Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja, on Wednesday, set aside the judgment of the National Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Yola, Adamawa State, which had affirmed Mohammed Salihu as duly nominated by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to contest for the last House of Representatives election.

Salihu contested for the Girei/Yola South/Yola North federal constituency election and won.

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The lower court had dismissed the petition filed by Abubakar Baba Zango and the All Progressives Congress (APC) which contended that the PDP lawmaker was at the time of the National Assembly elections in February 25, not qualified to run because he allegedly presented a forged primary school certificate and birth certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Abubakar’s legal team had prayed the tribunal to nullify the PDP candidate’s election on that ground as well as order INEC to issue him a certificate of return having emerged second runner up in the said election.

But during its judgment at the time, the chairman of the tribunal, Justice Aloysius Okuma, dismissed Abubakar’s petition saying he failed to provide credible evidence to prove his certificate forgery allegations especially in the area of name variation.

Dissatisfied with the rulling, Abubakar’s lawyer, F.K. Idepefo, approached the Appeal Court to set aside the judgment and declare his client the House of Representatives member for the constituency in dispute.

Idepefo contended in his processes that the “the justices of the election tribunal completely misconconceived the case of the appellants in resolving that Salih, Salisu or Salihu is a misnomer or a variant of the name Salihu, as that was not the case of the appellants, rather, the case of the appellants is that certificates presented to INEC were forged.”

At its judgment on Wednesday, the appellate court allowed the appeal entered by Abubakar against Salihu, agreeing that the certificates of the PDP candidate were forged.

“Judgment of the lower Tribunal is hereby set aside,” the Court of Appeal held while granting all the reliefs sought by the appellants.

YIAGA Africa Executive Director, Samson Itodo, says Liberian security agents are non-partisan in the country’s recent election unlike in Nigeria, where security forces have been accused of interfering in elections.

Itodo said that the Liberian National Police and the army were able to maintain order and security throughout the electoral process, despite concerns about their professionalism and integrity.

“As a nationalist, I believe that nations and states should be responsible for their security because why does the state exist? A state exists in the first place to provide security and deal with welfare and social condition of people, so I think that states should be responsible for protecting themselves,” Itodo said in an interview with Channels TV on Wednesday.

He stated, “In Nigeria, it is not guaranteed that you are going to have a credible or non-partisan management of elections security operations.

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“What is critical is the fact that Liberian people came to a point to say ‘we can do this on our own because in 2018 the UN left Liberia.’

“But then there were also issues around the professionalism as well as the integrity of the security agencies to manage the election because they thought that the Liberian national police and the army were going to be clearly partisan in managing the security but to a large extent we didn’t see that.

“You know the army and the police are answerable to the president who is commander in chief and the president was on the ballot.

“This is the experience that we have about security agencies acting in a very partial manner when it comes to elections and their loyalty isn’t to the constitution but to an individual and where the individual is a candidate in a party, the tendency is to protect the political interest of that particular incumbent when they are on the ballot or even the ruling party and not necessarily the entire state.

“But in the case of Liberia even though people had their concerns, we didn’t have cases where security agencies acted in a partial manner like we see especially in places in Nigeria, there are some cases where we have seen security agencies hijacking and interfering with the electoral process. Even though that has drastically reduced, you still see elements of that within our electoral process but we didn’t see that in Liberia.”

US President Joe Biden landed in Israel Wednesday on a solidarity visit following Hamas attacks, under the shadow of a deadly blast at a Gaza hospital that has inflamed regional tensions.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu personally welcomed Biden on the tarmac, putting his arms around the US president who then clasped his hands around Netanyahu in a sign of the newfound bond between the two leaders.

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Under unusually tight security even for the US president, Biden and Netanyahu chatted briefly on the tarmac at Ben Gurion Airport surrounded by their guards before their motorcades set off for a Tel Aviv hotel where they will hold talks.

Hundreds of armed police and troops were stationed around the seafront Tel Aviv hotel where Netanyahu and Biden will meet, with armed snipers on the roofs of nearby villas.

Tel Aviv is just 65 kilometres (40 miles) from the Gaza Strip, the Hamas-ruled territory which Israel has been pounding since a devastating October 7 attack by Hamas militants.

According to reports, no fewer than 3,308 Palestinians, including over 1,000 children and 1,417 women, have been so far killed in Gaza.

This figure included about 500 people who were killed by an Israeli airstrike at a Gaza hospital, the Palestinian Health Ministry said Tuesday

The ministry said the number of casualties at the Gaza City hospital, where many civilians had sought shelter, is expected to rise.

