The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Injustice

  • Injustice writ large  

    Injustice writ large  

    • Police authorities must punish their men who kept an innocent Nigerian in jail for 10 months

    Reported experiences of a 26-year-old photographer who spent 10 months in prison for resigning his job with a photography studio in Abuja through a text message illustrate abuses inherent in the Nigerian justice system.

    Peter Nicholas is a graduate of Mass Communication from Akwa Ibom State Polytechnic whose promising career was gridlocked by his 10-month incarceration at Keffi Correctional Centre, after he sent his resignation through a text message to the studio proprietor, Mike Oluwole, who is said to be a politician. The charges on which the young man was apprehended were that he insulted the proprietor and was also suspected of theft of a phone at the studio, which Nicholas denied because the phone was declared missing after he had quit the studio. The charges against him were later withdrawn by the litigant from the Upper Area Court in Mpape, Abuja, where Nicholas was arraigned, but he was yet held in prison because he could not raise the money to pay his bail. 

    Nicholas was working as a photographer and photo editor at the Abuja studio where he was placed on N70,000 monthly salary and a six-month probation before he resigned three months into the job, because of a better offer elsewhere and dissatisfaction with his boss’s human relations. He said he was not given a formal employment letter, and so did not consider it imperative to write in a formal resignation letter.

    On October 10, 2023, he sent in his resignation by a text message to the boss. He didn’t stop there, though. On October 14, he sent another text message advising the studio proprietor on leadership skills, which the proprietor found insulting. “The message I sent on October 10, 2023 stated that I was no longer interested in working with him. To further explain my reason for resigning, I sent another text on October 14, advising him to learn leadership and management skills because of how he humiliated a colleague who collected N125,000 from a client into his personal account since the customer couldn’t pay into the company’s account,” he said in a newspaper interview, adding: “The colleague was arrested, molested by the police, and eventually taken to their station despite reimbursing the company. After that, I lost interest in working at his studio. No staff member had ever stayed there for more than three months, though the customers weren’t aware.”

    Read Also: We must embrace multilateralism to secure sustainable peace, development, Tinubu tells African leaders

    The proprietor got Nicholas arrested on October 15, 2023, and he was in jail until recently when a non-governmental organisation, Hope Behind Bars Africa Foundation, facilitated payment of the bail fee. Executive Director of the organisation, Funke Adeoye, announced in a post on X last week that Nicholas got freed two weeks earlier after an anonymous person paid his bail. “From spending two days in police detention, he ended up being charged for ‘intentional insult,’ locked up in a room with 189 other cell mates at a prison in Keffi because he could not afford the bail sum initially set at N100,000 and later N50,000,” he said. “He remained there even after the said boss, a politician in the current administration and owner of a popular photography studio in the FCT, wrote a letter to the court withdrawing the charge,” Adeoye added.

    In his interview with ‘The Punch’, Nicholas described his 10-month stay at Keffi Correctional Centre as harrowing and recounted how he slept on the floor, went without bathing for more than three months for lack of funds to purchase water, and shared a cell with inmates who included hardened criminals – “robbers, kidnappers, murderers, innocent inmates awaiting justice, and those without records; there was no (distinction) whatsoever.”

    Despite those harsh conditions, however, he found solace in playing the keyboard at the prison church, where the chaplain took interest in him. His break came after Hope Behind Bars learnt of his plight through a friend he had contacted from prison.

    We consider it sheer abuse of influence on Oluwole’s part to have dragged Nicholas to the police on account of his feeling insulted by his resignation messages. Libel is a violation under Nigerian law, but those messages certainly aren’t libelous since they were not published to a third party. And if the issue was the reported phone theft, why was the issue not provable in court and the matter subsequently withdrawn? The businessman apparently had some reach with the police that he wielded to tyrannise Nicholas. The police deserve a greater censure for finding the matter serious enough to engage their time in litigation and not referred to domestic arbitration. And after the case was withdrawn by Oluwole, on what basis was Nicholas yet held in prison custody to last 10 months?

    With the level of criminality in society that the police are hard pressed to tackle, this matter smacks of that local axiom about conniving at leprosy disease and running frantic to cure eczema. Police authorities should investigate their personnel who committed precious operational hours to such trite matter and sanction them accordingly.

    Nicholas’s experience indexes why Nigerian correctional centres are overly congested, with more than half of inmates yet to be tried or found guilty of any offence. This calls for drastic review of the justice system to keep potential innocents out of jail-hold with convicted criminals.

  • ‘I chose law to fight injustice’

    ‘I chose law to fight injustice’

    Law was a natural choice for Blessing Chizurum Daniel: she detests injustice. The 2019 Abia State University (ABSU) Law graduate tells VICTORIA BOBADE how watching a wealthy young man brutalising his older but helpless victim with impunity reinforced her resolution to become a lawyer.

    I am Blessing Chizurum Daniel from Ohafia Local Government Area (LGA) of Abia State. I was born into the family of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel N. Umeh, both from Ohafia LGA in Abia State. I attended Abia State University (ABSU), Uturu, graduated on the 10th of October 2019.

    Daughter of a teacher, engineer

    My mother is a retired teacher and my dad is an engineer. I am the 4th of five children.

    Memorable school experience

    I attended Globel Christ Academy in Umuahia, the capital city of Abia State. Primary school played a significant role in forming the best part of me; it built my self-confidence from a tender age as I was nominated several times to represent my class in school classroom presentations as well as school competitions.

