Agency Reporter 

Delta Governor, Sen. (Dr) Ifeanyi Okowa, on Tuesday said his administration would continue to give priority attention to programmes and projects that would empower the girl-child and women.

Okowa stated this when he received the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) Multi-sectoral Regional Officer, Mr Lamine Sow, and his delegation at Government House, Asaba.

He remarked that the girl-child and women were relevant in every society and thanked UNESCO for considering Delta as one of the states to benefit from its women and girls development programmes.

He said that the state government would ensure that the programme was successful in the state.

According to the governor, Third World countries are always confronted with the challenge of relegating women to the background and I am confident that the move by UNESCO will reverse the ugly trend.

He said that a lot of programmes have been initiated by his administration towards empowerment and economic emancipation of women and the girl-child, coupled with the creation of the Girl Child Development Office in the state.

He advocated for concerted efforts aimed at giving women and the girl-child opportunity to realise their potential in the society, stressing that any investment in the lives of women had the tendency to affect the society positively.

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“Let me thank you for considering Delta as one of the three states currently involved in the project implementation and it is important to us because of the huge role women and the girl-child usually play in the family.

“I am glad that out of 36 states in the country we are among the three participating and what makes it more imperative for us is that you actually picked a segment of the society that is more oppressed.

“Although here in Delta, they have not been relegated but to some extent we have not paid attention to them and to that extent, anything that will help to ensure that they are better positioned in the society makes a lot of meaning to us.

“I say this because from all studies done, if you empower women, we are more likely to truly empower families; we are more likely to have very stable families and more likely to have a very responsible society and that, you can’t take away from women because of their God-given talent,” he said.

Okowa regretted that the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the economy of the nation has put women in more danger.

“With the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global economy, there is more challenge for the girl-child because as the economy gets tougher and the family gets poorer there is the tendency that the women folk will suffer more.

“This is because the impact is massive on the economy of the nation which has its general effect on the people, and because it truly threatens the existence of the family, it is a huge challenge for the women folk

“The nations are still troubled, particularly India, and the Federal Government has already rolled out preventive measures for a possible third wave which has serious consequences on the family, particularly families that live on daily income,” he stated.

Earlier, Mr Sow had said that they were in the state to seek stronger commitment with the governor about the agency’s empowerment of women and girls’ programme in three pilot states including Delta.

He said that the programme which would be funded by Japanese government with technical support from UNESCO, would be established in Bauchi, Gombe and Delta States and lauded Delta government for fulfilling its part of the partnership.

He said the advocacy part of the project would handle sexual and gender-based violence as well as general marginalization of women.

Our Reporter 

The Youth Party won a resounding victory in its bid to ensure that INEC respects the rule of law particularly obedience of judicial decisions.

The Court of Appeal, Abuja, led by Honourable Justice T.Y. Hassan delivered its unanimous judgement against the Appeal filed by the Independent Electoral Commission today 11th May, 2021.

The Court upheld the decision of the Federal High Court Abuja delivered by Honourable Justice I.E. Ekwo that declared the purported de-registration of the Party illegal, null and void ’. The Court of Appeal also “found the action of the Appellant very reprehrensive”.

The judgement at the lower Court was based on the INEC persistent disregard for the law and judicial decisions in failing to register the Party within time stipulated in the law and preventing it from participating in elections illegally.

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The Electoral umpire failed to register the Party after it got a judgement against it in FHC/ABJ/CS/221/2017 between Chukwudi Adiukwu & Ors V. INEC delivered on 18th October, 2017 until 14th August, 2018, less that 5 days to the commencement of Party primaries in 2018. INEC further resorted to illegal self help by illegally de-registering Youth Party while both of them were before the Federal High Court over the issue.

Furthermore, INEC is currently refusing to list the Party on its website as a registered Party or allow it to participate in any election even in the face of the aforesaid judgement, which had not been set aside or stayed.

Honourable Justice I.E. Ekwo in his judgment held that:

“the Defendant is not above the law. No person or parties to an action is allowed to resort to self help when an action is pending in Court.

