TheNewsGuru

Tag: Chairman

  • BREAKING: Court backs Senate’s decision to defer confirmation of Magu as EFCC chair

    A Federal High Court in Abuja has ruled that the Senate is conferred with the authority to ensure the choice of “only suitable and credible persons for appointment to the office”.

    The court gave the ruling on Thursday in determining the suit challenging the Senate’s authority to deny an appointee to the office of Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) under the EFCC Act.

    The court further held that any impression that the Senate is a rubber stamp of Presidential appointees is misconceived and running contrary to Section 2(3) of the EFCC Act.

    Details later…

  • Unango resigns as Northern Elders Chairman

    Chairman of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), Dr Paul Unongo has stepped down. He resigned yesterday at an emergency meeting of the Forum in Abuja.

    It was gathered that Unongo who succeeded the late former Nigeria’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Maitama Sule, last year as Convener of the elite Northern group, convened the emergency meeting where he informed members of the Forum of his decision to step aside.

    A competent source in the Forum told newsmen that a successor would be appointed in few days time “in line with the drive to move the Forum forward in its determination to support the task of building a strong and virile Nigeria”.

    Explaining why he resigned, the elder statesman said he stepped down on his own volition so as to give way for a new leader who will ensure dutiful implementation of the suggestions he has made as well as help move the forum forward.

    He said he chose to step down because the time was ripe for him to give way for NEF to produce another leader who will implement some of the suggestions he has made. “I opted to step down because of my conviction that the time has come for the NEF to produce the type of leaders that will implement some suggestions we have made. My stepping down will also afford me the opportunity to concentrate fully on other things that will further move the country forward”, Unongo said.

    He said the forum accepted his decision to step aside and even gave him the choice of selecting a successor. “But I gave them the freedom to choose whoever they want and I will give the person my full support”, he however noted.

    Confirming the development in a statement signed by its spokesperson, Prof. Ango Abdullahi, NEF said it accepted Unongo’s resignation reluctantly, even as it approved that the deputy Convener, Alhaji Sani Zangon Daura, should hold forth in the interim until a new Convener is appointed. Abdullahi stated: “The Forum reluctantly accepted the offer of its Convener to step aside to allow the emergence of a structured leadership which should prepare the Forum to deal with many of the challenges facing the North.

    “It took note of the sterling contributions of Wantaregh Paul Unongo to the foundation and development of the Northern Elders Forum along with its late predecessor and confident, Danmasanin Kano Alhaji Yusuf Maitama Sule.

    “The Forum has been assured by Wantaregh Paul Unongo of his life-time commitment to the goals and projects of the Forum, and is grateful for the fatherly and statemanly status which he will continue to place at the service of the Forum.

    “The Forum has approved that the Deputy Convener, Alhaji Sani Zangon Daura, CON should assume responsibility for the interim leadership of the Forum. Further reorganization of the Forum will be undertaken in the next few days”.

    The statement further disclosed that at the meeting, NEF also reviewed some critical national developments, particularly the tensions about national security challenges generated by killings in many communities, in Benue, Taraba, Adamawa, Kaduna, Zamfara and other parts of the country.

    According to Abdullahi, the Forum while commiserating with families and communities that lost members and assets, called on the federal and state governments as well as security agencies to take more decisive steps to restore the security of lives and property of citizens.

    He continued: “The Forum calls on all leaders to exercise the highest levels of restraint and responsibility in the manner they exercise their powers to shape opinion and determine the responses of the citizens. “It appeals to all communities to maintain vigilance over their relations with each other, and seek solutions that do not involve endemic conflicts that leave all of us as losers.

    “The Forum will continue to seek all opportunities and avenues to engage leaders, governments and all stakeholders in the search for peace and security in the North and Nigeria.

    “The Forum re-examined its basic philosophy and record, and has been re-assured that it represents a strategic asset for all Northerners, irrespective of location, ethnicity or faith.

    “It is motivated, under the circumstances, to seek to re-assure all communities that it will defend and protect the interests of all Northerners and it will not succumb to blackmail and mischief that will reduce it as a platform for only one type of Northerner”. Unongo’s appointment as NEF chairman was announced last year July during a visit by members of the forum to the residence of the late Maitama Sule at Dawaki Road, GRA in Kano.

    In his acceptance speech, Unongo had said, “One evidence of our commitment as one Northern entity and to sustain the legacy left behind by Danmasanin is the decision of my colleagues in the Forum to trust me with its leadership.

