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The Arab Council for the Sciences offers fellowship

Blessing OTOIBHI
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The Arab Council for the Sciences offers fellowship

THE Arab Council for the Social Sciences (ACSS) is accepting applications for the 10th cycle of its Early Career Fellows Program (ECFP).

This 12-month fellowship program aims at enabling early career researchers, up to three years out of a Ph.D., to pursue their research and publishing plans, become part of Arab research networks and plan a research career in the Arab region.

The fellowship will provide living and research expenses, with a total stipend ranging between US$20,000 and US$36,000.

The deadline for the submission of applications is May 25, 2023. Interested applicants can apply here.

152 stranded Nigerians evacuated from Libya

Oghenekevwe UCHECHUKWU
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152 stranded Nigerians evacuated from Libya

THE Nigerian Government in collaboration with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), have evacuated 152 stranded Nigerians from Libya.

The evacuated Nigerians with illegal immigrant status arrived at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, on Tuesday evening.

“Today, we have successfully evacuated another 152 Nigerians stranded in Libya to Nigeria. Because of their status as undocumented immigrants, they become vulnerable to exploitation and degrading treatment, including forced labour and prostitution,” Head of Nigeria’s Mission in Libya Kabiru Musa, said in a statement.

Musa noted this was the third exercise the Nigerian government and IOM have carried out in 2023, with a successful evacuation of nearly 500 Nigerians stranded in Libya to Nigeria since January.

“We evacuated almost 4,000 stranded Nigerians from Libya in 2022 and we hope to surpass that number this year.

“The federal government is determined to protect the rights of these migrants and will continue to facilitate their safe and voluntary return home,” Musa said.

Libya is a transit country for irregular migrants hoping to travel to the Western and other parts of the world, but sometimes become stranded in the country.

Since 2015, more than 60,000 migrants in Libya have been repatriated to different countries of origin across Africa and Asia through assisted return programmes that sometimes do not meet international human rights laws and standards, a report of the UN Human Rights Office published last October revealed.

The report which analysed the human rights protection gaps in the context of assisted returns from Libya stated that while ‘assisted returns’ of migrants to their countries of origin are, in principle, voluntary, many of the assisted returns carried out from Libya lacked free, prior and informed consent.

It also found that migrants are frequently compelled to accept assisted return to escape an environment of impunity, abusive detention conditions, threats of torture, ill-treatment, sexual violence, enforced disappearance, extortion, and other human rights violations and abuses.

“Once in Libya, migrants risk being systematically and routinely subjected to criminalisation, marginalisation, racism and xenophobia, and face a wide range of human rights violations and abuses by both State and non-State actors,” the report noted.

At the same time, there are virtually no safe and regular pathways for admission to and stay in third countries for migrants trapped in Libya.

As a result, many migrants find they have no choice but to return to the same circumstances that made them leave their countries in the first place.

Borno assembly member-elect is dead

Marcus FATUNMOLE
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Borno assembly member-elect is dead

BORNO State House of Assembly member-elect Nuhu Clark has died, 23 days after winning his election.

He was to represent the Chibok constituency.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria, he died in India on Monday after taking ill.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared him the winner of the election held alongside the governorship poll on 18 March.

He was a Commissioner for Poverty Alleviation under the incumbent Governor Babagana Zulum.

He resigned from the cabinet to contest for the Chibok constituency on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Clark was elected the chairman of Chibok Local Government Area in 1999.

He played an active role in ensuring the release of hundreds of girls abducted in the Chibok community by Boko Haram in 2014.

The state Commissioner for Home Affairs, Information and Culture, Babakura Abbajatau, confirmed Clark’s death on Wednesday while addressing journalists.

Kano APC contests NNPP’s victory, leaves Gawuna out of suit

Bankole ABE
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Kano APC contests NNPP’s victory, leaves Gawuna out of suit

THE All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano has filed a petition to challenge the victory of Abba Yusuf of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in the just-concluded governorship election.

However, the APC governorship candidate Nasiru Gawuna was exempted from the petition filed before the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal.

Gawuna, the outgoing Deputy Governor of the State, was not joined as a party in the petition.

The parties involved in the petition are APC as the petitioner, versus the NNPP, Abba Yusuf and INEC as 1st, 2nd and 3rd respondents, respectively.

In the petition filed on Sunday, April 10, the APC alleged that Yusuf was not qualified to contest the election because his name was not on the list of members of the NNPP sent to INEC.

The petitioner further alleged that Yusuf didn’t win the election with the majority of lawful votes, arguing that some of the votes cast for the NNPP are invalid and, if removed from the scores, the APC will have the highest number of votes cast.

