Abia State Commissioner of Police Adeleye Oyebade has said the command will soon make public names of lawyers whose work is to defend robbers in court.
Oyebade spoke at Osisioma divisional headquarters, during a tour of the 16 divisions under the Aba Area Command. He said for the war on crime to be won, the police must work with the judiciary.
The police chief said he was relocating the command headquarters to the state’s commercial hub to be aware of activities of his men in Aba and environs.
He noted that the command is doing all it can to instil discipline and fish out “bad eggs” among its officers and men, saying many of them have been tried, demoted and in extreme cases, dismissed from the service.
Oyebade urged his men to be dogged in crime fighting because of the persistent efforts of hoodlums and criminal elements to beat security intelligence.
Tag: Lawyers
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Abia police to name lawyers backing criminals
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Abia police to name lawyers backing criminals
Abia State Commissioner of Police Adeleye Oyebade has said the command would soon make public, names of lawyers whose work is to defend robbers in court.
Oyebade spoke at Osisioma divisional headquarters, during a tour of the 16 divisions under the Aba Area Command. He said for the war on crime to be won, the police must work collaboratively with the judiciary.
The police chief said he was relocating the command headquarters to the state’s commercial hub to help him have a score card of the activities of his men in Aba and environs.
He noted that the command is doing all it can to instill discipline and fish out “bad eggs” among its officers and men, saying many of them have been tried, demoted and in extreme cases, dismissed from the service.
Oyebade urged his men to imbibe the spirit of pro-activeness in crime fighting because of the persistent efforts of hoodlums and criminal elements to beat security intelligence.
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Bala Mohammed’s lawyers fault detention
Lawyers to former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory FCT, Alhaji Bala Mohammed have kicked against the continued detention of the former Minister by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The former FCT Minister was again whisked away from his residence on May 2, and since then has been detained at the EFCC custody.
In a letter addressed to the Acting Chairman of the EFCC, dated May 5, counsel to the former FCT Minister, Chief Christ Uche, SAN, called on the Agency to release him on bail, saying that there was no justification for his detention following his arrest since 2nd May, 2017.
They are also contemplating filing a contempt of Court case against the EFCC for violating the order by the FCT High Court for his release on bail.
The former FCT Minister was re- arrested on the May 2nd, for the same offense for which he was initially arrested and detained for about 42 days from 24th October to 29th of November, 2016, before he was granted bail by an Abuja High Court.
Bala’s counsel noted that their client is already on court bail and EFCC administrative bail on the charges for which he was re-arrested.
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Lawyers: Presidency right to back Magu
Some lawyers yesterday backed the Presidency’s decision to allow Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to remain in office despite the Senate’s refusal to confirm him.
Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Second Vice President Monday Ubani and Lagos lawyer Tope Alabi said the Presidency’s position is legally correct and that Magu can continue to act as EFCC chair.
But, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Abiodun Owonikoko, said either the executive or the legislature should approach the Supreme Court for an interpretation of what he described as a legal problem.
He said he could not reconcile the fact that the executive would send names to the Senate for confirmation, and when the person is rejected, retain the person in acting capacity.
Owonikoko said either of the parties could ask the Supreme Court to resolve the “serious matter” since both arms are insisting they are right.
Ubani said the Presidency’s position may be legally correct, but not politically savvy.
The former NBA Ikeja branch chairman said: “Conflicts are resolved in civilised climes by recourse to law of the land. Before now, EFCC chairman was usually confirmed by the Senate. Magu’s confirmation generated so much controversy for several reasons.
“He was Acting Chairman for too long during which he went after several senators who were alleged to have one corruption case or the other and this put his confirmation in clear jeopardy.
“He did not go for ordinary senators alone, he also went after Saraki Bukola, the Senate President, for breach of Code of Conduct rules for public officers and this happened while he was the Governor of Kwara State.
“Knowing how the typical Nigerian politicians operate, it would have been surprising for the Senate to confirm Magu ordinarily without much ado, in the light of the fact that many of them were under his investigation.
“Magu’s matter became compounded when the Department of State Services (DSS), an agency under the executive arm, wrote an adverse report against Magu and submitted it straight to the Senate without the knowledge of the Presidency, at least so we were told.
“The Senate that was looking for any deadly bullet for Magu saw many bullets in the letter of the DSS which they used maximally to turn down his confirmation two solid times.”
Ubani said going by facts, the Presidency believes that Magu is very key to its fight against corruption, having justified that confidence over time.
“The VP is right on the position of the law with regard to Magu being retained as the head of EFCC but there are consequences for this legally correct position. There are consequences due to the nature of the Senate we have now in Nigeria.
“They are as follows: a frosty relationship between the Senate and the Presidency which may linger throughout this administration; no budget approval for EFCC as an agency; refusal to bend backwards for the Presidency over pending bills in the Senate; collateral issues that may affect governance generally.
