The Nation Newspaper

Category: News

  • Deploying soldiers for elections is unconstitutional, says Falana

    Deploying soldiers for elections is unconstitutional, says Falana

    Lagos lawyer Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) has said it is illegal and ultra vires for the President to deploy armed forces to maintain law and order during elections.

    In a statement yesterday in Lagos, titled, Illegal Involvement of Soldiers in Election Duties, Falanasaid Sections 215 and 217 of the Constitution stipulates that the power of the President to deploy Armed Forces for internal security is limited to the suppression of insurrection, including insurgency and aiding the police to restore order when it has broken down.

    The frontline lawyer said instead of using soldiers during elections, the President should strengthen the police to ensure internal security while the Armed Forces should be restricted to defend the nation’s territorial integrity.

    He stressed that under the current constitution, the President lacks the power to involve soldiers in maintaining law and order during elections.

    Falana said: “Even in the Northeast, a state of emergency had to be declared by the President to justify the deployment of the Armed Forces as part of the extraordinary measures he was required to take to restore law and order pursuant to Section 305 of the Constitution. Even then, the President had to seek and obtain the approval of the National Assembly for the deployment for a specific period of time.”

    The lawyer described as “misleading apologia for the militarisation of the recent governorship election in Ekiti State” an article by Bashorun Akin Osuntokun on the “militarisation and other fallacies” published in his weekly column in ThisDay of July 11.

    According to him, Osuntokun, in hailing the soldiers for displaying professionalism, “was curiously silent on the infringement of the fundamental right of Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s freedom of movement, which occurred at Iju-Itagbolu in Ondo State, contrary to Section 41 of the Constitution”.

    He added: “The governor, who was billed to attend a political rally at Ado-Ekiti on June 19, 2014, was crudely turned back by the soldiers who claimed that they were acting on ‘orders from above’.

    “Mr. Osuntokun was equally silent on the illegal curfew imposed on Ekiti State by the army. Or, was any curfew declared by the relevant authorities that was not announced? A client, Mr. Bayo Fajimi, who was going home from Akure, Ondo State (his place of residence), was disenfranchised as he was prevented by the soldiers from entering Ekiti State at 6.30pm on June 20 because of the illegal curfew! Is the Bashorun not aware that the soldiers subjected every hotel in Ado-Ekiti to a search without warrant between 10pm and 2am for the sole purpose of ejecting all those who could not give ‘satisfactory’ explanation of their business in Ekiti State? Yet, while all ‘illegal aliens’, like Governor Amaechi and others suspected to be All Progressives Congress (APC) members were harassed and expelled from the state by the army, some non-indigenes, who are chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), including two serving ministers and an influential thug from Anambra State, were allowed to ‘monitor’ the election. Indeed, they were fully protected by the armed Gendarmes.

    “Even though the Bashorun admitted that he was ‘struck and inconvenienced by the rigour and saturation of the security blanket’ on account of repeated security check points, he dismissed the complaints of the militarisation of the election. As far as he is concerned, the United States Embassy had endorsed the militarisation by issuing a statement to the effect that ‘the security forces collaborated effectively and provided a safe and secure environment free of major incidents’…”

  • Don’t torment opposition governors, NLC tells Jonathan

    Impeachment and threats of impeachment of All Progressives Congress (APC) governors is suspicious, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) National Vice-President Isa Aremu has said.

    The labour leader said the sanctity of tenure is needed to sustain democracy.

    Aremu, who was a member of the National Conference, spoke yesterday in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, on the state’s radio programme, The Platform.

    The labour leader urged President Goodluck Jonathan not to use his office to torment governors in the opposition.

    He said: “What is worrisome to me is that of Nasarawa. The impeachment notice was served just at the time the President, who comes from another party, was visiting the state. I mean we should not give it the impression that the President is using his office to torment a governor in an opposition state. I don’t think this is the intention of the President.