    “This clearly shows that our commitment to reinforcing the idea of one North, one people as left behind by Danmasanin was not just a slogan but the expression of the reality that while we may speak different languages and worship God in different ways, history, destiny and the realities of our existence have combined to make us one entity as northerners who must swim or sink together”.

  • NPFL: Enyimba FC Chairman charges team ahead of Sunday’s match

    Felix Anyansi-Agwu, Chairman of Enyimba International Football Club, has charged the team to race out of the starting blocks as the 2017/2108 Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) season begins on Sunday.

    A statement on the club’s official website indicated that Anyansi-Agwu made the call at a meeting with officials and players of the club on Friday at the team’s camp in Aba.

    The NewsGuru reports that as part of preparations for the new season, the team had been involved in a closed camping exercise which spanned the entire Yuletide.

    According to the statement, Anyansi-Agwu was effusive in his appreciation of the sacrifice made by the team.

    “What you did is highly commendable. It’s not easy for you to have deprived yourselves of the feeling of Christmas. I know there is already a reward. Something has already been added to you.

    “I watched, from a distance, your reactions, even on social media and I am strengthened by your discipline, commitment and professionalism. I seriously appreciate you, from the bottom of my heart,’’ he said.

    Anyansi-Agwu laid out the club’s season targets, saying in spite of the absence of key players due to their involvement with the national team, Enyimba must hit the ground running.

    “We are going to move on, in as much as we will miss them. We are also going to demonstrate that we have capacity. It’s an opportunity for others to prove themselves.

    “We are hoping for them to do well, both for themselves and for the team. It is a huge statement, that we have five players (in the national team),” he said.

    “What denied us last season was a slow start. From day one, we want to start posting results. We’ve done it before. In this club, we set records, and we break our own records.

    “Let our work speak for us. The only way to show how hard we have worked is by getting results. In our history, we don’t stay out (of the title picture) for too long.

    “At least every other year, we win trophies. That is why it must be a target, for this team to win this year,’’ he added.

    Responding on behalf the players, the team’s Vice-Captain Ifeanyi Anaemena, expressed gratitude to the club’s chairman for his support and encouragement.

    He agreed with him on the two-time African champions’ laid-out targets for the season.

    “We are going to go out and do what we do best, to ensure that this season is a trophy season,” Anaemena was quoted as saying.

    The NewsGuru reports that the “People’s Elephant’’ will open their league account on Sunday against Lobi Stars FC at Makurdi.

  • Convention: Why we supported Secondus as chairman – PDP Governors

    Some governors elected under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, on Sunday explained why they supported the candidature and eventual emergence of Prince Uche Secondus as the chairman of the party in its December 9 national convention held in Abuja.

    The governors said they supported the new PDP chairman because of his strength, character and honesty.

    The governors stated that Mr. Secondus as National Deputy Chairman stood for the truth and ensured that rules were adhered to during party primaries.

    They spoke at the Thanksgiving Service in honour of Mr. Secondus, National Chairman of the PDP, at the Rivers State Ecumenical Centre in Port Harcourt on Sunday.

    The Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, said every governor gave testimony on how the National Chairman stood firm for the right thing to be done.

    He said as deputy national chairman, Mr. Secondus relegated monetary considerations and always ensured the promotion of PDP interests.

    Mr. Wike said that Mr. Secondus insisted on his emergence as PDP governorship candidate because he felt it was in the best interest of the party, even though other groups preferred an ethnic candidate.

    He said: “This position is an opportunity to give Nigerians what they want. I can’t understand why people are suffering untold hardship. Imagine the fuel scarcity with people buying a litre of fuel between N300 and N400.”

    He said that Mr. Secondus emerged through a credible process where all candidates tested their popularity. He said the governors and other stakeholders preferred Mr. Secondus because of his experience and track record.

    “For the first time in the history of our party, we had an election to elect a national chairman. It was not like the case before where the president and governors decided on a consensus candidate,” Mr. Wike said.

    The Cross River State Governor, Ben Ayade, said that he encountered Mr. Secondus when they had a major challenge in the delegates list of the party, but the former deputy national chairman insisted on correcting the illegality without inducement.

    He said all the governors who worked for the emergence of the national chairman did so because of the unflinching support Mr. Secondus gave them in the past.

    The Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi, said: “Secondus stood with me when the promise of man failed.”

    He said that all the governors resolved to work with Mr. Wike in canvassing for Mr. Secondus because of his character and content. He said that the governors turned their backs on those who took money in the past.

    In his remarks, Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu, commended the presence of mind of Mr. Secondus, which he said would be beneficial to the party.

    He said: “We are prepared to go the whole route with Prince Uche Secondus. He will be an exemplary party leader in Africa.”

