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Protesters leave Lagos ground, desert Abuja, Benin venues

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Protesters leave Lagos ground, desert Abuja, Benin venues

The few people who gathered at the Freedom Park in Lagos early in the day dispersed after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s broadcast.

The Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja was also deserted.

The popular Ring Road in Benin, centre of the protest since Thursday was cleared yesterday after the President’s broadcast.

The President told the protesting youths in his 25-minute address to the nation to call off their three-day-old action, saying he had heard them loud and clear.

Immediately after the broadcast, a disagreement broke out among the demonstrators at the Freedom Park in Lagos.

One of the leaders of the protesters announced to others the need to shelve the protest, having heard from the President.

He suggested that it should be put off till October 1 to give the President more time to evaluate the situation and take further action.

But a counter instruction was given almost immediately by other protesters, who said the President did not adequately address their demands.

Assistant Commissioner of Police Paul Okafor appealed to them to disperse because of the need for peace to reign in Lagos.

Thereafter, the protesters left in droves but the security agents remained on the ground.

Sanwo-Olu opens engagement channels

Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu announced channels of engagement, following the discontinuation of action by those protesting against economic hardship in the state.

The announcement was made in a statement by Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, the Commissioner for Information and Strategy.

It reads: “The Lagos State Government expresses appreciation to the protesters in Lagos for their peaceful conduct and their announcement of an end to their action following the broadcast by the president.”

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Praising leaders of the protest in the Centre of Excellence, the governor said: “Your stoppage of the protest today is a crystal clear affirmation of the fact that you know your collective voice has been heard by the government. What you have done is not only noble, but the civilised thing to do.

“In demonstration of the government’s commitment to continuous engagement with the youth, the governor has directed that despite the stoppage of the protest, the dialogue and engagements which the state government initiated prior to the action must continue.

“Consequently, Mr. Governor has directed Ministry of Youth and Social Development; Ministry of Information and Strategy and Office of Civic Engagement to immediately open wider channels of engagement with various stakeholders, including the protest leaders.

“The Executive Council members in charge of the ministries can be reached on the following dedicated Citizens Access lines:

. Office of Civic Engagement +234 802 522 4347

. Ministry of Information & Strategy +2348119655788

. Ministry of Youth & Social Development +2347077178295

“Now, it is fit and proper to, once again, warn our citizens to be very vigilant. Those who seek to divide us are yet to give up.

“They may continue to post fake news via audio and video channels. Lagosians must never give room to warmongering, scaremongering and rumour-mongering. That is not our way; that is not who we are. That is not our style.”

The statement quoted the governor as “praising Lagosians for rejecting anarchy and embracing peace”.

He also hailed the professional conduct of all security agencies, the Police Command, the Department of State Services, the military, Civil Defence, and Neighborhood Watch.

The statement further reads: “The governor notes with great pride the roles of our traditional rulers, civil society organisations, community leaders, religious leaders, students’ leaders and others, who ensured Lagos remained peaceful.”

Moshood Abiola Stadium deserted

The Nation correspondents, who monitored developments in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), observed that normalcy had returned.

The stadium where they were confined to by the court was empty as of 4 pm.

Security operatives, especially the police, were stationed at the venue to maintain law and order.

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A helicopter was hovering over the FCT for the better part of the day.

But all was quiet in the Federal Capital city.

Vehicular movement was easy but roads were largely empty.

It may also be because it was a Sunday when most people were indoors.

At every major intersection, security men were stationed to keep an eye on the environment.

Some of the few vehicles on the road, especially commercial vehicles, had leaves affixed on their windscreen, an indication that they were for peace.

Security around the Presidential Villa remained heightened.

The Kubwa-Zuba Motorway was free. Normal movement of traffic was observed.

Movement from Karshi town to other parts of the nation’s capital city was smooth.

Benin venue cleared

The protesters in Edo State yesterday suspended the protest after the President’s speech.

