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The Nigeria Bar Association has urged the Senate to look into
the case of Sani Yerima’s child marriage, saying that he cannot continue to sit
in the hallowed chamber of the Senate, contributing in the making of laws which
he claims do not bind him.

The Bar said attempts being made by some individuals and groups
to trivialise Mr Yerima’s disgraceful act are also political.

“We state without any equivocation that the act of contracting
any arrangement to satisfy the hedonistic urge of any individual is criminal,”
Rotimi Akeredolu, the national chairman of the association, said. “It becomes
even more worrisome to note that these people strive to hide under a popular
religion which preaches continence.”

The association also berated Mr Yerima’s manner of “clinging to
a supposed aspect of his religion, which allows a child barely out of the
cradle to warm his bed. The abiding injunctions on honesty, philanthropy and
continence, among others, on which all religions stand, are of little
significance to this man.”

While referring to Mr Yerima’s argument, when he was invited by
a child protection agency in Abuja, that he only recognized Sharia law and not
whatever the federal law said on his action, the NBA leader said, “The position
of the Bar is that this man cannot continue to sit in the hallowed chamber of
the Senate, contributing in the making of laws he does not believe in.

“Characters like this man should not be allowed to hide under
religion to perpetrate acts inimical to the wellbeing of the citizens of this
country, most especially children who must be protected by reasonable adults.
The news that a former child-wife was divorced for him to marry a new child, as
his fourth wife, in line with what he perceives as his religious obligation,
must rile the sensibility of decent people.”

The leadership of the Bar, specifically referring to Micheal
Aondoakaa and the ongoing litigation against him, assures Nigerians that it
will not shield any member of the NBA who has been accused of any wrong-doing.

“It is important we state this in the light of the recent
judgment delivered by a Federal High Court in Calabar on the suitability of the
immediate past Attorney General of the Federation, Mike Aondoaaka to hold
public office or any position of responsibility.

“We hasten to state, without gloating, that the Bar feels
vindicated on its positions on national issues which certain political jobbers
twisted to paint us with the brush of partisanship undeservedly. We expect more
of those whose activities have brought this country to this sorry pass to be
exposed,” Mr Akeredolu said.

Oyo crisis

The Bar, however, warned Goodluck Jonathan to check recent
political attack on the House of Assembly in Oyo State by some hoodlums.

It said that the action “is a litmus test for this
administration. It is treasonable to employ the force of arms to disrupt a
legislative process. It is akin to waging a war against the people. These
political charlatans got away with all manner of atrocities under Olusegun
Obasanjo. Mr Jonathan must follow his words with deeds which give hope.” The
NBA, however, hailed the appointment of the new Independent National Electoral
Commission boss, Attahiru Jega, and urged him to start on a clean slate.

Attempts by the fugitive former governor of Delta State, James
Ibori, to seek political asylum in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) ran into a
hitch Thursday after police authorities in Dubai revoked the bail it granted
him on May 13.

The spokesman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
(EFCC), Femi Babafemi, said the commission had received official report on the
bail revocation. “I can confirm that Mr Ibori is in custody, we were briefed by
the authorities in Dubai,” he said.

EFCC sources said his arrest was based on the conviction of his
associates in UK, the protest from Nigerian authority and the threat to retrieve
the license of flight Emirates Airlines and evidence from the EFCC supporting
the fact that he fled from Nigeria to evade justice.

On what the EFCC plans to do next, Mr Babafemi said “we will
just continue to ensure that he be brought to answer questions either in Nigeria
or in the UK.”

The EFCC had declared Mr. Ibori wanted as part of its
investigation of alleged misuse of state funds while he was governor. Its
operatives were on his trail before he sneaked out of the country and turned up
in Dubai.

The former Delta State governor was arrested in Dubai by the
police on the orders of the International Police (INTERPOL). The operation is
linked to the British Metropolitan Police, who has been fighting to have Mr.
Ibori extradited to the United Kingdom to face other fraud charges.

Early this week, his sister, Christine Ibori-Ibie, and his
female friend, Udoamaka Okoronkwo, were jailed by a UK court after they were
found guilty of all charges of money laundering and mortgage fraud.

