Prominent pro-democracy advocates, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria or HURIWA has condemned the Bola Tinubu-led federal government over claims ex-presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr Peter Obi is behind the planned hardship protest billed for August.

He cautioned the presidency to stop forthwith attempts to criminalise peaceful protests, alleging that some members of the current administration are attempting to go hard on peaceful protesters by criminalising any protest, a situation the group said is undemocratic.

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A statement on Sunday by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, said protests are civic actions are aimed at advocating for accountability, transparency and good governance.

THE WHISTLER reports that the Special Adviser to President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, had accused Peter Obi of being the brain behind the looming protest, warning of the consequences.

The Labour Party however denied the accusation with the media office to the ex-presidential candidate alleging that it was a pretext to arrest Obi by the government for his frequent criticisms.

The group described the allegation against Obi as unsubstantiated, affirming that “the statement by Bayo Onanuga amounted to a reckless, careless, ruthlessly lawless rumour mongering which is overheating the public space unduly.”

HURIWA has asked President Tinubu to call his media adviser to order and caution him to stop “behaving and speaking like a fascist because only in fascism or totalitarianism is peaceful assembly by the citizens to agitate for good governance is criminalised.”

Democracy, the group said, thrives on hearing the positions of all sides and that any democracy that does not allow peaceful protest is sick.

HURIWA has also condemned what it called “unconstitutional and illegal arrest and arbitrary detention of Mr.Junaidu ‘Abusalma’ Abdullahi, a Kano-based TikToker, for mobilising mass protests over the country’s widespread hunger.”

The group said it completely backed Amnesty International in demanding the immediate release of Mr Abdullahi, accusing the Nigerian government of punishing him for exercising his fundamental rights.

“The Nigerian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release social media activist Junaidu Abdullahi (Abusalma), who was imprisoned in Kano for posting a viral TikTok video calling for a peaceful protest against widespread hunger across the country. #FreeAbusalma,” Amnesty International was quoted to have stated.

HURIWA said peaceful demonstrations are legitimate and legally recognised means of passing on a message from the citizens to the government on the way forward in the area of framing and implementation of economic, sociopolitical policies that would culminate in the enthronement of good governance and the strict adherence to the democratic and constitutional principles of transparency and accountability by government officials.

The rights group said it is “shameful that someone who claims to be speaking for a democratically constituted central government headed by Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a tested civil society leader known to have organised, funded and participated in several pro-democracy protests in the past, is now pontificating like a tyrant in his opposition of civil protests.

“It is equally shameful to even recall that Mr. Bayo Onanuga is a trained journalist and yet he is the person who is deploying incendiary and unprintable terms in denunciation and repudiation of peaceful protests. Such a crying shame!

“It is a fact that the cost of living crisis has become highly combustible and most Nigerians are approaching the points of death,” the group ssid in the statement on Sunday.

“Why is this government driving people to their early grave with poor economic policies but yet doesn’t want the dying people to protest? This is wickedness at an unprecedented rate. This is absolutely reprehensible and despicable,” the group said.

HURIWA warned that if the government does not want people to protest peacefully then it is “directly telling the hungry and dying population to do their worst which might result in a very unpredictable and unpleasant turn of events.

“The government should chase after the black goat now that it is still daytime,” the group advised.

Paris Olympics supremo Tony Estanguet said Sunday that the city was “ready” for the Games as he played down complaints from some residents and businesses about the impact of the event.

“We are ready as we head into the final phase,” Estanguet told a press conference in Paris, five days from the opening ceremony next Friday.

He added: “For as long as the closing ceremony hasn’t finished, we need to remain vigilant. But today we are exactly where we would have dreamed of being a few years ago.”

Finishing touches are being applied to the venues across the City of Light and thousands of athletes and officials are pouring in, while the weather has brightened up after months of rain.

In a further boost for organisers, the water quality of the river Seine — which is set to be used for outdoor Olympics swimming events — has also improved dramatically since the start of July.

“All the indicators for the Seine are positive at this stage,” Estanguet added.

The river is set to host the opening ceremony which will see 6,000-7,000 athletes sail down it on 85 barges and boats.

