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Amina Zakari, a commissioner with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said she is not a niece or cousin to President Muhammadu Buhari.

There had been speculations that she is a "blood relation" of the president, with calls for her removal as head of the collection centre committee.

The presidency, however, denied the claims in a statement issued by Garba Shehu, the president's spokesman, on Friday. See Also Elections Garba Shehu: Buhari And Amina Zakari Not Related... Just An Inter-Marriage In Their Extended Families 0 Comments 1 Day Ago

Zakari also denied the claim in an interview aired by BBC on Friday.

VIDEO: Amina Zakari Speaks On Relationship With Buhari VIDEO: Amina Zakari Speaks On Relationship With Buhari

Her words: "I'm not his niece. I'm not his cousin. And on this job, I've been appointed since 2010 by President Jonathan and prior to that, I was appointed an SA to President Obasanjo and I've done my work conscientiously over the years as a patriotic citizen of Nigeria, and I don't think I should be distracted now that elections are coming forward.

"I'll continue doing my work. I'll continue serving my country to the best of my ability with the best of intentions.

"President Muhammadu Buhari is my president as everybody else's president. He's not my cousin; he's not my uncle as is being claimed. That's all I can say. But I know him as my leader, as a leader of the nation."

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Melaye Denies Booing Buhari During Budget Presentation

Dino Melaye, the senator representing Kogi West district in the National Assembly, has denied booing President Muhammadu Buhari during his budget presentation.

On December 19, 2018, Buhari was given a rough welcome by a section of the joint session of the National Assembly as he gave the speech that was expected to culminate in the presentation of the 2019 appropriation bill.

Buhari entered the National Assembly and immediately set about the business of the day. However, he was soon shouted down with screams of “nooooo”, “nooooo”, “lieessss” when he started talking about the strides of his administration. See Also Breaking News 'Nooooo', 'Liessssss' — Buhari Booed By Lawmakers While Presenting Appropriation Bill 0 Comments 2 Weeks Ago

However, a press statement signed by his media adviser, Gideon Ayodele, in Abuja on Saturday, debunked the claim that Melaye was one of the lawmakers who booed the president.

The statement read: "The attention of Senator Dino Melaye has been drawn to a malicious reference to his person on the social media as one of the lawmakers who booed President Muhammadu Buhari during his 2019 budget presentation before a joint session of the National Assembly on Wednesday, December 19, 2018.

"Before now, he had refused to refute the mischievious social media fabrication for what it is — a cheap lie. Senator Dino Melaye was not in the National Assembly that day.

For the avoidance of doubt, Distinguished Senator Dino Melaye was absent at the televised 2019 budget presentation session and hereby challenges anyone with contrary proof to come forward with such."

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PDP, Where Is The Restructuring Debate? By Obajeun Jonah

More than ever, the compelling need of a national leadership that understands the language of crises and colours of development makes the forthcoming election a detour from the norm. It is left for the vote-weary electorates to decide.

While the macro socio-political space has subjected the same electorates to voting haemorrhage, the political fighters that hinged the survival of the nation state on restructuring have raised the hope of an issue-based campaign season. In a twist of fate, the restructuring debate flight came crashing even before taking off. This is another validation of Prof Williams Adebayo’s social construct of hope that hoping against hope is not the cure for hopelessness. It is the marijuana of the hopeless. Our hope of an issue-based electoral run has been decimated.

So we are back to yesterday!

After the lettered spar between the perceptive Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and the dogged perennial presidential aspirant Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, one would have thought that the debate on restructuring would be with us throughout the 2019 election cycle, more so given that Nigeria is bleeding from a million cuts, like a great blue whale plagued on all fronts.

In our situation of insecurity, joblessness, hunger, rational debate becomes the first casualty. Logic does not flow with lack. The kingdom of the belly is not at material par with the paradise of the brain. During the Northcentral rally of the PDP, party leaders repeatedly told the people that they would put food on people’s table since APC has taken food away from their table. Unfortunately for the leading opposition party PDP that has been mouthing restructuring, it appears that the restructuring debate has lost its central purpose in its campaign run. The ruling party APC has counted this as a win.

