The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to remain neutral during the governorship elections in Edo and Ondo states. 

Yusuf Dantalle, IPAC national chairman, spoke on Thursday at a meeting of INEC and political parties at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

Dantalle said the election is a chance for political party leaders to restore confidence in the electoral process by ensuring the sanctity of the ballot box, and respect the mandate of the people.

“After 25 years of uninterrupted democracy in Nigeria, we must get it right this time,” he said.

“The Edo state gubernatorial polls will be a litmus test for the Ondo state governorship election scheduled for Saturday 16th November 2024, which in turn gives direction to future elections in the country.

“Certainly, the integrity of INEC is at stake. The commission should justify the confidence citizens reposed in it to conduct free, fair, credible, transparent, inclusive and peaceful elections. The success of these elections will rebuild trust in the electoral process and boost voter turnout.”

The council urged political parties and their candidates to imbibe issue-based campaigns that will unite the people and foster development.

“There is no place for politics of bitterness and violence that has impeded the nation’s hard earned democracy. It is time to change the narrative. It is time for patriotism. It is time to strengthen, deepen and advance our democracy,” he said.

“It is a collective task in the quest for a strong, united, progressive, prosperous, equitable and just democratic society.

“To further enhance the nation’s representative governance, political parties should adhere strictly to internal democracy as provided in their respective constitution. We must live and lead by example.

“It is obvious that the failure to comply with parties’ constitutions is the remote cause of crises, leadership disagreements, factionalizations and litigations that have retarded the development of party politics in Nigeria.

“We should be the solution we seek in advancing democracy in the country. It is easy to blame the electoral body, security agencies and the Judiciary when as leaders of political parties we cannot comply with clear provisions of our parties’ constitutions and basic provisions of the electoral act and guidelines.

“It is time to jettison impunity and embrace internal democracy in our activities, particularly in the nomination of candidates for elections.”

[TheCable]

Atiku Abubakar, Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2023, has said that he is not concerned about the politics of the 2027 elections.

Atiku spoke through his media adviser, Paul Ibe, in a statement on Thursday night.

Ibe said the former Vice President is preoccupied with recent happenings, especially in the hardship facing most Nigerians since President Bola Tinubu assumed office in May 2023.

This response follows recent comments by Bode George, the former deputy national chairman (south) of the PDP, who suggested that Atiku should consider retiring from active politics and wait until 2031 if he still aspires to the presidency.

Reacting to George’s remarks on Thursday, Ibe said that Atiku’s focus is on the present challenges facing Nigeria, not the politics of 2027.

“At this point, Atiku Abubakar’s preoccupation is not 2027. His concern is about 2024,” Ibe said.

“It is about 2025 and 2026 and beyond. His concern is about the plight of Nigerians who are literally going through hell because of the failed trial-and-error policies of this administration.”

Ibe further criticized the current administration, stressing that it is “insensitive” to discuss future elections when Nigerians are suffering under the current leadership.

He also urged George to focus on advising President Tinubu to reconsider policies that have worsened poverty and division in the country, rather than prioritizing the politics of 2027.

[politicsnigeria]

In the years 2000 to 2006, I watched with great interest the national furore and legislative resistance that greeted President Obasanjo’s request for an upgrade of the presidential jet. 

The presidential jet, a Boeing 727-200 acquired 17 years before, had been modified in Seattle, Washington, USA and had its conventional wings replaced with winglets.

The Boeing 727-200 was one of Boeing's best selling aircraft during its production run between 1962 and 1984. Yet as technology improved, such as increased aircraft automation and jet engine design, the jets lost their appeal.

Unlike jets flying today, the Boeing 727-200 had older low-bypass turbofan Pratt & Whitney JT8D jet engines which were extremely noisy. 

The loud P & W JT8D engines blasted ears and rattled windows throughout the 1970s, 80s and 90s. As a result, existing 727s had to be fitted with hush kits to comply with increasingly new regulations on noise and pollution control, especially at designated international airports across the world. 

While US Federal requirements stated that all civil aircraft must meet quieter ‘stage 3” noise regulations by January 1, 2000, The EU Noise Rule, which was to be effective in April 2002, banned aircrafts fitted with hush kits or devices that reduce aircraft noise. 

