₦airaland Forum

Asking Buhari To Resign Is Not An Offence, Release Tanko-Yakasai – Falana

A human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), says it is no crime for any citizen to call for President Muhammadu Buhari’s resignation.

Falana’s statement is not unconnected to the arrest of Salihu Yakasai, a former special adviser on Media to Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje.

State security operatives reported arrested Yakasai shortly after criticizing President Buhari on Twitter.

Reacting to the arrest, Falana condemned the action of the Department of State Services stating that there is no justification for the arrest and detention of Yakassai.

In a statement titled, ‘Asking Buhari to Resign is Not An Offence’, the rights activist noted that many politicians and activists have continued to call for Buhari resignation due to the deteriorating security situation across the country.

He further argued that in the past those who called for the resignation of former presidents did not get intimidated nor arrested.

“It is on record that the APC and its leaders including General Mohammadu Buhari; National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinibu; Malam Nasir El-rufai and Alhaji Lai Mohammed repeatedly called for former President Goodluck Jonathan’s resignation between 2013 and 2014. Yet they were never subjected to any form of intimidation for exercising their freedom of expression at the material time. Since the call for President Buhari’s resignation is likely to continue to be made by other concerned individuals and groups over the virtual collapse of the security architecture.”

Falana demanded the immediate and unconditional release of Mr Tanko-Yankassai from illegal custody.

He however noted that if the State Security Service has evidence that the “political detainee” has committed any criminal offence known to the law, then he should be transferred to the police for proper investigation and possible prosecution.

Below is the right advocate’s full statement regarding Salihu Yakasai’s arrest.

On Friday, February 27, 2021, Mr. Salisu Tanko-Yankassai, the Special Adviser on Media to Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of Kano state called on President Mohammadu Buhari to either guarantee the security of the Nigerian people or resign from office. Even though Mr. Tanko-Yankassai was legitimately exercising his freedom of expression enshrined in section 39 of the Constitution he was sacked by Governor Ganduje and arrested by the State Security Service. ASCAB has confirmed that Mr. Tanko- Yankassai is being held incommunicado in an undisclosed detention facility.

Having regard to the fact that civil rights advocates, retired military officers, and political party leaders including chieftains of the All Progressive Congress have repeatedly asked President Buhari to call it quits due to the worsening insecurity in the country there is no justification whatsoever for the arrest and detention of Mr. Tanko- Yankassai. In both Chambers of the national assembly there have been strident calls by legislators for President Buhari’s resignation or impeachment on the ground that criminal gangs have taken over the monopoly of violence in the country. Since such concerned citizens were never arrested the ongoing harassment of Mr. Tanko- Yankassai is high handed, discriminatory and illegal.

It is on record that the APC and its leaders including General Mohammadu Buhari; National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinibu; Malam Nasir El-rufai and Alhaji Lai Mohammed repeatedly called for former President Goodluck Jonathan’s resignation between 2013 and 2014. Yet they were never subjected to any form of intimidation for exercising their freedom of expression at the material time. Since the call for President Buhari’s resignation is likely to continue to be made by other concerned individuals and groups over the virtual collapse of the security architecture of the neocolonial State it is pertinent to draw the attention of the State Security Service to the case of Arthur Nwankwo v The State 1985 6 NCLR 228 where the Court of Appeal charged the Nigerian people to engage in relentless criticism of democratically elected governments. In particular, Olajide Olatawura JCA (as he then was of blessed memory) had this to say:

“The decision of the founding fathers of the present Constitution which guarantees freedom of speech which must include freedom to criticise should be praised and any attempt to derogate from it except as provided by the constitution must be resisted. Those in public office should not be intolerant of criticism in respect of their office so as to ensure that they are accountable to the people. They should not be made to feel that they live in an ivory tower and therefore belong to a different class. They must develop thick skins and where possible, plug their ears with wool if they feel too sensitive or irascible.”

In view of the foregoing, we demand for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Tanko-Yankassai from illegal custody. However, if the State Security Service has evidence that the political detainee has committed any criminal offence known to law he should be transferred to the Police for proper investigation and possible prosecution without any delay.

Femi Falana SAN,
Interim Chair,
Alliance on Surviving Covid 19 and Beyond (ASCAB)

superjab:
Nigeria bought fighter JF-17 jets from Pakistan.

