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Contempt: Court Vacates Order Sentencing Fidelity Bank MD, Secretary to Six Weeks in Prison

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A Chief Magistrate Court sitting in Ikeja , Lagos has vacated its ruling that convicted and sentenced the Managing Director and Company Secretary of Fidelity Bank Plc to six weeks in prison or a fine of Four Hundred Thousand Naira respectively for contempt.
The Chief Magistrate, Mr. Lateef Owolabi vacated the order in a Suit No: MIK/4726/22 between Justin Ahmed, (judgement creditor),  Prince Enabulele Osazee, (judgement debtor) and Fidelity Bank Plc, (1st Garnishee/Applicant).
The court in an earlier ruling delivered on February 6, 2023,  held that the Managing Director of Fidelity Bank, Nneka Chinwe Onyeali-Ikpe and the Company Secretary, Mrs. Unuigboje Ezinwa should be committed to six weeks’ imprisonment over alleged disobedience of a garnishee order of the court restraining the bank from allowing a judgement debtor access to his account.
However, at the resumed proceedings on the matter on Feb 15, 2023, the court vacated the committal order on the premise of facts presented before the court that the alleged acts of contempt were not deliberate but arose out of communication gap between the said parties and the erstwhile counsel. The court in its ruling also stated that the error or sin of the counsel should not be visited on a party or litigants. The court also noted that the monies which was the subject matter and fulcrum of the contempt proceedings has since been paid to the judgment creditor.
“From the materials presented before this court by the applicant, this application falls within the classic rule where the error or sin of the counsel should not be visited on a party or litigants. Moreover, the applicant has averred that the monies subject matter, the fulcrum of the contempt proceedings had since been paid to the judgment creditor. Having fully discharged this payment to the satisfaction of the judgment creditor, this court should not be seen to cry more than the bereaved”, Mr Lateef Owolabi held.
 The solicitor to the bank explained that Fidelity Bank, being a law abiding institution that will never or under any circumstance, directly or indirectly denigrate the integrity of the nation’s judiciary, had upon receipt of the garnishee order nisi on December 22, 2022, conducted a search immediately, and the result showed several accounts bearing similar names to the Judgment Debtor’s (Prince Enabulele Osazee). To prevent the bank from erroneously restricting the wrong account, the bank filed an affidavit requesting additional account details to enable it ascertain the correct account(s) to restrict.
He further stated that, on January 16, 2023, the bank received the Judgment Creditor’s affidavit showing the account number of the Judgment Debtor. Armed with the correct account number, the bank immediately identified and placed a lien on the Judgment Debtor’s account. Unfortunately, during the intervening period, the judgement debtor had carried on depositing and withdrawing from his account.
In vacating the order on February 15, 2023, the Chief Magistrate held that based on the materials before the court, the applicant has been able to tether the law to the facts to warrant the grant of the relief sought on their own strength and not based on lack of opposition.
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Tinubu Will Not Survive Second Term in Office If He Wins – Primate Ayodele

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Controversial cleric, founder and leader of the INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele, has said that President Bola Tinubu is sick and will not be able to complete a second term if he wins the 2027 presidential election.

In a video posted on Tuesday, Mr Ayodele predicted that Mr Tinubu might end up like ex-President Musa Yar’Adua, who died in office, if he wins re-election in 2027.

“If Tinubu wins the second time, he will not finish it. I stand by my word, he will not finish it. What happened to Yar’Adua or whatever that will make him not to finish it that will lead to emergency government, make Shettima take over from him might happen,” Mr Ayodele said. “Tinubu will not finish his second term, thus says the Lord of hosts.”

Mr Ayodele claimed he was denied access to Tinubu by those Mr Tinubu surrounded himself with, those who do not want him to hear the truth.

“People surrounding Tinubu don’t want him to hear the truth. They don’t want him to hear people like us. I don’t say prophets should not go again. Let them bring one billion alfas. It is a matter of time. You will all see it. If Tinubu wins a second term, he will not finish it. It is not a curse,” the INRI spiritual leader declared.