EU leaders had approved the hush-kit ban in April 1999 but delayed its implementation, first by 12 months, after an unprecedented lobbying campaign by Washington, which feared that it would hit billions of dollars worth of American-made aircraft and equipment, such as President Obasanjo’s Boeing 727-200, and so while the presidential jet may not have problem traveling to the United States and some other countries, it will not be allowed in European Union airspace. 

Unfortunately, the national conversations generated at that time were tainted ignorance, vain politics and reckless hypocrisy. 

Both houses of the National Assembly at the time, headed by Okadigbo and Na’abba, remained combative for many years with the Presidency over the issue of the presidential jet. 

It was not until the presidential jet developed a hydraulic problem after in Davos, Switzerland after the President’s attendance of the World Economic Forum where the President was stranded for more than 12 hours, and the near crash of a another presidential jet conveying Vice President Atiku from official trip to Portugal demanding an emergency landing in the Spanish Island of Tenerife that the National Assembly decided to agree and consider a complete overhaul of the presidential fleet with 8 new aircrafts to cater for not just the President, but the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Chief Justice of the Federation.

This explains why it is not uncommon to see the Senate President, or the Speaker of the House of Representatives being ferried around in an executive jet drawn from the pool of the presidential fleet. 

It took Obasanjo far more hassle to get his plane than it took most of the jet craving Governors at the time to get theirs. For instance, Rivers State Governor Peter Odili acquired a private jet much before the President. He did not just acquire an Embraer Jet for his exclusive use, but also acquired another aircraft for use as an air ambulance.  

The fact remains that the procurement of an executive jet befitting for a President, or a State Governor is an expensive adventure that will always provoke combustive national conversations. Such conversations are usual, and typical for any democracy. 

When Boeing, the Seattle based American aircraft manufacturer presented President Donald Trump with a $5 billion for two new presidential jets (747-8) to replace the current two 747-200s (VC-25) that had served for about 34 years, it was to Twitter that President Trump ran to exclaim “Cancel Order!”. 

Boeing eventually brought its bill down to $3.9 billion, a decision Boeing regrets today as they have consistently missed delivery deadlines, citing COVID-19 and unexpected design and material supply challenges. 

National conversations of this sort are useful, enlightening and should always be encouraged. This is the good thing with democracy, or democratic experiments. Problems only arise when these conversations are laced with ignorance, mischief and barefaced hypocrisy.  

You do not get these kinds of national conversations in dictatorships. 

For instance, no one questioned Nigeria’s former ruler, Sani Abacha when he decided on a presidential jet for himself or the presidential fleet. 

We do not  hear the Chinese complain about how many aircrafts the president owns in his fleet. Neither do you hear them speak up when a ruling party dictates a documented national decree of one-man-one-wife-one-child, as a way of taming its exploding  population and containing its rapidly declining economy. 

The conversations that have followed the decision of the Tinubu presidency to upgrade the presidential jet and trade-in a few other aircrafts in the presidential fleet have not been healthy improvements on those raised during the Obasanjo years. 

Last week, Daily Trust, a Nigerian newspaper carried a title stating that the United States President was still using an aircraft that was 34-years old while the Presidency was seeking to upgrade an aircraft that was barely 20 years old. 

The article did not state the fact that Air Force One, the call sign of the United States official presidential jet, is a title currently shared by two Boeing VC-25, military versions of the Boeing 747 airliner, modified for presidential transport. 

The first was delivered on September 6,1990. The second, an exact replica, was delivered on March 26, 1991.  And so they have both shared 36 years of service to about three US Presidents between them. 

The two VC-25As are slated for retirement, the first in 2027, and the second in 2028.  

On February 27,  2018, the White House announced a $3.9 billion agreement with Boeing to modify two unsold 747-8 Intercontinental (747-8i) to replace the current VC-25As. The new aircrafts will be designated VC-25B and are due for delivery in 2027 and 2028.

Unlike the Nigerian presidential jet, the old VC-25As will not be commercially traded off for profit but will be retired from service and placed in museums.

The Boeing 737-200 that President Tinubu inherited has a working life span of about 30 years. 

Over the years, the 737-200 has built a global reputation as a short haul work horse even though its duties at the Nigerian presidency has seen it being called up for long hauls at relatively short notice which may have over stretched it a bit. 

