The Federal High Court in Lagos has not barred the Federal Government-owned Marriage Registries of Ikoyi, Lagos and the Federal Capital Territory Abuja from further contracting marriages under the Marriage Act, 2004.

It has, however, perpetually restrained the Minister of Interior from further contracting marriages under the Marriage Act, 2004 within four Local Government Councils Areas in four states.

The Councils are Eti-Osa in Lagos State, Egor in Edo State, Owerri Municipal in Imo State and Port Harcourt City in Rivers State.

The orders are contained in the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgment of Justice Daniel Osiagor delivered last Wednesday, December 8, 2021, seen by The Nation on December 15.

The four plaintiffs in the suit marked FHC/ LS/CS/816/18 are Eti-Osa Local Government Council Area, Lagos State; Egor Local Government Council Area, Edo State; Owerri Municipal Local Government Council Area, Imo State and Port Harcourt City Local Government Council Area, Rivers State.

The three defendants are the Minister of Interior; Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice; and a firm, Anchor Dataware Solutions Limited (party joined by order of the court on April 9, 2019).

Justice Osiagor, however, refused to direct the Minister of Interior to return all marriage certificates issued within the respective Plaintiffs’ Local Government Councils since June 8, 2004, as demanded by the plaintiffs.

The judge also refused to order the Minister of Interior to return all the fees/money paid by couples’ since June 8, 2004, to the Plaintiffs’ Marriage Registries for re-issuance.

Regarding the plaintiffs’ prayer for an order sealing all Federal Marriage Registries in their local governments, the judge granted the prayer in part.

Read Also: ‘Why court ordered closure of Fed Govt’s marriage registries’

He granted the prayer to the extent that there shall be no Federal Marriage Registry in the Marriage Districts (Local Government Councils) save Ikoyi and Abuja Federal Marriage Registry which predate the 1999 Constitution.

The order, the court held, is without prejudice to the Minister of Interior’s “exclusive powers” to issue licenses to places of public worship to celebrate marriages all over the Federation.

The court orders on the plaintiffs’ seven prayers are as follows:

“Reliefs 1 granted as follows: AN ORDER of Perpetual Injunction restraining the 1st Defendant himself and/or either by his privies, agents or delegates from further contracting marriages under the Marriage Act, Cap. M6 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (LFN), 2004 within the Plaintiffs’ Local Government Councils Area. Except marriages conducted in the Marriage Registries of Ikoyi Lagos and Federal Capital Territory Abuja.

“Reliefs 2 granted as follows: AN ORDER of Perpetual Injunction restraining the 1st Defendant himself and/or either by his privies, agents or delegates from further celebrating marriages under the Marriage Act, Cap. M6 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (LFN). 2004 within the Plaintiffs Local Government Councils Area. Except marriages conducted in the Marriage Registries of Ikoyi Lagos and Federal Capital Territory Abuja.

“Reliefs 3 granted as follows: AN ORDER of Perpetual Injunction restraining the 1st Defendant himself and/or either by his privies, agents or delegates from further granting or issuing certificates of marriage under the Marriage Act, Cap. M6 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (LFN), 2004 within the Plaintiffs’ Local Government Councils Area. Except marriages conducted in the Marriage Registries of Ikoyi Lagos and Federal Capital Territory Abuja.

“Relief 4 granted as follows: AN ORDER of Perpetual Injunction restraining the 1st Defendant himself and/or either by his privies, agents or delegates from further registering marriages contracted and/or celebrated under the Marriage Act, Cap. M6 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (LFN), 2004 within the Plaintiffs’ Local Government Councils Area. Except marriages conducted in the Marriage Registries of Ikoyi Lagos and Federal Capital Territory Abuja.

“Reliefs 5 & 6 refused.

“Relief 7 granted to the extent that there shall be no Federal Marriage Registry in the Marriage Districts (Local Government Councils) save Ikoyi and Abuja Federal Marriage Registry predating the 1999 Constitution without prejudice to 1st Defendants exclusive powers to issue a license to places of public worship to celebrate marriages all over the Federation.”

All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader Asiwaju Bola Tinubu yesterday said he was still consulting over 2023 election.

He said he will not turn down individuals and groups who are urging him to contest for president.

The eminent politician spoke in Abuja after a closed-door meeting with members of the Northern Alliance Committee (NAC).

He maintained that consultations with political stakeholders was still ongoing.

Asked if he will heed the clamour of Nigerians that he succeed President Muhammadu Buhari, Tinubu said: “I’m not going to turn them down. But, I will still effectively and widely consult, particularly brainstorm with my friends and find a date to come out openly and tell Nigerians.”

Read Also: 2023: APC should be fair to Tinubu — Lawal

The former Lagos State governor however, said all hands must be on deck to assist President Buhari and ensure that he is not distracted from tackling the challenges facing the country.

He stressed: “The president is still in office. I don’t want to distract him from all the challenges that he might face today. So, we will consult and make our programme known to the people later and the intention is clear. So, you keep guessing.”