It will be the first time a Summer Olympics has opened outside the main athletics stadium, with up to 300,000 ticketed spectators set to watch from stands and on the river banks and another 200,000 expected to watch from the overlooking apartments.

Around 4,000 tickets are still available for the ceremony, Estanguet said.

“We’ve always tried to maintain as high a level of ambition as possible so that these Games make France shine,” Estanguet added.

‘Disruption’

The vast security operation for the opening ceremony is causing some friction, however, with large parts of central Paris along the banks of the river and around Olympic venues off-limits for most people.

Trade groups representing Paris shops, restaurants, bars and clubs complained on Friday that they were facing an “unprecedented slump in business and footfall”, blaming in part the “heavy security measures”.

“It was always a choice made in full conscience that the success of Paris 2024 would mean having the Games in the city,” Estanguet explained. “That was the completely unprecedented concept for Paris 2024.”

As well as the opening ceremony in the heart of the city, much of the sport is set to take place at temporary venues around Paris, with beach volleyball at the Eiffel Tower, archery at the Invalides and skateboarding at the Place de la Concorde.

“We can’t do it without some disruption. We can’t do it without some restrictions,” Estanguet said.

He thanked “those who have understood this because it’s really to honour our country in the most beautiful way.”

Around 45,000 members of the French security forces are set to be on duty on Friday when the Olympics kick off at 7:30pm (1730 GMT).

“Security was the number one priority for Paris 2024,” Estanguet said.

Cybersecurity is also a major concern, with a global IT outage last Friday caused by an update to CrowdStrike software leading to temporary disruption to accreditation system for the Games.

The International Olympic Committee has said it is bracing for disinformation attacks targeting the Paris Games following recent incidents blamed on Russia, in response to a near-ban on Russian athletes because of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

In another development, a major French Jewish group on Sunday slammed a hard-left MP for saying Israeli athletes were not welcome in Paris because of the war in Gaza.

Yonathan Arfi, head of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions in France (Crif), said on X that France Unbowed (LFI) lawmaker Thomas Portes was “putting a target on the backs of Israeli athletes”.

Portes had said at a rally in support of Palestinians that “Israeli sportspeople are not welcome at the Paris Olympic Games”.

Opposition to Israel’s actions in Gaza featured heavily in his party’s campaign for European elections last month.

Arfi said Israeli athletes were “already the most in danger at the Olympic Games”, recalling the 11 “murdered by Palestinian terrorists” at the 1972 Munich Games.

The territory’s Hamas-run health ministry said Sunday that almost 39,000 people had been killed in the fighting, which was sparked by the bloody October 7 attacks by Hamas.

The Appeal Court Lagos Division has dismissed the appeal of a Denmark national, Peter Nielsen, who was sentenced to death for killing his Nigerian wife, Zainab and daughter, Petra Nielsen.

The appellate court upheld the conviction of Nielsen by the trial court and dismissed his appeal for lack of merit.

When the case was called on Friday, Mr Adebayo Haroun, leading Jubril Kareem, announced his appearance for the respondent, while Mr A.D Taiwo Nsirim with Tochukwu Amaefule, appeared for the appellant.

Delivering the judgment, the appeal court held that the respondent (Lagos State) proved the offence of murder against the appellant beyond reasonable doubt.

It resolved the appeal in favour of the respondent and dismissed the appellant’s case.

The appellate court held, “The corroborative evidence of DNA also strengthened the circumstantial evidence against the appellant.

“There was no proof of breaking into the apartment as suggested by the appellant. 

“The missing exhibits as a result of the #EndSARS attack on the court do not affect the defence of the appellant as he had ample opportunity before the attack on the court. The findings of the forensic examiner corroborate the evidence of the children.”

Nielsen was found guilty and convicted of the murder of Zainab and Petra, by Justice Bolanle Okikiolu-Ighile,(retd.), of the Lagos State High Court, at the Tafawa Balewa Square.

Okikiolu-Ighile, in her judgment delivered on May 20, 2022, held that Nielsen smothered Zainab and Petra Nielsen to death.

