The Council of the Nassarawa State University Keffi has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the management of Bar and Bench Publishers for the construction of Nassarawa State University Press at Keffi.

The Publisher/Editor-in- Chief of Bar and Bench, Chief Ogwu James Onoja, SAN and Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Suleiman B. Muhammed formalised the agreement.

Onoja stormed the event with over 15 lawyers from his law firm as well as other key administrative staff comprising of the General Managers- Printing Press, Real Estate department, Accounts and others.

Expressing delight at the MOU, the Vice Chancellor enthused that having a printing press of the magnitude envisaged by both parties will not only be beneficial to the university community but to its environs and Nasarawa state as a whole.

The last has not been heard about the four police detectives who were killed in a village at Taraba state as the Army and Nigeria Police differ on how the men died.

A statement dated 8th August 2019, signed by DCP Frank Mba, the Force Public Relations Officer allege that the Nigerian Army has something to hide; stressing that it was insensitive, “disrespectful and unpatriotic for the Press Release by the Army to continue to describe Policemen on lawful National Assignment as ‘suspected kidnappers’ long after it had become crystal clear to the Army that these are Law Enforcement Officers who unfortunately were gruesomely murdered in the line of duty by Nigerian soldiers attached to 93 Battalion, Takum.”

.Read the full the statement below:  

In reply please quote 

Ref No. CZ.5300/FPRD/FHQ/ABJ/VOL.2/69                        Date: 8th August, 2019

The Director of News 

…………………………….

PRESS RELEASE

SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT – WHERE IS THE “RESCUED” NOTORIOUS KIDNAPPER, ALHAJI HAMISU BALA WADUME?

 The attention of the Nigeria Police Force has been drawn to the Press Release by the Nigerian Army dated 07 August, 2019, seeking to justify the unprovoked and unwarranted murder of three (3) Police officers and one (1) Civilian, and serious injury to other operatives, who were on legitimate criminal investigation activities to Taraba State, to arrest one Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume indicted in a series of high-profile kidnap incidents in the State. In the best tradition of Esprit de Corps, Inter-Agency Harmony and National Interest, the Nigeria Police Force would naturally have kept quiet, but it has become imperative to set the record straight by addressing the obvious distortion of facts inherent in the Press Release by the Nigerian Army. 

The most important question arising from the Nigerian Army Press Release is: Where is Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume? Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume is a millionaire kidnapper arrested by the Police but paradoxically treated as a ‘‘kidnap victim’’ by the Soldiers and subsequently ‘rescued’ by them. Where is he? Where is the rescued kidnapper?

Secondly, the Press Release was silent on the source of the alleged distress report or identity of the complainant, on the strength of whose report, the Army claimed had informed their decision to engage in the purported chase and rescue operation. Needless to state that in the true spirit of transparency and accountability, the Nigerian Army ought to have arrested the purported distress caller – if any – for obviously and deliberately furnishing them with false and misleading information. Besides, such arrest should in fact be made public! 

Thirdly, it is not true that the Policemen failed to identify themselves as alleged in the Press Release. The video on the incident, now viral, wherein the voice of one of the soldiers was heard loudly proclaiming that the Policemen were from the Force Headquarters, Abuja speaks volume. Besides, the presence of the IRT personnel was well known to the Taraba Police Command as the Operatives officially and properly documented not only at the State Command Headquarters but also at the Wukari Area Command and the Ibi Divisional Headquarters. As a matter of fact, some of the Detectives from the Taraba State Command’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) were part of the operation. 

The Force also considers it insensitive, disrespectful and unpatriotic for the Press Release by the Army to continue to describe Policemen on lawful National Assignment as ‘suspected kidnappers’ long after it had become crystal clear to the Army that these are Law Enforcement Officers who unfortunately were gruesomely murdered in the line of duty by Nigerian soldiers attached to 93 Battalion, Takum. 

In the final analysis, we leave the Nigerian Army authorities to provide Nigerians with answers on the following questions emanating from their Press Release: 

* Where is the notorious kidnapper, Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume ‘rescued’ by the soldiers?

