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Ramaphosa fires back at Trump over land confiscation claims

South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday hit back at his United States counterpart, Donald Trump over the latter’s threat to cut funding to the African nation after accusing it of “confiscating” land and “treating certain classes of people very badly.”

Trump on Sunday announced he was cutting off all future funding to the country pending an investigation.

“South Africa is confiscating land, and treating certain classes of people very badly. I will be cutting off all future funding to South Africa until a full investigation of this situation has been completed!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Later, in a briefing with journalists, Trump said that South Africa’s “leadership is doing some terrible things, horrible things” without giving examples.

“So, that’s under investigation right now. We’ll make a determination, and until such time as we find out what South Africa is doing–they’re taking away land and confiscating land, and actually, they’re doing things that are perhaps far worse than that,” he added.

In his response on Monday via his X handle, Ramaphosa noted that the democratic nation of South Africa respects the rule of law, justice and equity, noting that the government hasn’t “confiscated any land.”

With regards to the funding cut as disclosed by Trump, Ramaphosa, while acknowledging the US as a significant “political and trade partner,” corrected that South Africa only benefits from the US-funded “PEPFAR Aid, which constitutes 17% of South Africa’s HIVAids programme.”

His tweets read, “South Africa is a constitutional democracy that is deeply rooted in the rule of law, justice and equality. The South African Government has not confiscated any land.

“The recently adopted Expropriation Act is not a confiscation instrument, but a constitutionally mandated legal process that ensures public access to land in an equitable and just manner as guided by the constitution.

“South Africa, like the United States of America and other countries, has always had expropriation laws that balance the need for public usage of land and the protection of rights of property owners. We look forward to engaging with the Trump administration over our land reform policy and issues of bilateral interest. We are certain that out of those engagements, we will share a better and common understanding of these matters.

“The US remains a key strategic political and trade partner for South Africa. With the exception of PEPFAR Aid, which constitutes 17% of South Africa’s HIVAids programme, there is no other funding that is received by South Africa from the United States.”

According to AFP, the land issue in South Africa has long been divisive, with efforts to redress the inequality of white-rule drawing criticism from conservatives including the world’s wealthiest person, Elon Musk, who was born in South Africa and is a powerful Trump adviser.

It noted that last month, Ramaphosa signed a bill that stipulates the government may, in certain circumstances, offer “nil compensation” for property it decides to expropriate in the public interest.

Pretoria argues the bill does not allow the government to expropriate property arbitrarily and must first seek to reach an agreement with the owner.

However, some groups fear a situation similar to the Zimbabwe government’s seizure of white-owned commercial farms, often without compensation, after independence in 1980.

– South African billionaires –

Land ownership is a contentious issue in South Africa with most farmland still owned by white people three decades after the end of apartheid.

Since then land courts have adjudicated on a handful of land disputes and, after exhaustive processes, returned land to previously displaced owners.

According to the South African government, the 1913 Natives Land Act saw thousands of Black families forcibly removed from their land by the apartheid regime.

The delicate issue has been a particular rallying point for the right, with various conservative figures including Musk and right-wing journalist Katie Hopkins championing the cause of white land-owners.

Musk was born in Pretoria on June 28, 1971, to an engineer father and a Canadian-born model mother, leaving the country in his late teens. The formal policy of apartheid lasted until 1990, and multi-racial elections were held in 1994.

Trump has surrounded himself with powerful Silicon Valley figures who came of age in apartheid southern Africa, like David Sacks, his newly-appointed artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency czar, who co-founded PayPal along with Musk.

Another PayPal cofounder and Billionaire, Peter Thiel who introduced Trump to his vice president, J.D. Vance — also lived in southern Africa, including time in Namibia which was then controlled by Pretoria.

He has previously been accused of supporting the apartheid system, that violently subjugated the Black majority of South Africa to uphold white rule and economic control, something a spokesman denied on his behalf.

AFP

Another Epiphany: Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) unwittingly explains the reason for IGP’s tenure extension

By Tonye Clinton Jaja

In the past few weeks, the Nigerian public and others have received a lot of confessions from both current and former public officials.

Although not originally planned as public confessions, the public statements of these former and current public officials, UNWITTINGLY provided deep insights into the “inner workings”, the modus operandi and the priorities of the top public officials of Nigeria.

It started with the confessions of the current Governor of Bayelsa State, who admitted that he spent a whopping $15,000 as transportation fare for marabout (spiritual adviser) who had been imported from Senegal to “secure” his successful emergence as Governor of Bayelsa State!!!

Then the next person to take the microphone, was Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, National Assembly. In his own written testimony, he provided details of how Nyesom Ezenwo Wike (NEW) expended over ₦1bn of Rivers State government funds to finance the election of Governor Bala Mohammed in the year 2018/2019.

Then last week, Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi (RCA) took the microphone and announced that PBAT and all other Nigerian politicians will NEVER RELINQUISH VOLUNTARILY. That they are prepared to kill, maim and steal (and amend the necessary laws to elong the IGP’S tenure) to retain their hold on political power!!!

And most recently, Mr. Muyiwa Adejobi, the Police Public Relations Officer-PRO has joined the list of confessors.

So that I would not be accused of misquoting him out of context, I will reproduce verbatim what he said as follows:

“Muyiwa Adejobi, the public relations officer of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), says it is ridiculous for Nigerians to believe that officers can not afford expensive phones.

Adejobi, while responding to a query on his X handle, on Saturday, said netizens need to be “straight and be objective” when questioning police officers’ source of income.

HOW IT STARTED

On Friday, Adejobi posted a picture of one David Victoria, a deputy superintendent of police (DSP) and secretary to the inspector general of Police (IGP), who appears to be holding a Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 and a diamond-branded watch around her wrist.

“We have beautiful and intelligent ones in the force. This is DSP David Victoria, secretary to the IGP. Happy weekend. Ire o,” Adejobi wrote.

Netizens, who reacted to the post, asked for a disclosure of the officer’s salary that could afford a cellphone worth ₦1 million.

An X user also requested that Victoria’s account statement be printed out to track her cash inflow claiming her salary cannot afford such an expensive gadget.”

When a public servant, owns any property that is beyond their current salary, there can be only two LEGITIMATE sources and explanations as follows:

  1. A legitimate gift or legacy bequeathed by a very wealthy spouse or relative or friend. Or earned from bonds or shares; and
  2. Income earned from agricultural activity which is the only approved extra-secular activity that Nigerian public servants are permitted to engage in.

