Over 5,000 lawyers have registered with New NBA, says co-convener

 

The NNBA was formed following the controversy that trailed the dis-invitation of Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna, as a speaker at the just concluded annual general conference of the NBA.

In an interview with PREMIUM TIMES on Monday, Suleiman said the dis-invitation of the governor is not the reason for creating a faction of the NBA.

He said: “We, the conveners of the new NBA, are not fans of el-Rufai.”

“We all have our reservations on el-Rufai’s government. But since you have invited this man, let’s hear from him- for him to answer our questions before we take any action against him.

“Some people wrote a petition against him without giving him a fair hearing. This is against our motto, which is to uphold the rule of law. We did not do that. El-Rufai was not given that opportunity.”

Suleiman said one of the reasons for creating the new association is that the NBA is being run by a “cabal” who do not care about the welfare of the larger population of lawyers.

“Reasons for forming the new NBA are many but the first is that the NBA is being hijacked by some few cabals,” he said.

“NBA activity is just circulating between some few people. We have more than 200,000 registered members in Nigeria but I can tell you authoritatively that less than 100 people are benefiting from the NBA.

“Most of us are not benefiting from the NBA. We are paying our dues, we follow all the rules and regulations but our benefits and interests are not being protected.”

Suleiman said the intention of the group is not to create division but to create a competition for the NBA.

“We are not dividing the bar. We are trying to form an association to create a competition for the NBA,” he said.

“If we have two or more, there will be competing. If we look at developed countries, they have more than one lawyers’ associations. Why must we restrict ourselves to one.”

“As I’m talking to you now, we are still counting. We have more than 5,000 members that have registered with us and we are still counting.

“Starting from tomorrow, some state governments will be receiving our letters, notifying them of the formation.”

Sulieman also said the group will go to court if it faces opposition from the “bigwigs” in the profession.

He also denied the allegation that the group is being sponsored saying “we are ‘bankrolling’ ourselves, we are like-minds, no one is sponsoring us”.

- THECABLE

My wife is adulterous, has STD – Clergy seeks divorce

 

A clergyman, Joel Bamimore, on Tuesday begged a Customary Court sitting at Mapo in Ibadan to dissolve his 19-year-old marriage to one Seyi, on the grounds of infidelity.

The petitioner told the court that he was afraid of contracting Sexually Transmitted Diseases, STD, from his wife.

Joel, on Sept. 12, 2019 filed a divorce suit following his wife’s extramarital affair with another man.

However, the President of the court, Chief Ademola Odunade, then gave a ruling that Joel should first take his wife to the hospital for treatment due to the injuries he inflicted on her when he beat her up.

Odunade had in the ruling also advised the couple’s family members to resolve the conflict between them amicably.

But at the resumed hearing, the petitioner raised issues why the reconciliation will not work, NAN reports.

He said that Seyi had not changed from her promiscuous lifestyle.

“My Lord, I took Seyi to the hospital as you directed, but while there, the Doctor told me in her presence she was discharging blood from her private parts because she had contracted an STD.

“I can’t continue to be living under the same roof with an adulterous wife, my life is not safe,” he said.

Seyi, who gave her consent for the divorce, denied all allegations leveled against her.

“I am jobless because my husband has taken away all my means of sustenance.

“After taking me to hospital, he suddenly began to accuse me of having an STD.

“He is lying. No physician told me I had an STD. My husband is a pathological liar.

“The man he accused me of having an affair with someone who has helped us. He gives us money and food when we had nothing to eat, especially due to my husband’s condition.

“My husband is physically challenged,” Seyi said.

In his ruling, Odunade on behalf of the panel of judges, dissolved the marriage in the interest of peace.

He granted custody of the three children to the respondent and ordered the plaintiff to pay N15,000 as their monthly feeding allowance.

The Arbitrator advised Bamimore to learn to be tolerant and appreciate people who care for him, describing him as an ingrate.

- DAILY POST

ASUU faults FG’s plan to reopen universities

 The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has faulted the plan by the Federal Government to reopen public universities in the country.

Prof. Lawan Abubakar, the Bauchi Zonal Coordinator of the union, who made this known during a news conference on Tuesday in Jos, said that the move could be “perilous’’.

Abubakar, who declared that ASUU was not in support of the plan, said that reopening of universities would further pose a grave danger to students and it would be inimical to the fight against the spread of coronavirus in the country.

He said that most public universities lacked the infrastructure that would enable students to comply with putting safety protocols in place, thereby, making them prone to contracting the dreaded virus.

“ASUU is not in support of the government’s plan to reopen universities.

“Our position is that universities should remain close until the right thing is done to enable students to comply with the COVID-19 safety protocols.

“If students resume now, is it the grossly inadequate lecture halls, workshops, hostels or laboratories that will give them the opportunity to observe social distancing and other protocols?,” Abubakar asked.

The coordinator said that the outbreak of COVID-19 had further affirmed ASUU demands for a well-funded university system as contained in the 2013 and other Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that was reached.

He said that with the manner in which government was poorly funding universities in the country, it would take more than 10  years to put the necessary facilities on ground that would enable students to comply with the safety protocol against the virus.

“With the way the government is handling funding of universities, it will take us more than10 years before it will put necessary facilities to comply with all the protocols in public institutions.

“Had it been government implemented the 2013 MoU and subsequent ones, we wouldn’t have been caught off-guard by COVID-19; we would have been contemplating reopening the universities now that the numbers of cases are declining in the country.

“So, it is now clear to everyone that neither the struggle of ASUU nor the COVID-19 protocols agree with the reopening of universities. We must avert this disaster while we can,” he said

The union leader called on students, parents and the general public to support ASUU in its bid to salvage the university system from total collapse.

“We call on students, parents, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and the general public to understand and support us in the struggle.

