News

Ex-Gov Bello Absent In Court, EFCC Mulls Military Option For Arrest

Published

1 year ago

April 18, 2024

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Thursday, told the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja that it would leave no stone unturned in its effort to arrest and prosecute the former Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello over his alleged complicity in money laundering.

The anti-graft agency said it would execute the arrest warrant that was issued against the erstwhile governor, even if it would entail the involvement of the military.

Addressing the court through its team of lawyers led by Mr. Kemi Pinhero, SAN, the EFCC decried that the ex-governor failed to make himself available for his scheduled arraignment.

It told the court that spirited efforts by its operatives to arrest the defendant on Wednesday with the aim of producing him to enter his plea to the charge against him, “was frustrated by a person with immunity.”

“My lord, what happened yesterday was that a person with immunity came to whisk the defendant away. But what they forgot was that immunity does not attach to a building, but an individual.

“However, we know what to do. If it will take inviting the military to bring him here, we will do that because section 287 of the Constitution cannot be ridiculed.

“If he wants to play games, we will show him that the constitution is above every individual and you cannot fight the constitution.

“A former president of the United States was charged to court and he has been appearing for his trial. He did not file all sorts of things to frustrate the case.

“If the defendant believes that he is innocent, he should come and defend it here instead of filing frivolous applications to delay his trial,” EFCC’s lawyer added.

Meanwhile, though ex-governor Bello was absent, however, he briefed his lawyers led by Mr. Abdulwahab Mohammed, SAN, to approach the court to vacate a warrant of arrest he said was dubiously obtained against him.

Trial Justice Emeka Nwite had after the case was called up, queried the lawyer about the whereabouts of his client.

Responding, Mohammed, SAN, told the court that the ex-governor had February 9, secured an order from a High Court in Kogi State, which he said restrained the EFCC from inviting, arresting or prosecuting him over the subject matter of the instant charge against him.

He told the court that though an appeal the EFCC lodged against the ruling was still pending, it went ahead to file a charge against the defendant, “in defiance of that subsisting court order.”

Mohammed told the court that his client has already filed a preliminary objection to challenge the legal propriety of his planned arraignment and trial.

“What they are trying to do is to bring this court in collision with the Court of Appeal by rushing to this court to obtain an ex-parte warrant of arrest for someone that is already a defendant.

“Our position is that this court has no jurisdiction to do any other thing than to take our motion challenging its jurisdiction to entertain this charge.

“What happened at Zone 4 Abuja yesterday, where they laid seige to the house of the former governor while he was in Lokoja waiting for judgement in his fundamental right enforcement suit, was unfortunate.

“A bloodbath was avoided. You don’t issue a warrant against a defendant who is already before the court and who has also briefed lawyers to defend him.

“They wanted the Court of Appeal to vacate the restraining order but the Appeal Court refused.

“Let them deny that they did not speak against the restraining order, then, we will cite them for professional misconduct.

“That a court gave an order in the morning and another court of the same coordinate jurisdiction issues a contrary order in the evening, is an invitation to anarchy.

“Our contention is that the defendant is not a fugitive and your lordship needs to be circumspect.

“We don’t need the arraignment to take place when we aee saying that the court cannot even snif the charge. Your lordship has to determine the issue of jurisdiction first because it is a threshold issue.

“They came behind doors to get an ex-parte warrant of arrest, when we had already joined issues with them before another court.

“When the defendant was a governor, he only travelled out of the country twice and he was recently in Lagos. This is not a man that you can chase away.

“Moreover, we are yet to be served with any process by the prosecution,” Bello’s lawyer added.

Meanwhile, he rejected attempt by the EFCC to serve him with a copy of the charge in the courtroom, insisting that he was bereft of the authority to accept the process.

Mohammed, SAN, argued that the prosecution has not made any effort to effect personal service of the charge on the defendant.

News

Nigeria Ready, Willing To Host Commonwealth Games — Tinubu

Published

9 minutes ago

September 18, 2025

Editor

Nigeria on Thursday welcomed the Commonwealth Sport Bid Evaluation Committee to Abuja, a major step towards hosting the 2030 Commonwealth Games.

President Bola Tinubu, represented by his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, formally received the delegation at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.

