March 11 state elections to hold as scheduled — INEC
“It also discussed the governorship and State Assembly elections and the pending elections in Enugu East Senatorial District and the Esan Central/Esan West and Igueben Federal Constituencies in Edo.”
He said that INEC would surely conduct the rescheduled elections in Enugu State and Edo on March 11 along with the Governorship and State Assembly elections.
“The commission is aware that in some Senatorial Districts and Federal Constituencies, Declarations and Returns were not made.
“The Commission is compiling the list of the affected constituencies. A date for supplementary elections will be fixed, ” Okoye said.
Read also: U.S. urges INEC to address concerns ahead March 11 polls
Why we’ll be involved in politics — NLC president
Joe Ajaero, the president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) said that the organization will continue to get involved in politics in order to bring matters surrounding the welfare of workers to the front burner of programmes and policies of government.
Ajaero, made the assertion during a courtesy visit to some labour unions in Lagos on Thursday.
He said that the labour movement owned the Labour Party (LP).
According to him, LP is a party that has the ideology of the working class movement with its charter of workers’ demands.
“We have an era that we are entering: era of politics, and we will not shy away.
“The Nigeria Labour Congress will be involved in politics; we are already involved in politics; NLC had a political party: the Labour Party (LP), and LP participated in the recent elections.
“Nigeria must exist before we practice our unionism; anybody, who emerges as the President of Nigeria will work with us, and the rights and privileges of the workers must be guaranteed,” he said.
We are ready to meet Obi, Labour Party in court, says APC
All Progressives Congress (APC) says it is ready to meet Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate in court over his claim of electoral fraud in the February 25 presidential election.
Bayo Onanuga, Director of Media and Publicity APC Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) said this in a statement on Thursday in Abuja.
The statement was the APC PCC reaction to comments made by Obi, at a news conference in Abuja.
“We welcome the decision of Mr Obi to seek redress in court as an aggrieved party if he is convinced of the evidences of electoral frauds he will present before the tribunal as alleged.
“Going to court is part of the electoral process and it is the most decent, statesmanlike and civilised course of action to take,“ Onanuga said.
He said the APC PCC salute the decision, adding that it was better than calling supporters to the streets and instigating social unrest.
He, however, challenged some specific claims in Obi`s press address, saying that contrary to his statement, it was not true that the election was not free and fair.
Onanuga said the 2023 Presidential and National Assembly election was one of the most transparent and peaceful elections in the history of Nigeria. (NAN)
FirstBank reinforces commitment to celebrate, empower women
Folake Ani-Mumuney, Group Head, Marketing and Corporate Communications of First Bank of Nigeria Ltd. says the bank plans to dedicate the month of March to celebrating women across the world.
Ani-Mumuney, made this known in a statement made available to the press on Thursday.
According to her, the celebration is in commemoration of the International Women’s Day, scheduled for March 8.
The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day celebration, “Embrace Equity” is in furtherance of its role in promoting their socio- economic inclusion in the society.
According to her, the celebration will kick off with series of internal activities, designed to celebrate women.
“As a member of UN Women, FirstBank employs the relevant women empowerment tools, including the Women Empowerment Principles (WEPs) Gender Gap Analysis Tool in the process of assessing its performance and provides progress reports that feeds into the WEPs performance indicators,” Ani-Mumuney said.
“FirstBank has a ratio of about 39 percent : 61 percent female to men employees, while 32 per cent of women in management, driving a deliberate policy consistent with the WEPs – Equal Opportunity, Inclusion, and Nondiscrimination.
“In line with this commitment, FirstBank is partnering with UN Women on March 15, 2023 and is set to play a key role in a scheduled event driven by UN Women.
“This will showcase young women and men between the ages of 18-35 in Nigeria, who are using technological innovations and tools, to promote gender equality, women’s empowerment and inclusion.
“This is in line with the UN International Women’s Day theme for 2023, “DigitALL: Innovation and Technology for Gender Equality”, she added.
US pick to lead World Bank, Ajay Banga, to visit China, other countries
U.S. President Joe Biden’s nominee to lead the World Bank, ex-Mastercard Chief Executive Officer Ajay Banga, said he will visit Europe, Asia, Africa and potentially Latin America in coming weeks to meet with donor countries and borrowers.
Speaking with reporters at the U.S. Treasury Department, Banga said he believes the scientific evidence on climate change, and underscored the need for the bank to continue to work on poverty reduction and inequality, while also tackling the “intertwined” challenges posed by climate change.
David Malpass who announced his resignation last month after months of controversy after he fumbled an answer on whether he accepted the scientific consensus on climate change, and escalating pressure by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen for him to adopt “bolder and more imaginative” reforms at the bank.
Banga said he had already won support from India, Ghana and Kenya, but hoped to visit as many countries around the world “as logistically possible” over the next three weeks to understand their priorities and concerns so he could “hit the ground running” if he was elected. (Reuters)
