Proceedings
Donald Trump allies in Congress to challenge his loss to Joe Biden
A band of President Donald Trump’s Republican allies planned a last-ditch effort on Wednesday to undo his election loss to Democrat Joe Biden, a bid almost certain to fail that comes on the same day their party is poised to lose its majority in the Senate. The Republican-led Senate and Democratic-controlled House of Representatives were due to meet to formally certify Biden’s victory in the Nov. 3 election in proceedings that could stretch past midnight. In a joint session of Congress, Trump’s allies plan to challenge the results from a handful of states won by Biden. Thousands of pro-Trump protesters converged on Washington ahead of the session at his urging. Some clashed with police overnight. Biden won the election by a 306-232 count in the state-by-state Electoral College and by a marg...
Police ordered to arraign suspect detained for one year
The Independent Investigative Panel probing police brutality in Abuja, on Thursday, gave the police a six-day ultimatum to arraign a suspect, Raphael Toona, who has been in detention for about one year. The Chairman of the panel, Justice Suleiman Galadima (retd.), ordered that Toona should be arraigned on or before December 23. Justice Galadima gave the order following an application by Toona’s lawyer, N. T. Utasha, urging the panel to order the police to either release the suspect or arraign him in court. “The first complaint (Toona) should be taken to Benue State to be arraigned before a court of competent jurisdiction on or before December 23, 2020 where his bail should be considered, considering the fact that he has been in detention for more than a year,” Justice Galadima ordered. Too...
Lekki shooting: CNN objects to Lagos panel’s invitation
Cable News Network, Inc. (CNN) has protested against its invitation by the Lagos Judicial Panel of Inquiry to appear before it on Saturday, December 12, 2020, (today), over the alleged killing of peaceful #EndSARS protesters by soldiers in October. The news outfit said the panel does not have the jurisdiction to summon its staff to testify before it because they are not in Nigeria. The panel had invited CNN following its two-part report on the Lekki shooting incident. The report had claimed that Nigerian soldiers shot at and killed peaceful #EndSARS protesters on the night of October 20 at the Lekki toll gate, Lagos. According, the objection file by CNN’s Lawyers, Messrs. Olumide Babalola LP and dated 4th December 2020 at the Tribunal on December 9, 2020, stated that the panel is bereft of...
Quique Setien: Barcelona yet to inform me of sack
Former Barcelona coach Quique Setien claims the Catalans have not compensated him for his early dismissal, or even called to inform of his contract termination three months on. Setien replaced Ernesto Valverde in January signing on a contract until 2022 as the club hoped to reconnect with their philosophy of exciting, possession-based football. However, Setien’s time at Barça was marred with problems, from an apparently strained relationship with talisman Lionel Messi that reportedly spread to other members of the squad, to underwhelming results and performances on the pitch. The culmination of numerous issues at the club was the 8-2 humiliation by Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-final. The embarrassing result contributed to Messi’s desire to leave and effectively spelled the...
Court admits Senator Ndume to bail citing ‘good behaviour’
Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja, yesterday, on grounds of “good behaviour”, admitted Senator Ali Ndume to bail over his suretyship for former Chairman of the defunct Pension Reform Task Team, Mr. Abdulrasheed Maina. Maina, who is standing trial on a 12-count charge of alleged N2 billion money laundering, was assumed to have jumped bail following his failure to appear in court for his trial on four different adjournments. It would be recalled that Justice Abang had admitted Maina to bail in the sum of N500 million and a surety in like sum, who must be a serving Senator and must attend every court proceedings relating to the matter. Ndume had stood surety for Maina in his alleged money laundering trial and was consistent in attending Maina’s trial until sometime in Septem...
Police dismiss 10 officers for misconduct in Lagos
The Police Command in Lagos yesterday announced the dismissal of 10 police officers for various offences. The command’s spokesperson, SP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, in a statement, said this was in a bid to promote discipline and core values of policing in the state. Adejobi said the command tried 81 personnel for various criminal and disciplinary offences that were committed between October 2019 and October 2020. The offences, he said, ranged from murder, discreditable conducts, excessive use of power, corrupt practices and negligence. According to him, the command dismissed 10 personnel, reduced the ranks of 18 officers and issued warning letters to others. “Others were awarded extra fatigue, while 16 of the men were discharged and acquitted for want of evidence. “The personnel tried in the order...