The abandonment is a no surprise. None of the political parties has a clear understanding of what it means, how to do it and the expected outcome. But in the post party primary convention, they quickly rev up their foot soldiers on the debate with PDP thinking that it was offering a fresh alternative while APC was wobbling to explain its lazy and naïve approach to the restructuring debate.

Nonetheless, the limited understanding of the restructuring process and the expected outcome has made the debate to take the back seat in this campaign run.

Till now, none of the parties has been able to put a meaning to the buzzword but there are countless subjective interpretations which are laced with fault-lines, depending on which divide the holders belong. The debate is now more political than problem-solving as being touted by politicians. The subjectivity in the restructuring debate was made more evident in an open letter written by Prof Osinbajo to Alhaji Atiku. The response from Alhaji Atiku to that lecture note showed a more constricted subjectivity.

The opposition party has been forced to abandon its campaign theme on restructuring and has since been distracted by simplistic issues that offer zero electoral advantage and prosperity for the country. PDP has suddenly lost the steam that propelled the convention which produced their presidential candidate. Unfortunately, the party’s house of clay is riddled with half-hearted members and non-committal financiers. Such house of clay needs just an electoral defeat for its undergo internal re-engineering. It is a sobering reality of our evolutionary democratic journey.

However, for the ruling party APC that is full of confusionists – from Ogun State to Imo, from Zamfara to Kwara and from Rivers to Enugu; it is a game it has anchored on anti-corruption and has successfully maintained the discourse around corruption. For the ruling party, restructuring has never been part of the deal. APC’s house of clay is standing on a pillar, pray the pillar stands firm for some more years. Otherwise, it takes President Buhari to quit politics for the house of clay to come crashing and then undergo retooling.

There will be no definitions of restructuring from the people, and there will be no expatiation on what system of government the people want. If Nigerian leaders cannot see into the future nor perceive the revolutionary changes needed to stabilise the country and unleash the people’s energies and creative potentials, then let them continue to ossify in their conservative and reactionary politics.

Obajeun Jonah writes from Lagos. He blogs on www.obajeun.com and tweets via @Obajeun

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Delta APC Leader, Children, Driver Escape Assassination

Lucky Okperi

Lucky Okperi, the former Delta State House of Assembly member representing Isoko South constituency 1 and leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Isoko South Local Government Area of the state, his children and driver narrowly escaped assassination along Asaba-Kwale road.

SaharaReporters reliably learnt that on Friday, the lawmaker's driver, simply identified as Rex, conveyed the lawmaker's children from Oleh, Isoko South LGA where they went for Christmas celebration, to Asaba. On his way back to Oleh at about 5pm, he noticed that a Corolla car was trailing him.

Speaking with our correspondent via telephone, the lawmaker's driver said: "My boss asked me to carry his children from Oleh back to Asaba since the Christmas celebration was over. On my way back, I noticed that a Corolla car with two unidentified hefty men was trailing me from Ogwashu-Uku.

"At this point, I had to accelerate. However, the car that was following ours doubled-crossed us at Ossisa town and one of the men jumped out from the car, and entered the passenger's seat of the car I was driving. He brought out a pistol and asked me questions such as 'where is your boss?'; 'where are his children?' All this time, a gun was pointed at my head. I was then ordered to drive straight to Kwale and from there, I was ordered to face Ogume road.

"I had no option than to obey and I drove into Ogume road. When we got to a very lonely forest, I was again ordered to drive inside the forest. Before I could say Jack Robinson, I was shot. As I was shot, I found a way to escape into the forest. As I was inside the forest, they started shooting sporadically and telling me to come out from the forest or they would burn my car. Before the Police arrived the scene, they had set the car ablaze."

Lucky Okperi

According to Rex, the target was his boss, who was not in the vehicle at the time of the incident.

"Who knows if his children would have also been assassinated by the gunmen if they were still in the vehicle. The incident is politically motivated; that I can tell. But I thank God that their plans failed," he added.

When contacted, Okperi, a lawyer, confirmed the incident and accused the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, the House of Representatives minority leader and member representing Isoko federal constituency, Leo Ogor of being behind the attack.

Meanwhile, the matter has been reported at the Abbi Police Station for further investigation.

