Yahaya Bello Sacks Special Adviser, Anthony Ogah

Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi on Monday announced the sack of his Special Adviser (SA) on Stakeholders Relations, Mr Anthony Ogah. The sack is contained in a statement issued in Lokoja by Mrs Folashade Arike-Ayoade, Secretary to the Government of Kogi. The government said that the sack takes effect from Sunday. ”Gov. Bello has issued a directive for the immediate dismissal of Ogah, who served as the Special Adviser to the Governor on Stakeholders Relations. “The termination of Ogah as the special adviser to the governor is effective from September 24. “Governor Bello extends his best wishes to Ogah in his future endeavours,” the state government said. No reason was given for Ogah’s dismissal. He was instructed to “promptly hand over his identity card and any other government property or documents in his possession to the Permanent Secretary, Administration, in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the state.” 

Senate Debunks Impeachment Plot Against Akpabio

The Senate has media refuted reports that some Senators are planning to impeach President of the Senate, Sen. Godswill Akpabio. The Chairman Senate Committee on Media and Publicity, Sen. Yemi Adaramodu said this in a statement in Abuja on Saturday. “Our attention has just been drawn to a syndicated satanic verse in a section of the media of purported and illusory plots of leadership change in the Senate. “The Nigerian Senate is one united and fraternal family and this imaginative composition is in the realm of the fake and fallacious story of 100 million per legislator. “It is apt to note that the10th Senate under the leadership of Senator Godswill Akpabio has carried out its legislative and constitutional duties diligently. “Within a span of less than 60 Legislative days, the Senate has passed life enhancing bills and motions,” he said. He added: “It has screened and confirmed Service Chiefs and Ministers, among others, apart from very essential oversight functions. “We urge the fifth columnists, who operate undoubtedly outside the Senate, desperate to cause disharmony through media stunts and thus clipping the wings of Nigeria’s democracy, to take caution. “The Senate should be allowed fresh air to settle down for its national assignments, so that the Nigerian project can move forward.” He urged the media to be discerning not to be used as hand tool by the retailers of fake and bad news.

LP primary appeal dismissed for lack of locus standi

The Court of Appeal situated in Abuja has ruled to dismiss the appeal lodged by Sir Basil Maduka, the Labour Party’s candidate for the Imo governorship election. The dismissal was based on the grounds of lack of locus standi. Justice Olubunmi Oyewole, in his judgment, determined that Maduka did not possess the legal right to challenge the primary election, given that he was not an aspirant in the said election. Consequently, the court not only rejected the appeal but also levied a cost of N250,000 against the appellant. Maduka had emerged as the candidate of the Labour Party within the Julius Abure-led faction, whereas the Lamidi Apapa faction’s candidate was recognized by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Following the high court’s dismissal of his suit challenging INEC’s decision, Maduka pursued his case at the court of appeal. However, the 1st and 3rd respondents, namely the Labour Party and Ikechukwu Joseph, contested his action by filing processes that disputed the appellant’s contentions. They pointed out that the primary election of the 1st respondent occurred on April 16, 2023, as rescheduled by the national leadership of the party. Additionally, they emphasized that the appellant was not a participant in this primary election, which was won by the 3rd respondent. Justice Oyewole, while considering the arguments from both sides’ legal representatives, underlined the concept of locus standi as a prerequisite for maintaining an action in court. He stressed that the absence of such standing undermines the court’s jurisdiction to adjudicate on the matter. The judge further explained that the appellant failed to establish his participation in the primary election organized by the 1st respondent, rendering him unable to contest the election’s outcome. Consequently, he upheld the lower court’s decision that the appellant lacked the necessary locus standi to maintain the action. In conclusion, the appeal was deemed meritless and dismissed. A cost of N250,000 was ordered to be paid to the 1st and 3rd respondents by the appellant.

