Some lawyers in the country have passed a vote of confidence on the INEC chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, following calls for his sack or resignation.

The lawyers described the call for his sack as the handiwork of mischief makers and also condemned them for making allegations that cannot be aubstantiated against the INEC chairman to blackmail him.

The lawyers under the auspices of Consortium of Nigerian Lawyers, in a petition addressed to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rt. Hon. Rishi Sunak, through the High Commissioner to Nigeria, Dr Richard Montgomery, said the malicious claims of bribery and corruption were propagated by faceless individuals.

“We, the undersigned Nigerian lawyers, write this petition with great concern and urgency regarding the unsubstantiated and fake allegations made against Mallam Mahmood Yakubu, the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). We implore you to address this issue and rectify the damage caused to Mallam Yakubu’s reputation and the sanctity of the electoral process in Nigeria.

“The allegations in question, as reported by the conspiracy-driven news outlets and social media, claim that Mallam Yakubu engaged in corrupt practices and has accepted bribes. These malicious claims were propagated by faceless individuals who lack any form of credibility or substantiation for their accusations. It is clear that these allegations are baseless and intended solely to tarnish the reputation of Mallam Yakubu and undermine the integrity of INEC,” they said.

Nigeria have been placed second best overall nation in weightlifting event of the on-going 2023 Africa Games in Ghana with a total of 32 medals.

While Nigeria came second overall on the weightlifting medals table, the female lifters came first in their category winning 11 gold and two silver medals, second placed Egypt had 11 gold, 3 silver and 4 bronze medals.

Represented by 12 lifters made of six male and six female with four coaches, Nigeria lifters won 16 good, 10 silver and 6 bronze medals to come second behind leading country Egypt.
On their part, the Egyptians who also won the weightlifting event in 2019 Rabat Games had a total of 24 gold, 4 solve and 4 bronze medals to once again show their superiority in the sport.

All the 12 Nigeria lifters won medals with the exception of Morufat Folarin who was injured on Day 1 of the competition and could not continue.

King Kalu and Favour Agboro led the curtain raiser on Sunday after they won five medals two bronze in 55kg and two silver and a bronze in 61kg, respectively.

On Day 2 of the weightlifting event, Nigeria was dominant after all the three lifters won a combined 9 gold collectively, each winning three gold medals respectively. They were Edidiong Umoafia (67kg), Adijat Adenike Olarinoye (55kg) and Rafiatu Lawal (59kg).

Day 3 of the competition saw Nigeria win six more gold medals by Ruth Ayodele (64kg) and Joy Eze in 71kg, each winning 3 good medals in that order.

Competing on Day 4 were Desmond Akano (Men’s -96kg) who won 2 Silver, and a Bronze medals while Abayomi Adeyemi (Men’s 102kg) claimed a silver and 2 bronze.
Nigeria won another gold medal on Day 5 after Mary Osijo and Lucky Joseph combined to win six more medals.

Competing in Women’s 87kg, Ọsịsọ won 1 Gold and 2 Silver medals while Joseph won all the three silver medals in Men’s +109kg category Nigeria Weightlifting team were coaches by Ajei Emeka Godson , Ayodabo Kehinde, Lawal Patience and Okuofoh Evelyn. The General Secretary of Nigeria Weightlifting Federation, NWF, Mrs Melvina Ashinedu Apeh is also part of the team.

The 2023 Africa Games Weightlifting event which began on Saturday, 9th March was rounded off on Friday, March 15, 2024 at the University of Ghana, Legon.
Nigeria weightlifting team will return home with their shoulders held high having retained their second position which they achieved in Rabat Morocco, four years ago.

Nigeria’s Weightlifting Medal Results

1. Kalu King – 55 kg – 2 Bronze

2. Favour Agboro – 61 kg – 2 Silver & 1 Bronze

3. Edidiong Umoafia – 67 kg — 3 Gold

4. Adijat Olarinoye – 55 kg. —- Gold 3

5. Rafiatu Lawal – 59 kg. — Gold 3

6. Ruth Ayodele – 64 kg — Gold 3

7. Joy Eze – 71 kg —- Gold 3

8. Desmond Akano – 96 kg – Silver 2 & 1 Bronze

9. Abayomi Adeyemi – 102 kg – Silver 1 & 2 Bronze

10. Mary Taiwo Osijo – 87 kg – Gold 1 & 2 Silver

11. Lucky Joseph – +109 kg – Silver 3

Total Medals:-
Gold – 16
Silver – 10
Bronze – 6

There are Indications that the Technical Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) may have resolved to hire another foreign tactician to replace Jose Peseiro as Super Eagles head coach.

