IYANDA'SBLOG

10/17/21

A unity list of candidates, purportedly endorsed by Nigeria's First Lady, Aisha Buhari for the State Congress of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Adamawa State, is what has decided the winners in the state congress polls.

SaharaReporters gathered that all contestants whose names are on the unity list would shortly be declared winners in the keenly contested state congress in the party.

As things stand and going by the mode of election adopted, ballots so far cast indicate that contestants supported by by the First Lady were those elected at the congress.

For instance, Ibrahim Bilal, state chairman, supported by Aisha Buhari, has scored 1,640 to defeat his keenly contesting rival, Vrati Nzonzo, who garnered 224 votes.

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Groups To Hold Lecture On #EndSARS, Memorial Of Celebrated Murdered Journalist, Dele Giwa

The African Centre for Media and Information Literacy (AFRICMIL), in partnership with some other bodies will hold a lecture and public presentation in commemoration of the first anniversary of #EndSARS protest on Tuesday.

The lecture and public presentation, in partnership with Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ), Enough is Enough (EiE) Nigeria, National Consultative Front (NCF), PLAYYA and MILID Foundation, will also be about

Remaking Nigeria: Sixty Years, Sixty Voices – a book of sixty essays by sixty young Nigerians which salutes sixty years of Nigeria’s independence and points the way towards a better country.

Chido Onumah, Coordinator of AFRICMIL disclosed this in a statement on Sunday, made available to SaharaReporters.

According to the statement, the event, which will start at 10am at NECA House, Hakeem Balogun Way, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos, is themed: “One Year After #EndSARS, 35 Years After Dele Giwa and the Quest to Remake Nigeria."

The #EndSARS advocacy made global headlines last October when young Nigerians across the country and in major cities around the world embarked on protests against persistent brutality and rights violations by the Nigeria Police Force.

“One year after the protests and the reprehensible violent response by the Nigerian Army which led to the death of unarmed protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos, it is important to cast a critical eye on that incident and see what lessons have been learnt and what needs to be done going forward,” Onumah said in the statement on behalf of the group.

Significantly, the first-year remembrance of these protests coincides with the 35th anniversary of the murder via letter bomb of the celebrated journalist, Dele Giwa, editor-in-chief of Newswatch magazine.

“It is a measure of the acute dysfunction of the Nigerian state that till date, no one has been arrested let alone brought to trial for this heinous crime," Onumah noted.

The statement further read, "All of this and more including the rise of separatist agitations which has fuelled the search for a new direction for the country will be dissected at this event which will be chaired by renowned public intellectual, Prof. Pat Utomi.

"The keynote speaker is the irrepressible human rights lawyer and social crusader, Femi Falana. Other speakers include Richard Akinnola, journalist and executive director, Centre for Free Speech (CFS); Dr. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, founding director, Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre; and Lanre Arogundade, journalist and executive director, International Press Centre (IPC).

"On hand also is a panel of discussants featuring Motunrayo Alaka, Olanrewaju Ogunmefun (Vector), Inibehe Effiong, Rasheedat Adeshina and Femi Adeyeye. Moderator is Anike-Ade Funke Treasure."

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Groups To Hold Lecture On #EndSARS, Memorial Of Celebrated Murdered Journalist, Dele Giwa

Remaking Nigeria: Sixty Years, Sixty Voices – a book of sixty essays by sixty young Nigerians which salutes sixty years of Nigeria’s independence and points the way towards a better country.

Chido Onumah, Coordinator of AFRICMIL disclosed this in a statement on Sunday, made available to SaharaReporters.

“It is a measure of the acute dysfunction of the Nigerian state that till date, no one has been arrested let alone brought to trial for this heinous crime," Onumah noted.

"On hand also is a panel of discussants featuring Motunrayo Alaka, Olanrewaju Ogunmefun (Vector), Inibehe Effiong, Rasheedat Adeshina and Femi Adeyeye. Moderator is Anike-Ade Funke Treasure."

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Move By Buhari Government To Stop #EndSARS Memorial Protest Is Illogical, Provocative— Lawyer, Ubani Says

A former Second Vice-President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Monday Ubani has described as illogical, efforts by the Nigeria Police and some state governments to stop gatherings in commemoration of the first anniversary of the #EndSARS protest.

In a statement sent to SaharaReporters, Ubani argued that the plan by the youth to organise the protest is in accordance with the provision of the 1999 constitution.

He further advised the Nigeria Police Force, and the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu to ensure the protection of protesters.

Ubani's statement comes amid warnings by the Lagos and Oyo states police commands against protests, saying such gatherings would be repelled.

He wrote, “My attention has been drawn to the threat both by the state government and the Nigerian Police to stop Nigerians from commemorating the EndSARS protest which allegedly claimed several lives last year.

“We emphasize these facts for the umpteenth time that such act of aggression against the citizens' rights that are guaranteed by the constitution is illegal, illogical and provocative.

“The rights to peaceful assembly and movement including expression are products of the 1999 constitution as amended which remains the grundnorm.

“If there is any law that is meant to derogate from those rights, it has to be a reasonable law made in a democratic society. For now, no such law exists that outlaws the peaceful gathering and free expression of the citizens of Nigeria.

“The Nigerian Police represented by the current Commissioner of Police, Mr Hakeem Odumosu is advised to ensure that those who really want to commemorate the great event in a peaceful manner are given adequate security protection to carry out that basic civic duty.

“May I remind the present government, in case they have forgotten, that governance is not a monologue but a dialogue between the led and their leaders.

“Effective participation and feedback mechanism are powerful instruments that precipitate good governance in a democratic society. Autocracy and unimaginative exclusion of the people in governance have terrible and negative consequences in the country.

“It is my belief that those who intend to commemorate the EndSARS anniversary are knowledgeable enough to know that there are legal consequences for riotous and destructive behaviour under our criminal code.

“Let the people be allowed to freely express themselves, especially now that nobody is sure of those promises the government made over a year ago to carry out reforms on the policing system in Nigeria.

“They need to hear the verdict of the people and it will enable the government to properly assess itself on whether they have kept to their promises.
#PeacefulProtestIsMyRight.”

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