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ECOWAS Deploys 163 Observers to Nigeria’s Gubernatorial and State Assembly Elections

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ECOWAS Deploys 163 Observers to Nigeria’s Gubernatorial and State Assembly Elections

By: Michael Mike

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission said it is deploying 163 observers to monitor next Saturday’s Gubernatorial and State Assembly Elections in Nigeria.

A statement on Wednesday read that: “The President of the Commission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS Commission), His Excellency Dr Omar Alieu TOURAY, is deploying an ECOWAS Election Observation Mission (ECOWAS-EOM) to monitor the Gubernatorial and State Assembly Elections in Nigeria to be held on Saturday, 18 March 2023.”

According to the statement, the deployment of the 163 observers is in line with the provisions of Articles 42(2) and 44(b) of the 1999 ECOWAS Protocol relating to the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management, Resolution, Peacekeeping and Security: Article 12 of the 2001 Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance, and Article 53(c) of the 2008 ECOWAS Conflict Prevention Framework.

The statement further revealed that the observers will be drawn from the Community Institutions (the Commission, Parliament, and the Court of Justice); West African Ambassadors accredited to ECOWAS; Member States’ Electoral Commissions and Ministries of Foreign Affairs; and electoral experts from civil society. It will also include a 13-member Core Team of electoral experts that has been in Nigeria prior to the presidential and national assembly elections.

The statement added that the mission will be backstopped by an ECOWAS Technical Team under the overall coordination of Ambassador Abdel-Fatau Musah, the ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security.

The statement said that: “The 18 March elections will complete the current electoral cycle in Nigeria, following the 25 February presidential and national assembly elections to which ECOWAS deployed 250 observers across the six geopolitical zones of the country.

“The 163-member ECOWAS EOM will be deployed from 15 to 21 March 2023 to eighteen (18) States, identified on the basis of a technical assessment and analysis of trends and hotspots, to physically and remotely monitor the elections.

The States were the observers would be deployed include: South-West: Lagos – Ogun – Oyo; South-South: Rivers – Edo – Delta; South-East: Enugu – Ebonyi – Imo; North-Central: Nasarawa – Plateau – Benue; North-West: Kano – Kaduna – Sokoto; and North-East: Borno – Adamawa – Taraba

ECOWAS Deploys 163 Observers to Nigeria’s Gubernatorial and State Assembly Elections

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Dismissed soldier surrenders to police over murder case in Ogun

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Dismissed soldier surrenders to police over murder case in Ogun

By: Zagazola Makama

A dismissed soldier, Yemisi Poroye, who is the principal suspect in a conspiracy and murder case reported earlier on June 25 has surrendered to the Police in Ogun state.

Police sources told Zagazola Makama that the suspect turned himself in at about 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, following intensified police efforts to track him down.

The sources said that three other suspects earlier arrested in connection with the case, along with relevant exhibits, had already been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID), Abeokuta, for discreet investigation.

The sources added that the circumstances surrounding the murder and the dismissed soldier’s alleged role are currently under investigation.

Dismissed soldier surrenders to police over murder case in Ogun

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Troops repel coordinated attacks on three Plateau communities

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Troops repel coordinated attacks on three Plateau communities

By: Zagazola Makama

Troops of Operation Safe Haven (OPSH) along with other security forces, successfully repelled coordinated attacks on three communities in Riyom Local Government Area by gunmen suspected to be Fulani militias.

Zagazola Makama report that the affected communities Rim, Angwan Wereng, and Cum came under attack between 10:50 p.m. and 11:40 p.m. on Thursday night.

The troops responded promptly to distress calls and engaged the attackers, forcing them to flee the area.

“On receipt of the information, army troops and other sister security agencies moved swiftly to the scenes and repelled the attackers,”said the sources.

No official casualties were confirmed as of the time of this report, but the situation is said to be under control while normalcy has returned to the affected areas.

Troops repel coordinated attacks on three Plateau communities

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Gunmen abduct Fulani leader in Kogi, injure wife and son

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Gunmen abduct Fulani leader in Kogi, injure wife and son

By: Zagazola Makama

Armed men have abducted a Fulani community leader, Mallam Iliyasu, during a midnight attack on his residence at the Fulani Camp in Shagari Village, Lokoja, Kogi State.

Zagazola Makama learnt that the incident, which occurred around 12:20 a.m. on Thursday, also left two of his family members his wife and his son, Abdulsalam with gunshot wounds to the arm and leg, respectively.

The sources said the attackers stormed the home, fired several shots into the air, and forcefully took the community leader to an unknown destination. The assailants also reportedly injured the victims while trying to resist the abduction.

Both injured victims were taken to Ashafa Hospital for medical attention, where they are said to be responding to treatment.

Seventeen expended AK-47 ammunition shells were recovered from the scene of the attack by security forces.

A relative of the abducted victim, Alhaji Ahmadu Yusuf, confirmed the incident and appealed for urgent intervention to secure his release.

Gunmen abduct Fulani leader in Kogi, injure wife and son

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