    “What I am saying is, even the timing alone makes it to be suspicious. The President is an elected President. Currently, he is our President. He has the right to relate with elected governors but he cannot relate with you when, as he is arriving at the state, the governor’s job is being threatened.

    “I want President Jonathan to use his office to re-direct our political discourse along the line of statesmanship. He has done it before and I think he can do it before. Several times, he was threatened with impeachment and Nigerians stood up to say no.

    “I am not a fan of some of these governors. Some of them are known for recklessness and a lot of executive impunity. But a good number of them engage in self-help for themselves rather than public service for their people. Of course, there are some governors who have also performed, who endeared themselves to the electorate in their states.”

  • Atiku to PDP: stop demonising opposition

    Atiku to PDP: stop demonising opposition

    Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has warned the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administration against demonising the All Progressives Congress (APC) before Nigerians.

    In a statement yesterday in Abuja, Atiku described as dangerous the attempts by the PDP-led government to polarise the country along faulty lines just to score cheap political points.

    The former vice-president faulted the escapist tactics of the ruling party, adding that it was shocking that the ruling party could divert the attention of Nigerians from its ineptitude and apathetic posture to corruption and insecurity to waging a war against the opposition.

    Reacting to a sponsored report in a weekly newspaper, alleging that a former Russian spy had linked the APC to terrorists and extremists, Atiku said the sponsored allegations by the PDP administration would not help the country.

    According to him, no responsible government would seek to create divisions, suspicion and animosity among the citizenry by linking opposition leaders with terrorist activities or accusing them of harbouring extremists.

    Atiku said it was regrettable that the PDP, through its National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, officially and publicly labelled the APC the “Islamic Brotherhood Party of Nigeria” and the “Janjaweed Party”.

    The former vice-president said the names were borrowed from abroad and did not exist in Nigeria.

    He said the latest publication about the purported former Russian spy was a continuation of the PDP’s campaign of calumny against the opposition and its leaders to divert attention from the epic failures of the ruling party to deliver the goods.

    Atiku was dismayed by PDP administration’s tactics to drive a wedge between the people by using a religious divide-and-rule blackmail to seek re-election in 2015.

    The former vice-president stressed that the greatest challenges facing Nigeria today are insecurity, hopelessness, hunger, unemployment, disease, fear of the future and poverty.

    He said: “The APC is a party for all Nigerians, irrespective of their religious, ethnic or regional identities. Let no one get confused. The APC is the party to stop the looting of the treasury.

    “We will thoroughly investigate and uncover whatever is missing of the alleged $50 billion stolen from the sale of crude oil. We are going to stop the government-backed theft of crude oil, which swings between the daily averages of 100,000 to 300,000 barrels a day. APC is the party to create jobs and end joblessness.”

  • ‘179,000 subscribers successfully ported’

    ‘179,000 subscribers successfully ported’

    About 179,000 subscribers have successfully ported since the introduction of the Mobile Number Portability scheme in the country, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said.

    The scheme, which was introduced in April, last year, is aimed at enabling telecom subscribers choose the networks that can provide them with the most effective services.

    NCC’s Director of Public Affairs Tony Ojobo gave the figure at the weekend at the prize-giving ceremony of the agency’s national essay competition, titled: The Effect of Mobile Number Portability on Telecom Service and Usage in Nigeria.

    Ojobo said the scheme had deepened competition among service providers and led to innovative services.

    The spokesman said the scheme also enthroned the consumer as the king in the marketplace.

  • Dangote donates N30b

    Dangote donates N30b

    Africa’s richest person and the continent’s top donor, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has said he is increasing his philanthropic gestures in Africa, with charity beginning from his home country, Nigeria.

    A statement by his group of companies, which has made several donations across Africa, said: “Africans must begin to take responsibilities by shaping the condition of its people.”

    The statement said the Dangote Group, through its foundation, spent about N30 billion on humanitarian gestures in two years.

