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Gunmen Attack Sunshine Stars Players

By
Ayodele Oni
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0

By Ayodele Oni

Players of the Sunshine Stars FC of Akure, on Thursday, were attacked by gunmen suspected to be armed robbers along Benin/Ore Highway.

The players and officials were on their way to Benin to honour match day 13 of the Nigeria Premier Football League match with Bendel Insurance of Benin.

They were reportedly attacked with the ball boy to the team hit by bullets.

Reports also had it that the Team Manager and some team management were injured and have been taken to nearby hospital.

However, it is yet uncertain whether players in the entourage were injured.

Confirming the incident in a statement, the Media Officer of the team, Michael Akintunde, wrote:

‘It’s saddens our hearts to inform Nigerians, especially football lovers,  that our team was attacked few minutes ago along Ore-Benin Expressway to honor an Elite League tie, against Insurance of Benin, scheduled for this weekend.

“Our ball boy was shot in the horrible attack, Our team manager and other club officials including players are seriously injured .

“It took the intervention of officers of the Federal Road Safety corp that helped rescue the injured officials and the shot individual to a nearby hospital. We hope you join us in prayers”

“I Will Not Give In To Intimidation, Blackmail” – Rivers Governor, Fubara

By
Akinwale Kasali
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0
Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State

By Akinwale Kasali

In an apparent reference to the face-off between him and his predecessor in office, Nyesom Wike, now Minister for the Federal Capital Territory, Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has emphasized that nobody can take his mandate from him. He said he will not surrender his mandate to anybody.

Wike was behind the Governor’s victory in the March 25 Governorship Elections. He was his political godfather and incurred a couple of political  enemies for, literally, imposing Fubara on the State.

Shockingly, however, the two  fell apart too soon, allegedly, over Wike’s insistence on a number of things, including to still run the affairs of the State.

The face off led to an aborted plan to impeach Fubara from office, and has factionalised the Rivers State House of Assembly into two. The Assembly parades two Speakers – one loyal to the Governor, and the other loyal to Wike – and has adjourned indefinitely.

Governor Fubara, who spoke at  the Declaration of the 115th and 116th combined Quarterly General Meeting of Rivers State Council of Traditional Rulers in Port Harcourt, Rivers State Capital told the Traditional Rulers open, said that his administration was being sabotaged. But he emphasized that the level of sabotage deliberately coming  against his administration from some quarters, will not  force him to abandon the mandate given to him to serve the people.

Fubara noted that even though the State was going through a trying period,  he remained committed to serving with “humility, sincerity of purpose and accountability.”

Fubara: “Although these are trying times, let us not forget that Rivers State is our collective inheritance, presently under my watch, to protect, defend and advance it as the Governor.

“I assure you that I will not fail in this responsibility nor will I surrender our mandate and progress to intimidation, blackmail and deliberate sabotage. I reaffirm my earlier statement and recommit myself to the path of peace as there is nothing to gain in a State of needless crisis.”

PDP Distances Party From Merger, Coalition Talks, Says It Remains Determined, Focused

By
Akinwale Kasali
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0
PDP Secretariat - Wadata Plaza

By Akinwale Kasali

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has distanced itself from the merger and Coalition talks with other opposition parties in the country.

The PDP said it remains focused, determined and rebuilding towards the 2027 Elections.

PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, said it not merging with any Party to form a Coalition. He stressed that the PDP is the most organised and democratic party to exist in Nigeria to this day.

“Most other parties originated from the PDP. We did not and have not entered into any negotiations, nor have we had any talks for a coalition or merger, so-called, with any political party.

“In any case, if there is to be any such discussion, it is beyond the powers of the National Working Committee NWC to do so without the express consent of the National Executive Committee NEC of our great party.

“Every community in Nigeria has a functional PDP office. We are a party to due process; we don’t take actions without following our laid-down guidelines, procedures, and processes.

“Most Nigerians know we won the 2019 and 2023 elections, and everyone knows what happened. We are in the process of rebuilding and strengthening our party to defend our hard-won democracy”.

It would be recalled that Wednesday, a group of seven opposition political parties formed a new coalition in a bid to strengthen democracy in the country.

The movement tagged the Coalition of Concerned Political Parties was formed in Abuja at a meeting attended by leaders of the political parties at the National Secretariat of the Social Democratic Party.

The Coalition comprised the Peoples Democratic Party, African Democratic Congress, Social Democratic Party, Peoples Allied Movement, New Nigeria Peoples Party, Young Progressives Party, and Zenith Labour Party, but the PDP has distanced itself from this coalition.

