Home Office ordered to bring back migrant mother and five-year-old son deported to Nigeria
Wednesday 22 April 2015
Exclusive: Landmark ruling challenges policy of ‘deport first, appeal later’
Image source: RT.com
The Home Office has been ordered to arrange for a deported migrant family to be returned to Britain from Nigeria – in a landmark ruling that threatens to undermine the Government’s “deport first, appeal later” policy.
Theresa May’s department will face contempt of court proceedings unless the woman and her five-year-old son are located and transported back to the UK at the Home Office’s expense by Thursday 23 April. It is believed to be the first time that an immigration judge has demanded that the Government retrieve asylum-seekers previously deported from the UK.
Asylum campaigners and children’s charities have welcomed the ruling, which could have major implications for the way in which scores of children and their parents are deported from the UK every year.
The judgment raises fresh doubts about the validity of Ms May’s election pledge to implement a “deport first, appeal later” regime under which asylum-seekers and migrants would automatically be sent back to their country of origin unless they could prove they would be at risk of “irreversible harm”.
Last week’s ruling, which can now be disclosed by The Independent, sets a potential precedent that the best interests and the welfare of the child should be the “primary consideration” in deportation orders even if their parents’ case has been quashed.
Mr Justice Cranston, sitting in the Upper Tribunal of the Immigration and Asylum Chamber, granted a judicial review of the decision to deport the pair and in a highly unusual move – believed to be the first of its kind – ordered that the Home Office organise and foot the bill for their return to the UK by Thursday at the latest.
The Home Office has now been granted a last-minute hearing at the Court of Appeal to quash that decision, reflecting the seriousness of the case.
The ruling criticised the Home Office for its “flawed” decision to put the child, referred to as RA, and his 45-year-old mother BF on a plane to Nigeria at the end of January despite evidence of the woman’s poor mental health and the risk that both she and her son would end up destitute on the streets and at risk of prostitution, child labour or trafficking.
Home Office headquarters in Westminster (Steve Cadman/Creative Commons)
The woman claims to have been in the UK illegally since 1991 and applied for asylum in 2010, stating that she feared destitution and discrimination as a single mother in Nigeria with no immediate family.
But her asylum claim was repeatedly rejected. At one point she was admitted to a psychiatric unit with depression and her son put into foster care as she battled against attempts to send them both back to Nigeria. The foster carers who looked after the boy and remained close to his mother have been paying for her accommodation and healthcare in Nigeria from their own savings because they were so concerned about what would happen to the pair.
The judge ruled: “In not taking into account the implications of BF’s mental health for RA, and the risk of that degenerating in the Nigerian context and the likely consequences of removal, the Secretary of State failed to have regard to BA’s best interests as a primary consideration.”
Ian Mearns, the Labour parliamentary candidate for Gateshead who has been a vocal supporter of the boy’s case, said: “This is a massive vindication of the local campaign on behalf of [RA]. I have been extremely concerned that the Home Office has failed to take into consideration the rights of the child in this case and in others like it.”
Judith Dennis, policy manager for the Refugee Council, said: “This case is important because it highlights the need for a clear, transparent policy [concerning] children and their rights when it comes to asylum.
“We have this rhetoric about deportation and people being able to appeal from outside the country, but what this ruling says is that you need to balance the need for immigration control against the best interests of the child.
“I don’t think the Home Office even has a proper mechanism for doing that at the moment and that’s what we need – a clear transparent policy that can be worked to when it comes to children.”
Debora Singer, policy and research manager at Asylum Aid, said: “We are very concerned that the Home Office regularly fails to give sufficient importance to the rights of women and children seeking protection in the UK. Our experience is that women fleeing domestic violence or forced marriage are often disbelieved. As a woman you are more likely than a man to have a refusal for protection corrected at appeal.
“Under international law, the Refugee Convention should be interpreted in a gender-sensitive manner and the courts are obliged to take into account the best interests of children. But neither of these obligations are a regular feature of the UK’s asylum system.”
A spokesman for the Home Office said: “We are unable to comment due to the ongoing nature of this case.”
Here comes a law suit stating that GMB lied under oath. What are the merits of the law suit?
