The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, on Friday said that the call for resignation of President Muhammadu Buhari by the Peoples Democratic Party over the economy is “preposterous”.

Mohammed said, “It is very painful in a situation where the armed robber is now the one sympathising with the victim.

“I read in the dailies that the PDP said that the President must resign because of the economy.

“While we are not going to indulge in blame game, I think we should also be honest enough to admit that we will not have been where we are today if they had done what they ought to do.

“For the party to ask the President to resign is just a big joke.”

The minister said that though the government was not interested in blame game, it was important to set the records straight.

He noted that “agree that Nigeria is not the only country hit by the recession and crash in price of crude, but other countries made savings.

“Saudi Arabia today has about 600 billion dollars in reserve and this is by planning and saving for the future which the past administration failed to do during surplus.

“This is not about blaming other administration, but we believe that one should be honest when criticising.”

Mohammed then assured that the Federal Government would do everything possible to bring the country out of the
economic situation.

The PDP new Media Director, Deji Adeyanju, had in a statement in Abuja, asked the President to resign “for destroying” the economy.

Adeyanju was reacting to the data released by the National Bureau of Statistics issued on Wednesday which stated that Nigeria was in recession.

NAN

The post PDP’s call for Buhari’s resignation a joke – Lai Mohammed appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

A former top Volkswagen manager and engineer has filed a multi-million-euro lawsuit against the car giant in a dispute over patents, German media reported Friday.

Wolfgang Schreiber, the one-time head of VW subsidiaries Bugatti and Bentley, brought the case before the state court in Munich and is asking for 10 million euros ($11 million), DPA news agency said, citing a court spokeswoman.

Der Spiegel magazine had earlier reported that Schreiber’s claim was for “several hundred million euros”, describing it as the country’s largest-ever patent suit by an employee.

He was named as the inventor on several patents related to double-clutch transmissions after being appointed head of gearbox development for Volkswagen in 1996.

The former engineer believes he has not been adequately compensated for his brainchild, as double-clutch gearboxes have been included in more than four million vehicles built by the group, Spiegel reported.

When contacted by AFP, Volkswagen confirmed that Schreiber had taken legal action against the company, without providing details.

“Previous conversations with him did not lead to an agreement,” it said in a statement.

“Because of the ongoing proceedings we can’t provide any further information. However, we are maintaining our legal position.”

German law calls for employee inventors to be compensated “appropriately” for their creations, above and beyond their salary.

But employees and firms have repeatedly clashed over the definition of “appropriate” compensation.

The post Ex staff sues Volkswagen for $11m appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

Worried by his wife’s adulterous acts, Mr Azeez Adeshina, on Wednesday approached the Ikorodu Customary Court in Lagos State to annul his 22-year-old marriage.

Adeshina, a 40-year-old, who resides at Ipinyewi, off Aroro Adamo Road in Ikorodu, told the court that his wife, Oluwatoyin, was an “unrepentant adulterer’’.

He asked the court to dissolve the union since the woman was no longer staying with him since 2007.

He said, “I caught her red-handed committing adultery.

“She incited some people to beat me almost to the point of death and the people confirmed this to me after carrying out her orders.

“I cannot imagine being associated with a person that is not under my roof and still bears my name.

“My estranged wife does not care about her image as a wife; she takes pleasure in living outside my home so that she can continue with her adulterous acts.

“I need to move on in life and regain my sanity and that is why I want to divorce her,’’ he told the court.”

The petitioner, a bricklayer, also said he wanted to be separated from Oluwatoyin because she had been endangering the lives of their four children.

Adeshina added: “I have always told her that I do not want her to cross highways with my children where there is a pedestrian bridge but she refused.

“I do not love her again and I do not want her to bear my name any longer.’’

Meanwhile, the respondent, Oluwatoyin who is also 40 years old, accused the petitioner of failing to pay her dowry.

`She said, “Azeez is not a caring person and he finds it difficult to care for me and the children.

“He abandoned me after an accident I had and asked my father to care of me instead.

“Any claim of his that I kidnapped two of our children and harassed him is false.”

She said she moved out of his house because the husband was making life unbearable for her.

In his ruling, the court’s President, Mrs Abiola Omolara, ordered the couple to maintain peace pending when the case would be disposed off.

She said, “I want the two of you to continue to ensure that the children remain in school because you should not allow your misunderstanding to affect their education.

“I will further urge the two of you to discuss the way forward to resolve this crisis and let the court know your resolutions.”

The case has been adjourned to Sept. 18 for continuation of trial.

(NAN)

The post My wife is an ‘unrepentant adulterer’, man tells court appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

An Ebute Meta Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos on Wednesday ordered the remand of four students of the University of Lagos over their alleged involvement in cultism.

The accused were: Raheem Yusuf (21), Adedoyin Abraham (24); Olanrewaju Idowu (36) and Oluyemi Peters (24).

The Chief Magistrate, Mrs Oluyemisi Adelaja, gave the order that the accused should be remanded at the Ikoyi Prisons, pending when they would perfect their bail conditions.

The accused were arraigned on a two-count bordering on conspiracy to cause a breach of the peace and belonging to an unlawful and secret society known as “Aloral Buccaneers’’.

The Prosecutor, Oladele Adebayo, told the court that the offences were committed on Aug. 4, at about 9.30 a.m., at Room 318, Biobaku Hall, Unilag.

He alleged that the accused gathered themselves in the room and conspired to cause a breach of the peace and disturbed other members of the hall.

According to him, the offences contravened Sections 42(a), (b) and 09 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

The accused, however, pleaded not guilty to the offences preferred against them.

Magistrate Adelaja admitted them to bail in the sum of N200, 000 with two sureties each in like sum, who must provide evidence of proof of tax payment to the Lagos state government.

The case was then adjourned till Sept. 26, for trial.

(NAN)

The post Court remands Unilag students over cultism appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

An Abuja High Court on Wednesday granted bail to Godsday Orubebe, a former Niger Delta Affairs Minister, in the sum of N10 million for allegedly diverting N2.3 billion.

The court also granted bail in the sum of N20 million each to Oludare Alaba and Ephraim Zeri, Directors of Contract in the ministry.

Orubebe, Alaba and Zeri were arraigned on a six-count charge by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission.

The judge, Justice Olukayode Adeniyi, in his ruling, ordered Orubebe to produce one surety in like sum.

Adeniyi said that Orubebe’s surety must be a responsible Nigerian with evidence of three years tax payment and land property owner within the FCT.

He said Alaba and Zeri should produce one surety each in like sum, who must be an assistant directors in the civil service and a landowner within the court’s jurisdiction.

The judge ordered that the sureties must depose to an affidavit of means.

Adeniyi said that Orubebe shall remain in the custody of ICPC until his bail conditions were met and adjourned the case till Nov. 10 for hearing.

The defendants alleged diverted about N2.3 billion meant for the dualisation of Section IV of the East-West Road.

Orubebe allegedly circumvented a Federal Executive Council approval for the dualisation of the Eket-Oron Road, part of the East-West Road which runs from Edo to Bayelsa.

He allegedly instructed the contractor, Gitto Construction, to rehabilitate instead of dualising as approved by the council.