OPINION: Ondo Back Story Imitates Insanity

By
The Source
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0
Azu Ishiekwene

By Azu Ishiekwene

Ondo is one of Nigeria’s most enlightened states. It is, perhaps, side-by-side with Oyo, one of the most significant political bellwethers of the South-West. Apart from Olusegun Agagu’s four-year spell as governor, that state has maintained its progressive credentials in the last 24 years. But that illustrious tradition has fallen on bad times.

And you know this when the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which has governed the state for only four of the last 24 years,begins to suggest to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) how to manage what is obviously a delicate intra-party power transition. With nothing left to do in the wilderness, PDP is pleased to hold the beer while APC turns on itself.

It’s not the opposition’s fault, though. The tenure of Governor Rotimi Akeredolu will not expire till 2024, but his illness, especially in the last six months, during which he has been virtually absent from the state, has created an opening for forces within and without.

There are suggestions that Akeredolu who has reportedly been in Oyo State since he returned from a medical trip abroad in September, is terminally ill. No one is sure. The suggestions, worsened by his physical absence from the state, has fueled a proxy war between his loyalists and those of the Deputy Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa. There are already comparisons to similar dark episodes in the country’s not-too-distant past.

Dejavu

Umaru Yar’Adua’s presidency, for example, was a troubled one. Whether or not Yar’Adua had properly transmitted power before he went abroad for medical treatment, as is required by law, and whether he had the presence of mind to continue discharging his duties as his condition deteriorated, remained a matter of feverish speculation traded on by vested interests.

The National Assembly had to improvise the “Doctrine of Necessity,” to remove him, paving the way for his deputy, Goodluck Jonathan, to become acting president.

Two years after the death of Yar’Adua, Governor Danbaba Suntai of Taraba State, who, like Yar’Adua, was elected in 2007, survived an air crash that, sadly, incapacitated him. But power brokers in Taraba preserved him like a sacrificial totem, exploiting his mummified image. As long as he could still be wheeled around and papers shuffled in his name, it was good business. Suntai, who had spent less than two years into his second term, was shunted between German and US hospitals at considerable expense for 10 months, while the state was left stranded.

When the puppeteers could no longer sustain the hideous drama, or perhaps they had just about made enough out of it, they wheeled the governor back into the country and left him in a limbo. His estranged deputy remained “acting governor” until Suntai’s tenure officially ended in 2015. Two years later, Suntai died.

Siamese asunder

I have been reliably informed that Akeredolu’s relationship with Aiyedatiwa is not, ordinarily, one that should warrant the insane stalemate that has made fools of the state’s wise men and women. After Akeredolu fell out with his former deputy, Agboola Ajayi – who remained in position even though he switched parties, following a failed attempt to impeach him – he chose Aiyedatiwa as his running-mate for his second term. The pair have been like six and seven.

Although cloak-and-dagger is a popular currency in politics, anyone who saw Aiyedatiwa’s pictures until June this year, would remember how difficult it was to spot the difference in physical appearance between him and the governor. With every inch of carefully manicured grey stubble, caps, glasses, and even posture, both of them looked like political Siamese twins.

But the remoter the chances of Akeredolu’s return seemed, the greater the pressure Aiyedatiwacame under to discard his beard and nurture his own path to power. How long before he would step out of the shadows and live up to his name, Aiyedatiwa (the world shall become ours)?

Loyalty tested

“Loyalty is at the heart of the matter,” one source close to both parties told me on Tuesday. “People began to suggest to Aiyedatiwa that he could actually get power if only he could be his own man, and soon enough. To plot his way, he began to hobnob with Abuja politicians and some of Akeredolu’s arch enemies.”

But “loyalty” to who? To a person or to the constitution and the law of the land? Anyone who remembers former Governor Babatunde Fashola’s words when, during his ministerial nomination screening, he was asked about his spectacular fallout with then former Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu, might agree that “loyalty” is one point on which politicians pray never to be tested.

“May your loyalty not be tested,” Fashola replied to uproarious laughter from senators. But what is happening in Ondo is not a laughing matter. Especially the suspicion by Akeredolu’s camp that the deputy governor is in cahoots with some notoriously dangerous politicians in Abuja and elsewhere.

It’s fair to ask why Akeredolu – or those who claim to speak for him – cannot set aside personal grudges and put the interest of the state first?

Why? Some personal grudges run deep. I’ll mention two shared by insiders.

One, in June, the governor was said to have signed some papers and returned them to his deputy for action. Upon receiving the papers, his deputy was alleged to have said, flat out, that Akeredolu could not have signed the papers; not in the mental state he was believed, or suspected, to be in at the time. The buzz from then on, magnified, repurposed and retailed in several salacious versions, was that there was no further need of proof that Aiyedatiwawanted the governor dead. The world was, indeed, nearly his.

