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Tag: Book launch

  • Osinbajo hails lawyer at book launch

    Osinbajo hails lawyer at book launch

    Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has described Abuja-based lawyer, Mr. Sebastine Hon (SAN) as a blessing to lawyers because of “his immeasurable contributions to the legal profession.”

    Osinbajo spoke at the public presentation of Hon’s book: “Constitutional and migration law in Nigeria,” at the Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja.

    He said: “S.T. Hon’s book on the Law of Evidence in Nigeria is one of the best legal texts I have read.

    “He is bold, unequivocal, very insightful and forward-looking. He discussed such novel issues as proof of social media libel, electronically generated evidence. His comment on electronic signature, impressions made electronically was very unique. The way he takes on very difficult subjects and deals with them and gets a very clear and definite answer is marvelous.

    “ He dealt with such issues as the legality of surrogate or assisted pregnancy, inheritance rights, euthanasia, etc, in a fantastic manner that shows that he has done a great work. It is a book that every one of us ought to read”, he further stated.

    Osinbajo continued: “He is a young man and still has many years of writing and legal practice ahead of him. He is a blessing to the profession, his insights and profundity of what he has written is great. I therefore recommend the book for every legal practitioner, judge, law student and in fact, all Nigerians”.

    Former President Olusegun Obasanjo said: “I am not a lawyer. I hate legal jargons so I don’t know why he sent me a copy of the book.

    “I really enjoyed reading the book and that is why I am here. In the book, he made some criticisms. We must be satisfied with these criticisms we see everyday that stare us in the face. If we must make progress in Nigeria, the legal profession has a lot to do. I pray that our country will make progress.

    “Sebastine you have made a mark because this is a book everybody must read, both lawyers and non-lawyers. It must find a special place in my library.”

    The Chairman of the occasion, former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Benue State, Mr. Mamman Mike Osuman (SAN), said Hon’s books have remained classic and a valuable treasure for all.

  • Lagos on sound footing to emerge as world class city – Ambode

    Lagos on sound footing to emerge as world class city – Ambode

    Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode on Thursday said that his administration has succeeded in laying a strong foundation that would propel the State to emerge as a globally competitive City-State.

    The Governor, who spoke at the public presentation of a publication “Cascade of Change: A Decade Of Liberal Thoughts” authored by Mr. Steve Ayorinde, the State’s Commissioner for Information and Strategy, said that the next plan of action is to build on the foundation to move the State to the next level.

    “In the last one year we have laid the foundation to make Lagos a globally competitive City-State. In the coming years, we will build on this foundation to move Lagos to the next level, a level of first class infrastructure, services, economic growth and opportunities for all,” he said.

    He said the State has the privilege of housing the largest collection of media houses in Nigeria, saying it was an indicator to the fact that every journalist, editor, columnist and blogger has a role to play in the development of the State.

    “This calls for transparency and constructive engagement with the media to spread our message. Our government will always do its part and we call on the media to be our partner as we build a Lagos State where everybody has a voice, a chance and opportunities,” he said.

    Governor Ambode while commending the author of the book said it would no doubt go a long way to enhance knowledge as well as shed more light on issues of public discourse and enrich policy design and implementation process.

    He said Mr. Ayorinde’s contributions and participation as the arrowhead of the media and strategy team in his gubernatorial campaign was instructive to what the State Government could achieve if members of the team are on the same page.

    “Steve Ayorinde is an unassuming personality whose professional work has impacted on our national life in many ways as a social commentator, moderator of social commentary and now as the Chief Information Manager of Lagos State Government.   I am sure the fire that runs through his veins have been compressed to flow through his latest publication “Cascades of Change”: A Decade of Liberal Thoughts”.

    “He represents a generation of conscious journalists who have committed to working towards a better society. We are proud to have him in the Lagos State Executive and he has been involved in various stages in the implementation of our Change Agenda. He has deployed his professional skills, competence and experience in promoting our socio-political reforms through a liberal and focused policy implementation strategy,” the Governor said.

    He urged Nigerians to enrich their personal libraries with the book, just as he called on spirited individuals and corporate organisations to purchase copies and endow the libraries of tertiary institutions in the State for the benefit of the students who are the future of our society.

    In his remarks, Chairman of the occasion and former Governor of Ogun State, Aremo Olusegun Osoba said in the last one year, Governor Ambode has silently embarked on massive transformation of the State.

    Osoba, who alluded to the clearing of Falomo Roundabout in Ikoyi, the ongoing dualization of Epe-Ijebu Road and many other infrastructural projects in Lagos, said he was indeed happy that the Ambode administration has continued in the tradition of excellence that the State had always been known for.

