Sahara Reporters Latest News Today Sunday 22nd December 2019
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 22/12/19
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Buhari Blames Libyan Fighters For Persistent Boko Haram Attacks In Nigeria
President Muhammadu Buhari has blamed the continued Boko Haram attacks in Nigeria to Libyan fighters.
Buhari said this during a bilateral meeting with President of Cote d’Ivoire, Alhassan Quattara, on the margins of the 56th ordinary session of the Economic Community of West African States.
Buhari, according to a statement by Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the president on Media and Publicity, maintained that the instability in Libya was causing a recurring threat to the Sahel and Sub-Saharan Africa, expressing concern over the growing effect of the crisis on many lives.
He added that the fighters in Libya were surviving on violent crimes and terrorism.
The statement reads, “The President said the Libyan fighters, who were trained for the 43 years Muammar Gaddafi ruled the country were armed with deadly weapons and had been roaming the Sahel and Sub-Saharan region with no other skills for survival ‘but to shoot and kill.’
“President Buhari expressed happiness that neighbouring countries were supporting Nigeria in tackling the menace of the fighters who had teamed up with Boko Haram, adding that there was a need to do more by tWest African countries both under the ECOWAS platform and at bilateral levels.”
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Muslim Youth Urge Buhari To Release Sowore
Omoyele Sowore
Omoyele Sowore
BBC
Muslim youth in Nigeria have called on President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure the immediate release of Omoyele Sowore.
The youth under the auspices of Ansar-Ud-Deen Youth Association of Nigeria, Northern States Council, asked government to respect the court’s order granting Sowore bail and immediately free him and other political detainees in the country.
Chairman of the association, Prof Bashir Omipidan, condemned the rearrest of Sowore and his prolonged detention without a court order.
He said, “ADYAN Northern States Council is not oblivious of the fact that Omoyele Sowore and some other persons are still in detention despite court granted bail.
“We call on the Federal Government to arraign those who have not been tried to court, while allowing those who have already been granted bail to go home.
“We are equally not opposed to rearrest of anyone on bail if there are reasons to suspect that condition of such bail had been flouted.
“This should however, be carried out in accordance with the rule of law.
“A person remains a suspect until convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction but so far, Omoyele Sowore is still a suspect who has been granted bail by the court and should be released.”
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FUTO Students Held In Bosnia Return To Nigeria
Two students, Abia Alexandro and Eboh Chinedu, who were wrongfully deported to Bosnia by Croatian police, have been sent back home.
According to a report by PUNCH, an official from the Nigeria Diaspora Commission, Gabriel Odu, made this known in a statement on Friday.
Odu said the students, who had been in detention since November 17, were airborne at the time of issuing the release.
Five Nigerians had represented the country at the World University Table Tennis Championship in Pula, Croatia, in November.
Two of the players are said to have returned home, another tried to seek asylum, while Alexandro and Chinedu were deported to Bosnia by Croatian police.
The pair said they had flown to Zagreb, the Croatian capital, ahead of their return to Lagos.
In the evening of that fateful day, the two students checked-out of their hotel to take a walk.
A team of policemen apprehended them and loaded them onto a van, drove them to the border town of the country and lumped them with freshly detained migrants – most of whom were from Afghanistan.
They were subsequently placed in an overcrowded detention camp that had neither heating nor water.
They were later taken to Sarajevo in Bosnia before being returned to Lagos.
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Ebonyi Governor Says He’ll Pay N30,000 Minimum Wage From January
Governor of Ebonyi State, Dave Umahi, has said he will pay the N30,000 minimum wage agreed with organised labour from January 2020.
He made this known during the signing of the state’s 2020 budget in Abakaliki, the state capital, on Friday.
He however, pleaded with labour unions to accept the inability of the state to pay the backlog of salaries, which had accumulated since the wage increase was reached.
In the absence of the arrears, he noted that the state had set aside N500m to help workers earn some income from agriculture.