    One memorable moment I won’t forget was when I took ill as a result of the unexpected vacation. I lost hope of coming tops in my class. This was because I had missed at least 50 per cent of the classes. My competitor, who happened to be the headmistress’s son at that time, boasted that he would beat me to it by taking the first position. However, it was a shocking as well as an unforgettable moment when I was declared that first position in my class. That moment grew my self-confidence even more.

    Why I chose law

    I do not have direct family members that are lawyers, but growing up, I often saw injustice meted out to some people, mostly those of the lower class. A remarkable moment would be when I witnessed a full-grown man being slapped and punched several times by a younger man who was well-dressed and drove a clean white car. He was brutalised and no one could come to his aid. Every attempt to get the younger man to quit hitting him was abortive. The younger man further boasted that there was nothing that he (the older man) could do about it. That particular scene shaped me and inspired me to look out for people that can’t stand up for themselves. The only way I could achieve that was by going into the legal profession.

    However, if I hadn’t gone for Law, I would have ventured into Theatre Arts this is because I am solely obsessed with putting myself out there for the public to see what I have to offer. I am someone that loves to reach out to people, directly or indirectly. Acting would have placed me in the right position to do that regardless.

    Ups, downs of studying Law

    Studying law at ABSU was like a roller coaster reasons being that in some of the semesters, I wasn’t able to put up with the lectures as a result of some setbacks. It affected my academics. However, I will not deny the fact that some courses were life savers as the lecturers made them quite interesting and easy to understand, therefore, despite the setbacks, I was able to scale through at the end of the semester. Also, I won’t forget the wonderful people that I met at the university; they helped in making the journey smooth.

    How Law School impacted my confidence

    Sitting for any exam has never been my problem. I had this confidence that provided I understood the questions, I could attempt the questions and I definitely would come out successful even though it wasn’t with great and amazing scores. However, Law School didn’t go that way; I had my challenges that almost dealt with my self-confidence, shook my credibility. Nevertheless, despite the setbacks, I am glad it turned out well. I created time to balance my reading and social life. I am one to completely break down when I read for a long time so in order not to lose it completely, I took some time in between studying to listen to music and check up on my loved ones. After such an activity, I find myself refreshed and ready to read more.

    Going from active to reserved

    Unlike in my primary and secondary schools where I was more active in school activities, my life at the university took a different turn. I went from being a very active child in primary and secondary school to being a more reserved person in the university. I didn’t take part in competitions or anything. My main focus was to pass the exams and get to help people as I had planned.

    Call to bar

    My Call to bar ceremony was great. I celebrated with my family alongside my friend. Of course, it was a fulfilling day for not just me, but my family as well. I mean it was like a dream come true as I was able to finally get to achieve my long-term goal. I was also privileged to meet a legal luminary in the person of Awa U. Kalu (SAN) who prepped me on what lies ahead in the hallowed profession.

    Greater responsibilities since becoming a lawyer

    Well since I became a lawyer, I can say for a fact that a lot has changed. My parents now entrust certain things to me not taking into consideration that I am the younger child. They trust me now to handle things better than my older siblings. I can say sometimes it gives me the chills but I snap out of it almost immediately because, of course, this is what I signed up for. Also, my friends feel more comfortable discussing their next big plans with me. I mean they see me now as not just their friend but one that can easily guide them in making the right decision when it comes to getting legal advice

    What to do about Law School grading system

    The Law School grading system has been known to put students on their toes for quite some time now. My advice to students is to try their best. Brainstorm with fellow course mates. Burn the candle and get done with it. It’s not an experience you’ll want to repeat continuously. However, if you find yourself going down that road again, take a different approach than the first time, give it your best again, and get done with it.

    Lawyers’ wig, gown are unique

    The idea of a wig and gown for me is unique. It gives adds glamour to the profession. The idea in its entirety is appealing and should be applauded.

    Judge, SAN, or Prof?

    As a lawyer, I think the beauty is to experience the profession in totality. That being said, I would love to explore the legal profession up to the status of a SAN. I mean it is quite interesting because it compels one to work harder and that’s definitely what I intend to do. Expand my knowledge as well as understand the profession quite well. Also, I take into consideration the various rights and privileges accrued to a SAN and I intend to experience them.

    Marrying a lawyer?

    Lol. I can tell you for a fact that I don’t want to reason being that I am one to feel comfortable gaining knowledge from one I am not familiar with. Marrying a lawyer for me, will make me so comfortable and not able to stretch me beyond my expectations. I mean I don’t mind going to my seniors I am not familiar with to gain an understanding of the profession.

    Second chance at a career

    I love singing, watching movies. If I had a second chance, I’ll still go for law because, despite the ups and downs of the profession, it has given me the sense of belonging I need.

    The future

    I would love to own my law firm, I would love to explore other aspects of law aside from litigation. Venture into corporate law and property law in totality.

  • How injustice meted out to my cousin by the Police prompted me to join the Force—Lagos CP Zubairu Muazu

    Lagos State Police Commissioner, Zubairu Muazu, never had the childhood fantasy of becoming a cop; fate and the desire to correct an injustice meted out to a relative by the police changed his career path. In this exclusive interview with PRECIOUS IGBONWELUNDU, CP Muazu gives insights into his life, career and ways to improve the Nigeria Police. Excerpts:

     It is said that all men are born equal but the finest of them become cops. What was growing up like and did your childhood influence your decision to be a policemen?

    I grew up in a very large family. My late father had four wives and 25 children. Of course, not all of us were born at the same time. We have different peer groups in the family. So, I grew up among by brothers and sisters. I had a very humble beginning from a very humble family. My father was an Islamic scholar. He brought us up and I will tell you that all of us went to school even up at least first degree.

