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A report says the End SARS protesters have barricaded the Berger roundabout in Abuja, creating heavy gridlock as motorists are not allowed to access under the bridge.

The End Sars protesters are insisting on a total overhaul of the Nigerian police system and also opposed the new police SWAT unit.

Ait.live gathered that the protesters used their personal vehicles to stop motorists from driving through while those caught in the web of the protest were forced to drive back to where they are coming from.

Call for Awkuzu SARS probe, police reforms

Defiant youths numbering over 300 on Monday blocked the entrance gate of the Onitsha Area Command of the Nigerian Police Force in continuation of their protest for the disbanding of the federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and for police reforms in Nigeria.

Under the aegis of National Youth Council of Nigeria, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Wing, and some young lawyers, the youths, after holding rally at the popular DMGS Roundabout, stormed the Governor’s Lodge, chanting protest songs .

They carried placards with different inscriptions, reading: “Wrong is Wrong, No Matter who does it”, “We need Transparency and Accountability”, Using iPhone doesn’t make me a yahoo”, among others.

Speaking on behalf of the protesters, Anambra State Chairman, National Youth Council of Nigeria, Samuel Egwuatu, who recounted abuse by SARS operatives, called on State Governor Willie Obiano and the police authorities to use their positions to follow up on the demands of Nigerian youths.

Another protester, Ebelechukwu Ngini, said beyond the pronouncement for disbandment of SARS by the Inspector-General of Police, there is an urgent need for total reform of the police system in Nigeria.

He called for the removal of all police checkpoints in Anambra State, saying motorists and innocent citizens are being extorted and dehumanised at the check points.

The protesters described Awkuzu SARS as the deadliest in the country, calling for probe of all their activities and urged the Government to also look into the activities of Anti-Cult Special Squad, Enugwu Ukwu, lamenting how students are being intimidated and denied access to lawyers, saying that some have spent years in detention without their cases being tried in court.

Addressing the protesting youths, Choloma Jack, flanked by the Assistant Commissioner of Police in charge of Onitsha Area Command, John Obuagbaka, said the Commissioner of Police in the State, John Abang, will implement the directives of the inspector-General of Police regarding SARS.

He said the police is very much open to reforms and would help in making Nigeria a better and safer country.

The Transition Committee Chairman for Onitsha North, Hon Patrick Aghamba, who spoke on behalf of Governor Obiano, commended the students for their comportment and maturity displayed during the protest, and assured them that the Governor will address all their grievances.

A total of five political parties filed petitions at the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal at the close of submission of petitions on October 10, seeking to nullify the election of‎ governor Godwin Obaseki.

Three political parties which earlier filed their petitions are Action Democratic Party (ADP), Action Peoples Party (APP) and Action Alliance (AA) with APP and AA contesting the outcome of the election on the grounds that they were unlawfully excluded from the election.

But at the weekend, two more political parties, Allied Peoples Movement (APM) and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP)‎, filed their petitions seeking to nullify the victory of Godwin Obaseki, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP’s) candidate in the election, bringing the number of petitions against Obaseki’s election to five.

In their separate petitions, the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), are asking the tribunal to nullify the declaration of Obaseki as the winner of the election on the grounds that the conduct of the September poll violated, substantially, the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigerian and the Extant Electoral Act 2010 (As Amended 2015).

The are similarities in the two petitions and the first three that were filed. The similarities bother on the issues of the eligibility or otherwise of Obaseki to contest the election on the claim that he submitted false and or forged certificates to INEC, allegation of Obaseki’s participation in two separate primary elections of two different political parties of the PDP and the APC for the same election and other sundry matters.

Besides, the latest two petitions also sought similar reliefs such as a declaration that Obaseki was not duly elected in the said September 19, 2020 election by virtue of his not being qualified to contest having allegedly submitted false and or forged certificate; a declaration that PDP and Obaseki are not qualified to contest the poll in the first instance because of the alleged false and or forged certificate; an order asking INEC to conduct a fresh election among only qualified candidates in the aforesaid election to the exclusion of PDP and Obaseki and an order to withdraw the certificate of return earlier issued to Obaseki by INEC.

The point of departure between the two petitions is NNPP’s new relief to the extent that since Obaseki did not indicate the primary school he attended, he is deemed not to have been educated up to Secondary School Level or its equivalent, and as such not qualified to contest the election.

Meanwhile, the APM, alternatively, is asking the tribunal to nullify the election on the grounds that the return of Obaseki as winner “are voided by acts bothering on rigging and manipulation of election results; unprecedented acts of violence, thuggery and coercion of voters and unlawful interference in the electoral process by the respondents”.

Policemen have fired teargas canisters to disperse hundreds of Nigerians calling for an end to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad in the country.