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We Didn't Collect N150million From Buhari, Says NANS

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has denied receiving N150million from President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Executive Committee of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) visited President Muhammadu Buhari on January 3, 2019 and the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) was one of the issues that came up during the visit.

Buhari had told NANS that his government was "working hard towards a resolution, and will continue to ask for ASUU’s understanding".

However, reports had emerged that the association allegedly collected the said amount during the visit.

A statement made available to NAN on Saturday and signed by Adeyemi Amoo, its National Public Relations Officer (PRO), urged Nigerian students to ignore the allegations by ASUU.

The statement read: “Our attention has been drawn to the purported and sponsored allegation, that NANS had been bribed by President Muhammadu Buhari with a whooping sum of N150million to protest against ASUU.

“We commend the well meaning, intellectual and genuine civil society groups for not falling cheap for this blackmail, as we’ve gotten informed and reliably that they’ve also been lobbied by ASUU to join them in pushing such blackmail. We are not surprised that this blackmail isn’t flying beyond the pseudo groups they’ve been able to arrange and mobilise with cash.

“President Muhammadu Buhari is a known person in character and style to virtually all Nigerians. Even the opposition knows that Buhari will never give out such amount of money for any reason(s) that is not of national benefits or developments. No doubt this propaganda might have seen the acceptance of the masses if it wasn’t targeted towards Buhari himself.”

According to Amoo, NANS had earlier declared November 17, 2018 as a nationwide day of mass action tagged: 'Save Education Rally' held simultaneously across the states of the federation, to protest the incessant strikes across universities, polytechnics and colleges of education. He added that in October 2018, NANS national leadership met with the Minister for Education, to fine-tune ways of putting a long term end to the regular carnival of strikes in the educational sector.

The statement continued: “We thereby demanded as the major stakeholders in the sectors, to always have representatives at the meeting of ASUU with Federal Government, as this was targeted towards adding to the strength and voice of ASUU, so as to make government yield to their demands in time. The Federal Government on her own side sees the request of being an observer at the negotiation table with ASUU as a welcome development.

“NANS was invited twice to the meeting of Federal Government with ASUU, ably represented by the NANS national president, Danielson Akpan, but was walked out twice by the ASUU leadership, insisting that such negotiations must not be done in the presence of younger ones.

“NANS leadership begins to wonder what reasons might be behind the blind insistence of ASUU that NANS must not observe the meeting, when the Federal Government has wholeheartedly approved our attendance at such meetings.”

He added that NANS after exhausting all means, resolved to issue an ultimatum to the Nigerian Government and ASUU to return to the negotiation table. He also said NANS sought audience with the president which led to the meeting at the presidential villa on Thursday.

“At the meeting, NANS appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to, as a matter of urgency, resolve the ASUU strike, for him not to lose the support of over 20 million Nigerian students. This was the statement of the NANS president at the meeting, as against the cheap blackmail that NANS has assured Buhari of mobilising 20 million votes for him.

“NANS, therefore, uses this medium to inform Nigerian students and Nigerians at large, that its leadership will not, has not and will not for any reason sell the interest and integrity of our dear organisation.

“Conclusively, we want to tell ASUU that NANS is not for sale. We have not, and will not turn our struggles to sources of empowerment."

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Student Group Slams NANS’ ‘Anti-Union’ Threat Against ASUU/ASUP

The Alliance of Nigerian Students Against Neo-liberal Attacks (ANSA) has condemned the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) over its threat to commence a nationwide protest against the ongoing strike action of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP).

In a statement released on Friday, the students’ group noted that the NANS threat is “anti-union/anti-poor” and the stance violates the charter upon which NANS was created.

The statement read: “It is appalling to say the least that the ideological degeneracy of the current NANS executives has been allowed to bring forth its hydra-headed [stance] once again. Lovely were the days when we had the NANS that fought SAP; introduction of tuition in 1985, the military government and the June 12 revolts among other great historical battles.

“It is no wonder even the new executives of this anti-student NANS lack the basic understanding of the fraternal relations built on ideological conviction between the Nigerian Student Movement and their working class counterparts, especially when we all know that these bodies are representatives of the oppressed layer of our society. It is students today that become workers tomorrow."

ANSA claimed that NANS’ threat is in support of the Nigerian Government’s demand to have the unions call off the strike.

On Monday, December 31, 2018, NANS had issued a seven-day ultimatum to the striking unions and the Nigerian government to sort out the underlying issues. NANS stated that none of the demands of ASUU and ASUP aimed to improve the lot of students, and wondered why Nigerian students have to suffer, while the lecturers demand their allowances.

ANSA, however, opposed this position, stating instead that the striking unions are fighting for the collective challenges in the federal universities.

The statement continued: “Let us try to point out to the Nigerian public that the struggles being waged by the striking lecturers are the struggles the Nigerian students should be leading by now. In fact we should have shut down the campuses by ourselves considering the animalistic living and learning conditions students are subjected to.

“This then brings to question the real demands of the striking lecturers, as against the trivial and highly treacherous generalization of the agitation by the executives of NANS, elements who have never called any protest on any issues bordering on students welfare; arbitrary fee increment on our campuses; attacks on students unions and activists.

“As it stands now; schools like UNILAG, YABATECH, UI, OAU, RUGIPO, UNIOSUN amongst others — schools that have a union have very pliant unions such as YABATECH, UI, UNILAG College of Medicine, UNIBEN, FUTO, UNILORIN amongst others — have increased fees and are planning to increase again. Others who like OAU who haven’t increased have announced an increment. Where are the executives of NANS in all of these vicious attacks on students and their unions?”

ANSA further stated that NANS siding with the government would inadvertently affect the students.

“In summary, the statement issued by the NANS leadership, joining government in demanding that ASUU calls off its strike without government acceding to the demands of the Union is a call for mass expulsion of students who would be confronted with the menace of outrageous fee increment.

“Let us even assume without conceding that all the Union demands is all about its wages; doesn’t even the Bible say that the labourer deserves his/her wage? And the Holy Quran went further to assert that the sweat of a labourer must not go dry without his/her wages. Why will a government continue to pay non-working and ‘certificateless’ Senators N14million as allowances and would not be able to afford 30,000 naira minimum wage and earned academic allowance for our Professors who obviously add more value to the society than our sleeping Senators?”

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Student Group Slams NANS’ ‘Anti-Union’ Threat Against ASUU/ASUP

In a statement released on Friday, the students’ group noted that the NANS threat is “anti-union/anti-poor” and the stance violates the charter upon which NANS was created.

ANSA claimed that NANS’ threat is in support of the Nigerian Government’s demand to have the unions call off the strike.

ANSA, however, opposed this position, stating instead that the striking unions are fighting for the collective challenges in the federal universities.

ANSA further stated that NANS siding with the government would inadvertently affect the students.

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QUESTION: Can Amina Zakari, Buhari’s ‘Relative’, Influence 2019 Election Results?

The year 2019, as nascent as it is, is already bristling with all manner of emotions. From anticipation to hope; from fear to even despair. The chaos of emotions is not unfounded. It is an election year; and if the history of elections is anything to go by, Nigerians have every reason to let their emotions run chaotic.

These emotions, especially fear, heightened on Thursday when the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced Amina Zakari, supposed niece of President Muhammadu Buhari, as Head of Collation Centre for the 2019 elections. While some, led by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), have described the appointment of Zakari as a ploy to rig the 2019 elections, others see the brouhaha surrounding her appointment as making a mountain out of a molehill. But indeed, how powerful and influential is Zakari’s office.

What Is Collation?

Collation is the tabulation or summation of the votes cast during an election. It is a graphic reflection of the decision taken by the electorate who have exercised their franchise at the poll. There are various levels of collation depending on the type of elections. However, for the sake of credibility, at each level there is always an announcement of votes scored by each party participating in the election.

Levels of Collation

There are various levels. Results are collated and/or declared at a number of levels depending on the type of election. These include:

Registration Area (RA) Ward

Local Government Area (LGA)

State Assembly Constituency

Federal (House of Representatives) Constituency

Senatorial District

State

Collation and declaration of presidential election result at national level

How Significant Is Collation?

