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Super Eagles Star, Wilfred Ndidi Storms Ikeja Cantonment As Brig. Saraso Fulfils Promise to Little Wonders FC
The Brigade Commander of the Nigerian Army 9 Brigade Command, Maryland, Ikeja, Brig. Gen. M. L. D. Saraso has yet again fulfilled his promise to support the Little Wonders FC, the football team resident in the cantonment with a visit of Super Eagles and Leicester City midfielder, Wilfred Ndidi. This is in line with his decision to spur Little Wonders to success as they prepare to play in the Lagos State League. The team qualified for the league for the first time since its inception in 2002.
The visit of the Nigerian international, Wilfred Ndidi came alongside a friendly match of Little Wonders FC against Bomb Blast FC at the Lt. Gen. T. Y. Buratai sports complex inside the army cantonment. The game was an explosive match and is second in series lined up for the team by Brig. Gen. M. L. D. Saraso. It ended in a 2-2 draw with Wilfred Ndidi scoring the second goal for Little Wonders FC. The other goals were scored by Stanley Joseph of Little Wonders and the duo of Bulus Zaina and Nurudeen Akanbi of Bomb Blast FC.
Speaking with Oki Samson of Trek Africa Newspaper and other Pressmen on the reason for the novelty match, Brig. Gen. M. Saraso noted: ‘The essence of organizing this friendly novelty match is just to encourage the youths in the barracks. When the Little Wonders FC that have been grooming themselves for years on this pitch, Ndidi was one of them until he left for Europe to play professionally. They for the very first time as a team qualified to play in the Lagos State League. When they came to me with this good news, I promised that I am going to encourage them to go higher.
The least I can do is to get their contemporaries, people who started like them with humble beginnings and same background to come and identify with them, play with them, gist with them, get very good advice from them so that they can be encouraged and developed in order to realize their full potentials.’
‘We started this when I first brought in Moses Simon who plays with Nantes FC. He is also a barracks boy who started in Kaduna. His father is a soldier who served till he retired. I said it will not be out of place to get someone from this barracks from this same pitch. I found him and he obliged. I am sure it will impact youths playing on the pitch and those sitting on the pavilion by his presence and will likely wait to put in more determination to their acts.’
‘I want to encourage the youths to remain disciplined as the barracks is founded on discipline. There should be good ambassadors of the barracks, shun crimes and vices’, the Brigade Commander stated.
The special guest of honour at the football match, Wilfred Ndidi who also emerged from the barracks in Maryland, Lagos was elated to be invited to part of the success story. He said: ‘This is a great privilege for me to be back home. Special thanks to Brig. Gen. Saraso for inviting me. I am really honoured. I am really happy to see everyone. I am here to encourage these players and I believe my presence will make them feel that way. I am blessed to have come out of this place to let them know I came from the roots. I will advise the youths that they have the talent and quality, they should showcase it.’
On the need for youths to embrace education, the Leicester City FC star remarked: ‘On the other hand, they have to further their education which is a plus for you. It is a reality that you can be in school and play football so that you can have something to fall back on if football doesn’t work out.’
‘I didn’t think I would get to the top growing up in the barracks. I just wanted to play football. It was just the grace of God and the opportunity came and I took it. I am really pleased. I am really blessed. I am really proud of myself’, Ndidi concluded.
At the event, Wilfred Ndidi gave N500,000 each to Little Wonders FC, Bomb Blast FC, and widows in the cantonment.
Dignitaries at the novelty match are; Base Commander, 651 Base Services Group, Ikeja, Air Commodore Kolade Adeniran Ademuwagun; Director, Institute of Army Education, Nigerian Army Cantonment Ikeja, Brig. Gen. M.M Kini; ; Director, Nigerian Army Archives, Ikeja Military Cantonment, Lagos, Brig. Gen. M.A. Uba; CEO Achieving Greatness, Mr. Emmanuel Ojibo; Chief of Staff, 9 Brigade, Nigerian Army Cantonment Ikeja, Col. I.O. Amah; CEO of Teeded Nig. LTD, Mr. Tunji Aded Adeyankinnu; CEO, Emperor Resources Ltd, Mr. Femi Shadamoro among others personalities.
The Edo Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Abuja, on Wednesday, affirmed Senator Monday Okpebholo as the governor.
