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The governorship
candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Akwa Ibom State,
James Akpanudoedehe, has described his arrest and subsequent trial in
Abuja as an attempt by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to stop him
from campaigning for the governorship election in the state.

He told a Federal
High Court in Abuja yesterday that his arraignment by the police was
politically motivated. His counsel, Kola Awodein told the presiding
judge, Adamu Bello that Mr Akpanudoedehe’s arrest in Akwa Ibom State
and his quick arraignment in Abuja was designed to keep him away from
the campaign trail.

Mr Akpanudoedehe,
who is standing trial for treason, has been in police custody since
last Friday following an order of the court that he be remanded pending
yesterday when his bail application was heard. He was arraigned on a
four-count criminal charge bothering on treason and felony, and pleaded
not guilty to all.

The court will tomorrow rule on his bail application.

The accused, a
former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), was arrested
over last week’s clash between supporters of his party and those of the
PDP in the state during which many people were killed and properties
worth millions of naira damaged.

Mr Awodein urged
the court to grant his client bail pending the hearing and
determination of the charge against him by the police. He argued
further that the accused person be admitted to bail by the court based
on his antecedent as two-time senator, former FCT minister, former Uyo
Local Government Area Chairman and at present, a governorship candidate.

The counsel also
told the court that there was an earlier phantom murder allegation
against the accused person, in which the police searched his residences
in Uyo and Abuja and found nothing incriminating.

“The applicant was
compelled to approach a court of competent jurisdiction when he was
being harassed to create an enabling political environment to carry out
his campaign like every other candidate in the state and the court made
an order restraining the police from interrupting his campaign,” he
said.

He also told the
court that Mr Akpanudoedehe has an ailment that requires frequent
medical attention, a position he said was not countered by the
prosecution. He said the prosecution’s submission that they are still
investigating the matter showed that they have yet to establish a prima
facie case against the accused.

But the police
counsel, R. E Nkem asked the court not to grant the accused person bail
in view of the nature of the offence and the severity of the
punishment, if found guilty.

“The accused person
is charged with treason and other pending charges like that of murder,
arson and others, as such he should not be granted bail,” Mr Nkem said.

Justice Bello, after hearing from all the parties adjourned till Thursday, March 31st, 2011 to rule on the bail application.

The charge

The Police accused
Mr. Akpanudoedehe of levying war against the state with intent to
intimidate the governor of the State, Godswill Akpabio.

The charge sheet
read: “That you, John James Akpanudoedehe, ‘M’ and others now at large
as citizens of the Nigeria, on the 22nd day of March, 2011, at Ikot
Ekpene in Akwa Ibom state did conspire amongst yourselves to commit
felony, to wit: Treason by levying war against the state with intent to
cause such levying of war as would intimidate or overawe the governor
of the state and you thereby committed an offence punishable under
Section 37(2) of the Criminal Procedure Act Cap ‘C’ 38 Laws of the
Federation of Nigeria 2004.

“That you, John
James Akpanudoedehe, ‘M’ and others now at large, as citizens of the
Nigeria on the 22nd day of March, 2011, at Ikot Ekpene in Akwa Ibom
state in the Abuja Division did levy war against the state in order to
intimidate or overawe the governor of the state by discharging several
gun shots at him and his entourage while on his official assignment and
you thereby committed an offence punishable under section 37 (10 of the
Criminal Code Act Cap ‘C’ 38 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.”

Mr Akpanudoedehe pleaded not guilty to the four-count charge.

The Nigerian
Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress yesterday expressed
happiness over the signing of the N18,000 minimum wage into law by
President Goodluck Jonathan.

While briefing
journalists at the Presidential Villa, after a meeting with the
president, the NLC president, Abdulwaheed Omar, and his Trade Union
Congress (TUC) counterpart, Peter Esele, described the signing as
historic.

According to them,
the increase of the minimum wage from N7,000 to N18,000 would go a long
way to improve the welfare of workers in the country.