She ruled, “He was the one who killed Zainab, and Petra Nielsen. Zainab had already predicted her death when she told their driver that this man would kill her. She told her stepfather, Chris Madaki, when she went to Abuja that this man would kill her.”

The judge also held that the evidence of the sixth prosecution witness (PW6)  that on April 5, 2018, at 4:10 am, she saw Peter Nielsen beating and hitting Zainab’s head on the floor collaborated with the oral evidence of Prof John Obafunwa (PW4).

The judge held, “It is the judgment of the court that you, Peter Nielsen, is found guilty of the murder of Zainab and Petra Nielsen on April 5, 2018.

“I hereby pronounce that you Peter Nielsen shall be hanged by the neck till death. May God have mercy on you,” she said.

Justice Okikiolu-Ighile found him guilty of counts one and two of murder preferred against him by Lagos state.

She held that the oral and documentary evidence before the court showed that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that Nielsen killed his wife and daughter.

“This is one of the cases of domestic violence. The DNA analysis of nail scraping brought out the assailant of Zainab.

“Zainab tried so much to defend herself. The evidence shows that Peter Nielsen killed his wife and daughter.

“There is evidence before the court that there is a fight between Peter Nielsen and his wife,” the judge held.

She held that Prosecution Witnesses (PW5 and PW6) testified that they heard Zainab calling Mimi (one of the girls living with the couple) for help and they heard Zainab telling Nielsen to check her phone but he kept hitting her head.

“The act of Nielsen shows that he suffocated his wife and daughter.

“Nielsen has always domestically abused his wife which was shown in the police extract from the Ikoyi Police Station.

“She didn’t know that her marriage to the convict was void abi nitio because Peter was already married in Denmark.

However, on the issue of the nightgown worn by Zainab on the night she died, the judge expunged the evidence.

She said that the pathologist who analysed the DNA on the nightgown was thoroughly examined and cross-examined by the defence.

The judge, however, said that on October 20, 2020, the High Court of Lagos was vandalised and burnt, during the #EndSARS protest which affected the nightgown, a jumpsuit, towel and pants worn by Zainab and Petra.

The judge, however, said that the contention of the convict was not for cross-examination but for them to take the items for DNA examination for their case.

“It is trite law that all documentary evidence must be scrutinised but the defence argued that the convict didn’t have the opportunity to produce his examination. 

“The defence made an application to expunge such items from the evidence.

“I have considered the application, exhibits, PWN (Zainab’s nightgown, Petra’s jumpsuit, towel and pants) is hereby expunged,” she said.

But dissatisfied with the judgment Nielsen approached the appeal court to challenge his conviction.

Nielsen was arraigned on June 13, 2018, on two counts of murder.

He pleaded not guilty, to the two counts of murder contrary to Section 223 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015, following which trial commenced.

The Lagos State Government accused Nielsen, now 57, of smothering Zainab and their daughter Petra Nielsen, to death at about 3:45 am, on April 5, 2018, at No. 4, Flat 17, Bella Vista Tower, Banana Island, Ikoyi.

When the trial commenced, the prosecution called nine witnesses and closed their case on  September 20, 2019.

The defence opened its case and also called nine witnesses with the

convict as the ninth witness.

Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote has dismissed the claims that his group of companies enjoy monopoly, insisting it is not true.

Dangote stated this on Saturday when he received the leadership of the House of Representatives led by the Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas and his deputy, Benjamin Kalu.

Africa’s richest man said the labelling of his group of companies as monopolistic is disheartening.

He said his group of companies had never stopped anyone from doing the same business that they are doing.

He said: “If you look at all our operations at Dangote (Group), we add value; we take local raw materials and turn them into products, and we sell.

“We have never consciously or unconsciously stopped anybody from doing the same business that we are doing.

“When we first came into cement production, it was only Lafarge that was operating here in Nigeria…Nobody ever called Lafarge a monopoly,” he said, adding that labelling his group of companies as monopolistic is disheartening.

“Monopoly is when you stop people, you block them through legal means. No, it is a level playing field whereby whatever Dangote was given in cement, for example, other people were given because some of them even got more than us,” he said.

Nigerian political economist, Pat Utomi, has debunked a statement by the presidency alleging his involvement in the planned August nationwide protest.