Therefore, the Nigerian Police PRO owes us as the general public an objective explanation as to the other sources of income that accrue to public servants, in this instance police officers (other than their salaries and income from agricultural activity).

Mr. Muyiwa Adejobi’s proposed explanation can be a source of renewed interest and recruitment into the Nigerian Police by majority of unemployed Nigerian youths who would no realise that apart from the regular salary there are other sources of income for Police officers (which was previously unknown to majority of Nigerians)!!!

Unwittingly, Mr. Adejobi’s response has inadvertently provided additional explanation to the reason why the IGP lobbied for and was granted an extension of tenure.

Considering that an ordinary Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) and Secretary to the IGP is using a wristwatch and phone that costs over ₦1m, what would the IGP himself be using?

And unless, the IGP has an undisclosed mental health challenge, or is not a “typical” Nigerian public official, which “Nigerian” public official in his “right senses” would not seek to elongate his tenure when such an office gives him access to such humongous public funds!!!

Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja,
Executive Director,
Nigerian Law Society (NLS).

Are Yoruba Muslims truly marginalised?

Each time we hear or read outsiders say they are fighting for Yoruba Muslims, some of us (Yoruba Muslims) laugh. Who told them that we cannot fight our war ourselves – if there is a war? A statement signed by an Imam Haroun Muhammad Eze on behalf of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) led by the Sultan of Sokoto alleged last week that Yoruba Muslims were suffering marginalization in Yorubaland. The statement headlined ‘Live and Let Live’ complained about what it called “calculated attempts to prevent Muslims in the (South-West) region from practising their faith.” I read it and asked myself if that truly was the case. I asked some of my Muslim friends also. We compared notes and laughed.

The statement from the NSCIA wanted Sharia law in Yoruba states. Eighteen years ago, Kano-based Islamic scholar, Sheikh Adam Koki, was quoted as telling the New York Times that “politicians (have) started seeing Sharia as a gateway to political power.” They saw right and used it very well in pocketing Kano and its two million votes. They still annex and harness that gateway to arrive at power and wealth. With the piety of Sharia, a partnership in governance has evolved with northern Nigeria’s highbinders. And, because some persons pestled a tiger to death yesterday, some club-wielding people without muscles are on the prowl in 2025 Yoruba forest, hunting tigers and leopards. They do not know that it is not every leopard that is fated to fall to clubs.

The present cries are very unnecessary. Sharia never left Yorubaland. Our fathers called it seria. It has evolved adopting adept procedures in deft accommodation of its environmental and social realities. Yoruba Muslim families, who desire it, still conduct their private affairs in accordance with Sharia without disturbing their neighbours.

A quiet Sharia panel has been sitting for decades at Oja’ba, Ibadan. There is another one in Osogbo. I suspect that other major Yoruba towns have them. They adjudicate on marriage and marital issues; they arbitrate on disputes among Muslims. They do their thing without noise and drama and excesses. Every willing Muslim who goes there loves what the panels do and how they do it. The respective state governments are aware of their existence but they do not disturb them. At the compound and family levels, check out what we do with Muslim weddings, burials, administration of estates and inheritance matters etc. Those who want more than this should be bold to say what exactly they want.

They want hisbah, moral police on the streets of Ibadan, Abeokuta and Akure? They want a Yoruba Bello Buba Jangebe who would be amputated for stealing a goat while big men who steal roads and bridges hold court? Anyone who wants the Kano, Zamfara kind of Sharia in 2025 Western Nigeria needs counseling. They can have that only in an Islamic Republic of Yorubaland. And, to have that, they will need more than mere words and farty threats. The Nigerian state is a multi-religious reality; it exists to enforce its laws – your creed and my credo notwithstanding.

The case for officially sanctioned Sharia in Yorubaland will be easy to argue and win if its solicitors can show how its introduction in the North has helped the North. They should just exhibit how 22 years of ‘Sharia’ has turned Kano to Dubai or Riyadh or Doha; how more religious, more pious, more equitable, more peaceful and more prosperous the Muslim North has become since ‘Sharia’ became their guiding moral and political philosophy. That is all they need to prove to the Yoruba that Western Nigeria is missing something cool and good for their physical and spiritual growth.

The claim that Yoruba Muslims suffer persecution at the hands of Yoruba leaders and principalities is absurd. The most powerful human being in Nigeria today is the president; he is a Yoruba Muslim. He possibly read that NSCIA’s press statement and laughed as I did. Am I, a Yoruba Muslim, marginalised in Yorubaland? Who is marginalising whom and who is complaining or should complain?

I come from a state (Osun State) that has had six elected governors since it was created in 1991. Five of those six governors are/were Muslims. And, I will identify them: Alhaji Isiaka Adeleke was the first elected governor of the state. He was in power from 1992 to November 1993 when General Abacha sacked everyone everywhere. With democracy in 1999 came Chief Abdulkarim Adebisi Akande, a Muslim. After Akande came Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, a Christian. Then came Alhaji Rauf Aregbesola, a Muslim who spent eight years in power and was succeeded by a Muslim, Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola. Alhaji Oyetola’s successor, Senator Nurudeen Ademola Adeleke, flaunts his Muslim heritage and pedigree for all to see. No one has ever complained about the religious identity of these leaders – and no one will. Indeed, there is a governorship election next year; virtually all contenders that have shown their faces so far in the two principal parties are Muslims.

No one’s religion has ever truly been an issue in Osun State. On May 29, 2003, a Muslim Chief Judge swore in a Christian governor (Oyinlola) and a Christian deputy governor (Erelu Olusola Obada). The Christian-Christian ticket of Oyinlola/Obada was elected by an electorate from three senatorial districts, two of which are predominantly Muslim. There was not a single word of complaint from anywhere. The Muslim incumbent who lost that election did not bother to contest his loss in court.

I work in a state (Oyo State) that has produced five governors from 1999 to date. Three of the five are/were Muslims. Again, I will identify them: Alhaji Lam Adesina (Muslim) was the first to take the baton in 1999. He was succeeded by Senator Rashidi Ladoja, a Muslim. Otunba Adebayo Alao Akala, a Christian, succeeded Ladoja. Alao-Akala spent a term and handed over to Alhaji Isiaka Abiola Ajimobi, a Muslim, who spent two terms. The incumbent is Mr Seyi Makinde, a Christian. He will be succeeded by a Muslim or a Christian in two years’ time – no one cares.