* How and why was Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume released by the soldiers?

* How could a kidnap suspect properly restrained with handcuffs by the Police escape from the hands of his military rescuers? 

* If Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume is a ‘‘victim of kidnap’’ as claimed, and properly rescued by soldiers, why was he not taken to the Army Base for documentation purposes and debriefing in line with the Standard Operating Procedure in the Nigerian Army?

*  Why were the Police Operatives shot at close range even after they had identified themselves as Police Officers on legitimate duty as evident in the video now in circulation?

DCP FRANK MBA

FORCE PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICER

FORCE HEADQUARTERS

ABUJA

A group of human right lawyers in Abuja on Thursday kicked against the ex-parte order granted by a Federal High Court to the Department of State Services to detain the publisher of Sahara Reporters and convener of the RevolutionNow movement, Omoyele Sowore, for 45days.

The lawyers, who came to the court to express their solidarity in support of the human rights crusader, said that they would apply for the vacation of the order.

One of the lawyers, who spoke with journalists and asked not to be named, said that there was no justification to keep Sowore in custody for so long.

He said, “We don’t believe there is any justification for them to seek to detain Sowore for demanding that Nigerians should rise up for their socio-economic rights.

“For calling for revolution, he has defined the terms and has stated it expressly that things are not going well in the country.”

He added that Sowore was not the first person to call for revolution in Nigeria, noting that many people in government today had called for a revolution several times in the past.

He added, “Nobody arrested and detained them, no DSS came for these persons when they called for revolution.

“We have a lot of this evidence. It is most unfortunate that the government is now seeking to clamp down on dissents.”

Also react to the development, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Tayo Oyetibo, said, “There is a provision in the administration of criminal justice act that allows that to be done but it’s a provision that needs to be reviewed because the liberty of the individual ought not to be compromised on the altar of investigation. So, that law needs to be reviewed once again.

“To keep a man for 45 days without being charged to court is offensive to the constitution and offensive to the notions of the principles of the constitution.”

Another lawyer, Johnson Omede, told Sahara Reporters that the court order was alien to the crime the suspect had been accused of.

He said, “The order by the Federal High Court to detain Mr Sowore for 45 days is alien to the offense the suspect is been accused of.

“Revolution is nowhere mentioned under the terrorism Act and to have granted an order detaining a suspect for 45 days under the instrument, leaves us with more to be desired.”

The Federal Government had on Tuesday, August 6 requested for an ex-parte order to keep Sowore for at least 90 days.

Culled from: Sahara Reporters

The Federal Government says gun owners can’t use marijuana. States believe otherwise. Legal chaos ensues.

A bizarre, new legal issue has emerged in recent months that may leave those wishing to use medical marijuana having to choose between using pot or owning a gun.

That’s because federal law in the United States still lists marijuana as an illegal drug. And under federal law, it’s a crime if someone in possession of an illegal drug also possesses a firearm.

Welcome to yet another reel around the thorny bush of federal vs. state marijuana laws. While an increasing number of states have legalized marijuana, the federal government refuses to budge. As a result, even common sense issues about the plant are cloaked in confusion.

Related: 5 Facts About the First-Ever Cannabis Speakeasy That Just Opened in Las Vegas

Guns and Marijuana in Missouri, Pennsylvania

The latest example of the gun vs. pot issue is in Missouri, where state voters approved a ballot proposal to amend the state constitution and legalize medical marijuana in the Show Me State.

The ballots had barely been counted when the gun issue reared its controversial head.

The amendment, called New Approach Missouri, included provisions to protect the right to own a firearm and use medical marijuana. However, a spokesperson for the campaign told KAIT TV 8 out of Jonesboro, Ark., that  “unfortunately just like the other 32 states that have a medical marijuana program, there are some federal laws that do complicate that.”

