PRESS RELEASE
- Sanwo-Olu to receive Dr. Julius Marcus-Garvey, other returnees
Badagry, an ancient city in Lagos State will host a historical, spiritual and economic event tagged ‘Fourth Door of Return’, where hundreds of diaspora Africans are expected to return to their motherland, next week Saturday.
The major highlight of the event will see the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu walk through the door of return to welcome the Returnees, who would be led by Dr. Julius Marcus-Garvey.
The Fourth Door of Return programmes would be held from October 19 to 21 at Badagry in Lagos West Senatorial District of Lagos State.
Speaking during a press conference at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre, Alausa, Ikeja, on Monday, the Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, said the Fourth Door of Return will not only be of economic, physical and spiritual benefits to Lagos residents but to people living in the diaspora.
She said various activities had been lined up and dignitaries invited to the event would positively project Lagos tourist attraction and culture to the World.
Dabiri-Erewa who commended Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu for his administration’s tremendous support for the Door of Return event, said the unique and significant event would bring economic, physical and spiritual benefits to signify a return to the door of joy, peace, prosperity and progress.
She said: “I want to commend Governor Sanwo-Olu for the tremendous support for the Fourth Door of Return ceremony.
“What Bagadry has, no place in the world has it. Door of Return is going to be the biggest tourism event from Badagry, Lagos and Nigeria.
“The Door of Return includes receiving our brothers and sisters who were taken away as slaves over 400 years ago and it would be a historical, spiritual, emotional and physical experience for the pilgrims. It is a connection to what we call the Joy of Return.
“They are going to take a long walk through that path to the Point of No Return. They now come back where we receive them as kings and queens from the place where their ancestors were taken away many years ago as slaves. It is an event that everybody needs to participate in.
“When you come to witness the Door of Return ceremony in Lagos on October 21, you are going to see what Badagry has. What Lagos has for tourism, no country in the world has what Badagry has.
Also speaking, Lagos State Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Mrs. Toke Benson-Awoyinka, said the State Government is committed to unveiling the hidden treasures of Badagry and Lagos State to the world through the Fourth Door of Return programme.
Benson-Awoyinka, who decried the inhumane treatment meted out to the ancestors taken out of the continent over 400 years ago, said the Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration is committed to restoring the joy of every black man while narrating her experience at the door.
The Chairman, Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Tourism and Culture, Hon. Solomon Bonu, promised that the lawmakers would do everything within the confines of the law to support the event.
Press Release
Election Petitions Tribunal Affirms Election Of Rt. Hon Dekor
… Dismisses Petitions filed by APC, SDP, Accord Party
… Victory at the Election Stamped – Rt Hon Dekor
… Appreciates God, FCT Minister, Governor Fubara
… Calls for Unity amongst Ogonis
… Dedicates the Victory to the memory of Hon Barr DineBari Loolo
In a landmark decision, the Election Petitions Tribunal has upheld the election victory of the member representing Khana/Gokana Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon Dumnamene Robinson Dekor, affirming the legitimacy of his mandate.
The All Progressives Congress (APC)’s petition filed at the Tribunal by Mr. Eric Nwibani, against the election of Rt. Hon Dumnamene Robinson Dekor of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, was dismissed by the Tribunal.
Also dismissed were two other petitions filed against Rt. Hon Dumunamene Robinson Dekor by Mr. Naaku Paul of the Accord Party and Mr. Friday Nke-ee of the Social Democratic Party (SDP).
The Tribunal dismissed all the petitions filed by the All Progressives Congress, APC, Social Democratic Party, SDP, and Accord Party, solidifying the credibility and integrity of the electoral process.
In a statement following the Tribunal’s verdict, Rt. Hon. Dekor expressed gratitude to God for the victory.
The elated federal lawmaker also expressed deep appreciation to the immediate past Governor of Rivers State, and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Barr Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, the Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara for their support and encouragement during and after the election.