“We have the N500m approved by the state House of Assembly to assist workers and other segments of the society, engage in alternative means of livelihood which is agriculture.”
Speaker of the state’s legislature, Francis Nwifuru, said the lawmakers were impressed with the implementation of budgets it had signed under Umahi’s administration.
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E2%80%99s-regime-threatening-democracy-%E2%80%93useni Bad Advisers In Buhari’s Regime Threatening Democracy –Useni
A former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Lt. Gen. Jeremiah Useni (retd), has said that the influence of bad advisers working under the regime of President Muhammadu Buhari, constitutes a threat to good governance and democratic practice in the country, according to a report
Useni, who stated this while speaking with journalists in Jos on Friday, said unless those responsible for misleading the regime and other Nigerians resolved to do the right thing at all times in their given areas of responsibility, the country might continue to experience problems.
He said, “As a president, Buhari does not do everything by himself; he has advisers. If you have advisers and they advise you properly, you will do proper thing but when you have bad advisers, you will have problems.
“What I am saying is that there are good and bad advisers. So if there is anything going wrong at all under the administration, it must be based on bad advisers and not that him, as an individual, will try to see that things are done badly.
“So, I think there is a mix up because some people do not understand what democracy is all about and only think it is all about lying to the people and not telling them the truth.”
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Sowore: You Are Tarnishing Nigeria’s Reputation, US Lawmakers Tell Malami
United States lawmakers have written a letter to Nigeria’s Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, over the continued detention of pro-democracy campaigner and journalist, Omoyele Sowore.
The lawmakers said Nigeria under the watch of President Muhammadu Buhari had failed to be an example of respect for the rule of law on the African continent.
The letter was signed by six lawmakers including Robert Menendez (senator), Charles Schumer (senator), Cory Booker (senator), Christopher Coons (senator), Bill Pascrell (congressman) and John Gotheirmer (congressman).
The lawmakers expressed strong concern that Sowore was not getting the right to a fair trial but is rather being illegally detained by the government.
The statement reads in part, “Disturbing videos of the melee in court are circulating, which appear to show armed agents in court and Mr Sowore being placed in choke hold after which he was re-detained by DSS, though no new charges have since been filed to justify this re-detention.
“We understand that his case has since been placed within your purview.
“We are pleased to stand alongside Nigeria as a democratic country.
“As the largest democracy in Africa, Nigeria has an opportunity and responsibility to serve as model for following the established rule of law under its own constitution.
“And as with all advanced democracies, this includes the lawful application of prosecutorial powers and actions as well as ultimate compliance with judicial rulings. In the case of Mr Sowore, this does not appear to have happened.”
The lawmakers said Nigeria must learn to uphold basic human rights of citizens including their “freedom of expressions and political affiliation without fear of government reprisal and harassment, particularly for opposing or dissenting voices.”
Speaking further, the lawmakers said, “Mr Attorney General, we request that you take immediate steps to ensure the safety and security of Mr Sowore while he is held in government custody; work to facilitate speedy and fair resolution to the circumstances of his re-detention; and ensure he receives a legally sound and credible trial.”
Sowore was rearrested on December 6 less than 24 hours after he was granted bail.
He remains detained arbitrarily without being given a reason.
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Foreign Rice, Vegetable Oil Seized In Customs Raid Of Adamawa Market
The Nigeria Customs Service has revealed that it seized foreign rice and some food commodities in its raid of a market in Adamawa State.
The Adamawa/Taraba command in the raid led by Comptroller of Customs in charge of the two states, Kamardin Olumoh, said that contraband goods worth millions of naira smuggled into the country were seized.
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Diaspora Nigerians Declare Spiritual Warfare On Politicians
Nigerians in the Diaspora on the platform of Global Coalition for Security and Democracy in Nigeria have declared seven nights of spiritual warfare against Nigerian politicians.
Speaking through a YouTube broadcast, Global Coordinator of the group, Frederick Odorige, stated that this was a call to all Nigerians to change their prayer points and patterns.
