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PHL opens gov’t procurement market under landmark EU trade deal

The Philippines has agreed to open its government procurement market to foreign bidders for the first time under a landmark free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union that will also eliminate tariffs on more than 94 percent of tariff lines covering over 97 percent of bilateral trade.

The key provisions were disclosed by the European Commission after Manila and Brussels announced the substantial conclusion of negotiations on the long-awaited trade pact, which is expected to deepen economic ties beyond current levels of pound 17.6 billion (?1.26 trillion) in goods trade in 2025 and pound 10.3 billion (?736.9 billion) in services trade in 2024.

‘Our FTA does not just remove barriers to trade and investment – it builds a modern, forward-looking partnership between the EU and the Philippines, one that will open new opportunities for our exporters and investors, strengthen our supply chains and deepen bilateral economic ties for years to come. All at a time when diversification and resilience matter more than ever,’ Maroš Šefcovic, EC Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security, said.

Among the most significant features of the agreement is a government procurement chapter that will establish clear rules for public contracts and give European firms access to the Philippine procurement market.

The move could create opportunities for EU companies supplying goods, services and technology for infrastructure, transport, energy, healthcare and digitalization projects funded by the government.

Government procurement refers to the purchase by state agencies of infrastructure, equipment, supplies and services.

In the Philippines, public contracts range from roads, bridges, railways, ports and airports to medical equipment, information technology systems, consulting services and energy projects.

The European Commission did not disclose which agencies, projects or contract thresholds will be covered by the FTA. However, the deal is expected to provide European suppliers greater access to government-funded projects under transparent and predictable bidding rules.

The agreement’s economic gains will also be driven by broad tariff liberalization and improved market access.

According to the Commission, more than 94 percent of tariff lines will be liberalized, covering over 97 percent of bilateral trade.

The Philippines’ market of 113 million people is expected to become more accessible to European exporters, while Filipino businesses will gain wider access to the EU’s nearly 450 million consumers.

European exports to the Philippines are currently dominated by machinery and appliances, transport equipment, medicines and medical devices. Major EU agricultural exports include pork, poultry, dairy products and spirits.

In 2025, the EU was the Philippines’ fourth largest trading partner, accounting for 8.3% of the country’s total trade in goods. Foreign direct investment from EU to the Philippines amounted to pound 15.4 billion (?1.10 trillion) . Philippine direct investments in EU, on the other hand, totaled pound 2.4 billion (?171.7 billion)

The FTA also provides stronger protection for intellectual property rights, including a commercially significant list of European geographical indications, which protect products associated with specific regions or production traditions.

Another major feature is a dedicated digital trade chapter that seeks to facilitate online commerce while ensuring data privacy and consumer protection.

Negotiators earlier reported substantial completion of the chapter, along with provisions covering intellectual property and final provisions.

To reduce compliance costs for businesses, the agreement will establish transparent rules on sanitary and phytosanitary measures and technical barriers to trade while maintaining high regulatory standards on food safety and product quality.

The pact also embeds sustainability commitments at the core of the trading relationship.

The Commission said respect for human rights and the Paris climate agreement will be treated as essential elements of the treaty, supported by an ambitious chapter on trade and sustainable development.

In addition, both sides agreed on provisions covering energy and raw materials designed to encourage sustainable investment and create a level playing field, particularly for renewable energy projects.

‘This major advancement with the Philippines is another mutually beneficial partnership that will strengthen our resilience and trade diversification. It is good news for European farmers. We have reached an agreement on tariff preferences on key EU export interests such as pigmeat, and secured protection for almost 200 of our Geographical Indicators. This shows our partners value our high quality and food safety standards,’ Christophe Hansen, EC Commissioner for Agriculture and Food, said.

The agreement still needs to undergo legal scrubbing, signing and ratification by the Philippine Congress and the European Parliament before it can enter into force.

Ondo: Chemist operator arrested, Principal quizzed over blood tests on

A chemist shop proprietor identified as Adigun Kazeem has been in connection with the alleged blood tests conducted on new students at CAC Adu Memorial Secondary School, Oke-Aro, Akure, Ondo State capital.

Kazeem was the operator of the chemist shop allegedly used for the collection of the blood samples, the Ondo Command of Nigerian Civil Defence and Security Corps, NCDSC said in a statement on Wednesday.

