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Obi of Onitsha Declares War against Osu Culture

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The Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe, has said the time has come for the Osu caste system to be abolished in Igboland.

Describing the practice as antiquated, unlawful and obnoxious, Achebe called for a concerted war against the act.

The Osu caste system, our correspondent learnt, is a practice in Igbo land that discourages social interaction and marriages with a group of persons regarded as slaves. The stigma is transferable to even children yet unborn.

Speaking at a workshop on Thursday in Awka, Anambra State, organised by the Initiative for the Eradication of Traditional and Cultural Stigmatisation in Our Society,  a non-governmental organisation, Achebe said the practice had no place in a 21st century.

He urged traditional rulers in Igbo land to stamp out the practice in their domains, while hailing the body (IFETACSIOS) for its initiative in that regard.

He said, “There is the need for people from all parts of Igbo land to come together and agree that this obnoxious cultural practice, which our fore fathers introduced, no longer have effect on us and our children.

“We are happy with the coming of IFETACSIOS group on this project and we are going to collaborate with them to ensure we end this bad culture that has held our people backward for many years now”

The President of IFETACSIOS, Oge Maduagwu, in her address, sought the help of the traditional rulers in the area in the abolition of the Osu caste system.

Maduagwu said abolishing the system would restore the dignity of human beings, promote peaceful relationship and reduce communal conflicts.

She said the Osu caste system had wreaked havoc on the socio-cultural, economic and political lives of the Igbo.

She said, “In Igbo land, it is very sad to note that a young man and young lady might be courting, but the moment either of the two discovers that the other is an osu, he or she will opt out of the relationship.”

According to her, the group has extended the advocacy on the abolition of the harmful practice to Imo and Enugu states.

Maduagwu disclosed that they would visit Ebonyi and Abia before the end of 2018, saying, “The big dream of IFETACSIOS is the coming together of all the eastern states of Imo, Ebonyi, Anambra, Enugu and Abia to sign an accord on the abolition of Osu caste system one day.”

She said apart from meeting with the leadership of the traditional rulers, the group had engaged various community leaders to tackle peculiar challenges faced by communities with a view to ensuring total eradication of the system.

The Punch

                

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Edo Guber: Tribunal Dismisses Ighodalo’s Petition, Affirms Okpebholo As Duly Elected

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The Edo Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Abuja, on Wednesday, affirmed Senator Monday Okpebholo as the governor.

A three-member panel headed by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, dismissed the petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Asue Ighodalo, against the outcome of the September 21, 2024, governorship election.

In its judgment, the panel ruled that the petitioners failed to call competent witnesses to prove the allegations of non-compliance with the Electoral Act.

‎‎In the lead judgment read by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, the Tribunal said non-compliance must be proven convincingly. It noted that the failure of the petitioners to call polling unit officers, presiding officers or even voters during the election proved fatal to their petition.

The Tribunal stated that most of the 19 witnesses called by the PDP merely gave hearsay evidence during the proceedings.

‎‎Justice Kpochi faulted what he termed as the PDP’s reliance on Section 137 of the Electoral Act to dump documents on the Tribunal. The Tribunal noted that it’s not for it to scrutinise documents tendered by the petitioners.

‎‎The Edo Tribunal further said the BVAS machines tendered by the petitioners remain dormant, as it’s not the duty of the Tribunal to access the data in the machines.

‎‎In the unanimous decision, the Tribunal thereby restated that to prove overvoting as alleged by Ighodalo and the PDP, there’s a need to tender the voters register, BVAS machines and polling unit results or Forms EC8A.

Following that, the Tribunal dismissed the petition of Asue Ighodalo, candidate of PDP for lacking merit.

‎‎INEC had declared that Okpebholo of the APC secured 291,667 votes to defeat Ighodalo who got 247,655 votes. PDP approached the Tribunal to challenge the results from 765 polling units of the 4,519 units in Edo State.

‎The PDP candidate faulted the outcome of the election on the grounds of non-compliance with the Electoral Act and the failure of Monday Okphebholo to secure a majority of the lawful votes cast. Putting that in context, the PDP governorship candidate alleged improper computation of votes by INEC, non-serialisation of electoral materials and over-voting.

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Sen Natasha Defies Ban, Holds Rally in Kogi, Receives Rousing Welcome

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Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, on Tuesday, received a rousing welcome from her supporters and residents of the Ihima community of Kogi State, despite the government’s ban on rallies and processions.

As early as 8am, her supporters from the five local government areas of Kogi Central Senatorial District that Akpoti-Uduaghan represents flooded the Ihima community of Okehi Local Government Area (LGA) to welcome the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) lawmaker.

Several local musicians took turns entertaining the people who attended the celebration while they awaited the arrival of the female lawmaker.

It did not, however, take long before the embattled senator arrived at the place in a white helicopter, eliciting applause from her teeming, jubilant supporters.

“Yesterday, we heard on the news that rallies and gatherings will not be allowed, that roads will be blocked, and convoys leading into the state will not be allowed. I knew that we were the targets. But then I said, this is not political season, this is not campaign time,” the lawmaker told her supporters and constituents.

“We are not having a rally. This is just me, the Senator representing Kogi Central, coming down to her people to celebrate this festive time –  the Sallah with you, and there is nothing wrong with that. I am breaking no law. This is Nigeria. We have the right to be free, to express our choice in gatherings and celebrations.”

Her return comes hours after the Kogi State Government banned public gatherings and processions, citing security threats.

This was followed by the imposition of a curfew in the area by the Okehi Local Government Area chairman, Amoka Monday, and a warning from the police for her to cancel the event.

Despite the warnings, the lawmaker told the crowd of supporters that no one can stop her from coming home.

“Nobody and nothing can stop me from coming home. I’m an Ebira woman; this is my land. I’m the daughter of the late Jimoh Abdul Akpoti. I know my roots; I’m not a bastard, and I’m not afraid of anybody,” the PDP senator said.

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Edo Guber Tribunal Delivers Judgment Today

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The Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, sitting in Abuja, has
scheduled Wednesday, April 2, 2025, to deliver its judgment on the petition filed by Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) challenging the victory of Governor Monday Okpebholo in the September 21, 2024, gubernatorial election.

A three-member panel, led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, reserved judgment on March 3 after parties in the suit concluded their final arguments.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had on September 22 declared Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the election with 291,667 votes, defeating Ighodalo, who polled 247,274 votes, and Labour Party’s Olumide Akpata, who garnered 22,763 votes.

Dissatisfied with the outcome, the PDP and its candidate approached the tribunal, alleging widespread irregularities, including
over-voting, ballot serialisation issues, errors in collation, and miscalculations in results.

In the suit marked EPT/ED/GOV/02/2024,
Ighodalo presented a senior technical officer from INEC’s ICT department as a witness, who tendered 154 BVAS machines as evidence to substantiate claims of
over-voting.

Adopting his final address, Ighodalo further alleged that results from 765 polling units were manipulated at the collation centers and that errors in computation affected the final outcome.

He urged the tribunal to nullify the Certificate of Return issued to Okpebholo and declare him the rightful winner of the election.

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