By David Owei

The implementation of the Governor’s directive to issue letters of appointment to the first batch of teachers is ongoing and neither the Head of Service nor the Chief of Staff is stalling the exercise.

Spokesperson to the State Governor, Mallam Olawale Rasheed made the clarifications in response to conflicting media reports and allegations that top officials are pushing against the issuance of the letters due to financial considerations.

The governor’s aide who reminded the public that funding seizure and new minimum wage were responsible for the recruitment delay said the directive of Mr Governor is being processed by relevant agencies.

According to him, both SUBEB and Teaching Service Commission are working seamlessly under the purview of the Ministry of Education through the Chief of Staff to ensure new teachers are rightly shared between SUBEB and TESCOM.

“Media reports that the Head of Service and the Chief of Staff are blocking the release of letters of appointments are false. The said top officials are actually working hard to ensure the first phase of the exercise is successfully completed

“The Osun State Government urges media organisations to seek official clarification before publishing reports capable of distorting facts or casting aspersions on public officers who are diligently performing their constitutional duties.

“The recruitment process is ongoing, and the public will be duly informed through official channels as milestones are reached.

“The Adeleke-led administration remains focused on delivering good governance, strengthening education, and fulfilling its promises to the people of Osun State”, the spokesperson noted.

By Our Correspondent

The Leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele on Tuesday disclosed that the ongoing amendment of the Electoral Act, 2022 would be concluded on or before December 2025, assuring Nigerians that the amendment would be used for the 2027 general elections.
Bamidele, also representing Ekiti Central in the Senate, explained that the only reason the Muhammadu Buhari administration was unable to sign the last aspect of the electoral amendment Bill was because the National Assembly transmitted it late to the Presidency then.
He disclosed this in a statement he made after the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio read President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s request to confirm Prof. Joash Amupitan (SAN) as the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Tinubu had nominated Amupitan, a Professor of Law, after the Council of States unanimously approved his appointment as the new INEC chairman last Wednesday following the exit of Professor Mahmood Yakubu.
After the Council of States unanimously approved Amupitan’s appointment, President Tinubu formally requested the upper chamber to confirm Amupitan as the chairman of the country’s electoral commission.
In his statement on Tuesday, Bamidele noted that the only reason the previous administration did not sign the last aspect of the Electoral Bill in 2022 was because it was transmitted to the Presidency late.
He further explained: “Before then, we had made our first proposal. We sent the bill to the then president, and it was signed. When further observations were made especially when certain people were disenfranchised as statutory delegates and the National Assembly wanted to make corrections, late former President Muhammadu Buhari said the bill was coming too close to election.
“And late President Buhari then observed that he did not want to be misunderstood by the public. That is why the bill was not signed then. Between now and December 2025, we will ensure that the amendment of the Electoral Act, 2022 is concluded so that it will not be too close to the 2027 Elections.”
Speaking on the review of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (amended) Bamidele further assured Nigerians that the present review would scale through because relevant stakeholders, especially Nigerian Governors Forum and Conference of Speakers of State Legislatures of Nigeria, were meaningfully engaged in the overriding public interests.
Bamidele, also Vice Chairman of the 1999 Constitution Review Committee in the Senate, dismissed speculations that the presidency would resist the effort of the National Assembly to successfully amend the grundnorm.
According to him, I do not envisage that there will be any resistance because public institutions are working with the National Assembly for the successful review of the 1999 Constitution. In this amendment, global best practices will also be taken into consideration in the area of domestication of international treaties and agreements
On the issue of criticism by the opposition, Bamidele noted that no matter how well a government was performing, the opposition would never agree that the government was doing well because they too were plotting to reclaim the presidency.
He further explained: “Part of what they will love to see is to see the ruling party fighting on a daily basis, throwing out correspondences from the presidency or whatever is coming from the executive. That is what will make them happy. But our focus is on rebuilding Nigeria, stabilising our polity and growing our economy. And we will never be distracted from this goal.
On the agenda of the 10th Senate for the third legislative year, Bamidele said that the National Assembly “has a lot of issues to deal with in this session, ranging from the amendment of the 2022 Electoral Act to the review of the 1999 Constitution, among others.”

By George Mgbeleke
The Senate, on Thursday at plenary, passed for second reading, a bill seeking to establish the National Agency for Malaria Eradication (NAME), an initiative, aimed at holistically addressing the country’s worrisome menace of malaria.

The bill titled: “A Bill for an Act to Establish the National Agency for Malaria Eradication and for Related Matters, 2025 (SB. 172),” was sponsored by Senator Ned Nwoko (APC, Delta North) and presented during plenary session.

Leading debate on the general principles of the bill, Nwoko noted that, according to the World Health Organisation’s 2024 report, Nigeria accounted for over 184,000 out of 600,000 annual global malaria deaths, representing the highest in the world.

The lawmaker described the situation as worrisome and undoubtedly a national emergency requiring immediate and coordinated legislative action.

He observed that malaria is not merely a public health issue but a structural crisis that impairs maternal health, drains economic productivity, and impedes national development.

According to him, the disease was responsible for approximately 11% of maternal deaths in Nigeria, contributing to miscarriages, infant deaths, stillbirths, and severe anaemia.

The politician stressed that beyond the health impact, the economic toll, including the loss of millions of man-hours, reduced business productivity, and a growing burden on healthcare infrastructure.

The bill proposed a centralised and autonomous agency tasked with coordinating national malaria eradication efforts.

The agency will also have the mandate to formulate and implement national policies on malaria eradication, coordinate inter-agency and sectoral responses with legal authority, mobilise and manage resources efficiently and transparently as well as support vaccine research and genetic innovations targeting malaria.

Senator Nwoko faulted the current structure of malaria control in Nigeria, describing it as fragmented and ineffective, stating that the National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP) lacked operational capacity while also saying that the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA) has limited reach.

“A fragmented structure cannot confront a mutating threat. We need a unified, science-driven, and legislatively backed institution with the singular mandate to end malaria in Nigeria,” he declared.

The legislator cited the global urgency and funding mobilised during the COVID-19 pandemic, wondering why the global inaction on malaria.

“If malaria were endemic to Europe or North America, we would not still be grappling with it a century later,” he said.

After his presentation, the bill received support across party lines from lawmakers including Senators Victor Umeh (LP, Anambra Central), Ede Dafinone (APC, Delta Central), Babangida Oseni (APC, Jigawa North West), and Onyewuchi Francis (LP, Imo East), who all endorsed the proposed agency as a bold and overdue step toward malaria elimination.

The Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin (APC, Kano North) referred the bill to the Senate Committee on Health for further legislative action, mandating the Panel to submit its report to the Chamber within four weeks.

End.