Well don't be too happy about hearing this news.Njgeria bought these advanced jets not to fight bokoharam,Herdsmen,bandits but to attack ESN and Niger delta millitants.

A biased government couldn't attack bandits but rather chooses to defend dialouge and give them cash,such a government can never fight these same set of people.

But the bad news is that Nigeria yet doesn't understand how guerrilla warfare is,the ESN fighters are already aware of this development and they are already going to dig in,the jf-17 would be waste because it won't be able to hit ESN camps because they would all hide in tunnels and bunkers.
Buhari doesn't know ipob has what it takes to hire private millitary airforce to engage the Nigerian airforce when the going gets rough.

Buhari purchasing jf-17 to suppress agitating voices of the SE and Niger delta millitants would fail because these warplanes aren't be used to fight a just war but rather to oppress innocent voices.

thebosstrevor1:
The richest woman in Africa is a yoruba woman, got that riches because she was close to a hausa family( abacha)

samdunzo:
Im talking about lines across states.... what stops lagos and ondo from building a railline connecting each other? and private investors cant invest either

samdunzo:
It would be better if the NRC act is amended so that state govts and private investors can build lines, which would then be managed by the NRC. I think it would save the FG a lot of money in the long run

samdunzo:
Why not do both.... Alot of cargo in Lagos ports goes to Onitsha, PH, and Calabar. So, that line is much more beneficial to the South and Nigeria in the long term. I do agree though that Warri, PH, and Calabar need their ports working again, so when we return to regionalism, all 3 southern regions (SW, Midwest, and SE) can have working ports

erico2k2:
Here is what he said back then
https://www.pulse.ng/news/chibuike-amaechi-i-never-knew-nigerian-railways-were-functioning-says-minister-of/qv5bf56
Well, regards trains at the moment what we seem to have is passenger trains, port to port trains do not join with passenger trains as container trains are special trains and different.I don't know if you have seen a proper container lory that shifts and adjusts itself to 20ft or 40ft containers, that's how fright trains are.Going back to trains at PH, he abandoned the Monorail project after wasting Billions which is pathetic.I still think there is more Economic value for Lagos port linked to Onne port. The decongestion on the Lagos port if this is don would be world-class.
PS.This Electronic Truck call up at the apapa port they are talking about what is that all about, how does it work anyone knows?

erico2k2:
I know where the line passes, my house is in PH, But going by what this honorable Minister of transportation said earlier, he did not know PH has a railway track even though it's less than 100meters from the government house..
Onne Port is not a new port, its been there for ages I shipped containers fru there 6 years ago and its still in operation.People move with goods and B4 goods.As things stand we do not have a goods only carriage, its all passenger trains.

erico2k2:
U do nt k now why I have to go to Maiduguri from PH for? why not just construct Ph to Lagos and leave it just there

obiekunie2:
at the first bold - after the interruption why did you not post the other screenshots?

i still cant understand why the hate on igbos.

at the second bolded SMH. . .

Mightyhaiz:
You singled out that post here for sinister motives..

Cant you people act like you have brains even if na for once?

Omihanifa:
There's no sense in constructing Port-harcourt Maiduguri rail line now because of the insurgency. Expect the federal government wants to use part of the money for the project to pay ransom to bandits and Boko haram.

Just some few days back, Boko haram elements went and destroyed TCN transmission line, the federal government sent some engineers there to start repair works so that electricity can be restored back to Maiduguri. Only for Boko haram boys to come back there again and do the unthinkable

So the point am making is that if they can fustrate engineers trying to repair electricity tower, then it's not advisable at this point to now start a multi billion naira rail line construction in that same region

naptu2:
I'm going to answer all the questions in one post.

Here is the deal.

1) Historically there are 2 rail lines that cut across Nigeria. These lines were built by the colonialists and they are the Western Line, which runs from Lagos to Kano and the Eastern Line which runs from Port Harcourt to Maiduguri.Both lines meet at Kaduna.

The Western Line runs through places like Lagos, Abeokuta, Ibadan, Oshogbo, Minna, Kaduna and Kano. It was built to carry goods like (Alhassan Dantata's) groundnuts, meat, hides and skin, etc. to the port in Lagos.

