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GEJ Challenges Govs On Governance As MURIC Blame Him For The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Former President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has challenged Nigerian governors to act proactively and take charge of their state and stop the bickering among themselves especially along tribal lines, claiming they are the ones running the country and not only President Muhammadu Buhari.

He said this while speaking in Benin, the Edo State state capital on Sunday, May 16, 2021. He lamented that the governors should come together and proffer solutions on how to move the country forward via their forum instead of antagonizing each other.

He emphasized that the Nigeria Governors Forum should be a platform to engage and come up with a panacea for the issues affecting the country. He told newsmen:

“Governors themselves should continue to meet, I don’t really love a situation where the Northern governors will meet then the Southern governors will cry foul. Then the Southern governors will meet then the Northern governors will cry foul, that will not help our country.

“The governors through the Governors Forum should meet, they are the people who run this country, the President is just one person in Abuja. The states, especially in a country where the local governments are very weak, it’s the states that people fall back to.

“So if the governors of the states meet and dialogue, interrogate things that are good for this country, then we will move forward. I don’t really enjoy the antagonism between governors, they should come together and discuss. If there are issues affecting one or two states, I think the governors should see how they can collectively come with a way to address those issues.”

Meanwhile, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has blamed the administration of former president, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan for being responsible for the continued conflict in the Middle East.

While condemning the ongoing bombardment of Palestine by Israel’s warplanes and artillery, the group said Nigeria’s decision to abstain from a vote to recognize the State of Palestine under the Goo0dluck Jonathan administration is the reason for the ongoing crisis in the region.

A statement signed by the group’s director, Professor Ishaq Akintola, which was released on Monday, May 17, 2021, described the ongoing conflict as a ‘crime against humanity.’ The statement read in parts:

“We strongly condemn the ongoing aggression of Israel against Palestine. A people that does not possess a single warplane is being harassed, killed, and dehumanized by an apartheid state that is armed to the teeth while the world looks on carelessly…We are particularly disenchanted with the role of America in the whole issue. In 2019 alone, for example, the US provided $3.8 billion in foreign military aid to Israel. Israel also benefits from about $8 billion of loan guarantees. The United States (US) allows Israel to build a nuclear weapon but hypocritically breathes down the neck of Israel’s neighbors on the issue of nuclear energy. In as much as the US is Israel’s major supplier and backer, the US has the power to stop Israel’s aggression against Palestine.

“Even Nigeria under ex-President Goodluck Jonathan played an ignoble role in the Palestinian question. The request to officially recognize Palestine as a state within the 1967 boarders with full UN member benefits and state status throughout the international community was presented by Jordan on 30th December 2014. While justice-seeking countries like Argentina, Chad, Chile, Jordan, China, France, and Russia voted ‘Yes’ to a Palestinian State, Nigeria dashed the hope of Palestine by abstaining.

“Just nine votes were mandatory for Palestine to secure the status it needed and eight had been obtained. Only one more vote was needed but Nigeria reneged on its well-known anti-apartheid stance. It was a shocking, conservative, and reactionary shift from anti-apartheid champion status for which the country was known to a pro-zionist entity. It was the coup de grace. It was the day Nigeria shamefully turned its back on its principles of justice, liberty, and humanity, no thanks to ex-President Jonathan’s love for anything that may hurt Muslims and favor Christians. Jonathan cannot wash his hands off that diplomatic misadventure. He allowed his religious sentiment to get the better of him.”

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FULL LIST: Covenant emerges Nigeria’s best university for 2024

Covenant University has again secured the top spot in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2024.

The ranking, which evaluates universities across various performance metrics, placed the Ota-based institution ahead of other leading Nigerian universities, reaffirming its position as a higher-education leader.

The rankings, which surveyed 1,907 universities across 108 countries, assessed the institutions based on 18 performance indicators across five key areas: teaching, research environment, research quality, industry, and international outlook.

CU emerged as Nigeria’s best, outperforming the University of Ibadan, the Federal University of Technology Akure, and the University of Lagos, which ranked second, third, and fourth respectively

The 2024 list also reflected a shift in the global higher education landscape, with more than 134 million citations from 16.5 million research publications analyzed and survey responses from over 68,000 scholars collected globally.

Other Nigerian universities making the top ten include Bayero University, University of Ilorin, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and Afe Babalola University. The Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta also earned a spot in the top tier, securing 10th place.