“What I can assure you is that we’re ready,” Tinubu told the delegation.

He reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to hosting an inclusive, diverse, and world-class 2030 Commonwealth Games on African soil.‎

Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, revealed this in a statement he signed Thursday titled, ‘Nigeria ready to host Africa’s First Commonwealth Games in 2030-President Tinubu assures‎.’

Gbajabiamila, along with a strong Federal Government team of Ministers and senior government officials, held strategic talks with the delegation led by Darren Hall, Director of Games and Assurance at Commonwealth Sport, and a member of the 2030 Evaluation Commission.

President Tinubu emphasised that the Commonwealth champions unity and diversity, and Africa deserves its moment after nearly a century.‎

Africa has never hosted the Games since their inception in 1930. Nigeria made an unsuccessful bid to host the 2014 Games. The city of Durban in South Africa won the bid to host the 2022 Games, but could not do so due to financial difficulties. Birmingham in the UK took over and hosted the Games. Thus, Nigeria’s bid to host the 2030 Games would be historic, Onanuga stated.

In his welcome remarks, Gbajabiamila called on the visitors to savour Nigeria’s renowned hospitality: “You’re very welcome to Nigeria. I hope you enjoy our great hospitality, which we are known for. Mr President also asked me personally to convey his regards; he fully supports this bid.”‎

“The President has written a Letter of Guarantee to you; his full weight is behind this bid. What I can assure you is that we’re ready. We’re willing, we’re able, and we actually want this. It’s been almost 100 years. The games have not been held on any soil in Africa.

‎”The element of inclusivity is what the Commonwealth is, and we hope that will benefit us,” he stated.

President Tinubu stressed that his administration has set some bold reforms to reposition sports, having realised its role as a strategic driver of national development.

He added that he scrapped the Ministry of Sports and replaced it with the National Sports Commission in the bid to drive sports development.

The President further assured the delegation that all infrastructural, security, and hospitality needs will be met ahead of schedule.‎

He emphasised that Nigeria’s bid is not just about hosting but also leaving a legacy for youth and national development.‎

Chairman of the National Sports Commission, Shehu Dikko, made a strong case for Nigeria over India, stressing that Africa has 22 Commonwealth nations, and Nigeria, as the continent’s giant, deserves the honour.‎

“One thing I want to assure you is that the President sees the hosting of the Commonwealth Games in 2030, if we win the bid, as a celebration of the country’s growing force in sports, beyond just participation.”

‎President of Commonwealth Sport Nigeria, Habu Gumel, said the country is ready to host an environmentally sustainable Games.‎

Chairman of the Bid Committee, Mainasara Illo, presented Nigeria’s proposal, highlighting key plans and innovations.‎

He revealed that Nigeria proposes 15 sports, with football introduced to boost excitement, global visibility, and audience engagement.‎

Director of Games and Assurance, Darren Hall, thanked President Tinubu and the Nigerian team for their warm welcome.‎

“I have been most thrilled by the passion of the Nigerian people in all their endeavours, including sports.”

He said the Commonwealth, now comprising 56 nations, aims for greater diversity as it approaches its 100-year milestone.‎

Minister of Information and National Orientation, Muhammed Idris, Minister of Aviation, Festus Kayamo, Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism, and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa, Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Musa Dangiwa and‎ Minister of Police Affairs, Ibrahim Gaidam, attended the meeting and made statements in support of the bid.

Nigeria and India are the two official bidders for the 2030 Games, with Abuja and Ahmedabad, in Gujarat, as their proposed host cities.‎

‎After a thorough evaluation of both bids, the Commonwealth Games General Assembly will decide the host city in November 2025.

The next Commonwealth Games will be held in 2026 across four venues in Glasgow, Scotland, from July 23 to August 2.

News

JAMB Extends Post-UTME Deadline For Underage Candidates In 23 Varsities

Published

26 minutes ago

September 18, 2025

Editor

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has extended the deadline for universities to submit Post-UTME screening scores of underage candidates who sat for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination

JAMB’s spokesperson, Fabian Benjamin, announced the extension on Thursday in a statement on Thursday.

Benjamin, who explained that the decision was reached in collaboration with the affected institutions, said a reminder has been sent via email to the defaulting universities.