    “This is including the Dangote Academy, worth about a N1 billion, through which manpower is developed across various disciplines,” it said.

    Last month, Dangote Cement in Ibese, Ogun State, through the group’s foundation, gave scholarship to 50 students of Yewa (Egbado) origin in various secondary and tertiary institutions.

    The group also donated $500,000 to victims of explosion in Republic of Congo.

    The Dangote Foundation contributed $2 million (about N330 million) to flood victims in Pakistan and N120 million to cushion the effect of famine in Niger Republic.

    Two years ago, the company donated N2.5 billion to flood victims in Nigeria, the single highest donation by a private body in the nation’s history. It also donated N430 million to flood victims, unemployed youths and women in Kogi State in the same year.

    Three years ago, the Dangote Foundation donated about N1 billion for the economic empowerment of women in Kano State.

    Recently, the foundation donated N540 million to vulnerable women, following insurgency in the Northeast.

    The group spent N1 billion on the rehabilitation of some Nigerian universities, as part of its contribution to the Education sector.

  • LASAA unveils outdoor magazine

    LASAA unveils outdoor magazine

    he Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency (LASAA) has unveiled Outdoorable magazine, its trade publication.

    The magazine is designed to provide information on the agency’s initiatives and happenings in the Outdoor Advertising sector.

    Its Managing Director George Noah said: “The goal of Outdoorable is to provide a platform for accessing information about LASAA and on the latest trends in the outdoor advertising industry, new initiatives and campaigns breaking forth, ideas and institutional development, fundamentals of outdoor advertising practice as well as promote a ‘one corporate culture’ in the industry.”

    The glossy publication will be published bi-annually. Noah explained that Outdoorable “will fully represent the Nigerian outdoor advertising industry while reaching a mass audience and readership that cuts across the borders of Nigeria and extends to the rest of Africa and beyond”.

  • Ondo lawmaker, contractor trade words over attack

    Ondo lawmaker, contractor trade words over attack

    Confusion reigned at the Ondo State House of Assembly complex, Igbatoro Road, Akure, the Ondo State capital, at the weekend when a contractor handling projects at the complex, Mr Obayoriju Abass, was assaulted by some youths suspected to be political thugs loyal to one of the lawmakers.

    The youths were said to have stormed an office in the complex during a meeting summoned by the Assembly Tenders Committee chaired by the lawmaker representing Owo Constituency 1, Ayo Arowele.

    Sources said the contractor’s offence was that he argued with members of the committee during the meeting.

    Arowele’s clothes were torn to shreds after he was pushed out of the meeting.

    It was gathered that Obayoriju’s attack may not be unconnected with his interest in contesting in 2015 the position Arowele is occupying.

    Obayoriju, who spoke with reporters, alleged that he was assaulted by Arowele at the meeting.

    He said|: “I went to a meeting summoned by the tender’s committee but I was surprised that despite the fact that I answered the questions the committee asked me correctly, I was asked to shut up by Arowele and in the process of trying to defend myself, he slapped me.

    “He later instructed his thugs to walk me out of the meeting. One of his thugs tore my clothes and slapped me repeatedly.

    “I think what Arowele and his boys did to me is something that should not be allowed to go without reporting to the appropriate quarters. Such attack is barbaric and uncalled for.”

    Obayoriju, who has reported the matter to the police, threatened to sue the lawmaker, saying: “I will not hesitate to drag Arowele to court because what he did to me is primitive.”

    He also called on the police to investigate the matter.

    Arowele denied the allegation, describing it as a cooked-up story designed to dent his image. He added that there was no truth in the allegation levelled against him.

    He said: “We asked him some questions pertaining to the jobs he had handled in the Assembly and instead of addressing the issue, he insulted committee members at the meeting. I never assaulted him in any form.”

  • ‘Election petition not to distract Fayose’

    ‘Election petition not to distract Fayose’

    Ekiti State Commissioner for Integration and Inter-governmental Affairs Funminiyi Afuye has said the decision of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to petition the elections tribunal in respect of the June 21 election was not to distract the governor-elect, Mr. Ayodele Fayose.

