Headline

2023: Jonathan Recommends Removal Of Section 84 Of Electoral Act

Published

3 years ago

May 27, 2022

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has recommended the removal of the controversial Section 84 of the new Electoral Act to allow political parties to decide modalities for candidates’ elections.

Jonathan gave the recommendation at the public presentation of a book by former Minister of State Power, Dr Mohammed Wakil, on Thursday in Abuja.

The former president said that the National Assembly should allow political parties to have the leverage of doing certain things differently, as their needs were different.

“Give parties the leverage. The key thing is that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), is regulating them.

“They mentor them, and the system they will adopt in selecting their candidates must be documented in their constitution and copies deposited with INEC. That is what will be used to judge that party.

“Parties are not parastatals of government and the National Assembly cannot make laws that choke the political parties. That is my take on this controversial issue,” he said.

Jonathan also rated as low, the ongoing primaries by political parties to elect candidates for the 2023 general elections because of provisions of the 2022 Electoral Act.

He said that the primary where only elected delegates were allowed to elect candidates, was already a failed process.

“The National Assembly made alterations to the Electoral Law, and now only what they call the `elected delegates’ are to elect people that would vote. Then one day Nigerians will go to the polls and think they are voting a president?

“But who presented presidential candidates for you? Very few people at the national level, at the state level, at the local districts, at the federal and state constituencies.”

Jonathan cited a Federal Constituency in Bayelsa State with only two wards and just only six delegates that elected PDP candidates because every ward had three elected delegates.

He said the situation was even more worrisome when the delegates were unknown figures in the society.

“We have former governors, former deputy governors, former Senators and all the rest. But then, we have only one elected delegate that you don’t know where he is coming from.

“A delegate that will come to Abuja to select who becomes the presidential candidate. Is that the kind of democracy we will practice?

“But those of us who have been involved know that it is terrible. Are we bringing those who really know who is who to elect these delegates or those delegates that can be bought over with money?”

Jonathan advised the National Assembly to make laws that would help solve problems, not those that were irrelevant or designed to create problems.

“And laws must be made assuming those who are making the law are blind to any interest just like the judges, who rely on only the scale and the sword.

“Laws must not be made to target a group of individuals or an individual.

“And when you go into that system of making laws, you will make this terrible mistake that messes things up like the primaries that are going on now.

“I think we should rather think about institutionalised democracy and make it our culture,” he said.

Headline

Return Of Chinese Astronauts Delayed After Space Debris Hits Spacecraft

Published

12 hours ago

November 5, 2025

Editor

The return of three Chinese astronauts to Earth has been postponed indefinitely after their spacecraft was reportedly hit by a small piece of debris, according to Chinese state media.

The astronauts, who are part of the Shenzhou-20 mission, travelled to the Tiangong space station in April and were scheduled to return on Wednesday following a six-month stay. Their replacements, the Shenzhou-21 crew, had already arrived over the weekend.

“The Shenzhou-20 crewed spacecraft is suspected to have been struck by a small piece of orbital debris, and assessment of the impact and associated risks is currently under way,” the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) said in a statement.

“To ensure the health and safety of the astronauts and the successful completion of the mission, it has been decided that the originally planned return of Shenzhou-20 on November 5 will be postponed.”

Officials did not specify when the debris incident occurred. Earlier in the week, state media reported that both crews had shared a meal of baked chicken prepared using the station’s first oven, delivered by the Shenzhou-21 team. On Tuesday, videos showed the two teams holding a handover ceremony.

Yu Jun, a science communicator known online as Steed’s Scarf, said that if the spacecraft is deemed unsafe to return, authorities could activate a backup plan.

“Shenzhou-22 and the Long March 2F (launcher) were already on standby. This is our rolling backup mechanism. They are in ‘emergency duty’ mode and ready to bring our astronauts home safely if needed,” Yu told his more than five million followers on Weibo.