    He also commended the swiftness in which the Governor attends to issue of infrastructural renewal, saying many testimonies abound that Governor Ambode is a silent achiever, adding that such was what governance should be all about.

    On his part, a public commentator and development expert, Professor Pat Utomi recalled the early days of Governor Ambode in office when he was criticized by many as lacking the capacity to lead the state, adding that his response then was “you got to think, plan and act,” adding that he was happy that the Governor has proved him right.

    Utomi, who said the Governor, is endowed with the ability of audacious imagination, alluded to the recently signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the construction of 4th Mainland Bridge that was long conceived, the Eko Atlantic City Project, the Smart City Lagos initiative, the Light Up Lagos Project and the ongoing neighbourhood renewal.

    In her goodwill message, former Managing Director of Concord Newspapers, Dr. Doyin Abiola said she was proud that Lagos has always been a centre of excellence producing people of excellence.

    She said: “I have never met the Governor and I have never had any discussion with him but from what he has been doing so far, it was clear that he was prepared for the job and he has been moving from step to step.

    “I have always wondered how Lagos survived when the Local Government allocation of the state was withheld by the Federal Government. I could not understand it and it was said that Governor Ambode successfully managed the account of the state at that time and so I want to commend them for the good works they are doing and urge them to continue.”

  • Aisha Buhari donates N55 million to Chibok girls’ parents, others

    Aisha Buhari donates N55 million to Chibok girls’ parents, others

    Wife of the President, Mrs Aisha Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday presented fifty five million Naira to the parents of the abducted Chibok girls and Buniyadi in fulfillment of her pledge during the book presentation on ‘Essentials of Beauty Therapy.’

    Mrs Buhari, in a statement issued on Tuesday night by her Director of Media, Zakari Yau Nadabo, said that the proceeds from Her book presentation to the public at a recent event provided the privilege to dedicate thirty million Naira to the parents of the abducted Chibok girls and twenty five million Naira to those in Buniyadi.

    She urged the parents to remain patient while Government continue its effort to rescue the girls and reunite them with their various families and restore normal activities in all the areas affected by the insurgency.

    The chairman of the chibok girls parents Mr. Yakubu Keki who led other women to the State House commended every effort at providing succor to the parents and thanked the Federal Government for making it possible for the inhabitants to return to their homes instead of languishing in the bush for fear of attacks by the insurgents

    He said that the parents are very confident and optimistic that their children will eventually reunite with them to continue a normal life.

    A member of the House of Representatives from Chibok, Asabe Vilita Bashir thanked the Wife of the President for the unique and motherly gesture.

    She urged the Chibok parents to acknowledge the concerted effort of the Buhari Administration in bringing to end the spate of insurgency in the country.

    The Wife of the President also received a delegation of medical experts from abroad and their local partners  on a crusade to stop Tuberculosis which Nigeria is ranked fourth on the global chart .

    Mrs Buhari Promised to mobilize other major stakeholders for a nationwide campaign to stop Tuberculosis and consistent advocacy through her Future Assured Initiative.

  • Photos: Ekweremadu launches book on Nigeria

    Photos: Ekweremadu launches book on Nigeria

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    Former Head of State and Chairman of the Occasion Gen. Yakubu Gowon (Rtd.) Senate Minority Leader, Godswill Akpabio, Former Senate President, David Mark and Deputy Speaker of the House of representatives, Hon. Suleiman Lasun at the public presentation of the Book title ‘who will love my country written by Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu—Photo by Femi Ojo

     

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    Extreme Right: Former Head of State and Chairman of the Occasion, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (rtd) and Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, (Extreme Left) among others at the public presentation of the Book title ‘Who Will Love My Country” written by Deputy Senate president —photo by Femi Ojo

     

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    Deputy Senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed Representing the President and Mrs. Ekweremadu, Dr. Nwanneka at the public presentation of the Book

     

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    L-R: Former Senate President, Hon. Joseph Waya and Leader of the Senate, Ali Ndume at the book launch in Abuja
  • Osinbajo, others honour Jackie at book launch

    Osinbajo, others honour Jackie at book launch

    Pastor Jackie Omotosho last Saturday launched her book titled Practice and influence of elegance: Inside Out at the Oriental Hotel in Lagos. The book which came in two volumes brought dignitaries from all walks of life.  Some of the people in attendance included the wife of the vice president, Dolapo Osinbajo, and the author’s husband, Modupe Omotosho, a pastor of the RCCG in the United States.

  • Book launch Tuesday

    ON Tuesday, May 12, 2015, a book entitled ‘Media Gaffes & Essays’ written by this columnist will be presented at the Bolaji Akinyemi Hall of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), 13/15 Kofo Abayomi Road, Victoria Island, Lagos, at 11 a.m. It is the media event of the year.

