Its Official, Elections Have Been Postponed

INEC chairman Prof. Attahiru Jega just briefed the media on the outcome of their meeting today. He said the 2015 general elections has been postponed by 6 weeks. Jega said the decision was made after briefings with various stakeholders notably political parties, security agencies, civil society and the media. He said 26 out of the 28 registered parties were at the meeting. Jega blamed the postponement mostly on lack of security and collection of PVC.

 

New dates:

Presidential - March 28th

Governorship - April 11th.

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Jonathan And Buhari Are Disasters –Aborisade

An academician and activist Mr Femi Aborisade veered towards another direction regarding the forthcoming presidential election by tagging the two leading presidential candidates as disasters and calamities if viewed from the supposed perspective of the late legal luminary Barr. Bamidele Aturu if he were alive.

The two presidential candidates are President Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) and Gen. Mohammadu Buhari of the All Progressive Congress(APC) he advised students not to entrust with their votes. Mr Aborisade made this assertion at the first Barr. Bamidele Aturu’s Debate organised by Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) Students’ Union while delivering his speech as the chairman of the occasion, on a theme he tagged: Who is Bamidele Aturu.



According to Aborisade “the disaster of this country is that we have two disasters in the two presidential candidates of the APC and the PDP. If late Aturu were to be alive this would have been his view about the two front runners in the imminent presidential election." He premised his argument on the fact that the incumbent president has not been able to meet the welfare needs of the people has enshrined in the constitution. Gen. Buhari on the other hand he said in any decent and normal setting should not contest after he truncated a democratic setting".

He further stressed that endorsing any of these two candidates to become the president of this nation is not necessary. "They are not worth risking your votes or lifes for".  Aborisade however charged Nigerians not to render their votes to any candidate who is not committed to the development of education in the country as Bamidele Aturu would have done if he were alive.

The event featured a debate competition which has 'Nigerian students’ and the challenges of leadership' as the topic. The debate was keenly contested by six ivory towers. They include: Lagos State University(LASU), Ekiti State University(EKSU), Federal College Of Education Osiele, Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta(FUNAAB), and the host school Obafemi Awolowo University(OAU). At the end of the intellectual duel, OAU came first with 161 points, UI came second with154 points, LASU came third with 145 points while the FUNNAB and FCABEO came forth and fifth with122 and121 respectively.


Reported by OAU Glitz

Pastor Adeboye Changes Profile Picture To Jonathan, Cover Photo To Osinbajo

General Overseer of The Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, has updated his Profile picture and Cover photo of his official Facebook account.

The respected Man of God updated his profile picture with that of president Goodluck Jonathan, who is the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, kneeling before him for prayer while he changed his cover photo to his prayer session with stalwarts of the All Progressives Congress, APC, led by its Vice-Presidential candidate and a pastor of the church, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.

President Jonathan and Prof. Osinbajo were also seen exchanging greetings at the February’s Holy Ghost Service held at the Redemption Camp on Friday.


Source

Osun Election: Tribunal Upholds Aregbesola’s Victory

The Osun state Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Osogbo, Friday, upheld the re-election of Governor Rauf Aregbesola in the August 9 election.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, had pronounced Aregbesola winner of the election with 374, 684 votes against the Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Senator Iyiola Omisore who polled 292, 747.

Senator Omisore challenged the declaration of Governor Aregbesola before the three-man Tribunal led by Justice Elizabeth Ikpejime.

In the about eight hours judgement read by Justice Ikpejime, the Tribunal dismissed the Omisore’s petition for lacking in merit.

It also held that the petitioners failed to prove most of the allegations raised in their petition before the Tribunal.

Specifically, the Tribunal failed to prove that voters were not properly accredited by INEC officials before voting.

On the allegation that unaccredited voters were allowed to vote during the election while those dully accredited were not allowed top vote, the Tribunal also held that the petitioner failed to prove this allegation.

The tribunal also said that on the allegation of multiple voting, the allegation can only be proved by the inspection of ballot papers used adding that the tribunal does not discover any multiple vote in any of the units in dispute.

The petitioners had also alleged intimidation and inducement of voters at polling centers to which the tribunal stated that throughout the proceedings of the petition, nobody proved that they were not allowed to vote on account of intimidation and harassment.

Osun state Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has described as the triumph of the will and wishes of the people, the verdict of the tribunal which declared him winner.



