Headlines
False Accusation: Activist Bags Seven Years Jail Term
A Nigerian activist has been jailed for seven years for falsely accusing a public official of corruption.
Ibrahim Wala, popularly called I G Wala, was jailed on Wednesday by Justice Yusuf Halilu of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
He was found guilty of falsely accusing the head of a pilgrim commission of corruption and leading a protest against the official.
Justice Halilu found Mr Wala guilty on three of the four charges filed against him by the Inspector General of Police and the Attorney General of the Federation.
The three charges for which he was found guilty include unlawful assembly, public incitement and criminal defamation of character.
The judge, however, dismissed the charge of criminal intimidation for lack of merit.
The trial
The activist was arraigned following a petition filed by the chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Abdullahi Mukhtar.
In the petition, Mr Mukhtar alleged that Mr Wala used his Facebook page to incite the public against him and defame his integrity and that of the commission he heads.
The judge said the prosecution “has been able to establish the offence of making an unlawful assembly.”
He, therefore, sentenced him to seven years in Prison for the offence.
The judge also found Mr Wala guilty of public incitement, an offence contrary to section 114 of the penal code which deals with the breach of public peace.
He sentenced him to three years in prison for the offence.
Mr Yusuf also agreed with the prosecution that Mr Wala criminally defamed Mr Mukhtar after he alleged that the NAHCON boss “made N3 billion for himself” from the 2017 Hajj operations.
The judge said Mr Wala wrote on his Facebook page that he has documents to prove the allegation.
He, however, said the activist failed to provide the document to prove his claims in court.
“Where is the document proving N3 billion made by chairman hajj commission?
“Why has the accused person failed to tender such document now that he has been dragged before a court of law?” the judge said.
He said by his inability to provide relevant documents to prove his ‘huge allegations’, Mr Wala “has made the case of the prosecution less cumbersome”.
The judge sentenced him to two years in prison for criminal defamation.
The judge also said all the sentences would be served concurrently; meaning the convict would serve seven years in jail unless the ruling is upturned by an appeal court.
Mr Wala is to serve the sentence in Suleja prison.
Mr Wala has led protests against issues like corruption and human rights violations in several parts of the country.
Premium Times
The Libyan Football Federation (LFF) has addressed the circumstances behind the extended delay at Al Abraq International Airport, where the Super Eagles of Nigeria were held hostage for over 15 hours, and attributed the situation to routine air traffic and logistical challenges rather than deliberate foul play.
In a statement on Monday via X, the LFF sought to clarify the events, emphasising that the diversion of the Nigerian team’s flight was not intended as a hostile act.
“We firmly reject any claims that suggest foul play or sabotage in this situation,” the LFF said.
Meanwhile, in the most recent development, Super Eagles players and officials have been reportedly set to depart from Libya.
This was disclosed by a sports enthusiast, identified as Pooja Media, via his X handle on Monday, according to The Punch report.
He wrote, “Super Eagles players and all officials are boarding to fly out of Libya to Nigeria. Thank God.”
Confirming this, a player, Bruno Onyemaechi, wrote, “Me and Libya, I don wash my hands commot. Nothing concerns me and una again. Thank God I’m going back.”
The team, held at an abandoned airport for over 15 hours, has resolved not to play the match, citing safety concerns.
Nigeria Football Federation director of communications, Ademola Olajire, confirmed that the team would fly back home.
“Players have resolved not to play the match any longer as NFF officials are making plans to fly the team back home,” Olajire stated.
Four Israeli soldiers have been killed and more than 60 people injured in a Hezbollah drone attack on an army base in central-northern Israel, according to first responders and the Israeli military.
The incident late Sunday local time is one of the bloodiest attacks on Israel since the beginning of the war last October.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said an unmanned aerial vehicle, or UAV, launched by Hezbollah hit an army base adjacent to Binyamina, a town north of Tel Aviv that lies some 40 miles from the Lebanese border.
The four killed soldiers were all 19 years old and in infantry training at the base, the IDF said, adding that eight other soldiers were severely injured.
According to Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency service, a total of 61 people were wounded in the attack, with dozens still hospitalized.
The news comes after Hezbollah said Sunday it had fired a swarm of attack drones on an Israeli infantry training camp in Binyamina.
The Lebanon-based militant group said the attack was in response to deadly Israeli strikes in Lebanon Thursday.
Hezbollah said it had targeted the Golani Brigade, an infantry unit of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) that has been deployed in southern Lebanon. The claim of responsibility for the attack came shortly after the militant group released an audio message from its slain leader Hassan Nasrallah calling on its members to “defend your people, your family, your nation, your values and your dignity.”
Earlier on Sunday, the IDF said it had intercepted a Lebanon-launched UAV without specifying where. It was not immediately clear whether this was the same incident that led to the injuries.
Israeli air defence systems tend to be very reliable, but on Sunday, there were no reports of alerts in the Binyamina area at the time of the attack, raising questions of how the drone was able to penetrate so deep into the Israeli territory without being spotted.
Hezbollah said it had fired dozens of rockets toward the northern Israeli towns of Nahariya and Acre to engage Israel’s air defense systems, while simultaneously launching the drone swarm.
“These drones broke through the Israel defense radars without detection and reached its target at the training camp of the elite Golani Brigade in Binyamina,” Hezbollah said.
The IDF’s top spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said the military would investigate how the drone got through without raising an alarm at the base.
“We will learn from and investigate the incident,” he said in a video statement from the base. “The threat of UAVs is a threat we are dealing with since the beginning of the war. We need an improvement to our defense,” he added.
Source: CNN
The Court of Appeal has upheld the judgment of the Federal High Court, affirming Martins Amaehwule as the rightful Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
Recall that the Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara, had challenged the judgement of Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court Abuja, which affirmed Amaehwule’s leadership.
This ruling is a victory for the camp of former Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike, who has been at odds with Governor Fubara.
Governor Fubara has also been ordered to re-present the 2024 budget to the Amaehwule-led House of Assembly.