1. Covenant University

2. University of Ibadan

3. Federal University of Technology Akure

4. University of Lagos

5. Bayero University

6. University of Ilorin

7. University of Nigeria, Nsukka

8. Afe Babalola University

9. University of Benin

10. Federal University ofAgriculture, Abeokuta

11. Ladoke Akintola University of Technology

12. Lagos State University

13. Nnamdi Azikiwe University

14. Obafemi Awolowo University

15. University of Port Harcourt

16. Abia State University

17. Akwa Ibom State University

18. Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu-Alike

19. Babcock University

20. Baze University

21. Bells University of Technology

22. Benson Idahosa University

23. Delta State University, Abraka

24. Edo State University, Uzairue

25. Edwin Clarke University

26. Elizade University

27. Evangel University, Akaeze

29. Federal University of Kashere

30. Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun

31. Federal University of Technology, Minna

32. Federal University of Technology, Owerri

33. Fountain University

34. Landmark University

35. Nasarawa State University, Keffi

36. Niger Delta University

37. Plateau State University, Bokkos

38. Thomas Adewumi University

39. Veritas University, Abuja

40. Yusuf Maitama Sule University, Kan

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Court bars VIO from confiscating vehicles, imposing fines on motorists

A Federal High Court in Abuja has issued a ruling prohibiting the Directorate of Road Traffic Services, commonly known as the Vehicle Inspection Office (VIO), from stopping vehicles on the road, impounding or confiscating them, and imposing fines on motorists.

The judgment, delivered by Justice Evelyn Maha on October 2, stems from a fundamental rights enforcement suit (FHC/ABJ/CS/1695/2023) filed by human rights activist and public interest attorney Abubakar Marshal.

In her ruling, Justice Maha affirmed Marshal’s assertion that there is no legal basis for the VIO and its officials to stop, impound, or confiscate vehicles or to levy fines against motorists.

The order also extends to the Director of Road Transport, the Area Commander in Jabi, and the Team Leader in Jabi, with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) listed as a respondent

Additionally, the court issued a restraining order against the respondents, preventing them and their agents from impounding or confiscating vehicles or imposing fines, labeling such actions as wrongful, oppressive, and unlawful.

Justice Maha further granted a perpetual injunction to protect the rights of Nigerians, ensuring their freedom of movement, presumption of innocence, and right to own property without lawful justification.

This landmark ruling is expected to have significant implications for traffic enforcement practices and motorists’ rights in Nigeria.

Celebs

Falana denies demanding ₦10m from Bobrisky for Presidential Pardon

Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana has dismissed the allegation that Idris Okuneye aka Bobrisky while serving his six-month jail sentence from a purported private apartment reached out to him to seek a presidential pardon.

In a recent viral video, Martins Otse aka VeryDarkMan, claimed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) dropped the money laundering charges against the popular cross-dresser after receiving ₦15 million.

In a recorded conversation Otse played online, a voice believed to be Bobrisky’s was heard saying Falana and his son, Folarin Falana aka Falz, tried to get him a presidential pardon in exchange for ₦10,000,000.

While releasing the audio conversation aimed at exposing the alleged corruption involving Bobrisky and officials of the EFCC and the Nigeria Correctional Service, Otse said the Falanas would lose the respect he has for them if the cross-dresser’s claims about them were true.

In response to the allegation, the lawyer while speaking on Channels TV on Thursday, October 3, 2024, debunked the claim, saying he has never met Bobrisky.

“Bobrisky never spoke to me. I have never met him. I do not know him from Adam. He allegedly spoke to my son, Folarin (Falz),” he said.

Contrary to the presidential pardon claim, Falana said the cross-dresser approached Falz his son on May 4, requesting for ₦3 million to be placed in a special part of the prison.

“My son said this guy (Bobrisky) was appealing to people for assistance and called my son on May 4 or thereabout this year and said can you give me ₦3 million to be placed in a special part of the prison — we call it VIP section.

“And my son said, ‘are you calling me under the authorization of the superintendent of prisons?’ He said no. Then Falz said ‘don’t call me again. I’m unable to assist you to bribe the prison authorities. And be very careful, since you are already in jail for an offence. Please, if you are going to call me next time, you either do it through the superintendent, or you write a letter endorsed by the prison authorities.” the Lagos lawyer said.

Falana emphasized that his son has never negotiated fees on behalf of anybody.

Having threatened to institute legal action against Otse, the human rights lawyer described his action as infantile radicalism, saying he would make him a deterrent to other social media users who use their platforms to defame people.

Meanwhile, the EFCC’s head of the prosecution team, Bilikisu Bala, has denied the bribery allegation against the commission.

While appearing before the House of Reps committee investigating the matter, Bala said the anti-corruption agency legally dropped the money laundering charges against the controversial cross-dresser because the EFCC could not sustain the charges.