    My father died when we were still in the secondary school. I went to the university with the support of the eldest of us in the family who is also late now. So, I grew up among my brothers. We schooled together; three of us from three different wives were in the same class both in primary and secondary schools. I went to Ahmadu Bello University in the early 80s and graduated with a first degree in Botany, Natural Sciences.

    I was posted to Cross River State (which included the present day Akwa Ibom) for my National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) where I taught Mathematics and sciences in secondary school. After my youth service, I picked up an appointment with the governmen,precisely in the Forestry Department, Ministry of Agriculture. The government sent me on an official forestry training course in Edo State where  I started my career as a public servant in the Forestry Department Department.

    At what point did you become a policeman?

    While working as a civil servant, I had an encounter with the police. My first cousin, who is my age mate, and I grew up together;  he was head of the pharmacy department at a hospital in Bauchi. Unfortunately, there was burglary there and he reported it to the police. But when he made the report, he was kept at the police station the whole day. I learnt of it and went there and was told he needed someone to bail him because he was the first suspect.

    I wondered how someone  who reported a case of burglary in an office he was heading suddenly turned the suspect. I felt something was wrong and I instantly developed interest in becoming a policeman. I said I will go into this job and see what I can do to change it. While we were doing this, the advert for entry into the police was going on. I still did not make up my mind until the very last day for submission of forms. I went to pick my own form under the PRO,  DSP Julius Fakoya. He asked if I was serious at all and why I was coming to pick the  form on the last day for submission? I told him I was very serious and that I will return my completed form before the close of work that day, which I did. About 18 of us were invited for the preliminary screening in Bauchi and we went to the zonal headquarters in Yola for the interview. When the appointment came out, my name was first on the list. They called us on radio that in two weeks time, we should report to the Police Academy. This is how my life started as a police officer.

    It’s been over 30 years since that encounter and you have held several appointments as a policeman. Have you been able to change those things that spurred you into the service?

    I have made my own impact in my own way. We went to the Police Academy in March,1988 and trained for 18 months. Then, there was a policy that Inspectors, ASPs, DSPs should be deployed to their states of origin. Incidentally, I started working in that same division where I had that nasty experience; that was my first division. The first one year, you will go round various departments- investigations, operations, we did it.

    Then, I was posted to the headquarters in Bauchi where I worked with the CP Uba Uba, now retired AIG. As a DSP, I was posted to the Police Staff College (PSC). The British Government wanted to establish a central planning unit for the Nigeria Police Force (NPF). So we were the pioneering staff. We had four British police officers to help the Nigerian government establish the unit which would control centrally, all the training programmes in the NPF, coordinate all the police colleges, draft curriculum for all police trainings and promotion courses. We worked with them for three years and we left.

    I can say most of my early policing duties were in investigations and trainings, though I had a brief stint as a DPO in Adamawa for a year and half and was posted back to the CID. I served at the Special Fraud and AIG Monitoring Units. As an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), I was posted to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) where I also did more of investigations and operations. I returned to the Special Fraud Unit as Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) and was also posted to the Rivers State Command. That was where I was promoted Commissioner of Police. I have been CP Admin, CP EOD, CP Niger, CP Akwa Ibom, Nigerian Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies Kuru (NIPSS), CP InterPol before becoming CP Lagos Command.

    Niger State was my first command as CP and the experience was something else. I was posted there at the peak of banditry and other security issues in Niger. It was not easy but by the grace of God, we were able to salvage the situation. In Akwa Ibom, the issue was that of cultism and communal crises. It was a different ball game in Niger, particularly in two Local Government Areas (LGAs). We put a lot of community policing strategies in place to ensure stability.

     While at EFCC and SFU, you handled several fraud and corruption cases and it is on record that you were meticulous. Can you share some of the experiences with us?

    The experience in EFCC Lagos is not what you think. We did more of the advanced fee fraud cases and cyber crimes in Lagos. Those are the main issues in Lagos. Most of the corruption cases were handled in Abuja, though we had few in Lagos and treated them successfully. We had more of bank fraud cases. While I was Head of Operations, we investigated issues surrounding five banks that later went under. We did a thorough investigation and charged the cases to court.

    Were there threats to your life or inducement attemtps?

    There is big difference between investigating financial crimes and violent crimes. Financial crimes are white collar crimes and the suspects are mainly well educated people who play tricks and then take money from people through banks or other means. So, I won’t say there was threat to my life. But there was a lot of temptations. In fact, the experience was terrible. They will not come to you and say we want to bribe you. They call it different names and it is left for the investigator to reject such by taking his mind very far from it, otherwise, you will fall for it. We were able to overcome it. You cannot record success if you are not determined. I am proud of my experience and I hope that what we left behind is still being maintained at the EFCC.

    What major challenges have you faced in your over 30 years as a policeman?

    Well, investigation is very challenging. My first experience as an investigator was at the SFU as a young officer. Then, the link between the fraudsters in Nigeria and their victims abroad was just a telephone number and fax machines. The fraudsters wrote beautiful but fake business proposals which they used to lure their victims. Once there is a complaint, it is that phone number used we usually relied on. Initially, we will go to NITEL to get the details of the owner of the telephone number but the fraudsters realised this and started using fake names, addresses and pictures to register their telephones.

    This was being done with conspiracy from NITEL workers because I did not understand how someone will come to apply for telephone line and the picture he came with isn’t his but he is approved. Getting the suspects became a challenge because the details on the file usually belonged to someone who had nothing to do with the fraud.

    So, we started tossing the lines of these suspects once a signal was given and traced the lines to the nearest distribution box to know the apartment the suspect telephone was. Other times, we disconnected them once their numbers had been flagged; so they came to NITEL to complain and they were picked up from there and taken to their homes for investigation to continue.  It was very dramatic and also exciting.

