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Tag: Falana

  • Falana blasts Obasanjo, Atiku for owning private universities, says ‘your pension can’t establish primary school’

    Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana has lambasted former Nigeria leaders who allegedly use public Funds to enlarge their business empire.

    The foremost lawyer tactically referred to former President Olusegun Obasanjo and his Vice Atiku Abubakar.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo owns Bells University of Technology, Ota, Ogun state, while former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar is the founder of American University of Nigeria in Yola, Adamawa state.

    Falana spoke at the launch of Sahara Reporters’ Civic Media Laboratory.

    In his words: “These guys who have restructured the economy of Nigeria. Or you are not aware that these guys restructured the economy of Nigeria to the extent that Nigeria is the only country today where former heads of states openly own universities.

    “Have you ever heard of that anywhere in the world that the likes of Obasanjo, Atiku, Babangida and others, own universities, and of course, the man who is now pushing for restructuring, Atiku, has a univerisity as well.”

    “None of these guys worked outside the government. One was a customs officer, the others were soldiers; their pension cannot establish a primary school, not to talk of a university. For young people, I think there is enough provocation on the part of the ruling class,” he added.

  • Fayose’s re-election bid, effort in futility – Falana

    Vocal human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has said the courts will not endorse the re-election bid of Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State after exhausting his two terms as governor.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Fayose ‎made the declaration on Monday, saying that he would contest the 2018 governorship election ‎to serve his first term which was truncated in 2006.

    TheNewsGuru.com recalls that Fayose was impeached in 2006, but the Supreme Court in 2014 nullified the impeachment that ousted him from office about seven months to the end of his first term.

    ‎However, Falana on Tuesday explained that Fayose’s bid to seek re-election would amount to tenure elongated which no court could grant.

    In his words: “Tenure extension by a governor under any disguise is anomalous. No court can prolong the tenure of a sitting governor buying the two terms prescribed by the Constitution.

    “In the case of Gov Rasheed Ladoja v INEC the appellant wanted an extension of his term of office to allow him to spend extra 11 months while he was fighting his impeachment from outside.

    “Although the Supreme Court had set aside his impeachment it was held that the relief was illegal and unconstitutional.

    “Similarly, the governors who were re-elected after their initial election was annulled, the Supreme Court made it abundantly clear that tenure extension was unknown to the Constitution.

    “In view of the settled position of the law on the matter, Governor Ayo Fayose cannot be granted by any court in Nigeria.”

  • Why Osinbajo must not sign 2017 budget into law – Femi Falana

    Activist lawyer, Femi Falana, has urged the Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo not to sign the 2017 budget because it was illegally increased by the National Assembly.

    Speaking in Kwara State, Falana noted that the National Assembly had no constitutional powers to increase the budget presented by Buhari, adding that the legislators erred constitutionally by increasing their share of the budget.

    He also said that President Muhammadu Buhari was not competent to sign the 2017 budget into law because he was on vacation.

    The lawyer said since Buhari transmitted a letter to the National Assembly informing them of his medical vacation, all presidential powers had automatically been transferred to Osinbajo who was now the Acting President.

    Falana stressed that until the President writes another letter to the federal parliament at the end of his vacation, he cannot exercise the powers of his office.

    He said, “The President is not competent to sign any bill into law while he is on vacation. The constitution did not envisage that a President who is on a vacation and an acting president, who is standing proxy for him will be exercising presidential powers simultaneously.

    “To that extent, pending the resumption of duties by President Buhari, the Acting President, Prof. Osinbajo, is competent to sign all bills validly passed by the NASS.

    “If President Buhari did not exercise powers during his vacation even though he was in the country, why would he want to do so while he is on medical vacation abroad?

    “Instead of dissipating energy over the competence of an appropriation bill signed into law by the Acting President, Nigerians should subject the 2017 budget to scrutiny.

    “We are therefore calling on the Acting President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, who is a professor of law not to endorse and sign the illegal appropriation bill of 2017 into law.”

  • You can’t execute Rev. King, others on death row – Falana tells Lagos Govt

    You can’t execute Rev. King, others on death row – Falana tells Lagos Govt

    Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has said that the Lagos State Government cannot execute the death penalty passed on death row inmates in the state going by the judgement delivered in 2002 by the High Court of Lagos State.

    Falana however urged the Governor Ambode led administration to rather convert the penalty to life imprisonment.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that the General Overseer of the Christian Praying Assembly, Chukwuemeka Ezeugo, also known as Rev. King is one of the persons on the death row.