NSCDC also revealed in the statement signed by its spokesperson for the command, SC Daniel Aidamenbor that the principal of the school, Mrs Olajumoke Ekpo-Jide has been interrogated and made written statement on the incident.

He explained that the school principal was assisting the command in establishing the circumstances surrounding the alleged collection of students’ blood samples.

The command’s spokesperson said, however, the principal denied the involvement of the school in the act since the ministry of education had ban the use of blood test as requirement for admission.

Aidamenbor said that a laboratory, Zion-Gate Medical Diagnosis Service, was used to commit the offence, saying the command has retrieved a copy of laboratory results.

‘On Sept. 21, the command’s head of Safe School Unit received a call from the State Ministry of Education, Science and Technology about an illegal collection of blood sample from students at CAC Adu Memorial Secondary School, Oke-Aro, Akure.

‘Upon receipt of the information, a team proceeded to the school to ascertain the circumstances surrounding the allegation.

‘Investigation revealed that a kiosk/chemist shop located very close to the school was allegedly used to collect blood samples from students.

‘It was further gathered that the blood samples were taken to a laboratory, after which the students were allegedly provided with laboratory results, usually the following day.

‘The address stated on the laboratory result was traced by the team; however, the location of the said laboratory could not be ascertained when the physical address was traced,’ he said.

Aidamenbor, however, said that the person, Mr Olugbenga Foge, reportedly in-charge of the laboratory aspect of the operation was currently at large.

‘Preliminary investigation described Mr Olugbenga Olusola Foge as the main laboratory ‘expert,’

‘Meanwhile, the owner/operator of the kiosk/chemist shop, Mr Adigun Kazeem, allegedly involved in the collection of the blood samples is in the custody.

‘The arrested chemist shop owner will help in the investigation to track the main suspect and any other person(s) connected to the case,’ he said.

The Ondo Ministry of Education, Science and Technology in a statement issued on Tuesday by its spokesperson, Bisi Lawani, had disowned the alleged blood testing conducted at the school.

Oriire: Oyo govt approves death benefits for slain teachers

Officials of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, Jos, have commended the Oyo State Government for its pension administration and other local government policies under Governor Seyi Makinde.

The commendation was made during an on-the-spot assessment of the state’s local government administrative policies and strategic development initiatives, including the activities of the Oyo State Local Government Staff Pension Board, at the State Secretariat, Ibadan.

The NIPSS team also expressed satisfaction with what it described as best practices observed in the administration of the pension board.

Speaking during the assessment, the team leader, Prof Ibrahim Choji, said the exercise was aimed at assessing policies, strategies and systems across local governments to identify practices that could be recommended for adoption at the national level.

Choji said: ‘NIPSS is a foremost Federal Government think tank in Nigeria and the purpose of the visit is to carry out assessment of local government policies, strategies and systems to see what is on ground to form part of recommendations and implementation strategies to the presidency, so that best practices can be adopted and award will be given to outstanding state or agency in December.’

He added: ‘I must confess that there are so many things that we have seen on ground at the Oyo State Local Government Staff Pension Board as best practices. Oyo State has been hospitable and accommodating.’

Receiving the delegation on behalf of the state government, the Secretary to the State Government, Prof Musibau Babatunde, highlighted some of the achievements of the Makinde administration, including recruitment into the local government service, an integrated administrative system, improved functionality of local governments and the provision of equipment for primary healthcare centres.

Also speaking, the Chairman of the Oyo State Local Government Staff Pension Board, Hon Akeem Ademola Ige, disclosed that Governor Makinde had approved the immediate payment of death benefits to the families of the teachers killed in the Oriire incident.

Ige said the payment would be made without unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles for the affected families.

He said: ‘Governor Seyi Makinde has approved the immediate payment of death benefits to the slain Oriire teachers. The payment will be seamless without any stress for the family members of the deceased teachers.’

The Chairman also listed some of the pension-related interventions of the administration, including the payment of N42 billion in gratuities and death benefits to retired and deceased pensioners, covering inherited backlogs and obligations accrued under the present administration.

According to him, the monthly allocation of the Local Government Staff Pension Board increased from N250 million to N3 billion, while total monthly pension payments to retired local government pensioners between 2019 and 2026 exceeded N103 billion.

Ige further listed other interventions to include payment of N15,000 wage award, N10,000 transport support and N50,000 Christmas bonus to pensioners.