The Eastern Line runs through places like Port Harcourt, Aba, Enugu, Makurdi and Maiduguri. It was initially built to carry coal from Enugu to the port at Port Harcourt.

More recently, in the 1980s, a Central Line was started. It was to run from Itakpe to Warri. This is because Nigeria had planned to become a major producer of steel and so the railway line was designed to take iron ore from the iron mines at Itakpe to the steel plant at Ajaokuta and then to take steel to the port at Warri. The line was started by the Babangida Administration in 1987, but it was never finished.


The Eastern and Western lines are narrow gauge lines. This means that trains cannot move very quickly on them. That's why we have slow trains. I read an account in a colonial officer's book about how another colonial officer made a presentation to Lord Lugard that Nigeria needed a standard gauge rail line because the narrow gauge was too slow and groundnut was being piled up in pyramids in Kano because the trains could not move them to the port in Lagos quickly enough.

The Central Line was built in the 1980s and it was the only standard gauge line in Nigeria for a long time.

The first map below shows the old narrow gauge Eastern and Western lines and the uncompleted Central Line.

www.nairaland.com/attachments/12019220_nigeriarailwaymap_svg_pngc2ad80783a6f9fc203733f315b3825ed


Railway Modernisation Programme

The idea of modernising Nigeria's railway system began during the presidency of Olusegun Obasanjo.

Abuja Metro

Nigeria was bidding to host the 2014 Commonwealth Games and we were leading in the bid race. It seemed certain that Abuja would host the competition. Glasgow was our closest competitor. However, something happened that basically destroyed our bid.

An inspection team came to inspect the facilities that would be used for the games. We had easily passed all previous inspections because we had recently hosted the All Africa Games and the facilities were relatively new, but this team did not come to inspect our sports facilities.

The team, which was led by a woman, came to inspect our hotels and transport facilities. The team was shocked that Abuja did not have any rail or metro system. If you go to Wikipedia and search for any major stadium like Old Trafford or Yankee Stadium, you'd see the nearest train station listed in the article. That's because a metro system is the best way to move a large number of fans to and from the stadium easily. Abuja did not have that. That was the turning point and we eventually lost the bid to Glasgow.


President Obasanjo subsequently decided that a metro system must be built for Abuja. This was toward the end of his tenure and so it was not built while he was in office.


Lagos-Calabar Rail Line

For many decades people have criticised the colonialists for the way that they built the rail lines in Nigeria. The critics say that the colonialists were only interested in exploiting Nigeria's resources, that's why they built the rail lines in a north-south fashion. The lines were built to take groundnuts, coal, cocoa and other raw materials to the ports for exports. They were not built to solve the transportation needs of Nigerians and that's why the Eastern and Western lines do not meet anywhere in the south. They only meet in Kaduna. Therefore, a person that wants to go from Enugu to Lagos by rail would need to go to Kaduna first before getting to Lagos.

I have often wondered why Nigerians did not build an East-West line after the colonialists left. President Obasanjo (or his advisers) must have also had that thought and so they included a Lagos-Calabar rail line in their modernisation plan.

Eastern and Western standard gauge lines

The plan also included the construction of an Eastern and a Western standard gauge line. There was also a plan for a high speed rail line to connect Lagos and Abuja.

www.nairaland.com/attachments/12019222_eh92k0wwaatz8c_jpeg84afae16d4e372984a694153b190f717

Construction

All these plans were only on paper when President Obasanjo left office. Although his government signed an agreement with the Chinese, nothing was done on the ground.

The Goodluck Jonathan Administration started the construction of the Abuja-Kaduna Rail Line (part of the Western Line) and the Abuja Metro System in 2011. The projects were finished in 2016 and commissioned by President Buhari.

Continuation

The Buhari Administration stated that it would complete the projects that it inherited before beginning new projects. The rail projects that it inherited are the Western Line (Abuja-Kaduna started by the Jonathan Administration) and the Central Line (Warri-Itakpe started by the Babangida Administration).

www.nairaland.com/attachments/12019221_2020072907_30_17_jpeg5e32039f91150c47e38b735dae81795b

The administration continued working on the Western Line by building the Lagos-Ibadan phase of the line. It had been said during the Obasanjo Administration, that Nigeria does not have the money to build all the lines at once and so they would be built in phases.

