News & Announcements

The Labour Party’s candidate, Peter Obi, submitted documents in support of his appeal opposing the election of President Bola Tinubu. The Independent National Electoral Commission has stated its objections to the materials.

Since the beginning of the hearing, the electoral body had argued against the petitioners’ use of the various documents they had submitted as exhibits to the Presidential Election Petition Court to support their claims, and it had maintained, like other respondents, that the petition’s arguments would be made during the address stage.

In contrast, during Friday’s proceedings, Kemi Pinhero, SAN, the attorney for INEC, informed the court that the electoral organization had objected to the presenting of the election result sheets because the petitioners had gone beyond the regions in which the election was in dispute.

According to him, those local government areas that were unlawfully included in the court’s procedures are foreign to the petition and are unable to uphold the law.

Justice Harunna Tsammani, the chairperson of the five-person panel, interjected and stated that it was improper for the lawyer to provide justification for their objection after the commission had stated that it will do so at the address stage of the proceedings.

Later, Peter Afoba, SAN, who handled the proceedings for Obi and LP, submitted more materials to the PEPC to support their petition against Tinubu. These exhibits were accepted and designated as materials PB 16 to PB 21, and they were labelled as such.

The Justice Haruna Tsammani-led panel entered the exhibits into evidence, which consisted of certified authentic copies of the presidential election results from six states of the federation: Adamawa, Bayelsa, Oyo, Edo, Lagos, and Akwa Ibom.

Obi claimed in his suit that there was widespread vote suppression in Lagos State even though he won the presidential election there.

In addition, the petitioners provided the court with evidence, which included the outcome from the Bida Local Government Area in Niger State, which was accepted as Exhibit PE 24.

He submitted the election results from a few local government areas earlier on Thursday in the states of Rivers, Niger, Benue, Cross River, Osun, and Ekiti, but he omitted the Bida LGA from submission.

Other respondents, including INEC, protested to the document’s inclusion and stated that they would reserve their objections until the petition’s final address stage.

The results from 21 LGAs in Adamawa State were subsequently accepted by the court and designated as Exhibits PH 1 through PH 21. Exhibits PJ1 to PJ8 were designated as the presidential election results from the eight LGAs in Bayelsa State.

PK 1 through PK 31 were the results from the 31 LGAs in Oyo that the court accepted as exhibits, whereas PL 1 through PL 18 were the results from the 18 LGAs in Edo State.

Results from 31 LGAs in Akwa Ibom State and 20 LGAs in Lagos State were also tendered, and both sets of results were accepted as exhibits as Exhibits PM 1 through PM 20 and Exhibits PN 1 through PN 31.

The panel adjourned to Monday, May 5, for a further hearing in the matter.

Next Wednesday will see the start of a national strike called by the Nigeria Labour Congress.

The congress declared that a strike would be called if the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited did not change the new pump pricing for Premium Motor Spirit.

After the National Executive Council’s emergency meeting on Friday in Abuja, the NLC made the choice.

The President, Bola Tinubu, during his inaugural speech on Monday, May 29, 2023, announced the removal of fuel subsidy. “Subsidy is gone,” Tinubu had said.

Nevertheless, the President’s image makers argued that the incoming president was misquoted by several media outlets in words made public by the White House.

Following Tinubu’s statement, there was a spike in panic buying, with some gas stations across the nation marking up the price of gasoline at the pump to as much as N600 per litre.

The NNPCL announced new pump prices on May 31, 2023, according to the states.

A meeting between some government representatives and NLC leaders resulted in a standstill.

However at the end of its NEC meeting on Friday, the national president of the NLC, Joe Ajaero, while briefing journalists said, “The NLC NEC directs all state councils and industrial unions to commence mobilisation from this moment.”

On Friday, President Bola Tinubu named Femi Gbajabiamila, the departing Speaker of the House of Representatives, as his new Chief of Staff.

Additionally, he appointed Sen. Ibrahim Hadejia, a former deputy governor of Jigawa State, as deputy chief of staff and George Akume, a former minister of special duties, as secretary to the government of the federation.

This information was provided in a statement headlined “President Tinubu appoints Gbajabiamila COS, Sen. Ibrahim Hadejia, DCOS, and George Akume, SGF,” which was released on Friday and was signed by State House Director of Information Abiodun Oladunjoye.

