News
INEC denied us the right to vote – Kogi residents, fault ‘margin of lead principle’
The residents, who were mainly dwellers of Ogori/Magongo local government area in an interview with SaharaReporters, faulted the electoral body for applying a “margin of lead principle” to cancel the earlier rescheduled governorship election in their council.
The INEC had announced the cancellation of the election in 67 polling units in the council where election did not take place and rescheduled them for November 18. Surprisingly, the rescheduled election was cancelled following the final declaration of the winner.
Some residents of the area had alleged that voting took place over the night as ballot papers were thumb printed secretly till the early Saturday morning, ahead of the official election process despite the absence of INEC officials.
INEC through its Head of Voter Education and Public Enlightenment, Haliru Haruna, had said the commission had commenced an investigation into the matter, adding that the public would be informed about the outcome.
Despite this, INEC still went ahead to declare Usman Ododo of ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the election, citing a “principle of margin of lead.”
One of residents of the local government who spoke on the decision of INEC, described the situation as discriminatory towards the people.
He said, “They are using that (the principle of lead margin) excuse to disenfranchise us; to stop us from exercising our fundamental rights in other words, denying us the access to vote. That could lead to a lot of denial in the real sense of whosoever won the election. What we are saying is that INEC was biased in its officiating for them to have produced results before the accreditation of voters for the election. It is too bad. That anomaly cut across the state. We are not just speaking for our local government or our own area.”
Another resident added, “We know what they are doing is not right. As a result, INEC should not deny us access to vote. INEC is deliberately disenfranchising us from exercising our fundamental human right.”
…moves online services to www.enuguairlines.ng
Enugu Air has announced the launch of its new official website, enuguairlines.ng, as part of efforts to provide passengers and customers with a better, safer and more convenient digital experience.
The airline said the migration to the new website is designed to improve how passengers connect with Enugu Air and access its services online, including flight bookings, schedules and the latest updates.
Announcing the development, the airline said: “We’ve moved! We’re innovating! We’ve migrated to a better, safer and convenient website to connect you to the world.”
Passengers can now access Enugu Air’s online services through its new web address, enuguairlines.ng, which the airline described as its new digital home.
The airline urged passengers and prospective travellers to save the new web address and use it for flight bookings, checking schedules and obtaining the latest information about its operations.
“Same Enugu Air. New web address,” the airline stated, emphasising that the change represents an improvement in its digital platform while retaining the Enugu Air brand and services.
The airline further encouraged customers to visit, www.enuguairlines.ng for all flight-related information and online services.
It further stated that the old website, enuguairlines•com has been discarded and no longer in use.
A kidnapped female police officer has been found dead in Ebonyi State after a suspected member of a kidnapping syndicate was arrested and led police operatives to the scene where her remains were recovered.
The Nigeria Police Force disclosed this in its state-by-state operational update issued by Force Public Relations Officer
Force Headquarters, Ani Iniedu on Monday, detailing several arrests, rescues and recoveries recorded across the country between September 19 and 20, 2026.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested following a sustained intelligence-led and technology-based investigation into the kidnapping of the female officer.
The suspect reportedly led combined police teams to the crime scene, where the remains of the officer were recovered.
The police said the case is being investigated by the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) in Abakaliki.
In a separate operation in Adamawa State, police operatives rescued two kidnapped victims from a suspected kidnappers’ hideout in Shako Forest, Toungo Local Government Area.
The operation, carried out on September 20 following actionable intelligence, also led to the recovery of two magazines containing 10 rounds of 7.62×39mm live ammunition.
A National Identification Number (NIN) card, mobile phone, passport and chain were also recovered from the suspected hideout.
In the Federal Capital Territory, police arrested 334 suspects during coordinated raids on criminal hotspots, black spots and uncompleted buildings across several locations.
The operation, conducted on September 19, also resulted in the recovery of various quantities of substances suspected to be illicit drugs.