The second point, according to sources, has nothing to do with Aiyedatiwa directly, but with his new company. The governor’s wife, Betty Anyanwu, a most robustly active political wife, if ever there was one, had set her sights on the Senate in the February general elections in her native Imo State.

The problem was how to get past her state governor, Hope Uzodimma, who before the presidential primaries had pitched tent with Ahmed Lawan against Akeredolu’s preferred candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu. In fact, it was Uzodimma and Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, who submitted Lawan’s nomination form.

As for the Owerri senatorial district, Uzodimma, an enigma, had other plans.He wanted Alex Mbata instead. Betty was forced to withdraw from the senatorial primaries in humiliation.

By the time Mbata lost to the Labour Party candidate, EzenwaOnyewuchi, the damage had been done. The Akeredolus, still smarting from that defeat, are now also trying to get used to the fact that their man, Aiyedatiwa, is in bed with their foe, Uzodimma.Yet, if a politician sleeps with three women in one day, you can only thank God it was not four.

Dumb wars

For a state with Ondo’s political sophistication, it’s a bit of a travesty to suggest that petty squabbles have held it hostage for months now. But that would be naïve. From the Spanish marriages to the Crimean War over the right of access to a church key, history is full of battles fought for the dumbest of reasons. President Tinubu’s last-minute intervention haskept the fragile peace in Akure. But no one is sure how long.

The longer it takes for the parties to find a sensible, common ground, the worse it would be for citizens whose interest they claim to serve. All said, if Akeredolu were in a position to make the call today, I’m not sure he would take a position different from the principled one he took as president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) when Yar’Adua was in a similar situation. He should resign.

If Akeredolu cannot make this call, those who can should do so for the sake of his legacy and the wellbeing of the citizens of the state. That is the painful but proper and necessary thing to do.

Ishiekwene is the Editor-In-Chief of LEADERSHIP. Visit: www.azuishiekwene.com

Kano: Don’t Bow To NNPP Pressure, CSO Begs Supreme Court

By
James Orji
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0

The Coalition of Civil Society Organisations for Democracy, CCSOD, has called on the Supreme Court justices not to succumb to pressure as it plans to deliver judgment on the Kano state governorship election.

The civil society body alleges that the ruling party in the state, New Nigerian Peoples Party, NNPP is trying to force the apex court to deliver judgment in its favour.

The group has therefore appealed to the justices in the court not to capitulate under NNPP pressure.

The Court of Appeal last month affirmed the verdict of the State Election Petition Tribunal which declared Nasir Gawuna, candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, winner of the February 28 governorship election.

Following the verdict, the state has remained tense, particularly after Abba Yusuf, the governor of the state and candidate of the NNPP challenged the verdict at the Supreme Court.

Some members of the NNPC in the state have also protested against the Appeal Court judgment claiming their party had been robbed of victory during the poll.

They have warned of serious consequences if the Supreme Court affirms the lower court verdict.

Reacting, OEniola Enaife, the National Secretary of the civil society body told journalists in Abuja on Thursday that a former governor of the state, Rabiu Musa Kwakwanso is responsible for the violent protest in the state, which he said was meant to blackmail the court. The apex court must not fall for such, he said.

Enaife said the former governor should be called to order as he alongside his party are walking the nation through a dangerous path.

He called for the arrest of Kwakwanso, who, he claimed is planning to lead members of the party to occupy the Supreme Court and other foreign missions in the country.

According to him, “This act is against the tenets of democracy hence we in the Coalition for Democracy have come out to speak and act according to the rule of law. We demand immediate arrest of the Leader of the Kwankwasiyya Movement, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso now to stabilise the State.

“For us as coalition, we are working voluntarily with other prominent CSOs both in Kano state and around the country to gather intelligence around the key leaders of NNPP, APC, PDP and Labour Party in Kano State in the interest of peace and tranquility of the state and Nigeria. We shall not hesitate to raise alarm whenever we notice any sinister move to cause trouble before and after the judgement of the Supreme Court regarding the Kano Governorship election.

“Therefore, we restate the call for the arrest of key leaders of Kwankwasiyya Movement and some sympathisers of Governor Abba Yusuf, who are bent on causing trouble if the outcome of Supreme Court do not favour them. The Attorney General of Kano State

“We also call on the Supreme Court Justices not to be intimidated by the threat of this red-cap wearing group as the majority of Kano people are in support of the earlier verdicts of the Tribunal and the Appeal Court.”

The magazine has been reliably informed that the apex court will deliver judgment before the end of the year.

