The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that bye-elections to fill legislative vacancies across the country will be held on Saturday, August 16, 2025.

The elections will cover 16 constituencies in 12 states, involving over 3.5 million registered voters.

In addition, the Commission disclosed that Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) will resume nationwide, with online pre-registration starting on Monday, August 18, and in-person registration set for Monday, August 25, 2025.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, made these announcements on Thursday during the second quarterly consultative meeting with political party leaders at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

According to him, the bye-elections will take place in two senatorial districts, five federal constituencies, and nine state assembly constituencies across 32 local government areas, 356 wards, and 6,987 polling units.

“In the last two years since the inauguration of the National and State Assemblies in June 2023, vacancies requiring bye-elections have occurred nationwide,” Yakubu said.

“You may recall that in February last year, the commission conducted nine by-elections to fill vacancies resulting from the deaths or resignations of members of the National and State Houses of Assembly. Since then, more vacancies have been declared nationwide.”

“Consequently, the commission has fixed Saturday, August 16, 2025, for bye-elections in 16 constituencies across 12 states of the country involving a total of 3,553,659 registered voters spread across 32 local government areas, 356 wards and 6,987 polling units. The commission will deploy 30,451 officials.” he added.

However, Yakubu noted that bye-elections will not take place in Khana II State Constituency in Rivers State, due to a state of emergency, and Talata Mafara South in Zamfara State, owing to a pending legal dispute.

The Commission revealed that party primaries must be held between July 17 and 21, with submission of nomination forms via INEC’s portal from July 22 to 26. Political campaigns will be allowed from August 2 to midnight on August 14.

In addition to the bye-elections, Yakubu stated that two previously disrupted court-ordered re-run elections in Enugu South I (Enugu State) and Ghari/Tsanyawa (Kano State) would also be held on August 16.

Regarding the resumption of voter registration, the INEC chairman announced that CVR will take place in INEC’s 37 State/FCT offices and all 774 local government offices across the country, with 30,451 officials deployed for the process.

He specified that voter registration in Anambra State will begin earlier—from July 8 to July 17, 2025, in all 326 wards.

“During the registration period, new voters as well as those who wish to transfer their registration to Anambra State from other states of the federation or one location to another within the state will have the opportunity to do so,” Yakubu explained.

“Similarly, registered voters whose Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) are lost or damaged will have the opportunity to apply for a replacement. Uncollected PVCs from previous registrations will also be available for collection at the registration centres. Interested and eligible Nigerian citizens are encouraged to appear in person to register.”

“The online pre-registration option is not available for the time being. Voter registration and the compilation of the voters’ register must be completed not later than 90 days before the date fixed for the election as provided by law. Detailed information, including the locations of the 326 registration centres in Anambra State, is included in your folders for this meeting.”

Meanwhile, Yusuf Dantalle, Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), urged INEC to use the upcoming Anambra governorship election scheduled for November 8, 2025, to demonstrate its capability for credible, technology-driven elections.

Dantalle acknowledged recent improvements but expressed concern over continued low voter turnout.

“Voter turnout remains disturbingly low, largely due to a lingering distrust in the electoral process, fears over electoral violence, and a general lack of confidence in political actors.”

He advised the Commission to rebuild public trust through the strategic deployment of new technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI):

“INEC should leverage its new technologies, especially artificial intelligence (AI), to drive decision-making, risk management, voter engagement, predictive analytics, automation, and integrity safeguards.”

Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, has taken aim at former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, by sharing biting excerpts from former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s memoir My Watch (Volume 2).

This came in response to El-Rufai’s recent critical comments about the Tinubu administration during an appearance on Arise TV.

In the interview, El-Rufai, who supported Tinubu in the 2023 election, claimed: “God saved me from the disaster called Tinubu’s government,” adding that the president “would be lucky to come third” in the 2027 election as there was “no pathway to win.”

Reacting via social media, Onanuga posted segments from Obasanjo’s book, where the former president offered a scathing character assessment of El-Rufai, suggesting the former governor suffers from “small man syndrome” and deeper psychological issues possibly rooted in childhood trauma.

Obasanjo is quoted as writing:

“Nasir’s penchant for reputation savaging is almost pathological. Why does he do it? Very early in my interaction with him, I appreciated his talent. At the same time, I recognised his weaknesses; the worst being his inability to be loyal to anybody or any issue consistently for long, but only to Nasir El-Rufai.

Obasanjo described El-Rufai as someone who had a habit of lying and harming the reputations of those close to him:

“He lied brazenly, which he did to me, against his colleagues and so-called friends. I have heard of how he ruthlessly savaged the reputation of his uncle, a man who, in an African setting, was like a foster father to him. I shuddered when I heard the story of what he did to his half-brother in the Air Force, who is senior to him in age.”

The former president explained why he never considered El-Rufai as a potential successor during his presidency:

“Character-wise, Nasir does not have much going for him. But he is a talented young man who can always deliver under close supervision. So, when Osita Chijoka approached, among others, propping Nasir as my possible successor, believing that whoever I supported would make it, which was a false belief, I did not hesitate to point to Nasir’s naivety and immaturity, talk less of his inability to give honour to whom honour is due.”

