July 21, 2022

[GIST] Nigerian Asset Management Corporation, AMCON Sues Interior Minister, Aregbesola’s Aide Over N167Million Debt

[GIST] Nigerian Asset Management Corporation, AMCON Sues Interior Minister, Aregbesola’s Aide Over N167Million Debt

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The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has filed a debt recovery suit against Ademola Adeyinka, the Senior Special Adviser to the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola.

According to a statement of claim supported with a statement on oath by AMCON’s supervisor, David George, and filed before a Federal High Court in Lagos by Oluwole Olukole, an Ibadan-based lawyer, Adeyinka allegedly owes N167,242,515.22, The Punch reports.

Rauf Aregbesola

AMCON is a corporation established by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria Act 2010 (as amended) and duly empowered for the purpose of acquiring eligible bank assets from Eligible Financial Institutions and efficiently resolving the Eligible Bank Assets.

Adeyinka was a banker with Intercontinental Bank Plc (acquired by Access Bank Plc) but is now a politician with residential addresses in Lagos, Osogbo and Abuja.

AMCON said the defendant at all material times was a customer of the erstwhile Intercontinental Bank Plc and operated accounts with the bank at their Plot 999C Danmole Street, Victoria Island branch in Lagos.

AMCON averred that the defendant sometime in 2008 applied for and was granted a credit facility for N50 million only to purchase shares of blue-chip companies quoted on the stock exchange acceptable to the bank.


It said that the facility was to be paid back within 270 days and repayment was to come from operational cash flow but not limited to the sale of the shares.
 
The claimant averred that it disbursed the funds under the facility and that the defendant utilised the facility by issuing cheques to various relevant parties to the transaction that were honoured by the bank.

“Upon the disbursement of the facility to the defendant, the defendant rather than honour the express terms of the facilities failed and /or refused to repay the debt and kept accumulating interest,” it said.
 
AMCON further stated that sometime in 2011, some staff members of Intercontinental Bank loyal to the senior management of the bank tried to delete and in fact deleted some computer files belonging to some customers, including that of the defendant.

Efforts to have the files of the defendant totally gone proved futile as the bank had backup files to reprint the documents they tried to delete, and retrieve the same.
 
“The effect of this act of sabotage was to render some files and documents of the defendant, including the offer letter illegible and not very clear,” AMCON said.


The claimant pleaded that when the facility of the defendant expired, it was not repaid by him and that it degenerated to a non-performing loan of N69,280,723.57.

It said the continuous refusal of the defendant to liquidate his indebtedness to the bank occasioned great hardship for the bank which led to AMCON taking over the non-performing facility from Intercontinental Bank Plc.

Pursuant to its powers under the AMCON Act 2010 (as amended), the claimant said it purchased the defendant’s outstanding indebtedness arising from the facility granted her by Intercontinental Bank Plc.

Consequently, all rights including but not limited to the right to institute an action in respect of any indebtedness were assigned to the claimant by the bank.

The claimant contended that the defendant has failed and/ or refused to settle the outstanding indebtedness to date despite repeated demands.

It added that the indebtedness has continued to grow at an interest rate of 15% per annum and would continue to grow until full liquidation of the outstanding indebtedness.
The claimant said it has incurred various substantial costs in its efforts to recover the indebtedness of the defendant by engagement and/or payment of various professional services/fees including but not limited to the institution of this action.

The claimant stated that the defendant has numerous accounts with other banks where he has money standing to his credit and that he also has millions of shares standing to his credit at the Central Securities Clearing System Plc.

The claimant’s claims against the defendant are for the payment of the sum of N167,242,515.22 being the outstanding balance as of 29th September 2020 of the credit facility granted by Intercontinental Bank Plc to the defendant (which debt was purchased by the Claimant) but which the defendant has refused to pay despite repeated demands.

Meanwhile, the court has adjourned till after vacation for the report of service.
 

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[GIST] Nigerian Children Showing Signs Of Malnutrition Under Buhari Government —Report

[GIST] Nigerian Children Showing Signs Of Malnutrition Under Buhari Government —Report

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A Report by SBM Intelligence has shown how the rate of malnutrition has increased among children in Nigeria since President Muhammadu Buhari came to power in 2015.

 

According to the report, information and data were gathered from different interview sessions conducted in 10 states across the country to examine how inflation has aggravated food scarcity in the country, particularly among young children.

Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari.