Orubebe and others were also charged with conferring undue advantage on the construction firm when they caused the money meant for compensating residents whose property were marked for demolition paid to Gitto.

Orubebe was also accused of making false statements to the ICPC claiming that the decision to rehabilitate the road rather than dualise it was taken after he had left office as the minister.

(NAN)

The post N2.3bn fraud: Court grants ex-minister, Orubebe, N10m bail appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

A 28-year-old man, Alhassan Musa, on Wednesday appeared in a Magistrates’ Court sitting at Audu Bako Secretariat, Kano, for allegedly sexually abusing nine under-age boys.

Musa of Gwammaja Layin Jirgi, Kano, was charged with unnatural offence, contrary to Section 284 of the Penal Code.

Prosecutor Suleiman Danladi had told the court that parents of two of the abused minors, Ahmed Musbahu and Fatihu Hibbu, jointly reported the matter on July 24.

Danladi said that on July 18, the accused person lured the nine minors between the ages of 11 and 12 to defile them at separate times.

He said, “Your Worship, from our investigation, the accused lured the minor into his Shop at Gwammaja Layin Jirgi Quarters to have unlawful sex with each of them through their anus.

“He had his way at different occasions to perform the unlawful carnal knowledge of the children by offering them N100.”

The accused person pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The Chief Magistrate, Muhammad Jibril, however, remanded the accused in prison custody, and adjourned the case till Sept. 29 for mention.

(NAN)

The post Man on trial for raping nine boys in Kano appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

A middle-aged father, Ojo Adewole, on Wednesday told an Ikole Customary Court in Ekiti that he was involved in rape because his wife starved him of sex.

Adewole, who made this known when he testified in a divorce petition by his wife, Omotayo,35, admitted being involved in a rape case but blamed it on the wife.

He said, “Your honour, my wife had always starved me of sex. Instead of taking care of me and the house, she went about partying and making friends.

“My wife is simply wayward and the family had always supported her deeds.

“Your honour, I may not have the moral justification to ask for the preservation of the marriage, but I am praying the court to reduce my monthly financial obligation to my children to N5,000.”

“My prayer for the slashing of the upkeep money hinges on the fact that I have just been released from detention and I do not have any tangible source of livelihood at the moment.’’

Omotayo had told the court that Adewole had been “sexually unruly’’, adding that he had gambled out their collective property and money.

She said, “Your honour, my husband is so addicted to gambling to the extent of using my three cell phones, cooking stove and other house utensils to gamble.

“His habitual drunkenness made him to beat me so often.

“He is not also responsible for the upkeep of our five children as he evades paying their school fees. Your honour, I am tired of the marriage and I want it dissolved forthwith.”

She further said, “The father of my children does not have respect for her family members even though all of us stood by him when he was involved in a rape case.’’

The mother of five had sought for the custody of all the children and prayed the court to compel the respondent to assign some amount monthly for their upkeep.

In her Judgment, the President of the court, Mrs Yemisi Ojo, dissolve the 15-years-old marriage between Omotayo and Adewole for promiscuity and gambling lifestyle.

Ojo held that the petitioner’s request had merit and “in the light of the evidence before the court it is clear that the respondent’s lifestyle had put off the feelings the petitioner initially had for him.

“It is appropriate in the circumstance for parties to be allowed to go their separate ways.

“I, therefore, order that the custody of the children from the union would remain with the petitioner,’’ the president held.

Ojo said: “the respondent is ordered to give his ex-wife the sum of N10, 000 monthly for the upkeep of the children on monthly basis.’’

(NAN)

The post Sex starvation led me into rape, man tells court appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

 Ramon Oladimeji

A former Vice-President, Nigerian Maritime Law Association, Mr. Chidi Ilogu (SAN), says to address the increasing security challenges, including piracy and kidnapping, on the Nigerian territorial waters, the country must collaborate with neighbouring countries along the West and Central African coast.

This collaboration, he said, was in line with the recommendation by the International Maritime Bereau.

To,  however, be able to enter into such collaboration, Ilogu said the National Assembly must first pass a law and must do so urgently.

The urgency of the legislation, he said, was in view of a recent report by the IMB, which put the number of Nigerian crew members kidnapped by pirates in the first half of this year as 24.

The said kidnappings and armed robberies, Ilogu said, had led  to increased cost of shipping and insurance, with the final consumers bearing the brunt.

Ilogu made this submission on Wednesday at the maiden edition of a public lecture series organised by the Department of Commercial and Industrial Law, University of Lagos, where he was the guest lecturer.

The Senior Advocate spoke on the theme, “Contemporary Issues in Shipping and Maritime Law in Nigeria.”

He recalled that the IMB, in its recent report, had detailed the new modus operandi of pirates, where it observed that, “In the past, these pirates had been content with boarding ships and stealing their cargoes, such as oil from tankers… (but) now, the gangs tend to board vessels, such as bulk carriers, up to 120 nautical miles offshore, kidnap some crew members and take them ashore to be held for ransom.”

“This report goes on to observe that the acts of piracy and armed robbery in the Gulf of Guinea, especially off the Nigerian coast, have increased in the last two to three years.

“This is regrettable as it has resulted in higher shipping and insurance costs on Nigeria-bound cargoes, which ultimately get passed to the consumers,” Ilogu said.

According to him, to tackle the menace of kidnapping and armed robberies on the Nigerian territorial waters, the IMB had called for collaboration among neigbouring states along the West and Central African coast.

This collaboration, the IMB said, “will allow for the hot pursuit of suspects into territorial waters of a neighbouring state by naval vessels from another state to apprehend the culprits.”

To this end, Ilogu submitted that, “There is every urgency for more effective legislation by the National Assembly to address the challenge in Nigeria and of course more effective naval and aerial surveillance of the Nigerian coastal, territorial waters and the EEZ to curb the menace.”

He described as a right step in the right direction, the Memorandum of Understanding that the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency signed with the Nigerian Navy and other security agencies on matters of mutual interests including the security of the maritime environment.

Ilogu said, “By this MoU, the Nigerian Navy and NIMASA carry out regular patrol of the Lagos waters and other susceptible marine areas in the country. There is also a similar understanding with the Nigerian Air Force for aerial surveillance.”

Copyright PUNCH.
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.

Contact: editor@punchng.com

The post SAN urges W/African countries to unite against pirates appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

A group, the Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice, has said it will be good if the United States of America and the European Union could emulate the United Kingdom by undertaking to repatriate looted funds stashed in their territories to Nigeria.

ANEEJ expressed this view in a statement by its Executive Director, Rev. David Ugolor.

The UK had recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Nigeria on how to repatriate funds looted from Nigeria.

Ugolor described the step as laudable.

 As a complement to the step, however, ANEEJ urged the Federal Government to expedite action on its pledge to join the Open Government Partnership.

 The group said the OGP, which would disclose how the Federal Government would spend the repatriated funds, would give the assurance that the funds would not be re-looted.

Ugolor said, “Apart from this MoU and the commitment between the Nigerian and the UK governments, we urge the Federal Government to expedite action on her own commitment to join the Open Government Partnership, a commitment made at the London anti-corruption summit.

