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Ondo Election: Courts Give Conflicting Judgements Over PDP Candidates

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Ondo Election: Courts Give Conflicting Judgements Over PDP Candidates

 

Eyitayo Jegede
Eyitayo Jegede

The drama that has characterized the leadership tussle in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, especially with regards to the Ondo State governorship election, continued on Thursday as two courts, one in Abuja, the other in Akure, gave conflicting judgements on the issue.

Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja, in his ruling, refused the application brought by Eyitayo Jegede, the governorship candidate of the Ahmed Makarfi-led faction of the PDP, seeking permission to appeal the October 14 judgement of the court.

Abang had declared Jimoh Ibrahim, candidate of the Ali Modu-Sheriff faction of the PDP, as the authentic PDP candidate for the November, 26 election in Ondo state, restating that Sherrif remained the authentic National Chairman of the PDP.

However, in his ruling on Thursday, Abang held that Jegede lacked the locus standi to appeal the decision of the court because the Electoral Act only allows the party and not the candidate to contest the judgement.

He said: “The only case where the applicant would have been considered as having a locus standi to contest the October 14 judgement is if he had taken part in the August 29primaries conducted by Mr. Sheriff’s faction.”

Abang said that the record before him did not show that Jegede was a sponsored candidate of the PDP in Ondo State.

In a separate judgement; Justice Abang struck out an application by the Makarfi-led faction seeking a stay of execution of the October 14 judgement.

He also awarded a fine of N100, 000 in two tranches of N50, 000 against Adeola Adedipe, the lawyer who represented the Makarfi faction on Thursday.

Jimoh Ibrahim
Jimoh Ibrahim

Abang ordered that Adedipe to pay the sum of N50, 000 to each of the two counsels, who represented both the Sheriff and the Makarfi factions in the previous sitting.

He described the appearance of Adedipe as a gross abuse of judicial process, since the counsel was not a party during the court session where the said judgement was given.

Different Ruling In Akure

Meanwhile, an Akure High Court on Thursday ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, not to substitute the name of Eyitayo Jegede as candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party for the November 26 governorship election. ‎

The Makarfi faction of the PDP had gone to court asking it to stop the moves by the Sheriff faction and its candidate Jimoh Ibrahim to get INEC to list Ibrahim as the authentic PDP flagbearer.

Justice William Olamide ruled that it would be out of order for INEC to replace or substitute Jegede’s name while the motion on notice was still pending. He said such ‎would contravene the principles of “equity, justice and fairness.”

“It is hereby ordered as prayed. The defendant/respondent is hereby restrained either by itself, chairman, commissioners, agents and servants, officers or privies or through any person or persons, howsoever from changing, replacing, removing, substituting or in any manner tampering with the name, Eyitayo Jegede SAN as the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the governorship election slated for November 26, 2016pending the determination of motion on notice,” the judge said.

The final list of candidates for the election is expected from INEC before the end of Thursday.

Senate Passes Code of Conduct Amendment Bill

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Senate Passes Code of Conduct Amendment Bill

senate-passes-code-of-conduct-amendment-bill

The Senate has passed the Code of Conduct amendment bill, 2016, stripping the presidency of the powers to appoint members of the Code of Conduct Bureau, CCB as well as the Code of Conduct Tribunal, CCT.

In the amended bill, the powers to appoint members of the CCB/CCT were vested on the National assembly.

The decision of the Senate came just moments after the Appeal Court struck out the appeal by the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, challenging his trial at the CCT over alleged false assets declaration.

Saraki had suggested that before filing charges against him, the CCB should have invited him to come and clarify his assets declaration.

The actual amendments to the Act were done by the House of Representatives and passed on May 31, the Senate only concurred with the House and passed the bill on Thursday.

According to the amended bill, ‎the CCB will first invite the person suspected of falsely declaring his asset for clarification before taking the person to the Tribunal.

In Section 4 (2) of the amended act, the word “President” was substituted with “the National Assembly”, as the one to appoint members of staff of the Bureau and exercise disciplinary control over them.

‎Section 1 (4) was deleted and replaced with: “The Chairman and members shall serve for a term of five years subject to renewal for one further term only.

“(E) upon complaint(s) of any breach or where it appears to the Bureau that there is a breach of the provision of this Act, any person concerned shall be given particulars of such non-compliance or breaches to explain before any reference to the Tribunal.”

Recall that the Senate had initially stepped down the consideration of the bill due to opposition and protests by civil society organisations.

Osinbajo To Deliver Anti-Terrorism Lecture At Harvard

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Osinbajo To Deliver Anti-Terrorism Lecture At Harvard
Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo
Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo

Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo is expected to deliver an anti-terrorism lecture: “Destroying Boko Haram and the Rebuilding of Nigeria’s North-East”, at a seminar which will hold at the Harvard University, Boston, in the U.S. on Thursday.

