The Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, has dismissed the appeal filed by the Edo State House of Assembly, thereby affirming that Comrade Philip Shaibu remains the Deputy Governor of Edo State.

The appellate court upheld the earlier ruling by the Federal High Court, Abuja, which nullified Shaibu’s impeachment and ordered his immediate reinstatement.

This development follows Shaibu’s controversial impeachment on April 8 by the Edo State House of Assembly, where he was accused of perjury and leaking government secrets.

However, Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court had ruled that the impeachment process did not follow due process, and as a result, ordered Shaibu’s reinstatement to his position.

In its decision, the Court of Appeal warned that any person aside from Shaibu who attempts to parade themselves as the Deputy Governor of Edo State would face legal consequences.

Additionally, the court set aside the appointment of Omobayo Godwins, who had been named as Shaibu’s replacement following the impeachment.

The court also directed the Inspector General of Police to provide Shaibu with the necessary security to ensure he resumes his duties as the Deputy Governor of Edo State until the end of his tenure.

This ruling has further intensified the political tensions within Edo State, which have been marked by internal conflicts within the state’s leadership.

The Federal Government has expressed its intention to resolve the legal dispute involving former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Walter Onnoghen, amicably.

Onnoghen, who was removed from office in 2019 after being convicted by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) on charges of false asset declaration, is challenging the decision through an appeal filed with the Court of Appeal in Abuja.

Tijjani Gazali, counsel representing the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), revealed the government’s stance during a court hearing on Tuesday.

Gazali, who serves as an acting director of civil litigation at the Ministry of Justice, informed the court that efforts were being made to resolve the issues raised by Onnoghen through dialogue rather than prolonged litigation.

Onnoghen, who was present in court, is seeking to overturn the CCT’s judgment, arguing that he was denied a fair hearing and that the tribunal chairman was biased.

He also contends that the National Judicial Council (NJC) is the only body with the authority to discipline a judicial officer, not the CCT.

Gazali explained that the case file had only recently been transferred to the Ministry of Justice following the death of the former counsel handling the matter, Aliyu Umar, in 2020.

As a result, he requested an adjournment to allow time for proper briefing.

Onnoghen’s counsel, Chris Uche, did not oppose the adjournment but urged the court to expedite the hearing.

The appellate court granted the application and adjourned the case to September 19, 2024.

Former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili, has criticized President Bola Tinubu’s decision to purchase a 14-year-old aircraft for use as a presidential jet, stating that there is no justification for such an expense.

Taking to X, Ezekwesili expressed her disapproval, describing the move as an act of “profligacy” that cannot be justified by any argument from the President.

She wrote, “No argument justifies the purchase of a 14 year old Airbus plane by the @NGRPresident @officialABAT for his indulgence. o argument that can persuade reasonable people justifies this latest profligacy.”

Ezekwesili further warned that such “obscene indulgence” would eventually face backlash from citizens struggling with poverty.

“Continue with your obscene indulgence until the day your hungry citizens can no longer bear to sleep on empty stomachs,” she cautioned.

She also criticized the manner in which the current administration came to power, suggesting it was solely for personal gain rather than for the benefit of the nation.

“I hope it is now evident to all eyes why they needed to ‘grab it…… snatch it ….. and run away with it’.

“All that desecration of our Democracy was to acquire Power for nothing but a self-indulgent lifestyle at the expense of the people. Nothing else. How crass! Just look at the country and its people. One Day shall be One Day,” she concluded.

Elder Statesman and National Leader of the Pan-Niger Delta Forum, Edwin Clark, has called for the immediate exit of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Naija News reports that Clark made this call in a formal letter addressed to the National Chairman of PDP, Ambassador Iliya Damagun.

According to him, Wike needs to leave PDP for the party’s survival.

The former Federal Commissioner for Information and esteemed leader in the South-South region elucidated the alleged tactics employed by the former Governor of Rivers State to exert pressure on Governor Siminalayi Fubara and the party, leveraging his close relationship with President Bola Tinubu.

During a press briefing at his residence in Asokoro, Abuja, on Tuesday, the leader of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) expressed his inability to remain silent in the face of Minister Wike’s persistent attempts to undermine Governor Fubara.

The head of the Southern and Middle-Belt Leaders Forum, who acknowledged his political career predated Wike’s birth, cautioned Damagun that failure to halt Wike’s actions would lead to a situation where the matter would consume the minister, Wike, and their allies.

Clark, who is currently in the process of writing a book titled “PDP: To Be or Not To Be,” highlighted the concerning trend of former Governors Bello Matawalle (Zamfara), Dave Umahi (Ebonyi), and Ben Ayade (Cross River) defecting to the All Progressives Congress (APC), suggesting that Wike’s current actions are reminiscent of those of his predecessors.

“After conceding that former Rivers State Governor Peter Odili and his wife made him what he is today and will forever remain grateful to them, he is now abusing them. I won’t allow him to destroy Rivers State,” Clark declared.

He alleged that having failed to use the APC to disrupt the PDP, Wike is now using the party against itself.

