Court remands ex-governor Fintiri in prison

Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri

A Federal High Court in Abuja Thursday ordered the former Governor of Adamawa State, Umaru Fintiri, to be remanded in Kuje prison, Abuja.
Justice Ahmed Mohammed gave the order shortly after Fintiri and his company, Mayim Construction and Properties Limited, were arraigned on a five-count charge of money laundering.
The ex-governor and his company are accused of laundering over N1 billion.
Although Fintiri pleaded not guilty to the charges, he will remain in prison until Friday when the court will rule of his bail application.
Defence lawyer, Mahmud Magaji (SAN), while arguing Fintiri’s motion for bail, contended that the offences allegedly committed by his client were bailable.
(C)The Nation

Kuje Prison Chief Removed, Faces Probe Over Jailbreak

The escapees, Maxwell Ajukwu and Solomon Amodu, were standing trial for murder, but managed to escape by scaling the fence enclosing the prison. At the time of publication, the two remain at large.

NPS Controller-General Ahmed Jafa'aru

Kuje Medium Prisons officer Musa Tanko has been removed from office on the order of Controller-General of Prisons Ahmed Jafa‘aru after two inmates escaped last Friday.

Mr. Tanko will be investigated by officers from the Federal Capital Territory Command of the Nigerian Prisons Service (NPS) over the escape, according to Punch Newspaper.
The escapees, Maxwell Ajukwu and Solomon Amodu, were standing trial for murder, but managed to escape by scaling the fence enclosing the prison. At the time of publication, the two remain at large.
According to one source, “For now, only the officer in charge [Mr. Tanko] has been transferred out of the prisons, but we don't know if other senior officers like the yard master and the officer on duty would also be redeployed out of Kuje prisons. For now, everyone is waiting with bated breath to see the next line of action by the authorities.”
If Mr. Tanko and others are indicted for the escape, they will face more serious sanctions than redeployment, according to NPS Public Relations Officer Francis Enobore.
“The management of the prisons service is taking the matter seriously, and any indicted officer will be severely punished, so transfer cannot be the punishment for the escape of inmates,” Mr. Enobore said.
He added that the investigations are ongoing and that appropriate sanctions would not be imposed until Minister of Interior Abdurahaman Dambazzau reviews the investigators’ report on the matter.
(C) SaharaReporters

House to vote on measure to keep guns from terrorists: source

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan told Republican lawmakers on a conference call that the House will vote next week on a measure intended to keep guns out of the hands of people on terrorism watch lists, according to a knowledgeable source.

House Republican leadership refused to provide details of the legislation, which Ryan said would be part of a larger terrorism package. A Democratic aide speculated that the measure could be a House version of a Senate Republican measure backed by the National Rifle Association.
But the aide, a spokeswoman for House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, said Democrats had not been briefed on Ryan's plans.

The announcement came a week after Democrats staged an unprecedented House sit-in to protest the Republican-controlled chamber's lack of movement on guns in the aftermath of the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, which killed 49 people at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, on June 12.

Ryan told the lawmakers that it is important to make sure suspected terrorists cannot acquire guns, calling it "just common sense," according to a source who was on the call.

In a reference to last week's sit-in, which infuriated Republicans, Ryan said Democrats were desperate to change the narrative from terrorism to guns because of their record on terrorism.

(C)Reuters

Post-BREXIT: Johnson pulls out, won’t replace Cameron as P.M.

Former London mayor Boris Johnson, who led the successful campaign for the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union, announced Thursday that he would not run to replace David Cameron as leader of the Conservative Party and prime minister.
New York-born Johnson was the bookmakers’ favorite to replace Cameron, who led the losing “remain” campaign and said after the June 23 referendum that he would step down this fall.
“Having consulted colleagues and in view of the circumstances in Parliament I have concluded that person cannot be me,” Johnson said in the surprise announcement.
“My role will be to give every possible support to the next Conservative administration to make sure that we properly fulfill the mandate of the people that was delivered at the referendum and to champion the agenda that I believe in, to stick up for the forgotten people of this country,” he said.
The nominations to replace Cameron as leader of the Conservative Party opened Wednesday and closed at noon Thursday. Under the current schedule the new leader would be announced Sept. 9.
Justice Secretary Michael Gove, a prominent member of the “leave” campaign, surprised the nation by announcing he would run as party leader Thursday. Gove was expected to back Johnson and has said he does not want to be prime minister.
“I wanted to help build a team behind Boris Johnson so that a politician who argued for leaving the European Union could lead us to a better future,” he said. “But I have come, reluctantly, to the conclusion that Boris cannot provide the leadership or build the team for the task ahead.”
Home Secretary Theresa May, who supported “remain,” is among the five Conservatives who declared they would run as candidates.
The winner faces the arduous task of finalizing Britain’s EU divorce, which thus far has not been amicable. While Cameron and others have been lobbying for continued access to lucrative EU trade rules, EU leaders have stressed that any deal must be “based on a balance of rights and obligations.” Those obligations, including free migration among EU nations, were sticking points that helped drive Britain out of the EU in the first place.
Politics is politics, though, the U.K. being little different from the U.S. in the regard. Education Secretary Nicky Morgan announced support for Gove and immediately was asked by the BBC whether she was offered a job in a future Gove cabinet.
“There’s not a sausage being offered, that’s not why I’m doing it,” she told the iconic British media outlet.
Housing Minister Brandon Lewis announced support for Theresa May, dismissing the fact that May sided with “remain” in the hotly contested referendum.
“We’re all ‘leavers’ now,” Lewis said.
(Source: USA TODAY)

Sports:Zlatan Ibrahimovic confirms Manchester United move

Zlatan Ibrahimovic today on twitter broke long held speculation linking him with several clubs. he stated categorically that he is joining Manchester United to link up with his former boss Jose Mourinhno. Ibrahimovic was the highest goal scorer for PSG last term and is moving on a free transfer.

Court stops stops Chief Judge from swearing in Uche Ogah as Governor

Justice C.H Ahuchogu of the Osisioma Ngwa Division of the Abia State High Court has ordered the Abia State Chief Judge Justice Theresa Uzoamaka Uzoekwe not to Inaugurate the President of Masters Energy Dr Uchechukwu Ogah as the Governor of Abia State pending the determination of the Suit brought by Governor Okezie Ikpeazu
The Judge ordered that no Judicial Officer should Inaugurate Dr Uche Ogah as Governor of Abia State while Dr Okezie Ikpeazu remains in Office Pursuant to section 143(1) and (2) of the Electoral Act.
Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC in obedience to court order that annulled Ikpeazu’s election over tax evasion had issued Certificate of return Dr Uche Obuah.
(Source: THE NEWS)

SPORT:Gareth Southgate does not want England manager job

England Under-21 manager Gareth Southgate has no interest in succeeding Roy Hodgson as boss of the senior national team.

