Sahara Reporters Latest News Today Saturday 16th May 2020
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 16/05/20
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JUST IN: After Public Outrage, Nigeria Immigration Service Suspends Redeployment Of Five Female Officers Who Participated In Viral Video Challenge
The Nigeria Immigration Service has suspended the disciplinary redeployment of five female officers punished for participating in a viral social media video challenge in their uniforms.
The women, Priscilla Irabor, Catherine J. Bakura, Blessing Alfred Udida, Binti I. Attabor and Ockiya Eneni, had recorded themselves transforming from their uniforms to a wide range of outfits while participating in the challenge initiated by popular Nigerian musician, Falz.
Early in April, the NIS in a disciplinary memo, asked the women to explain why they should not be punished for violating the internal code of the agency.
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The agency as a way of punishment to the ladies, transferred them to different states across the country.
But in a series of tweets on Friday, the NIS said the Comptroller General of the agency, Muhammad Babandede, had decided to suspend the deployment after his attention was drawn to the matter.
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Five Female Employees Of Nigeria Immigration Service Who Participated In Falz’s ‘Don’t Rush’ Challenge Punished With Redeployment To Borno, Yobe, Others
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It reads, “The attention of the Comptroller General, Muhammad Babandede, MFR, has been drawn to some trending matters on some social media platforms regarding the deployment of some of our personnel to some formations across the country.
“It is important to note that staff deployment remains a vital practice of regimented organisation such as ours and should be seen as such. As an agency, we maintain zero tolerance to any matters bordering on offences against discipline among members of our workforce irrespective of gender.
“We have high premium for staff development and indeed encourage personal efforts but that must be within the confines of our rules and regulations.
“The matter involving the personnel in question is still being investigated and therefore, the Comptroller General has directed that the earlier posting order be put on hold pending the conclusion of the investigation.”
4. that the earlier Posting Order be put on hold pending the conclusion of the investigation.— Nigeria Immigration Service (@nigimmigration) May 15, 2020
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EFCC Yet To Prosecute Lagos Assembly Speaker, Obasa, Since 2018 Despite Corruption Evidence Against Him
Lagos Assembly Speaker Mudashiru Obasa
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is yet to prosecute Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, despite a letter it wrote to the House demanding for him to be investigated for fraud in March 2018.
In the letter seen by SaharaReporters dated March 19, 2018 and addressed to the Clerk of the Assembly, it was stated that the EFCC was also investigating the Speaker for abuse of office.
The EFCC listed two accounts being run by Obasa in Wema and Standard Chartered banks that are used for his corrupt activities.
Lagos Assembly Speaker Mudashiru Obasa
The letter reads, “The commission is investigating a case involving the above mentioned name, during the course of investigation, several lodgements from the Lagos State House of Assembly into the same accounts were found.
“In view of this, you are expected to furnish the commission with the followings: the details of all lodgements into these accounts from LAHA from January, 2015 to date.
“To detail a senior officer conversant with these transactions to report with the documents and interview the undersigned through the Sectional Head, Intelligence and Special Operation Section on Monday 26th March, 2018 at 10am.”
However, SaharaReporters discovered that since that period till date, nothing had been heard of that petition and the investigation of Obasa by the EFCC.
In series of reports recently, SaharaReporters had exposed the fraudulent and corrupt activities of the Lagos Speaker, who has used different companies registered under different names to siphon public funds in Lagos.
The online publication revealed how Obasa approved the sum of N258m for the printing of invitation cards for the inauguration of lawmakers two months after the event had been held, and how he illegally collected N45,750,00 for a Christmas party that never held.
While Obasa also orchestrated the disbursement of N10m monthly allocation to his wife under the guise of gender inclusiveness programme for women, he also received N17m monthly to maintain his personal residence and guest house.
He has mobilised thugs with N50m in a bid to invade the Civic Media Lab to burn down the place with anybody found there as a way of getting back at the online news publication for exposing his fraudulent activities in the Lagos parliament where he had been feeding fat on public funds.
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Lagos Speaker, Obasa, Gives Thugs N50m To Burn Down SaharaReporters’ Civic Media Lab, Targets TVC Journalist, HEDA For Criticizing Him
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E2%80%94national-bureau-statistics Nigeria Generates N338.94bn From VAT In First Quarter Of 2020 —National Bureau Of Statistics
The Nigerian Government has generated N338.94bn Value Added Tax in the first quarter of 2020, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics.This was made known in its report on sectoral distribution of Value Added Tax in Q1.It says, “Sectoral distribution of Value Added Tax data for Q1 2020 reflected that the sum of N338.94bn was generated as VAT as against N308.48bn generated in Q4 2019 and N293.04bn generated in Q1 2019, representing 9.87 per cent increase quarter-on-quarter and 15.66 per cent increase year-on-year.