    Then came the 090 mobile and the fraudsters would just discard the lines after hitting their target. Once they noticed their line was tossed, they will just buy a new one and communicate to their victims. To address this, we started doing partial tossing of their lines so that they will think it is a technical problem. What we did was to make it such that they can either receive calls but cannot call out or the other way. That way, they will come to complain at NITEL and then, we will pick them up. Those days, we did the jobs ourselves and I cherish those moments despite the challenges.

    Then, as CP Niger State, I had a very nasty experience. There was this clash between locals and the military and I had to play a vital role. The community members were looking up to me to get justice. On the other side, I had my colleagues in the security service that were also looking up to me. But thankfully, we were able to address the situation with each side leaving satisfied. I came in as CP Lagos at a rough time. It was the last lap of political campaigns towards the 2019 general elections but we ensured peace reigned in the state.

    There were exaggerations on the social media about the incident that happened during the presidential election.  There was this video of somebody being beaten and burnt to ashes; it was not true and we had to call stakeholders together to discuss and avoid any violence. Then, we reviewed our deployment and identified trouble areas. For the first time Lagos was peaceful during elections; there was no violence. Nobody died in Lagos State during the 2019 elections. We made sure there was also no violence during the governorship exercise. It was a nice experience. After elections, it was a different ball game because the youths who were earlier engaged by the politicians for campaigns and other things were now idle.

    We started having issues of cultism, clashes between rival cult groups, few cases of kidnapping and we started experiencing traffic robberies. But we are on top of it and I assure you that in all the kidnap cases we had after the elections, all the suspects were arrested. I know you also know that we have few cases of police officers’ indiscretions, over  which we stood firm and ensured necessary sanctions.

    Between March and May, we arrested a total of 90 armed robbery suspects; five died during encounters with the police; 77 armed robbery attempts were foiled and nine incidences reported; 40 arms and 68 ammunition were recovered and seven suspected kidnappers held. Also, 60 persons were arrested for cultism, three vehicles snatched, four removed from where they were parked and two driven off by drivers.That is the experience so far in Lagos.

    What strategies did you adopt that have led to drastic reduction in kidnapping s, armed robberies and violent crimes in Lagos since you assumed duty?

    I will say it is the practice of community policing that has been working for us. It was the same strategy that worked for us in Niger and Akwa Ibom states. Then, there is determination and constant supervision of my DPOs and officers. Once you supervise them and they see the commitment in you as a leader, definitely, they would follow suit. I ensure that DPOs and Area Commanders are carried along in what I want achieved. Let them see transparency and hardwork in you and it will be easy.

    My DPOs are on their toes in Lagos because they do not know which division I will visit next. I go round regularly. On Sunday, I was in Ajao Estate in the evening; from there, I went to Isolo to see what they are doing. So, once they know that the CP can appear anytime, they are always on their toes, and once they are on their toes, jobs get done.

    Recently, a picture where you stooped before the family members of a young man shot dead by the police went viral with lots of commendation from the public. Many have wondered if that was a policing strategy or personality touch?

    I told you earlier that I grew up in a very humble home. I will say it is my personality. My philosophy in life is give every human being his due respect or right and live in peace with them. Do not harass or embarrass anybody. Treat him like a human being, and he will give it back to you. As a police officer, it costs nothing to do our jobs with human face. We have powers given to us by law but you should also know that the same law that gives us such powers, limits the powers.

    So, work within your limit. Once you work within your limit and respect human dignity, we will live peacefully and it will make your work easy. You will find people being attracted to you. I come here (office), sit down and listen to anyone who comes to see me. If it is something I can do, I’II call my officers to do and if I cannot, I’IIbtell the person I cannot. I encourage my officers to do the same and that is why we have synergy and are achieving results in Lagos.

    Given the opportunity today, what are the things you think you will change to make the police more effective?

    We have majorly three issues-Recruitment, training and welfare.

    In recruitment into the police force, we should go back to the grassroots and return the powers on who becomes a policeman from a community to the people. It is the people that know who the criminals in their communities are; they are the ones who know those who will not make good officers.  So, let the people have a say in who represents them as a police officer. That way, people who are committed and passionate about the police job and not those who are looking for employment will join the force. The nature of training in the force needs to improve and be more practical. Police job is a practical thing, so you cannot train policemen like they do in the universities and expect them to come out as practical police officers. Policemen need to get practical training of the job. Every training school must have a police station so that while in training, they start practising these things, including arrest of suspects and the procedures. Lastly, it is human beings that do the job. The current welfare package can be improved upon.

    There has been clamour for better welfare for policemen and this is against scarce resources at the disposal of the federal government. Some people have suggested the decentralisation of the force as a way out, while others want private sector sponsorship encouraged. How can this funding issue be addressed in your opinion?

    Show original message

    Yes, I do relax. I told you earlier that I visited Ajao Estate on Sunday. It was for a social event, family’s baby dedication and it was from there I visited the Police Divisions I mentioned. I enjoyed nice music and the company of the couple for about an hour and half. I was not CP during those moments. Some weekends, I visit the nearest beach. The Police Officers Mess is just by my house and I go there. We have the police sports arena and as a sportsman, I go round to see what my colleagues are doing and also play.

    What kind of sports do you play?

    I was Chairman of Darts Association. I played Dart, Athletics and Squash.  I am the Chairman, Police Athletics Association. As a youngster, I played hockey for my state and while in the training school.

  • Senate ticket: Shehu Sani resigns from APC

    • Says posterity will judge

    Senator Shehu Sani (Kaduna Central) yesterday parted ways with the All Progressives Congress (APC), citing “grave injustice by the leadership of the party.”