He presented a comprehensive report on the activities and achievements of the pension board to the NIPSS delegation after a series of brainstorming sessions.

The National Coordinator of the assessment programme, Mr Yoni Charles, said he was impressed by the findings of the team.

‘On behalf of the Director-General, I’m not disappointed. I’m impressed. I’m proud of Oyo State,’ Charles said.

Earlier, the Acting Head of Local Government Administration of the board, Alhaji Musibau Ladele, said the assessment would help strengthen administrative excellence, strategic leadership, institutional performance, accountability and effective service delivery within Nigeria’s local government system.

As part of the programme, newly retired primary school teachers and local government staff were enrolled on the pension payroll, while officials of NIPSS made a symbolic presentation of pension certificates to some of the retirees.

The retirees also had the opportunity to interact with the NIPSS officials.

Responding on behalf of the newly enrolled retirees, Mrs Balogun Abosede expressed appreciation to the state government for what she described as gestures extended to retirees under the Makinde administration.

Among those present at the event were the Executive Assistant to the Governor on Budget, Finance and Economic Planning, Alhaji Gafar Bello; Permanent Secretary, General Administration, Office of the Executive Governor, Mr Kadri Akeem; NIPSS Director of Administration, Mr Rotimi Mustapha; Mrs Adenike Ademola; Miss Ibrahim; Director of Finance and Supplies, Mrs Temitayo Adeyemo; Director of Budget, Planning, Research and Statistics, Mr Oluwole Kehinde; Director of Education and Social Services, Mrs Banke Adeyemo; Internal Auditor, Alhaji Raifu Najimdeen; and Deputy Director of Administration and General Services, Mr Abiodun Muraina, among others.

JAMAICA-JUDICIARY-Lawyers stage silent protest

Several lawyers, including the President of the Jamaica Bar Association, Tenneshia Watkins, Wednesday staged a silent protest outside the Supreme Court here in support of their calls for a review of the mandatory sentencing provisions of the Firearms (Prohibition, Restriction and Regulation) Act, 2022.

The lawyers armed with placards, some of which read ‘Tough on guns: yes. Tough on children: no.’ say they are concerned with the mandatory minimum sentencing provisions, particularly the restriction they place on judicial discretion.

‘We have seen the injustices in the system and we are now here for a change. The biggest issue we have is the mandatory minimum which has taken away the discretion of the judge totally,’ Watkins said.

Under the 2022 legislation, certain firearms offences attract mandatory minimum sentences of 15 years, but the lawyers argue that the sentencing regime does not adequately allow judges to distinguish between offenders and the individual circumstances surrounding cases.

Justice Minister Delroy Chuck is quoted in the media as saying that a repeal of mandatory minimum sentences is unlikely with the security forces crediting the measure for a decline in murders and shootings.

‘The legislature should not tie the hands of the judiciary,’ said one of the protesting lawyers, with another telling reporters the action ‘is the start, we will take further steps next week if it is we are not called to the table for a meeting….’

‘…by next week we might not be going into the courts to do any matter at all, we will continue to withdraw services until we get some attention and the discussions begin. It can’t be that a guilty plea is of no moment in this piece of legislation. You plead guilty 15 years, you go to a trial on your phone guilty 15 years, that just makes no sense,’ Watkins added.

King’s Counsel Peter Champagnie said that the protest must not be viewed as lawyers being opposed to combating gun crime or taking a political stance.

‘It has nothing to do with JLP (ruling Jamaica Labour Party), PNP (opposition People’s National Party),’ he said, adding that it has to do with the mandatory minimum sentencing that has to be reviewed.

‘It has to do with the fact that we have to look at this in a sense where, and in the context where, for the first time historically, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions also is aligned with our view that there needs to be a review of the legislation.

‘No one is exclusively saying that a 15-year mandatory minimum is to be removed. That’s not it. We need some kind of meeting. We need some action to review the legislation. And to say that murders are down because of the gun law, in my view, in our view, that is something that is absolutely a misfit.’

Champagnie said that while the lawyers must commend the secuity forces for the reduction in crime ‘and we are happy for tha, but this is more than that.

‘So let us not take it as a political campaign, as some are doing by pausing, publicising placards and so on, saying PNP lawyers and gunmen lawyers. We have seen it and it is actually very offensive and it is misleading,’ he said commending the Advocates Association of Jamaica and the Jamaican Bar Association for speaking up about their concerns regarding the legislation.