The 45-year-old has not been offered the role or spoken to the Football Association since the weekend.
Hodgson resigned after four years in charge following the shock Euro 2016 last-16 defeat by Iceland on Monday.
Southgate was considered as a possible temporary appointment while the FA searched for a successor to Hodgson.
(c)BBCSPORT

Forex scarcity: Arik, Aero, Dana suspend Lagos-Accra flights

INDIGENOUS airlines, Aero Contractors and Dana Air have suspended sched­uled commercial flight operations between Lagos and Accra, Ghana, owing to the exorbitant foreign exchange (forex) cost.
Daily Sun learnt that the airlines said they found it uneconomical to contin­ue doing business on the route given that charges paid to Ghana’s airport and regulatory agencies by for­eign airlines flying into the country are done in foreign currencies.
“Most of our passengers are Nigerians and they usu­ally buy return tickets and pay in naira. But the bulk of the charges we pay in Ghana are in dollars and those charges are so expen­sive by the time we convert air fares collected in naira to dollars,” said a top offi­cial of Dana Air.
The official who said he was not authorised to speak, noted that under such conditions, making profit becomes Herculian, unless the airlines decide to raise fares, which in it­self could only end up in seeing the operators flying half-filled aircraft.
“We all know the crisis associated with access­ing forex in Nigeria and so I will say that that is a big problem for operators like us on that route. So we had to stop the Lagos to Accra flight temporary. We have taken the aircraft out for C-Check abroad and maybe by the time it returns we can resume,” added the official who pre­ferred to speak on condi­tion of anonymity.
Spokesman for Aero, Mr. Simon Tumba, told Daily Sun on phone that the suspension of the La­gos-Accra route was also temporary. He, however, would not link the deci­sion to forex scarcity insist­ing the major reason for the suspension was due to an ongoing restructuring exercise following the air­line’s takeover by a receiver and Arik Air with a new management.
“We now have a new management in place and it has to decide what we can do and what we cannot do to remain in business; and the temporary suspen­sion of the Lagos-Accra flight was one of them,” he said.
The decision leaves lim­ited option to most passen­gers on that route that fly Dana, Aero Contractors.
They are Nigeria’s three airlines operating the lu­crative Lagos-Accra route. Their exit, albeit temporar­ily, leaves only Med-View Airlines on that route.
Scarcity of forex has in recent months posed a serious threat to the sur­vival of many businesses in Nigeria, especially those that rely on importation of spares, feedstocks or raw materials as well as those, like airlines, that must do routine maintenance abroad with forex.

(C)daily sun

Two transgender women running for US Congress could make history

Two transgender women, 30 year old Misty K. Snow (Democrat), a grocery store clerk from Salt Lake City, Utah and 33 year old Misty Plowright (Democrat) who is a military veteran and works in IT in Colorado won their state primaries on Tuesday night and have been selected to run for spots in the US Congress in November. This will be a first in major-party American political history.

Misty K. Snow will run against Republican  favorite Sen. Mike Lee in Utah this November, while Misty Plowright will challenge Rep. Doug Lamborn in Colorado.

Snow beat her primary opponent, Jonathan Swinton, by almost 20% points, criticizing him for supporting limitations on abortion rights, according to a Salt Lake Tribune report.

“While I’m not running on the basis of being a trans woman, my experiences as a trans woman have given me the empathy to understand the struggles of groups that feel that the American Dream is out of reach,” Snow said in her statement. “I’m running to give a voice to the voiceless.”

Plowright, on the other hand earned the Democratic nomination in Colorado by winning more than 13,000 votes while her opponent earned just over 9,600.

Both, if elected, would be the party’s first transgender women in U.S. Congress
Posted by Linda Ikeji

INEC, PDP ask court to dismiss suit on Anambra PDP primaries

THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), have asked the Federal Court sitting in Abuja to dismiss the suit challenging the validity of the primary election of the party that produced senators Andy Ubah, Stella Oduah and others as candidates for the 2015 National Assembly elections.
The respondents are contending that the suit insti­tuted by Senator Annie Okonkwo and 43 others consti­tute a gross abuse of the court.
They hinged their position on the claim that the is­sues raised by the plaintiffs had already been decided by the Supreme Court.
In the suit in contention, Okonkwo and 43 others had, through their counsel, Chief Asam Asam dragged INEC, Ubah, Oduah and 16 others who are lawmakers in the National and Anambra State houses of assembly before the Federal High Court praying the court to in­validate the nomination of the defendants.
In addition, the plaintiffs applied for an order of the court restraining INEC from accepting the nomination of Ubah and his colleagues in the national and state as­semblies on the ground that they were not nominated by the state executive committee of PDP led by Mr. Ejike Oguebegu.
It is their claim that since Oguebegu-led state PDP committee conducted primary election, nominated them and their names published by INEC, it was wrong in law for their names to be withdrawn from INEC’s list.

Kourtney Kardshian spotted with P Diddy's son, Quincy Combs, 25

Lagos government shuts down 70 churches, 20 mosques, 11 hotels over Noise pollution

The management of the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), has shut down 70
churches and 20 mosques in the state over noise pollution. Bola Shani, the general manager of the agency made this known in an interview with newsmen in Lagos today June 29th.

 

“Precisely about 70 churches, 20 mosques and about 11 hotels, club houses and beer parlours were shut and we’ve given them some directives to follow. We’ve been so strict now that we are not going to even allow make-shift churches in the state any longer. What I mean by make-shift, using tents and uncompleted building, we are not going to allow that any further in the state.
But I will strongly tell you that the level of compliance is more on the mosque area, because immediately you shut them, they instantly bring down their speakers or reduce the noise they make.’’ Shabi says the plan of the state government is to reduce noise pollution in the state to about zero per cent by the year 2020. “As at today, we are only able to reduce the noise level to about 35 per cent. That is not a pass mark yet. So, until we reach that target of 70 to 80 per cent, we will continue the enforcement.‎ Enforcement is a continuous exercise and we have set a target for ourselves. We want to ensure that Lagos is noise-free by the year 2020. With our status as a mega city, by year 2020 we will be free of noise,’’ he said.

         (c) LIB

ELECHI AMADI PASSES ON

Mr Elechi Amadi

Renowned educationist, novelist, and dramatist, and author of the popular novel 'The Concubine' Elechi Amadi has died. He died this afternoon at a hospital in Port Harcourt at the age of 82.

He was born on 12 May, 1934 in Aluu community, Ikwerre local government area of River state. The River state government have released a statement mourning his passing. The late literary icon was  among the first generation of African writers and novelists. Some of his works include The Concubine (1966), The Great Ponds (1969), and The Slave (1978). May his soul rest in peace.

'Defies reality': Kerry takes heat for claiming airport attack a sign of ISIS desperation

Secretary of State John Kerry faced swift criticism Wednesday for suggesting the terror attack at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport was evidence the Islamic State is getting “desperate” – an assessment one top Republican official said “defies reality.”

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Kerry made the remarks late Tuesday at the Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado, referring to ISIS by the name Daesh.
Crediting coalition efforts, Kerry said it’s been over a year since the group launched a “full-scale military offensive.”
"Now, yes, you can bomb an airport, you can blow yourself up. That's the tragedy. Daesh and others like it know that we have to get it right 24/7/365. They have to get it right for ten minutes or one hour. So it's a very different scale,” Kerry said. "And if you're desperate and if you know you’re losing, and you know you want to give up your life, then obviously you can do some harm.”
House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mike McCaul, R-Texas, slammed the secretary’s assessment.

