Why Court dismissed certificate forgery case against Obaseki

Governor Godwin Obaseki Says Plaintiffs failed to prove their allegations By Ikechukwu Nnochiri – Abuja Respite came the way of Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State on Saturday, as the Federal High Court in Abuja, dismissed the certificate forgery case the All Progressives Congress, APC, and one of its members, Mr. Williams Edobor, instituted against him. The court, in a judgment that was delivered by Justice Ahmed Mohammed, held that the Plaintiffs, failed to by way of credible evidence, discharge the burden of proof placed on them by the law. Justice Mohammed said there was no iota of evidence before the court to establish that Obaseki forged either his O’level certificate or the degree certificate that was awarded to him in 1979 by the University of Ibadan. He held that allegation of forgery the Plaintiffs levelled against Obaseki bordered on crime and therefore required to be proved beyond a reasonable doubt. “It is quite known that he who alleges must prove. The burden is on the Plaintiffs to lead credible evidence to indeed prove that the 1st Defendant presented forged certificates to INEC. “None of the witnesses called by the Plaintiffs was able to prove that the certificate was forged. “In fact, the witnesses admitted that none of them visited the University of Ibadan to confirm the authenticity of the certificate. “The Plaintiffs only relied on photocopies that were attached to the Form EC9 the 1st Defendant submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission”, the court noted. It held that apparent discrepancies in the documents Obaseki submitted to INEC, “were satisfactorily explained”. Justice Mohammed further noted that all the witnesses were in agreement that when the original document is photocopied with an A4-sized paper, some information would be cut off. He said the evidence of witnesses Obaseki produced in the course of the hearing, especially that of the Deputy Registrar Legal, at University of Ibadan, Mr. Abayomi Samuel Ajayi, “successfully put to rest the issue of whether or not the embattled governor graduated or was awarded a degree certificate by the school. The court held that for the Plaintiffs to insist that Obaseki forged his certificate, even after the school confirmed the genuity of the document, was akin to alleging that someone has no father, even in the presence of the person’s father. Consequently, it dismissed the suit, though it declined to award cost against the Plaintiffs. The APC had in the suit it jointly filed with one of its members in Edo, Mr. Edobor, alleged that Obaseki forged the University of Ibadan degree certificate he submitted to INEC in aid of his qualification for the governorship election that held in Edo state on September 19, 2020. In the suit marked FHC/B/CS/74/2020, the Plaintiffs equally alleged that there were discrepancies in the subjects that Obaseki claimed he passed in his West African Examination Council (WAEC) exam and subjects in his testimonial. They, among other things, prayed the court to declare that Obaseki’s claim in his INEC form EC9 at column C, sworn to on June 29, 2020 at the Federal Capital Territory High Court Registry to the effect that he obtained from the University of Ibadan in 1979, a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Classical Studies, is false and contrary to Section 31 (5) and (6) of the Electoral Act, 2010. As well as an order declaring that Obaseki lied on oath when he swore to an affidavit on June 29, 2020, that he worked in Afrinvest Limited from 1994 to 2014 when he retired. The Plaintiffs urged the court to not only invalidate Obaseki’s candidacy but to also restrain INEC from recognising him as a contestant in the gubernatorial contest. The INEC was listed as the 3rd Defendant in the matter. The Plaintiffs closed their case after they called a total of six witnesses and tendered 17 exhibits before the court, while Obaseki rested his case after he tendered 18 exhibits and produced three witnesses that testified on his behalf. Among exhibits, he tendered before the court included the original copy of the Bachelor of Arts degree certificate that was awarded to him by the University of Ibadan in 1979, which the APC insisted was forged. Other exhibits the embattled governor adduced before the court to prove his qualification, were the School Certificate the West African Examination Council, WAEC issued to him in June 1973, a Higher School Certificate which WAEC also issued to him in 1976, as well as the original copy of his Primary School Certificate issued in July 1971. While PDP which is the 2nd Defendant in the matter, relied on Obaseki’s defence, INEC, said it had no witnesses to call in the matter

Congress certifies Biden win after violent Capitol riot

Congress has now certified President-elect Joe Biden's 2020 election victory, despite a chaotic and deadly scene that erupted after a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol and delayed the proceedings.

The joint session of Congress, which is normally a ceremonial step, was halted for several hours when rioters breached the Capitol.

Proceedings resumed at about 8 p.m. ET Wednesday, with Vice President Mike Pence bringing the Senate session back into order.