Rt. Hon. Dekor commended the good people of Khana/Gokana Federal Constituency for voting for him and also standing by him throughout the Tribunal proceedings.
He also expressed appreciation to the Tribunal for their impartiality and commitment to upholding democratic principles.
He reiterated that his victory in the election has been reaffirmed and emphasized his commitment to serving Ogoni people faithfully and diligently.
“We have always believed in the choice made by our constituents. This Tribunal decision validates their trust in us and affirms that our electoral process remains robust and transparent,” Rt. Hon. Dekor stated.
He extended an olive branch to all his brothers involved, urging unity and cooperation for the progress and development of Ogoni land.
“We must put the election behind us and come together to work for the betterment of our people. Unity is essential, and I am ready to collaborate with all stakeholders in Ogoni to ensure a brighter future for the
Ogoni people”, he concluded.
Rt. Hon. Dekor dedicated the victory to the memory of his long standing and dependable ally, Hon. Barr. DineBari Loolo, who passed on recently.
He regretted that Hon. Barr. DineBari Loolo is not alive today, to celebrate the victory with him.
The Tribunal’s ruling marks a significant milestone in Dum Dekor’s electoral journey, underlining the importance of respecting the will of the people and the democratic process.
It will be recalled that Rt. Hon. Dumnamene Robinson Dekor won the election with 18,641 votes to defeat other candidates.
Signed:
Rt. Hon. Dum Dekor Media Team
NDLEA arrests 67-year-old at Abuja airport for ingesting 100 wraps of cocaine
– Nabs Saudi-bound lady with 52 pellets at Kano airport; destroys over 11 tonnes of cannabis in Ogun, Edo forests
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have arrested a 67-year-old trafficker, Chukwuemeka Clement, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, NAIA, Abuja for ingesting 100 wraps of cocaine, a criminal enterprise he claimed he ventured into to raise enough money to marry a new wife and start life afresh after wasting 30 years of his life in Brazil, Ethiopia and Thailand.
Chukwuemeka was arrested on Tuesday 3rd October during the inward clearance of passengers on Ethiopian Airlines flight 951 from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and taken for body scan, which revealed multiple pellets in his stomach. While under observation, he excreted a total of 100 wraps of cocaine weighing 2.195 kilograms in four excretions.
In his statement, he claimed to have spent 30 years in Brazil, Ethiopia and Thailand, while he was once married, but lost his wife and without a child. He added that was why he decided to go into drug trafficking to raise enough money to marry a new wife and start life afresh.
On the same day, Tuesday 3rd October, NDLEA operatives at the Malam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano, intercepted a 45-year-old woman, Bilkisu Mohammed Bello while preparing to board a Saudia Airlines flight to Saudi Arabia.
While being interviewed, she confessed that pellets of cocaine given to her to swallow before her flight were kept in a house in Farawa area of Kano. When she led NDLEA officers to the house, 52 wraps of the illicit substance with a total weight of 767grams were recovered.
Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives supported by officers and men of the Nigerian Army, Civil Defence Corps and Amotekun personnel on Tuesday 3rd October stormed James town, in Ogunmakin, Obafemi Owode local government area of Ogun state where they located and destroyed 10.38 tonnes of cannabis sativa covering over 4.152 hectares.
While on their way back from the operation, the team also intercepted a truck marked FS548XN carrying a 40ft container loaded with logs of wood. A search of the container led to the recovery of two bags of cannabis sativa weighing 20kgs while six suspects: Ahmed Yusuf, Olaniyi Babatunde, Adedeji Babatunde, Richard John, Osolale Olamilekan and Abdulazeez Saied, in the truck were arrested.
In the same vein, operatives on Sunday 1st October raided Obi camp in Owan West LGA, Edo state where 30 sacks of skunk weighing 300kgs and concealed in charcoal were evacuated from an old dilapidated mud house. Similarly, two cannabis farms measuring 1.179065 hectares at Igbanke forest in Orhiowon local government area of the state were identified and destroyed on Friday 6th October while four suspects: Tersoo Zaria, 28; Ifeanyi Osai, 53; Moses David, 19, and Daniel Gabriel, 20, were arrested.
