Dear senator Ireti Kingibe,

The news that you are the winner of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Senate seat makes us extremely happy. Our heart is overflowing with contentment at your overwhelming success. Please accept our heartfelt preeminent wishes for further and everlasting success.

You must be quite pleased with your winning since you obviously worked very hard to get here. You earned this position, thanks to your hard work and devotion. With you, several things that have been off for a while may be put back on track now.

Your desire to make a difference for the country, Nigeria has given you a fighting chance at becoming a senator and it is clear that you suit this job description to a tee..

We have faith in your ability to shine brightly in the future and to effortlessly deliver on your promises. On behalf of we all at Topflyers Magazine International, we say congratulations on your well-deserved victory as we pledge to continually support you in making Nigeria great.

Congratulations!

Tofllyers Magazine International

The electoral commission, INEC, has declared Bola Tinubu, the candidate of Nigeria’s ruling party, APC, as the winner of Saturday’s presidential election.

Mr Tinubu defeated 17 other candidates who took part in the election. He scored a total of 8,794,726 votes, the highest of all the candidates, thus meeting the first constitutional requirement to be declared the winner.

He also scored over 25 per cent of the votes cast in 30 states, more than the 24 states constitutionally required.

INEC Chairman Mahmood Yakubu, who announced the final results in the early hours of Wednesday in Abuja, said Atiku Abubakar of the PDP came second in the election.

Atiku polled a total of 6,984,520 votes in the election.

Peter Obi of the Labour Party came third in the election with a total of 6,101,533 votes while Rabiu Kwankwaso of the NNPP came fourth with 1,496,687 votes

Mr Yakubu said a Certificate of Return for the President and Vice President will be presented by 3 p.m. on Wednesday at the National Collation Centre.

Only the top four candidates won the presidential election in at least one state. Each of Messrs Tinubu, Atiku and Obi won in 12 states while Mr Kwankwaso won only in Kano

However, winning a majority of states is not a requirement for a candidate to be declared the winner of the election.

States Won

Mr Tinubu won the election in Rivers, Borno, Jigawa, Zamfara, Benue, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo, Oyo and Ogun states.

Atiku won in Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, Kaduna, Gombe, Yobe, Bauchi, Adamawa and Taraba states. He also won in Osun, Akwa Ibom and Bayelsa states.

Mr Obi won in Edo, Cross River, Delta, Lagos, FCT, Plateau, Imo, Ebonyi, Nasarawa, Anambra, Abia and Enugu states.

Mr Kwankwaso won in only Kano State.

A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a suit seeking to stop the general election over the exclusion of Nigerians in diaspora from voting.

Delivering judgment on Wednesday, Inyang Ekwo, the presiding judge, held that the suit lacked merit.

judge also held that the right to vote in elections was not guaranteed by the country’s laws for Nigerians living abroad, the Cable News reports.

“The court does not enact laws. It cannot also expand the law in order to accommodate an issue before it, no matter how sympathetic or humanitarian the cause or situation is,” the court held.

“It only interprets and expounds the laws, and it is the law as stated before in this judgment, that when interpreting the provisions of a statute, the court must not ascribe meanings to clear, plain and unambiguous provisions in order to make such provisions conform to the court’s view of their meanings or what they ought to be.”

The judge said by the provisions of sections 77(2) and 117(2) of the 1999 constitution (as amended), the right to vote is reserved for Nigerian citizens resident in Nigeria.

“The right to vote for a president or governor is tied to the right to vote in an election of any legislative house, going by the provisions of sections 132(5) and 178(5) of the 1999 constitution (as amended),” the judge added.

Ekwo also raised concerns over the filing of the suit three months to the general election.

“The applicants can only be commended for bringing this matter to the fore. However, the court is not where the solution lies for now,” he said.

“What this case has revealed is that there is lacuna in the existing law with respect to the right of Nigerians in the diaspora to votes in elections in Nigeria.”

Addressing journalists in Benin, the state capital, Obaseki, who spoke through the Commissioner for Communication and Orientation, Chris Nehikhare, said from investigations, the protest was politically motivated.

He said the call for Oshiomhole’s arrest and questioning became necessary following a viral video where the former national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) instigated the people to go on rampage.

“We have been around the city all day, speaking with some of the protesters and we have done our investigations. We discovered that it is more than meets the eye.

“At this juncture, we will like to call on security agencies to call Adams Oshiomhole for questioning. He should be arrested and made to account for his movement in the last few days especially here in Benin City. Oshiomhole deliberately instigated the protest of the people," he said.

He alleged that Oshiomhole instigated the violence to destroy government properties in such a way “to bring anarchy to our city because his government is about to lose the forthcoming general elections,” saying the states which riot took place were PDP control states.

But checks showed that there riots in Ondo, which is governed by the ruling APC.

“I know people will think the protest is as a result of lack of naira notes but even if that is the case, Nigerians should know which political party is involved because it is ironic the political party that is responsible for this policy is the same party sending people to destroy PDP billboards,” Nehikhare said.

Responding, Oshiomhole’s spokesperson, Victor Oshioke, denied the allegation, saying Oshiomhole is busy campaigning for the APC presidential candidate and himself.

The former governor is the APC candidate for the February 25 election in Edo North Senatorial district. “Oshiomhole has no time to call for violence because the people of Edo love him. Obaseki and his people are rattled and nervous by the growing acceptance Oshiomhole gets any where he goes to in the state.

