A human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN) on Sunday revealed why his son, Folarin Falana, popularly known as Falz, embarrasses the government. According to Falana, the popular rapper and rights activist embarrasses the government because of what he experienced while growing up.
Falana while speaking at the 2nd anniversary of the Oluyinka Odumakin Lecture in Lagos said his son at a tender age was bothered about his frequent arrests as a legal practitioner.
The lawyer noted that his frequent arrest made his son, Falz ask if he was a criminal.
Falana stated this, days after the rapper released a new song titled, ‘Yakubu,’ featuring fellow rapper, Vector.
He said, “One of these guys one day said, ‘Falana talk to your son; he should stop embarrassing the government’. I said which government? You mean that boy who is an adult? Can I give you his number so you can talk to him? But be careful because when that boy was growing up, I was being arrested from time to time. So, the only language he understood was detention, arrest and the rest of them.
“One day, when that boy was six, he asked his mother, “Our teacher taught us that only criminals were arrested. Is my father a criminal? Why is he always being arrested? And the mother had to say that in Nigeria, under the military, only two sets of people were arrested: Criminals suspects and political suspects. Political suspects are those who are out to expose the criminality of the government. That is what you see going on.”
The Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, has called on anyone with evidence against the Chairman of the Lagos State Parks and Garages Association, Musiliu Akinsaya, popularly known as Mc Oluomo, to file a case of attack.
He made this known via his Twitter handle on Tuesday morning in response to a Twitter conversation on MC Oluomo’s remarks during the March 18 elections.
The tweep, Ajamma, chastised Adejobi for failing to protect voters during the election after he asked people to take MC Oluomo’s remark about Igbo in a viral video as a joke and assured them of safety during the election.
AjammaS said, “Sir you are also guilty, if I may say. This is what you said in the TV interview, and I quote. ‘MC Oluomo threat is a joke, let’s take it as a joke until he perfect the threat. I urge everyone to go out & cast their votes’.
“Now Nigerians heeded to your calls & went out to cast their votes and unfortunately you failed to protect them as you promised. They were attacked by MC Oluomo & his boys, some were murdered, brutalized, blinded, some are currently receiving treatment in different hospitals.”
Adejobi responded by asking the tweep to file an attack case against Oluomo if he had evidence of attacks against him, adding that Oluomo lacked immunity.
He said, “You can take the case of attack up with MC if you have a case or evidence of attacks against him. Many people and lawyers, even the Deputy Gov of Lagos, have said it severally. He has no immunity, so if you have a case of attack against him, take it up.”
“There is no need to pass judgement or do trial on Twitter. Very simple. Many of you just follow others to raise this issue on Twitter.”
The family of the late Eruwa born business magnate and philanthropist, Chief Adeseun Ogundoyin has announced a 3day burial program for one of his wives, Chief Mrs Justina Iyabo Ogundoyin, the mother of the Speaker Oyo State House of Assembly, Hon Adebo Ogundoyin.
Yeye Ogundoyin who until her death was the Iyaloja General of Ibarapaland, Yeyeluwa of Eruwa and the Aare Iyalode of Ibadanland breathed her last on the 26th of March, 2023 during a brief illness.
She was survived by four children, Adesoji, Adebo, Adetoye and Aderemi
A statement from the eldest son of the deceased, Mr Adesoji Ogundoyin revealed that the funeral programme for late Chief Mrs Justina Iyabo Ogundoyin will commence on Wednesday 12th April, 2023 with a Christian Wake at St’ Joseph Catholic Church, Oke Ado Ibadan while lying-in-State holds at Ogundoyin, Ori-Oke family house on Thursday 13th April, 2023.
According to the statement, a funeral Service will follow on Thursday, 14th of April, 2023 at Eleruwa Stadium, Eruwa while interment will follow at the Ogundoyin Vault, Adetoro Estate Eruwa on the same day.
Guests will thereafter be entertained at DEC Hall , Eruwa.
The late Chief Mrs Justina Iyabo Ogundoyin was a one time acting Iyaloja of Oyo State. She was a business woman of repute.