SARS is notorious for brutality, extortion, harassment and extrajudicial killing of innocent citizens.

The protesters had earlier requested to see the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu.

They vowed not leave the premises of building until the IGP addressed them.

But armed policemen stationed within the building fired teargas at them around 6:20pm and violently disrupted the peaceful protest.

Some of the demonstrators were beaten and dragged on the floor by policemen.

As at the time of this report, the protesters vowed to stay put until their demands were met.

Tax consultancy firm, Alpha Beta LLP, has denied allegations levelled against it by its former Managing Director, Dapo Apara, adding that he in fact diverted N6bn from the company.

Apara had in a writ of summons before a Lagos State High Court accused the company of being controlled by a former Lagos State Governor, Bola Tinubu, and making mysterious payments of over N20bn to several private accounts.

Responding on Friday, however, Alpha Beta said in a statement by its Managing Director, Akin Doherty, that Apara was the one that was culpable as he had diverted about $5m during his time as managing director by inflating a contract which was worth about $300,000 and then diverted a separate N6bn to personal use.

The firm said it had reported Apara’s alleged fraud to the appropriate authorities but he had refused to show up and rather remained in Dubai.

In the statement titled, ‘Alpha Beta: Facts of the Matter’, the firm said Apara was an aggrieved ex-employee who was bent on tarnishing the image of the company after being sacked for financial impropriety.

It read in part, “The fact is that Dapo Apara began making his untrue allegations in the aftermath of his removal as Managing Director of Alpha Beta for fraud and unethical practices. While he was MD, Apara used his position to siphon huge sums of money from the company including but not limited to fraudulently converting $5m; money allegedly used to pay for cloud based services that were eventually discovered to be worth less than $300,000.

“Mr. Apara, who was a signatory to all the bank accounts of Alpha Beta from inception until his removal, received all his payments and entitlements until June 2018 when he was removed after his fraudulent misconduct was discovered.

“In July 2018 further evidence of his fraudulent and unethical practices was uncovered, including the revelation that he converted approximately N6bn belonging to Alpha Beta to his personal use.

“This fraud was reported to the authorities and Mr. Apara was subsequently invited to return to Nigeria from his hiding place in Dubai to render account. To date, he has refused to do so. Instead, Mr. Apara chose to embark on an aggressive smear campaign seemingly in an effort to blackmail us into ending the investigations into his misconduct.”

The firm said Apara’s allegations levelled against Tinubu were specious and diversionary.

“The uncorroborated allegations against Asiwaju Bola Tinubu by Dapo Apara, in particular, show that he is bent only on creating sensational headlines to deflect attention from his own criminal activities,” it said.

According to Alpha Beta, Apara has filed many suits in Lagos and Abuja on the same matter, engaged in arbitration, the police, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, and other agencies.

It said in all that time, he has steadfastly refused to honour all invitations by the authorities to return to Nigeria and account for the huge funds he misappropriated.

The firm stated that although it had not been served with the court summons, it looked forward to the opportunity of publicly presenting the full picture of Apara’s misconduct, deceit and fraud and to have the matter resolved by the court once and for all.

Alpha Beta monitors and reconciles tax on behalf of the Lagos State Government for a commission, a contract it has been executing for over 15 years.

Lagos Assembly Speaker, Obasa, In EFCC Office Over Misappropriation Of Public Funds

Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, is currently at the office of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for questioning over allegations of financial misappropriation.

SaharaReporters had on Wednesday reported that Obasa and some top members and accounting officials in the Lagos Assembly had been invited by the EFCC for questioning.

Obasa, who is a stooge of ex-Lagos governor, Bola Tinubu, arrived at EFCC's office at about 10:00am today.

SaharaReporters had in series of reports detailed how Obasa had engaged in looting of public funds since he became Speaker of the Assembly.

The online news publication revealed how he operated over 64 bank accounts using different names to steal public funds.

To conceal his identity, the Speaker changed his name and date of birth in some of the accounts.

Aside from using Ajayi Mudashiru Obasa, he also used Obasa Abdulrahman Gbadunola and Gabriel Adedoyin Savage to register some of the bank accounts.

SaharaReporters also exposed how Obasa awarded contracts to himself using different companies owned by him and how he got the Assembly to approve N258m for the printing of invitation cards for the inauguration of lawmakers two months after the event held.

Gunmen have killed a cleric, Mr Kayode Ogunleye, dumping his body in a forest on the Aramoko-Ijero-Ekiti highway in Ekiti.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the lifeless body of the pastor, who was also a staff of the Ekiti West Local Government Area in Ekiti, was found on his farm near the forest.

Sources revealed that Ogunleye, working for All Christian Fellowship Church, was murdered while working on his farm.

He was said to have been shot dead while trying to harvest banana at his plantation.