Osimhen, Oshoala Makes CAF Final Three Shortlist For Player Of The Year

By
Akinwale Kasali
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0

By Akinwale Kasali

Super Eagles and Napoli Football Club of Italy forward, Victor Osimhen has made the final Three Shortlisted for the CAF African Footballer of the Year Award for 2023.

Osimhen, during the week, won the award for the Best Footballer in Italy for 2023, to become the latest African to have won the award after African legends, George  Weah of Liberia, Samuel Eto’o Fils of Cameroon to mention a few.

Also, Super Falcons and Barcelona Feminina Forward, Asisat Oshoala, was also shortlisted in the final Three by CAF for the Female Footballer of the Year.

For Osimhen, this is the first time he would be making the final Three Shortlist, while Oshoala has won the Award Six Times and would be gunning for her Seventh.

The 24-Year Osimhen was instrumental to Napoli’s success last season, as the club won Serie A for the first time in 33 years. Osimhen also won the Golden Boot, scoring 26 goals and becoming the highest-scoring African in the league. He was also named the best striker in the league.

The 28-Year Old Oshoala on her path also was pivotal for Barcelona Feminina Team that won the Spain Female La Liga Iberuodola Title and the UEFA Champions League for the second time at a stretch.

The reigning CAF African Female Footballer of the Year Oshoala scored 21 goals in just 28 games to lead FC Barcelona to the 2022/23 Spanish League title and was the Spanish club’s top scorer with 27 goals in all competitions.

She has scored 31 goals in the AWCON Competition and won the Women’s African Cup of Nations three times with the Super Falcons.

The award ceremony will take place on 11th December 2023 in Marrakech, Morocco.

However, all indications show that the Nigerians could cart away with the coveted CAF Awards.

NIMASA, MWUN Parley Over Pay For Sacked NNSL Seafarers

By
James Orji
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0

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, and the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, MWUN have begun discussions on how to resolve the lingering issue of terminal benefits of Seafarers whose appointments were terminated due to the liquidation of the defunct Nigerian National Shipping Line, NNSL.

The Director General of NIMASA, Dr Bashir Jamoh, and the Vice President of the Nigerian Labour Congress who is also the President General of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, Comrade Adewale Adeyanju, jointly announced an agreement for physical verification of the affected seafarers/next of kin as the case may apply; the nature of appointment of all affected seafarers, and the exact amount due each beneficiary.

The NIMASA DG also assured the Union that theirposition will be communicated to the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, to ensure Government takes all necessary actions to bring to a conclusion, the issue of NNSL.

“The issue of industrial harmony in the maritime sector is of uttermost interest to our administration at NIMASA. We have been at this for a while. NIMASA had offered 100 million naira as settlement, which the Union declined. We have also discovered that some of those demanding settlement did not even have any employment letter. We will follow the lead from our supervising Ministry and ensure the physical verification exercise is brought to a logical conclusion. Our Honorable Minister will be duly updated by the Agency. I look forward to closing this issue in months to come”, the DG said.

On his part, the President General,  Maritime Workers’ Union of Nigeria (MWUN) Comrade Adeyanju restated the commitment of the Union to peaceful resolution of disputes; to ensure the rights and privileges of workers are well protected, without disrupting productivity in the Maritime Sector. He commended the Jamoh led Management at NIMASA,urging others to follow suit.

“I will like to commend NIMASA under Dr Jamoh, for the unflinching commitment to industrial harmony. He is always a phone call away to resolve any issue. Yes, NIMASA offered 100 million naira to offset the terminal benefits. However, if others like Nigerian Ports Authority, Nigerian Shippers  Council and the rest also add funds, there will be enough to go round the expected beneficiaries. As we did for dockworkers when a flat rate of two hundred thousand was paidduring port concession; that is what we want, putting into consideration the realities on ground now.

Emefiele’s Kinsmen Allege Persecution, Plead For Release, Blame Ordeal On Buhari’s Naira Redesign

By
Ayodele Oni
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0

By Ayodele Oni

Kinsmen of the embattled immediate past Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, ((CBN)Dr. Godwin Emefiele,  have described his continued detention as a vendatta over the Naira redesign policy under the immediate past administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Recall that a couple of months to the last general elections, the CBN under Emefiele, carried out a redesign of some Nigerian currency denominations which include N1,000, N500 and N200 notes.

This action which caught some politicians unawares, checked money politics such as votes buying. President Bola Tinubu was one of those affected, and he and a number of his loyalists alleged a number of times that he was the real target of the redesign.

On assumption of office, President Tinubu using agents of  state, including the State Security Service, (SSS) arrested Emefiele and on release after months, the Economic Financial Crimes Commission, (EFFC) took him into custody and arraigned him.

