Home Blog Page 49

Defamation Saga: As Afe Babalola withdraws suits against Farotimi following Ooni, other monarch’s intervention

  • Akinseye George, SAN, hails Babalola

“There is nothing I am going to gain from his imprisonment. There is nothing I am going to gain from so-called damages. I am not in quest of more wealth, rather how to spend what I have for the benefit of others. The only time I am happy is when I give…” — Aare Afe Babalola, SAN

“Aare Afe Babalola, you are an elder statesman, you have seen it all, you are one of the iconic voices in this country, a great man per excellence, you are a rare breed who has excelled in everything you have touched in this life, a very God fearing elder stateman, above all, you are one of the proponents of the Yoruba ethos of Omoluwabi which has been your strongest value that you hold in our country… ” — Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi (the Ọjájá II)

Following the intervention of the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi (the Ọjájá II), Aare Afe Babalola SAN, the Founder of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, in the early hours of Monday, conceded to the withdrawal of the suits he instituted against activist and lawyer, Dele Farotimi.

Chief Babalola had alleged in a petition to the police commissioner in Ekiti State that Farotimi defamed him in a book titled ‘Nigeria and its Criminal Justice System’, leading to the arrest, arraignment of the lawyer before two courts in Ekiti and his eventual 20 days of detention in Ado Ekiti prison.

Farotimi was charged with criminal defamation before an Ekiti State Magistrate Court, Ado Ekiti District and cyber-bullying before the Ado Ekiti Division of Federal High Court.

The nonagenarian, who spoke at ABUAD after the intervention of the Ooni other top traditional rulers at the midnight meeting, said, he had agreed to withdraw the criminal case, saying, “I will tell my lawyers to withdraw the case.”

Pouring encomiums on the aged Senior Advocate, Prof Yemi Akinseye-George, SAN in a short message sent to Law & Society Magazine said:

“We salute the Oonirisha, the Arole Oodua and the eminent Obas in his company for this great feat. We salute the great Aare Afe Babalola, for bowing to the pressure from their Royal Highnesses. May your days be long. Long live the Yoruba Nation; Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

Equally in attendance were the Chairman, Ekiti State Council of Traditional Rulers and the Olojudo of Ido Ekiti, Oba Ayorinde Ilori-Faboro; the Ewi of Ado Ekiti, Oba Adeyemo Adejugbe; the Ajero of Ijero Ekiti, Oba Joseph Adewole: the Ogoga of Ikere Ekiti, Oba Adejimi Adu; the Oloye of Oye Ekiti, Oba Michael Ademolaju; and the Alaaye of Efon Ekiti, Oba Emmanuel Aladejare.

Iterating the significance of the Yoruba traditional institution and its influence, Babalola said, “The monarchs are here, they have appealed to me over a criminal charge involving somebody who said I was corrupt.”

Explaining that he had rejected all earlier appeals to take the cases out of court, Babalola who said he felt bad over Farotimi accusing him of winning all his cases through corruption listed those who had appealed to him to take the matter out of court to include former President Olusegun Obasanjo; the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Mathew Kukah; and the Ewi of Ado Ekiti, Oba Adejugbe.

He said, “If you go through the pamphlet (Farotimi’s book), you will find that he attacked many judges by names, he attacked Supreme Court judges, and none is bothered, but I am bothered. I am bothered because of where and how I started life, from the farm to where I am.

“There is nothing I am going to gain from his imprisonment. There is nothing I am going to gain from so-called damages. I am not in quest of more wealth, rather how to spend what I have for the benefit of others. The only time I am happy is when I give.

“The request is simple, take away this criminal case in court. When Obasanjo wrote, he came here, I said no. when Kukah phoned and came, I said no, but on this occasion, I say yes. Thank you Kabiyesis. I will speak to my lawyers to withdraw it.”

Speaking on behalf of Yoruba monarchs, the Ooni had requested Babalola to withdraw the case in court, assuring him that “nobody can tarnish your name. Your name is more than silver and gold and you have stood for your name with the message that nobody can joke with your name.”

Ogunwusi, who acknowledged Babalola’s contributions to the development of Yoruba, Nigeria and the world, said, “We (monarchs) came here to discuss the matter with him and he gave full respect to the obas and agreed.

“We, the obas, can attest to the hard work of Aare Afe Babalola and how he has invested so hard to build his name. The name cannot be tarnished or rubbished by anyone. Aare Afe Babalola has proven to the world that he cherishes his name and the world has heard him clearly.

“Baba, we want to appeal and also use our race to instruct you. Dele Farotimi is your son, you may not know him, we give birth to different children in this world, some are tough, some are soft, some are hard. Why we are here is our ethos as a race.”

The Ooni added, “We are using our race because some of our elders in Yorubaland and even beyond Yorubaland have spoken, but combining forces with the traditional institution, we have heard you, enough, enough and enough. Your name is intact. We have resolved the matter in our own way, we have done the needful.”

In a petition dated November 19, 2024, addressed to the Ekiti State Commissioner of Police, Adeniran Akinwale, Afe Babalola alleged that defamatory content in Dele Farotimi’s book, ‘Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System’, tarnished his reputation.