The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) leadership has warned that it is prepared to embark on a fresh strike across the country in response to any attempt to arrest or detain its President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, by operatives of the Nigeria Police.

This declaration was made at the union’s headquarters on Tuesday morning, following an immediate emergency meeting of the National Executive Council (NEC) to deliberate on the police’s request to invite the NLC President in light of allegations concerning the financing of terrorism.

During the meeting, the NEC decided that Ajaero would accept the police’s invitation but emphasized the necessity for the union’s legal counsel to request additional time for Ajaero to be presented before the law enforcement authorities.

Deputy President of the NLC, Comrade Ado Kabiru Sani, has urged the nation’s workforce to be prepared for further instructions if the police’s actions do not align with the union’s expectations regarding Ajaero’s detention.

He said: “As a committed labour centre, we will honour the invitation of the police because we are not a faceless organization, but we are working with our lawyer for an extension of time.

“In the event that the President is arrested, all workers will down tools immediately. We should wait for further directives from our leadership.”

The United States (U.S) government has unveiled a humanitarian aid package amounting to $27 million for Nigeria, aimed at supporting vulnerable communities and enhancing resilience against the challenges posed by food insecurity and the impacts of climate change.

The U.S. Mission in Nigeria announced on Tuesday in Abuja that this contribution is a part of the broader $536 million humanitarian aid package allocated by the U.S. government to sub-Saharan Africa.

Naija News reports that Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights, Uzra Zeya, officially unveiled the comprehensive aid package which brings the total U.S. humanitarian assistance to Sub-Saharan Africa in Fiscal Year 2024 to nearly $3.7 billion.

“The funding will be channelled to those in need through the State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration and USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance.

“It brings the total U.S. humanitarian assistance to Sub-Saharan Africa in Fiscal Year 2024 to nearly $3.7 billion.

“The assistance aims to address the critical needs of vulnerable individuals across the sub-Saharan region,” the mission explained.

It added: “This includes refugees from war and terrorism violence, asylum seekers, internally displaced persons, stateless individuals, and other conflict-affected people.

“It will focus on crises in the Sahel, among other areas, and support efforts to build durable solutions, such as voluntary returns and refugee integration.”

In an address regarding the development, the U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, Richard Mills, highlighted the significance of the recently announced U.S. funding.

Mills noted that the initiative underscored the United States’ dedication to delivering essential aid and safeguarding the well-being of vulnerable populations and the communities that host them across the African continent.

“This assistance will make a real difference in the lives of those most in need in Nigeria and across the continent.

“This 27 million dollars in aid demonstrates the U.S.’s unwavering commitment to supporting Nigeria in addressing humanitarian challenges.

“We stand with Nigeria in its efforts to provide for vulnerable populations and build resilience against food insecurity and climate change impacts,” the mission quoted Mills as saying.

Lawyer and activist, Deji Adeyanju, has accused President Bola Tinubu of not being a good leader.

Speaking against the backdrop of the recent purchase of a new jet for the presidential air fleet, Adeyanju, in a post via his Facebook account on Monday, accused Tinubu of behaving like former Military Head of State, Sani Abacha.

The activist said Tinubu is behaving like Abacha pro max, adding that critics don’t make good leaders.

He further accused President Tinubu of being a hypocrite because of the purchase of a new presidential jet, an Escalade bulletproof vehicle, and a yacht while urging Nigerians to bear the hardship in the country.

Posting on his Facebook page, Adeyanju wrote: “Critics don’t make good leaders. If in doubt, just look at Tinubu. The guy is acting like a Sani Abacha pro max just under one year. A hypocrite that can’t take what he gives.

“Just got back to Abuja from Lagos and saw Tinubu’s outrageously huge presidential jet.”

He also wrote in another post: “I have not recovered from the shock of how big Tinubu’s presidential jet is. It is so huge. We cannot subsidize the poor and the economy but we can subsidize Tinubu and politicians. Nigeria is sitting on a keg of gunpowder that could go off at any moment.”

Naija News recalls President Bola Tinubu-led administration, on Monday, unveiled the new Airbus A330 purchased under his leadership.

The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, who released the pictures, said it replaced the 19-year-old Boeing B737-700(BBJ) bought under the Presidency of former president, Olusegun Obasanjo.

Onanuga, however, did not reveal the amount spent by the Nigerian government to acquire the new presidential jet.

He said it saved Nigeria huge maintenance and fuel costs, running into millions of dollars yearly.

Onanuga said, “The recommendation to replace the B737-700(BBJ) followed an investigative hearing by Nigeria’s parliament that questioned the plane’s safety record and cost efficiency, especially after it malfunctioned during a trip to Saudi Arabia.

“The Nigerian Senate’s security and intelligence committee recommended replacing the ageing aircraft in the presidential fleet to reduce downtime and operational expenses.”

In Osun State, an Osogbo-based cleric, identified as Femi has raped and impregnated his stepdaughter.

The 16-year-old stepdaughter, name (withheld), who levelled the allegation against Femi, disclosed that she was raped when she was 13 year-old. 