Elders and Stakeholders of Emefiele’s community,  Agbor, have fingered his role in the Naira redesign policy as the root cause of his problems. They pointed out that the Policy was a baby of former President Muhammadu Buhari which Emefiele was directed to carry out, and wondered why he is the target of the Buhari policy.

In a statement, they stated that “The traducers of  our brother are willing to break any law of the land and deny him any basic freedom and rights in order to punish him for carrying out his statutory duties during his time as governor of CBN.

“There’s no doubt that Emefiele’s unjust detention, emotional torture and rubbishing of his image has to do with President Muhammadu Buhari’s naira redesign policy of last year.

“Recall that the APC federal government had moved to change the face of  Nigeria’s currency in the run up to the 2023 elections. The reasons stated were:  to reduce inflation and shore up the currency’s value by calling in huge cash stockpile in the hands of politicians.

“President Buhari had stated openly that he desired a free and fair election that was not mired by vote buying.

This policy which was obviously initiated by  President Buhari didn’t go down well with many APC candidates and politicians who saw it as a ploy by the presidency to hamper their electoral chances.

“The policy seemed to be designed to starve them vote-buying cash. They had even dragged the CBN and the president to court then.

“Today,  Emefiele is being punished for taking directives from his boss, the former president Buhari in the course of a routine,  legitimate, government business.

“Emefiele who has been the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), for the past nine years is currently being sequestered and shackled like a common criminal by the Nigerian state he has served so diligently over these years.

“A few days after the inception of the current administration (on May 9th precisely), Mr. Emefiele was suspended from office as governor of the CBN for no stated reason. This was done regardless that his position is tenured and still subsisting – until his removal was announced while still in detention.

“The following day, (June 10), our brother was virtually ‘abducted’ from his Lagos home by officials of the Department of State Service (DSS) and flown to Abuja in a manner fit only for a renegade.

“Our brother has not been allowed to return home since then.

Almost six months after, Mr Emefiele has remained in the custody of the DSS; and lately, the EFCC.

“No charge was filed against him for a long spell of incarceration. Several court orders had been secured for his release but they were serially and flagrantly disobeyed by the DSS.

Judging by the ferocity with which Emefiele is being pursued, it seems someone wants him dead.”

They pointed out that despite series of court judgement granting Emefiele freedom, he remains incarcerated.

“It noteworthy that nearly half a dozen courts in Nigeria had ruled in favour of outright release of Emefiele or that he be granted bail. But all the orders were shunned by the DSS.”

The statement, signed by Kachikwu Kanene appealed passionately to President Tinubu to intervene and ensure the release of the former CBN governor.

“We appeal that with the elections over, and the diadem won and lost, President Bola Tinubu should be magnanimous in victory and allow our brother to return home with some honour and dignity to take his well deserved rest along with other former Buhari appointees who have returned to their homesteads unmolested.”

Following is the full text of the statement.

EMEFIELE: AGBOR STAKEHOLDERS APPEAL TO TINUBU

“We, the stakeholders and elders of Agbor stock have watched with concern and indeed, consternation, the relentless hounding and persecution of our brother and mentor, MR GODWIN EMEFIELE.

Emefiele who has been the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), for the past nine years is currently being sequestered and shackled like a common criminal by the Nigerian state he has served so diligently over these years.

A few days after the inception of the current administration (on May 9th precisely), Mr. Emefiele was suspended from office as governor of the CBN for no stated reason. This was done regardless that his position is tenured and still subsisting – until his removal was announced while still in detention.

“The following day, (June 10), our brother was virtually ‘abducted’ from his Lagos home by officials of the Department of State Service (DSS) and flown to Abuja in a manner fit only for a renegade.

Our brother has not been allowed to return home since then.

“Almost six months after, Mr Emefiele has remained in the custody of the DSS; and lately, the EFCC. No charge was filed against him for a long spell of incarceration. Several court orders had been secured for his release but they were serially and flagrantly disobeyed by the DSS.

“Judging by the ferocity with which Emefiele is being pursued, it seems someone wants him dead.

WHAT IS EMEFIELE’S OFFENCE?

“Recall that in February, DSS had told the world that its preliminary investigations revealed that Emefiele committed various acts of terrorism financing and involvement in economic crimes of national security dimension. But to our surprise, when Emefiele was finally arraigned at the Federal High Court Ikoyi, Lagos after six weeks of further investigations, all they could charge him for was illegal possession of one single-barrel shotgun and ammunition.  No mention was made of economic crimes or terrorism financing.

