A veteran journalist, Mr Richard Akinnola, has said irrespective of the hardship facing the country, military rule is a no-option for Nigeria.
Akinola, who condemned those calling for the return of the military due to the country’s economic hardship, urged Nigerians to work together to overcome the obstacles facing their nation.
He spoke on Wednesday while delivering a lecture at the 2024 Democracy Day celebration held at the Kuto Cultural Centre, Abeokuta, Ogun State.
The human rights and pro-democracy activist, in his lecture titled, “June 12: Defining Moment in the Democratic Development of Nigeria,” chided the nation’s judiciary for being a tool in the hands of the military government to annul the June 12 elections.
He said “In fact, June 12 stands as a defining moment and a watershed in our quest for democracy. That is why we should be very careful. Some people who did not experience what we went through are not subtly calling for the military.
“We must say no, never do we call for the military again. Whatever the challenges we are having, let’s fight, let us argue, let us disagree, let us abuse each other, but never should we be tempted to invite the military”
Akinnola referred to the June 12 elections as the greatest in the country’s history while pointing out that the annulment’s aftermath resulted in the deaths of pro-democracy activists and fostered mutual distrust among citizens.
He asserted that for democracy to thrive in the country, Nigerians must keep their leaders on their toes adding that, people should not forget those who sacrificed their lives for the democracy being enjoyed in the country now.
In his goodwill message, a pro-democracy activist and former Commissioner for Information and Strategy in Ogun State, Dr Niran Malaolu, eulogised Chief Abiola for paying the supreme prize for the nation to experience democracy, noting that several Nigerians also suffered in the course of returning the country to democratic rule.
Military rule not solution to Nigeria’s hardship – Activist, Akinnola
Military rule not solution to Nigeria’s hardship – Activist, Akinnola
Family faults Tinubu’s omission of Fasehun from June 12 heroes list
The family of the late founder of the Oodua Peoples Congress, Dr Frederick Fasehun, has protested the omission of their son by President Bola Tinubu in the list of June 12 heroes contained in the Democracy Day address on Wednesday.
In a statement issued by the late OPC Founder’s son, Remi Fasehun, the family described the omission of his father from the President’s list as uncharitable, ungrateful and unpardonable.
He said Tinubu was a beneficiary of his father’s activism and sacrifice for democracy, adding that his father helped the President to escape into exile.
He said, “The President was a beneficiary of our father’s activism and sacrifice for democracy. Not only were they in the trenches together, but Fasehun helped Tinubu to escape into exile. In fact, it is on record that, when General Sani Abacha’s squad surrounded Senator Abraham Adesanya’s residence, where they held a meeting, Tinubu mounted the back of Fasehun and jumped the fence to flee into hiding and subsequently into exile.
“Several people, who escaped from the country into exile and joined NADECO-Abroad, including Pa Anthony Enahoro, were personally taken by boat and bush paths, through the NADECO Route, by Dr. Fasehun. He was at a point the link between Pa Enahoro-NADECO and NUPENG, the union that played a pivotal role in that struggle.
“He was thrown into prison several times by the General Sani Abacha junta, in Kirikiri, Ilorin and Kuje. At the infamous Inter Centre in Ikoyi Cemetery, he was held incommunicado for several months, an experience that inflicted immense damage on him physically and psychologically, to the extent of leaving his vision impaired for life.
“His family and businesses paid dearly for his struggle for democracy. Today, his wife and children still pay the price of their father’s sacrifice to birth the democracy Nigeria has today.”
The statement said Fasehun’s businesses, Century Hotel and Besthope Hospital in Lagos, had become a shadow of the flourishing enterprises they used to be before he threw himself into the struggle for June 12.
It added that Fasehun specifically founded the socio-cultural group, Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), in 1994, as a vehicle for wresting democracy from the sit-tight military junta.
“To ignore such an inimitable icon as Dr. Frederick Isiotan Fasehun from any so-called list of June 12 and Democratic Heroes smacks of crass injustice and inexplicable vendetta,” it added.
The family recalled that in the struggle for June 12, hundreds of OPC members paid the supreme price, through extra-judicial killings by overzealous and ill-advised security agents.
While acknowledging that leading a huge nation like Nigeria could be a Herculean task, the Fasehuns urged Tinubu to put welfare packages in place to ameliorate the unprecedented poverty, inflation and insecurity bedevilling citizens.
“We only hope that in the name of fairness and justice, the President will correct this anomaly and place Dr. Fasehun in Nigeria’s democratic Hall of Fame as he very well deserves.
“Truth should not be sacrificed on the altar of politics, however. Dr. Fasehun should be given his well-deserved historical recognition as a true Nigerian Hero of Democracy,” it added.