Farotimi was arrested in Lagos by officers of the Ekiti State Police Command and transported to Ado-Ekiti, where he faced a 16-count charge of criminal defamation and cyberbullying. Following his arraignment in a magistrate court, he was remanded in custody.

The allegations stem from claims in the book accusing Babalola and other Senior Advocates of Nigeria of influencing Supreme Court justices through corruption.

Read the full text of the statement from Ooni’s palace below.

OONI RESOLVES ISSUES BETWEEN AARE AFE BABALOLA AND DELE FAROTIMI

The Ooni of Ife, Arole Oduduwa Olofin Adimula, Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, CFR, Ojaja II in company of about prominent Yoruba traditional Rulers in Ekiti state was at the Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti (ABUAD) last night to appeal to the founder of the university Aare Afe Babalola to forgive the human rights lawyer and activist Dele Farotimi and withdraw the ongoing criminal case instituted against him.

Ooni Ogunwusi arrived Ado Ekiti at about 10:08 pm last night into the waiting hands of Aare Afe Babalola himself accompanied by the Vice Chancellor Professor Elisabeta Smaranda Olarinde
Bursar Pastor Joseph Modupe Babalola,
The school PRO, Deans of various faculties at the university and the legal team of Afe Babalola handling Farotimi’s criminal case.

The Vice chancellor in her welcome speech at the meeting acknowledged Ooni’s love for the school’s founder and the school itself which she described as one of the leading universities in Africa.

The Ooni briefed the journalists outcome of the meeting which was earlier held close door between Afe Babalola and the Ooni accompanied by Ewi of Ado, Oba Rufus Adejugbe Aladesanmi III, Ajero of Ijero, Oba Adewole Joseph Adebayo, the Ogoga of Ikere, Oba Samuel Adejinmi Adu, Alaaye of Efon Alaaye, Oba Dr. Emmanuel Aladejare Agunsoye II and the Olojudo of Ido Ekiti who doubles as Chairman, Ekiti Council Of Traditional Rulers, Oba Ilori Faboro that having watched the scenarios surrounding the criminal case instituted against Dele Farotimi with rapt attention, it has become very imperative to apply Alternative Dispute Resolution method which Yoruba race was known for in the past because it’s a case between father and son.

“We have come today to appeal to Aare Babalola to forgive his son; Dele Farotimi and what we want from him is to withdraw the criminal charges against Farotimi today.

“Aare Afe Babalola, you are an elderstateman, you have seen it all, you are one of the iconic voices in this country, a great man per excellence, you are a rare breed who has excelled in everything you have touched in this life, a very God fearing elderstateman, above all, you are one of the proponents of the Yoruba ethos of Omoluwabi which has been your strongest value that you hold in our country. This what we are using to bring down the tempo in what has happened between you and your son Dele Farotimi. We have been very proud of you as a great Yoruba elderstateman. You have done great things for this race and Nigeria such that your name can never be forgotten.”

“We’ve all come together as traditional Rulers to discuss with you on this issue and this gentleman Dele Farotimi is your son and you must forgive him and withdraw the criminal charges against him. As a father, you have soft sons and you have tough sons, Dele Farotimi is a tough son of yours. You have indeed made a point that your name can not be be messed with”.

“I hereby withdraw the criminal charges against Farotimi” – Afe Babalola.

When given the microphone to respond to the request made by the Ooni and the traditional Rulers, Aare Afe Babalola did not hesitate to accept the request saying he grew up as a child to understand such interventions by the traditional rulers. He declared he had not only forgiven Dele Farotimi but also will instruct his lawyers to withdraw the criminal charges against him with immediate effect, because of the honour for the Ooni and the other Obas.

“Today is a very important day for me, I’m a Yoruba man and I’m very proud to be one. Ewi of Ado has come here to meet me on this matter, former president Obasanjo has intervened, same with Bishop Matthew Kukah and a host of other prominent Nigerians to ask for the exact thing you have come to ask for this evening., my answer to them has been “NO” but today my answer is “YES”

Your coming is unquantifiable in terms of money, who Am I? When the colonialists came here in 17th century or thereabouts, they found as a fact that Yoruba land was a highly organised society with an advanced systems of government with each town headed by an Oba who was regarded as a replica of God on earth. His words were commands.”

In the middle ages, the Greeks had a saying”the meadow that grow on the bank of a river which obeys the direction of the flood remains strong forever but the meadow that grow that disobey the direction of the flood were broken asunder”.

Aare Babalola concluded his response with a an Adage in Yoruba saying ” Eni ti o ba nI nkan lati se, kii wo elegan rara” meaning “those who change the world for the better do not wait to respond to criticism”

He said he had listened to the Ooni’s advice and he certainly didn’t want to be a meadow by the riverside which disobeys the flood.

I was a lawyer who defended the EFCC law, yes I’m corrupt, I was given an oil block, when I looked at the money and saw that it was too much , I rejected it, yes I’m corrupt, I was offered ministerial appointments twice, I rejected it, yes I’m corrupt because whatever I am, I don’t want anybody to say I made it through corruption. Look at my books, I’m Chairman, Transparency International based in Germany, I have given lectures against corruption with my papers in many universities globally. For someone to allege me that I have won my cases through corruption, it’s an attempt to defame me, that was why I rejected all appeals earlier made to me. But when I heard that Ooni was coming, I knew I’m in a fix today. “Nkan de o”. There is nothing I’m going to gain from his(Dele) imprisonment and there’s nothing I want from the so called damages. I am not in quest of more wealth, I’m rather concerned on managing the one I have already. Dele Farotimi is hereby forgiven. On this occasion, I say “YES”.

