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A human rights activist and Director of Communication and Advocacy of Make A Difference Initiative, Lemmy Ughegbe, has decried the failure of Justice Yusuf Halilu to diligently follow the letters and processes of law in reaching a decision to convict Maryam Sanda on the charge of taking the life of her husband, Bilyaminu Bello.

Speaking with ARISE NEWS, the human rights advocate said Justice Halilu, whom he described as a “courageous judge”, had stripped the judgment of legitimacy by abusing due process.

He noted that Justice Halilu had jumped the gun by hastening to deliver a verdict on trial without due regard to the preliminary objection, which challenged the competence of the charge and the jurisdiction of the court to entertain it.

He said, “The judge committed a fatal blunder when he failed to consider the preliminary objection and rule on it one way or the other before delivering his judgment.

“I have studied the judgment of Justice Halilu and it is crystal clear that he failed to rule on the preliminary objection one way or the other. Based on the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, Justice Halilu had upon hearing the preliminary objection announced that he would go ahead with the trial and when it was all done, he would rule on the objection and its success or failure and determine whether or not to proceed to deliver a judgment.

“It is trite that when issues of competence of a charge and jurisdiction of a court are raised, the court must dispense with that issue one way or the other.

“This judge misdirected himself by not considering and ruling on these issues raised and it is settled law that however elegant a proceeding or a judgment is, it becomes invalid, null and void in that circumstance.”

Ughegbe said the failure of the judge to rule on the preliminary objection amounted to a bias against the defendant and a consequent denial of her constitutional right to fair hearing.

He stated, “I advise them to make this a number one ground of appeal as I believe it is a settled principle in our law that without fair hearing a proceeding is flawed and incurably defective.

“No person should be convicted for the offence of murder, which attracts capital punishment based on circumstantial evidence.

“The absence of a murder weapon, autopsy report, confessional statement and pictures taken of the body of the deceased make it nearly impossible to convict Maryam Sanda on the charge of culpable homicide.”

Speaking further, the rights activist noted that the judge had misdirected himself and assumed the position of an IPO whereas the only job he was paid to do was look at the various evidence before him and evaluate them to make a decision.

Recall that on January 27, the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja had sentenced Sanda to death for killing Bello.

Sanda had on November 19, 2017 stabbed her husband to death following an allegation of infidelity against him after seeing a text message on his phone.

By Toby Prince

Ex-lawmaker representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani, has alleged that he was thrown into an underground cell after his arrest by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Sani spent 30 days in EFCC custody following his arrest on December 31.

He was accused of extorting $15,000 from one Sani Dauda in November 20, 2019, promising to give it to Ibrahim Muhammad, chief justice of Nigeria, to influence some pending cases in court.

Sani, who was released on Thursday after a court granted him bail, has vehemently denied the allegations.

In a statement on Saturday, Sani said while in custody, he was forced to declare his assets and subjected to “traumatising interrogations.”

“My incarceration for 30 days in the jail of EFCC was unfair, unjust and a clear breach of my fundamental rights and hence stands condemned. During my unjust stay in the EFCC cell, I was subjected to traumatizing interrogations – my houses and offices were searched,” he said.

“They compelled me to declare my assets, they tried to subject me to polygraph lie detector tests, my accounts were blocked, and my phone was seized, all in the name of fictional $24,000 or $25, 000 extortion.

“Any Information planted in the media by the EFCC spokesperson while I was in their custody about me is outrightly false and nothing but a bacterial and fungal infested concoctions, typical of their style.

“Our country will continue to be at the bottom strata of the Transparency International index as long as our anti-graft agencies only use their might and arsenal to crush ants while lacking the courage, the heart, and the liver to confront the snakes, the vultures and the hyenas of the ruling establishment. They can frame me, detain me but can’t silence me.

“In an ideal democratic state, all agencies of the government are obliged to operate within the dictates and the ambit of the rule of law or the nation leaps into tyranny.

“The rule book of Stalin, The manual of Hitler or road map of Mussolini should not be the guidance and the compass of the nation’s security and anti-corruption agencies in their quest to sanitize our country.”

By Toby Prince

Governor Nyesome Wike of Rivers State has said he has deep respect for traditional rulers because they play a critical role in the development of the state.

Wike made this remarks on Saturday during the installation of former minister of Transport, Dr Abiye Sekibo, as the Head of Achin War Canoe House of Kiniju Town and admission as member of Okrika Divisional Council of Chiefs, at National Field, Okrika.

The governor expressed regret that some politicians in the state had continued to play politics with the traditional institutions.

“I have great respect for traditional rulers because they are critical to the development of our State.

“It is regrettable that some politicians always want to play politics with the traditional institution. I am the only governor who has always declared open their quarterly meetings. It was not so in the past.”

Wike stated that he would always promote the tradition and culture of Rivers people, adding that in all his engagements with monarchs, he has always maintained that they promote their respective ethnic nationalities.

“When I urge the traditional rulers to promote Rivers culture, it is not aimed at disrespecting them. We must promote our own culture. We must show we are Rivers people.

“Those playing politics with the traditional institution were the ones that balkanized the traditional institution in the state.

”What I said is, carry along with your staff of office, which distinguishes you as traditional rulers. Our traditional rulers must prove at all times that they are not second class citizens.”

By Bukola Olasanmi

Members of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) are embarking on prayer walk across the country tomorrow to express displeasure at the “gruesome killings of innocent people in the country.”

The action is also to pray for “the government to develop capacity to overcome the criminals troubling the nation.”

Consequently, all parishes of the church have been enjoined to end their service not later than 11am on Sunday to enable members “march round their immediate environment, praying for God’s intervention in the ongoing situation in Nigeria.”