    The Jigawa State Governor Alhaji (Dr.) Sule Lamido will preside over the occasion while his Katsina State counterpart Barrister (Dr.) Ibrahim Shehu Shema will deliver the guest lecture. Former Action Governor of Abia State (1999-2007) Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu (OUK) will play host to the distinguished guests expected at the event. Access to the venue is free, but come loaded with convertible currencies as spectatorship is disallowed! Eminent personalities from all walks of life have confirmed prosperous attendance.

    I must thank the former governor of Ogun State, Aremo Olusegun Osoba, who had thought that this book launch would have held on the initial date of May 5 and had to fix his overseas trip for May 6 which could not be aborted for strategic reasons. Just before he travelled last week, he called me and asked me to furnish him with my bank account details. By the time the transaction alert came the next day I was richer by hundreds of thousands of naira! In 2005, too, when I unveiled my second book entitled ‘My Country, The Media’, he made the highest donation which I wll not disclose here. I have never done anything for him—it is just his passion for issues concerning journalism (the media generally). Egbon, it will continue to be well with you. I recall when you invited me to your Ikoyi residence a long time ago just to appreciate me for my analytical and dispassionate writings. May God endlessly embarrass you with favours.

    With regard to Dr. Kalu, my principal, his resolution to be part of this ceremony all the way from Dubai will be disclosed when I give the author’s brief address in a couple of hours. This circumscribed space is not enough to capture his essence as regards this media show of the year.

    At this point, a synoptic view of what informed this literary intervention using three memorable testaments would be apposite to round off this week’s output: “I wish to put on record my appreciation for the good work being done by you in MIDWEEK, especially through your column WORDSWORTH. Please keep up your pursuit of professional excellence.” (Tunji Oseni, Group Managing Director, The Daily Times of Nigeria PLC, April 3, 1995)

    “Ebere, I trust you are doing great! It has been quite a while I planned writing to encourage you after I read a couple of your articles since returning to Nigeria. Profound and brilliantly delivered in prosaic language that my perfectionist dad would have praised. Well done and may your ink never dry! Blessings always….” (Dr. Oby Ezekwesili (Former Vice President, World Bank, Africa Region)

    “I remember how we started off years ago at the defunct Daily Times where our professional skills were nurtured by such brilliant editors as Onyema Ugochukwu, the late Femi Sonaike, John Araka, Dapo Aderinola, and Ndu Ughamadu, among others. Along with such brilliant minds as Tunde Olusunle, the late Femi Olatunde, Hakeem Bello, Emeka Nwosu, Ebere Wabara, Abiodun Raufu, Louis Okoroma and Yomi Ola to name a few, we worked extremely hard and had such great fun.” (THE NATION Back Page, Saturday, June 30, 2012) (Segun Ayobolu, SSA (Media) to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Lagos State Governor (1999-2007) and now Deputy Chairman, Editorial Board, THE NATION Newspapers),

    The section on tributes glowingly celebrates some eminent Nigerians that I have shared experiences with, worked for or just admired from a distance. These three considerations are the standpoints for choosing the select personalities who constitute these pages. Just like the preceding section, all the elite I have encountered are innumerable for listing in this choky space.

    What originally would have been the last section of this book is now spread all through for effect. Something that has not happened in Nigeria in the past 21 years took place last year. It was the widely-reported and reprehensible abduction of this author from his Lagos palatial home by officers and men of the Abia State Police Command Criminal Investigation Department at the instance of the Abia State Governor, Mr. Theodore Ahamefula Orji, for alleged “seditious publications”. Some of the perspectives that trailed the seizure of the author are represented in this last, but not least, section. Of particular note is the personal account of the victim—it is a 7,000-word award-winning essay. Indeed, the following pages should have constituted another book entirely. According to foremost constitutional lawyer, Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN), “sedition is a colonial law, which went away with colonialism. It was a law meant to protect the government from being brought into disrepute. Now we have a constitution, which guarantees the right to freedom of expression. As such, the law of sedition can’t co-exist with the provisions of the constitution on freedom of speech and expression. The Court of Appeal declared over 20 years ago that sedition has ceased to exist and that is the way it must be.” (Vide DAILY SUN, April 2, 2014, Page 8) Human rights lawyers, Fred Agbaje, Festus Keyamo and Valentine Buoro, among other activist lawyers, also agree with Prof. Sagay. In one of the analyses in this section, Mr. Richard Akinnola, a rights advocate and social justice crusader, radically dissects the futility of this extinct law and the folly of those trying to resurrect it!

