Alleged False Asset Declaration: Orubebe Opens Defence Before CCT

A former Minister of Niger Delta, Elder Godsday Orubebe, on Thursday opened his defence before the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT).
The former minister is being tried on one count criminal charge of alleged false declaration of asset.
He was specifically accused by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) of failing to declare his ownership of a landed property in Abuja.
The Federal Government on May 24 closed its case before the CCT against Orubebe after calling only one witness to testify against him.
The case was adjourned to 31st May, 2016 for the defendant to open his defence, but the CCT did not sit yesterday and fixed today for further hearing.
The Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) of the federation, Mr. Moses S. Odiri appeared for the prosecution while Selekowei Larry (SAN) appeared for the defendant.
Orubebe’s first witness, Akinwunmi Ajibola is presently giving evidence before the CCT.
Mr. Orubebe was minister between 2007 and 2011

Leadership Crisis: Why We Took Over PDP Secretariat – BoT

The Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday moved to save the party from imminent political oblivion by taking over the running of its affairs pending the resolution of its leadership crisis.
The Inspector General of Police, IGP, Solomon Arase on Tuesday ordered the re-opening of the national secretariat of the main opposition party after sealing it for nine days to prevent breakdown of law and order by the various factions jostling for the national chairmanship of the PDP.
The BoT members, who last week tried unsuccessfully to prevail on Senator Ali Modu Sheriff to recognize the Senator Ahmed Makarfi-led caretaker committee by withdrawing his court case against the party, arrived the Wadata Plaza national secretariat of the PDP in Abuja shortly after noon and went straight to the National Executive Committee (NEC) hall.
The BoT, led by its Chairman, Senator Walid Jibrin, held a meeting with the secretariat staff on latest developments in the party.
Senator Jibrin said the board remained the only legal body that is not involved in any of the court cases by the contending parties, hence, the decision to take over the affairs of the party.
“Nobody has taken the BoT to court. Today, the BoT remains the only legal body that is not in court with anybody, and that is why we are here to play our role”, Mr. Jibrin said.
“We are here to perform our duty, according to the PDP constitution, hoping that our problems will soon be resolved.
“Members of the board will be operating from the boardroom. They will not be occupying any of the offices used by members of the disbanded National Working Committee (NWC)”, the BoT chairman added.
He also explained that the sealing off of the party’s secretariat by the police on the instructions of Mr. Arase was to protect lives and property.
“We the BoT have been asked under the constitution of the party to be in charge of the assets and the liabilities of the PDP generally.
“It is in that respect that the Inspector General of Police, having considered the importance of our constitution and having considered the importance of the staff of the PDP headquarters here, that this place be opened and entrusted in the hands of the BoT”, Jibrin asserted.
While describing the party’s problem as “temporary”, the PDP chieftain disclosed that the BoT had reached out to parties in the lingering crisis, with a view to reconciling them.
He said: “We have gone very far to resolve this matter, we are making contacts and consultations and we are not here to blame anybody, but to resolve the problem.
“PDP will never die; we are only on sabbatical and once the sabbatical is over, we are going to take over our leadership. We are coming back in 2019”.
Speaking in the same vein, the BoT Secretary, Ambassador Ojo Maduekwe, said the board decided to oversee the party’s affairs to prevent a vacuum in the face of conflicting court orders.
“We are giving members opportunity to withdraw all cases in court so that PDP can rebrand”, Maduekwe said.