With increasing age especially at more than 15 years of continued steady service, the cost of a detailed maintenance check such as a D Check (or P48 check) which involves more than 20,000 to 40,000 man-hours, runs into millions of dollars. 

I am sure President Tinubu would not have bothered to change the jet if not for the series of small challenges that have arisen in recent times during his several trips abroad. Issues like hydraulic malfunction to leakages have hampered the President’s travel.

The decision to trade in the Boeing 737-700 for an Airbus A320 is a good one considering that the A320 is better suited for long hauls and can effortlessly carry out some of the many tasking travel challenges that the President’s itinerary entails. Besides, the fact that the Presidency was able to commandeer a deal that saved the country more than $400 million is also worth considering. 

Already according to online listings, the old presidential jet, a 19.1 year old VIP configured Boeing 737-700 (BBJ) has been put up for sale. 

ADS-B data shows that the 5N-FGT (MSN 34260) was ferried from Abuja to Basel/Mulhouse/Freiburg in Switzerland on March 25.

According to the listing, the aircraft underwent B1(mechanics - engines and airframes) and B2 (Avionics –instrumentation, electrical/electronic equipment) inspections, plus C1 and C2 maintenance by AMAC Aerospace in Basel in July 2024. The twin jet had clocked up 3,821 flying hours and 1,881 landings. 

Its replacement, a foreclosed ACJ330-200, VP-CAC (MSN 1053) now 5N-FGA has also arrived Nigeria and has since resumed presidential duties. 

The new acquisition came after the House of Representatives Committee on National Security and Intelligence recommended acquiring new aircraft for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his Vice President due to high maintenance costs and operational issues with the current presidential fleet, which is operated by the Nigerian Air Force but overseen by the Office of the National Security Adviser led by Nigeria’s famed former Anti-Corruption Czar Nuhu Ribadu. 

The presidential fixed wing fleet also comprises the Vice President’s 13 year old Gulfstream Aerospace G55, a Gulfstream G500, two Falcon 7X, a hawker 4000 and a Challenger 605 though three of these aircraft are reportedly unserviceable and will be sold off as well. 

Between 2016 and 2024, the cost of managing the presidential fleet has skyrocketed by more than 200% with maintenance expenses of each aircraft ranging from from $1.5 million to $4.5 million annually. 

Be that as it may, this new business jet, with a far larger capacity and travel time than the other, will still be due for replacement in the next ten to fifteen years, as it would be best for Nigeria to sell it off before it completely loses its second-, or third-hand value. 

My prayer is that when the next national conversation on presidential jet replacement or upgrade comes,  it would be far more informed, far more guided, and devoid of the parochial politics of yesteryears and the myopic, mischievous and malicious idiosyncrasies of yesterday, especially in this day and age when information can easily be accessed and interrogated thanks to the internet. 

Our hope and earnest wishes are that the President should put these equipments to good use and for the betterment of our country and its people. 

George Kerley writes from Port Harcourt

Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said it has granted an Approval-in-Principle to two crypto exchanges Quidax and Busha, giving them the status of legally recognised crypto trading platforms in the country.  

The two exchanges were approved under the Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Program (ARIP) program of the Commission. 

In addition to that, the Commission said it has also admitted four companies to test their models and technology under its Regulatory Incubation (RI) Program. 

The four firms are digital assets offering platforms, which include Trovotech Ltd, Wrapped CBDC Ltd, Dream City Capital, and HousingExhange.NG Ltd. 

Announcing the development via a statement on Thursday, the SEC the listed above firms are not the only entities that have applied to ARIP and the RI Program.  It added that other applications received are being assessed would be granted Approval-in-Principle on a case-by-case basis as they meet all SEC requirements. 

Legal recognition for crypto trading 

While noting that the referenced Approvals-in-Principle is a precursor to the grant of full registration by the SEC, the Commission emphasized the legal status of the companies as crypto trading platforms in Nigeria.   

“The SEC uses this medium to reiterate that only approved digital exchanges and platforms are legally authorized to carry out the business of crypto trading in any form in Nigeria.  

“In this regard, the ARIP and RI remain the only avenues for well-intentioned entities to legitimately introduce their digital products and services to the Nigerian Capital market. 