“We all have a responsibility to ensure that public universities in the country are not joked with,” he said.

PM/NAN

Barcelona presidential candidate reveals why Messi wants to leave, next club

 Barcelona presidential candidate, Toni Freixa, believes that Lionel Messi will move to Manchester City.

City are favourites to land the 33-year-old, after he informed the club he wants to leave this summer.

According to Freixa, Messi’s decision to dump the LaLiga club, has taken several years to arrive at and is irrevocable.

He claims the Argentine superstar has not been supported enough at the Camp Nou and backed him to recapture his magic under Pep Guardiola at the Etihad.

Freixa told Goal: “I have heard from several sources that the decision by the player has matured over several years and is irrevocable. I don’t think there is any going back.

“Messi is a player who longs for maximum success. He alone can’t achieve maximum success, he needs a team to do it. He doesn’t have that.

“I think City is likely. Messi had his most dazzling years in Barcelona with Pep. It would only make sense if both would work together again.”

- DAILY POST

Water control bill: Don’t license dictatorship, NLC warns n’assembly

 

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has tackled the national assembly for considering the water resources bill for passage, warning the legislature against licensing “dictatorship”.

Ayuba Wabba, NLC president, said in a statement on Monday that the federal lawmakers should not ambush Nigerians with the bill “because of the danger it portends to national unity”.

The national water resources bill 2020 was rejected in 2018, but reintroduced by the Buhari administration in July, and now awaiting passage by the national assembly.

It seeks to bring all water resources, both surface and underground, under the control of the federal government through agencies to be established by the bill. 

Many Nigerians, including Wole Soyinka, playwright and Nobel laureate, have kicked against the passage of the bill which has scaled second reading at the house of representatives.

Wabba accused the national assembly of working “surreptitiously with vested interests” to pass the bill without due legislative process.

“Although the National Assembly is constitutionally vested with law-making, we warn against the National Assembly ambushing Nigerians,” he said.

“We equally warn against legislative abuse or betrayal of Nigerians as this is what it will amount to if the bill is passed or caused to be passed without public engagement and scrutiny. Already, the sentiments expressed against this bill are too grave to be brushed off.

“In the light of this, we state unambiguously that the National Assembly should listen to the voice of reason by resting this bill.”

The NLC president added that while there is no law against re-presentation of a rejected bill, “given the strong sentiments expressed against this bill from practically all sections of the country, then and now, we would strongly advise that this bill should not be resurrected”.

“We have in our hands at the moment enough challenges to court fresh and costly controversy,” he said.

“Although legislation is one of the three constitutional functions of the National Assembly, it should not be a licence to dictatorship but a representation of the will, aspirations and sensitivities of the populace.”

- THECABLE

Boko haram: Insurgents killing traditional rulers, 13 district heads gone – Shehu Borno

 

The Shehu of Borno, Abubakar El-Kanemi has revealed that Boko Haram insurgents are targeting traditional rulers in that state, and has resulted in the death of 13 district heads.

The monarch revealed that the deadly Boko Haram and other militants in the region have moved to local governments, and they are killing people.

This claim by the Shehu of Borno is in contrast with the claims by the government and the security heads that the insurgents are being neutralized.

The monarch revealed this on Monday while receiving members of the Senate Committee on Special duty that visited Borno to assess the works being done by the North East Development Commission (NEDC).

“Gradually, they moved their operations from Maiduguri to local government headquarters and other towns within Borno. In the course of their operations, the emirate council lost about 13 district heads in addition to many ward heads, who were killed in their respective domains,” he said.

He added that, “The activities of the criminal elements have not deterred our district and village heads from being proactive in reporting their activities to the security agencies.”

He further called for more funding for the NEDC to help rebuild the region that has been devastated by the insurgents.

“I want to call for more funding for the commission to enable it to facilitate the reconstruction of destroyed communities and intervention programmes towards empowering all IDPs. The call became necessary in view of the huge destruction and losses incurred in the state as a result of the crises in the last 11 years.”

- DAILY POST

Access Bank computers leaking, hacker Ihebuzo steals customers data

 

A Nigerian hacker Ihebuzo Chris has demonstrated that the walls built around Access Bank network are vulnerable.

The hacker who calls himself a python on Twitter gained access and extracted the data of over 2,000 customers.

In a viral video, he showed the print out of the customer accounts, including their BVN, account numbers and other details.

He also, possibly inadvertently blew his own cover, an error that may easily make him a candidate for jail.

Ihebuzor didn’t plan to steal money from the accounts, according to the video, he just wanted to show that the Access Bank computers are not impregnable.

According to him, he could debit customers’ accounts without their consent owing to the information he has.

He claimed he went deep into the Bank’s computer without their permission.

He blamed the bank for loose security, saying he is not a staff and only a guy with a computer.

atch the video:

Video Player

00:00

02:18

However, towards the end of the video, he claimed Access Bank already got in touch with him and said they could get in touch again for him to return all the details he possesses.

Access Bank, on the other hand, reacted to the viral video of the hacker assuring customers that there are no threats to their account.

“Criminals have posted pages purporting to contain customer account information. We’ve alerted law enforcement agencies and ask that you ignore the post. There is no threat to your account balances.

“Pls. continue to follow security protocol by never sharing your account details, Access Bank said.

Criminals have posted pages purporting to contain customer account information. We’ve alerted law enforcement agencies and ask that you ignore the post. There is no threat to your account balances. Pls. continue to follow security protocol by never sharing your account details.

— Access Bank Plc (@myaccessbank) August 31, 2020

On his Twitter page, Ihebuzo describes himself as a ‘python’, a software developer. who can do amazing things with the web.

He has nine followers, while he follows 20 other people.

- PM NEWS