FG reroutes mega project, slashes lanes to six
The Federal Government says it has rerouted the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway path to avoid any possible damage to subsea cables belonging to telecommunication companies.
The government also said it had reduced the project’s size from 10 lanes to six as a cost-saving measure for the legacy project.
The Minister of Works, David Umahi, who made the announcements at a meeting with contractors on Tuesday in Abuja, also said the government had disbursed a total sum of N10bn as compensation to property owners affected by the demolition necessary for the construction of the 700km Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
This was as it announced that the first 47 kilometres of the project would be open to the public by May of next year.
The government early this year began the construction of the Lagos-Calabar highway, which is designed to extend through nine states with two spurs leading to the northern states, using concrete pavement.
It later established a committee tasked with the responsibilities of reviewing, assessing and compensating landowners affected by the construction of the expressway.
On May 1st, the government began payment of N2.75bn in compensation to property owners affected by the demolition necessary for the construction of the expressway.
Section one is scheduled to begin at Eko Atlantic and end at the Lekki deep sea port.
He said, “For the three legacy projects by the administration, the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway, we have cut down the project size to six lanes, especially from sections two, three, and four, it shows you that we mean business. Some people have been writing that we have stopped the project. No project is stopped. As we are talking now, over four kilometres of concrete road has been completed on six lanes.
“We had to establish a new path due to complaints made by MTN on its subsea cable and Okuaja community, we had to reroute not to the new alignment, not to the gazetted alignment but far away from the two, and we came back to a new alignment at kilometre 25. So the work is going and it’s moving smoothly. We have paid the total compensation of close to N10bn. we are not owing and the contractor is highly commended for a very beautiful job, commitment and being very reasonable.
“These projects are investments, and they have inherent returns on investments, By May 29, 2025, we will have completed section one of the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway. Apart from the land, we are going to acquire for tourism, factories and industries when we toll the road within 10 years we would recover the cost of the money so it is an investment.”
He added, “Sections three and four have been finalised, but we are going to do stakeholder engagement in either Cross River or Akwa Ibom because that is where those sections will get started so that we can ensure procurement. But the design is almost completed.”
Speaking further at the meeting, the minister expressed regret over the scarcity of funds, noting that the government inherited over 2,600 projects valued at N15tn.
In explaining the delay in payments to contractors, Umahi mentioned that aside from the inherited projects, the government initiated 330 emergency projects totalling N260bn.
He noted that over 80 per cent of these projects have already been completed.
He further explained that the ministry would no longer allow contractors to determine the cost of projects through the excessive use of variation of prices.
Meanwhile, the minister of works has announced that Julius Berger is expected to resume construction on the remaining section of the Abuja-Kano after resolving some challenges.
“I commend Julius Berger very highly, some of you thought we were going to be quarrelling but yesterday we resolved a lot of our issues and by this week, the Abuja-Kano work will resume.”
On the recently flooded Kara bridge, the minister stated that the issue has been rectified, ensuring there will be no further flooding.
“Also, in the next few days or weeks, we would have completed the installation of CCTV on the bridge so that we can checkmate what is happening there and we have less than 5 minutes of response time from securities agencies to avert any form of incidents,” he concluded.
Russia denies coercing Nigerian students into fighting for visa extensions
Russian authorities, on Wednesday, denied allegations of coercing African students, particularly Nigerians, to fight in the ongoing war with Ukraine in exchange for visa extensions.
The Russian Embassy in Nigeria, in a statement, labelled the report as fake news and entirely unfounded.
It said that the report could potentially damage the educational cooperation between both countries.
It also stated that no association of Nigerian students in Russia has sent in any report confirming the claim.
The statement reads: “The Embassy of the Russian Federation is compelled to emphasize that such news is not only false but also damages Russian-Nigerian educational cooperation by misleading numerous scholarship and grant applicants as well as their partners, who could be extremely concerned by such fakes.
“The Embassy states that Nigerian students face no difficulties in extending their visas while continuing their studies in Russia. Numerous associations of Nigerian students in Russia have not reported any issues in obtaining the necessary documentation to continue their stay in the country.
“The Embassy welcomes the official press release of the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on this matter and expresses gratitude to the Ministry and the Association of Nigerian Students in Moscow for their efforts in debunking the fake news aimed at undermining the friendship and cooperation between Russia and Nigeria.”
Russia denies coercing Nigerian students into fighting for visa extensions
UK varsity offers expelled Nigerian students flight assistance
Teesside University in the United Kingdom has announced a new initiative to support Nigerian students facing severe financial difficulties by funding their flights home, as reported by BBC on Tuesday.
