The Deputy Controller of the Nigerian Correctional Service, NCoS, Michael Anugwa, has denied his suspension by the service.

Anugwa is the officer in charge of the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Kirikiri, Lagos State, where popular crossdresser Bobrisky served his jail term.

DAILY POST reports that Bobrisky was sentenced to a four-month jail term in April 2024 over misuse of the naira.

Popular social media critic, VeryDarkMan, leaked an audio recording of Bobrisky narrating how he bribed the officials with N15 million to spend his jail term in a private apartment close to the Lagos correctional centre.

Bobrisky further stated that singer Falz contacted him about obtaining a presidential pardon for him through his father, human rights lawyer Femi Falana, for N10 million.

Following the controversy generated by the audio, the Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, during a press briefing in Abuja on Friday, announced the suspension of Anugwa alongside Sikiru Adekunle, Deputy Controller of Corrections in charge of the Maximum-Security Custodial Centre.

However, addressing members of the House of Representatives committee investigating the bribery allegation against the anti-graft agency and the NCoS on Monday, September 30, 2024, Anugwa stated that his suspension was a social media report.

“I wasn’t served a letter,” he said.

A former Vice President and the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the 2023 general elections, Atiku Abubakar, has written to the National Assembly, requesting an amendment to the Constitution to allow for a six-year single term for the President and state governors.

In a memorandum to the Senate Committee on Constitutional Review, Atiku also proposed that the presidency be rotated between the North and South.

It is noteworthy that during Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s presidency, he advocated for a six-year single term for the presidential seat.

Following the 2023 general elections, Atiku has continued to support this tenure proposal.

He stated, “The office of the President shall rotate among the six geopolitical zones of the federation on a single term of six years, flowing between the North and South on the single term of six years respectively.”

Atiku urged the National Assembly to “amend Section 135(2) to read: ‘Subject to the provisions of subsection (1), the President shall vacate his office at the expiration of a period of six years.’”

Additionally, he proposed the “substitution of an aspirant” in Section 285(14)(a) with “a voter.”

The former Vice President also suggested that the minimum educational qualification for a person to run for election should be the Ordinary National Diploma instead of the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination. He proposed an amendment to Section 65(2)(a) to read: “He has been educated up to at least Ordinary National Diploma in any recognised academic institution.”

Furthermore, he recommended the insertion of a paragraph in Section 65(2)(a)(i) to read: “Evidence of certificates of all educational qualifications of a candidate shall be submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission or an affidavit by the candidate in the event of loss of his/her educational certificates, qualifications obtained, and dates, stating the schools attended.”

Atiku also advocated for political parties to have more power in the candidate selection process. He proposed an “amendment to Section 65(2)(b) to read: ‘He is a member of a political party whose name is in the register to be made available by his political party to the Independent National Electoral Commission 30 days before the conduct of the political party’s primary and he is sponsored by that party.’”

Ahead of the planned nationwide protests on Tuesday, October 1, pan-Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere, has said the planned demonstration is within the right of Nigerians.

DAILY POST reports that some Nigerian youths are planning to stage a nationwide protest on the day the nation is celebrating its Independence Day anniversary.

The protest is birthed by the growing hunger and other economic hardship bedevilling the citizens.

Speaking on the matter, the Leader of Afenifere, Chief Reuben Famuyide Fasoranti, said in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Jare Ajayi, that “it is the right of the people to do so.”

The organisation, however, pleaded that such should be done peacefully without looting or causing any damage to property and without harming anybody.

The statement called on the federal government under President Ahmed Bola Tinubu to do more in the areas of security, agriculture, education, and the economy and increase its efforts at ensuring that available infrastructure functions while also working on providing more.

“State governments are also urged to do more in infrastructure and service delivery, particularly in those areas where there is no constitutional inhibition for them.

“The local governments too should be alive to their responsibilities now that they are having fiscal autonomy so that people’s welfare can improve tremendously,” he said.

According to the statement, Afenifere also commended the enduring spirit of Nigerians, expressing optimism that things should take a better shape soonest.

The Afenifere leader opined that although the country is going through a challenging moment, there is a need to acknowledge the modest progress made since independence.

The newly-inaugurated Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Kudirat Motomori Olatokunbo Kekere-Ekun, vowed on Monday in Abuja that obedience to court orders will not be negotiable under her watch.

