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A federal high court in Abuja, yesterday, discharged
Uche Chukwumerije, a senator and a traditional ruler, Eze Gaius
Ihejiamaizu, as sureties for the former governor of Abia State, Orji
Uzor Kalu, because they claimed that they no longer had confidence in
him. Mr Chukwumerije and Mr Ihejiamaizu approached the court to vacate
their pledges over Mr Kalu. At the resumed hearing of the matter,
Kelvin Emeka Okoro, counsel to the senator, and Onyedika Offor, lawyer
to the traditional ruler, in their application, told the court that
section 134 of the Criminal Procedure Act (CPA), allows a surety to
withdraw at any stage.

“The surety at any time can apply to the court to
discharge the cognizance he entered as it affects him.” Adding, that
the court should discharge their clients as sureties.

Counsel to Mr Kalu, Awa Kalu, did not object to their
withdrawal, but said having regard to sections 122 of the CPA, the
judge may consider whether it is still desirable to retain traditional
ruler as surety in the matter. “Since the date of arraignment, the
first accused has been appearing before the court, his appearance today
is 32nd.” The lawyer said Mr. kalu has demonstrated unequivocally, his
wiliness to appear before the court and face his trial.” Having regard
to the fact that the accused has never fail to appear, the court may
bend the rules requiring a traditional ruler or senator and grant him
bail on self recognizance. He is a former governor of Abia state and
understand the consequences of failing to come to court.”

Rulings

Ruling on the application, Adamu Bello discharged
Messrs. Chukwumerije and Ihejiamaizu as sureties to Mr Kalu and asked
him to look for a surety to replace Mr. Chukwumerije while he waived
the requirement of the traditional ruler to be a surety in the matter,
and adjourned the matter to April 18, 2011 for mention.

Mr Ihajiamaize, in an affidavit, said: “…Sometime
in July 2007, I stood as surety to the first accused person [Orji Uzor
Kalu] in this charge. That part of the bail condition included the
deposit of my certificate of recognition as a traditional ruler [Eze]
in Abia State issued on November 16, 1998 by the state government. That
I entered as surety to the accused person because of the confidence I
had in him then. I no longer have confidence in the first accused
person and will not stand as surety for him anymore. That for now the
first accused and myself have not been associating with each other and
I can no longer vouch for him, being unaware of his movements and
actions. That it would be in the interest of justice to discharge me as
a surety to the first accused person and return my said certificate of
recognition to me.” The EFCC had slamed a 107-count charge of
money-laundering against Mr Kalu, including mismanaging over N5billion
belonging to the Abia State government.

Two other accused persons standing trial alongside Mr Kalu including Ude Jones Udeogu and Slok Nigeria Limited.

The protracted
leadership tussle that has hitherto turned the Edo State House of
Assembly into a one-party assembly might soon end as the house
yesterday recalled four of its members who were suspended in February
this year.

The suspended
legislators including the erstwhile Speaker, Zakawanu Garuba (Etsako
West I) were suspended for allegedly using dangerous weapons in the
forceful change of the House’ leadership on February 22, 2010.

Mr Garuba alongside
his former deputy, Levis Aigbogun (Ovia North East I), former Majority
Leader, Frank Okiye (Esan North East I) and Blessing Agbebaku (Owan
West) were however asked to apologise to the assembly and withdraw
their cases from the court.

Spirit of the yuletide season

Majority Leader of
the House, Philip Shaibu who moved the motion for the recall of the
suspended members, explained that the decision to recall the members
was in line with the spirit of the yuletide season as well as the
spirit of unity to strengthen the nation’s democracy.

The motion which
was seconded by the Deputy Speaker, Paul Ohonbamu, however listed
conditions that must be met before they could be fully re-admitted into
the House.

According to him,
Mr Zakawanu and his colleagues “must withdraw all cases in court
instituted by them against the Edo State House of Assembly or any
member thereof.

“They must formally
apologize to the House in writing, for their roles in the fracas on the
floor of the House on Monday, February 22, 2010.

“They must sign an undertaking with the State Commissioner of police, to be of good behaviour thereafter.” He said.

Meanwhile, the
House in a plenary session on Monday, swore-in the member-elect
representing Igueben constituency, Steven Idehenre of Action Congress
of Nigeria (ACN) who was declared winner of the election held on April
14 by the Appeal Court last week.

The relevant oaths
were administered by the Clerk of the House, Egbe Evbuomwan under the
watchful eyes of the Speaker, Bright Omokhodion and other members.

