₦airaland Forum

omenka:
Dude got me frankly!!

Was about typing "I think the best roads I've seen are in Akwa Ibom and Kano", but when I saw the first pics, I was like pwahahahahahaha!!!

PASCHAL28:
Ever since some law courts admitted former National Security Adviser Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd.) and Biafra agitator Nnamdi Kanu to bail and they were not promptly released, there has been lots of hot air released, either backing or attacking their continued detention.

Today, I write to say that I think President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) and the Federal Government are right in law, contrary to the loud crowd’s assertion of ‘human rights’. first, let me state it clearly here, I am not against anybody nor group. I am an Igbo man from Agu-ukwu Nri in Anaocha Local Govt of Anambra State. but we must always do things in accordance with the laws of the land.

The detention of Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd.) and Nnamdi Kanu has generated a lot of debate and even criticisms against the Federal Government and the person of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari (PMB). These criticisms reached their peak after the President’s responses to some questions on the issue in his maiden presidential media chat of Wednesday December 30. Some legal luminaries and human rights activists vehemently contend that the Government violated court orders granting the said accused persons bail.

The Vanguard of Monday January 4 reported several senior lawyers, including the current NBA president, contending that the Government is guilty of disregarding court orders on the issue. Some argue that the Federal Government should have released Kanu or deported him after seven days. These critics have turned the trial of the duo into the trial of the State that is accusing them. I put it to 2/3 of Our so called lawyers even those in the rank of SANs that they do not know the true position of our laws. most of them who claim to be so good and sound in the field of law do not know the law itself. Even the ones claiming to be standing for Nnamdi Kanu and Dasuki do not know the true position of laws of the land.

The one million dollar question now begging for answer is therefore: Is the Federal Government really in breach of Court Orders? The answer to this question is NO. Let me say outright here that the President’s opinion on this matter is in accord with the judgement of the Supreme Court in Dokubo-Asari v. F.R.N. (2007) All FWLR (Pt. 375) p. 558 where the Supreme Court held at page 585 thus:

“…Where national security is threatened or there is the real likelihood of it being threatened, human rights or the individual rights of those responsible take second place. Human rights or individual rights must be suspended until the national security can be protected or well taken care of. This is not anything new. The corporate existence of Nigeria as a united, harmonious, indivisible and indissoluble sovereign nation is certainly greater than any citizen’s liberty or right.”

This is the law as enunciated by a unanimous decision of the apex court of the land during Yar'dua regime. The law is what the courts say it is, and not what we see in statute books. Therefore, PMB’s opinion on this matter is more in tandem with the spirit of the constitution and the law than that of those senior legal minds and human rights activists.
It is true Kanu was granted bail on October 17. On the day he claimed to have perfected his bail conditions, he was already too late as the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) had already filed a fresh six-count charge against him. Thus, in law, Kanu was released on bail for the earlier charges and then re-arrested on the new charges, which charge sheet was served on him the day he perfected those conditions.

When Kanu was arraigned on the fresh charges before Justice Ahmed Mohammed of the Federal High Court, he declined to enter his plea and objected to the jurisdiction of the court to try him, accusing the judge of bias. Consequently, the judge rightly disqualified himself and remitted the case file to the Chief Judge for redirection.

Like Kanu, Dasuki and three others were arraigned before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory by the EFCC on a 19-count charge bordering on money laundering and criminal breach of trust. On December 18 Dasuki and others were granted bail on the said 19-count charge. The former NSA perfected his bail conditions and was released on bail. Later, the government found fresh pieces of evidence against him and he was re-arrested and re-arraigned on a 22-count charge.

He was again granted bail and, after his release, the government re-arrested him at the gate of the court on yet another fresh set of charges.

The law is settled that any bail granted an accused is completely related to the offence(s) for which he is charged. So, if after he has been granted bail the prosecution charges him for another offence for which no bail has been granted and no plea taken, then the accused can be re-arrested.

Some of the lawyers seem to have admitted this leg of the argument. However, the problem they seem to have is the timing of the re-arrest. They opine that even though the Government has a right to re-arrest them on fresh charges, that should not come immediately after release. They further reason that the FG should have lumped the charges together instead of bringing them piecemeal.

Again, these submissions are without any basis. It is within the exclusive prerogative of the prosecution (and not anybody else) to decide whether, when and how to charge accused persons. In these matters, the AGF is the law unto himself! He is not subject to the control of anyone as far as the exercise of his powers is concerned. See State v. S.O. Ilori & 2 others (1983) 2 S.C. 155 and Amaefule v. State (1988) 2 NWLR (part 75) page 156.

One lawyer argued that Kanu should have been released after seven days of detention or deported from Nigeria in accordance with the Immigration Act. The lawyer even initiated an online petition on December 31 calling on the President to resign from office or be impeached for the alleged breaches. It was countered by another petition of Buhari supporters on www.ipetition.com <http://www.ipetition.com>. At the time of writing (noon Friday January cool, the anti-Buharis have gathered 2,997 signatures in 9 days while the pro-Buharis have gathered 12,343 in 5 days, and still counting.

This aside, is seven days detention and/or deportation the punishments for the offence Kanu is charged with? Kanu is facing a 6-count charge, one of which is treason. By section 41 (c) of the CCA, treason is a capital offence which attracts the Death Sentence. It is a matter of common knowledge that Kanu has threatened to wage war against Nigeria and has taken several steps to make his threat real.

