Headline

Female Lawyers Protest, Lament Bias In Ondo Judiciary

Published

4 years ago

March 8, 2022

Female lawyers in Ondo State on Tuesday joined their counterparts and other women organisations across the country to protest against the alleged constitutional bias meted to women in the country.

The lawyers, under the auspices of the International Federation Of Women Lawyers, Ondo State chapter, lamented the alleged bias in the state judiciary as very few women were allegedly elevated to higher positions in the judicial sector of the state.

The state chairperson of FIDA, Catherine Ogunjebi, who addressed journalists after the protest, which was held at the state House of Assembly, Akure, the state capital, said the association was ready to address issues of gender bias and all forms of violence against women in the state.

She lamented that in the state judiciary, only four females were elevated to the position of judges out of the 28 judges, the rest are males. She called for more elevation of females in the state judiciary.

Ogunjebi said, “It is our mandate to protect, preserve and promote the rights of women and children in the society. To this end, allow me to reiterate that we have well trained and capable hands to handle gender cases and engage communities and the government in driving the needed change.

“As we speak, the mega rally to protest the constitution bias meted to Nigerian women is ongoing. We joined our sister organisations/associations to protest this morning (Tuesday) at the House of Assembly. We are ready to do more and we know that Nigerian women and Ondo women shall be free from all gender-based discrimination and violence.

“It is important to note at this point that the government of Ondo State under the leadership of our Executive Governor, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu continues to elevate women in places of authority. We are grateful to Mr Governor for the appointments of more women in the cabinet of the state.

“We use this opportunity to ask that women be elevated to the bench of the Ondo State Judiciary where we currently have an appalling 24:4 ratio of men to women judges in the state.”

She enjoined women to participate in politics, register to be members of political parties so that their voices could be heard and enable them to have more representation in the political and elective positions in the country.

“As we continue to protest the constitutional bias of the National Assembly against Nigerian women, which has smeared this year celebration; we assure you that we shall continue to engage our rural and urban women on the need to take part in politics, our political party leaderships to create safe spaces for women in politics to thrive; and government to allow women to thrive greatly.

“It is our hope that, come 2023, Ondo will have her first female senator and member of the house of assembly,” the FIDA leader stressed.

Headline

Indian Court Denies Bail To Nigerian Man Over Drug Charges

Published

2 hours ago

May 28, 2026

Editor

A court in India has denied bail to a 44-year-old Nigerian national, Cristian Soporuchukwu, who is currently facing drug trafficking charges in the country.

Cristian Soporuchukwu initially entered India on a business visa but was later arrested over allegations of involvement in the sale of hard drugs.

Reports indicated that after arriving in India, Soporuchukwu travelled through Goa, Delhi, and Mumbai, where he allegedly established links with suspected drug traffickers.

He was accused of purchasing MDMA crystals and distributing them to college students and information technology workers.

According to reports, operatives of the Beguru Police arrested Cristian Soporuchukwu in April 2025 for allegedly selling MDMA crystals around Begur Lake and the AECS Layout Road area.

The New Indian Express reported that the High Court of Karnataka subsequently dismissed the Nigerian’s bail application.

“The anti-narcotics wing seized about 1 kg of MDMA crystals, a pocket weighing machine, 10 zip-lock covers, a mobile phone and a scooter from him,” the report stated.

Justice V. Srishananda, while ruling on the bail application, reportedly held that errors relating to the grounds of arrest could not automatically justify bail in serious narcotics-related offences under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, NDPS, Act.

The court further noted that Cristian Soporuchukwu had allegedly overstayed his visa in India, according to the report.

Headline

Strait Of Hormuz: US Announces Sanctions Against Iran

Published

3 hours ago

May 28, 2026

Editor

The United States Treasury has announced sanctions against Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority.

Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, said this in a statement on Wednesday.

The statement extended the threat of sanctions to anyone paying the fees, saying they may be providing support to and receiving services from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, and therefore may be exposed to sanctions risk.

“The Iranian military’s latest attempt to extort global maritime trade is proof that Economic Fury has left the regime desperate for cash.

“Treasury has deprived the Iranian regime of revenue for their weapons programs, terrorist proxies, and nuclear ambitions,” Bessent said.

Bessent added that the US has succeeded in disrupting tens of billions of dollars’ worth of revenue from being accessible to Tehran.

Headline

US Launches New Airstrikes On Iran

Published

3 hours ago

May 28, 2026

Editor

The United States has launched new airstrikes in southern Iran.

The strike shot down four one-way attack drones that posed a threat around the Strait of Hormuz and then a ground control site.

A US official revealed that American forces struck an Iranian ground control station in Bandar Abbas that was about to launch a fifth drone.

The official described the strikes as purely defensive, saying the US intended to maintain the ceasefire.

Report says this is the second time in three days that the US has carried out self-defense strikes against Iranian military targets in southern Iran.

Recall that on Monday the US carried out airstrikes against Iranian missile locations and boats that US Central Command said were preparing to launch mines in the Strait of Hormuz.