In uncovering the merits of such a law suit, a court will apply a standard of review. Given the circumstance, the test a court will apply will be that of reasonable person. Will a reasonable person under the circumstance agree with the petitioners/plaintiff, that GMB lied under oath? The answer will always be no. Why?
(1) The Plaintiffs appear to be younger than GMB. (2) The Plaintiffs were not students or officials of the said school GMB attended in 1960 or thereabouts (3) No living person who claimed to have attended the said school in 1960 has come forward to refute GMB's affidavit. (4) No group of persons from the graduating class of 1960, with certified WASC from 1960 have come forward to state that GMB was not part of the graduating class of 1960. (5) None of the plaintiffs graduated from the said school in 1960.
Under the reasonable persons standard as applied by courts everywhere, the burden is on the petitioners/plaintiff to prove that GMB lied under oath. GMB followed the law . He swore and submitted an affidavit. The petitioners cannot carry their burden by only making conclusory statements. To carry their burden, they must submit to the court any credible document countering GMB's affidavit; or any credible person or persons, who will counter GMB's affidavit.
In addition, there is no evidence of a smoking gun- such as a letter from the principle of the school dating back to 1960, stating that GMB was not a student of the school, or that GMB did not sit for WASC or GMB did not complete his secondary education.
The petitioners suit in this case will be analogous to a frivolous law suit filed by any Nigerian who is upset that GMB tendered an affidavit rather than a certified copy of his WASC from London. One must have evidence that GMB lied under oath. It is not enough to state that GMB lied, such is a conclusory statement. A conclusory statement must be backed by facts to survive a thorough legal scrutiny. Without facts, a conclusory statement falls apart like a pack of cards.
Buhari is not required by Nigeria law to retrieve a certified copy of his certificate from the body that conducted the exam and submit same to the Nigerian public. It is up to GMB do so if he so chooses. Until the constitution is amended, GMB followed every letter of the law.
Exactimo Bredrin.
PDP lawyers to party: you can’t stop Buhari in court
January 21, 2015
...The PDP leadership and some Presidency officials sought legal advice on how to get Gen. Buhari disqualified, a source told The Nation, pleading not to be named because of what he described as the “sensitivity” of the matter.
But they were shocked to learn that it was all a wild goose chase.
The legal advice made available to the party indicated that Gen. Buhari cannot be stopped because Section 318 of the 1999 says any candidate can contest for elective office with a minimum of school certificate or its equivalent.
The section also does not say a candidate must pass or fail the school certificate examination or its equivalent, which could be a primary school certificate or the ability to read or write in English.
Also, if a candidate has served in the public sector for up to 10 years, this could be the equivalent of a school certificate.
A highly-placed source said: “The legal advice sought by PDP has confirmed that even if the party goes to court, it cannot stop Buhari. The party is in a state of confusion because it has to face the electoral battle with APC.
The 1999 Constitution is explicit in its interpretation of Section 131 of the 1999 Constitution by Section 318.
Section 131 states: “A person shall be qualified for election to the office of President if (a) he is a citizen of Nigeria by birth; (b) he has attained the age of forty (40) years; (c )he is a member of a political party; and (d) he has been educated up to at least School Certificate level or its equivalent.
“In Section 318, School certificate or equivalent means (a) a Secondary School Certificate or its equivalent, or Grade II Teacher’s Certificate, the City and Guilds Certificate; or (b) education up to Secondary School Certificate level; or
“(c) Primary Six School Leaving Certificate or its equivalent and (i) service in the public or private sector in the Federation in any capacity acceptable to the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) for a minimum of 10 years; and
“(ii) attendance at courses and training in such institutions as may be acceptable to the Independent National Electoral Commission for periods totalling up to a minimum of one year, and
“(iii) the ability to read, write, understand and communicate in the English Language to the satisfaction of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC); and
“(d) Any other qualification acceptable by INEC.”
Another source said the PDP has realized its folly because it did not seek legal opinion before raising false alarms that Gen. Buhari is unqualified to contest.
The source added: “The PDP leaders have realised that all their alarms over Gen. Buhari’s certificate amounted to nothing.
“Out of shame, they have decided to keep their findings under wraps.”
The Federal government on Wednesday clarified that President Goodluck Jonathan will hand over power to General Muhammad Buhari, Nigeria President elect on 29 May and not 28 May as previously reported.
