The Nation Newspaper

Tag: case

  • Court adjourns N110m debt case against Kano businessman

    The High Court of Justice, Abuja, yesterday adjourned till November 3 a N110million loan recovery case filed by Unity Bank Plc against Kano businessman and politician Isyaku Ibrahim.

    The bank sued Ibrahim in 2008 to recover N110,000,000 debt for which judgment was obtained in June 10, 2010.

    The court said Ibrahim failed and neglected to repay the money, which made the bank to apply to sell his house on Plot 1757, Off Jimmy Carter Street, Cadastral Zone, Asokoro District, Abuja.

    The application could not be heard for a while as the businessman prayed the court, at various times, to sell his factory at Gwagwalada in the Fedral Capital Territory (FCT), to offset the debt.

    Ibrahim once told the court that the factory had been sold, but when the matter came up for further settlement, he claimed that the prospective buyer had not paid.

    At the last sitting on September 25, it was learnt that Ibrahim requested for two weeks’ adjournment with an undertaking that the money would be paid on or before October 12.

    He reportedly promised that if he failed, the judge should grant the bank’s application.

    Although it was learnt that the bank opposed the application, the trial judge adjourned the matter till October.

    But at the end of the submissions by both parties, the judge again adjourned the matter till November 3.

  • You ‘ve a case to answer, DPP tells driver

    The 34-year-old Lagos bus driver, who has been in detention for seven months over attempted murder of a Lagos Judge, Justice Adeniyi Adebajo, has been denied bail.

    The decision followed the advice from the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP). The DPP said he has a case to answer.

    Magistrate A.O. Adegbite, who read the DPP advice in parts, ruled that the matter be transfered to the High Court for trial.

    She said: “The DPP’s advice got to the court on (Monday), and from the advice, Kasali has a case to answer.

    “Since the DPP has advised that Kasali has a case to answer and going by the offence he was arraigned for, this court lacks jurisdiction to hear the matter.

    “I therefore rule that the matter be transfered to the appropriate court (High Court) for prosecution.”

    Kasali was on March 5, arraigned before Magistrate M.A. Ladipo at Tinubu, on a count of ‘hitting Justice Adebajo with an intent to kill him’, to which the magistrate ordered that he be remanded in prison custody.

    The matter was subsequently transferred to Magistrate Adegbite. At this point, the police amended the charge against Kasali and was re-arraigned on a five-count.

    According to the charge sheet, “Kasali on March 1, at about 11:20am at Moloney Street, being the driver in charge of a commercial vanagon bus marked XA242KLK, drove in a deliberate manner thereby attempted to unlawfully kill Justice Adebajo when he was crossing the road.”

    It said the driver unlawfully intended to harm the judge by hitting him with the bus which caused him injury and grievous harm.

    A tearful Kasali’s wife, Habiba, at the court premises, appealed to Justice Adebajo to forgive his husband.

    She told The Nation that life has been unbearable for her and their new baby since her husband was arrested on March 1, adding that Justice Adebajo should for the baby’s sake, have mercy on Kasali.

    “Things have not been easy for us. I just put to bed and I am not working. We have virtually been feeding from hand to mouth since his arrest.

    “I am begging the judge in the name of God, he should just look at my baby and have mercy on him.

    “I do not know who to run to or where to go for help. I do not even want to know whether he did it or not, the judge should please forgive him and let him return home to his family.

    Kasali was also accused of dangerous and reckless driving on the public highway, without drivers’ licence and without due consideration of other users.

    His alleged offence was said to have contravened Sections 228(2), 242, 243 of the Criminal Laws as well as 29 and 7(1) of the Road Traffic Laws of Lagos, 2011.

    Although the defence counsel, Adedotun Isola-Osobu on several occasions applied for Kasali’s bail, Adegbite did not oblige as she maintained that she lacked jurisdiction to admit Kasali to bail and insisted that she will only take an action after the DPP advice was ready.

  • Alleged NPL fraud: Minister refers case to NFF

    Alleged NPL fraud: Minister refers case to NFF

    The Minister of Sports, Bolaji Abdullahi has referred the Nigeria Premier League (NPL)’s External Auditor’s Report’s case to the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to investigate the allegation of corruption levelled against the NPL by the External Auditors.