The report reads in part: "Interviews were conducted in 10 states across the country (Abuja, Anambra, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, Imo, Kogi, Lagos, Rivers and Sokoto) to examine if the present economic condition has affected the diet of children. That is to say, are children now seen with signs of malnutrition?

 

“Respondents in Sokoto confirmed that children are beginning to show signs of malnutrition in the region. One of the respondents had this to say: ‘The average Northerner does not care so much about the food he eats or whether the food is a balanced diet. They just make sure there is something in their stomach. They do not care if the food given to the children is balanced as well. The recent economic situation, especially the increase in prices of foodstuff has made the situation worse. So will say yes, more children are now showing signs of malnourishment. They look pale when they come to school.

 

"Judging from this respondent's statement, we can infer that more people have fallen below the poverty line. A respondent in Kogi, a petty trader, said that her husband, who is a university lecturer, has not been paid his salary for months because of the ongoing ASUU strike, hence the family is struggling to feed.

 

“From her point of view, her family can still afford food for now, but she does not know what will happen if the ASUU strike and nonpayment of salaries continue till the end of the year. She also mentioned that children are increasingly being seen in the streets with signs of malnutrition.

 

"Those who hitherto could easily provide their families with three square meals a day are now struggling to keep up because of economic hardship. Some have dropped to two meals, but most have been reduced to one. This was according to a respondent in Edo State. A staff member of the state university in Edo said that he currently has challenges feeding his family as he has not been paid for seven months.

 

“According to him, some of his colleagues are suffering the same fate. ‘So why will you not see children with malnutrition when there is not sufficient money for a balanced diet?’ he asked.

 

"Some of our respondents in Abuja and Lagos said that the present economic condition is not the cause of the signs of malnutrition being seen in some children. According to a respondent, a doctor, many children had not been eating properly for a while, so the current economic situation reflected by the continuous rise in food prices only serves to compound what was already an issue. He further explained that prior to now, poor Nigerians have been having issues with their diet, but those who were getting along could begin to show signs of malnutrition.

 

"A teacher in Port Harcourt said that she observed that her students have been coming to school with reduced rations of food and snacks.

 

“’Some don't even come with food or snacks at times, and the food that some of the poorer children bring to school does not look nutritious.’ She noted that the poor kids she teaches have been losing weight lately.”

 

The report also explained how the average cost of making a pot of jollof rice went up from N8,595 to N9,311 at the end of Q2 2022, an 8.3 percent increase.

 

It was noted that Bauchi had the highest cost at N11,600, followed by Wuse II at N11,300. The noticeable pattern here is that the Northern states had a higher cost of making a pot of jollof rice despite their farming and livestock rearing occupations.

 

“This trend is accounted for by increased insecurity in those states. Traders who purchase from the rural markets are boycotting those areas. Transportation costs have greatly increased, not only because of fuel shortages but also because of the risk involved in travelling those kidnap-infested roads,” it said. 

 

 

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[GIST] FLASHBACK: In 2014, Buhari Knocked Then-President Jonathan, Said A Serious Government Would Negotiate With Striking University Lecturers, ASUU

[GIST] FLASHBACK: In 2014, Buhari Knocked Then-President Jonathan, Said A Serious Government Would Negotiate With Striking University Lecturers, ASUU

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In 2014, Muhammadu Buhari, as a member of the opposition criticised the then President, Goodluck Jonathan ‪over a strike action embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
 
ASUU is currently on strike after embarking on industrial action on February 14, 2022, over President Buhari’s government’s failure to honour an agreement on issues relating to funding of universities, and lecturers’ salaries and allowances.

The ongoing strike action by the university lecturers’ union is in its fifth month. In 2020, also under Buhari’s government, the union was on strike for 9 months.
The industrial action has crippled academic activities in government universities across the country.
 
On Tuesday, Adamu Adamu, Minister of Education, was granted approval by President Buhari to resolve issues of contention regarding the ASUU strike.
 
In an old video trending online, Buhari was heard castigating then-President Jonathan’s administration for failing to reach an agreement with the lecturers’ union.
 
Speaking about the 2014 National Conference convened by the ex-President, Buhari picked holes with the timing of the event which came at a time ASUU, Polytechnic lecturers and other arms of tertiary institutions unions were on strike.
 
He faulted the government for earmarking the sum on N7 billion for the confab, saying a serious government would not spend so much money on frivolity while the tertiary institutions workers were on strike.
 
