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Obaseki Transmits Bill Abolishing Laws Of Sedition, Criminal Defamation To Edo Assembly
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2 years agoon
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EditorThe Edo State Government on Thursday disclosed that it has commenced the process to abolish the laws of sedition and criminal defamation to pave way for freedom of speech needed by media practitioners in line with the laws of the land.
Governor Godwin Obaseki made the disclosure in his keynote address at the maiden edition of Radio Nigeria’s Bronze FM, Benin inaugural lecture and award with the theme “Deepening Democracy; Role of the Media”.
Represented by the Commissioner for Communication and Orientation, Andrew Emwanta, Obaseki said “Last Wednesday the Edo State Executive Council considered and approved 5 Executive Bills for onward transmission to the Edo State House of Assembly for legislative action. One of the Bills is the Edo State Criminal Law 2022 Bill.
“Under the proposed Law, the provisions on Sedition and Criminal Defamation were taken out in line with decisions of appellate courts, which aligns with constitutional provisions on the right to freedom of expression and the press.”
In his remarks, chairman of the event and the National President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Comrade Chris Isiguzo charged the media to help Nigerians choose the right candidates ahead of the 2023 general election.
He said: “Without the media, there is no democracy. We normally say the judiciary is the last hope of the common man, but the current reality is that the media is now the last hope of the common man.
“The media must be alive to its role as we move forward to 2023 election. Virtually, every state today has a presidential aspirant but the media must bring these characters to the people and help them decide the right people.”
READ ALSO: 2023: Oshiomhole’s Loyalists, Serving Senate’s Aide Exchange Words Over Edo North Ticket
While contributing to the lead paper which was delivered Mrs Yemi Kolapo, National President, Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Ladi Bala regetted the non passage of women related aspects of the reviewed Constitution by the National Assembly.
In her welcome address, General Manager of the station, Mrs Abimbola Oyetunde said the lecture series was instituted to impact more the station’s immediate environment and the larger society.
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Iran Gets Interim President After Raisi’s Death
Published
4 hours agoon
May 20, 2024By
EditorIran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei assigned vice president Mohammad Mokhber to assume interim duties after the death of president Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash a day earlier.
“In accordance with Article 131 of the constitution, Mokhber is in charge of leading the executive branch,” said Khamenei in a statement, adding that Mokhber will be required to work with the heads of legislative and judicial branches to prepare for presidential elections “within a maximum period of 50 days”.
Recall that President Raisi was confirmed dead on Monday after his helicopter crashed in a mountainous region of the country.
READ ALSO: UK Regulator Reports Air Peace Over Alleged Safety Violation
Raisi was travelling with Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian who also died in the accident.
Rescue teams had been scouring the area since Sunday afternoon after a helicopter carrying Raisi, the foreign minister and other officials had gone missing.
Early Monday, relief workers located the missing helicopter, with state TV saying the president had died.
“The servant of Iranian nation, Ayatollah Ebrahim Raisi has achieved the highest level of martyrdom whilst serving the people,” state television said Monday, with Mehr news agency also saying he was dead.
State television broadcast photos of Raisi, with the voice of a man reciting the Koran playing in the background.
READ ALSO: Iran Declares 5 Days Of Mourning Over President Raisi’s Death
Iran’s vice president for executive affairs Mohsen Mansouri posted on X a Koranic verse used to express condolences.
Meanwhile, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has announced a five days of mourning for President Raisi.
“I announce five days of public mourning and offer my condolences to the dear people of Iran,” said Khamenei in an official statement a day after the death of Raisi and other officials in the crash in East Azerbaijan province.
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UK Threatens To Deport Physically-challenged Nigerian After 38 Years
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4 hours agoon
May 20, 2024By
EditorThe United Kingdom has threatened to deport a physically-challenged Nigerian man, Anthony Olubunmi George, over an alleged forged entry stamp in his passport.
George who has lived in the UK for 38 years, after he left Nigeria at the age of 24 in 1986, according to the Guardian UK.
The 61-year-old Nigerian has no criminal convictions and made several applications for leave to remain in the UK, which the Home Office has rejected, most recently on 7 May.
George’s case became the second African facing a huge disappointment with the UK Home Office after spending several years in Britain.
READ ALSO: US Sets Deadline For Troop Withdrawal From Niger
Vanguard reported last week that a 74-year-old Ghanaian Nelson Shardey, who has resided in the UK since 1977, was refused indefinite leave to remain despite being in the country for most of his adult life.
As the case of the Nigerian, he has never left the UK and has no criminal convictions, with the reports of having two strokes, which left him with problems with speech and mobility in 2019.
When George arrived, Margaret Thatcher was prime minister and Rishi Sunak is the ninth to hold office since George has lived in the UK.
He has endured many periods of homelessness and disclosed he has lost count of the number of friends who have given him shelter over the years, adding that he no longer has any close family in Nigeria.
READ ALSO:Step-by-step Guide To Applying For 2024 MTN Scholarship
The Guardian UK said in 2005, his previous solicitors submitted a forged entry stamp in his passport and have subsequently been reported to the police and the legal regulatory bodies.
George told the Guardian he knew nothing about the passport stamp until many years later. His current lawyer, Naga Kandiah of MTC Solicitors, cited his poor previous legal representation as the reason for George’s problems.
In his most recent refusal, Home Office officials said: “Unfortunately this is not something that is considered an exceptional circumstance.”
READ ALSO: List Of Persons On Board Iranian President’s Missing Helicopter
Kandiah has lodged an appeal against the latest refusal.
A previous Home Office rejection of his case states: “It’s open to your family and friends to visit you in Nigeria.”
George said, “I don’t know how many different sofas I’ve slept on – too many to count. I don’t have my life, living the way I’m living now. My health problems since I had my stroke are my biggest worry. All I’m asking for is some kindness from the Home Office.”
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JUST IN: ICC Prosecutor Seeks Arrest Warrants For Netanyahu, Hamas Leaders
Published
5 hours agoon
May 20, 2024By
EditorThe chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has applied for arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas’s leader in Gaza for war crimes.
According to BBC, Karim Khan said there were reasonable grounds to believe that both men bore criminal responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity from at least 7 October 2023.
The ICC, based in The Hague, has been investigating Israel’s actions in the occupied territories for the past three years – and more recently the actions of Hamas as well.
READ ALSO: Iran Declares 5 Days Of Mourning Over President Raisi’s Death
Mr Netanyahu recently called the prospect of senior Israel figures joining the ICC’s wanted list “an outrage of historic proportions”.
Last week, 13 Western countries including the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, Italy, Japan and others cautioned Israel over its resolve to launch a full-scale operation in Rafah.
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