Today's Headlines: Tinubu meets Oba of Benin in Aso Rock, Court quashes Emefiele’s arrest, detention
Tinubu meets Oba of Benin in Aso Rock
President Bola Tinubu today (Friday) received in audience, His Royal Majesty, Omon’Oba N’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo Ewuare II, the Oba of Benin and his delegation at the State House, Abuja.
The Oba of Benin is meeting with Tinubu for the first time after his inauguration as Nigeria’s President on May 29th.
Again, court quashes Emefiele’s arrest, detention
Coming just 24 hours after a High Court sitting in the Federal Capital Territory directed the release of suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, from detention, another High Court in Abuja on Friday, nullified his arrest and continued detention by the Department of State Services (DSS).
According to a judgment upon an Originating Motion on Notice brought before the Court by Mr. Emefiele, against Incorporated Trustees of Forum for Accountability and Good Leadership, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Inspector General of Police, State Security Service (SSS) and the Central Bank of Nigeria, presiding Judge stated that the arrest, detention and interrogation of Emefiele were in contravention of the subsisting judgment and orders of Justice M. A. Hassan in Suit No. FCT/HC/GAR/CV/41/2022.
Mr. Emefiele through his Counsel, Mr. Peter Abang, had requested the court to set aside, quash, invalidate and nullify the arrest and detention of the Applicant for being illegal and a nullity in view of the subsisting judgment of Justice M. A. Hassan delivered on December 29, 2022.
In another prayer granted by Hon. Justice Bello Kawu, the FCT Court ordered the setting aside, voiding, quashing, invalidating and nullifying any warrant of arrest obtained or procured by the Respondents, especially the DSS for the arrest, detention and/or interrogation of Mr. Emefiele in connection with the allegations of terrorism financing, fraudulent practices, money laundering, round tripping, threat to national security before or from any court since the date of the judgment of Justice M. A. Hassan.
Also, the High Court granted an injunction restraining the Respondents, especially the DSS from arresting, detaining, further detaining or proceeding against, breaching or interfering with Mr. Emefiele’s personal liberty and freedom of movement or taking any other steps against him in connection with any allegations of terrorism financing, fraudulent practices, money laundering, round tripping, threat to national security before or from any court since the date of the judgment of Justice M. A. Hassan.
The Court also granted an order of injunction directing and mandating the Respondents, particularly the DSS to forthwith release and unfetter Mr. Emefiele from any arrest, detention, custody, interrogation with regard to allegations of terrorism financing, fraudulent practices, money laundering, round-tripping, threat to national security before or from any court in view of the subsisting judgment of Justice M. A. Hassan.
In his reaction to the latest judgment, Counsel to Mr Emefiele told journalists that beyond the release of his client, Nigerians must celebrate the fact that Nigerian judges despite several acts of intimidation by security agencies and some unfavourable conditions under which they work are bold to dispense justice not minding whose ox is gored.
He told the DSS to immediately comply with the court’s orders and release his client so that he can go and look after his failing health aggravated by over one month of illegal and unlawful arrest and detention.
Photo Credit:Google
ASUU faults FG’s ‘biased’ payment of members’ salary arrears
Photo Credit: Guardian Nigeria
Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi chapter, has faulted the Federal Government’s mode of paying its members’ backlog of salaries for the 2022 eight months industrial action.
It described it as “discriminatory.” Speaking with newsmen in Bauchi, yesterday, ATBU-ASUU Chairman, Dr. Ibrahim Inuwa Ibrahim, chided the former Minister of Labour and Productivity, Dr. Chris Ngige, for allegedly misinforming Nigerians on his colleagues at ATBU’s College of Medical Sciences (CMS).
Ibrahim said: “To convince Nigerians, Dr. Ngige claimed that lecturers under the umbrella of the Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria (MDCAN) wrote to him through the University Vice Chancellor, dissociating themselves from the ASUU national strike. As a ploy, Ngige presented MDCAN as a purely academic union. He hid from the public the fact that not all medical and dental consultants operating in the teaching hospitals are core staff of the academic unit that forms the CMS.
“Under this guise, Ngige made a case to the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) for some lecturers in the CMS of the university to be paid. If it were true that lecturers in the CMS were working during strike, this would have given the medical students an edge over their mates from other faculties. Unfortunately, this is not the case, because our members in all the academic units of the university were on strike,” he said.
The lectures said it became necessary for the union to call the attention of the Nigerian state on Ngige’s ploy to divide and break the resoluteness of union members during the 2022 national strike that lasted almost eight months.
Nigeria unsecured remains insecure Nigeria, By Adekunle Adekoya
Photo Credit: Vanguard
THE news broke a few days ago that runway lights on domestic runway 18/36L of the Murtala Muhammad Airport, in Lagos, got stolen and it left me with a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. Runway 18/36L of the Lagos airport had been shut down for maintenance, and the runway lights had been installed only last November.
The development speaks volumes about how we take security generally in our country. There is no doubt that the country is presently facing humonguous security challenges, but thieves sneaking onto restricted areas of a major infrastructure facility like an airport brings the situation to an unprecedented low.
The questions on my mind, and no doubt, on the minds of many fellow compatriots, would be like: How did it happen? Insider collusion? Outright negligence? Dereliction of duty? More questions: Runway lightings are not ordinary electrical installations. It means the thieves have special equipment with which to remove them, while it also means there must be a market for the stolen items.
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