Senator Patricia Akwashiki, the Minister of Information told journalists after today’s meeting of Federal Executive Council that President Jonathan will remain Nigeria’s President till 29 May.
Akwashiki said she was misquoted in the statement attributed to her last week that President Jonathan will hand over power on 28 May. There has been controversies since the publication of the story that the President will hand over power a day earlier than usual.
The opposition All Progressives Congress is said to be uncomfortable with the May 28 handover date proposed by the out-going administration. There have been reports that the Presisent thee President-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) are set to clash over a proposal by the Jonathan team to hand over the mantle of leadership to Buhari on May the 28th, instead of the 29th.
Some lawyers had also said handing over government to Buhari on 28 May may result in a vacuum on the governance of the country as constitionally, the tenure of the President will end on the 29th.
Akwashiki, had said last week that President Jonathan would perform the handover ceremony at a dinner on May 28.
This is despite the fact that since the return of democracy in 1999, the traditional date for the handover of power has been May 29, which is also observed as Democracy Day.
@op, the painful truth whether you like it or not is that the guy has trekked himself to fame and popularity.
It may be be he took some quick one in between states distances, but the fact now is that he is recognized.
Secondly, i will not argue with him because just like every other dream, nobody know you at your starting point, people only claim relationship when they see you approaching success and that includes that of this guy.
No one heard of him when he started and through the west until he came into the north, i think its because people thought he was insane or may not make it. He has made it now, pple are now blabbing.
For me, whether he trekked or not, fame and recognition has caught up with him, if e pain you, Hug Transformer.
It pains me to say that most of Suleiman's detractors are as unexposed as they come. Beyond the trite expressions of disbelief, you would note that few - if any - have made any serious attempt to analyse his accomplishment.
Two years ago, Hasheem said, he made a promise to trek from Lagos to Abuja if Buhari wins the then-upcoming election, saying the purpose of terminating his journey in Abuja is where he thinks he could see the retired General and congratulate him.
Hasheem, who grew up in Osun and Lagos, now lives in Ibadan where he is working with a construction company. Hasheem said that his decision to embark on the mission was borne out of happiness he feels for General Muhammadu Buhari becoming a leader for the masses.
He said in Bida four days ago that after 13 days of trekking, he had so far worn-out five pairs of shoes with a new pair just bought for him by a Good Samaritan. He showed Weekly Trust the blisters on his feet, which made him pass two days in Bida, so as to treat himself.
Hasheem said before embarking on his mission, he ensured that he was financially equipped but to his amazement, up to the time he arrived Suleja, he did not have to spend a single kobo from his pocket because of kind, generous receptions he has been receiving.
This shameless criminal who wants to deceive my people mean to tell us that he began his journey and suddenly landed in Niger State without being seen in any of the Yoruba States?
Fejiro Oliver - are you sure you have covered all bases here?
He left lagos at 5am on the Morning following the day after Gen Buhari was declared the president and arrived Ibadan city at 6pm.
He reported at a police Station in Ibadan and requested for a police report so as to be able to travel un-impeded if he were to be accosted by Police men on his way.
He travelled cross country from ibadan through Oyo, Ogbomosho, Ilorin, Oloru, Jebba, Kutugi, Bida all through to Abuja his final destination.
I am asking this question because I have already shown elsewhere that 'the Land's End to John o' Groats' hike (in Britain) - a distance of 1,900 km - is usually covered in less than a month.
Is the writer simply showcasing his own limited world view, by rushing to press with claims of criminality, in the absence of any evidence that nails Hashimu Suleiman? Are the many NLers who have been quick to pooh pooh this young man's effort, also guilty of the same predilection?
Land's End to John o' Groats .. ... The first recorded end-to-end walk (actually from John o' Groats to Land's End) was undertaken by the brothers John and Robert Naylor in 1871.[4] Since then the walk has been undertaken many times, more particularly since 1960, after a well-publicised road walk by Dr Barbara Moore. In 1960 the entrepreneur Billy Butlin organised a road walking race, which gave further impetus to the idea.