In Gombe state, a suspect, Auwal Bindow was arrested on Friday 6th October along Bauchi – Gombe road with 50,000 capsules of tramadol, while in Oyo state, NDLEA operatives on patrol along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway nabbed Anuoluwapo Blessing Iyanu, 32, with 52 blocks of compressed pawpaw shaped cannabis sativa weighing 30kgs on Wednesday 4th October.
With the same vigour, the various commands of the Agency across the country continued with the War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, advocacy campaign in the past week. Some of them include: WADA sensitisation lecture for students and teachers of Igbonnibi High School, Ila Orangun, Osun state; WADA sensitisation lecture at Royal Ambassador Secondary School, Makurdi, Benue state; WADA sensitization lecture at Ilora Baptist Grammar School, Ilora, Oyo state and LGA WADA sensitisation lecture for students of Beth-Root Model Secondary School, Onitsha, Anambra state.
While commending the officers and men of the NAIA, MAKIA, Ogun, Oyo, Edo, and Gombe Commands of the Agency for their outstanding feats in the past week, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) equally applauded their counterparts in all the commands across the country for intensifying their WADA advocacy lectures thus creating a fair balance between their drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction activities.
Femi Babafemi
Director, Media & Advocacy
NDLEA Headquarters Abuja
Sunday 8th October 2023
EFCC arraigns Chris Okafor on four- count charges bordering on stealing and obtaining money by false pretences to the tune of Sixty-Four Million, Eight Hundred and Ninety Thousand Naira (N64, 890,000).
The Enugu Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arraigned one Chris Okafor before Justice O. Eyah of Enugu State High Court, on four- count charges bordering on stealing and obtaining money by false pretences to the tune of Sixty-Four Million, Eight Hundred and Ninety Thousand Naira (N64, 890,000).
He was arraigned on Tuesday, October 3, 2023, based on claims of a petitioner linking him with an alleged fraudulent property transaction.
Count One of the charges read: “That you Chris Okafor and Lion of Judea Real Estate Company Limited between the months of March, 2017 and December, 2018 at Enugu State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did commit a felony to wit: stealing by fraudulently converting to your personal use the sum of Fifty-Nine Million, Two Hundred and Ninety Thousand Naira (N59, 290,000.00) property of staff of Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NNRA), the said sum being part payment of the purchase of 79 plots of land located at Obinagu Obeagu Awkunanaw, Enugu South Local Government Area, Enugu State”.
The defendant pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to him.
In view of his plea, EFCC Counsel prayed the court to remand the defendant in a Correctional Centre. Justice Eyah thereafter ordered the defendant to be remanded in Enugu Correctional Centre, and adjourned the case to November 15 and 16, 2023 for trial.
Media & Publicity
October 10, 2023.
MORE TROUBLE FOR BAYELSA APC AS ABUJA COURT SACKS TIMIPRE SYLVA
Justice Donatus Okorowo of the Federal High Court, Abuja, in a judgement delivered on Monday, disqualified the Bayelsa All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the November 11 governorship election, Chief Timipre Sylva.
Justice Okorowo ruled that Chief Sylva having been sworn in twice and ruled for five years as governor of Bayelsa would breach the 1999 constitution as amended if allowed contesting again.
The judge also declared that Sylva was not qualified to run in the November poll because if he wins and is sworn in, he would spend more than eight years in office as governor of the state.
Citing the case of Marwa vs Nyako at the Supreme Court, Okorowo noted that the drafters of the country’s constitution stated that nobody should be voted for as governor more than two times and that the parties to the suit agreed that Sylva was voted into office two times.