Those complications also have arisen in Pennsylvania, where medical marijuana is legal. When Dr. Matthew Roman — a practicing physician in Philadelphia who uses medical marijuana — went to a south Philadelphia gun shop to buy a handgun for self-defense, he was asked if he used marijuana. When he told the gun dealer he did, he was told that he couldn’t be sold a gun. “The doc answered that question truthfully. And the dealer said, ‘I can’t sell you a gun,’” the physician’s attorney told the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Dr. Roman has sued the U.S. Department of Justice, saying not selling him a gun denied his Second and Fifth Amendment rights.

Related: Despite Being Illegal Under Federal Law, Cannabis Has Grown Into a $9 Billion Industry In States Where It Is Legal.

What The Law Says

So, what does the law actually say? The Justice Department’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives put out a memo years ago that outlined the provisions. According to the memo:

• Federal law prohibits any person who is an “unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance” from shipping, receiving or possessing firearms or ammunition.
• Federal law places marijuana among Schedule I illegal drugs, the highest level possible and on par with heroin and LSD
• There “are no exceptions” for those who use medical marijuana, “even if such use is sanctioned by state law.

Continue reading:https://www.greenentrepreneur.com/article/324630?_ga=2.40810530.123679756.1565281272-1342745200.1564505544

A call by National Leader of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has resurfaced in the heat of the debate on the semantics of the use #RevolutionNow for the organisation of series of protests against bad governance in Nigeria.

Tinubu made the call five years ago on September 29, 2014, in a statement titled, ‘A Return to Decency’.

Omoyele Sowore, human rights activist and pro-democracy campaigner was abducted Gestapo-style and taken to Abuja by the Department of State Services (DSS) on August 3, 2019, for using the phrase #RevolutionNow to plan peaceful demonstrations.

Tinubu’s comments which were reported in national newspapers such as The Punch, DailyPost, PM News, The Nation as well as other news platforms.

When SaharaReporters conducted research on Wednesday, however, The Punch, The Nation, and DailyPost had deleted the online version of the story.

But Punch made the error of leaving behind a 2014 tweet which it posted after publishing the story on Twitter.

The story was tweeted on the verified Punch Newspaper Twitter page, @MobilePunch, at exactly 12:36 pm on September 30, 2014.

The 2014 call by the leader of the APC did not attract operatives of the DSS and was not regarded by the Goodluck Jonathan administration as a treasonable felony.

In the report, Tinubu described the 16 years of PDP rule at the federal level as a period of steady decline into disaster.

He said, “The longer they rule, the less benefit the people derive.”

The Punch report quoted Tinubu as saying, “Nigeria now needs a ‘common sense revolution’, a revolution that calls forth a return to decency, probity, transparency of process and fairness in outcome.“

“This is done not by subterfuge, divide and rule and turning Nigeria in a field of discord or a street of broken institutions.

“It is accomplished by honouring the principles of democratic good governance and economic justice.

“It is done by persuading the people they are better off as one instead of better off tearing at one another’s throats.“Nigerians should be prepared for change.

“We must rescue Nigeria from those set to cause it irreparable harm. The change I talk about is the only route to our deliverance from 16 years of the PDP locusts.”

He described Jonathan’s transformation agenda as an avenue to siphon funds through a dubious blueprint.

Tinubu stated, “They do not have a national blueprint or vision. They do have a blueprint and vision for excessive self-enrichment.

“Their equation is simple: You work, they feast. You toil, they grow fat. You seek a decent wage; they pilfer the collective treasury to enjoy a king’s ransom.”

Other popular Nigerians in the past had also called for a revolution.

On November 30, 2018, Kingsley Moghalu, presidential candidate of the Young Progressives Party in 2019 in an interview with The Guardian called for young people to “rise up for a revolution in 2019”.

Popular Nigerian televangelist, Tunde Bakare, and running mate to President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2011 presidential election on April 3, 2016, called for a revolution to correct the current “leakages in government”.

In a story reported by The Punch, Bakare had said: “While appreciating the positive developments in our democratic experience, especially the attempts by past and current governments to eliminate systemic leakages, I shall seek to prove that, by a fair preponderance of the credible evidence, the state of the nation calls for a revolution.

“This is a revolution that transcends politics or policies; a revolution that means far more than any change of government; a revolution that means a radical reformation of values as they impact upon the social, economic and political landscapes of our nation.”

