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Failure of Nigeria’s Election Spell Doom For Democracy in West Africa- ECOWAS

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Failure of Nigeria’s Election Spell Doom For Democracy in West Africa- ECOWAS

By: Michael Mike

The Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) Observer Mission to Nigeria has said Nigeria’s election remains a guide to other countries in West Africa and cannot just be allowed to fail as it would spell doom for democracy in the sub region.

ECOWAS, while insisting that the 2023 elections in Nigeria should set the pace for other countries to follow in West Africa,
further noted that the elections must reflect the will of the people as practiced in all democracies.

The mission, led by former President of Sierra Leone, Ernest Koroma, stated this at a meeting with ECOWAS observers on Thursday in Abuja.

Koroma, while acknowledging that election observation is never an easy responsibility, noted that the process of an election and the election result was a major challenge in electoral process.

The former Sierra Leone’s President said that the ECOWAS 250 observers to Nigeria are not expected to dictate electoral proceedings, noting this is the most competitive election so far in the country and urged the observers to abide by the principles of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The former President explained that: “Our presence in Nigeria is, therefore, more than significant. It is first and foremost a legal obligation in applying the provisions of the Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance. Our role is to observe whether the conduct, organisation, and holding of the 25th February 2023 presidential elections comply with the standards set out in the above-mentioned Protocol.

“The elections that will take place in the next two days are crucial, not only for the brotherly people of Nigeria but for the entire ECOWAS sub-region. The campaign process has been carried out without much incident. However, the forthcoming phases, namely voting, counting, and the proclamation of results, are the most decisive. What will happen on 25th February 2023 is of the utmost importance for the Nigerian citizens, but also for all of us West African citizens.

“For that reason, the ECOWAS authorities are keeping a very close eye on these elections. They call for the highest sense of responsibility from all stakeholders involved in these elections, starting with the political parties, the State authorities, the civil society stakeholders, and the entire citizens.

“We would have also succeeded in ensuring that what comes out of this elections will set the pace for the elections to come. We have two other elections in Sierra Leone and Liberia. Next year, we have critical elections. When what happens have reflect the will of the people, I am sure other countries coming after Nigeria will toll the line.”

In his remarks, the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Touray, appreciated the importance of Nigeria to West Africa, stating that the outcome of the elections will affect West Africa and the world as a whole.

Touray noted that most foreign observers deployed to observe the elections in Nigeria depend on the observations and recommendations of ECOWAS Observers, adding that its observers must report nothing but the truth.

He said: “Ahead of your deployment to your stations, you have been selected on integrity, competence and your zeal for democracy to thrive in Africa.

“When asked how I sense the direction of these elections, I see good elections in Nigeria that will reflect the will of Nigerians.

“We have deployed the largest observers. Most of the observer groups depend on what ECOWAS says or report. Therefore, your mission is important to ECOWAS and the world.

“Report the truth and nothing but the truth. Do away with fake news. ECOWAS observers must show that we can be leaders.”

Failure of Nigeria’s Election Spell Doom For Democracy in West Africa- ECOWAS

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NAN, AWALCO Partners to Promote ECOWAS Parliament

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NAN, AWALCO Partners to Promote ECOWAS Parliament

By: Michael Mike

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) has pledged to partner the Association of West African Legislative Correspondents (AWALCO) to publicise the activities of the ECOWAS Parliament, particularly its 25th anniversary celebrations.

The Managing Director of the agency, Malam Ali Muhammad Ali,, made the pledge when the leadership of the association paid him a courtesy visit in his office in Abuja on Thursday.

Ali while expressing appreciation to the association’s officials for deeming it worthy to pay him a courtesy visit, said as Africa’s biggest news content provider, NAN was home to all.

He said: “For deeming it worthy to come and pay us this courtesy call, the agency is appreciative.

“We hope that it will help the Parliament achieve its goals, and raise awareness, like you said, about its activities.

“On our part, the News Agency of Nigeria, like you know, is Africa’s biggest news content provider.”

He noted that the agency is the most authentic and biggest news hub in Africa, with a domineering influence and reach within the West African subregion.

Ali said: “So, with an association like this, certainly in the News Agency of Nigeria, you find a soulmate, a fellow traveler. You are welcome. We look forward to partnering and doing more, and the News Agency of Nigeria is your home.”

Speaking earlier, AWALCO President, Mr Innocent Odoh, explained that the purpose of the visit was to seek the collaboration and support of NAN, as the indisputable leader in terms of news credibility reportage, and viability.

He said that ECOWAS Parliament would be marking its 25th anniversary on November 16 and a series of activities had been lined up for it.

Odoh said that AWALCO, being the association of the parliament’s press corps, was fully involved in it by way of planning to give the occasion a media and publicity glitz.

He said this would help to propagate the ideals of ECOWAS in general, and ECOWAS Parliament in particular, and make the objectives of ECOWAS Commission and Parliament known globally, starting from the subregion.

He said: “In terms of viability, if we talk about the repository of news in all ramifications, in all dimensions, I think the News Agency of Nigeria comes first before any other one.

“So, what we are doing is in line with the media advocacy that we are projecting for the ECOWAS Parliament at 25.

“We can see that if the collaboration with NAN takes off as we planned it, I think it will go a long way in expanding the vision of the association.”