Since the 1960s, walkers have mostly chosen off-road routes, using the growing network of long-distance footpaths. A classic account is from 1966 by the travel writer John Hillaby.[5] Off-road walkers usually complete the journey in two to three months. There is a considerable choice of off-road routes, but all are much longer than the shortest road distance, usually 1,200 miles (1,900 km) or more. The walk is still undertaken by road walkers, often doing the walk, like Sir Ian Botham, for charity, or as a "challenge walk". They typically take a month or even less.
omolami: All hail our Hero; Jonathan who continue to save nigerians from bloodshead. If d court had pronounced buhari guilty the same faith that Jonathan avoided by conceding defeat could have played out again. It is fact that APC supporters are Almajiris, urchins and buchers looking for who to kill. Jonathan is noble and peaceful he went further by withdrawing the suit. What a great mind and a hero of our time. God bless Jonathan and family.
[/s]
^^^#ArrantNonsense
Any suggestion that Jonathan was some kind of hero is akin to saying a snake has shoulders.
Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN) who is representing one of the plaintiffs, told the judge on Wednesday that his client decided to withdraw his suit to afford the incoming government time to focus on the “enormous task” of governance.
When the second case which was filed by Max Ozoaka was called, his lawyer, Dr. Chike Amobi, also adduced similar grounds for withdrawing the suit.
^^^So after all that huffing and puffing by the ruling party, with a legion of TANoids running amok on NL, we are now told there is no will to prosecute a case? If this volte-face does not signal the lack of a veritable and worthy cause to begin with, I really don't know what does.
Journos are going to have to learn to spell the guy's name properly, for posterity if nothing else Variations I have uncovered so far include: Suleman Hashim Suleiman Hashim Suleiman Hasheem Suleman Hashimu Suleiman Hashimu
^^^Not good.
Anyway, question I would like to know is; whether @OP is disputing the claims made below?
Two years ago, Hasheem said, he made a promise to trek from Lagos to Abuja if Buhari wins the then-upcoming election, saying the purpose of terminating his journey in Abuja is where he thinks he could see the retired General and congratulate him.
Hasheem, who grew up in Osun and Lagos, now lives in Ibadan where he is working with a construction company. Hasheem said that his decision to embark on the mission was borne out of happiness he feels for General Muhammadu Buhari becoming a leader for the masses.
He said in Bida four days ago that after 13 days of trekking, he had so far worn-out five pairs of shoes with a new pair just bought for him by a Good Samaritan. He showed Weekly Trust the blisters on his feet, which made him pass two days in Bida, so as to treat himself.
Hasheem said before embarking on his mission, he ensured that he was financially equipped but to his amazement, up to the time he arrived Suleja, he did not have to spend a single kobo from his pocket because of kind, generous receptions he has been receiving.
I just need to understand what the bone of contention is.
Oh this is you.... we will start dealing with you again
I never hid that fact, mumu.
TheOtherview: It was a hard slug which resulted in both real and virtual (human) casualties, because the ruling party never adopted any sense of fair play.
To the progressives on these boards, who took on a well-oiled social media machinery - with limitless access to funds derived from our commonwealth - I doff my cap. It was not an easy battle. And it was common knowledge that the scales were tilted in favour of renegades who wore various appellations (TANoids, 'Hope For Nigeria',...etc) by forum arbitrators whose impartiality was...
Although I walked away at one point, in order to advance the struggle for actualization elsewhere, with the avalanche of negative propaganda which the opposition party faced, I was forced to do a re-think. Like other progressives who posted above, I also embraced the more combative and, unarguably, adversarial approach that the battle for Nigeria's political centre-ground became. In the fullness of time, I hope those on the other side of the fence; who turned a 'battle of ideas' into an into acrimonious engagement of wits, would be sufficiently chastened to reflect on the errors of their ways.
omenka: Just when all the hard work started paying off.
MzJackBaueress (Berem)/Omenka - I had to deactivate that account because the head honcho and some of his mods decided to muzzle it. If you study my posts under this handle, though, you will note that I did re-appear to help neutralise the TAN-movement; at the point where the struggle for our nation's renewal entered its most critical phase.
Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat ~ Sun Tzu
Land's End to John o' Groats .. ... The first recorded end-to-end walk (actually from John o' Groats to Land's End) was undertaken by the brothers John and Robert Naylor in 1871.[4] Since then the walk has been undertaken many times, more particularly since 1960, after a well-publicised road walk by Dr Barbara Moore. In 1960 the entrepreneur Billy Butlin organised a road walking race, which gave further impetus to the idea.