The women were also found to have helped the former governor
move an estimated £70 million worth of looted funds through several London
banks during his reign in office from 1999 to 2007.

Mr. Ibori, who was declared wanted by the anti-graft agency
weeks ago, in connection with the illegal disposal of 528 million shares
belonging to Delta State in Oceanic Bank, refused to turn himself in and
thwarted all efforts by the EFCC and the Nigeria Police to arrest him.

A security source, however, said the revocation of Mr. Ibori’s
bail, following which he was clamped into a Dubai jail, was only one more step
in the efforts of the MET to take him to London.

A member of the House of Representatives, Rasaq Adewusi, has
accused the group of ‘progressives’ calling for the resignation of the Speaker,
Dimeji Bankole, of selfishness.

Mr. Adewusi, who is the Chairman of Committee on Pension, told
journalists in Abeokuta that the group is not fighting the cause of the
majority of lawmakers and challenged them to present their allegations when the
House resumes.

He said it was ridiculous for the group to have asked the
speaker to resign when plenary has been suspended.

“As I see it, it is more of personal that is the way I see it.
You cannot just stand up and say the Speaker must resign when we have suspended
plenary session about six days ago,” he said.

The lawmaker said the group, consisting 12 members, is too small
to challenge the leadership of the House.

‘The house is the house of 360 members and with the number of
people that have gathered together as a group, I think when we get to the
bridge we shall cross it. It is just a matter of when we come together in the
house, the reason behind their asking the speaker to resign his speakership
would be known,’ he said.

Beyond the cars

Mr. Adewusi said the Speaker’s opponents are bringing up
forgotten issues in their fight against him.

“The issue of cars they are talking about has gone to rest for a
very long time. Nobody has ever returned the cars. I don’t want to pre-empt
their action, when we get to the house by June 22, we will know, they will tell
the house,” he said.

The National Food and Drug Administration and Control Agency
(NAFDAC) will today, at its Lagos office, introduce a solution meant to be the
silver bullet against the monstrous fake drug business in the country.

The data collected from a three-month trial of the Mobile
Authentication Service (MAS), an SMS-based solution implemented by Sproxil Inc,
will also be discussed at the meeting with drugs manufacturers and retailers.

The innovative technology has been described as most suitable
for checkmating fake drugs in Sub-Saharan Africa, where the counterfeit drugs
business is estimated to be worth about $75 billion, because it utilises the
ubiquitous mobile phone platform.

The model is as simple as a consumer walking into a
pharmaceutical store to buy drugs, which would have a scratch panel. The
consumer scratches the panel and sends the code on it to a well-advertised
number through SMS. A confirmation message will be sent back confirming the genuineness
or otherwise of the drug. If the drug is counterfeited, the consumer is
expected to inform NAFDAC.

Anti-counterfeit
officials

This model, which will also be effective against all forms of
counterfeited and sub-standard products, will turn consumers to an independent
army of “anti-counterfeit officials,” one as big as the entire Nigerian
populace, if implemented efficiently.

The document, which was exclusively obtained by NEXT, was
prepared by a national committee inaugurated by Paul Orhii, NAFDAC’s Director
General, in June 2009.

The committee consisted of representatives of the
Pharmaceutical Manufacturers of Nigeria (PMG-MAN), Nigerian Representatives of
Overseas Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (NIROPHARM), and mPedigree, the company
marketing the product.

The committee submitted its report, Deployment of National
Electronic Anti-Counterfeiting Platform for Regulated Products in Nigeria, in
September 2009. Thereafter, Biofem agreed to use its “highly counterfeited”
product, glucophage, as a “guinea pig” and in February, NAFDAC announced a
trial project, to be implemented by Sproxil.

The feasibility of the guideline document requires several
partnership agreement and understanding among several components of the design
including telecommunication companies, drug manufacturing companies,
Information Technology Company, and NAFDAC.

However, Biofem-Spiroxil partnership has, within a shorter
period, produced an implementation platform for the technology and the trial
has received positive feedback from industry stakeholders.