“They’ve said they’re on the run for many years, and they’re not,” McCaul told Fox News Wednesday morning. “I think the airstrikes have ramped up external operations … This is an unprecedented pace of terror in modern times. And so to say they’re on the run … absolutely defies reality.”
Underscoring Kerry’s questionable characterization was news Wednesday that Islamic State militants were pushing back U.S.-trained Syrian rebels in a battle for control of a town on the Iraqi border.
While no terror group has claimed responsibility for the Istanbul attack, Turkish officials told The Associated Press and Reuters that ISIS was the prime suspect. The attack killed at least 41 and injured hundreds, with the body county expected to keep rising. The attack at one of the world's busiest airports was committed by three suicide bombers who opened fire with AK-47s before blowing themselves up.
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani told Fox News these attacks – along with those in Paris, Brussels and, most recently, Orlando, Fla. – are “following their plan.”
“This isn’t accidental,” he said, adding “something’s wrong” with the secretary of state’s analysis.
Officials inside the Obama administration have given a conflicting picture of ISIS’ strength.
What’s clear is that the group is under pressure from coalition forces in its central territory of Iraq and Syria, even as it pushes back. The Iraqi government declared victory over the weekend in driving ISIS out of the Iraqi city of Fallujah, and the Pentagon confirmed that Iraqi security forces are in “100 percent control” of the city -- while also saying ISIS has not had a “strategic victory” in over a year.
(c)FoxNews

After slamming trade deals, Trump fends off business criticism

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump fired back at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday, saying the nation's largest business association needed to "fight harder" for American workers, after it issued a scathing criticism of his economic platform.

The Washington-based lobbying group, which represents the nation's largest corporations and business interests, is typically a reliable backer of Republican policies. But it took issue on Tuesday with Trump's vocal opposition to international trade deals, calling his proposals "dangerous" ideas that would push the United States into another recession.

Trump struck back the following day, saying the organization needed to "fight harder" for American workers.
"Why would the US Chamber be upset by the fact that I want to negotiate better and stronger trade deals or that I want penalties for cheaters?" the wealthy businessman wrote on Twitter.
In speeches on Tuesday, Trump called for renegotiating or scrapping the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Canada and Mexico, which he called job killer, and reiterated his opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership among 12 Pacific Rim countries. He also singled out China's trade and currency policies for criticism.
The Chamber has consistently backed international trade deals.
The public disagreement between the presumptive Republican nominee and the business group was unusual, one of a series of reminders that Trump still struggles with uniting his party. The Republicans and many business leaders tend to share policy goals and work in lockstep. Many business leaders have also traditionally been big donors to Republican candidates.
But fighting against trade deals has proven successful for Trump among voters concerned about the loss of manufacturing jobs.
Peter Navarro, a Trump trade policy adviser, defended the candidate's position.
“Here’s the central point to understand: The White House has been utterly and completely soft on China’s illegal trade practices,” said Navarro, a professor at the University of California, Irvine. "The status quo is the worst of all possible worlds for the United States."
Trump, who was slated to speak in Bangor, Maine, later on Wednesday, took criticism for his trade speech from both sides of the political aisle.
In a call organized by Democrat Hillary Clinton's campaign, U.S. Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, a former businessman and tech entrepreneur, said that while the country needed to do a better job protecting workers, more resources should be put into training them for a new economy.
The Democratic lawmaker criticized Trump's remarks supporting the British decision to leave the European Union.
“The truth is if you are entrusted with positions of responsibility, words matter, your tone matters, your confidence matters and on all of those indicators Donald Trump has failed the test of tone or tenor for leadership,” Warner said.

Clinton held no public campaign events on Wednesday but did announce she would campaign next week with President Barack Obama for the first time this year.

The presumptive Democratic nominee and Trump are almost certain to face off in Nov. 8's general election. 

(c)Reuters

One kingdom, two kings

There is palpable tension in Oraukwu community in Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra State as two kinsmen, Chief Pius Ezedigboo Okoye and Dr Emeka Onuora, are battling over the ancestral stool of the kingdom.
While some of the residents said that the former was elected and coronated in December 29, 2015 by the Caretaker Committee set up by the Anambra State government owing to the demise of their monarch, Igwe Emeka Ogbunude, some others said that the later was elected by a faction of the community’s 10th Congress led by its President-General, Chief Cyril Ejidike on May 16, 2016.

: Abians rally in solidarity with embattled Abia State Governor, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu

Abia State residents today came out to rally in solidarity with their embattled Governor, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu. This is coming after Justice Okon Abang of a Federal High Court in Abuja, ordered the Governor to vacate his office after finding him guilty of submitting false information to his party - PDP during the party's governorship primary in December 2014.


Responding to the crowd of Abians who besieged the government house in Umuahia, the Governor, represented by his Deputy, Ude Oko Chukwu, said he will employ all judiciary processes to regain his mandate and expressed confidence that the judiciary will do the right thing. He thanked the people for conducting themselves well without disrupting peace and informed them that he has appealed the judgement.
posted by Linda Ikeji

Man Utd: Zlatan Ibrahimovic deal close to completion

Zlatan Ibrahimovic should complete his long-anticipated move to Manchester United by the end of the week.

The Swedish striker, 34, is a free agent after leaving Paris St-Germain and is expected to sign a one-year deal with the Old Trafford club.
He will become the second signing for United boss Jose Mourinho, who replaced Louis van Gaal as manager in May.
Ivory Coast defender Eric Bailly, 22, has already completed a £30m move to United from Spanish side Villarreal.
United have also made an improved offer for Henrikh Mkhitaryan, 27, and are now waiting for his German club, Borussia Dortmund, to make a decision on the Armenian playmaker's future.
Ibrahimovic removed the final barrier to his switch to the Premier League when he said he did not wish to be considered for Olympic duty at the 2016 Games in Rio following Sweden's exit from Euro 2016.
It will be his first spell in England after winning titles in four countries.
Although the Swede repeatedly refused to confirm his plans during the Euros, Old Trafford was widely assumed to be the next destination in a career that has seen him win league championships in 13 of the last 15 seasons.
Ibrahimovic was top scorer in France's Ligue 1 last term with 38 goals but did not score as Sweden went out of Euro 2016 at the group stage.
source: bbcsport

 