If Sharia as it exists in the North is truly a priority of the Yoruba, would those Muslim governors have ignored doing it? Or are those gentlemen not Muslim enough? Indeed, as recently as 2011 to 2015, the governors of Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, and Osun States were all Muslim. We are talking of four out of six states being ruled by Muslim governors at the same time. I am referring to the years when Raji Fashola (Lagos); Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun); Abiola Ajimobi (Oyo) and Rauf Aregbesola (Osun) were governors. The four states operated under Muslims – leaving Ekiti and Ondo states for Christians. And there was peace. There will always be peace because what throws in governors and what kicks them out in Western Nigeria is the sobriety that comes with good behavior and good governance –not praise and worship.

Where I come from, we were taught to learn how to state our case before learning how to fight. The statement from the NSCIA said sharia was a constitutional issue. If it was, shouldn’t it be properly handled in a constitutional way? If we, Yoruba Muslims, truly want codified Sharia law and Sharia Courts, there are Muslim legislators in virtually all the state Houses of Assembly. Sharia proponents should ask these Muslim legislators to sponsor bills on the matter and lobby their colleagues to pass them into law. Or, if they think it is already in the constitution, and it is their right, let them go to court for enforcement of that right. If I were they and I could not do this, I would keep quiet forever. Extra-legal, unilateral, self-help declarations cannot help them in a democracy.

I once wrote against some Yoruba Pentecostal Christians who said (and still say) my sallah meat is sin. We look at such here and say they’ve packed unwellness with their faith. Yoruba Muslims who jog to the North in search of pity and support are exactly like those ones. They are as misguided as the misguided Pentecostal Christians. They are both working hard to rip open the belly of amity in Yoruba land with their fundamentalism. And they cannot succeed.

Now, what do I think of Imam Eze signing a Live-and-Let-Live statement on Sharia in Yorubaland? An Eze, I assume and presume, is from the South-East. If that signatory is from the South-East, then it was a ghastly error on the part of those who procured him to sign that statement. It was also an insult to the Yoruba, a people with a robust history of engagement with Islam dating back to more than seven hundred years. Procuring outsiders to speak for the Yoruba Muslim is a misnomer. They have leaders; their leaders are the Imams; they listen to the Imams, the Imams listen to them. Channeling the Yoruba spring to flow desert-wards for rejuvenation is an effort that hurts.

The Imam Eze statement will make me draw an analogy: We all know that Ilorin has no physical and spiritual space for Sango, the Yoruba god of thunder. Now, imagine an Ilorin man donning the costume of the Mogba, priest of Sango, and marketing the god of thunder to Oyo Alaafin, Sango’s hometown. Or who does not know that Mùsùlùmí Ìgbò gégé bi OníSàngó Ilorin ni? I will neither interpret nor translate that question. The Eze man should have first launched Sharia for his own home region before looking the Yoruba way. My people say if you think velvet is good and you would clothe me with it, I must first see on you velvet or something superior to velvet. How can the unclad clothe the clothed?

A group of eminent Yoruba Muslim scholars, seven years ago, published a book entitled: ‘Islam in Yorubaland: History, Education and Culture’. The editors were kind enough to give me a copy. Those who are seeking to fetishize Sharia today will learn from those scholars that what they seek to import has actually been part of their heritage before the white man created Nigeria with all its contradictions. Persons who are begging for external help on Sharia should read what the scholars say in that book. They will read the story of a Timi of Ede, Oba Abibu Lagunju (1817-1900), his court and the existence of Ilé Bàbá Kóòtù (compound of baba who holds court) in Ede. They will read also of Oluwo of Iwo, Momodu Lamuye, who became Oluwo of Iwo in 1858 and died in 1906. They will read of why a compound is named Ile Alikali (Alkali’s compound) in Iwo. They will read more of Islam, Sharia and the Yoruba society before colonialism.

Provocation excites and tickles us in this country. In 2016, a bill for a Christian court was sponsored by Hon. Gyang Dung (PDP) from Plateau State and eight other members of the House of Representatives. It scaled the second reading and that was the last we heard of it. The bill was an act of provocation and it was so treated and trashed. The statement from Imam Eze and its associated noise fall in the same category.

The difference between the past and the present is change. We live in a world that shifts with time. The World Bank in 2020 ranked Saudi Arabia as the fastest-reforming country in the world. That country has gone far doing that, redefining the concepts of right and wrong and striking a balance between Islamic law on the one hand; local politics and global economic realities on the other. Today, even rude Donald Trump lowers his voice when the subject is Saudi. Those who have knowledge tell us that the reforms that burnish and refurbish Saudi Arabia do not make that country less Muslim.

It should be the same here. Reform and innovation are at the core of Yoruba’s cultural resilience. That is possibly what the Muslim North has not sat down to study and understand about Western Nigeria.

Let me say finally that making Sharia a hot-button topic in 2025 Nigeria is suspect and very unnecessary. Elections are coming, especially presidential and governorship elections. Flightless birds need the winds of religion to fly their political planes. They will use all magic and talismans to conjure those winds. The sudden interest in Sharia is one talisman that worked wonders in other climes at other desperate times of polls. It cannot work in today’s and tomorrow’s Yorubaland. So, I appeal to the Sultan and other well-meaning Muslim leaders to back off on agitations that seek to use their respected and respectable anvil to forge this idle tool. Adding their weight to weightless claims does no one any good.

The Egbetokun Tenure Extension Controversy: Legality vs. Legitimacy, By Okechukwu Nwanguma

In the ongoing controversy surrounding Mr. Egbetokun’s tenure extension, the key issues are not merely legal compliance but the legitimacy of both the legislative process that amended the Police Act and the extension itself.

While the Attorney General’s perspective suggests that Egbetokun may legally remain in office despite surpassing the 60-year age limit, the broader implications of legitimacy are significant. The public outcry concerning the process and the extension should be a primary concern for Egbetokun, especially given the discontent within the Nigeria Police Force (NPF). Many senior officers feel that their career trajectories have been compromised by this extension.

The amendment bill that facilitated this tenure extension originated from President Tinubu, for whom Egbetokun served as chief security officer during his time as governor of Lagos State. Egbetokun’s public expressions of loyalty to Tinubu raise questions about the neutrality of the amendment process, especially when the Nigerian Senate, led by Godswill Akpabio, exhibited a willingness to swiftly carry out the President’s directives. The unprecedented speed at which the bill passed through all legislative readings—complete with no public hearing—further erodes its legitimacy. How can such a critical amendment to the Police Act be enacted without public consultation?