He further stated that the Supreme Court ruled in the case of Marwa vs Nyako that nobody can expand the constitution or its scope. So, if Sylva is allowed to contest the next election, it means a person can contest as many times as he wishes.
Tinubu’s House of Forgeries
By Paul Ibe
Since Tuesday last week when the deposition regarding President Bola Tinubu’s educational qualifications came to the fore in the United States, there have been several attempts to twist the facts of the matter, which deliberately aim to confuse the mind of the public concerning the matter.
Some media aides to the president have come out openly to ‘push back on the narrative’, while some media houses, especially one, have persistently slanted their story to justify a corrupted interpretation of the facts in the disposition.
Sadly, however, the truth of the matter remains that Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu falsified a document he submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and swore an affidavit under oath to back up his forgery.
On page 26 of the deposition which is publicly available, the Registrar of the Chicago State University, Caleb Westberg under oath, was asked a simple question that, “CSU has determined that it does not have a true and correct copy of the diploma issued to Bola Tinubu is 1979, correct?
“To which the Registrar responded, “that’s correct.”
Also, on page 27, a similar question was put to Mr. Westberg: “So, CSU, after going through every diploma, was unable to find an authentic copy of any diploma that CSU issued to Tinubu in 1979. Is that correct?”
The CSU Registrar, in his response, said: “We did not find any diploma issued by CSU in 1979 to Mr. Tinubu.”
And coming straight to the specific issue of whether the CSU is aware of or in possession of the diploma that Tinubu submitted to INEC, to which Mr. Westberg simply said, “Correct, we are not aware of it.”
Indeed, anyone who has taken time to do a thorough reading of the deposition will come to the unambiguous conclusion that the footprints of Tinubu’s odyssey as far as the CSU documents are concerned is filled with profound forgeries and abuse of administrative due process.
President Tinubu’s supporters and spin doctors will want to force the narrative of, at least, “Tinubu graduated from the CSU down our throat, even when the narrative has no foothold in logic.
The question remains: How does a candidate graduate from a university that you were never qualified for?
According to information in the open, President Tinubu applied to the CSU with a pre-qualifying 1970 certificate from Government College Lagos, whereas the school did not come into existence until 1974. Maybe this should make Tinubu the first man ever to have an anticipatory certification from the school four clear years before the founding of the school.
Another mystery is that in addition to the non-existing Government College Lagos certificate, Tinubu presented a certificate from another school in the United States that belongs to a female candidate and a Cambridge HSC of 1970 – the same year he purportedly graduated from a secondary school in Nigeria.
Long before the CSU discovery of last week, Tinubu has had a history of forgery and perjury. In his form CF001 he filed ahead of his governorship election in 1999, Tinubu had claimed albeit fraudulently that he attended St John’s Primary School Aroloya, Government College Ibadan and Chicago University as different from Chicago State University. The late lawyer and human rights icon Gani Fawehinmi would have succeeded in bursting him but for the immunity he enjoyed as Governor of Lagos State.
President Tinubu must be a man of mystery. No wonder his supporters call him Idan (a distorter).
It is our contention that at the heart of the forgery scandal against President Tinubu is the question of integrity and morality.
If the President would not do what is honourable by resigning from office and saving the country an imminent embarrassment, at least his supporters should desist from telling shameful lies to confuse the public
Lastly, while supporters of the President are quick to reference his transcript from the Chicago State University as evidence of his studentship in the school, we are alarmed how his NYSC certificate bears Bola Adekunle Tinubu, even when the CSU said under oath that the middle name of “A” was never interpreted in any document in his file.
Every Nigerian who has undergone the NYSC programme understands that the names on the NYSC are never a creation of the candidate, but the official name that the student was officially known as, from their tertiary institution. Tinubu was allegedly never known as Adekunle at CSU. Thus, the only way to understand how Adekunle was smuggled on his NYSC discharge certificate can only be explained as a forgery.
Yet, his media aides will come to the open to make a shameful alternative fact.
