By our Correspondent

The incumbent Deputy President of the Senate , Senator Barau Jibrin was on Tuesday rated as the most Outstanding holder of the position since 1999.

The rating as noted by journalists that have been covering the National Assembly since June 1999, was based on his highest number of bills sponsorship within 40 months of the current 10th Senate which is 49 , out of which five had been passed into law and got presidential assent .

The journalists under the aegis of Senate Press Corps , also anchor the award on the fact that out of the five distinguished Nigerians that had occupied the position since 1999, only Barau Jibrin had the rare privilege of serving as Chairman of Appropriations Committee at different times in both the House of Representatives and the Senate .

Deputy Speakership of the ECOWAS Parliament being held by Barau at the regional parliament , was also listed as one of the things that stood him out among his predecessors .

Barau as contained in the citation read before the presentation of the award , through bills sponsorship , facilitated the establishment of the North West Development Commission , Federal University of Science and Technology , Kabo and Federal Medical Centre , Gwarzo , Kano State .

Elated by the award , Senator Barau Jibrin in his response , said it will serve as propeller for him to do more for his constituents , the Senate and Nigerians generally .

“I am truly grateful and deeply appreciate this gesture. This recognition will serve as a propeller, motivating me to do even more. As the popular saying goes, to whom much is given, much is expected.

“By conferring this honour on me, you are not only acknowledging what I have done but also challenging me to do more.

“I want to assure you that I will not let you down. I will not let the Senate down, I will not let the National Assembly down, and I will not let the entire legislature or our country down.

“I promise to continue doing more for the development of the legislature and, indeed, for the advancement and overall development of our country”, he said .

By Correspondent

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has warned the Sokoto State Government against continued interference with the party’s campaign activities in the state, declaring that the State Governor would be held personally responsible for any violence against the opposition in his state.
In a statement signed by Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the National Publicity Secretary of the party, the ADC condemned what it described as a growing spate of political obstruction in Sokoto State as the opposition party prepares to launch its campaign in the State, describing such actions as a deliberate attempt to intimidate the opposition and undermine the democratic rights of Nigerians.

“The Sokoto State Government must understand that governing a State does not confer ownership. Public office is a temporary mandate from the people, not a licence to suppress political competition. No governor has the power to decide which party can campaign, which candidate can speak, or which political choices the people of Sokoto are allowed to consider,” the party said.

The ADC described the alleged interference with its campaign activities as political sabotage and a direct assault on the constitutional rights of opposition parties to organise and mobilise support ahead of the elections.

“We call on the Sokoto State Government to immediately end all efforts to frustrate our lawful political activities and guarantee a level playing field for all political parties. We also remind security agencies and other public institutions that their responsibility is to the Constitution and the Nigerian people, not to the political interests of the party in power.”

The party warned that public officials who abuse their authority and obstruct lawful political activities must be prepared to face the consequences of their actions under the law, no matter how long it takes.

“Let there be no misunderstanding. The ADC will campaign in Sokoto State. We will not be intimidated, obstructed or pushed out of any part of Nigeria simply because those in power are afraid of political competition. Democratic participation is not a privilege to be granted by a governor. It is a right guaranteed by the Constitution.”

The ADC further stated that the growing intolerance of the ruling party towards opposition activities reflects its fear of facing the electorate in a free and fair contest.

“If the ruling party believes it has served the people well, it should have nothing to fear from an open contest. Intimidation cannot manufacture public support, and obstruction cannot take away the people’s right to choose their leaders. The people of Sokoto, like all Nigerians, deserve the opportunity to listen to competing ideas and make their own decisions.”

The party called on its members, supporters and the people of Sokoto State to remain peaceful and law-abiding, while insisting that it would continue to defend its right to campaign freely in every part of the country.

“The future of Sokoto belongs to the people of Sokoto, not to any governor or political party. No government has the right to veto democracy,” the statement concluded.

By Peter Udeh,Enugu

The Enugu State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has reacted to the controversy that trailed the visit of the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, Mr Peter Obi, to the state last week.

lt was gathered that less than 24 hours before Obi’s visit for a town hall meeting, the NDC camp alleged that the state government had instructed the owners of the venue booked for the event to deny them access.

However, the event was eventually held, with the venue owners categorically stating that the NDC had not booked the facility but had instead used a medical organisation as a front.

In a statement on Monday, Steve Oruruo, Spokesperson and Director of Public Communications of the Enugu APC Campaign Council, accused the NDC of contriving layers of spurious allegations

According to Oruruo, “Silence could have been golden, save for the brazen frivolity that characterised the chronicled and dramatised falsehood intentionally deployed to embarrass and impugn the image of the entire state, and invariably validate their next lie in the sequence of street-level mendacities, while an unsuspecting section of the populace may remain confused.”

He called on the people of the state to rise above what he described as barefaced antics, gimmicks and shenanigans from the pit of hell.

He said the explanation by the event centre owners had exposed the NDC’s alleged lying machinery, stressing that “one Dr Sebastine Chuks Eze, a disguised client who paraded himself as the Registrar of the Nigeria Institute of Healthcare Givers and Medical Social Work Practitioners, in which he assented to the right of the aforesaid management to halt any activity, meeting, or event not conducted strictly in accordance with the stipulated rules of engagement, eventually metamorphosed into an NDC contract to host a town hall meeting at the behest of former Governor Peter Obi.”

Oruruo stated that, in a fruitless bid to deceive what he described as a highly elitist and intellectually persuaded Enugu electorate, Mrs Ada Ogbu and her dramatis personae threw caution to the wind in what perhaps turned out to be an attempt to muddy the waters through unforced errors.

“Where is the ecclesiastical rectitude, untainted probity, and self-acclaimed morality that former Governor Peter Obi preaches? Have they not been cascaded to Enugu NDC members?” Oruruo queried.

He further stated that “Enugu NDC has failed on arrival. It is almost non-existent in Enugu and perhaps gains its only infinitesimal traction whenever the state government or the name of our erudite Governor is mentioned in its tales of woes.

“Mischievously linking uncharitable words or deeds, without verifiable facts, to a revered state that the NDC purportedly intends to govern is antithetical to the minimum acceptable trust values and the widely acknowledged enviable security profile of Enugu State.”

While urging Mrs Ada Ogbu to apologise to the people of Enugu State, the APC said she would realise the extent to which she had offended the sensibilities and temperament of residents.

Oruruo said the 2027 elections should be about issues, ideas and the definitive capacity to deliver, stressing that the state remained peaceful and accommodating.