APC also alleged that the Kano Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) was wrong for declaring the NNPP candidate as the winner, arguing that the margin of lead is not higher than the votes cancelled.

Reports say the exclusion of Gawuna might not be unconnected with his loss and congratulatory message to Yusuf. Gawuna had earlier conceded defeat and congratulated Yusuf.

Gawuna conceded defeat in a statement issued on March 29 in Kano by his Chief Press Secretary, Hassan Musa Fagge.

Gawuna, in the statement, called on the people of Kano and APC’s supporters to continue to be law-abiding.

“I am congratulating him, and I pray for him for Allah’s guidance in his administration,” he said.

While receiving his certificate of return at the INEC headquarters, Yusuf extended an olive branch to Gawuna and other candidates who contested the governorship election.

Arewa youths react as Benue govt suspends livestock guards

Theophilus ADEDOKUN
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Arewa youths react as Benue govt suspends livestock guards

THE Benue State Government has suspended the operations of the state’s livestock guards for two weeks.

The operations of the livestock guards, who enforce the Benue State Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law enacted in 2017, was temporarily suspended to allow the exit of all herdsmen with livestock within Benue territory.

Governor Samuel Ortom announced the development on Tuesday, April 11, after a state security council meeting, which deliberated on the killing of about 130 villagers in the state by suspected armed herdsmen, last week.

Ortom said that the suspension is to enable herdsmen who are not aware of the anti-open grazing law to leave.

“The move is to show good faith to all those who claimed to have come into the state without knowing there is a law prohibiting open grazing.”

He stressed that security agencies in the state have confirmed President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive to investigate and apprehend perpetrators of the mass killings in the state.

The governor, however, reiterated the need for speedy investigation by security agencies to enable victims of the attack to get some form of justice and restore peace.

Meanwhile reacting to the development in an interview with The ICIR,  the director of publicity of the Arewa Youth For Peace and Security, Salihu Mahmoud, said the temporary suspension of the operations of the livestock guards was politically motivated.

“Ortom introduced the anti-grazing law because of political interest and his self centered interests. The temporary reversal was borne out of how he had lost grace because if you observe in the present political system he has lost totally.

“He lost his senatorial bid and his anointed governorship candidate lost, so he need to retract his decisions.

“The law should be suspended and it should not be temporary because these cattle are consumed by majority of people,” Mahmoud said.

Stressing that the law should be abolished, he added, “Benue State does not have any approved grazing route for herdsmen. For you to suspend grazing, you must have a legal grazing route across the state from Benue to Makurdi.

The ICIR reported that President Muhammadu Buhari condemned the recent killings in Benue communities and charged security agencies to make efforts to end the violence.

According to Buhari, it was unacceptable for lives to be taken by herdsmen and farmers alike.

On April 7, The ICIR reported how residents of Apa community in Benue State took to the streets to protest against incessant killings by suspected armed herdsmen in the state.

Census: NPC postpones training for enumerators, supervisors

Beloved JOHN
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Census: NPC postpones training for enumerators, supervisors

THE National Population Commission (NPC) has postponed a training programme organised for enumerators and supervisors involved in the 2023 population census.

The training, which the NPC slated for April 13, has been postponed indefinitely.

The Commission’s chairman, Dr Ipalibo Harry, disclosed this while addressing journalists on Wednesday, April 12.

He assured that the development would not affect the conduct of the population and housing census scheduled to hold from May 3 to 7.

Harry said the NPC has concluded the training of its data managers and is prepared for the census.

First census since 2006

Nigeria is set to hold its first national population census in 17 years.

The census will be conducted in May and, according to the NPC, will meet global best standards.

Nigeria’s estimated population is more than 200 million, and the United Nations expects that to double by 2050. That would make Nigeria the world’s third most populous country, overtaking the United States.

The census had been earlier scheduled for March 29 but was postponed due to the postponement of the gubernatorial and state assembly elections.

According to the NPC, the census will be conducted digitally. This, according to the Commission, is in line with the United Nations (UN) recommendations.

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) recently approved N2.8 billion for the Commission to procure software to be used for the conduct of the census.

Internews Health Journalism Network offers HIV/AIDS Reporting Fellowship

Blessing OTOIBHI
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Internews Health Journalism Network offers HIV/AIDS Reporting Fellowship

THE Internews Health Journalism Network, with the support of the Mercury Phoenix Trust, is inviting applications for its HIV/AIDS Reporting Fellowship.