It is even more shameful that just when this whole scandal continues to unfold, media handlers of President Tinubu have, from nowhere, smuggled a middle name of Adekunle into his Wikipedia account. The word Adekunle in Yoruba is a house filled with royalty. But in this instance, we daresay it is a house filled with forgeries.
It is, therefore, becoming very obvious that there is no end point to how President Tinubu and his spin doctors will continue to use one forgery to cover the other.
Paul Ibe is Media Adviser to Atiku Abubakar,
Vice President of Nigeria (1999-2007) and Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (2023).
ECA calls for support to women and youth entrepreneurs in transforming African trade
Addis Ababa, 8 October 2023 (ECA) – African countries have been urged to promote gender responsive and inclusive policies to support women and youth entrepreneurs to accelerate trade development in Africa.
Speaking at the 14th African Congress for Women Entrepreneurs and 4th COMESA Federation of Women in Business Forum, the Principal Regional Advisor for Regional Integration and Trade Division at the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), Brendah Phiri-Mundia, said women and youth, have revolutionized entrepreneurship in Africa and they are better positioned to boost trade through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The Congress ran under the theme, Economic Empowerment and Entrepreneurship Promotion for Women and Youth and support of MSMEs for realizing Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and Regional Integration in line with Africa’s Agenda 2063 and UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The congress took stock of progress on tackling challenges in accessing economic opportunities faced by women and youth across the African continent.
Ms. Phiri-Mundia noted that the AfCFTA which came into force in May 2019, could advance the global and continental goals on gender equality and women empowerment.
According to the ECA, the full implementation of the free trade area will increase the value of intra-Africa trade to US$195 billion by 2045 compared to US$113 billion recorded in 2020 which is the baseline.
Women have made an undeniable impact in the entrepreneurial landscape with research indicating that Africa alone has more entrepreneurs than other regions for both females and males. Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest rate of female entrepreneurs globally with approximately 26% of female adults involved in entrepreneurial activity.
The ECA’s 2021 Women’s Entrepreneurship Report estimates that reducing gender inequality will boost African economies by US$316 billion.
Ms. Phiri-Mundia stressed that Africa’s youth is a potent force for innovation and economic development with incubators, accelerators and government initiatives helping young entrepreneurs turn their ideas into reality.
Recognizing the potential of women and the youth in business development, the ECA is providing support to Member States across the continent in the development of gender-responsive and inclusive policies and context-specific interventions to drive women and youth empowerment within the continental integration agenda.
“Support is being provided for gender mainstreaming in national and regional AfCFTA implementation strategies, capacity building of women’s business associations and MSMEs to ensure they also take advantage of the opportunities under the AfCFTA,” said Ms. Phiri-Mundia.
However, the challenges faced by both women and youth entrepreneurs cannot be ignored, Ms. Phiri-Mundia added, acknowledging the access to start-up financing, skills development, mentorship, promoted by various Women Business Associations and development partners to overcome the challenges faced by women and the youth.
The ECA has also stepped up its efforts to contribute to addressing the complex issue of collecting gender disaggregated data to support better policymaking and evidence-based advocacy across the African continent, said Ms. Phiri-Mundia, who represented the ECA Deputy Executive Secretary and Chief Economist, Hanan Morsy.
These efforts include a joint project with UNCTAD and the UN Economic Commission for Europe to “develop a coherent approach to measuring the impact of trade on gender equality using official statistics and building on the existing statistical data and capacity of countries”.
She called for collective action to amplify collaboration in initiatives that address multiple barriers faced by women and youth which finance literacy and digital finance, apprenticeships especially in male-dominated sectors, digital skills training and profitability information across sectors.
The ECA is keen to deepen its partnerships and work towards a future where every woman and youth entrepreneur in Africa not only achieves their aspirations but also transforms their dreams into impactful, sustainable enterprises Ms. Phiri-Mundia said.