The International Criminal Court in Hague has been asked to investigate a spokesperson of the All Progressives Congress presidential campaign, Femi Fani-Kayode, and Musiliu Akinsanya (a.k.a MC Oluomo), for alleged “ethnic hate”.
The petition was filed by Assistant Professor of Law at the University of Calgary, Christian Gideon, in connection with election and post-election violence in Nigeria.
He claimed that the duo allegedly caused tension in Nigeria against a particular ethnic group and also alleged that none of them has been arrested following inciteful remarks they made.
“The domestic institutions in Nigeria have become corrupt and inept, and hence unable to hold the individuals who directly and indirectly planned, organized and incited this ethnically motivated violence,” Gideon wrote, urging the ICC to probe them alongside another APC spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga on alleged ethnic hate.
He wrote, “Further Request to Investigate the Election and Post-Election Violence in Nigeria as Well as Incitement to Ethnic Hate by Messrs. Femi Fani-Kayode and Musiliu Akinsanya (a.k.a MC Oluomo)
“This is further to my communication to the International Criminal Court (The Court) dated 27” March 2023, requesting The Court to investigate the series of ethnically motivated violence in the Nigeria presidential and governorship election as well as the conduct of Mr. Bayo Onanuga in inciting ethnic hate that fueled the violence.
“Following the said letter to The Court, I have become aware of additional evidence suggesting the alleged involvement of the additional individuals in inciting the ethnic hate that culminated in the “organised violent attacks” resulting “many casualties and fatalities” to persons from a targeted ethnic group during the said elections. The individuals are:
“1. Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode “2. Mr. Musiliu Akinsanya (a.k.a MC Oluomo)
“Mr. Fani-Kayode is a prominent politician and a former federal minister in Nigeria. Following the presidential election and prior to the Lagos state governorship election, Mr. Fani-Kayode resorted to inciting ethnic hate against members of the Igbo ethnic group as a tool to achieve his political and ideological interests.
“In a widely publicized column in the media, which had a clear objective of inciting ethnic hate against the Igbos, Mr. Fani-Kayode made incendiary remarks against the group. He made the statement knowing fully well its potential to threaten and result in violence against members of this group, especially in the light of the political and social tension in the country at the time of the publication of his write-up.
“Mr. Fani-Kayode incited ethnic hate against this target group writing: “[w]e gave them land, food and shelter and now they want to take everything from us and rule over us. They have even infiltrated our churches and introduced a brand of religious intolerance which is alien to us.”
“Mr. Musiliu Akinsanya (a.k.a MC Oluomo) is the head of the dreaded National Union of Road Transport Workers — a well-organised and decentralised band of touts and local gangs that operate conspicuously in Lagos.
“Prior to the Lagos state governorship election, he had publicly warned individuals from the Igbo ethnic group about severe consequences should they show up on election day to vote against his ethnic interest.
“His hate speech which was highly publicized and available in the public domain, was made before his cheering gang of political supporters in Lagos. While the serious threat evident from Mr. Akinsanya’s speech was reported to the security agencies in Nigeria, no effort was made by the authorities to address this threat or protect the individuals threatened.
“Rather, in an interview with the Channels TV, the spokesperson for the Nigerian Police dismissed the speech as a “joke”. However, the threat did materialize on March 18 during and after the governorship election when individuals from the Igbo ethnic group and other individuals that ‘looked like them’ were specifically targeted and attacked resulting in several fatalities and casualties.”
Christian works as an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Calgary.
According to the University of Calgary, “He obtained his law degree (LL.B) from the University of Lagos in Nigeria, an LL.M (with specialization in Law and Technology) and a PhD from the University of Ottawa. During his doctoral studies, Gideon was a SSHRC – Joseph Armand Bombardier Canada Doctoral Scholar.”
Nobel laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka has expressed disappointment about the conduct of the just concluded 2023 general election.
According to him, the nation was moving towards a situation, which he says was not planned, but one that happened fortuitously where the existing mould was going to be broken.
ODUDUWA NEWS reports that Soyinka, who said he preferred not to make comments on the electoral process because he was out of the country for a while, noted that the elections were “not exactly the most edifying exercise that we’ve been through.”