    Afuye said the party’s intention was to prove the extreme possibility of having rigged the election using technologies known to have been employed in some advanced climes to perpetrate electoral fraud.

    He spoke in Ikere-Ekiti at the weekend in an interview with reporters during the referendum held by the government on the creation of new Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs).

    Afuye said despite the loss of the election, the Governor Kayode Fayemi-led administration remained a blessing to the people.

    He said: “People would have to believe that nothing is impossible with technology. There are people who defraud through the use of Automated Teller Machine (ATM) without the owner knowing about it.

    “If this could happen and many other reported cases of cyber crime, we cannot rule the possibility of photo chromic and thermo chromic rigging in the June 21 governorship election.

    “Apart from this, the system had been used in advanced climes to rig

    election and it might be a new invention in Nigeria, which our party would have to expose”.

    He added that APC would do everything possible to maintain a robust opposition.

    “We will constructively engage him on issues and this will be based on the programmes he has for the people of this state,” he said. .

  • Ibadan PDP governorship aspirants to pick consensus candidate

    Ibadan PDP governorship aspirants to pick consensus candidate

    •Akala: they’re not my match

    Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant of Ibadan origin agreed yesterday to  present a consensus candidate.

    They met in Ibadan, the state capital at the residence of Elder Wole Oyelese.

    At the meeting were Oyelese, Alhaji Hazeem Gbolarumi, Prof.  Taoheed Adedoja, Prof. Soji Adejumo, Sen. Teslim Folarin, Seyi Makinde and Dr. Azeez Adeduntan.

    A statement by the aspirants reads: “ We deliberated on the political situation in Oyo State, especially as it relates to our great party, the PDP and resolved as follows:

    “That we unanimously agreed to work together as a team to ensure victory for our party in 2015 elections and deliver Oyo State for President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’s reelection.

    “That given the political reality on ground, the PDP candidate, who by the grace of Almighty God will be the next governor of Oyo State, must come from Ibadan land.

    “That the body takes cognizance of the importance and political interest of other zones and resolved to work assiduously with them to achieve victory for our great party at all levels.

    “That we appreciate the patience of our teeming and loyal supporters and indeed the good people of Oyo state for enduring all the inhuman treatments inflicted on them by the current APC administration and we assure them of a responsible and responsive government as from May 29 2015

    “That we appeal to our teeming and loyal supporters of the party to work together and for those who have defected from the party to return into the fold for a collective victory.”

    Ibadan votes accounted for the majority of votes in previous elections.

    The decision, said analysts, would affect the chances of former Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala, who is seeking to return to power.

    Alao-Akala said he would defeat the Ibadan aspirants at the primaries.

    He added that Alao-Akala said  Ibadan is only one of the towns in Oyo State, pointing out that every indigene has the right to contest for any position.

    According to him, Ibadan has  11  of the state’s 33 local government areas. He said candidates would need votes across all the councils to win.

    “I don’t care. Let all of them choose a candidate that will face me in the primaries. I have been governor before and I will be again,” Alao-Akala said.

  • Oyo Speaker: no plan to impeach governor

    Oyo Speaker: no plan to impeach governor

    Oyo State House of Assembly Speaker Monsurat Sunmonu has denied reports that some members of the Assembly planned to impeach Governor Abiola Ajimobi.

    Sunmonu, who spoke with our correspondent on telephone yesterday, said rather than promoting unfounded “anti-progress” reports, Nigerians should be praying for the Assembly for working hard to achieve peace and prosperity of the state in the last three years.

    The Speaker said at no time did members of the Assembly meet to discuss the alleged impeachment.

    “Instead of believing these lies, the good people of Nigeria should be praying for us to continue to work for the peace and progress of Oyo State. We have been discharging our duties by the grace of God and we believe God to help us till the end,” she said.