PDP: Sheriff appoints Ojougboh acting deputy chairman

National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Ali Modu Sheriff has appointed former   national vice chairman (South-South), Dr Cairo Ojougboh as his deputy.
The PDP National Working Committee (NWC)  was dissolved at the national convention held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, which announced a caretaker committee to administer the party with former Kaduna State governor,  Ahmed Makarfi as chairman.
The erstwhile deputy national chairman, Uche Secondus, along with other nine members of the dissolved national working committee have since pledged loyalty to the Makarfi committee.
Daily Sun gathered that Sheriff has already issued a letter to Ojougboh.
The letter, signed by national secretary of the dissolved NWC, Professor Wale Oladipo read in part: “Please, be informed that the NWC of the party at a meeting held on the June 28, 2016, and having received nomination from the Concerned PDP stakeholders (Abuja Convention Group) and major stakeholders in the South-South has appointed you (Ojougboh) as the acting Deputy National Chairman of the party pending the conduct of election to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of the erstwhile deputy national chairman. This appointment takes immediate effect.”
Oladipo  urged Ojougboh to “ discharge his function with dedication to ensure the progress of the party.”
Also, barely 24 hours after 24 states chairmen pledged loyalty to the Makarfi committee,  chairmen of Ondo, Ogun and Yobe states chapter of the party have also pledged loyalty to Sheriff’s leadership.
Leader of the delegation,  Prince Boroye Biyi  moved the motion for the vote of confidence on behalf of his colleagues and it was seconded by Alhaji Lawal Gana from  Yobe.
Prince Biyi expressed concern over what he viewed as the demonisation of Senator Sheriff, whom he claimed was begged to come and lead the party by certain chieftains of the party now accusing him of being an agent of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
“There is a saying that where the lawless are the lawmakers, it is unlawful to be law abiding.
The era of impunity in the PDP has to go. Honestly, propaganda is modern way of telling lies and it will not help anybody. Our leaders went to beg Sheriff to come and lead this party…”
“After the begging, votes were cast by the National Executive Committee (NEC) and he emerged. Today, the story is that APC brought him. Meaning that those leaders who went to beg him, were the APC leaders.
“Sir, the payment of staffers, the sanitisation in the secretariat abound as good testimonies of what you have done.”
“On this premise that the PDP are having a good image in the minds of Nigerians, leading by your humble self, I move a vote of confidence on you and your exco.”
His Yobe state counterpart,  Alhaji Lawal Gana pleaded for understanding of the two contenders to the office of national chairman of the main opposition party to build a united platform.
source: Daily Sun

Boko Haram members have moved from Land to Cyberspace- Chief of Army Staff says

Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Tukur Buratai, says that members of Boko Haram terror group have moved their war from Land where they have been defeated to Cyberspace. Buratai said this while addressing newsmen in Abuja yesterday June 28th

"We have already defeated the insurgents and the terrorists on the land. Now they have migrated to cyberspace. They have migrated to the internet and other print electronic media but I want to assure you that the terrorists and the Boko Haram members who have migrated to the cyberspace, we will follow them to that cyberspace and equally defeat them"he said 

SOURCE: Linda Ikeji

Clinton claims House Benghazi report ‘found nothing,’ says time to ‘move on’

Hillary Clinton claimed Tuesday that the final report issued by the House Republican investigation into the deadly Sept. 11, 2012, Benghazi terror attack — in which Clinton is accused of knowingly misleading the American public —  “had found nothing,” and that it’s time to “move on.”

Abia: PDP appeals Ikpeazu’s removal

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has lodged an appeal against the judgment of a Federal High Court in Abuja which sacked Abia Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu for presenting false tax information to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
This was just as Ikpeazu approached the Court of Appeal to set aside the judgment. In the notice of appeal filed yesterday, Ikpeazu said the trial court lacked the powers to remove him from office.
The party, in the notice of appeal dated June 28, 2016,  expressed dissatisfaction with the judgment of the lower court which removed the governor and ordered Uche Ogah as PDP’s rightful candidate for the governorship election that held in Abia State in April 2015.

House Benghazi report slams administration response to attacks

A damning report authored by the Republican-led House committee probing the Benghazi terror attacks faulted the Obama administration for a range of missteps before, during and after the fatal 2012 attacks – saying top administration officials huddled to craft their public response while military assets waited hours to deploy to Libya.

Complaints over President’s ambassador list

The Presidency has come under heavy criticism over non inclusion of nominees from some four States for ambassadorial appointment already sent to the National Assembly for screening.
President Mohammadu Buhari had recently sent a 47 man list to the legislature for confirmation for appointed into Nigeria’s foreign missions abroad but some states like Bayelsa, home state of former President Goodluck Jonathan, Plateau, Ebonyi and Ondo were not represented.
In a petition to President Mohammadu Buhari and the President of the Senate of the Federal Republic, Senator Bukola Saraki, a copy obtained by newsmen in Abuja, a former member of the House of Representatives from Bayelsa state, Hon. Bolous S. Indiamaowei want government to include nominee from the state jus as the other three states on the list.
Indianaowe further averred that while other states have about three nominees, Bayelsa state and three others have none.
But the Presidency had explained that the affected four states don not have qualified candidates for consideration.
The Secretary to the Federal Government (SGF), Mr David Babachir Lawal has faulted the reasons given by the Senate for rejecting the list of ambassadorial nominees, based on protest by representatives of the affected states that the nomination is not a reflection of the federal character whereas according to him, the principles of the federal character as constitutionally provided was fulfilled.
He claimed that the missed out states did not have people in the diplomatic service that met the set criteria for selecting ambassadors of Nigeria. The Senate had, among other misgivings, rejected the list of 47 nominees sent to the Upper Chamber for screening and confirmation by President Muhammadu Buhari, saying the constitutional provision of federal character was not adequately reflected as four states did not have nominees.
Dismissing government’s claims that the affected states have no qualified officers to be nomited, the former law maker said, his investigations have revealed that , “there are currently at least two Bayelsans in the Foreign service on grade levels 16 who have met all criteria set for the field of selection.
He said the non inclusion of names of Bayelsans on the ambassador designate is a clear violation of the Federal character principles of equitable representation.

Source: SUN NEWS

4-year-old girl is the sole survivor in a tragic crash that killed her 3 sisters and parents

Four-year-old Heidi Miller (right) was the sole survivor when a train hit her family’s vehicle in Colorad Woke on Sunday morning, June 26. Heidi suffered broken bones and a head injury in the collision which killed her three sisters and her parents.

Republican-led panel accuses Clinton State Department of Benghazi lapses

Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton pauses as she speaks at a campaign rally in Cleveland, Ohio June 13, 2016.

Congressional Republicans on Tuesday accused Hillary Clinton's State Department of failing to protect four Americans killed in a 2012 attack in Libya, in a final report that contained no major new revelations but reignited debate on the U.S. presidential campaign trail.

In an 800-page report that Democrats derided as a political vendetta, Republicans said Clinton, who served as secretary of state from 2009 to 2013 and is now the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, and her staff showed a "shameful" lack of response to congressional investigators looking into the attacks on a U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya.

The report, the culmination of a two-year investigation, is likely to be the last official attempt to investigate the attack. Seven other congressional committees have also investigated the attack on the U.S. diplomatic and CIA posts in Benghazi.

The latest investigation, led by Representative Trey Gowdy of South Carolina, has been used by Republicans to question Clinton’s national-security credentials. Opinion polls have shown Americans deeply split along partisan lines over the probe.

Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has repeatedly charged that Clinton is personally responsible for deaths of a U.S. ambassador and three other Americans killed by militia groups in the September 2012 incident.

Clinton's campaign dismissed the report as a partisan effort to derail her candidacy, arguing that the committee had not found anything that had not been discovered by previous congressional probes.

In a statement, Clinton spokesman Brian Fallon accused the committee of trying to "politicize the deaths of four brave Americans" in an effort to attack the Obama administration and Clinton.

