Politics
Diri Speaks On LG Autonomy, Reforms
Sequel to the granting of fiscal autonomy to Nigeria’s Local Government Areas by the Supreme Court, Bayelsa State Governor, Duoye Diri has shared that his state has been practising LG autonomy. In fact, he asserted that the state has been supporting the LGs by augmenting their allocation to ensure prompt payment of salaries and execution of projects.
He took to his verified handle on micro-blogging site, X on Saturday to laud the Supreme Court’s ruling and vent that more reforms were necessary to ensure equity and balance the allocation of national resources for states like Bayelsa who had only eight LGAs, as against other states who have over 40.
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He maintained that “As governor of Bayelsa State, we demand urgent actions to correct this imbalance. Our position is that Bayelsa deserves not less than 30 Local Government Areas.”
He asserted, “And our position from the beginning of this discuss has been that, states should take charge of the number of local governments they can create and cater for.
“You don’t create local governments and take resources from one state to cater for the local governments in another state. That is robbing Peter to pay Paul!”
Gov Diri wrote, “As a government, while we have received the decision of the Supreme Court on the financial autonomy of the Local Government Councils, it must be noted that my administration has been practising the autonomy in principle because we do not tamper with the allocations to the Local Government Areas.
“Rather, the State Government augments the allocation in a number of the LGAs where they are not able to pay salaries to their workers.
“Our reforms in the LGAs have largely sanitized the system to the extent that Local Government Chairmen not only conveniently meet their financial obligations to the workers, but now carry out projects and still have some savings at the end of each month.
“In truth, Bayelsa State has not been fairly treated in the creation of Local Government Areas to the extent that today, we still have just 8 local government areas as opposed to some other states with 44 and 40 local government areas. That to us is a clear injustice!
“And our position from the beginning of this discuss has been that, states should take charge of the number of local governments they can create and cater for.
“You don’t create local governments and take resources from one state to cater for the local governments in another state. That is robbing Peter to pay Paul!
“As governor of Bayelsa State, we demand urgent actions to correct this imbalance. Our position is that Bayelsa deserves not less than 30 Local Government Areas.”
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has made significant progress in uploading the results of the Edo State governorship election to its INEC Result Viewing (IREV) platform.
As of today, over 4,173 out of the 4,519 polling units across the state have successfully uploaded their results, which accounts for 92.34% of the total.
This initiative allows voters, party agents, and the general public to monitor election outcomes in real time, promoting transparency in the electoral process.
READ MORE: #EdoDecides2024: Ighodalo, Wife Cast Votes
The INEC IREV platform was introduced to enhance the credibility of elections and improve public trust by making results available online for verification.
In Edo State, this system is being closely watched due to the high stakes of the governorship race, which has been marked by strong competition between the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
Despite this impressive milestone, some results are still pending due to challenges in remote areas, technical issues, and disruptions at some polling units.
The INEC has assured the public that efforts are underway to ensure that all polling unit results are uploaded as soon as possible, urging patience and confidence in the process.
Afrobeats singer, David Adeleke, widely known as Davido, has labeled the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the most dangerous institution in Nigeria.
He made this claim in a series of posts on his X account on Saturday during the ongoing gubernatorial election in Edo State.
“The most dangerous institution in Nigeria @inecnigeria,” he wrote.
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The Afrobeat singer urged Edo residents to be ready to follow their votes and the result from the polling units up until the state collation centre.
According to him, INEC will not transmit results electronically even after making promises.
“We already know that @inecnigeria will not transmit results electronically so everyone should be ready to follow the vote/result from the polling unit up until the state collation centre.
“Winning is one thing. Being declared a winner is another thing! …. From 7pm make una go Dey mount collation center !! #EdoDecide2024.”
Afrobeats star, David Adeleke, better known as Davido, has expressed his interest in the ongoing Edo State governorship election.
BIZTELLERS reports that residents turned out in large numbers on Saturday to vote in the off-cycle gubernatorial election in Edo State.
Davido has been vocal on X, calling out the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over alleged irregularities in the election process.
His concern raised questions as to why he is so interested in the election, considering that he is not from Edo State.
Addressing the questions via his X handle, Davido explained that his late mother, Imade Veronica Adeleke was from Edo State.
He further explained that aside from his late mom being an Edo State indigene, he should be concerned as a Nigerian.
He recalled calling out INEC during the Osun State gubernatorial election when his uncle, the incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke, was contesting.
The singer wrote, “My mom is from Edo for those wondering why I’m interested in the election … but we as Nigerians should be concerned sha .. @inecnigeria shame on you I know how many times I had to come in here and rant before they got it right in Osun ! It’s really bad. God help us.”
Davido previously endorsed the PDP candidate, Asuen Ighodalo, for the Edo gubernatorial election through his Instagram account.
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