“If you could recall, at the time the government said it was voting N7 billion for the conference, ASUU was on strike. And teachers of other tertiary institutions, like the polytechnics, were on strike,” Buhari had said.
 
“This strike was on for almost an academic year and a serious government, if they had N7 billion to throw about, would go and negotiate with ASUU and the teachers’ organisations and the teachers’ unions of the tertiary institutions of the polytechnics downwards so that our children will remain in schools.
 
“The National Assembly is there, if you want to amend the constitution so why go and take N7 billion that we could not afford when our children are on the streets? I think this government has the capacity for wrong priorities that are hurting us as a nation.”

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July 20, 2022

[GIST] World's Richest Man, Elon Musk To Face Trial Over Failed $44bn Twitter Takeover

[GIST] World's Richest Man, Elon Musk To Face Trial Over Failed $44bn Twitter Takeover

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In an early victory for Twitter, a judge in the United States, Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick has set a five-day October trial date for the looming legal battle between the social giant and Tesla CEO, Elon Musk.

According to Aljazeera, the hearing on Tuesday centred on Twitter’s push to set a trial date for as early as September in a case focused on Musk’s attempt to walk away from a $44 billion agreement to purchase the company.

Twitter accused the Tesla CEO of smearing its reputation and lowering its value.

“Delay threatens irreparable harm,” said Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick of Delaware’s Court of Chancery, which handles many high-profile business disputes. “The longer the delay, the greater the risk.”

Musk had announced that he was terminating the deal earlier this month, but Twitter has sought to hold him to it, saying he “knowingly, intentionally, willfully, and materially breached the agreement”.

The San Francisco-based company is seeking to resolve months of uncertainty for its business as Musk tries to abandon the takeover, alleging Twitter misled him about the tally of fake accounts on the platform.

Twitter has asked McCormick of Delaware’s Court of Chancery to find Musk breached the agreement and to order him to complete the deal at the agreed price of $54.20 per share.

The company’s value dropped to $32.65 per share last week, erasing nearly $3bn in value. It was trading at about $39.16 on Tuesday morning, up about 2 percent and near the highest level since Musk said he was walking away.

Twitter wanted an expedited trial in September because it said Musk is smearing Twitter and undermining operations by refusing to approve business initiatives, such as an employee retention plan.

“It’s attempted sabotage. He’s doing his best to run Twitter down,” William Savitt, a lawyer for Twitter, said during Tuesday’s hearing, which was held virtually after McCormick said she tested positive for COVID-19.

The company said adopting Musk’s “slow walk” proposal for a 2023 trial – his legal team had proposed a mid-February start date – left little time for additional litigation over deal financing if Musk is ordered to close. The deal financing expires in April.

But Musk on Friday accused Twitter of seeking a “warp speed” trial to “railroad” him into buying the company.

McCormick said on Tuesday that his legal team had underestimated the court’s ability to “quickly process complex litigation”. She asked the parties to work out the schedule for the trial, which she set at five days.

Since agreeing in April to buy Twitter, Musk has questioned whether the company misled regulators about fake accounts and bots on the platform.

A lawyer for Musk on Tuesday blamed Twitter for dragging its feet in responding to requests for information regarding the methods for calculating the number of spam accounts and he said an expedited trial will prevent the truth from coming to light.

“When Mr Musk started asking questions, the answers he got were alarming,” said Andrew Rossman, Musk’s lawyer, adding that it will take months to analyse massive amounts of data to resolve questions about Twitter’s spam accounts.

Rossman also rejected Twitter’s argument that his client was trying to damage the company as “preposterous. He has no interest in damaging the company,” said Rossman, noting that Musk is Twitter’s second-largest shareholder with a far larger stake than the entire board.

Rather than Silicon Valley, where Twitter is based, the company has lodged its lawsuit against Musk in Delaware.

The firm is incorporated in the tiny state like scores of other companies, and the case will happen in the Delaware Chancery Court that has deep experience in business disputes.


 

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[GIST] Lawyer Petitions APC Chairman, Adamu Over Tinubu/Shettima Muslim-Muslim Ticket, Says It’s Unconstitutional

[GIST] Lawyer Petitions APC Chairman, Adamu Over Tinubu/Shettima Muslim-Muslim Ticket, Says It’s Unconstitutional

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An Abuja-based law firm, BBH Legal Practitioner on Tuesday described the Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as illegal.