    The lawmaker announced this in a letter addressed to the APC Chairman, Ward 6, Tudun Wada North, Kaduna State.

    He said:”I present to you my highest compliments and wish by this communication to formally offer you my resignation from the APC.

    “I had joined the APC and remained with it against all odds in the belief that it will constitute a veritable platform for the realisation of those democratic ideals which I hold very dear.

    “I joined in the belief that honour and integrity will be the ultimate ethos of the party and most importantly, that internal democracy will always be the norm.”

    The lawmaker expressed disappointment at the manner in which the tenets of the party were being thwarted.

    He added that, “only posterity can affirm the extent to which the APC has committed to and reflected these values.

    “As I exit the APC at this point in time, I wish to formally thank the party for availing me the platform upon which I am currently serving this country.”

    He said only posterity can affirm the extent to which the APC has committed to and reflected those values.

    Sani, was the only aspirant cleared to contest the senatorial election by the national leadership of the APC and  endorsed by the appeals panel.

    His name was however missing from the list of the APC candidates sent to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday, October 18.

    The Nation gathered that the party forwarded the name of Mallam Uba Sani, the preferred candidate of Governor Nasir el Rufai to the electoral body against the advice of the appeals panel that the primary that produced him was conducted in contempt of the court.

    Contacted yesterday, the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mallam Lanre Isa-Oniru said the party would  react appropriately in due course.

    He said “we received the news of the alleged defection of Senator Sheu Sani through media reports. The party leadership will relate with all the facts concerning the reported defection and react appropriately in due course.”

    However, the national leadership of the APC has said it has learnt of media reports regarding the resignation of one of its senators, Shehu Sani. Shehu Sani.

    The party in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu said it was studying all the facts before taking an appropriate action. He said, “We received the news of the alleged defection of Senator Shehu Sani through media reports. The party leadership will relate with all the facts concerning the reported defection and react appropriately in due course,” he said.

    Sani had reportedly announced his resignation in a letter addressed to his ward chairman in Kaduna State. The letter signed by the lawmaker and copied to the National Chairman of the party, Mr Adams Oshiomhole, however, did not state his next political destination.

     

  • ‘Announcing my sack on air was injustice’

    The immediate past Chairman of the Governing Council of the College of Education at Ikere-Ekiti, Prof. Babatope Alo, has said the announcement of his sack on air is an “act of injustice”.

    Alo said he had not been officially communicated through a letter or electronic media since his sack was announced last week on the Broadcasting Service of Ekiti State (BSES).

    He said a member of the Governing Council, Mr. Gboyega Akinola, resigned in protest against the way he was treated by the state government.

    The Usi-Ekiti-born Professor of Applied Biology said he served the college diligently, worked for its progress and recorded many achievements during his tenure.

    The achievements, according to him, include stability in the administration, increase in internally generated revenue (IGR), improvement in workers’ welfare, reviving the college farm and establishment of a printing press.

    Alo, who spoke yesterday for the first time on his removal, said he was happy he left office with his name, image and integrity intact as he was not accused of any act of fraud, embezzlement and abuse of office.

    Noting that he had no premonition of his sack from office, the former school chairman said Governor Ayo Fayose had accused him of fraternising with his enemies.

    He added that he did not know the enemies the governor was referring to.

    Alo said: “I had no premonition of my removal except for a time the governor called me and accused me of fraternising with his enemies. I wondered who the enemies could be…”

  • MOSOP to Buhari: address our injustice, neglect

    GOVEMENT for Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP) has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to address injustice and neglect in Ogoniland.

    MOSOP spoke yesterday in Port Harcourt through its Publicity Secretary, Fegalo Nsuke.

    It decried the Federal Government’s inability to clean-up Ogoniland by implementing recommendations of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report on the environmental assessment of Ogoniland.

    MOSOP said with the August 4, 2011, submission of the UNEP report to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja, it’s a shame that almost seven years after, the clean-up of Ogoniland was  yet to begin.

    Ogoni people in the four councils of Khana, Gokana, Tai and Eleme, through MOSOP, said: “At the inception of the administration of President Buhari, we (Ogoni people) had anticipated some relief for the Ogoni people, not only because the new President had during his campaign in 2015 pledged to ensure the clean-up of Ogoniland and fully implement the recommendations contained in the UNEP report, but we expected that the clean-up would open discussions on crucial issues affecting the Ogoni people, especially the political right to self determination.

    “We had hope that President Buhari’s integrity, based on what we had heard about him and his uprightness, would not be compromised. We were actually optimistic of a renewed commitment to resolving the Ogoni problems.

    “We were sure that President Buhari was aware that in over 30 years of oil exploration in Ogoniland, an estimated $81 billion had been generated from the area, excluding the huge gas potential of Ogoniland, the revenue from the two seaports, two refineries, a petrochemical complex and two power stations in the area, but Ogoniland has no water, electricity, roads and other social amenities.

    “The Ogoni experience clearly shows the injustice in Nigeria. The shame is that rather than address the injustice, the Federal Government of Nigeria is attempting to deceive the world about the true situation in Ogoniland. Today in Ogoniland, some villages bury as many as 13 persons in a week, because of pollution caused by exploration and exploitation of crude oil and gas since 1958.

    “The Federal Government of Nigeria is not bothered about the pathetic situation in Ogoniland, but still pushing for resumption of oil production in Ogoniland, over 25 years after Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) was sent packing from the area. Nigeria government’s primary interest is the Ogoni oil and not the safety and future of the people.”