The AWALCO president further said that the partnership would determine how the regional bloc is run, especially at a time that so many things about ECOWAS needed to be interrogated.

“That is why we’re here, to seek that collaboration, to seek that support, how we can deepen that collaboration to ensure that the citizens of the Parliament understand what is happening around them.

“ECOWAS has a vision of 2050 but many people may not be aware of it, but collaborations like this can open up an opportunity for people to understand the vision of ECOWAS,” he added

on her part, Chief Communication Officer, ECOWAS Parliament, Mrs Uche Duru,, who was part of the delegation, in a remark, extended greetings from ECOWAS Parliament Speaker and Secretary-General to Ali and NAN’s management.

The spokesperson for the parliament said the association was beyond Nigeria, as its membership encompassed the entire West Africa, including even from member states that were threatening to exit or had already exited.

NAN, AWALCO Partners to Promote ECOWAS Parliament

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Nigeria, China May Head for Diplomatic Row Over Shooting of Immigration Officer at Chinese Firm

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Nigeria, China May Head for Diplomatic Row Over Shooting of Immigration Officer at Chinese Firm

By: Michael Mike

Nigeria is not taking lightly the shooting of an immigration officer at a Chinese firm in Jos, Plateau State.

The Minister of Interior, Hon. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo who narrated the story,
The federal government has threatened a serious diplomatic row with the Republic of China over maltreatment of a Nigerian Immigration Service officer shot by a Chinese company in Nigeria for asking for the company’s expatriate list.

Minister of Interior, Hon. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, who narrated the story on Thursday in Abuja at a stakeholders sensitisation workshop on the implementation of the Nigeria Visa policy 2025, said Nigeria is not handling the matter with kid gloves as it would be taken up as a diplomatic issue.

Tunji-Ojo lamented that the development alone is an attack on Nigeria. It will never be condoned.

He said the Immigration officer, who was on official duty, had visited the Chinese company in Jos, Plateau state, to check the list of the company’s expatriates, but the owner of the company ordered a security officer in the premises to shoot the government official.

Tunji-Ojo said: “I won’t go to China as a Nigerian, open a company and tell my security to shoot a government official in uniform. It’s never done anywhere in the world.

“These officers put their lives on the line. These officers serve this country with their all. And you will not come from anywhere and ask them to shoot them in their fatherland.

“It will no longer happen. We will take it up with you. Because that company, we (Nigerian government) have the power to withdraw their business permit Nigeria and declare them illegal.”

He wondered how it had become an offence for an Immigration officer to visit a foreign company and demand to see their expatriate list.

He said: “It will not happen again. So we’re going to be very hard. We will not stop your business. We will not overburden your business. But don’t make us inferior in our own land. No, please.

“And we’re going to be very tough on this. Because talking to you, I’m not just talking with passion on this topic, I’m talking with a lot of anger, because that guy that was shot is a Nigeria that we all swore to protect by virtue of the laws of Nigeria, by the constitution. That Immigration guy was not shot by a terrorist, is a father, he is a son to somebody. He is a husband to somebody. That cannot happen anywhere in the world.

“We will not tolerate it. Please, no agent, no company is above the law,” the Minister declared

Nigeria, China May Head for Diplomatic Row Over Shooting of Immigration Officer at Chinese Firm

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Nigeria Explores CNG Technology to Power Defence, Industrial Vehicle Fleets

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Nigeria Explores CNG Technology to Power Defence, Industrial Vehicle Fleets

By: Michael Mike

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar has led a high-level delegation on a tour of UROVESA—a renowned Spanish manufacturer of military and industrial vehicles.
The visit focused on exploring potential collaboration in Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) technology for powering Nigeria’s defence and industrial vehicle fleets.

The minister was accompanied on the visit by key figures including the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ekperikpe Ekpo; Presidential CNG Initiative representative, Engr. Michael Oluwagbemi; Engr. Henry Oki; and the Special Assistant for Gas Business and Investment to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), where they all engaged in detailed discussions with UROVESA executives.

During the visit, Tuggar emphasized the longstanding trade ties between Nigeria and Spain, noting that Spain remains one of Nigeria’s top trading partners, with Nigerian crude oil exports reaching $3.64 billion in 2023.

He lauded UROVESA’s innovative approach to producing all-terrain, armoured, tactical, and logistical vehicles, and expressed Nigeria’s growing interest in and implementation of CNG-powered solutions.

Tuggar also highlighted Nigeria’s business-friendly economic reforms under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, which have positioned the country as a prime destination for investment in clean energy technologies. The discussions provided a valuable platform for further exploration of future collaborations between UROVESA and Nigeria’s Ministry of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas) in CNG-powered vehicle production and supply.

According to a statement by the foreign affairs minister spokesman, Alkasim AbdulKadir, the engagement not only reinforced Nigeria’s commitment to a green energy future but also laid the groundwork for modernizing the nation’s defence and industrial fleets with environmentally friendly and cost-effective energy solutions.

He said the promising outcome of the discussions sets the stage for a strategic partnership that is expected to foster sustainable innovation and drive economic growth for both Nigeria and UROVESA.

Nigeria Explores CNG Technology to Power Defence, Industrial Vehicle Fleets

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