The protests are at the instance of the RCCG General Overseer, Pastor Adejare Adeboye.

The Assistant General Overseer (Admin and Personnel) of the church,Pastor J.F Odesola said in a January 29, 2020 circular to all regions and provinces of the RCCG said: “The Christian Association of Nigeria, the umbrella body for all Christians and Christian organizations in Nigeria, has made a clarion call for prayers and advocacy to all Christians in Nigeria in response to the inhumane acts against Christians in the country.

“The General Overseer has therefore directed that all members of RCCG should participate in this prayer and advocacy with details as stated here under:

Since RCCG is currently on a fasting and praying programme, the prayer focus within this period should be against the gruesome killings of innocent people in the country and prayer for the government to develop the capacity to overcome the criminals troubling the nation.”

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Former Military Administrator of Lagos State, Brigadier-General Buba Marwa (retd) has said that retired military officers in the country are solidly behind troops fighting insurgency battle in the northeast notwithstanding the complaints and in some cases, distractions against the nations’ gallant military.

Speaking as a guest of the 2019 West African Social Activities (WASA) of the Army Headquarters Garrison which held at Mogadishu Cantonment at the weekend, General Marwa whose community, Michika, in Adamawa state has witnessed Boko Haram attacks, noted that troops were fighting under difficult conditions like bad weather, marshy terrain, and mines laden stretches of land.

“We retired officers appreciate the difficulty of the counter-insurgency operation. We recognize the difficulty, commitment, and doggedness, as well as sacrifices of our troops.

” Please be aware and know that we retired officers are 100 percent with you and are ready at all times to offer our advice if needed in tackling the counter-insurgency operation. We also appreciate the widows and their families for the sacrifices.

Describing the 2019 AHQ Garrison WASA as one of the best he had witnessed both as a serving and retired military officer, General Marwa advised youths in the barracks to be hardworking, religious, respectful and follow the path of discipline noting that the sky is their limit if the do so.

“As I was going round the various stands with the representative of the Chief of Army Staff (Lt. General Lamidi Adeosun), I could see myself in these youths because 60 years ago, I was like these boys attending WASA.

Commenting on the promotion of Lt. General Lamidi Adeosun, the Chief of Policy and Plans, Army, to s 3 star General in the Nigerian Army, Gen Marwa said, ” It only takes a man like Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai to agree and to recommend another officer to be a Lt. Gen while he is still in the same service.

The Commander, Army Headquarters Garrison, Maj.-Gen. James Gwazs Kalifa Myam in his address said the Army Headquarters Garrison had a very successful year 2019 adding, “The Command continued to provide operational, administrative and logistics support to AHQ departments, formations, and units, as well as to conduct training activities throughout the year in line with the COAS’ Training Directive and NA Forecast of Events.

“This is in spite of the numerous security challenges confronting the country at this time in history and the arduous multiple tasks the command had to undertake within the year.

“It is on this premise that it becomes quite gratifying to thank ‘the Almighty God for granting the Army Headquarters Garrison a very successful Year 201 9.

“During the year, the command successfully executed Annual Medical and Physical Efficiency Test; Annual Range Classification; Corporals and Below as well as Warrant Officers and Senior Non Commissioned Officers’ Competitions. Also, the Command successfully conducted the Operations Planning Cadre for middle-level 0fficers in order to horn their skills at Operations Planning.

“In addition, the command hosted several conferences including the First, operations and the combined Second and Third Quarters COAS’ Conferences, which brought together PSOs, Field Commanders, and Commandants of NA Schools to deliberate on NA activities and to chart a new course going forward. It is indeed heartwarming that the staging of these activities were quite successful in the Year 2019.

“The Army Headquarters Garrison also within Year 2019, made significant strides in terms of welfare in the form of administration of personnel and rehabilitation of some living quarters. Worthy of mention is the taking on board of Phase 1 of the Muhammadu Buhari Cantonment, which was recently constructed by the Army Headquarters and commissioned by the minister

of Defence in a bold move to mitigate the acute accommodation challenges confronting personnel of the NA in Abuja.

“Similarly, an ultra-modern housing estate was acquired and tastily furnished at Kurudu for NA officers in Abuja by the Army Headquarters.

“Other interventions that border on personnel welfare are the continued renovation and furnishing of officers and soldiers living accommodation virtually across all the barracks in Abuja and the provision of a new block of quarters and Corpers Lodge respectively at Mambilla Barracks extension, just to mention a few.

“In terms of logistics, the Army Headquarters Garrison formations and units are proud beneficiaries of the issuance of several state of the art office equipment as well as repair and refurbishment of all the unserviceable vehicles on their inventory currently being undertaken by the Command Engineering Depot (CED); courtesy of the COAS.

“Indeed, we make bold to state that no NA formation has had it so good like the Army Headquarters Garrison, in terms of operational, administrative and logistics support of the COAS.

“We, therefore, owe the success of this command and its modest achievements in the outgone year to the unflinching support of the COAS, in providing us with the tools, funds, and requirements necessary for the accomplishment of assigned tasks.”

“As the activities for Year 2020 commence, we wish to assure the COAS that Army Headquarters Garrison has already received his ‘Strategic Directive to NA personnel for Year 2020’ (SD: 2020), which has charged all personnel to ‘sustain professionalism and responsiveness .in the discharge of their constitutional roles’.

“We have studied the letters of the SD: 2020 and wish to state that personnel of the command are poised towards approaching their duties with renewed vigour and commitment in terms of professionalism and responsiveness in the discharge of their constitutional roles.

“Let me also use the opportunity to convey, the deep appreciation of the personnel of the Command who benefitted from promotions as well as various training courses within the year to the COAS. This has greatly boosted their morale and enhanced their professional competences.”