The PUNCH: The Independent National Electoral Commission has budgeted over N3bn to defend the results of the February 25 presidential and national assembly election and the March 18 governorship and state assembly polls. The PUNCH reports that several candidates who lost in the elections have filed petitions at the presidential and state election petition tribunals to challenge the outcome of the polls.
The Guardian: From Lagos to Enugu and Kano to Port Harcourt, there seems to be a breather, at last, for cash-strapped Nigerians, as part of the hitherto withheld banknotes made their way to Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and banking halls for those who need cash for transactions. The gradual easing could force the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), which had planned an industrial action on Wednesday to protest the naira scarcity, to retreat.
The Nation: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Chairman Dr. Iyorchia Ayu is under pressure to quit, following the protracted crisis that has hit the platform. Yesterday, he was suspended by the executive committee of his native Igyorov Ward in Gboko Local Government Area of Benue State after a vote of no confidence was passed in him.
Daily Trust: The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) took a new turn yesterday as the party’s Igyorov Ward stakeholders in Gboko LGA of Benue State suspended the National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, over alleged anti-party activities. The suspension of Ayu came a few days after the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party dragged the Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, before its national disciplinary committee and suspended a former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, and erstwhile Senate President, Anyim Pius Anyim, among others.