The administration also continued the work on the Central Line by actually connecting Warri to Itakpe. The line had previously been abandoned in the 1980s without getting to any of those two cities.

Complaints

The work on the Lagos-Ibadan and Warri-Itakpr lines led to a lot of complaints. People in Kano complained that they had been abandoned and that the government was only building railway lines in the south, despite the fact that they gave the government the highest number of votes. However, I heard last week that work is about to begin on the Kano-Kaduna section of the Western Line.

People in the North-East and South-East have also complained that they've been abandoned because work is only happening on the Central and Western lines. The minister of transport, Rotimi Amaechi has, in response, repeatedly promised that discussions are ongoing with the Chinese about the Eastern Line. He said that there are a few problems with getting the loan/funding for the line and also with the procurement process, but he has promised that the line would be built.

Modifications

President Buhari had also made some modifications to the projects. The Warri-Itakpe Line will now be connected to Abuja and it will become the Warri-Abuja Line. The Eastern and Western standard gauge lines will also be connected to Abuja. He has also ordered that every state capital should be connected to a rail line and that all the rail lines should terminate at a sea port.


Conclusion

In conclusion, although some people are wondering why train stations were not named after certain Nigerians, the fact is that there are still many train stations that will be built. Some people are wondering why the Eastern Line has not been built yet and the answer is that the government wants to finish building the lines that it inherited before starting new projects.

I think that the Lagos-Calabar Line will be the last to be completed because the other 3 lines are being built on already existing rail corridors, while a new corridor/right of way would have to be cleared before the Lagos-Calabar Line can be built.

PRESS RELEASE FG TO  FLAG- OFF EASTERN RAIL CORRIDOR 9TH MARCH 2021 - TRANSPORTATION MINISTER

The President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, @MBuhari will perform the groundbreaking ceremony for the Eastern rail corridor on 9th March, 2021.

The Minister of Transportation, @ChibuikeAmaechi disclosed this during inspection tour to all the stations from Mobolaji Johnson Station at Ebuta Metta to Ibadan station over the weekend.

He further disclosed that the President has also approved the redirecting of the Eastern line to two new spurs namely: Abakaliki, Ebonyi State and Awka, Anambra State.

Similarly, the Minister  mentioned that the FG has approved the commencement of the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri rail project & is also negotiating loans for Lagos-Calabar rail project.

On the take-off of the Ibadan-Kano rail project, Amaechi informed that the government is still seeking approval for loan to enable it take off. Speaking on the Lagos-Ibadan rail project, Amaechi noted that he has challenged Messrs. China Civil Engineering and Construction Company to deploy global acceptable safety and security standards for the project. He directed that central cooling system be installed in all the major train stations along that route.

Eric Ojiekwe
Director, PPR
27th February,  2021.

ShaqFu:
Pardon me bros Naptu2. What exactly is their job?

I've come to believe they (Ministry of Water Resources, Public Complain Commission and National Orientation Agency) don't do anything at all other than collect money from the federal government.

Beremx:
Ministry of water resources?

How many boreholes have they drilled in Nigeria. The ministry is just an avenue to loot

Neddstark:
No in the USA. I bet their police will do the needful.
RIP Frabz. Thanks for the music.

kings59:


The best way to survive in Nigeria as a rich man is to stay low-key.

RIP

TheStranger:
What's going on in this Buhari Nigeria sef? Insecurities here and there

9573M:
Shit hole country

patwilly:
Thanks sir. Which of the wives is the article referring to?

IME1:
Happy birthday to the celebrant

It's good for mods to push lighter things to front page also (but not irrelevant things).
The bad news we read everyday happening in different places in Nigeria is enough to make many people unbothered, unsympathetic, indifferent and hardened.
Seun make we dey laugh too, no be only cry and shake head we go dey do

Meanwhile
why I came here is to ask how many of you remember that Pears baby advert where a toddler was a judge and a mother was on trial and the judge asked "now what say you?"

naptu can you help with a link to that advert make I snap that toddler judge dey use for meme

Emyzoloye5:
somebody very powerful is backing this yakassi of a guy! for him to be this bold and outspoken


could it be kwakwanso? or Atiku