One of the sources, who pleaded anonymity, described Ogunleye’s killing as barbaric, calling on security agencies to fish out the killers.

The Public Relations Officer of the police command in Ekiti, Mr Sunday Abutu, confirmed the incident, saying that it was a suspected case of murder.

Armed robbers on Friday attacked a second generation bank in Iyin-Ekiti, Irepodun/Ifelodun local government area of the state and made away with unspecified millions of naira.

Tribune Online gathered that the gunmen who arrived the town around 3 pm, started shooting sporadically into the air to scare residents and robbed the bank, which is the only bank in the community for almost 40 minutes without any hindrance.

A source in the community who spoke with our correspondent said the robbers, numbering about six, gained access into the bank by destroying the security door of the bank with dynamite.

He added that no one was killed or sustained any form of injury in the robbery incident.

The residents were said to have run in different directions due to the severity of the gunshots, which the source said had sent jitters through the spines of the people.

Vehicles travelling across Ado-Iyin-Aramoko-Efon road had to take a detour to prevent being caught in the web of gunshots.

According to him, “In fact, the police disappointed us. They disappointed the people of Iyin today. The robbers robbed for over 40 minutes without any challenge.

“They came in two vehicles, shot into the air and scared the people around away. In fact, those in the nearby market left their commodities and ran for their lives.

“The police station along Igede Ekiti was not up to 500 metres while the police patrol point along Ado Ekiti should be a kilometre away, but none of them responded for over 40 minutes the robbers operated.

“But we thank God nobody was killed, but the agony of the gunshots was too much on the locals.”

Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer, Ekiti Command, ASP Sunday Abutu, said the police, upon receiving the information, immediately visited the troubled spot.

He added that men of the command gave the men a hot chase,” that made the robbers abandon their two vehicles and escape into the forest.”

The PPRO said, “We got a distress call from Iyin Ekiti about the robbery and we immediately dispatched our men and officers to the place.

“I want to confirm to you that the robbers are being chased as I speak with you and the determination is to effect their arrest.

“We are assuring the people that the hoodlums shall be arrested and brought to justice. Ekiti is not a safe haven for robbers and that we shall continue to sustain.”

The police had on Thursday raised the alarm that some gunmen were planning to invade the state and wreak havoc on the people.

The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Wednesday nullified the recruitment of 10,000 constables carried out last year by the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu.

A three-man panel of the Court of Appeal led by Justice Olabisi Ige unanimously held that the IGP lacked the power to recruit constables for the police force.

The court held that the power to carry out the recruitment was exclusively that of the Police Service Commission.

The judgment upturned the December 2, 2019 verdict of the Federal High Court in Abuja which had validated the power of the IGP to proceed with the recruitment of 10,000 he embarked upon in 2019.

The PSC, in a superiority battle with the IPG, had in September 2019, instituted the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1124/2019, in its bid to gain the exclusive right to conduct the recruitment process which the NPF and the IGP, had as of that time, almost concluded.

The commission asked the Federal High Court judge, Justice Inyang Ekwo, to nullify the process already commenced by the NPF and the IGP.

It urged the court to declare it as the body with the exclusive powers to carry out the recruitment process.

But the judge in his judgment delivered on December 2, 2019, dismissed PSC’s case which he adjudged to be lacking in merit.

He ruled that the law guiding the enlistment of constables into the NPF was the Nigeria Police Regulations of 1968, issued by the Nigerian President in accordance with the provisions of Section 46 of the Police Act 1967 (No 41), providing for the organisation and administration of the police force.

He noted that section 71 of the said Nigeria Police Service Regulations, 1968, gave the power to enlist constables to the Police Council and the NPF under the control of the IGP, and not the PSC.

He ruled that PSC by its enabling law retained the exclusive powers to promote, demote, dismiss and discipline any police officer apart from the IGP, it could only appoint constables after the recruitment exercise carried out by the NPF.

The PSC had through its lawyer, Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN), a former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, appealed against the judgment, which he urged the Court of Appeal to set aside.

Delivering the lead judgment of the Court of Appeal on Wednesday, Justice Ige, upheld the PSC’s case by resolving all the issues raised in favour of the appellant.

The court agreed with Agabi, represented in court by Edidiong Usungurua, held that the word “appointment” used in the Constitution with respect to the powers conferred on the Police Service Commission included “the power of recruitment and or enlistment of recruit constables”.

The court held that the police regulation and or provisions of the Police Act which purportedly vested the IGP the power of recruiting constables “is null and void being in conflict with the Constitutional powers vested in the Police Service Commission”.

It therefore declared the recruitment carried out by the IGP as “null and void”.

It went ahead to grant all the prayers sought by the PSC in its amended suit filed at the Federal High Court.