    It noted that its demand for justice, fairness and equity through non-violent means is taken for granted, saying governments had pushed Ogoni to the wall.

    The umbrella organisation maintained that Ogoni State was not negotiable, stressing that the new state will deliver social equality and justice for the people.

    Renowned environmentalist Ken Saro-Wiwa, and eight other activists were hanged at the Port Harcourt Prisons on November 10, 1995, during the regime of the late Gen. Sani Abacha.

     

     

  • Salami: An epic injustice revisited

    Salami: An epic injustice revisited

    When the National Judicial Council (NJC) recommended in May 2012 that the suspended president of the Court of Appeal, Justice Ayo Isa Salami, be reinstated, not a few of those who  had followed the matter closely felt that the Council was offering President Goodluck Jonathan            a decent way to end one of the ugliest episodes in Nigeria’s judicial history.

    That the recommendation bore the imprint of two of the nation’s most distinguished jurists  who stood at opposite ends of the ideological spectrum made the recommendation all the more resonant.

    If the liberal Justice Kayode Eso, judge of the Supreme Court, since deceased, and the conservative senior attorney and former Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of                              the Federation, Chief Richard Akinjide (SAN), could sign off on the document along with the majority, it would seem that the Council had decided to take politics out of the matter and had considered it purely on its legal merit.

    The NJC, I thought, had thereby placed in President Goodluck Jonathan’s hands a powerful weapon to rein in the hawks in the PDP who would settle for nothing less than Justice Salami’s scalp because his Court stripped them of their stolen gubernatorial trophies in Osun and Ondo and restored the people’s mandate to those who had earned it at the polls.

    I was hoping that Dr Jonathan would seize the opportunity to play statesman rather than party chieftain.  And when he was reported to be “studying” the recommendation, I thought he was trying to find a way of appeasing the hawks, aforementioned.

    Dr Jonathan had something else in mind.  He ran down the clock on Justice Salami, calculating that the books would be closed on the matter once the jurist reached the mandatory retirement age of 70 years.

    And so, two years after being consigned to judicial purgatory, Justice Salami served notice of retirement, effective October 15, 2013, victim  of an epic injustice that Dr Jonathan could and indeed should have ended.

    Justice Salami’s ordeal began, as I once recalled in this space, when he presided over the sitting  of the Court of Appeal that voided the purported election of the PDP candidate, Engineer Segun Oni, in the 2007 Ekiti gubernatorial election and declared Dr Kayode Fayemi of the ACN winner.

    The election was marred by fraud on a staggering scale.  In a court-ordered partial re-run  to ascertain the true voice of the people, the PDP, the election umpire INEC, Maurice Iwu presiding, and the police, executed a more brazen heist that a 3-2 majority of the Election Petitions Tribunal nevertheless consecrated with transparent sophistry.

    The Court of Appeal reversed, and Justice Salami became a marked man.

    Five weeks later, the Salami Court, Justice Clara Ogunbiyi presiding, vacated the stolen mandate under which yet another PDP candidate, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, had governed Osun for three years and seven months–or seven years and seven months if one believes, as one now positively must — that Oyinlola and the PDP never won the 2003 election, on the basis of which    he had served a four-year term.

    As in Ekiti, the Osun poll was vitiated by massive rigging and violence.  The ACN candidate, Engineer Rauf Aregbesola, headed to the Elections Petition Tribunal for review and redress.  Obtaining neither, he took his case to a superior body, which held that the verdict of the court  below amounted to a miscarriage of justice and ordered that the petition be heard de novo.

    The new tribunal rejected Aregbesola’s petition in a “unanimous” judgment signed by four of  the five judges.  The text was festooned with alterations and interpolations that called the integrity of the process into question.

    In finding for Aregbesola, Justice Ogunbiyi wrote for a unanimous Court of Appeal that the Tribunal was “lackadaisical” in its handling of the case, that it dismissed vital evidence as “mere allegations”; that it set at nought compelling forensic evidence; that it wantonly misrepresented evidence of key witnesses; in sum, that the Tribunal’s conduct was “a travesty, and a mockery”   of the judicial process.

    That verdict sealed Justice Salami’s doom.  He would have to be taken out of the Court of Appeal, the terminus for all election petitions except those arising from the election of President.

    First they offered to promote him to justice of the Supreme Court.  He demurred.

    Several years earlier, when there was a vacancy on the Court, he had declined to apply for the position.

    Then, they accused him, first in whispers and subsequently in unsigned newspaper advertorials of all manner of misconduct, including consorting with attorneys of parties to the case he was handling.  Leading the charge was Senator (as he then was) Iyiola Omisore who, despite his apparent conversion to probity and propriety, nevertheless remained a principal suspect in the murder of the former Federal Minister of Justice and Attorney-General, Chief Bola Ige.

    Then there was talk of giving Justice Salami a “soft landing” if only he would just quit.

    Why would they contemplate, much less make such offers to a judge they claimed was tainted irredeemably?  Why would they reward him with a promotion to the Supreme Court?  Why would they offer him a “soft landing”?  Why not make a public example of him?

    If you had the facts on your side, if you were serious about cleansing the judiciary, if you were truly desirous of prosecuting a Transformation Agenda in which fighting corruption was a core element, why would you pass up such a great opportunity to nail the judge?

    But Justice Salami’s saga was never about law.  It was about politics through and through,  politics in its rawest form.

    A pending judgment in the disputed gubernatorial election result in Sokoto before the Salami Court would provide the final pretext for caging Justice Salami and ultimately terminating his career. The judgment could overturn many a political applecart, and the authorities were taking no chances.