It is remarkable that though Emefiele was hurriedly removed from his Ikoyi residence on June 10, a shotgun was to be found in the same house on June 15th  while he was being held in Abuja.  This is a pointer to the fact that the evidence against Emefiele was only being dredged up after he was arrested. Now  the only charge the DSS preferred against Emefiele was possession of a shotgun and few rounds of ammunition.

“But most troubling is that our brother was again bodily prised from the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS) by officials of the DSS in flagrant contempt of the Lagos court that had granted him bail and specifically ordered that he be remanded at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre. But to the shock of Nigerians, the DSS had secured an anticipatory order from another court to counter the orders of the court they were arraigning him in. The question is: what is the special interest on our brother?

SERIAL CONTEMPT AND DISOBEDIENCE OF THE COURTS:

“It is noteworthy that nearly half a dozen courts in Nigeria had ruled in favour of outright release of Emefiele or that he be granted bail. But all the orders were shunned by the DSS. Here are a few:

■On December 29, 2022, Justice M.A. Hassan of the FHC, Maitama, FCT, Abuja, issued a restraining order on the DSS to among others, refrain from arresting, detaining, proceeding against him, breaching or interfering with his personal liberty and freedom of movement; or taking any other steps against him in connection with any other allegation… before or from any other courts from the date of this judgment of Justice M. A. Hassan.

■ On July 13th, 2023 another FCT High Court (Justice Hamza Muazu) sitting in Maitama Abuja,  had ordered the DSS to charge Emefiele to court or release him.

■ On July 14th, 2023, Justice Bello Kawu of the FCT High Court sitting in Apo, Abuja voided Emefiele’s arrest and detention as a violation of a subsisting judgment and order of Hon. Justice M.A. Hassan.

“These judgments and more were ignored.

THIS IS VENDETTA OVER NAIRA REDESIGN POLICY:

“The traducers of  our brother are willing to break any law of the land and deny him any basic freedom and rights in order to punish him for carrying out his statutory duties during his time as governor of CBN.

There’s no doubt that Emefiele’s unjust detention, emotional torture and rubbishing of his image has to do with President Muhammadu Buhari’s naira redesign policy of last year.

Recall that the APC federal government had moved to change the face of  Nigeria’s currency in the run up to the 2023 elections. The reasons stated were:  to reduce inflation and shore up the currency’s value by calling in huge cash stockpile in the hands of politicians. President Buhari had stated openly that he desired a free and fair election that was not mired by vote buying.

This policy which was obviously initiated by  President Buhari didn’t go down well with many APC candidates and politicians who saw it as a ploy by the presidency to hamper their electoral chances. The policy seemed to be designed to starve them vote-buying cash. They had even dragged the CBN and the president to court then.

“Today,  Emefiele is being punished for taking directives from his boss, the former president Buhari in the course of a routine,  legitimate, government business.

FINAL WORD AND APPEAL:

“We, the stakeholders and leaders of Agbor are pained that our brother is being ridiculed and dragged in the muck by a country he served so creditably well. And we now have strong fears that someone wants out brother dead.

“Recall that Emefiele, a successful banker who as managing director of the biggest and most profitable bank in Nigeria before he was headhunted to run the apex bank, was one of the pillars of the Buhari administration and the APC government.

“It’s on record that Emefiele went beyond the call of duty to initiate far-reaching fiscal and developmental initiatives in agriculture, infrastructure and poverty alleviation.

“We remember that before the currency redesign episode, Emefiele’s CBN was hailed as the face of the Buhari administration and the signpost of critical achievements in rice production and agric development in general. Even though no single case of corruption has been levelled against Emefiele and the CBN, yet President Tinubu has just ordered a forensic audit of the apex bank. It is uncanny that CBN is the only federal institution being so x-rayed after eight years of Buhari.

“On this note, we appeal that with the elections over, and the diadem won and lost, President Bola Tinubu should be magnanimous in victory and allow our brother to return home with some honour and dignity to take his well deserved rest along with other former Buhari appointees who have returned to their homesteads unmolested.

We make bold to say that but for the ugly political turn of events in the APC,  Emefiele was serving out his term as a hero of the Buhari era.

“Once again, we plead with our president:

PLEASE LET OUR BROTHER GO!

LONG LIVE AGBOR!
LONG LIVE DELTA STATE!!
LONG LIVE NIGERIA!!!

FOR:  AGBOR STAKEHOLDERS FORUM
KACHIKWU KANENE “

Emefiele: Agbor Stakeholders Appeal To Tinubu (Advertorial)

By
The Source
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0

Full Text:
Emefiele: Agbor Stakeholders Appeal To Tinubu
We, the stakeholders and elders of Agbor stock have watched with concern and indeed, consternation, the relentless hounding and persecution of our brother and mentor, MR GODWIN EMEFIELE.

