₦airaland Forum

Kola Alapinni, a defence lawyer representing the two defendants, said the convictions were incompatible with Nigeria's constitution, which gives people the right to have freedom of expression.

If the Judges should quash these sentences, Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has promised to appeal against the decision.

https://www.atheistalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/legal-team-2-2100x1200.jpeg

Today, our legal team appeared in the Kano High Court, arguing appeals for Yahaya Sharif-Aminu and Umar Farouk. On August 10, 22-year-old Yahaya was sentenced to death and 13-year-old Umar was sentenced to 10 years in jail with menial labor, both on charges of blasphemy. AAI assembled a legal team and raised funds to appeal these two cases. Read more about these cases here.

The appeals were heard by the Chief Justice of Kano, N.S. Umar and Justice Nasiru Saminu.

Our legal team arrived at court early and passed through a crowd of people who had come to see these cases but were unable to get into the already-packed court. Outside a substantial contingent of police officers were on hand to keep the peace but the crowd remained calm throughout.

Our legal team comprised (from left to right in the picture) Ebuka Ikeorah, Rouf Gazali, AA Muhammad, Murtala A. Alimi, and Kola Alapinni (lead counsel). We are grateful to these men for taking on this controversial case, especially since the Muslim Lawyers Association of Nigeria declared on August 15 that the death sentence on Yahaya was correct and urged the Government in Kano State to carry out the execution. Such a statement from a body that should remain strictly neutral would undoubtedly serve to intimidate lawyers who might otherwise have acted for Yahaya.

Neither appellant was in court today and our lawyers have been officially denied access to them since their trial in August.

Umar Farouk’s appeal was first up. Our lawyers argued that Umar was not legally represented at his trial, that he would not have pleaded guilty if he had been legally represented, and that he was below the age of criminal responsibility at the time of the alleged offense. Interestingly, prior to the court hearing, Kano state lawyers stood by the Shariah definition of “full age”. By this definition, a boy who has under-arm hair and is able to produce semen may be prosecuted. However, they did not argue this point in court. In fact, they did not respond to any of the grounds of appeal proposed by our lawyers.

Yahaya Sharif-Aminu’s case was next up. Yahaya was of full age when the alleged offense took place but no evidence was produced at his trial and he suffered the exact same denial of rights and unfair trial process as Umar.

Kano State argued that Yahaya admitted his guilt and admission is “better than evidence”. But, of course, if he had been legally represented he would not have admitted guilt.

Our lawyers made the point that the right to life is a person’s most fundamental human right and this right cannot be denied except after the most diligent and fastidious investigation and trial, which did not happen in this case.

In both cases, our lawyers argued that the Federal Constitution of Nigeria protects the right to freedom of expression and that any law that seeks to deny that right must be void. In other words, the blasphemy laws in the Kano Shariah Penal code are unconstitutional and should be struck down.

The Judges retired to make their judgment. The date on which this will be announced will be advised in due course.

If the Judges should quash these sentences, Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has promised to appeal against the decision. If the sentences are not overturned, we will appeal again. So, we expect these cases to continue, most likely to the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

Appealing these two cases was only possible through the generosity of good people who donated to our GoFundMe appeal. We are not done with these cases, please be one of those good people and make a donation so we can continue the fight. Please do it now. You can find the GoFundMe page here.

Thank you.

By Yekini Jimoh - LokojaOn Jun 3, 2020

THE Managing Director of the National Inland Waterways Authority, (NIWA) Dr George Moghalu, the Managing Director has disclosed that the abandoned Lokoja Inland river port in Kogi State will cost federal government N4.112 billion when completed.

Work on the port has been dragging for the past eight years while that of Baro in Niger state has been completed and commissioner by President Muhammadu Buhari sometimes last year.

In an interactive session with journalists on Wednesday in Lokoja, Dr Moghalu said Federal Executive Council (FEC) had earlier in the year approved the Ministry of Transportation memo for N2 billion revised cost for the completion of the project.

The approval puts the total cost of the project at N6.4 from the reviewed N4.112 billion.

Moghalu noted that the federal government is committed to ensuring that the river port which is “critical to Nigeria’s Waterways operation”, is completed and operational.