Immediately after the broadcast, the protesters  removed the podium at Ring Road, near the palace of the Oba of Benin, Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Ewuare II.

Barricades on the major roads linking the ever-busy Ring Road were also cleared by the protesting youths, thereby paving the way for free vehicular and human movements by motorists and pedestrians respectively, without harassment or molestation of passersby and commuters, but policemen were on standby, in order to prevent the breakdown of law and order.

Church services at venues

In Osun and Plateau states, the demonstrators who insisted on continuing with the protest held church services at the venues.

At the popular Olaiya Bridge in Osogbo, Osun State where the service was held, leaders of the protest were collecting offerings from the demonstrators to make purchases.

“The reason for the offering is to enable us to get logistics for this protest. Anybody can drop his offering as we pass through the streets,’’ said one of the protesters who identified himself as Bishop.

“We are continuing the protest tomorrow (today). We are not backing down. The President has not addressed our demands,” Bishop added.

Emmanuel Olowu, secretary of the state’s Coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) led the service.

His sermon was taken from Exodus 14 after the praise and worship session.

Olowu, who noted that God ordains leaders, including the president, governors and lawmakers, spoke about the essence of “good leadership and followers.”

According to him, both are synonymous with the country’s current predicament.

Olowu said Nigerians from different religious backgrounds “must come together to support the cause of entrenching good governance.”

Chairman of the Democratic Socialist Movement in the state, Alfred Alagbe, read Gen. 41:13 and Matthew 21:9-11.

At the end of the service at about 12:27 p.m, the protesters continued with the protest, chanting solidarity songs.

Soyinka: How  to handle protesters 

Nobel laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, called on security agents to be tactical in the handling of the protests to avoid further fatalities.

Soyinka made the call in a statement he issued after President Tinubu’s address to the nation.

The statement was titled ‘’The Hunger March as Universal Mandate.’’

The Nobel laureate and global literature icon was also concerned that the President’s broadcast was silent on the actions of the security agents.

He cautioned against unprofessional conduct by security agents that could hurt protesters “who are merely asking for bread.”

According to him, a hard approach to the protests could lead to “more desperate upheavals.”

Soyinka said: “Even tear gas remains questionable in most circumstances; using it is certainly an abuse in situations of clearly peaceful protest.

“Hunger marches constitute a universal S.O.S, not peculiar to the Nigerian nation.

“They belong, indeed, in a class of their own, never mind the collateral claims emblasoned on posters.

“They serve as summons to governance that a breaking point has been reached and, thus, a testing ground for governance awareness of public desperation,” he said.

Soyinka said the tragic response to the hunger marches in parts of the country constituted a retrogression that took the nation backwards.

The statement reads: “I set my alarm clock for this morning to ensure that I did not miss President Bola Tinubu’s impatiently awaited address to the nation on the current unrest across the nation.

“His outline of government’s remedial action since inception, aimed at warding off just such an outbreak, will undoubtedly receive expert and sustained attention both for effectiveness and in content analysis.

“My primary concern, quite predictably, is the continuing deterioration of the state’s seizure of protest management, an area in which the presidential address fell conspicuously short.

“Such short-changing of civic deserving, regrettably, goes to arm the security forces in the exercise of impunity and condemns the nation to a seemingly unbreakable cycle of resentment and reprisals.

“Live bullets as a state response to civic protest – that becomes the core issue.

“The tragic response to the ongoing hunger marches in parts of the nation, and for which notice was served, constitutes a retrogression that takes the nation even further back than the deadly culmination of the watershed ENDSARS protests.

“It evokes pre-independence – that is, colonial – acts of disdain, a passage that induced the late-stage pioneer Hubert Ogunde’s folk opera Bread and Bullets, earning that nationalist serial persecution and proscription by the colonial government.

“The nation’s security agencies cannot pretend unawareness of alternative models for emulation, civilised advances in security intervention. Need we recall the nationwide 2022/23 editions of what is generally known as the Yellow Vest movement in France?”