The court had earlier dismissed the preliminary objection filed by the Nigeria Police Force, the IGP and the Minister of Police Affairs.

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday approved N13.09 trillion budget estimate for 2021 fiscal year.

Briefing State House Correspondents after the meeting, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, said the budget estimate is made up of N2.083 trillion capital expenditure, which she described as N29 per cent of the total budget.

According to her, the budget proposal is predicated on $379 exchange rate, oil benchmark of $40 barrel per day, oil production volume of 1.86 million per day, including 400,000 condensate, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of three percent and 11.95 percent inflation rate.

The minister who said the project would run on N4.48 trillion deficit, put the revenue target in the fiscal year at N7.9 trillion.

The House of Representatives has withdrawn its controversial National Water Resources Bill, 2020.

The House was thrown into a turmoil on Tuesday, while considering a Matter of Privilege, raised by Rep. Benjamin Mzondu(PDP-Benue) to be heard on the contentious National Water Resources Bill, 2020.

Mzondu’s motion sought the withdrawal of the Bill, owing to the public outcry against it and its breach of House’ Rules.

In presenting his Matter of Privilege, Rep. Mzondu cited Order 6, Rule 1(1), 2 and 3, as he argued forcefully, against the transmission of the Bill to the Senate and its finally becoming law.

According to him, “I wish to refer to Order 6, Rule 1(1), 2 and 3 and Order 12, Rule 18 to state that I was deprived of my legislative Privilege of sighting a gazetted copy of the National Water Resources BillHB 921, and such could not participate in the consideration of the report by the Committee of the Whole, which also deprived me of my rights and privilege of representation to my people.

“Mr. Speaker, Hon. Colleagues, it is in the effort to eliminate the “Element of Surprise”, that the House in its wisdom, included in its Standing Rule, that every Bill, must be gazetted or clean copies circulated. It is important to note that the word emphasized here, is “gazette”, which means appearing in the Bills Journal of the House.

“The words used are clear and unambiguous, they ought to be given their ordinary meaning, as stated.

“Mr. Speaker, Hon. Colleagues, I was misled by the use of order 12, Rule 18 of our Standing Orders. Mr. Speaker, Hon. Colleagues, it is an issue of law and procedure, and Hon. Speaker, the onus of interpretation, lies with you. Where the Bill was labeled as Bill 2020, it was not considered as such.

“The laws lay, on your shoulder to interpret these rules as stated in Order 7 Rule 1(7). It is important to emphasize that I have painstakingly searched through all the journals of the House, and cannot find where the Bill is gazetted and I stand to be challenged or corrected.

“The next question for your consideration, Hon. Speaker, deals with jurisdiction, whether the House such powers to entertain a bill, such proceedings become a nullity, ab initio no matter how conducted and decided”.

” So having not met this condition, I wish to move, relying on Order8 Rule 8 and the above-stated rules, that “The House do rescind/expunge its decision of 23rd July 2020, which adopted the National Water Resources Bill, 2020 HB921 to have been read the Third time from our records”.

His latter prayers were granted, after a prolonged debate from both sides of the legislative divide, as the Speaker ordered for the withdrawal of Bill.

“Fundamental issues have been raised by Hon. Mzondu. He has backed them up, with a clear language, that such bills, must be re-gazetted”, Gbajabiamila said.

While the Deputy Speaker of the House, Rep. Idris Wase who argued against Mzondu’s position, stressed that the Bill followed due process in its passage.

Wase’s argument was buttressed by the sponsor of the Bill, Rep. Sada Soli(APC-Katsina), and the Chairman of the Rules and Business Committee, Rep.Hassan Fulata(APC-Jigawa).

Lawmakers, led by Rep. Kingsley Chinda(PDP-Rivers), however, put up a strong defense for Mzondu’s submission, leading to the decision of the Speaker to Order for the withdrawal of the Bill, for a fresh gazetting.

Recall that the same Bill which was earlier introduced as Executive Bill was killed in the Senate, but passed in the House. The instrument, however, couldn’t be retransmitted to the Senate for Senate’s concurrence before the 8th Assembly lapsed.

In a last minute move to avert the nationwide Strike billed to commence by the middle night today, the leader of the House of Representatives led by the Speaker, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila, has commenced an emergency crucial meeting meeting with the organised labour to find possible solution to the crisis.

The closed-doors meeting is being attended by President of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ayuba Wabba; and President of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Comrade Quadri Olaleye, among others.

Addressing the labour leaders before going into the closed doors session, Rep Gbajabiamila appealed to the labour to shelve the nationwide Strike even for a while to allow the Federal Government to sort out all the issues at stake.

The Nigerian Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress had jointly declared their readiness to embark on a nationwide strike and protests to compel the Federal Government to reverse the hikes.