The Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase has mandated commissioners of police in the states to dismantle road blocks erected by local government officials in order to collect fees, dues and taxes.

In a terse press statement issued on his behalf on Wednesday by the police spokesperson, Emmanuel Ojukwu, the IGP said the order became imperative following complaints by the public over the disruption of the smooth flow of traffic by officials of the local government who mount road blocks in the guise of collecting the fees.

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He said there were equally reports of extortion and harassment of motorists by the local government agents deployed to the highways.

“Henceforth any local government staff found wanting in this regard would be made to face the full weight of the law,” the statement read.

By Musdapha Ilo, Maiduguri

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Wednesday, during a visit to Maiduguri promised that the federal government would resettle all those displaced by the insurgency that has ravaged the North east in recent years.

He also said their welfare would be given top priority in subsequent government spending.

Osinbajo who visited some of the camps that currently accommodate an estimated 1.5 million internally displaced persons, IDPs, in Borno Satate, reemphasized that the essence of governance was the security and welfare of the people.

At the Dalori camp, one of the 22 IDP camps in the state, the Vice President said he had gained more insight on the huge challenges faced by the IDPs during his visit.

While praising the efforts of the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, over their support for the displaced persons, he said he had equally met with different stakeholders in the state who apprised him of the challenges faced at the camps.

At every camp visited, Osinbajo was quick to state that he was in Maiduguri as a representative of the president, Muhammadu Buhari.

“I am here in Borno state and in particular in this camp on the specific instructions of the President, who out of great concern for the wellbeing and the welfare of men, children and women in this camp has sent me here. He has asked me to come and see for myself what is going on at the IDP camps located in the northeast,” Osinbajo stated.

He said that from his assessment, he could see that there was a great deal of suffering and pain being experienced at the camps by the IDPs.

He, however, commended the state governor, Kashim Shettima for putting in place measures to ameliorate the plight of the IDPs.

“This is overwhelming task and a great task indeed and he has rendered tremendous service not just for his people but for the entire populace of this country,” the Vice President said.

He affirmed the federal government’s resolve to play a leading role in bringing about suitable measures to bring succor to the besieged communities, adding that state government and nongovernmental bodies would equally be carried along in the implementation of such steps.

“The work of resettlement involves a big deal, not just taking people back to their homes; it involves rebuilding and in doing this we have to rebuild their homes, schools, and places of worships. We will collaborate with the state government and NGOs in this regards. We will do this within a short time,” Osinbajo promised.

He said although the federal government was currently battling with financial challenges, it would, however, place the northeast in its list of priorities in the disbursement of funds.

Osinbajo’s visit to the city was, however, not without hiccups as there was massive traffic gridlock across the city due to the closure of major roads from as early as 7am in honor of the visiting official.

Many had to resort to trekking to get to their destination during the period of the visit.

Respite came for residents only after the Vice President left Maiduguri around 3.30pm.

A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed an application by the federal government for the extradition of Buruji Kashamu, a senator representing Ogun-East in the National Assembly.

Kashamu is currently wanted to the United States of America for drug trafficking related offences.

The immediate past attorney-general and minister of justice, Mohammed Adoke, had filed the application on May 28, 2015 after the US government requested for the senator’s extradition.

Presiding judge Gabriel Kolawole in his ruling held that he lacked requisite jurisdiction to entertain the suit ‎while the judgment of the division of the court in Lagos nullifying the proceedings on June 8, 2015 and the same judgment affirmed by another judge of the same Lagos division had not been set aside by an appellate court.

A judge, Okon Abang, of the Lagos division of the Federal High Court had on June 8, 2015, nullified the extradition proceedings which he said were initiated in contravention of an earlier order of the court.

Abang’s orders nullifying legal proceedings were equally affirmed by another judge, Ibrahim Buba, in another ruling on June 23, 2015.

Kolawole had expressed reservations on the Lagos judgments, which he described as “wild and audacious.”

He, however, held that it was the exclusive duty of the Court of Appeal to determine whether the rulings were rightly or wrongly given.

Kashamu’s counsel, Ajibola Oluyede, had on June 25, 2015, when the case came up for the first time, urged the court to dismiss the extradition application in the light of the judgments delivered in Lagos

The Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Lagos on Wednesday dismissed a petition challenging the victory of the Lagos State governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, in the governorship polls of April 11.

Head of the tribunal, Rita Ofili Ajumogibia, upheld the Ambode victory, bringing to an abrupt end to the tribunal proceedings which began in May.

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and its candidate in the governorship election, Jimi Agbaje had filed the petition in May challenging Ambode’s victory at the keenly contested elections.

The petition had requested that the tribunal compel the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC to make available all materials used for the election.

However the tribunal refused to accede to the request but rather it granted an appeal to allow the petitioner inspect the materials used specifically for the governorship polls.

It would be recalled that INEC had declared Ambode the winner of the election on April 12, when it announced that he polled 811,994 votes, as against that of Agbaje who secured 659,788 votes.

After the election results were announced, Agbaje had accepted Ambode’s victory, congratulating him and wishing him well. But he and his party later filed a case against the result at the tribunal.

A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has dismissed the corruption charges levelled against a former aviation minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

In her ruling, the presiding judge, Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia, said that the prosecution’s case was feeble and failed to provide enough evidence linking Fani-Kayode to money laundering.

The former spokesperson for the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP,presidential campaign organization, whose trial began in 2008 was arraigned by the EFCC for allegedly laundering about N100m while he was minister of culture and tourism and subsequently, aviation minister.

The initial sum of N100m in the charge sheet was later scaled down N2.1million on November 17, 2014 after the court dismissed 38 of the 40-count charge levelled against Fani-Kayode for lack of proof.

The EFCC prosecutor, Festus Keyamo, then had urged the court to uphold the remaining two counts and to accordingly convict Fani-Kayode, since the former minister failed to exonerate himself of the allegations.

Keyamo had pointed out that the objective of the charge was that Fani-Kayode illegally transacted in cash sums above N500,000, whichwas the threshold stipulated by the Money Laundering Prohibition Act.

He also argued that Fani-Kayode admitted making such transactions in his confessional statement of Dec. 22, 2008 made to the EFCC.

Keyamo had equally argued that the prosecution had discharged its duty once it established that Fani-Kayode transacted in large sums above the Money Laundering threshold.

He had asked the court to make Fani-Kayode explain the source of the money.

However, the defence lawyer, Ifedayo Adedipe in his summary argument, maintained that his client made no confession to the EFCC, adding that the anti-graft agency failed to show that Fani-Kayode actually accepted a cash sum of N1million as alleged.

Adedipe said the EFCC also failed to show to the court the person who handed the cash to the accused person.

He had also opined that for the prosecution’s case to succeed, it had to be proven beyond reasonable doubts.
Fani-Kayode had consistently denied the charges levelled against him by the anti-corruption agency.