“Professional services generated the highest amount of VAT, with N38.30bn generated and closely followed by other manufacturing generating N37.37bn, commercial and trading generating N17.19bn while, mining generated the least and closely followed by textile and garment industry and local government councils with N61.83m, N306.05m and N319.04m generated respectively.“Out of the total amount generated in Q1 2020, N172.67bn was generated as non-import VAT locally while N93.67bn was generated as non-import VAT for foreign.”
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Court Orders Nigeria’s House Of Reps To Halt Passing Infectious Diseases Bill, Summons Speaker, Gbajabiamila
The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered Nigeria’s House of Representatives to halt passing the controversial Infections Diseases Bill after it scaled second reading.
Dino Melaye, former Kogi-West senator, had last week filed a suit against the National Assembly, saying the new bill threatened his right to life as a Nigerian.
In a motion ex parte dated May 13, 2020, the court said, “An order of this honourable court is hereby made mandating the respondents to appear before this court on May 20, 2020, to show cause why the application of this applicant should not be granted.
“Should the respondents fail to attend court on the date stated for the hearing on this matter, the reliefs sought ex parte shall be granted.”
Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, also summoned the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, who is the sponsor of the bill, the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), the Inspector-General of Police, Muhammed Adamu, as well as the Clerk of the National Assembly over the bill.
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BREAKING: Bandits Currently Attacking Kastina Community
Armed bandits are currently attacking Yankara community under Faskari Local Government Area of Borno State.
A resident of the town, who spoke with SaharaReporters, said, “They are currently operating here in Yankara, attacking the villagers, burning houses and stealing our cattle.”
No fewer than 50 people have been reportedly killed by bandits in Kankara, Dutsinma, Musawa, Danmusa and Safana local government areas of Kastina State in the last one month.
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JUST IN: Adamawa Discharges Eight More COVID-19 Patients
Eight more COVID-19 patients have been discharged from isolation facility in Adamawa State after testing negative for the virus twice.
Commissioner for Health in the state, Prof Abdullahi Isa, confirmed that the state had successfully discharged eight more patients.
He said, “It is true that we have discharged eight more patients from the isolation centre after they all tested negative twice for Coronavirus.
“This is in line with the protocol of the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control.
“We had earlier discharged five on Monday and eight today.”
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E2%80%94lawyers Governor Wike’s Demolition Psychopathic, Lawless —Lawyers
Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, on Sunday supervised the demolition of a hotel and other business facilities in Eleme Local Government Area of the state after they violated the lockdown order put in place to curb the spread of the Coronavirus.
Nigerian lawyers have said the demolition of two hotels by Nyesom Wike, governor of Rivers State, was an act of executive lawlessness and an exhibition of psychopathic tendencies.
Wike had earlier on Sunday demolished Prodest Hotel, Alode in Eleme, and Etemeteh Hotel in Onne for allegedly violating the executive order he put in place to stop the spread of Coronavirus.
Rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, who spoke with SaharaReporters, said the demolition was illegal going by the provisions of the constitution.
Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, on Sunday supervised the demolition of a hotel and other business facilities in Eleme Local Government Area of the state after they violated the lockdown order put in place to curb the spread of the Coronavirus.
He said, “It is totally unconscionable and the very foundation of what he has done is flawed. There is no governor in Nigeria that can use executive order to perform a judicial function.
“Even if there was an executive order that states in black and white expressly that any hotel or hotel owner whose facility shall be demolished, it will be unconstitutional because whether the person has actually committed an infraction can only be determined by a court of law. So, even if the governor actually goes to the hotel and find a guest lodging, it is not in his place to determine if that amounts to an offence, the owner of the hotel has to be subjected to the judicial process.
“So, for a governor in Nigeria to claim that he has the authority to demolish the probate property of citizens without recourse to the court is illegal.
“The right to own immovable property is guaranteed under the constitution, the right to acquire and own property, it cannot be derrogated from.
“Beyond the legality of the action, what the governor has done is reprehensible and is the action of a reprobate mind, it is psychopathic. How do you demolish a building because it flours an order? That building creates employment.”
Effiong also revealed that the punishment for violating an executive order is N200 or six months in a correctional center and wondered why the provisions of the law was not adhered to in the matter.
He added, “The punishment for violating any executive order according to the constitution made pursuant to the Quarantine Act is six months imprisonment or a fine of N200, the law is very clear.” PHOTONEWS: Few Days After Demolishing Hotels For Violating COVID-19 Lockdown Order, @GovWike Attends Rivers State PDP Inauguration Where Social Distancing Guideline Was Violated pic.twitter.com/GRz9WrGphb— Sahara Reporters (@SaharaReporters) May 14, 2020
Public interest lawyer, Jiti Ogunye, on Friday told SaharaReporters that the accused in the matter were never charged to court or given the opportunity for defence as stipulated by the constitution, rendering Governor Wike’s action illegal.
He said, “What was done is arbitrary and amounts to executive lawlessness. The law is clear, Section 36 of the constitution guarantees the right to fair hearing and it also provides that no one can be punished except in accordance to a written law that must have been violated and the alleged offender would be afforded the opportunity to defend himself before a court of law or tribunal.
