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The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has dismissed the proposal by the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, to set up an independent parallel result transmission system alongside the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the 2027 general elections.

Describing the plan as the product of ‘unhinged desperation,’ the APC National Publicity Secretary, Barrister Felix Morka, declared that the former Anambra State governor lacks both the legal locus and the logistical capacity to assume the duties of the statutory electoral umpire.

Morka’s scathing assessment comes in reaction to a recent appearance by Obi on a national television, where the NDC candidate unveiled plans for a ‘dual transmission’ system.

Obi had argued that his campaign team and other independent organizations would establish situation rooms to transmit results directly from polling units to verify the official counts uploaded to the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal.

Speaking on the development in an interview, Morka ridiculed Obi’s assertions, questioning his legal standing to usurp functions constitutionally guaranteed to INEC.

‘Peter Obi of the NDC must be a political jester,’ Morka stated. ‘He is a presidential candidate that also wants to be the electoral umpire, a role statutorily reserved to the Independent National Electoral Commission. Has he any locus to do that?’

The APC spokesman pushed back on the feasibility of the plan, noting that Obi lacks both the technical infrastructure and the grassroots party structure required to execute a nationwide parallel collation exercise.

‘One, he doesn’t have the software, unless he means he is going to create his own software to do that. And if he does that, that will be creating utter confusion. And he doesn’t have the capacity to do that,’ Morka said. ‘I bet you, Peter Obi will not have agents in all the polling units in this country. He doesn’t. So I don’t know how he’s going to go about it.’

Morka further suggested that Obi’s proposal borders on self-delusion, quipping that the opposition candidate might as well declare himself the winner ahead of the poll.

‘Mr. Obi shouldn’t just stop at creating a parallel IReV; he might as well go ahead, today, and declare himself winner ahead of the 2027 presidential election. That’s the stuff unhinged desperation is made of,’ he declared.

Beyond the electoral portal controversy, the ruling party scribe criticized Obi’s broader policy proposals, including his comments on petrol subsidy removal, arguing that the opposition candidate has consistently failed to offer coherent alternatives to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic reforms.

According to Morka, opposition leaders like Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi are struggling to present viable policy offerings that can compete with the current administration’s pragmatism.

‘You see Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, the problem they have right now is that they are struggling to differentiate their policy offering from that of Asiwaju,’ Morka asserted. ‘And they can’t do it easily, because Asiwaju’s plan and his program is almost ironclad in both pragmatism and value. But these guys are merely speculative.’

He added: ‘You know, when he was asked what he meant by that, he couldn’t explain. A lot of things he said in that interview, like his fuel subsidy plan-it’s not understandable. I don’t know anybody who understood what he said. He just said, ‘I’m going to bring the price of petrol down.”

Morka concluded by noting that he often hesitates to respond to statements from the opposition, as doing so confers unearned credibility on unsubstantiated claims.

‘If I respond to Peter Obi now, I would be injecting sense into his nonsense, because it’s very incoherent in what he says,’ Morka noted. ‘Sometimes, I refrain from responding to these snippets from Peter Obi, because when I do, I will be the one making it look like he is saying something that is worth responding to. Sometimes I just ignore them, because, you know, they don’t make any sense.’

Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa has called on indigenes of the state evacuated from South Africa following ‘xenophobic attacks’ to turn their ordeal into an opportunity to rebuild their lives and contribute to the development of the state.

Aiyedatiwa gave the advice on Friday during the presentation of financial assistance to 45 returnees at an official welcoming and empowerment programme held at the Cocoa Conference Hall of the Governor’s Office in Akure.

The event was organised by the Ministry of Regional Integration and Diaspora Relations in the state.

Speaking at the programme, Aiyedatiwa said his administration is prepared to support the returnees to rebuild their lives and contribute to the development of their various communities in the state.

The governor, who presented N1 million each to the 45 returnees, amounting to N45 million, said the financial support will enable them restart their businesses and establish sustainable means of livelihood after returning home.

According to him, the intervention was part of his administration’s commitment to supporting vulnerable citizens and ensuring that indigenes forced to return home were not left without assistance.

He specifically noted that the returnees should see their experiences abroad as lessons that could be transformed into opportunities, rather than allowing the ordeal to discourage them.

‘Look around, look for opportunities, see the needs and meet the needs. That’s how to make money. There are needs everywhere when you look,’ Aiyedatiwa said.

He said the government was interested not only in providing immediate relief but also in empowering the returnees to become economically productive and self-reliant.

Assuring the returnees of government’s support as they reintegrate into their communities, the governor stressed that Ondo State remained their home and would continue to provide opportunities for them to thrive.

He explained that reintegration must go beyond bringing the returnees home to encompass skills development, economic support, counselling, entrepreneurship and the provision of an enabling environment.

The governor, however, advised the returnees to reconnect with their local governments and extended families and reintegrate into their communities.

‘As long as you are Nigerian, you can live in any part of the country. In South Africa, they don’t want to see you but there is nowhere we want to send you to.

‘Nigeria has to receive you back as citizens of this country. And since you have traced your roots back to Ondo State, we also receive you as our own,’ he added.

He commended the Ministry of Regional Integration and Diaspora for the safe return of the affected indigenes, describing their intervention as necessary in ensuring that the returnees were reunited with their families.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Regional Integration and Diaspora Relations in the State, Hon Wale Akinlosotu said the reception demonstrated that Ondo State remained home to its people regardless of where they had lived.

Akinlosotu described the event as more than a ceremony, saying the governor’s intervention reflected his commitment to the welfare and dignity of Ondo indigenes.

