News
Pro-Biafra groups warn against plot to truncate rotation of Ohanaeze presidency
By Francesca Hangeior
A coalition of pro -Biafra organizations including the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB); Eastern People’s Congress (EPC); Billie Human Rights Initiative (BHRI); Biafra Liberation Council (BLC), among others, have sternly warned against any attempt to truncate the rotation of the office of the President of the apex Igbo socio-cultural organization, Ohanaeze Ndigbo.
Other members of the coalition are the Biafra Revolutionary Force (BRF); Biafra Revolutionary Organization (BRO); Biafra Reconciliation (BR); and Union of Biafra Scientists and Engineers (UBSE).
A new leadership of Ohanaeze is expected to assume office on January 10, 2024 when the tenure of the late Professor George Obiozor-led leadership will be elapsing.
Unfortunately, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu who was elected to complete the turn of Imo State in the Ohanaeze presidency following the demise of Obiozor, also died in office, thus leaving the Secretary, Ambassador Okey Emuchay from Abia State to oversee the affairs of the apex Igbo body.
The coalition in a press statement issued on Tuesday, vowed to stoutly resist any attempt to thwart Ohanaeze constitution or deny Rivers State its right to produce the next President of Ohanaeze Ndigbo in the forthcoming Ohanaeze election.
The statement was jointly signed by Comrade Uchenna Madu of MASSOB; Mazi Okechukwu Orji for EPC; Innocent Amadi for BHRI; Comrade Festus Obiorah for BLC; Comrade Bidwell Ogbonna for BRF; Rev. Chioma Ajah for BRO; Elder Anya Kalu for BR; and Okasi for UBSE.
” We condemn the clandestine plot to thwart and frustrate the established norms and smooth running of Ohaneze Ndigbo affairs as enshrined in Ohaneze Ndigbo constitution by our founding fathers”, the statement read.
It further read:”With our unwavering and unshakable loyalty and alliance to the leadership of Ohaneze Ndigbo, we can never allow any personal or group interest to undermine or thwart the very foundation of trust, confidence and brotherhood that bind Ndigbo irrespective of their states of origin. Even external influences will never break our solid foundation of mutual trust.”
The coalition warned that “any clandestine attempt to thwart the solemnity of Ohaneze Ndigbo constitution will be resisted with every means of legally resistance.”
The statement further read:”Pro Biafra agitators will never allow both internal and external enemies of Igbo land to destabilize and divide Ndigbo against ourselves.
“Section a and b of the mode of election in article eleven of Ohaneze Ndigbo constitution states thus:
(a) That the Office of the President General of Ohaneze Ndigbo shall rotate among the Igbo speaking states and Igbo speaking areas of Delta (Anioma) and Rivers States in alphabetical order thus namely Abia, Anambra, Delta (Anioma), Ebonyi, Enugu, Imo and Rivers States.
“(b) The President General shall be elected by the National General Assembly from all interested candidates from the state whose turn is to fill the office provided there are at least three candidates.The tenure of the office of President General shall be one term of four years.”
According to the statement, “the current leadership of Ohaneze Ndigbo from Imo State will end on January 10th 2025, and the next turn is Rivers State.”
“Any attempt to thwart the turn of Rivers State or restart from Abia State will spell doom on entire Ohaneze Ndigbo leadership”, the statement warned.
By Francesca Hangeior
The Kano State Law Reform Commission has earmarked not less than N100m for the reforms of various laws of the state in 2025.
The commission’s Chairman, Justice Lawal Muhammadu, disclosed this shortly after he defended the commission’s 2025 budget before the Committee on Judiciary at the state House of Assembly.
According to him, many laws in the state need reforms, a project that started earlier in the year but was unfortunately damaged and burnt during the August protest in the state.
He said the entire work is starting all over again, with a total budget of N100 million to reform all the laws in the coming year.
“There are many laws that are old; some were made since before Nigeria’s independence and are as old as since 1837 and based on England law. Some of them are not even used in the country, but we still have them here.
“Those are some of the reviews we want to do. The ones that are not useful will be withdrawn, and the ones that need reform will be reformed,” he noted.
Others who defended their budgets are the Kano State Radio Corporation, the state Ministry of Information, Kano Pillars Club, Abubakar Rimi Television, the Triumph newspaper, the Kano Printing Press, Kano Film and Censorship Board, among others.
They reinstated their commitment to utilising the resources committed in their budget to improve outputs.
By Francesca Hangeior
Like the Senate, the House of Representatives has invoked the provision of paragraph 17 (3), Part 1, fifth schedule to the constitution for the removal from the Office of the Chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal, FCT, Umar Danladi.
Hon. Julius ihonvbere who moved the motion drew strength from paragraph 17 (3), PT 1, Fifth Schedule of the Constitution and section 22(3) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act Cap , that the President is mandated to act on an address supported by a two-thirds majority of the Senate and House of Representatives for the removal of the chairman for misconduct.
The house drew attention to the conduct of the CCT Chairman, who recently engaged in a public brawl with a security guard at the Banex Plaza Shopping Complex, Abuja, necessitating an invitation from the Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, and Public Petitions.
The lawmakers said after his first appearance, where he admitted to having been involved in the brawl, he refused to attend subsequent sittings, thereby frustrating the efforts of the committee to investigate the allegations against him.
The house noted that a statutory institution of such magnitude is expected to be an epitome of moral rectitude and virtues of integrity, probity, and accountability.
However, the official conduct of Umar has fallen short of the requisite standard of a public officer to conduct the affairs of such a tribunal.
By Francesca Hangeior
The Director of Information, Secretary, Research and Information (SR&I), National Assembly, Mr Bullah Bi-Allah, has denied the purported budget presentation by President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday.
Bi-Allah said this in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday following the news making the round that the president was billed to present the budget on Wednesday, Nov. 27.
He said such news credited to him was fake, baseless, and unfounded, urging the public to disregard it.
He said: “The attention of the Secretary, Research and Information (SR&I), National Assembly, Dr Ali Barde Umoru, has been drawn to the purported fake news credited to him.”
He added that the news alleged that “His Excellency, President Bola Tinubu, will tomorrow Wednesday present the 2925 budget to the joint session of the National Assembly.”
According to him, the news circulating on both social and mainstream media and other outlets is false and should be disregarded.
“The secretary advised that any official inquiry and clarification should follow the official communication channels of the National Assembly.”
He said that NASS was yet to approve the 2024-2026 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper, forwarded to both chambers of the National Assembly by Tinubu.
He clarified that the MTEF approval would come before the official presentation of the 2025 budget.
He said, “In view of the above, the SR&I warns peddlers of such information to desist forthwith from using his office to mislead members of the public.”
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