“They want to blackmail him because they have see his acceptance after almost eight years in government against Obaseki’s government who had failed woefully. The people are happy with Oshiomhole because of his performance which Obaseki can’t match, and they want to distract him” he said.

According to him, Oshiomhole didn’t made any statement to suggest that anybody should riot against anybody, adding that he is busy campaigning to Edo North people for his senatorial ambition.

“If Oshiomhole could not instigate people in past elections, while would he now instigate violence now that he is contesting and the people are with him. In Etsako where he is campaigning, there is no riot. And Obaseki is from Benin, so, he should check himself” he said.

Bendel Insurance Football Club of Benin Wednesday evening continued their impressive run in the Nigeria Premier Football League as they defeated Nasarawa United of Lafia by a lone Goal to remain leaders of the Group A of the abridged league.

The Benin Arsenals’ right back Ebuka Akobundu delivered the judgement that separated the two sides in the 52nd minute with his trademark powerful shot from the flank after picking up the ball from Vincent Augustus and fired it beyond the reach of Goalkeeper Jerry Isaac.

Thanks to substitute Vincent Augustus for the assist that pave the way for the scorer of the only goal of the match.

Both sides had laboured to a goalless draw in the first half of the tight but entertaining game.

The solid miners, however finished the game with ten men after Chris Madaki was shown the way out of the game with red card in the 83rd minute, following his hard tackle on dazzling Vincent Augustus.

Insurance FC have now stretched their comfortable lead in the group A of the abridged league with 20 points from eight games.

The Benin Arsenals have been impressive in the current season as they remain the only unbeaten team so far.

The Benin Arsenals earned away draw at Shooting Stars last Sunday after the home team forced them to a 2-2 draw at the Lekan Salami stadium, Ibadan. Gombe United had snatched a barren draw result in Benin against the Insurers in the previous week encounter.

Insurance FC will be playing host to former CAF champions Enyimba International on Saturday in the week nine engagement before going on mid season break.

The Benin Arsenals have been impressive in the current season as they remain the only unbeaten team so far.

The Benin Arsenals earned away draw at Shooting Stars last Sunday after the home team forced them to a 2-2 draw at the Lekan Salami stadium, Ibadan. Gombe United had snatched a barren draw result in Benin against the Insurers in the previous week encounter.

Insurance FC will be playing host to former CAF champions Enyimba International on Saturday in the week nine engagement before going on mid season break.

Creating a food-secure world: Tingo sites $1.6b food factory in Delta, to create 12,000 jobs

Tingo Foods, a division of Tingo International Holdings Inc., has set out to establish its food processing factory in Delta State which is expected to create over 12,000 direct employment.

Dozy Mmobuosi, the company's founder, said in a statement yesterday that the initiative would significantly help the economy by creating jobs and distributing wealth.

Additionally, it will support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, which aim to eradicate hunger and combat climate change.. 

 
Mmobuosi expressed optimism that the project will save Africa from paying foreign exchange to import finished food products. 

He said: “Additionally, it will aid the export of made-in-Africa foods to the world, enhance inter-Africa trade via the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement, and sell high-quality and nutritious food products in Nigeria.

“The formal foundation laying of this project will take place on February 9 in Ishiekpe village, Onicha Ugbo Aniocha North Local Government Area of Delta State and is expected to begin operations in the next 18 to 24 months.

“The facility when fully operational will initially produce a range of products including rice, tea, coffee, chocolate, biscuits, edible oil, cashew milk, millet-based cereal, beer, mineral water, fizzy drinks, pasta, and noodles. The facility will also serve as a hub for the development and distribution of new products in the future.”

Mmobuosi stated that the facility is the first phase of a multi-billion-dollar investment that Tingo International Holdings plans to make in the African food industry. 

He said the bulk of the cost is primarily machinery, which will be imported from some of the world’s leading manufacturers. 

Mmobuosi said: “As the founder of Tingo International Holdings, I am thrilled to be a part of this project, which I believe will play a significant role in helping Africa feed itself. This facility represents a major step towards building a sustainable future for Africa and creating a food-secure world.”

CEO Neha Mehta said, “Tingo Foods new food processing facility is more than just a business venture. It is a symbol of hope and a catalyst for change. We are committed to using this facility to drive economic growth and create a better future for Africa.” 

“At Tingo Foods, we understand the importance of human capital in the food processing industry, and we are committed to investing in the skills and development of our employees. We believe that by providing high-quality training and education, we can unlock the full potential of our workforce and create a thriving, sustainable industry.”

” In recent years, the African food industry has struggled with a lack of productivity and poor usage of human capital. However, Tingo Foods aims to change that by creating jobs, generating wealth, and contributing to sustainable development in Africa.

“Despite the challenges, there are also many strengths in this space. For example, the African food industry has a large and growing market, with a population of over 1.3 billion people and a rapidly expanding middle class.

Yokohama FC in Japan said Miura, 55, joined Oliveirense on a loan deal

The Japanese forward previously said he plans to play until he is 60.

Miura returned to Europe from Japan in 1999 when he was signed by Dinamo Zagreb in Croatia.

He won titles in Japan and Croatia.

Miura played for the Japanese national team between 1990 and 2000 and scored 55 goals in 89 international caps.

He will be 56 on Feb. 26.