Ooni departed venue of the meeting at about half past midnight for his Ojaja Park in Akure from where he is expected to make his departure to Abuja on Monday.

Signed:
Otunba Moses Olafare,
Director, Media & Public Affairs,
Ooni’s Palace

FIDA Nigeria Abuja calls for collaboration with media to protect rights of women and children

By Chibuike Nwabuko

The new FCT FIDA chairperson, Barr. Chioma Onyenucheya-Ukoh has called for collaboration with the media to protect the rights of women and children. The chairperson made the call at a media parley in Abuja on Saturday, attended by some members of her executives and journalists drawn from different media houses.

Lamenting the incessant cases of defilement of minors as well as other forms of violence against women and girls, she re-stated FIDA’s commitment to defending women and children against all forms of injustice at no cost (pro bono).

While stressing the pivotal role the media plays in creating awareness about societal ills that need to be addressed as well as acting as a bridge between FIDA and Survivors as well as victims, she appealed to the media for continued partnership and support in the fight to end violence against women and girls.

According to her, “top of our things to do, which is why we are having their parley this afternoon, is that with the work we do, with the demographic we serve, the people who we serve in our mandate as FIDA, it is impossible to effectively do that work, if we have everybody signed on and we don’t have the media to do that with us because part of the challenge we have is that there is poor enlightenment on even the issues. It is obvious that a lot of people don’t even understand the provisions of the law, particularly as it affects women and children. So sometimes, infractions are because of ignorance which unfortunately the law doesn’t permit as an excuse. So as part of helping to enlighten the people as to what legal provisions on subjects of children and women, we need you – the press.

“Then to also give visibility to the work we do, because at the risk of sounding immodest, FIDA Nigeria has done a lot and keeps doing a lot and I speak particularly about FIDA Abuja branch. There have been a lot of activities over the years. FIDA Abuja would be 35 next year and in all this time, it has been a lot of work consistently and if all this work is done without the necessary visibility, people may not realise where they can go to when they are in need of such services as we render.

Onyenucheya-Ukoh further stated that part of the reason for the media parley is essentially to remind media practitioners “of what objectives of FIDA are and what we do and to share with you our desires as to how we think you can come in to help us ensure that we all enjoy fairly better society because the quality of attention that women and children rights and welfare we enjoy by the hopeful partnership that will arise from this parley.”

She highlighted that women and children face all forms of harmful, degrading, discriminatory practices daily and many times, these are people who may not be able to afford the services of lawyers.

“We realized that this is part of giving back to the society and as women who have been called to the practice of law in Nigeria, we can at least come together – this is what FIDA does. This is our own platform of giving back to the society; to lend our speciality, and our professional knowledge to serving women and children who would otherwise do not have a voice,” she said.

The FIDA FCT Chairperson who acknowledged and appreciated that the media is doing enough, added that “if in all we do, we do it in silos, we won’t be able to achieve the society that we want.”

She, therefore, charged the media to target their reporting in a way that it would achieve the desired outcome “such that whether we are targeting the general society by way of information or we are targetting policymakers or political leaders or leaders of thoughts – whether they are traditional or religious leaders, for media to formulate strategies that can help to ensure that the issues are reported or projected in the right manner that will elicit the desirable reactions.”

FIDA Abuja Chair further appealed to the media to be more sensitive in reporting gender-related stories, particularly as it affect women and girls.

Urging journalists to give accurate visibility to reports that will bring the right result, she noted that sometimes stories that do not portray the right legal position or draw focus on what the real legal issues should be are seen in the public space thereby inadvertently supporting the inaccurate narratives.

Mrs Onyenucheya-Ukoh assured that FIDA is available to give every legal opinion/ guidance that will help in sensitive reporting even in the choice of words.

On proactive and prompt communication update on FIDA, the FCT Chairperson said; “Chioma Onyenucheya–Ukoh has never refrained from responding to any call to lend the voice on any subject within FIDA thematic point, it has never happened and I don’t discriminate against platforms even if it is a one-person audience.

“I would be ready to address what needs to be.be addressed. So, if you have had any challenges in the past as to being able to access resources or authorities or as to speed for immediate response, that can’t happen again – FIDA has a rich reserve of resources and I speak responsibly and sincerely. Even if I am not going to be personally available, there are many people who are able and willing to and I can guarantee you, I will get you such people for any time I am not able to do it personally”.

As Nigeria’s Supreme Court prepares for Rivers State proxy wars

By Chidi Anselm Odinkalu

Depending on what view one takes of the matter, 10 February 2025 promises to be Proxy Wars Day at the Supreme Court of Nigeria in Abuja. On that day, a panel of five Justices of the Supreme Court will take arguments on seven appeals connected with the synthetic political crisis in Rivers State.

The issues that the court will be asked to decide include the validity of last October’s local government elections in the state; the fate of the faction in the Rivers State House of Assembly who claim to have switched their affiliation from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP, on whose platform they were elected) to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC); the legality of the state’s 2025 budget passed by the rump of the state House of Assembly; and the effort to importune judges into denying Rivers State access to its share of the Federation Account.