    Falana stated this in a letter addressed to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode on April 19 2017.

    He argued that the planned execution of death row inmates in the state would violate a judgment delivered in 2012 by the High Court of Lagos State which ruled that it’s unconstitutional to execute the inmates on death row.

    The human right defender reminded Governor Ambode that the judgment of the court of the state had held that to hang or subject the death row inmates to firing squad would lead to the violation of their fundamental right to freedom from torture guaranteed by the Constitution.

    He recalled that the judgment was delivered by Justice Mufutau Olokooba of the Lagos State High Court back in June 29, 2012.

    According to him, “On the basis of the valid and subsisting judgment of the Lagos High Court on the illegality of the execution of the death penalty in Lagos State we urge Your Excellency not to sign a death warrant authorising the killing of any condemned prisoner either by hanging, firing squad or any other means whatsoever.

    “In the circumstance, Your Excellency may wish to commute the death sentences of all condemned prisoners in Lagos State to life imprisonment forthwith.”

    The Attorney-General of Lagos State, Adeniji Kazeem, while addressing the press on Tuesday had declared that unlike previous governments, Governor Ambode would sign the necessary documents to execute those on death row in the state.

    According to him, “On the basis of the valid and subsisting judgment of the Lagos High Court on the illegality of the execution of the death penalty in Lagos State we urge Your Excellency not to sign a death warrant authorising the killing of any condemned prisoner either by hanging, firing squad or any other means whatsoever.

    “In the circumstance, Your Excellency may wish to commute the death sentences of all condemned prisoners in Lagos State to life imprisonment forthwith.”

    The Attorney-General of Lagos State, Adeniji Kazeem, while addressing the press on Tuesday had declared that unlike previous governments, Governor Ambode would sign the necessary documents to execute those on death row in the state.

    TheNewsGuru.com that the nation’s apex court had on 27 February, 2016 upheld the judgment of the Appeal Court which passed death penalty on King, saying the condemned reverend and others on others on the death row inmates must die by hanging.

     

  • EFCC denies handing over Alamiyeseigha’s property to Falana

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) thursday denied report that it has handed over properties of former Bayelsa State Governor, Diepreye Alamieyeseigha to Lagos lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN).

    The commission also debunked claims that a staff in Falana’s legal chamber was seconded to the acting Chairman of EFCC, Ibrahim Magu as chief of staff.

    EFCC Head of Media and Information, Wilson Uwujaren, said:

    Our attention has been drawn to a malicious and misleading report trending on the social media platforms that Ola Olukayode, Chief of Staff, CoS, to Ibrahim Magu, the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC was a staff “seconded” to the Commission from the Chambers of Femi Falana, SAN.

    The report further alleged that Falana, SAN is a beneficiary of some of the properties recovered by the Commission from the late Diepreye Solomon Peter Alamieyeseigha, former Governor of Bayelsa State, hence the secondment of Olukoyede to the EFCC.

    The allegations are not only unfounded but evil, as all the properties recovered from the former governor have been returned to the state Bayelsa State government.
    For the record, Olukoyede was not “seconded” to the EFCC by Falana and he has never worked in Femi Falana’s Chambers. He was head hunted based on his pedigree. Even if he had worked for Falana it may not have mattered as working for Falana is not a criminal offence in the nation’s statute.

    It is also important to state that Falana, SAN is not a counsel to the EFCC and has never interfered in the operations of the agency.

    The author of the mischievous and misleading information went ahead to give the telephone number of the CoS and asked members of the public to call and enquire if he was indeed a former staff of Femi Falana’s Chambers. He has therefore been bombarded with unsolicited calls by members of the public.

    Whoever is behind this criminal act should desist forthwith as any attempt to further malign the reputation of Olukayode and the EFCC would not go unchallenged.
    19 hrs · Public

  • Court summons Falana over ‘supermarket’ judgment comments

    A judge of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, Justice J.D. Peter, has ordered activist lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), to appear before him over comments credited to him.

    Falana was reported to have said that Nigerian courts had become “supermarkets where only the rich do their shopping” during the opening of the Enugu branch of the Nigerian Bar Association Law Week.

    The Lagos lawyer was the guest speaker at the event. The theme of the event was Corruption and the Justice Sector: Implications for the Rule of Law and Democracy.