The outcry regarding the amendment process and Egbetokun’s tenure extension is a vital concern for both him and the government, especially if they profess to value due process, transparency, and public trust. Even if the amendment withstands legal scrutiny, questions about its retroactive application remain. Should Egbetokun benefit from an amendment made while he was already in office? This challenges the principle of non-retroactivity in law and raises further legal and ethical considerations.

In conclusion, while legalities may outline the framework of governance, it is the legitimacy of actions taken that will ultimately determine public faith in institutions like the Nigeria Police Force. Egbetokun’s focus should shift from merely defending his legal standing to addressing the very real concerns surrounding the legitimacy of his position and the processes that brought him here.

Okechukwu Nwanguma  

February 1, 2025

Staff members of Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University drag Acting VC to EFCC for massive corruption

The Staff members of the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Igbariam, Anambra State have petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against Professor Kate Azuka Omenugha, the Acting Vice Chancellor of the university for alleged contract racketeering amounting to public procurement violation, fraud and financial crimes.

In a 27 January 2025 letter addressed to the EFCC Chairman, by Silas, Joseph Onu, Esq., counsel to the petitioners who have elected to remain anonymous, the EFCC was informed that a probe into the “dealings of the Ag. Vice Chancellor with her son and the various companies linked to Mr. Chukwuma Paul Chukwuka, will not only reveal multiple violations of the Public Procurement Act 2007, financial misappropriation and other heinous public financial crimes being perpetrated by the team, but will also expose other unknown fraudulent activities being perpetrated by the Ag. Vice-chancellor.”

The most part of the petition reads:

INTRODUCTION:

Professor Kate Azuka Omenugha is currently the Acting Vice Chancellor of  Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Igbariam, Anambra State (formerly known as Anambra State University) and since she assumed that office, which also automatically placed her as the chairman of the University’s Tenders Board, our clients have been witnesses of her reckless disregard for adherence to due process and a penchant for awarding contracts to her son – Mr. Nelson Omenugha and one Chukwuma Paul Chukwuka, who uses multiple companies all registered by him, blatantly. Our clients believe that an investigation into the dealings of the Ag. Vice Chancellor with her son and the various companies linked to Mr. Chukwuma Paul Chukwuka, will not only reveal multiple violations of the Public Procurement Act 2007, financial misappropriation and other heinous public financial crimes being perpetrated by the team, but will also expose other unknown fraudulent activities being perpetrated by the Ag. Vice-chancellor.

Our clients have diligently obtained some evidence of these abuses of public office and financial crimes through the splitting and awarding of contracts for personal gains. Each instance of such infractions is as detailed below:

  1. RE: ALLOCATION FOR YEAR 2024 TETFUND SPECIAL HIGH IMPACT PROJECT INTERVENTION PHASE XIV 2024V/FXS13: DISBURSEMENT OF FIRST TRANCHE OF FUNDS. (annexure)

This intervention is for the sum of four billion naira (N4,000,000,000.00). This intervention was divided into (8) eight lots, which are for 4 constructions contract and 4 consultancy contracts. Attached herein are the evidence of award for contracts lots 1, 2 to Fibelle & Mibble Ltd. And lot 3 to Humblerock Ltd., they are marked accordingly annextures 1,2 and 3.

It is important to note that due process was not followed in splitting and awarding these contracts. The Ag. Vice-chancellor as chairman of the Tenders Board of the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, in cahoots with Mr. Chukwuma Paul Chukwuka – who poses as a contractor, violated the Procurement Act in the award of these contracts in the following ways:

  1. There were no public notifications for expression of bids as required by the Public Procurement Act.
  2. The 4 construction contracts and the 4 consultancy contracts were awarded to Fibelle & Mibble Ltd., Humblerock Ltd., FIDES ET RATIO Ltd., Field Mashal Integrated Engineering Concept Ltd. All registered to Mr. Chukwuma Paul Chukwuka. See the attached Corporate Affair Commission search reports attached as annextures 4, 5, 6 and 7.
  3. Payments have been requested by one of the companies and approved by the Ag. Vice-chancellor. See the request for payment attached as annextures 8 and 9. (Our clients believe that the payments are prioritised and paid without delays)
  4. At the time of these awards, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and other related Anti-graft agencies were already prosecuting the said contractor. The attention of the Ag. Vice-chancellor was called to this information which was in the public domain, but she rebuffed it, because of her vested interest in the contract and the contractor. This is in violation of Part XIl s. 4 (a, b, c and e) of the Public Procurement Act 2007.

2. STAFF BIOMETRIC CAPTURING EXERCISE

The contract for this staff biometric capturing exercise was awarded by the Ag. Vice-chancellor to IMPERIAL ASSOCIATE LIMITED of 7B OBA ADETONA STREET, ILUPEJU, LAGOS.  See attached as annexture 10. This contract was actually awarded by the Ag. Vice-chancellor to her son, Nelson Omenugha in total disregard for conflict of interest. This contract violates Part XI (s. 10) and s. 12 (a, b, c. d, e, f. and g) of the Public Procurement Act 2007. This is an inactive company on the records of the Corporate Affairs Commission. An inactive company means that it has been denying the Government of the Federation taxes for decades. Yet public funds were fraudulently paid to this company.

3. THE UNIVERSITY GATE HOUSE, IGBARIAM CAMPUS

The University perimeter fence at the Igbariam campus collapsed since 2010. The Gatehouse was declared poorly executed in 2013 and the contractor – Mactonnel Associates was blacklisted by the University. However, in 2024, the Ag. Vice-chancellor and her son, embarked on a facelift of the gatehouse without the input of the University’s Director of Physical Planning and, without any valuation by the Council haven been done, as required by law. This gatehouse facelift, alleged to have been carried out by the Ag. Vice-chancellor’s son, Nelson Omenugha has gulped millions of naira ranging from N65m, (Sixty-five million) to N110m (One hundred and ten million naira). This contract violates Part XI (s. 10) and s. 12 (a, b, c, d, e, f, and g) of the Public Procurement Act 2007.

4. SOLAR STREET LIGHTING IN THE COLLEGE OF MEDICINE, AMAKU, AWKA

This contract awarded by the Ag. Vice-chancellor for the sum of N20m (Twenty Million naira) was executed in 2024 by her son, Nelson Omenugha. There was no valuation by the Director of Physical Planning nor was there a bid for the contract. This contract was in violation of Part XI (s. 10) and s. 12 (a, b, c, d, e, f, and g). Two batteries were procured with some solar panels. This project has never worked in the college with the students left in darkness. The contract sum was paid into the account of the Ag. Vice-chancellor’s son by the University. The Ag. Bursar will be able to provide proof of payment and account details.