He noted that despite the release of the 2025 Senior School Certificate Examination results by the National Examinations Council on September 17, several institutions had yet to comply.

Benjamin, hoiwever, urged the affected institutions to forward the results without further delay.

He said, “23 out of 71 universities failed to meet the earlier deadline of September 15 for the submission of the scores. The institutions are among those chosen by candidates seeking admission.”

Benjamin further directed all public universities to upload their recommended candidates to the Central Admissions Processing System on or before September 30, while private universities have until October 31.

He added, “The measure was necessary to meet the overall admission deadlines of October 30 for public universities and November 30 for private institutions.”

Benjamin said a breakdown of the affected schools shows that the University of Lagos tops the list with 39 underage candidates, followed by Nile University of Nigeria, Abuja, with 18, and Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, with 15.

Others include the University of Abuja with 12 underage candidates, University of Uyo with nine, Federal University of Technology, Owerri has eight, and David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences, Uburu with six.

The board spokesperson added that in total, 135 underage candidates are involved across 23 institutions.

JAMB had earlier disclosed in August that it would conduct a special screening for over 500 outstanding underage candidates seeking admission for the 2025/2026 academic session.

Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, said the screening would be handled by a technical committee between September 22 and 26 at designated centres in Lagos, Abuja, and Owerri.

He noted that while 41,027 underage candidates wrote the 2025 UTME, only a little over 500 met the requirements to proceed to the next stage.

News

FULL LIST: Anglican Church Approves 15 New Dioceses

Published

33 minutes ago

September 18, 2025

Editor

The Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, has approved the creation of 15 new dioceses, bringing the total number of dioceses across the country to 176.

The decision was taken at the Standing Committee Meeting of the Church, which held in Ekiti State between September 15 and 19, 2025.

According to a statement signed on Thursday by the Church’s Communication Officer, Korede Akintunde, the approval followed a series of inspections, verifications and validation exercises after the lifting of the moratorium on the creation of new dioceses in September 2024.

The statement read, “The inspection team are as follows: Old Province 1 headed by Archbishop Joseph Akinfenwa, Old Province 2 headed by Archbishop David Onuoha while Old Province 3 headed by Archbishop Daniel Yisa.

“They presented their fact-finding report at the Standing Committee held at Niger-Delta Diocese in February 2025 which formed the basis of the assignments of the Church of Nigeria Validation Team on the creation of full-fledged and missionary Dioceses which was constituted and inaugurated by the Primate on 27th March, 2025, headed by the Most Rev’d Dr Timothy Yahaya.

“The Validation Team in turn visited, inspected and verified the contents of the report of the Inspection Teams and Verification Committee and made the recommendations to the Primate on the creation of full-fledged and missionary Dioceses in the Church of Nigeria.”

The statement noted that five of the new dioceses would operate as full-fledged dioceses, while 10 others were approved as missionary dioceses.

The full-fledged dioceses are:

1.⁠ ⁠Ekiti South Diocese out of Ekiti Diocese
2.⁠ ⁠Kalabari Diocese out of Niger Delta Diocese
3.⁠ ⁠Lagos South West Diocese out of Lagos West Diocese
4.⁠ ⁠Omoku Diocese out of Ahoada Diocese
5.⁠ ⁠Ozoro Diocese out of Oleh Diocese

The missionary dioceses include:

1.⁠ ⁠Eket Diocese out of Uyo Diocese
2.⁠ ⁠Idanre Diocese out of Akure Diocese
3.⁠ ⁠Ikom Diocese out of Calabar Diocese
4.⁠ ⁠Keffi Diocese out of Kubwa and Lafia Dioceses
5.⁠ ⁠Nasarawa Diocese out of Lafia Diocese
6.⁠ ⁠Ogoja Diocese out of Calabar Diocese
7.⁠ ⁠Oyo South Diocese out of Oyo Diocese
8.⁠ ⁠Oyun Diocese out of Kwara Diocese
9.⁠ ⁠Takum Diocese out of Jalingo Diocese
10.⁠ ⁠Zuru Diocese out of Kebbi Diocese

The church added that the election of bishops, consecration, inaugurations, and enthronement dates would be announced later.