation on digital transformation and entrepreneurship.
Lead Facilitator of IgniteHer, Hajiya Hafsat Salabi-Dange, described the programme as a catalyst for social and economic transformation. While praising NITDA’s visionary approach to development, she stated that the programme is a movement that is bridging the digital gender divide and fostering economic independence.
Encouraging the participants to remain curious, intentional, and bold, she said, “What you will gain here goes beyond business; it is a tool for community upliftment, national growth, and generational impact.”
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