Headline

Buhari at ICC, Promises Free, Fair 2019 Elections

Published

6 years ago

July 17, 2018

Eric

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday promised to do everything possible to ensure that the 2019 general elections are free, fair and peaceful.

He said all hands were on deck to forestall the violence that characterised the 2011 elections which necessities investigations by the International Criminal Court.

Buhari made the promise in his keynote address at the Solemn Hearing to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Rome Statute of the ICC, at The Hague.

It will be recalled that scores of Nigerians were killed in parts of the country in the wake of the violence that broke out after the 2011 elections in Nigeria.

But the President assured the ICC that such would not happen under his watch.

He said, “Let me intimate you that Nigeria is preparing to conduct general elections in 2019.

“Contrary to the tragic incidents that characterised the 2011 general elections in Nigeria which necessitated preliminary investigations by the International Criminal Court, I assure you that all hands are on deck to prevent any recurrence of such tragic incidents.

“We shall do everything possible to ensure that Nigeria witnesses the conduct of free, fair and peaceful elections in 2019.”

Buhari called on the states parties to support ICC with jurisdiction over serious cases of corruption and illicit financial flows by state actors.

He added, “A strong and effective ICC has the potential to send a powerful message about the international community’s commitment to accountability, a message that will be heard by both victims and perpetrators.

“Equally, a strong and effective ICC demonstrates the international community’s commitment to the rule of law.

‘‘A strong and effective ICC can also act as a catalyst for other justice efforts, expanding the reach of accountability.

“These could include serious cases of corruption by state actors that severely compromise the development efforts of countries and throw citizens into greater poverty.

“These could also include cases of illicit financial flows where countries are complicit and obstruct repatriation of stolen assets. As the African Union Champion on Anti-corruption, these are issues dear to my heart.”

The President thanked the judges of the court for electing a Nigerian, Chile Eboe-Osuji, as President.

While congratulating Eboe-Osuji, on his election, the President said Nigeria was proud of him.

Buhari recalled that the court was established 20 years ago as a global court, inspired by the Nuremberg trials of World War II war criminals, to hold people accountable for crimes against humanity, war crimes, crimes of genocide and aggression.

He noted that the ICC has given hope for justice to many by demanding strict adherence to the rules of international humanitarian law.

With the alarming proliferation of the most serious crimes around the world, the President said the ICC, and all that it stands for, was now needed more than ever, in ways that were unforeseeable to its founders.

He added that although the ICC may have been created at a time of optimism that it would not need to be utilised frequently, but, unfortunately, the increase in international crimes has only increased the court’s relevance.

He said while limits on the ICC’s jurisdiction mean that it cannot presently act with regard to some of the dire crises of the day in states that are not parties, by acting where it can, the ICC reinforces the demand for justice far beyond its own cases.

The President noted that Nigeria has cooperated with, and supported the court at all times.

This, he said, the country had demonstrated by its full and transparent cooperation on matters on which it is being investigated and also in its several country statements at the sessions of the court.

“Our cooperation with the court is borne out of our strong belief in the respect for the rule of law and human rights, and in our firm commitment to the sanctity of fundamental freedoms at international and domestic levels, as ingrained in the objectives for establishing the court,” he added.

While admitting that the goals and responsibilities of the court are challenging and daunting, Buhari noted that with the cooperation of all, coupled with the high calibre of judges and staff of the court, the challenges are not insurmountable.

He therefore urged all states not to politicise the decisions of the court but to always bear in mind the rationale for its establishment in the first place.

“I urge all sates that have not yet done so to, as a matter of deliberate state policy, accede to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court so that it can become a universal treaty,” he added.

The Nigerian leader is the only President invited to grace the 20th anniversary of the adoption of the ICC Rome Statute.

Over 25 high-level state officials, the President of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute, O-Gon Kwon, ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, ICC Registrar Peter Lewis, UN Legal Counsel Miguel de Serpa Soares, and other special guests, attended the event.

The Punch

Headline

Breaking: Wike Plans to Attend Thursday’s PDP NEC Meeting

Published

1 day ago

April 17, 2024

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

The immediate past Governor of Rivers State, and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, may have concluded plans to attend the much advertised National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), billed to hold on Thursday, in Abuja.

Impeccable source, who is in the know, told The Boss that the minister, whose membership of the PDP is yet to be revoked even as he frolicks with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), and serving in the President Bola Tinubu government as a minister.

