SOUTH WEST BOKO HARAM !! MURIC says NBA snubbing el-Rufai ‘is a declaration of war’

 The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) says the decision of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to withdraw the invitation to Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna state, to speak at its annual general meeting is a declaration of war.

The NBA withdrew el-Rufai’s invitation on Thursday following a petition against the governor addressed to Koyinsola Ajayi, chairman of the conference technical committee.

Some lawyers had kicked against the choice of the governor, saying he “represents the very anti-thesis of what we profess to defend”.

The lawyers, under the aegis of Open Bar Initiative, described the invitation as a “reward for misrule”, adding that “el-Rufai has on several occasions abused the rights of Nigerians”.

Reacting in a statement on Friday, Ishaq Akintola, MURIC director, said the decision of the legal association is based on prejudice.

He said the NBA displayed intolerance by aligning with the views of a group without hearing the other side.

“NBA yesterday dropped Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, the governor of Kaduna State from the list of speakers at its Virtual AGC which is billed to start on 26th August, 2020. It is high level prejudice. NBA as a group of learned literati should know better. It is parochial, myopic and jejune,” the statement read.

“The fact that NBA took the ill-advised step on account of a petition written by a group, Open Bar Initiative, whose main fear is expressed as ‘One can be sure that he will also use the given platform to advance his conflated narrative, designed to deceive and confuse the nation on the real causes of the killings’ exposes NBA’s impatience, intolerance and self-conceit.”

Akintola said by the NBA’s decision, the legal association has refused to contribute its quota to resolve the southern Kaduna crisis, saying its action is a declaration of war.

He said it is better to allow the governor speak at the event as “change cannot come through rejection and exclusion.”

The MURIC director called on lawyers from the northern region to boycott the conference until the NBA reverses its decision to exclude el-Rufai from speaking at the event.

“Is it not better to hear him out than to lock him out? Is it not better to jaw-jaw than to war-war? The departure of the ambassador, they say, is the beginning of war. By dropping el-Rufai, NBA has declared war on the other side in the southern Kaduna crisis. By so doing, it lost a golden chance to be part of the solution to the conflict. NBA has elected to be part of the problem,” it read.

“How justifiable is NBA’s decision to exclude Governor el-Rufai from the virtual conference when people like Chief Olusegun Obasanjo of Odi and Zaki Biam fame and Governor Nyesom Wike are among the speakers? Who bulldozed the hotels of innocent people despite court orders? Who visited unspeakable violence on political opponents? Should NBA hobnob with people linked to genocide and undemocratic practices? So why demonise el-Rufai where killers of innocent people and enemies of democracy are idolised?

“MURIC calls on all lawyers from the North to boycott NBA’s AGC in protest against this open declaration of war on Northern Kaduna. Every little action of injustice must spark a reaction if tyranny is to be stopped in the world. NBA has crossed the red line in human relations and conflict management. No single lawyer from the North should participate in the AGC either as a resource person or as a participant unless NBA rescinds its decision to drop el-Rufai from the list of speakers. Injury to one is injury to all.”

Meanwhile, el-Rufai had reacted to the NBA’s decision, saying irrespective of the platform, his voice will still be heard.

The governor described the decision as “an unfortunate embrace of injustice, unfairness, absence of fair hearing and total disregard for the rule of law”.

- THECABLE

Aircraft fails brake, rams into fence at Lagos airport

 

An aircraft belonging to Jedidiah Air on Friday crashed into a fence at General Aviation Terminal (GAT), local wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos.

The incident happened while the King Air 200 jet with registration number 5N-HIS, was reparking at the tarmac close to a facility used by Bristow Helicopters.

An eyewitness speaking to The Nation said the accident happened due to brake failure.

“The accident happened at the tarmac beside Bristow Helicopter Hanger 3.

However, there was no passenger on board and the pilot sustained no injury.

“The brake of the jet was not functioning at the time which led to the collision of the jet with the fence of Bristow Helicopter hanger,” the eyewitness told The Nation.

Spokesman of Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), Mr. Tunji Oketumbi confirmed the incident.

He disclosed that a team of investigators has been dispatched to the scene of the accident to begin investigation.

“They will submit their preliminary report to ascertain the cause of the accident.