5. B-ORIENT TABLE WATER

In 2024, the Ag. Vice-chancellor through her children took advantage of her office to enter a business transaction with the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, to sell only their family table water (KONCIO) within the entire University premises. KONCIO table water and KONCIOO Enterprises Ltd. has Kate Azuka Omenugha and her children as Persons with Significant Control of the companies, see attached annexture 11 and 12. This is in violation of Part XI (s. 10) and s. 12 (a, b, c, d, e, f, and g) of the Public Procurement Act 2007. Millions of naira of university funds were paid over to the Ag. VC’s companies under the contract. Furthermore, the University’s vehicles were deployed to the services of the private family business, and attendant expenses including fuelling and maintenance were borne by the university.

When University Council got wind of this gross violation of the procurement process, it directed the termination of the relationship and sale of the table water within the University. However, the Ag. Vice-chancellor in contravention of Part XI (s. 10) and s. 12 (a, b, c, d, e, f, and g) of the Public Procurement Act 2007, circumvented the Council directive and introduced another table water named B-ORIENT Table water and gave it monopoly of the water market within the University. A further investigation and petition by a staff to Council on behalf of the shop owners in the University minimart at the Igbariam campus, got Council to once again direct the stoppage of the sale of B-Orient Table water. But the Ag. Vice-chancellor, has persisted in the act of violation of the conflict-of-interest doctrine of the Public Procurement Act. Here again the company purportedly behind B-ORIENT Table water, ORIENT-WRITERS LIMITED of BLK 9 NEWSITE ABOR, OGBUNIKE, OYI LGA, AMA WA, ANAMBRA, is inactive and illegally operated according to the search report from the Corporate Affairs Commission, see attached annexture 13.

6. PRINTING OF STUDENT IDENTIFICATION CARD

In 2024, the Ag. Vice-chancellor’s son, Nelson Omenugha instructed the Dean of Students Affairs Arch-Deacon Dr. Sunday Achebe to transfer to him the money meant for the printing of identity cards for students. The Dean transferred the sum of N4.5m (Four million, Five Hundred thousand naira) to the account of the Ag. Vice chancellor son, Nelson Omenugha. The identity card was neither printed nor the money refunded. It is alleged that the Ag. Vice-chancellor’s son comes to the Dean’s office every Friday evenings to collect huge stacks of money in Ghana-must-go bags. These are dues and service charges generated by the Students Affairs Directorate, that to be used for running cost of the student’s hostels and other student activities.

7. RE: YEAR 2023 TETFUND ANNUAL INTERVENTION (LOT), CONSTRUCTION OF DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE BUILDING; PASSIONATE APPEAL TO CONSIDER PROJECT AUGMENTATION AS A RESULT OF INFLATION

The contract for the construction of Department of Architecture building was awarded to SOTTAM SYNERGY RESOURCES LTD On 21 July, 2023 which mobilized to site on the 13th September, 2023, with a completion duration of 48 weeks (One year). This contract was awarded at the cost of N414 million (Four Hundred and fourteen million naira) and the funds were made available promptly. The contractor completed 92 percent of the work and was to finish the job and take his remaining 15 percent payment from TETfund. However, when the Ag. Vice-chancellor visited the site; she saw the contract as an avenue to extort money from the university and colluded with the contractor to stop the work. She first proposed that the Contractor be paid N100 million (One Hundred Million naira) of the University’s money to enable him complete the job given and being paid for by TETfund.

This contractor has been working for TETfund and knows that TETfund does not pay variations in their contracts. That was why the contractor almost completed his job before the corrupt manipulations started. The University got a consultant and paid him to value what was needed to complete the contract and the Consultant got the sum of N48m (Forty-eight million). The University gratuitously paid the contractor N58m (Fifty-eight million naira). Yet the contractor was encouraged by the Ag. Vice-chancellor, not to return to site but demand for N100m (One Million naira) which she initially insisted the University must pay to the contractor. Annexure 8 is the company’s ludicrous request for variation and the reasons given. These actions of the Ag. Vice-chancellor and the contractor are in violation of Part XIl s. 4(a, b, c, f and g) of the Public Procurement Act 2007. The appeal for augmentation is attached and marked annexture 14.

CONCLUSION AND PRAYER:

Going by the above submissions with verifiable documentary proof of the alleged infractions perpetrated by the Ag. Vice Chancellor in cahoots with her son, family members and Mr. Chukwuma Paul Chukwuka – who is the front for the many companies involved in the racket, including others not listed above, which are: Fibelle and Mibbelle Energy Resource Ltd.; Fibelle and Mibbelle Academy Ltd.; Fibelle and Mibbelle Foods Ltd.; Humbelrock Iron and Steel Ltd.; Captal Fides Et Ratio Ltd.; and Fides Et Ratio Academy Ltd. – CAC reports of all are herein attached and marked as annextures 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20, respectfully. We hereby petition all the individuals and corporate entities involved in the fleecing of public funds under the pretentious cover of contract awards. Their actions clearly amount to gross violations of the procurement processes and the Public Procurement Act 2007 and undermines the proper administration of the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Igbariam, Anambra State.

A thorough investigation will certainly expose more unknown fraudulent activities by the Ag. Vice Chancellor.

We look forward to your swift action to forestall the continuance of this criminal enterprise.

Sincerely,

for: SHIELD AND SWORD CONCSULT.

SILAS, Joseph Onu, Esq.

Managing Consultant.

Ooni’s face-saving intervention forgot the Supreme Court

By Abimbola Adelakun

The case between Dele Farotimi and Afe Babalola reached a climax when we were informed early on Monday morning that the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, had intervened. Media reports indicated that the traditional ruler and a consortium of elders met Babalola the previous night. Even though the story was reported in multiple media outlets, no journalist appeared to have witnessed it; they only reported what was reported to them. Consequently, the same account of the occasion was repeated almost word for word across media channels without any of the recyclers asking relevant questions, such as who instigated the reconciliation meeting and why Farotimi, the key figure in this case, was remarkably missing from the whole picture.

We thank the Ooni for playing the peacemaker, but the trouble with offering an agboolé -style resolution for issues bordering on the integrity of modern institutions is that they merely put the bubbling crisis in abeyance and ultimately compromise an opportunity to positively strengthen the forces that shape our lives.