The Senate and House rejected objections to throw out Georgia and Pennsylvania's electoral votes for Biden. Republicans also objected to Arizona, Nevada and Michigan's electoral votes, but the motions failed before they reached debate.

The Senate voted 93 to 6 to dismiss the objection raised by Republicans to Arizona's results, and 92 to 7 to reject the objection to Pennsylvania.

These are the senators who voted to object to some of the results of the election (and the states they objected to):

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz (Arizona, Pennsylvania)

Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley (Arizona, Pennsylvania)

Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall (Arizona, Pennsylvania)

Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville (Arizona, Pennsylvania)

Mississippi Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (Arizona, Pennsylvania)

Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy (Arizona)

Florida Sen. Rick Scott (Pennsylvania)

Wyoming Sen. Cynthia Lummis (Pennsylvania)

The House ultimately voted to reject an objection to throw out Pennsylvania's Electoral College votes for President-elect Joe Biden, but over half of the House Republicans backed the effort. The challenge failed by a vote of 282-138.

The GOP House minority leader, Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California, and his deputy, Steve Scalise, were among those seeking to overturn the results

The East Carolina University in the United States has denied appointing the Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje

The East Carolina University in the United States has denied appointing the Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, as a visiting professor, saying the letter he received from a member of its faculty was unauthorised by the appropriate officials. Ganduje’s spokesperson, Abba Anwar, had on Tuesday said the governor’s appointment was contained in a letter sent to him by the school through a lecturer of the International Centre for IT and Development, Victor Mbarika, at the university’s College of Business on November 30. However, the university’s Interim Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Dr Grant Hayes, in a letter to Ganduje, dated December 4, 2020, titled ‘Re: Unavailability of Faculty Appointment,’ said, “I must inform you that that the letter you received from Dr Victor Mbarika on November 30, 2020 does not convey an authorised offer of appointment or establish any position of scholar or professor at East Carolina University.”

Hisbah bans radio stations from calling black friday in kano

The Kano State Hisbah Board, which is tasked with the duty of enforcing Sharia law in Kano State, has written a letter to a radio station, in Kano State, 96.9 Cool FM, for using the term ‘Black Friday’. . Black Friday is an informal name for the Friday following Thanksgiving Day in the United States, which is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. The term is used worldwide to mean a day for promotional sales where goods are sold at discounted prices. . However, in a letter signed by Principal Executive Officer II, Abubakar Ali, on behalf of the Commander-General, Hisbah stated that Friday is regarded as a holy day in Islam and tagging it as ‘black’ is derogatory and would not be condoned. . The letter titled, ‘Letter of Introduction’ reads in part, “I am directed to write and notify you that the office is in receipt of a complaint for the conduct of ‘Black Friday Sales’ on November 27, 2020. . “Accordingly, we wish to express our concern on the tagging of Friday as ‘Black Friday’ and further inform you that the majority of the inhabitants of Kano State are Muslims that consider Friday as a holy day. . “In view of the foregoing, you are requested to stop calling the day ‘Black Friday’ with immediate effect and note that the Hisbah Corps will be around for surveillance purposes with a view to avoiding occurrence of any immoral activities as well as maintaining peace, harmony and stability in the state.” . Hisbah, an Islamic police operating in many states in the North, has been accused of several human rights abuses. . It is known for accosting vehicles transporting alcoholic beverages and does not allow such vehicles to pass through the state. Hisbah’s Commander General, Sheik Aminu Daurawa, had said over 12 million bottles of beer were destroyed in 800 operations executed in seven years. . According to the National Broadcasting Commission Act, only the NBC has the power to sanction a radio station especially in matters that relate to broadcasting.

GOP leaders’ embrace of Trump’s refusal to concede fits pattern of rising authoritarianism, data shows