Clinton, speaking in Denver, Colorado, said it was crucial to "learn the right lessons" from the Benghazi tragedy.

"No one has thought more about or lost more sleep over the lives that we lost - the four Americans - which was devastating," she said.

Trump's campaign had no immediate comment, but Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, said Clinton's actions as secretary of state were "disqualifying."

Related Coverage

• › White House blasts Republicans over House Benghazi panel report

"Hillary Clinton was in charge, knew the risks, and did nothing" to protect personnel on the ground in Libya, he said.

At a news conference on Capitol Hill, Gowdy, chairman of the special congressional panel, said there was a disconnect between the violence unfolding in Benghazi and the perception among top Obama administration officials that "the fighting had subsided" at the U.S. diplomatic compound.

Gowdy said the panel uncovered "new information on what happened in Benghazi," including details contained in emails from then-Secretary Clinton that were handed over to the committee.
NO NEW REVELATIONS
Specifically, the committee report faulted the State Department for providing inadequate security for the U.S. compound in Benghazi, State Department officials and the CIA for failing to properly evaluate the threat to U.S. personnel on the ground, and the Pentagon for not being in position to aid the Americans under siege. The report did not dispute assertions by the Obama administration that such a mission would have come too late to aid the four who were killed.
None of those conclusions, however, came as revelations. All had been reached by previous probes.
The report also accused the White House of stonewalling the investigation, something aides to Obama have denied.
Democrats on the Benghazi committee issued their own report a day before Tuesday's release, accusing Republicans of conducting an overzealous investigation.
According to a website maintained by committee Democrats, the investigation cost more than $7.1 million, a figure that excludes money spent on investigations by the seven other congressional committees that investigated the attacks.
The Gowdy committee investigation lasted 782 days, longer than congressional probes of Pearl Harbor, the Kennedy assassination, the Iran-Contra scandal and Hurricane Katrina.
Since it was established in May 2014, the Gowdy committee held four public hearings, according to its website, which said that it interviewed 107 witnesses, mostly behind closed doors, including 81 who never appeared before the other committees that investigated the attacks. It reviewed about 75,000 pages of previously unexamined documents.
CLINTON HAS REBUFFED CHARGES
Last October, Clinton, already a Democratic presidential candidate, calmly deflected harsh Republican criticism of her handling of the attack during a testy 11-hour hearing in Congress.

In testimony that stretched deep into the night, Clinton rejected Republican accusations that she ignored requests for security upgrades in Libya and misinformed the public about the cause of the attack.

Clinton's appearance before the Benghazi panel followed months of controversy about her use of a private home email server for her State Department work, a disclosure that emerged in part because of the panel's demand to see her official records.

A 2012 report by a government accountability review board faulted State Department officials for providing "grossly" insufficient security in Benghazi, despite upgrade requests from Stevens and others in Libya.

Top U.S. labor leader blasts Trump on trade in dueling speech

Richard Trumka, president of American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), speaks during the AFL-CIO 2013 Convention in Los Angeles, California, U.S. September 10, 2013.

Reuters/Kevork Djansezian/File Photo

The head of the largest U.S. labor union federation tried to pre-empt Donald Trump's planned speech on trade on Tuesday, saying the Republican presidential candidate was full of "empty promises" as he tried to make inroads with working-class voters.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka - a top ally of Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton - said at a trade conference in Washington that, at Trump campaign stops in the Rust Belt states of Ohio and Pennsylvania, voters should expect to hear "crocodile tears about lost jobs and shuttered factories."

"Trump embodies everything that is wrong with our current trade policy. He has consistently sent American jobs overseas to line his own pockets," Trumka said, apparently referring to Trump-branded products such as suits and ties that are made abroad.

Trumka's rebuke occurred just hours before the New York businessman was slated to make a speech attacking Clinton's record on trade, followed by a stop in Ohio.

Trump will tie Clinton to trade deals such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which unions oppose, and question her commitment to fight for American workers, a campaign aide said.

Trump will also discuss his own trade agenda, including his plans to label China a currency manipulator, the aide told Reuters.

Clinton's campaign called the presumptive Republican nominee's remarks an attempt to distract from "his dangerous economic policies."

Both Clinton and Trump are battling over blue-collar voters ahead of the Nov. 8 election in states such as Pennsylvania and Ohio, which Democratic President Barack Obama won twice but which have been hard-hit by manufacturing job losses. Trumka has acknowledged that Trump's populist rhetoric could appeal to Rust Belt workers.

Clinton, the presumptive Democratic nominee, struggled with these voters in her primary race against U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, who criticized her for supporting trade deals and said she was too close to Wall Street.

But when the AFL-CIO, a federation of 56 unions that collectively represent more than 12 million workers, formally endorsed Clinton for president earlier this month, Trumka warned of the "dire consequences" posed by Trump's candidacy.

Trumka acknowledged on Tuesday that Clinton was pushed to reject the pending 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership during her primary campaign after pressure from progressives within her party, including Sanders, who now says he will vote for Clinton in November although he has not withdrawn from the race.

POPULIST ANGER

    In recent days, Trump has seized on Britain's vote to leave the European Union to bolster his argument that voters are rising up against establishment leaders, saying Americans would reject the "global elite" and support his presidential candidacy.

Trumka said the "Brexit" vote "sent a message that was pretty loud and pretty clear that we have to make democratic societies work for working people."

Trump has broken with Republican Party orthodoxy to criticize U.S. trade deals, and threatened to slap tariffs on imports from Mexico and China. His rhetoric has drawn criticism from many economists, who say such practices could spark trade wars.

Paul Ryan, the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives and highest-ranking elected Republican in Washington, on Tuesday called for the United States, in parallel with ongoing trade negotiations with Europe, to pursue a separate free trade agreement with Britain once it has formally separated from the EU.

Clinton has said she will evaluate each trade deal on its merits. At a rally in Ohio on Monday with U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, a leading critic of trade deals, Clinton said if elected to the White House, she would appoint a trade prosecutor to "end the abuse" of U.S. workers.

Matt Grossmann, director of Michigan State University's Institute for Public Policy and Social Research, said union members tend to be more conservative than their solidly Democratic leadership.