“The claim that the Defendant has power pursuant to S. 225A (b) & (c) of the 1999 Constitution(as amended) to de-register a political party does not justify the action of the Defendant while this action is pending.

“The Defendant must understand that the constitution is not an author of confusion. I condemn the action of the Defendant as a wrong exercise of might. Therefore, the de-registration of the Plaintiff during the pendency of this action by the Defendant is illegal, null and void, and liable to be set aside. Consequently, I hereby make an order setting aside the de-registration of the Plaintiff.”

The decision of the Court of Appeal also put paid to the orchestrated and incorrect media interpretation of the recent Supreme Court Case involving NUP and INEC that it had effectively deregistered Youth Party and other parties. It is pertinent to state that Youth Party was not a party to the case and the facts of the case was different from its case. Essentially, it cannot serve as a judicial precedent against Youth Party as upheld by the Court of Appeal today.

Once again, we thank the Nigerian judiciary for giving us hope that the rule of law is still sacrosant and the judiciary is the hope of our democracy. We also thank all our members for their unflinching support and steadfastness during this challenging period – this is the price we must all pay to shape the future we desire

By Robert Egbe

A lecturer and consultant pathologist at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Dr Sunday Shoyemi, has presented to the Lagos Judicial Panel probing police brutality the bullet extracted from the head of a victim of police extrajudicial killing.

Shoyemi presented the bullet during his testimony in the case of Charles Otoo, who was said to have been shot by the police.

The pathologist’s appearance followed a summons by panel chair Judge emeritus Doris Okuwobi, after a request by the deceased’s wife, Victoria Otoo.

Shoyemi testified that Otoo bled to death following a gunshot injury to the head which damaged his brain.

He said: “Death was caused by severe injury to the brain following a gunshot. We extracted a bullet in the cause of examining the dead body.”

Presenting the bullet extracted from the deceased’s head to the panel, he said it would undergo a ballistic analysis.

The pathologist also presented a post-mortem report of the deceased to the panel.

Justice Okuwobi said the panel had sighted the bullet and it would be released for ballistic examination any time it was demanded.

Earlier, Mrs. Otoo testified that her husband was shot on October 21, 2020, by men of the Nigeria Police Force, Ojodu Divisional Headquarters.

Mrs. Otoo, who was led in evidence by Adebola Lema, told the panel that the incident happened around 6pm on October 21 at Ojodu Berger.

“My husband and I went to the Bus Stop at Akiode, Ojodu Berger, to buy foodstuffs for the family that evening in the neighborhood market, at Ishola Bello Street.

“After buying what we wanted to buy, the police started shooting. I ran to one side, he ran to another side but it was not far. The police continued shooting, after some minutes, I saw my husband on the floor, he was shot at the head,” Mrs. Otoo said.

The deceased’s wife said the officers were led by the Station Officer (SO) of Ojodu Police Division.

She alleged that her husband was shot by a female officer named Chinyere.

She told the panel that residents around could not help her husband immediately he was shot because the police were still shooting.

Mrs. Otoo said after several gunshots, the police left the area and her husband was rushed to County Hospital, Aguda, with the help of passers-by.

He was pronounced dead by one Dosumu Y.A, a doctor.

“The doctor said he has lost a lot of blood, the police shoot him in the head,” she said.

The deceased was described as a responsible father of three who never had any issues with police officers before they shot him.

But the police denied knowing Chinyere.

Police counsel Joseph Eboseremen, fielded the station officer of the Ojodu Police Station, Lukeman Sowemimo as the defence witness.

Sowemimo said he drafted men to the Ojodu area on October 21 because “hoodlums were attacking the area, including the police station” adding that he did not know the alleged shooter.

When shown the bullet brought before the panel by the pathologist, Lukeman said the “bullet is from pistol.”

“The difference between pistol and a rifle is that pistol can only kill at a close range while rifle can kill from any distance.

“I am not a ballistician but with the experience as a mobile man, if I see a pistol ammunition, I can differentiate it from an AK 47 ammunition,” he said.

He however admitted that police officers carry pistols.