For a detailed report on
this, read NEXTonSunday

The senate committee on environment have threatened to shut
down the five stone mining companies operational at Mpape, a suburb of Abuja,
for none compliance with environmental safety laws.

The threat came after the committee, led by its chairperson,
Grace Bent (PDP Adamawa state) and the National Environmental Standard and
Regulation Enforcement Agency (NESREA) paid an unscheduled inspection visit to
the quarries.

Mrs Bent and Ngeri Benebo, the director general of NESREA,
expressed dissatisfaction with the level of compliance with environmental laws
by the various quarrying companies in the area.

Some of the five stone mining companies operational in the
suburb have been blasting and crushing rocks in Mpape for over 30 years, but
none of them have an environmental impact assessment certificate or a plan on
how to remedy the environment after mining. Neither did any of the mining
companies have a corporate social responsibility project in the community.

The worst offender, according to the inspection team, was
Julius Barger Plc. They are the longest stone blasting company in the area, but
had neither an Environmental Impact Assessment certificate nor an Environmental
Management Plan. Their site also had a lake developing from their previous
mining pit which inspectors said was untreated and breeding mosquitoes.

“Can Julius Barger do this in Germany?” Mrs Bent asked the site
manager. “This is totally unacceptable in Nigeria.”

Non compliant miner

The senate committee chairman therefore gave them an ultimatum
of two weeks to develop an environmental management plan and conduct an
environmental impact assessment on the site adjourning community.

“We are giving you two week to do this or we will come back
here and shut this place down,” she said. “We cannot tolerate this; it is
totally unacceptable to us.”

Like Julius Barger, Arab Contractors and the rest of the
Chinese companies mining stones at the suburb were blasting the rock, causing
earth tremors, polluting the air with dust, and producing unsafe lakes from old
mining pits but have never conducted and environmental impact assessment on the
site.

Their workers were also not protected with safety kits, neither were they
insured. Kamel Eljilbal, who represented the management of Arab Contractors
Ltd, argued that the company had the necessary certifications; but Ihebinike
Kevin, an official of the federal ministry of environment, countered his claims
saying the ministry had no record of such certifications and neither did they
have any post mining plans from the company. The other mining companies which
the team visited also argued they had certificates and permits but could not
present them.

The deputy Senate
president, Ike Ekweremadu, who is also the head of the Senate committee
on constitution review, has affirmed that the president need not sign
the amended constitution before it becomes binding and effective.

“I’m surprised that such an argument is coming up,” he told reporters in an interview in Abuja, earlier in the week.

He argued that the
constitution will automatically become effective once the required
two-third of the state Houses of Assembly assent to it.

“I don’t know who
is engineering that because section 9 says an Act of the National
Assembly for the alteration of constitution will be conducted in a
manner provided by that section 9. Don’t forget we copied from the
American constitution. Once the American Congress passes the
Constitution Amendment and it is sent to the state, just like in our
own, and you have the requisite number, it becomes automatically
operative. No American president has ever signed a constitutional
amendment. “

Last bus stop

He further argued
that for the constitution to make provision for two-third of the
members of the National Assembly and two-third of the state Houses of
Assembly to ratify it means that that alone is the “last bus stop.” The
deputy Senate president has always argued that since Nigeria’s
constitution is modelled after that of the United States of America, it
will not require the assent of the president to alter it.

“Amendment of the
constitution, according to section 9, does not require presidential
assent,” he said in a Senate workshop in Kaduna, October last year.

He had argued
against the opinion of Tayo Oyetibo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, who
lectured the Senate on steps to successfully amend the Constitution in
that workshop.

Mr. Oyetibo had
said that unlike the American Constitution, which states clearly that a
law is valid with the assent of a certain majority of their National
and State Houses of Assembly, the Nigerian Constitution is ambiguous
about it, and that that leaves the president with the power to validate
any law.

Mr. Oyetibo then
advised the senators to rephrase section 9 of the 1999 Constitution to
reflect the validity of a law, with just the assent of a certain
majority of the National and State Houses of Assembly.