- DAILY POST

Yahoo Yahoo Boys invade Minna, nine arrested

 

Nigeria’s notorious fraudsters, the Yahoo Yahoo Boys, may have shifted their operational base to Minna, Niger States as the EFCC arrested nine of them in one fell swoop on Thursday.

They were arrested following intelligence volunteered to the Commission by concerned residents of the area.

The suspects were picked up by the operatives of the Commission at their hideouts in Room 202, Seftec Hotels, behind NNPC’s mega petrol filling station, Minna, Niger State, for their alleged involvement in love scam and other internet related crimes.

The suspects are: Ohanuka. O. Samuel, 26; Adebayo Adeyinka Samuel, 26; Omoh Simeon, 25; Igah Abumere, 28 and Ajobo Sunday, 26.

Others are Abdukadir Musbau, 20; Iredia Johnson 29, Aliyu Abdulazeez, 25, and Adebisi Temitope, 27.

Items recovered from the suspects include, one Toyota Venza with registration number, LND-528GD, laptops and exotic phones.

- PM NEWS

Filmmaker sues NBC, asks court to nullify amended broadcasting code

 

Charles Uwagbai, a Nigerian filmmaker, has instituted a lawsuit against the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) over the controversial amendment of the broadcasting code.

The NBC recently launched the amended 6th edition of the code which has been criticised by industry stakeholders.

The code seeks to regulate content exclusivity, enforce content sharing and empower the NBC to determine prices at which content is sold to sub-licensees by rights holders.

Also, the fine for hate speech has been increased from N500,000 to N5 million.

Ikra Aliyu Bilbis, chairman of the NBC board, had publicly stated that Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, amended the country’s broadcasting code “unilaterally” without involving relevant stakeholders.

In the suit filed by Olumide Fusika, the plaintiff’s counsel, Uwagbai contended that the NBC Act can only be by amendments to the statute that created it, and not by “approval of the President” of the recommendations of the committee of the National Broadcasting Commission”.

He said the notice of the amendment which was published on several media platforms was signed by “management” but NBC has no organ known or named “board” and “management”.

According to the filmmaker, there are allegations that “the board and management referred to in the publication were persons outside the commission who had used their political power and connection to capture, subvert and utilise, in aid and promotion of their own business aspirations, the responsibility vested in the defendant to establish and disseminate a national broadcasting code.”

Uwagbai submitted that according to Section 3 of the National Broadcasting Commission Act and Rules 1, 4, 7, 8 and 11 of the first schedule (supplementary provisions relating to the commission) the NBC can only exercise its powers to establish and disseminate the broadcasting code after a resolution is adopted by a quorum of its stipulated members.

He urged the court, therefore, to make a declaration “that the establishment and dissemination of a purported addendum to the 6th edition of the NBC code by the persons or bodies and/or through the process/procedure stated in the preface (at page 6) thereof is unknown to law, and therefore null, void and of no effect whatsoever and howsoever.”

He also prayed for an order setting aside the said addendum “for constituting an abuse, by capture and subversion, of the responsibility statutorily vested in the defendant, under Section 2(1)(h) of the National Broadcasting Commission Act, Cap N11, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004”.

In the alternative, the plaintiff wants the court to compel the NBC “to disclose and make public the full details and records of its meeting(s) or proceedings at which the same was proposed, considered and established, and resolved for dissemination to the public (including but not limited to the notice(s) convening the meeting(s), the members in attendance and their vote(s) at the meeting(s), etc.).”

- THECABLE

2 dead, several injured as SUV rams into building

 Two persons have been confirmed dead while several others sustained different degrees of injuries following a brake failure accident involving an unregistered Land Rover SUV.

The SUV reportedly veered off the road and rammed into a building at Panada, Isolo area of Lagos State.

According to eyewitnesses, who spoke to DAILY POST, the vehicle had hit several people along the roadside killing two persons, including an eight year old child.

Confirming the incident, the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Aswani Divisional Police Station, CSP Oyin Francess, said an investigation would be conducted to know the real owner of the vehicle since it is unregistered.

She said the vehicle has been evacuated to the police station while the injured persons including the driver have been taken to the hospital for treatment.

One eyewitness, Iya Fathia narrated: “I sell goods on that culvert. As the vehicle was approaching with reckless speed, I shouted at him to condemn his manner of driving in fact, he bashed the police patrol van stationed over there and what we saw next was that he was hitting people on the roadside before ramming into that building. It was then we moved closer to the place and realised that several people had been injured. On the spot, we saw a small girl lying lifeless on the floor as well as a man who was identified as Jelili on the floor.