The effort to frame these as legal issues is transparently valiant. Despite the shameful conversion of judges into politicians in the Rivers State crisis – or indeed because of precisely that fact – the imminence of Rivers State Proxy Wars Day at the Supreme Court is evidence of what has gone wrong with Nigeria’s judicial system and why fixing it is essential for the health of Nigeria’s attempt at government with electoral legitimacy.

This is not the first time that legal disputes about power and how to share the spoils from it have ended up at the highest court in the land. That tendency in Nigeria is over a century old and arguably goes back to the 1921 judgment of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in the case of Amodu Tijani, over the effort by the colonial authorities to split Herbert Heelas Macaulay from his support for Eshugbayi Eleko, the Oba of Lagos.

For the hearing of that case before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in 1920, Herbert Macaulay travelled to London with the Oba’s Staff of Office in support of Amodu Tijani and the Idejo Chiefs of Lagos. From London, he issued a statement claiming that the Eleko was the King of over 17 million Nigerians and in possession of a territory more than three times that of Great Britain. Despite a healthy revenue of over £4 million, he claimed, the British had reneged on a treaty commitment to compensate the Eleko.

Embarrassed at being publicly called duplicitous in this way, the British required the Eleko to disown Herbert Macaulay. He issued a public statement clarifying his position on Herbert Macaulay’s statement but declined to disown him through the Oba’s Bell Ringers, as the Brits required.

Unable to secure the support of the popular Eleko, the colonists chose to head off rising tension by deposing him. On 6 August 1925, they issued an ordinance de-stooling him and, two days later, on 8 August, they arrested and removed the Eleko into internal banishment in Oyo. In his place, they installed Oba Ibikunle Akitoye.

Oba Akitoye’s rule lasted an uncomfortably brief three years, largely because he lacked the support of the people of Lagos. Indeed, in 1926, he suffered physical assault by his people. Supported by the elite and people of Lagos, the deposed Eleko took his case to the courts, fighting all the way once more to the Privy Council, which decided on 19 June 1928 in favour of his claim for leave for a writ of habeas corpus. This all but sealed the fate of Oba Akitoye, who is suspected to have facilitated his own earthly demise shortly thereafter.

The crisis in Rivers State shares some unsettling similarities with the events in Lagos nearly one century ago. In Rivers today, as in Lagos then, a powerful man – in this case the current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and immediate past governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike – seeks to banish the current governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara, from office using surrogates beholden to him in the state House of Assembly.

There is one important difference, though: the issues in Rivers State today hardly involve principle or the public interest. Framed though they are in legalese, these cases from Rivers State are about power and money grab. This is not a first. It appears to be the standard procedure of the current FCT Minister to seek to inveigle judges into acting as his political surrogates under ruse of law.

In instigating this crisis, Mr. Wike suffered a characteristic failure of his frontal lobe and forgot his public vow to “give himself that respect” and not interfere in the affairs of the state after his exit from the office in May 2023. Rather, since leaving office as the state governor, Mr. Wike has sought to install himself as both the Minister in Abuja and Sole Administrator in Port Harcourt. He makes no effort to conceal the fact that much of what passes as his political dare-devilry appears to be accomplished under the influence of sufficiently gluttonous amounts of dangerous beverage as to entitle him to access to a defence of automatism in criminal law.

In October 2024, he told Seun Okinbaloye with undisguised hubris on Channels Television that the only solution to the crisis in Rivers State was for the incumbent governor to “obey court judgment.” This was no advocate for the rule of law, however. Instead, Mr. Wike projected an air of political impregnability purchased with a currency bearing a distinct whiff of procured judicial crookery.

To be fair, this is not something entirely unexpected of an ambitious Nigerian politician without an alternative address (apologies to Deji Adeyanju). What is more difficult to overlook is the high judicial tolerance for undisguised political importuning of judges.

Nigeria’s judicial system has been overtaken by a category known as “political cases.” In November 2023, former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Olukayode Ariwoola, reported that his Supreme Court registered 1,271 motions and appeals from 12 September 2022 to 11 July, 2023, out Of this, the court “heard 388 political appeals, 215 criminal appeals and 464 civil appeals.” Two years earlier, in 2021, Ariwoola’s predecessor, Tanko Muhammad, reported that the court’s portfolio of 269 appeals disposed of included 139 civil appeals, 102 criminal appeals, and 28 “political cases”.

According to CJN Ariwoola’s report, the court “delivered a total number of 251 judgments, of which 125 were political appeals, 81 were civil appeals, and 45 were criminal appeals.” In just two years, the output of the court fell by 6.69% but “political cases” rose from 10.67% to 49.8%. Even allowing for the fact that 2023 was an election year, this is system collapse.

Nigeria’s judges appear to have decided that the only people entitled to exit from the courts are politicians. In turn, the politicians are happy to enjoy this exclusivity and to overwhelm the courts to the point that even judges now complain. They hire the priciest lawyers to frame undisguised power and money grabs as questions of law.

