Election: EFCC moves against vote buyers, deploys operatives across country

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has deployed its operatives to the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory to combat votebuying ahead of Saturday’s general elections.

EFCC Head of Media and Publicity, Mr Wilson Uwujaren, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja.

Uwujaren said that apart from the teams deployed across the country, the anti-graft agency had also released incidents reporting hotlines for the 36 states of the federation and the FCT.

He said the move was part of efforts to ensure the integrity of the Feb. 25 Presidential and National Assembly elections.

He quoted the Executive Chairman of the commission, Mr Abdulrasheed Bawa, as urging the operatives to be conscious of the interest of the nation and to exhibit a high sense of professionalism in the discharge of their duties.

“You are out on a national assignment and

I expect you to conduct yourselves responsibly in line with our core values of professionalism, integrity and courage.

“You have a responsibility to ensure that this election is devoid of financial malpractices, especially inducement of voters.

“The attention of the world is focused on Nigeria and we must do what is necessary to ensure that we have credible, free and fair elections.”

Bawa also urged members of the public to report any case of vote buying or selling, or other evidence of financial malpractices designed to compromise the electoral outcome through these hotlines.

“Members of the public can also report anyone trying to buy or sell votes by making use of the EFCC financial crimes reporting App, Eagle Eye, which is available for download on the Google Play or Apple store.

“Additionally, the public can reach the Commission through our social media handle, @officialefcc or by email, info@efcc.gov.ng.” (NAN)

Robotics championship designed to discover young Nigerian innovators, says organiser

Mr Olajide

Ajayi, National Coordinator, First LEGO League robotics championship says the competition is designed to inspire and discover young science and technology innovators across the country.

Ajayi told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that it was important for the country to focus on science and technology in order to innovatively solve the nation’s problems.

He said the robotics challenge which was put together by the Federal Ministry of Education in collaboration with Coderina Education and Technology Foundation was a step in unveiling creative thinkers.

“This creative programme is meant to inspire the young generation of people coming behind us to take technology and science very seriously”

“For any economy to be productive, you have to have creative thinkers, innovative thinkers, you have to have critical thinkers.

“As you know there will always be problems around, so you need to proffer solutions and find a way of solving our problems as a nation.

“That is why we want to catch these young talents early and develop them into critical thinkers and problem solvers using modern trends in technology,” he said.

Ajayi explained that the FIRST LEGO League competition is focused on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) skills using robotics and is open to students aged 9 to 16.

While the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) is designed for older students (12-18 years) and emphasizes the design and development of robots.

NAN reports that more than 600 students participated in the national championship, where they showcased their robots, inventions, and research projects to a panel of judges.

Federal Science and Technical College (FSTC) Usi-Ekiti won the 2023 edition of the competition held in Abuja, Queens College emerged second, FSTC Ilesa finished third, while GDSS Karu placed fourth.(NAN)