“Perhaps it is time to make such scenarios compulsory viewing in policing curriculum. In all of the coverage that I watched, I did not catch one single instance of a gun leveled at protesters, much less fired at them even during direct physical confrontations.

“The serving of bullets where bread is pleaded is ominous retrogression, and we know what that eventually proves – a prelude to far more desperate upheavals, not excluding revolutions.

“The time is long overdue, surely, to abandon, permanently, the anachronistic resort to lethal means by the security agencies of governance. No nation is so underdeveloped, materially impoverished, or simply internally insecure as to lack the will to set an example.

“All it takes is to recall its own history, and then exercise the will to commence a lasting transformation, inserting a break in the chain of lethal responses against civic society.

“Today’s marchers may wish to consider adopting the key songs of Hubert Ogunde’s bread and bullets if only to inculcate a sense of shame in the continuing failure to transcend the lure of colonial inheritance where we all were at the receiving end. One way or the other, this vicious cycle must be broken.”

Protesters leave Lagos ground, desert Abuja, Benin venues

THE NATION

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Court orders Alcon Nigeria to pay ex-workers over N39m

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Court orders Alcon Nigeria to pay ex-workers over N39m

Justice Muhammad Hamza of the Port Harcourt Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court has ordered Alcon Nigeria Limited to pay its former employee N39,707,607 for breach of contract.

In a statement on Monday, the court declared that Alcon Nigeria Limited’s non-payment of Mr. A. Ikenna’s salary from October 2021 to January 2022 constituted a breach of the employment contract.

The court further ordered Alcon Nigeria Limited to pay Mr. Ikenna N16,781,500 as pension contributions for the period from January 2017 to January 2022, N5,762,267.4 as salary for October 2021 to January 13, 2022 (less one month’s payment in lieu of notice), N11,289,600 as End of Service/Gratuity, and N5,874,240 as leave allowance for the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 periods, plus a 50kg bag of rice, among other payments.

Facts of the case 

The claimant stated before the court that he was forced to resign from Alcon Nigeria Limited due to the company’s failure to pay his outstanding benefits.

The claimant’s legal team argued that their client’s obligation to comply with Alcon Nigeria Limited’s exit protocols only arises when the company has fully settled all outstanding salaries, allowances, and pension contributions owed to Mr. Ikenna prior to his resignation.

The claimant contended that, since Alcon Nigeria Limited admitted to breaching the employment contract, it could not claim that he had failed to adhere to exit protocols following his resignation.

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The claimant urged the court to grant relief for the various outstanding payments.

In response, Alcon Nigeria Limited’s legal team argued that Mr. Ikenna’s entitlements were withheld because he had not completed the exit process or returned company property.

The defense added, “Withholding these properties and assets is a clear violation of the collective agreement signed between the parties,” claiming that the claimant’s “self-help” actions in withholding Alcon Nigeria Limited’s assets hindered the company’s ability to settle his entitlements as stipulated in the collective agreement.

What the court said 

In delivering judgment, Justice Muhammad Hamza held that, based on the evidence presented, the claimant was entitled to salary payments from October 2021 to January 13, 2022, minus one month’s pay in lieu of notice as specified in the company’s collective agreement.

The court further ruled that “Mr. Ikenna has proven his entitlements for unremitted pension contributions and End of Service/Gratuity from Alcon Nigeria Limited to the satisfaction of the court. The assertion that Mr. Ikenna had been employed by Alcon Nigeria Limited since 2004 requires no further proof.” 

  • On the matter of damages, Justice Hamza held that although Alcon Nigeria Limited breached the employment contract by not paying the claimant’s monthly salary, Mr. Ikenna was not entitled to general or exemplary damages as he had retained company property after his resignation.
  • Justice Hamza subsequently ordered the firm to pay the claimant his dues while Mr. Ikenna was ordered to return all Alcon Nigeria Limited property in his possession, including a Lexus vehicle and a laptop, in good condition within seven days.
  • The National Industrial Court of Nigeria, established in 1976, presides over cases related to labor disputes, civil matters, child trafficking, employment issues, entitlements, allowances, and workplace sexual harassment.

