Kanu Requests New Judge, Opposes Resumption of Trial

Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, remains firm in his objection to the resumption of his trial, citing a lack of trust in Justice Binta Nyako.  He insisted that the judge should step aside, despite the Federal Government’s push for proceedings to continue under her oversight. The case has faced multiple twists since Kanu’s re-arrest and extradition from Kenya in 2021. Initially handled by Justice Nyako since 2015, the trial saw her step down in September 2024 after Kanu challenged her impartiality.  However, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court reassigned the case back to her, stating her long-standing familiarity with it.  Kanu’s legal team contends that Justice Nyako’s decision to recuse herself still stands, making the Federal Government’s push for trial resumption improper.  Meanwhile, government lawyers argue that her recusal was not formalized by the required legal process and demand a trial date.   READ ALSO: Tinubu Visits Enugu for Project Commissioning Today The prolonged legal battle, involving allegations of treason and terrorism, has kept Kanu in custody under the Department of State Services, with repeated bail applications denied.  The dispute over the judge’s role further delays proceedings, leaving the case in a state of uncertainty.

FG approves first aviation school in Southeast 

To address the dearth of manpower in the aviation sector, the Federal Government has approved the listing of Eastwing Aviation Training Institute under the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE). Having met the technical evaluation by the FG, the Institute can now commence the process of admission of students through the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, JAMB, and the students, upon completion of their studies, will be awarded national diploma and high national diploma, respectively. Speaking on the approval, the founder and CEO of Eastwing Aviation, Dr. Christopher Edeh, urged youths to take advantage of the opportunity offered by the institution to achieve their dream of becoming pilots, aviation engineers, cabin crew or other functions found in the sector. He said: “What this approval means for our youths is that every one of them now has the opportunity to explore this field, even if it means just coming to us for advice. The institution would encourage and help build the dream because we do not want you to stay idle after graduating. “It has been my desire to give back to society considering what I have passed through from the day I joined the Nigerian Air Force. “Being the first aviation school in the South-East region means a lot to us. It means that I am getting closer to my dream and I have reached that stage where society can benefit from me.”  Explaining the process of getting the institute certified, Edeh disclosed that he worked with former colleagues to realize the project. “Those who worked with me on this project were colleagues that we served together. They have been very supportive throughout this quest. It was purely a communal effort, what you would call ‘Wazobia’ and we are where we are today.” The Eastwing Aviation Institute also recently established a non-governmental organisation to encourage less privileged youths who are talented and who meet the basic requirements but are not able to financially pursue their dreams. According to the founder, “We are hopeful that the new dawn would encourage a huge turn up. Many people regard the aviation sector as rocket science; now we have brought it to their doorsteps. For interested candidates, there are many areas in this field they can fit in; go to airports, all you see are many people carrying luggage and we believe they can do more than that.” Speaking further, Dr Edeh recounted: “A good example is one of the security personnel I worked with who was talented and hardworking. I realised this and encouraged him to do more for himself seeing that he has potential. Today, he is an aircraft maintenance engineer in one of the airlines.”

Umahi bemoans dilapidated federal roads in Anambra, South-East

The Minister of Works, Chief David Umahi, has decried the poor state of federal roads in the South-East geo-political zone, especially in Anambra and Ebonyi states. Umahi made his feelings known during a courtesy call on the Anambra Governor, Prof. Charles Soludo, on Saturday night in Awka. The Minister said Anambra and Ebonyi were competing for the worst in terms of poor federal road projects in the country. He said that he had recently visited Imo, Abia, Enugu and Ebonyi states before coming to Anambra, saying that the situation is the same on the state of federal roads. Umahi, who before meeting Soludo had inspected the Enugu-bound lane of the Onitsha/Enugu Expressway, passed a vote of no confidence on the consultants supervising the reconstruction of the road. He regretted that the handlers of the very busy road were exposing road users to untold hardship. “I am a bit disappointed with the state of Enugu/Onitsha expressway; I have called both the contractors and consultants to a meeting this evening with the Governor. “I have equally passed a vote of no confidence on the consultants,” he said. He directed the firm to immediately rehabilitate the bad spots, which have caused vehicles to fall and other sundry hiccups on the Enugu-Onitsha expressway. The Minister said he was personally concerned due to a series of calls and complaints coming from the same road. “While MTN Nigeria says they have 100 per cent funding, the chairman of RCC construction firm, will say the opposite, complaining of funding problem. “We will all meet and sort out these problems because we cannot have one or two contractors doing 200 kilometers of road for seven years,” he said. Umahi, who noted that states in the South-East geo-political zone were not fairly treated on MTN Nigeria Tax Credit decision, said he was confident that Mr President would look into the matter in due course. “Yes, Enugu and Abia states benefitted, but that cannot be compared with other zones which got on the MTN Nigeria Tax Credit sharing formula. “I know as a man of justice and equity, President Bola Tinubu will look into the matter because development thrives on fairness and equity,” he said. Responding, Governor Soludo said he was overwhelmed when President Tinubu appointed Umahi his minister of works. “Umahi’s appointment is a prayer answered for me because it is like a perfect round peg in a round hole,” he said. He regretted that the entire federal roads in Anambra were all bad, adding that urgent actions were needed to reduce the sufferings facing road users on the roads. Soludo who appealed to the minister to replicate what he did on road construction in Ebonyi across the country, advocated for what he tagged mega-budget for road projects. According to him, the initiative would encourage the National Assembly to make adequate budgetary provisions for road projects which have lasted more than four years. He said when this is done, government would no longer required to talk about budgetary allocation on existing roads yearly, but would be spending on already approved fund to end problem of poor funding,” he said. Before the courtesy visit, Umahi visited Enugu/Onitsha Expressway, Oye-Oranto Ukpo Road in Dunukofia, and Otuocha-Iheaka-Ibaji Roads.