On May 15, 2019, the Nigerian senate debated a “poverty-triggered revolution in the country”  following a motion by Senator Chukwuka Utazi.

In a report by PremiumTimes, Utazi had affirmed: “The Senate recognises that what we are witnessing today is a culmination of long years of neglect of the welfare and future of younger generations and unwillingness by both the government and the elites to plan for the future, or read the signs of upheaval.

“Today, the chicken has returned home to roost: the downtrodden are revolting. Hitherto docile beggars have risen in arms forcing those with powers of patronage to beg for safety. The elites are being attacked. We have in our hands a dictatorship of the beggars, fuelled by drugs and poverty,

“What we are witnessing is not a spike that will go away. It is the incipient seeds of a revolution and we need to concertedly handle it with care.”

By Sahara Reporters

Press Release

By Tony Orilade, Ag. Head, Media & Publicity

Justice Archibong Archibong of the Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting in Uyo, on Wednesday, August 7, 2019, convicted and sentenced Archibong Effiong Edem to seven years imprisonment over N28, 234, 735 fraud.

The convict was arraigned by the Port Harcourt’s Zonal office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, at a Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, on two-count charges bordering on obtaining by false pretence.  The case was later transferred to an Akwa Ibom State High court, Uyo owing to issues of jurisdiction.

Edem’s journey to jail began when a petitioner, Godwin Utumude, alleged that sometime in 2004, in the United States of America, he met the convict who showed him a property in Texas that was up for sale.

According to the petitioner, the prize of the said property was initially $218,000 (Two Hundred and Eighteen Thousand Dollars), but the convict eventually agreed to sell at $200,000 (Two Hundred Thousand Dollars) which was an equivalent of N28, 234, 735 (Twenty Eight Million Two Hundred and Thirty Four Thousand Seven Hundred and Thirty Five Naira) at the time, and on September 1, 2004, he paid N20million to the convict who assured him that by December 2004, all documents regarding change of ownership of the said property would be handed over to him.

To ensure that the necessary change of ownership was perfected,  the petitioner said the convict further requested the balance payment of N8,234,735 which he made on January 17, 2015. 

All efforts by the petitioner to get the said documents proved abortive, hence the petition.

In the course of trial, the Commission called three witnesses: Godwin Utumude, the petitioner (PW1); Michael Adukwu,  an operative of the EFCC (PW2) and Chukwuma Ekezie Amadi, Deputy Compliance Officer, Zenith Bank  (PW3).

The EFCC also tendered several documents which were all admitted in evidence.

The documents comprised: A copy of the petition dated November 22, 2016 as exhibit A; a cover page of a document showing the picture of a building as exhibit B; Pages 1 and 2 of a document also showing the building as exhibit B1; Pages 3, 4 and 5 of a document titled: “Seller Disclosure Notice” as exhibit B2, amongst others.

Delivering judgement, the court noted that the prosecution had overwhelmingly established a case of obtaining by false pretence against the defendant through the evidences tendered before the court by the three witnesses.

Justice Archibong said that:  “The prosecution has satisfactorily proved his case beyond reasonable doubt against the accused person to warrant his conviction in counts 1 and 2 of the charge against him. The defendant is hereby found guilty as charged and is accordingly convicted on counts 1 and 2 of the charge”.

Before the convict was sentenced, the judge asked him if he had anything to say.

The convict, without showing any remorse, maintained that he never admitted to have collected the said amount: “it is not true that I admitted under cross examination that I collected N28million from the petitioner. I have always told him that I will pay him his money and I will do so if permitted”, he said.

At this point, the defence counsel, S. A. Ngbe, prayed the court to temper justice with mercy on age and health grounds, “consider his age and ailing health. My lord, he is over 70 years of age”, he pleaded.

The court immediately sentenced Edem to seven years imprisonment on each of the two counts without an option of fine. The sentence runs concurrently from the date of his conviction.

Justice Archibong also ordered the convict to restitute by paying the petitioner the entire sum which is N28, 234, 735.00.