The Supreme Court can end this but feigns reluctance to. Rather, the court affords powerful politicians the kind of tolerance that they are unwilling to extend to lesser mortals, preferring instead to enable this joint enterprise of senior lawyers and politicians while fettering its own capacity to determine for itself what should be a question of law deserving of its rarefied attention.

This sucks for many reasons. It prostitutes the bench; casualizes the constitutional guarantee of fair trial “within a reasonable time”; and portrays the judiciary as captured.

To describe this as Supreme pusillanimity is to be generous. It is a form of judicial lasciviousness syndrome, promenading judicial wares before political gawkers in a peonage system in which the only effective currency is high political patronage. In these Rivers State cases, the Supreme Court has an opportunity to make a bold statement. If it doesn’t, then it should be ready for many more proxy war days yet.

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

The Trumpism effect on Nigeria’s economy in 2025

By Louis Aminadokiari Koko

On 18 December, 2024, the President of Nigeria, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu presented a fiscal appropriation bill of N47. 9 trillion to be financed by taxes, export revenues from oil and gas, and non- oil. However, these projected receipts are not sufficient to have a balanced budget. Therefore, the budget has a deficit of N13. 4 trillon to be financed by both domestic and external debts.

It is also projected that Nigeria will produce 2.01 million barrels per day of crude oil and the price has an average projected estimate of $75 /barrel . What this means is that if we produce the volume of crude oil and the price averages on $75/barrel, we need to still borrow about N13.14 billion to finance the 2025 budget as to deliver on its theme: Budget of Restoration, Securing Peace and Rebuilding Prosperity.

As lofty and assuring this budget theme sound, it appears that what is coming out of the land of the free and the country of the brave ( USA) whose current President is a maverick and a transactional politician is capable of causing oil price shocks for oil revenue dependent countries of the world, if US oil companies ramps up crude oil production which may likely cause global oil glut in the international market .

If USA becomes self sufficient in crude oil production, then the oil supply in the international market may exceed demand thereby causing downward adjustments in prices of crude oil.

I foresee drastic decrease in crude oil price to about $45 to $55 per barrel. This forecast is based on the average oil price in 2016 during DT 1.0 administration.

If this scenario painted here plays out in 2025, that is average crude oil price of $45 to $55 per barrel in the international market, how can Nigeria finance the 2025 budget that already has a deficit of over N13 trillion?

Assuming that Nigeria produces the targeted 2.01 million barrels per day, can Nigeria sell this daily production quantity if crude oil supply is already saturated in the international market?

What may likely happen is that the gulf in the FG 2025 budget will further increase , that is, the deficit will further expand with its consequences on the economy. The federal government maybe unable to finance the capital projects, which may lead to under performance.

Other consequences of likely oil glut as germane to our economy are many but not limited to the following.

  1. Exchange rate of naira to dollar will continue to increase causing serial depreciations of naira. This is not good for an import dependent country like Nigeria.
  2. Interest rates will continue to increase and crowding out domestic private investments.
  3. Cost of living crisis will escalate
  4. Poverty will increase
  5. Crime will increase and Nigeria maybe in dire situation.
  6. Nigeria may find it difficult to service her external debts and this can cause the country to move into debt trap.
    All these adverse consequences will flow out of President Donald Trump’s decision to ramp up oil production and supply which is likely to cause global oil glut and decrease in average price of oil in the international market this year. Nigeria will be worse hit by this Trumpism effect.

Louis Aminadokiari Koko, Esq (PhD)

NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 25th January 2025 (Day 20 prayer points)

0

DAY 20 OF 21 – ALL THINGS ARE WORKING

Don’t forget to Study/Meditate on Isaiah 43:18-19, Isaiah 54, 1 Samuel 10: 1-13, Matthew 13:1-9, John 15, Romans 8

DECLARE:
2025: ALL THINGS ARE WORKING!!! 7x

The Lion of The Tribe of Judah Has prevailed! The Old is gone, It’s a New Season for me! A Way Has been made, Rivers are flowing! I Am Led By The Spirit! Loved By God! Covered By Grace! Ignited With A Holy Fire! Focused And Purposeful! Empowered For Exploits! Revelations 5:5, Isaiah 43:18-19

By the Zeal of El-Roi over my 2025, I Declare January to March my first Quarter of back-to-back Wonders! I see 20 years in 1 miracles arriving, testimonies on the heels of another: My testimony shall be El-Roi finished the work, and cut it short in righteousness: a short work did He do in my health/business/career/family. Romans‬ ‭9‬:‭28‬ ‭

I AM AN NSPPDIAN and just like Angel Gabriel in Luke‬ ‭1‬:‭19‬, I stand in the presence of God! By reason of all my encounters with El-Roi on the Altar of Fire, as I speak, let there be a showing! This is that year my declarations of Faith and Words of Prophecies are becoming my tangible evidence!

