Press Release on EYC NEC Meeting on National Issues

EBIRA YOUTH CONGRESS (EYC)

National Secretariat

P.O. Box 781, Okene, Kogi State, Nigeria

                                                     3rd January, 2011

Press Release

The National Executive Council of the above named umbrella body of youths of Kogi Central Senatorial district, rising from an emergency meeting on 26^th December, 2010, to review the state of the nation as it affects the people of Kogi Central wishes to place on record the following resolutions:

      Security Concerns on the Impending General Elections: The NEC commends the INEC leadership for its avowal to ensure that it meets the expectations of Nigerians, in terms of conducting free fair and credible elections in 2011. Council however, notes that this determination would be unrealistic if critical security measures are not put in place for the security of the votes cast. This security concern stems from the widely reported disappearance of twenty (20) of the initial 6,500 DDC machines before the glare of Airport security. Besides the issue of securing electoral materials, there is also the issue of vulnerability of the electorate in certain areas of the country.

Given the above observations, the NEC feels strongly, and therefore appeals to the Federal Government, that flash points across the country, such as Kogi Central, need be given serious security beef up during electioneering campaigns and elections proper to forestall breakdown of law and order. Also, to avoid incidents of diversion of electoral materials, NEC appeals to INEC to ensure regular publication of the voter’s registration and electoral materials dispatched to every state, Kogi State in particular. This would not only ensure transparency at the state level, it would assist greatly in checking incidents of criminal diversion of such materials by men of influence driven by lust to sustain political hegemony and remain perpetually at the corridors of power, which characterized previous exercises in Kogi State.

      The new Federal University granted Kogi State: The NEC, while appreciating the Federal Government for granting Kogi State a federal university, appeals the FG to consider the issue of location of the university dispassionately. This is against the backdrop of the very obvious penchant of the current Kogi state administration in politicizing every federal government policy requiring state input in favour of the governor’s district, in utter disregard to the security implications of such.

The NEC notes that of the three senatorial districts, the Kogi East need not be considered at all for the siting of the federal university given the fact that apart from the Kogi State University located there, all the three tiers of tertiary institutions have been established there while the Kogi Central and Kogi West barely have one each. The Table below highlights the distribution of the tertiary institutions in Kogi state:

Location of the Tertiary Institutions in Kogi State

S/No.	Kogi East	Kogi Central	Kogi West
1	Kogi State University, Anyigba	None	Ahmadu Bello University (A Unit of the Faculty of Agric)
2	Federal Polytechnic, Idah	Kogi State Polytechnic (the School of Mines and Metallurgy), Osara campus	Kogi State Polytechnic, Lokoja
3	Kogi State College of Education, Ankpa	Federal College of Education, Okene	Kogi State College of Education (Technical), Kabba
4	School of Health Technology, Idah	School of Nursing, Obangede	None

As a socio-cultural body concerned about equity, fair-play, social justice and committed to peaceful co-existence, we earnestly appeal to the FG to critically examine the above Table with a view to taking decision, independent of Kogi state government, in siting the federal university.

Thank you.

OGIRIMA Nuhu 

President General