News of the conviction of Nigerians Former Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, his wife, Beatrice and their “middleman” has been the most talked about story in the media last week.
Ekweremadu was jailed by a United Kingdom court for an organ-trafficking plot, after bringing a man to the UK from Lagos for their 25-year-old daughter Sonia.
The pair and Dr Obinna Obeta, 50, were convicted previously of conspiring to exploit the man for his kidney.
Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) parliament, National Assembly of the Federal Republic of Nigeria had made a public appeal to the UK government, urging them to show leniency in the case of Ekweremadu, after he was found guilty of facilitating organ trafficking.
But Ike Ekweremadu, who was described by the judge as the “driving force throughout”, was sentenced to nine years and eight months in prison as the judge, Justice Johnson, said he took into consideration “a 51-page document” pleading for leniency for Mr Ekweremadu and highlighting how he is a person of upstanding character.
UK slams 10-year jail term on Ekweremadu over organ harvesting plot
Rumpus, dismay trail Tinubu’s consensus NASS leadership positions
At the weekend, the pairing of Senators Godswill Akpabio and Jibrin Barau as Senate president and deputy Senate president had become an open secret after several meetings and horse-trading that secured the deal brokered by the president-elect, Senator Bola Tinubu and certain tendencies in the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of June 13 inauguration of 10th National Assembly and election of presiding officers.
It was learnt that Tajudeen Abass (Zaria Federal Constituency, Kaduna State) also from the same North-West zone will pair with Honourable Benjamin Kalu who represents Bende Federal Constituency, Abia State, as Speaker and Deputy Speaker respectively were picked as the preferred candidate during a meeting held on Friday afternoon at the Defence House, the official residence of the president-elect.
However, former Zamfara State governor and Senator-elect from Zamfara West, Abdulaziz Yari, appears determined to challenge a consensus deal.
A credible source in the party, who confirmed the development, said the decision was taken to ensure that Christians were well represented in the scheme of governance owing to the controversy that the Muslim-Muslim ticket generated.
“The decision was taken to show that APC is the party of all Nigerians and not a Muslim party.
“That is the reason that the Senate Presidency is now being zoned to the South-South and to have a Christian as Senate President. It is also to ensure balance that Tajudeen Abbas from North-West is being chosen as the Speaker,” the source explained.
However, Senator Yari is being goaded by his friends, as- sociates within the APC who believe that Zamfara is being offered the short end of the stick in Tinubu’s presidency.
A source privy to the camp of the former Zamfara State governor argued that apart from Yari, Zamfara also has another aspirant for the speakership of the House of Representatives Honourable Aminu Jaji.
Fuss, disappointment as Tinubu visits Rivers
The visitation of the President-elect to Rivers State on the invitation of Governor Nyesom Wike to inaugurate the Rumuokwuta/Rumuola flyover in Port Harcourt created different mixed reactions.
Tinubu during the inauguration described the People’s Democratic Party’s Wike as a man of integrity who abandoned his interest for the nation’s interest.
Wike had declared Wednesday 3 May public holiday for Rivers state people to celebrate Tinubu on his visitation.
This visitation did not go down well with the Rivers chapter of APC as it dissociated itself from the visit. The Rivers State governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Tonye Cole, who was also absent to receive Tinubu during his visit to the state to inaugurate projects cited negligence and Wike’s nonchalance among others as reasons why he was absent from the inauguration.
The spokesperson told the governor, “to play less divisive politics and exercise restraint in planting seeds of discord amongst opposition political parties”. Nwauju accused Wike of working to paint a false perception of the collapse of the APC structure in Rivers despite his boast “in previous well-documented interviews”.
Meanwhile, Wike got his first jab of disappointment when Tinubu rejected a request made by Wike, for a refund for the construction of some federal roads in the state. While noting how the state had to amend its procurement law to enable it to source funds and complete the various flyover projects embarked upon in record time, Wike said the projects undertaken by the state ought to be done by the Federal Government.
“And unfortunately too, these projects ought to be Federal Government projects because they are federal roads.
“If we had said because they are Federal Government roads, and we won’t do it. Who are those to suffer?…
“I am not asking what we are not entitled to. The Federal Government should say you are a true son of this government you have removed shame from us.”
But in his response, the President-elect stated, “The 12th flyover and the demand you made for refund, I owe you nothing. It is your road.
“You can’t chuckle at me and make a demand. You are the one living on this road. I commend your effort. You have to lobby me to collect it.”
King Charles crowned
Tens of thousands of people of all ages, from Britain and across the globe, massed in rainy central London on Saturday to witness King Charles’ coronation and enjoy the unique atmosphere, with many donning crowns and cloaks of their own.
From the early hours, people dressed in red, white, and blue and clutching Union flags lined the streets for the first coronation in Britain for 70 years and a vast display of pomp and pageantry, NAN reports.
President Muhammadu Buhari, on Saturday, joined other world leaders invited to attend the coronation of Charles III and his wife, Camilla, as His Majesty The King and Her Majesty The Queen Consort of the United Kingdom respectively.
The President is billed to participate in the Summit which will deliberate on the ‘Future of the Commonwealth and the Role of the Youth’.
He will be accompanied by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Maj.-Gen Babagana Monguno (Rtd), the Director General, National Intelligence Agency, (NIA), Ambassador Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, the Chairperson/Chief Executive Officer of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa and other senior government officials.
Also, the award-winning Nigerian singer, Tiwa Savage, was invited to perform at the coronation of the British monarch, King Charles III.
Tiwa Savage is set to join an array of celebrities such as Steve Winwood, DJ Pete Tong, Lang Lang, Lucy, Paloma Faith, and Olly Murs, who will entertain guests at the coronation concert and Big Lunch scheduled for Sunday, May 7.
School fees hike: NANS threatens to shut down Nigeria, all Airports
In the news last week, the Federal and State Governments in the country have been put on notice, to either stop the increase in tuition fees in all tertiary institutions across the country or face the hardest-ever student uprising.
The declaration was made by the National President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Comrade Usman Barambu while speaking at the 1st North-East Zonal Senate sitting of NANS held on Thursday at the Abubakar Tatari Ali Polytechnic (ATAP), Bauchi.
He said that the increase in tuition fees has negatively affected students particularly those who are from the poorest of the poor but managing and struggling to get to school.
School fees hike: NANS threatens to shut down Nigeria, all Airports
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