Ooni’s intervention resonates meaningfully within the context of our society and its traditions where the egungun was—and still treated as— a part of juridical institutions whose mystique must be preserved. If an egungun is de-robed in public, fellow masked spirits must quickly gather around it and use themselves to protect its nudity from the glaring eyes of the public while leading it out of sight. Protecting its nakedness is about retaining the moral universe of the people who have accepted the masked one as the spirit of their dead ancestor. By stepping up, the Ooni similarly used his moral legitimacy to re-dress an elderly man, a legal institution in himself, who got into a demystifying fight and for whom this face-saving closure was necessary.

That conclusion would have been satisfactory if the matter was just about a contest of wills between the two leading actors. When you really look at it, Babalola was not the only egungun in this dance. The other one is his co-accused, the Supreme Court. By leaving the serious accusation against judges unaddressed, the institution remains exposed to the harsh weather elements of public distrust. Are there ethics, values, and legitimacies composed in our traditional institutions that can be called upon to similarly re-dress the Supreme Court’s demystification? The easiest answer, of course, is to quickly point out that Ooni’s moral jurisdiction does not extend to those modern institutions. It should not be his duty to salvage the face of an institution that has fallen into serial disrepute.

But the question subsists, what of the Supreme Court? Is there still anything left of the supremacy of its ethos that maintains its qualifications to dispense justice to the rest of society? Someone described the resolution as “the best of Yoruba jurisprudence” and it is striking how our people are quick to tout the supremacy of native resolution when what is at stake is the ideals of modern society. This was not merely about a clash between an elder and a stubborn younger man who can be patronisingly “forgiven” but justice as a condition for the continued existence of Nigeria. Babalola pointed out that Farotimi also “attacked” Supreme Court judges, but that is not accurate. The Supreme Court’s systematic self-demystification has been unfurling for years, one election petition at a time.

One of my disappointments with the unfolding of the case was how even the media managed to reduce it to a clash between two men. That failure to look beyond personalities blinded many commenters to the point they reduced the issue to either their annoyance at the disrespect of calling out an elder or mere legal technicalities. If this was about establishing the truth of what went down in the case in contention, this would have been a civil—not criminal—case. Farotimi would not be locked up at the behest of Babalola but given an adequate chance to subpoena those Supreme Court judges he accused of complicity, and they would be compelled to explain the magic by which “10” became “254”.

If the case had been allowed to proceed reasonably, it would have been one of the most interesting in the history of our society because we would be asking the judges who determine our lives to judge their own selves. It would have been a test of their virtues and ability to redeem an institution that is becoming a parody. Instead, what did we get? If Nigeria were a society where the truth matters, commentators on the case would not sit in their lazy chairs asking, “Can he even prove his accusations?” They would be invested in the search for the truth.

Unfortunately, our collective ethics have been so disintegrated that accusing the Supreme Court of corruption did not warrant that urgency to ascertain the truth. It got so bad that none of the television anchors who were dishing out hot takes while the case raged were curious enough to look for a copy of the disputed court judgment to at least offer an informed analysis. Their best effort in making public intervention was to bring in one lawyer after the other to rake over the dead leaves of wilted opinions about the letter of the law. Thank God for Dr Opeyemi Banwo who took the initiative to search for the original copy of the case and analyse it, showing that Farotimi was on to something with his accusations. If you did not read his article titled, The ‘10-Hectare-for-254-Hectare Mistake’ That Sparked the Mother of All Defamation Wars Between Dele Farotimi and Chief Afe Babalola, I urge you to do so.

In a society where people take themselves seriously, not only will the judges involved in this case be summoned to account for changing their judgment, but they will also face intense scrutiny. Every case they have previously determined will be re-examined in the light of the accusation that what they corrected could be more than a clerical error. Real journalists will examine their record of using the “slip rule correction” and debate our judiciary system. Instead, what did we get?

The fact that an individual in Nigeria gets to initiate a criminal case against a fellow Nigerian and then turns around to announce that he has dictated its withdrawal to the police only confirms Farotimi’s contention that some people in this county have an inordinate amount of power that allows them to abuse public institutions.

It was not enough that Babalola got what he wanted, he also had to heighten the drama by reeling out the names of the big people whose solicitations he had previously refused. Of course, he would not have been a successful lawyer if he did not know the value of a good drama. He entertained the audience with several instances of his virtues such as that one time he turned down an offer of an oil block because “the money was too much” and he was already struggling under the weight of what he had already acquired. It was far more interesting that his rejection of that oil block was not because he thought the offer was morally wrong. I wished he mentioned the name of the person who offered him that oil block.

In any case, after spicing things up with a narration of Yoruba history and the necessary valorisation of tradition, he eventually gave in just at the point the occasion hit the climax. Everything ended there, including the gràgrà of the ideologically compromised police who pretended there was nothing to their interest in this matter other than running the errand of the rich and the powerful. In the hands of a seasoned dramatist like Ola Rotimi, the whole affair would have been written into an elegant satire.

Before we call it ECO-WAS

By Chidi Anselm Odinkalu

In the aftermath of the announcement on 28 January 2024 by Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger Republic denouncing the Revised Treaty of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and leaving the regional bloc “without delay”, reactions spanned the spectrum from hubris to hyperbole. From Nigeria, the regional anchor and chair of the Community, the predominant sentiment was: “the three countries would have more to lose.”

Outside the continent, some described the situation as “West Africa’s ‘Brexit’ moment” or Sahelexit, likening it to Britain’s decision in 2016 to quit the European Union. Reinforcing the comparison, the finalization this past week of the exit of the three countries from ECOWAS coincided with the fifth anniversary of the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU. The temptation to read too much into this coincidence should be resisted.

It is significant that the announcement by the three ECOWAS frontier states in 2024 was made shortly after the arrival in France of Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu for what was said to be a “private visit”. All three countries have been involved in a plurinational dispute involving both Nigeria and France and connected with military rule and transitions to elected government.

In reality, however, the disputes have been more about historical legacies of French colonial rule, the complex insecurity in the Sahel, and Nigeria’s regional role. In reference to this, the joint statement by the three countries accused ECOWAS of  being “under the influence of foreign powers and betraying its founding principles.”

These were not allegations to be treated lightly. There was also significance to the fact that the announcement came on the eve of ECOWAS’ golden jubilee year and represented the latest escalation in what is in fact a debate about how to calibrate inter-state relations in an increasingly complex regional environment.