“In a meeting with Progressives Governors Forum, the President also named former Governor of Benue State and immediate past Minister of Special Duties, George Akume, Secretary to the Government of the Federation,” the statement read.

Passengers who boarded United Nigeria have expressed gratitude to God for being alive after the plane crash-lands at the Lagos airport.

According to reports, the tragic incident happened on Wednesday, May 31st when the plane reportedly crashed-landed at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Ikeja, Lagos State.

The plane was said to have taken off from Ebonyi State when one of its tires was removed while trying to land at the airport causing it to crash-land.

After the plane crashed-landed at the airport, passengers who were onboard were seen holding their bags and luggage after they were rescued.

According to one of the passengers who spoke to the news team, he disclosed how the plane started shaking when one of the tires was removed halfway to land.

Additionally that the pilot had no choice but to manage to land in the bush for everyone’s safety.

He disclosed that the plane nearly caught fire after the tyre was removed.

In his words, “The plane started shaking as soon as the tyre was removed. The pilots managed to land the plane in the bush. It was an emergency landing and the plane almost caught fire.”

The Zimbabwean government this week summoned Elaine French, the US ambassador in Harare, over Washington’s suspected meddling in the nation’s approaching elections. 

The charge d’affaires was called, according to a statement from the foreign affairs ministry of the country in southern Africa, after the US Embassy in Harare posted several messages on social media this month urging Zimbabweans to “register to vote and make sure your voice is heard.”

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade summoned the Chargé D’Affaires after the US embassy issued several election-related social media posts via Twitter on 26 May 2023,” the ministry stated.

The US diplomat was informed by Rofina Chikava, Zimbabwe’s acting secretary for foreign affairs, that her country was troubled by the embassy’s advertisements because they “border on activism and meddle in Zimbabwe’s internal affairs.”

Additionally, the ministry called the mission’s actions “unacceptable” and a departure from “conventional diplomatic norms and values enshrined in the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961),” and it urged that such behaviour be avoided in the interest of fostering better ties between Zimbabwe and Washington.

While emphasizing her embassy’s position on free and fair elections in Zimbabwe, where ties with the US have been strained for decades as a result of sanctions imposed on the late Robert Mugabe’s regime for alleged human rights violations and electoral fraud, French took note of Harare’s worries.

The US Consulate’s spokeswoman, Meg Riggs, was cited by VOA News, which is supported by the US government, as saying that there was no issue with the election-related posts.

We continue to stand by the recent social media posts we made urging for harmony during the election season. According to Riggs, who was quoted by VOA News, “These unbiased, apolitical messages showcase the work of Zimbabwean artists who wished to educate their fellow youth on the value of peace during an electoral process.

A photographer who claims Kanye West threw her cell phone to the ground in a confrontation is suing the troubled rapper for assault.

Nichol Lechmanik said on Thursday that the artiste, who is now formally known as Ye, caused her “great mental and emotional pain” in the January confrontation.

At a press conference in Los Angeles, journalists heard how the paparazzo was outside a sports center in Ventura County, north of the city, where Ye and Kim Kardashian’s son were playing.

The lawsuit says Lechmanik had taken photographs of Kardashian and then saw Ye standing outside arguing with someone, so began filming him from her car.

The clip, which was played for reporters, shows Ye approaching the vehicle and addressing the photographer.

“If I wanna go see my son at a game, You all ain’t gonna run up on me like that. If I say stop, stop with your cameras,” the rapper says.

“I know, but Kanye, you are a celebrity,” Lechmanik replies, continuing to film.

The footage shows Ye reaching into her car, grabbing the phone, and throwing it to the ground before he walks away.

“He caused me so much fear that I have not been the same since,” Lechmanik told reporters Thursday.

“His actions have interfered with my ability to work. Although I am not a world-famous artist (like) Ye, I have just as much right to work as he does. He has no right to assault me, batter me, or cause me to be afraid to pursue my profession.”

The suit, filed in Ventura County, seeks “general, special and punitive damages,” attorney Gloria Allred said. No figure was given on the amount being sought.

Confrontations between paparazzi and celebrities in and around Los Angeles are not uncommon, with movie stars and musicians complaining that they are abused and harassed by people who follow them incessantly.

Such freelance photographers say images of famous people are often tightly controlled, and that a picture of an unguarded moment is the only way to make a living in a highly competitive marketplace.