It’s the latest sign of the party’s lurch away from democratic ideals and practices, a shift that predates Trump but one that has accelerated precipitously since. Now, according to data released by an international team of political scientists just before the Nov. 3 election, it’s possible to quantify the extent to which the Republican Party no longer adheres to such principles as the commitment to free and fair elections with multiple parties, the respectful treatment of political opponents and the avoidance of violent rhetoric. “The Republican Party in the U.S. has retreated from upholding democratic norms in recent years,” said Anna Lührmann, a political scientist at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden and a former member of the German parliament. “Its rhetoric is closer to authoritarian parties, such as AKP in Turkey and Fidesz in Hungary.” Lührmann is deputy director of the university’s V-Dem Institute, which compiled the data. For the project, researchers recruited more than 600 political scientists around the world to make annual assessments of political parties’ adherence to a number of key small-D democratic values. Those assessments are combined into the main measure in the chart above, which tracks parties’ overall commitment to democracy. Lührmann points out that the Republican Party score started to edge downward during the Obama administration but fell off a cliff in 2016 with the ascent of Trump. The Democratic Party, by contrast, hasn’t changed much. This is a prime example of what political scientists call asymmetric polarization — a growing partisan gap driven almost entirely by the actions of the Republican Party. While V-Dem’s data only runs through 2018, that asymmetry has only become more apparent in the aftermath of this election, Lührmann said: “It is disturbing that most leading Republicans are still not objecting to President Trump’s baseless claims of electoral fraud and attempts to declare himself the winner.” As a result, she says, GOP scores are likely to sink further when 2020 data is released. Daniel Pemstein, a political scientist at North Dakota State University who helped develop V-Dem’s methodology, acknowledges that the project “seeks to measure things that are inherently difficult to observe.” There’s no universally accepted measure of “illiberalism,” for instance. In the absence of such a measure, the best alternative is to interview numerous experts on the topic to determine whether there is a consensus. V-Dem essentially systematizes this process, collecting and standardizing expert assessments on a massive scale. “We combine ratings from a huge number of local experts on political parties, leveraging the pattern of agreement across experts to estimate real-world party characteristics,” Pemstein said. Lührmann notes the project has collected data on nearly 2,000 political parties. The drivers of the Republican Party’s drift toward authoritarianism are visible in the sub-indicators that make up the main index. Consider the demonization of political opponents: In 2006, V-Dem’s experts judged that GOP leaders “usually did not” resort to demonization and severe personal attacks in characterizing the Democratic Party. But the rise of the tea party was a turning point, research shows. “Angry protesters have frequently made claims ranging from proclaiming Obama’s ‘socialist’ intentions to making explicit Nazi comparisons to suggesting that the President is defying or even subverting the Constitution,” the Anti-Defamation League wrote at the time. By 2016, that sort of rhetoric had become the norm among GOP leaders. Encouraging violence has become alarmingly common. From the 1970s through roughly 2010, V-Dem’s experts note that both Republican and Democratic leaders consistently rejected the use of violence against political opponents. For Republicans, that began to change under Trump. It’s tempting to write off these worrying trends as Trump-era aberrations that will subside after he leaves office — Biden predicted a post-Trump “epiphany” among the GOP, for instance. There are some in the Republican Party who are critical of Trump’s efforts to undermine the election. Former national security adviser John Bolton warned in a recent Washington Post op-ed that the party may suffer “permanent damage to its integrity and reputation because of President Trump’s post-election rampaging.” But V-Dem’s data underscores how much of the Republican Party has adopted the authoritarian beliefs and tactics of the president. Many of the GOP leaders going along with Trump’s baseless claims of voter fraud will still be in office after he leaves. “That leading Republicans are not willing to defend the electoral process shows that Trump is not the only GOP politician who has a problem with key democratic norms,” Lührmann said.

You can’t dictate to us anymore, PANDEF, Afenifere, Ohanaeze, Middle Belt tell North

The Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum, SMBLF, on Wednesday, warned that it will no longer allow a section of the country to play any supremacist role over others. The forum said this, in a communique, after an emergency meeting held in Abuja. The communique was signed by Chief EK Clark (PANDEF Leader), AVM Idongesit Nkanga, Chief Broderick Bozimo, Mr. Solomon Asemota (SAN), Senator Bassey Henshaw, Prof GG Darah and Chief T k O Okorotie. Others are Chief Ayo Adebanjo (for Afenifere Leader), Mr Yinka Odumakin, Senator Kofoworola Akerele-Buknor, Oba Oladipo Olaitan, Senator Femi Okunrounmu, Chief Supo Sonibare, Chief Demola Folarin, Dr. Akin Fapohunda. Chief John Nwodo (President General, Ohanaeze), Chief Guy Ikokwu, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, Mr. Chuks Muomah SAN, Mr. Mike Ahamba SAN, Mr. Madu Bright O Allwell, Chuks Achi-Okpaga, Chief Alex Ogbonnia. Dr. Pogu Bitrus (President, Middle Belt Forum), Air Commoder Dan Suleiman (retd), Dr. S D Gani, Elder Stephen Bangoji, Hon Jonathan Asake, Mr. Chris Aba, Mr. Mark Jacob and Mr. Festus Nyiwo. Reacting to the meeting of Northern states’ Governors with Northern Emirs and Chiefs and Arewa leaders in topmost positions in the current regime held on Monday, the leaders reiterated it’s call for restructuring before the 2023 general elections. The communique reads: “The meeting coming aftermath of the ENDSARS protest when we should be putting heads together nationally to seek solutions to our problems is most distractive, divisive and made Nigeria widely scattered as against the ‘indivisibility’ and other non-sequitors that were regurgitated at the end of it. “Where would this country be heading to if we also decide to call our own meeting with our Governors and top officials in the Federal Government? We do not see any responsibility displayed by those who have been serially accused of sectionalising our national government to allow such in sensibility, insensitivity and total subversion of the unity of the country that only exists on the lips of those behind the meeting. “It not also lost on us that the communique of the meeting was making space for National Executive Council nominations to a sectional initiative as the utmost level of disregard to the rest of the country whom they are treating as serfs when we are supposed to joint and equal stakeholders in project Nigeria. “The meeting wondered the quality of humanity of any group meeting at this period of mournings not to have a word of compassion for those that were recklessly murdered by state forces and hired thugs during the protests. “We reject the indecent approach to paste the peaceful protesters in dark colours. They made their demands clear and were orderly before the violent Nigerian state deployed armed soldiers and thugs in 911 lorries against them. “It is wickedness to place ‘our power’ above every other national interest by playing the “regime change” label on the peaceful protesters who were not armed like Boko Haram that the regime is chasing about with negotiations in the same spirit it has been cuddling and pampering killer herdsmen. “We do not see the thoughtfulness in the celebration of Northern youths not participating in ENDSARS protests as if they did not also loot like their deprived young people in other areas of the country which shows they are suffering the same thing. But instead of treating leprosy, our counterparts are dealing with eczema “We foresaw all that is happening now, which is why we have been calling for restructuring as a multi-ethic country like Nigeria can only be run along federal lines. We were not oblivious of the damage the military did to this country by using fiat to create LGAs with headquarters in the villages of top shots mostly from the North. Kano state today has 44 Local Governments and Bayelsa has 80.When you want to recruit 10 policemen per LGA Bayelsa will have 80 and Kano 44O.That affects where the materials to be drawn into SARS and others are drawn.The inequalities multiply everywhere. And this is why we insist on restructuring of the country now before we go for any national election. “We make it abundantly clear to our colleagues from the core North that yesterday ended last night and never again shall this country be run the same old way. No section of the country can play any supremacist role again as if the rest of us are fools. “It is either we live together as equals under the same rules of engagement or we explore other options as dignified human beings. “We deeply mourn with all families who lost dear ones in the crisis we just went through and pray to God to comfort them. May those who wantonly destroyed lives pay grievously for their deeds.”

BREAKING: Buhari, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala Meet At Aso Rock

President Muhammadu Buhari and former Minister of Finance and Coordinator of the Economy, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, are meeting right now at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The former minister is one of two final leading contenders for the position of Director-General of the World Trade Organisation.

Okonjo-Iweala and South Korea’s Yoo Myung-hee had scaled the hurdles to the final stage on October 7, 2020.

Okonjo-Iweala was cited going to meet with Buhari in company with the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Niyi Adebayo, and the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Zubair Dada.

THE WHISTLER learnt that the visit is most certainly in connection with the WTO election.

Buhari has since backed Okonjo-Iweala, who served under the administrations of former President Olusegun Obasanjo and former President Goodluck Jonathan, to clinch the plum job.

She will probably speak with State House Correspondents after ending the session with Buhari

Source: punchng.com

An area of eastern Ghana has declared itself a sovereign state Togoland

 