The victim, aged 16, had approached a Non-Governmental Organisation, the World Institute for Peace, to seek Alternative Dispute Resolution.

The teenager had in an affidavit, sworn to at the Osun State Ministry of Justice, claimed that after her stepfather put her in family way, the pregnancy was terminated.

Narrating her ordeal to the officials of the NGO, she disclosed that she first reported the matter to her teacher in school, after about four years of constant abuse by her stepfather.

Speaking at an alternative dispute resolution meeting organised by WIP, the victim explained that her stepfather started having sexual intercourse with her when she was 12 years old.

She said, “When I was 13 years old, I got pregnant and he took me to a hospital for an abortion.

“He asked me to lie to the doctor that my classmate impregnated me and ran away. The first time he had intercourse with me was on my mother’s bed and he has been doing it continuously.

“I decided not to take the matter to court because my mother had four children for him, although two were dead.”

She also said she did not take legal action because of her step-siblings.

“I don’t want a situation whereby when the children grow up, it would be as if I am the one who sent their father to prison.

“I decided not to take legal action because of his children who are my younger siblings,” she said.

Also at the meeting, Femi, who is a commercial motorcyclist, as well as a pastor in a church he established, confessed to committing the crime.

Femi, who stated that he lost count of the number of times he slept with her, said it was God that instructed him to have carnal knowledge of the victim.

“It is true I slept with her although I don’t remember the number of times I did it with her.

“I’m a pastor and it was God who told me to sleep with her. God also told me to abort the pregnancy,” he confessed.

The affidavit, sworn to by the mother of the victim on her behalf, partly read, “My daughter went to the human rights organisation, World Institute for Peace, and reported a case of defilement and abortion levelled against her stepfather, Femi, early in August 2024.

“That, I have the consent of all the members of the family to swear to the affidavit that on August 11, 2024, we met with the human rights organisation, World Institute for Peace and agreed to settle amicably within the family.

“That, she (victim) agreed to resolve the dispute through alternative dispute resolution and has engaged in negotiation.

“That the family is not ready to pursue any case whatsoever with Mr Femi any longer.

“That the purpose of withdrawing was as a result of a settlement between the families, which was the sole proposition of the settlement.”

In his admonition for the parties involved in the matter, the Executive Director of the NGO, Lamina Omotoyosi, called on parents to ensure the safety of their children, especially from close family members and relations.

Lamina also bemoaned the increasing cases of incest in the state.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has confirmed that its President, Joe Ajaero, has been summoned by the police over allegations of terrorism financing and other related offenses.

The confirmation was made in a statement by the NLC spokesperson, Benson Upah, on Monday evening. The police had invited Ajaero for questioning regarding charges connected to “criminal conspiracy, terrorism financing, treasonable felony, subversion, and cybercrime.”

According to the invitation letter dated August 19, 2024, and signed by ACP Adamu Mu’azu on behalf of the Commissioner of Police, Intelligence, Ajaero’s name surfaced in ongoing investigations related to the alleged offenses.

In his statement, Upah said, “A personal message sent to Comrade Joe Ajaero by SP Moshood said, ‘We were at the Labour House to submit this (letter of invitation), but the place was locked, sir.’”

Upah expressed concerns, noting that staff were present at the office beyond 6 pm and questioned why Ajaero was not addressed by his official title as President of the Nigeria Labour Congress.

He added, “Clearly, the last has not been heard about the raid on the headquarters of the Nigeria Labour Congress.”

Upah also recalled that prior to the raid, the NLC had advised the government to engage in dialogue with organizers of a recent protest, despite the congress distancing itself from the event. The congress had also condemned the high casualty rate resulting from police action during the protest and demanded an apology from the police and the government.

“At its world press conference last Thursday, the congress had raised the alarm that should anything happen to the leadership of the congress or any of its members, the police should be held accountable,” Upah continued.

He concluded by questioning the motive behind the police action, stating, “The question on the lips of those in the know is: Who wants Joe Ajaero out of circulation?”

It is worth recalling that security agents conducted a night raid on the NLC national secretariat in Abuja on July 7.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Ogun State, Barrister ‘Niyi Ijalaye, is dead.

The Ogun REC slumped and died in Abuja on Monday evening after a meeting of RECs at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

A source at the Ogun State INEC headquarters, who spoke on condition of anonymity, revealed that Barrister Ijalaye had returned to his hotel room after the meeting before the incident happened.

The source further revealed that the Ondo-born administrator, who was lively throughout the commission’s meeting, retired to a hotel in the Federal Capital Territory, where the incident happened.

The meeting, according to the remarks of the Chairman of INEC, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, which was posted on the verified timeline of the Commission on Facebook, focused on two off-cycle governorship elections in Edo and Ondo States, and seven vacant positions in the National and State Assemblies.

During the meeting, Barrister Ijalaye dressed in blue striped Kaftan with a red cap, was seen in one of the pictures posted by the Commission on its timeline.

Barrister Ijalaye was posted to Ogun State in March 2022, following the transfer of Olusegun Agbaje to Lagos State.

The commission is yet to issue a confirmation statement on the reported death.