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31/07/2020

NJC RECOMMENDS APPOINTMENT OF 22 JUDGES FOR SUPREME COURT.

The National Judicial Council (NJC) has recommended the appointment of 22 judges for the Supreme Court and other courts across the country.

A statement by the Director of Information of the NJC, Mr Soji Oye, on Thursday, said the council made the recommendation at its second virtual meeting held on August 11 and 12, 2020.

Oye said the council at the meeting presided by its Chairman who is also the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Tanko Muhammad, recommended a total of 22 judicial officers across various courts, including the Supreme Court, which has been seeing a steady decline in the number of its Justices in the last two years.

The recommended candidates for the Supreme Court bench which currently has 12 Justices, will add to the list of four others whom the NJC had recommended to the President Muhammadu Buhari since last year.

The 22 judicial officers newly recommended by the NJC are for appointment as Justices of the apex court, and as heads of other courts, judges of High Court states, Kadis of states Sharia courts and judges of Customary Courts of Appeal.

He said the recommendation of the 22 candidates for appointment followed the council’s consideration of the Report of its Interview Committee.

The statement added that the council also issued “a warning letter to Hon. Justice K. N. Ogbonnaya of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory following its findings on the petition written against him by Dr. Uchechukwu Samson Ogah, OON, that His Lordship refused to release a copy of Judgment delivered to the petitioner within the constitutionally prescribed period of seven days.”

The statement however added that the council dismissed the petition sent against 17 judges.

“In the same vein, Council also dismissed a petition written by Mrs Ademujimi Adenike Nancy against Hon. Justice Sunday Olorundahunsi for want of merit.

“Council also considered the Report of Preliminary Complaints Assessment Committee on petitions written against the following 16 Judicial Officers and dismissed the allegations levelled against” them, on the grounds that the petitions were “either lacking in merit or being subjudice”.

The 16 other exonerated judges include, the Chief Judges of Ekiti and Kwara states, Justices Ayodele Daramola and Sulyman Kawu, respectively.

The rest include four judges of the Federal High Court, Justices I. N. Oweibo, Hadiza R. Shagari, Ijeoma L. Ojukwu, Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa; two Lagos State High Court judges – Justices B. A. Oke-Lawal, O. A. Ogala; a judge of the Cross River State High Court, Justice Augusta Uche Kingsley-Chukwu, a judge of the Nasarawa State High Court, Justice Mustapha A. Ramat; as well as two judges of the Kaduna State High Court, Justices M. M. Ladan and Muhammed Lawal Bello.

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The rest are a judge of the Bauchi State High Court, Justice Adamu M. Kafin Madaki, a Bayelsa State High Court judge, Justice L. M. Boufini, as well as a Kadi of the Sharia Court of Appeal, Borno State, and Kadi Goni Kur.

According to the statement, the council “also received the final report of the Judicial Ethics Committee and other Ad-Hoc Committees set up.”

It added, “Council also received the notification of retirement of thirteen judges and notification of death of six judges of States High Courts and Sharia Court of Appeal.

31/07/2020

NEWSHURIWA threatens Lai Mohammed over N5m fine, says Buhari hates free speech.

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, on Friday condemned the illegal National Broadcasting Commission’s new Code on hate speech.

HURIWA has also asked the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed to withdraw the NBC code or face legal actions.

Recall that Mohammed had recently announced that the reviewed NBC code comes with a N5 million fine for hate speech as against the previous N500, 000.

However, the rights group lamented that the new code was an indication that President Muhammadu Buhari was not an admirer of free speech.

A statement by HURIWA’s National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko and National Director of Media Affairs, Miss. Zainab Yusuf said Mohammed has 76 hours to withdraw the code.

The statement reads partly: “There appears to be little or no doubt that President Muhammadu Buhari is not an admirer of free speech. Recall that in his 18 months as Military Head of State in the mid-80s, human rights in the country was gagged, with press freedom curtailed for pleasure.

“Even as an elected president, the record of his administration where media and human rights are concerned has been totally unclean. Though his image-makers have tried to sell him as a leader who is now persuaded that basic democratic freedoms matter, but they have been unsuccessful

“As Military Head of State between 1983 to 1985, General Mohammed Buhari (as he then was) had promulgated the Decree No. 4, which did not take kindly to press criticisms and saw two Nigerian journalists jailed.

“The Decree 4, drafted on March 29, 1984, was suppressive, with its Section 1, sub-sections (i), (ii) and (iii) providing that: “Any person who publishes in any form, whether written or otherwise, any message, rumour, report or statement, being a message, rumour, statement or report which is false in any material particular or which brings or is calculated to bring the Federal Military Government or the Government of a state or public officer to ridicule or disrepute, shall be guilty of an offence under this Decree.

“Let’s say that was a military regime in power, and cannot be valid under a democratic government, which the present administration purports to be, but the provisions of the Decree No. 4 is similar to the provisions of Hate Speech Bill proposed by lawmakers early this year and the NBC Code on hate speech supervised by Minister of Information and Culture; Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

“The content of the Hate Speech and Anti-Social Media bill sponsored by the Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate; Aliyu Abdullahi and which found its way into the 6th Amendment to National Broadcasting Code unveiled by Lai Mohammed, Minister of Information on August 4, 2020, in Lagos to keep critics quiet was not totally different from the provision of Decree 4.

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“Unlike the Decree 4, this time, the Code stipulates that those who fall foul of the provision of the broadcast code on hate speech shall pay a fine of N5m, which was raised from N500, 000 as a means of compelling media houses to scrutinise adverts and reports before publishing them.

“With the NBC board’s position, the code on hate speech had not come into force; therefore, the N5 million fine is illegal. This is because the imposition of the N5 million fine was anchored on a purported amendment of the code and since the NBC lacks the legal competence to impose a fine on any broadcasting station without a finding of guilt by a properly constituted criminal court, the NBC should crush the illegal fine.

“Whether or not what Dr. Mailafia said on the radio station was a false claim, it is outside of the objectives of a responsible regulatory framework to sanction a radio station for a comment an individual made, even as the personality in question; Dr. Obadiah, had been quizzed and released by law enforcement agents.

“The NBC Code on Hate Speech is a regulation that has no force of law so we condemn it and are by this statement giving a final warning to the Minister of Information and Culture; Alhaji Lai Mohammed to withdraw the illegal regulation within 76 hours or we file a suit to challenge the legality of such an affront against freedom of the media and expression in a competent Court of law. We have already briefed our lawyer.

“Conclusively, we urge the President; His Excellency, Muhammadu Buhari (GCFR) to caution his Minister of Information and Culture; Alhaji Lai Mohammed to refrain from threatening Nigerians with punishment under a controversial and illegal platform that is inconsistent and incompatible with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).”

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Buhari govt raises penalty for hate speech from N500,000 to N5 million

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