Politics
Protest rocks INEC over demand for Ondo REC redeployment

Published
5 months agoon
By
Ekwutos BlogProtest rocks INEC over demand for Ondo REC redeployment
Scores of demonstrators from Ondo stormed the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission in Abuja on Tuesday, demanding the immediate redeployment of the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mrs Oluwatoyin Babalola, from the state.
Waving banners and placards with messages such as “Mahmood: Redeploy Babalola Now” and “We Don’t Want a Repeat of Edo Fiasco,” the demonstrators blocked the entrance to the national secretariat, demanding a meeting with INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, to voice their concerns.
The protest comes a week after the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, made a similar request, citing concerns over Babalola’s alleged links to the ruling All Progressives Congress. Speaking at a Peoples Democratic Party campaign rally in Akure, Makinde argued that Babalola’s background in Ondo may compromise the neutrality of the electoral process.
Supporting the governor’s stance, Ayo Adeyemi, Leader of the demonstrators and Convener of the Ondo Youth League, told journalists that while they had no personal issues with the REC, they could not risk any potential bias in the upcoming election.
Adeyemi stated, “Redeploying Babalola is in the best interest of our people and INEC to ensure a free and credible election.”
He added, “We urgently demand that INEC redeploy Ondo Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mrs Oluwatoyin Babalola, from the state. We respect her accomplishments, especially as a woman who has risen to such a prominent position. But for a free and fair election in Ondo, we can’t have Babalola overseeing the process. She grew up here, knows nearly everyone in the public sector, and is highly familiar with the state.
Babalola hasn’t done anything wrong; we simply want her reassigned to another state to avoid any possible conflict of interest.”
“We’re not here to criticise INEC’s operations; we just want an unbiased REC to oversee the upcoming governorship election.”
Responding to the protesters, INEC National Commissioner, Major General Modibbo Alkali (retd), commended them for their orderly conduct.
Alkali assured them that the commission would consider their concerns regarding Babalola’s position.
“We appreciate seeing you come here well-organised. INEC operates impartially, without alignment to any political party or candidate. We function under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” he
said. “We’ve received your letter, and INEC will consider it thoroughly. Rest assured, your concerns will be analysed and addressed by the commission chairman.”

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Politics
Atiku, El-Rufai, Tambuwal visit Buhari in Kaduna

Published
1 hour agoon
April 11, 2025By
Ekwutos Blog
Former Vice President and 2023 PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has visited former President Muhammadu Buhari at his residence in Kaduna.
The visit, which also included former governors Aminu Waziri Tambuwal (Sokoto) and Nasir El-Rufa’i (Kaduna), was captured in a video sighted on the Facebook page of Atiku Abubakar.
Although the specific purpose of the visit was not disclosed, Atiku described it as a “post-Sallah visit.”
In the post, Atiku wrote, “As the Waziri Adamawa, I was obligated to be in Adamawa during the Sallah celebrations. I held forth for the Lamido Fombina (Adamawa) in some of the activities of the Sallah celebrations. Today, I had the opportunity to pay a post-Sallah visit to His Excellency, Muhammadu Buhari, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2015-2023. It was a wonderful time with him. As usual, he cracked me up (to the extent that my ribs were hurting) with his peculiar humour. -AA”
The visit comes after governors from the All Progressives Congress (APC) paid a similar visit to Buhari in Kaduna last week, amid growing speculation about political realignments and possible coalitions ahead of the 2027 elections.
Politics
Rivers govt debunks civil service recruitment announcement

Published
2 hours agoon
April 11, 2025By
Ekwutos Blog
Rivers State Government has refuted a widely circulated social media announcement alleging that the state’s Sole Administrator, retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, approved the recruitment of 10,000 “graduates and non-graduates” into the Rivers State civil service.
On Thursday, social media platform “Facebook”, was flooded with the purported government notice, which falsely claimed that the recruitment exercise had been sanctioned.
The statement was reported to have been signed by the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Ibibia Lucky Worika.
However, in a statement issued by Mrs. Inyingi S. I. Brown, Acting Head of the Rivers State Civil Service, the government described the information as entirely untrue and urged the public to disregard it.
The statement also clarified that any official communication on civil service recruitment would come from the Rivers State Civil Service Commission at the appropriate time.
The statement read, “The Office of the Administrator of Rivers State wishes to disclaim a purported Special Government Announcement spreading round on social media and other platforms stating that His Excellency, The Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral (Rtd) Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas CFR, has approved the recruitment of 10,000 qualified graduates and non graduates into the Rivers State civil service and that the recruitment portal shall be opened for application midnight of Sunday 13/04/2025.
“The statement is claimed to have been signed by the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Ibibia Lucky Worika.
“We wish to categorically inform the people of Rivers State and the general public that this is false and ask that this fake announcement be ignored.
“Appropriate information will be released by the Rivers State Civil Service Commission in due time.”
Politics
APC Can’t Take Anambra Like Edo, Imo and Kogi— Gov Chukwuma Soludo

Published
9 hours agoon
April 11, 2025By
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Governor Charles Soludo has dismissed the chances of the All Progressives Congress in the upcoming November 8 Anambra governorship election, declaring that the party lacks the grassroots presence needed to win in the state.
Soludo, who is seeking re-election under the All Progressives Grand Alliance, made the statement during an interview on Arise Television’s Prime Time.
The National Chairman of the ruling APC, Abdullahi Ganduje, had repeatedly stated that the APC had its eyes on southern states under the opposition control, such as Edo, Anambra, Osun and Oyo states.
But the governor stated that APC was able to prevail in states like kogi and imo because the incumbent governor’s got reelected, and they prevailed in Edo because they had grassroot structure.

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