Says Electoral Act Criminalises Tribal and Sectional Campaigns, Prescribes Up to 12 Months’ Imprisonment

The Foundation for Peace Professionals (PeacePro) has urged the Federal Government and relevant law enforcement agencies to prosecute politicians who weaponise indigeneity to discriminate against political candidates, warning that such conduct may constitute a criminal offence under Nigeria’s Electoral Act 2026.

PeacePro’s Executive Director, Abdulrazaq Hamzat said a candidate’s ancestry or state of origin must not be exploited to promote political exclusion, incite sectional sentiments or undermine citizens’ participation in the democratic process.

PeacePro cited the ongoing controversy surrounding Senator Solomon Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Ogun State, whose ancestry has become a subject of political dispute.

In September 2026, Adeola challenged individuals questioning his Ogun State roots to provide evidence for their claims or face legal action. Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate Oladipupo Adebutu subsequently challenged Adeola over the matter, insisting that he was prepared to defend his position in court.

Hamzat said the controversy illustrates the danger of turning questions of ancestry into political weapons, shifting public attention away from candidates’ policies, competence, integrity and capacity to govern.

PeacePro drew attention to Section 101 of the Electoral Act 2026, which makes it an offence for a candidate, person or association to engage in campaigning or broadcasting based on religious, tribal or sectional considerations to promote or oppose a political party or candidate.

The provision prescribes a fine of ₦3 million to ₦5 million, imprisonment for up to 12 months, or both, for an individual offender upon conviction. Political parties found guilty face fines ranging from ₦30 million to ₦50 million.

PeacePro called on the Federal Government, the police and other relevant authorities to investigate complaints and prosecute those against whom sufficient evidence establishes an offence.

PeacePro warned that allowing indigeneity to become a weapon in electoral competition could deepen ethnic divisions, undermine peaceful political participation and reinforce the dangerous notion that public office belongs exclusively to people of a particular ancestry.

It urged political parties and their supporters to focus on policy choices, public accountability and the qualifications required by law rather than attempting to discredit candidates through identity-based campaigns.

The Ekiti State Government has proposed a ₦490.74 billion budget for the 2027 fiscal year, aimed at consolidating the achievements of the Biodun Oyebanji administration and advancing the state’s development agenda.

Governor Biodun Oyebanji presented the proposed budget, tagged “Budget of Sustained Progress and Prosperity,” as a framework for building on the gains of the administration’s Shared Prosperity Agenda while laying a stronger foundation for sustainable growth in the coming years.

The proposal prioritises investment across the administration’s six pillars of governance, including education and healthcare, infrastructure development, agriculture, youth development, good governance, and arts and tourism.

According to the state government’s presentation, the budget is designed to strengthen public services, improve infrastructure, promote economic opportunities and support initiatives aimed at improving the welfare of Ekiti residents.

The proposal also reflects the administration’s stated commitment to sustaining ongoing projects and programmes while pursuing long-term development goals across the state.

The 2027 budget proposal will guide the government’s spending priorities if approved by the Ekiti State House of Assembly. Its implementation will determine how effectively the proposed allocations translate into improved services, infrastructure and economic opportunities for residents.

The Oyo State Police Command have confirmed the abduction of three staff members of the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN) in Ibadan, Oyo State.

The incident has raised fresh concerns over the security of residents and workers in the state, as security agencies are expected to intensify efforts to locate the victims and secure their safe release.

Details surrounding the circumstances of the abduction, including the identities of the victims, the exact location of the incident and whether the kidnappers have made contact with their families, were not immediately available.

The police are expected to provide further information as investigations progress, while efforts to establish the whereabouts of the abducted staff members continue.

The incident adds to growing concerns about kidnapping and insecurity in parts of Oyo State, with residents calling for stronger security measures to protect lives and property.

Parents of abducted prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members have claimed that ₦50 million was paid to secure the release of their children, despite the police denying that any ransom was paid.

The development follows the abduction of 20 prospective corps members who were travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to their respective NYSC orientation camps when gunmen attacked two buses conveying them along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Umunoha, Imo State.

The parents had earlier raised the alarm over a reported ₦1 billion ransom demand, with the abductors allegedly requesting ₦50 million for each victim. The families appealed to the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, and security agencies for urgent intervention to ensure the safe return of their children.

However, the police have denied that ransom was paid to secure the victims’ release, creating a discrepancy between the account attributed to the parents and the official position of the security authorities.