“With that commitment, Nigeria has to sign and provide a document outlining how it intends to be open and transparent in government business. If this is done, it immediately sends a strong message to everyone that the returned loot would not be re-looted.”

ANEEJ urged the US government as well as all the European countries to take a cue from the UK by removing any impediments in the way of repatriating looted funds to Nigeria.

It said, “The UK has already established the benchmark that it would post the MoU it had with the Nigerian government on its website; the Swiss government as well is working with the civil society and the Nigerian government to repatriate stolen Nigerian monies; all that the Justice Department of the United States should do now is partner the Swiss and UK governments and the Nigerian government as well, to tackle the legal and bureaucratic blockages involved in the repatriation of stolen monies from developing countries abroad.”

Copyright PUNCH.
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.

Contact: editor@punchng.com

The post Group urges US, EU to repatriate Nigeria’s loot appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

Ramon Oladimeji

An octogenarian professor at the United Bible University, Lagos, Augustus Macaulay, has sued the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission for what he termed the unlawful seizure of books belonging to the institution.

In the papers he filed through his lawyer, Mr. Ali Adah, before a Federal High Court in Lagos, Macaulay said the ICPC came after him on the allegation that he was operating an illegal university.

The octogenarian said he and the university’s Academic Manager, Mrs. Sandra Thompson, were arrested on April 27, 2016 and detained for three days without allowing them to see their families or lawyer.

Macaulay claimed that the ICPC seized from him 12 publications authored by one Prof. Paul Emeka of the university and kept in the university’s library for the purpose of teaching the students.

Macaulay, Thompson and the owner of United  Bible University, Registered Trustees of Christian Soul Winners Worldwide, jointly sued the ICPC, demanding N10m as compensation for the alleged breach of their rights.

The plaintiffs’ counsel contended that it was unlawful for the ICPC to investigate his clients over the allegation that they were operating an illegal university, a case, he said, was already before the police.

Adah, who told the court that Macaulay had been on police administrative bail since August 2015, argued that it would amount to duplication of duty for the ICPC to be investigating his clients simultaneously.

Adah is also urging the court to void the ICPC’s directive, mandating Macaulay to report to the ICPC office every Friday at 9am to sign an attendance register, which he described as a violation of the octogenarian’s rights to freedom of movement, liberty and dignity of person.

A vacation judge, Justice Abdulazeez Anka, last week granted the application to hear the case during the ongoing court’s vacation.

The judge rejected argument by the ICPC’s lawyer, Atanda Oludiya, that there was no urgency in the matter to warrant its being heard during vacation.

Oludiya had pointed out that Macaulay was not in detention as he had already been granted an administrative bail by the ICPC, with the only condition that he should report to the commission’s office every Friday at 9am pending conclusion of investigation.

She said the ICPC had not in any way violated the octogenarian’s rights.

But Justice Anka pointed out that the ICPC had curtailed Macaulay’s freedom of movement by merely mandating the octogenarian to report every Friday at the ICPC office.

The judge upheld the plaintiffs’ lawyer’s argument that fundamental rights enforcement suits are by nature urgent.

After deciding that the matter was urgent enough to be heard during the court’s vacation, Justice Anka adjourned the case till September 6, 2016 for hearing.

However, when the matter came up on Wednesday, September 7, another vacation judge, Justice Babs Kuewumi, who had taken over from Justice Anka, said there was no need to commence hearing into the case during the court’s vacation which would soon end.

Justice Kuewumi said since he would not be able to conclude and give judgment in the case, it was better to return the case file to the Chief Judge, Justice Ibrahim Auta, to reassign it to the judge before whom the case was originally filed, Justice Mohammed Idris.

Consequently, Justice Kuewumi adjourned the case till October 4, 2016 for hearing before Justice Idris.

Copyright PUNCH.
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.

Contact: editor@punchng.com

The post Professor sues ICPC for seizure of books appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

In  this  report  by RAMON OLADIMEJI, some human rights lawyers lauded but picked holes in the anti-grazing law recently signed by Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State to check killings of farmers and destruction of farmlands by Fulani herdsmen

These days, the mention of nomadic Fulani herdsmen seems to have become a presage to reports of mindless killings of farmers and wanton destruction of crops across the country.  In June, in Benue State, rampaging herdsmen killed at least 59 residents, including a traditional ruler, at Turan Council Ward of Logo Local Government Area of the state over a weekend. This was apart from many others who escaped with varying degrees of injuries and others who went missing after the attack.

The above of example is just one out of many successive attacks in Benue and Kogi states where arms-carrying herdsmen casually visited terror on harmless citizens, killing and displacing community members.

In July, a first-class traditional ruler in Plateau State, the Saf Ron Kulere, and the Chairman of  Bokkos Traditional Council, Sir Lazarus Agai, was killed alongside his driver while returning from his farm.

But these kinds of attacks by herdsmen were not limited to the Middle Belt and the North.

In April, in Enugu State, herdsmen invaded Ukpabi Nimbo, an agrarian community in the Uzo-Uwani Local Government of the state, and killed not less than 20 persons in one attack.

In April, a group of herdsmen invaded the farm of a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Olu Falae, in Ondo State and killed the security guard on duty, who dared to challenge them.

Usually, a day or two after each of such attacks, the Federal Government would issue a statement quoting the President as condemning the killings and destruction of livelihoods.  But no herdsman has been brought to book or made to pay for the criminal killings.

And so it was that the Governor of Ekiti State, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, received wide applause last week, when he signed a law to curtail the activities of herdsmen in his state in response to the killing of two residents in Oke Ako community in Ikole Local Government Area of the state by herdsmen.

The law titled, “Prohibition of Cattle and Other Ruminants Grazing in Ekiti, 2016,” criminalises grazing in some places within the state and outside certain period in the day.

It also prohibited carriage of any kind of weapon by herdsmen.

Signing the new law, Fayose had said it would check cases of incessant attacks or killings of local residents and destruction of farmlands by herdsmen and their cattle.

He said the law would also strengthen security in various communities across the state, adding that anyone that fouled the law stood the risk of being treated as a terrorist.

The governor said, “With the signing into law of this bill today, anyone caught grazing with arms or any weapon in Ekiti would now be charged with terrorism and be made to face the law according to certain sections of it.

“The same goes for those who graze in prohibited areas or go against the time frame of 7am to 6pm allowed for open grazing.”

Giving an overview of the law earlier, the Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Kolawole Oluwawole, had said that the Assembly gave the bill that culminated into the law an accelerated hearing as part of its collaborative efforts towards maintaining peace and order in the state.

Oluwawole said, in pursuit of the law, the state government was already working with local government authorities to allocate portions of land for grazing in their areas.

He explained that grazing must henceforth be from 7am to 6pm on a daily basis and that the government would allot portions of land to each local government area in that regard.

He said, “Anyone caught grazing on portions of land or any farmland not allotted by government shall be apprehended and made to face the law.

“Any herdsman caught with firearms and any weapons whatsoever during grazing shall be charged with terrorism.

“Any cattle confiscated shall be taken to government cattle ranch at Erifun and Iworoko Ekiti communities in the state.