The protest was held under the banner, ‘Enough Is Enough – Silent Protest: A Fairer Firearms Act for a Safer Jamaica’.

RUN applauds Atiku’s scholarship for teen mining worker, knocks Tinubu govt

The Rise Up Naija (RUN) movement has commended former Vice President Atiku Abubakar for his intervention in the life of Yusuf Aliyu, an articulate teenager who was recently discovered working at a mining site in Niger State.

The group said Atiku’s decision to offer Yusuf a full scholarship demonstrated his commitment to education and reflected the qualities it believes are needed in Nigeria’s next president.

In a statement signed by its spokesperson, Comrade Usman Okai Austin, RUN, a civic support organisation within the African Democratic Congress (ADC), praised Atiku for responding to Yusuf’s situation.

Okai said Atiku did not merely announce the scholarship from afar but invited Yusuf and his parents to his residence in Abuja, describing the gesture as evidence of a ‘fatherly figure’ and a commitment to due diligence.

He added that Atiku is also scheduled to pay a condolence visit to the people and government of Niger State over the incident.

The statement also highlighted Atiku’s call for measures to protect Yusuf and his family, particularly to ensure that the assistance offered to the teenager does not expose them to intimidation or retaliation.

‘Atiku’s call for the protection of Yusuf’s life and that of his family shows he cares not just for education, but for the safety of the vulnerable,’ the statement quoted Okai as saying.

However, RUN criticised the administration of President Bola Tinubu over what it described as the government’s failure to identify and prosecute the owners of mining sites where children are allegedly employed.

The group also criticised the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, describing his performance as a failure.

‘The government is hiding the identity of the mining site owners. We are witnessing atrocities in the mining sector that require a government truly ready to govern,’ Okai said.

He urged the committee set up by the Federal Government to investigate the matter to ensure that its work does not become a ‘mere damage control mechanism’ for the administration.

The group further alleged that illegal miners are exploiting poverty and unemployment in the country, which it attributed to what it described as failures of the current APC-led administration.

Okai called on Nigerians to demand a change in leadership ahead of the 2027 general elections, saying an Atiku presidency would prioritise equal opportunities for Nigerians regardless of their social status.

‘A lot of atrocities are happening in the mining sector that need a government that is ready for governance to end them,’ the statement quoted him as saying.

RUN also urged the investigative committee to remain accountable to Nigerians and ensure that its findings and recommendations address concerns surrounding child labour and activities in the mining sector.

Authorities zeroing in on person who incited Banga shooter-Remulla

Authorities are actively pursuing a person suspected of influencing the minor involved in the deadly school shooting in Banga, South Cotabato, through online conversations, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla said.

The person, according to the DILG chief, is in the Philippines and authorities have identified his location.

He said the person preyed on the student’s insecurities and encouraged violence by promising that such an act would bring recognition.

‘They prey upon their insecurities, telling them that they will be glorified if they do something like this,’ he said. ‘It’s a very insidious way of inciting that kind of hate.’

Remulla earlier said investigators had linked the junior high school student’s actions to exposure to the deep dark web. ‘They now glorify violence through the deep dark web. It’s very alarming,’ he said.

Following school shootings in Tacloban, Zamboanga, and Cotabato, Remulla said authorities are taking online threats related to school shootings seriously. He cited four students previously caught over Facebook posts.

He said the government is pursuing a broader response to school violence, including measures to limit minors’ access to social media and websites, similar to the approach taken in Australia.

Remulla also urged parents to guide their children and watch for signs that they may be drawn into violence online.

‘We’re asking the parents to watch their children kaysa we discover it too late,’ he said.

Isack Hadjar ready for return at Azerbaijan Grand Prix

Red Bull driver Isack Hadjar said at a press conference in Baku ahead of the 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix that he and the team are aiming for a strong result. He added that they will do their best to remain competitive throughout the weekend.

Hadjar also spoke about his return to the cockpit after last racing in Budapest. He said the time since his previous appearance had felt very long and that he was happy to be back behind the wheel after a difficult period.

The driver added that his wrist is now in good enough condition for him to drive, which he described as the most important thing for him ahead of the weekend.

The 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix will be held at the Baku City Circuit from September 24 to 26 as the 15th round of the Formula 1 season.

