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Moghalu Apologises for Hailing Yakubu Gowon
Former Presidential candidate of the Young Progressive Party (YPP), Prof. Kingsley Moghalu, has apologised to Ndigbo and other Nigerians for his description of Yakubu Gowon as a humane personality. Moghalu spoke during the second Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu Memorial Lecture at the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University (COOU), Igbariam, Anambra State.
Also, wife of the ex-Biafran warlord, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, is not pleased with Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State who was absent at the lecture. Though the governor was represented by his deputy, Dr. Nkem Okeke. She told Obiano that there was no evil spirit at the venue to warrant his absence at his late benefactor’s memorial.
The widow also bemoaned “the fast eroding legacies her late husband left in the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). ”The lecture under the chairmanship of former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, was themed ‘Ndigbo In The Contemporary Nigerian Politics’. Gowon is believed by many, especially the Igbo, as the architect of the civil war between 1967 and 1970, which claimed the lives of about three million Igbo men, women and children.
Moghalu said, “Perhaps, because of my use of the word ‘humane’ in describing Gen. Gowon from my personal knowledge of him, I was heavily criticised by hundreds of Twitter users, mainly but not exclusively Igbo who felt I was wrongly celebrating a leader they hold responsible for the death of millions of Igbo people during the civil war.
“There is no more appropriate place and occasion than this lecture to address the misconception that I was insensitive to the death of our family members, young and old, during the terrible civil war.
“This was far from my intention because in my message, I urged Gowon to step forward and play a leadership role in bringing the painful issue of the civil war and its lessons to closure, so that Nigeria can heal.”
According to the former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), despite the no-victor-no-vanquished declarationby Gowon at the end of the war, Igbo people have remained heavily discriminated against in Nigeria in many ways, in particular, in the political terrain in which there appears to be an unspoken conspiracy to prevent a person of Igbo ethnic nationality from becoming president of Nigeria.”
On the controversial tweet, Moghalu said: “In the first place, I am deeply sorry, and apologise, to everyone whose sensibility I offended, if I mistakenly conveyed the impression that I, as an Igbo man, was uncaring about the millions of people, mostly Igbo, that perished in the war.”He recalled the mass killing of Igbo people in 1966, which led to the war, adding that there would not have been clamour for Biafra if there were no counter-coup or failure of the Aburi Accord.
The Super Eagles of Nigeria defeated Egypt 4-2 on penalties to win the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 third-place playoff on Saturday.
Goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali proved the hero of the night with two crucial saves during the shootout, including one from Egyptian star Mohamed Salah.
Ademola Lookman then calmly converted the decisive penalty to secure the bronze medal —Nigeria’s ninth third-place finish in AFCON history.
With neither side able to break the deadlock in a cagey second half, the game ended 0-0, sending the contest directly to penalties.
Despite Fisayo Dele-Bashiru missing Nigeria’s first kick, Nwabali’s immediate saved from Egypt’s first two attempts shifted the momentum.
The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal of the son of a former Jigawa State governor, challenging the decision of the trial court, which convicted him for failing to declare $40,000 at Kano airport.
In a unanimous decision, the apex court panel dismissed the appeal of Aminu Sule Lamido, the son of former governor Sule Lamido, for lack of merit.
Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arrested Aminu on December 11, 2012, at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport while preparing to travel to Cairo, Egypt.
The prosecution said Aminu declared $10,000 to the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), but was found with an additional $40,000, which was not disclosed on his currency declaration form.
The EFCC charged him before the Federal High Court in Kano on a one-count offence of false declaration of foreign currency, contrary to provisions of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.
On July 12, 2015, the court convicted Aminu and ordered him to forfeit 25 per cent of the undeclared sum to the Federal government.
Dissatisfied with the ruling, Aminu approached the Court of Appeal in Kaduna to overturn the conviction and set aside the forfeiture order.
In a judgment delivered on December 7, 2015, however, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has ordered that the trial of former governor Lamido, his two sons, and others, over alleged N1.35billion fraud, should continue before the Federal High Court in Abuja.
A five-member panel of the apex court issued the directive in two unanimous judgments, in the two appeals filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The Supreme Court upheld the decision of the trial court, which dismissed the no-case submission filed by the Lamidos and held that the defendants had a case to answer.
Both appeals were against the July 25, 2023, judgments of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, which upheld the no-case submission made by Lamido and others and struck out the 37-count charge on which they were being prosecuted, on the grounds that the Federal High Court in Abuja lacked the jurisdiction to hear the case.
In the lead judgments of the Supreme Court, Justice Abubakar Umar set aside the July 25, 2023 judgments of the Court of Appeal and affirmed the earlier decision by Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which overruled the no-case submissions by Lamido and others and ordered them to enter their defence.
The EFCC, in the 37-count charge, among others, accused Lamido of abusing his position as a governor between 2007 and 2015, allegedly laundering sums of money received as kickbacks from companies that were awarded contracts by the Jigawa State Government under his leadership.
The other defendants charged alongside Lamido are his two sons – Aminu and Mustapha; Aminu Wada Abubakar and their companies – Bamaina Holdings Ltd and Speeds International Ltd.