“Several people were injured. The girl’s sister was hit and sustained serious injuries. There were another four victims from a family. The accident was so serious that we don’t know the number of people that were injured because the casualties were too much. A woman was selling Dokunu over there, her leg was broken with her small girl also injured. The community has since been thrown into great grief.”

It was learnt that the eight-year-old girl was the only child of her father – who was identified as ‘Akure’ and had followed her maternal stepsister out to get what she was going to eat when the unfortunate accident happened.

The eight year old girl’s father was seen crying uncontrollably while he received sympathisers.

He said, “if I am at home she wouldn’t have gone out. She knew everything about me. Whenever I and her mother got into a misunderstanding, she knew how to calm me down. She knew what I wanted and what I detest. Where is my Eniola!”

A family friend, Pastor Mrs. Ezekiel Ojomo, explained that the little girl had followed her sister out to get food without the consent of their mother.

She said the mother would not have allowed her to follow her sister.

- DAILY POST

Three killed, houses burnt as Tivs, Jukuns clash again

 

Three persons have reportedly been killed in a clash between Tiv and Jukun ethnic groups in Taraba state.

Both groups share a common boundary in not Just Taraba but Benue state.

A resident said some persons were killed while several houses set ablaze in Dananacha town, Gassol local government area of Taraba on Wednesday.

He said some elders from both ethnic groups later reconciled the aggrieved youth but a fresh round of crisis broke out on Thursday.

One of the reasons for the violence is the change of the town’s name from Dananacha to Kwararafa, according to a community source.

Dananacha town has been reportedly divided into three; with some part being controlled by Jukun, while the two parts are controlled by the Tiv and Hausa-Fulani ethnic groups.

David Misal, spokesman of the Taraba police command, confirmed the latest violence but said the police had restored normalcy in the area.

In a bid to find solution to the lingering crisis between both groups, Darius Ishaku, governor of Taraba, recently established the judicial commission of inquiry to ascertain the remote and immediate causes of the crisis between the Tivs and Jukuns.

But the Tivs withdrew from the commission, saying they were in doubt of the sincerity of the panel sitting in Jalingo, the state capital.

Over the years, the deaths caused by the crisis between both groups have been on the rise.

In September, the West Africa Network for Peace Building, Nigeria (WANEP-Nigeria) said at least 600 persons have been killed during the crisis between both groups.

- THECABLE

Buhari suspends Babalakin, Ogundipe, sends Visitation Panel to UNILAG

 

President Muhammadu Buhari has constituted a Visitation Panel for the University of Lagos (UNILAG), where the Vice Chancellor Professor Oluwatoyin Ogundipe and the Pro-Chancellor, Dr. Wale Babalakin were locked at war.

Instead, a presidential directive asked the two combatants to recuse themselves from official duties, pending the outcome of the Special Visitation Panel.

The new development was announced Friday in a press statement by the Federal Ministry of Education spokesman, Ben Goong.

Babalakin’s Governing Council had, on August 12, sacked Ogundipe as Vice-Chancellor over alleged financial misappropriation and misconduct.

The council went further to appoint an acting vice chancellor, Prof. Theophilus Omololu Soyombo of the Faculty of Social Sciences.

However, the institution’s Senate and all its workers unions condemned Ogundipe’s removal, saying it flouted the university’s regulations.

They all passed a vote of confidence on Ogundipe and vowed not to recognise the acting vice-chancellor.

Ogundipe insisted he remains the vice chancellor, urging the public to disregard news of his removal

He said the University’s due process had not been followed.

The alumni association also said that due process had not been followed.

But Babalakin, in several media reactions, insisted that due process had been complied with in terminating Ogundipe’s appointment.

Ogundipe filed a case at the National Industrial Court early this week.

But Ogundipe asked his lawyer, Ebun Adegboruwa, to withdraw the case today.

According to reports, Ogundipe withdrew the case, in anticipation of President Buhari’s intervention.

- PM NEWS

America-based Nigerian woman to rot in jail 10 years for buying 3 children

 

A Magistrate Court in Port Harcourt has slammed 10 years imprisonment on 47-year-old, Lois Obazi, a US-based woman for child trafficking.