Nwoye, Udende Must Vacate Their Seats For Defecting To APC, PDP Caucus Vows

The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) caucus in the House of Representatives on Wednesday vowed to ensure that Tony Nwoye (PDP-Anambra) and Emmanuel Udende (PDP-Benue), who defected to All Progressive Congress (APC) on the floor of the House, lose their seats.
The affected lawmakers in separate letters they wrote to the leadership of the lower legislative chamber and read by Speaker Yakubu Dogara during the plenary session yesterday, announced their intentions to dump the PDP on whose platform they were elected, owing to the leadership crisis in the main opposition party.
Reacting to the defection of the lawmakers, the Minority Leader, Leo Ogor, described their resignation letters as unconstitutional.
He argued that section 68(g) of the 1999 constitution (as amended) provides that any member who must resign on the platform where he/she was elected, must declare his/her seat vacant.
Ogor said: “I have told those who care to listen that there is no division in the PDP. Clearly the PDP is one family, and in line with the Constitution in line with Section 68(g), which I quoted on the floor is clear on this.
“We had a national convention, signed by then national chairman, Ali Modu-Sheriff.
“The party itself went for that convention in Port-Harcourt and you know that the party convention is the highest organ of the party. It has the power to elect and remove anyone, and we saw the decisions that were taken in Port-Harcourt. And no court of competent jurisdiction has today ruled that there is any faction in PDP. Neither is there any recognised faction.
“There is a Supreme Court ruling on this matter. I pity those young men. They really don’t know what they have done. But for me, I am a law abiding citizen and I can tell you that by tomorrow morning, my party will be headed to court once I have the Order Paper for the day. We will be in court to make sure we vacate those seats, then we go for an election to replace those interlopers. They think they can go to APC, so easily but they are wrong. So long as we have a Supreme Court ruling on this matter, I am sure, they are history”.
The leader of the PDP caucus in the House of Reps, who expressed surprise over the defection of Nwoye and Udende, accused the duo of failing to consult with the PDP caucus before making their decision known on the floor of the House.
“I was not really expecting this. I am so shocked. I am so disappointed with those young men. I would have thought that they would have discussed this kind of issue with me and they know that there is no faction in the PDP. But for reasons best known to them, they are trying to create a faction.
“Like I have said, there is a Supreme Court ruling on the issue of factions, that there must be a clear division in the national executive of a party for you to say there are factions. You cannot just wake up and say, you had your on convention. And if indeed some people held a convention, they did it on their own.
“They are not even members of the national executive. None of them is. Sheriff was even in Port-Harcourt, he went through clearance. So how can they say there is a faction? In fact, there is no need to over flog this issues because by tomorrow, as soon as I have a copy of the votes and proceedings for Wednesday, my prayer will head to court”, he vowed.

Orubebe: I Don’t Deserve Being Put On Trial For Alleged False Asset Declaration

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A former Minister of Niger Delta, Elder Godsday Orubebe, Thursday stunned the Code of Conduct Tribunal sitting in Abuja when he declared that he regrets serving the country as a minister.
Mr. Orubebe, who served as minister between 2007 and 2011, is currently standing trial on one-count criminal charge of alleged false declaration of asset.
Speaking during the opening of his defence before the CCT, the ex-minister said it was unfortunate that after serving the country to the best of his ability, he was been put on trial for something he claims he knows nothing about.
He said: “I love this country and I served as a minister with all my heart and to the best of my ability.
“But I am pained that the same country is putting me through all the things I know nothing about.
“I slept in the creeks for two weeks t‎rying to persuade the militant to drop their weapons.
“Finally, we succeeded and we got amnesty”.
“But see what I am being subjected to today”, Mr. Orubebe lamented.

Militants give soldiers 72-hour ultimatum to leave N’Delta

The Joint Niger Delta Liberation Force, a militant group in the South-South region of Nigeria, has given the Nigerian Armed Forces a 72-hour ultimatum to leave the Niger Delta region, TheCable reports.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the group threatened to declare full blown war if the military continue its operation in the region.

Osinbajo Leaves Ogoniland As Wike Shows APC Love

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike receives Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the Port Harcourt International Airport during his visit to the state to flag off the implementation of the UNEP Report for the clean-up of Ogoni land , see more photos as the VP Yemi Osinbajo Leaves Ogoniland below.

Nigeria Police Recruitment: PSC Shortlists 338,227 Applicants From Nearly A Million Application

The Police Service Commission (PSC) on Thursday said it shortlisted 338,227 applicants out of the 911,438 that applied for recruitment into the Nigeria Police Force.
The Chairman of the Commission, Mike Okiro, who disclosed this at a news conference in Abuja, said screening of successful applicants would begin on June 6 in the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory.

Mr. Okiro explained that 44,661 were shortlisted for cadet Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) , 87,736 for cadet Inspector and 205,830 for Police Constables.
He said “I would like to emphasise that the initial shortlisting of applicants was done electronically.
“Invitation letters were also sent to successful applicants through SMS and to their personal email addresses.”
He warned applicants against fake letters from criminal elements, stressing that “the invitation states the date for each person’s screening and venue of the screening.
“Applicants will be grouped according to their local government areas and a date fixed for their screening.”
The chairman said this was to avoid overcrowding the venue and also for meticulous exercise.