“Any farm crop destroyed by the activities of any apprehended herdsman shall be estimated by agricultural officers and the expenses of the estimate shall be borne by the culprit.

“Any herdsman who violates any of these rules shall be imprisoned for six months without option of fine.”

Everyone welcomed the law in the face of unrelenting attacks by herdsmen, who seem to be getting more emboldened in their unchecked act of casual killings of farmers and destruction of farmlands aparently as there was no retribution.

However, only days after Fayose signed the law, Fulani herdsmen from Ilorin, Kwara State, resident in Ekiti State under the aegis of Jamu Nate Fulbe Association of Nigeria, rejected the law.

The counsel for the herdsmen, Mr. Umar Imam, contended that herdsmen who carried light weapons such as cutlasses, knives, catapults and arrows within the time stipulated by the new law could not be charged with terrorism.

According to him, the provision of the law that treats herdsmen found with knives, cutlasses, arrows and catapults as terrorists was in conflict with the provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act, 2011.

Imam argued, “The law of the federation on terrorism is very clear and no one can be charged with terrorism for carrying lesser arms like cutlasses, catapults and knives during the grazing period as contained in the Ekiti new law.

“I have made it in my submission during the public hearing on the bill in the Ekiti State House of Assembly that these Fulani herdsmen use these lesser weapons for certain purposes that can make grazing easier.

“I also told them that movement at night while relocating from one place to another was to ensure that they don’t wreak havoc on the people during the day while relocating to other towns. I expected the state government to have taken care of these in the new law rather than impose a total ban.

“What the state government ought to have done  is to allow whoever wants to relocate at night to take permit from a certain government authority or inform their Seriki, but banning them from moving at night may not help the situation, it will make their jobs difficult.”

Also, the Seriki of the association in Ekiti, Alhaji Ahmadu Mahmoud, argued that the government failed to consider the practicality and the implication of restricting movements of herdsmen to only daytime.

“We agree with the governor on the grazing period of between 7am and 6pm, but we should be allowed to carry lesser arms and relocate at night.

“How can somebody who wants to carry his cattle numbering hundreds from Ekiti to  places  like Lokoja, Ibadan or Ilorin move during the day? These places are densely populated and it will create traffic congestion and confusion everywhere. The government must look into all of these,” the Seriki said.

But a Lagos-based lawyer, Mr. Dele Adeogun, has said the herdsmen’s lawyer, Imam, missed the point by arguing that the Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2011 does not recognise knives, cutlasses, catapult and arrow as weapons of terror.

According to Adeogun, the emphasis of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act was not on the weapon used but on any act that could instill terror in the mind of citizens or the state, regardless of the kind of weapon deployed by the terrorist.

Adeogun said, “What is terrorism? Basically, it means an act that is directed at the state or an individual intended or calculated to create a state of terror in the mind of a particular person or the general public. So, flowing from that clear definition of what terrorism is, which is an act premeditated or politically motivated, what becomes a terror is not the weapon you are using. Recently in Germany, what did a man use to kill about 80 people? He turned a vehicle on them. So, the issue is not the weapon, the issue is whether the violence is directed or calculated to create terror in the mind of people.

“If what the herdsmen are doing is such that they take knives and go on the rampage, then that is an act of terror. So, the attention should shift away from whether a herdsman is carrying a gun or not. It is not only a gun that is used in acts of terrorism. The 9/11 terror attack was carried out with an aircraft.

“Any weapon can be used for terrorism, insofar as the attack is a premeditated or politically or religiously motivated violence perpetrated against non-combatant targets. So, the definition of terrorism does not include the type of weapon that the terrorist is using.”

Adeogun further argued that the government was justified to take every step needed to let everyone, including the herdsmen, realise that nobody was above the law.

He added, “Beyond the politics, it is important that herdsmen be made to realise that they are subject to laws of the state wherein they operate. The herdsmen cannot think because they are herdsmen, they are not subjected to the laws of the land. Of course, there are laws and you can enter into someone’s farm and destroy their crops.”

A human rights lawyer, Mr. Fred Agbaje, also said Imam was wrong, pointing out that nobody, including, herdsmen, was allowed by the law to carry any kind of weapon without being licensed.

Agbaje, “What we should be asking is: what made them to now begin to carry arms and ammunition? Does the law permit them? Are they now policemen to carry arms or are they members of the security force?”

A Lagos-based lawyer, Mr. Wahab Shittu, recalled that back in the days, all that a herdsman carried in the course of grazing his animal was just a stick. He queried the sudden need for herdsmen to now be armed while carrying out their trade.

Shittu queried, “I want to ask, in the first place, what is a herdsman doing with a weapon? In those days, in the relation between herdsmen and local communities there was no violence; then what you’d see with a herdsman is an ordinary stick. But now, why do they have to carry weapons? I think the state government is right to treat whoever carries weapon as a terrorist.”

But Agbaje expressed reservation on the portion of the Ekiti law that places restriction on the free movement of herdsmen.

He said, “I am not saying it is not the duty of the government to protect the interest of its citizens, but they must be careful to get the limitation line between the provisions of the Constitution and the various laws passed by the states.

“Supposing a herdsman says he wants to travel to felicitate with his colleagues in Ekiti State, are we saying they can’t go there as freely as they want? There is freedom of association and freedom of movement involved. Will the Ekiti law not be in conflict with the provisions of the Terrorism Act? What Ekiti State can do is to adopt the Federal Government terrorism law, domesticate it; but if they don’t want to domesticate it, their own law must conform with it, but should not be at variance.”

Another Lagos-based lawyer, Mr. Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, also said the Ekiti law may come in conflict with the constitutional provision on the rights of citizens to freedom of movement.

 Adegboruwa said, “I think that we need to find a balance between Chapter 4 of the 1999 Constitution on the right of citizens to move about in any part of the country, including herdsmen and then the issue of imposition of violence on innocent citizens in their farmlands and houses.

“I support the effort of the Ekiti State government to monitor and restrict the movement of herdsmen and to strip them of any weapon of violence.  But beyond that, any attempt to stop people from exercising their fundamental right of movement either with their cattle or alone will be unconstitutional.

“The House of Assembly in Ekiti State has no right to prevent people from grazing, but such grazing can be done without imposing violence on other citizens. But every citizen of Nigeria has a right to move in any part of the country whatsoever, whether as a herdsman or farmer.”

Adegboruwa also pointed out that though the Ekiti lawmakers and the governor had a good intention, the new law was unnecessary as, according to him, there were already existing laws in the country that criminalise unathourised use of weapon and murder.

He argued that rather than pass a new law, the focus should have been more on how to get the law enforcement agencies to enforce the existing laws.

Adegboruwa added, “If and when a person is caught with a weapon in the course of grazing, that is already dealt with under the Criminal Code of Nigeria as illegal possession of firearms and so, that has already covered the field. And I don’t believe that there is a need or it is relevant for the Ekiti State House of Assembly to be replicating the content of the Criminal Code. A citizen who is caught with weapons or firearms without licence is liable under the existing Criminal Code and under the Firearms Act. The Federal Government has already covered the field. It is for the police to have the will to enforce the law. It is not a lacking of legislation that is causing the crisis of herdsmen; it is lack of political will on the part of the institutions to enforce the laws. If you make hundred laws and you don’t look at the way to enforce them, it is of no use. So, I am encouraging the institutions already set up, the Nigeria Police, to have the will to enforce our laws.”

Adeogun also shared Adegboruwa’s views.

He said, “There are existing laws in all the states before now that criminalise wanton destruction of properties. So, the issue is not about making a law, there are already existing laws in the country. But the question is: all the farms that have been previously destroyed, has anybody been charged to court or brought to justice? We need to focus more on the enforcement of our laws rather than adding more to the laws. In the implementation of the Ekiti law, is it not the police that will prosecute any offender? So, the focus of this debate should really be more about how do we ensure that herdsmen operate within the boundary of the Federal Republic of Nigeria or any state thereto and abide by the laws of those states. So that if that begins to happen, then people will know that you can’t just go around with knife and be stabbing people.”

Failure to enforce the laws, Adeogun said, would give way to anarchy as the farmers might resort to self-help.

He added, “The reason we are having the increasing conflicts involving the herdsmen is that when the herdsmen enter into a farmer’s farm and let their cattle eat up all the crops, they are not brought to justice and there is no remedy for the man who has lost his crop for the year, then the next time it happens the farmer will resort to self-help.”

Copyright PUNCH.
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.

Contact: editor@punchng.com

The post Force and limits of Ekiti State’s anti-grazing law appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

A hairdresser went on trial in Norway Thursday for refusing a Muslim client wearing a hijab, in the first case in the country to go to court over the Islamic head covering.

Merete Hodne risks up to six months in prison for religious discrimination for turning Malika Bayan away from her hair salon in Bryne, a small town in southwestern Norway, in October last year.

According to the charge sheet, Hodne told Bayan “she would have to find someplace else because she didn’t accept (clients) like her.”

“I don’t want this evil in a place where I decide. This evil is the Islamic ideology, the Mohammedanism and the hijab is the symbol of this ideology just like the swastika is that of Nazism,” Hodne told TV2.

Described by Norwegian media as a former activist in Islamophobic movements such as Pegida, the 47-year-old hairdresser said that accepting a woman in hijab as a client in her salon would have meant she would have had to turn away male customers.

She claimed that the woman would not have been able to expose her hair with men present.

Bayan, 24, told media she felt “deeply humiliated when I’m treated this way in a public place in my own country”.

“It can’t be evil to open the door of a hair salon to ask how much it costs to do highlights,” she said last year.

The hairdresser refused to pay a fine of 8,000 kroner (870 euros, $980) for religious discrimination, and the case was therefore brought to the Jaeren district court on Thursday.

Police officials said they would ask for the fine to be raised to 9,600 kroner, and if she refused to pay they would seek a jail sentence of 19 days.

AFP

The post Hairdresser on trial for refusing customer in hijab appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

The Police in Kogi on Thursday arraigned the son of the former governor of the state, the late Prince Abubakar Audu, for robbery and attempted culpable homicide at a Lokoja Magistrates’ Court.

Mohammed Audu was arrested on Wednesday night when he honoured police invitation at the Special Anti-Robbery Squad at the Police Headquarters in Lokoja.

The prosecution charged the accused with criminal conspiracy, causing grievous hurt, mischief, armed robbery and attempted culpable homicide, contrary to sections 97(1), 248, 327, 298 and 229 of the Penal Code.

The prosecuting police officer, Mr Gabriel Otowu, told the court that Mohammed allegedly committed the offences against his uncle, Prince Yahaya Audu, on Aug. 30, in the family house at Ogbonicha, Ofu Local Government Area.

Otowu told the court that Yahaya and one Ibrahim Immam were in his family compound at Ogbonicha for the eighth day prayer of Dauda Audu when the alleged offence took place.

He said that in the First Information Report, Yahaya alleged that hoodlums armed with guns, cutlasses and axe criminally conspired and invaded his compound pretending to be visitors.

He alleged that Yahaya ignorantly welcomed the people, who asked him to give them “something no matter how small”.

The prosecutor said that as the complainant walked toward his vehicle to give them money, the people attacked him from behind with a machete and “thoroughly” beat him up.

He said that the suspects inflicted injuries on the complainant and shot sporadically into the air.

Otowu said that the complainant fell to the ground and pretended to be dead and the hoodlums attempted to carry him before he ran into the bush and escaped.

He also said that they broke the windscreen of his jeep and made away with his Samsung handset.

The prosecutor further said that the complainant and Imman sustained bullet wounds and were later rushed to the Specialist Hospital, Lokoja for treatment.

He said that prior to the attack the accused had threatened to deal with Yahaya.

In his submission, Okechukwu Ayewu, leading seven other lawyers for the accused, urged the court to grant his client bail in line with the constitution and the Criminal Procedure Code.

Otowu, however, did not object to the bail application but urged the court to use its discretion.

The Magistrate, Mr Alhassan Husaini, in his ruling, said: “Though I find on the face of the originating process (FIR) a barrage of allegations, it appears that both counsel are on the same page.

“Accordingly, the accused person herein is admitted to bail in the sum of N100, 000 with a surety in like sum,” he said and adjourned the matter to Sept. 29 for further mention. (NAN)

The post Ex Kogi gov’s son, Mohammed Audu, arraigned for robbery appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

The Federal High Court, Abuja, has directed, Sen. Buruji Kashamu, to execute the two previous court judgments he obtained stopping the Federal Government from extraditing him to the U.S.

Kashamu, had in a fresh application, urged the court to prohibit the police and the Department of State Services from arresting and extraditing him to the U.S to answer charges on drug-related offences.

The judge, Justice Okon Abang, declined the request, saying that the serving senator, representing Ogun West in the Senate did not need the order.

Abang held that if Kashamu was sure that police and the DSS were taking steps to arrest and extradite him, he should execute the two earlier judgments obtained against the Federal Government.

He said that it was not necessary for the court to issue a fresh order against the defendants in the matter since the same court had delivered two judgments in his favour on the subject matter.

The judge said, “On this issue of the alleged plan by the respondent to abduct the applicant, I am aware that the applicant has various court judgments in his favour.

“If he is apprehensive, and is so sure of himself and his facts, he is at liberty to execute the various judgments.

“The two judgments are still subsisting and therefore the applicant requires no court order against the respondents.

“If he is complaining that persons who were not parties in the previous judgments are threatening to take steps to extradite him to U.S by force, he can seek leave of the court to execute the judgements in his favour.

“He can do so in line with provisions of Section 133 of the Criminal Code and he does not need a fresh order or fresh suit to achieve that.’’

On the petition against him by Adebutu that he, Kashamu was threatening his life, the judge ordered that status quo be maintained pending the determination of the motion on notice filed by the senator.

Abang said that his decision was based on the agreement reached by the parties to maintain status quo.
He, however, referred the case filed to the chief judge of the court, Justice Ibrahim Auta, for reassignment to another judge after vacation.

He said that his tenure as a vacation judge would end on Sept. 9 and that he could not afford to open a fresh case he would not be able to complete during vacation.

