01/18/18

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Latest Reality Blog is a legal blog where you are updated on online latest news, gist, entertainment, events, motivational text, and genue articles.
Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu

Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has urged Nigerians to resist all appeals to ”unthinking passions and old prejudices” and instead follow their conscience in picking their next crop of leaders in 2019.
At the annual Daily Trust Dialogue in Abuja today, he implored Nigerians not to allow politics as usual to decide the 2019 election season. His speech was read by a former commissioner for finance in Lagos State, Olawale Edun.
“We must insist on the principle that elections do not return to being games played by a well-heeled elite while the rest of the nation is left to struggle and starve,” he said while addressing the topic, ‘Nigeria and the Challenges of 2019, this is Not a Game’.
“The people must resist all appeals to unthinking passions and old prejudices. We must adhere to what our conscience reveals as the best path to good governance for all.”
Tinubu said while democratic politics inherently bears aspects of competition and contest, it must never be reduced to a mere game. According to him, the objective of a game is served by the mere playing of it.
“Playing the game is an end in and of itself. However, this cannot be the case with politics and elections,” he said.
“Winning the political contest can never be an end in itself. The proper outcome of electoral victory is not for the victor to revel at his good fortune or his skill in electioneering.
“The inevitable sequel to an election is for the winner to assume the sobering burden of governance. Elections are not the climax of an epic book. They are merely the close of the book’s opening chapter.
“What comes afterwards – governance – is much more vital than politics, for governance determines how we shall live.”
He lamented that although the country is approaching 60 years of nationhood, it has remained a complex yet incomplete work of art and a project as much on the drawing board.
“They see the nation not as object of loyalty but as the most available platform to realize their personal aims. In their minds, Nigeria is lesser than their ever expanding ambitions; because they view Nigeria as a game, their politics is but a game within a game.
“Rather than becoming a joyous nation, Nigeria has become a cruel playground where the fears and concerns of the average person get exploited but their interests never get promoted.”
He said it would require many years of outstanding governance to heal the ills that have bedevilled Nigeria as a nation. He also urged the Federal Government to solve the problem of fuel subsidy, which he said, has caused more pains than solutions.
“As a progressive, I believe we must transform the nation by embarking on deep and impactful reforms, by creating more jobs, providing social policy initiatives and building an infrastructure befitting a leading nation. Social services must become a reality close at hand and not a vague dream lying in the distance.
“For example, we must reform the current fuel subsidy regime. At this stage it causes more problems than it cures. Bottlenecks of long fuel queues, erratic supply, resultant economic dislocations for consumers from lack of fuel and the corrupt practices of trade insiders undermine the good intentions upon which the subsidy is based.
“Currently, the subsidy does not benefit the average person. It sweetly profits the elites who manipulate the programme to their own advantage. We need to allow market forces to more directly determine price. We need to open the now closed market to more suppliers. In this way, we may better harmonise supply and demand, where they do the most sustainable economic good.”
Tinubu’s speech also touched on the herdsmen-farmers crisis in the country.
In his view, the crisis has an economic origin and declared nomadic way of life as obsolete.
“The crux of the matter is that the nomadic way of life is fast becoming obsolete. Large scale nomadic practice does not belong in this day and age. This is reality and it is inescapable.
“Thus, herders have no right to cling to this way of life by killing others. Government must stop their violence but also offer them a viable new way of life by moving them toward more modern, non-nomadic cattle rearing
“As we commend these security measures, we must not lose sight of the fact that the problem bears an economic origin. Thus, agro-economic policy initiatives must help shape the lasting solution.
While he commended the deployment of law enforcement agents and the military into the troubled areas as a way of stemming further loss of lives, he also urged government to establish a “relief and rehabilitation programme for those families and communities that have been so grievously harmed”.
“In short, to resolve this lethal problem, government must implement a multi-dimensional policy that encompasses security, agro-economic, educational and emergency relief elements. This is the art and mastery of governance that our nation and its complex problems require”, he said.
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The National Economic Council (NEC) has constituted a working committee of nine governors, with the Vice President as chairman, to resolve herders and farmers clashes.
This was one of the high points of the resolutions of NEC announced by Governors Dave Umahi of Ebonyi and Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano.
According to Ganduje, the committee has begun its meeting and consultations immediately.