Emefiele who has been the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), for the past nine years is currently being sequestered and shackled like a common criminal by the Nigerian state he has served so diligently over these years.

A few days after the inception of the current administration (on May 9th precisely), Mr. Emefiele was suspended from office as governor of the CBN for no stated reason. This was done regardless that his position is tenured and still subsisting – until his removal was announced while still in detention.

The following day, (June 10), our brother was virtually ‘abducted’ from his Lagos home by officials of the Department of State Service (DSS) and flown to Abuja in a manner fit only for a renegade.

Our brother has not been allowed to return home since then.

Almost six months after, Mr Emefiele has remained in the custody of the DSS; and lately, the EFCC. No charge was filed against him for a long spell of incarceration. Several court orders had been secured for his release but they were serially and flagrantly disobeyed by the DSS.

Judging by the ferocity with which Emefiele is being pursued, it seems someone wants him dead.

WHAT IS EMEFIELE’S OFFENCE? Recall that in February, DSS had told the world that its preliminary investigations revealed that Emefiele committed various acts of terrorism financing and involvement in economic crimes of national security dimension. But to our surprise, when Emefiele was finally arraigned at the Federal High Court Ikoyi, Lagos after six weeks of further investigations, all they could charge him for was illegal possession of one single-barrel shotgun and ammunition.  No mention was made of economic crimes or terrorism financing.

It is remarkable that though Emefiele was hurriedly removed from his Ikoyi residence on June 10, a shotgun was to be found in the same house on June 15th  while he was being held in Abuja.  This is a pointer to the fact that the evidence against Emefiele was only being dredged up after he was arrested. Now  the only charge the DSS preferred against Emefiele was possession of a shotgun and few rounds of ammunition.

But most troubling is that our brother was again bodily prised from the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS) by officials of the DSS in flagrant contempt of the Lagos court that had granted him bail and specifically ordered that he be remanded at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre. But to the shock of Nigerians, the DSS had secured an anticipatory order from another court to counter the orders of the court they were arraigning him in. The question is: what is the special interest on our brother?

SERIAL CONTEMPT AND DISOBEDIENCE OF THE COURTS: It is noteworthy that nearly half a dozen courts in Nigeria had ruled in favour of outright release of Emefiele or that he be granted bail. But all the orders were shunned by the DSS. Here are a few:

■On December 29, 2022, Justice M.A. Hassan of the FHC, Maitama, FCT, Abuja, issued a restraining order on the DSS to among others, refrain from arresting, detaining, proceeding against him, breaching or interfering with his personal liberty and freedom of movement; or taking any other steps against him in connection with any other allegation… before or from any other courts from the date of this judgment of Justice M. A. Hassan.

■ On July 13th, 2023 another FCT High Court (Justice Hamza Muazu) sitting in Maitama Abuja,  had ordered the DSS to charge Emefiele to court or release him.

■ On July 14th, 2023, Justice Bello Kawu of the FCT High Court sitting in Apo, Abuja voided Emefiele’s arrest and detention as a violation of a subsisting judgment and order of Hon. Justice M.A. Hassan.

These judgments and more were ignored.

THIS IS VENDETTA OVER NAIRA REDESIGN POLICY: The traducers of  our brother are willing to break any law of the land and deny him any basic freedom and rights in order to punish him for carrying out his statutory duties during his time as governor of CBN.

There’s no doubt that Emefiele’s unjust detention, emotional torture and rubbishing of his image has to do with President Muhammadu Buhari’s naira redesign policy of last year.

Recall that the APC federal government had moved to change the face of  Nigeria’s currency in the run up to the 2023 elections. The reasons stated were:  to reduce inflation and shore up the currency’s value by calling in huge cash stockpile in the hands of politicians. President Buhari had stated openly that he desired a free and fair election that was not mired by vote buying.

This policy which was obviously initiated by  President Buhari didn’t go down well with many APC candidates and politicians who saw it as a ploy by the presidency to hamper their electoral chances. The policy seemed to be designed to starve them vote-buying cash. They had even dragged the CBN and the president to court then.

Today,  Emefiele is being punished for taking directives from his boss, the former president Buhari in the course of a routine,  legitimate, government business.

FINAL WORD AND APPEAL: We, the stakeholders and leaders of Agbor are pained that our brother is being ridiculed and dragged in the muck by a country he served so creditably well. And we now have strong fears that someone wants out brother dead.

Recall that Emefiele, a successful banker who as managing director of the biggest and most profitable bank in Nigeria before he was headhunted to run the apex bank, was one of the pillars of the Buhari administration and the APC government.

