Politics

Foreign Affairs Minister receives Bianca Ojukwu on resumption as Minister of State

Published

2 years ago

on

November 5, 2024

By

Sunday Odibashi

Minister receives Bianca Ojukwu

The Minister of Foreign Affairs Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, warmly received Bianca Odinakachukwu Olivia Odumegwu-Ojukwu on resumption of duty as the Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

According to the Minister @YusufTuggar,

“Today, we warmly welcome H.E. Bianca Odinakachukwu Olivia Odumegwu-Ojukwu as she officially joins the Ministry of Foreign Affairs @NigeriaMFA as the Minister of State.

“I look forward to working closely with her as we champion Nigeria’s interests and strengthen our global engagements.”

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The institute urged security agencies to identify high-risk areas early and develop location-specific plans to prevent intimidation, disruption and attacks on electoral participants. Osun offers lessons ahead of 2027 Despite the challenges, observers say the Osun election also provides evidence that improvements in election administration can produce positive results. Yiaga Africa's assessment found that INEC and security agencies largely passed the test of conducting the election, while its independent verification indicated that the official results accurately reflected the ballots counted at polling units. The challenge ahead is to build on those gains while addressing the weaknesses exposed during the election. For INEC, that means improving BVAS reliability, strengthening result-transmission and collation procedures and maintaining clear communication with voters and political parties. For security agencies, it means preventing electoral violence and ensuring that investigations and prosecutions are not selective. Political parties also face pressure to take greater responsibility for the conduct of their candidates, agents and supporters, particularly over voter inducement and intimidation. A bigger test awaits in 2027 The central lesson from Osun may be that a technically transparent election is not automatically the same as a completely free election. Electronic transmission can make results easier to monitor, but technology cannot by itself prevent voters from being offered money, threatened or pressured before they cast their ballots. IRI's latest assessment similarly stressed that the credibility of the 2027 elections will depend not only on technical administration but also on security, consistent application of electoral rules, timely communication and public confidence in INEC. 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