“On the farmers and herders clashes, the Council constituted a working group to collaborate with the federal government in addressing the issues of impunity regarding the killing and violence.
“The Committee is composed of nine governors, under the chairmanship of the Vice President and would work in accordance with the present commitment to ensuring that all perpetrators of violence are brought to book.
“The working group comprises governors of Zamfara, Kaduna, Adamawa, Benue, Taraba, Edo, Plateau, Ebonyi and Oyo States.
“The committee has started its meeting right after today’s National Economic Council.’’
The Kano governor also said that the Finance Minister Mrs Kemi Adeosun, informed NEC that 11 states had received the N700 million disbursed for budget support from the federal government.
He said that states with outstanding payment were asked to fulfil the necessary obligations before the disbursements were made adding that the criteria for disbursement was tied to the fiscal sustainable plan approved earlier by NEC.
He said the minister announced a balance of 2.32 billion dollars in the Excess Crude Account as at Jan. 15, while the stabilization fund account had balance of N9.73 billion and the National Resource Development Fund had N115.01 billion.
On his part Gov. Umahi said that NEC considered the need for increased domestic funding for the treatment of HIV following the presentation by the Health Minister and Director-General of NACA for the elimination of the condition by 2030.
He said the presentation stated that such increase would reduce dependence on donor funding for HIV services which was already declining due to present economic realities as well as to resolve other implications.
He said the Health chiefs also called for investment in HIV treatment that would lead to increased life expectancy in the country and proportionate increase in GDP.
He said that reducing the gap between those who require HIV care and treatment and those who had access was also given as reason for the proposal to invest in the treatment of HIV/AIDS.
“The presentation asked Council to approve the resolution of the 59th National Council of Health that at least between .one per cent and five per cent of the monthly federal allocation to states be earmarked for implementation of HIV/Aids sustainability roadmap.
“Council was also asked to approve universal free anti-natal services and abolition of user-fee associated with Prevention of Mother-to-Child transmission services.
“Council was also asked to ensure that state Health Insurance Schemes include HIV as an indicator disease for both testing and treatment particularly as it relates to community health insurance programmes.
“Council noted and approved the recommendations above as requested,’’ he added.
Umahi added that the Health Minister also briefed NEC on the outbreak of Lassa fever, especially in Ebonyi and the council agreed on immediate federal government’s intervention in Ebonyi and Ogun states.
On the update in the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, he said that after the presentation by the Minister of Budget and National Planning on the efforts by the federal government, NEC agreed that states to start the implementation of the programme. LR News
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An FCT High Court in Maitama on Thursday ordered the trial- within-trial in a culpable homicide charge slammed on a 37-year-old, Mathew Ankyoor, who allegedly killed his wife.
Justice Peter Affen, who gave the order, said it was necessary to ascertain the veracity of the statements made by the accused.
Ankyoor is standing trial for allegedly beating his wife to death with a three-count charge hanging around his neck.
The accused, who was first arraigned on Oct. 24, 2017, had pleaded not guilty.
At the resumed hearing of the case on Thursday, the Prosecuting Counsel, Mr Donatus Abah, called the first prosecution witness (PW1), Insp. Raymond Isama of the Homicide Section of the FCT Police Command.
The witness told the court that the case was transferred from the Lugbe Division of the command to the homicide section and was assigned to him to investigate.
He said Ankyoor had written the statement without coercion, adding that he (Isama) took both the accused and the statement to a superior officer where the document was signed and countered-signed.
The witness added that the accused voluntarily signed the statement before the superior officer, while he (Isama) countered-signed.
Isama  had also informed the court that he visited the scene of the crime as well as Wuse General Hospital, where a pathologist removed the baby inside the womb of the deceased, Mrs Doosuur Ankyoor.
He said that he took the photographs of the baby, who also died in the process of being removed from its dead mother’s womb.
The photographs were admitted as exhibits as the defence counsel did not object to its admissibility.
There was a mild drama as an argument ensued between the two counsel when Abah sought to tender the accused person’s statement as exhibit before the judge.
The Defendant’s Counsel, Mr John Godwin had objected to its admissibility on the grounds that it was contrary to Section 29 of the Evidence Act.
Godwin said the statement was not voluntarily made by the accused, adding that he was “tortured, coerced and intimidated into writing the statement”.
Arguing on point of law, the prosecuting counsel, insisted that the statement was admissible, adding that the defence counsel’s objection was only a ploy to delay the trial.
The judge, after entertaining the witness’ submission and arguments from both counsel, ordered a trial-within-trial to ascertain the veracity of Ankyoor’s claim.
He case was adjourned until Feb.19.
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The man shot was lying on some bags of rice