The Nobel laureate, who appeared on Monday’s edition of Channels Television’s Roadmap 2023, said even though he wasn’t in the country, he was not ignorant to what was going on.
While sharing his thoughts about the 2023 general elections and the political actors, the Nobel laureate stated that “On arriving, I came in for World Poetry Day, and immediately, I was bombarded by the most horrendous narratives both pre and after the elections.
“Since then, I’ve also read columns; I’ve seen Nigerian papers for the first time in months and I didn’t like what I read at all.
“My trust has broken down completely and even the minimum restraint that we’ve learnt to expect from seasoned politicians has been jettisoned completely. “And the signs were there that there would be die-hard opposition to the breaking of that mould,” he said. “Elections should be keenly contested. But I still believe very much in what I call the Fashola Dictum.”
Anti-Tinubu passenger aboard an Abuja-Lagos flight, Mr Obiajulu Uja, has been arraigned before the Zuba Magistrates’ Court, Abuja and remanded in prison custody.
His lawyer, Ejike Ugwu, disclosed this to The Newsmen on Monday.
Uja was on Friday evening carried off a Lagos-Abuja flight, after he started a lone protest, demanding that the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, must never be sworn in as president on May 29.
In the viral video that made the rounds on Saturday, it took the efforts of no fewer than six airport security officers to evacuate him after holding up the aircraft for more than an hour, as the 6pm flight had yet to move as of 7pm.
A copy of the charge sheet sighted by our correspondent showed that Uja was charged with “public nuisance, resistance to a lawful arrest, threatening violence and conduct likely to cause a breach of peace contrary to sections 396, 267,188,172 and 144 of the Penal Code Law.”
The lawyer said, “He was arraigned at the Zuba Magistrates’ Court after they deceived us because yesterday he was taken to Muhammadu Buhari Police Hospital, Area 11 Abuja.”
The lawyer, who exclusively spoke to our correspondent in Abuja noted that his client, was admitted at the Muhammadu Buhari Police Hospital, adding that the hospital did not have a psychiatrist doctor and psychologist that to examine him.
He, however, said a doctor was invited from National Hospital, Abuja to examine Uja but the efforts unfortunately was futile.
“While we were there, it was around 3pm they told us that they wanted to arraign him in Zuba Magistrates’ Court.
“We reminded the court that the same police invited the doctor to examine him, and the same police instead of waiting for the doctors to examine him hurriedly charged him to court.
“Even with the test we did, we spent almost N40,000 at the Police clinic, all the tests they conducted we abandoned all of them; they have not prescribed any medicine.
The Amotekun Corps, a southwest security organisation, thwarted a car robbery attempt on the Akure-Ilesa Expressway on Friday and recovered an oil-filled vehicle in the process.
Retired Brig. Gen. Bashir Adewinmbi, commander of the corps in Osun, revealed to newsmen on Saturday in Osogbo that the robbers had been attacking vehicles on the Ileki/Osu axis of the Ilesha-Akure Road for almost an hour.
He said that at at 11.46 p.m., a driver who had escaped the bandits’ ambush called in an Amotekun patrol squad, who then pursued the criminals away.
“The robbers ambushed vehicles and were shooting into the air, forcing drivers to park, abandon their vehicles and run into bushes for safety.
“When the robbers, however, saw that Amotekun patrol team was coming for them, they fled the scene after operating on the road for almost an hour,’’ he said
According to Adewinmbi, after the robbers escaped, a truck that had been abandoned by its driver and was laden with gasoline and fuel was found and brought to the Amotekun office in Osogbo.
He claimed that the owner of the items was contacted and that the driver and his assistant, who had fled into the jungle, were located using the waybills that were discovered in the vehicle that was later retrieved.
According to him, the driver revealed that when they were ambushed, they were travelling from Lagos to Abuja via Lokoja.
Adewinmbi noted that the vehicle and its contents were released to the driver on Saturday in Osogbo in the presence of officers from the incident’s local police station, Ayeso Police Station, in Ilesha.
