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Judiciary hurting democracy in South East — CSOs

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By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

A Coalition of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) domiciled in the South Eastern States have accused the judiciary of playing ignoble roles that have resulted in the lack of progress in the South East geo-political zone since the rebirth of the democracy in 1999.

The group made the accusation at a one-day symposium to mark the 10th anniversary of Southeast Democracy Clinic, a platform geared to help deepen democracy and ensure that its dividends gets to people of the region.

The group alleged that the judiciary has been in bed with “vagabonds of power ” in the zone who they claim, brazenly steal the mandate of the people and mock them with the usual refrain ‘Go To Court’, slogan.

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They submitted that it was only the 2023 governorship election in Abia and the off-season governorship election in.Anambra State in 2022 that had a semblance of electoral credibility, and which outcomes represented the will of the people of the two states, alleging that the judiciary has not been fair in delivering justice to the people of Imo, Enugu and Ebonyi States in successive elections.

Founder of Southeast Democracy Clinic and former Resident Electoral Commissioner,Enugu State, Dr Emeka Ononamadu queried what the Imo State Election Tribunal meant when it ruled in its recent judgement that the poll was in substantial compliance with enabling statutes when issues of widespread violence, thuggery, intimidation of voters, BVAS. Issues, vote buying, manipulation of results, snatching and or destruction of ballot boxes were rife.

Ononamadu, a lawyer alleged that there was widespread violence and intimidation, electoral malpractice, ballot box snatching, vote-buying, and manipulation of results were common during the elections.

“These practices undermined the integrity of the election process. Also Logistical Problems: Delays in the delivery of electoral materials and issues with the functionality of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) led to significant disruptions and confusion at many polling stations.
“Despite the presence of security forces, there were failures in effectively securing polling units and ensuring the safety of voters and election officials, ” he said.

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Amid these and other plethora of complaints reported by election observers Ononamadu noted that the tribunal ruled that the poll was in substantial compliance with enabling laws.

Executive Director, Peoples Rights Organization,Dr Chris Nwadigo, noted that there is no law prohibiting the admission of report of election observers in evidence in court, and wondered why the nation’s courts have failed to leverage on reports of election observers to dispense justice.

In a communique issued at the end of the symposium the participants called on the judiciary to dispense electoral justice to save Nigeria’s democracy.

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Donald Trump unhurt as gunman fires shots at Golf Course where he was playing

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By Francesca Hangeior.

 

Donald Trump is “safe following gunshots in his vicinity” at his Florida golf course Sunday, his campaign said in a statement.

The former president was playing at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach when shots were fired.

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Officials believe an armed individual intended to target Trump, according to sources briefed on the matter. A car has been stopped in relation to the incident nearby, according to a law enforcement official.

The Secret Service said it is working with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office to investigate a protective incident involving Trump. The Secret Service said the incident occurred shortly before 2 p.m.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are both “relieved to know” that Trump is safe and have been briefed on the security incident, according to the White House.

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IPOB: Justice Nyako hands-off from Nnamdi Kanu’s trial

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By Francesca Hangeior.

 

Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja has withdrawn from the treason trial of the self-acclaimed leader of the separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.

Justice Nyako announced her withdrawal on Tuesday shortly after Kanu demanded that the judge recuse herself from his trial.

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At the mention of the case on Tuesday, September 24, Kanu’s lawyer, Alloy Ejimakor urged the court to postpone the planned commencement of trial, claiming that his client was denied the opportunity to adequately prepare for his defence.

But, before Ejimakor could conclude his submission, Kanu rose from where he sat in the dock and told his lawyer to sit down.

Kanu told his lawyer: “Sit down! I say you should sit down.” Then, turning to the judge, he said: “My lord, I have no confidence in this court anymore and I ask you to recuse yourself because you did not abide by the decision of the Supreme Court.

“I can understand it if the DSS (Department of State Services) refuse to obey a court order, but for this court to refuse to obey an order of the Supreme Court is regrettable.

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“I am asking you to recuse yourself from this case,” Kanu said.

Prosecuting lawyer, Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN) urged the court to ignore Kanu and proceed with the trial.

Awomolo noted that contrary to Kanu’s claim, the Supreme Court ordered that the defendant (Kanu) should be tried on the seven counts left in the 11 counts contained in the original charge on which he was first arraigned.

He said: “The Justices (of the Supreme Court) ordered this court to proceed with the hearing of the charge against the defendant.

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“My lord, you should not recuse yourself based on this mere observation, which does not have anything to do with the Supreme Court.

“It is an incompetent observation. We urge this court to proceed with the hearing.”

Kanu, again, stood up and held out a document he claimed was the subsisting judgment of the Supreme Court.

Without seeking and obtaining the judge’s permission, Kanu proceeded to read a portion of the document where he said the Supreme Court found that actions of the trial court in the case “rendered the impartiality of the judge suspect.”

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Kanu said: “But my lord, you know that I love you. It is just that this court is allowing the prosecution to railroad me into a trial that is at variance with every provision of the Constitution.”

The defendant then sat down, following which Justice Nyako expressed displeasure about his conduct.

Justice Nyako subsequently announced her decision to withdraw from the case, saying: “I hereby recuse myself and remit the case file back to the Chief Judge.”

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Flood: NAFDAC removes N5b contaminated drugs, foods, from Maiduguri markets

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By Francesca Hangeior.

 

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has removed all compromised food and drugs valued at over N5 billion from the shelves in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, following the recent floods that ravaged the city.

The comprehensive mop-up operation was carried out across several key markets in Maiduguri at the Gamboru Drug and Food Market, Monday Market, Open Air-Theatre Drug Market, and Gwange Drug Market.

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The operation which was directed by the agency’s Director General (DG), Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, was conducted by officials drawn from Borno, Yobe, Gombe, and the NAFDAC area laboratory that meticulously inspected and removed the compromised items.

The initiative, according to the DG, was aimed at removing drugs and food items contaminated by recent floodwaters to prevent their re-introduction into sales as part of our market control strategy, thereby preventing possible outbreaks of diseases.

The agency also provided guidelines to market vendors and the public on how to identify and handle potentially contaminated products in the future.
Furthermore, all manufacturing facilities engaged in the production of regulated products located within the flood-affected areas have been closed down to allow for GMP reassessment before production begins again.

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