MINISTERIAL APPOINTMENT: MERIT WILL SUPERSEDE FEDERAL CHARACTER, SAYS OSINBAJO

As Nigerians await Muhammadu Buhari’s cabinet, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has hinted that merit would carry more weight than Federal Character or zoning.
The Vice President spoke as he delivered the keynote address at the 10th Memorial Anniversary of Late Justice P. O. E. Bassey, held at the International Conference Center of the University of Calabar on Thursday.
With the theme of the memorial lecture; “Social Virtues and the Nigerian Renaissance”, the Vice President extolled the values of respect for merit in the country; the principles of integrity and trust as well as the need for social justice to be institutionalised.
As he puts it, “If we take government seriously, we must as Nigerians take merit before federal character.”
However, he explained that the government will not ignore Federal Character but that merit must come first during consideration.
The Memorial lecture attended by the governor of Cross River State Prof. Ben Ayade also had two guest speakers, Mr. Donald Duke, former governor of Cross River State and Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, former federal cabinet minister.

HERE IS THE RESUME OF MR. GREGORY PETER OBI

MR. GREGORY PETER OBI

7 Aerodrome Road, Apapa, Lagos, Nigeria

Tel: 08034051000

DATE & PLACE OF BIRTH: 19th July 1961, Onitsha – Nigeria

NATIONALITY: Nigeria

MARITAL STATUS: Married with two children

EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS ATTENDED:

• Christ the King College, Onitsha (W.A.S.C.) - 1978

• University of Nigeria, Nsukka, (B.A. Philosophy) - 1984

• Lagos Business School, Nigeria (Chief Executive Program)

• Harvard Business School, Boston, U.S.A. (Mid to Mid Marketing)

• London School of Economics “L.S.E” (Financial Mgt./Business Policy)

• Columbia Business School, New York U.S.A. (Marketing Management)

• Kellogg Graduate School of Management U.S.A. (Advanced Exec. Prog.)

• Institute for Management Dev. (IMD), Switzerland (Snr. Executive Forum)

NANS Petition Government, Security Agencies Over Alleged COOU Student Assault By House Agent

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Zone B has petitioned the Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase, Anambra State Governor Willie Obiano and the Department of State Security (DSS), over the alleged assault of a student of Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Chioma Ifemeludike.
NANS officials blocked the Goodwill Junction axis of Oby Okoli Avenue, Okpuno-Awka, for over an hour in protest.
NANS coordinator Mr. Ikechukwu Okorie led other students to shut the office of a lawyer, Mr. Albert Okwudinka. Ifemeludike was alleged to have instructed his security man to  push Chioma Ifemeludike  from a storey building.
Okorie said Ifemeludike suffered life threatening injuries and Okwudinka showed no remorse, even refusing to appear at the B-division police station where the matter was first reported before it was transferred to the Area Command.

PDP Reps Candidate concedes Defeat To APGA In Anambra

The People Democratic Party Candidate in the March 28th National Assembly election and Member Representing Anaocha/Njikoka/Idumukofia Federal constituency may have conceded his victory to his opponent in the said election, Mr. Dozie Nwakwo.
The drama eschewed when the counsel to the second,third and forth respondent in the suit approached the Anambra state election petition Tribual sitting in Awka, headed by Justice Nayai Aganaba to announce their resolve to vacate the case against for the applicant, Mr. Dozie Nwakwo, stating that they have agreed to alow applicant be sworn in as member elect for Anaocha/Njikoka/Idumukofia Federal constituency, owing to the recent computation done by their legal team which actually revealed that the Mr Dozie Nwakwo won in the said election.
The dramatic concession, which elicited wide laughter in court, came up when the second and third respondents to the petition, Dr. Eze and PDP respectively, admitted that a polling unit by polling unit computation of all the valid votes clearly showed that Mr. Nwankwo won the election by a wide margin, hence he should have been returned elected.

Court Sacks Godwin Idu to be Replaced By Chuba Ikpeazu, Both PDP Anambra State

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday ordered the Peoples Democratic Party member of the House of Representatives representing Onitsha North/South Federal Constituency of Anambra State, Godwin Idu, to vacate his seat.
Justice Adeniyi Ademola also cancelled the certificate of return which the Independent National Electoral Commission earlier issued to him as the winner of the March 28, 2015 election for the Onitsha North/South Federal Constituency seat in the House of Representatives.
The judge, who was delivering judgment in a suit challenging the submission of Idu’s name to the INEC as the candidate of the PDP for the election, ordered that the plaintiff in the suit, Lynda Chuba-Ikpeazu, should be sworn in Idu’s ste
Chuba-Ikpeazu, had filed the suit which predated the March 28, 2015 election, on March 18, 2015, to challenge the substitution of her name earlier submitted to INEC as the winner of the PDP’s primary, with that of Idu.
The PDP, INEC, the National Working Committee of the PDP and Idu were the defendants in the suit. But INEC did not file any defence in the suit filed through the plaintiff’s counsel, Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN).