This was made known in a statement issued by his spokesperson, Laolu Akande.

Osinbajo was invited by the university to talk to a gathering of intellectuals at a Seminar titled ‘Nigeria in the World’ which is hosted by the Weatherhead Centre for International Affairs.

Akande said that the seminar will serve as a forum for scholars, researchers, policy makers, and professionals to reflect on critical issues pertaining to Nigeria’s relations with the world by focusing on strategic issues of security.

He added that the major focus of the seminar would be on regional stability, economic development, interreligious relations, health policy, human rights, justice and gender, while its overall goal is to bring Nigeria into dialogue with world issues.

Osinbajo’s lecture is expected to highlight the progress made by the Buhari presidency in degrading Boko Haram resulting in the freedom of thousands of Nigerians in Boko Haram captivity, including some of the abducted Chibok girls.

Aknde added that the lecture will be a clarion call for a more concerted global action against terrorism and an increasingly effective international collaboration regarding the humanitarian crisis in the North-East.

“While in Harvard, the vice president will be received by top officials of the university and will also visit the Divinity School and the African Studies Centre,” the Vice President’s spokesman stated.

He added that Osinbajo will on Friday participate in a town hall event in Houston, Texas, and also a business conference organised by U.S.-based Nigerians on infrastructure development issues.

It said he will round off the visit in Houston by attending an evening gala to honour high flying U.S.-based Nigerians.

“The Vice President who left Abuja on Wednesday after attending the Federal Executive Council meeting and the inauguration of the Presidential Committee on the Northeast Initiative is expected back on Sunday,” Akande said.

Oil Workers Threaten Strike Over Sack Of Over 3,000

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Oil Workers Threaten Strike Over Sack Of Over 3,000

oil-workers-threaten-strike-over-sack-of-over-3000

The Two Major Unions In Nigeria’s Oil And Gas Sector Are Threatening To Down Tools If The Mass Retrenchment In The Sector Continues Unabated.

The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, on Wednesday gave the federal government a 21-day ultimatum to halt the sackings which they said had affected over 3,000 oil workers.

Igwe Achese, National President of NUPENG, while addressing journalists at the union’s meeting in Delta State said that government must be proactive to avoid grounding the industry.

He named oil companies that have so far retrenched workers to include: Chevron Nigeria Limited, ExxonMobil, Pan Ocean, Saipem, and Hercules oil and gas limited, among others, apparently due to the current economic recession in the country.

He said: “More than 3,000 of our members are affected.

“Chevron alone is about 1,500; Mobil is about 1,000; the entire workers of Hercules Oil & Gas are being asked to go home; Pan Ocean has since closed shop and is gone. Industry-wide everybody is being asked to go.

“We are now asking ourselves, where are we heading with the industry? We have lost so much of Nigerian personnel working in the oil and gas industry.

“What is happening in Nigeria cannot be compared to what is happening in other African countries. We want government to wake up and address some of these issues.”

Achese said if government failed to act and direct the oil companies to stop these ongoing retrenchments of their members in the sector, they would be compelled to act to protect their interest.

“It is painful to say as I address you, Chevron has wound up in the East and their offices closed. A total of 1,500 workers were sacked without their entitlements. Nobody is saying anything about it. As we speak, many companies have left and many others are winding up to go.

“The Federal Government should act fast to avert further loss of jobs. There is too much redundancy in the oil industry, which needs urgent action from government to salvage the situation,” Mr. Achese said.

It has been a tough period for the Nigerian oil and gas sector following the drastic drop in the global price of crude oil, as well as the resurgence of militant activities in the Niger Delta which has seen oil installations destroyed by aggrieved youths in the region.

Nigerian Activist In Solitary Confinement In Japan

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Nigerian Activist In Solitary Confinement In Japan

elizabeth-aruoriwo-obueza

A Nigerian activist, Elizabeth Obueza, who sought asylum in Japan, is reportedly being held in solitary confinement at a detention centre in capital Tokyo for the past two weeks.

Reports have it that the 48-year-old Obueza was detained after her asylum request was rejected.

She is a prominent campaigner for asylum seekers in Japan as well as for the thousands of people who are on “provisional release” from immigration detention.

‘Provisional release’ is a status that allowed  foreigners in Japan to get out of the detention centres but bars them from working and travelling freely in the country.

According to Reuters, Obueza’s case is being seen as efforts by Tokyo to crackdown on foreigners living in the country without valid visas.

Immigration lawyer, Shoichi Ibusuki said that “Elizabeth was targeted and detained for being an activist,” adding that he wants “her released immediately.”

