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Senate Leader Pledges Inclusive Zonal Hearings On Constitution

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Senate Leader Pledges Inclusive Zonal Hearings On Constitution

Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele has assured Nigerians that the forthcoming zonal public hearings on the proposed amendments to the 1999 Constitution will be inclusive and participatory.

Bamidele, who represents Ekiti Central Senatorial District, gave the assurance in a midterm statement released to journalists yesterday.

“The Constitution Review Committee will soon commence zonal public hearings. We assure Nigerians that the process will be inclusive and participatory,” he said.

He emphasised the need for far-reaching constitutional reforms to correct long-standing structural imbalances in the federation and deepen Nigeria’s democracy.

The lawmaker further said the 10th Assembly has made significant legislative progress, but its vision goes beyond passing bills.

“Our legislative agenda goes beyond numbers,” Bamidele said. “It reflects the National Assembly’s expanded oversight responsibilities and its responsiveness to citizen concerns.”

According to him, between June 2023 and June 2025, a total of 983 bills were introduced, 477 in the first session and 506 in the second, marking a 6% increase. He further stated that bill passage rose more significantly by 232%, from 25 in the first session to 83 in the second, while Executive bills passed also doubled, from 13 to 26.

The Senate Leader also listed the Student Loan (Access to Higher Education) Act, 2024 and the Tax Reform Bills, 2025 as key legislative highlights.

He disclosed that the student loan programme, administered through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), has received over one million applications, with more than 500,000 students already benefitting.

“This is real progress in human capital development,” he said.

On economic legislation, Bamidele said the tax reform bills currently awaiting presidential assent are projected to enhance investor confidence and could grow Nigeria’s GDP from $363.8 billion to $1 trillion by 2030.

Responding to persistent criticism that the legislature is “rubber-stamping” executive actions, Bamidele defended the Senate, saying it is a strategy of constructive engagement.

“The adversarial posture of previous Assemblies often hampered governance,” he said. “This Assembly has pursued constructive engagement without compromising our constitutional independence.”

He also highlighted increased Senate oversight activities, with the number of petitions handled rising from 50 to 80 in the past year, and 215 executive appointments confirmed during the first session.

Looking ahead, Bamidele said the Senate would prioritise fiscal and monetary stability, infrastructure and security, and reducing inflation.

He also noted that electoral reform remains a top priority. “We must work together to build a political structure that reflects our aspirations and protects our democracy,” he said.

Reaffirming the Senate’s commitment to democratic deepening and national development, Bamidele called on citizens to actively participate in the ongoing legislative process.

“We are ready for the road ahead—and we invite all Nigerians to walk it with us,” he declared.

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2027 Election: Tinubu’s Ex-Minister Adelabu Speaks On Dumping APC

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The immediate past Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has dismissed reports that he is planning to defect from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Allied People’s Movement (APM) ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Naija News reports that Adelabu made the clarification in a statement issued on Friday in Ibadan, Oyo State, by his media aide, Femi Awogboro.

The statement followed reports alleging that Adelabu’s personal assistant, Ajiboye Akande, had held talks with members of the APM as part of moves to facilitate the former minister’s defection.

Reacting to the speculation, Adelabu described the claim as false and unfounded, insisting that neither he nor his aide was involved in any plan to leave the ruling party.

“He remains a committed member of the APC and continues to hold the President and National Leader of the party, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in the highest regard as his political mentor,” the statement said.

The former minister also reaffirmed his confidence in the APC leadership and pledged to abide by legitimate decisions taken by the party.

It added, “Chief Adelabu believes in the party, respects its leadership, and remains committed to the democratic process. Given his well-known decency and integrity in politics, he is always prepared to respect the legitimate decisions of the party’s national leadership.”

Adelabu urged members of the public and his supporters to disregard the defection reports, describing them as an attempt to create unnecessary political confusion.

 

-Source: Politics Nigeria

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FULL LIST: APC Uploads 13 Governorship Candidates to INEC Portal

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The All Progressives Congress (APC) has intensified preparations for the 2027 general elections with the submission of nomination details for 13 governorship candidates to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The party is working to beat the August 8 deadline set by the electoral body for the submission of governorship and State House of Assembly candidates across the country.

A senior APC official disclosed that the nomination details of the candidates had already been processed and uploaded through INEC’s nomination portal, while documentation for additional candidates was being finalised.

According to the official, the party remains confident that all 28 governorship candidates and their running mates will be successfully submitted before the deadline expires.

Party sources said the APC’s Information and Communication Technology team has been handling the uploading process while ensuring that all required documents meet INEC’s specifications.

However, the party is facing challenges with the submission of candidates for State Houses of Assembly.

The source revealed that technical issues affecting the INEC nomination portal have slowed down the process for the assembly candidates.

Despite the setback, the APC expressed optimism that the problem would be resolved quickly.

“Our ICT team has already scanned and prepared the documents for immediate upload once the issues are resolved,” the official said.