It did not have to end this way. As a matter of law and notwithstanding the peremptory language deployed, the departure declaration by Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger in 2024 denouncing the ECOWAS Treaty was not immediate. Article 91(1) of the Revised ECOWAS Treaty requires departing countries to “give to the Executive Secretary one year’s notice in writing” and their departure can only take effect at the end of the period.

ECOWAS had every opportunity during this period to exert itself to show it desired a different outcome. In the end, the Community appeared manifestly incapable of sustaining two contradictory ideas. One is the strategic importance of good neighbourliness within ECOWAS as a regional community of sovereign peers; the other is the commitment to government founded on democratic legitimacy.

The fact that ECOWAS finds itself in the current predicament ostensibly over the fate elective government in the region is somewhat perverse acknowledgement of how far it has advanced since its origins.

Of the 15 heads of state and government present at the adoption of the Treaty of the Economic Community of West African States in May 1975, seven were military rulers and another six were succeeded by soldiers. Felix Houphöuet-Boigny of Côte d’Ivoire was the only president as such among the original signatories who was neither a soldier nor directly succeeded by one but his successor was toppled by the military in December 1999. Abdou Diouf, who represented Senegal at the adoption of the treaty was then Prime Minister to President Leopold Senghor, whom he later succeeded as president on 1 April, 1981.

Cape Verde and Senegal are, therefore, the only ECOWAS countries to have been spared the experience of military rule. This fact should ordinarily have equipped the Community and its member states with adequate skills in reacting to military coups. However, it would be a mistake to suppose this denouement is the result of an argument over coups alone or mostly.

ECOWAS began life in the middle of the global energy crisis of the 1970s, founded by rulers who declared it as their goal to “foster and accelerate the economic and social development of our States in order to improve the living standards of our peoples.” A combination of misrule and debt overhang miscarried this objective even before the ink was dry on the parchment on which it was written.

In the wake of instability that followed, the community adjusted its mission in 1981 to include mutual defence and security, importing an implicit obligation of regional solidarity. When the Mano River countries, first Liberia and then Sierra Leone, descended into war from 1989, Nigeria, then led by military ruler, Ibrahim Babangida, launched a regional intervention known as ECOWAS Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) in 1990.

 A review of the original ECOWAS Treaty followed in 1993, chaired by Nigeria’s former military ruler, Yakubu Gowon, himself the prime mover behind the original ECOWAS vision. The Revised ECOWAS Treaty again enhanced the obligations of mutual solidarity among the countries of the sub-region.

As the anchor country in ECOWAS, Nigeria was naturally expected to bear much of the burden of financing this obligation. But a straitened economy at the end of decades of misrule have frustrated that capability on the part of Nigeria at precisely the time that the countries of the Sahel needed its presence the most in response to Islamist insurgencies.

The resulting vacuum has been filled by external actors. The French proved to be their own worst enemies in their attempt to fill this vacuum, providing the soldiers who have seized power in these countries with a common foil. French departure in November 2022 and regional isolation by ECOWAS have proved to be a boon to Russia which has quickly built up assets and relations with the regimes in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.

Notionally, the departure of these three countries will cost ECOWAS 54.35% of its landmass, 20% of its sovereign membership, 16.5% of its population and seven per cent of its GDP. The actual costs are incalculable. First, Mali and Niger have been historic buffers between the violence of the Sahel and the Maghreb on the one hand and the coastal states of the Gulf of Guinea on the other. Their departure could create new security exposures.

Second, the informal economies of West Africa depend significantly on these countries. Trade, migration and pilgrimage routes traverse through them and the impact on the poor and the excluded who rely on these informal routes could either prove to be prohibitive or prove that our inter-state borders are hollow in legitimacy and meaning in the lives of ordinary people.

Third, these countries are important for civil aviation in West Africa for overflights. If they were to deny these, ticketing and routing into their southern neighbours could also become prohibitive.

The upshot is that, in a region defined by notoriously porous borders and transnational communities, severing ties could be easier said than done. Even now, there is still reason not to give up hope: Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger retain their membership of the CFA Franc Zone in the UEMOA, five of whose members remain in the ECOWAS.

ECOWAS has put a brave face on its diminution, claiming that its institutional doors remain open to these countries but their Alliance of Sahel States (AES) is up and running. The feeling remains inescapable that this outcome was not foregone and that it has been enabled by high-level ineptitude among the leadership of ECOWAS.

Ghana’s new president, John Mahama, has in a practical manner made it a priority to advance rapprochement with the AES countries, appointing a personal envoy to lead this process. The Community should fully support him.

It is impossible not to contemplate what might have been. Over the past year while the imminence of these losses escalated, Nigeria’s President and Chairperson of ECOWAS, Bola Tinubu, has been to France on numerous occasions. Consider what might have been if he found time to engage and personally visit these West African neighbours? Surely, that was a mission fit for a new presidential jet.

A lawyer & a teacher, Odinkalu can be reached at [email protected]

Will She Win the Grammy? Multitalented Grammy-nominated  Yemi Alade seeks to showcase Africa to the world

Nigerian Afro-pop sensation Yemi Alade has a history with the Grammys. She’s featured on a Grammy-nominated album by Beyoncé and a Grammy-winning one by Beninese-French star Angelique Kidjo; but despite her popularity in Africa and her multilingual songs, Alade has yet to win a solo Grammy.

On February 2, that could change, with her song “Tomorrow” nominated in the Best African Music Performance category.

For Alade, her latest nomination is particularly special. “This time around it was for my own song, it was for my own crown,” she told CNN.

“Tomorrow” features on Alade’s sixth studio album “Rebel Queen,” which the Recording Academy said “solidifies her reputation as “Mama Africa” — the title of a previous Alade album and a term associated with iconic South African singer Miriam Makeba.

Alade first found fame with her 2014 single “Johnny,” which in 2019 made her the first Nigerian female artist to hit 100 million views on YouTube. She has also recorded the song in Portuguese, Swahili, and French.

She was inspired to record the French version by hearing her francophone African fans singing it word for word at her shows and thought that would show them her appreciation. As she began to tour Europe, she recalls the song became one of the pillars of her career.

“Paris is one of the cities that opened its borders to my music, and I fell in love with French even more,” Alade told CNN. “I wanted to communicate, so I decided to make versions of my songs (in other languages). That’s how the love story with languages started off.”

“My own superwoman”

Alade was born in Abia State, southeastern Nigeria, to a Yoruba father and an Igbo mother, and historically, “intertribal relationships were frowned on,” she explained. As a teen growing up in Lagos, she and her friends were also immersed in African American culture listening to rap music and making mix tapes. That context played a key role in Alade’s development as an artist and intentionality became paramount, from her lyrics to her album titles.