 

The firm asserted that a presidential ticket for candidates of the same faith or tribe is unconstitutional and an exercise in futility.

According to the firm, the Federal Executive Council is largely limited to the President and Vice President and the appointed Ministers of the President, noting that having a presidential aspirant and vice presidential aspirant from the same religious faith rudely conflicts with the spirit and letters of section 14 of the 1999 constitution (as amended), and it strongly inhibits national unity and national loyalty.

 

This is contained in a letter addressed to the National Chairman of the party, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, and signed by Osigwe Ahmed Momoh Esq. and copied to Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Senator Iyiola Omisore.                                                                      

The presidential candidate of the party, Tinubu, a Muslim, chose a former Borno governor, Kashim Shettima, a fellow Muslim as his running mate.

Momoh stressed that laws are good enough, but “men would find every loophole to intentionally obfuscate the rather lucid and express provisions of our constitution”.

 

The letter reads in part, "It is with love for God and country and utmost deference to you that I write to you and your great Party, with the hope that your Party carefully walks away from a lurking legal quagmire.  I am of the firm understanding that your Party is sailing on murky waters as regards your proposed decision to fly a same-faith presidential ticket in the 2023 general elections.

 

"Since it is not in my place to lecture or pontificate, I shall limit myself to unearthing and unveiling our extant laws in light of your party’s push for a Muslim-Muslim ticket. I shall as lucidly as possible, explain why your party’s action is not just insensitive and poorly considered, but also utterly unconstitutional. 

 

"I shall toe the path of brevity and clarity to ensure that even the least legal mind can grasp the gamut of my submissions. The bulk of my discourse shall center around these three terms; ‘Democracy, Social-Justice and And’. Inasmuch as I know these terms are very common and really need no illumination, I shall nevertheless delve into defining these words to ensure we are all on the same page;

 

"Democracy- gladly, the Court of Appeal Kaduna Division in PDP v. MOHAMMED & ORS (2015) LPELR-40859(CA) has done sufficient justice as far as the definition/exposition of democracy is concerned. The court noted that; ‘All democracies are systems in which citizens freely make political decisions by Majority Rule. Therefore, in every election, it is the wish and desire of the majority of the voters that must always be the determining factor’.

 

"Social Justice - simply means justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. The phrase is synonymous with inclusion and social sensitivity.”

 

Momoh further stated, "Let us surgically dissect the introductory part of the Section 14(3) above i.e., ‘the government of the federation’; elementary government studies would be apt here. 

 

"The Federal Executive Government is largely limited to the President and Vice (and the ‘appointed’ Ministers of the President); having a presidential aspirant and vice from the same religious faith i.e., sectional group rudely conflicts with the spirit and letters of section 14 of the 1999 constitution (as amended), and it strongly inhibits national unity and national loyalty. Our laws are good enough, but men would find every loophole to intentionally obfuscate the rather lucid and express provisions of our constitution.

 

"When a particular group or section of the society feels that another group or segment are irrelevant to winning elections or building or forming a government, then dialogues would die, and the fabrics that hold us would visibly start disintegrating.

 

"Section 15 (4) of the constitution echoes these sentiments it reads ‘The State shall foster a feeling of belonging and of involvement among the various people of the Federation, to the end that loyalty to the nation shall override sectional loyalties.’”

 

 

"The ultimate question would be, is there any other section of the constitutions that makes Chapter II justiciable as regards this subject? And my very simple answer would be a resounding YES! 

 

"Section 224 of the 1999 constitution (as amended) boldly states that; ‘The programme, as well as the aims and objects of a political party, shall conform with the provisions of Chapter II of this Constitution’.

 

"Therefore, Chapter II of the constitution in its entirety is binding and justiciable as far as political parties are concerned and every political party must implement the provisions of Chapter II of the party, and no party can by their constitution oust the express provisions of Chapter II of the Constitution. This is by no means advice or a mere suggestion; it is a clear instruction.

 

"If we can agree that two gentlemen from Lagos state or Borno state will not meet the requirement of Chapter II of the Constitution, then in the same vein, two people of the same religious faith would certainly not cut it either. It is really that simple,” he said.

 

However, the law firm established that "Nigeria is a country based on not just democracy but also social justice”.

 

"Social Justice is as important as Democracy as far as the constitution is concerned.

 

"Although Chapter 2 of the constitution is ordinarily non-justiciable, section 224 makes it justiciable as far as political parties are concerned.