"The long-running Democratic strategy has been to say, 'We empathize with people like you and the Republicans are out for the rich.' I don't see any reason why you would change strategies," Grossmann said.

c:Reuters

Tompolo seeks meeting with Buhari

Former Commander of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, Chief Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo, has expressed his desire to meet with President Muhammadu Buhari on the Niger Delta crisis so as to tell him “my side of the numerous stories you have been inundated about me.”
Tompolo, in an open letter to the President, revealed himself as the Chief Priest of Egbesu Shrine, which is the traditional worship centre of the Gbaramatu people, lamenting that the military had not returned his symbol of authority removed from the traditional temple about a month ago.
The ex-militant leader hinted that it was in the interest of the nation for the Buhari to employ dialogue, stressing that he should learn from the 2009 invasion of Gbaramatu kingdom and the resultant offer of amnesty by the late President Umaru Yar’Adua when military option failed.
The open letter reads in part, “Mr President sir, please permit me to quickly recall a similar incident that occurred in May, 2009, when this same military invaded several communities in Gbaramatu kingdom, under the command of late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.
“Traditional worship centres were desecrated, property were looted and above all, the multi-billion naira ultra-modern magnificent palace of the Pere of Gbaramatu kingdom was burned down, and his golden crown was stolen by the military.”
While recalling the 2009 invasion, Tompolo lamented the failure of the Federal Government to pay the N99bn compensation to the embattled community as was directed by the court.
Tompolo noted that the kingdom approached the courts and demanded compensation for the unlawful invasion and destruction of property because of their peaceful disposition and belief in the rule of law.
“After seven years of that sad incident, the Federal Government is yet to pay the compensation. This incident also led to the declaration of the Presidential Amnesty programme for peace to reign, as the government found out that military action is not the best way to address the Niger Delta question, and the rest become a history in the life of those who led that invasion.
“I believe Mr President should learn a lesson from the 2009 military invasion and do the needful,” he advised.
He however appealed to the President to direct the army to return items including a golden sword that is the symbol of authority of the Gbaramatu kingdom and other artefacts allegedly looted from shrines in Oporoza.
“Today is exactly 31 days after (another) invasion of the traditional headquarters of Gbaramatu Kingdom, Oporoza town, by your military led by Brig. General Faruk Yahaya of the 4th Brigade, Benin City, with the allegation that I am the one behind the bombing and destruction of crude oil facilities in the Niger Delta region.
“I was informed that the army was on the loose, and committed so much abomination in the community.
“The military made away with the symbol of Authority of the Gbaramatu people from the Egbesu Shrine, which I am the Chief Priest. They also made away with other valuables worth several millions of naira from the community.
“The most annoying one is the purported arrest of 10 young promising men most of whom are orphans, who are secondary school students sitting for the West African Senior Secondary School Examinations (WASSCE) and other palace staff, and labelled them as members of the Niger Delta Avengers
source: daily sun

Explain why you froze Fayose's account, court orders EFCC, Zenith bank

Read the statement below...

The Federal High Court, Ado-Ekiti has ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Zenith Bank plc to show cause why an Order Exparte to defreeze Governor Ayodele Fayose's accounts, filed yesterday to the court by the governor's legal team, should not be granted. The judge gave Monday July 4 for the anti-graft agency and Zenith bank Plc to appear in court with the said evidence.

Kachikwu: Nigeria to export refined petroleum in 2019

The Minister of State for Petroleum and Group Managing Director of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, yesterday in Beijing, China gave assurance that the country will export refined petroleum in the next three years.
He gave the assurance in an exclusive interview with Daily Sun after he addressed the business community and investors in the oil and gas sector in the city.
Kachikwu is in Beijing for the NNPC Roadshow for Investors in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector on Monday where he also hinted that the mission he embarked upon with Executive Directors of the NNPC was already a huge success.
He assured that the responses he has got from the Chinese investors were signs that the mission was a fruitful venture as he was certain that after signing an MoU for investment for about $8 billion and some others lined up for the week, the deals waiting to be executed would not be less than $40 billion with Chinese investors.
In an interactive with Daily Sun after his address to the Forum, he clarified that “although MoU was just an indication of interest and starting point, it is the first and most vital step in the commencement of a venture. We have got positive responses and going by what is on ground, there is no going back on the commitments.
China has over time proven its readiness to do business in Nigeria and that is why we started from here after which we will go to India and the Gulf Region. India had in the past been good partners in our oil business, but going there now might not be for investment. We know India has one of the best and most modern oil refineries in the world, so we would go to tap into their intelligence on how to get it right in refining.
“But in China it is the capital to invest and we are not unaware of this, which is the reason we started here and the enthusiasm has been great.
“Right now, even at short notice, the partners are working so hard to ensure I meet President Xi Jinping this week.”
He also clarified that the visit is part of the implementation and follow-up to the visit of President Muhammadu Buhari two months ago.
The NNPC boss also in response to Daily Sun question on the readiness of Nigeria for China that is out to invest in Africa and looking for the best place to go assured the Chinese Government and private investors that Nigeria remains the best destination for them and most assured place with the right laws for protection of their interest.
He said Nigeria is aware of China’s desire for worldwide foreign investment and wooed them to always think of Nigeria first due to the advantage of what he described as the most assuring investment laws and returns on investment.
He however appealed to China and other countries to assist Nigeria in checking crude theft that leaves Nigeria and find destination in many developed economies, clarifying that Nigeria allocates crude sales rights once in a year and warned that any foreign investor approached for crude purchase outside the allocated agents should be wary not to patronise those that steal Nigeria crude and destroy the economy.
On the assurance of local refining, Kachikwu stated that in August the major work in the rehabilitation of the refineries would commence in full force. He said since the work would be done in phases, he is certain that by the end of 2018 the entire work would be have been completed and Nigeria will refine enough for its local consumption and export.
He said the refineries that will be ready then would include private refineries, both major ones and what he called seven modular refineries in the Niger Delta region.

source: Daily Sun

Presidency, Saraki fight dirty

The Presidency and Dr. Bukola Saraki were yesterday locked in war of words.
The embattled Senate President fired the first salvo with his allegation that the administration of Muhammadu Buhari has been hijacked by powerful forces.
“What has become clear is that there is now a government within the government of President Buhari who has seized the apparatus of Executive powers to pursue their nefarious agenda,” he said in a statement he personally signed, shortly after the Federal Capital Territory High Court granted him bail.
He said if losing his personal freedom was the price he had to pay for not yielding to the nefarious agenda of a few individuals bent on undermining the nation’s democracy and destabilising the Federal Government to satisfy their selfish interests, “let the doors of jails be thrown open and I shall be a happy guest.”
But the presidency in a swift reaction dismissed the allegation as a product of a troubled sleep.
According to Mr. Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, to claim that Buhari was anybody’s stooge was not only ridiculous, but also preposterous.
“It is not in the character of our President,” the presidential spokesman said.
He added: “This claim by Senator Saraki would have been more worth the while, if it had been backed with more information. If he had proceeded to identify those who constitute the “government within the government,” it would have taken the issue beyond the realm of fiction and mere conjecture.  But as it stands, the allegation is not even worth the paper on which it was written, as anybody can wake from a troubled sleep, and say anything.
“The Attorney-General of the Federation is the Chief Law Officer of the state.  It is within his constitutional powers to determine who has infringed upon the law, and who has not.  Pretending to carry an imaginary cross is mere obfuscation, if, indeed, a criminal act has been committed.  But we leave the courts to judge.”
Saraki, his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu, immediate past Clerk of the National Assembly, Alhaji Salisu Maikasuwa and the acting Clerk, Mr. Benedict Efeturi are facing charges for allegedly forging the Senate Standing Rules used on June 9, 2015 to conduct the election that brought Saraki and Ekweremadu to office as principal officers.
But Saraki described the trial as diversionary and accused the government of President Buhari of witch-hunt.
Saraki said in the statement: “In our view, the charges filed by the Attorney General represent a violation of the principle of the Separation of Powers between the Executive branch and the Legislative branch as enshrined in our Constitution.  Furthermore, it is farcical to allege that a criminal act occurred during Senate procedural actions and the mere suggestion demonstrates a desperate overreach by the office of the Attorney General. These trumped up charges is only another phase in the relentless persecution of the leadership of the Senate.
“This misguided action by the Attorney General begs the question, how does this promote the public interest and benefit the nation?  At a time when the whole of government should be working together to meet Nigeria’s many challenges, we are once again distracted by the Executive branch’s inability to move beyond a leadership election among Senate peers. It was not an election of Senate peers and Executive Branch participants.
“Over the past year, the Senate has worked to foster good relations with the Executive branch.  It is in all of our collective interests to put aside divisions and get on with the nation’s business.  We risk alienating and losing the support of the very people who have entrusted their national leaders to seek new and creative ways to promote a secure and prosperous Nigeria.  As leaders and patriots, it is time to rise above partisanship and to move forward together.”
The embattled Senate President added: “This latest onslaught on the Legislature represents a clear and present danger to the democracy Nigerians fought hard to win and preserve.  The suit filed on behalf of the Federal Government suggests that perhaps some forces in the Federal Republic have not fully embraced the fact that the Senate’s rules and procedures govern how the legislative body adjudicates and resolves its own disputes.
“Let it be abundantly clear, both as a citizen and as a foremost legislator, I will continue to rise above all the persecution and distraction that have been visited on me. In the words of Martin Luther King Junior, ‘the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at a time of challenge and controversy.’
“I will remain true and committed to the responsibilities that my citizenship and my office impose on me. Without doubt, the highest of those responsibilities is the steadfast refusal to surrender to the subversion of our democracy and the desecration of the Senate. This is a cross I am prepared to carry.”
Besides the current forgery suit, Saraki is facing another trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) over claims that he under-declared his assets as governor of Kwara State between 2003 and 2011.
Source:DAILY SUN