The 6.003-kilometre street circuit features 20 corners and will host a 51-lap race covering 306.049 kilometres. Free Practice 1 and 2 will take place on Thursday, followed by Free Practice 3 and qualifying on Friday, while the Grand Prix will be held on Saturday at 15:00 local time.

The Baku circuit combines long, high-speed sections with the narrow streets of the Old City. At its tightest point around the Turn 8 and 9 complex, the track is just 7.6 metres wide. The circuit made its Formula 1 debut in 2016 as the European Grand Prix before returning the following year as the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

BAHAMAS-WEATHER-Bahamas PM urges caution as Atlantic hurricane season appears to be sleeping

Bahamas Prime Minister Philip Davis says while the Caribbean has so far not recorded a single hurricane this season ‘the Atlantic lies as still as a sleeping giant’.

The Atlantic hurricane season ends on November 30 and Prime Minister Davis addressing the ‘Rising Nations Gala Dinner’ on Tuesday night on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), said he wished he could all that good news, but he cannot.

‘Because the same force that has quieted my ocean has set another on fire. The winds that shield The Bahamas are feeding the storms of the Pacific. Two Category 5 hurricanes. The Northern Marianas struck by super typhoons, twice. Hawaii hit head on,’ Davis told the event that was held under the theme ‘Celebrating the UN Declaration on Sea Level Rise: From Ambition to Implementation’.

He told the event at which the French President, Emmanuel Macron and the Prime Minister of Tuvalu, Feleti Teo, received the ‘2026 Rising Nations Leaders Award’ that countries needed to be honest ‘about what this quiet is.

‘The hurricane season is not over and to date we have been spared. Others have not. And many of them are sitting in this room. No policy spared us. No treaty. No fund. No sea wall.

‘To date this year, she chose the Pacific. Next year she may choose the Caribbean. We remember what that feels like.’

Prime Minister Davis recalled that in 2019, Hurricane Dorian sat over Abaco and Grand Bahama and ‘would not leave’ as families watched the sea take the only land they had ever known.

‘That is life in a small island state. We do not decide whether our year is kind or cruel. We wait to learn whose turn it is. And while we wait, the sea keeps rising. It does not take turns. It rises on all of us, every year, in silence.

‘Friends, no nation’s survival should depend on luck. And no nation should take comfort in a mercy that is paid for by someone else’s suffering,’ Prime Minister Davis said, adding ‘yet that is the temptation of our time.

‘We live in a fragmented world. Nations are turning inward. Promises are made loudly and kept quietly, if at all. Each country is tempted to say: it is not my storm, not my coastline, not my problem.

‘The ocean does not recognise that thinking. It is one body of water. What warms in one hemisphere breaks upon another. The sea has never been fragmented. Only we are.’

Prime Minister Davis said that this is why the Declaration being honoured matters so deeply. ‘In a divided world, the nations of the world agreed. It is proof that we can still act as one. Now we must make it real. Real means this. Climate mobility is the human face of this crisis. ‘

He said that by 2050, up to 8.2 million people across the Greater Caribbean could be on the move.

‘Our people do not want to leave. So, protect their right to stay, with adaptation finance that is larger, faster, and placed in the hands of communities themselves. Some cannot leave, even when they must. The poor. The rural. Too often, women. Do not abandon them on the front line. And where people must move, let them move with dignity, with rights, and with their culture intact.’

He said that this is the work of the Rising Nations Institute and the Communities Climate Adaptation Facility and that The Bahamas stands fully behind them.

‘So from a Caribbean that has been spared, to a Pacific that has not: we see you. We stand with you. Your storm is our storm. One day the Atlantic will wake again. When it does, let it find a world that did not look away.’

CRICKET-CPL-Tahir eyes CPL 2027 at age 48

Imran Tahir may be nearing the half-century mark, but the leg-spinner shows no signs of slowing down.

The Guyana Amazon Warriors captain has confirmed his desire to return for the 2027 Caribbean Premier League season, where he will be 48 years old.

For Tahir, however, the motivation extends beyond statistics; it is about finishing his storied career on his own terms, in the country he now calls home.

‘I’m very keen to come back and play because I feel this is my home. I get a lot of love when I come here,’ Tahir said at a press conference in Georgetown following the conclusion of CPL 2026. ‘I’m looking to finish my career in front of the Guyanese crowd.’