 

"A same faith or tribe presidential tickets would conflict with chapter II hence, it is unconstitutional and an exercise in futility.

 

"We urge you therefore to critically consider this provision of the constitution vis-a-viz your purported decision, failure to rescind your decision within 24hrs from the receipt of this letter would force us to seek action to prevent this breeding anomaly," the statement noted.

 

 

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[GIST] How I Was Threatened By Anti-graft Agency, EFCC Official To Implicate Ex-Nigerian President Jonathan And Adoke, Defence Witness Tells Court

[GIST] How I Was Threatened By Anti-graft Agency, EFCC Official To Implicate Ex-Nigerian President Jonathan And Adoke, Defence Witness Tells Court

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Mr. Aliyu Abubakar, the first defence witness in the trial-within-trial of the former Attorney-General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke, has told a Federal High Court, Abuja that he was threatened by an operative of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and told to implicate former President Goodluck Jonathan in the alleged money laundering suit filed against him and Adoke.

 

He told the trial judge, Justice Inyang Ekwo on Tuesday while being led in evidence by his lawyer, Wole Olanipekun (SAN) that the officer, Mr. Bala Sanga, threatened him and told him to implicate the ex-AGF.

The second prosecution witness in the trial-within-trial, Aminu Lawal, on May 10, told the court that Abubakar was never forced to make statements nor coerced to implicate others in the course of the investigation and that he was never threatened with detention.

Lawal was one of the investigators who took the defendant’s statements on December 31, 2019, and on January 6, 2020.

Abubakar, who is a co-defendant in the suit, told the judge that the statements he made on December 31, 2019 and January 6, 2020 were not made voluntarily.

 

He said on December 31, 2019 when he was invited to the EFCC's office, Sanga threatened to detain him if he refused to make the statements.

 

Also, Abubakar said on January 6, 2022, Sanga, who introduced himself as the new prosecutor in the matter, told him that there was evidence before him (Sanga) which showed that he (Abubakar) gave the sum of $20 million to Adoke.

 

"On 31st December 2019, my lawyer, Ahmed Audu, came to me and said one Ibrahim Ahmed from EFCC called him that they needed clarification from me about this case.

Abubakar said, "I followed my lawyer to EFCC. When I got there, some of the EFCC's staff like Ibrahim, Babangida and others came in that I must give a confessional statement.

"They said that things have changed and somebody has to record me (on video), that his name is Bala Sanga.

"He introduced himself as the new prosecutor in this case. He thanked me and said I should continue to cooperate with them and that they will help me if I continue to cooperate with them.

 

"He then asked me questions. He asked my lawyer to write for me and I said no that I will not make any more statements because I had already made statements which were with them.

 

"He said if I don't, they will detain me.”

He said due to the fact that it was a festive period then, he had to succumb to the officer's instruction.

"I realised the next day was January 1, 2020, that was why I decided that they should write for me," he said.

While recounting his experience at the anti-graft agency's office, he said: "That day, we went to the EFCC and they asked us to come the second day. Bala Sanga called me to one side that Alhaji, I want to help you in this case.

"He (Sanga) asked how close I am to Adoke. He said you have to sacrifice somebody to be alive.

"He said there is evidence before him which he will show me at the right time; that he heard information that I gave Adoke 20 million dollars.

"I said what? How did it come? He said maybe because me and Adoke are from the same place and that that was why I did not want to say anything.

"He also said that there is evidence before him that I gave Goodluck Jonathan 50 million dollars. He said if I did not agree to cooperate with him, he would charge me to court. So I said he should go ahead."

 

Adoke's counsel, Kanu Agabi, SAN, while crossed-examining Abubakar, asked him to reconfirm his statement that Sanga told him to implicate Adoke; he answered in the affirmative.

Counsel for the EFCC, Offem Uket, during his cross-examination, told Abubakar that the statements he made on December 31, 2019, and January 6, 2020, were voluntarily made.

He said in the video clip played in the open court on the last adjourned date, Abubakar did not protest against the directive by the agency's officers on making the extra-judicial statements but the witness disagreed with Uket.

Also, the second defence witness, Ahmed Audu, who is Abubakar's lawyer, also testified in the matter after Abubakar was discharged from the witness box.

Audu said he wrote the statement on Abubakar's behalf on December 31, 2019.

"Sanga came in that day and asked my name and I said, Barrister Ahmed. He said he was the new prosecutor in this matter and he took over from one Aliyu Yusuf.