“We are very
excited,” Mr. Omar said, adding that they decided to meet with
President Jonathan to clarify the conflicting reports of the signing
into law of the minimum wage bill.

“Mr. President
himself confirmed that he has signed the bill to law. We are happy that
Mr. President has signed the minimum wage bill into law and the
minister of labour has assured us that a copy of the bill would be sent
to us,” he said.

“We are jubilating
over it and the next thing is implementation. We will try to ensure it
is fully implemented because as you are aware, that is usually the bone
of contention,” the NLC president said.

On the alleged
threat made by some states not to implement the N18,000 minimum wage,
Mr. Esele said the first achievement was the signing of the bill into
law, adding that the union will deal with the issue of defaulting
states when the time comes.

Mr. Jonathan
finally put to rest speculations of whether or not he has signed the
bill. Responding to concerns expressed by the leaders of the two labour
unions about the new minimum wage, the president said he had signed the
minimum wage bill into law, adding that, “ordinarily, such a sensitive
Bill should have attracted a ceremony with members of the labour
movement in attendance, but I did not want the tight schedule of the
election campaigns to delay the signing.”

Hope for successful elections

Speaking on the
national elections starting this weekend, he said the 2011 elections
will be different, because a lot of work had been done and each vote
cast would count.

“Before now, our
elections have been of questionable credibility, but we are determined
to conduct free, fair, and credible elections, so that we will be
accepted and take our rightful place in the international community,”
he stated.

Mr. Jonathan
condemned the violence that was unleashed in Akwa Ibom State and in
other parts of the country, and warned that the culture of impunity
which propels lawlessness, especially in the run-up and during the
elections, would not be tolerated from anyone.

He stated that
efforts were being made to ensure that the Petroleum Industry Bill was
passed into law during the current National Assembly, and drew
attention to the Memorandum Of Understanding recently signed by the
Ministry of Petroleum and foreign investors for the establishment of
two fertiliser plants, a refinery, petrochemical and ethanol plants,
all aimed at strengthening the economy and creating jobs in the
downstream sector of the oil industry.

The president said
Nigeria needs a generation that will make the extra sacrifice which
will take the country to a level equal to its contemporaries, and
appealed to the labour movement to be part of such a generation.

The Congress for
Progressive Change (CPC) and the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN)
yesterday announced that they are still holding discussions on the
possibility of presenting a common presidential candidate, less than
two weeks to the presidential election.

Some northern
politicians, under the aegis of Arewa Youth Action for Change (ACAC),
are reportedly engaged in discussions with the presidential candidates
of the CPC, Muhammadu Buhari; his All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and
ACN counterparts, Ibrahim Shekarau and Nuhu Ribadu with a view to
getting one of them to contest the election. The three candidates are
from the northern part of the country.

The national
publicity secretary of the CPC, Rotimi Fashakin, who confirmed that Mr
Buhari is involved in the talks with the northern politicians and
elders, explained yesterday that the party accepted to join in the
discussions because of the quest to defeat the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) at the federal level.

“The discussions
are still on. In politics, negotiations don’t end because it involves
give and take. On our part, we are open to such negotiations so far
they do not depreciate our values or what we stand for,” Mr Fashakin
said yesterday.

The three parties
had been discussing a possible merger, but they could not agree on a
common candidate and therefore held separate primaries.

Mr Fashakin faulted scepticism that the discussions are coming too late, as the presidential election is coming up on April 9.

“In politics, even 24 hours is a long time not to talk of almost two weeks. That is like eternity in politics,” he said.

Mr Fashakin,
however, said that Mr Buhari will not step down for either Mr Ribadu or
Mr Shekarau, insisting that the former military ruler is the best
candidate among the three. He said the CPC candidate is the only one
capable of defeating the PDP at the polls as according to him he has
the widest acceptability.

“You don’t go to an
examination and tell the brightest candidate to hand over his first
position to the second or third candidate. This is antithetical to
rationality. It is not something you will readily see,” he said.