    A release signed by the Special Adviser on Media to the Minister, Julius Ogunro reads: “The attention of the Honourable Minister of Sports and Chairman of the National Sports Commission, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi has been drawn to news stories in the Punch newspaper of October 18th and 19th, which dwell on the allegations of corruption against the Board of the Nigeria Premier League.

    “As a result of this, the office of the Honourable Minister has been inundated with calls from journalists and sports stakeholders who seek his comments about the allegations against the NPL Board arising from the external auditor’s report.

    “While the Hon Minister is embarrassed by the issues raised in the report, he wishes to state that he has referred the matter to the Nigeria Football Federation, being the primary agency responsible for football in Nigeria.

    “The Honourable Minister believes the content of the external auditor’s report, without prejudice to the veracity of the allegations made, is inimical to the development of football and sports in general. While the Minister will exercise utmost restraint in interfering in these matters, he will not hesitate to discharge his full responsibilities as the foremost custodian of sports in Nigeria.

    “The Honourable Minister wishes to state that the doctrine of non-interference as espoused by the global football governing body, FIFA is primarily to enhance the development of football. However, the kind of issues at stake appears to neither serve the interest of Nigerian football nor that of FIFA.

    “Nevertheless, the Honourable Minister believes that all the issues at stake are still allegations until proven otherwise, while trusting that the NFF will ensure that justice is done on these issues and to all concerned”, Ogunro stated on behalf of the Minister.

  • HIV positive woman wins 12-year-old case

    After waiting 12 years for justice, reprieve finally came the way of Georgina Ahamefule on 27th September, 2012 at a Lagos State High Court.

    Ahamefule is a woman living with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), whose employment as an auxiliary nurse at the Imperial Medical Centre was terminated in October 1995.

    Efforts by her, through the Social Economic Rights Action Center (SERAC), to obtain redress received an initial jolt when the HIV-positive woman was barred from entering the courtroom, due to her medical status, by a judge of a Lagos High Court, where her case was to be heard. The judge said she needed “satisfactory expert evidence” to convince her that the judge and others would not become infected with the virus as a result of Ahamefule’s physical presence in the courtroom.

    SERAC appealed the decision at the Court of Appeal, where it was remitted back to the High Court for trial. The suit commenced by a writ of summons filed at the High Court of Lagos State, Ikeja Judicial Division, (General Civil Division) on 14th July, 2012.

    The 27th September, 2012 judgment delivered by Justice Y.O. Idowu, the court made four declarations, and ordered that; 1) Five million naira be paid to the plaintiff for the wrongful termination of her employment, and 2) Two million naira be paid her, being compensation for unlawful conduct of HIV testing without the plaintiff’s informed consent and for the defendants’ negligence.

    Speaking with reporters, Ahamefule, a native of Mbaise, Imo State, said she had to relocate to Port Harcourt while awaiting the outcome of the case. According to her, she knew that justice would surely come her way, especially considering the resilience with which SERAC pursued the case. Before she relocated to Port Harcourt, she had worked with Centre for the Right to Health (CRH) and a medical facility briefly as an HIV counselor. She is currently without a job.

  • NOA DG makes case for voluntary services

    National Orientation Agency (NOA), Director-General Mr. Mike Omeri, has implored Nigerian youths to define their roles in terms of the national development challenges by their involvement in voluntary services for community development. He made this call when the Speaker of Nigerian Youth Parliament, Rt. Honourable Abdullahi Hussaini Maibasira, in company of leaders of the parliament visited him in his office.

    Omeri urged the youth to identify with the NOA’s Citizens’ Responsibility Volunteer Scheme (CRVS) which was launched last month, describing it as a stop-gap arrangement for youth engagement and training preparatory to employment. While condemning the practice of youths abandoning their education to involve in political thuggery, the NOA boss admonished youths to imbibe the value of patience which, he said, breeds possession of all the good things a youth aspires for.

    The NOA helmsman also charged the parliament to propagate the positive values of patience, patriotism, tolerance, hard work and good conscience among Nigerian youths through effective use of social media.