He said despite the cessation of works on the main project due to some bottlenecks, the Authority has been on site extending the fetching and other works.

The project was first awarded to Messers Foby Engineering Ltd at the cost of N2.3 billion in 2007 and a mobilisation fee of N800 million was paid.

But due to alleged inability of the contractor to perform, the contract was revoked, revised and subsequently re-awarded in the second quarter of 2012 to another company, Inter-Bau Construction Ltd, at the cost of N4.112 billion.

The administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, who re-awarded the contract on March 23, 2012, gave 57 weeks as the expected period for the completion of the project but work stalled in 2016 due to irreconcilable differences between the federal government and the construction firm.

Moghalu said with the approval of the revised cost, works on the project will be accelerated and completed in record time.

He mentioned that the Authority’s management has been interfacing with the contractor handling the project on the matter following the approval of the revised contract sum by the Federal Executive Council.

remedick:
you just want to keep running in circles by asking for answers that are already obvious, dont you?

yomi96:
na so them they quick build seaport? Its a lot of work,lot of permits,visibility studies,dreading. Guy e plenty.

Mr. Chidi Izuwah, presented the Full Business Case Compliance Certificate for the project to the Honourable Minister of Transportation, Hon. Rotimi Amaechi, in Abuja on Monday.

FEC presentation and approval and commercial close is the next stage for the project.

…As ICRC presents FBCC Certificate to Transport Minister

Governor Udom Emmanuel has applauded President Mohammad Buhari led the federal government’s determination to fast track the actualisation of Ibom Deep Seaport, IDSP.

The governor also thanked the Federal Ministry of Transportation, led by Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi, and all relevant federal regulatory agencies including the NPA, ICRC, and others for working tirelessly with Akwa Ibom state government to actualise a vision that will transform the economic fortunes of the entire country.

He poured encomiums on the Technical Committee on Realisation of Ibom Deep Seaport, led by Barrister (Mrs.) Mfon Usoro, for its dedication and high sense of patriotism displayed in pursuing the project.

These commendations came on the heels of an announcement that the federal government is set to move to the next level of the procurement process of the Ibom Deep Water Port (IDWP) through Public-Private Partnership (PPP).

Governor Emmanuel speaking through the Commissioner for Economic Development and Ibom Deep Seaport, Mr. Akan Okon said ” the government and people of Akwa Ibom state are very happy with this development and we must appreciate President Mohammad Bihari for his visionary leadership and thank the Honourable Minister of Transportation, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi and all relevant regulatory agencies who diligently and tirelessly with our state government and contributed to the success so far recorded.”

He maintained that ” this certification is clear evidence that the federal government appreciates the extensive benefits Ibom Deep Seaport will attract to the country in terms of expansive business and employment opportunities”.

“In addition, this development will provide federal with an additional port to help decongest other ports and ensure that Nigeria enjoys seamless engagement in its maritime sector”. He said.

In his capacity as Commissioner for Economic Development and Ibom Deepseaport, Mr. Akan Okon commended Governor Udom Emmanuel for his commitment to the realisation of Ibom Deep Seaport demonstrated by his prompt response to issues related to the project.

“Governor Emmanuel is focused on leaving sustainable legacies in the state, which drives his passion for the realisation of Ibom Deep Seaport. With such commitment, it is easy to state that Akwa Ibom is fully committed towards speedy completion of the project”.

Meanwhile, the Director-General of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission, Mr. Chidi Izuwah, presented the Full Business Case Compliance Certificate for the project to the Honourable Minister of Transportation, Hon. Rotimi Amaechi, in Abuja on Monday.

During the presentation, the ICRC DG, Mr. Izuwah noted that “the IDWP project is planned to become a major national and regional economic gateway that will provide additional container handling capacity for the country.

“In addition to containers, the IDWP is expected to handle petroleum products, crude oil, natural gas, vehicles and bulk trade in natural resources thereby expanding and further developing the Nation’s transport sector’, he said.

The DG appreciated tremendously the leadership that the Federal Ministry of Transportation, through the able and tireless Honourable Minister, Rt. Hon. Amaechi has provided for the project. The DG also appreciated the MD Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Hadiza Bala-Usman, and the Akwa Ibom State Governor, HE Udom Emmanuel for all their effort in getting the project to this point.