China has continued to expand its human spaceflight program, completing 37 flights and six crewed missions so far, with plans to land astronauts on the moon by 2030.

The Shenzhou-20 commander, Chen Dong, holds China’s record for the longest cumulative space time more than 380 days and the highest number of spacewalks, with six.

Chinese astronauts have not joined the International Space Station, a partnership between the US, Russia, Europe, Canada, and Japan, due to a US law preventing NASA from cooperating with China’s space program. Instead, China has said it welcomes international cooperation on its Tiangong space station.

(The Guardian Uk)

Headline

Man Grabs Mexico’s President While Meeting Citizens On The Street

Published

12 hours ago

November 5, 2025

Editor

Mexico’s President, Claudia Sheinbaum, while meeting citizens in Mexico City was grabbed by a man, prompting concern over presidential security and ongoing harassment faced by women in the country.

A video from Tuesday shows a man, appearing intoxicated, attempting to kiss the president on the neck and holding her from behind.

She quickly removed his hands and turned to face him before an official stepped in and blocked the man.

As he was led away, Sheinbaum was seen smiling slightly and saying, “Don’t worry.” State police later confirmed the man’s arrest.

Commentators said the episode shows that no woman, not even Mexico’s President, is immune to harassment.

“Even if you’re the president, any guy believes he has the right to touch you,” said Catalina Ruiz-Navarro, a journalist with feminist outlet Volcánicas. “When they ask what the patriarchy is, this is it.”

The incident also raised questions about Sheinbaum’s security. Her team was not clearly visible in the footage, and it took several seconds for anyone to react.

It comes days after Carlos Alberto Manzo Rodríguez, a popular mayor, was killed during Day of the Dead celebrations in Uruapan, Michoacán.

He was shot seven times at close range before the gunman was killed. Before his death, Manzo Rodríguez had publicly appealed to Mexico’s President for help against local criminal groups.

He is the latest in a series of officials killed in Mexico. During the 2024 election campaign, 37 candidates were murdered, and since Sheinbaum’s government began on 1 October, 10 municipal presidents have also been killed.

While local leaders are often targeted, high-level officials have also faced threats.

In 1994, presidential candidate Luis Donaldo Colosio Murrieta was assassinated at a rally in Tijuana. In 2020, the Jalisco cartel attempted to kill Omar García Harfuch, Sheinbaum’s current security minister, in a daylight attack in Mexico City.

Sheinbaum herself faced a scare last year during her campaign in Chiapas, when masked men stopped her vehicle to demand action against violence before letting her go.

Like her predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Mexico’s President has preferred to keep close contact with the public and maintain lighter security. But the latest incident may prompt her to reconsider.

“Hopefully [the presidency will press charges], and the president will send a clear message: no man has the right to kiss or touch a woman without her consent,” wrote Alejandra Escobar, editorial director of Ectétera, on X. “May this also serve as an example for [her assistants]: it is not acceptable for her to be so exposed.”

(The Guardian UK)

Headline

Sweden To Charge 18-year-old Over IS Terror Plot

Published

2 days ago

November 4, 2025

Editor

The Swedish Prosecution Authority said Tuesday it intended to charge an 18-year-old man for planning a terrorist act in Stockholm on behalf of the Islamic State group.

According to prosecutors, the planning took place between August 2024 and February 2025.

“We believe the purpose of the preparations was to induce serious fear in the population, in the name of the Islamic State. The criminal act could have seriously harmed Sweden,” Deputy Chief Prosecutor Henrik Olin said in a statement.

Prosecutors did not provide details of the plan but said the man was also suspected of “preparation for serious crimes under the act on flammable and explosive goods and training for terrorism”.

Prosecutors said they planned to file the charges on Thursday and that a press conference would be held the same day.

The young man will also be charged alongside a 17-year-old boy with attempted murder in Germany in August 2024.

Both of them are also suspected of “participation in a terrorist organisation,” according to the statement.

The man was arrested in Stockholm on February 11 and has been in custody since then.

AFP