Meanwhile, police in Anambra State arrested a suspected child trafficker who was allegedly intercepted while travelling with a six-month-old baby boy.
The baby was recovered and handed over to the appropriate authorities for necessary action, according to the police.
In Kaduna State, four suspected members of a kidnapping syndicate were arrested following intelligence-led operations.
Police said the suspects confessed to their alleged involvement in kidnapping and provided information about fleeing accomplices. A locally made Dane gun was recovered.
Another suspected kidnapping syndicate member was arrested at Soba Market in the state. Police said the suspect also confessed and gave information implicating five fleeing accomplices.
In Ogun State, police arrested a suspect linked to a fatal shooting incident in Isara, Remo North Local Government Area.
One single-barrel gun, one live cartridge and one expended shell were recovered during the operation.
In Imo State, a suspect was arrested during a raid on a suspected criminal gathering at Nekede, Owerri West Local Government Area, with police recovering a locally made cut-to-size single-barrel gun.
Police in Ekiti State also arrested two suspects linked to multiple shop-breaking and stealing incidents in Ado-Ekiti and recovered suspected stolen iron rods.
In another operation in Ado-Ekiti, police recovered an abandoned white sack containing a pump-action gun loaded with two live cartridges and a locally made single-barrel gun from a farmland.
In Benue State, police tactical teams, supported by personnel of the Police Mobile Force and military, intervened in a renewed communal conflict at Akpa-Mbakor Community in Tarka Local Government Area.
The security teams dispersed the rampaging youths and restored normalcy in the area, according to the police.
In Oyo State, police arrested a truck driver allegedly involved in a fatal road traffic incident along the Ijebu-Ode/Idi Ayunre Road.
The truck was impounded for further inspection and investigation.
The police said all the cases remain under investigation by the respective State Criminal Investigation Departments.
Teachers trained in Nigeria and Ghana are no longer eligible to apply for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) in England under the United Kingdom’s overseas-trained teacher application route.
The change took effect on September 9 and means teachers trained in the two West African countries can no longer use the route to obtain QTS, a status recognised by many schools in England.
The UK Department for Education said countries included in the scheme must meet specific requirements to ensure that applicants’ qualifications, professional standing and teaching experience can be properly verified. One of the requirements is that a country must have a national regulator capable of confirming a teacher’s professional status and providing authenticated references.
According to the department, Nigeria and Ghana did not meet the reference-verification requirement.
“Our data shows that more than 70% of applications from teachers in Ghana and Nigeria include work history references that use public email addresses, such as Gmail or Hotmail, rather than a school’s official email domain. This means assessors spend additional time and resources trying to verify information provided in applications,” the department said.
The UK department said about 90 percent of applications are assessed within 12 months.
India was also removed from the eligible list because it does not have a national regulator capable of confirming teachers’ professional standing.
South Africa is now the only African country remaining on the list of countries whose teachers can use the QTS application route.
The department said the verification process was necessary to ensure that information provided by applicants was genuine and that teachers awarded QTS possessed the required skills and experience to teach in England.
To apply for QTS, overseas-trained teachers must have a valid passport, an undergraduate degree equivalent to a UK bachelor’s degree and professional recognition as a teacher in the country where they trained.
Applicants must also have completed any mandatory induction requirements needed for full teacher registration in their country of qualification.
They are required to demonstrate that they are qualified to teach children aged between five and 16 and have at least nine months of teaching experience gained after qualifying as a teacher.
Applicants must also provide employment references that verify their work history and use an email address linked to the school’s official domain.
Depending on the country where a teacher trained, additional requirements may include qualifications to teach pupils aged between 11 and 16 and a specialism in subjects such as mathematics, science, biology, chemistry, physics, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Mandarin, Russian or Spanish.
However, because teachers in England are employed by individual schools rather than the Department for Education, schools may consider alternative routes into teaching.
The department said teachers who are no longer eligible to use the QTS application service can explore other routes into teaching in England.
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