Photo: Man arrested for sleeping and impregnating his 15 year old daughter in Lagos

41 year-old man, Raymond Anyanwu, pictured, has been arrested by the Lagos state police command after it was discovered that he impregnated his 15 years old daughter at their home in Ajao estate Isolo in Lagos.

According to a report by Vanguard, Anyanwu confessed that he had started sleeping with his daughter since January this year after he lost his job. He says frustration drove him to commit the act.

He was exposed after an aunt of the girl suspected that she was pregnant. A test was run on her which showed positive. When she was asked who had been sleeping with her, she said her father.

Confessing to the crime, Anyanwu said “I started sleeping with my 15-year-old daughter sometime around January, after I lost my job. I am a transporter but I took to alcohol after I lost my job and could not meet up with my responsibilities as the head of the house”he said

When his act was exposed, Anyanwu beat up his wife and warned her not to mention it to anyone. The girl's mother quickly arranged for an abortion for her. He was arrested last Wednesday June 22nd after the Lagos State Ministry of Youth and Social Development got wind of the matter and alerted the police.

The 15 year old girl is currently in protective custody by the Lagos State government. The case, which is currently being investigated at the Gender Unit of Lagos State Police Command, will be charged to Ikeja Magistrate’s Court today June 28th.
Posted by Linda Ikeji

BREAKING: ROY HOGSON RESIGNS AS ENGLAND MANAGER!

Roy Hodgson has resigned as England manager after his side's 2-1 defeat by Iceland saw them knocked out of Euro 2016.

The 68-year-old had been in charge for four years after replacing Italian Fabio Capello.
"I am sorry it will have to end this way but these things happen," he said.
"I hope you will still be able to see an England team in a final of a major tournament soon."
More to follow

BREAKING: England out of Euro 2016

Debutants Iceland on Monday eliminated England ffrom the ongoing European Championship in France.
They came from behind to beat England 2:1 in the round of 16 to set up a quater final clash with hosts France on Sunday July 3. 

Militancy: Buhari invites Niger Delta monarchs to Abuja

Following the festering militants activi­ties in the Niger Delta region, President Muhammadu Buhari has invited chair­men of states Council of Traditional Rul­ers in the region to a meeting in Abuja.
The meeting scheduled for Wednes­day, June 29, Daily Sun learnt, is one of the strategies by the president to consult with relevant stakeholders as he seeks to resolve the crisis.
Already, a security summit scheduled to hold in Uyo by the South-South Mornachs Forum has been shifted to July 25 to 28, as a result of the meeting with the President.
Head of secretariat/summit coordina­tor, Dr. Alfred Chiakor who confirmed this to Daily Sun called on aggrieved groups in the region to sheath their swords and allow the Buhari-led govern­ment chart a steady course for resolving the remote and immediate causes of the crises.
The South-South Mornachs Forum urged all stakeholders in the Nigeria project to encourage every initiative for peace, noting that the mushrooming of crises in different parts of the country is asymmetrical to the aspirations of the col­lective heritage.
It equally appealed to investors operat­ing in the region to support the forum and other genuine stakeholders with a view to safeguarding the integrity of the region and its national and natural assets.
Chiakor explained explained that the rescheduling of the summit was consis­tent with the imperative of deference to the presidential summon.
“The shift in dates, he said, will enable the forum reach out to other critical stakeholders and appealed to all aggrieved parties to shield their swords and allow Buhari chart a steady course for resolving the remote and immediate causes of the crises.
“The forum is appealing for calm to en­able the royal fathers initiate measures to douse the tension and provide long term solutions to the restive region. They also called on the nation’s security establish­ment to exercise restraint so as not to further aggravate the already charged situation.
He emphasized the forum’s belief that “achieving sustainable peace requires ro­bust synergy, which is the critical element for harvesting inputs and other strategic platforms for engendering peace and stability.”
He also noted that “broadening re­source and contact database would in no small measure stimulate interest for a broad consensus, as any avenue to explore holistic blueprints that has the capac­ity to rein in the triggers of recurrent crises in Nigeria and consolidate unity and prosperity of the Region cannot be compromised.”
According to the Forum, time has come to lay the solid foundation for sustain­able peace, stability, development and security for the Niger Delta region, and the only way out is to “explore traditional approaches of mediation and consensus to develop an actionable blueprint to resolve the crisis in the region.”