Recalls a presidential spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, on Saturday, accused supporters of the Labour Party presidential candidate in the last election, Peter Obi, of organizing the ‘End Bad Government’ protest scheduled for August 1st to 10th.

According to Bayo, some X users, including one “FS Yusuf, a supporter of Peter Obi, Professor Pat Utomi, a Labour Party chieftain and another X user with the handle, Peter Obi’s First Son” are behind the planned protest.

Reacting, Utomi in a post on his official X handle, said he has nothing against the planned nationwide demonstration.

Utomi stated that his involvement in any protest would be made public and not wait to be called out by Onanuga.

He said, “Let it be clear that I have nothing against protests. It is a legitimate instrument of democracy for raising the voice of citizens.

“I have participated in many in my time. From my undergraduate days at UNN to marching with concerned professionals following the June 12 election annulment.

“So if I were part of whatever is being planned for August, I would wear it as a badge of honor and not wait to be called out by Bayo Onanuga.”

A social and political critic, Aisha Yesufu has said that Nigeria kills its own.

While appealing that the Dangote Refinery not be allowed to fail, Yesufu urged all hands to be on deck to ensure it succeeds.

Her statement comes after the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority said the Dangote refinery has not been licensed to begin operations in the country.

Farouk Ahmed, the Chief Executive Officer of NMDPRA, had made the claims during a chat with journalists at the State House, Abuja on Thursday.

Ahmed revealed that the refinery was still in the pre-commissioning stage and had not been licensed yet, noting that there were concerns about the quality of petroleum products produced by the Dangote refinery.

He had alleged that the quality of product churned out from the new refinery was inferior to imported commodities.

He said, “So, in terms of quality, currently, the AGO quality in terms of sulfur is the lowest as far as a West African requirement of 50 ppm”, he said.

However, reacting to a call by an X user @Oluseun Onigbinde for the regulator to be sanctioned for the claim against the Dangote refinery, Yesufu said Nigerians should speak up.

The social critic said that Dangote now feels what Nigerian business people with no government connections feel and go through always.

She said: “Nigeria kills its own. I truly agree with you, the refinery should not fail. All hands should be on deck to ensure it succeeds.

“Alhaji Dangote @AlikoDangote now feels what Nigerian business people with no government connections have always felt and gone through.

How dreams are stolen and destroyed. Just yesterday LandMark got its share and there was silence from the business community.

“When you speak up when others are affected, it is to ensure that a stop is put to such injustice so it never gets to you.”

The Chairman, Senate Committee on Privatisation, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu has backed calls for part-time legislature at both federal and state levels.

Senator Kalu, who represents APC from the Abia North senatorial district said this would help the nation cut costs and enhance the citizenry’s trust in the polity.

The former Abia Governor said this during an interview over the weekend.

On calls for a part-time legislature, Senator Kalu said, “I think it will be a very good idea if my colleagues and other members of the Houses of Assembly will agree that we can sit for three months and do constitutional amendment first.

“So we can sit four times a year and if there’s any emergency, there will be emergency sitting. We can come to do a presidential bid on that basis and go back instead of sitting on a full-time basis.

“Not only the Senate and the House of Representatives but all the legislative houses in Nigeria will be part-time.”

Senator Kalu maintained that this would be part of austerity measures to reduce the cost of governance, arguing that regional government is another viable alternative.

“If we’re going for a regional government, it also means that the ministers, the legislators, will be the same. I’ve been tinkering with the idea of how we can save money to run Nigeria because the country needs money.

“I will encourage the President, the National Assembly to make these kinds of laws. This will help him, and this will help the system, and this will help everybody,” he said.

The ex-governor explained that contrary to misconceptions among Nigerians, senators are not paid enough.

“But I want Nigerians and my colleagues to do a quick constitutional amendment so we can go and be a part-time sitting Senate and part-time sitting House of Representatives and other 36 state houses of assembly in Nigeria.

“That will bring trust and bring relief to the Nigerian people,” the ex-governor said.

The Leader of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele has disclosed that the policies of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration are not friendly and fueling more economic hardship.