An area of eastern Ghana has declared itself a sovereign state. The region known as Western Togoland has had secessionist attempts in the past. Armed men demanding the secession of Western Togoland from Ghana blockaded major entry points to the Volta region of Ghana on Friday morning. Local sources say the group are holding three police officers hostage, including a District Commander, and attacked two police stations. Prior to the blockade, the group reportedly broke into an armory and stole weapons. "This is a very serious situation because just few weeks ago we saw [what happened] when they mounted signs along the major roads welcoming people into the Western Togoland State," a local resident told DW. "Blocking the roads with heaps of sand, burning tyres [and ] even holding security personnel hostage." About 12 hours before Friday's dawn operation, the Western Togoland Restoration Front (WTRF) published photos of the graduation ceremony for around 500 personnel who underwent training for months in secret locations, raising questions over the effectiveness of security agencies in the region. Seeking sovereignty Ghana's Western Togoland region is predominately wedged between Lake Volta and the Ghana-Togo border. Currently, a number of splinter groups are demanding the area be recognized as a sovereign state. In a press release, the chairman of the WTRF, Togbe Yesu Kwabla Edudzi I, declared that efforts for consolidating statehoood, which began on 1 September 2020, were being put into practice. The press release also claimed "roadblocks to assert its sovereignty are all over the Southern sector." The movement says it wants to force the Ghanaian government to join United Nations (UN) facilitated negotiations aiming to declare Western Togoland an independent state. Ghanaian police have been ordered to "leave the region in 24 hours" and surrender weapons. Some radio stations appear to have been taken over by members of the WTRF. The group has demanded the release of prisoners currently being held in detention for secessionist activities. Travelers urged to be cautious Meanwhile, on Facebook, Ghanaian police have cautioned travellers to be aware of "security operations" in some communities in the Volta Region. Local media have reported the minister of the affected Volta Region, Archibald Letsa, urged travelers to remain calm and allow security personnel to do their jobs. A tumultuous past The territory of Western Togoland was first colonized by Germany in 1884 and incorporated into the Togoland colony. After Germany's defeat during the First World War, the colony of Togoland was divided between France and Britain as protectorates. The western part of Togoland became part of Britain's Gold Coast colony, which became independent in 1957 to form modern-day Ghana. Togo gained independence from France in 1960. Western Togoland is a member of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO). Four million people live in the region. In terms of language and culture, Western Togoland, especially the Volta region, has more in common with Togo. Locals in the region say they feel underrepresented by Ghanaian authorities. A previous unsuccessful attempt to declare Western Togoland independent from Ghana took place in 2017. In March 2020, around 80 members of the separatist group were detained for protesting the arrest of seven leaders of the Homeland Study Group Foundation. The charges were later dropped. Source: https://www.dw.com/en/ghanas-western-togoland-region-declares-sovereignty/a-55051426

Federal government to setup special court for rape cases

The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami (SAN), said on Thursday that his office had commenced talks over plans to establish special courts for rape and other sexual and gender-based violence cases.
.
He also said the Federal Ministry of Justice had started a review of relevant laws aimed at proposing relevant legislative changes to enhance preventive, investigative and counter-measures.
.
Malami, represented by the Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Justice, Mr Dayo Apata (SAN), said this at a press conference jointly held with the Executive Secretary of the National Human Rights Commission, Mr. Tony Ojukwu.
.
The press conference focused on modalities for the eradication of rape and other sexual and gender-based violence in the country.
.
Malami said the talks over the establishment of the special courts to hear cases relating to the offences were being held with heads of various courts.
.
He said the proposed court would help to ensure expeditious trial of all pending and future rape and gender-based violence cases.
.
He said, “To tackle this hydra-headed menace headlong, my office (the Federal Ministry of Justice) is currently engaging with the respective Heads of Courts, for the establishment of specialised courts for the speedy and seamless trial of rape/gender-based violence offences in Nigeria.
.
“The aforestated specialised court when established will necessarily create a timely/speedy trial of all pending and incoming rape and other related gender-based cases and facilitate their conclusion within record time."

Professor Obioma appoitmented registrar of NECO

The National Examinations Council (NECO) has gotten a new Registrar and Chief Executive Officer, Professor Godswill Obioma.

Professor Obioma’s appointment has been approved by President Muhammadu Buhari.

In a letter dated 15th May 2020 with Reference No: FME/PS/396/C1/1/134 and signed by the Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, the letter stated that the appointment which is for an initial tenure of five years takes effect from 14th May 2020.

In a statement signed by the Head of Information and Public Relations Division, Azeez Sani, the Registrar officially took over the affairs of the Council from the former Acting Registrar, Mallam Abubakar Gana on Friday, 22nd May 2020 at the Council’s headquarters in Minna.

The new NECO Registrar is a Professor of Education Measurement and Evaluation and was a former Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Educational Research and Development Council.

Until his appointment as Registrar/CE of NECO, Prof. Obioma was the Ebonyi State Resident Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/thenationonlineng.net/just-in-neco-gets-new-registrar/amp/

Man celebrated 100 days consecutive with out flight to another country

A man by name Abdul Aziz Naibi celebrated 100 consecutive days president Buhari didn't travel to foreign countries.