    The lawyer was also said to have attacked the NBA for condoning corruption, saying that the body’s national election had become even more expensive than a governorship election, with each candidate spending as much as N700m during the association’s presidential poll.

    Falana asked the National Judicial Council and the NBA to restore integrity to the judiciary by identifying and exposing corrupt judges and lawyers.

    However, a lawyer from Falana’s chambers had on March 28 appeared before Justice Peter, who sits in Court 5 at the Lagos Division of the National Industrial Court.

    The lawyer appeared in the court regarding a case, marked NICN/LA/601/2012 involving Chief Ebenezer Ayodele Obadimu vs G. CAPPA Plc.

    Falana’s chambers is representing the judgment-creditor in the case and had then taken an application seeking to enforce the judgment through a garnishee procedure before Justice Peter.

    However, before the lawyer from Falana’s chambers could make his submissions, the judge drew the counsel’s attention to an online publication in which Falana had described courts as “supermarkets where only the rich do their shopping”.

    The judge subsequently adjourned the case for Falana to appear personally in court to explain “if he obtained the judgment by purchase from the judicial supermarket and for how much”.

    He adjourned the case till May 13, stressing that Falana must appear in court to say how much he paid for the judgment which he sought to enforce.

    As of the time of filing this report, Falana had yet respond to a text message by our correspondent seeking to get his reaction to Justice Peter’s directive. His mobile line also rang out when our correspondent called.

  • Falana files contempt charges against AGF, others over refusal to release El-Zakzaky, wife

    Falana files contempt charges against AGF, others over refusal to release El-Zakzaky, wife

     

    Human rights lawyer, Chief Femi Falana (SAN), has filed a notice of contempt of proceedings against the Inspector General of Police (IGP), the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice and the Director, Department of State Services, DSS over their refusal to effect the release of the leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), Ibrahim El-Zakzaky and his wife, Malama Zeenah Ibraheem despite previous court pronouncements.

    The ‘Notice of Consequences of Disobedience of Court Order’ Form 48 was served on January 20.

    It reads: “that unless you obey the direction contained in the order of the Federal High Court of Justice Abuja, delivered on the 2nd December, 2016, which ordered you to release the Applicants in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/281/2016 and its sister case Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/282/2016 within forty (40) days, inter alia you will be guilty of contempt of court and will be liable to be committed to prison.”

    No date has been fixed for hearing.

    TheNewsGuru.com recalls that Justice Gabriel Kolawole had on December 2, 2016 awarded a cumulative sum of N50 million to the Zakzakys and ordered the AGF and IGP to provide him a new accommodation and security in any part of Kaduna or Northern region that they prefer within 45 days.


    El-Zakzaky and his wife Malama Zeenah Ibraheem have been locked up without charge for more than a year following a clash between his supporters and the Nigerian military in which hundreds of men, women and children were killed.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that an Abuja Federal High Court had on Monday issued strict warnings to the AGF, IGP and DSS to release El-Zakzaky or go to jail.

  • El-Rufai, Nigerian Army collaborated to secretly bury slain Shiites – Falana

     

    Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), has accused the Kaduna State Government as led by Mallam Nasir El-Rufai of aiding the Nigerian Army in secretly burying slain Shiites.

    He also accused El-Rufai of failing to prosecute the soldiers that killed 347 members of the sect.

    “The Kaduna State government has refused to prosecute the soldiers who killed the 347 Shiites as recommended by the judicial commission of inquiry which it had set up,” Falana said in a statement on Thursday.

    “The Kaduna state government aided and abetted the army in the secret burial of the bodies of the slain Shiites in a mass grave in Mango village, near Zaria.

    “As if those atrocities were not enough, the Kaduna state government proceeded to demolish the houses of the Shiites leader, Sheik Ibraheem Elzakzaky. Apart from witnessing the gruesome murder of three of their children, Elzakzaky and his wife who were subjected to horrendous brutalisation from the troops have been detained without trial since December 14, 2015.

    “Having lost his right eye, Elzakzaky has applied to seek medical treatment abroad. But the request has been rejected by the State Security Service. In a grand display of impunity the order of the federal high court that the couple be released from detention and be provided with accommodation by the government which has rendered them homeless has been treated with disdain.”

    Falana also criticized President Muhammadu Buhari’s refusal to order the army authorities to court martial the soldiers involved in the killings.

    “In the same vein, the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, President Buhari has refused to direct the army authorities to constitute a court-martial for the trial of the military officers who issued the illegal order for the genocidal acts,” he added.