Headlines
Soldier Who Criticised Buhari, Buratai to Appear in Sokoto Court Today
The Nigerian Army has transferred a Lance Corporal, Idakpini Martins, from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja to Sokoto State to face a court-martial.
Mr Martins in a published video criticised the Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai’s handling of the Boko Haram crisis.
The soldier’s lawyer, Tope Akinyode, told PREMIUM TIMES about the transfer on Saturday.
A senior army officer who asked not to be named also confirmed the transfer saying the army did so because Mr Martins committed his ‘offence in Sokoto’.
The source said the soldier will likely face the court-martial on Monday.
The lance corporal was apprehended on June 20 following the video he released online condemning Mr Buratai and President Muhammadu Buhari over alleged failure to provide adequate resources to soldiers combating Boko Haram.
He was detained in Abuja and denied legal representation for a month until Mr Akinyode, a rights lawyer, approached a Federal High Court, Abuja to file a rights violation lawsuit.
On July 22, Justice A. I. Chikere granted Mr Martins access to his lawyer and relative. He said the Nigerian Army’s action is against the fundamental human rights of citizens.
Despite the court order, this newspaper reported that the army on several occasions refused to obey, hence, denying Mr Martins the right to see his lawyer and families.
On Saturday, Mr Akinyode told our correspondent that Mr Martins would be tried before a court-martial in Sokoto on Monday.
He alleged that the army “is forcing a lawyer from within the military on Lance Corporal Martins in a desperate attempt to jeopardize the case and wrongly convict the detained soldier.”
“Lance Corporal Martins has been brutalized and subjected to a great deal of dehumanizing treatment. He was also denied food and has therefore developed Ulcer,” he said.
Premium Times
The National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (NWC) has suspended the National Legal Adviser, Kamaldeen Ajibade; National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu; Deputy Legal Adviser, Okechukwu Osuoha; and National Organizing Secretary, Umaru Bature for one month.
The suspension comes on the heels of the judgement of the Federal High Court On Friday, which stopped the party’s planned national convention.
The National Publicity Secretary of the party, Debo Ologunagba, told journalists in Abuja on Saturday, that the decision followed an emergency meeting of the national working committee, which was held in Abuja.
President Donald Trump of the United States on Friday designated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC), in response to allegations of widespread persecution and genocide against Christians.
Writing on his Truth Social account, Trump stated that Christianity faces a serious threat in Nigeria.
The US leader also added Nigeria to a State Department watch list.
“Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter,” Trump wrote.
According to the US president, he was placing Nigeria, Africa’s top oil producer and most populous nation, on a “Countries of Particular Concern” list of nations the US deems to have engaged in religious freedom violations.
According to the State Department’s website, the list includes China, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia, and Pakistan, among others.
Trump said he had asked US Representatives Riley Moore and Tom Cole, as well as the House of Representatives Appropriations Committee, to look into the matter and report back to him.
A Federal High Court in Abuja has removed Hon. Abubakar Gummi from the House of Representatives after he left the Peoples Democratic Party for the All Progressives Congress.
The lawmaker represented the Gummi/Bukkuyum Federal Constituency in Zamfara State.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu delivered the ruling, holding that Gummi’s defection breached the Constitution.
The court said the seat does not belong to any politician but to the political party that sponsored the election.
According to the judgment, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, is barred from recognising Gummi “as a member representing Gummi/Bukkuyum Federal Constituency.”
The judge also instructed the Independent National Electoral Commission to “conduct a fresh election” for the vacant seat within 30 days.
The case was instituted by the PDP and its Zamfara chairman, who insisted that Gummi’s move to the APC had no legal justification. They argued that there was no division in the PDP to support his defection, as required by Section 68(1)(g) of the Constitution.
Gummi, through his counsel, claimed he left the PDP due to internal crises which he said made it “impossible” to serve his constituents effectively. The judge, however, dismissed his arguments and granted all the reliefs requested by the plaintiffs.
Justice Egwuatu, in a firm comment, warned politicians against what he described as reckless party hopping.
“Political prostitution must not be rewarded,” he declared, adding that lawmakers must not transfer votes won on one party’s platform to another party.
The court also ordered Gummi to refund all salaries and allowances received from October 30, 2024, until the date of judgment. He is also barred from earning any further benefits as a member of the House.
Additionally, the judge imposed a N500,000 cost against the defendants in favour of the PDP.