source: DailySun

Senate President Bukola Saraki’s statement on federal indictment

“Today we the leaders of the Nigerian Senate reiterate our innocence against the charges filed by the Attorney General of the Federal Government of Nigeria at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court on the allegations of forgery of the Senate Standing Rules document.
In our view, the charges filed by the Attorney General represent a violation of the principle of the Separation of Powers between the Executive Branch and the Legislative Branch as enshrined in our Constitution. Furthermore, it is farcical to allege that a criminal act occurred during Senate procedural actions and the mere suggestion demonstrates a desperate overreach by the office of the Attorney General. These trumped up charges is only another phase in the relentless persecution of the leadership of the Senate
This misguided action by the Attorney General begs the question, how does this promote the public interest and benefit the nation? At a time when the whole of government should be working together to meet Nigeria’s many challenges, we are once again distracted by the Executive Branch’s inability to move beyond a leadership election among Senate peers. It was not an election of Senate peers and Executive Branch participants.
Over the past year the Senate has worked to foster good relations with the Executive Branch. It is in all of our collective interests to put aside divisions and get on with the nation’s business. We risk alienating and losing the support of the very people who have entrusted their national leaders to seek new and creative ways to promote a secure and prosperous Nigeria. As leaders and patriots, it is time to rise above partisanship and to move forward together.
However, what has become clear is that there is now a government within the government of President Buhari who have seized the apparatus of Executive powers to pursue their nefarious agenda.
This latest onslaught on the Legislature represents a clear and present danger to the democracy Nigerians fought hard to win and preserve. The suit filed on behalf of the Federal government suggests that perhaps some forces in the Federal Republic have not fully embraced the fact that the Senate’s rules and procedures govern how the legislative body adjudicates and resolves its own disputes.
Let it be abundantly clear, both as a citizen and as a foremost Legislator, I will continue to rise above all the persecution and distraction that have been visited on me. In the words of Martin Luther King Junior, “the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at a time of challenge and controversy”.
I will remain true and committed to the responsibilities that my citizenship and my office impose on me. Without doubt, the highest of those responsibilities is the steadfast refusal to surrender to the subversion of our democracy and the desecration of the Senate. This is a cross I am prepared to carry. If yielding to the nefarious agenda of a few individuals who are bent in undermining our democracy and destabilising the Federal government to satisfy their selfish interests is the alternative to losing my personal freedom, let the doors of jails be thrown open and I shall be a happy guest.”

(Source: BREAKING TIMES

Alleged N4.7bn fraud: EFCC arrests Gov. Fayose’s aide, Abiodun Agbele...Fayose responds!

An aide of Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti state, Abiodun Agbele has been arrested by the EFCC over allegations of aiding and abetting Fayose to launder part of the N4.7 billion he received from the Office of the former National Security Officer, Sambo Dasuki in June 2014. EFCC is accusing Agbele of receiving N4.7 billion from former Minister of state for Defence, Musiliu Obankoro, and handing it over to Fayose. Agbele was arrested in Lagos last night and is being detained at the Lagos office of the antigraft agency. Read Fayose's statement on the matter after the cut...

Our attention has been drawn to the arrest of Mr Abiodun Agbele by the EFCC and we wish to say that we encourage the EFCC to carry out its investigations without politics as it is being done now. It must be pointed out that at no time was Mr Abiodun Agbele invited by the EFCC, and if he had been invited, he would have honoured the invitation. Therefore, there is nothing to celebrate in his arrest if it is not political.

As already pointed out, Governor Ayodele Fayose does not have anything to do with any fund from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA). He has stated how his election was funded and Zenith Bank that he said funded his election has not denied doing so.

Also, the person said to have been arrested is an adult and will defend himself when the time comes. Subjecting him to media trial as EFCC has been doing since the inception of this government will only give our adversaries momentary sense of joy.

We await reports of EFCC investigations and we hope that the anti-corruption agency will be civil enough to allow an open and transparent trial in competent court of law and not media trial just to get at Governor Fayose because of his uncompromising stance against the misrule of the APC/Buhari led federal government.

Whatever stories being circulated by the EFCC and its political allies can at best be regarded as rumour as we were all in Nigeria when Nigerians were told that $700m cash was found in the House of Mrs Diezani Allison Madueke and the story turned out to be lie.

Finally, like we have maintained, Governor Fayose will remain resolute in making his opinions known on national issues and will not be intimidated.
Posted by Linda Ikeji

EURO 2016: ITALY ELIMINATE SPAIN

 

Italy outclassed Spain to knock out the defending champions and reach the quarter-finals of Euro 2016.

Giorgio Chiellini prodded home in the first half, finishing the rebound after David de Gea saved Eder's free-kick.
Alvaro Morata missed the chance to equalise with a header after the break and at the other end De Gea saved when Eder was clean through on goal.
Italy survived Spanish pressure before Graziano Pelle scored a late second to set up a quarter-final against Germany.

BREAKING:Tax evasion: Court sacks Abia gov, Ikpeazu

Barely three months after the Supreme Court affirmed his election as Abia State governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu has been kicked out by the Federal High Court, Abuja, which cancelled his nomination as the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the governorship election.

In the ruling of Justice Okon Abang on the tax evasion case instituted against Ikpeazu, the court ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to issue a certificate of return to Dr. Uche Samson Ogah, who came second in the PDP primary.

Ikpeazu was also ordered to vacate office with immediate effect.

The court ruled that since Ikpeazu is guilty of tax evasion, he was not qualified to seek the ticket of PDP and to stand for election.

Ogah had instituted a case against Ikpeazu, alleging that the tax clearance certificates he submitted with his governorship nomination form were fake.

Reacting to the judgment, Governor Ikpeazu said he will appeal.

source: Daily sun

Biafra: IPOB woos Britain on referendum

THE Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), governed by the Supreme Council of Elders, is wooing Britain on a proposed referendum on Biafra.
IPOB, under the leader­ship of Mr. Nnamdi Kanu has congratulated the Brit­ish government over the successful referendum which confirmed the coun­try’s exit from European Union (EU).
The group described the exercise as a good omen and a step ahead of Biafra’s secession, calling on Brit­ish government to support the wishes of Biafrans to secede.
A statement signed by spokespersons of IPOB, Mr. Emma Nmezu and Dr. Clifford Chukwuemeka Iroanya said the British government, which is the closest ally of the Nige­rian government must, as a mark of exemplary leader­ship, guide President Mu­hammadu Buhari and his colleagues to respect the wishes of the people.
“IPOB congratulates the government and people of Britain for organising the Brexit vote and applauds the British government for respecting the wishes of her citizens. However, it smacks of hypocrisy that the same David Cameron that initiated the Brexit vote has been propping up the Nigeria government in the acts of suppressing the quest by Biafrans to exit from Nigeria. Is it because Biafrans are blacks and black Africans inferior to white British people?
“Why does British gov­ernment think that what is good for the white people is not good for the black peo­ple of Africa especially Biaf­rans? Mr. David Cameron, in organising Brexit is tak­ing advantage of the rights of people to make their choice. But in denying Bi­afrans the right to choose their own nation, Cameron is telling Biafrans that they are inferior because of the colour of their skin. He is directly telling Biafrans that because they come from an inferior race, they do not deserve to exist as a nation of their own choice.”
Meanwhile, IPOB has distanced itself from the reported alignment with the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) and other militants in the Niger Delta by the group’s faction led by Kanu and Uchenna Madu’s fac­tion of Movement for Actu­alisation of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB).
Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Indigenous People of Bi­afra (SCIPOB), Dr. Dozie Ikedife made the declara­tion, yesterday, when he spoke with newsmen in Nnewi.
Ikedife said he saw the Biafra war from beginning to the end and witnessed how millions of people especially from the South East were slaughtered and property worth billions of pounds destroyed because of the struggle for self de­termination.
The Ikenga Nnewi said nobody in his right senses would talk about a repeat of the 30 months pogrom that inflicted pains and sor­rows to almost every family in Biafran land. He insisted that he would not support any war, “because any life lost cannot be replaced…”

Source: Daily sun.