Since the 1960s, walkers have mostly chosen off-road routes, using the growing network of long-distance footpaths. A classic account is from 1966 by the travel writer John Hillaby.[5] Off-road walkers usually complete the journey in two to three months. There is a considerable choice of off-road routes, but all are much longer than the shortest road distance, usually 1,200 miles (1,900 km) or more. The walk is still undertaken by road walkers, often doing the walk, like Sir Ian Botham, for charity, or as a "challenge walk". They typically take a month or even less.
VOICEOFTHEMASES: Blindness is when u believe that a man trekked from lagos to abuja in 19days. Got to abuja looking still fresh. A journey that will take 9hours took this man 19days.
He showed up with the same cloth?
Small water bottle?
No umbrella incase of ran?
His cloths are still looking neat?
How about food to eat or was someone coming to feed him?
Chai my people una mumu don over mature. For believe this shit
[/s]
Read up on the great British walk - Land's End to John o' Groats - to enlighten yourself.
GenBuhari: List of African presidents that have been probably poisoned include :
Abacha Yaradua Atta-Mills (Ghana) Meles Zenawi (Ethiopia) Zambia's last president and a few others.
Almost if not all the listed presidents were not stooges of America and following policies that were in the best interest of their country.
I am surprised that @GenBuhari has not cited the USA as a possible suspect in the "mysterious" deaths recorded in Ondo state, this past week.
With non-stooges like Abacha, your quintessential hero, who needs a real stooge huh?
The Justice Department suit filed in November 2013 saying that Abacha, his son Mohammed Sani Abacha, their associate Abubakar Atiku Bagudu and others embezzled, misappropriated and extorted money from the Nigerian government.
They laundered funds by buying bonds backed by the United States using U.S. financial institutions, prosecutors said.
No wonder sincere9jerian, omokri, and other PDP social-media big wigs, have maintained a steely silence. Who would have guessed that this ideologically deficient "youth" collective are planning a palace coup eh?
Seriously now; it would be nice to have these irritants back on board - since they did marshal their disagreeable arguments with some aplomb. The foot soldiers they left behind - yes, the ones currently running amok - need some direction.
Good luck to those trying to raise a phoenix from the smouldering ashes. Nigeria does need a viable opposition after all.
PDP Chieftains Ask Jonathan To Prepare for 2019, Want National Working Committee Sacked Immediately
APR 20, 2015
SaharaReporters understands that a group of party youths has been mobilized to stage an “occupy” protest that would take over the party secretariat until the NWC members are kicked out by President Jonathan and replaced with a caretaker committee that would be malleable to his desires.
Photo credit: msnbc
Some chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party have called on President Goodluck Jonathan to start preparing to run again for election in 2019.
The group, which held a high level meeting last week, expressed the view that it was the party, not the President, who failed in the elections. They blamed his defeat on the refusal of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party to work assiduously to help him win the re-election. Our sources stated that the Governor of Cross River state, Liyel Imoke, has been tapped to become the new chairman of the People's Democratic party in a bid to re-organize the party on behalf of president Jonathan take over of the party hierarchy.
The chieftains have now convinced President Jonathan to take over the party apparatus from the current national working committee members and ‘reorganize’ towards another run at the presidency in 2019, telling him that his concession in the recent election puts him in a good position locally and internationally to get the support to run for again.
SaharaReporters understands that a group of party youths has been mobilized to stage an “occupy” protest that would take over the party secretariat until the NWC members are kicked out by President Jonathan and replaced with a caretaker committee that would be malleable to his desires.
On their part, members of the NWC who spoke anonymously with our reporter said Mr. Jonathan failed woefully in the election largely due to strategies, sometimes operating outside the party structures.
They gave the example of campaign spokesman Femi Fani-Kayode, who they said, came in to compound the image of the president. They said Mr. Fani-Kayode only helped to build enmity for the president across the nation.
Our sources said that regardless, President Jonathan gave an enormous amount of funds to Fani-Kayode which enabled him to buy himself a mansion in Abuja and begin processing a N300m real estate buy in Lagos , Mr. Fani-Kayode also bought a luxury SUV for one of his numerous girlfriends.