The programme seeks to encourage and support journalism that looks at new, unique, or underreported angles of HIV/AIDS.

Ten journalists will be selected for the fellowship and they will receive US$1,000 each.

The fellowship includes three virtual training sessions, one-on-one mentoring on story development, and a chance to win an additional prize for the best story to be produced and published or aired.

The organiser says the publishing/airing of stories produced as a result of this fellowship will aim to correspond with the International AIDS Conference in Brisbane, Australia in July.

The deadline for the submission of the application is April 18, 2023. Interested applicants can apply here.

Peter Obi detained by Immigration at London airport – Spokesperson

Bankole ABE
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Peter Obi detained by Immigration at London airport – Spokesperson

THE Obi-Datti Presidential Campaign Office said the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, was harassed by immigration officers at Heathrow Airport, London, United Kingdom (UK).

According to a statement released by the Head of Media of the Obi-Datti Campaign, Diran Onifade, on Wednesday, April 12, Obi was detained and interrogated for hours by Immigration officials over offences allegedly committed by an impostor.

According to the Campaign Council, Obi’s impersonator, who is still at large, may commit some offences that might result in his arrest in the UK.

Onifade said the spontaneous action of Nigerians at Heathrow Airport saved the LP presidential candidate, who has just returned from London, where he celebrated Easter.

Parts of the statement read: “The Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, just back from London, United Kingdom where he celebrated Easter, has confirmed that he was harassed by London Immigration officials and placed in detention but for the spontaneous reaction of Nigerians at Heathrow Airport.

“Obi-Datti Media Office can confirm that the LP presidential candidate in the February 25 presidential poll arrived at the Heathrow Airport in London from Nigeria on Good Friday, April 7, 2023, and joined the queue for the necessary airport protocols when he was accosted by Immigration official who handed him a detention note and told him to step aside.

“He was questioned for a long time, and it was very strange for a man who lived for over a decade in that country.” 

Onifade further disclosed that as Obi was recognised by Nigerians in the Diaspora who are likely to be Obidients, people who witnessed what was happening quickly raised their voices, wondering why he was being delayed.

“The Immigration officials who were also taken aback at the reaction of the people were forced to reveal that Obi was being questioned for a duplication offence meaning that someone has been impersonating him in London,” Onifade stated.

.He noted that the implication of the offence is that the impersonator could be committing serious crimes and other dubious acts that would be recorded in Obi’s name.

The Obi-Datti Media office claimed that its principal had been the target of numerous attacks since the February 25, Presidential Election in which he finished third out of 18 candidates.

The campaign office further stated that Since Obi was told to go to court, there have been severe attacks on him from all corners.

Onifade observed that the Federal Government, which directed Obi “to go to court,” still despatched the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammad, to the United States to de-market Obi and accused him of treason.

He added that Obi is back in the country and has continued his charity works.

INEC declared Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress winner of the presidential poll, ahead of 17 other candidates that contested the election.

The Chairman of INEC, Mahmood Yakubu, announced the result of the election on March 1.

According to the released result by INEC, Tinubu scored a total of 8,794,726 votes to defeat Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled a total of 6,984,520 votes, and Obi of LP, who came third with 6,101,533 votes.

The PDP and LP candidates had since rejected the election’s outcome and are challenging it in court.

Presidential poll: INEC asks tribunal to dismiss Atiku’s petition

Mustapha USMAN
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Presidential poll: INEC asks tribunal to dismiss Atiku’s petition

THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has asked the Presidential Election Petition Court to dismiss the petition filed by Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) flagbearer Atiku Abubakar challenging the victory of All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate Bola Tinubu.

Atiku who came second after polling 6,984,520 votes in the February 25 Presidential Election, on March 20, dragged the electoral commission and APC’s Tinubu to the election tribunal to contest the outcome of the poll.

INEC had declared Tinubu winner of the presidential election after scoring 8.7 million votes across the 36 states and the FCT.

The two leading candidates, Tinubu and Atiku respectively won 12 states each while Peter Obi of the Labour Party won in 11 states and the FCT. 

Tinubu scored over 25 per cent of the votes cast in 29 states, more than the 24 states constitutionally required.

Although his failure to win 25 per cent in FCT has been a burning issue among other candidates.

The PDP and Atiku, however, are alleging several irregularities including INEC’s failure to upload election results from polling stations in real-time to its IRev portal, electoral malpractices and Tinubu failure to polled 25 per cent of FCT votes.

PDP petition

The petition marked: CA/PEPC/03/2023, has INEC, Tinubu, his running mate, Senator Kashim Shettima, and the APC as the 1st to 4th respondents.

