₦airaland Forum

The Coalition of Public Interests Lawyers and Advocates (COPA) has urged the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Mohammed Adamu to ensure justice is served in case of rape involving Mr Biodun Fatoyinbo, Senior Pastor, Commonwealth of Zion Assembly (COZA).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mrs Busola Dakolo, wife of Nigeria’s inspirational singer, Timi Dakolo, had accused the pastor of rape when she was 17 years.

The allegation necessitated the stepping down of Fatoyinbo as the Senior Pastor of the church.

However, Mr Pelumi Olajengbesi, Convener of COPA in a statement on Monday urged Adamu to ensure the matter was not swept under the carpet and that the suspect should be tried in Lagos where the matter was reported.

He called on the police to handle the case in Lagos where the victims resides, adding that “our demands are simply that the matter be allowed its due course within the jurisdiction where the complaint was filed”.

He called on the police to take urgent action on the matter that had already in the public glare without giving rooms for doubt in their ability.

He also urged the police to execute a valid and active warrant of arrest against Fatoyimbo in order to restore the confidence of the ordinary Nigerians.

The COPA leader further stated that the coalition would diligently continue to monitor matters as they arise to ensure fairness and justice.

It would be recalled that Mrs Busola Dakolo filed a petition against pastor Biodun on the 27th of June, 2019, at the Office of the Assistant Inspector General of Police in Alagbon, Ikoyi.



See more here https://thickmatch.com/coza-coalition-lawyers-urges-igp-ensure-justice/

see more picture here https://thickmatch.com/flooding-130-houses-washed-away-gombe/

Gombe State Emergency Management Agency, SEMA has confirmed that windstorm and flooding caused by heavy downpour has wrecked havoc on Gombe community, washing away a total of 130 houses.

The incident which occurred in Bojude, Kwami Local Government Area three weeks ago also destroyed food stuffs and other household materials, including a goat.

This was revealed by Muhammad Garba the Relief and Rehabilitation Officer of Gombe yesterday.

He also confirmed that the rainfall which started at around 8pm rendered about 215 households homeless. “The houses affected were all made of mud and because of the intensity of the wind most of the roofs were blown and the wall fence surrounding the houses collapsed, about 208 room were affected”.

“No life was lost though, but about 35 bags of beans, 42 gabs of maze, 5 bags of Bambara nuts and as usual household items, like beds; beddings and so many home appliances were destroyed in flood,” Garba said.

He added that the agency had upon receiving the report from the authorities of the council area, visited the scene and recorded the damages made for further action.



see more here https://thickmatch.com/flooding-130-houses-washed-away-gombe/

The Oyo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal on Monday disallowed a subpoenaed witness called by the Independent National Electoral Commission from testifying in a petition challenging the victory of Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the witness was Prof. Toyin Ogundipe who was the Oyo State Returning Officer in the March 9 governorship election in the state.

The tribunal led by Justice Muhammed Sirajo said that INEC’s statement of oath and list of witnesses submitted to the tribunal did not include Ogundipe’ name.

Sirajo said that INEC also failed to indicate whether an official or subpoenaed witness would be called to testify in the matter.

“This witness cannot testify for INEC in this matter,” the tribunal ruled.

Earlier, counsel to INEC, Mr Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), had told the tribunal that the subpoenaed witness was an official witness who was not under the control of the commission.

He, however, said that Electoral Act paragraphs 41 to 48 allow the tribunal to use its discretion on the issue and allow the witness to testify.

Kehinde argued that the witness had been the INEC returning officer who was critically involved in the election and urged the tribunal to allow him to testify.

But counsel to Adebayo Adelabu, the APC flagbearer, Mr Afolabi Fashanu (SAN), said there should be a granted application before the tribunal can allow a subpoenaed witness to appear before it.

Fashanu said that the discretion to be exercised by the tribunal must be based on an existing law and must be exercised judiciously.

He urged the tribunal to disallow the witness.

NAN reports that the tribunal had taken a break to resume later in the day as at the time of this report.

NAN also reports that Adelabu and his party are challenging the declaration of Makinde, the PDP candidate, as the governor of Oyo State by INEC during the March 9 governorship election.

The other respondents in the matter are INEC and the PDP.




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/oyo-gov-tribunal-disallows-inecs-witness-testifying/

Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has congratulated his Osun State counterpart, Gboyega Oyetola, over Friday’s Supreme Court ruling that validated his election as governor.

Fayemi described the apex court ruling as an affirmation of the people’s will as expressed through their votes in the 2018 governorship election in the state.