2025: Fire clear the way! O destroying mountain that shall arise to contend with the manifestation of the works of God in my life, by the consuming Fire of El-Roi, become a burnt mountain! Jeremiah‬ ‭51‬:‭25‬

Lord you are the vine and I am your branch. As I have chosen to remain in the place of my fellowship with you on the altar of Fire, let there be an overflow like never before in every area of my life! This is another year my testimony shall be ALL THINGS ARE WORKING! John 15:5

January to December 2025: The Lord shall hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth; and the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear _____call your name/familly name/business/career_____.” Hallelujah! Hosea 2:21-22

‭The Breaker Has gone ahead of me! My Time is now, The Hour has come! I move from prayers to answers, prophecies to fulfilment, expectations to reality! Delays at transition gates, Not in 2025! I break out! I break forth, I break through! Micah 2:13

When my time of visitation comes, in my spirit/soul/body, I will not be absent/distracted/dislocated! Powers that cause men to miss kairos moments that align them to their answers, I am not your candidate, Fire! Isaiah 43:18

2025: I SEE MORE! My preparation will not be less than Heavens release! In the order of Isaiah 54:2-3, I Enlarge the place of my tent, I stretch forth the curtains of my habitations: I spare not, I lengthen my cords, and strengthen my stakes; I break forth to the left and right! Amen.

2025: My doors/Help and Helpers/Talents/Giftings/Ideas are Great and effectual! Powers that make great doors ineffective and make effective doors small, not in my 2025! All things are working, Great and Effectual doors, EPHPHATHA!!! 1 Corinthians 16:9

I am on the Lord Side! I Am A Kingdom Addict! A Vessel In The Vineyard! I Give To The Gospel! I Am Grounded And Rooted In Faith! Therefore, 2025: I AM UNSTOPPABLE! Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭28-31‬ ‭KJV‬‬

I bear upon my body the mark of favor, joy, elevation, increase, blessings, congratulations and celebrations, therefore delays and disappointments, lack and dryness, exchange and reduction, Fire! 2025: “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for me, who can be against me?” Fire! Galatians‬ ‭6‬:‭17‬, Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭31‬ ‭KJV‬‬

By the Mercies of God, All things are working for me! In the same places of my mistakes and failures, I am back bigger, better, wiser, stronger! In the order of the prodigal son, I receive a new garment, a new ring! new Shoes! I arise with a renewed identity in Christ, I speak with Authority, I move into my newer levels and Higher grounds. Luke 15:22

ABBA whatsoever you’re doing in this season, every grand plan for the recovery and restoration of your people, don’t do it without my family. With your outstretched arm, lift us, wipe our tears, move us from here to our “THERE”! Isaiah‬ ‭11‬:‭11‬ ‭KJV‬‬

I am fashioned in Christ onto good works! Wherever I go, whatsoever I touch, whoever I make contact with, let the works of God be made manifest in and through me! Let there be healings, miracles, signs, wonders, Fire! Amen. Ephesians 2:10, Acts‬ ‭19‬:‭12‬ ‭KJV

Watch the closing of fast video below.

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 24th January 2025 (Day 19 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 23rd January 2025 (Day 18 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 22nd January 2025 (Day 17 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 21st January 2025 (Day 16 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 20th January 2025 (Day 15 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 19th January 2025 (Day 14 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 18th January 2025 (Day 13 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 17th January 2025 (Day 12 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 16th January 2025 (Day 11 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 15th January 2025 (Day 10 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 14th January 2025 (Day 9 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 13th January 2025 (Day 8 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 12th January 2025 (Day 7 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days Fasting and Prayers 11th January 2025 (Day 6 Prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 days fasting and prayer, 10th January 2025 (Day 5 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 days fasting and prayer, 9th January 2025 (Day 4 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 days fasting and prayer, 8th January 2025 (Day 3 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days fasting and prayer, 7th January 2025 (Day 2 prayer points)

See Also: NSPPD 21 Days fasting and prayer, 6th January 2025 (Day 1) prayer points)

Woman who ceased having sex with husband wins at European court

A woman who was blamed by French courts for her divorce because she no longer had sex with her husband won an appeal in Europe’s top human rights court, the court said on Thursday, reigniting a debate in France over women’s rights.

The French woman – identified as Ms. H.W, born in 1955 – brought her case to the European Court of Human Rights in 2021 after exhausting legal avenues in France almost a decade following the divorce.

The ECHR ruled that the French courts had violated the woman’s right to respect for private and family life.

“In the present case, the Court could not identify any reason capable of justifying this interference by the public authorities in the area of sexuality,” it said in a statement.

The woman, who married her husband in 1984 and had four children with him, wanted the divorce, but contested being blamed for the breakdown, arguing it was an unjust intrusion into her private life and a violation of her physical integrity.

She cited health problems and threats of violence from her husband as reasons why she had not had intimate relations from 2004 onwards.

The ECHR ruling comes amid a period of soul-searching in France after the high-profile case of Gisele Pelicot, whose husband was found guilty of drugging his wife and inviting dozens of men over to their home to rape her. The case shocked the world, rekindled thorny debates about women’s rights in France and turned Gisele Pelicot into a feminist icon.

In a statement released by her lawyer, Lilia Mhissen, H.W celebrated her legal victory.

“I hope this decision will mark a turning point in the fight for women’s rights in France,” she said. “It is now imperative that France, like other European countries, such as Portugal or Spain, take concrete measures to eradicate this rape culture and promote a true culture of consent and mutual respect.”

Mhissen said the ECHR ruling has no impact on H.W.’s divorce, which is definitive. However, she said it will have a major impact on French law, preventing French judges from making similar divorce rulings in the future.