Obasanjo further said:

“My vivid recollection of him is a penchant for lying, for unfair embellishment of stories, and his inability to sustain loyalty for long. Two years after I had left office, Osita came to me to confirm how right I was in my assessment and judgement of Nasir.”

Despite his concerns, Obasanjo acknowledged El-Rufai’s capabilities—though he believed those talents must be tightly managed:

“I knew what I could make him achieve, and he achieved it for my administration and the country. I believe that he can still be used in public service, but under guidance and sufficient oversight, making allowance for the psychology of his petite size and his elephantine brain. He was described as a malicious liar. He was more than that; he is a pathological purveyor of untruths and half-truths with little or no regard for integrity. In all of this, he unwittingly does more harm than good to himself.”

Obasanjo concluded his assessment with a reflection on El-Rufai’s personality and background:

“He’s always playing himself up to give himself more ‘height’ than he has. Whichever way, he has my sympathy. It was characteristic of him. Unfortunately, his character could also be seen as a reflection of his upbringing, which may spread the blame beyond him.”

“In a typical African society, it would be asked, ‘Did he not receive home training, or did he reject home training?’ Is there nobody in the family to call him to order? One may also wonder how much his losing his father at the tender age of eight years had rendered him devoid of fatherly care, guidance, paternal direction, and home training.”

Confusion has erupted within the ranks of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) following a clash between the National Working Committee (NWC) and the party’s Acting National Chairman, Ambassador Umar Damagum, over key decisions regarding the party’s leadership and upcoming meetings.

On Wednesday, the NWC issued a statement firmly denying reports that the 100th National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the party, scheduled for Monday, June 30, 2025, had been postponed.

In addition to dismissing the alleged postponement, the NWC also refuted claims that Samuel Anyanwu had been reinstated as the National Secretary of the party.

The NWC’s statement came in direct response to a press briefing earlier the same day by Damagum, in which he had announced both the postponement of the NEC meeting and Anyanwu’s reinstatement.

According to the NWC, Damagum’s declarations stand in clear violation of the decision reached at the 99th NEC meeting, which had not only confirmed June 30 as the date for the next NEC session but also deferred all matters concerning the National Secretary’s position to that very meeting.

“The pronouncements by the Acting National Chairman have no foundation as no organ of the Party (including the NWC), individual or group has the power to cancel, overrule, veto or vary the resolution of the National Executive Committee (NEC),” the statement read.

Wale Ajetunmobi, the Special Assistant on Media to Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has advised former presidential candidate Peter Obi to lodge a formal complaint with the police regarding the demolition of his brother’s property in Lagos.

The statement follows Obi’s social media post in which he narrated how his younger brother’s company building in Ikeja, Lagos, was demolished under unclear circumstances.

According to Obi, the property, which had stood for over 15 years, was brought down without proper notice or identifiable legal grounds.

In a post shared on X (formerly Twitter), Obi wrote, “This morning, my youngest brother called me frantically, informing me that a group of people had invaded his company property in Ikeja, Lagos, and were demolishing the building.

He had just come in from Port Harcourt and was denied entry to the property by security men who told him the building was being pulled down.

“They even informed him that this demolition had started over the weekend. As a peace-loving Nigerian, he quickly started processing to go to court immediately, not knowing what must have resulted in this, as they moved fast to destroy his home without any restraint.”

Obi continued, explaining how he visited the site himself and was nearly denied access.

“I humbly pleaded with them that the property belonged to my brother’s company, and from the records, the company had owned the property for over a decade.

“They told me they had a court judgment, and I immediately requested it. You would not believe that the court judgment they claim was issued against an unknown person, and squatters. I went further to ask about a demolition order or permit, and there was none,” he said.

“How do you sue an unknown person? How does a court issue a judgment in such a farce of a case? No one was served. No name was written. Yet they showed up with excavators and began destroying a structure that had stood for over 15 years,” Obi added.

Although Obi did not explicitly blame the Lagos State Government, several online users speculated that the Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, might have played a role.

Responding to the growing criticism, Sanwo-Olu’s media aide, Wale Ajetunmobi, defended the commissioner, stating, “Tokunbo Wahab won’t come out to answer questions about a demolition he never sanctioned. Peter Obi should report the matter to the police. They will help him find people who ordered the building’s demolition.”

He emphasized that Wahab’s responsibilities do not include issuing legal rulings or demolition orders.

“Whatever game Peter Obi wants to play, first things first, Who is responsible for the demolition has to be well stated. If he can’t reach them, he should go to the police station and report. A commissioner who doesn’t issue court orders should not be questioned,” Ajetunmobi said.

He also pointed out the public’s frequent misunderstanding of the commissioner’s duties.

“People probably think HC Tokunbo Wahab’s primary job is to demolish people’s houses. They can’t differentiate between removal of contraventions along drainage/canal’s right-of-way and demolition of distressed buildings, which is out of HC Wahab’s purview,” he added.

The Nigerian Senate has approved the 2025 Appropriation Bill for Rivers State, authorizing a total expenditure of ₦1.485 trillion for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2025.