    Maibasira had disclosed that the parliament was seeking partnership with NOA to assist in the prosecution of the Agency’s Do the Right Thing: Transform Nigeria campaign and ensure its longevity even beyond the tenure of the Director General. The decision to seek the partnership, according to him, was because the campaign had brought back the founding heritage of the nation in terms of values especially among the youths and this was in tandem with the aspirations of the Youth Parliament.

  • N600m LG fund: Mimiko has case to answer, says Ogele

    N600m LG fund: Mimiko has case to answer, says Ogele

    An Akure-based activist, Barrister Morakinyo Ogele, who is seeking to have Ondo State governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, prosecuted over alleged misappropriation of about N600m earmarked for the creation of additional local governments in the state, has insisted Mimiko has a case to answer.

    He told our correspondent yesterday he is set to approach a court of competent jurisdiction to have the Mimiko-led administration questioned over the money.

    Ogele said the failure of Mimiko to respond to his request for a public explanation on how the fund was spent has convinced him the money must have been misappropriated.

    In a letter to the governor through the Commissioner for Finance last Tuesday, Ogele asked the governor to explain how N7billion palm tree seedlings project at Ore and Bagbe and the N2.7 billion “Igbe Ayo” project were spent.

    He vowed to initiate litigations against against

    officials of the ministries of finance and budget

    planning if Mimiko failed to respond on time.

    Speaking yesterday, he said he will now proceed to institute a case against the Governor as he is convinced Mimiko has no plan to respond to his request.

    Ogele also urged Ondo indigenes to be wary of

    the politicians and political party the will entrust the state to on

    October 20.

    According to him: “With politicians like Mimiko and political parties like Labour Party(LP) we just need to be more careful the way we vote. Our votes as our power will save us from further looting of our treasury.”

  • The Nation man makes case for NYSC at book launch

    With rising insecurity and recent attacks on the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members, the programme, created to foster unity, seems to be losing its popularity.

    But for the author of Served, a book presented in Lagos yesterday, the fading glory of the mandatory programme can be restored.

    Written by The Nation, reporter, Joseph Agbro jnr,, the book chronicles the life, experience and survival instincts of a youth corps member in a village far away from his hometown.

    It gives a vivid description of what the national orientation camp looks like. It reminds the reader of the national anthem and paints the picture of the birth of compatriot.

    To the older generation, the book is a nostalgic, taking the reader down memory lane. For the fresh graduate, it is a literary replay of their NYSC experience, and for the undergraduates, it is an eye opener to the world that awaits them in the national orientation camp.

  • NBA threatens to take over Yekini’s case

    NBA threatens to take over Yekini’s case

    After a long wait without pleasing results, the Nigeria Bar Association, Oyo State branch, has signified interest to wade into the investigations surrounding the death of late Super Eagles’ striker, Rashidi Yekini.

    The was revealed to newsmen in Ibadan yesterday by the Yekini’s Lawyer, Barrister Mohammed Olanrewaju Jibril who claimed he had been blocking his professional body (NBA) that had shown interest in taking over that case right from the onset.

    He explained that NBA has begun to inquire why nothing tangible has been done in exposing the true circumstances that surrounded the untimely death of the football hero.

    Jibril said the reason he had been preventing his body from dabbling into the case was that of the family of his client who are likely going to be the prime suspect in the case going by all the available facts generated so far.

    The Lawyer, however, explained that although the family had brought the death certificate of the deceased but he still alleged that, “the death certificate has not really clarified other important things like where was Rashidi Yekini between the Monday he was reportedly whisked away from his abode till the Friday he was rushed to the hospital where they claimed he died?

    “From my personal investigations after receiving the death certificate, the doctor who signed it insisted that he had not done anything serious as regards the medical check-up on Yekini before he died when he was rushed into his clinic.

    “I have been keeping quiet and hesitating on pressing charges on the family because I don’t want to be seen inflicting more pains on them after losing their son. But I won’t be able to stop any pressure group that may want to investigate the matter to a logical conclusion.

    “I have told them before now and I am using this medium again to appeal to Yekini’s family to come out openly and apologise to the whole Nigeria and the world at large over their attitude and on the mistake they made as regards the treatment meted on my client.

    “It is my belief that the family was misled by some misleading report they might have read in the newspapers concerning the sanity of my client. Rashidi was their son but he was my client too. He was a hero recognized worldwide, so he should not be treated like just a commoner,” Jibril explained.