    Also speaking, Mr. Secondus said that the PDP is poised to take over the leadership of the country.

    He said: “We are going according to the plans and purpose of God. This country will be returned to the PDP, whether you like it or not, it approved in heaven. You cannot do otherwise “.

    While thanking God for his grace and blessing that delivered the position of the national chairman, Mr. Secondus said God used Mr. Wike and his colleagues to bring the post to fruition.

     

  • PDP convention: Adedoja approaches court, seeks nullification of Secondus’ election as chairman

    One of the candidates that contested for the national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prof Taoheed Adedoja, has approached a Federal High Court in Abuja seeking the nullification of the election of Prince Uche Secondus as national chairman.

    In Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1225/2017 filed on his behalf by Messers Rickey Tarfa & Co., Adedoja prayed the court to declare ‎the election of Secondus as national chairman of PDP null and void.

    The complainant also prayed the court to declare as null and void any documents submitted by the leadership of the PDP to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) recognising Secondus as national chairman of the PDP.

    Adedoja also asked the court for the cancellation of the national chairmanship election held on Saturday, December 09, 2017 at Eagle Square, Abuja where Secondus emerged as chairman.

    He prayed the court to order the conduct of another elective national convention for the election of national chairman within 30 days ‎nullificationion of the December 9 convention.

    Through his lawyers, Adedoja similarly asked the court to restrain the INEC from recognising Uche Secondus as national chairman of the PDP.

    Stating the grounds for asking the court to nullify the outcome of the election that produced Secondus as chairman, Adedoja said his name was unlawfully excluded from the ballot paper as one of the candidates vying for the position of chairman.

    He averred that excluding his name from the ballot paper was a flagrant violation of the Electoral Act, the constitution of the PDP, the guidelines for the conduct of PDP national convention and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    According to him, the organisers of the convention had substituted his name with “Prof Taoheed Oladoja” on the ballot paper, whereas all his nomination documents submitted to the leadership of the PDP bore the name of Prof. Taoheed Adedoja.

    Prof Adedoja also averred that he drew the attention of the chairman of the convention planning committee, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State to the error

    But according to him, his complaint was ignored by Okowa and other organisers of the convention, a situation which he said, caused his loss at the election because those that wanted to vote for him could not find his name on the ballot paper.

    Addressing newsmen in Abuja on Monday, Adedoja said, “I have suffered psychological trauma as a result of the public ridicule the election result has caused me, my family members, friends and associates.

    “My lawyers are demanding for appropriate compensation for damages, ridicule, embarrassment and disrepute brought to my name as a result of my wilful exclusion from participating in the election resulting in zero score credited to my name which is now in public domain”, he added.

    Listed as defendants in the suit are Governor Okowa, Secondus, INEC, and the PDP. No date has been fixed for having.

  • Robbers invade NLC Chairman’s house, abduct wife

    There was pandemonium on Sunday in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State as armed robbers attacked the residence of Mr Leonard Nkah, chairman of the Ebonyi Chapter of Nigerian Labour Union (NLC).

    The robbers, five in number stormed the residence of the Chairman in the evening of Saturday and ransacked the house carting away some valuables including some undisclosed amount of cash.

    Mr Nkah in a chat with newsmen confirmed the incident but noted that he was not around when the robbers struck.

    “I was called by my wife around 9pm that robbers came to our house and demanded for my whereabouts. They said they got information that there was money that was brought in and that they need the money. They forced her to lie down despite the fact that she was pregnant. They ransacked the house and took whatever they could find but they were disappointed that there was no such huge amount of money in my house”

    He lamented that the robbers physically attacked and abducted his wife and later dumped her in a bush.

    “They assaulted my house help who opened the door when they came in, they also assaulted my wife and later abducted her. They beat her up while forcing her to lie down with her pregnancy which was difficult for her. They took her to other residents in the area where they also robbed before dumping her in the bush”

    “I thank God I wasn’t there, if I was there maybe it may have been a different story. They had information that I had huge sum of money. I was gathering resources to organise this reception for the Governor today, maybe some people told them I have money”.

    Nkah urged the police to beef up security in the state during the Christmas to checkmate the activities of the criminals.

     

  • Police arraign Maryam Sanda, mother, brother for allegedly murdering ex-PDP chairman’s son

    The Nigerian Police Force on Thursday arraigned Maryam Sanda; her mother, Maimuna Aliyu; her brother, Aliyu Sanda; and a fourth defendant, Sadiya Aminu for the alleged murder of Biliyanu Bello, late son of a former Peoples Democratic Party chairman, Mohammed Bello.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Sanda was accused of killing her husband, Biliyanu Bello, over allegations of infidelity. They had been married for two years, before the incident occurred in November.