The incident has raised fresh concerns over the safety of prospective corps members travelling to orientation camps and the growing threat of kidnapping along major highways. Further clarification is needed from the parents and police regarding the circumstances surrounding the reported payment and the victims’ release.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has issued the Federal Government a two-week ultimatum to take urgent measures to reduce the price of petrol and commence negotiations for a new national minimum wage. The ultimatum takes effect from Friday, October 9, 2026.

The demand was contained in a communiqué issued after a joint meeting of the NLC’s National Executive Council and Central Working Committee in Abuja. The Congress said rising inflation, declining purchasing power and the high cost of petrol had made it increasingly difficult for workers to meet basic needs.

The NLC is demanding that petrol prices be reduced to the level prevailing when the current national minimum wage was signed into law in 2024. It also wants the Federal Government to begin the process of renegotiating the national minimum wage, implement previously agreed tax relief for workers and introduce wage awards to cushion the impact of rising living costs.

Beyond wages and petrol, the Congress called for the implementation of the February 5, 2026 Terms of Settlement reached with the Joint Health Sector Unions and Assembly of Healthcare Professionals (JOHESU), as well as outstanding demands of the Joint Public Sector Negotiating Council.

The NLC warned that failure to meet the demands within the two-week period would compel the Congress to take further action, with its affiliates and allies directed to remain prepared for what the union described as decisive action.

The Oyo State Police Command has arrested three suspects in connection with the killing of six members of the same family in the state.

The suspects were taken into custody following investigations into the incident, which shocked residents and raised concerns over the safety of families in the area.

Police authorities said detectives are working to establish the circumstances surrounding the deaths and determine the roles allegedly played by the suspects.

The command is expected to provide further details as investigations progress, while the suspects remain in custody for questioning and possible prosecution.

The police have assured members of the public that efforts are ongoing to unravel the motive behind the killings and bring all those responsible to justice.

The Ekiti State Government has disclosed that the state now generates more than ₦50 billion annually in Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), describing the feat as part of the state’s economic progress as it marks its 30th anniversary.

The government said the increase in internally generated revenue has strengthened its capacity to meet its financial obligations, including the regular payment of workers’ salaries.

According to the government, improved revenue mobilisation, greater efficiency in collection and ongoing economic reforms have contributed to the growth in the state’s internally generated revenue.

The disclosure comes as Ekiti marks three decades since its creation, with the state highlighting developments recorded across various sectors, including infrastructure, education, healthcare and economic development.

The government said it would continue to pursue policies aimed at expanding the state’s economic base, attracting investment and improving the welfare of residents as Ekiti enters another phase of its development.

2027: GBENGA OLAWEPO-HASHIM EMERGES AS THE ONLY MAIN OPPOSITION TO TINUBU, A REFRESHED BRAIN WITH ROBUST POLICY PLAN

As the 2027 general election draws closer, the political space is becoming clearer. While many politicians are recycling old ideas and old quarrels, one name is standing out as the only credible and main opposition to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. That name is Dr. Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, the presidential candidate of the Accord Party.

What makes Hashim different is not noise, but substance. He comes with a refreshed brain, a new thinking and a robust policy plan that speaks directly to the hardship facing ordinary Nigerians. Labour leaders and independent analysts are already saying that Nigerians must look beyond the far right market politicians who all share the same economic ideology. The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Joe Ajaero, recently noted that Peter Obi, Atiku Abubakar and Asiwaju Bola Tinubu all belong to the same economic school, market people from far right, whose policies have continued to punish production and reward importation. Ajaero said he has looked at Gbenga Hashim’s position and found it worthy of serious public attention.

What Nigeria needs now is not another round of devaluation, subsidy removal without plan and IMF prescriptions. What Nigeria needs is a leader with a productive economy agenda built on affordable energy, massive industrialization, domestic refining, increased crude production, job creation and security of lives and property. That is exactly what Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim represents.

Unlike the opportunistic opposition in Kwara and at the national level, who want to eat their cake with the ruling party and still pretend to be opposition, Hashim is not a sekuseye politician. He is not looking for settlement. He is not jumping from one party to another to negotiate personal interest. He is offering a real alternative. In Kwara State, the Accord Party has already declared itself the only real opposition party, warning Kwarans not to waste their votes on a dead PDP and a visionless Rainbow Coalition of opportunists without ideology. With the Federal High Court affirming Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim as Accord’s presidential candidate, that same clarity is what he is bringing to the national stage, the only real opposition platform with the courage to tell the government the truth and the competence to do better.