Following the recent announcement by NFF, asking interested coaches to apply for the plum Super Eagles job after expiration of the former coach contract, no fewer than 40 coaches, both local and foreign, are said to have applied for the position that many Nigerian football stakeholders now feel should be occupied by an indigenous coach.

Former Nigerian internationals, Emmanuel Amuneke, Finidi George who served as assistant coach to Peseiro, Daniel Amokachi, Sunday Oliseh, Salisu Yusuf Sylvanus Okpala are among Nigerian coaches who have applied for the job.

Micheal Nsien, a Nigerian coach who is currently handling the USA U-17 and U-19 national teams, is also in the race for the juicy position.

One-time Indomitable Lions of Cameroon Portuguese coach, Antonio Canceicao is one of the foreign tacticians who is said to be highly favoured to land the job.

However, a member of the NFF Technical Committee, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he doesn’t the power to spoke on behalf on the committee, said what the Super Eagles need right now is a sound foreign technical adviser who will not only impact positively on the senior national team but help in developing other aspects of Nigerian football.

He reiterated that there is nothing wrong with hiring a foreign coach, but whoever is coming must be a world-class coach with a track record of achievements as manager of a renowned football nation.

“I have nothing against indigenous coaches, but I will say that the person we need at the moment is a foreign coach with the prerequisite experience to handle the Super Eagles. He must be the type of coach who will come and support in the overall development of our football.

“The Super Eagles as presently constituted are too big for the indigenous coaches that Nigerians are clamouring for. They are not bad coaches, but they are not yet at the level that they can effectively handle the senior national team.

“If you talk to most of my colleagues in the committee, they will tell you the samething. Most of us are for a foreign coach for the Super Eagles. I believe the NFF will see reason with some of us on this matter,” the very influential member of the NFF Technical Committee said.

Recalls that the Technical Committee met recently in Abuja to scrutinise the applications received by the football federation after it advertised the vacant positions of the head coach of the Super Eagles and the Golden Eaglets.

The leaders of the Fulani nationals in Nigeria, expressing concern over the challenges faced by pastoralists, have issued a stern warning, threatening to halt the sales of livestock nationwide if their grievances are not addressed.

The Communique issued at the end of the Fulbe National Security Summit, organised by the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), was presented by the National President of MACBAN, Baba Othman Ngelzarma.

Ngelzarma emphasised that pastoralists have been unfairly targeted for crimes in the country.

Joined by leaders of Tabital Pulaaku International and Fulbe Global Development and Right Initiative, Ngelzarma alleged that the government has not made significant progress in addressing the root causes of the current conflict and the challenges faced by the Fulani community.

He said that the Fulbe pastoralists do not enjoy Government patronage and are often made scapegoats for most atrocities. He further stated that the Fulbe often suffer intimidation, segregation, molestation, and all forms of deprivation in the hands of Security Agents and Vigilantes groups thus forcing them out of their occupational livelihood and ancestral homes.

Reading the resolutions of the Communiqué, he said the Summit “acknowledged the passion and commitment of President Ahmed Bola Tinubu in addressing the security challenges by accepting to implement the recommendations of the Prof Attahiru Jega chaired the National Conference report on Farmer/Herder conflict organized by the then Executive Governor of Kano State – Dr Abdullahi Umar.

“The summit advised that membership of the implementation committee should consist of persons with the knowledge of the culture of the pastoralists.

“That the registered Fulbe socio-cultural groups and associations do not support any crime or criminality such as banditry, kidnapping and cattle rustling, as the Fulbe have also been the major victims.

“That the current security challenges confronting the country and especially the Fulbe communities ranging from banditry, kidnapping, socio-economic marginalization, youth restiveness, drug abuse, cattle rustling, and proliferation of arms should be addressed as a matter of urgency and the necessary need to integrate the Fulbe to the larger society through education and social interaction.

“That there has been resentment and wrong profiling of the Fulbe across the nation. The summit calls on the Government to partner Fulbe socio-cultural associations/opinion leaders andSecurity Agencies to curtail the current trajectories.

“The summit opined that the Fulbe pastoralist will be compelled to stop selling livestock across the nation if immediate action to curtail the current challenges by all tiers of Government are not addressed.