The governor, in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Yinka Oyebode, said, “It is a great day for democracy. The highest court in the country has finally settled the controversies surrounding the Osun governorship election and affirmed Governor Oyetola as the true winner of the election.
“Hearty congratulations to my brother Governor, Oyetola. A bigger congratulation to the people of Osun State, who are the real winners in the context,” the governor stated, adding that Oyetola would take Osun State to the next level of development and prosperity.

Also, the APC in the South West on Friday congratulated Oyetola on his victory, saying it called for great celebration.

The APC, in a statement, signed by the Zonal Publicity Secretary, Karounwi Oladapo, expressed confidence that Oyetola would certainly accelerate the pace of development in Osun, now that there would be no more unnecessary distraction.




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/fayemi-south-west-apc-congratulate-oyetola-supreme-court-victory/

President Muhammadu Buhari will depart Abuja on Saturday for Niamey, Niger Republic to attend the African Union Summit, scheduled to hold on July 7.

A statement issued by the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, in Abuja on Friday, said the president would participate in the 12th Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of the Union on African Continental Free Trade Area, AfCFTA.

The presidential aide added that the president would also participate in the First Mid-Year Coordination Meeting of the AU and the Regional Economic Communities in Niamey.

“The Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of the Union is expected to launch the operational instruments of the Agreement establishing AfCFTA.

“The instruments include: AfCFTA Rules of Origin, Tariff Concession Portals, Portal on Monitoring and Elimination of Non-Tariff Barriers, Digital Payments and Clearing Systems and African Trade and Observatory Dashboard,’’ Adesina further disclosed.

Prior to the Summit, the Buhari administration had embarked on extensive consultations with stakeholders, culminating in the submission of the report by the Presidential Committee to Assess Impact and Readiness of Nigeria to join the AfCFTA.


The committee had recommended that Nigeria should sign the Agreement which aims to boost intra-African trade.

Adesina revealed that Buhari would sign the AfCFTA Agreement on the margins of the AU meeting in Niamey.

While formally accepting the report on June 27, President Buhari said, “For AfCFTA to succeed, we must develop policies that promote African production, among other benefits.

“Africa, therefore, needs not only a trade policy but also a continental manufacturing agenda.


“Our vision for intra-African trade is for the free movement of ‘made in Africa goods.’ That is, goods and services made locally with dominant African content in terms of raw materials and value addition.”

According to Adesina, President Buhari will be accompanied to Niamey by the First Lady, Mrs Aisha Buhari, Governors Babagana Zulum, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu and Aminu Bello Masari of Borno, Kebbi and Katsina States, respectively.



Read more here https://thickmatch.com/au-summit-buhari-depart-niger-republic-saturday/

Hmmm

See more of it here

The Peoples Democratic Party in Osun State said it has accepted the Supreme Court judgment that affirmed Governor Gboyega Oyetola as the winner of the September 2018 governorship election in the state.

Mr Soji Adagunodo, the State PDP Chairman, in a telephone interview with News Agency of Nigeria in Osogbo said since the Supreme Court was the apex court in the land, the party could not appeal the decision.

NAN reports that the Supreme Court in a split judgment of five-to-two on Friday upheld the election of Oyetola.


Adagunodo said the minority judgment dealt with the constitutional issue of the matter, which according to him, was the most important while the majority judgment dealt with the technical tissues

“Since the Supreme Court is the highest court in the land, we don’t have anything to say than to accept the verdict.

“The judgment is a split judgment.

The majority judgment dealt with technical matter and we expected the judges to have called for the file of the lower court.

“Meanwhile, the majority judgment dealt with a constitutional matter which is important to our democracy.

“The court has ruled and we don’t have anything to say than to accept the verdict since there is nowhere to go again,’’ Adagunodo said.

He, however, appealed to party members to be calm and peaceful.




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/gov-poll-accept-supreme-court-verdict-says-osun-pdp/

Hmmm

Please don't push this to front page for the good of nairaland, this statement is not based on fact or evidence, it is just a beer parlor reasoning, where is the evidence Mr poster

The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the 2018 Osun State governorship election, Senator Ademola Adeleke on Friday congratulated Governor Gboyega Oyetola on his victory at the Supreme Court.

Adeleke in a statement by his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, stated that his ambition to be the Governor of Osun State was never a do-or-die affair.

He said the Supreme Court’s decision, regardless of his disagreement and disappointment with it remained final.

He said, “As a democrat and law-abiding citizen, I accept the ruling no matter my misgivings.

“I wish Governor Oyetola well in the governance of Osun State.”

Adeleke added, “In all circumstances, we must thank God Almighty. We gallantly fought a good fight in pursuance of a democratic cause.