Endorsing Tinubu for 2023, the NAC leader, Ambassador Lawal Ahmed Munir, said the meeting resolved to work for the actualisation of his ambition.

Munir resolved to support him in 2023 because of his sterling qualities.

Munir said: “The meeting ended very well. We are working for him. We are working for him because we know he will win the election when the time comes.”

By Mike Odiegwu, Port Harcourt, Rasaq Ibrahim Ado-Ekiti and Nsa Gill, Calabar

• ‘No going back on strike’

• Union: Fed Govt has again reneged on its agreement with us

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has accused agents of the Federal Government of executing what it called a well-planned plot to decimate the nation’s public university system to allow privately-owned ones to thrive.

The union vowed not to allow such a plot to succeed.

It insisted that if strike remained the only language the government understood, it would continue to speak it.

ASUU stated this through its Port Harcourt Zone in a position paper read by its Zonal Coordinator, Stanley Ogoun, at the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education.

Ogoun listed agents of the Ministry of Finance, the Office of the Accountant General, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and a Federal Permanent Secretary, as obstacles to resolving its issues with the government.

He said Labour and Employment minister, who assumed the role of a conciliator, had failed to perform the role the union expected of him in the face-off between the government and the union.

The ASUU regretted that even the intervention of the Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari had not yielded any result.

He urged members of the public to disregard the claims by the government that it had paid ASUU N50 billion the Earned Academic Allowance (EAA) Revitalisation Funds.

Read Also; Ex-ASUU president to Fed Govt: stop approving new varsities, fix existing ones

ASUU’s chairmen present at the gathering were: Uzoma Chima, University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT); Tonbara Kingdom, Niger Delta University (NDU); Emmanuel Ekwulo, Rivers State University (RSU); Joseph Endurance, Ignatus Ajuru University of Education (IAUE); Socrates Ebo, Federal University, Otuoke (FUO) and Donny Sigah, University of Africa, Toru-Orua.

Also, ASUU has renewed its threat to embark on strike should the Federal Government delay a little further to meet the union’s demands.

Addressing reporters at the Ekiti State University (EKSU) in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, the union’s Akure Zonal Coordinator Prof. Olufayo Olu-Olu said the strike became necessary, following Federal Government’s failure to implement the agreement reached with the union in 2009.

The zonal coordinator in charge of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife (Osun State); Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) in Ondo State and EKSU described the Federal Government as insincere for reneging on the Memorandum of Action (MoA) it signed with ASUU on December 23, 2020.

Also, leaders of the Calabar Zone of the union have alerted Nigerians to what it called government’s failure to honour its agreements with ASUU.

Addressing reporters in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, the union’s Zonal Coordinator Aniekan Brown recalled that on December 23, 2020, the union “patriotically suspended” its strike after nine months “as an extreme act of goodwill signifying ASUU’s sole-desire to ensure industrial harmony in our public universities while trusting that the Federal Government would fulfil her own end of the Memorandum of Action (MoA) signed then with attached timelines”.

He regretted that nearly one year after, the Federal Government had not fulfilled its promise.

By Nicholas Kalu, Okodili Ndidi, Abuja and AbdulGafar Alabelewe, Kaduna

• NSA names three terror sponsors

• Buhari, governors discuss insecurity

• 30 travellers abducted

The Department of State Services (DSS) yesterday raised the alarm that National Assembly members would be targets of kidnappers and bandits during the Yuletide.

The security service also confirmed plots by elements it described as desperate power seekers to cause a breakdown of law and order in the country.

Also yesterday, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Gen. Babagana Monguno, listed the three religious groups backing terrorist organisations in Nigeria and other Sahel countries.

Miffed by the worsening insecurity in the Northwest, governors from the region met to discuss the crisis. Also, three Northeast governors stormed Aso Villa, Abuja, to brief President Muhammadu Buhari on the security challenges in their states.

Last month, the DSS said it had uncovered plots by marauders to attack military formations in border communities.

At a news briefing in Abuja, DSS disclosed that intelligence at its disposal showed that National Assembly members were primary targets of kidnappings and assassinations during the Yuletide.

It also warned that students would be targets for recruitment into banditry and other crimes during their vacation

DSS Public Relations Officer Peter Afunanya said some desperate power-seekers were using wrong and skewed narratives to mislead citizens and heat up the polity.

He said the unscrupulous elements are exploiting and politicising insecurity in many parts of the country for pecuniary reasons.

Afunanya said: “The Service, therefore, warns that those who are involved in these (plots) should desist from such destabilising acts. It also enjoins politicians to play by the rule and avoid statements or activities capable of inflaming the fires of division and violence, prior to the 2023 elections.

“Opinion molders like the clergy, religious and traditional rulers are also to guard their utterances and avoid inciting pronouncements.

“In a related development, it is common knowledge that criminal elements will heighten their inglorious activities before, during, and after the festive periods.

“Therefore, religious and community leaders, hoteliers and operators of markets, parks, recreational and relaxation centres are to be on the alert and watch strange movements and activities around their facilities.

