ENYA'S GIST BLOG

President Muhammadu Buhari has again praised his predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, for peacefully handing over in 2015. Mr Buhari in 2015 became the first opposition candidate in Nigeria to win a presidential election after defeating Mr Jonathan. Since then, Mr Buhari has repeatedly commended Mr Jonathan for peacefully handing over. The president reiterated his stance Thursday night when he hosted members of the Kannywood entertainment industry to a dinner at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. Mr Buhari, who recalled his political struggles since 2003 when he made his first attempt to clinch the presidential seat, lauded Mr Jonathan for accepting defeat in the 2015 general elections. “I’ll continue to hold former president Jonathan in high esteem as a result of that singular act. “He (Jonathan) was in power as Deputy Governor, Governor (Bayelsa), Vice-President and President, all for about 10 years and he voluntarily accepted defeat and surrendered power to me,’’ he said. ...

Sen. Bukola Saraki Senate President Bukola Saraki has administered the oath of office on Lawal Gumau (APC, Bauchi South) and Ahmed Babba-Kaita (APC, Katsina North), the newest senators in the country. The swearing-in took place at the Senate on Wednesday. Mr Gumau emerged winner of the Bauchi South senatorial election held on August 11. He was declared winner by the returning officer of the election, Ahmed Fadam, who supervised the final collation of the results. Mr. Gumau, who was a member of the House of Representatives, polled a total of 119,489 votes beating his closest rival, Ladan Salihu of the PDP who polled 50,256 votes. He replaces a late senator, Ali Wakili, who died on March 17. Mr Babba-Kaita was declared winner of the Katsina North senatorial election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), scoring 224,607 votes, while his elder brother and a retired customs officer, Kabir Babba-Kaita of the PDP scored 59,724 votes. He replaces a late senator, Mustaph...

Speaker Yakubu Doraga A new member of the House of Representatives, Haruna Isah, who was recently elected in a bye-election to represent Lokoja/Koton-Karfe federal constituency of Kogi State has been administered his oath of office by the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara. Mr. Isah won the by-election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to fill the vacancy created by the death of the former occupant of the seat, Umar Jibrin, on March 30. He polled 26,860 votes to defeat Bashir Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled 14, 845 votes. The late Mr Jibrin was until his death, the deputy house leader. Like the new lawmaker, the deceased was a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Nigerian songstress and Effyzzie Music Group act, Yemi Alade, has come through with the release of another single titled “Oh My Gosh.” The new single comes barely a month after she shared “Elele” produced by Egar Boi. “Oh My Gosh” was produced by Nigerian record producer, DJ Coublon, co-written by Klem and mixed and mastered by Swaps. The love-themed single sees the award-winning singer gushing over a love interest in a way that makes the song quite intriguing. Regarded as one of the most consistent and hardworking female Nigerian acts, Yemi Alade has continued to grow in the industry with little or no scandal attached to her name. Still riding on the success of her earliest groundbreaking single, “Johnny”, the video is currently one of the most viewed in Nigeria with over 93 million views. In his 2013 review of “Johnny,” Nigerian music blogger, Arinze Obikili, said “Johnny might be just what the doctor ordered at this stage in Yemi Alade’s career as she puts herself into the high l...

The former Senate minority leader, Godswill Akpabio, has said he is not interested in being senate president now. The position of Bukola Saraki as senate president is threatened as the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its lawmakers have asked him to resign his position or be removed having defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Sen. Godswill Apkabio Mr Saraki, however, says he would not resign as he believes he still enjoys the support of majority senators. The APC says it still has a slight majority of 53 of Nigeria’s 109 senators. However, two-thirds is constitutionally required to remove Mr Saraki, which means the ruling party would need the support of many opposition senators to achieve that feat, something it is unlikely to get as the race for 2019 heats up. Mr Akpabio, the former PDP leader in the Senate, on Wednesday formally defected to the APC amidst rumors he was promised the senate president’s seat by the ruling party. However, in an inter...