“The summit noted the serious encroachment and dilapidation of grazing reserves throughout the country and the need to channel resources arnd preserve them in all states where they exist, this is necessary in the view of the intent of settling of the entire pastoralists in the reserves for ranching-

The Summit also resolved that the committee constituted to implement the recommendations of the Orasanya Report, to consider as a necessity the retention of the National Commission for Nomadic Education as an Agency of the Federal Ministry of Education with specialised mandate of ensuring the delivery of functional basic education to nomadic communities.

“This is in consideration of a research report on out-of-school children in Nigeria, that 8 million out of over 10 million out-of-school children in the country are pastoralists children.

“Therefore, not retaining the commission with sufficient funding to educate the children is an eminent danger to our dear nation, the Communiqué said.

“Federal and State Governments should create Ministries of Animal Resources to enable the channeling of more resources towards developing the nation’s livestock industry to feed the nation’s ever growing population.

“All states should acknowledge that the pastoralists are citizens of this country protected by the Constitution and are only practicing their Occupational trade in their states and their movement are as provided by the ECOWAS trans-human protocol of 1998 of which Nigeria is a signatory.

“That there is a concern about the setting up of community guard/Vigilante groups by various state Governments that includes the local demography except the Fulbe pastoralists. In this regard, the summit appreciates and commend the Oyo state Government for being the only state
that included Fulanis in their vigilante grOup. Other state Governors are advised to emulate the footsteps of the Oyo state Governor for desired result.

“All participants agreed on the importance of education and called on all pastoralists to enroll their children into schools, especially nomadic education school in order to be productive in their future life and useful to humanity.

“The federal Government should revise and adopt a non-kinetic approach to ending banditry, kidnapping and cattle rustling, as the kinetic ways used over the years have only achieved very little result.

“That the trend in social media is further fueling the conflict and current challenges of the Fulanis, unfortunately the social media is not regulated. The hate speeches in the social media targeted at the Fulanis should be addressed by the Government”, the Communiqué added.

Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs of the United States, Lee Satterfield will travel to Nigeria on a working visit from March 17 to 22.

This was disclosed in a press statement by the office of the spokesperson with Satterfield scheduled to visit the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja and Lagos State.

“While in Nigeria, Assistant Secretary Satterfield will advance key bilateral priorities, including expanding access to education and bolstering economic opportunities through the creative arts,” the statement read.

According to the statement, Assistant Secretary Satterfield’s trip to Nigeria builds on a recent visit by Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken.

Satterfield’s trip also reinforces the Biden-Harris administration’s commitment to Africa by focusing on people-to-people connections between Americans and Nigerians.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar, has accused President Bola Tinubu’s government of ignoring transparency issues.

Naija News reports that the former Vice President made the assertion while reacting to the controversial unresolved $3.3 billion NNPCL loan repayment scandal.

In a post via X, Atiku noted that the silence on the NNPCL loan attests to the corrupt issues with Tinubu’s administration.

According to him, Tinubu’s government ignores due process issues in public administration.

Atiku wrote, “The current federal government has a disgraceful track record of ignoring issues of transparency and due process in public administration.

“The unresolved $3.3 billion NNPCL loan repayment scandal, with Nigeria now expected to repay $12 billion, remains a glaring example.

“The Tinubu administration must address these high-profile corruption cases transparently.

“The National Assembly, as the elected representatives of the people, are constitutionally obligated to legislate for the peace, order, and good governance of our nation, without colluding with corrupt elements.

“Failure to do so and persisting in denial will only confirm the government’s complicity in official malpractice.”

The overseer of the Citadel Global Community Church, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has said the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, can’t end corruption in Nigeria.

Bakare spoke at the men’s symposium in honour of Pastor Chinedu Ezekwesili’s 70th birthday in Abuja on Friday.

He disclosed that the antidote to corruption in Nigeria is when the sons of God start manifesting righteousness.

According to Bakare: “There are many theories about how to end corruption in Nigeria, EFCC can’t do it; ICPC can’t fix it.

“The antidote to corruption is only one thing, the manifestation of the sons of God under righteous authority.

“Setting up committees to investigate corruption by corrupt individuals, who cannot execute it, is a waste of time.”

Bakare called for a return to God’s original purpose across various spheres of influence, including family, businesses, and national governance.

Ahead of the April 2024 deadline by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the registration for Bank Verification Number, BVN, increased to 61.16 million on March 15, 2024.

The Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) disclosed this in its latest BVN database.

The figure represents an increase from the 59.9 million recorded on January 26, 2024.

Accordingly, this shows that 674,280 new registrations for BVN were recorded between late January and mid-March this year.