She said that no individual or institution, irrespective of their standing, would be permitted to treat judgments of the court with levity or disregard.

The CJN spoke on the occasion of the commencement of the 2024/2025 legal year and the inauguration of the 87 new Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) held at the Supreme Court.

Justice Kekere-Ekun stated that the judiciary stands resolute in ensuring that the sanctity of legal decisions is upheld in line with the rule of law.

To achieve this new narrative, the CJN canvassed that all hands must be on deck in fostering an unwavering commitment to the full enthronement of the rule of law.

“Disobedience to court orders or non-compliance with judicial directives is a direct affront to democracy and an invitation to anarchy.

“As such, it is critical that we respect and observe all the features of an enduring democracy, for in doing so, we maintain the delicate balance that sustains our society.”

“Let us, therefore, work together collectively and tirelessly to ensure that Nigeria continues to abide by the rule of law, upholds the best democratic practices, and remains vigilant in the protection of citizens’ rights.

“The rights of every Nigerian must be valiantly safeguarded against oppression and impunity, utilizing the full array of legal instruments at our disposal.”

Maintaining that a new dawn and a new era in the Nigerian judiciary has come with her appointment, Justice Kekere-Ekun assured Nigerians of her commitment to work diligently to improve public perception of the judiciary.

According to her, “Over the years, various factors have contributed to the negative image of the judiciary. However, we are determined to change the narrative and make the judiciary a source of pride for all Nigerians.”

“When the legal compass of a nation falters, everything suffers, including public and international perception.”

“The attitude of some of us in the justice sector is sometimes less than salutary, and that has contributed to the current image deficit of the country’s legal system.”

The CJN condemned the forum shopping by some lawyers, which she claimed has led to the emergence of conflicting orders by courts of coordinated jurisdiction.

To address this ugly trend, the CJN vowed that there will be consequences for any act of indiscretion that could bring the judiciary to disrepute.

The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, has sent a message of hope to Nigerians ahead of the country’s 64th Independence Day.

Nigeria is observing a public holiday Today Tuesday, October 1, commemorating the country’s Independence from British rule. 

In his message celebrating Nigeria’s 2024 independence, Ajaero urged Nigerians not to give up their hope for a better Nigeria.

However, the NLC president called upon citizens to hold their government accountable at all levels.

He praised Nigerian workers’ determination and sacrifices while addressing the ongoing issues of betrayal and corruption within the nation’s political framework.

He noted that for many years, Nigerians, especially those in the working class, have suffered from unfulfilled promises and exploitation.

Ajaero stressed that the marginalized citizens, who continue to endure the consequences of these broken commitments and corruption, should maintain their hope for a better future in their country.

Furthermore, the NLC President advocated for change, encouraging Nigerians to engage in lawful protests against injustices and the undermining of democratic values. He asserted that only through persistent advocacy can the political elite be motivated to prioritize the welfare of the nation.

The NLC President’s statement reads:

“THE BEGINNING OF A NEW ERA

“Being the text of the goodwill mesage by the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Joe Ajaero on the occasion of Nigeria’s 64th independence anniversary.

“On the ocassion of Nigeria’s 64th independence anniversary celebration, we congratulate all Nigerians, especially workers for their sacrifice, resilience or robust spirit in spite of serial acts of betrayal of monumental proportions by the political leadership at various times and levels.

“We urge the downtrodden Nigerians who bear the marks or burden of these broken promises, exploitation and corruption to not give up hope on their country.

“In light of the fact that their sacrifice has been taken for granted for so long, they should learn to protest within the limits of the law against injustices and subversion of democratic norms, culture and values by the dominant political elite.

“It should be apparent to the citizenry that the leading political elite are not ready to do the right thing except they are compelled to do so.

“In the same vein, we would like to sound a note of caution to our political elite whose preoccupation is to circumvent the principles and practice of popular democracy that undermining of our democratic institutions can no longer be business as usual.

“The consequences of their acts of commission or omission brought us this far. It is time to turn a new leaf. Let it be the beginning of a new low.”

Nigerian-born British heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua has been banned from boxing for at least 28 days.

This is coming after Anthony Joshua was defeated by a lowly rated Briton heavyweight boxer, Daniel Dubois on September 21.