Lagos Assembly rejects 17 commissioner-nominees, confirms 22

The Lagos State House of Assembly has rejected 17 commissioner nominees of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, including former Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi and former Commissioner for Information, Mr Gbenga Omotosho. The lawmakers, however, confirmed 22 other commissioner-nominees of the governor. The exercise, which was done through a voice vote, was sequel to the screening of the nominees at the assembly’s Committee of the Whole at plenary. The Speaker, Mr Mudashiru Obasa, who presided over it, said the exercise followed a rigorous and detailed screening of the nominees by an ad-hoc committee led by the Chief Whip, Mr Fatai Mojeed. Obasa said the exercise was in line with Section 182 Sub-Section I and II of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The speaker said the other 15 nominees rejected were as follows: Mrs Folashade Adefisayo, Mr Yomi Oluyomi, Mrs Folashade Ambrose, Ms Barakat Bakare, Olalere Odusote, Dr Rotimi Fashola, Mrs Bolaji Dada. According to him, others rejected include: Mr Sam Egube, Mr Olalekan Fatodu, Mrs Solape Hammond, Mr Mosopefolu George, Mrs Aramide Adeyoye, Mr Seun Osiyemi, Mr Rotimi Ogunwuyi and Dr Olumide Oluyinka Obasa listed the 22 confirmed nominees as: Mr Layode Ibrahim, Mr Mobolaji Ogunlende, Dr Dolapo Fasawe, Ms Bola Olumegbon, Mr Idris Aregbe, Ms Abisola Olusanya, and Mr Moruf Fatai. “Other nominees confirmed are Mr Kayode Bolaji-Roberts, Mr Abiola Olowu, Mrs Toke Benson-Awoyinka, Dr Oreoluwa Finnih- Awokoya, Mr Yakub Alebiosu, Mr Lawal Pedro, Mr Tunbosun Alake. “Also confirmed are Mr Gbenga Oyerinde, Dr Adekunle Olayinka, Dr Jide Babatunde, Mr Afolabi Ayantayo, Mr Tokunbo Wahab, Mr Olakunle Rotimi-Akodu, Mr Jamiu Alli-Balogun and Mr Abdulkabir Ogungbo. The speaker commended the committee for its effectiveness and urged the confirmed nominees to always remember that they were in office to serve the people of the state and not individuals. He also promised that the assembly would continue to do its best in the interest of the state. The Speaker, therefore, directed the Clerk of the House, Mr Lekan Onafeko, to communicate the notice of the confirmation and rejection of the nominees to the governor. The speaker did not give any reason why the assembly rejected the nominees.  

Kogi Guber: Appeal Court dismisses suits seeking Ododo’s disqualification 

The Court of Appeal, Abuja on Friday dismissed the appeals filed by a former Senator representing Kogi West Senatorial District at the National Assembly, Smart Adeyemi and that of a governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kogi state, Mr. Abubakar Achimugu, seeking to nullify the governorship primary election of the party which produced Ahmed Usman Ododo as the party’s flagbearer for the Kogi state governorship election slated for November 11. The court held in a unanimous judgement that the two appeals challenging the judgement of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja lacked merit and accordingly dismissed them. Justice Muhammed Lawal Shuaibu’s led panel held that the appellants failed to prove the criminal allegations in his case. The Appellate court ruled that the burden of prove lies on the plaintiff who alleges irregularities in the conduct of the primary election of the APC for the nomination of its governorship candidate in the forthcoming governorship election in Kogi state. He said, “the evidence placed before the trial court by the respondents was not controverted by the appellant in this circumstance, issue one is hereby resolved against the appellant. “Where commission of a crime is an issue, it must be proved beyond reasonable doubt. Allegation of falsification of votes is a criminal act and it is required in law to be proved beyond reasonable doubt, which the appellant could not prove, consequently, issue two is resolved against the appellant. “On the whole, the appeal is un-meritorious and it is hereby dismissed. The judgement of the lower court is hereby affirmed. Parties are to bear their respective cost”, Justice Shuaibu held. Recall that Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja had, in a judgement delivered on July 12, held that Adeyemi did not prove his allegation that Ododo was not lawfully nominated by the APC.  Adeyemi had alleged in his suit that the primary election that purportedly produced Ododo as the APC governorship candidate did not hold and that the results were forged. Delivering judgement in the suit marked FHC/CS/556/2023, Justice Omotosho held that Adeyemi’s allegations of results forgery were criminal and must be proved beyond reasonable doubts. The court noted that the burden of proof was on the applicant to produce the forged results or the original copies of the results to discharge the burden and added that, failure to discharge the burden was fatal to the applicant’s case and further held that, there was evidence that the primary election was validly held and monitored by INEC. Dissatisfied with the judgement which affirmed the primary election that produced Ododo as candidate of the party, Adeyemi approached the appellate court to set aside the judgement. Adeyemi had in his suit at the trial court, sought the cancellation of the primary election on the ground that it was not validly conducted and prayed the court to declare as illegal, unlawful and invalid, the purported direct primary election said to have been conducted by the APC, through which Ododo emerged as a candidate for the governorship poll. The former lawmaker told the court that Ododo was handpicked as flag-bearer of the party by the outgoing Governor of the state, Yahaya Bello, in gross violation of Section 177 of the 1999 Constitution, Section 29 and 84 of the Electoral Act as well as Article 20 of the Constitution of the APC. Besides, the aggrieved governorship aspirant, through his team of lawyers led by Dr Adekunle Ottitoju, prayed the court to order the APC to conduct a fresh primary election and to give all aspirants equal opportunity as prescribed by the Electoral Act, 2022. But, in his judgement, Justice Omotosho held that the plaintiff did not by way of credible evidence, establish his allegation and said, he found no reason to invalidate the outcome of the primary election and consequently dismissed the suit for lacking in merit.  In the same vein, the Court of Appeal, Abuja dismissed Achimugu’s appeal against a judgement of a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja which affirmed Ahmed Usman Ododo as the APC flagbearer for the November 11, 2023 governorship election in Kogi state. The appeal was against the judgement of Justice Obiora Egwuatu delivered on 18th July which held that, Ododo can lawfully continue to fly the flag of the APC in the November 11, 2023 governorship election in Kogi State. The appellate court, in a unanimous judgement delivered on Friday held that Achimugu’s appeal is bereft of merit and affirmed the judgement of the trial court. The court consequently dismissed the appeal for lacking in merit. Achimugu had approached the trial court with a suit seeking to disqualify Ododo from contesting the November 11 governorship election on grounds that he did not resign his employment with the Kogi State public service 30 days before contesting the governorship primary election. But, the trial court, in its judgment, held that contrary to the claim of Achimugu, evidence showed that Ododo resigned his appointment more than 30 days before participating in the APC primary. According to Justice Egwuatu, exhibits tendered by the defendants showed that while Ododo’s resignation letter was received by the Office of the Kogi State Governor on March 8, that of the 3rd defendant, Mr Salami Deedat, was received on March 9. “Satisfied that they resigned their appointment on March 8 and 9, more than 30 days before the April 14 primary election of the APC, the suit is bereft of any merit and is accordingly dismissed”, the court held. Achimugu, in a Notice of Appeal filed on July 21 through his counsel, Josiah Daniel-Ebune said Justice Egwuatu erred in law and occasioned a miscarriage of justice when he held that Ododo and Salami Deedat (2nd and 3rd defendants) duly resigned their appointment and thus, not caught up with the mandatory provision of what the law requires them to do before they participated in the APC’s governorship primary election for Kogi state held on April 15, 2023. He asked the appellate court for an order setting

