Headlines
Bandits Asked for Forgiveness for Abducting Kajuru Emir
A member of the royal house in Kajuru, who does not want his identity disclosed, has narrated the encounter with the bandits who abducted Alhaji Alhassan Adamu, the emir, on Sunday.
Armed men whisked away the emir and 13 other family members from his private residence on Sunday.
However, he was released on Monday while other captives were held.
The source, who was among those who picked up the emir, said the bandits asked for forgiveness before handing over the 85-year-old monarch to relatives and members of the emirate council.
The source, who was one of those who received the Sarkin Kajuru, said the bandits had called them through the emir’s phone number shortly after Asr (sunset prayer) and asked them to prepare to receive him.
He said on getting to the location, near Gengere community, three of the bandits; heavily armed and in military uniform, apologised for abducting the emir and sought forgiveness from him.
“We couldn’t believe it. We stood there looking at them while they apologised, saying they had not felt at ease since they abducted him. They told us to go with him while negotiations for the other 13 people will continue tomorrow (Tuesday),” he said.
Meanwhile, residents took to the streets on Monday to jubilate over the release of the Sarkin Kajuru.
Daily Trust gathered that no ransom was paid for the release of the 85-year-old second-class emir who ascended the throne as Sarkin Kajuru in 1978.
At 5:25pm when news filtered of the emir’s release, residents trooped to his residence in jubilation as many tried to get a glimpse of him.
The Galadima of Kajuru Emirate Council and one of the five king makers, Dahiru Abubakar, confirmed that the emir had returned home safely and was in good health.
Another member of the emirate council told our correspondent that no ransom was paid for the emir’s freedom, adding that in the middle of negotiations, the bandits had asked them to prepare to pick-up the emir at an undisclosed location.
“A few minutes later, they called us again and asked us to go and pick him up towards Kajuru Castle. We went with a vehicle and some motorcycles and found him close to a village called Gengere, near Kajuru Castle,” he said.
Daily Trust reports that the bandits had earlier demanded N200m for the release of the emir and others.
Daily Trust
The Presidency has dismissed claims that Vice President Kashim Shettima’s recent comments were directed at the political situation in Rivers State or President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s constitutional decisions on the matter.
In a statement on Friday by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications (Office of the Vice President), Stanley Nkwocha, the Presidency described the reports as a “gross misrepresentation.”
The statement clarified that Vice President Shettima’s remarks at the public presentation of a book by former Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN), were misconstrued by some online platforms and individuals.
“These reports have distorted the Vice President’s comments in pursuit of a mischievous agenda,” it stated.
“They twisted his account of how the administration of former President Jonathan considered removing him as Borno Governor during the insurgency to falsely link it with current events in Rivers State.”
The Vice President, who spoke at the launch of OPL 245: The Inside Story of the $1.3 Billion Oil Block in Abuja on Thursday, was said to have referenced the past solely to commend Adoke’s professionalism while in office, and to reflect on Nigeria’s constitutional evolution regarding federal and state relations.
“For the avoidance of doubt, President Tinubu did not remove Governor Fubara from office. The constitutional measure implemented was a suspension, not an outright removal.
“This action was taken in response to the grave political crisis in Rivers State at the time, with the governor facing a looming impeachment and the State Assembly complex under demolition,” Nkwocha clarified.
The Presidency insisted that the action taken by President Tinubu in declaring a state of emergency and suspending the Governor was fully in line with Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which authorises such measures when there is a breakdown of public order requiring extraordinary intervention.
According to the statement, the President’s proclamation invoking Section 305(2) was subsequently ratified by an overwhelming bipartisan majority in the National Assembly, confirming the legitimacy and constitutional propriety of the decision.
“The action of President Tinubu in suspending Mr. Fubara and others from exercising the functions of office averted the governor’s outright removal. To conflate suspension with removal is misleading,” the statement further noted.
Nkwocha also stressed that Vice President Shettima’s comments were delivered extemporaneously and intended to underline the importance of public accountability and historical documentation.
He referenced the Vice President’s mention of past public servants, including Adoke and former Speaker Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, to illustrate principled leadership.
“His remarks were not in any way a criticism of President Tinubu’s actions, which the Vice President and the entire administration fully support and stand by without reservation,” the spokesman stated.
The Vice President, the statement added, remains in “loyal concert” with President Tinubu and is committed to implementing all constitutional measures necessary to safeguard democracy and uphold order across the country.
Concluding, the Presidency called on media organisations and political actors to desist from misrepresenting public remarks for sensational or partisan purposes.
“We urge media organisations and political actors to desist from the destructive practice of wrenching statements from context in order to fabricate nonexistent conflicts,” Nkwocha said.
Headlines
Akpabio Relieves Natasha of Committee Chairmanship Position, Appoints Akwa Ibom Senator As Replacement
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has replaced suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, as the Chairman, Senate Committee on Diaspora/Non-Governmental Organisations.
In her place, Akpabio named Senator Bassey Aniekun Etim (Akwa Ibom -East).
The Senate President, who made the announcement on the floor in Abuja on Thursday, did not give any reasons.
The committee position had remained vacant since March when the Senate suspended the Kogi-Central Senatorial District lawmaker for six months for flouting the Senate’s rule on the seating arrangement and seat allocation.
The suspended lawmaker, at a point, chaired the Senate Committee on Local Content before Akpabio reassigned her to the Committee on Diaspora/NGO, shortly before she ran into trouble with the Senate over her conduct on seat allocation.
The Supreme Court has affirmed the 2024 governorship election victory of Governor Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), dismissing the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Asuerinme Ighodalo.
In a unanimous decision by a five-member panel led by Justice Mohammed Garba, the apex court ruled that the appeal lacked merit. It upheld the earlier judgments of the Court of Appeal and the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which had both declared Okpebholo the validly elected governor.
