PDP Chairman Uche Secondus and Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Muhammed
The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Uche Secondus dragged the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed to court for defamation of character and asking for N1.5 Billion as damages.
The Minister had mentioned Prince Secondus in the list of those he claimed looted the nation’s treasury, alleging that he collected N200 million from the former National Security Adviser (NSA).
Secondus who said he never collected a dime from the former NSA through his lawyer Emeka Etiaba SAN, wrote to the Minister seeking the immediate retraction of the National Chairman’s name on the list, payment of N1.5 billion damages and public apology within 48 hours.
In the letter, the PDP boss said that if Lai Mohammad failed to meet the demand after 48 hours, he would proceed to a court of competent jurisdiction to ventilate his right under the law.
Having failed to meet the demand, Prince Secondus today, Friday, the PDP chairmsn filed a suit at the Port Harcourt High Court, Rivers state, claiming among other things, that the court awards to him the sum of N1.5 billion being damages for humiliation, castigation, vilification attack on his person and integrity as a result of the publication.
According to a statement from the PDP National Chairman’s Spokesperson, Ike Abonyi, Secondus, in the suit no/PHC/1013/2018, is also claiming that Lai Mohammad’s publication is defamatory and is asking the court to direct him to retract the said publication and apologize in writing.
He asked Lai Mohammed to publish the retraction and apology in all the social media, including but not limited to the Following newspapers, the Nation, Thisday, The Sun, Guardian and Punch as well as in The following television channels, NTA and Channels Televisions among others where the defamatory story was published.
Secondus is also asking the court for a perpetual injunction restraining the defendant from further publishing defamatory materials against him.
Joined in the suit are the Federal Government of Nigeria through the Attorney General of the Federation and the Vintage Press ltd, publishers of the Nation Newspapers.
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Tukur Yusufu Buratai has approved the release of special promotion for 3,729 troops of Operation LAFIYA DOLE who participated in Operation DEEP PUNCH II in Sambisa Forest. a statement by the Director Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Texas Chukwu today, Friday saisd that the mass promotion is in recognition of their valour and uncommon commitment to duty during the operation. A breakdown of the beneficiaries include 223 Staff Sergeants promoted to the rank of Warrant Officers, 511 Sergeants promoted to the rank of Staff Sergeants while 994 Corporals were promoted to the rank of Sergeants. Others are 1064 Lance Corporals promoted to the rank of Corporals while 932 Private soldiers were appointed Lance Corporals.
Facebook has been battered by allegations that its platform has helped fuel communal bloodshed in Myanmar, a mainly Buddhist country accused of waging an ethnic cleansing campaign against Rohingya Muslims.
Six Myanmar organizations, yesterday, Thursday, published an open letter criticizing an interview Zuckerberg gave with news site Vox this week where he cited examples of both Myanmar Buddhists and Muslims spreading “sensational” messages on Facebook Messenger that warned of imminent violence from the other community.
“That’s the kind of thing where I think it is clear that people were trying to use our tools in order to incite real harm. Now, in that case, our systems detect that that’s going on. We stop those messages from going through,” Facebook owner, Zuckerberg was quoted as saying.
In their letter, the six local tech and human rights organizations said that they were “surprised” to hear Zuckerberg “praise the effectiveness” of Facebook’s systems in Myanmar.
“It took over four days from when the messages started circulating for the escalation to reach you,” said the groups, who had flagged the content to Facebook.
“Far from being stopped, they spread in an unprecedented way, reaching country-wide and causing widespread fear and at least three violent incidents in the process.”
When reached for a comment on Friday, a Facebook spokesperson conceded the company was too slow in responding to reports about the incendiary messages.
“We should have been faster and are working hard to improve our technology and tools to detect and prevent abusive, hateful or false content,” the spokesperson said.
“We are sorry that Mark did not make clearer that it was the civil society groups in Myanmar who first reported these messages.”
Facebook has also added more Myanmar-language reviewers and is rolling out the ability to report content in the Messenger service, the spokesperson added.
In late January this year, Facebook removed the page of popular anti-Rohingya monk Wirathu. Last year it regulated the use of the word “kalar” which is considered derogatory against Muslims.
In their joint letter, the local groups said Facebook’s response to hate speech and vicious rumours in Myanmar has been “inadequate” for years, adding that their offers to help craft broader solutions have gone unanswered.