Obazi had in 2018 disguised in a quasi-name, ‘Precious Obasi’ living around Omehia School Road, Igwuruta community in the Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers State, at the time of her purchase of three children.

The suspect, before her arrest, had in a hotel on Stadium Road, Elekahia, in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area, claimed that she gave birth to the three children on two different days in a maternity home at Igwuruta.

Chief Magistrate , Felicitas Amanze, in her judgment, sentenced the woman to three years imprisonment on count one, and seven years imprisonment on count two of the charges preferred against her, adding that the terms would run concurrently.

Amanze held that evidence before the court proved that Obasi bought the three infants.

The chief magistrate noted that it was impossible for Obazi to have left overseas to Nigeria to deliver her triplets and also nurse them in a hotel as she claimed, stressing that the prosecution counsel proved their case beyond reasonable doubt.

Meanwhile, the defence counsel, Chris Nwadigo, said the judgement was full of emotion and sentiment, and vowed to appeal it.

- PM NEWS

Nigerian traders must pay $1m – Ghana insists

 

The Ghanaian authorities have said Nigerian shop owners in the country must pay taxes and other fees imposed on them.

The country’s Ministry of Trade, while insisting on the payment, said that claims of unfair treatment on Nigerian traders in the enforcement of the Ghana Investment Promotion Council regulations were not true.

Appearing on Starr FM on Sunday, the Head of Communications, Ministry of Trade, Prince Boakye Boateng, said the law being enforced by the Ministry gave the Ghana Union of Traders Association the right to be the sole traders in the local market.

This signifies the collapse of the earlier intervention of the Presidents of Ghana and Nigeria through the Economic Community of West African States.

Ghana is asking the Nigerian traders to pay a $1m registration fee.

One of the Nigerian traders had recorded a video of the incident while his shop was being locked up by the Ghanaian security officials.

Despite displaying his business registration certificate and other documents, the enforcement team shut his shop.

Boateng said Nigerian traders failed to honour an ultimatum to meet the requirements.

He said, “It cannot be that we’ve been insensitive; if that is what they’re saying, I’ll be disappointed because, I’ll rather say they have rather been unfair to us as a regulatory body because we have given them more than enough time to the extent that even the Ghanaians thought that the ministry was not ready to enforce the law.”

Recall that the Nigerian Senate had tasked its Committees on Foreign Affairs and Trade and Investment to liaise with the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs to investigate hostile policies against Nigerian businesses in Ghana.

- DAILY POST

FG to reciprocate travel ban by EU countries

 

The federal government says it will reciprocate travel restrictions by countries that have not opened their airspace to Nigeria.

Speaking on Thursday at the briefing of the presidential task force on COVID-19, Hadi Sirika, the minister of aviation said countries in the European Union will be affected.

Sirika was represented at the briefing by Musa Nuhu, director-general of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).

“On the list of countries (that are banned), we are working on the comprehensive list, but the main one that came up is when the EU opened their borders effective 1st July, Nigeria was among the list of 54 countries that were not allowed to enter the EU,” he said.

“To my understanding, as the situation changes, they are going to look at the list and change it. But so far, we don’t have any contrary information to that first one that Nigeria is banned from going to the EU.

“So, as we open our airspace, we are going to apply the issue of reciprocity to those (EU) countries.”

The minister said only a few international flights will be allowed at the onset of international flight resumption as test runs of the protocols put in place at the airport to ensure safe operations.

He also said the number of inbound international passengers will be limited to 1,280.

TheCable had earlier reported that the European Union Commission excluded Nigeria from the list of countries whose nationals will be allowed in the region upon flight resumption on July 1.

Nigeria will reopen its airspace to international flights on August 29. However, flights will be restricted to the Lagos and Abuja airports.

- THECABLE

Manchester United’s Harry Maguire arrested in Greece

 

Manchester United’s captain and defender, Harry Maguire is being held in police custody in Greece.

Local sources in the country reported that the defender was taken into custody on Friday morning after he was involved in an altercation during his trip in Mykonos, Greece.

Maguire was said to have been involved in a fight alongside his friends with other Englishmen outside a bar.

Reportedly, Maguire was handcuffed after the incident while the police themselves were targeted too although it’s not clear if that involved Maguire or the others involved in the altercation.