The source stated that Fani-Kayode was given N1.7 billion in cash as his last payment before the presidential election. Also involved in some financial shenanigans, they claimed, was Anthony Anenih, the ubiquitous party Board of Trustees chairman known as “Mr. Fix It”.
Several of the NWC sources stated that the next few days will prove interesting as some of them are willing to give a full account of the fraud perpetrated by President Jonathan and his men, both financially and generally, with regards to the internal rigging that took place in several states across the federation. One of the sources told SaharaReporters that the party actually won 11 states in the presidential election, claiming that in at least four states, figures were simply concocted and presented as election figures.
Ondo strange disease not contagious, initial results show ethanol poisoning – Official
April 19, 2015
The Ondo State Government says a strange disease that has killed over a dozen people since its outbreak on April 15 in Ode-Irele, Irele Local Government Area of the state, is not contagious and could be a result of ethanol poisoning.
The Commissioner for Health in the state, Dayo Adeyanju, stated this on Sunday at a news conference in Akure.
He said findings from post-mortem carried out on the victims and other laboratory tests revealed that the disease was neither epidemic nor contagious.
According to the commissioner, preliminary report showed ethanol poison found in the systems of all the victims.
“Our investigations revealed that the victims, who are commercial motorcyclists, gathered at some local joints to take alcoholic substance mixed with roots and some other local herbs on the eve of the outbreak of the disease.
“I can assure you that the disease is in no way contagious. The fact that none of the caregivers has contracted the disease has greatly underscored this point.
“Therefore, the fear of spread does not arise and should be discouraged.
“We strongly suspect ethanol poison and in view of this, we have ordered for another toxicology test for surviving victims,” Mr. Adeyanju said. Ebola Alert, an evidence-driven group of volunteer professionals who helped with the Ebola Virus Disease interventions in Nigeria, had said on Friday that samples taken from victims and tested in a laboratory in Lagos tested negative to Ebola and five other deadly diseases.
“#OndoX samples tests negative for Ebola Virus, Yellow Fever, Lassa Fever Virus, Rift Valley Fever Virus, Dengue Virus, West Nile Virus,” the organisation said.
The Ondo commissioner, who said that there had been no report of new cases in the last three days, explained that 18 out of the 23 people affected have died.
He said the five survivors, who have currently gone blind, have been referred to the University Teaching Hospital, Ibadan, for further examination and monitoring.
Mr. Adeyanju said he would not join issues with traditionalists who believe that the outbreak of the disease was because some youth stole from shrine of some gods.
The commissioner, however, said that the dead would be buried in body bags to curtail any spread of the disease.
You might want to take some of that advice yourself and unplug your mind from the cancer that masquerades as the western media.
^^^Says the other arm chair analyst who is easily given to paranoia. No matter how spurious the claims is, trust this duo to lap it up without asking questions.
You don't need Logic to understand metaphysical things. Despite my vast educational knowledge, I put it aside when it comes to understanding spiritual entities and beings. . I ain't no ignoramus on the issue you just raised.. I don't let logic come in my way when metaphysical issues are raised.. Shalom
I know you do; which is why you are hardly likely to invent anything useful or even birth a philosophy others can write about. The ignoble and bone-idle would never allow sound reasoning to trounce paucity of thought - not while the latter provides limitless fulfillment
"Colonialism is not satisfied merely with holding a people in its grip and emptying the native’s brain of all form and content. By a kind of perverted logic, it turns to the past of the oppressed people, and distorts, disfigures, and destroys it." ~ Frantz Fanon
iamord: may god punish pat Robertson for that rubbish statement he made.. If you understand the history of Haiti and all what haiti has been through .you will know that this charlatans use history occurrence to suite their grand scheme. while Haiti people fell for the baith that they are cursed. Cuba Russia and north Korea accused USA of testing a bio weapon. the irony. it pains me that a lot for black people don't use their brains properly.
^^^Co-signed.
Rachel Maddow- Haitian ambassador shames Pat Robertson
Arising from a meeting in Abuja Thursday night, the national leaders and national caucus of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have officially zoned the office of the Senate President in the 8th Senate to the North central geo-political zone, while the Speaker of the House of Representatives was zoned to the North-east geo-political zone.