Recall that on the said date, Dubois knocked out Anthony Joshua in the fifth round after the 27-year-old Briton had knocked down AJ four times in front of a massive crowd of 96,000 at Wembley Stadium in London.

As a result of this victory, Dubois successfully defended his IBF heavyweight title, while Anthony Joshua’s future was subjected to uncertainty.

By standard procedure, the British Boxing Board of Control has enforced a 28-day suspension for Joshua, preventing him from entering the ring in the said period.

This action is in line with the regulations of the Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports, which require fighters to be issued medical suspensions following knockouts (KO) and technical knockouts (TKO).

This means that Anthony Joshua can be permitted to box from November 2024 as he had insisted that he is not thinking of retiring from the sport despite suffering four defeats in the last three years.

After his humiliating defeat to Dubois, Anthony Joshua said, “You’re probably asking if I still want to consider fighting. Of course, I want to continue fighting.

“We took a shot at success and we came up short. What does that mean now? That we’re going to run away? We’re going to live to fight another day. And that’s what I am – I’m a warrior. Always walk with your head high. We rolled the dice for the third time. There have been 13 world title fights; not every one of them has been successful, but everyone has been fun.

“There were a few mistakes in there but that’s the name of the game. Fine margins will cost you at the top level. Also, before I finish, we have to give credit to our opponent, Daniel. When I sign up to fight opponents, I don’t really like them in my head any more. But now that it’s done, I take my hat off to him and say well done.”

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) says the Air Component of Operation Whirl Punch (OPWP) has destroyed the terrorist logistics base at Yadi Forest in Giwa Local Government Area of Kaduna state.

This is contained in a statement by the deputy director, public relations and information, NAF, Group Capt. Kabiru Ali, on Monday in Abuja.

Mr Ali said the operation was executed following credible intelligence indicating huge presence of terrorists and their weapons cache in the Yadi Forest.

He said the intensive intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance confirmed the consistent presence of terrorists and their motorcycles at the location.

According to him, additional intelligence revealed that the logistics base belonged to the notorious terrorist kingpin, Kadade Gurgu, a close ally of Dogo Gide.

He added that available intelligence at the disposal of the NAF revealed that Kadage Gurgu had been providing shelter for notorious terrorist kingpins following the aggressive military operations in Sokoto and Zamfara States.

Mr Ali said the air component dispatched an aircraft, supported by an Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) platform, to attack the target.

According to him, the target area initially appeared uninhabited but as the aircraft approached, some of the terrorists were seen emerging from under the shrubbery and running away from the area.

“Subsequently, the targets were engaged, recording successful hits on the logistics facility, which was engulfed in flames with thick black smoke seen.

“Reports from independent sources, including local informants around the general area, later confirmed that the logistics base was totally destroyed and scores of terrorists were killed as a result of the attack.

“The NAF, in collaboration with surface forces, will continue to dominate the battlespace through extensive situational awareness, constant patrols, and targeted interdiction of bandits’ safe havens within its area of responsibility and neighbouring states.

“This aims to decimate and flush out terrorism and criminal activities within the North-West and North-Central region,” he said.

(NAN)

President Bola Tinubu, on Monday, 30th September, swore in Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun as the substantive Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN).

Kekere-Ekun was sworn in as the 23rd CJN at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

It would be recalled that the Nigerian Senate last Wednesday, confirmed Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, the highest-ranking justice of the Supreme Court, as the new Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN).

She received confirmation following a rigorous two-hour question-and-answer session with senators.

She had been serving in this role on an acting basis since August, when Justice Olukayode Ariwoola retired from the post.

Her confirmation follows a request to the lawmakers by President Tinubu.

Speaking during her screening, Kekere-Ekun, vowed to ensure that petitions are dealt with speedily to foster integrity within the judiciary.

Justice Kekere-Ekun, a 1974 Queens College Alumnus and a Life Bencher, pledged to do her best and uphold the integrity of the judiciary, the rule of law and defend the Constitution of Nigeria.

She also advocated for better legislation to boost the country’s autonomy, while highlighting the need to limit the volume of cases that terminates at the Supreme Court.

She specifically recommended that all cases related to elections conclude at the Court of Appeal.

She believed that improving behaviour during elections is crucial to eliminate the necessity of constantly going to court.

Manchester United manager, Erik ten Hag stated that his team must learn from the humiliating 3-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday and focus on self-improvement.