The Source told The Boss that Wike’s impending presence at the NECeeting on Thursday is not unconnected with plans, already hatched with some governors, to weaken the opposition PDP.

“Yes, we have on good authority that FCT minister, Wike is planning to attend the NEC meeting tomorrow all in a bid to weaken the fabrics of the PDP, and pave the way for the continuation of the Tinubu administration come 2027, and by extension, relapse Nigeria to a full blown one party state.

“From every indication, Wike and his co-travellers, are bent on unleashing the same crisis ravaging the third force, Labour Party, and Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso’s Nigerian National People’s Party (NNPP) on the PDP for the APC to remain the only political party in the country, and ensure that Tinubu has no challenger, come 2027,” the Source said.

It would be recalled that Wike has boasted over and again that there’s no opposition against Tinubu’s re-emergence in 2027, and that they have made sure of that. He has been compensated with the Ministerial job after he withdrew support for his party, and supported the APC and Tinubu to emerge as national government.

The Source further revealed that in the attempt to actualize the intended one party state, a lot of funding is ongoing to ensure that concerned stakeholders are ‘settled’ handsomely.

Wike, prior, during and after the 2023 general elections, has been floating in between the two major political parties; the APC and the PDP. While he claim to still be a member of the PDP, he is functioning as a minister in an APC government, mocking the inability of his party to discipline him.

Political stakeholders have concluded that the outcome of Thursday’s PDP NEC meeting will determine the path Nigeria’s political trajectory will take, and that it may portend the end of multi-party system and political democracy if Wike succeeds in his plan.

Headline

Bribery, Corruption: APC Suspends National Chairman, Ganduje

Published

3 days ago

April 15, 2024

Eric

The All Progressives Congress ward in Ganduje, Dawakin Tofa Local Government Area, has suspended the party’s National Chairman, Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje.

The party ward legal adviser, Halliru Gwanzo, announced the suspension while addressing newsmen in Kano State on Monday.

Gwanzo cited allegations of bribery against Ganduje levelled by the Kano State Government as the reason for the suspension.

“We decided to suspend Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje from the party due to the seriousness of the allegations against him,” Gwanzo said.

Meanwhile, efforts to contact the Chief Press Secretary to the APC National Chairman, Mr Edwin Olufo, failed as his mobile phone was unreachable.

Headline

Akpabio Commits to Collaboration with Tinubu, Governor Umo Eno

Published

7 days ago

April 12, 2024

Admin

The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has stated his commitment to working closely with Nigeria’s President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and Governor Umo Eno to ensure the delivery of democratic benefits to the people of Akwa Ibom State.

Akpabio stated this in his country home, Ukana, Essien Udim Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom, while briefing his constituents on the journey so far as their representative in the red chamber.

He assured the people of Akwa Ibom North West Senatorial District of his commitment to their welfare in appreciation of their total support for him, President Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in last year’s election.

The Highpoint of the constituency briefing was the distribution of over 10,000 bags of rice and other essentials for his constituents from the wards, to the local governments.

A statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Jackson Udom, quoted Akpabio as saying, “I am here once again, to thank you for standing by me, our President and the party, before, during and even after last year’s elections. I have come to say thank you and also bring Renewed Hope to you all.

“As the President is doing his own, the Senate President is also doing his bit and being complemented by the state governor, Akwa Ibom would be the better for it. We have finished elections and politics, we are now into governance. The governor of the state must touch you, because he is the governor of all the people in the state irrespective of political affiliation.

” As I am touching you now from the political angle, I will also touch the state without any political party affiliation. Most of the projects we are putting in place would be used by people resident in the state. Relax, things are getting better.”

The former Governor of the state, assured his constituents that his current position as the Senate President would be used for the development of the state in collaboration with the President and the Akwa Ibom State Governor.

Hear him: This Senate President is not the one that would be fighting the state government. I will collaborate with , I will collaborate with , to make the state better for us all. We cannot be out of government for a long time. You have to go to a government that carries you along”

Akpabio promised to work for his constituents and Nigeria with all his strength, noting that, “as the President of the Senate, I am for the Southern region and the entire country. I may not come here regularly to tell you what I have been doing for you, but you will be feeling the impact on way or the other. Our unemployed youths would be gainfully employed. I will construct a mini stadium in all the local governments in the district, for our youths to develop their sporting potentials. ”