"He said he needed some clarifications from us and my client rejected because he had written a number of statements over this matter. Ibrahim said anything Sanga asked us to do we should do.

 

"While we were there, we heard Magu’s (former EFCC chairman) siren coming in and I was even sweating and I felt guilty already. I asked Ibrahim why did he say that anything he asked us to do, do it.

"That was how we started the statement. That was what happened that day. After the statement, I asked Ahmed Ibrahim can I go with my client.”

"They released us around 7:30pm on that day and we protested that I will not sign and my client too. But they said we will not go until we sign. So, they ask us to come on January 6, 2020," he added.

 

Adoke was the Minister of Justice and AGF during President Jonathan's administration between April 6, 2010 and April 29, 2015.

 

 

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[GIST] BREAKING: Fire Destroys Several Oil Tankers In Lagos Mechanic Village

[GIST] BREAKING: Fire Destroys Several Oil Tankers In Lagos Mechanic Village

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Properties worth millions of naira were destroyed on Tuesday when fire gutted oil tankers packed at Mechanic Village along Otto Wharf Road, Apapa, Lagos. 

SaharaReporters gathered that the fire incident was allegedly caused by the careless operations of a panel beater welding under a truck suspected to be carrying Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), also known as diesel.

The spokesperson for the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Southwest zone, Ibrahim Farinloye, who confirmed the incident said although no life was lost, many vehicles were destroyed by the fire.

He said the fire outbreak was not taken seriously initially until when one of the tankers exploded and it got out of hand.

Farinloye said the fire was later put out through the efforts of several firefighters from both government and private institutions. 

On the cause of the fire, the Public Relations Officer said, "It is alleged to be caused by careless operations of a panel beater welding under a truck. It was alleged that the fire outbreak was not taken seriously initially until it got out of hand. 

"However, the situation is under control. No one is injured and no death recorded."

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[GIST] ASUU Strike: Group Warns Nigeria Labour Congress Against Last-Minute Suspension Of Nationwide Protest Without Achieving Demands

[GIST] ASUU Strike: Group Warns Nigeria Labour Congress Against Last-Minute Suspension Of Nationwide Protest Without Achieving Demands

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The Education Right Campaign has commended the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) on its plan to stage a nationwide protest over the continued closure of tertiary institutions in the country.

 

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has been on strike for five months over the failure of the Nigerian government to honour an agreement on issues bordering on funding universities, as well as salaries and allowances of lecturers.

In a letter dated July 15 and addressed to chairpersons of the NLC in the states, Ayuba Wabba, the congress’ national president, and Emmanuel Ugboaja, general secretary, said the protest is aimed at getting “our children back to school and support our unions in Nigeria’s public universities fighting for quality education”.

 

They designated Labour House in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and secretariats of the NLC as the takeoff points for the protest.

 

According to the circular, the protest would be held on Tuesday, July 26, 2022, and Wednesday, July 27, 2022, in all the states of the Federation and Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.

 

ERC’s Deputy National Coordinator, Ogunjimi Isaac Ayobami, and ERC National Secretary, Michael Lenin, in a statement on Tuesday hailed the action of the workers’ union.

 

The group however warned against last-minute suspension of the protest without any democratic discussion or any concrete resolution of the crisis.

 

The statement read, “We of the Education Rights Campaign (ERC) welcome the decision of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to embark on a two-day national protest on 26 and 27 July 2022 to force the government to meet the demands of ASUU and other University unions. Although coming very late, it is a step in the right direction.

“The ERC has been at the forefront of calling on NLC and TUC to embark on a series of mass actions to defend public education from the claws of the capitalist ruling class who are hell-bent on not just ruining it but also taking it out of the reach of children of the working masses.

 

“We hereby urge the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to align with the position of the NLC and mobilize out its members to jointly prosecute the two-day national protest. The ERC also calls on Nigerian students, students unions, radical student groups, NANS and civil society organizations to answer the call of the NLC by mobilizing to join organized labour on 26 and 27 July 2022 for the protest. To draw in as many forces as possible and to ensure active mobilization, the ERC urge the NLC to direct its state councils to convene state planning meetings within the next few days.

 

“At the same time, we call for the independent preparation of the mass of students, parents and well-meaning Nigerians for the July 26 and 27 protests. In the event that the NLC calls off the protest before the set date as is their usual practice, we ask that students, parents, education workers and workers generally should go on to protest independently for the reopening of schools and to make the federal government yield to the demands of the public university unions.