This move came after several students were removed from their courses and ordered to leave the UK due to their inability to pay tuition fees.
The financial crisis in Nigeria, exacerbated by a shift from a seven-installment to a three-installment payment plan by the university, left many students struggling to cover their expenses.
A local food charity reported that 75 per cent of its clients are now Nigerian students, highlighting the extent of their financial hardship.
On May 22, 2024, a group of Nigerian students at Teesside University were expelled from their courses and ordered to leave the United Kingdom due to difficulties in paying their tuition fees on time.
The students cited the devaluation of the naira as a significant barrier to meeting their financial obligations, which has led to a breach of their visa sponsorship requirements.
Several students found themselves locked out of their university accounts, reported to the Home Office, and mandated to leave the UK.
The university maintained that strict external regulations necessitate these actions.
The affected students, numbering 60, expressed deep distress and disappointment, accusing the university of being unsupportive and “heartless.”
They banded together to urge the university for assistance after witnessing their peers face severe consequences for late payments.
On May 29, 2024, the Federal Government stepped in to address the deportation orders issued against some Nigerian students at Teesside University.
A delegation led by a representative of the Nigerian Embassy in the UK, Ambassador Christian Okeke, along with leaders of the Nigerian Students Union in the UK, met with the University’s management to seek a resolution.
However, following protests and the intervention of the Nigerian government, the university has re-enrolled some affected students and opened a relief fund.
“We are working with a small group who need to return to their home country and are opening an international relief fund to offer additional financial support for these unexpected travel costs,” a university spokesperson told the BBC.
The university is also offering some students the option to complete their studies remotely from Nigeria or to return to the UK at a later date.
The BBC understands some students have lodged legal appeals.
Dormant NPDC claims four banks, others fined N400m for data breach, hides offenders’ identity
In what could be likened to a massive cover-up, the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has refused to reveal the identities of banks, companies and others involved in leaking citizens’ data without consent.
The NDPC on Tuesday claimed that four major banks and three other institutions have been sanctioned and have incurred fines totalling N400m for infractions relating to breaches of citizens’ data.
However, the agency, saddled with the protection of citizens’ data failed to name the affected companies and financial institutions, nor did it give a breakdown of the amount any of the offenders paid, to bring the amount to the N400 million it claimed to have collected.
This is coming at a time data mining is at a peak and companies are abusing their access to citizens’ data.
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More worrisome, NPDC’s National Commissioner, Vincent Olatunji during the press conference disclosed that over 1,000 financial institutions, schools, insurance companies, and consultancy firms are currently undergoing investigations for various degrees of breaches of citizens’ data.
He stressed the commission’s commitment to safeguarding citizens’ data by global best standards and practices, deeming it essential for ensuring its safety, security, and protection.
Yet, it appears the commission is protecting the culprits when they should be named and shamed.
In another development, checks by TVN have shown that the agency has failed to update its website since the 25th of February 2023.
The last time the agency updated its website or kept Nigerians abreast of its activities was on February 22, 2023 when it posted a news story about the partnership between the Voice Of Nigeria and NDPB To Promote Data Protection.
Since then, it has failed to update its website, raising questions as to its activeness in meeting its mandate.
By: Babajide Okeowo
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Gov Fintiri pardons 6 inmates, reduces 2 death sentences
Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State has granted pardon to six inmates, including a female.
The governor similarly reduced the death sentences of inmates to life imprisonment.
Information about the governor’s action attributes it to the spirit of the nation’s Democracy Day celebrations.
The inmates were in various correctional centres in the state.
A statement from the Government House in Yola gave the names of the released inmates as Ali Abdul, Mohammed Goni, and Hapsatu Idi from Yola Old Correctional Centre; as well as Buba Usman from Numan Correctional Centre and Yusuf Ali and Babala Benson from Yola New Correctional Facility.
The Governor commuted the death sentences of the two convicts named Usman Inuwa and Joseph Eugene, both serving at Yola New Correctional Centre.
According to the government statement signed by Fintiri’s Chief Press Secretary Humwashi Wonosikou, Governor Fintiri’s actions are based on the advice of the Advisory Committee on Prerogative of Mercy and the powers conferred on him by Section 212(i) (d) of the Constitution of Nigeria 1999 as amended.
Wonosikou explained that the release of the five inmates and the commutation of the two death sentences to life imprisonment take immediate effect.
Gov Fintiri pardons 6 inmates, reduces 2 death sentences
Bayelsa partners BOI on economic development
Bayelsa State Government and the Bank of Industry have announced their partnership to drive sustainable industrial and economic development in the state.