The petitioners are praying for the tribunal to declare Tinubu as not duly elected with a majority of the lawful votes cast and therefore wants Tinubu’s victory nullified. 

Part of the petition read: “The petitioners contend and shall lead evidence to show that contrary to the original design of the BVAS machine to upload data directly to the electronic collation system and the IReV portal, the 1st Respondent contrived and installed an intervening third-party device (Device Management System) which, in its ordinary usage, is meant to secure and administer the 1st Respondent’s technological ecosystem for the elections but as it relates to the presidential election, was used to intercept the results, quarantine and warehouse same, and filter them before releasing same to the IReV portal.

“The 1st Respondent used the said Device Management System to manipulate the election results in favour of the 2nd and 3rd Respondents.”

INEC says PDP petition ‘grossly incompetent’

INEC, in its defence to the PDP petition, filed through its team of lawyers led by A. B. Mahmoud (SAN), described the petition as “grossly incompetent, vague and academic”, noting that it was an abuse of the court process.

The Commission affirmed Tinubu as the winner having scored at least one-quarter of the valid votes cast in 29 states, which is over and above the 24 states threshold required by the Constitution. 

The electoral body said the APC candidate met all the legal requirements to be announced as the winner of the election, arguing that it’s not a must for a candidate to secure 25 per cent votes in the FCT to be declared winner.

It stressed that FCT was not accorded any special status in the Constitution as being “erroneously” portrayed by some political parties and candidates who lost the election.

“The FCT has the status of a state and ought to be recognised as one of the states of the federation,” the petition read.

The Commission argued that the election was conducted in compliance with the Electoral Act.

INEC further stressed that it delivered its promises “in conducting free, fair, transparent and credible elections by deploying the BVAS device in conducting accreditation of voter’s electronically and uploading scanned copies of polling unit election results to the IRev portal”.

According to the Commission, the Electoral Act does not require it to transmit results to the IRev portal before determining or declaring the winner of the presidential election.

“The 1st respondent (INEC) states further that it had all the physical hard copies of the results sheets from which it collated and tabulated the scores of the candidates. It states further that the result sheets were uploaded via its e -transmission system to the IRev portal.

“In further answer to paragraph 21 of the petition, the 1st respondent states that the BVAS device was, despite the glitches experienced on the day of the presidential election, still a game changer.

“It was properly deployed and used to verify and accredit registered voters. It was also used to upload scanned copies of polling unit results through the e-transmission system to the IRev portal in the presidential election held on 25th February 2023.

“The 1st respondent further states that the BVAS device was not designed to and did not transmit election results to the phantom Electronic Collation System as alleged by the petitioners.

“The 1st respondent denies that it prescribed or established a system to electronically transfer or transmit the results and the accreditation data from polling units to an electronic collation system.”

INEC explained to the Tribunal that the PDP and Abubakar “neither scored the majority of the lawful votes cast at the election nor scored not less than one-quarter of the lawful votes cast in at least two-thirds of the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory and therefore the 1st petitioner (Atiku) is not entitled to be returned as the winner of the presidential election conducted on February 25″.

The electoral body, therefore, urged the court to dismiss the petition.

OAU confirms, condemns killing of final year student over alleged phone theft

Marcus FATUNMOLE
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OAU confirms, condemns killing of final year student over alleged phone theft

THE Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, has condemned the killing of a final year student of the Department of Civil Engineering in the university for allegedly stealing a phone.

The student, whose identify is yet to be disclosed, was beaten to death by his fellow students inside the Awo Hall. 

Efforts by the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital to save his life on Tuesday after he was rushed to the facility failed.

The incident was a repeat of the killing of Deborah Samuel at the Shehu Shagari College of Education in Sokoto, Sokoto State, in May 2022 over blasphemy.

The incident also occurred less than 24 hours after a mob killed a driver who rammed into a crowd, killed two and injured others in Akure, Ondo State, on April 10.

Reacting to the student’s death, the OAU, in a statement by its public relations officer, Abiodun Olanrewaju, described the mob action as an ‘ugly development’ and ‘unfortunate.’

He said the school’s Vice Chancellor, Prof Adebayo Bamire, had set up a committee to unravel the cause of the attack.

“The action of the mob, being a violation of the law of the country and the university regulations, has been reported to the police, who have commenced investigations.

“The university administration hereby commiserates with the parents of the deceased, staff and students, and prays that God will grant us the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss.

“Students are strongly admonished to desist from taking laws into their hands and to report any criminal activities to the university authorities for immediate actions.”

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