Commuters and passersby were caught in a pandemonium that broke out on Wednesday at the Abule Egba area of Lagos State when operatives of the Nigerian Customs Service opened fire on suspected smugglers’ vehicles.

The shootings claimed the life of one Toyeeb Olayiwola and allegedly left three others injured.

The officials attached to the Federal Operations Unit, Ikeja, were said to have chased some vehicles conveying suspected smuggled rice from the Sango-Ota area of Ogun State.
On getting to the Abule Egba under bridge  area around 6am, they reportedly opened fire on one of the vehicles.

Latest Reality Metro gathered that a bullet hit the head of Olayiwola, who was lying on some bags of rice in the bus. He died on the spot.

Not done, the officials were said to have moved into a commercial tricycle park in the area and continued firing at the occupants of the other vehicles, who had disembarked to protest the killing.

The suspected smugglers reportedly hurled stones at the officials, while the shootings intensified.

The chaos was said to have caused confusion as commuters and passersby scampered to safety.

A tricycle rider, who gave his name only as Samuel, said the officials, numbering about six, later fled the scene in their operational van.

He said, “The incident happened around 6am. I learnt the Customs men were chasing the vehicles from the Sango area. On getting to Abule Egba under bridge, they started shooting. The man that died was lying on some bags of rice.

“It was a time people were going to work. People were running helter-skelter amid gunshots. Apart from the man that was killed, about three persons were hit by stray bullets. The injured were taken away on motorcycles. During the shootings, the streetlights went off,  which heightened the confusion. After the Customs men left, the protesters created bonfires on the road, which caused traffic.”

Our correspondent learnt that operatives of the Oke-Odo Police Division, who mobilised to the scene, called for reinforcements from the Rapid Response Squad and the Lagos State Task Force on Environmental and Special Offences (Enforcement) Unit, to restore normalcy.

The RRS Commander, ACP Olatunji Disu, who represented the state Commissioner of Police, Edgal Imohimi, said the corpse and the vehicle were moved from the scene after the protesters were dispersed.

One of our correspondents, who was at the scene around 8am, saw an Armoured Personnel Carrier, mounted by the roadside.

Splinters of shattered glasses also littered the road.

A witness said many motorists abandoned their cars and fled to safety due to the continuous gunshots.

“I saw some children crying in a car. The driver, who was taking them to school, had fled due to the continuous shootings. One of the motor boys who accompanied the bags of rice was also injured and rushed to the hospital,” he added.

A commuter, Dele Adejare, said the shootings defied civility, adding that the Customs officials should be disciplined.

He said, “I don’t see reasons why Customs operatives would chase those people to the town. Were Customs officials not at the border the smugglers passed through? Why didn’t they stop them there? It is very wrong for them to shoot where there are passersby and commuters.”

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Chike Oti, confirmed the killing, adding that the corpse had been deposited in a mortuary.

 He said, “Around 5.30am, Customs officials were pursuing an alleged smugglers’ vehicle. They allegedly opened fire on the vehicle and one of the occupants died from gunshot wounds. The incident led to a protest, but the situation was brought under control by the police.”

However, the NCS Public Relations Officer at FOU, Jerry Attah, denied the killing.

