Amended
Lagos assembly begins audit of 57 councils
The Lagos House of Assembly has commenced an audit exercise for all the 20 Local Government Areas (LGAs) and the 37 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) in the state. The Chairman, House Committee on Public Account (Local), Mojeed Fatai, made this known in a statement issued in Lagos on Saturday. Fatai said that the committee was expected to submit its report to the House after the weeklong exercise. The lawmaker explained that the exercise was aimed at checking probity and accountability in the local government administration as provided in the 1999 (Amended) Constitution. He said: “The essence of the exercise is to allow the committee go through the 2019 report of the Auditor General without fear or favour to any local council indicted by the officials of the Auditor General. “Also, t...
JUSUN strike: How we decongested our cells – Police
The police in Lagos say they have devised means to decongest their cells amidst the prolonged strike by the Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN). The police spokesperson in the state, Muyiwa Adejobi, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday that the decongestion was carried out in collaboration with the office of the Chief Judge and Attorney-General of the state. NAN reports that JUSUN, on April 6, directed its members to shut down all courts across the country, demanding the implementation of the law granting financial autonomy to the Judiciary. “The command had been managing the situation in collaboration with the office of the state chief judge,” Mr Adejobi said. He, however, did not give the number of suspects that had been granted bail. “We work with the office of the CJ an...
CSOs threaten to occupy National Assembly over Electoral Act amendment
A coalition of Civil Society Organisations has threatened to occupy the National Assembly after Ramadan fasting, if the lawmakers fail to pass the Bill for an amendment of the Electoral Act. The CSOs which include Center For Liberty, Concerned Nigeria, The Electoral Hub, and Raising New Voices Initiative, issued the threat at a joint news conference on Thursday in Abuja. The Co-convener, Centre for Liberty, Mr Dare Ariyo-Atoye, who read the joint speech of the CSOs, said they were worried that the 9th National Assembly was yet to pass the bill. According to him the passage of the bill could have given them lasting legacies and written their names in gold. Ariyo-Atoye said that in the last 15 months, CSOs had consistently engaged lawmakers and appealed to the NASS to make the passage of a n...
Nigerian government tenders foreign currency in ‘money laundering’ trial of ex-NAF chief
The Federal Government, on Thursday, tendered before the Federal High Court, Abuja, different currencies of dollars stashed in three bags as evidence in the money laundering charge against Air Commodore Umar Mohammed (rtd.) Counsel to the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Magaji Labaran, tendered the bags of money before Justice Inyang Ekwo while leading the only witness in the case, Stephen Olatubosun, in evidence. Newsmen report that Mohammed (1st defendant) and his company, Easy Jet Integrated Service Ltd (2nd defendant), are being charged with three counts bordering on money laundering, illegal possession of firearms and possession of classified documents without lawful authority. The retired air officer and his company are alleged to have received the sum of one million, thirt...
National Assembly to make smart card reader compulsory in future elections
File Photo The National Assembly plans to make the use of Smart Card Reader compulsory in future elections in Nigeria, a lawmaker has said. The Chairperson of the House Committee on Electoral Matters, Aishatu Dukku, said this at a Joint Public Hearing on “The Bill for an Act to repeal the Electoral Act 2010 (As Amended) and enact the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Act, 2020″, on Wednesday in Abuja. The event was organised by the National Assembly Joint Committee on INEC and Electoral Matters. Ms Dukku said the amendment will affect about 300 clauses in the Act. ” In Section 49 of the Electoral Act 2010 under Use of Ballot Paper, Subsection (1) and (2) are to be amended to read: “A person intending to vote in an election shall present himself with his voter’s card to a pre...
PDP reconstitutes Kaduna caretaker committee
File Photo The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), acting on behalf of the National Executive Committee (NEC), has reconstituted the Kaduna State Caretaker Committee. The party, in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan, in Abuja on Friday, said that committee would be chaired by Bashir Dutsen, while the Secretary would be Abdullahi Kano. Other members of the committee according to him, are Ashiru Abdullahi, Dr Abdu Usman, Ahmed Zaria, Lawal Balarabe, Jerry Ishaya, Imam Lawal Adamu, Edward Masha ,John Ayuba and Maria Dogo “The action of the NWC, which is pursuant to Section 29(2)(b) and 31(2) (e) of the PDP Constitution (2017 as Amended), is consequent upon the expiration of the tenure of the outgoing state caretaker...
Akwa Ibom speaker hails President over executive order on financial autonomy
Speaker of Akwa Ibom House of Assembly, Mr Aniekan Bassey, has commended President Muhammadu Buhari, for signing into law Executive Order No. 10, of 2020. The law is for the implementation of Financial Autonomy of State Legislature and State Judiciary. Bassey made the commendation on Sunday in Uyo while fielding questions from newsmen on the legislative autonomy. He, however, warned his colleagues not to take the autonomy as an avenue for legislative “rascality”, but as a means of cooperation among the three arms of government. He described granting financial autonomy to the legislative and judicial arms of government across the country as a means of ensuring smooth conduct of government businesses within the three arms of government. “Financial autonomy granted to the two arms of governme...