They urged the social media giant to add reporting mechanisms to the Messenger app, increase transparency, engage more with local stakeholders and draw on data and engineering teams to identify repeat offenders.
Facebook dwarfs all other social media platforms in Myanmar, where it has become the chief channel for communication among both the public and government ministries.
But it has come under fire for allegedly helping broadcast ethnic hatred in a fledgeling democracy still emerging from decades of repressive junta rule.
Scrutiny has intensified in the wake of a bloody military campaign against the Rohingya that erupted last August, expelling some 700,000 of the minority to Bangladesh.
In March, the UN’s special rapporteur to Myanmar Yanghee Lee said Facebook had morphed into a “beast” and had incited “a lot of violence and a lot of hatred against the Rohingya or other ethnic minorities”.
South Korea’s former president Park Geun-Hye has been sentenced to 24 year for demanding and receiving bribe worth $20 million from conglomerates, sharing secret state documents with Choi.
Park was convicted of receiving or demanding more than $20 million from conglomerates, sharing secret state documents with Choi, ordering officials to stop offering state subsidies to “blacklisted” artists critical of her policies, and firing officials who resisted her abuses of power.
The wide-ranging corruption scandal exposed shady links between big business and politics in South Korea, prompting massive street protests against Park last year.
But today, Friday, the ruling was greeted with dismay in streets outside the courtroom by several hundred flag-waving Park supporters.
The trial of the ex President which lasted more than 10 months ended with Park being found guilty on multiple criminal charges, including bribery and abuse of power.
Park’s successor described the sentencing as a “heartbreaking event” for both the nation and the ex-leader herself.
“The accused abused the power bestowed by the people — the true ruler of this country — to cause chaos in national administration,” said Judge Kim Se-Yoon.
“Despite all these crimes the accused denied all the charges against her, displayed no remorse and showed an incomprehensible attitude by blaming Choi and other … officials,” he said, referring to Park’s secret confidante and long-time friend Choi Soon-Sil.
Many protesters sat on the pavement in tears while others began a protest march.
“The rule of law in this country is dead today,” said Han Geun-Hyung, a 27-year-old Park supporter.
Park herself was not in court for Friday’s judgement which, in a rare move, was broadcast live on television. She had boycotted most sessions of the trial in protest at being held in custody.
She now has seven days in which to file an appeal.
Park becomes the third former South Korean leader to be convicted on criminal charges after leaving office, joining Chun Doo-Whan and Roh Tae-woo, who were both found guilty of treason and corruption in the 1990s.
Park’s presidential predecessor Lee Myung-bak is currently in custody as prosecutors investigate multiple corruption charges involving him and his relatives.
Judge Kim Se-Yoon said he had passed a tough sentence to “prevent such an unfortunate event from happening again”.
The presidential
Blue House said in a statement after the verdict: “Each person must have different feelings about former President Park Geun-Hye. But a bleak wind blew through the hearts of all of us today.
“It is a heartbreaking event for the nation as well as for the person’s life. A history that is not remembered is bound to be repeated. We will not forget today.”
Park, the daughter of dictator Park Chung-hee, lost both her parents to assassins. She took office in 2013 as a conservative icon who cast herself in the role ofthe daughter of the nation — incorruptible and beholden to none.
Less than four years later, she was impeached, stripped of all her powers and ousted from office on the back of months-long mass protests that brought millions onto the streets of Seoul and other cities.
The trigger was a snowballing graft scandal involving Park and Choi and accusations of graft, influence-peddling and taking bribes from corporate bigwigs in exchange for policy favours.
Much of the public anger was focused on Park’s relationship with Choi and accusations that she let her childhood friend — who held no formal position or security clearance — meddle in state affairs, including high-level appointments and editing official speeches.
Choi is the daughter of a shadowy religious figure who had served as a mentor to Park for decades until his death in 1994. She was tried separately and sentenced in February to 20 years in prison.
Condemned in the media for her “Rasputin-like” influence over Park, Choi was convicted of using her presidential ties to squeeze tens of millions of dollars out of major South Korean businesses, including Samsung — the world’s top smartphone maker — and retail giant Lotte.
Former leaders Chun and Roh received presidential pardons after each spent around two years in jail a privilege that may elude Park for many years, said Jeong Han-wool, an analyst at the Seoul Hankook Research think-tank.
“Park has denied all charges against her and expressed no remorse or atonement — legally as well as politically, for what’s probably the most shocking political scandal in our modern history.”