The IDWP project involves the development of a Greenfield Deepsea Port and accompanying Free Trade Zone (FTZ) in Akwa Ibom State in the South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. The proposed Port and FTZ are part of the planned Ibom Industrial City initiative that will be established on a 14,400-hectare site donated by the Akwa Ibom State Government (AKSG) free of charge.

It may be recalled that Bollore/Power China emerged the preferred bidder for IDSP following the transparent bidding process that held earlier. FEC presentation and approval and commercial close is the next stage for the project.

The West Africa Road Transport Union (WARTU), has decried lack of rail connectivity into Nigerian seaports, saying this encourages cargo diversion to neighbouring countries.

Chairman WARTU, Nasiru Salami, who disclosed this in a statement yesterday, urged the Nigerian government to ensure adequate rail connectivity to all new and old ports to encourage the seamless movement of cargoes.
   
Salami maintained that Nigerian seaports may continue to lose its hub status if the adequate infrastructure is not taken seriously to improve port efficiency and productivity, adding that other competitive sports in the sub-region are technological driven to create wealth for their respective nations.

“If the issue of railway connectivity is not resolved, Nigerian goods will continue to be diverted to other ports, and shippers cannot be responsible for lack of infrastructure to connect Lagos ports through railway.
 
Salami described Lome Port in Togo as the most organised seaport in transhipment of consignments in the sub-region, saying the availability of logistics infrastructure put in place by the authorities paved the way for thriving businesses within the international frontiers.

“The reason why Lomé (Togo) port is the number one transhipment port in West Africa today is that the Port has the following: proper road network, trailer park, transit distribution centre, which can contain more than 2,000 trucks.
 
He added that Customs officials from Burkina Faso have two transhipment centres to distribute cargo to various destinations in the sub-region.
 
According to him, Togo has two important borders to connect Mali and Burkina Faso and Lakandji corridors through Lome Dapaong Cinkansi or Lomé Lomé Dapangou Pognon Koupenga Nadiagou Fada. He added that the port also has connectivity with Niger Republic, Mali, Burkina Faso and other neighbouring countries through Lome, Kara, Cinkansi Koupéla, Ouagadougou, Mopti, Gao, Toubouctou among others.

If it produces technology the Chinese government or one of its companies covet, that technology would be at great risk of being poached. Chinese companies have already done this in West Africa, enabling them to dominate the region’s wax-print fabric industry and force out indigenous competitors.

Chinese eavesdropping could gain valuable information on African governments’ negotiating strategies, competitors’ bids, and other relevant information: There are reports of Chinese hackers stealing just that sort of information in other parts of the world.

Joshua Meservey

Senior Policy Analyst, Africa and the Middle East

SUMMARY

Beijing may have better surveillance access to Africa than anywhere else in the world. Chinese companies have constructed or renovated (or both) at least 186 sensitive African government buildings; Chinese telecommunications firms have built at least 14 intra-governmental, “secure” telecommunications networks; and the Chinese government has gifted computers to at least 35 African governments. As the world leader in economic espionage and foreign influence operations, Beijing almost certainly uses its engagements in Africa to surveil American and African officials and business leaders. The Chinese government could use the information it harvests to advantage its companies competing against American and other firms, glean insights into U.S. security assistance and counterterrorism programs, and recruit or influence senior African government officials. The U.S. should, among other efforts, work to understand the nature of Chinese surveillance and how it contributes to Beijing’s influence operations, educate U.S. companies on the risks, and train its officials on techniques to complicate Beijing’s information gathering in Africa.

“The raiding of Kawaye, Zugu, Dan Kamfani, Bagega, Dareta and Dakie Takwas mining sites of the above LGAs led to the arrest of two hundred and fifty (250) Nigerians and One(1) Burkinabe national,”

Security operatives from the police and the army have arrested and quarantined 251 illegal artisanal miners in the state, the state police commissioner, Usman Nagogo said on Friday.

He said he had earlier led a team of policemen to one of the major mining sites at Kwalli in Bukkuyum local government and the result was that some Chinese nationals and their Nigerian collaborators were arrested and had since been handed over to Force CID, Force Headquarters Abuja.