Attah, in a statement, said officials had traced one LT bus loaded with unspecified bags of smuggled foreign parboiled rice from the Sango area and eventually stopped it at Abule Egba.

He said the bus driver made comments that made a mob to attack the officials with broken bottles, stones and cutlasses.

“Given the support of the mob, he resisted lawful arrest and the other armed operatives fired shots into the air to disperse the raging mob to no avail. As a responsible organisation, the officers retreated to avoid any casualty.  We appreciate and thank God that no life was lost as of the time of the confrontation, even though two of our officers sustained injuries.

“The fact that a smuggler has evaded scrutiny either by following an unapproved route or compromising any officer, does not guarantee that the smuggled item will not be seized anywhere it is found by patrol officers whose duty is to ensure compliance,” the statement added.

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The Adamawa State Chief Fire Officer, Alhaji Adamu Abdullahi, who confirmed the development to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said his men were battling to put out the fire.

 “I am at the scene of the incident and can assure you that things are under control. We are about to contain the fire which damage so far is not much,” Abdullahi said.

The Administrative Secretary of Adamawa State Emergency Management Agency, Mr. Hassan Furo, who also confirmed the incident, said that the extent of damage could not be ascertained as of the time of filing this report.

NAN report that similar fire outbreak was recorded in the market in 2015 were properties worth billions of naira were lost.
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Despite N298bn appreciation recorded in the country’s equities market, Nascon Allied Industries Plc, Cadbury Nigeria Plc and University Press Plc closed in losses at Wednesday’s trading.

Nacon, Cadbury and UPL shares plummeted respectively by 4.98 per cent, 4.97 per cent and 4.94 per cent.

Trailing the top three losers were Airline Services and Logistics Plc and AG Leventis Nigeria Plc, which also slumped by 4.87 per cent and 4.17 per cent, accordingly.

 A total of 960.751 million shares valued at N12.52bn exchanged hands in 8,866 deals.
The Nigerian Stock Exchange market capitalization rose to N16.080tn from N15.782tn while the NSE All-Share Index closed at 44,885.24 basis points from 44,054.72 basis points.

 The Nigerian equities market advanced by 1.89 per cent, pushing the year-to-date return up to 17.37 per cent. Similarly, market volume and value advanced by 51.20 per cent and 63.96 per cent, respectively.

The market recorded 44 gainers and 19 losers.

The Cement Company of Northern Nigeria Plc led the market with a 10.17 per cent share price appreciation. Other top gainers were Diamond Bank Plc, Sterling Bank Plc, Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc and Fidelity Bank Plc, which appreciated accordingly by 10.1 per cent, 10 per cent, 9.91 per cent and 9.75 per cent.

All sector indices closed positively, save for the consumer goods sector, which declined by 0.64 per cent.

The NSE industrial goods, the NSE insurance, the NSE oil/gas and the NSE banking indices advanced by 4.42 per cent, 1.80 per cent, 1.79 per cent and 0.51 per cent, accordingly.

Commenting on the market’s performance, analysts at Meristem Securities Limited, in a post, said, “The Nigerian bourse continues to record increased investor confidence as the market advanced further by 1.89 per cent on Wednesday.

“We note that activities in the day were skewed towards counters below N5, as they were 30 out of the 44 gainers. However, we posit that the market’s impressive performance was as a result of the N13 gain on Dangote Cement Plc, as the market would have advanced by just 0.67 per cent ex-Dangote Cement.

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Mr Jide Omokore


An official of Stanbic IBTC Plc, Mr. Adedayo Adesanmi, told the Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday that the accounts of a businessman, Jide Omokore, with the bank and into which $1.6bn proceeds of sales of the Federal Government’s crude oil were allegedly diverted, had been closed as a result of “a worldwide freezing order.”

Adesanmi, who is a Senior Manager with the bank and the Relationship Manager for the two companies’ accounts, disclosed this while testifying as the fourth prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of Omokore and others before Justice Nnamdi Dimgba.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is prosecuting Omokore, his two companies, Atlantic Energy Brass Development Limited and Atlantic Energy Drilling Concepts Limited, and others on nine counts of criminal diversion of about $1.6bn alleged to be part of proceeds of sales of petroleum products belonging to the Federal Government.