This decision followed the third reading of the bill on the Senate floor, after lawmakers reviewed the report submitted by the Ad-Hoc Committee on Rivers State during a Committee of Supply session.

The bill, as passed, permits the issuance of ₦1,485,662,592,442 from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of Rivers State.

According to the approved breakdown, the budget allocates:

₦120.8 billion for debt servicing,

₦287.38 billion for recurrent (non-debt) spending, and

₦1.077 trillion for capital projects.

During deliberations, Senator Abdul Ningi (Bauchi Central) backed the passage of the bill but raised a concern about the extra ₦50 billion earmarked for settling outstanding pensions and gratuities.

He emphasized the need for more intensive oversight by the committee to ensure the funds are disbursed appropriately, stating that “the funds reach the rightful pension beneficiaries without delay.”

The legislation now awaits assent before implementation can begin.

Earlier in May 2025, President Bola Tinubu transmitted the Rivers State 2025 budget to the National Assembly, citing the suspension of the state House of Assembly as the reason for federal legislative intervention.

In his letter to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, President Tinubu noted that the budget proposal amounted to ₦1.481 trillion, emphasizing that the funds were designed to “revitalize key sectors” of the state’s economy.

President Tinubu also sent the same proposal to the House of Representatives, pointing out that the Supreme Court had nullified an earlier 2025 budget presentation made by suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara.

Following months of a deepening political crisis between Governor Fubara and a faction of the Rivers State House of Assembly loyal to Minister of the FCT, Nyesom Wike, the President declared a state of emergency in the state on March 18, 2025.

To restore order and oversee governance, Tinubu appointed Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas (rtd) as sole administrator of the state.

Ibas was officially sworn in on March 19, 2025, and is expected to manage state affairs for an initial period of six months.

Hon. Chimaobi Sam Atu, representing Enugu North/South federal constituency in the house of Representatives has officially defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The defection took place on Thursday in the floor of the House and was formally acknowledged during plenary after a letter from Hon. Atu was read by Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen.

Hon. Atu said his decision to dump the Labour Party was driven by the unrelenting internal crises within the party.

According to him, the turmoil and lack of strategic direction made it difficult for him to effectively serve his constituents.

“All of you have seen the crisis in the party and grass lack of direction. My interest is to serve my people in the most modest way I can,” Atu stated.

He further explained that his choice to join the ruling APC was influenced by recent efforts by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to address longstanding concerns in the South East.

“Again, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has demonstrated his commitment to Ndi Igbo with signing of the South East Development Commission and other significant projects,” he said.

As political maneuvering intensifies ahead of the 2027 general elections, President Bola Tinubu has dismissed the emerging coalition of opposition figures seeking to challenge his re-election bid, branding them as “political IDPs”,  internally displaced politicians.

Speaking during a one-day presidential visit to Nasarawa State on Wednesday, where he inaugurated several development projects, Tinubu urged his supporters to ignore what he described as distractions from the opposition.

“Just don’t pay them any attention. They are the political IDPs. Don’t give them a home. The hope is here,” the President stated.

His comments come amid reports that notable opposition figures, including 2023 PDP presidential candidate and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Labour Party’s Peter Obi, and ex-Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai, are in talks to form a united front against the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027.

Despite the growing momentum behind this planned alliance, Tinubu downplayed the threat, suggesting the coalition would ultimately work against itself.

“They are in a coalition to unseat themselves,” he remarked.

During the visit, Tinubu also commended Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State for his strides in development, pledging continued federal support for the state’s progress.

“Sule is doing well. We will support whatever Governor Sule brings about to work harder for the prosperity and renaissance of Nasarawa State. That is what we stand for,” the President assured.

Governor Sule, in his address, urged the President to back full-scale oil and gas exploration in Obi Local Government Area, following the 2023 discovery of hydrocarbon reserves there.

“In 2023, there was an exploration well that was going on in the Obi Local Government Area of the state. There has been a discovery of hydrocarbon in excess of one billion,” he noted.

“We are asking you, Your Excellency, to ensure that they come back and drill the next exploration well, the appraisal well, and the development package so that we can start producing oil from that site,” Sule added.

He emphasized the economic potential of the discovery, stating, “We are telling you that this is the best for the country. We’ll become another Saudi Arabia if we have a deep onshore operation so that we can have integrated oil and gas facilities similar to what they have in Saudi Arabia so that we can do exploration, production, refining as well as gas and power production and be able to export finished products to other countries.”

Momentum behind the opposition coalition has been building steadily.

In May, Atiku Abubakar’s spokesperson, Paul Ibe, confirmed during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today that discussions were ongoing.

“Well, you and I know that there have been ongoing discussions between Atiku Abubakar and some opposition leaders: Peter Obi, Nasir El-Rufai,” Ibe said.

“Yes, it’s out there in the open. Discussion is still ongoing, and at the end of that discussion, they will come out with a position and the direction that we’re going to follow based on the yearnings and aspirations of Nigerians.”

Further fueling the coalition movement, a new political party, the All Democratic Alliance (ADA), led by a former Senate President David Mark, recently submitted its registration application to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The party is backed by the National Opposition Coalition Group (NOCG), which includes former Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi.