The Kingdom of Netherlands on Thursday officially presented a smuggled Ife Terracotta antiquity dated to be at least 600 years old to Nigeria.

The repatriated antiquity was presented to the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed at a ceremony held in Abuja.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyema, Netherlands Ambassador to Nigeria, Harry Van Dijk, Nigeria Charge de Affairs to Netherlands, Kabiru Musa and the Director-General National Commission for Museum and Monuments (NCMM) were present at the event.

Receiving the repatriated object, the minister said it was smuggled through the airport in Ghana before getting to Europe in 2019.

“The smuggler had obtained forged documents purported to be from a former Director-General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments.

“The smuggler ultimately passed through the airport in Ghana before getting to Europe in 2019.

“The Dutch Customs at Schiphol Airport suspected that the object might be illicitly imported and alerted the antiquity protection office known as the Inspectie, which is the Information and Heritage Inspectorate of the Netherlands, to give an opinion.

“The Inspectie invited Nigeria to prove her case against the suspected smuggler,’’ he said.

In proving the case, Mohammed said the NCMM acted swiftly by dispatching its lawyer, Mr Babatunde Adebiyi, to present evidence and argue for the return of the object.

He said Nigeria was successful in the case and the claim was determined in its favour.

Mohammed said after all internal procedures, including the right of appeal, were exhausted, the Government of the Netherlands handed over the object to the Nigerian Embassy in Hague on Nov. 2.

He noted that with the repatriation of the “priceless and timeless’’ artefact the federal government efforts at pursuing the return of Nigerian antiquities had started yielding fruits.

The minister underscored the need for Nigeria to tap into tourism and other fields, where Nigeria has comparative advantages, in order to generate income for the nation and secure jobs for the youth.

“One way of generating income for the country is if our cultural properties are exhibited around the world to a fee-paying audience, on the basis of proper agreement that acknowledges us as owners and confers the right benefits on us.

“But this is not possible for as long as most of them adorn the museums and private collections of others, who describe them as their properties,’’ he said.

The minister reiterated Nigeria commitment to joint international efforts to put a stop to illicit export and import of cultural goods.

He said Netherland and Nigeria will make a joint presentation on the repatriation to the UNESCO Secretariat in Paris, so that other nations might take a cue from it in finding rapprochement and common ground concerning the issue of return of antiquities.

On his part, Onyema said it is a happy day for Nigeria because there are many Nigerian cultural assets around the world which have become difficult to track.

He said some of the assets were taken out of the country for over 100 years back and some more recently.

The minister said there is underground illegal market for cultural asset which has made them difficult to identify, retrieve and repatriate.

Onyema said the government is committed to the restitution of all the nation’s cultural assets illegally taken and litter across the globe

Musa said the repatriation was made possible in compliance with the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Prevention of Illegal Trafficking of Cultural Heritage which Nigeria and Netherlands are signatories.

He said that the return of the smuggled artefact was significant considering the fact that it coincided with 50 years-celebration of the UNESCO Convention.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has stated that Nigeria has a key role to play in the successful negotiation process of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area, AfCFTA.

This is as he called for private sector commitment in the negotiation process, during the virtual opening ceremony of the 52nd Annual National Conference of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria, CIPM on Thursday.

Osinbajo who spoke on “Nigeria and Manpower Preparedness for AfCFTA,” noted that it was important that Nigeria continued to lead on the negotiation process even as it moved to the second phase that will focus on intellectual property, competition, and investment policy.

Noting that the AfCFTA will be the largest free trade area in the world, he said the aspect of the negotiation process was pertinent as Nigeria must play a leading role in harmonisation and integration of effective border management.

According to him, “This will require the scaling of our negotiating capacities and the private sector must support this process by bringing in their interest, concerns and practical understanding on dynamics of international trade, and must pay close attention to the negotiation process.

“They must understand that even in this process of negotiation which is to ensure that we bring in practical dimensions of international trade by creating an enabling environment for the private sector to participate in the negotiation that had been negotiated.”

He added that the private sector skills, knowledge, and experience when brought to the table will be of maximum advantage.

He said: “Building productive capacity is only the first step, the ability of businesses and entrepreneurs to integrate successfully into the opportunities of the free trade agreement gives a great deal in strengthening our domestic ability to facilitate trade,” Osinbajo added.

Earlier, President and Chairman of Council, CIPM, Wale Adediran, said the theme of the conference tagged, “Reinvent: Exploring New Frontiers”, was important as it was time “to reform our establishments, institutions, and companies; to revive multilateral, multi-industry and cross-organisational agreements that are essential for our growth. We must continue to create new coalitions on the most pressing issues of our time.” he added

He called on the government, public, and private sectors to effectively identify and address the people-related impacts and implications of AfCFTA, to proactively mitigate against risk while at the same timing positioning the country at the vantage point of value.

On her part, the Head of Civil Service of Federation, Folasade Yemi-Esan, urged organisations to be proactive and redefine their steps digitally to be in tandem with the new normal.

According to her, organisations proactiveness and aligning to digital innovations will restore confidence in the teeming workforce.

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Diego Maradona’s death could spark a family feud over his estate as he leaves behind five children he recognised as his and six others he has been linked to, Daily Mail reports.

Before he died one of his daughters joked he could make up a starting eleven with his kids after a 23-year-old Argentinian was named as the latest woman fighting to prove she was his daughter.

Maradona had recognised two sons and three daughters by four different women – including his ex-wife Claudia Villafane and former long-term partner Veronica Ojeda – as his own.

Giannina Maradona, one of the former footballer’s two daughters by Villafane, joked last year after the names of three children said to be his in Cuba were made public: ‘Just three more needed for the team of 11. You can do it!!!’

In October last year a 23-year-old brunette called Magali Gil emerged as the latest possible member of Maradona’s brood.

Popular Argentinian TV programme Intrusos said she had a young daughter which would have made the former Naples and Barcelona star a grandfather if he was confirmed as her father.

She is understood to have launched legal proceedings in April last year to try to prove her blood link.

Journalist Adrian Pallares told Intrusos: ‘Her mother didn’t raise her but her adoptive family, who gave her all their love.

‘The time came when she discovered she didn’t belong to that family and that her father could be Diego Armando Maradona.’

In February she broke her silence in Argentina to confirm the situation had not moved forward and begged the football legend to agree to a DNA test.

She had already confirmed on Italian TV she had been adopted as a youngster and her birth mum contacted her at the start of 2019 to tell her who her real father was.

Magali told Argentinian journalist Tomas Dente, speaking at the start of the year for the first time in her home nation: ‘Sadly we still haven’t been able to fix a date for the DNA test.

‘I’d like to think that the predisposition Diego’s lawyer Matias Morla spoke about last December when we met is still there so this can be resolved as quickly as possible and in the best way possible.

‘I’m anxious and worried at what’s happening because this is something which is key for me, my identity and my past.

‘I’m trying to stay calm and understand that we’re talking about Diego Maradona who I know has got a packed diary.

‘I’d just like to urge him to realise there’s a person who’s waiting and needs him to be able to resolve my identify and put an end to this search.’

The Magali bombshell first emerged a month after Santiago Lara, who comes from the same Argentinian city of La Plata where Maradona managed Gimnasia y Esgrima, made a renewed TV appeal for the football legend to recognise him as his son.

The teenager, whose waitress mother Natalia Garat died aged 23 from lung cancer in 2006 and was raised by her ex-boyfriend Marcelo Lara, spoke for the first time in 2016 of his fight to find out who his real father is.

He said at the time: ‘I’ve been told my real father is supposedly Diego Maradona. My dad is always going to be Marcelo Lara but what I’ve been told is that my real father is supposedly Diego Maradona.

‘I think I look like him, the face, the curls, everything. I look at Marcelo and I know we’re not alike. It’s not easy to wake up in the morning with that feeling.’

‘I found out after I went past a newspaper stand near my house aged 13 and saw a magazine front cover with Maradona’s face on it and mine pixellated underneath.

‘I was left in a state of shock because I didn’t know what I was doing in the magazine. I went running home and asked Marcelo what was going on and he explained everything.

‘He told me my mum was well-known on the modelling circuit when she was younger and he told me he had the feeling I wasn’t his son.

‘He told me a DNA test was asked for but was never forthcoming.’

Maradona’s lawyer Matias Morla said months before the footballer’s death he would assume his responsibilities as Santiago’s father if the blood link was confirmed.

Morla has previously been quoted as saying ‘Everyone knows that in Argentina there’s Santiago and another person that people are talking about’, although other media in the South American country have speculated the 11th child that would make up Diego’s football team is a fourth Cuban.

The Cuban trio whose names have already been made public are Joana, Lu and Javielito, born after Maradona moved to the Caribbean island in February 2000 to fight drink and drug addictions.

Mr Morla, who admitted in October 2018 the ex-footballer had been ‘naughty’ in Cuba and confessed: ‘There’s going to be a lot of Maradonas, a lot, even if some people don’t like it’, has confirmed the trio met him during the funeral of Fidel Castro.

Over recent years Maradona had recognised his grown-up son Diego Junior, born from an extra-marital affair with Italian model Cristina Sinagra, and 23-year-old Jana who met her dad for the first time nearly six years ago following a court fight by her mum Valeria Sabalain.

Maradona also had two daughters by his ex-wife, 32-year-old Dalma and 30-year-old Gianinna, and a seven-year-old son called Diego Fernando by former girlfriend Veronica Ojeda.

Several Spanish-language memes went viral after Maradona’s lawyer revealed the three Cuban children.

One said: ‘If you were born between 1980 and 2019 and you have extraordinary footballing skills, contact us. You could be a son of Diego Maradona.’

The Nigeria Judicial Council has turned down Gombe State Chief Judge’s nominee list over the omission of the most senior judge, Justice Beatrice L. Iliya.

Iliya’s name was omitted from the nomination list by the Gombe State Commissioner for Justice and Attorney-General, Zubairu Mohammed Umar.

Iliya had petitioned the NJC to reject the list and order a fresh process of nomination.

Granting the request of Iliya, the NJC rejected the nomination list when it sat on Thursday to review the situation and also and ordered the state’s Attorney-General to begin a fresh process that will be fair and transparent.

Recall that the Attorney-General refused to nominate Iliya for the position because she was a Christian like the immediate-past Chief Justice in Gombe.

In a petition to the National Judicial Council obtained by SaharaReporters, Iliya questioned the rationale behind the removal of her name despite being the most senior judge and having served as an Acting Chief Judge in the state.

She highlighted the faulty process, procedure and criteria used by the Judicial Service Commission in the assessment and selection of the shortlisted candidates.

She explained that the head of the Judicial Service Commission nominated himself and another junior colleague while excluding her name from the nominees list without any reason. Thenigerialawyer

DJ Switch has returned to social media with a post slamming the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, over his recent statement on the EndSARS protests.

also accused her of being a front for divisive and destructive forces.

He said, “One of the purveyors of fake news was one DJ Switch which real name is Obianuju Catherine Udeh, even though she claimed authentic evidence of mass killings. Surprisingly, instead of presenting whatever evidence she may have, she chose to escape from the country on the claim that her life was in danger. In danger for who?

“The military has come out to say we never sought after her and to the best of my knowledge, the police never declared her wanted.

“Her conduct thus becomes suspect. Who is she fronting for? What is her real motive? Who are her sponsors? If she has any evidence, why is she not presenting such evidence to the panel? Since she was very desperate for asylum in any country, did she have to resort to blatant falsehood to tarnish the image of the country?

“In the fullness of time, this lady will be exposed for who she is, a fraud, a front for divisive and destructive forces.”

DJ Switch who has been away from social media for weeks was forced to make a return in reaction to the minister’s statement.

She tweeted: “Hw can a “minister of information” be so “misinformed”?The only believable thing about him, is his name…Lai Unfortunately sir,the truth is a very stubborn thing! Tnk u all 4 ur well wishes & prayers.Its nt bn easy 4 me bt d need 2 #SoroSoke is more important than their bullying.”

Mrs Josephine Okereke, wife of Abuja newspaper vendor killed by a security detail, has disassociated herself from the N500 million compensation lawsuit.

Okereke told newsmen on Thursday in Abuja that she was not privy to the N500 million compensation requested by the family.

She said what was paramount now is how to get justice for her late husband.

Recall that on Nov. 23, a letter signed by Mr Mike Ozekhome (SAN), counsel to Okereke’s family, had demanded a N500 million compensation from the speaker.

The letter also stated that failure to comply with the N500 million demand within seven days would led to legal action against the Speaker.

She however said that the Speaker had since reached out to the family with a promise to take care of the children.

“Gbajabiamila carried my new born child when he came to our house and said he was not a speaker when he knew my husband.”

Okereke said that what she needed at the moment is justice and not N500 million, stressing that she will never be in support of the N500 million compensation.

The bereaved wife said the speaker had done what was unexpected of someone in authority with a promise to take care of the children education and other needs.

“I was in my house when within 10 minutes my father in-law came from Abia, he went out along with his other son and the next day I heard that my husband’s people are demanding N500 million as compensation.

“I was shocked and asked how will they be doing that and how will the speaker help the children again with such demand.

“All I want now is that the person that killed my husband to face justice, he was the bread winner of the family and he just secured a job with the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.

“But COVID-19 prevented him from resuming, it was the Minister, Dr Chris Ngige, that helped him secured the job, but since COVID-19 prevented him from resuming he went back to vendor so as to eke a living,” she said.
The 36-year-old mother of two said she was also a vendor when they both met in 2013 and the union had since produced two children.

NAN recalls that Ifeanyi Okereke, the vendor was shot in the head on Nov. 19 by a security detail attached to Gbajabiamila when the speaker’s convoy passed through the Federal Secretariat.

Mr Wilfred Okoye, the Legal Adviser to Newspaper Association of Abuja (NPA), had condemned the death of Okereke by the security aide, Abdullahi Hassan.

In an emotion laden voice, he said Okereke’s death was most painful, adding that the NPA is pained by the gruesome murder of the late vendor.
He called for justice to the bereaved family to serve as deterrent to other security details.

Okoye commended the speaker for the role played so far in assuaging the feelings of the family, expressing confidence that the Department of State Security that deployed Hassan to the speaker will do the needful.

“I have not seen such empathy by people in authority in my 12 years of legal practice, the Speaker should not be discouraged , he should put up the trust fund quickly to secure a future for the children,” said the lawyer.
He called on President Muhammadu Buhari to take immediate steps that would address overzealous security operatives in the country.

Thenigerialawyer

Uganda’s Supreme Court has jailed a former presidential aspirant for using abusive language against them, including calling them “incompetent fools”.

Ivan Samuel Ssebadduka was sentenced to three years in prison for contempt of court, according to local media.

Mr Ssebadduka had in September filed a petition at the Supreme Court seeking to stop a requirement for presidential aspirants to collect nomination signatures.

He also wanted the court to suspend coronavirus safety restrictions issued by the health ministry on the conduct of campaign rallies.

He used offensive remarks when defending the petition before the judges

Chief Justice Alfonse Owinyi-Dollo was quoted as saying that criticism against judges should be accurate and fair and should not infringe on the rights of others.

The High Court of Rivers State has extended an order of interim injunction restraining the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), its agents, and employees from taking over Berths 9, 10, and 11 at the Federal Ocean Terminal, Onne Port Complex from INTELS Nigeria Limited.

The order was extended at the resumed hearing of the matter on Tuesday, November 24, 2020.

Recall that Justice A. Enebeli, the Judge had earlier granted the restraining order on November 3, 2020.

The court had ordered that that status quo ante bellum be maintained by the defendant (Nigerian Ports Authority) and its servants, agents, and employees pending the hearing and determination of the applicant’s (INTELS’) interlocutory injunction which is before the court.

At the resumed hearing of the matter on Tuesday, November 24, Justice Enebeli ruled that the ex parte order of injunction made by the court “shall subsist and remain binding on the defendant pending the determination of the Notice of Preliminary Objection”.

The matter was adjourned to December 7, 2020.