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Adekeye, Apex Court Jurist, Bows Out By Felix Nnamdi / Judiciary Correspondent Published on Wednesday, 31 October, 2012 by pmnews Supreme Court jurist, Justice Olufnlola Oyelola Adekeye, who attained the mandatory retirement age of 70 years on 28 October, retired from service in a valedictory session held in her honour on Wednesday at the Supreme Court complex in Abuja, Nigeria's capital. The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloma Mukhtar, praised Justice Adekeye’s great ability to incisively deal with issues in a matter and noted that the retiring jurist communicates in the most simple and analytical manner that is highly commendable. "Justice Adekeye is very versatile, a quality she brought to bear on her judgments. It is no wonder she was found worthy for appointment as presiding Justice of the Court of Appeal in the Ilorin Division in 2008," the CJN added. Also speaking at the event, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Moham...

Court Throws Out Bakassi Indigenes' Suit Published on Wednesday, 24 October, 2012 by pmnews Nnamdi Felix / Abuja A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Wednesday threw out the suit filed by indigenes of Bakassi in Cross Rivers state seeking for an order to void the Green Tree Agreement that Nigeria signed with Cameroon in 2006. The Green Tree Agreement officially marked the ceding of the oil rich peninsula to Cameroon by Nigeria and it also gave effect to the 2002 judgment of the International Court of Justice declaring Cameroon as the lawful owner of Bakkasi. The applicants had sought for an order of mandamus compelling the Federal Government to re possess, occupy and take full legal and administrative control of the Bakassi Peninsula. Delivering ruling on the motion ex parte, Justice Gabriel Kolawole held that the reliefs being sought by the plaintiffs were political in nature. He said that it was clear that the applicants counsel had a misconception of what he w...

Ndume Admitted Links to Boko Haram, Says SSS Published on Wednesday 24, October 2012 by Nnamdi Felix / Abuja An operative of the State Security Service, SSS, on Wednesday told a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja that embattled Senator Aliyu Mohammed Ndume who is standing trial for allegedly providing finance and logistics to the dreaded Boko Haram Islamic fundamentalists sect, admitted having links with the sect. Senator Ndume represents Borno South Senatorial District at the National Assembly. The operative, Mr. James Ene Izi appeared as prosecution witness 2 in the on-going trial of the senator and made the disclosure while giving evidence. He further stated that the embattled senator confessed to having telephone interactions with the jailed former spokesperson of the sect, Ali Konduga in a voluntary statement he offered during interrogation at the SSS headquarters. Mr. Izi added that when the senator and Konduga were made to face each other, Ndume claimed to be see...

Director Docked Over Breach of Federal Character Principle in Employment Published on Monday, 22 October 2012 by pmnews Nnamdi Felix / Abuja The Director General of the National Centre for Technology Management, Dr. Willie Siyanbola, on Monday in Abuja, protested his proposed arraignment before the Code of Conduct tribunal where he was dragged by the Code of Conduct Bureau for allegedly contravening the federal character principle in a recent recruitment exercise at the establishment. Mr. Siyanbola was alleged to have run foul of the federal character principle by employing over 60 per cent of the newly employed officers of the federal government agency from his home state in breach of section 14 (3) of the constitution. The section provides as follows, 14 (3): The composition of the Government of the Federation or any of its agencies and the conduct of its affairs shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the federal character of Nigeria and the need to promote nat...

2015: Jonathan's kinsman opposes his candidacy Published on Monday, 22 October, 2012 by pmnews Nnamdi Felix / Abuja As Nigerians await the decision of an Abuja High Court over the speculated candidacy of President Goodluck Jonathan in the 2015 Presidential election, one of the President’s kinsmen from the South South region of Nigeria, has approached a Federal High Court also siting in Abuja for an order barring the President from running for office in 2015 as it will amount to breaching a constitutional provision prescribing a period of not more than eight years for occupants of that office. The litigant, Mr. Henry Amadi, a native of Elele – Alimini but residing at Rumumoi in Rumuigbo Town of Obio / Akpor local government council of Rivers state and a registered voter in Ward 9, Emohua local government area also in Rivers state, told the court that President Jonathan first took oath of office and oath of allegience on the 6th of May, 2010, following the death of his predec...

2015: Judge's absence postpones verdict on Jonathan Published on Thursday 18, 2012 by pmnews Nnamdi Felix / Abuja The inexplicable absence of Justice Mudashiru Oniyangi of an Abuja High Court on Thursday stalled the scheduled delivery of the judgment in a suit instituted by a Peoples Democratic Party chieftain to prevent President Goodluck Jonathan from contesting the 2015 Presidential election. The court had earlier scheduled to deliver its decision on the matter for today but the event was stalled as the judge was said not to be around to deliver the judgment which, P M News learnt, was ready to be delivered. A female court official who declined to be named said the judge traveled out of the jurisdiction but could not say whether the judge was attending a conference or any other official assignment that made him to be absent from his duty post. The President’s party chieftain, Mr. Cyriacus Njoku, was miffed with Jonathan’s statement earlier in March that he is servi...