Tahir’s performances in the 2026 campaign proved that age is merely a number. The veteran spinner finished as the joint-highest wicket-taker of the tournament with 16 scalps, sharing the honour with Hunain Shah, Alzarri Joseph, and Matthew Forde.

His leadership guided the Amazon Warriors to Qualifier 2, where their campaign ended at the hands of eventual runners-up and debutants, the Jamaica Kingsmen.

The 2026 season was one of the milestones for Tahir. He became the first overseas player to feature in 100 CPL games and surpassed Sunil Narine to claim the top spot on the tournament’s all-time wicket-taking charts.

He now sits on 146 wickets from 102 matches, all played for the Amazon Warriors since 2018.

Earlier in the month, Tahir rolled back the years with a career-best five-wicket haul against the St Lucia Kings, recording figures of 5 for 17.

At 47, it made him the oldest player ever to take a five-for in T20 cricket.

‘I get motivated to come here and play my cricket, trying to get fit, eat well,’ Tahir said of his longevity. ‘It is not easy because if someone is eating ice cream and I’m in front of them, it’s very difficult to control yourself. But that’s what you have to do if you want to play for another year and another year.’

Beyond the CPL, Tahir also led the franchise to their maiden Global Super League title earlier this year, further cementing his legacy with the Warriors since taking over the captaincy in 2023.

Under his leadership, the team won the CPL title in 2023 and reached the finals in 2024 and 2025.

Despite his desire to return, Tahir acknowledged that the final decision rests with the franchise’s management.

‘There will be questions about me, and I’m the kind of guy that likes challenges and stuff,’ he said. ‘For me, my part is to play my role not as a captain, but as a player towards the team. I think I tried my best, so obviously I leave it with the management. I leave it with the team owner and the president; they have to decide where my future will be.’

Amid doubts, INEC assures Rivers opposition parties of credible elections

Despite growing doubts over the conduct of elections in Rivers State, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has assured opposition political parties in the state of free, fair and credible polls in 2027.

Opposition parties in the State, under the aegis of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), had expressed fears over possible electoral violence, alleged political intimidation and INEC’s impartial conduct of the 2027 general elections.

INEC held a strategic engagement with IPAC on Monday in a bid to address these issues, and as part of efforts to promote a peaceful, transparent and credible electoral process ahead of the 2027 elections.

The meeting brought together INEC officials and leaders of various political parties in the State and focused on the conduct of the elections and the need for greater collaboration among stakeholders.

Johnson Alalibo Sinikiem, INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Rivers State, assured the parties that the Commission would conduct elections that are free and fair.

He was responding to concerns raised by political parties, particularly over the use of Local Government Area headquarters, as colation centres during elections.

He said, ‘In all election circles, we expect a better one. Not only in Nigeria, even in other climes of the world. Even we as election managers, we are expecting better elections.

‘All the times it has been free and fair. But it depends on the operators and the people in the field. I always say it: those people in the field, once they play by the rules, we don’t have anything to worry about. For us, we assure you that the commission, from headquarters to the state and to the local government will be free to all political parties,’ he said.

Sinikiem explained that Council headquarters are secured and established places, adding that ‘during colation, we need appropriate places for both accommodation and the security of men and materials and the officers that are doing colation’.

Meanwhile, the State chapter of the Inter-Party Advisory Council has raised concern over what it described as a series of negative political developments in the State.

Ben Ogbobula, IPAC State Secretary and Chairman of the Zenith Labour Party, advised INEC to carefully consider concerns raised by political parties and maintain neutrality in the discharge of its responsibilities.

He said, ‘IPAC is ready for elections. We also told them to be mindful of the colation centres, that other political parties are not happy with what the ruling party is doing. So we urged INEC, to be observant and not to be partial, but to ensure that what is meant for Mr A is also good for Mr B. So that they play a neutral ground in these forthcoming elections.

‘Especially now that a lot of political parties like the African Democratic Congress (ADC) Some days ago, some of its members were arrested for unlawful gathering, though this is election period. People are supposed to gather,’ he said.

Ogbobula alleged that the ruling party in the State has been sending people to burn the offices of opposition political parties, to disorganise their meetings and warned that no political party should be intimidated.

‘So, they should allow people to campaign and sell their manifestos to the people’ he urged.