Source: Vanguard

NECO Releases Nov/Dec 2014 SSCE Result

National Examinations Council (NECO) has released the Nov/Dec 2014 SSCE results with remarkable departure from the past results recorded in the past years.

Registrar/ Chief Executive of the Council, Professor Promise Okpala who announced the result in Minna yesterday said 52.94% of the candidates had Credit in English and 55.37% in Mathematics which is a tremendous improvement from the past years.

The Registrar said, out of 63,445 that registered for the examinations, 61,386 eventually sat for the examinations with 30.57% recording Credits and above.

A breakdown of results recorded in the core subjects shows that out of 53, 848 who sat for Biology 26,947 obtained pass with Credit which represents 50.04%. Also, out of 28,250 Candidates who sat for Chemistry,14,858 passed with Credit representing 51.62%, while 28,222 sat for Physics with 57 pass at Credit level which represents 0.20%.

Similarly, 1,753 sat for Further Mathematics while 395 passed at Credit level representing22.53%, Agricultural Science had 41,080 Candidates and had 12,006 pass at Credit level representing 29,22%.

Professor Okpala however decried the continuous involvement of Candidates in Examination malpractices despite the stringent measures taken to stop the ugly trend pointing out that 620 cases of malpractices were recorded which is still an increase in the ugly incidence.

“It is important to note that there have been improvements in NECO SSCE results over the past four years. A comparative analysis of the results in English language and Mathematics examinations and those who had five Credits and above including English language and Mathematics from 2011 to 2014 depicts this trend.”


Source

Election Break: OAU Students Resolve To Embark On Lecture Boycott

The six and half hour parliamentary sitting of the Students' Representative Council(SRC), Obafemi Awolowo University just ended with a major resolution that there will be a lecture boycott infinito starting from Monday, 9th February, 2015 if the management of the university refuses to honour the letter requesting for an academic break for the students to be able to participate in the forthcoming elections.

Details later...

Editorial: Operation No Election Break

By Gbadamosi Elias

Finally, all rumours have been dispelled as regards election break for Nigerian academic institutions. Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, Nigeria’s Education Minister has made it clear that the forthcoming elections will not ground academic activities in schools across Nigeria. He made the pronouncement after a consultative meeting in his Abuja office with the 36 state Commissioners for education and other education stakeholders.

On ObafemiAwolowo University campus, the news has generated divergent views and opinions among lecturers and students alike. Ibikunle Isaac, the Students’ Union President opines that closing OAU down for elections will further disrupt the school’s academic calendar which has already been badly affected by the ASUU and school fee hike strikes of last year. While students like Adewale Yusuf, a 400 level student of the department of Physics also shares Ibikunle’s sentiment, some others, especially those that have been recruited by INEC as ad hoc staff envisage and engender the fear that the “no election break policy” will have detrimental effects on their schedules as it won’t be easy combining rigorous academic work with their INEC jobs.

Another student of the University who prefers anonymity, while voicing her opinion says the decision is not a very good one as no one knows what will happen after elections owing to Nigeria’s volatility as regards post-election violence. She further states that for someone like her and other OAU students who did not register in Ife, the decision will rob them the opportunity of voting in the forthcoming elections.

As a student of this University, I posit that going home at this period when our mates in other Universities have concluded or are in the process of concluding another session will in the end not be in our best interest. Also,protests and agitations against the decision of the federal government will definitely not mean much for the decision does not affect OAU alone and the probability that the school management will go against the decision to please us is almost impossible. Any attempt to become rebellious on the issue will only result in another protracted closure of the school which is in no way good for us.I therefore beseech us to take this decision in good faith.

The divergent views held by students on this germane issue cannot be overlooked and none of the arguments put forward can be dispelled as they all hold water.Regardless of our view on the issue, we must endeavor to play our part during and after elections. We enjoin those of us that registered in Ile-Ife to turn out massively to print our thumbs where our hearts belong. However, for the bulk of us that unfortunately did not register in Ife, we can also not afford to be silent at this crucial period in the history of our country. We can always fashion out ways of contributing our own quota in ensuring a fruitful and hassle free election.

To wrap it up, as students and leaders of a fast approaching tomorrow, let us vote wisely and peacefully. Let’s try as much as we can to be of good conduct and eschew all immoral and despicable acts before, during and after elections. Subscribing to the “political booty ltd.”, stomach infrastructure and primordial sentiments that do not mean much will only worsen our situation as a country. A new Nigeria is possible and it begins with YOU.