Hashim’s plan is built on clear priorities. First is Energy First, making energy affordable and available to power industries and homes with a realistic plan starting at 605 naira per litre PMS and targeting 200 to 300 naira through domestic refining and efficiency. Second is Production Over Consumption, moving Nigeria from a sharing economy to a producing economy by raising crude production to 4 million barrels per day within 24 months and building industrial clusters. Third is Security and Jobs, linking security to economic justice by engaging the youth productively and securing farms and communities. Fourth is Accountable Governance, a government that listens, cuts waste and puts the people first.

While others are campaigning with insults and old ethnic calculations, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim is campaigning with a policy document. He is a refreshed brain in a tired political system. He is not part of the old order that created the current crisis and he is not confused about what to do. For Nigerians who want real change in 2027 and not just a change of faces, the choice is becoming clear. The 2027 election is not between APC and a scattered settlement seeking opposition. It is between the status quo of President Tinubu and the only main, prepared and policy driven opposition, Dr. Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim.

An intelligence-led operation by a combined team of the Nigerian Army, Department of State Services (DSS) and Western Nigeria Security Network, codenamed Amotekun, has killed a senior leader of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), Abdussamad Ohida, in Owo Forest, Ondo State.

Ohida, also known as Anwar, was reportedly killed alongside several other members of the terrorist group during a surprise operation on their hideout at the weekend.

Security sources said Ohida was planning attacks in some southern states ahead of the Yuletide season.

The sources said Ohida previously served as deputy to the ISWAP Central Nigeria leader, Abu Ikrimah, also known as Abu Uwais, who was arrested by the DSS in 2023.

Following Ikrimah’s arrest, Ohida reportedly assumed leadership of ISWAP activities across parts of the North-Central and southern regions, where he was involved in the planning and coordination of terrorist operations.

The sources said intelligence obtained from the interrogation of Abu Uwais helped the DSS uncover plans by Ohida to attack civilians during the forthcoming festive period and disrupt the 2027 general elections.

One of the sources said the intelligence was also corroborated by intelligence partners in the United Kingdom, who supported the operation that led to Ohida’s elimination.

The source attributed several attacks to Ohida, including the December 31, 2025, invasion of Ipele Divisional Police Station in Owo, Ondo State, where eight AK-47 rifles were reportedly carted away before the station was destroyed with explosives.

He also linked Ohida to the July 28, 2022, attack on a military checkpoint along the Suleja-Zuba Road in Niger State, which reportedly killed several soldiers, security personnel and civilians.

Other attacks attributed to him include the July 11, 2022, attack on the Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja; the April 23, 2022, attack on Ogaminana Police Station in Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi State, which killed five police officers; and the February 7, 2022, attack on the Okene Area Command police station.

The source further alleged that Ohida planned and executed the December 24, 2020, attack on a naval checkpoint in Okene, Kogi State, which resulted in the deaths of two naval officers.

The source described Ohida’s elimination as a major setback for ISWAP’s operations in central and southern Nigeria.

He said, “We may not immediately realise it, but the elimination of Abdussamad Ohida represents a significant disruption to ISWAP’s leadership structure, operational network and expansion efforts in central and southern Nigeria.

“Ohida’s elimination, coming a few months after the killing of ISIS leader Abu Bilal al-Minuki, is a very big blow to ISWAP’s efforts to expand its operational presence in Nigeria and underscores the growing efficiency of our security services.”

The Federal Government has released eight months’ salary arrears owed members of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), following the union’s recent 14-day ultimatum over unpaid entitlements.

SSANU President, Mohammed Ibrahim, confirmed the development on Wednesday, saying the release would help avert an indefinite strike by the university-based union.

Ibrahim commended the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, for his intervention and efforts toward securing the release of the funds. He said the development demonstrated the importance of constructive engagement between the Federal Government and university unions.

SSANU had earlier demanded the payment of outstanding arrears arising from the implementation of the 2026 FGN/SSANU Agreement, which took effect from January 1, 2026.

The union, however, said outstanding issues remain, including two months’ withheld salaries from the 2022 industrial action and one-year arrears linked to the 25 per cent and 35 per cent salary increases.