“We have not heard the last over Magu’s matter. Nigerians expect the resolution of this matter soon and for good governance to be given to Nigerians who were promised ‘change’ by the APC administration.
“Time is ticking and Nigerians await the fulfillment of all the promises, including deadly fight against corruption. They must not fail Nigerians!,” Ubani said.
A member of the Ogun State Judiciary Commission, Abayomi Omoyinmi, said the Presidency was in order to have endorsed Magu to continue in office in his capacity as the acting EFFC chair.
“No law has been violated by Vice President Osinbajo’s endorsement in this regard. Section 171 of the 1999 constitution is clear and unambiguous as to the acting capacity at which Mr Magu can continue to act even despite the rejection of him as the substantive EFFC boss,” he said.
Activist-lawyer Tope Alabi said the Senate’s refusal to confirm Magu does not mean he cannot continue to act in office.
He said the president was at liberty to appoint anyone in acting capacity so long as the president remains in office.
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Lawyers reject senators’ call to stop Saraki’s CCT trial
Lawyers yesterday rejected a call by some senators for the Federal Government to withdraw the charge against Senate President Bukola Saraki at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT).
The senators, who are Saraki’s supporters, reportedly made the demand at the All Progressives Congress (APC) Caucus meeting with the leadership of the ruling party.
The senators were said to have described Saraki’s trial as “political” and that withdrawing the charge for alleged false assets declaration would help thaw the frosty relationship between the executive and the legislature.
Some lawyers kicked against the call and warned of its consequences.
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Charles Uwesuyi-Edosomwan, said it would be wrong to withdraw the charge for political convenience.
According to him, institutions should be allowed to do their jobs without any form of interference.
He said: “We can’t do that. We need to strengthen the institutions. We cannot trade forgiveness of alleged crimes for political sagacity or convenience.
“We can’t begin, in our constitutional development, to start encouraging a culture of trading political favours for crimes i.e, whenever we have political logjam, we just forgive criminality.
“Institutions must be strengthened on their own; on the pedestals of legality, constitutionalism and morality.
“On the basis of law, it is illegal to say because there is a political impasse, you want to forgive crimes that should be tried; you cannot also, because of convenience, raise a particular individual over an institution, like they’re trying to do with (Ibrahim) Magu.
“So, let the Senate do its job; and let the other institutions and structures also do their jobs.”
The founder/President of a human rights group, the Crusade for Justice, Mr. Richard Nwankwo, said Saraki’s trial should run its full course.
He said withdrawing the charge for political reasons would mean that some persons are above the law.
Nwankwo said: “That will mean giving a different meaning to the definition of justice. If we are all equal before the law, we want to see the equality from a practical point of view.
“If they (executive) are convinced that they have something concrete against Saraki, I think there is no moral justification for abandoning such a campaign. The beauty of justice is that nobody lives above it.
“Once you start dispensing justice in a manner that makes it discriminatory, it no longer falls within the confines of the definition of justice.”
The activist said that withdrawing the charge against Saraki as a means of political settlement would amount to “a bastardisation of constitutional democracy on a larger platform”.
He, however, urged the government to adopt a comprehensive approach to tackling corruption rather than being selective.
Another SAN, Chief Gani Adetola-Kaseem, described it as a political decision with yet unforeseen implications.
He said: “That would be a political decision and any political decision certainly has its implications. It depends on how you look at it.”
Adetola-Kaseem noted that some party members could be considering that if Saraki’s CCT trial is allowed to run its course, “there will be a lot of issues”, because “he is a state official or party man”.
“The implication of this,” the senior advocate warned, “is that others could want their prosecutions discontinued as well.
“People could look at it and say, well, we might as well withdraw cases against others. So, there are a lot of implications, but I don’t want to speculate. Let’s see how it plays out.
“It would be a political decision, but whether that decision would be correct or not is another matter and whether the merit will far outweigh the demerit is another matter.”
But, another SAN, Mallam Yusuf Ali, pitched his tent with anything that will help rebuild the frayed relationship between the executive and the legislature.
“I will support anything that will promote amity between the legislature and the executive so that they will have time to attend to issues affecting we the ordinary people,” Ali said.
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Lawyers manipulating my daughter – Stephanie Otobo’s mother
Why I begged Apostle Suleiman
Bukky, mother of Stephanie Otobo, accuser of General Overseer of Omega Power Ministries, Apostle Johnson Suleman, has accused lawyers of manipulating her daughter.
In an exclusive interview with online platform, Premium Times, the trader also explained why she went to beg Suleman in Auchi, Edo State over the sexual allegations.
She denied she was threatened to apologise to Suleman, saying the assertion by her daughter was untrue.