The other defendants are a former Managing Director of the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company, Victor Briggs; a former Group Executive Director, Exploration and Production of the NNPC, Abiye Membere; and a former Manager, Planning and Commercial of the NNPC, David Mbanefo.

Late last year, one of the counts in which the name of the immediate-past Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, who was said to be Omokore’s ally was mentioned, was struck out by the court following an application by the former minister’s lawyers.

Fielding questions from the lead prosecuting counsel, Mr. Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), on Wednesday, Adesanmi had said each of the Atlantic Energy Brass Development Limited and Atlantic Energy Drilling Concepts Limited, had a naira and dollar accounts with Stanbic IBTC.

He explained to the court how the funds were paid into separate dollar accounts of the two companies by Glencore, London.

However, the issue of the closing down of the accounts was raised by a defence lawyer, Mr. Adeniyi Adegbonmire (SAN), while cross-examining the witness.

 Adesanmi answered in the affirmative when Adegbonmire asked him if he knew that something “occurred in those accounts that necessitated the accounts being closed.”

Answering further questions from the defence lawyer, the witness said the payments into the accounts were “proceeds of sales of crude oil,” but admitted that nothing on the statements of accounts described the entries as such.

After the witness was cross-examined by the defence lawyers, he was again re-examined by the prosecuting counsel, during which he explained that the accounts of the companies were closed as a result of a worldwide freezing order.

 Adegbonmire had objected to the question being asked on the grounds that it did not qualify as a re-examination question, but the judge overruled him.

 Responding to Jacobs’ question of why the accounts were closed, the witness said, “The bank got a worldwide freezing order. There were also negative press generated by the accounts and frequent invitation from security agencies because of the accounts.”

Earlier, the prosecution had tendered the statements of the four accounts and other relevant documents including the ones dealing with the incorporation of the two companies, account opening packages and instruction mandates authorising  various transactions on the accounts.

The documents were tendered and admitted as exhibits by the court without any objection from the defence lawyers.

The witness gave a breakdown of how a total sum of $563,983,556.53 was paid between the period of June 2013 and July 2014 into the dollar account of the Atlantic Energy Brass Development Limited, a firm which he said was incorporated on February 5, 2013.

 According to him, the first tranche of $11,135,517.30 was paid into the account on June 14, 2013, barely four months after the company was incorporated.

 Reading from the account statement, he said, “The period covered by the statement covers April 4, 2013 to September 3, 2015 (account statement range).

“There was no other entry before the beginning of the range.

 “The first entry on the account of the Atlantic Energy Brass Development was on June 14, 2013 and it was a credit of $11,135,517.30. The amount that entered the account was from Glencore, United Kingdom.

“On July 11, 2013 there was an inflow of $79,408,556. 24. On July 19, 2013 there was an inflow of $19,570,062.69.  There were other inflows from June 2013 to July 2014.”

At that point, Justice Dimgba noted that it was unnecessary for the witness to read out the entries on the statement one after the other as “the document speaks for itself.”

Taking his cue from the judge’s advice, Jacobs asked Adesanmi to give only a summary of the entries into the account.

Responding to further questions, the witness said, “Yes there were other inflows from Glencore, London. The total credit was $563,983,556.53 between the period of June 2013 and July 2014.”

For Atlantic Drilling Concept Limited the witness said, “There were entries of both debit and credit in the naira and dollar accounts.”

Under cross-examination by a defence lawyer, Mr. Lawal Rabana, Adesanmi said he made two statements to the EFCC, the second being made on November 8, 2017.

He confirmed that it was correct that the transactions as recorded by him in his statement to the EFCC “followed a normal banking transaction.”

Under cross-examination by another defence counsel, Mr. Tayo Oyetibo (SAN), Adesanmi admitted that the bank had a money laundering compliance officer and that the bank never had any cause to query any of the accounts for money laundering activities before the charges against the defendants were instituted.

The trial continues on Thursday (today). LR News

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