Governor Douye Diri gave the assurance on Tuesday when he received a four-man team from the South-South and South-East divisions of the Bank of Industry in Government House, Yenagoa.
Diri who was represented by his deputy, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, said his administration would do everything within its power for the immediate and smooth take-off of the bank’s operations in the state.
He disclosed the state government had already provided a temporary operational office for the bank to immediately commence its operations in the state.
The governor said Bayelsa was in a hurry to catch up with other states in terms of industrial development and maintained that his administration would harness opportunities created by the bank to promote the growth of local industries in the state.
He called on the bank to disclose the list of Bayelsans who had already applied for loans and other facilities but could not meet the bank’s requirements for the state government consideration and necessary action.
His words: “Clearly, before now Bayelsa had not taken advantage of the opportunities created for us as a state by the Bank of Industry. However, this time we are ready to seize the opportunity you are going to create to drive the growth of our local industries.
“We want to establish a relationship with the BOI that would be fruitful and run very fast. We, as a government, have an emergency in our hands; while you have urgency in your hands.
“The state government had already provided three places for you to choose one and start to use it as a take-off operational office for the BOI in Bayelsa. The Deputy Chief of Staff to the Governor will take you there immediately after this meeting.
“We are ready for your operations even this month because the role of your bank is even more important than that of the mainstream commercial banks to the growth of local industries.”
Earlier in his presentation, the Divisional Head of the Bank of Industry, South-South and South-East, Kings Jack, pointed out that Bayelsa was the only state in the entire South-South in which the BOI was not fully operational.
Jack said the BOI team was in Bayelsa to seek collaboration with the state government on how to commence the bank’s services to stimulate industrial development of the oil-rich state.
He further disclosed that many corporate organisations and individuals from Bayelsa could not access the over one billion Nair BOI loan facility on account of the inability to procure certificates of occupancy and other requirements.
Jack expressed the readiness of the bank to advise the government on the right policies to stimulate the industrial and economic development of the state.
The visiting BOI team also had its Group Head, Strategic Communications, Seun Olagunju; the Regional Manager, South-South, Irabor Pacqueens, and the State Manager, Ojiegbe Uchechukeu.
Edo made plans for N70,000 minimum wage three years ago – Obaseki
Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has stated that the state Government made plans for a N70,000 minimum wage three years ago when the telltale signs began to show that the economy was going in the wrong direction.
According to a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on Media Projects, Crusoe Osagie, Obaseki stated this on Wednesday when the Editorial Board of Tell Magazine presented him with the Award for Exceptional Courage in Leadership, in Benin City on Tuesday.
He said that the state made the plans for the increase in minimum wage when he started raising the alarm on the excessive borrowings by the Federal Government to meet its statutory obligations.
According to him, ‘We can pay the N70,000 minimum wage because we planned in the last three years because we knew a day like this would come.
‘Thank God that we have been vindicated today, as our sincerity has helped us prevail over every situation. We see prospects for a better economy and transparent government in Edo State because of the institutional reforms we have introduced to better manage the State.’
He continued: ‘We have always prevailed because the majority of Edo people understand appreciate and endorse what our government has done. This has been the reason for the courage with which we have tackled any problem we faced along the way.’
Noting that the state was on a steady growth trajectory, he said, ‘For the next few months that are left for our administration, we will finish strong. We will finish all that we have started. This week, I will set up my transition team that will aggregate and document for the next administration all our achievements, projects and undertakings for our administration.’
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Actress Bibi Sonye threatens to sue any movie producer who pairs her with bad breath actor
Fast-rising Nollywood actress Bibi Sonny has taken to her social media to issue a threat to sue any movie producer who dares to pair her with an actor with bad breath.
The thespian issued the threat in a post on her official Instagram page while taking a stance against dental hygiene in the Nigerian movie industry dubbed Nollywood.
Sonye in her post on social media also advocated that movie producers should endeavour not to normalise kissing as she is tired of locking lips with people with horrible breaths.
She said; “Nigerian movie industry we need to do better. If you’re going to give me a script and you put a kissing scene in that script and you know that you did not hire an actor with fresh breath and put that person in the same scene with me, I will sue your production.
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‘‘I am tired of kissing people with horrible breath, let’s normalise not kissing, let’s normalise not kissing in a romantic scene because what the hell is going on?”
She also criticized some of her co-stars for their poor oral hygiene habits, bringing up the disregard for basic hygiene before amorous movie scenes.
“Y’all would be eating your egusi soup or whatever and then you’d come straight to set without gargling, without using a mouthwash and you think it’s okay to put your mouth in my mouth? I quit! No,” the talented actress lamented.
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