Reports say about 10,859 people have been injured in Gaza; while another 1,200 were reported missing in the occupied West Bank.

Labour Party (LP) has expressed sadness over the plan by the 360 members of the House of Assembly to be gifted with vehicles worth about N160 million each.

The party condemned what it called the level of insensitivity being displayed by the executive and the legislative arms under the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led All Progressives Congress (APC) administration.

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National Chairman of the party, Julius Abure, in a statement on Tuesday, said it is saddening that with deepening poverty among Nigerians, the administration had decided to increase its appetite for a life of opulence to mock hardworking but underprivileged Nigerians.

“How else can any government justify the bloated Federal Executive Council (FEC) of 48 cabinet ministers, with each of them given three luxurious four-wheel drive vehicles on the first day in office, paid for and fueled by taxpayers? This is notwithstanding hundreds of presidential and ministerial aides, as well as numerous aides to the aides, which are being funded by the government.

“These vehicles will be costing Nigerians about N57.6bn and this is happening at a time when the government claims it cannot afford to increase the minimum wage of N30,000 monthly to workers,” Abure said.

He noted that the price of a bag of 50 kg rice has risen to N50,000 while most families could not even afford two square meals a day.

“This same government is still going round the world cap in hand seeking loans, what a shame! As things stand today, inflation is likely to hit 30 per cent by December, 2023, yet all they are concerned about is the comfort of a privileged few who found themselves in public office.

“Why spend so much money on the import of and purchase of vehicles from other nations amidst the scarcity of needed foreign exchange for manufacturing? Why not empower local manufacturers such as Innoson Motors in Anambra and Peugeot Automobiles in Kaduna to save forex and boost our local economy?

“When our Presidential Candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, said we in the Labour Party want to move the economy from consumption to production, this is what we mean – Nigeria first!” he said.

Abure urged the government to retrace its step, in the interest of the nation and give priority to revamping the economy instead of its current obsession with luxury living.

He also called on the LP lawmakers in the 10th Assembly to kick against the move in line with the ideology of the party: social justice and equal opportunity for all.

Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, on Tuesday called for an emergency closed session of the Senate during plenary.

The closed session followed a walkout of the chambers by the Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Ali Ndume, after the Senate President Godswill Akpabio ruled him out of order.

Ndume had, citing order 54 of the Senate Standing Orders, raised a point of order.

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He drew the attention of the Senate President to his handling of affairs in the chambers which he said were not in consonance with the rules.

Ndume said: “Mr. President, there are some things we do in this chamber that are against the rules. Sir, nobody is too big to learn….”

At this point, Akpabio interjected and called for a copy of the Standing Orders.

He proceeded to read order 54 and said it did not support the point Ndume was making and thereafter ruled him out of order.

Upon the action of the Senate President, Ndume who was visibly angry packed files papers on his desk and stormed out of the Chamber straight to his office.

The Chief Whip was just settling down when he received a call from a colleague to return to the chamber for an executive session.

However, neither the Senate nor Ndume spoke on the issue.

But a source close to the leadership of the Senate said Ndume did not storm out of plenary as he later returned to partake at the executive session.

He said senators are free to leave and return to their seats any time during plenary.

He noted that what transpired on the part of Ndume was a misinterpretation of an order.

He said but for the vigilance and smartness of the Senate President who decided to read the order aloud, Ndume would have made his intended contribution citing the wrong order.

He added that the closed door session, which was already planned to discuss germane issues concerning the running of the Senate, was called shortly after Ndume left his seat.

He stated his leaving was not in anyway a prompt for the executive session.

He added that some of the issues discussed during the session include its upcoming retreat which they could not have discussed at plenary and Executive communications seeking the confirmation of some nominees for appointment.

“The Senator really wanted to contribute but the order he cited did not avail him the chance to keep on talking and then the Presiding Officer, the Senate President had to rule him out of order.

“What happened today was a misinterpretation of an order by a Senator,” the source said.

A motion calling for the reopening of Nigeria-Niger border shut following a military coup in Niger Republic suffered a setback in Senate on Tuesday.

The Federal Government, in August, closed all its land borders with Niger Republic as part of the sanctions on the Niger military junta, which toppled the democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum.

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The motion titled: “Urgent need to reopen the Nigerian-Nigerien border to open up economy activities in both countries as the closure of the border has had a devastating impact on businesses in the area” was sponsored by Senator Suleiman Kawu Sumaila (NNPP, Kano South)

Sumaila, in a his lead debate, said the border closure has led to deterioration of economic activities in many border towns in Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Katsina, Jigawa, Yobe and Borno states.

“Many businesses are struggling to survive while some have even collapsed,” he added.