“This guarantees impartiality and fairness. The executive branch of government cannot be the accuser, the investigator of the alleged offence, the prosecutor, the judge, and the punishment executioner all rolled into one.
“And we are not even talking about the executive inelegance of personally supervising the demolition of a property that was operated allegedly in violation of the COVID-19 regulation according to the governor of Rivers State.
“What made the property fit for demolition? Is it that the land on which the property is built does not belong to the owner or that the property built was in violation of environmental laws? Why would a physical structure be targeted for demolition if the human beings who allegedly violated the regulation are available to be punished in accordance with the law?”
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E2%80%99s-property-lagos-government JUST IN: EFCC Hands Over Ex-Nigeria’s Petroleum Minister, Diezani’s Property To Lagos Government As COVID-19 Isolation Centre
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has handed over a property forfeited by former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, to the Lagos Government for use as an isolation centre for COVID-19 patients.
Lagos, which has the highest number of COVID-19 patients in the country, is struggling with bed spaces.
The property consisting of six flats of three bedrooms and a boys’ quarter, was forfeited by Allison-Madueke following an order of the Federal High in 2017.
Speaking during the handover ceremony on Friday, the Zonal Head of the EFCC in Lagos, Mohammed Rabo, said the gesture was part of the agency’s support in curbing the spread of the virus.
He said, “This gesture is part of the commission’s efforts in discharging its own social responsibility towards the fight against the spread of Coronavirus.
“The commission is always committed and ready, alongside its mandate in fighting economic and financial crimes, to also render any essential service that may be required of it in the fight against the pandemic.
“Therefore, the state should not hesitate to call on the commission anytime the need for such an essential service arises.”
Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, commended the commission for the gesture, saying it was a welcome collaboration between the Federal Government and states.
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Ondo: PDP Asks EFCC To Investigate Secret Account With N4.3bn, Transactions
The Peoples Democratic Party in Ondo State has called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to investigate the transactions of the secret account where N4.3bn was discovered after 10 years.
The party said investigating the account domiciled with Zenith Bank in Akure, Ondo State, was important as the state government claimed that the fund had already been spent.
The PDP noted that if the lawmakers of the state’s Assembly had not issued a query on the money, the Governor Rotimi Akeredolu-led government would have been silent on the discovery of the secret account and the withdrawals.
In a statement on Friday, spokesperson for the PDP, Mr Zadok Akintoye, said it was also worrisome that the state government never disclosed the said funds as part of money handed over to it by the previous government.
He said, “Investigation by our party has shown that the Akeredolu-led ODSG is being economical with the truth and has violated the law with its intentions not to disclose the receipt of such funds until it was recently probed by the Ondo State House of Assembly.
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N4bn Discovered Inside ‘Secret’ Ondo Government Account, Lawmakers Demand Explanation From Executive
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“For the records, the Commissioner for Information lied when he alleged that the ODSG discovered the funds hidden in an account with the bank.
“The domiciled funds which was deposited in a call account was disclosed to the Akeredolu-led government which consequently took over the bank account. What is however, worrisome is that the Ondo State Government never disclosed the said funds as part of the funds handed over to it as part of the assets its inherited.
“We must therefore ask how this fund was accounted for or captured in the records of government.”
The party further asked both Zenith Bank and Governor Akeredolu to come clean on the fund and disclose the wherabouts of N10.7bn accrued interest/earnings on the N4.3bn discovered in the account.
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Redeem Yourself For Plunging Nigeria Into Economic Crisis, PDP Tells President Buhari
Kola Olognondiyan
The Peoples Democratic Party has called on Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari, to implement electoral reforms that would make the voting process more transparent in the coming election.Speaking to SaharaReporters on Friday, Kola Olognondiyan, publicity secretary of the party, said electoral reforms was the only way Buhari can make up for the economic crisis, which he had plunged the country into.The PDP said it was impossible to have free and fair elections in Nigeria today with the way the electoral process was set up.
Kola Olognondiyan
He said, “We are concened about the electoral process in itself. Until and unless electoral reforms are carried out, to manage the situation in which we have found ourselves electorally, our party does not believe that we can have a free, fair and credible election”Just before the 2019 election, the National Assembly submitted an amendment to Mr President to address the fault lines in our electoral process which he has refused to sign.”For instance, in the last election in Kogi State, voter registers were not displayed. We could not ascertain those who actually participated in that election, whether the dead or the living. Going into the upcoming elections, INEC is saying it cannot display the voters register which is the cardinal programme in electioneering.”Since he (Buhari) is not going to be in the next elections, one of the best legacies he can leave beyond the economic quagmire that he has sank the nation of into is to allow for electoral reform.”We are concerned about the impact of COVID-19 in the forthcoming elections, the governorship in Edo and Ondo states.
“The PDP believes that INEC should reason ahead and see what it can do in the immediate to tackle the effect of the pandemic on voters otherwise we may have voter apathy.”
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