Primate Ayodele stated that the current government would have been the best if they listened to advice but the policies formulated so far have not been helpful to the country and her citizens.

In a statement signed by his Media Aide, Oluwatosin Osho, Ayodele said the decisions of Tinubu’s government have further destroyed the country and will likely bring more hardship and pain.

’Tinubu’s government would have been the best if they listened to advice. The government is formulating policies that have bad intentions because they are not friendly. Sending money and rice to people will further destroy the economy.

“The tax policy is not helping the country at all. There is so much wrong in the government that is yet to be explained, if care isn’t taken, this is how they will destroy the country and people will be facing more hardship and pains.’’

He advised the President to avoid being deceived by those celebrating his government because citizens are yet to experience a better economic situation where they can afford basic needs.

Ayodele said the country has resources that can help curb hardship but they are not being put to use. He urged the president to adjust his policies to become friendly.

‘’Things are not palatable; Tinubu shouldn’t be deceived by those celebrating his government. The economic policy should be adjusted and let them put things in place because people are not happy. We have resources that can help curb economic hardship but we are not using them.’’

Furthermore, Primate Ayodele mentioned that his prophecies are not to abuse the government or speak against them but to put them to work and speak truth to power.

‘’My prophecy isn’t to abuse the government or create panic but to put the government on their toes and whether they are fake or not, time will tell. The government needs to do something urgently, Tinubu should not be deceived. Economic hardship causes corruption and encourages insecurity.’’

Enugu State Governor, Governor Peter Mbah, has accused a Finland-based Biafra agitator, Simon Ekpa, of murdering and terrorising residents of Nigeria’s South-East.

Ekpa, a self-proclaimed Prime Minister of the IPOB, has been allegedly linked to some deadly attacks and enforcement of illegal sit-at-home orders in the region.

The governor who received members of the House of Representatives Committee on National Security and Intelligence in Enugu, accused the Biafra agitator of being a “scammer” who has been “feeding fat” on the suffering of Igbos.

“It is surprising that the Finnish government allows this man to reside peacefully in their country and then perpetrate terrorism in Nigeria,” Mbah said.

“And I think this is something your committee may have to wade into and see how this guy can be repatriated and then be brought to justice.

“Through his (Ekpa) statements and his actions, a lot of people have died and he continues in that trajectory. So, this is a tragedy that we must all work as a country to end. He doesn’t represent the Igbo interest.”

According to the governor, his administration has ended the illegal sit-at-home situation in the state and will remain determined to ensure the safety of all residents.

He also called on young people in the South-east not to yield to Mr Ekpa’s antics and vowed that the state government would not be intimidated by the agitators’ threats.

“As you may also have noticed recently, they have continued to make attempts, particularly, that megalomaniac (Ekpa), who ironically resides with his family peacefully in Finland, a country where the rule of law reigns, but he encourages anarchy here and goad some of our youths to their self-destruction.

“This is also a business for him (Ekpa), pretending to be fighting for Igbo’s interest, but does not know anything about the Igbo or have their interest at heart,” he stated.

The President of the Dangote Group has called on the House of Representatives to investigate the quality of diesel and petrol at filling stations.

Dangote made the call on Saturday when he received the leadership of the House led by Speaker Tajudeen Abbas and his deputy Benjamin Kalu.

To carry out the investigation, he urged the House to set up a committee to test products at various filling stations across the country.

Decrying the damage being done to vehicles and engines by substandard products, also called on the House to investigate the quality of laboratories being used to test imported products and compare that with the one at the Dangote Refinery.

He informed the lawmakers, who had earlier toured the refinery, that he was also open to independent testing of his refinery’s products as that would only attest to their quality while exposing the problem with some of the products being sold by other players in the sector.

The management of Dangote Refinery has complained in recent months about what they say is an attempt by international oil companies (IOCs) to sabotage the refinery. It has also decried what it says is the importation of substandard products.

In turn, the refinery has been accused of essentially pushing for a monopoly.

Dangote, however, dismissed the monopoly claims insisting that the Dangote Group did not receive any special incentive when the refinery was being built.

He also said there was no effort to prevent other players from operating.