The Director-General of the Department of State Services (DGSS), Oluwatosin Adeola Ajayi, has set free and approved an initial payment of N20 million to four suspects, out of which, each suspect is to receive five million Naira as compensation after being cleared of alleged membership of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

Security sources disclosed that the suspects; Emele Uduma Ibe, Berefgagha Appah, Ondokeyilemi Aggry and Oyeinmokebebeton Aggry, were arrested in May 2022, in Sampou and Akeddei communities in Kolokuma/Opokuma and Sagbama Local Government Areas of Bayelsa State.

“The Agency established that they had been misled into believing that they would each receive a monthly payment of N100,000 under the Federal Government’s Amnesty Programme, not knowing that they were being lured by a group of IPOB members who are now facing trial,” disclosed one of the sources.

While receiving the four, Deji Adeyanju & Partners, Counsel to the suspects, commended the Service for their relentless efforts towards safeguarding Nigeria’s security, particularly acknowledging the DGSS’ attempt at upholding human rights.

Expressing gratitude to the DSS boss, Emele Uduma Ibe who spoke on behalf of others, described the day as the happiest of his life, noting that the experience had taught him a valuable lesson which he would share with others.

He offered prayers for God’s continued blessings upon the DSS boss and the management of the Service.

Recall that upon assuming office in 2024, the DG ordered a review of over 300 inherited terrorism cases.

Currently, the DSS panel has been able to decongest its facility to about 100 after thorough investigations, paying a huge compensation.

The DSS boss awarded N20 million and covered the medical bills of a Jos based businessman, who was shot erroneously by service personnel in Plateau State.

Chineze Ozoadibe was also compensated with N10 million after she was wrongfully arrested, Sunday Ifedi who was also compensated with 10 million naira after investigation cleared him of ties with IPOB, likewise Kenneth Okechukwu Nwafor was also paid N5 million after investigation absolved him of IPOB allegations.

“Like other compensated suspects, the DSS will also offer psychological, medical support to these four in addition the initial amount given,” I’m confident the DSS will also help further reintegration into the society, revealed a source.

The DG- DSS in a recent maiden media interview admitted that, as humans, the DSS is prone to mistakes.

However, where there is injury, Mr Ajayi said there must be remedy.

“Where we admit our mistakes, we offer compensation, and seek ways to improve operations in tandem with the rule of law,”

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has explained why young people account for a smaller share of Nigeria’s registered voters ahead of the 2027 general elections than they did in 2023.

INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, said the decline was largely due to the ageing of people who were classified as youths during the 2023 general elections, rather than a loss of interest in electoral participation.

Amupitan gave the explanation on Tuesday during the grand finale of the INEC Campus Debate held at the Law Theatre of the University of Abuja.

According to him, youths currently account for 29.79 per cent of the voter register being prepared for the 2027 elections, compared with 39.65 per cent in 2023.

He said many people who fell within the youth age bracket in 2023 had since moved into older age categories, accounting for the change in their share of registered voters.

“Some questions have been asked, why has the number reduced compared to what we have in 2023? But the truth of the matter is that there has been progressive migration of the categories of persons that were youth in 2023, they have now migrated into different age groups,” Amupitan explained.

The INEC chairman said the current register was still undergoing review through the claims and objections process.

The 2023 voter register contained 37,060,399 young people aged between 18 and 34, representing 39.65 per cent of the 93.4 million registered voters.

Amupitan said the campus debate was part of the commission’s efforts to address voter apathy and improve young Nigerians’ understanding of the electoral process.

“Our plan is to catch them young,” he said, recalling an earlier engagement where some participants could not identify the INEC chairman.

The debate, held under the theme, “Nigeria’s Electoral Process and Democracy”, ended with the University of Jos emerging winner. Bayero University, Kano, came second, the University of Ibadan placed third, while the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, finished fourth.

Amupitan, an alumnus of the University of Jos, commended the quality of the presentations and said the judges took considerable time to calculate the scores to ensure an accurate result.

He joked that the outcome was so clear that none of the participating universities should consider challenging it in court.

The chairman also directed INEC’s Director of Voter Education and Publicity to maintain contact with the finalists, saying he would have offered them automatic employment if the law permitted.

“They are not qualified to have been given automatic employment, if not I will have done that by now,” he said, explaining that they would first need to graduate and complete the National Youth Service Corps programme.

Amupitan also highlighted the commission’s recent electoral activities, saying it had conducted four off-cycle elections since he assumed office. They include the Anambra governorship election, Federal Capital Territory area council elections, Ekiti governorship election and Osun governorship election.

He said the Anambra and Osun elections, which had previously been inconclusive in earlier cycles, were concluded under his leadership.

On women’s participation in politics, he said INEC had a gender and inclusivity department but noted that Nigeria was yet to introduce legislation guaranteeing equal representation of women in political offices.

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Abuja, Professor Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmi, urged young Nigerians to obtain their Permanent Voter Cards, participate in elections and hold elected leaders accountable.

He commended INEC for organising the debate, saying it would help young people understand how to manage disagreements peacefully.

“It can be argued that debate is the opposite of violence,” he said.

The Inspector-General of Police, IGP, Mr Olatunji Disu, says the Nigeria Police Force is ready for the successful conduct of the 2027 general elections.

Disu gave this assurance on Tuesday in Abuja, when a delegation from the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for West Africa and the Sahel paid him a courtesy visit.

The IGP told the delegation led by Dr Leonardo Simao that the Nigeria Police Force was adequately prepared for the elections.

Disu said the force had held a series of trainings with personnel of the Nigerian Army, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Customs, Immigration Service and the Department of State Services, DSS, in preparation for the election.

He said the training also involved how to include everybody in the election process, especially those living with disabilities.

According to him, the officers have been trained to identify them, and know what to do when they see persons with disabilities.

“So far so good, we are not afraid. We are confident that even if the elections start tomorrow, the Nigerian Police Force is ready to do what is expected of the force.

“We are ever ready to go, and we want to assure you that Nigerians will not be disappointed with the activities of the Nigerian Police Force in the election,” he said.