Nyesom Wike, the governor of Rivers State, stated on Saturday that Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai is not known for being a sycophant and has a reputation for speaking truth to power.

The governor remarked that El-Rufai was the only one who bravely insisted that Nigeria’s southern region win the presidency in 2023 for the sake of national cohesion and advancement.

In a message for the occasion, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the president-elect, described governor El-Rufai as a hard worker and noted that “give El-Rufai any task, he will deliver it.” Kashim Imam, a former chairman of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, served as Tinubu’s representative.

N20 million was given by Tinubu for the book launch.

The pair spoke on Saturday at a book presentation on El-Rufai in Kaduna for the book “Putting The People First,” written by seasoned journalist and public commentator Emmanuel Ado.

Eugenia Abu, a former top news anchor for the Nigerian Television Authority, reviewed the book.

Wike recalled El-Rufai’s contentious letter to President Major-General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) from March 2017, in which he challenged Buhari to meet the expectations of the populace in order to avoid being on the wrong side of history.

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As a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Governor El-Rufai, he continued, was an example of courage who could speak the truth to the authorities without worrying about the repercussions because he had never been known to be sycophantic.

The governor, who contributed N20 million to the book launch, urged attendees to buy the books and stock countrywide public and private school libraries with them.

At the same time, he urged Senator Uba Sani, the incoming governor of Kaduna State, to continue Governor El-Rufai’s work to advance the state’s greatness.

El-Rufai is a leader whose greatness, in his opinion, defies classification, he said. Governor El-Rufai exemplifies character, dedication, and perseverance. He is brave. He has a strong sense of justice, equity, and fairness and is brave and daring.

“El-Rufai is assertive in society and politics and is steadfast in his adherence to morality. No one has ever accused Governor El-Rufai of being a sycophant. I could recall his contentious letter to President Muhammad Buhari, particularly the one from March 2017 in which he urged him to meet the expectations of the populace in order to avoid being on the wrong side of history.

“I’m not sure how many governors will have the guts to write the president-elect of his party and say, “Look, do the right thing; be mindful of the expectations of the people so that you do not end up on the wrong side of history. It requires men with character and courage.

“No sycophant can pull that off. I’m not aware of anyone who is able to look at the president’s face. Mr. President is doing everything right. Mr. President is flawless. El-Rufai is not for you if that. His adherence to principles does not excuse him from telling the truth. And that is what this nation today needs in terms of leadership and good character.

“Those who will stare you down, not in an insulting manner, but to advise you that this is improper. And as a result, some of us are forced to empathize with him. You are aware of what took place in this nation. One of the APC governors, El-Rufai, boldly declared, “Look for the unity of this country; let the presidency go to the south for this country to advance.”

He does, after all, possess the necessary qualifications to declare that he will run for president of this nation. No can’t be said. However, he added, “We want unity to advance because this is the country we are building together.” How many people can put aside their personal interests and come out and say, “Let’s go to the South,” I don’t know. Therefore, we will assert that “agreement is agreement.” El-Rufai thinks that consent is consent. Follow the terms of our agreement.

It was raining heavily this morning, so when I saw the invitation, I said, “If it likes, let there be flood everywhere. I must be here today, to participate, honor a man who has shown character; who has shown that service is not just about getting elected. Being of service to your people is a privilege. He put Nigeria first because he wanted to put the people first. Your side of history is the right one.

“Keep in mind that people won’t talk about you until after you have left office. Not in the office, please. When you were the FCT Minister, people are still talking today. Compare them. I regret to inform you that Abuja today is not what it was when you were the FCT Minister.

“It wasn’t the same when you were the Minister of the FCT. We require individuals like you to restore Abuja to its former glory. Everyone wishes they could return to FCT. Go to FCT today, though, and garbage is everywhere. You didn’t have that when you were a minister. I’m sorry, but the truth must be said because this is your party.

“I think the significance of today’s event goes beyond just the book launch. It is more of a chance to recognize governor El-Rufai’s outstanding leadership, ground-breaking ideas, courage, dedication to duty, and contribution to the growth and development of Kaduna State and Nigeria over the course of his eight years in office.

El-Rufai also spoke, thanking Wike for all the good things said about him and adding, “God’s timing is the best. Our paths may not have crossed for very long before now. Wike’s comments about me apply to him as well. He is equally bold and fearless.