He commended governor Aiyedatiwa for his ‘magnanimous intervention and compassionate leadership’ after being informed about the plight of the returnees.

The commissioner urged the beneficiaries to see the financial support support as a foundation for rebuilding their lives and not merely as financial assistance.

Speaking on behalf of the returnees, Ajibade James Ogunleye lauded the state government for receiving them with dignity and compassion.

Ogunleye said the returnees endured several difficulties in South Africa, including alleged violent attacks, challenges relating to permits and healthcare, and the loss of businesses and properties.

He explained that the evacuation provided an escape route for many of them, noting that some were forced to abandon businesses and properties they had painstakingly built in South Africa to return home safely.

He appreciated the federal and state governments for facilitating their evacuation, providing accommodation and supporting their reintegration.

The Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Olumide Aserere, also commended stakeholders involved in the evacuation and reintegration exercise.

Aserere particularly appreciated Governor Aiyedatiwa for supporting the returnees, saying the intervention demonstrated the administration’s commitment to the welfare of Ondo citizens.

The Nation recall that the beneficiaries had earlier been evacuated from South Africa following reported xenophobic attacks and other hostile experiences faced by Nigerians and other African nationals in the country.

The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Air Peace Limited, Dr Allen Onyema, has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene in the challenges confronting Nigeria’s aviation industry, particularly the financial burden of the five per cent Ticket Sales Charge (TSC).

Onyema said Nigeria’s reported designation by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) as one of the most difficult places to establish and operate an airline business could change if the factors behind the classification were addressed.

He spoke in Lagos on Wednesday while delivering the keynote address at the 30th annual conference of the League of Airport and Aviation Correspondents (LAAC), with the theme, ‘Towards a Sustainable Aviation Industry: Balancing Government Revenue Demands with Sector Growth.’

The Air Peace boss said indigenous airlines needed an opportunity to present their challenges directly to President Tinubu, expressing confidence that the administration would consider measures to address the issues affecting the sector.

He said presidential intervention could resolve the financial difficulties associated with the five per cent TSC.

According to Onyema, Nigeria could reduce the high rate of airline failures through an equitable system of taxes and charges that protects airlines, aviation agencies and passengers.

He argued that the current arrangement, under which airlines pay five per cent of each ticket’s cost to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), places a significant financial burden on operators.

Onyema proposed introducing a fixed flat charge on air tickets, saying the measure would make payments more predictable and reduce financial pressure on airlines.

He said this was one of the reasons airline operators were seeking President Tinubu’s intervention, recalling the President’s decision to waive the four per cent Free on Board (FOB) levy, a statutory charge introduced by the Nigeria Customs Service for airlines.

Onyema, who is also Vice-President of the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), said the government’s revenue objectives should be balanced with the need to sustain airlines and promote growth in the aviation sector.

Dr Onyema, who is also the Vice President of Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), said that when the matter came to President Tinubu, he exempted the airlines from paying the levy within 24 hours.

He said, ‘One thing I must say is that I’m certain any day President Bola Ahmed Tinubu sees us, if they allow us to see him, because I know he will not mind meeting with us, that will be the day a new revolution in the airline industry in this country will occur because Mr President abhors anything capable of adversely affecting indigenous businesses that provide jobs for the people.

‘I remember when we complained to the Comptroller General of Customs, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, of the debilitating effects of the newly introduced 4% FOB customs duty on airlines. He, Wale Adeniyi, took it up with the presidency the same day. I was there in the Presidential Villa with the Customs boss, a fantastic man. This President acted swiftly and waived it for airlines within hours of being made to understand the would-be effects of such a charge on the viability of indigenous Nigerian airlines.’

The customs boss thinks about the overall wellbeing of the country, not just revenue. He asked me, ‘Is it going to hurt airlines?’ I said, ‘We are already bleeding. This 4% will hurt us.’

He said, ‘Okay, let’s go see the President.’ This man helped to save Nigerian airlines. Within 24 hours, the 4% was removed. That is the power of listening. President Tinubu is a listening President.’

‘The problem is that the President has not heard from us on why his country was so described by IATA, who equally compared Nigeria to Afghanistan.’

When he does see us, aviation will flourish in this country. It will benefit the agencies, the government, and the flying public.’

Dr Onyema also recalled that he promised to create 1000 jobs for Nigerians after the President removed airlines from paying the 4% FOB levy. 78000 Nigerians applied for the job and from that number 1000 young Nigerians were employed as he promised. The interview was held at the University of Lagos Auditorium.

The Air Peace Chairman reiterated that Nigerian airlines will not grow if they continue to operate under numerous taxes and charges which is what is currently their situation.

He said that if the Ticket Sales Charge is made a specific amount of money attached to the ticket, it will help the airlines and it will even benefit NCAA, the other aviation agencies, the flying public and more in the long run.

He also reiterated the reports, which indicate that no fewer than 62 commercial airlines have collapsed or gone default in Nigeria since independence in 1960. With over 22 shutting down in a recent 24-year window due to high tax burden, which are too many.

‘At several aviation fora, IATA has identified Nigeria as one of the most expensive countries in the world in which to operate an airline, citing high operational costs that continue to challenge the viability and growth of local carriers.

The Association has reiterated that the high cost environment has made it difficult for Nigerian airlines to remain competitive and profitable, limiting the sector’s ability to reach its full potential. They wondered how Nigerian airlines survive and even compared Nigeria to Afghanistan, which is not good for our country’s image,’ Onyema added.