Niger Coup: Thousands march in solidarity in Niamey

Demonstrators took to the streets of Niger’s capital Niamey on Thursday in a show of support for the country’s new leadership, a week after a military coup in the West African country. People rallied on the streets of Niamey to signal their support for de facto president Abdourahmane Tchiani and his junta, a dpa correspondent in the capital reported. The demonstrations followed a call by civil society associations, according to reports. They came on the 63rd anniversary of Niger gaining independence from former colonial power France. According to local media, people also demonstrated in the city of Agadez, with posters seen expressing support for the putschists. Russian flags are also said to have been waved. Agadez is on the edge of the Sahara Desert, which many migrants pass through on their way through the desert to Libya and towards the Mediterranean. The coup plotters managed to ignite a “nationalistic fire” in the population within a week, said Olaf Bernau from the migration network Afrique-Europe-Interact. Part of the reason for this is the EU’s migration strategy in Niger. For several years, Niger, as an important transit country for migrants heading for Europe, has received financial support to limit migration. Since 2015, a law in Niger has criminalized illegal migration and its support. So far, Niger has not only been an important partner for the West in containing migration, but also in the fight against terrorism. In the Sahel, dozens of militias, some of whom have sworn allegiance to so-called Islamic State (IS) or the terrorist organization Al-Qaeda, regularly carry out attacks. Last week, officers of the presidential guard in Niger arrested the democratically elected president of Niger, Mohamed Bazoum, and declared him deposed. Tchiani, the commander of the presidential guard, appointed himself the new ruler on Friday, suspended the constitution, and dissolved all constitutional institutions. Bazoum used an opinion piece in the Washington Post on Thursday to call for the international world to help restore constitutional order. He was writing “as a hostage” and was “just one of hundreds of citizens who have been arbitrarily and illegally imprisoned,” Bazoum said in the piece. The coup had no justification and, if it succeeded, would have “devastating consequences for our country, our region, and the entire world,” Bazoum wrote. He used the piece to call on the US government and “the entire international community” to help restore order. “Fighting for our shared values, including democratic pluralism and respect for the rule of law, is the only way to make sustainable progress against poverty and terrorism. The Nigerien people will never forget your support at this pivotal moment in our history,” he wrote. Niger’s new rulers are looking for allies. The deputy head of the country’s military junta, General Salifou Modi, travelled to the neighbouring countries of Mali and Burkina Faso, which are also ruled by army officers who took power in military coups. Both have pledged their support to Niger, Modi said, particularly in the area of security. “We are happy about the closeness we have with our brothers in Mali,” the deputy head of Niger’s military junta, General Salifou Modi, said after a meeting with the government in the Malian capital Bamako on Wednesday. Burkina Faso’s military strongman Ibrahima Traoré also assured him of his support at a meeting in the capital Ouagadougou on Wednesday, Modi said. Pressure continues to mount on Niger, with Nigeria suspending electricity supplies and the World Bank freezing payments to the West African nation on Wednesday. Also, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has given the putschists in Niger an ultimatum. If Bazoum is not reinstated by Sunday, ECOWAS will take action that could include sanctions and armed force, it declared. Meanwhile, in Paris, the French Foreign Ministry said the evacuation of its nationals from Niger has been completed, according to a statement on its website published on Thursday. French Defence Minister Sébastien Lecornu said on Twitter that 1,079 French and foreign nationals have been evacuated since Tuesday. There were four Paris-bound flights carrying 992 people including 560 French nationals. A fifth and final flight brought about 100 people to Chad, the French General Staff told dpa. Paris said the evacuation was needed because Niger had closed its airspace and there had been reported violence at the French embassy during pro-coup protests. Niger’s junta has accused France of planning a military intervention. French broadcasters France 24 and RFI have been banned from broadcasting in Niger. A statement issued on Thursday evening by France’s Foreign Ministry said it very firmly condemned the suspension of broadcasting. The measures taken against the press in Niger occurred in a context of authoritarian repression by those responsible for the coup, the ministry added. In Washington, President Joe Biden noted on Thursday on the occasion of Niger’s Independence Day, that the West African country “is facing a grave challenge to its democracy.” He repeated calls for the immediate release of Bazoum and his family and “for the preservation of Niger’s hard-earned democracy.” 