Obueza reportedly said that she Nigeria in 1991 to escape female genital mutilation.

She had applied for asylum in 2011, but since the past 15 days she claimed that she was locked up for more than 22 hours a day, whereas a typical detainee is confined for up to 18 hours a day at the Tokyo Immigration Bureau.

“I want to help people,” Obueza said, “give me the right to help people. Don’t put me in here.”

Mitsuru Miyasako, the head of the Provisional Release Association in Japan, a group representing refugees and immigrants said: “Elizabeth is held in solitary because she’s an activist and immigration officials don’t want her causing trouble.

“Locking someone up alone in a tiny room is to ruin them psychologically.”

According to rights groups, lawyers and former detainees, Obueza has helped her fellow detainees navigate the system to find legal help, during her stay at different detention centres.

Miyasako too added that as an activist Obueza has helped detainees write petition to immigration authorities to seek better medical assistance.

The death of a Sri Lankan man in 2014 in a solitary cell reportedly highlighted the lack of medical facilities provided to detainees.

Obueza said isolating her will not stop her from campaigning for the cause. She said when she is let out of her room she goes to other cells to talk to detainees and “advise them”.

“You might think you arrested me, but I think God wants me here to help some other people,” she said of the immigration officials who locked her up.

145 Child Soldiers Released In South Sudan

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145 Child Soldiers Released In South Sudan

child-soldiers-in-south-sudan

The United Nations’ Children’s Fund, UNICEF, has announced that a total of 145 child soldiers, who were fighting for two rebel groups in South Sudan have been released.

The children were recruited by the Cobra Faction and the SPLA In Opposition, two armed groups which have been fighting the government.

In a statement, UNICEF said the children were freed in the eastern region of Pibor and “disarmed and provided with civilian clothes,” adding, however, that about 16,000 more children still belong to various armed groups.

UNICEF said it was the largest release of child fighters since last year but warned that children were still being recruited by various armed groups.

Mahimbo Mdoe, Unicef’s representative in South Sudan called on all parties in the conflict to “end the recruitment and to release children who are currently serving in their ranks”.

One of the child soldiers, an 11-year old whose name was given only as Silva, said that he has been fighting for more than two years.

“I haven’t seen my mother and father since last summer,” he said, “I’ve seen many people killed when I was on missions.”

“I had an AK-47. It was heavy. I was fighting to protect my family and village. Now I want to go to school and learn. I don’t want to fight anymore, I was scared,” he said.

South Sudan was plunged into internal strife in December 2013 when President Salva Kiir accused his rival, former Vice-President Riek Machar of plotting a coup.

The two camps have broken a series of peace deals, the latest one in July, meant to resolve the crisis in the country.

Hundreds of civilians have been killed and thousands forced from their homes in the latest fighting.

NEMA Wants More Attention For Liberated Communities

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NEMA Wants More Attention For Liberated Communities

nema-wants-more-attention-for-liberated-communities

The National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, has urged humanitarian agencies working in the North east, to focus more attention on the communities that have been liberated from Boko Haram Insurgents in order to provide succor for the people returning to their homes.

The call was made by Mohammed Kanar, the North east Zonal Coordinator of NEMA during a humanitarian coordination meeting organized by the agency in conjunction with the Borno State Emergency Management Agency, BOSEMA, on Wednesday.

Kanar said it appeared that a lot of focus is being centred on the people living in Internally Displaced Persons, IDP, camps to the detriment of those who are in host communities as well as newly liberated towns.

He noted that there are 52 humanitarian organisations presently in the North east, comprising mostly of international agencies, with all concentrating on IDP camps.

He also said that it was only about 500,000 persons, out of the 2,093,036 IDPs in Borno State, who are residing in camps, as others reside within the Maiduguri metropolis and liberated towns.

Kanar said that at present, the camps are already well covered but the same cannot be said about the other communities where even larger numbers of people live, as there have been reports of humanitarian crises in some of the areas.

He however admitted that some of the humanitarian partners have started making inroads into the host communities and newly liberated communities, but said that much needed to be done.

He said the major agenda of the meeting was to deliberate on how to scale up efforts at arresting humanitarian crisis in the host communities and the newly liberated towns, promising that NEMA will boost its activities in eight council areas of the state that are most affected by the Boko Haram crisis.

The eight councils include: Gwoza, Gamboru-Ngala, Mafa, Bama, Askira-Uba, Konduga, Maiduguri Metropolitan Council and Jere.

The meeting was attended by representatives of all the humanitarian agencies working to cater for citizens of Borno State, the worst-hit by the Boko Haram insurgency.

Buhari Reappoints Yemi Kale As NBS Boss

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Buhari Reappoints Yemi Kale As NBS Boss
Yemi Kale
Yemi Kale

President Muhammadu Buhari has reappointed Yemi Kale to serve another five-year tenure as the Statistician General of the Federation and Chief Executive Officer of the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS.

