Headlines
Credit Switch Boss’ Widow Narrates How Cook Killed Husband
The wife of the late Chairman of Credit Switch Technology, Chief Ope Bademosi, who was murdered at his Parkview Estate residence in the Ikoyi area of Lagos State, on Tuesday narrated to a Lagos State High Court in Igbosere how her husband was allegedly murdered by their 22-year-old Togolese cook, Sunday Anani.
The widow, Ebunoluwa , told the court that she had gone to Polaris Bank at the Falomo area to transfer money to Dubai and China when the deceased angrily called her, asking why the defendant was knocking at his room’s door.
She added that by the time she came back, she saw blood flowing from her husband’s room.
Anani was alleged by the police to have stabbed his boss with a knife on Wednesday, October 31, 2018, three days after he was employed.
It was alleged that the suspect fled the home with some valuables belonging to his boss after committing the crime.
Anani was arrested by the Ondo State Police Command around 9.30am on November 2, 2018, in the Yaba area of Ondo town.
The suspect, who denied involvement in the murder, claimed that he and the victim were attacked by robbers, who demanded money from his boss.
He claimed that when the assailants were not satisfied with what they got, they killed the Credit Switch boss.
The cook is facing two counts of murder and armed robbery preferred against him by the Lagos State Government.
Ebunoluwa, at Tuesday’s proceedings, while being led in evidence by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Ms Titilayo Shitta-Bey, told the court that before she left for the bank, she had told the defendant that her husband was sleeping and that he should not be disturbed.
She said, “I left the bank and drove through Bourdillon and went home; the security man opened the gate and I drove in and went through the kitchen’s door to gain access into the building, but it was locked. I knocked several times, calling on the defendant, but he didn’t come to open the door.
“While waiting, I got a call from my sister in Ibadan and we spoke for about six minutes. I called my husband but the phone was picked and nobody responded. I called him twice and the same thing happened; so, I went downstairs and decided to pass through the front door, thinking that if I got there, there would be somebody at the door, but by the time I got to the front door, it was left ajar.
“I entered the apartment and saw blood flowing out from my husband’s bedroom. I couldn’t enter the bedroom, but the door was a bit opened and I saw his body lying on the floor, so I ran out of the building and started screaming and calling neighbours for help.”
The widow added that she inquired the whereabouts of the cook from the security man, who told her that the defendant informed him that he was sent on an errand.
She added that she passed out when she was informed by her neighbours, who went into the bedroom, that her husband was dead.
Ebunoluwa added that 10 days after the incident, she discovered that her husband’s five wristwatches and phone had been stolen by the defendant.
The presiding judge, Justice Mobolanle Okikiolu-Ighile, adjourned the case till June 11 for the continuation of trial.
Earlier the defendant’s counsel and Director of the Office of the Public Defender, Olayinka Adeyemi, informed the court that they would be opting for a plea bargain.
The Punch
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.