Kashamu had premised his case on the grounds that he had information that operatives of the police and the DSS were taking steps to abduct him and extradite him to the U.S.

In his motion on notice filed by his counsel, Mr Godswill Mrakpor, the senator claimed that unless the court granted him the order, his liberty would be put in jeopardy by the security operatives.

(NAN)

The post Extradition: Court declines Kashamu’s fresh application appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

An Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court has admitted a 50-year-old prophet, Emmanuel Adeyemi, to bail in the sum of N500, 000 for allegedly chaining his step-son and burying four corpses in his residence.

The Chief Magistrate, Mrs Taiwo Akanni, who granted the bail on Friday, ordered the accused to produce two sureties in like sum.

She adjourned the case till Oct. 10 for mention.

Adeyemi who lives at No 16, Aderinola Olamiju Close, Unity Estate, Ojodu, a suburb of Lagos, was arraigned for deprivation of liberty and unlawful burial in his residence.

The Prosecutor, Sgt. Rafael Donny, told the court that the offences were committed at the accused residence between July and August, 2016 and unspecified dates.

Donny said that the accused was arrested following information that the accused chained a 16-year-old step -son in his residence.

The victim had been chained down for a month.

He said, “On investigation, it was also discovered that the accused buried four different corpses in his residence without the permission of the Local Government.”

The offences contravened sections 162(1) and 270 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

The accused, however, pleaded not guilty.

NAN

The post Court grants prophet N500, 000 bail for chaining step-son appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

A British lawyer suing MasterCard for £14 billion over card charges accused the US financial giant on Friday of indirectly pushing up prices for all British consumers.

“Our case is that businesses that had to pay these fees then naturally passed on their costs… to consumers,” Walter Merricks from law firm Quinn Emanuel said on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

Mark Barnett, head of MasterCard in Britain, told the BBC that card services had benefited consumers, adding: “We will be vigorously defending the case… We don’t think consumers have suffered in any way”.

The law firm, which launched its collective action on Thursday, said MasterCard had imposed unlawfully high card fees between 1992 and 2007 and added the claim was “the biggest in UK legal history”.

The European Commission last year said the US credit-card giant overcharged customers and retailers, having already found rival Visa at fault over fees levied on card payments.

The Commission said it believed MasterCard was in breach of EU single market competition rules.

“Many consumers use payment cards every day, when they shop for food, clothes or purchase anything online. We currently suspect MasterCard is artificially raising the costs of card payments, which would harm consumers and retailers in the EU,” EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said last year.

“We have concerns both in relation to the rules MasterCard applies to cross-border transactions within the EU, as well as the fees charged to retailers for receiving payments made with cards issued outside Europe,” Vestager said.

AFP

The post Firm sues MasterCard for £14bn over fees appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

A 19-year-old man, Jelili Afolabi, who allegedly raped a 16-year-old girl was on Friday arraigned at a Surulere Magistrates’ Court in Lagos.

Afolabi, whose address was not provided, is charged with rape.‎

The prosecutor, Sgt. Anthonia Osanyade, told the court that the accused committed the offence at Konga Meji Ibeshe beach, Lagos, at about 7.30 p.m. on Aug.17.

She said the accused ‎invited his victim to a quiet part of the beach and forcefully had sex with her.

The offence contravened Section 137 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2011.
‎
The Chief Magistrate, Mrs Ipaye Nwachukwu, granted bail to the accused in the sum of N200, 000 with two sureties in like sum.
‎
She ordered that one of the sureties must be a blood-relation to the accused, and that both sureties should provide evidence of tax payment to the Lagos State Government.
‎
Nwachukwu adjourned the case to Nov.1.

(NAN)

The post Man on trial for raping minor appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

Ramon Oladimeji

The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, United Kingdom, Nigeria Branch, has called on arbitrators in the country to team up with the government to take the country out of recession.

The Chairperson of CIArb, Mrs. Adedoyin Rhodes-Vivour, who noted that foreign investment was critical to Nigeria’s economic revival, however said arbitrators, by their conduct, could either encourage or discourage foreign investors.

She, therefore, called on arbitrators to always conduct themselves in line with international best practices during arbitral proceedings.

Rhodes-Vivour made the call at the inaugural CIArb Arbitration Workshop Series, with the theme, “Conduct of counsel in international arbitration,” held last Wednesday in Lagos.

According to her, the level of Nigeria’s acceptance as a place of arbitration should be one of the indices for measuring the country’s economic development.

She said, “Nigeria is now in a recession and each and every one of us in partnership with the government has a role to play in our economic development and survival and exit strategies during this period.

“Arbitration and alternative dispute resolution activities, as well as Nigeria’s perception as a place where disputes are effectively and expeditiously resolved outside the court system, can attract foreign investment.

“Therefore, counsel in arbitration proceedings need to be aware and practice within globally accepted standards.”

The guest speaker at the workshop, Mr. Tunde Fagbohunlu (SAN), stressed the need for counsel to strike a balance between their clients’ interests and the need to comply with ethical standards.

The senior advocate took his listeners through the processes of drafting the arbitration clause in agreements, how to write the witness statement, how to prepare  for hearing and cross examination, among others.

He differentiated between various cultures and the need to be aware of the culture from which the arbitrator is being chosen, adding that an arbitrator’s background and personality should be considered in case preparation.

Fagbohunlu highlighted some arbitration instruments that arbitrators must be familiar with to include the IBA Guidelines on Party Representation in International Arbitration, the ICC Guidelines on Conflict Disclosure by Arbitrators and the LCIA Guidelines for Parties Legal Representatives.

Participants were also exposed to the peculiarities of international arbitration proceedings, as well as common pitfalls to avoid and case preparation strategies.

Copyright PUNCH.       
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.

Contact: editor@punchng.com

The post Arbitrators must work with govt to overcome recession –Rhodes-Vivour appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

Ahmed Adetola-Kazeem

The notion of confidentiality in arbitration is inherently ambiguous and potentially confusing. It has long been standard practice to include the word ‘confidentiality’ in any list of supposed benefits of arbitration. Parties agreeing to an arbitration clause therefore expect any dispute to be resolved out of the sight of jealous competitors and inquisitive media, not to mention over-curious authorities. One wonders why many cases emanating from arbitral proceedings end up in the regular courts and why we have a lot of cases whose subject matter are arbitration ending up in the law reports in spite of the ‘confidential’ nature of arbitral proceedings.

Very little critical analysis has been brought to bear on this issue, as may readily be verified by reviewing textbooks on arbitration. Even the most comprehensive ones have little to say on this subject, except to repeat generalities which are presumed rather than proven. In recent years, a handful of cases in a number of national jurisdictions have demonstrated that the issue is indeed complex. These cases illuminate not only the absence of an explicit and absolute duty of confidentiality, but also this paradox: if they really thought it through, many parties might find it undesirable for the rule to be as comprehensive as they vaguely suppose it to be.

It is true that third parties are excluded from most types of international arbitration. But does it follow that parties are obliged not to disclose to strangers what has transpired in the arbitration? Can one really point to a positive duty on the part of participants in arbitral proceedings to maintain confidentiality? If such a duty exists what are its limits and its practical effects? Parties may be astonished to find out that, when they actually test the matter, that the rule of confidentiality is not reliable.

