Court stops NASS from tampering with amended Electoral Act – Newstrends
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Court stops NASS from tampering with amended Electoral Act

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Femi Gbajabiamila and Ahmed Lawan

ABUJA–The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Monday, restrained the National Assembly from tampering with the newly amended Electoral Act 2022.

The restraining order followed a motion ex-parte that was brought before the court by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

The court, in the ruling that was delivered by Justice Inyang Ekwo, specifically barred all the Defendants in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/247/2022, from removing section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act or preventing it from being implemented for the purpose of the 2023 general elections.

Cited as Defendants in the suit are; the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Clerk of National Assembly, Senate Leader, House of Representatives Leader and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

Others are; Deputy Senate President, Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Deputy Senate Leader and Deputy Leader of the House of Representatives.

It will be recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari had before he signed the Electoral Act Amendment Bill 2022 into law, asked the National Assembly to expunge section 84 (12) of the Act, which he argued would disenfranchise serving political appointees.

The section particularly made it mandatory that political office holders must firstly resign from office before they could vie for any elective position.

It reads: “No political appointee at any level shall be a voting delegate or be voted for at the convention or congress of any political party for the purpose of the nomination of candidates for any election.”

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Meanwhile, PDP, in the substantive suit it filed through its team of lawyers led by Chief Ogwu Onoja, SAN, challenged the legality or otherwise of the National Assembly tinkering with the Electoral Act, after it had been signed into law by the President.

Plaintiff, PDP, in an affidavit of urgency attached to the motion ex-parte, said there was an urgent need for the court to bar the Defendants from taking any step to accede to President Buhari’s request, pending the determination of the suit.

After he heard the application, Justice Ekwo, granted it as prayed.

He equally ordered PDP to serve the order as well as all the relevant processes on all the Defendants, even as he fixed March 21 to hear the substantive suit.

The Plaintiff had in the ex-parte application, prayed the court for “an order of interim injunction restraining the Defendants from refusing to implement the duly signed Electoral Act or in any manner withholding the Electoral Act from being put to use, including the provisions of section 84 (12) of the said Act, pending the resolution of the suit”.

As well as, an order restraining the National Assembly from giving effect to President Buhari’s request to remove section 84 (12) from the Electoral Act or take any step that will make the provision inoperative, pending the resolution of the motion on notice for interlocutory injunction.

It argued that President Buhari, having assented to the Bill on February 25, 2022, cannot give any directive to the National Assembly to take immediate steps to remove the section or any section of the Act on any ground whatsoever.

Plaintiff wants the court to declare that Buhari’s power regarding law-making is limited to assenting to a bill of the National Assembly or withholding assent, and does not extend to giving conditional assent.

The PDP further wants the court to hold that Section 84 (12) is constitutional and liable to be enforced by INEC which is the 8th Defendant in the suit.

It prayed the court for a declaration that Section 84 (12) is not inconsistent with or contradicts Sections 40 and 42 of the Constitution and does not offend Constitutional provisions on disqualification of a person from election to office.

It applied for an order of mandatory injunction compelling INEC to put into immediate effect the Electoral Act, including the said Section 84 ( 12).

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NIMC issues 105 million NINs in two years

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April 16, 2024

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NIMC issues 105 million NINs in two years

The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has announced that it has issued 105 million NINs to Nigeria and aims to capture the country’s over 200 million population by 2026.

The Head of Corporate Communications at the commission, Kayode Adegoke, disclosed this on X Space over the weekend.

He said, “As of today, over 105 million NIN have been issued to Nigerians and legal residents. We want to assure Nigerians that within the next one or two years, we will reach our target of enrolling all Nigerians.”

Speaking further, Adegoke highlighted that after Abisoye Coker was appointed the director-general of MIMC, she identified the necessity to streamline the modification and enrollment processes.

His words: “In the past, if any applicant has issues with the data on their NIN, you have to go to our office or any of our centres physically to go and do the modification.

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“However, I want to remind Nigerians that when President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, came on board on May 29, 2023, one of the pillars of the Renewed Hope Agenda was to strengthen the national identification system in Nigeria.

“In August, President Tinubu nominated Engineer Abisoye Coker to manage the affairs of the commission. When she became the DG/CEO, one of the things she noticed was that the process for modification and the process for enrollment was a bit cumbersome. So, she came up with a self-service platform.