    FOR IGP Arase, PSC

    I plead with the IGP Solomon Arase and the Police Service Commission (PSC) to direct the Abia State Police Command headed by Hassan Adamu to release my HP Laptop and Samsung Galaxy handset unlawfully seized by officers and men of the CID, Umuahia, during their despicable, illegal and callous abduction of this columnist from his aristocratic home in March 2014. In his recent ruling, Justice Okon Abang of a federal high court in Lagos declared that “…The action of the governor (T. A. Orji) is barbaric, archaic, unconstitutional, and undemocratic….” God’s case, no appeal!

     

     

     

  • Mobolaji Johnson, Niyi Adebayo, Akeredolu, others honour Jakande at book launch

    Mobolaji Johnson, Niyi Adebayo, Akeredolu, others honour Jakande at book launch

    At over 80, Former Lagos State Governor and ex-Minister of Works, Alhaji Lateef Jakande CON, is still receiving public recognition and awards. Last Tuesday was yet another honours day for the former journalist and politician.

    The venue was the Lagos Airport Hotel in the heart of Ikeja, Lagos. And the event was the book launch of Jakande Leadership is action, a 200-page book put together in his honour, by Healthcare magazine publisher, Dr Bola Olaosebikan.

    Jakande was there with his wife Alhaja Abimbola Jakande, and son, Deji Jakande; and so were a large number of party stalwarts from the All Progressives Congress (APC). The party’s presidential flagbearer, General Muhammadu Buhari, was ably represented by ex-Ekiti State Governor Niyi Adebayo; Mr Rotimi Akeredolu SAN represented Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi, the APC Campaign Director General, while Lagos Sate Hon. Commissioner for Information and strategy, Alhaji Lateef Ibirogba, represented the Lagos State Governor, BabatundeRaji Fashola SAN.

    Also on the high table was ex-Governor of Lagos State, Brig. General Mobolaji Johnson, who has been a close friend of Jakande, over the years. The Lagos white cap chiefs were there, representing the Oba of Lagos. They sat in the front row. They were prominently laid out in their conspicuous white attire and symbolic white caps. APC women party faithful were there in yellow coloured aso ebi and gele to match. And so were the Iya-Olojas. It was quite a crowd.

    The book reviewer for the day was the APC gubernatorial candidate for Lagos State, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, who was represented by Mr Alade, a member of his campaign group. According to him, “the book has arrived at a most auspicious time, a time when leadership is much needed in the country. The book is informative, educative, interesting and engaging to read. The book is also laced with 10 sterling qualities of leadership found in the life of Alhaji Jakande, and worth emulating. And among other things, the book tells us much about the historical life of Alhaji Jakande, who was born in Epetedo.”

    There were repeated applauses for Alhaji Jakande when he later received a Life Time Award from the publishers of Healthcare magazine. Two more Life Time Awards were also presented in the course of the event. One went to  Brig. Gen  Johnson, and the other was presented to the National Leader of All Peoples Congress party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu by a representative of the Lagos white cap chiefs. It was received on behalf of the APC leader by Alhaji Lateef Ibirogba.

    Jakande, who spoke after the awards, said: “my heart is full of joy and prayers for this country and for the organisation that has published this book to honour me and also bestow on me, this Life Time Award.” His son, Deji Jakande, rounded off the emotional event with a vote of thanks.

  • Oshiomhole praises mum at book launch

    Oshiomhole praises mum at book launch

    Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole has praised his mother, Hajia Aishetu Oshiomhole, saying she taught him the virtues of honesty and doggedness.

    Speaking at the launch of a biography, “Igovina Emosi” a biography of Alhaja  Oshiomhole written by Imuzeze Ofen-Imu, the governor said said he learnt early in life that resources that belong to the people must not be tampered with no matter the condition.

    He said: “My mom is a woman of virtue. She has a very kind heart and somehow she taught the values of being straightforward, of courage.

    “My mom has been the unofficial treasurer of various community meetings where the books are not written and she kept the money under the carpet and yet when we are going to school and we need money, she would say there is no money.

    “I would say there is money under the carpet and she would say that the money belongs to the community. Those are some of the values we seem to have lost.

    “Even now at her age, I discourage her from getting involved in all sorts of things but she would remind me that she knows politics more than me. I once teased her that whatever she thinks she knows in politics, she was never elected not even as a councilor.”

    Former Minister of State (Works) Chris Ogiemwonyi, who chaired the occasion, praised Oshiomhole for developing the state.

    He said: “Today we salute your courage for the Benin Airport Road. For a long time, Oshiomhole was the first to bring bulldozers to Benin. You had the courage to give the Benins befitting roads and today they are happy for it.”