The deputy Senate
president also confirmed that the National Assembly is yet to transmit
the harmonised copy of the draft amended Constitution to the State
Assembly.

“We are meeting
with the Houses of Assembly on the 15th of this month to formally hand
over the harmonised version to them,” Mr. Ekweramdu said.

“We appeal to them
to deal with it in a matter of a week or two. We intend to extend
invitation to the governors, or at least find an opportunity of meeting
with them to also seek their support at this last lap of this exercise.
So, we are not expecting any problem.”

He further defended
the Senate’s position on some key issues in the amended constitution
that pitched the lawmakers against the public. Such issues like
allowing people indicted for corruption and embezzlement by
administrative panels to run for public offices, and cross carpeting
for elected lawmakers.

“The constitution
has made sufficient provisions on things that could disqualify you. If
you have been found guilty by a court for offences regarding
disqualification, you will not contest election. But it went further in
section 66(i) and said that if you are indicted by an administrative
panel of inquiry and that indictment is accepted by the Federal
Executive Council and State Executive Council, you are disqualified.
But we said no, that those other copious provisions, regarding areas of
disqualification on criminal ground, they are enough.

“Those who will be
disqualified are those who are found guilty by a court of competent
jurisdiction, and that is what is in our constitution. A lot of people
seem to misunderstand it clearly. In America, where we copied our own
constitution, people move from party A to B and they don’t lose their
seats. It is only the Parliament that it says if you cross carpet
without a genuine reason, you will lose your seat.

“But in the Executive, there is no such thing. Why isolate the
Parliament? And meanwhile, we have a provision in the constitution for
freedom of association. How do you reconcile it? And for you to amend
that section to say you cannot cross carpet, then you have to go and
amend the constitution regarding the freedom of association and that
requires a higher threshold,” Mr. Ekweramdu added

Evidentiary hearing
into the cases of some former state executives is yet to commence,
nearly four years after the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
(EFCC) filed criminal charges against them, the chairman of the
commission, Farida Waziri, has said.

Mrs. Farida Waziri,
who was speaking in Abuja yesterday at the public presentation of
Anti-Corruption Handbook authored by Tabi Joda, listed several
instances where the slow pace of court processes stalled the fight
against corruption.

Some of the ex-governors include Ayo Fayose, Saminu Turaki, and Joshua Dariye.

Mr. Fayose was
prosecuted on December 17, 2006 on a 51-count charge on financial
misappropriation totaling N1.2 billion; Turaki’s trial also commenced
on July 13, 2007, when he was arraigned on a 32-count charge for
laundering N36 billion; and Dariye’s was also set on the same date,
based on prima facie case of corrupt enrichment and money laundering of
N700 million.

While reiterating
her call for the establishment of special courts to try corruption
cases, Mrs. Waziri said court processes have frustrated the work of the
agency.

“I have also called
for laws that will enable us sequestrate the assets of accused persons
and convert them to government assets upon their conviction. Whereas
those are long term goals, I think the judiciary can do a lot to speed
up our trials,” she said.

She also added that
the commission has recovered $3.5 billion as proceeds of crime and over
N3 billion after investigating tax cases, which has been forwarded to
the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

Minister of Police
Affairs, Adamu Waziri, and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bell Adoke, in
their goodwill messages both agreed that fighting corruption was the
collective responsibility of Nigerians. Mr. Adoke promised that attack
on EFCC operatives would be a thing of the past.

Mrs. Waziri said the police must be reformed to execute its constitutional duty.

The Nigeria Labour
Congress has described the task ahead of elections’ boss, Attahiru
Jega, as enormous, stating that the electoral commission presently
lacks the operating environment that is required for him to succeed in
the office

“The question of
financial autonomy of INEC is highly imperative at this time so that
the new INEC chair would hit the ground running given the enormous
responsibilities awaiting him especially in cleaning up the messed-up
electoral register and other critical logistics that will ensure a
smooth general election in 2011,” said Abdulwahed Omar, NLC president.