“I am saying that
of all the northern candidates, Buhari commands the most acceptability
in the broad spectrum of the Nigerian people. He has the greatest
chance to defeat the PDP. Unless you want to bring in other issues,
Buhari stands out as the best candidate, considering his pedigree and
character.”

Ibrahim Modibbo,
the spokesperson for Mr Ribadu confirmed that discussions between the
three candidates and some northern politicians are still going on.

Mr Modibbo refused
to speak on who the possible choice will be, but pointed out that the
closeness of the talks to the election day will not affect the
candidate.

Concern over Jonathan’s wife

The CPC also
faulted the recent meeting between Patience Jonathan and female
candidates across the country, during which Mrs Jonathan and the wife
of the vice president, Zainab Sambo donated money to the 809
candidates, who are contesting on the platform of various political
parties.

Mr Fashakin yesterday said the party is concerned about the source of the money.

“The Congress for
Progressive Change (CPC) has noted with dismay the unwholesome
activities of the First Lady in the name of women participation in
politics. As a party, we were reticent in divulging the contact details
of our female candidates because the motive for the request was quite
opaque to us,” he said.

The CPC also said
it was satisfied with the decision of the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) to adopt the Modified Open Secret Ballot
System, whereby the Nigerian voters would wait to have their votes
counted after casting their votes.

“The CPC welcomes this ingenious decision at ensuring transparency for our electoral process,” the statement said.

Historically, no one
has ever won a medal for battery, rape, incest, or any other form of
violence against women. It is also certain that no one will ever receive
or give an award for violence. Why then the increase in the occurrence
of domestic violence in recent times?

Violence within the
home is dangerous and unfortunate because often times one runs home from
outside for protection if there is any danger. Experiencing danger
within the confines of the home is no doubt a double tragedy.

Domestic violence is
systematic behaviour used to control an intimate partner by the other
partner in a relationship; it is often perpetrated by the male over the
female – women and young girls. Unfortunately, also, this control is
sustained by culture and religious interpretations that recognise male
control as normal.

Continuous silence
and denial of the health and social implications of abuse is not good
for the people. As it is today, domestic violence is under-estimated and
unreported.

Domestic violence
can happen to anyone of any race, age, sexual orientation, religion, or
gender. It can happen to couples who are married, living together, or
who are dating. Domestic violence affects people of all socio-economic
backgrounds and educational levels.

According to
paragraph 112 of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action:
“Violence against women both violates and impairs or nullifies the
enjoyment by women of their human rights and fundamental freedoms. In
all societies, to a greater or lesser degree, women and girls are
subjected to physical, sexual and psychological abuse that cuts across
lines of income, class and culture.”

The socialisation of
boys and men is a major contributory factor to the increase in the
occurrence of violence at home. The belief that men are superior to
women has turned most men into wife batterers because they feel that the
women are their subjects and should be under their control. Some women
have been battered even during pregnancies and have either had
miscarriages or lost their lives as a result.

Domestic Violence
Against Women (DVAW) is a major public health and human rights problem
throughout the world. Therefore, the continuous divide between the
private and public in cases of violence against women should be
discontinued. The fact that domestic violence happens behind closed
doors is enough reason to make it a pubic affair, to stop its further
perpetuation.

It is important for
the government to carry out studies on domestic violence to establish
its effects on the health, education, and criminal justice system. The
government cannot afford to hold back because it affects a significant
part of its population.

Indirectly, the
government’s social welfare packages respond to cases that are
aftermaths of domestic violence. In the process, a lot of human and
material resources are committed. From all indications, reducing the
occurrence of violence against women will automatically reduce the
extent of government’s expenses on social welfare schemes.

The award of
excellence, if developed at all, should be targeted at governments that
do their homework in reducing the occurrence of domestic violence
against women and which respond swiftly to any such situations.

