The Supreme Court has set March 10 for the hearing of Senator Samuel Anyanwu’s appeal contesting his ousting as the National Secretary of the People Democratic Party (PDP), as announced yesterday.

The decision was made by a five-member panel led by Justice Ibrahim Saulawa during the ruling on Anyanwu’s motion for expedited consideration.

Last December, the Court of Appeal sitting in Enugu upheld a High Court decision that sacked Samuel Anyanwu as PDP national secretary.

The lower court upheld Sunday Udeh-Okoye as the substantive national secretary of the opposition party.

In the lead judgment delivered by Justice Ridwan Abdullahi, the Court of Appeal held that Anyanwu‘s appeal was incompetent and lacking in merit.

The appellate court held that the appellant violated the PDP constitution by laying claim to the national secretary position, having contested and picked as the party’s candidate in the 2024 governorship election in Imo State.

Dissatisfied with the ruling, Anyanwu approached the apex court last month and asked the court to set aside the judgment of the two lower courts and recognise him as the authentic national secretary of the PDP.

He also filed a motion for accelerated hearing as well as an abridgment of time on grounds of the crucial role of the office of national secretary.

Delivering ruling in the motion, the Supreme Court  granted the relief sought and ordered service of the court processes on the respondent, Mr. Aniagu Emmanuel, who the court said, must file in his reply brief within three days of service.

Anyanwu, on the other hand was given two days to reply on point of law.

But the apex court did not hear Anyanwu’s motion for stay of execution of the judgment of the appellate court was not heard by the apex court.

The Nigerian government is looking forward to the repatriation of 119 Benin bronzes from the Netherlands.

A formal request for the return of these artefacts, which were acquired during the British assault on the Benin Kingdom in 1897, has been made.

It has been reported that an agreement regarding their repatriation was signed yesterday by representatives of both countries.

Of the 119 objects being returned, 113 of them were among the Dutch State Collection, while the remaining six were returned by the Municipality of Rotterdam.

The signing ceremony took place at the Wereldmuseum in Leiden, the Netherlands, where the Benin bronzes were previously displayed.

Dutch Minister of Education, Culture and Science, Mr. Eppo Bruins, and the Director-General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), Olugbile Holloway, signed for their countries.

A statement by Anneloes Hoff of the Embassy of the Kingdom of The Netherlands said the artefacts are expected to arrive later this year, according to the agreement.

The statement reads: “The Netherlands will return 119 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria, following a request from the Nigerian government. The transfer agreements were signed today by the Dutch Minister of Education, Culture and Science and the Director-General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM).

“The objects are expected to arrive in Nigeria later this year. The restitution underscores the strong partnership between The Netherlands and Nigeria.

The Netherlands is returning the Benin Bronzes unconditionally, recognising that the objects were looted during the British attack on Benin City in 1897 and should have never ended up in The Netherlands.

The Department of State Services (DSS) has accused two television stations, Africa Independent Television (AIT) of DAAR Communications Plc and Channels Television, of airing reports that are allegedly false, defamatory, and malicious in nature regarding its activities.

The agency indicated that these inaccurate reports were related to the presence of its personnel at the Lagos State House of Assembly on Monday.

Through its counsel, Chief Ayodeji Adedipe (SAN), the DSS has called for a retraction and a public apology to be issued within a period of seven days, threatening to pursue both criminal and civil actions against the television stations should they fail to comply.

In a letter, dated February 17, 2025, titled: “False, Defamatory and Malicious Publication Concerning the State Security Service (or DSS) Regarding Their Presence at the Lagos State House of Assembly on Monday February 17, 2025,” Adedipe said the DSS (SSS) denied allegations it invaded the Assembly and attempted to prevent the members of the Assembly and Speaker Mojisola Meranda from entering the chamber for plenary.

The secret police insisted that it was duly invited through a letter by the Deputy Clerk to support the security operatives attached to the Assembly in order to forestall an imminent breakdown of law and order.

“However, without any verification of the reason for the presence of our client’s officials at the Lagos State House of Assembly on February 17, 2025, your organisation maliciously and falsely broadcast, both on your news bulletin and print media, that our client had invaded/stormed the Lagos State House of Assembly with a view to preventing the members and speaker from entering the chamber for plenary.

“By this publication, our client, which is a highly responsible and respected organisation, was portrayed as an irresponsible and reckless organisation, which, in a Gestapo manner, invaded/stormed the Lagos State House of Assembly to support one of the feuding parties and to desecrate the hallowed chambers.