Although confidentiality is often cited as one of the primary advantages of arbitration, the arbitration rules of most of the best-known institutions do not require the parties to maintain the confidentiality of the arbitral proceedings, award or any documents exchanged in or created for the proceedings. The arbitration rules of some institutions do, however, impose such a confidentiality requirement on the administrator and arbitrators. Several common law countries have imposed an implied obligation of confidentiality on arbitrators and parties, while some countries’ laws (e.g. Australia and United States) impose no confidentiality requirements on parties to arbitration unless confidentiality is expressly provided for in the contract between the parties.

At one extreme, arbitral scholars believe that it is an inherent element of arbitration that there is a general duty of confidentiality. It might be seen as an important aspiration of commercial parties to deal with their disputes in a way which does not adversely affect their status in the market place through bad publicity. Many disputes also deal with confidential aspects of technology and business know-how. At the other extreme, some argue that an undue concern for confidentiality comes at the expense of transparency and the ability to promote consistency through adoption of similar logic to other arbitral tribunals.

In Commonwealth of Australia v. Cockatoo Dockyard Pty Ltd [1995] 36 NSWLR 662, the Australian court concluded that whilst there was a ‘high level of confidentiality’ in arbitral proceedings, this should not prevent disclosure where the public interest was concerned. It is this concern for the public interest – and the public’s right to know’ – that has led to the erosion of the principle of confidentiality in arbitral proceedings.

Where one or both parties in an arbitral proceeding are state parties the requirement of transparency and disclosure in the public interest will outweigh that of confidentiality. For instance it is doubtful whether it is be possible to impose a binding duty of confidentiality on government institutions in Nigeria who are parties to an  arbitration in view of the enactment of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2011.

Section 1(1) of the FOIA provides that:

“Notwithstanding anything contained in any other Act, Law or regulation, the right of any person to access or request information, whether or not contained in any written form, which is in custody or possession of any public official, agency or institution howsoever described, is established.”

Section 4 of FOIA mandates a public institution, subject to some exception, to make the information available to the applicant. Where a case of wrongful denial of access is established, the defaulting officer or institution commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of N500, 000.

The FOIA however provides exemption for cases where application for information will be refused. The FOIA provides that a public institution may deny an application for information that is subject to legal practitioner-client privilege; health workers-client privileges; journalism confidentiality privileges and any other professional privileges conferred by an act.

Since no Act in Nigeria has conferred any privilege or made confidentiality mandatory on parties to an arbitral proceeding, any member of the public may request to have access to an arbitral award or documents exchanged during an arbitration proceeding which are in the possession of a public official, agency or institution.

• Adetola-Kazeem, a lawyer, wrote from Lagos

Copyright PUNCH.       
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.

Contact: editor@punchng.com

The post Confidentiality in arbitration and FOI Act appeared first on Punch Newspapers.

Experts, in this report by RAMON OLADIMEJI, say successive jailbreaks and riots in Nigerian prisons within the last three months are not a coincidence but telltale signs of the age-long malaise plaguing the Nigerian prisons system to which the authorities have turned a blind eye

On June 24, 2016, there was a successful jailbreak in the Kuje Prison, Abuja, wherein two awaiting-trial inmates, identified as Maxwell Ajukwu and Solomon Amodu, escaped.

Twenty-six days after this, on July 30, another jailbreak happened at the Koton Karfe Prison in Kogi State. This time, 13 inmates successfully scaled the prison wall.

Eleven days after the Kogi jailbreak, on August 10, 25 inmates also escaped from the Nsukka Prison, Enugu State, in another successful jailbreak.

On August 18, the Abakaliki Prison, Ebonyi State, was thrown into pandemonium following a foiled jailbreak. The ensuing riot resulted in the death of six inmates while four prison officers were injured.

On August 29, mayhem broke out in the Kuje Prison, as inmates resisted a move by the prison officers to search their cells for illegal items. The riot happened 11 days after the attempted jailbreak at the Abakaliki Prison.

In response to the Kuje and Koton Karfe jailbreaks, authorities of the Nigerian Prison Service, led by the Controller-General of Prisons, Ahmed Ja’afaru, dismissed 17 prison officials in August.

Similarly, the Civil Defence, Fire, Immigration and Prisons Services Board, in a letter signed by its Secretary, Alhaji A. A. Ibrahim, also dismissed another six prison officials in relation to the jailbreaks.

The immediate aftermath of the Nsukka jailbreak was the suspension of 11 officers, including the prison’s controller, to pave the way for investigation.

Some human rights lawyers, working closely with the prison service, by virtue of their criminal defence activities, told our correspondent that the successive jailbreaks were a product of the deep rot in the Nigerian prison system begging to be urgently addressed.

They described the sacking of the 23 complicit officials in the recent jailbreaks as only a face-saving or superficial effort, which would not be enough to fix the inherent problems in the Nigerian prison system.

The problems with the Nigerian prisons are myriad and notorious.

Experts, who spoke with our correspondent, summed them up as mostly a product of under-funding, outdated legislation and inefficiency, which reflect in the form of old and dilapidated prison structures, overcrowded cells, gross shortage of prison vans to convey inmates to court for trial, poorly paid and unmotivated prison officials, to mention but a few.

A former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Ekiti State, Mr. Olawale Fapohunda, said, “Our prisons have, over the years, been a source of concern due to overcrowding, understaffing, lack of adequate medical care, inadequate provisions for female and juvenile detainees, poor administration, long detention of those awaiting trial and limited access to legal advice and representation. These have frequently led to poor health conditions including frequent jailbreaks.”

Fapohunda, who is the Chairman of a joint committee of the Nigerian Prisons Service and the National Human Rights Commission on the Review of the Prisons Act, noted that while Nigeria had 240 prison facilities across the country – comprising 138 main prisons, 85 satellites, 14 Farm Centres and  three borstal institutions – the Nigeria Prisons Service could only boast of 28, 065 officers.

“With the imminent retirement of many officers in the period between 2014 and 2016, this number may drop by as much as 4,000,” he added.

For the Director of Prisoners’ Rights Advocacy Initiative, Ahmed Adetola-Kazeem, the recent jailbreaks were an indication of institutional failure.

He said, “The recent jailbreaks in the country are clearly an indication of institutional  failure. They are an indication of the failure of the Nigerian state.  Fyodor Dostoyevsky  said, ‘The degree of civilisation in a society is revealed by entering its prisons.’ Some of the factors responsible are neglect of the prisons by the Federal Government, overcrowding, understaffing, dilapidated prison structures and high level of corruption among prison officials amongst other factors.

“Sacking of prison officers is not a solution to jailbreaks. There is need to tackle the root cause of the jailbreaks.”

The NHRC had in a 2012 audit of the Nigerian prisons, submitted that prison structures across many parts of the country were old and dilapidated as most of them were built in the 19th Century by the British colonial masters.

The Azare, Bauchi, Ningi and Misua prisons built in 1816, 1820, 1827 and 1831 respectively were ready examples.