“The public is strongly advised to refrain from dealing with illegal operators who have not applied to and received the SEC’s approval under the ARIP or the RI Program.  

“Intending investors are also reminded to always confirm from the various SEC information portals whether entities purporting to provide investment services are legally empowered to so do,” the Commission stated. 

Backstory 

It would be recalled that the SEC introduced the ARIP to strategically on-board firms that had commenced operations prior to the release of the Rules on Virtual Asset Service Providers in May 2022.  

• This was in response to several calls by stakeholders on the need to regulate crypto trading in the country. 

• Conversely, the RI Program was created to assess the business models of Digital Assets firms and test innovative products, services, and technology in a real-time market environment under close supervision by the SEC. 

• The SEC said the first set of companies approved are to test its regulatory model, adding that the outcome of the process would inform further policy development in the crypto space in Nigeria.   

What you should know 

Despite the negative posture of the Nigerian authorities to crypto trading, many Nigerians have continued to transact with digital assets.  

Several reports on global crypto trading have recognised Nigeria as one of the top countries trading in cryptocurrencies all over the world.  

• Meanwhile, stakeholders in the blockchain space in Nigeria have blamed the recent controversy that surrounded the operations of crypto exchanges and the alleged manipulation of the Nigerian currency through peer-to-peer (P2P) crypto trading on the policies and actions of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which tends to distance the regulator from the market. 

• According to them, the stance of the banking regulator opened the doors for bad actors, who were involved in currency manipulation through crypto trading.  

• The activities of the bad actors are believed to be denting the image of several legitimate players in the industry. 

[Nairametrics]

The United Nations (UN) Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, has reacted to calls for the resumption of nuclear testing around the world.

Recall that last month, Robert C. O’Brien, a United States former national security advisor to ex-President Donald Trump, had urged the former president to conduct nuclear tests if he wins a new term in the November 2024 presidential election.

O’Brien said Washington “must test new nuclear weapons for reliability and safety in the real world for the first time since 1992.”

He added that doing so would help the United States “maintain technical and numerical superiority to the combined Chinese and Russian nuclear stockpiles.”

When the cold war came to an end in 1992, the United States gave up the explosive testing of nuclear arms and eventually spoke to other atomic powers to also do so.

Experts and machines at the country’s weapons labs are instead used by the United States to verify the lethality of the country’s arsenal.

Taking to his official X handle on Thursday to mark the International Day Against Nuclear Tests, Guterres in an apparent reaction to such calls, argued that nuclear tests left a legacy of destruction and created long-term health problems for people.

He said the recent calls for the resumption of nuclear testing was a demonstration that lessons of the past have been forgotten or ignored.

“Recent calls for the resumption of nuclear testing demonstrate that the lessons of the past are being forgotten — or ignored,” the UN chief wrote.

“The world must speak with one voice to end this practice,” he noted.

International Day Against Nuclear Tests

In 2009, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 29 August the International Day Against Nuclear Tests.

According to the UN, the date recalled the official closing of the Semipalatinsk nuclear weapons testing site in today’s Kazakhstan on 29 August 1991; that one site alone had seen 456 nuclear test explosions between 1949 and 1989.

The global body said between 1954 and 1984, there was on average at least one nuclear weapons test somewhere in the world every week, most with a blast far exceeding the bombing of Hiroshima; nuclear weapons exploding in the air, on and under the ground and in the sea.

“Radioactivity from these test explosions spread across the planet deep into the environment. It can still be traced and measured today, in elephant tusks, in the coral of the Great Barrier Reef and in the deepest ocean trenches.

“Meanwhile, nuclear weapons stockpiles have grown exponentially. By the early 1980s there were some 60,000 nuclear weapons, most far more powerful than the bombs used in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

“Public indignation grew. By the 1960s it was agreed in principle that ending explosive nuclear tests would be a vital brake on developing nuclear weapons and thereby promote nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament. The preamble to the Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968 talked boldly of achieving ‘the discontinuance of all test explosions of nuclear weapons for all time’.

“But then it took almost thirty more years and hundreds more nuclear test explosions before the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) was agreed in 1996. This is one of the world’s landmark treaties. What a difference it has made,” the UN noted.