Lionel Messi’s father already in talks with PSG to negotiate in January – report
According to a report published by ESPN, Lionel Messi’s father and agent Jorge Messi is already in talks with PSG over a negotiation that can take place in January. Messi wanted to leave the club in the summer, but a move to Manchester City fell through after extensive legal proceedings regarding his contract and if he could leave the club for free. Now former President Josep Bartomeu blocked the transfer himself, saying that he could leave for no less than his €700 million – the release clause mentioned in the contract. The Argentine came out after that to speak about the saga, explaining his unhappiness, and how the only reason he did not leave was because he did not want to drag the club he loved into a legal battle. However, he can leave Barça in June, next year on a free transfer, and...
EU: Brexit trade talks still face ‘too many difficulties’
With a deadline looming ever more menacingly, the European Union’s chief negotiator on the post-Brexit trade deal with Britain on Wednesday publicly blamed London for a lack of progress in the two sides’ belated attempt to reach an even rudimentary agreement. “At this stage, there are still too many difficulties remaining on important topics,” Michel Barnier said on his way to brief the envoys of the 27 member states. In a Twitter comment later, Barnier said, “Despite EU efforts to find solutions, very serious divergences remain.” Britain’s chief negotiator, David Frost, said he agreed that “wide divergences remain on some key issues.” “We continue to work to find solutions that fully respect U.K. sovereignty,” Frost tweeted. Barnier’s comments threw a dampener on optimistic reports that p...
Zamfara APC sets up seven-man disciplinary committee
The Zamfara chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has set up a seven-man disciplinary committee to look into activities of party members working against the resolution of the APC National Executive Committee (NEC). The state party’s Chairman, Alhaji Lawal Liman, made this known in a statement in Gusau on Tuesday. Liman said that the committee was set up in line with the directive by the National Secretariat of the party. He said the committee, headed by the Zonal Vice Chairman, Zamfara North, Alhaji Abdullahi Ja’o, has Mr Bello Umar as Secretary. “Other members are Ahmad Maradun, Nasiru Magayaki, Babangida Abdullahi, Aliyu Kagara and Umar Abbas. “The committee has 19 days to submit its report as directed by the National Secretariat of the party,” he said. Liman said that Zamfara A...
Court acquits man over prosecution’s inability to prove case of rape
Justice Oluwatoyin Ipaye of an Igbosere High Court in Lagos on Friday discharged and acquitted one Niyi Oyelami charged with defiling a nine-year-old daughter of his neighbour. Oyelami was charged by Lagos State on a count charge of defiling a minor, to which he pleaded not guilty. Delivering the judgment during a virtual court proceedings, the judge found the defendant not guilty as charged. Justice Ipaye said that the testimony of the two prosecution witnesses failed to establish that the accused actually committed the offence. She said the prosecution failed to prove the case beyond every reasonable doubt. Ipaye said that the failure of the prosecution to provide eyewitnesses even the victim to give evidence as whether it was the defendant who actually ruptured the hymen was fatal to it...
Court restrains Nigerian government from extraditing Senator Kashamu
Associated Press Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Thursday, restrained the Federal Government from extraditing Buruji Kashamu, a Nigerian senator, to the U.S. to answer drug charges. Delivering judgement, Justice Abang, held that neither the federal government nor any of its agents could validly initiate extradition proceedings against Kashamu in view of subsisting judgements and orders in favour of the plaintiff, which had remained unchallenged. Abang particularly noted that the judgement delivered by the Federal High Court, Lagos on January 6, 2014 (in suit No:49/2010) and another judgement of July 1, 2016 given by the Federal High Court, Abuja (in suit No: 479/2015), which prohibited Kashamu’s extradition on account of the U.S. drug allegation, were still subsisti...
Nigerian National Assembly spends billions of naira on constitution review
The perennial constitution amendment exercise by the National Assembly is characterised by proposals that keep resurfacing despite gulping billions of naira yearly, an analysis has shown. The federal parliament had from the 5th to the current 9th National Assembly made several attempts to amend some provisions of the 1999 Constitution to no avail. At every session, the parliament officially spends N1 billion shared equally between the Senate and the House of Representatives. There are reports that the lawmakers spend more than what is appropriated for the exercise. While some amendments were successful, several others suffered serial failures but kept appearing in new proposals. Considering the huge spending, lawyers and civil society groups have pointed out that no significant amendments ...