“Given her attitude and public anger over her scandal that remains raw, it will be difficult to create a political environment in favour of her release anytime soon.”
Park’s left-leaning successor, Moon Jae-in, came to power largely because of the public backlash against her and her conservative party, dimming hopes for a pardon under the current administration, he added.
There is some residual sympathy for Park among her core supporters, who have always seen her as a heroically tragic figure who devoted her life to the service of her country despite childhood tragedy.
The fact that she never married or had children was part of her appeal, given the nepotistic tendencies of many senior officials.
“I’m married to the Republic of Korea. I have no children. South Koreans are my family,” she once declared.
But for the vast majority of Koreans, she has now been permanently disowned and will go down in history not as the country’s first woman president but the first democratically-elected leader to be forced from office.
Kano State Governor, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has appointed the former chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega as chairman of a Committee for the Establishment of Yusuf Maitama Sule Centre for the Advancement of Politics and Democratic Governance in the state.
In a statement, the State Commissioner of information, Malam Muhammad Garba said that the establishment of the Centre is a tribute to late Yusuf Maitama Sule’s immense contributions to the political and democratic development in the north and Nigeria in general.
The center will be utilized for research and scholarly discourse for the advancement of politics and democratic governance.
Members of the 15-man committee include Justice Mamman Nasir (Galadiman Katsina), Alhaji Bashir Othman Tofa, Prof. Mustapha Isa Ahmad (Vice Chancellor, Yusuf Maitama Sule University), Prof. Shehu Musa Alhaji (Vice Chancellor, Kano State University of Science and Technology), Prof. Sule Bello and Prof. Dahiru Yahaya.
Others are Engr. Mansur Ahmed, Tajuddeen Aminu Dantata, Arc. Ibrahim Haruna, Alhaji Muhtari Hassan, Alhaji Muhtari Maitama and representative of Kano Emirate Council while Office of the Secretary to the State Government is to provide the secretary for the committee.
Following the death in July last year, of Yusuf Maitama Sule, two time minister in Nigeria and former Nigeria’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Governor Ganduje renamed the state-owned university, Yusuf Maitama Sule University and the street where his residence is located to Yusuf Maitama Sule Road in honour of the statesman.
Some protesting pregnant women at the premises of the hospital | Photo credit: Tribune
Pregnant women were said to shut down the Ondo state specialist hospital, Akure, to protest an alleged hike in medical bills.
The pregnant women who barricaded the gate of the state hospital alleged that there was an outrageous new medical bill at the hospital which is no longer bearable.
According to the expectant mothers, the hospital now charges N25,000 for delivery while Cesarean Session (CS) which was hitherto free now cost N50,000.
According to some of the pregnant women who spoke to newsmen, other unjustified charges ranging from N500 to N4000 are being collected by the hospital officials on the order of the state government.
The expectant mothers, numbering about one hundred, disrupted operations at Ante-natal section of the hospital.
Before now, pregnant women and their children who are below five years had enjoyed free medical services under the previous administration of Olusegun Mimiko.
The Managing Director of Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) Ahmed Kuru has vowed to comprehensive review the corporation’s intervention in the nation’s transport sector in the forthcoming 6th annual Nigeria Transport Awards and Lecture.
He is expected to speak on the topic-‘AMCON’s Intervention in Transport and Allied Sector, the Achievements, Challenges, Prospects,’ in the lecture scheduled for April 26, 2018in Lagos State.
This is coming on the heels of the AMCON’s intervention and taken over of some companies in the transport and allied sector such as Arik Airline, Aero Contractors Limited and PAN Nigeria Limited among others.
Head of the Corporate Communications of AMCON, Mr. Jude Nwauzor said that the annual lecture will offer the corporation a platform to review its achievements and challenges in the transport sector as well as interact with industry stakeholders.
Meanwhile the Editor of transport day newspapers and organizers of the annual Lecture, Frank Kintum, has expressed happiness that AMCON boss will deliver this year’s lecture and that industry players are already looking forward to a very interactive session.
Last year’s lecture was delivered by the Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dakuku Peterside.
The Senator representing Kogi West Senatorial district, Dino Melaye, has gone to the Supreme Court, seeking an order restraining the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from proceeding with his recall from the Senate.
In a notice of appeal today, Thursday, filed by his Counsel, Mike Ozekome, (SAN), Dino Melaye wanted an order of perpetual injunction restraining INEC from commencing or further continuing with his recall or acting on the purported petition.