A third defeat in United’s first six league games of the new campaign has left the Red Devils down in 11th and time is surely running out for the Dutchman.

“But we definitely have to learn and make things better. We have to get better in the pressing, and better on the ball because there were situations where we could have played better to find the spare man or play over the press to keep the ball and play from there,” Ten Hag said in the post-match interview.

“We didn’t do that and that’s disappointing,”  he said.

“I don’t want to talk about progress after such a defeat. We have to deal with this, show resilience, but don’t talk about in this moment today about progress.

“We just focus now on Porto. We will close this game down, deal with it, and then we move on.

Tottenham showed they were the better side as they made a flying start when Brennan Johnson tapped in from Micky Van de Ven’s storming run after three minutes.

Ten Hag speaking on his side’s lacklustre performance in every aspect of the game said, “It’s a bad start to the game. Tottenham were dominant, we couldn’t get the right press and we also made many mistakes in possession.

“But we could have come back into the game and I think the red card changed the game.”

On the first half performance: “It was no good. It’s not possible for a player from the back can dribble through the whole team and then bring a cross in.

“The press was no good in the first half, but we concede some counter-attacks after we countered and we had some bad decision-making. We had a lot of space.”

“We then lost a little bit of confidence and we were also poor in possession. We can do better there and all the players know this.”

When asked about the referee’s decision to award a red card for Bruno Fernades’cynical tackle, the United boss said

“I don’t think it’s a red card.”

United face daunting trips to Porto in the Europa League and Aston Villa on league duty next weekend before a two-week international break that clubs often use to implement managerial change.

The travelling support taunted Ten Hag with chants of “You’re getting sacked in the morning” during the second half.

United’s new football leadership team handed the Dutchman an extension to his contract less than three months ago.

How quickly they backtrack on that decision now appears a matter of time.

The Federal Government of Nigeria says it is not discussing debt forgiveness with China, noting that Beijing is willing to lend Nigeria more money and invest more in the economy of Nigeria.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, stated this on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics programme.

Nigeria has been making proposals for debt forgiveness at the United Nations General Assembly for some years now but this hasn’t been achieved.

At the recent 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, President Bola Tinubu, represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, pushed for reform of the international financial system to include “comprehensive debt relief measures, to enable sustainable financing for development”.

Asked whether any of the multilateral or bilateral loans obtained by Nigeria was cancelled at this year’s UNGA, the foreign minister said, “Under President Obasanjo, we benefited from debt forgiveness. It’s a process; it’s not just an event, it takes time but you have to be there, you have to be present, and then these things happen, they don’t happen overnight.

“The effect that we felt the last time we had debt forgiveness did not just happen with one UNGA.”

According to the Debt Management Office (DMO), Nigeria’s external debt stock as of March 2024 was N56trn ($42bn) while domestic debt stood at N65trn ($46.29).

China is one of the lenders of Nigeria. Asked whether Nigeria is in talks with Beijing for debt relief considering that Tinubu met with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping of late, the minister said that was not the case.

Tuggar said, “No, that is not what we are discussing with China. And when it comes to the issue of debt, look at the debt-to-GDP ratio of Nigeria, we are not even among the critically indebted nations.

“When you talk about the debt of a developing country, Nigeria is not in that sort of precarious situation. As a matter of fact, China is prepared to lend more, China is prepared to invest more in Nigeria in terms of infrastructure development and other things.”

The minister also said Nigeria would join BRICS+, a nine-member economic and political force, at the right time.

As of December 2004, Nigeria owed a total of $36bn (which amounted to N4.8trn at the exchange rate of N134/$1). $30.84bn of the country’s external debt at the time was borrowed from the Paris Club, alongside other bilateral and multilateral facilities.

The Paris Club is an official group of money lenders formed in 1956 with headquarters in Paris, France. Nigeria borrowed funds for developmental projects from members of the group such as the UK, US, France, Germany, Japan, Netherlands and eight other countries. Some of the funds borrowed were long before Obasanjo’s administration.

President Olusegun Obasanjo’s debt relief campaign in 2005 saw the Paris Club grant Nigeria a debt relief of $18bn out of the $30.8bn outstanding. As an exit strategy, Nigeria paid Paris Club creditors $12.4bn which represented $6.3bn regularisation of arrears and a balance of $6.1bn.