The party maintained that preparations were progressing smoothly in most states despite concerns raised by some aspirants and stakeholders following the outcome of various primaries.

Reacting to reports of dissatisfaction among some party members, APC Director of Publicity, Bala Ibrahim, said efforts were ongoing to reconcile aggrieved stakeholders and strengthen unity within the party.

According to him, the APC reconciliation committee has already commenced engagement with affected members.

“As for the disaffection that the emergence of some of these candidates may have caused, the reconciliation committee is working,” Ibrahim said.

“We are hoping that, at the end of the day, all grievances will be resolved. All the aggrieved parties will come together and forge ahead.”

He stressed that the party remained focused on building a united front ahead of the elections.

Ibrahim also urged candidates to remain committed to the APC’s policies and programmes while taking the message of President Bola Tinubu Renewed Hope agenda to voters across the country.

He said party members must work collectively to strengthen the APC’s chances at the polls.

INEC had opened its portal for governorship and State House of Assembly nominations on July 18.

The commission fixed August 8 as the deadline for the submission of candidates’ particulars.

Under the timetable released by the electoral body, personal details of candidates will be published on August 29 to enable public scrutiny.

The deadline for withdrawal and substitution of candidates has been fixed for September 19.

In a related development, the APC recently announced the successful completion of the upload of all its presidential and National Assembly candidates to the INEC Candidate Nomination Portal.

The party described it as a major milestone in its preparations for the 2027 general elections.

The exercise saw the submission of 471 candidates, including the presidential ticket, Senate candidates and House of Representatives aspirants.

APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, hailed the development and commended party officials involved in the process.

“I congratulate our candidates, leaders, and members of APC on the successful 100% upload of our Presidential, Vice Presidential, Senate, and House of Representatives candidates on the INEC Candidate Nomination Portal (ICNP),” he said.

“With this milestone achieved, our focus now shifts to mobilisation and preparations for a successful campaign and decisive victory at the polls.”

The successful upload also confirmed President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima as the APC presidential ticket for the 2027 election.

The development came shortly after INEC extended the deadline for the submission of presidential and National Assembly candidates following appeals from some political parties that were unable to meet the initial deadline.

The APC had criticised opposition parties over the extension, insisting that it had completed its submissions before the original closing date.

Recall that INEC later announced an extension of the deadline after receiving requests from political parties through the Inter-Party Advisory Council.

The electoral commission said the decision was taken to allow parties complete their uploads while ensuring broad participation in the electoral process.

Source: Politics Nigeria

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BREAKING: APC Sitting Senator Dumps Party, Joins New Political Party

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APC Schedules July 24 NEC For Ganduje Replacement

The senator representing Osun Central Senatorial District in the Senate, Olubiyi Fadeyi, has dumped the All Progressives Congress and returned to the Peoples Democratic Party.

PUNCH Online reports that Fadeyi, alongside four other National Assembly members, dumped the Peoples Democratic Party in July 2025.

He, however, lost the APC ticket to contest the 2027 general election to Mr. Adekunle Adegoke (SAN).

Announcing his return to the PDP during a telephone interview with our correspondent on Thursday, Fadeyi said, “I am back in the PDP led by the FCT Minister, His Excellency, Nyesom Wike. I have already written to the Senate.

“I can also confirm to you that I am the candidate for Osun Central Senatorial District for the 2027 Senate election.”

Stating his reasons for dumping the APC, in his letter to the Senate, Fadeyi referred to how the 2027 National Assembly primary for Osun Central was conducted by the Osun APC.

“I write to formally tender my resignation from the All Progressives Congress (APC), effective immediately. This decision has not been taken lightly. I joined the APC as a progressive party in good faith to support Mr President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, in his ancestral home, which falls within my senatorial district, Osun Central.

“Having got assurances and an agreement reached by Mr President to give me the sole ticket to run for the senatorial seat under the APC in Osun Central, which was passed down to our leader of the party by Mr President, I believed that those understandings would be honoured and that the party would uphold the principles of fairness, equity, mutual respect and internal democracy.

“Regrettably, recent developments from the leadership of the APC in Osun State have created serious trust issues within the party and made my continued membership of the party untenable. It was expressly agreed that the process for selecting candidates would be conducted on the basis of consensus. However, no consensus process was genuinely conducted, nor were party primaries held in a transparent and acceptable manner.

“This departure from our collective understanding has eroded confidence and undermined trust within the party. Furthermore, the manner in which decisions were taken appeared to disregard the authority and leadership of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, whose commitment to due process, party cohesion and democratic values is well known,” Fadeyi’s letter to the Senate President partly read.

He also expressed concern over the decision to hand return tickets to the other colleagues — a serving senator and three House of Representatives members — who defected with him, while denying him the 2027 ticket.

He said the decision to dump the APC was not in opposition to Tinubu but was informed by his conviction that democratic principles, mutual trust and respect for agreements must always prevail.

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