El-Rufai pledged to keep firing any bad actors in his administration and demolishing bad buildings up until the very last minute of his term as president on May 29.

“We will eliminate any negative elements we uncover so that the next governor won’t have to deal with them again. Watch out—we’ll continue to fire bad actors and get rid of bad things until the very last minute, when we’ll be leaving office.

A 14-year-old boy named Marvelous Asefon is being held without bail after being accused of killing his neighbor, Sunday Ogele, by an Ondo State Magistrate Court in Akure, the state’s capital.

In a fight over a girlfriend in Oka Akoko, the state’s capital and the seat of Akoko South-West Local Government Area, in April, the deceased was fatally stabbed with a pair of scissors, according to reports. The defendant was subsequently detained by members of the State Police Command.

He was later charged with murder and arraigned in court.

According to the charge, “That you, Marvelous Asefon,’m’ did kill one Sunday Ogele,’m’ 17 years old, by stabbing him with scissors in his rib on April 20, Sunday, 2023 at 8:pm at Kanmu, Oka-Akoko in the Ondo State Magisterial District, which resulted in his death.”

The criminal offense, in accordance with the prosecution, violates Sections 319(1) and 316 of the Criminal Code, Cap. 37, Vol. 2, Laws of Ondo State, 2016.

The defendant did, however, enter a not guilty plea to the charge, but the court did not accept his plea.

In a petition, the state’s director of public prosecutions, Martins Olowofeso, urged the court to remand the defendant to the state prison while it awaited his advice.

The case was postponed until June 11 so that the magistrate, Folashade Aduroja, could order the defendant’s continued detention.

The three separate petitions seeking to overturn the results of the 2023 presidential election will be merged, according to the Presidential Election Petition Court, which is based in Abuja.

The court claimed that paragraph 50 of the First Schedule of the Electoral Act gave it the authority to combine all the petitions and make a decision on them all at once.

Abubakar Mahmood, SAN, who served as the Independent National Electoral Commission’s lead attorney, testified in support of this judgment by saying, “We are happy with the provision of the law and we are also happy with whatever position your lordships will take with respect to this matter.”

My lords, I personally believe that the provision is required, Mahmood continued. It was explicitly stated that, unless the court orders otherwise, all petitions filed to invalidate the same election or return must be consolidated if there are two or more of them.

Chris Uche, SAN, the lead attorney for Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar, asked for more time to consult with his client.

“My lords, we won’t deny that we’ve looked at it, but it might need to be discussed with the other petitioners.

In light of the fact that this is similar to marriage, which is a union between two consenting adults, Uche continued, “We, therefore, ask for a stand down or an adjournment so that we can explore the modalities.

The lead attorney for the president-elect, Wole Olanipekun, SAN, stated that he would also need time to consult with the counsel for the vice president-elect, Senator Kashim Shettima, who also appeared on behalf of the president-elect, Bola Tinubu.

The five-member panel, presided over by Justice Haruna Tsammani, then decided to postpone the case until Monday so that all parties could report the results of their consultations regarding whether or not to combine all the petitions.

Sunday was detained, according to the Ondo State Police Command, in relation to the death of an 80-year-old woman in the state.

The elderly woman was discovered dead on her farm in the Costain area of Ore in Odigbo Local Government Area of Ondo State. Her identity had not yet been made public at the time this report was filed.

Prior to her corpse being discovered on the farm, the deceased was reportedly reported missing a few days earlier.

The position of the old woman’s corpse when it was discovered on the farm led to the conclusion that the locals believed she had been raped to death.

According to a source, after discovering the deceased’s phone in the suspect’s pocket, the neighborhood kids later arrested the suspect, a palm wine tapper. Later on, they turned him over to the police.

The incident was confirmed and the suspect was already in the police system when it was contacted by Mrs. Funmilayo Odunlami, the state police public relations officer.

Yes, I can attest to the fact that the suspect is in our care; after the investigation is over, he will soon be charged in court, the PPRO said.

The People’s Democratic Party and its presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar filed a petition with the Presidential Election Petition Court on Saturday. The pre-hearing was postponed until Monday, May 22, 2023, so that the pre-hearing could continue.

Following the parties’ proposal of the petition hearing modalities, the five-person panel, led by Justice Haruna Tsammani, set the date for the hearing.

Before the following adjourned date, Justice Tsammani ordered the parties to consult and report to the court on any issues that could be consolidated.