“To achieve this, we ask students, parents and workers across all states to start organizing independent protest committees that can work with the NLC state councils to organize the protest while remaining independent of it.

 

“While we consider NLC’s decision to embark on a protest in the right direction, we equally warn against late-minute suspension of the protest without any democratic discussion or any concrete resolution of the crisis. We make this point against the background of the constant suspension of strikes and mass action by NLC without any resolution of the crisis the action was intended to resolve.

“For instance, in January this year, the NLC and TUC declared a protest over the planned removal of fuel subsidy only to call it off at the eleventh hour. Similar thing happened in 2020, when the NLC called off its planned strike scheduled to commence on September 28 that year.

 

“If this protest is successful, it can send a clear warning to the capitalist elite however far more would be required to win victory. This is because the President Buhari APC government appears to recognize that conceding to the demands of public university unions may provoke a contagion of demands for wage review and sundry issues across the labour movement, especially in the context of economic crisis, inflation and worsening living standards. Therefore, we urge the NLC and TUC to begin to prepare for a 48-hour general strike as the next stage after the July 26 and 27 national protests.”

 

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[GIST] Many Nigerian Soldiers Feared Killed In Fresh Boko Haram Ambush In Borno

[GIST] Many Nigerian Soldiers Feared Killed In Fresh Boko Haram Ambush In Borno

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A yet-to-be-confirmed number of soldiers has been killed and several others missing after an ambush by militants from the Islamic State-backed faction of Boko Haram, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), formerly known as Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād in Borno State.

 

Multiple military sources told SaharaReporters that the attack took place in the Gubio Local Government Area of the state on Monday.

The sources added that at least a military vehicle, several weapons and ammunition were stolen and burnt by the terrorists during the attack.

 

SaharaReporters gathered that the soldiers were on patrol to clear some Boko Haram terrorists in the area following credible intelligence when they were ambushed by the group.

 

The terrorist group in a statement sighted by SaharaReporters on Tuesday confirmed the ambush.

Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province, have killed thousands and displaced millions of people in northeastern Nigeria.

 

The Nigerian military has repeatedly claimed that the insurgency has been largely defeated and frequently underplays any losses.

 

In the past months, soldiers have been targeted by insurgents.

 

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[GIST] African Union Donates Military Equipment To Fight Boko Haram Terrorists In Nigeria, Chad, Others

[GIST] African Union Donates Military Equipment To Fight Boko Haram Terrorists In Nigeria, Chad, Others

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The African Union (AU) has donated military equipment to boost the counter-insurgency operations of the Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Chad region.

This is contained in a statement issued by Chief of Military Public Information, MNJTF, Lt.-Col, Kamarudeen Adegoke, from the MNJTF Headquarters in N’Djamena, Chad on Tuesday.

Adegoke said the donation of the equipment was done through the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC).

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the donated equipment includes Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs); troop-carrying vehicles, buses, high calibre generators, Counter Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) equipment, and office equipment.

 

He said the equipment was handed over to the recipients’ Troops Contributing Countries (TCCs) of Nigeria, Niger, and Chad after the necessary paperwork and authorisation by the AU.

 

According to him, the approval comes after the visit of the Force Commander, MNJTF, Maj.-Gen Abdul Khalifah Ibrahim to the AU Continental Logistics Base in Doula, Cameroon in November 2021 where he inspected and identified various equipment that would be useful in its counter-insurgency operations.

 

“The Force Commander in company of the Theatre Commander (TC), Operation Hadin Kai, Maj.-Gen. Christopher Musa, formally handed over the equipment to Sector 3 of the MNJTF on July 13 in Maimalari Military Cantonment, Maiduguri in Borno.

 

“The items were received by the Commander Sector 3 Maj.-Gen. GM Mutkut at the headquarters in Monguno, North East Nigeria,” he said.

 

The Force Commander Maj.-Gen. Khalifah said the equipment was given to the sector to improve their combat efficiency in war zones.

Khalifah praised the doggedness of the Sector in the course of Operation Lake Sanity, urging them to do more.

 

The Theatre Commander, Maj.-Gen. Musa appreciated the AU for the donations, saying with such donations, the North East operational environment would soon be secured.

He said the new equipment would allow the forces to concentrate on other security-challenged areas in the country.

 

The Commander of Sector 3 promised that the equipment would be well maintained and deployed effectively against terrorists.

 

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