“The ideals we fought for lives on.

“Our ambition was never a do-or-die affair. We aspired to serve and deliver democratic dividends to the people of Osun state. Our ambition was altruistic. We wish Governor Oyetola the best in the governance of the state.”




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/breaking-wish-oyetola-well-adeleke-declares/

g

The House had erupted into a rowdy session yesterday when the speaker announced a different set of names as against that which was sent to him by the major opposition party in the house.

The Social Democratic Party (SDP) says it is giving its full backing to the speaker’s announcement on his choice of principal minority officers.

The position of SDP was made known in a telephone interview with Newsmen on Thursday in Akure by its only member in the House, Hon. Tajudeen Adefisoye, representing Idanre/Ifedore Constituency.

Adefisoye, who explained that he and his colleagues in all the minority parties had reached an agreement on the choice of minority principal officers, said: “Therefore, we support the choice as announced by the speaker on Wednesday.”

“The names read by the Speaker on the floor of the House truly reflected the choices made by members of the minority parties.

“I speak on behalf of my party, the Social Democratic Party, which is one of the minority parties in the House.

“I want to make it clear that the names read on the floor of the House by the Speaker were the ones duly nominated and endorsed by myself and other colleagues in other minority parties,” he said.

Adefisoye described the new principal minority officers as very competent and responsible members whose reliability and moral standings the House could readily vouch for.
He also described the names sent by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the speaker as mere wishful thinking.

” The names sent to the Speaker by the PDP is null and void as far as we are concerned.

“The reality is that PDP cannot unilaterally decide on the issues of minority principal officers for all other minority parties.

“After all, PDP is just one party out of the multiple minority parties in the House,” Adefisoys said.



Read more here https://thickmatch.com/sdp-throws-weight-behind-gbajabiamilas-choice-minority-principal-officers/

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, Thursday announced Alhassan Doguwa from Kano State, as the leader of the House.

He also named Peter Akpatason as Deputy Leader, Tahir Monguno as Chief Whip and Nkeiruka Onyejeocha as Deputy Chief Whip.

Doguwa, who represents Doguwa/Tudun Wada federal constituency, was former Chief Whip of the 8th House.

Meanwhile, other appointments were affirmed for minority leaders.

Against the backdrop of the appointments made by People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Gbajabiamila had named Ndudi Elumelu as the House Minority Leader.

Elumelu from Delta State was named alongside Toby Okechukwu as Minority Leader, Gideon Gwani as Minority Whip and Adesegun Adekoya as Deputy Minority Whip.

But the declaration met stiff opposition from the PDP and its lawmakers.

The opposition party had in a letter on Wednesday plenary announced Kingsley Chinda as its leader.

The party also nominated Chukwuka Onyema as Deputy Minority Leader, Yakubu Barde as Minority Whip and Muraina Ajibola as Deputy Minority Whip.




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/gbajabiamila-announces-doguwa-apc-reps-principal-officers/

The Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Jos, the Plateau state capital, has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to supply Senator Jeremiah Useni and the PDP all the relevant documents they need to support their petition filed before the tribunal.

This followed an oral application made by Senior Counsel to the petitioners, Edward Pwajok SAN.

Pwajok had informed the tribunal that the electoral umpire has so far failed to fully comply with its earlier order to make available to the petitioners Certified True Copies of “forms, voters registers and any other relevant documents the Applicants may request for the purpose of instituting and/or maintaining the Applicants Petition”.

The Tribunal Order was made on 1st April, 2019, and subsequently duly served on INEC.

The Petitioners’ Counsel however said that although they had paid INEC the sum of N4m “good money”, INEC was yet to allow his team full access to all the requested election documents; “this is very unfair, my lords.”

When the Tribunal Chairman, Justice H. A. Saleeman sought to know why INEC had only partially complied with its order, INEC Counsel Clement Onwuenwunor said rather that, “We are working on it. It is never our intention to deny the Petitioners access to documents validly in our custody.

“We assure the Honourable court that we will liaise with the Petitioners and comply accordingly.”

Justice Saleeman then countered that even if the electoral umpire is unable to allow access to the relevant documents, it must state so and explain it in writing to be brought to the notice of the Tribunal.

Meantime, Useni has forwarded to the Tribunal a fresh tranche of nine certified documents. These are: copies of results from various polling units in Mangu, Bokkos and Jos East Local Government Areas.

Respondents’ Counsel has indicated that they will make their objections on the documents in their final address before the judgement of the tribunal.

Tribunal Chairman, Justice Saleeman, received and coded the exhibits accordingly: P44A – P50A.