He also asked the court to set aside the March 16 judgment of the Court of Appeal, delivered by the Court of Appeal on March 16, which gave INEC the go ahead to continue with the recall.
The embattled Senator sought an order declaring the petition purportedly presented to INEC by some purported constituents for his recall as illegal, unlawful, wrongful, unconstitutional, invalid, null and void and of no effect.
Dino Melaye, in addition prayed for a declaration that the recall purportedly initiated against him by INEC and on the basis of the petition was illegal since it commenced on the basis of an invalid petition.
He also asked the court to declare that the 90 days period as provided for under Section 69(b) of the 1999 Constitution as amended had elapsed.
According to him, having elapsed, INEC can no longer proceed on the basis of the purported petition.
He said that the Court of Appeal erred in law when it held that it was not for the court to verify the signature on the petition.
He said that the court held that it was the duty of INEC, by reason of which the court failed to invalidate the petition presented to INEC.
The Court of Appeal, in its judgment delivered by Justice Tunde Awotoye, leading two other justices, dismissed all the grounds of appeal filed by Senator Melaye.
It held that the 90 days stipulated by the constitution within which a recall process would take place had no time limitation as it could be extended.
Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on September 11, 2017 dismissed a suit filed by Dino Melaye, seeking to stop INEC from initiating his recall from the National Assembly.
Dimgba held that the senator’s complaints were hasty, premature and presumptuous and therefore ordered the INEC to go ahead with its planned verification.
Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, has made it clear that he has no problem with the national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“I have no problem with Asiwaju, he is my leader. And President Buhari is the leader of all. I was supporting you (Oyegun and NWC) but we have to hold National Convention.”
Governor Yahaya Bello, who was reacting to President Muhammadu Buhari’s decision against the tenure elongation of national chairman, John Oyegun and National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC: “they are saying that I have problem with Asiwaju Bola Tinubu; that is why I supported tenure elongation.”
He said that he would go to any length to support President Buhari in anything he is doing, adding: “I am an ardent supporter of President Muhammadu Buhari, who has said that we must stick to the 1999 Constitution and APC Constitution. If Buhari asks me to jump into fire, I will not hesitate to jump into it.”
Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and President Muhammadu Buhari
The Buhari Volunteers Movement, (BVM), has alleged that what the former Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo wants is not the progress of the country but a President that is answerable to him.
The group, in a statement issued by its national coordinator, Mr. Emumena Michael reacting to claim by Obasanjo that the Buhari administration is a failure, said that such claim was erroneous, unsubstantiated and politically driven, insisting that the misrule and impunity which characterized the 16 years the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in power was spearheaded by Obasanjo in 1999.
It said that the All Progressives Congress (APC) government has devoted itself to solving the problems caused by the opposition party’s 16 years administration even as it advised the former President to join hands with the Buhari administration to reposition Nigeria for greatness.
“Nigerians all over the country are fed up with the antics of Obasanjo to cause unnecessary tension and confusion in the political terrain in order to install a President that is answerable to him.
“When we learnt that former President Olusegun Obasanjo claimed that the Buhari administration that is working to rescue the country from the dilapidated position the PDP left it after 16 years of gross misrule has failed, it became very obvious to us that Obasanjo is bent on heating up the polity simply without respect to Nigeria and Nigerians,” the group said.
“Otherwise, how can someone in his position pretend not to understand the state President Muhammadu Buhari met the country and the diverse efforts of his administration to right the wrongs and reposition Nigeria for greatness?
“Is Obasanjo not aware that corruption almost ruined our country and it is taking this current government considerable effort to change that ugly narrative? Is Obasanjo not aware that the oil-based economy created by the culture of impunity the PDP introduced into politics is what landed us into the economic recession this country was experiencing, which President Buhari is judiciously addressing through agricultural diversification, promotion of local contents and manufacturing as well as massive infrastructural development?
“Is Obasanjo not aware that the inability of past administrations to set up systems to tackle insecurity is one of the reasons why the Buhari administration is still trying to set up foundations that can bring an end to insecurity across our country?”
“Is Obasanjo not aware that the infrastructural decay meted on Nigeria by budgeting funds for infrastructure and looting those same funds, is the only reason why the Buhari administration is devoting a considerable part of his administration for massive infrastructural development?”
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The Senator representing Kogi West Senatorial district, Dino Melaye, has gone to the Supreme Court, seeking an order restraining the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from proceeding with his recall from the Senate.