“Now this service is to ensure that Nigerians, either here or abroad, do not need to go to a centre or do not need to be physically present for modification to be done. Through this platform, Nigerians can change their names, dates of birth, email addresses, phone numbers, and so on. They can do all these in the comfort of their homes or offices on their devices, be it iOS or Android-based devices.”

Adegoke mentioned that with the introduction of the self-service portal, all modifications are now completed within 24-48 hours, stating that it’s a shift from the past where individuals had to wait for months before modifications were made.

He also explained the distinction between the NIMC self-service portal and the NIMC mobile app, which has been available for some time.

He noted that the two platforms serve different purposes. The mobile app can be used for identification and linking mobile numbers to NINs. While the self-service portal is solely for data modification, a function that is not available on the app.

NIMC issues 105 million NINs in two years

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Church testimony: Vera Anyim speaks after meeting with Pastor Enenche

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April 16, 2024

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Church testimony: Vera Anyim speaks after meeting with Pastor Enenche

Anyim Vera, the lady accused of giving false testimony at Abuja’s Dunamis International Gospel Centre, has stated that she holds no malice against the church.

A viral video from Sunday shows the church’s senior pastor, Paul Enenche, doubting the legitimacy of the woman’s testimony at his Abuja church.

Enenche interrupted the woman, who claimed to have graduated with a “BSc in Law” from Nigeria’s National Open University, and accused her of lying.

He told her that the way she spoke did not indicate that she was a law graduate. He also informed her that there is no such thing as a “BSc in Law” and ordered that she vacate the alter.

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The video received varied comments, with many requesting that the pastor apologize to the woman. Anyim, however, stated in a Facebook post on Monday that she had moved on from the issue.

Anyim made this statement after meeting Enenche and his wife, Becky.

She wrote, “I want to inform the whole world that I just had a warm meeting with my spiritual father and mother, Dr. Paul Enenche and Dr. Becky Enenche.

“I don’t have any grudges against the church or them. I remain committed to serving God as a member of Dunamis Church.

“I am thankful for the concern of the public.

“I have put the situation at my back, and I have moved forward, and I want everybody to do the same. Peace.”

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We rescued over 1000 abductees without paying ransom – Ribadu

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April 16, 2024

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National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu

We rescued over 1000 abductees without paying ransom – Ribadu

The National Security Adviser, NSA, Nuhu Ribadu, says the Federal Government has rescued over 1,000 victims of verified mass abduction across the country without paying ransom.

Ribadu disclosed this on Monday, in Abuja while receiving 22 rescued students and staff of the Federal University Gusau, that the covert operations were conducted in the last few months.

He said the successful rescue operations were testimonies to the efforts of the government to free all those being unlawfully held in captivity.

“We have so far released over a thousand of such victims without noise and in complete respect for their privacy and safety.

“We released people from Zambara, Sokoto, Kaduna, Katsina, Taraba, Adamawa, and so many other states.

“Thousands, but never said a word and we thank God for that, and maybe that is the reason why we are so far very successful.

“This occasion marks a final juncture in a series of rescues we have undertaken in the last few months to free victims of recent cases of mass abductions that are verified.

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“It is making a difference, it is a matter of time and we will see the outcome of the work we are doing,” he said.

The NSA said the victims were rescued unhurt and without any of the female abductees molested, adding that it was a marked departure from what had been the case in the past.

According to him, going forward, the government is strengthening law enforcement and security measures to prevent further abductions.

He added that the government would strengthen physical security across vulnerable communities in the country.

“This work is done by our security forces, our armed forces, our police, our intelligence agencies.

“All of us collectively have done this work together and we all are fully participating and this is the outcome of it,” he said.

Ribadu commended the leadership of President Bola Tinubu for working assiduously to address insecurity in the country.

According to him, the efforts have led to great improvement in recent times in taming terrorist attacks.

Recall that those rescued were abducted from the school on September 22, 2023, when bandits attacked three off-campus students’ hostels at Sabon Gida in Gusau.

Those kidnapped from the university included female students, some male artisans, a private security guard and a protocol officer.

We rescued over 1000 abductees without paying ransom – Ribadu

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