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/wp-admin/admin.php?page=gf_edit_forms

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and the Inspector General Police, Adamu Mohammed, have been barred from harassing or interfering in the legislative duties of the Edo State House of Assembly.

Justice M. Umar gave the order following a motion ex-parte, filed by Alhaji Yayaha Audu Omogbai, Clerk of the Assembly and the Edo State House of Assembly.

Recall that only 11 out 24 lawmakers in the Edo Assembly have been sworn-in. The 13 other lawmakers-elect believed to have the backing of Oshiomhole have fled to Abuja over alleged threat to life.

At the hearing of the suit, Justice Umar ordered defendants in the suit, their servants and agents, not to interfere, disrupt or obstruct the constitutional duties of members of the Edo House of Assembly.

The defendants are the National Working Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Inspector General of Police, the Commissioner of Police in Edo State and Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu.

Justice Umar also barred them from further publishing in any newspaper or other media, any inciting publications concerning the inauguration of the 7th Assembly of the Edo State House Assembly and the election of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker which took place on 17/6/2019 in the Edo State House of Assembly.

He ruled “that an interim order of injunction is hereby granted restraining the defendants by themselves, their servants, agents, officers or privies from interfering with, obstructing or harassing, in any manner whatsoever, the plaintiffs in the performance of their constitutional duties as the Legislative Arm of the Edo State Government pending the hearing and determination of the motion on Notice for interlocutory injunction.

“That interim order of injunction is also granted restraining the defendants by themselves, their servants, agents, officers or privies from further committing any act aimed at disparaging the integrity of the legislative arm of the Edo State Government and/or destabilising the peace, order and good governance of Edo State in general, pending the hearing and determination of the Motion on Notice for interlocutory injunction.

The case was adjourned to 9th October 2019




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/court-orders-oshiomhole-igp-apc-spokesman-stop-interfering-edo-assembly/

The Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) has rejected the request by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate in the last presidential election, Atiku Abubakar for opportunity to re-argue a motion by the All Progressives Congress (APC), seeking the dismissal of the petition.

The tribunal had on June 11, 2019 ruled that the petitioners – PDP and Atiku had no response to the motion by the APC, on the grounds that they failed to file a counter-affidavit.

It was that ruling that the petitioners prayed the court to set aside and allow them formally respond to the motion, a request the tribunal rejected in a ruling on Wednesday.

The tribunal also adopted the schedule of proceedings agreed by parties on Monday, and adjourned till Thursday for the commencement of formal trial – hearing of the petition.

The petitioners are expected to call their first set of witnesses on Thursday.




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/breaking-tribunal-rejects-pdp-atikus-request-re-argue-apcs-objection-petition/

Hon Adekunle Akinlade of the Allied People’s Movement (APM) has stormed the election petition tribunal sitting in Isabo, Abeokuta with ‘Ghana Must Go’ bags containing electoral evidences to prove his case beyond reasonable doubts.

Akinlade had lost the 2019 Ogun governorship election to Governor Dapo Abiodun of the All Progressives Congress, APC, as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

However, Akinlade petitioned the election tribunal, alleging he was robbed of his victory.

At the resumed sitting of the tribunal panel, yesterday, the APM governorship candidate shocked the panel with certified true copies of electoral materials from different local governments in more than seven Ghana must go bags to convince the tribunal that he was the winner of march 9 governorship election in Ogun state.

The tribunal admitted in evidence, forms EC8A from different wards in Abeokuta North and Ado Odo Otta local governments, as counsels to INEC, Governor Abiodun, and the APC did not object to the evidence.

The next sitting of the tribunal has been scheduled for Thursday, 4th July, 2019.

“We shall be willing to have the answers to our questions (asked and yet unasked) at the said sitting.

“Once again, we thank the good people of Ogun State for their continuous support, and we shall regularly bring the details of proceedings at the tribunal to the notice of the general public until our mandate is restored,” said Akinlade after the sitting.




See more here https://thickmatch.com/ogun-guber-akinlade-storms-tribunal-shocking-evidences-gov-abiodun/

lalasticlala mynd44

The Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) has blamed insecurity for majority of the elections declared inconclusive.

INEC chairman, Prof. Mamood Yakubu, stated this during the Commission’s meeting with security agencies that participated in the general elections.

INEC meeting with the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) is in continuation of the 2019 general election review meetings.

Yakubu, who is the co-chair of ICCES, also called for immediate prosecution for all arrested for electoral offences in the 2019 general polls.

He pointed out that he will continue to champion the call for creation of different body to deal with electoral offences.



Read more here https://thickmatch.com/2019-election-inec-blames-insecurity-inconclusive-2019-polls/