“This decision marks the abolition of the marital duty and the archaic, canonical vision of the family,” she said in a statement. “Courts will finally stop interpreting French law through the lens of canon law and imposing on women the obligation to have sexual relations within marriage.”

FRANCE TO ‘ADAPT’ LAW

France’s Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs represented the French government in the case.

A diplomatic source said the government acknowledged the decision and added that the French government had been involved in the fight against sexual and sexist violence, especially within couples, for years. A law that would modify the legal definition of rape was under consideration in parliament at the moment, the source said.

Nicolas Hervieu, a law professor at Sciences Po university, said the decision was “humiliating for France but salutary for the reminder of the principles of sexual liberty and of protection for victims of sexual violence.”

Gerald Darmanin, France’s justice minister, told reporters he would speak with lawmakers about changing the law. “Obviously we will go in the direction of history and we will adapt our law,” he said.

H.W., who is from Le Chesnay near Paris, said she had been deeply traumatised by the original French ruling, which “legitimised a family environment where the privacy and dignity of women are ignored and flouted.”

H.W.’s case was supported by two French women’s activism groups.

Emmanuelle Piet, the head of one of them, the Feminist Collective Against Rape, said she was delighted.

“Ms. W spent 15 years fighting this battle, and it ended in victory, bravo,” she said. “When you are forced to have sexual relations in marriage, it is rape.”

Story by Reuters

Woman laments that her teenage best friend is sleeping with her dad AND mum!

0

Niteens are aghast over the trending post of a 21-year-old woman who claimed her teenage best friend is ‘sleeping with my parents’ who are both in their 50s. 

Mail Online reports that the lady posted anonymously on Reddit‘s Relationship Advice thread, described the ‘super messed up situation’ while asking fellow users for advice on how to navigate it while still living at home with ‘her and my parents…acting all gross and lovey-dovey’. 

The Reddit user used the pseudonym ‘Jackie’ to refer to her friend, who she met online ‘a few years back during the first set of [Covid] lockdowns’. 

The video player is currently playing an ad. You can skip the ad in 5 sec with a mouse or keyboard

At the time, she was 18 and Jackie was 16. 

She continued: ‘Jackie had this thing she’d like to do, where she’d make jokes about finding my parents hot. 

‘She’d mention that my dad was hot, or that she was having sex with my mom, whatever.

‘I’d counter back and, and we’d have a good laugh, all in good fun.’ 

The woman then explained how her 52-year-old father and 50-year-old mother recently ‘sat me and my two younger sisters down and told us they would be opening their marriage’ and wanted the girls to ‘meet their new partner’ because they felt a ‘strong connection’ with them. 

Well, surprise, surprise,’ she wrote. ‘Their new partner comes over for a visit and it’s Jackie.’ 

Over the course of a heated exchange, the woman learned her parents had met Jackie on ‘website where couples can look for thirds’ and had no idea she was the same person their daughter was friends with. 

‘For context, since we met online and the times we’ve met up in person have been either at her house or college, at my college, or a third location for both of us, my parents have never actually seen Jackie in person,’ she explained. 

Jackie, however, knew exactly what her parents looked like – considering all the times she had expressed her attraction for them.

When the woman confronted Jackie, she ‘explains that she’s always told me she was attracted to my parents, and that she didn’t think I’d see it as a big deal,’ her post read. 

Her parents, meanwhile, dismissed her concerns about their ‘alternative lifestyle’ and explained ‘they were all adults…and happy together’. 

The woman was also informed that Jackie would be sleeping with her parents in their bedroom, adding: At this point, I was so disgusted and angry I just left the house for the rest of the day. 

‘When I came back that night, everyone was in bed and I’m 99 per cent sure I heard them having sex, which made me want to vomit.’ 

She ended the bizarre post by asking for advice on how to continue living in the same house with her parents ‘who were paying for her colleand Jackie ‘definitely having intercourse at night’. 

‘She knowingly started a relationship with my parents, and my parents knowingly started a relationship with someone younger than one of their kids,’ the woman said.

‘I just feel sick and awful, and I have no idea what to do anymore. How do I continue to have a relationship with them while this is happening?’ 

The woman’s message sparked strong reactions in the comments section, with several people questioning whether her story was true.

Some likened it to ‘rage bait’ while others said it sounded ‘fake as hell’. 

The woman later addressed allegations she had made the incident up in one of her replies, writing: ‘I wish it was fake, but unfortunately no.’ 

She later doubled down against the criticism, saying Reddit users were so ‘irony poisoned they forget genuinely improbable things happen in life’.  

Responding to thoe who said she needed to move out at the earliest, she said ‘it’s not really an option for me’. 

‘I’m still in college (which my parents pay for) and I work a minimum wage job.’ 

Still others criticised her ‘nasty’ parents for sleeping with a ‘LITERAL teenager’. 

‘That’s perverse (I said what I said),’ one person said, adding they were ‘definitely judging them.’ 

Another wrote: ‘These parents are gross, and have appropriate boundary issues. Open up your f***ing marriage if you want, but not with your kid’s best friend. 

‘F***ing creeps.’ 

The woman replied saying her parents had reiterated they have a ‘very deep connection’ with Jackie when she told them how uncomfortable the situation was making her. 