Nigeria finance minister says economy will definitely go recession

The minister said this on Thursday, May 21, 2020, after the National Economic Council meeting.
.
She said, “The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has made an assessment. So, it is the NBS assessment that Nigeria will go into a recession measuring at an average of -4.4%.
.
“But with the work that the Economic Accessibility Committee is doing; bringing stimulus packages, we believe that we can reduce the impact of that recession.
.
“And if we applied all that have been proposed and we are able to implement it, we may end up with a recession that is -0.4 percent. In any case, we will go into recession but what we are trying to do is to make sure that it is shallow so that we will quickly come out of it come 2021.”
.
A country’s economy goes into recession when its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) reduces for two consecutive quarters.
.
In her statement on Thursday, Ahmed suggested that Nigeria would slip into recession in the second quarter of 2020.

court struck out resistance of arrest suit against Dino meleye

The High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Maitama, Abuja, on Tuesday, struck out charges of resistance to arrest instituted against the former Kogi West Senator, Dino Melaye.
.
Justice Yusuf Halilu struck out the eight counts on the grounds of lack of diligent prosecution.
.
The judge made the order following the inability of the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation to produce its sole proposed witness to testify on Tuesday.
.
Melaye was on January 22, 2019 arraigned before the judge by the Inspector-General on Police, who later handed over the case to the AGF office.
.
Melaye was arraigned on charges bordering on alleged conspiracy, resistance to arrest, failure to honour police invitation and intentionally giving false information to the public.
.
The police had alleged that the senator conspired with one Silas Omenka on December 28, 2018, to commit an offence of illegal obstruction to a lawful arrest, thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 97 of the Penal Code.
.
The prosecution alleged that Melaye intentionally resisted lawful arrest, thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 172 of the Penal Code.
.
He was also alleged to have intentionally tweeted, with the intention of inciting the public against the police.
.
The prosecution also alleged that Melaye tweeted that the Inspector-General of Police planned to arrest and inject him to death, which was false.
.
It alleged that this constituted an offence punishable under Section 416 of the Penal Code. He had pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The Senate on Tuesday asked the Federal Government to consider a comprehensive review of the power privatisation policy

The Senate on Tuesday asked the Federal Government to consider a comprehensive review of the power privatisation policy with a view to reversing the current arrangement.
.
The red chamber said Nigerians would not enjoy stable power supply in the next 10 years if the activities of the distribution companies were not reviewed and restructured.
.
The Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, stated this on Tuesday after the Senate had considered and approved a motion by Senator Gabriel Suswan on the power sector recovery plan.
.
He said, “We gave power to them (power generation and distribution companies) and they still come to the public to ask for funds.
.
“I think it’s time for Nigeria to consider reversing the privatisation of the power sector or they should just cancel the entire privatisation process completely.
.
“If we leave it, we may not have power for another 10 years.”
.
Lawan said, “The privatisation of the power sector has, so far, not been successful. We expected efficiency and effectiveness in the power supply.
.
“The Discos have no capacity to supply us power. The Gencos have challenges too.
.
“It is not a good commentary that we should continue to give them money. They’re private businesses. We need to review this privatisation.
.
“Our committee needs to investigate trillions spent. That’s a lot of money.
.
“Try to find out what has happened so far. Government needs to look at this whole thing.
.
“Maybe, government is not doing its own part. We need to find out.
.
“There is lack of capital, lack of investment. We feel very bad because we have no electricity and the country is suffering.”
.
The Senate also urged the Federal Government to suspend the planned electricity tariff increase due to take effect from July given the increased hardship occasioned by the coronavirus pandemic.
.
The upper chamber also commended the Federal Government for the proactive initiative to establish the N1.7tn Covid-19 crisis intervention fund to cater for critical issues on effective management of the pandemic.
....

BREAKING: FG sacks TCN MD, Usman Mohammed

The managing director of the Transmission Company of Nigeria, Usman Gur Mohammed has been sacked.

This development was announced via a statement issued by the Minister of Power, Mamman Sale, signed by his spokesman, Artimas Aaron on Tuesday evening. His replacement, Sule Abdulaziz, has been ordered to take over immediately.

“As part of continuing measures to reposition and improve the performance of the Power Sector in the country, the Honorable Minister of Power Engr. Sale Mamman hereby announces major changes at the Transmission Company of Nigeria”

“Accordingly, the Managing Director of the TCN, Usman Gur Mohammed has been removed from office with immediate effect. He is being replaced with Engr. Sule Ahmed Abdulaziz, as Managing Director, in acting capacity.”

It’s unclear the reason for the sack. Before joining TCN, Mohammed was the Principal Power Utility Transformation Specialist in the AfDB’s Nigeria Country Department