Violence, whether
within the home or in the public, is a violation of the right of its
victims. It is also inconsistent with accepted human norms and must,
therefore, STOP. Violence in whatever form is not a culture to be
tolerated.

Heavy clashes broke
out on Monday in the town of Duekoue, in western Cote d’ Ivoire, between
forces loyal to incumbent Laurent Gbagbo and his rival in an election
dispute, residents and combatants said.

Duekoue has remained
under Mr. Gbagbo’s control since Cote D’Ivoire’s 2002-3 civil war, but
rebels who seized the north of the country and now back his rival
Alassane Ouattara have pushed towards the town as the country’s
post-election crisis turns increasingly violent.

The rebels said they
had taken Duekoue, lying in a region that produces around 250,000
tonnes of cocoa a year for the world’s top grower.

“The town of Duekoue
has been under our control since 7 a.m. (0700 GMT). We are conducting
search operations throughout,” said Lacine Mara, a spokesman for
pro-Ouattara forces in the west.

Mr. Gbagbo’s forces confirmed the fighting but said they remained in control of at least part of the town.

“Our men have been
in combat since about 2 a.m. (0200 GMT) this morning with the rebels,
who tried to take the town. We control one part and they control the
other,” said Yao Yao, operations chief of Gbagbo’s Front for the
Liberation of the Great West (FLGO) militia.

A violent dispute
over the presidential election last November that was meant to draw a
line under the country’s civil war has instead restarted it, after Mr.
Gbagbo refused to step down despite U.N.-certified results showing that
he lost.

Up to one million
Ivoriens have now fled fighting in the main city Abidjan alone. Others
have been uprooted across the country and around 100,000 from the west
have crossed into neighbouring Liberia, according to the U.N. refugee
agency.

Pro-Ouattara forces
have already seized four towns in the west and Mr. Gbagbo’s forces fear
that if they capture enough important towns, they will be able to march
south to the port of San Pedro, which ships about half Ivory Coast’s
cocoa crop.

“The rebels want to
take Duekoue and Guiglo so they can easily descend on San Pedro,” Mr.
Yao Yao said. “We won’t let them.” The violent stand-off has led to 462
confirmed deaths, according to the U.N. Last week around 15,000
pro-Gbagbo youths turned up at army headquarters to enlist, raising
fears that all out civil war is now unavoidable.

“Since this morning,
the military and the militias have been fighting with the rebels, who
have taken control of the main road leading to (rebel-held) Man,” said
cocoa trader Daouda Fadika. “We’re hearing heavy weapons fire and
Kalashnikovs.” A Reuters reporter in the main city of Abidjan also
reported shooting and heavy arms fire on Monday, from areas where
insurgents seeking to oust Gbagbo are pushing towards the city centre.

Ouattara has been internationally recognised as president but remains
holed up in an Abidjan hotel, protected by a ring of U.N. peacekeepers.

A Federal High Court
sitting in Osogbo, Osun State has restrained the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) from using Rufus Oluwatooyin Akeju as the
Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of the state. The court further
directed INEC directed INEC to immediately appoint another REC for the
state.

The State chapter
of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had dragged INEC and Mr Akeju
before the court citing allegations of bias against Mr Akeju and
describing him as a “sympathiser” of the Action Congress of Nigeria
(ACN). Mr Akeju hails from Lagos State and is believed to have been
nominated for the post by the Lagos State government.

Presiding judge,
Babs Kuewumi in his ruling restrained Mr Akeju from conducting the
election in Osun State and also restrained INEC from using him in the
state as the REC in the coming elections.

The PDP while
citing Section 14 (3) of the 3rd Schedule to the 1999 constitution
sought for a declaration that Mr Akeju cannot impartially conduct or
supervise the conduct of a credible election in Osun state in April
2011.

The case

In an originating
summons deposed to by the state PDP counsel, Kayode Adesiyan, the party
explained that based on the allegation of bias levelled against Mr
Akeju, the court should order INEC to transfer him from Osun State to
any other state in Nigeria to conduct or supervise the conduct of the
April 2011 general elections and appoint a new REC for Osun State.