Kale was first appointed in August 2011 by former President Goodluck Jonathan for an initial five-year term, having served as the Special Adviser to the then Minister of National Planning.

His first tenure ended in August and there had been speculations that President Buhari may appoint a new person for the post.

Kale, son of a retired Army General, was educated in Ethiopia and London and had served on several presidential committees and advisory bodies.

He is a member of numerous professional bodies including: Fellow of the UK Royal Statistical Society, Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Administrators and Researchers of Nigeria, Member at the World Economics Federation, Member at the Royal Economic Society and Member of the Nigerian Statistical Association.

Borno Battles Drug Abuse In Displaced Persons’ Camps

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Borno Battles Drug Abuse In Displaced Persons’ Camps

borno-battles-drug-abuse-in-displaced-persons-camps

The Borno State Government has raised alarm over the increasing rate of drug abuse among the citizens of the state, especially in the Internally Displaced Persons, IDP, camps, as well as in communities liberated from Boko Haram control.

The State Commissioner for Justice, Kaka Shehu, who also doubles as Chairman, Borno State Committee for the Control of Drug Abuse, made this known in Maiduguri on Wednesday, saying that the state is considering declaring a state of emergency on illicit drug use.

He however said that officials are doing their best in the anti-drug abuse campaign despite the challenges posed by insecurity.

He said: “I recall that some of offices of the National Drug Law and Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, were attacked in Gamboru Ngala, Banki, Baga and here in Maiduguri before it was taken over by Boko Haram insurgency.

“But in spite of these challenges, the NDLEA Borno Command was able to recover more than 20 tonnes of various assorted illicit drugs.”

He added that some suspected drug peddlers had been arrested over the last three years, a development that led to the formation of the Drug Control Committee.

“The committee comprises, the military, NDLEA, Police, Civil Defence and other humanitarian and Non-Governmental Organisations.

On the activities of the committee since its formation, Shehu said: “So far, we have mapped-out an aggressive sensitisation on drug abuse in almost all the IDP camps because we have discovered that some IDPs are chronic addicts of illicit drugs.

“Our fear is that we do not want these IDPs to get back to their liberated homes and continue to constitute nuisances.

“We have had enough of Boko Haram and enough of our youth engaging in drug abuse.

“We do not want to go to the camps to start effecting arrests now because of the condition they have found themselves,” he said.

The anti-drug abuse committee chairman assured that “as we are moving to return them (IDPs) to their liberated communities, we will ensure that we clear the communities of nefarious activities.

He disclosed that a truck that was heading to Gamboru Ngala with about 1, 200 kilograms of Indian Hemp was intercepted by security agencies, adding that “the committee will continue to liaise with NDLEA, to ensure that all liberated communities are free of illicit drugs.”

“We will also liaise with Federal High Courts to ensure that all cases of drug abuse was handled with dispatch to serve as warnings to others,” Shehu said.

House Summons IGP Over Extrajudicial Killings

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House Summons IGP Over Extrajudicial Killings
IGP Ibrahim Idris

Following series of allegations against the police and other security agencies of committing extrajudicial killings in Bayelsa State, the House of Representatives has invited the Inspector General of Police, IGP, Ibrahim Idris, to appear before it and state the force’s side of the story.

The matter was raised on the floor of the House on Wednesday by Douye Biri, a Bayelsan lawmaker who said that there had been at least four cases of extrajudicial killings in the state in the last two weeks.

“In the last two weeks, the Nigerian Police Force Bayelsa State Command has shot and killed four innocent Nigerians.”

According to the lawmaker, some of the people killed include Innocent Kokorifa, Izu Joseph and Godgift Oduku.

Biri noted that “the Nigerian Police Force is a creation of law whose principal function is to protect and ensure the well-being of citizens and visitors who are within the territorial jurisdiction of Nigeria.

He added that in the discharge of its duty, the police force should display utmost “care and respect for human life,” as indiscriminate killings such could throw the society into avoidable crisis.

“In a situation where the people will be forced to defend themselves from attacks from the very police who have been paid by the taxpayers to protect them is not a welcome idea,” he said.

Nicholas Ossai, chairman of the House committee on Ethics and privileges, also told members of the House that he had received numerous complaints from members of the public about extrajudicial killings by security agencies.

He said that Nigeria should emulate other western countries where the lives of citizens are greatly valued.

Force Public Relations Officer, Don Awunah, said that the police do not engage in extra-judicial attacks on citizens, adding, however that the IGP would act on the summons when he receives it.

Awunah said if any attack occurred that involved the police, the matter would be investigated and culpable officers be brought to book.

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