However, he was one of the three taken into custody after the incident with the police.

- PM NEWS

British High Commission announces reopening of Application centers in Nigeria

 The British High Commission in Nigeria has announced that it has reopened its visa Application Centres across the country.

The Commission made the announcement in a statement released via its Twitter account on Thursday, adding that there would be free visa replacement which will be open till December 2020 and covers individuals who will be travelling to the UK for work, study or to join their families.

In the statement by the Commission titled, ‘Update on VAC Services From The BHC Nigeria’ the commission said that any individual whose 30-day visa to travel to the UK for work, study or visitation had expired can request for a replacement free of charge.

“As a result of the disruptions to travel caused by COVID-19, we are experiencing high demand for replacement vignettes for 30-day visas to travel to the UK for work, study or to join family.

“If an individual’s 30-day visa to travel to the UK for work, study or to join family has expired, or is about to expire, they can request a replacement visa with revised validity dates free of charge until the end of this year.

“This does not apply to other types of visas. This process will be in place until the end of 2020. The replacement visa will be valid for 90 days.’

“To request a replacement visa, individuals can arrange to return their passport to their Visa Application Centre in Nigeria without an appointment,” the statement read.

- DAILY POST

Testing for COVID-19 is one of the biggest fraud – Oyakhilome

 

Founder, Christ Embassy, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome has said the testing for COVID-19 is one of the biggest fraud the nation and the world are witnessing.

Oyakhilome, in one of his sermons asked: who examined the test kits? Independent examiners? What are they testing for?

“Every test must look for something. Does this test know the difference between Malaria and COVID-19? Or any type of Corona virus?

“After all, they said they are still studying the virus, so what are they testing for? A presence? A reaction? What is it testing for?”

According to Oyakhilome, this fraud of a test needed to stop, saying that from different countries “we have heard complaints of this fraud of a test.

“Those who are doing the test are behind the fraud. Every government needs to wake up now and question the fraud! Paid Journalists had better be sincere to themselves, their country and to God. I have done my research. You do yours! Get the right information.”
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He described the social distancing rule as so ridiculous, saying “Who is fooling who? Between now and the Antichrist new world order, I will tell you what’s going to happen. We have come of age as the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have come to a place of knowledge and understanding.

“He is bringing us into a place of maturity in Christ Jesus. God has brought us to a place where we should recognize deception and not fall for it.

“We are in a position of responsibility. Here’s where we have arrived…we will grow to another level but we have attained a place where we must now decide the next world order.

“The new world order won’t come from them (those who caused the decimating of economies around the world) it will come from us. Three things are important. We will do it through prayer,” he added.

- PM NEWS

Court jails two Lebanese who attempted to smuggle $890,000 out of Nigeria

 

A federal high court in Rivers has sentenced two Lebanese citizens to a prison term of two years each for attempting to smuggle $890,000 out of the country.

The duo – Chamseddine Waell Mohammed and Dina Jihad Khali (pictured) – were sentenced after they pleaded guilty to charges filed against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Mohammed and Khali’s offences are in violation of section 2 (3) of the money laundering (prohibition) act 2011 (as amended) and punishable under section 2 (5) of the same law.

They were arrested at Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa, last week, while onboard a chartered flight to Lebanon.

At the court on Thursday, Aso Larrys Peters, EFCC counsel, tendered some documents, which included a letter of invitation by customs and statements of the defendants, as exhibits.

Macaulay Olayinka, a police officer and witness of the anti-graft agency, said the money recovered from the suspects had been deposited with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

“They were apprehended by the Nigeria Custom Service, Area One Command, Port Harcourt and handed over to the Port Harcourt Zonal office of the EFCC on August 12, 2020 for further investigation,” Olayinka said.

“The Convicts, Khali with Passport Number LR152975 (Republic of Lebanon) was arrested with $670,000 while Mohammed with Passport Number LR0356598 (Republic of Lebanon) had in his possession the sum of $220,000.”

Thereafter, Peters asked the court to sentence the defendants.

Paul Ejiga, counsel to defendants, prayed the court to be lenient in its sentencing, arguing that his clients do not have a criminal record.

Subsequently, I. M. Sani, the judge, sentenced to two years imprisonment with an option of fine of N1 million each.

Sani ordered that the money be forfeited to the federal government.

- THECABLE