According to the NHRC report, on account of poor sanitary condition, absence of recreational facilities, overcrowded cells among other acute failures, the Nigerian prisons have remained “punitive centres” rather than being “reformatory homes, where persons who come in conflict with the law are sent for reformation and eventually reintegrated into the society as  better persons.”

Fapohunda told our correspondent that as of June this year, the population of inmates in prisons across the country was 63, 142. Out of this number, 45, 623, representing 72.3 per cent were awaiting-trial inmates, while only 27.7 per cent had been convicted, he added.

“The rate of overcrowding in Nigerian prisons in general is 70 per cent, however, there are specific prisons with overcrowding rate of 90 per cent,” Fapohunda said.

It is instructive that as of the time of the Koton Karfe jailbreak on July 30, the prison facility with a holding capacity of 180 inmates was accommodating 263 inmates.

The July 30, 2016 jailbreak at Koton Karfe was the third between 2010 and this year.

The National Coordinator of the Legal Aid Defence and Assistance Project, Mr. Chino Obiagwu, said jailbreak was inevitable when people, who had a brush with the law are kept in prison awaiting trial in perpetuity.

He said, “People are agitated. You lock up somebody who is presumed innocent for so many years and nobody is talking about trial and nobody is giving them information, it’s natural for people to become violent in such a situation especially in our prisons with institutional lapses.

“It is a failure of the entire justice system not to respect people who come in conflict with the law, not to recognise that they are presumed innocent and to treat their cases expeditiously.

“There are people who were arrested for terrorism and have been there for five years without trial, it’s natural especially for such people to revolt. And that’s exactly what we are seeing. And of course, one successful jailbreak motivates another; it has a ripple effect. It is a call on the government to do something right away. The government should embark on a prison audit to identify people who have stayed for more than a year in the prison, to give their cases urgent attention.”

Obiagwu said the problem of overcrowding and jailbreak could not be divorced from the undue delay in the nation criminal justice- system, resulting in  a huge number of awaiting trial inmates.

Fapohunda noted that over the years, while the number of states and local governments areas in the country were increasing due to creation of new ones, with attendant multiplication of police and courts’ jurisdictions, there was no corresponding increase in the number of prison facilities.

He said, “The prison facilities did not multiply by same geometric proportions in which police, courts and ministries of Justice, which are components of the criminal justice system, expanded during the creation of states and local governments. This political development increased the scope and operations of the police and the courts and led to an increase in the number of suspects and convicts committed to prison.

“The majority of persons in prisons are remand prisoners. The inability of the courts to process cases of persons charged with criminal offences quickly has led to congestion in our prisons.”

According to him, one of the main reasons for the inability of the courts to expeditiously process criminal cases was shortage of prison vans to convey inmates to court for their trials.

He said, “Specifically, the total number of vehicles available for the NPS to transport offenders to courts nationwide is 268, with a coverage area of 774 local governments areas and 5,022 courts across the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory.”

Under poor conditions such as are found in the Nigerian prisons, the chances that an inmate would be reformed are slim or non-existent.

It is not unnatural for a prisoner who feels hopeless and dehumanised  to resort to jailbreak, especially because the system that is supposed to rehabilitate them has rather broken their spirit.

In Fapohunda’s view, the Nigerian Prisons Service is not living up to its mandate of providing secure custody for those committed to its care by the courts.

He said, “Inmates are housed in squalid and congested cells due to lack of structures. Most of the prisons in use are pre-colonial and colonial prisons built almost 100 years ago.

“In recent times, cell blocks have been built in some of the prisons but they are quickly used up. Out of the 47 prisons proposed by the Federal Government in 1980 to expand prisons in 10 years, only 20 have been completed 35 years after. None of these are modern in any sense.”

As long as Nigerian prisons are overpopulated, Fapohunda said they would never attain the dream of turning out truly reformed prisoners, ready to be reintegrated into the society.

At the root of the uproar at Kuje Prison on August 29 was corruption among prison officers, who aid and abet inmates in smuggling contraband items into the cells.

The lack of professionalism, said to be rife within the Nigerian Prisons Service rank on account of corruption, is also a bane of the institution.

Fapohunda said, “Corruption is one of the factors that have adversely affected the prisons service. The non-investigation of allegations of graft in the appointment and promotion of prison officers and the pervasiveness of forged birth and education certificates have been an obstacle towards achieving professionalism and efficiency in the administration of prisons.

“The effect of this is general loss of morale and widespread lack of confidence in the service. This last factor is at the root of the disloyalty displayed by staff in recent times.”

Recommendations

The experts who spoke with our correspondent said the successive jailbreaks recorded in recent times should be a wake-up call for the government to address the problems with the nation’s prisons.

The danger of having unreformed criminals released into the society from the prisons, they said, was real.

Fapohunda said prison law reform was the first step in tackling the rot in the system.

“The Prisons Act 1972 is palpably outdated. The Act does not provide for the proper and efficient administration of prisons, protection of human rights and upholding of international standards. The need, therefore, for a new Prisons Act that would bring the prisons regime in line with constitutional and international human rights standards cannot be overemphasised,” he said.

The law reform that Fapohunda talked about, Adetola-Kazeem said must include the review of the law which placed the Nigerian Prisons Service under the supervision of the Ministry of Interior alongside the Nigeria Police and paramilitary services like the Fire Service, the Immigration Service and the Civil Defence Corps.

He said, “The board overseeing the activities of the prison presently is the Immigration, Custom and Prisons Services Board. The prison, which holds the deadliest of criminals and which is a reformation centre for evil-minded individuals, is too important to be lumped together with other agencies, hence a need to have a separate Prisons Board, which will ensure quick resolution of the problems bedevilling the prisons.

“There is a need to increase the funding of the prisons and to ensure the money allotted is judiciously spent. The funds will ensure the building of modernised prison and rehabilitation of old ones in order to combat overcrowding and also making it difficult for jailbreak to occur.”

Fapohunda and Adetola-Kazeem hold the common view that the prison officials should be trained, equipped and well remunerated.

Fapohunda said, “Any improvement in conditions for prisoners will be dependent on prison staff having a pride in their work and a proper level of competence. The conditions of service under which the prison staff work are grossly inadequate. The pay is poor and cannot match the dangers, emotional stress and social isolation to which prison officers are exposed. It is obvious that inadequately motivated staff cannot find satisfaction in their jobs neither can they be expected to perform optimally.”

Adetola-Kazeem added, “The government should employ more adequately trained prison officials who should be provided with sophisticated equipment and weapons to combat crimes and security threats in the prisons.

“There should be zero tolerance for corruption of prison officials who extort money from inmates and senior officials who divert funds meant for the welfare of prisoners and prison officials.”

Summary recommendations

To tackle the problem of jailbreak and other challenges in the Nigerian prisons headlong, Fapohunda recommended:

1. Modernising prison facilities.
2. Procuring additional vehicles for the NPS.
3. Better endowment for prisons education, vocational training and rehabilitation programme.
4. Improving physical structure of prison officers’ accommodation and training facilities .
5. Review of training curriculum for prison officers.
6. Use of IT in prisons.

Copyright PUNCH.       
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.

Contact: editor@punchng.com

The post Jailbreaks: Signs of a failing prison system appeared first on Punch Newspapers.