The House also
cleared two commissioner nominees. They are Francis Osakpamwan
Evbuomwan and Ojeabu Ochei Callistus who were sent by the Governor of
the state, Adams Oshiomhole for screening and confirmation.

The Chairman of
Bendel Insurance Football Club, Igbinomwahia Ekhosuehi was at the
weekend abducted by two armed men at his residence in Idemudia Avenue
of Erediauwa Street, Ekehuan road, Benin City.

The Edo State
Director of the State Security Services (SSS), Francis Adeyemi Sonaike
confirmed the kidnap saying that investigations are ongoing.

A family source had
also said that the kidnappers of Mr Ekhosuehi were said to have
demanded for a ransom of N10m and N1m daily for the victim’s feeding
and upkeep.

Also, the State
Security Services, (SSS), paraded five suspects for various crimes
ranging from blackmailing, rape, extortion, threat to kill and
kidnapping.

According to Mr
Sonaike, over 50 kidnap cases are pending in various courts in the
state, but said they have asked the state prosecutors to push for
accelerated hearing and trial of all the suspects currently facing
trials for kidnap related cases.

Seven Years

A Benin City
magistrate court yesterday sentenced one Osamuyi Osunbor to seven years
imprisonment without an option of fine for extortion and threat to kill.

Mr Osunbor was
arrested on November 2, 2010 while attempting to collect a ransom of
N100,000 paid into his account by a victim he had threatened to kill.

The Magistrate, J.U Oyomire therefore sentenced him to seven years after he pleaded guilty to the crime.

Anambra State
governor Peter Obi was moved to tears last weekend when he visited
victims of a fire disaster at Uli, Ihiala local government area of the
state.

Mr Obi said he had
come to commiserate with them and to assess the level of damage wreaked
by the inferno when a fuel tanker fell on the road leading to the
Anambra State University at Uli, destroying houses and goods worth
millions of naira.

Speaking during the
inspection, the governor said he wished the disaster had not happened.
He said he feels pained when any part of the state suffers in any way,
because there was enough hardship in the state already. He remarked
that his government was working round the clock to ameliorate the
situation.

The governor, who
had earlier sent a commissioner to assess the damage as well as
directed the State Emergency Management Agency to pay full attention to
the incident, said he felt compelled to visit in person to show how
dispirited he was.

Consolation

He assured the
victims that they would be compensated and promised that he will appeal
to the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) to replace the burnt
wire and restore electricity to the affected homes.

The Legislator
representing Ihiala 1 Constituency at the state house of assembly,
Simeon Ohajianya said that he was often humbled by the way issues
affecting any part of the state touched the governor.

“When I informed
him about the disaster, he was touched. For once, one could see a
governor who is passionate about the welfare of his people. If you do
not love this state, after dealing with the governor, you will be
inspired to love the state,” Mr. Ohajianya said.

The traditional ruler of Uli, Onyedi Ebekue, said that his people
were grateful to the governor who had continued to show them love and
care.

The Ekiti State
Police Command says it has deployed 750 officers to provide security
during the by-election into the Moba state constituency 1 in Moba
Council Area. The spokesman for the Command, Adebayo Jimoh, in Ado
Ekiti on Monday said that police authorities had ordered ‘stop and
search’ inspections on all vehicles coming out and going into the
constituency as part of measures to forestall any breach of the peace.

The by-election to
be organized by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is
scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 22. The constituency became vacant
following the death of Saliu Adeoti, the former deputy speaker of the
House of Assembly on October 27. The election is expected to hold in 49
polling booths in five wards that make up the constituency.

“So far, 750 policemen from the command have been deployed to take
part in the Moba Constituency 1 by-election to ensure peaceful conduct
of the election. The Commissioner of Police has equally visited the
constituency and all the polling booths to assess the security
situation,” Mr. Jimoh said.

Gladys Nwafor, a
national commissioner at the Independent National Electoral Commission,
said the commission will prosecute anyone found guilty of malpractice
during the forthcoming voter registration.

Mrs. Nwafor said in
Bauchi at the weekend that the immediate prosecution of the offenders
would serve as a deterrent to other persons with similar motives.

According to her, the commission has set an example with the recent prosecution of some offenders in the Anambra by-election.

“We are using the
Anambra issue as a case study. So, anybody found guilty or engaged in
electoral malpractice will be dealt with accordingly, no matter his or
her status,’’ she said.