19th of April
Barring any last minute changes, a document ratified by the APC national leadership and national caucus members Thursday night may form the basis for the allocation of executive positions and emergence of principal officers of the National Assembly from across the six geopolitical zones. The document, which was obtained by THISDAY, shows that the office of Secretary to the Government of the Federation is zoned to the South-east. The incumbent SGF, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, a former senate president, is from Ebonyi State in the South-east.
The zoning to South-east puts paid to speculations that the director-general of the APC presidential campaign organisation and Rivers State governor, Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi, may become the next SGF. It also ends the alleged spirited effort by some APC governors from the North-east to produce the new SGF, with the current Secretary to the State Government of Borno, Ambassador Ahmed Baba Jida, widely suspected to be the choice of the governors.
In other positions, the post of Senate President is zoned to North-central, the same zone of the outgoing holder of the position, David Mark, who is from Benue State. Speaker of the House of Representatives is given to South-west, where the vice president-elect, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, hails from. Osinbajo is from Ogun State.
Daninya11: Festac 77 was orchestrated and executed from the pit of hell. It was a conglomeration of dark powers. . After the festival. . Demonic powers decided to make Nigeria their host nation. They have been given thrones to rule Nigerians.. Have you asked yourself why our so called leaders those days are recycling themselves at the seat of power?? They have the backing of those demonic princes
^^^Idiooocy
I suppose Festac 77 was also responsible for the truncation of the first republic; the successive counter-coup; Africa's first televised war; the assassination of Murtala Mohammed...and much more!
It was folks like you that Steve Biko had in mind when he exclaimed: "the most powerful weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed".
Just like the seeds of Haiti's underdevelopment lies in the violent revolution which took place on the island, according to Pat Robertson? Isn't that the way the logic goes?
@OrlandoOwoh - Why do we continue to immolate ourselves culturally, by asking the most asinine of questions? I am a little surprised that you are one of those who appears to have fallen for this bait, to be honest.
Lol. Sir, so the Arabs left Allah, for Jesus? - incredulous.
Anyway, what do you think about the elections?
I think folks should let Lib Dem die off and remain buried, and push Labour to win areas dominated by minorities - regardless of how uncharismatic Ed is. A vote for Lib Dem is a waste.
Hopefully, folks in the Midlands and up North won't share Labour's votes, with Lib Dem again this time. If Labour can win London convincingly this time. Ditto Midlands, unlike the last election, in which Lib Dem shared parts of the votes - get the North and SNP on board, then it should be a homer.
Bruv, I share your views on those vacuous Lib Dems. After watching a documentary about the kind of horse trading which birth the coalition, during a period of boredom a few days ago, my previously low opinion of Nick and his gang went down even further.
Based on my reading of the tea leaves, I think Ed. needs to go easy with his expressions of feigned indignation vis-a-vis a possible government of unity with the SNP. When even the dog on the street knows that a deal would have to be done at some point, he needs to contain the machismo which has him shooting darts at his potential partners
Bevista: When was this interview conducted? I'm always impressed with Buhari's simplicity, but I'm not sure this interview was conducted as President-elect - the APC is too organized to allow this happen.
First on March 28 and and second on April 11, 2015l
Daura: Simplicity, Contentment redefined in Buhari’s abode
April 18, 2015
...Meeting with Journalists
It was in this natural setting, directly under the shade of a tree that he interacted with Journalists on two occasions. First on March 28 and and second on April 11, 2015. Unlike most censored executive chats, these meetings exclusively featured off-the-scripts chats with questions emanating from all angles on the contemporary social and political issues.
For one, Journalists felt at home savoring the drinks, including fura du nunu and Kunu (locally made milky juices) that were presented to them after the hectic work of monitoring and covering the presidential/National assembly; Governorship/State assembly elections respectively. The chat was later to culminate into memorable snapshots with the host.
Politics / Court Orders British Authorities To Bring Back Mother, Son Deported To Nigeria by TheOtherview: 9:48am On Apr 23, 2015 
could have played out again. It is fact that APC supporters are Almajiris, urchins and buchers looking for who to kill. Jonathan is noble and peaceful he went further by withdrawing the suit. What a great mind and a hero of our time. God bless Jonathan and family.
