News
BREAKING: There Will Never Be a Live Broadcast of Election Petition Proceedings – Tinubu, Shettima Boast
The President-elect, Bola Tinubu, and the Vice President-elect, Kashim Shettima, have urged the Presidential Election Petition Court to dismiss the application by Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party for a live broadcast of proceedings, while arguing that the relief sought by the applicants are not such that the court could grant it.
Both Tinubu and Shettima said “With much respect to the petitioners, the motion is an abuse of the processes of this honourable court,” .
Besides describing the application as frivolous, they said the court is not a soapbox, stadium or theatre where the public should be entertained.
Through their team of lawyers, led by Chief Wole Olanipekun, they both wondered why a petitioner would file an application to distract the court and waste its precious time, while stating, in the counter affidavit, that the application relates to policy formulation of the court, which is outside the PEPC’s jurisdiction as constituted.
Olanipekun stated that: “The application also touches on the powers and jurisdiction invested in the President of the Court of Appeal by the Constitution, over which this honourable court as presently constituted cannot entertain.
“The application touches on the administrative functions, which are exclusively reserved for the President of the Court of Appeal.
“The application is aimed at dissipating the precious judicial time of this honourable court.
“The said application does not have any bearing with the petition filed by the petitioners before this honourable court.
“It is in the interest of justice for this honourable court to dismiss the said application filed by the petitioners,” they said.
In an attached written address, the respondents faulted the applicants’ reference to the fact that virtual proceedings were allowed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
They argued that Atiku and his party failed to draw the court’s attention to the fact that practice directions were made by the respective courts for the exercise.
“Another angle to this very curious application is the invitation it extends to the court to make an order that it cannot supervise.
“The position of the law remains, and we do submit that the court, like nature, does not make an order in vain, or an order which is incapable of enforcement,” the respondents stated.
More so, they stated that “At the very best, this application is academic, very otiose, very unnecessary, very time-wasting, most unusual and most unexpected, particularly, from a set of petitioners, who should be praying for the expeditious trial of their petition.
“Petitioners have brought their application under Section 36(3) of the Constitution which provides that the proceedings of a court/tribunal shall be held in public.
“The word ‘public’ as applied under Section 36(3) of the Constitution has been defined in a plethora of judicial authorities to mean a place where members of the public have unhindered access, and the court itself, sitting behind open doors, not in the camera.
“Even in situations where a class action is presented, the particular people constituting the class being represented by the plaintiffs or petitioners are always defined in the originating process.
“Here, in this application, the public at whose behest this application has been presented is not defined, not known, not discernable.
“Beyond all these, it is our submission that the court of law must and should always remain what it is, what it should be and what it is expected to be: a serene, disciplined, hallowed, tranquil, honourable and decorous institution and place.
“It is not a rostrum or a soapbox. It is not also a stadium or theatre. It is not an arena for ‘public’ entertainment.
“With much respect to the petitioners, the motion is an abuse of the processes of this honourable court.”
News
Fire Service Put Out Polaris Bank’s Broad Street fire
Polaris Bank Tower at 61/65 Broad Street, Lagos Island, Lagos State.
Margaret Adeseye, Controller General Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service (LSFRS)said that the Service has successfully extinguished a fire outbreak that occurred on the 3rd floor of the Polaris Bank Building, located at 61/65 Broad Street, Lagos Island.
The incident was reported at approximately 11:33 hours and involved a stationary saloon car parked on the 3rd floor of the 17-storey building, which serves as a parking facility.
Firefighters from the Ebute Elefun and Sari Iganmu Fire Stations promptly responded to the emergency and swiftly contained the fire, preventing it from spreading to other vehicles and sections of the building.
The only damage recorded was to the affected vehicle and its immediate surroundings. No casualties or injuries were reported.
The firefighting operation has been successfully concluded, and normalcy has been fully restored to the area.
News
UK Court Acquits Alison-Madueke, Ayinde and Agama of Bribery Charges
Prosecutors had alleged that Alison-Madueke received benefits from oil and gas industry figures seeking favourable treatment in the award of contracts in Nigeria during her tenure.
Photo: Diezani Alison-Madueke
Former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has been acquitted of all six bribery charges brought against her in the United Kingdom.
A jury at the Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday cleared the former minister after a 12-week trial in which she faced five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.
Alison-Madueke, 65, who served as petroleum minister under former President Goodluck Jonathan between 2010 and 2015, had denied all the allegations.
The jury returned its verdict after 46 hours of deliberations.
Prosecutors had alleged that Alison-Madueke received benefits from oil and gas industry figures seeking favourable treatment in the award of contracts in Nigeria during her tenure.
The prosecution told the court that she lived a luxurious lifestyle in London and allegedly benefited from cash payments, private jet travel, chauffeur-driven vehicles, luxury shopping expenses and high-value properties.
The alleged benefits included £100,000 in cash, more than £2 million spent on luxury shopping at Harrods, £4.6 million for property refurbishments and payments for household staff at luxury homes in London and Buckinghamshire.
In her defence, Alison-Madueke maintained that she neither requested nor accepted bribes and did not abuse her office.
Her legal team argued that the allegations were politically motivated and that investigators had misrepresented payments and benefits linked to her.The trial, presided over by Justice Justine Thornton, focused on allegations said to have occurred between 2011 and 2015.
Alison’s faced up to 10 years in prison and an unlimited fine if convicted under UK anti-bribery laws.
She was tried alongside oil executive Olatimbo Ayinde and her brother, Doye Agama.
Ayinde faced one count of bribery relating to Alison-Madueke and another count involving the bribery of a foreign public official, while Agama was charged with conspiracy to commit bribery over alleged payments linked to his church.Both men denied the allegations and were also acquitted by the jury.
A Federal High Court in Abuja has adjourned to June 25, 2026, the hearing of a lawsuit seeking to compel the Nigeria Police Force to conduct a fresh, thorough investigation into the death of Afrobeats singer Ilerioluwa Oladimeji Aloba, popularly known as Mohbad.
The case, presided over by Justice James Omotosho, was slated for hearing on Wednesday, June 17, but was postponed due to ongoing terrorism trials occupying the court.
The suit, filed by the Registered Trustees of Break the Silence Foundation, is praying for an order of mandamus compelling the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), the Nigeria Police Force, and the Lagos State Commissioner of Police to carry out a diligent, impartial, and comprehensive reinvestigation into the circumstances surrounding Mohbad’s death.
Mohbad, aged 27, died on September 12, 2023. His death sparked widespread controversy and public outcry, leading to the arrest of several persons of interest by the Lagos State Police Command.
Those arrested include his childhood friend Oluwatosin Owoduni (Primeboy), singer Naira Marley, music promoter Sam Larry, and auxiliary nurse Feyisayo Ogedengbe, who allegedly administered injections to him at his residence.
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