She however assured Nigerians that the Attahiru Jega-led electoral
commission would conduct free, fair and credible elections in 2011.

A healthy
environment will reduce the high mortality rate in Nigeria, says
Augustine Ebisike, Registrar, Environmental Health Officers
Registration Council of Nigeria.

Mr. Ebisike said in
Abuja on Monday that “ environmental health is paramount because if you
get your environmental health right, so many preventable deaths will be
cut short.

“Our mortality
rate; infant mortality rate are all related to environmental health; so
these are the broad issues that are posing health challenges in the
society,” he said.

According to him,
70 per cent of the diseases that cause hospitalisation in Nigeria are
not only preventable but they are environmentally related.

“If 70 per cent of the diseases that are preventable in this country
go away, what we will be left with will definitely be 30 per cent. None
of the 30 per cent of the diseases will cause an epidemic and none will
have children dying the way they are dying,” he said.

The Mashi Local Government Council in Katsina State has donated a cow to the Igbo community in the area as Christmas gift.

Speaking while
presenting the gift to the community in Mashi on Monday, the Chairman,
Sirajo Mohammed who was represented on the occasion, by the Head of
Personnel, Ma’aruf Abubakar, said that the gesture was part of the
Council’s contribution towards ensuring the welfare of the Igbos living
in the area.

“The Igbos have co-existed peacefully with the people of the area
and do contribute to the socio-economic development of the area hence,
the need for the local government to appreciate their contributions.”
He said. He gave an assurance of the Council’s continued support to the
Igbo community, urging them to continue to live in peace in the area.

The Chinese
government may have unwittingly given the world a new symbol of
opposition to oppression, an empty chair. But there’s another piece of
furniture that’s suddenly empty too and it delivers a different message.

The chair belonged
to Chinese author and activist Liu Xiabo, the laureate of the Nobel
Peace Prize for 2010, imprisoned for his writings and prevented from
travelling to Oslo to receive his award. It was placed instead on the
chair he would have occupied to mark his absence.

It’s quickly become
an iconic image and empty chairs have begun appearing in Chinese
Internet traffic. Cyberspace is closely policed in the People’s
Republic by thousands of censors. Within hours even the use of the
phrase ‘empty chair’ was being wiped from the web.

There is also an
empty table though, and that’s getting a little less attention. Norway
is a tiny nation of fewer than five million people that had been
negotiating Europe’s first free- trade agreement with China, an
exploding economy of more than a billion.

When the Norwegian
Nobel Committee honoured Mr Liu, Beijing suspended the negotiations.
The deal is at least temporarily off the table, potentially an enormous
blow to a range of Norwegian businesses and jobs.

Norwegian Foreign
Minister Jonas Gahr Store told me that his government has no influence
on the Nobel Committee and values the committee’s tradition of
independence. He said that Norway’s government wouldn’t sacrifice its
principles to please Beijing.

Norway is an
affluent country, with enormous oil and gas reserves that China and
many other nations are eager to buy. With or without the free-trade
agreement, its economy is in an enviable position.

But for governments without those assets and the assurance they
bring, the empty chair isn’t the only piece of furniture to remind them
of China’s reaction to this year’s Nobel Prize. There is also that
empty table.

About five months
to the end of his tenure as Ogun State governor, Gbenga Daniel at the
weekend challenged his predecessor, Olusegun Osoba to a public debate
on which of them performed better as governor of the state. Mr Daniel
threw the challenge at a public debate organized by the ruling People’s
Democratic Party {PDP} for all its aspirants ahead of 2011 polls held
at the June 12 Cultural Centre, Abeokuta.

“I am ready to
engage Osoba in a public debate, whether partisan or not. I am ready
for the open debate to be conducted anywhere. We should put on the
scale our account of stewardship. Let’s appear and present ourselves to
public domain to weigh our performances,’ he said.

Mr Daniel defeated
Mr Osoba, then of the Alliance for Democracy {AD} now Action Congress
of Nigeria {ACN} in the 2003 governorship election. But there has been
increasing condemnation of the performance of his government by Mr
Osoba and the leadership of the Action Congress of Nigeria {ACN}. The
governor also defended himself against accusations of promoting
violence, accusing the opposition Action Congress of Nigeria {ACN} of
masterminding violence in the state.

He also said
allegations of corruption leveled against his government by the
opposition was unfair, saying, “In Nigeria, how many governors openly
declare their assets as I did on assumption of office? It shows we are
transparent and I challenge anybody to fault this claim.”