    According to Justice Salami, the sitting Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu, requested that the judgment be withheld, for political reasons.  Justice Salami cited Justice Dahiru Musdapher, of the Supreme Court, as a witness to this encounter.

    Justice Katsina-Alu said he had merely informed Justice Salami that the judgment had been leaked, and that it might be wise to put off issuing it.  But at the material time, the judgment  had not been leaked.  It turned out that documents alleging a leakage did not surface for at least another week.

    Justice Musdapher whom Justice Salami had cited as witness would only say with diplomatic tact that he could not recall the occasion.  Not categorically that the encounter never happened; merely that he had no recollection of it.

    For all practical purposes, that was the end of Justice Salami’s career.  Those determined to teach him a lesson wove Justice Musdapher’s diplomatic answer into a charge of perjury, with Chief Justice Katsina-Alu as accuser and prosecutor and witness and judge while in office and even after he retired.

    Not even the NJC could save Justice Salami from their vengeful wrath those who had a vested interest in “arresting” the pending judgment of the Court of Appeal.

    Justice Salami left the scene bruised and battered, and not entirely on his own terms.   But his head was unbowed.  He refused to submit to blackmail and blandishment.  While they hurled every weapon in their arsenal of dirty tricks at him, he sought vindication through the law.

    A vindication of sorts came last week.   The NJC named Justice Salami to head the Crime Cases Trial Monitoring Committee, charged to fast-track corruption trials and free them from the delays and detours, the twists and turns contrived by lawyers and judges alike.

    Something tells me that posterity will remember Justice Salami more kindly than those who, when presented with a chance to end an epic injustice, chose to perpetuate it.

  • Revenue allocation: Ayade cries out over injustice to Cross River

    Revenue allocation: Ayade cries out over injustice to Cross River

    Cross River State Governor Ben Ayade yesterday decried what he described as injustice meted on the state by the Federal Government in terms of revenue allocation.

    Ayade spoke when he received the Chairman of Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Alhaji Aliyu Ahmed, who led members of the commission to his office in Calabar.

    He said the loss of 76 oil wells by the state was a direct consequence of the ceding of Bakassi by the Federal Government and that rather than find a permanent solution to the fiscal challenges that arose from that action, the Federal Government inflicted incalculable pain on the people.

    Ayade said: “You took our land, took our oil wells, took us out of 13 per cent derivation fund and reduced us to a weeping child in the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). The pain is incalculable. We are a captured people by the Federal Government. We have no say because it does not matter. We practise ethnocracy and so it does not matter how the people of Bakassi and Cross River as a whole are in pains.

    “Today we have NDDC, whose projects are based on percentage of oil production. So, look at what we have lost from the perspective of NDDC which keeps us as a crying child who is just in NDDC by geography not by production as the sharing formula here is by quantum of oil production coupled with the fact that today also , we no longer benefit from the 13 percent derivation.”

    “If not for President Buhari, I am sure that even the superhighway and Bakassi Deep Seaport (being developed by the state) would have been killed by now. But how can a people feel like captives in a place they call their own?”

    Wondering what indices are used by the Federal Government in deciding allocations for the state, he said: ” If I have to link two villages in Cross River State, the minimum kilometers you are going to do is 5 to 6kilometers because that state’s landmass is 21,000 sqkm while you are dealing with sister states in the Niger Delta with 3,000 sqkm. You need to put six states together to give you our land mass.”

    He urged the commission to use the opportunity of the visit, which is a fact-finding one, to write a report that would right the wrongs done to the state.

  • Sultan attributes security challenges to injustice

    Sultan attributes security challenges to injustice

    Sultan of Sokoto Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar yesterday attributed security challenges facing the country to injustice.
    He conceded that frictions exist among Christians, Muslims and various ethnic groups.
    The Sultan spoke in Ilorin at a two-day international conference on “Security and peaceful co-existence in Nigeria”, organised by the state government.
    The monarch said: “We have problems in this country. There are frictions between Muslims and non-Muslims and various ethnic groups across the country. Few days ago, we were in Kaduna to talk to the governor on the Southern Kaduna crisis. We cannot continue hiding under religion to foment trouble and this country will move forward. We are being dragged back by evil people and they are either Christians or Muslims.
    “The main foundation of the problem of insecurity in Nigeria is injustice. And injustice breeds bad governance. Bad governance allows people to do whatever they want and go scot-free.
    “There must be justice in whatever we do. Whoever offends anybody should be brought to book. We call on our leaders to have a model and send to religious leaders on how to implement them. Let us stop inciting remarks at various places. Please, let us work towards finding solution to the problems of insecurity in Nigeria.
    “We have been working hard to see how we can stop the menace of herdsmen. I don’t want to say Fulani herdsmen. They could be any other thing. How could Fulani, who move with their cows and family come to a village, kill people, destroy everything there and disappear into thin air like spirit? What are our security men doing? Where are our intelligence gathering mechanisms to know where these people come from to know who they are?”
    The Sultan said he accepted to attend the programme because of “the very serious insecurity issues affecting our country”.
    “There is no state in this country that is not facing one crisis or the other. Therefore, for Kwara State government to organise this programme, chart a way forward. I will challenge the government to come up with a model that other states could emulate and have a peaceful atmosphere.
    “The two major friction points in Nigeria are herdsmen clashes and the issue of Southern Kaduna. People write the way they want because there is freedom of speech in Nigeria. But you incite people; you bring in hatred of one religion and community under the guise of being religious or traditional leader.
    “This cannot be allowed to go on. Government has responsibilities to call people to order in such a straightforward way that people will understand that there is authority.
    “Our religions know the important of authority on the leadership. We cannot just allow things go awry without pulling the strings back of those fomenting trouble, wanting to cause disharmony between Christians and Muslims, whom we all know are brothers and sisters.
    “When a problem is up and hurting everybody, we can only sit together as one big family and deliberate on it and find a way out. Don’t give a terminology to a criminal. Call him a criminal and that is all.”
    Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed hinged the security problems on pessimistic and disenchanted youths.
    Ahmed said: “To start with, I have no intention to offer excuses for the violent insurgencies, conflicts and other threats to our security.
    “Long before our country was forced into a recession by a global downturn in the economy, unemployment had become a major social and economic problem.
    “Today, with inflation at 18 per cent and unemployment at an all-time high of 13.9 per cent, the socio-economic challenges posed by youth unemployment are gradually evolving into a security threat, a simmering keg of gun-powder, whose explosion, if not prevented, will have serious implications for our country and its security.
    “Indeed, unemployment, poverty, illiteracy, and weak family ties have been identified in several studies as making youths susceptible to radicalisation and recruitment into insurgency groups.
    “Certainly, the raging poverty and inequality plaguing the country suggest a causal link between despondency, insecurity and other threats to peaceful co-existence.”