According to Bukky: “All those lawyers are using her to get their own names. They should leave my daughter alone. They should leave my daughter out of this matter.
“I am still talking about all those lawyers. They should leave my daughter alone.
“She is not wayward, that is why what is happening is surprising me. Somebody is behind this matter because she was not like that before.
“She is a good child. She loved me and I love her. So, along the way, I don’t know what happened; that is why I said they are manipulating her, using something against her and I want every Nigerian to help me to pray, pray for her that God should deliver her.”
On why she went to beg Suleman, Bukky said: “I beg the man of God to forgive her so that this matter can die off. Because I cannot continue with this (and) the way I am seeing it.
“I don’t want anything of such to happen again. Nobody threatened to kill me or prompted me to do so. I went there on my own to apologise to man of God.
“Nobody threatened me. It is because I am a mother. I did not bring her up this way and the way she is behaving is not normal.
“I was not threatened. I am a mother. I cannot continue to see her in that manner. She has been saying all sorts of things. We are not happy and that is why I went to apologise. I went there alone; nobody threatened me.” -
‘6000 awaiting trials inmates don’t have lawyers’
Six Thousand inmates are awaiting trial in Lagos Prisons, according to Prison Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) Executive Director Benson Iwuagwu.
They do not have lawyers, said Iwuagwu, who is also Lagos State Restorative Justice Project Coordinator.
He called for the establishment of a unit within the prisons command to facilitate the referral of inmate to the Restorative Justice Centre (RJC) for legal representation.
Iwuagwu spoke during a technical meeting of the Lagos State Restorative Justice Steering Committee, an initiative of the PFN in partnership with the Lagos State Government. The project is supported by the European Union and Nigeria United Nation’s Office on Drug and Crime (UNODC).
Iwuagwu said the country’s criminal justice system was struggling with crippling challenges of delay, over-use of custodial measures and consequent overcrowding in prison.
“Over 70 per cent of Nigeria’s prison population is currently awaiting trial in overcrowded detention centres, with 90 per cent of them lacking legal representation,” Iwuagwu said in a communique issued after the meeting.
He said the delay and congestion were linked to what he called the “largely” retributive justice system, despite the transformative provisions in the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (2015).
According to Iwuagwu, restorative justice can be applied at every stage of the criminal justice process, from pre-charge to post conviction and has the capacity to transform the criminal justice system.
“This is because restorative justice gives the victim and community, voice, in the criminal justice system, whilst enabling the offenders to face the consequences of their actions and inspire rehabilitation and reconciliation,” he said.
Deputy Controller Welfare, Nigeria Prison Service, Lagos, Musili Olasanya said the restorative system would address the issue of classification and delayed trial.
“We have over 7000 inmates, 1000 are convicted, over 6000 are awaiting trials. About 1000 of those on trial have lawyers to represent them in court,” Olasanya said.
Co-ordinator, UNODC Support for Justice Sector Reform Programme, Nigeria Dr Uju Agomo said restorative justice was embedded in the African traditional system that is rooted in communalism. This, he said, could be adapted to Lagos State and Nigeria’s Criminal Justice system.
She said there was need to strengthen the legislative and administrative footing for restorative Justice through an executive bill for the establishment of Lagos State Restorative Justice Centre.
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Fayose: Lawyers petition EFCC, IGP
A law firm, Salawu, Akingbolu and Company, has petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged money laundering charges against some aides of Ekiti State Governor Ayo Fayose.
The lawyers also petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP), accusing the governor of using policemen to “prevent arrest of suspects, manipulate charges against his aides and harassment of bank workers”.
In the petitions dated February 23, the lawyers said they were acting on the orders of The Concerned Ekiti Indigenes and demanded investigation of the allegations.
They urged the EFCC to investigate the alleged stealing of $150,000 by a woman and some domestic workers in the Government House.
The petitioners also pointed the IG’s attention to serial use of policemen to perpetrate illegal acts in favour of the governor, citing the use of policemen to prevent EFCC from effecting the arrest of Femi Fani-Kayode’s wife when she attempted to withdraw money from her husband’s frozen account.
Other illegal acts, according to the petitioners, include the governor’s use of the policemen to harass bank workers over attempt to withdraw money from an account under a legal restriction, including use of policemen to besiege a popular hotel to prevent arrest of a suspect.
The lawyers pointed attention to the role of the Ekiti State Police Command in the manipulation of the alleged theft charge of $50,000 in the Government House involving Fayose’s aides, Sunday Omosilade, Afolabi Sunday, Bamidele Temitope and a foreign exchange operatorr, Shuaibu Amidu.
They noted that in the purported amended charge, Amidu, who assisted Afolabi and Temitope to change the $50,000 to naira equivalent, was omitted “for obvious reasons and the name of Omosilade, the governor’s aide was also removed.”