The party also asked
for an order of perpetual injunction restraining the 2nd defendant
(Akeju) from conducting or supervising in any manner whatsoever the
conduct of elections into various political positions in April 2011 in
Osun State.

The state PDP
further urged the court to grant, “An order of injunction directing the
1st Defendant (INEC) to appoint forthwith or transfer a new Resident
Electoral Commissioner to conduct or supervise the conduct of April 2011
elections in Osun state”.

In a 28-paragraphs
affidavit in support of the originating summons which was deposed to by a
member of the Elder Caucus of the PDP in Osun state, Raphael Ayotunde
Towobola, he alleged among other things that prior to the appointment of
Mr Akeju as the REC, he had lived and worked in Lagos State as a
Special Assistant in the government of former Governor of Lagos State,
Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

He explained that by
virtue of his former position, he was under the strong influence of Mr
Tinubu, a leader and chieftain of ACN, a political party which is
presently governing Osun State and that he cannot claim to be non
partisan.

Mr Towobola cited an
instance where a member of the ACN in Atakunmosa-East Local Government
during the last registration exercise seized and broke the Direct Data
Capturing Machine and he was promptly arrested by the police but instead
of Akeju to ensure the prosecution of the culprit, he swiftly “directed
the police to release the criminal.”

Presiding judge, Mr Kuewumi adjourned the matter till 6th of April, 2011.

Four months after
Rauf Aregbesola was sworn in as the governor of Osun State, the
government claims that it has not appointed commissioners because it is
trying to resolve the political crises in the state. According to the
spokesperson to the governor, Semiu Okanlawon, The administration of Mr
Aregbesola has in the hundred days of being in office achieved more than
so many states with commissioners and endless list of political aides.
He added that, “you will also recall the kind of challenges we met on
ground. The kind of the composition of the House of Assembly, the House
of Assembly that even the ordinary list of the local government
caretaker committees suffer a kind of hardship that it suffers in their
hands, because of the composition.

“You will agree
with me that bringing in the list of the commissioners could even bring
in a bigger headache. So, rather than giving much energy into how to
force the list of the commissioners, which you know that some of the
people in the House are going to stand against, then why not concentrate
on other things which are going to benefit the people of the state and
wait and look for better opportunities when appointing commissioners?”
Mr Okanlawon said.

Commissioners’ list to be presented soon

When asked about the
relationship between the Osun State legislators and the executive, the
speaker, Bello Adejare told NEXT he was at a meeting and would be
commenting on the issues when called in a later date.

But speaking on the issue, Sunday Akere, who is the spokesperson of
the Action Congress of Nigerian (ACN), said Mr Aregbesola is not afraid
of presenting the list to the House of Assembly, claiming that the list
will be presented in a matter of days time. “Why would he be afraid of
presenting the list? Ogbeni Aregbesola and those working with him has
been wonderful and doing fine even without commissioners. Though when we
came in the issues in the house was huge, but we all know that we now
have equal representation in the House, so why are we going to start
waiting for the election before we present the list? Don’t worry, it is a
matter of days,” he said Mr. Okanlawon however also argued that “the
question here is that even without commissioners, this government has
achieved greater feat even than some governors that have commissioners.”

A coalition of civil
society organisations monitoring the 2011 general elections has said,
state governors are largely responsible for the political violence being
experienced across Nigeria. Speaking yesterday in Abuja at a press
conference organised by the 2011 Nigeria Election Situation Room,
comprising more than 40 civil society organisations, Jibrin Ibrahim,
executive director of Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), said
the raging violence poses a serious threat to the conduct of free, fair
and credible general elections across the country in April.

“The unprecedented
levels of violence that have seen several people either killed, maimed,
kidnapped or intimidated for political reasons pose the single most
significant threat to the conduct of general elections beginning in only
a few days,” the group said.