“The magnitude of arrest led both the Inspector General of Police and Chief of Army staff to give a marching order to security agents to go after these illegal miners.

“In the same vein, the Brigade Commander 1 Brigade Nigeria Army, Gusau, Brigadier General O. M Bello led a team compromising of Army, Police and DSS to raid the mining sites in Anka, Bukkuyum and Gummi LGAs.

“The raiding of Kawaye, Zugu, Dan Kamfani, Bagega, Dareta and Dakie Takwas mining sites of the above LGAs led to the arrest of two hundred and fifty (250) Nigerians and One(1) Burkinabe national,” he added.

He said exhibits recovered in the raiding and the arrest include among others; 12 pumping machines, 29 motorcycles, chemicals for making gold and unrefined Gold sifting materials.

All the suspects have confessed to the offence and would be arraigned before the court of competent jurisdiction whenever the court resumes sitting.

“Let me sound a word of warning that until and unless the Federal Government lifts ban on the mining activities, anybody who goes against the norms will be arrested and severely dealt with according to the law of the land.

“The raiding of illegal miners will continue until all illegal mining activities are halted.

“It is known fact that the Federal Government had last year at the heat of Banditry, Cattle Rustling and Kidnapping banned all forms of mining activities in Zamfara State.

“This is because the government felt that there was a nexus between the criminality in Zamfara and mining activities,” he said.

"They will continue their Quranic education but under the care of their parents and not under someone who does not know them or paid to look after them."

Vulcanheph:
Why not make free education in all government primary and secondary schools in the state to encourage parents instead of making threats.

The governor stressed that every child in Kaduna state must get 12-year free and compulsory primary and secondary school education.

"Those that cannot proceed to senior secondary school will have the opportunity to go to vocational school, also free.

"As such, no parent has any excuse for his child not to go to school," El-Rufa'i said.

Governor Nasir El-Rufa'i of Kaduna State has warned that parents who enroll their children into the Almajirai education system stand the risk of prosecution and up to two years jail.

El-Rufa'i stated this in Kaduna yesterday when he visited some 200 Almajiri children repatriated from Nasarawa State and undergoing rehabilitation and optical screening at Government College, Kurmin Mashi, Kaduna.

The governor also said that any Islamic cleric who enrolls any child into the Almajiri system would also be prosecuted and jailed as well as fined N100,000 or N200,000 per child.

He said that all the Almajiri pupils repatriated from other states of the country were indigenes of the state, adding that the government would give them all the opportunity they deserved to grow and develop.

El-Rufai expressed satisfaction with the ongoing transformation of the Almajiri pupils from hopelessness to hope and confidence.

According to him, the state has a responsibility to do whatever it can to give them hope and a better future.

"We will, therefore, continue to take delivery of every Almajiri pupil indigenous to Kaduna state for rehabilitation, treatment and enrollment into formal school nearest to where their parents live.

"We will continue to do this until we clear Kaduna state of the menace of Almajiri system, which is not education but the abuse of the privilege and future of a child.

"Our ultimate goal is for them to acquire formal education without depriving them of the opportunity to acquire Quranic education.

"They will continue their Quranic education but under the care of their parents and not under someone who does not know them or paid to look after them."

He explained that the Ministry of Human Services and Social Development (MHSSD), along with UNICEF would closely monitor them and ensure that no child would leave his locality until he finished primary and junior secondary school.

The governor stressed that every child in Kaduna state must get 12-year free and compulsory primary and secondary school education.

"Those that cannot proceed to senior secondary school will have the opportunity to go to vocational school, also free.

"As such, no parent has any excuse for his child not to go to school," El-Rufa'i said.

He thanked MHSSD and other state agencies for the commitment and passion for the welfare of the children.

He equally thanked AMA foundation and other NGOs and civil societies for supporting the government to provide the Almajiri pupils with the needed medical care, food, and clothing, among others.

The governor particularly appreciated UNICEF for supporting the state government in ensuring that all the repatriated children were well documented.

El-Rufai said that the care and support provided had restored the sense of dignity of the children.