It’s on record that Emefiele went beyond the call of duty to initiate far-reaching fiscal and developmental initiatives in agriculture, infrastructure and poverty alleviation.

We remember that before the currency redesign episode, Emefiele’s CBN was hailed as the face of the Buhari administration and the signpost of critical achievements in rice production and agric development in general. Even though no single case of corruption has been levelled against Emefiele and the CBN, yet President Tinubu has just ordered a forensic audit of the apex bank. It is uncanny that CBN is the only federal institution being so x-rayed after eight years of Buhari.

On this note, we appeal that with the elections over, and the diadem won and lost, President Bola Tinubu should be magnanimous in victory and allow our brother to return home with some honour and dignity to take his well deserved rest along with other former Buhari appointees who have returned to their homesteads unmolested.

We make bold to say that but for the ugly political turn of events in the APC,  Emefiele was serving out his term as a hero of the Buhari era.

Once again, we plead with our president:

PLEASE LET OUR BROTHER GO!

LONG LIVE AGBOR!
LONG LIVE DELTA STATE!!
LONG LIVE NIGERIA!!!

FOR:  AGBOR STAKEHOLDERS FORUM
KACHIKWU KANENE

CBN Fails Nigerians Again; Banks, POS Operators Lament Cash Shortages Ahead Yuletide

By
James Orji
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0

The Association of Mobile Money and Bank Agents has warned that the problem of cash shortages currently facing the country will  likely get worse ahead of the yuletide and New Year festivities.

The warning comes amidst efforts by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, to manage the problem.

The apex bank had issued three statements in the last one month assuring Nigerians that it is on top of the situation. From all indications, it doesn’t seems so considering the harrowing experience many Nigerians are facing in the midst of all of these to satisfy their cash transaction.

Not a few Nigerians insist that the Oluyemi Cardoso-led bank seems to have run out of ideas on how to solve the problem. He needs to do more, according to them, to justify his appointment as Nigeria’s top banker.

On Thursday the Vice President of the association, Obioha Oti called on the CBN to intervene before it is too late.

Oti while speaking on Channel Television Business Morning, disclosed that the problem is gradually getting out of hand, to the extent that his members are now resorting to buying cash from petrol stations and other business outlets in other to meet customers’ demands.

“If the situation is not resolved before next week, there will be a serious crisis,” he said, noting that the current problem is a result of the Supreme Court ruling regarding the expiration of the old N200, N500, and N1,000 notes by the end of the year.

Recall that the CBN said last week that the March 2022 Supreme Court ruling which sought to invalidate the old naira as legal tender, has been vacated.

The assertion was contained in a statement signed by the bank’s Acting Director, Corporate Communications, Sidi Ali.

According to the apex bank, the old and new naira notes are to be used side by side for cash transactions.

The statement said, “Following the order of the Supreme Court on Wednesday, November 29, 2023, granting the prayer of the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation to extend the use of old Naira banknotes ad infinitum, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed all its branches to continue to issue and accept all denominations of Nigerian banknotes, old and re-designed, to and from deposit money banks (DMBS).

“For the avoidance of doubt, the Supreme Court ordered that the old versions of N200, 500, and N1,000 banknotes shall continue to be legal tender, alongside the re-designed versions.

“Accordingly, in line with Section 20(5) of the CBN Act 2007, all banknotes issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), will continue to remain legal tender, indefinitely.

“Members of the public are enjoined to continue to accept all Naira banknotes (old or re-designed) for their day-to-day transactions and handle these banknotes with the utmost care, to safeguard and protect the lifecycle of the banknotes.

“Furthermore, the general public is encouraged to embrace alternative modes of payment, e-channels, in order to reduce pressure on the use of physical cash.”

Despite the assurance by the CBN that it is on top of the situation, cash problems persist across the country with no end in sight to it, according to those monitoring the situation.

The situation has now opened an opportunity for POS operators and other money agents to do brisk business, though, the operators insist that they are not the cause of the problem.

The operators have increased their charges blaming it on the rising cost of operation.

Some POS operators while speaking with the magazine said they no longer get cash from the bank, and that they are going through the same problems other Nigerians are facing.

“We no longer get enough cash from the banks. The commercial banks no longer have enough cash in their ATMs as well. When we go to the counter, they only pay us a meager amount of what we requested,’ an operator in Ikeja told the magazine.

On their part, some spokespersons of commercial banks said on Thursday that they can only make the cash made available to them by the CBN to customers.

“It is not our function to print money. That is the duty of CBN. We only give to customers on demand what we get from CBN. Besides the current cash scarcity is an artificial one. Hopefully it will go away in a matter of days,” a top commercial bank official said.

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