APC NEC elects Ganduje National Chairman, Basiru as Secretary

In a significant development for the All Progressives Congress (APC), the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) convened on Thursday to elect key officials. The former Governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Ganduje, emerged as the newly elected National Chairman, while Ajibola Basiru, the former Senate spokesman from Osun State, secured the position of National Secretary. The 12th NEC meeting of the APC took place at the Congress Hall of Transcorp Hilton in Abuja, where party leaders and delegates gathered to witness the election. After his victory, Ganduje expressed gratitude to the President and assured the party that internal democracy would be upheld during his tenure. Ganduje further committed to establishing a scientific register of party members, prioritizing election management, and effectively resolving conflicts within the party. He emphasized providing a level playing field for all members during party primaries to strengthen the party’s democratic principles. Prominent figures such as President Bola Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima, members of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, and party chieftains in the National Assembly were in attendance at the NEC meeting. During the meeting, President Buhari emphasized the party’s responsibility to fulfill the promises of good governance made to the Nigerian people following successful electoral victories. He praised the 2023 elections as the best in Nigeria’s history. Notably, former President Muhammadu Buhari and former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo were absent from the NEC meeting, while the first National Chairman of the party, Bisi Akande, was present. This NEC meeting followed a previous session of the APC national caucus, indicating the party’s commitment to addressing critical matters within its ranks. Earlier in mid-July, two members of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), Senator Abdullahi Adamu and Senator Iyiola Omisore, resigned from their positions as National Chairman and National Secretary, respectively. The election of Ganduje and Basiru marks a new chapter in the APC’s leadership, as they take on the task of steering the party towards success in the upcoming governorship elections.

Give Tinubu benefit of doubt, Uwaleke appeals to Nigerians

Professor of Finance and the Capital Market at the Nasarawa State University, Uche Uwaleke, has called on Nigerians to give President Bola Ahmed Tinubu the benefit of the doubt. The President had in a nationwide broadcast on Monday in Abuja, reeled out a number of measures meant to cushion the effects of the removal of fuel subsidy. In his inauguration speech, the President said fuel subsidy was gone forever. According to him, his administration would rather channel the savings from the subsidy removal into other critical sectors of the economy. In his broadcast, the President said his administration has proposed the sum of N75 billion to fund enterprises at 9% interest per annum; N125 billion to energize MSME; release 200,000 Metric Tonnes of grains; 225,000 metric tonnes of fertilizer,  seedlings, and other inputs to farmers; and N50 billion each to cultivate 150,000 hectares of rice and maize. Also, the federal government will also make available N50 billion each to cultivate 100,000 hectares of wheat and cassava, N100 billion to acquire 3000 units of 20-seater CNG-fuelled buses and review the minimum wage. Uwaleke said: “The President’s address to the nation is quite soothing. “He spoke in clear terms and I think Nigerians should allow him the benefit of the doubt.” The first Professor of the Capital Market in Nigeria was however concerned that President Tinubu failed to tell Nigerians how the executive will also make sacrifices. “But it was short on how the three arms of government will share in the pains of the governed, especially with respect to affecting a significant cut in the cost of running government,” he asked.