    On Thursday, Mrs. Sanda’s mother, Maimuna, who is also facing a separate charge of fraud, was arraigned with her daughter alongside two others.

    According to the new charge, the defendants are accused of culpable homicide and obstruction of justice. Mrs. Sanda was covered in a blue veil, with her face bent down while the charges were read.

     

    Details later…

  • Kidnapped PDP chairman, Sango regains freedom

    The Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Plateau State and ex-Minister of Sports, Damishi Sango, and four others, who were abducted on Thursday
    have regained their freedom.

    The four others abducted alongside the PDP state Chairman were Damishi Sango Jnr; a chieftain of the PDP in Plateau, Emmanuel Mangnin; Sango’s driver, and one other person whose name was not given to the press.

    Recall that they were abducted along Jere Road in Kaduna State around 2pm on their way to Abuja for the party’s National Convention scheduled for Dec.9.

    However, in a statement by the Publicity Secretary of the PDP in Plateau state, John Akans, he said, “the abductees regained their freedom on Sunday evening and are currently in a private residence in Abuja.

    “Their abductors abandoned their vehicle by the roadside where it was discovered.”

    After their abduction, the Public Relations Officer of the Plateau State Police Command, Tyopev Mathias, said the police were on the trail of the abductors and that they would soon be set free.

  • We are working with security agencies to free kidnapped PDP chairman – Lalong

    Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau has said that the Plateau and Kaduna State Governments are working round the clock with security operatives to have the Plateau PDP Chairman, Chief Damishi Sango, released.

    Sango, a former Minister of Sports, and four others were abducted by unknown persons on Wednesday evening at Jere-Kaduna on their way to Abuja from Jos.

    Lalong, in a statement signed by his Director of Press, Mr Emmanuel Nanle, on Friday said that the state governments were working for their unconditional release without delay.

    “I received with deep concern the news of the abduction of Hon. Damishi T. Sango, Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party, Plateau State and four others at Jere, Kaduna State on their way to Abuja.

    “To say the least I am most saddened by this act of inhumanity to man that must be condemned totally,” he said.

    Lalong while sympathising with members of the families of the kidnap victims and the PDP over their traumatising experience, also called for calm.

    He assured travelers on Plateau-Kaduna and Kaduna-Abuja routes, that the Federal and the state governments were taking every step to ensure that the roads were secured from armed robbers and kidnappers.

    The governor further enjoined Plateau citizens to be vigilant while on transit and ensure that they reported all suspected criminal movements they noticed to the relevant authorities.

  • Plateau PDP chairman Damishi Sango, abducted

    Chief Damishi Sango, Plateau PDP Chairman and former sports minister, has been kidnapped by unknown persons.

    Plateau Police Command spokesman, Terna Tyopev, who confirmed this to the NewsGuru on Thursday in Jos, said that Sango was abducted alongside four others around Jere-Garkawa road in Kaduna State.

    “They were on their way from Jos to Abuja on Wednesday evening when the kidnappers abducted them,” he said.

    He said that the Plateau Police Command had reached out to the Kaduna Command on the matter.

    “The spokesman of the Kaduna Police Command has told me that the Commissioner there has ordered ordered his men to comb everywhere to rescue them,” he said.

    He said that the Plateau Command was working in synergy with the Kaduna office to rescue the victims and possibly arrest those behind the incident.

    Tyopev urged members of the public with any useful information to contact the Kaduna or Plateau formation.

    A family member, Mr Jonathan Mapis, who spoke on the issue, said that the victims were abducted “around 5.30 p.m.”

    “Sango and his entourage were on their way to Abuja for the Saturday PDP National Convention when the abductees got them.

    “He left home around 4 p.m. for Abuja, but at about 6 p.m., when someone called one of the persons Sango traveled with, a policemen picked the call and told him (caller) that they found the phone in a vehicle abandoned on the road.

    “Apparently, the kidnappers took them to an unknown destination and left the vehicle just by the road side,” he said.

    Mapis, however, said that no one had contacted the family so far.

    “We are actually anxious for their (kidnappers) call. We want to know if they (abductees) are alive and in good condition. We are just so worried and confused,” he said.

    He urged security agencies to intensify efforts to ascertain the fate of the victims and rescue them.

    PDP Deputy Chairman in Plateau Amos Gombi, who also confirmed the incident, said that Sango and his team were abducted on their way to Abuja.

    “We have not heard anything since they were abducted; all we know is that the vehicle in which they traveled is now at the police station,” he said.