The cleric called on the president’s family to rally prayers and not let Mr Tinubu die.

“You are not seeing what I am seeing. Tinubu is not OK. He needs prayers. Wife, children of Tinubu, wake up. Seyi! Help Tinubu. Don’t let your father die,” Mr Ayodele said.

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Man Accuses Girlfriend of HIV Infection, Beats Her to Death

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A 30-year-old man identified as Emmanuel Okpara has been arrested in Enugu over the alleged murder of his girlfriend, Chinyere.

The suspect, of Olympic Layout, One-Day, Enugu, allegedly beat his girlfriend to death over argument of who between them infected the other with HIV.

Okpara had allegedly after the murder hidden the remains of the lady in his toilet.

However, his neighbours forced the door to his apartment open and discovered the remains and subsequently alerted the police.

The spokesperson for Enugu Command, SP Daniel Ndukwe, confirmed the incident in a statement on Tuesday.

Ndukwe explained that Chinyere’s surname, age and address had yet to be established.

He stated that the suspect was rescued from an angry mob and detained by police operatives attached to Awkunanaw Division at about 6:30pm on September 21.

He added that “the rescue followed information reaching the police that Okpara had allegedly murdered his girlfriend.

“Preliminary investigation indicates that the suspect allegedly killed the victim on September 19, wrapped her remains in a nylon and locked them inside the toilet of his apartment.

“The offensive odour of the decomposing body subsequently attracted neighbours, who forced the door open and apprehended him before the arrival of the police.

“The remains were evacuated to a mortuary for preservation and autopsy, while efforts are ongoing to trace and notify her relatives,” the statement added.

It further stated that during preliminary interrogation, the suspect confessed to the crime.

Ndukwe explained that the suspect confessed that the incident followed an argument between him and the deceased over allegations of who infected the other with HIV.

He further stated that during the argument, Okpara hit the deceased on the head with a pestle, resulting in her death.

He was alleged to have subsequently wrapped and dumped her remains inside his toilet.

According to Ndukwe, the Commissioner of Police, Mr Mamman Giwa, has ordered the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) to conduct a discreet and thorough investigation to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident.

The commissioner directed the SCID to ensure that the suspect was arraigned upon the conclusion of investigations.

He cautioned the public, particularly unsuspecting young women, to inform trusted relatives or friends about their whereabouts and exercise caution about whom they visit or spend time with.

NAN

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Workers Write Tinubu, Demand N500/litre Fuel or N500k Minimum Wage

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Civil servants under the aegis of Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council, (JNPSNC) trade union side, have written to President Bola Tinubu, seeking an immediate intervention to tackle the worsening economic hardship facing workers.

In a letter addressed to the President, the workers urged the Federal Government to stabilise the price of petrol at N500 per litre, approve an immediate Wage Award and upwardly review salaries and allowances across the public service.

The workers equally demanded the immediate constitution of a committee to negotiate a new National Minimum Wage ahead of January 2027.

According to the workers, the recent increase in fuel prices to N1,430 per litre and above in some locations had further worsened the cost-of-living crisis.

They gave the Federal government until Wednesday, September 30, 2026, to take action on their demands, warning that the prevailing hardship was creating palpable tension among workers and Nigerians.

The workers added that the removal of fuel subsidy three years ago had triggered an astronomical increase in fuel prices and produced multiplier effects on the prices of essential commodities across the economy.

According to the JNPSNC, the situation had made life increasingly unbearable for workers, adding that the provision of food palliatives was not a sustainable solution to the economic crisis.

“It has dawned on Nigerian workers that the provision of palliatives such as bags of rice, Indomie, vegetable oil, garri, among other edible foods, is as good as weaponising Nigerians with poverty because it is a Pyrrhic intervention which is unsustainable, inaccessible to the majority of Nigeria’s population and also limited to political cronies,” the workers said.

They further stressed that a more sustainable intervention would be to reduce the cost of fuel to N500 per litre, stating that the measure would have a multiplier effect across the economy.

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