Furthermore, he
said, the coalition attributed the violence mostly to the actions of
governors in specific states who have worked to prevent opposition
parties from equal access to public venues for campaigns.

The group listed
such states where incumbent governors have muscled opposition as Akwa
Ibom, Ebonyi, Imo, Nasarawa, Niger, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers and Benue,
among others.

Mr Ibrahim also
said the findings of the group reveal that most political parties are
busy funding and recruiting thugs to inflict violence on their
opponents, thus turning the elections into contests of might rather than
of ideas.

“The situation room
raised the concern that the on-going violence could hinder large voter
turn out on election days, as genuine voters may be frightened away from
polling unit out of fear of being attacked. It calls on the police
authorities to do more,” he said.

Resist violence

Furthermore, the
civil society coalition called on Nigerians, particularly the youth, to
resist being recruited as thugs by political parties. The group said the
youth should realise that they will be the ones who will suffer the
consequence of being used as instruments of violence.

It commended the
guidelines issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission
(INEC) for voting, which provides for accreditation of voters before
votes are cast. “The situation room was satisfied with the procedure
that requires voters to first be accredited between the hours of 8 am
and 12noon, before they then turn up to vote between 12.30pm and 4pm.
The measures, if well implemented, will reduce voting abuses,” he said.

The group is also
happy with INEC’s announcement that voters could peacefully observe
voting at polling units and collation centres. He said this will further
reduce the manipulation and switching of votes on election day.

The Situation Room
is made up of groups such as Action Aid Nigeria, Transition Monitoring
Group, Centre for Democracy and Development, Justice Development and
Peace Commission, Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre, CLEEN Foundation and
Community Life Project, among others.

President Goodluck
Jonathan has promised to push for legislation that will upgrade the
current status of primary education and protect the teaching profession.

He made the promise
yesterday in response to requests from a delegation of the Nigeria Union
of Teachers (NUT) who paid him a courtesy call at the State House,
Abuja.

The meeting is part
of the president’s series of consultations with various interest groups
across the country ahead of next month’s general elections.

Mr Jonathan, who
described himself as a member of NUT and the Science Teachers
Association of Nigeria (STAN), said laws are made for good governance
and his administration will ensure that the laws of the land protect the
educational system in order to ensure that the system produces quality
pupils and students.

“As a nation, we
must work together. I always say that no one owns the nation. Laws are
made for good governance, and that is why we have a National Assembly.
We just changed the constitution because of the elections; so, if we
have to amend the constitution to protect the teaching profession to
ensure that we produce pupils and students that will have qualitative
education, there is nothing wrong.” Mr Jonathan also promised to speed
up action on the establishment of the National Secondary Education
Commission in order to support the Universal Basic Education Commission
which caters for pre-primary, primary and adult and non formal
education.

“We are studying
final proposal and we will set up a commission for Secondary Schools, in
order to lay a solid foundation for tertiary education in the country,”
he said.

Living wage wanted

The National
President of NUT, Michael Olukoya, appealed to Mr Jonathan to push for
legislation that will give teachers a professional national wage
structure and reflect the status, profession and societal relevance of
teachers in the country.

“Nigerian teachers are among the worst paid professionals not only in Africa but in the entire world,” he said.

“ A critical
problem which has for years defied solution is the status of primary
education, which today, stands out as an orphan which no one wants to
own up to. Whereas the federal government says it has no role to play in
that sector, except through intervention fund under the Universal Basic
Education Act, the state governments claim that primary education is
the responsibility of the local government.” He further commended the
President for the Presidential Summit on Education held in October 2010
and the establishment of the Presidential Task Force on Education and
promised to support him to realise his political ambition.

The Education
minister, Aisha Ruqqayatu, Labour minister Emeka Nwogu, minister of
state for Education, Kenneth Gbagi, minister of Aviation, Fidelia Njeze,
Niger Delta, Godsday Orubebe and Information minister, Labaran Maku
were in attendance.