Recall that in December last year, the apex bank also directed commercial, merchant, non-interest, payment service banks, other financial institutions, and mobile money operators through a circular that the BVN or National Identification Number, NIN, attached to all accounts/wallets must be electronically revalidated by January 31, 2024.

The apex had ordered banks to freeze Tier-1 accounts without a BVN or National Identification Number, NIN, from April 2024.

City FM is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Programme: CITY TALKS WITH REUBEN ABATI

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(Nigerian Human Rights Activist)

Topic: "Home, Diaspora and the Challenges of Activism"

Date: 16th March, 2024
                         
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As Nigeria continues to seek solutions to the rising crisis of insecurity, Daniel Bwala, former spokesperson of the Atiku presidential campaign, has said the real perpetrators of the kidnappings and insecurity crisis in Nigeria are individuals in white collars, government agencies and other financial and business interests.

Bwala in an interview with ARISE NEWS on Friday, said the kidnappers are mercenaries working for these perpetrators.

“The notion or narrative that this insecurity is a ploy to offset the Tinubu’s administration in my view is a decoy narrative peddled by either some security narratives or politicians in a bid to give president Tinubu the impression that it is a case of us against them.

“We have seen it seriously, he didn’t commission the law enforcement agency to be brutal about it. This is the same movie as before. In president Buhari’s time, it was the same thing.

“You remember when he started the war against corruption, the minute information started coming out about public officers under his employ and appointment are involved in corruption, they immediately built a narrative to him that it is corruption fighting back and the minute he accepted that notion, everything you said about public affairs under his administration, he didn’t take serious.

“That is why I like what president Tinubu said. he refused to buy that idea, when he said I don’t have that luxury of time; you have to go and deal with this or I take a decision. This problem that is confronting us is local and the solution is local.

“This emerging issue of kidnapping is a crisis economy and the kidnappers in the bush are mere mercenaries. The real perpetrators are in towns, in white collars, in government agencies, some in financial and other business interests.”

The legal practitioner also advised the federal government to be cautious in accepting the offer of foreign partners who are offering to help as that could be a ‘ploy to negotiate their interest’.

“Even the notion that some international partners are opting to help us, I advised the federal government a few days ago on twitter that we should accept that help with a long spoon. These foreign governments oftentimes use that as a ploy to negotiate their interest. They never mean and will never mean well for our problem.

“To juxtapose my point, when a missionary was abducted; an American citizen, you see the swiftness with which the American forces came and rescued the person. If they really wanted to help us, from when Boko Haram started till today, we would have been able to deal decisively with Boko haram. So, let us treat their offer with caution.”

He also supported the president’s statement that no ransom will be paid to the kidnappers, adding that the bandits opted for school children because they understand that it will gain the attention of the United Nations.

“I agree with President Bola Tinubu that no ransom be paid because he must have been briefed based on intelligence that the individuals involved in this ransom thing are white collar people and so, continuing to discuss and paying ransom is feeding off of the crisis economy, thereby financing them and in turn they procure more arms and build that economy to be much more stronger than the oil and gas industry and these bandits know that once you abduct school children, it takes an international dimension because it falls under the convention of the united nations.

“If the President wants these guys back in 15 days, Mr. President can call all the security chiefs and say in 15 days and I don’t see these children back, I am relieving you all and I am getting a new set of securities and I guarantee you that in 15 days, these kids are going to be back. We all know the states in Nigeria where you have large expanse of land and where this possible carnage is going on. What happened to our law enforcement securities.

“Also, we put so much pressure on the Nigerian Army to deal with internal security matters and so they are so overwhelmed and fatigued. These guys are trained to fight conventional war. When you bring them into the internal mechanism of security checks, you are to expect collateral damage

“The president has to be decisive because from Buhari to this president, I have not heard where a demand is made for money and they refuse to release it.”

Meanwhile, the former aide to the PDP’s 2023 presidential candidate also stated that President Tinubu made him realize that it was time to focus on nation building rather than politicking, adding that “there must be a Nigeria before there is politics.”

“I have no regrets that I went to PDP nor supported Atiku. At every given time, I do what I do based on my convictions and if at the end of the day, I execute what I want to execute and it doesn’t work out, I accept the realities of fact. The reality I have accepted now is that this politicking is gone and because of the crisis in Nigeria, the only way we can have an election in 2027 is if Nigeria is safe and secure.

“When I saw this president whom I had supported when I was in APC and saw the good intention he has to right the wrong that he past administration has committed, and when he said he wants all other people from other opposition to come together for a nation building, I felt it was the right time for me to look at nation building rather than politicking because after all is said and done, there must be a Nigeria before there is politics.”