[NaijaNews]

Topher of the Aces Duo has revealed that he would on Friday have a crucial conversation with his love interest in the Big Brother Naija season 9 ‘No Loose Guard’ reality show, Anita.

LEADERSHIP understands that Topher who is 24 years old has been on a ship with Anita of the Nelita duo who is 28.

Anita recently found out through Ben of the Beta duo that she was four years older than Topher, making her uncomfortable with being in a relationship with him.

During his diary session with Biggie on Thursday, Topher disclosed that he would ‘come clean’ with Anita after their wager games on Friday.

“Before coming into the house, I used to take pride in my age because I started a lot of things on time.

“I don’t want to mess things up for the house by having the conversation with her now, so I’ll just wait till after the games,” Topher said.

Topher also disclosed that he nominated the Beta duo for possible eviction because “Ben whispered the age thing to Anita”, thereby putting him under pressure in the BBNaija house.

[Leadership]

Waheed Ayilara, Commissioner of Police in Akwa Ibom State, is dead.

Ayilara, who took over the State Command of Nigeria Police Force in February, died while undergoing surgery at a popular hospital in Lagos State.

The deceased was said to have had prostate cancer surgery on Wednesday before he died hours later.

Lagos State Police Command Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, was unavailable for comment at the time of filing this report.

Late last year, Ayilara had a stint as acting Commissioner of Police in Lagos.

The former Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the State Criminal Investigation Department,0 took over from AIG Idowu Owohunwa.

It was after acting as head of Lagos Police Command that he was deployed to Akwa Ibom.

[DailyTrust]

Liverpool’s latest signing, Federico Chiesa, has explained why he joined the club as a free agent.

Liverpool officially announced the signing of Chiesa on Thursday.

The 26-year-old forward joined the Premier League giants on a long-term deal after his contract with Juventus expired.

Speaking after signing for Liverpool, the Italy international suggested that he joined the Reds because of the club’s history and what its fans represent.

“I’m so happy to be a Liverpool player. When Richard Hughes called me and he said, ‘Do you want to join Liverpool?’ – and the coach called me – I said yes immediately because I know the history of this club, I know what it represents to the fan,” Chiesa told Liverpool’s website.

“So, I’m so happy and I can’t wait to get started.”

[Dailypost]

Canada has barred holders of visitor visas from applying for work permits while inside the country, effective immediately.

This was made known by the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) on Wednesday, marking a significant shift in policy.

“While the temporary policy was set to expire on February 28, 2025, IRCC is ending the policy as part of our overall efforts to recalibrate the number of temporary residents in Canada and preserve the integrity of the immigration system,” the statement read.

“IRCC is also aware that some bad actors were using the policy to mislead foreign nationals into working in Canada without authorization. IRCC will continue to process applications submitted before August 28, 2024, under the policy.”

The IRCC further said that the decision was influenced by concerns that some individuals were exploiting the policy to mislead foreign nationals into unauthorized employment in Canada.

“IRCC is also aware that some bad actors were using the policy to mislead foreign nationals into working in Canada without authorization. IRCC will continue to process applications submitted before August 28, 2024, under the policy,” the statement added.

This policy was initially implemented in August 2020 as a response to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the time, many visitors were stranded in Canada due to international travel restrictions and border closures.

Under the policy, visitors could apply for a work permit without having to leave Canada.

Also, anyone who had held a work permit within the preceding 12 months but had changed their immigration status to “visitor” became eligible to “work legally in Canada while waiting for a decision on their new work permit application.”

[TheNation]

Tino Anjorin has completed a permanent transfer to Serie A side Empoli.

According to a post on Chelsea Football Club’s website on Thursday, Anjorin, who first trained with Chelsea at the age of six, officially signed as an under-9 and progressed through the Academy at Cobham.

Tino signed his first professional contract in November 2018 and moved up to the Under-21s squad ahead of the 2019/20 season.

It was an impressive campaign for the midfielder, as he was handed his senior debut against Grimsby Town, made his Premier League debut against Everton, and helped the Under-21s win Premier League Two.

“Tino was involved in several match-day squads throughout the following season, making his Champions League debut and full Premier League debut, and then embarked on several loan spells.

“We would like to thank Tino for all his efforts while at the club and wish him well as he begins the next chapter in his career,” Chelsea Football Club added.

[Punch]