They also complained that the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Owoseni Ajayi, had applied to take over the case, indicating that there was a ploy to manipulate the case and to cover-up the alleged fraud in the governor’s favour.
They called the attention of President Muhammadu Buhari and EFCC to the alleged Fayose/police conspiracy to aid criminality in Ekiti State.
They said: “The questions that agitate the minds of the public and demand answers are as follows; how did Omosilade suddenly turn from an accused to a complainant?
“How did he come about $50,000 which is the equivalent of N20,000,000? Why did the governor demote him and send him packing from the Government House to the office of his wife? If Omosilade is the owner of the money, why did the governor punish him?
“What is his salary and how did he come about having $50,000 in his possession?”
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Why abduction persists, by Lagos lawyers
Some lawyers in Lagos believe the rate of unemployment, bad morals and inadequate security contribute significantly to the recurrent cases of kidnapping experienced in the country.
The lawyers spoke in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday.
“There is no particular region today in the country that is free from kidnapping. The economic reality today is that people are losing their jobs and a lot of people are not even employed.
“The high level of unemployment should give the government serious concern, because if you are idle, you become the devil’s workshop,’’ Mr Monday Ubani, one of the lawyers, said.
He said unemployed youth could easily be recruited to carry out nefarious activities that were detrimental to the development of the country.
”The government should ensure adequate employment is created to reduce the issue of kidnappers in the country.
”The government should also ensure that the country is well policed with necessary equipment,” Ubani told NAN.
The lawyer, who gave tips on how to avoid being kidnapped, said people needed to be more security conscious of their environment.
”Watch the people you live with in your neighborhood and mind the kind of information you give out to people, because the information could be detrimental to your safety.
“Also, watch how you boast. Know your relations well, because successful kidnapping cannot be complete without an insider,” he said.
Another lawyer, Mr Kayode Ademiluyi, identified bad morals as part of the factors contributing to the rising cases of kidnapping.
”Apart from the economy that is not too good, when children are not brought up with good values, they tend to join bad gangs,” he said.
Ademiluyi called on the government to increase the level of security in the country and urged individuals to be security conscious and alert.
Also speaking on the issue, Mr Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa urged the government to engage the youth and adopt the use of technology to stem the tide of kidnapping in the country.
Mr Kayode Akinsola, another lawyer, urged the police to be more proactive and enjoined everyone to continue to pray for the country’s economy to be back in good shape.
He, however, commended the government for its efforts at fighting kidnapping in the country.
Lagos, one of the latest to do so, imposes penalties that include death for offenders, where a victim dies in the hands of his abductors, and life imprisonment for kidnapping for ransom.
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NBA to nominate lawyers as Court of Appeal justices
•Shittu: it’s a positive development
THE Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) is set to nominate lawyers as Justices of the Court of Appeal.
This is coming after it nominated nine lawyers, including six Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), for appointment as Supreme Court justices at the instance of Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Walter Onnoghen.
The association had last week sent notices to all lawyers asking those interested in serving as Court of Appeal Justices to send in their profiles.
NBA said the call was at the instance of President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulchachuwa.
The submission of profiles ended last Friday.
NBA’s letter to lawyers, signed by its General Secretary, Isiaka Olagunju, reads: “Pursuant to Section 238(3) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the President of the Court of Appeal of Nigeria, Hon Justice Z.A Bulkachuwa, CFR has invited the NBA to nominate suitably qualified legal practitioners to express interest for appointment as Justice of the Court of Appeal of Nigeria. Interested legal practitioners are hereby required to send their hard copy profile.”
Lagos lawyer and university teacher Mr. Wahab Shittu said the opportunity given to the Bar to nominate lawyers as appellate court justices was welcome.
“This is a very, very positive development. I’ve gone through the list of those who have been shortlisted for the Supreme Court and I’m convinced about them in terms of competence, character, capacity, knowledge, exposure and experience.
“I believe the search for persons to occupy the appellate courts should not be limited. It should be extended, guided by the need to get the best to serve us,” he said.
On suggestions that it could kill the morale of judges, who had been hoping to be elevated, Shittu said: “If you look at the composition of the Supreme Court presently, they are made up mainly of those who rose through the ranks.
“There is nothing stopping the search for more hands to be extended to the Bar and even the academia, driven by the need to retain the very best.
“All over the world, the norm is to encourage people at all levels with requisite knowledge, experience and exposure to come to the Supreme Court bench.
“Recall that the late Justice Taslim Elias was appointed CJN from the academia. Retired Supreme Court Justice Adolphus Karibi-Whyte used to lecture at the Faculty of Law, University of Lagos.
“I think it’s salutary in the sense that you know you can rise to the highest court in the land either from the Bench, the Bar or the academia.”