According to him, the closure runs contrary to the provisions of the constitution of Nigeria that guarantees the security and welfare of the people.

He urged the Federal Government to reconsider reopening of the borders between Nigeria and Niger to allow free movement of goods between the two countries.

He stressed that Nigeria and Niger had signed an agreement on border frequency coordination to allow free movement, therefore closing the borders runs contrary and violates that agreement.

However, in his reaction to the motion, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, said the Senate had resolved to back ECOWAS resolutions on the political situation in Niger Republic.

ECOWAS announced wide ranging sanctions such as a ‘no fly zone’ over Niger and an immediate closure of its borders to force the junta to relinquish power.

Akpabio said there was the need for the Senate to get proper briefing from the military authorities before taking a position, saying the call for the reopening of the borders has security implication.

He therefore, urged Senator Kawu to withdraw the motion to allow for wider consultation and discussions before representing it.

The Kano lawmaker withdrew the motion.

A Federal High Court, Abuja, on Tuesday, rescheduled the trial of Sen. Stella Oduah, a Chinese construction giant, CCECC, and others on alleged N5 billion fraud charges for Nov. 14.

The matter, which was on number three on the cause list could not be heard by Justice Inyang Ekwo.

Although counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Offem Uket, was in court, the defendants, including Oduah, were not in court.

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The News Agency of Nigeria recalls that Justice Ekwo had, on July 21, ordered the EFCC to produce persons behind breaching his privacy through text messages on his phone and another group who petitioned the chief justice of Nigeria regarding the ongoing case.

The judge, who adjourned the matter until today, directed that the anti-corruption agency must produce the those persons in court.

“I will give a date for trial and make a consequential order because you have allowed this matter to degenerate this way.

“Do you think you can shield any of these persons who have interfered in these proceedings?” he asked rhetorically.

NAN reports that Oduah, a former senator representing Anambra North Senatorial District at the 9th National Assembly, and others were arraigned on July 21 on 25-count charge.

She was arraigned alongside CCECC Nigeria Ltd, the Nigerian subsidiary of China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) established by the Chinese government to execute international contracts and economic cooperation.

Also joined in the charge are Gloria Odita, Nwosu Emmanuel Nnamdi and Chukwuma Irene Chinyere.

Others include Global Offshore and Marine Ltd, Tip Top Global Resources Ltd, Crystal Television Ltd and Sobora International Ltd.

They all pleaded not guilty to the counts and were admitted to bail in terms of the administrative bail earlier granted them by the anti-graft agency.

In the charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/316/2020 and filed by the EFCC on December 17, 2020, the defendants are being accused of laundering various sums of money totalling about N5,052,415,984 between February and June 2014.

The EFCC accused the defendants of conspiracy to commit money laundering, transferring, taking control and taking possession of proceeds of fraud, aiding and abetting money laundering and opening anonymous bank accounts.

Specifically, the prosecution alleged in two of the 25 counts that Oduah, a former Aviation Minister, and Odita opened anonymous “Private Banking Nominee” dollar and naira accounts with First Bank Ltd, thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 11(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 11(4) (a) of the same Act.

In the charge, CCECC Nigeria Limited was alleged to have transferred over N2.5 billion into the naira account of a Private Banking Nominee between March 31 and June 6, 2014.(NAN)

The Nysome Wike -led group of five Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Governors made up of four former and one serving governor, held talks with President Bola Tinubu late on Tuesday.

It was gathered that the meeting was preceded by a meeting held at the Abuja residence of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT Nyesom Wike.

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Soon after the meeting, it was gathered that Wike led his former colleagues to meet with President Tinubu, at the Presidential Villa.

Although details of the meeting were sketchy as at the time of filing this report at 10:45 pm, it was gathered that a working relationship between the president and the former governors was what was tabled.

A source privy to the meeting who pleaded anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the issue said, “The G-5 PDP Governors first met in Wike’s residence for a few hours before heading to the Villa to meet with the president.

“Exact details of what was discussed isn’t available to me at the moment, but from discussions held during the initial meeting at Wike’s residence, it was all about finding accommodation for the former governors in the scheme of things and of course, how they can work together .”

footage from the meeting 

The source noted that it was instructive that the former governors were meeting with President Tinubu barely 24 hours to the commencement of the Imo State PDP governorship campaign in Owerri and the growing tension over the occupant of the seat of party Secretary.

The former Governors who attended the meeting were: Nyesom Wike, immediate past Rivers State Governor and now FCT minister, former Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, former Enugu State Governor, Ifianyi Ugwuanyi, his Abia State counterpart, Okezie Ikpeazu and serving Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde.