Socio-cultural organization, Middle Belt Forum (MBF), has faulted Nigeria’s democracy and the capacity of the nation’s National Assembly.

Naija News reports that MBF’s National Publicity Secretary, Isuwa Dogo, said electoral malpractice, corrupt judicial system and poor representation from the legislature showed the nation’s democracy is yet to work.

In an interview with Daily Independent, Dogo noted that the nation’s electoral system, including internal party politics, has robbed citizens of the right to elect their leaders.

“I’m not sure if we’re practising democracy in Nigeria. There’s hardly anything that’s not influenced in one form or the other, directly or indirectly. All elections, right from the councillorship at the local government to the presidency.

“In one form or the other, some­body, somewhere, a party, a group, an individual, a tribe, a religious organisation, and people with different interests will try to influ­ence it. You’ll also discover that if it’s democracy, it wouldn’t be that almost every single election ends up in the court.

“At no point has the court re­versed some of them or most of the very important ones, like the governorship, the senatorial, and the presidency. No matter how manipulated it might have been, the court will still say the person was duly elected.

“So, it’s either the court is being induced criminally to give their verdict, or they just don’t want to waste their time to do the right thing.

“Another aspect is that from the primaries, people spend so much money to buy off the delegates.

“They’re voting for people who are the highest bidders. So right from the very councillorship to the highest level, the presidency,” Dogo said.

The Middle Belt Forum Spokesman decried the mass defection of politicians to the All Progressives Congress (APC). This, he said, could be to protect themselves from trial for corrupt practices, citing statement of former Chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomhole.

Dogo stressed that politicians who defect to other parties should be made to lose their offices. He said the law has to be reviewed to address the wave of defections.

“Like this gale of defections, when Ad­ams Oshiomhole was APC na­tional chairman, would say if you come to APC, your sins are forgiven. That is to say, no matter how corrupt you are, if you go to the APC, there’s nobody that will touch you.

“But the most interesting aspect should have been that if you defect, you lose your position. Because you contested on the plat­form of the party. But that is not the case now,” he stated.

He further lambasted the National Assembly for failing to be true representatives of the citizens.

“I think the National Assem­bly doesn’t even exist any longer. Because the whole beauty of the National Assembly is to represent the people.

“Do they represent the people? Tell me one single bill they have sponsored in the advent of this very government.

“When it comes to political issues, there’s really no judiciary. You know, why? Because it’s the executive that elects the judiciary,” he noted.

Dogo added that Nigeria’s de­mocracy needs urgent help if it must survive, including ensuring that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is independent and officials are not appointed by the president.

As part of efforts to reform its immigration system, the United Kingdom could soon restrict visa applications from nationalities whose citizens are most likely to overstay their approved stays.

First reported by the Times, the Home Office listed the affected countries as Pakistan, Nigeria, and Sri Lanka.

The report noted that nationals from these countries overstay their visas and later seek asylum.

Successful asylum requests allow the applicants to permanently remain in the country.

As a consequence, the Home Office said they may face tougher restrictions when applying to work or study in the UK.

“Our upcoming Immigration White Paper will set out a comprehensive plan to restore order to our broken immigration system,” a Home Office spokesperson said.

“To tackle abuse by foreign nationals who arrive on work and study visas and go on to claim asylum, we are building intelligence on the profile of these individuals to identify them earlier and faster.

“We keep the visa system under constant review and where we detect trends, which may undermine our immigration rules, we will not hesitate to take action.

“Under our plan for change, our upcoming Immigration White Paper will set out a comprehensive plan to restore order to our broken immigration system.”

Full details of the government’s plans are due to be published in the said paper later in May.

TOUGHER VISA RESTRICTIONS FOR NIGERIANS IN RECENT TIMES

Nigerians have been significantly affected by the UK’s immigration reform plans over the past two years, especially in the areas of student visas, work permits, and visa approvals.

Following tighter rules on dependents and post-study work opportunities introduced by former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, international student applications to the UK have dropped drastically.

Many Nigerians have now turned to the US as a choice destination — but even that option has now proven unsustainable.

US President Donald Trump has also increased tighter restrictions, warning that even students with valid visas could be deported if the US believes they do not serve her best interest.

A 2024 report showed how Nigerian visa rejection rates to the UK rose from about 1 in 31 applications in late 2022 to 1 in 8 by late 2023.

This resulted in a 63 percent decrease in visas issued to Nigerians compared to the previous year.

The financial burden of non-refundable fees combined with higher rejection rates have intensified pressure on Nigerian applicants.

Last year, TheCable reported how the British government earned over N40 billion processing visas for Nigerian nationals between June 2023 to the same month in 2024.

African economists and development experts have urged nationals of developing nations not to seek greener pastures abroad but to stay back and contribute to the development of their countries.

The Federal High Court in Abuja, on Tuesday, banished Favour Kanu, wife of Prince Fineboy Kanu, the younger brother of Nnamdi Kanu for streaming the proceedings of the court live on her Facebook page.

Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), is being prosecuted by the Federal Government for alleged terrorism.

Justice James Omotosho, who gave the order, after Mrs Kanu admitted engaging in the act and apologised to the court, held that she would have been charged for contempt of court.

Although Kanu’s lawyer, Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, also apologised on her behalf, Justice Omotosho insisted that Mrs Kanu would be barred from three proceedings.

The judge expressed surprise that despite that Mrs Kanu’s phone was confiscated on the last adjourned date when she was caught recording him, she still went ahead to post the video online.

“I want to hear from her. Were you not the one that I took your phone?

“I did not give order to forfeit that phone. I don’t know if she might be a wife to my brother (Nnamdi Kanu),” the judge said.

The judge, who cautioned against any act that could cause delay in the trial, assured all parties in the case that justice would be served. (NAN)

Residents of Iyiowa Odekpe in Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State have protested against exorbitant electricity bills from the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), claiming monthly charges now exceed the national minimum wage of ₦70,000.

The protesters, many holding placards, said most households receive bills ranging from ₦80,000 to ₦130,000—even those with prepaid meters. They described the charges as “inhuman and outrageous” and condemned the recent disconnection of power to the entire community by EEDC officials.

Some of the placards read: “N80,000 monthly electricity bill is unaffordable”

“Over 80% of those disconnected have prepaid meters”

“Stop the overbilling now!”

“There is a monthly cap from NERC”

Chairman of the Iyiowa Odekpe Landlords and Tenants Association, Chief Sunday Obinze, said residents are being exploited and intimidated. He questioned how civil servants could afford such bills, noting that charges used to range between ₦18,000 and ₦28,000 before the recent hike.

Obinze cited information from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), which places the billing cap for their area at about ₦31,000—an amount the residents say they are willing to pay.

Dr. Okolie Chukwunonso, secretary of the association, added that efforts to dialogue with EEDC were ignored, and the company’s response was to disconnect power across the community.

“It’s unjustifiable to disconnect an entire area where over 80% use prepaid meters,” he said.

The community is demanding fair billing, cancellation of inflated arrears, provision of prepaid meters to those without, and immediate restoration of electricity. They are also calling for urgent government and regulatory intervention.