For an election to be successful and credible, it demands proper planning and efficient conduct. The outcome of an election is a culmination of five processes: accreditation, voting, counting, collation and results declaration. Though the first three processes are important, the last two are the critical stages. They can make or mar the whole electoral exercise. If either of these two processes stalls the essence of the exercise might be jeopardized. It is during collation that the results of an election can be doctored to satisfy selfish end and defeat the purpose of election.

It will be recalled that it was at this stage that the military Junta led by General (rtd.) Ibrahim Gbadamosi Babangida scuttled the 1993 election, aborting what would have been the Third Republic. Fresh in recent memory is the drama enacted by Godsday Orubebe, a former minister and loyalist of former President Goodluck Jonathan, at the International Conference Centre (ICC), which served as the National Collation Centre for the 2015 presidential election. The purpose of Orubebe’s momentary disruption and outburst was to render the election inconclusive, having realised that the results were unfavourable to his master’s reelection ambition. That should tell us the significance of collation.

Functions of the Head of Collation Centre

While the fuss about the appointment of Amina Zakari as Head of Collation Centre may not be misplaced or unjustified, the office may not be as powerful as thought.

Findings by SaharaReporters showed that there are 12 members in the aad hoc committee for the National Collation Centre. The committee will ensure that facilities such as power, access to the internet, live transmission for national and international observers as well as security of the venue are put in place.

This is what Zakari, as the chair of the committee, will lead other members in doing. In other words, Zakari is not the Returning Officer at the national level; the INEC Chairman has that onus but inalienable responsibility. Zakari’s brief is to provide logistics and administrative support to the collation centre. The roles spelt out by the INEC make her incapable of influencing the results of the elections.

The Presidency explained on Friday that there is no blood relationship betweeen Buhari and Zakari, but even in that same press statement it admitted that “an inter-marriage occurred in their extended families”. That is implicating enough for the public to fault or question the ethical soundness of the appointment of Buhari’s supposed niece into that kind of office. Nepotism is one thing, the opportunity to use it to one’s advantage is another. Zakari’s presence in INEC will always draw suspicion, but can she single-handedly rig the election in Buhari’s favour? Absolutely not!

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QUESTION: Can Amina Zakari, Buhari’s ‘Relative’, Influence 2019 Election Results?

What Is Collation?

Levels of Collation

There are various levels. Results are collated and/or declared at a number of levels depending on the type of election. These include:

Registration Area (RA) Ward

Local Government Area (LGA)

State Assembly Constituency

Federal (House of Representatives) Constituency

Senatorial District

State

Collation and declaration of presidential election result at national level

How Significant Is Collation?

Functions of the Head of Collation Centre

While the fuss about the appointment of Amina Zakari as Head of Collation Centre may not be misplaced or unjustified, the office may not be as powerful as thought.

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PDP Responsible For Nigeria’s Current Woes – Amaechi

Mr Chibuke Ameachi, Minister for Transportation and Director General (DG) of Buhari Campaign Organisatuon, said the opposition People Democratic Party (PDP) was responsible for the current challenges Nigerians were passing through.

Ameachi said this at the flag-off of Gov. Simon Lalong’s re-election bid on Friday in Jos.

According to him, the hunger, poverty and under-development being faced in the country was because PDP diverted huge monies meant for the public into private use in its 16-year rule.

“If today Nigerians are hungry, it is because in its 16-year rule, the PDP stole monies meant for development of critical sectors of the economy.

“For 16 years, they gave us 3, 000 mega watts of electricity, today the current administration produces 7,000 mega watts.

“Because they diverted huge public funds, we were importing rice, but today the story is different and our local farmers are smiling to the banks.

“So, PDP is full of dishonest people and that is why they stole all our money,” he said. Ameachi, the immediate past governor of Rivers State, noted that to address poverty, hunger and under-development, the present government is working in that regard.

He urged Plateau residents to vote President Mohammadu Buhari, and Lalong for a second term, adding that the forthcoming polls would be a tussle between the “greedy rich versus the poor masses”.

”So, I am urging you the good people of Plateau to again vote APC at all levels, we mean well for this country, ” he said. (NAN).

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