WIKE RESTORES OMEHIA’S RIGHTS AS EX-GOV

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, on Thursday formally restored the benefits and entitlements of Sir Celestine Omehia as a former governor of the state.
Wike, in recognising Omehia as a former governor of the state, had personally returned his (Omehia) official portrait to where the photographs of other past chief executives of the state were placed at the Government House in Port Harcourt.
Omehia who was sworn in as the governor of the state on May 29, 2007, was replaced by Mr. Rotimi Amaechi on October 25, 2007 through the verdict of the Supreme Court.
Since then, Omehia was not recognised as a former governor of the state by the immediate past administration.
But about nine years after, Omehia’s portrait was returned to Government House with his privileges and benefits to be accorded to him as a former governor of the state.
Speaking on his action, Wike explained that his decision stemmed from the fact that Omehia worked as governor of the state between May 29, 2007 and October 25, 2007, wherein he took decisions on behalf of the state and initiated projects.

NDLEA Discovers 3 Drug Labs In Anambra, Arrests Drug Kingpin

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) yesterday said it had arrested a suspected drug baron who specialised in sponsoring drug couriers to China, Malaysia, Turkey, Italy and other foreign countries.
Addressing journalists at office of the agency at Ikoyi, Lagos, the NDLEA Chairman, Ahmadu Giade, said the 37-year-old suspect, Sylvester Chukwunwendu, was also a producer of methamphetamine in Anambra State. Giade said that Chukwunwendu was arrested at Ozubulu in Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State based on intelligence report received by the agency on April 23, 2014.
The suspect was said to be deeply involved in unlawful exportation of illicit drugs and running a methamphetamine production laboratory in his house at No. 2, St. James Close, Ajao Estate, Isolo, Lagos. Chukwunwendu, aka Blessed, was alleged to be the owner of the laboratory and leader of an international drug trafficking organisation which recruits and sponsors drug couriers to foreign countries. Giade said that sufficient evidence had been gathered to ease the prosecution of the suspect.

ASSEMBLY CONFIRMS JUDGE’S CALL FOR AREGBESOLA’S IMPEACHMENT

The Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Mr. Najeem Salaam, said on Wednesday that the assembly had received a petition from Justice Folahanmi Oloyede, calling for the impeachment of Governor Rauf Aregbesola because of alleged financial recklessness.
Oloyede is a serving judge in the Osun State judiciary.
The judge’s petition read in part, “Consequently, the admitted inability of Mr. Governor and his deputy to pay pensions, salaries and allowances for periods ranging from eight to 11 months now as a consequence of their own decision to accumulate debts beyond the capacity of the state’s internally generated revenue, whilst the very ‘actors’, Mr. Governor and his deputy, continue to enjoy their security allowances in hundreds of millions, is a violation of their oaths of office.
“Their action in this respect is as illegal as it is immoral and unconscionable. It is an evidence of their inability to discharge the functions of their office. There is therefore no legal or moral basis for their continued stay in office.

Senator Ndume Defeat Senator Lawan In Senate Leadership Mock Poll

EFFORTS to resolve the crisis over the choice of principal officers of All Progressives Congress, APC, ran into a stalemate yesterday night, even as Senator Ali Ndume defeated Senator Ahmad Lawan in a mock poll.
At the end of marathon meetings, party members from the North-East caucus of the party insisted on pushing forward their choice of Senator Ndume over the party’s preferred Senator Lawan as Senate Leader, which was zoned to the North-East.
The insistence of APC North-East senators was despite efforts, including an intervention by the immediate past President of the Senate, David Mark, to break the logjam in the ruling party, which had seen senators aligned to Senate President Bukola Saraki reject the party’s list of candidates for the four principal offices on offer to the party.
Vanguard gathered that a list of the names of four senators chosen by the party, which had been with the Senate President, would have been announced alongside that of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, senators today, but for the last minute rejection of Lawan by APC North-East caucus.
Principal Offices

WHY BUHARI’S ADC ORDERS DSS OPERATIVES OUT OF PRESIDENTIAL VILLA

The inter agency rivalry between the Department of State Services and the Nigerian Army came to head, yesterday, as the Aide de Camp to the President, Lt. Col Abubakar Lawal ordered personnel of the DSS out of the villa.
The incidence which happened at the residence of the President at the Presidential Villa was extended to all other points that had been manned by the personnel of the DSS.
But the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, said what happened was a realignment of security around the President which entailed that members of the armed forces would man the inner perimeter of the President security while operatives of the DSS would man the outer perimeter.