Read Also; Kano activist Zainab Ahmad backs out of ‘No More Bloodshed’ protest after DSS grilling

“As schools vacate and students return home for holidays, there is the likelihood that subversive gangs will target them for recruitment for undesirable intents. These may include, but not limited to financial crimes, armed robbery, civil disobedience and violent protests, substance abuse, banditry, and kidnapping.

He added: “Aside from students, members of National Assembly/ Houses of Assembly and other public/private sector workers on vacation may be predisposed to threats of various degrees.

“This also applies to Nigerians who may travel from within and outside the country to join their loved ones for the celebrations.

“These individuals are susceptible to kidnapping, hijack, assassinations, armed robbery, and political manipulations. They are advised to be security conscious in order not to fall victims of these attacks and destructive political maneuvers.”

Afunanya accused the legal team of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, of misleading the public with fake news on how their client is being treated in custody.

He said contrary to the rumour being peddled, Kanu is not being starved or ill-treated in any way.

Afunanya added: “We deny all the inciting allegations by IPOB and states that Nnamdi Kanu is not, in any way, maltreated in custody. Accusations of maltreatment negate the service standard operating procedure on the implementation of rights of a suspect.”

Monguno named Jama’at Nasr al-Islam Wal Muslimin (JNIM), Islamic and Muslim Support Group (GSIM), and ISGS as sponsors and supporters of terrorist groups.

He urged “Ulamas, preachers, and community leaders” to preach on the negative effects of insecurity and canvas support for the ongoing counter-terrorism operations.

He said: “There’s no gun more powerful than enlightenment and education at the grass-root level,” he said during the 14th Workshop of the League of Ulamas, Preachers, and Imams of Sahel countries.

Monguno said alliances between the clerics and security forces “should be the backbone to rebuilding our terrorism-infested communities”.

He said: “Terrorism and the rapid escalation of violent activities by militant Islamist groups in the Sahel since 2016 have been primarily driven by the Islamic State in Greater Sahara (ISGS), which mainly operates in Mali and extends to the Niger Republic and Burkina Faso.

“It is bolstered by activities of groups such as Jama’at Nasr al-Islam Wal Muslimin (JNIM), the Islamic and Muslim Support Group (GSIM), and ISGS, which have continued to pose an imminent threat to the stability of the region.

“In Nigeria, Boko-Haram and Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) dominate terrorist activities, especially in the Northeastern..

“The situation in the Sahel has never been grimmer, extremist violence continues to spread; the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) is growing, and food insecurity is affecting more people than ever before. There are several not entirely congruent working hypotheses underpinning foreign and regional government strategies.

“It is imperative that Ulamas, preachers, and community leaders in your localities key in to support efforts of our security forces, in order to end this menace.

“Just as collaborations between governments are boosting the advance of security forces in the fight against terrorism, alliances and group effort like LOPIS should be the backbone to rebuilding our terrorism-infested communities.”

*Bandits kidnap 30 travellers, kill community leader

Bandits on Monday night killed a community leader and kidnapped about 30 travellers along the Kaduna-Zaria Highway.

The bandits were said to have opened fire on the vehicle conveying travellers, leaving many of injured.

Kaduna State Police Command was yet to confirm the incident at the time of filing this report.

Senate spokesman Ajibola Basiru has said the National Assembly will take the best decision for Nigerians, irrespective of President Muhammadu Buhari’s disposition towards the Electoral Bill.

On November 19, the National Assembly transmitted the Electoral Act Amendment Bill to the President for assent.

According to the constitution, the President has 30 days within which he is expected to assent to a Bill to become law.

The National Assembly also has a provision to override a presidential veto by two-thirds vote in a case where the President fails to sign the Bill into law within the specified 30 days.

In the case of the Electoral Bill, the deadline for the presidential assent is December 19.

Reacting to the development yesterday on a Channels Television programme “Sunrise Daily”, Bashiru said the National assembly would not go on war path with the President over the Electoral Bill.

Read Also: New Electoral Bill: Suspense as Buhari keeps Nigerians waiting

But he said the legislature would do what is the best for Nigeria on the Electoral Bill, irrespective of the Executive’s position.

“When the President takes the decision, whatever the generality of the National Assembly thinks, we all will know. I think it is too early to seek to put us on a war path with the President.

“We will take a decision we think is in the best interest of the country, irrespective of the attitude the President or Executive shows to the Electoral Bill,” he said.

Reacting to the description of the National Assembly as the rubber stamp of the Executive, Basiru said: “If making law for the progress of the country is considered to be a rubber stamp, then we agree that we are a rubber stamp National Assembly.

“If the idea of seeing the National Assembly as an opposition parliament is what some people expected, we are happy to disappoint such people. Our job is clearly cut out for us by Section 4 of the Constitution.

“The National Assembly today is a bipartisan legislative assembly whereby we have members from the ruling party (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Our decisions are taken not on the basis of partisan consideration but on the basis of the general consideration of the people.

“For those that see the National Assembly as a fighting organisation, I think we are happy to disappoint them. We are a conglomerate of Nigerians elected to represent the Nigerian people for the purpose of lawmaking.”