Kanye and Kardashian, who have four children together, divorced last year in an acrimonious split, after around a decade together.
                 

President Joe Biden took a face-first tumble on Thursday after tripping over an obstacle on stage at the Air Force Academy in Colorado, but he appeared unhurt.

Biden, 80, who had delivered the commencement address to graduates of the military academy, had just shaken hands with a cadet and begun walking back to his seat when he fell.

Air Force personnel helped him back up and he did not appear to require further help.

As he rose, Biden pointed to the object that had apparently caught his foot. It resembled a small black sandbag on the stage.

Biden is the oldest person ever in the presidency and is seeking a second term in the 2024 election. His official doctor’s report this year declared him physically fit and he exercises regularly.

In November 2020, shortly after winning his election against the incumbent Donald Trump, Biden broke his foot while playing with a pet dog.

Abba Kabir Yusuf, the governor of Kano State, encouraged petroleum marketers to restore the previous rates for petroleum products on Monday evening to ease the current suffering felt by the general populace.

The governor is aware that the marketers still had old products in stock that were intended to be sold at the prior pricing, according to a press release from the governor’s spokesman, Sanusi Bature Dawakin Tofa.

“To reduce the needless hardship on the state’s citizens, the marketers should exercise some restraint and quickly reopen all filling stations, with available products in stock to sell at the former price.

“As a concerned governor, I am disheartened to see our dear people of Kano suffering as a result of an unjustifiable fuel hike, and the situation must be stopped right away,” the governor said.

According to Yusuf, Kano is the commercial center of the nation’s northern region as well as some West African nations, and its thronging population continues to profit from favorable economic conditions.

The governor advised the law-abiding citizenry of Kano State to remain calm and follow the law because the government was ready to ensure that people could go about their daily business easily.

Joe Agada, the PDP’s first witness on Thursday, said that the BVAS devices were altered in the most recent presidential election and that he was coerced into signing the results while serving as the state collation officer in Kogi State.

During his cross-examination in the Presidential Election Petition Court, where the results of the election on February 25 are being contested, retired captain Agada made this statement.

The trained pharmacist told the court that he had the chance to visit some polling units in some Local Government Areas. He was identified by the counsel for the Independent National Electoral Commission and the cross-examiner, Abdullahi Aliyu SAN, as a past witness in 2019 for the petitioners, the PDP and its candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

He provided a positive response when INEC’s attorney questioned him about a rumored manipulation of ballot papers and whether it took place in his presence.

More so, he also alleged that he was present while the BVAS devices were manipulated.

Aliyu had asked, ” You were present while the BVAS devices were also manipulated?”

“Yes, in not less than 20 Polling Units I visited across 2 senatorial districts.”

He acknowledged that he had spent between three and five minutes in the impacted areas.

Agada further claimed that INEC officials at the state level coerced him into signing the results.

He said that if he hadn’t signed the documents, his party would not have received a copy.

He said, ” I was forced to sign which I protested because without signing I was going to be denied a copy to my party.”

He, however, admitted that he did not mention the incident in his witness deposition.

An Osun State High Court sitting in Osogbo has sentenced Miss Adedeji Adesola, the receptionist who received late Timothy Adegoke when he lodged in the Hilton Honors Hotel, Ile-Ife in the evening of November 6, 2021, to two years imprisonment for altering the receipt issued to the deceased.

It was claimed that the receptionist created a different receipt to hide any evidence of Adegoke’s lodging at the motel.

Adesola was found guilty on Tuesday by the presiding court, Justice Adepele Ojo, of altering the hotel receipt given to the deceased, creating another, and hiding evidence brought against her.

Ojo stated that the two years should begin to run from the first day she was imprisoned following the start of the proceedings.

However, Dr. Rahman Adedoyin, owner of the Hilton Hotel in Ile-Ife, was given a death by hanging sentence by Justice Oyebola Ojo, chief judge of Osun State.

In a previous ruling, Justice Ojo found Adedoyin, the owner of the Hilton Hotel in Ile-Ife, where Timothy Adegoke, a postgraduate student at OAU, was reportedly killed, guilty of murder.

In her ruling, Justice Ojo stated that the hotel’s owner and two of his employees were found guilty of murderous conspiracy and unlawful death of the dead based on the facts of the case presented by the prosecution attorney, Femi Falana, SAN.