  • ‘How to correct injustice in Niger Delta’

    Rivers State Government has said despite the difficulties oil exploration has brought to host communities, peace is most fundamental towards correcting the situation.

    The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Environment, Mr. Emmanuel Oye, who canvassed this position also said: “It is unfortunate that we have been hit from both sides-the communities, government and the companies.”

    Oye, who spoke in Port Harcourt to declare open a conference organised by Gas Alert for Sustainable Initiative (GASIN) for six communities in Rivers and Bayelsa states, government regulatory agencies such as National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), National Environmental Standard Regulation Agency ( NESRA), Rivers State Ministry of Environment, members of staff of Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) and Nigeria Agip Oil Company (NAOC), however lamented the difficult situation people from oil-bearing communities have found themselves in.

    While urging the people to embrace peace and accept whatever is being put in place to solve the problems, he also noted that  “some of these processes of change take time to begin to manifest. Dialogue is of the essence.”

    The theme of the conference was “Towards a Sustainable Relationship Between Oil Operators and Host Communities: The Roles of Government, Oil Operators and Host Communities.”

    Welcoming the participants, the Executive Director of GASIN, Rev, Fr. Edward Obi explained that the job of his organisation is to establish a tripartite relationship among government/the regulatory agencies, the communities and the oil and gas companies for harmonious existence.

    Obi also said: “Forming the tripartite relationship is good because it prevents a situation whereby communities lock up companies’ gates. Oil companies do not exist in a vacuum; they exist here and when they come, they have to do what is right for the people and vice versa.”

    He expressed optimism that since the tripartite relationship had worked before, “it will work again in Niger Delta.”

    In his speech, the Port Harcourt Zonal Director of NOSDRA, Mr Cyrus Nkangwung advised that “everybody should be seen as owners of the oil God has put in the land.”

    Nkangwung also urged the communities “to ensure that no oil spill takes place because if it does, it is the communities that will suffer most.”

    He further expressed the Federal Government’s desire to clean the Niger Delta region “which it has started with the clean-up of Ogoni land.”

    The six communities that attended the conference were Akala-Olu; Enito II; Oshie from Ahoada West Local Government Area of Rivers State while those from Bayelsa State included Koroama; Obunagha and Polaku in Yenagoa Local Government Area.

    The people expressed regrets for letting in these companies into their lands.

    The absence of the IOCs from the conference was viewed as an insult to the communities.

    King Funpere Akah of Gbarain Clan in Koroama said it is regrettable that “we are talking about our problems and those who are to help in solving them are not here. If you know they will not come, please do not invite us next time.”

    Akah lamented that SPDC has not helped his community as the company has brought all manner of troubles to them.

    The royal father pointed out that the presence of the company has brought insecurity to his land to the extent that it has become a big threat to the community because “the place is now safe haven for hoodlums, armed robbers and kidnappers.”

    He also said the community that produces gas which is used to light up other parts of Nigeria is groping in darkness.

    Akah also lamented that his people can no longer harvest palm fruits “because everywhere is criss-crossed by oil-pipelines.”

    ”How do you get them to address our problems? Next time, if you know they will not come, please, do not invite me.

    The Spokesman of Akala-Olu community in Ahoada West Local Government Area of Rivers State, Mr Odums .S. Odums said his people are exposed to gas flaring while their rain water is polluted.

    Mr Thompson Pere from Obunagha community in Bayelsa State said his people are assailed by three predicaments that bother on gas flaring; oil spill and their lives.

    Pere said: “Gas flaring is now cracking our roofs, our potable water has no meaning again and our cash crops are now affected.”

    He also said “due to the operations of the oil companies, we have been witnessing oil spills which pollute the water we used to drink and destroy aquatic life.”

    Continuing, Pere stated that “since Oil Company stepped into our land, our social lives are affected and anti-social behaviours which we never experienced before are now the order of the day. Youths indulge in cultism, armed robbery and other acts of criminality.”

    Speaking for Kula community in Rivers State, King Barnabas Kurule said: “Oil and gas companies have caused a lot of damage to us. Due to their operations, we do not know when there is rainy or dry season.

    “Vibration of our land does not allow us to sleep well at night.”

    Others who spoke on behalf of other communities that attended the conference reeled off several woes that have become their lot since the IOCs commenced operations in their land.

    In a 19-point communiqué they issued at the end of the conference and which was signed by all the participants present, they, among others, called on government and the IOCs “to provide adequate social amenities for the host communities to ameliorate the hazards caused by their operations.”