2015: Judgment Day On Suit To Stop Jonathan Published on 17 October by pmnews Nnamdi Felix / Abuja Ahead of Thursday’s judgment by an Abuja High Court in a suit brought against President Goodluck Jonathan’s speculated second term bid by a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Nigerians have been called to remain calm and law abiding irrespective of which way the judgment goes. The chieftain, Mr. Cyriacus Njoku made the call ahead of the judgment day. He had earlier attempted to stop the President from contesting the 2011 Presidential election on the ground that Jonathan’s candidacy violated the zoning principle of the party. In the instant suit, Mr. Njoku is asking the court to stop President Jonathan contesting the 2015 presidential elections on the grounds that he is already in his second term in office. The President, in his response to the suit, insisted that he is currently doing his first term of four years in office as the President of the federal Repub...

Council boss docked for cult membership Published on October 16, 2012 by pmnews Felix / Abuja In a move calculated to enforce a constitutional restriction on public officials from membership of secret cults, the Nigerian government on Tuesday dragged a local council chairman before the code of conduct tribunal for allegedly being a member of national association of Buccaneers. Mr. Emil Lemke Inyang, chairman of Biase local government council of Cross Rivers state, however denied the allegation and pleaded not guilty to the charge. He also challenged the jurisdiction of the conduct tribunal to entertain his trial over the charge and filed in an application claiming that the tribunal did not follow due process in bringing him to trial. Mr. Iyang also argued that the Code of Conduct Bureau did not invite him to admit or deny the allegation before dragging him to the tribunal for trial and considered such act as unconstitutional. He therefore pleaded with the tribunal to quash...

NNAMDI FELIX / ABUJA Published on October 15, 2012 by TheNEWS Magazine Confusion and outrage have continued to trail the demolition of 372 unites of 3 and 2 Bedrooms apartment buildings financed by the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, FMBN, through an estate development company, Minanuel Int. Limited, owners and promoters of Minanuel Estate, situated at Goza, a layout in Lugbe District, along the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja. Residents and beneficiaries are miffed at the massive destruction of a project that would have helped in easing the ever increasing cost of decent accommodation in the city by a government which had consistently sang songs of providing decent accommodation for the teeming population of the capital city. Trouble started brewing between the estate developers and Development Control, an agency of the Federal Capital Territory Administration saddled with regulating development in Abuja, some months ago when the estate developers mobilized t...

Court strikes out suit opposed to Justice Salami's return Published on 15, October by pmnews  Nnamdi Felix / Abuja  A Nigerian court siting in Abuja, on Monday struck out a suit instituted by persons who were opposed to the return of ousted President of Court of Appeal, Justice Ayo Isa Salami. The suit was calculated to forestall the implementation of a latest recommendation by the National Judicial Council, NJC, the regulatory authority for judicial officers. The body recently called for the reinstatement of the jurist who was forcefully sent on compulsory leave by President Goodluck Jonathan as a fallout of an allegation the jurist levied against erstwhile Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloysius Katsina Alu. The order of the court striking out the suit was sequel to a drama which ensued at the last proceedings when the man whose name was purportedly used in instituting the action on 19th June 19, Mr. Wilfred Okoli, told the court that he had no knowledge of t...

Court Grants Journalist N100M For Assault Published on October 8, 2012 by pmnews Nnamdi Felix / Abuja Nearly three years after being assaulted and battered by men of the Nigerian Police Force and officials of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc in Abuja, a senior reporter with TheNEWS Magazine / PM News, Mr. Desmond Utomwen, has been awarded the sum of N100 million as damages against the bank by an Abuja High Court. Mr. Utomwen, supported by the Nigerian Union of Journalists, NUJ, had dragged the bank and the Nigeria Police Force before the court for battering and assaulting him while officially investigating a protest at the Area 3, Garki branch of the bank by some customers who had accused the bank of inexplicable and irregular withdrawals via ATM from their accounts domiciled at the bank on Friday, December 11, 2009 The presiding judge, Justice U. K. Kekemeke while delivering the judgment in the matter decried the assault on the journalist who was merely carrying out his legitimate du...

JAMB Doubts Varsities' Readiness For 2012 Admission Indications emerged on Thursday that many applicants who applied for entry into Nigerian Universities for the 2012\ 2013 session would not realize their ambition as the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board declared that only 10 out of the nation’s 71 Universities may likely meet the 31st October, 2012 admission deadline for the 2012\2013 academic session. JAMB Registrar, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde  made this known at a meeting in Abuja between the Minister of Education and management of the tertiary institutions, to review the preparedness of the institutions ahead of the October deadline. In view of the development, Minister of Education, Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufai, issued a Seven day ultimatum to all the institutions to meet with the relevant admission and regulatory agencies to iron out their challenges ahead of the deadline. Out of the 71 institutions invited for the meeting, including Colleges of Education and Polytechnics, o...

Fuel Importation: Court Moves To Enforce FOI Act Nnamdi Felix / Abuja Recently passed Freedom of Information Act, FIOA, was further strengthened by a Federal High Court sitting in  Abuja which made an order granting leave to a legal practitioner, Mr. Ojukwu Chikaosolu, to apply for  judicial review  for an order of mandamus to compel the Executive Secretary of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, PPPRA, Mr. Reginald Kingsley, to release information demanded by the lawyer under the Freedom of Information Act. Mr. Chikaosolu had on the 19th of July requested information on the list of companies who had obtained import licenses and volumes of products allocated in their respective permits. He sought for the information with a view to curbing sharp and fraudulent practices in the petroleum import transaction through an informative and open process. He also demanded to know whether the Executive Secretary had resigned his employment with the Nigerian National Petr...