Meanwhile, the Mega
Party Movement, applauded the nomination of Mr Jega. In a statement
signed by its secretary, Wale Okuniyi, yesterday, the party said Mr.
Jega’s appointment was a major victory for Nigerians who have been
agitating for an electoral umpire with high pedigree and integrity. The
party described Mr Jega as an icon of the democratic struggle, adding
that his nomination has restored hope and opened a new vista of faith
in Nigeria’s electoral system ahead of the 2011 general elections.

The way forward

It also hailed the
selection of Lai Olurode and other members on the new board of INEC,
and advised them not to allow themselves to be tainted. The party also
advised the federal government to fully observe the process of
electoral reforms recommended by the Muhammadu Uwais-led panel.

Another group,
Human Rights’ Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has challenged Mr
Jega to put in place a credible voters’ register for Nigerians.

Born in Jega on 11
Jan., 1957, Attahiru Jega attended Sabon Gari Primary School between
1963 and 1969 and Government Secondary School, Birnin Kebbi. He went to
Bayero University, Kano (BUK) in 1974 and graduated in 1978 with second
class upper division B.Sc. in Political Science. He started his career
as a graduate assistant with BUK and rose to become a professor, and
then vice chancellor of the university in 2005. His tenure as vice
chancellor is expected to end in October.

Resident doctors in
the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) resumed duties
today after calling off a one week strike action yesterday.

The Lagos branch of
the Association of Resident Doctors (LASUTH-ARD) called of the strike
after a meeting it held at the hospital premises on Wednesday. The
strike, which lasted seven days, was observed to press for the payment
of the deducted 12 days’ pay from their salaries by the state
government, for participating in a nationwide strike called by the
National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) in April.

”We have just
called off the strike, so we will resume work 8 am tomorrow morning;
they (state government) have answered us,” said the association
president, Saliu Oseni, who described the state government’s action as
an insult to the medical profession. Dr. Oseni also said the
association had forwarded a memo stating its other demands to the state
government for consideration, prominent among which is the
implementation of the Consolidated Medical Salary Scale (CONMESS), an
improved salary structure.

Getting back to business

The withholding of
the salaries to punish the doctors had, however, met with criticisms
from some quarters, including the Democratic Peoples’ Alliance (DPA),
an opposition party, and NARD, which have pushed for the immediate
payment of the deducted salary.

In its protest, the
NARD gave the Lagos state government seven days to pay the deducted
money, threatening a nationwide strike of resident doctors if the
demand was not met by then; the ultimatum expired yesterday.

While the strike
lasted, various wards of the hospital were empty, except for the
emergency ward, where consultants were on hand to attend to the
patients. With the return of the doctors, patients will be relieved of
their suffering.

A patient, Kabiru
Mohammed described the news of the doctor’s strike call-off as “a
welcome development.” “I think it’s a good thing that both of them have
resolved their issues, because it’s we people that will suffer, not the
doctors, not the government,” he said.

The Oyo State governor, Alao Akala on Wednesday said that individual Nigerians need reform.

Mr. Akala, reacting

to the appointment of Attahiru Jega as new INEC boss, told aviation

correspondents at the Murtala Mohammed Airport 2 on Wednesday that

Nigerians although the clamour for political reforms is right,

Nigerians should reform their ways.

“Everyone is

talking about political reforms, but it is we in Nigeria that have to

reform ourselves,” he said. “What Nigerian people don’t know is this,

the chairman will not be everywhere in every election.”

The governor also lauded the appointment of Mr. Jega, and stated that the new INEC boss is worthy of the position.

“He has good track

records and he has integrity,” he said. “With the man there now, there

will be a lot of transparency. You know he doesn’t take nonsense and he

is a nice man. I know he will not disappoint Nigerians.”

The National

Council of States, on Tuesday approved the appointment of Mr. Jega,

vice chancellor of Bayero University, Kano as the new chairman of

Nigeria’s electoral commission. Also approved by the council are ten

other electoral commissioners and 18 resident electoral commissioners.

Commenting on his political future, Mr. Akala, expressed his

confidence ahead of the 2011 general polls. “I have been doing that for

the past how many years now,” he said. “For when you have been on a

particular job for a very long time, the more time you spend, the more

you master the game.”