Court orders Alcon Nigeria to pay ex-workers over N39m

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Two brothers remanded in Kaduna for alleged armed robbery, killing

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Two brothers remanded in Kaduna for alleged armed robbery, killing

A Kaduna High Court on Tuesday ordered that two brothers be remanded in a correctional centre for alleged culpable homicide and armed robbery.

The police charged Hamza Jibrin, 27 and Yusuf Jibrin 24, with conspiracy, armed robbery and culpable homicide.

Justice Aisha Shagari ordered the remand of the defendants, after they pleaded not guilty to the charge preferred against them.

Shagari adjourned the matter until Dec. 12 for hearing.

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Earlier, the Prosecutor, James Edward, said that the defendants and two others at large, while armed with matchete and other dangerous weapons along Airport Road, Kaduna, on Nov. 7, robbed and caused the death of a 26-year-old man, Rabiu Sani.

He said the defendants stole the deceased’s HP laptop, two cell phones, his wallet which contained two ATM cards and cash sum of N30,000.

Edward said that the offence is punishable under the Robbery and Firearms ( Special Provision) Act LFN, 2004.

The Defence counsel, Habiba Usman, had pleaded with the court to grant her clients bail.

Usman while moving her bail application, urged the court to gtant her client bail on literal terms, adding , that the defendants would be of good behaviour and would not jump bail.

Two brothers remanded in Kaduna for alleged armed robbery, killing

NAN

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Police dismiss bomb explosion reports in Jos as false alarm

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Police dismiss bomb explosion reports in Jos as false alarm

Residents of Jos, the Plateau State capital, who were at the Terminus area of the city early this morning scampered for safety as rumours of a bomb planted in the neighbourhood filtered to town.

Diverse messages had circulated on social media about a suspected explosive device in the vicinity, causing panic, but the State Police Command debunked the rumour, saying it was a false alarm.

The State Police Public Relations Officer, Alfred Alabo, explained, “In the early hours of today, the 12th day of November 2024, at exactly 08:20 am, the Plateau State Police Command received a report of a shallow dug hole suspected to be planted with an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) at the Murtala Mohammed Way beside Old JUTH fence, which created panic among the residents.

“Upon receiving this report, the Plateau State Commissioner of Police, CP Emmanuel Adesina, immediately ordered the Area Commander Metro and the Officer in Charge of the Command’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Unit, aka Anti-Bomb Squad, to mobilise a team of bomb technicians to the scene in collaboration with the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), “C” Division, to assess the situation and take necessary actions.

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“On reaching the scene, the area was immediately cordoned, and our EOD Team began examination. Upon conclusion of the examination, the hole was found to be safe and free of any explosive devices. CP Emmanuel Adesina and other members of his management team also visited the scene for an on-the-spot assessment.

“The CP commends the people of Plateau State for being security conscious and cooperating with the police throughout the exercise. He therefore urges them to go about their normal business activities without fear, as the area is safe and free of any threats to lives and properties.”

Also, Cynthia Ukachukwu, whose shop is in the vicinity, told Vanguard on the phone, “I was in the market very early this morning to receive my goods. At about 8 am, I saw people hurrying about; when I asked what had happened, I heard there was a bomb close to the old JUTH.

“Police and other security agencies were here, and they asked us to vacate our shops, which we did, but as I am speaking with you now (11.25 am), I am in the shop because the police allowed us to go back to our businesses. Nobody is running here; everywhere is calm.”

Recall that the very busy neighbourhood had experienced a double bomb blast in 2014 where, yet to be ascertained, a number of people lost their lives, and scores are still carrying the scars of the scary incident.

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