A three-member panel headed by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, dismissed the petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Asue Ighodalo, against the outcome of the September 21, 2024, governorship election.
In its judgment, the panel ruled that the petitioners failed to call competent witnesses to prove the allegations of non-compliance with the Electoral Act.
In the lead judgment read by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, the Tribunal said non-compliance must be proven convincingly. It noted that the failure of the petitioners to call polling unit officers, presiding officers or even voters during the election proved fatal to their petition.
The Tribunal stated that most of the 19 witnesses called by the PDP merely gave hearsay evidence during the proceedings.
Justice Kpochi faulted what he termed as the PDP’s reliance on Section 137 of the Electoral Act to dump documents on the Tribunal. The Tribunal noted that it’s not for it to scrutinise documents tendered by the petitioners.
The Edo Tribunal further said the BVAS machines tendered by the petitioners remain dormant, as it’s not the duty of the Tribunal to access the data in the machines.
In the unanimous decision, the Tribunal thereby restated that to prove overvoting as alleged by Ighodalo and the PDP, there’s a need to tender the voters register, BVAS machines and polling unit results or Forms EC8A.
Following that, the Tribunal dismissed the petition of Asue Ighodalo, candidate of PDP for lacking merit.
INEC had declared that Okpebholo of the APC secured 291,667 votes to defeat Ighodalo who got 247,655 votes. PDP approached the Tribunal to challenge the results from 765 polling units of the 4,519 units in Edo State.
The PDP candidate faulted the outcome of the election on the grounds of non-compliance with the Electoral Act and the failure of Monday Okphebholo to secure a majority of the lawful votes cast. Putting that in context, the PDP governorship candidate alleged improper computation of votes by INEC, non-serialisation of electoral materials and over-voting.
The Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, sitting in Abuja, has
scheduled Wednesday, April 2, 2025, to deliver its judgment on the petition filed by Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) challenging the victory of Governor Monday Okpebholo in the September 21, 2024, gubernatorial election.
A three-member panel, led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, reserved judgment on March 3 after parties in the suit concluded their final arguments.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had on September 22 declared Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the election with 291,667 votes, defeating Ighodalo, who polled 247,274 votes, and Labour Party’s Olumide Akpata, who garnered 22,763 votes.
Dissatisfied with the outcome, the PDP and its candidate approached the tribunal, alleging widespread irregularities, including
over-voting, ballot serialisation issues, errors in collation, and miscalculations in results.
In the suit marked EPT/ED/GOV/02/2024,
Ighodalo presented a senior technical officer from INEC’s ICT department as a witness, who tendered 154 BVAS machines as evidence to substantiate claims of
over-voting.
Adopting his final address, Ighodalo further alleged that results from 765 polling units were manipulated at the collation centers and that errors in computation affected the final outcome.
He urged the tribunal to nullify the Certificate of Return issued to Okpebholo and declare him the rightful winner of the election.
A Federal High Court in Port Harcourt has summoned President Bola Tinubu and Rivers State Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, over the emergency rule declaration in the oil-rich State.
The summons follows a lawsuit filed by the Incorporated Trustees of Peoples Life Improvement Foundation, alongside individuals Precious Elekima and Inanna Wright Harry, challenging the legality of the emergency rule imposed on the state.
Also listed as defendants in the suit are Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas, the National Assembly, Attorney General of the Federation Lateef Fagbemi, the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission, and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
President Tinubu, on March 18, 2025, declared a state of emergency in Rivers, suspending both the executive and legislative arms of government and appointing retired naval officer Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas as administrator.
In suit number FHC/PH/CS/45/2025, the plaintiffs are seeking judicial interpretation on whether the emergency declaration aligns with constitutional provisions, arguing that it is unconstitutional, null, and void.
They contend that it violates Article 13 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement Act) and Section 305(3)(b) of the Nigerian Constitution, which outlines the conditions under which a state of emergency can be declared.
The plaintiffs have urged the court to restrain the Rivers State Administrator from appointing caretaker committees for the 23 local government councils, forming a state executive council, or making financial transactions from the state treasury.
Additionally, they are seeking an order for the immediate reinstatement of the suspended executive and legislative arms of government in the state.
Meanwhile, the court has given the defendants 30 days to respond to the summons.