“King of Queens,” “Woman of Steel,” “Mama Africa,” “Empress”, and “Rebel Queen” all speak of her struggles as a female artist in the industry, women’s empowerment and the unification of Africans across the world.

“I needed to be my own superwoman. I think that spirit became what you see today,” she said.

Rebel Queen mixes genres like R&B and pop with dancehall, highlife, and amapiano, with Alade singing in English, French, Igbo, Yoruba, and Swahili. It is the climax of a decade-long musical career that has taken her on a rich cultural journey.

“My love for Africa just genuinely grows,” she said. “I do not do this with an agenda. When I travel, I see the different cultures, I easily accept it, appreciate it, from the food to the language to the way of life. In every country I go to there’s something that’s culturally appealing.”

Staying independent

Alade has become known as a champion of African culture and for her international collaborations. She featured in Beyoncé’s 2020 musical film and visual album “Black is King,” and on her song “Don’t Be Jealous” from the album “The Lion King: The Gift.”

New album “Rebel Queen” features Ziggy Marley on the song “Peace and Love” and Kidjo on “African Woman.” The latter, Alade says, was one of the most challenging and fulfilling songs to make because she got to know one of her heroes even better, describing Kidjo as “my musical mother.”

Despite her growing success, Alade has chosen to remain independent, working with the same management team for over a decade in the music industry and recording with Effyzzie Music Group, rather than a major label.

“Other labels have made offers and we haven’t accepted, not because they’re not good enough. (But) if your goals are not in alignment with the goals that I’ve set for myself for over 10 years, then we should not be in the same boat. If you have a team of two people, trust me, that’s all you need,” she added.

Source: CNN

Intense grief, weeping as fire guts apartments in the FCT

It was extreme grief, shock and manner of emotions mingled following a fire outbreak that gutted apartments at Specialist Quarters in the new Kutunku area of Gwagwalada in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The incident which reportedly occurred on Wednesday, January 29, 2025, at about 7:37 am, left destruction in its wake, leaving several families homeless. 

Efforts to contain the fire proved abortive as it quickly spread to other apartments and properties. 

Families of the affected homes couldn’t control their grief. 

One of the residents identified as Mrs Gloria burst into tears after returning home to find her apartment completely razed. 

One of her neighbours, Mrs Rebecca Musa, who spoke to Daily Trust, said the incident happened after Gloria had taken her children to school. 

The woman said she immediately raised an alarm but most of the neighbours had already left for work.

Mrs Musa said she had to rush out of the compound to call some people, including passersby but that the entire apartment had already been razed before help could come.

“The woman just left home and took her children to school when the fire broke. Unfortunately, before neighbours could come to assist, the fire had already razed down her apartment,” she narrated. 

She said the woman started crying when she returned from school and saw what happened.

Another neighbour identified as Gabriel said he suspected that the fire outbreak might have been caused by an electrical fault, adding that the fire spread rapidly to eight other apartments.

“You know the quarters and buildings were attached to each other, but that of the woman is the most affected because the fire started from her apartment which was occupied mostly by tenants,” he said. 

“In fact, the woman and her family members are now stranded. All her valuables were razed in the inferno.” 

Meanwhile, the Secretary of Gwagwalada Area Council, Alhaji Muhammad Saba has expressed deep sympathy to all those affected by the house. 

He called on the community to support those affected and also appealed to well-meaning individuals and relevant authorities to provide necessary assistance. 

Residents weep as fire razes apartments in FCT
Residents weep as fire razes apartments in FCT
Residents weep as fire razes apartments in FCT
Residents weep as fire razes apartments in FCT
Residents weep as fire razes apartments in FCT
Residents weep as fire razes apartments in FCT
Residents weep as fire razes apartments in FCT
Residents weep as fire razes apartments in FCT
Residents weep as fire razes apartments in FCT
Residents weep as fire razes apartments in FCT

After telling court he was asleep when they had sex, man with ‘sexsomnia’ cleared of rape

A man diagnosed with ‘sexsomnia’ has been acquitted of rape after he told the court he was asleep when he had sex with a woman.

40-year-old Timothy Malcolm Rowland was on Thursday found not guilty of having non-consensual sex with a woman at his Sydney apartment on August 26, 2022, after the pair spent a night out together.

Mail Online reports that Malcom told the seven-day jury trial that he was experiencing an episode of sexsomnia, a medical condition where people exhibit sexual behaviour during sleep.

The not-guilty verdict came hours after jurors sent a series of questions to Judge John Pickering at Sydney’s Downing Centre District Court.

One inquiry of concern to the judge regarded the consequences of committing crimes while a person was unconscious.

‘This is a really dangerous logic,’ the judge said.

A jury should not be determining a case based on laws it wished were in place but instead on the current laws, he warned.

Doing this would be unfair on any accused, he said.

Someone could not be found guilty of a crime they did unconsciously, Judge Pickering said.

‘We’re not about to punish people for acts that they have no lawful control over.’

There were no current laws, rules or regulations about having sexsomnia or doing something while having the medical condition, the judge said.

”No laws about that exist. There are no criminal offences about that that exist. And it’s not for you to create the law.’

Rowland and the woman went drinking at a cocktail bar in inner-city Darlinghurst on the night of the alleged rape, returning to his apartment at about 1 am, the jury heard during the trial.

Once there, they drank some more and took a naked bath together before the woman fell asleep in Rowland’s bed, the parties agreed.

At about 6 am, the woman allegedly woke to find Rowland having sex with her before she pushed him off, jumped out of the bed and left the apartment.

There was no dispute during the trial that Rowland had sexsomnia. But the issue before the jury was whether he was having an episode at the time of the alleged rape or whether he was awake.

It was also not in dispute that the woman was asleep when Rowland began having sex with her.

Earlier on Thursday, the jury asked what sort of evidence there could be to prove someone was awake.

And if there was insufficient evidence, why was the case prosecuted and why did it come before a jury, it asked.

Judge Pickering said it was none of his business why the Director of Public Prosecutions had decided to pursue the case in court.

It was also not the jury’s responsibility to wonder about these things.

Instead, he urged them to look at the evidence before them and determine whether the rape had been proved beyond reasonable doubt.

Determining a verdict was a ‘cold-analytical process’ which should not be concerned with how the alleged victim or the community may feel, he said.