He warned that no applicant would be admitted into any venue or appear on any date other than those allocated to him or her.
Mr. Okiro added that after the screening, successful candidates would be invited to a zonal screening to be held in the 12 police zonal headquarters in the country.
He said the national interview would be held in Abuja, where those who were successful at the zonal screening would be interviewed.
He noted that the Commission had been transparent since the filling and submission of forms started, saying “I want to re-emphasis that the Commission will be guided by the rules and will be fair, transparent and ensure that the process is merit-driven.
“As a commission, we have collectively and individually swore to make this project a huge success.
“The Nigeria Police needs the best, especially now that the nation is engaged in several battles.”
Femi Adenaike, the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of training, said all training schools and colleges were rehabilitated.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 262,426 applicants applied for cadet Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), 211,832 applied for Cadet Inspector and 437,144 for Police Constables.
President Muhammadu Buhari approved the recruitment of 10,000 policemen into the nation’s Police Force to reinforce the police for better service.

D’banj’s Award Rack Is Truly Stunning

Sound Sultan seems to have set the trend for showing off award racks!
The Kokomaster a.k.a Bangalee followed the trend when he shared a picture of himself next to his numerous plaques.

D’banj is undoubtedly one of the most celebrated Nigerian musicians as evidenced by his haul of awards.

Koko Master D’banj

Immigration boss orders arrest of former ministers, governors, others with diplomatic/official passport

Newly appointed Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Mohammad Babandede, has ordered the immediate arrest of former political office holders including governors, ministers, senators and retired public servants who are still in possession of Official/Diplomatic passports. Babandede gave the order while addressing senior officers of the Service at the Service headquarters in Abuja today May 31st.
According to him, President Buhari had on September 7th 2015, directed the NIS to retrieve the official/diplomatic passports from all illegal holders noting that most of them were yet to comply with the directive.
“Charges will be pressed against unauthorized holders of such documents because such persons are no longer in the eligibility list and are, therefore, in contravention of Sec. 10 of the Extant Immigration Act, 2015. I am hereby directing that unauthorised holders of such passports be arrested at the airports and other points of entry/departure. Efforts will be made to trace such unauthorized holders in their given addresses.”he said

PDP reopens national secretariat

The National Secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party has reopened for business.
The secretariat, which was sealed off by armed policemen, on May 22 after the leadership tussle in the party worsened was reopened today, with workers returning gradually.
A statement by the Head of Publicity Division at the party’s secretariat, Chinwe Nnorom, in Abuja, earlier today had said the Secretary of the PDP’s Board of Trustees, Chief Ojo Maduekwe would address workers at 1pm.
The statement read, “Please be informed that the PDP National Secretariat re-opens today being Tuesday May 31, 2016 for members of establishment staff only.

Soldiers storm Kogi Assembly, stop legislators from sitting

Armed soldiers on Tuesday stormed the Kogi State House of Assembly, where they turned back legislators from entering the parliament.
Last Thursday, a group of legislators operating on the platform of the G15, who had secured an Abuja court ruling, stormed the parliament and held a plenary session.
The soldiers numbering 15 got to the Assembly complex in a truck as early as 6am.
They took over the gate and the road leading to the parliament.

The G15 is led by the embattled Speaker, Mr. Momoh-Jimoh Lawal.
A group of five lawmakers, who operated on the platform of the G5, had announced the impeachment of Lawal, who had the backing of 14 lawmakers.
The court had ruled that the impeachment of Lawal as the speaker was null and void.
Journalists, who arrived at the Assembly to cover proceedings, were turned back by the soldiers.
The soldiers dislodged the riot policemen, who had manned the Assembly’s gate since last week.
Spokesperson for the G15, Matthew Kolawole, expressed shock at the turn of events.
He said the group was shocked to discover that soldiers from the Army Records Unit, Kogi, had barricaded the Assembly’s gate.
Kolawole said the soldiers prevented them from entering the parliament.
He said gunmen in two vans had stormed the Kogi legislative quarters in the midnight of Monday and shot repeatedly into the air in order to intimidate the members of the G15.
But the Special Adviser to the state governor on Media and Strategy, Alhaji Abdulkareem Abdulmalik, denied government’s involvement in the crisis besetting the Assembly.
According to him, the security men were there to prevent a breakdown of law and other.
Also, the Kogi State Commissioner of Police, Yakubu Usman, said he withdrew his men in order to prevent a clash that might result in the loss of lives.
Meanwhile, the Kogi State Independent Electoral Commission has been called upon to conduct a supplementary election in Idah and Ofu local government areas, where election had been declared inconclusive.