He said, “Christians have been encouraged to pray for those in authority. `This has been done. We have also prayed for Nigeria our country. God has answered our prayers too.
“We can no longer continue to pray for this set of politicians who have come to steal, kill and destroy.
“Those in authority now are mostly principalities and powers who defy the laws of the land and continue to loot without remorse. They continue to spirit away our God-given commonwealth to satisfy their greed and lust. We shall no longer pray amiss.
“The time has come for us to re-direct our prayers of arrows against our unrepentant taskmasters. We shall make decrees against them since we have the power of life and death in our tongues. We have complained enough as a people.
“The prayer nights will commence from midnight Nigerian time for just one hour on 21, 28 December 2019; 4, 11, 18, 25 January and 1 February 2020.”
According to Odorige, members of the coalition, who are Muslims have been encouraged to contact the organisers so that a similar program could be arranged for them.
Recall that the coalition recently protested to the World Bank in Washington, United State, to submit a petition asking that further loans to Nigeria should be stopped because of misappropriation by politicians.
They also petitioned the Federal Bureau of Investigation to investigate the process of issuing loans to the Nigerian Government as there were growing allegations of bribery.
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Emir Sanusi Accepts To Head Kano Council Of Chiefs
BusinessDay Media
Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has agreed to serve as Chairman of Kano State Council of Chiefs established recently by Governor Abdullahi Ganduje.
Sanusi sent his acceptance letter to the Secretary to the State Government on Friday.
Governor Ganduje had on December 9 appointed Sanusi as head of the council of chiefs following his assent to a law that created other emirates, whittling the Emir of Kano’s powers.
Ganduje had given the emir an ultimatum of two days to either accept or reject the appointment in a letter on Thursday.
In his reply, Sanusi said, “Kindly inform His Excellency that His Highness, Sarkin Kano, has not rejected his appointment as Chairman, Kano State Council of Chiefs. His Highness accepts the appointment.
“In doing so, His Highness requested for further directives of His Excellency, the governor. For clarity, these directives may include appointment of other members of the council, appointment of staff of the council, provision of accommodation for the secretariat and other logistics to make the council operational.”
The council comprises all five emirates in the state and other members.
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Lawyer Urges Senate To Stop Social Media Bill Deliberation
A human rights lawyer, Tope Akinyode, has called on the Nigerian Senate to halt proceedings of the infamous social media bill, which had passed second reading and is now at committee stage in the Senate.
In a letter to the Senate, Akinyode said, “We have written the Senate President and Chairman, Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, Opeyemi Bamidele, informing both of them to halt further proceedings on the ‘Protection from Internet Falsehood and Manipulations Bill, 2019’ because of its illegality.
“On the November 12, 2019, I filed a lawsuit with suit number: FHC/L/CS/2037/19 against the National Assembly, Senate President, Nigeria’s President and the Federal Government seeking an order of court to prevent the bill from being enacted because it offends the provisions of Section 39 (1) of the 1999 constitution as amended.
“My position is that the bill is repressive and difficult to maintain without a brutal violation of the citizens’ right to free speech.
“The matter was slated to come up at the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos, on December 2, 2019 but the court did not sit that day at the instance of the judge and the matter was adjourned. The court is yet to give an adjourned date.
“On November 10, 2019, I received a call from the Office of the Senate President wanting to confirm if I was the one who filed the suit.
“They also requested for the suit number of the case which they said was not legible on the face of the court process and I obliged them.
“In effect, the Senate President and the National Assembly are aware of the pendency of the suit. This position is further confirmed by the bailiff of the Federal High Court who deposed to an affidavit of service.
“However, despite the pendency of the suit, Senate has continued parliamentary proceedings over the bill.
“I wrote the letter to advise them against this lawlessness. It is settled law that once parties turn their dispute over to the courts for determination, parties must maintain the status quo until the final determination of the subject-matter.
“To act otherwise is regarded as “self-help” which the law frowns at.”
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