Several people urged the woman to make alternate living arrangements, such as moving in with her grandparents or relatives who might have a ‘spare room or at least a couch to sleep on’ so she can focus on college. 

One Reddit user also advised the woman she needed to ‘completely cut off Jackie’ and distance herself from her parents after graduating. 

‘I’m petty and would do the bare minimum when celebrating your graduation because I can guarantee they will have her attend as well,’ they continued. 

Multiple people suggested Jackie had ‘targeted’ the woman’s parents so she can get ‘a sugar momma and a daddy out of it’. 

‘Your ex friend for sure targeted them,’ one user said. ‘Otherwise, what are the odds? These apps have an age limit setting.

‘This is f***ed, since you’re still living there I would cut all contact with your ex-friend, don’t even look at her if she talks to you.’ 

Some advised reporting Jackie’s behaviour to her parents and then ‘cutting this nightmare out of your life’. 

The woman later confirmed she had moved in with her grandparents because ‘being in that house was not healthy for me’. 

Sidi Bage, Ejembi Eko, Hayatu Chiroma, Ezeilo, Ozekhome, others made Life Benchers

A retired Justice of the Supreme Court and Emir of Lafia, HRH. Hon. Justice Sidi Bage, Honorable Justice Ejembi Eko (JSC, Retired), the Director General of the Nigerian Law School, Prof. Isa Hayatu Chiroma, SAN, and Prof. Joy Ngozi Ezeilo, SAN, law teacher and ex-United Nations Special Rapporteur on Trafficking persons in Africa have been confirmed Life Benchers.

At the event which took place during the Body of Benchers meeting on Thursday 23rd January 2025, 15 Benchers were confirmed as Life Benchers, increasing the total number of Life Benchers to 170, a cap set for the next five years.

Other new Life Benchers include: Chief Professor Mike Ozekhome, SAN; and Senator Michael Opayemi Bamidele.

NBA AGC 2025 Early Bird registration, 34 days to go

34 days to go! The Early bird registration for the 65th NBA AGC which began on January 1, 2025, will end on February 28, 2025.

When it closes, regular registration will commence on March 1, 2025, and run through May 31, 2025.

This year’s conference will take place in the Garden City of Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

The NBA AGC is an annual event dedicated to exploring the latest developments in law and providing participants with the highest-level insights from leading experts in the field.

How to Register:
To register for the conference, please follow the simple step-by-step guide below:

  1. Visit the registration portal at https://agc.nigerianbar.org.ng/register/event.
  2. Click on “Register”.
  3. Select the “Individual” option.
  4. Input your details as prompted.
  5. Preview your details for accuracy.
  6. An email verification link will be sent to your registered email address (please check your spam folder if you do not see the email in your inbox).
  7. Proceed to login using the verified details.
  8. Click on “Make Payment” to complete your registration.
  9. Once payment is made, you will receive a receipt and a confirmation email.

Important Notes:
• Your Supreme Court Number (SCN) will serve as your unique identifier throughout the registration and conference process.
• QR codes will also be utilized for verification purposes during the event.
• We urge all registrants to ensure their email details are correctly entered to avoid delays in receiving verification and confirmation emails.

The NBA looks forward to welcoming you to this prestigious event, where critical legal issues and innovations will be discussed, and networking opportunities will abound. Act promptly to secure your participation at early bird rates, which will only be available until February 28, 2025. 

For registration inquiries or further assistance, please contact Sadeeq at: [email protected] or 09129209903(Strictly on Whatsapp).
Register today and join us for an unforgettable 2025 Annual General Conference!
Signed;
Chief Emeka Obegolu SAN, Chairman, AGCPC

Barbara Omosun, Esq.
Secretary AGCPC

Veteran actress, Joke Silva expresses concern over murders of women by partners over alleged infidelity, Says: “These men should be tried and put in jail for life.”

Veteran Nollywood actress, Joke Silva, has expressed concern overthe murders of women by their partners in the country over alleged infidelity.

This is coming after a housewife identified as Mrs Chioma Nwaka died after being set ablaze by her middle-aged husband, Obiozor Nwaka, over suspected infidelity in Anambra.

Read Also: Again Devil Gets the Blame: Woman doused with fuel and set on fire by husband in Anambra dies, husband accuses Satan

In an exclusive interview with Saturday Beats, the actress, 63 expressed her outrage and said men who kill their partners for alleged infidelity should be jailed for life.

She said, “These men should be tried and put in jail for life because it is a capital offence. The law should take its course because it’s ridiculous. Men cheat all the time. Do they get killed? Do they get burnt? What rubbish is that? Where’s the proof that she cheated? And what about the man who she cheated with, what would happen to him? Is he supposed to go scot-free?”

She added, “It’s so bad. Even if there’s evidence of cheating, why can’t you just carry your bag and leave? Or send the woman back to her parents? If you investigate properly, you’ll probably find that the murderer has cheated a million times, yet he’s killing his partner in one instance.

Read Also:Man who burnt wife to death begs sons for forgiveness, Anambra Govt says justice will take full course

“The women who are dead now are people’s children and mothers too.”

On the entertainment industry’s role in addressing the killings, Silva said, “How much advocacy do you want the industry to do? One of the best forms of advocacy is enforcing sanctions for bad behaviour. This isn’t just bad behaviour; it is criminal.”