Dasuki, on the other hand, is charged with crimes bordering misappropriation of funds set aside for the procurement of arms to battle the Boko Haram insurgency and illegal possession of firearms. Furthermore, there is the fear he may jump bail; in fact he has said he wants to jet out to receive ‘medical attention’ abroad; the habit of many a high profile figure charged with crime.

And could the opinion of the President in the said media chat influence the judge? It depends: for some judges it may make no difference; for some, it may influence the judge against the accused persons; for yet others, it may influence them in favour of the accused persons (true for judges who want to assert their authority and independence). There is no certainty as to whether and in which way the influence of that opinion goes.

So, finally, we resort again to the Supreme Court “Where national security is threatened…individual rights of those responsible take second place...” and say PMB is right by law. At this point, I am calling on my Igbo brothers to come back home. Let us reason on the way forward. Violence does not pay. I call upon the wife of Late Ikemba Ndi Igbo as a matter of urgency to build a sound and digital Library for Ikemba if it at Nnewi His Country Home or at Enugu where people mostly the younger generation who did not witness the Civil war to know more and equally to tap from what went wrong in the past and the way forward. Before 2011 elections, when IBB visited Ojukwu at His Residence before the Northern Elders did mock primaries between Atiku and IBB, Ojukwu addressed Ndi Igbo urging us to support the Northerners. what happened the press statement. I will come up with issue and many more at appropriate time. I rest my case.

Eledan:
It took me almost 20 minutes to make the U-turn at the 7up toll gate from the CMD road exit, simply because tens of luxurious buses from Biafra carrying Biafrans were entering Lagos. Go to Ojota, Jibowu and Mazamaza as we speak now, the biafrans are busy offloading into the zoo. Useless and shameless animals

kahara:
There are many Nnamdi Kanus in Igboland who are ready to continue from where he stopped. I ,for one, am ready to stake my life for The Course. In Biafra we stand.

kayo80:
Okay. Cool. Is this a unanimous decision? Cos I have noticed that a lot of rich Igbo people are not concerned about Biafra. It has to be at least 60% of people of Igbo land wanting to leave...not just a small portion of the people.

Donclaracuzo:
I am trying to wonder why the South Eastern people have been subjected to such dreadful and emotional trauma for traveling on the road. It is only in the South East that you will find soldiers and Police in full strength. From Abuja to Awka, a distance of 360km, we encountered only two check points but, the entire Igbo Nation is filled with Police check ponts. Why?

AtlanticBreeze:
Fire this evening engulfed the popular Sabon Gari market in Kano with men of the Fire Service Department struggling to contain the fire.

Details later..

http://sunnewsonline.com/new/breaking-news-sabon-gari-market-in-kano-on-fire/

Ambjosh:
Let's be sincere here with ourselves, in the 16 years of PDP government in Nigeria the only position Igbos did not hold was just the presidency. We have had about five senate presidents, Deputy senate president, Deputy Speaker, the Army Chief, Immigration Boss, the Prison Boss, Central Bank Governor, Ministers in key ministries of power, finance, education, petroleum and health etc. What has Igboland got to show for these positions other than installation of one Chieftaincy title or the other? Let me ask again; as much as the majority of our complaints are genuine, are we not part of our problems?

tscara:
This is for all igbos who are against the stupidity and myopia of the so called biafran struggle. This is fast degenerating into somethIng else. Let us all collectively make our voice heard that we are not in support of a cause that might lead to widespread violence as it did some 40 years ago. Let us prove these miscreants that the majority of igbos do not support this cause or at least do not want from any violent means.

#notobiafra tscara

otukpo:
I don't support shooting of unarmed protesters.

Saturn213:
I am sorry for your loss

May God give your family the strength to bear this terrible and needless loss of life

I hope that IpoB youths are watching this

War is not fun, it is ruthless and bloody

donTbone:
Rev Father Ejike Mbaka, the catholic priest from Enugu state, has been strongly criticized for his statement, in which he said that he would support pro-Biafran agitators only if “their sponsors take the lead in any protest”.

The Sun reports that Rt. Rev. Bishop Abraham Chris Udeh, the general pverseer of Mount Zion Faith Global Liberation Ministries in Nnewi, Anambra state, has called on Catholic Bishops to call the fiery priest to order.

Udeh alleged that some enemies of the Igbos sponsored Father Mbaka to work against his Igbo brothers. He also claimed that the catholic priest allegedly worked against Goodluck Jonathan during the 2015 general elections leading to his loss.

“It appears you people (the media) are afraid to tell Mbaka the truth. Why should he be working against Igbo interest and everybody will keep quiet. Even the Catholic Bishops do not want to call him to order. He is not talking prophetically. Is the Buhari he projected to succeed Jonathan working for the interest of Ndigbo? Can’t we reason? That is the question we should ask ourselves,” the bishop said.

According to Udeh, some Igbo leaders keep quiet over the arrest and detention of Nnamdi Kanu, the director of Radio Biafra “because they are contented with their political positions and the crumbs from the table in Abuja.”

A week ago, during a sermon at Adoration Ministry, Mbaka strongly criticised Biafra supporters, defining them as ‘evil’. He called on youths in the south-east and south-south to go back to their business as pro-Biafra protests could lead to their deaths.

Responding to Mbaka, the Indigenous People of Biafra denounced him as a compromised priest speaking from both sides of his mouth.

rahazaqa:
shut the Bleep up. OPC is not an antic government group, it is not a violence group like urs,let that stick to your skull. dont compare you people to OPC