Headline

Ilorin Amusement Park: Toyin Saraki’s Lawyers Warn Kwara Govt, APC, Others Over Libel

Published

7 years ago

August 18, 2019

Editor

Former First Lady of Kwara State Mrs Toyin Saraki has stated emphatically that she has no link whatsoever in the ownership of Ilorin Amusement Park.

Mrs Saraki’ s reaction followed tweets that created the impression that the new government had taken over the said park from her. Now she has told the writers to retract the stories on social media within 24 hours.

Lawyers acting for Mrs Toyin Saraki, has issued a Letter Before Action – Cease And Desist Caution Notice – to Kwara State Government, the state Chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and one Titi Anifowoshe, a personal aide to Minister-Nominee Former Senator Gbemisola Rukayat Saraki-Fowora warning them to retract a defamatory story they sponsored on the social media against the former First Lady on the ownership of an Ilorin Amusement Park.

In a letter addressed to the Kwara State APC Chairman, Bashiru Bolarinwa and the others which was made availabe to The Boss, the law firm of Austen-Peters & Co, demanded that the state government, the ruling party and the aide of the minister designate should publish a retraction within 24 hours.

The text of the letter reads:
“We write on behalf of Mrs Toyin Saraki (hereinafter referred to as “Our Client”) who has complained about the malicious publication of falsehoods against her person on your Twitter handle known as “@MediaApc”, published at about 12.45 am on Thursday 15 August 2019, and reproduced and published by a Titi Anifowoshe @d_legal_eagle, ostensibly a personal aide to a former Senator, Minister-Nominee Gbemisola Rukayat Saraki Fowora, at 10:57am on 15th August, 2019.
The objectionable tweets respectively contained the following words:

“Kwara State Govt has taken back the Amusement Park from former 1st Lady, Toyin Saraki, wife of former SP Bukola Saraki who took over the property as her personal possession after paying #62M for a land that is worth over #1.2billion using fake company to take over the land.”
@MediaApc https://twitter.com/MediaApc/status/1161776837669916672?s=08

And:

“Kwara State Govt has taken back the Amusement Park from former 1st Lady, @toyinsaraki Toyin Saraki, wife of former SP @bukolasaraki who took over the property as hers after paying #62M for a land that is worth over #1.2bn using fake company to take over the land. #TakeItBack
@d_legal_eagle
https://twitter.com/d_legal_eagle/status/1161940010251292672?s=08”.

In their warning, Austen-Peters & Co further stated:

“Our Client finds the entirety of the publication mendacious, libellous and criminally defamatory. She believes that the peddling of malicious falsehood in the said publication was done deliberately and maliciously in a bid to bring her to disrepute before right-thinking members of the public, especially because there is no iota of truth in the publication.”

“First, Our Client has never at any time, owned, nor sought to own any portion or the whole, of the Ilorin Metropark, formerly known as Ilorin Amusement Park.

“Secondly, it is pure falsehood to assert that the Kwara State Government has taken back any property from Our Client let alone the Amusement Park, since she never had it.

“Thirdly, there was never a time that Mrs Saraki paid the sum of N62 Million or any other sum for the acquisition of the Amusement Park.

“Lastly, Mrs Saraki has never operated any fake company and it is criminal defamation to allege that she did so and used it to acquire the said Amusement Park. Nothing of such ever took place.

“It is matter of fact for the public record and public knowledge, especially in Ilorin and Kwara State that Our Client, as the First Lady, donated a children’s playground and ancillary landscape gardening, to the Amusement Park in 2004, as a philanthropic gesture, which was enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of children, and their families, freely. Mrs Saraki has not had any contact with the Amusement Park or its then administrators, the Kwara State Ministries of Social Welfare and Works and Housing, ever since the time of her donation in 2004, beyond hosting children’s parties on public and religious holidays, during the time of her then role as First Lady of Kwara State, which concluded on 29th May, 2011”, the law firm stated.

Austen-Peters & Co further demanded the following on behalf of Mrs Saraki:

“An immediate and unequivocal retraction of the publication by APC Kwara State, to disabuse the mind of the public as to whatever misrepresentation the publication might contain. Such rebuttal should enjoy, as a minimum, similar prominence of place as the original publication”

“An immediate undertaking that you shall not cause to be published, any form of falsehood against Mrs Saraki”

and

“An unreserved apology to Mrs Saraki for the publication of malicious falsehood against her person.”

While giving the recipients twenty-four (24) hours to fulfil the above-mentioned demands in full to properly vindicate Mrs Saraki, the lawyers stated that their client reserved her rights in full to seek appropriate remedies without further recourse to the publishers of the objectionable content.

In a related development, records at the High Court, Ilorin, indicate that the case initiated by the Ilorin Emirates Descendants Progressives Union in 2013, which named Mrs Saraki as 7th Defendant along with the purported sellers and purchasers of the Ilorin Amusement Park, a claim which the Kwara State Government had in 2013 denied, had since been discontinued on 7th May 2019, at the request of the claimants. The court had also struck it out.

The alleged purchaser of the Park, Artee Industries, owner operators of Park & Shop, a supermarket conglomerate headquartered in Lagos, and managed by Dutch Firm SPAR Nigeria/DESPAR, is owned by a billionaire Indian family, according to the CAC Register.

When contacted, a spokesman for Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, stated: that “Her Excellency, Mrs Saraki had waited patiently for over seven years for the erstwhile misguided complainants, Dr Saliu Ajibola Ajia, Dr Sa’ad Omoiya, Alhaji Saleh Duro Garba, of the IEDPU, whom had inexplicably listed Mrs Toyin Saraki as the 7th defendant, in 2013 without notice to her, to realise the defamatory folly of wrongly attaching her name and reputation injuriously, to a matter she had no knowledge of, whatsoever. The addition of her name in that case, without any notice served to her, was, in our opinion, a frivolous and malicious abuse of judicial processes in an already overburdened court system, and thus her legal counsel immediately approached the court independently to strike out her name. The case was subsequently abandoned by the claimants, was ruled by the judge to be struck out for lack of diligent prosecution, only for the same claimants to later themselves discontinue their own case on March 7th 2019, after seven years of tarnishing the name and reputation of an innocent woman”.

The aide continued that: “Mrs Saraki, out of the goodness of her heart, in 2004 supported the rehabilitation, restoration and beautification of the long abandoned park and also donated a children’s playground for public use, enjoyed freely by hundreds and thousands of children in the Ilorin Emirate.

“It is unfortunate that due to politically motivated rumours and abuse of judicial process, innumerable children and citizens of Ilorin Emirate have been denied the peaceful enjoyment of those once green recreational acres for over six years. For the identified sponsors and actors of slander, libel, and defamation to now seek to tarnish the reputation of the Park’s only benefactor in over two decades, in a repulsive attempt to justify their own discontinuance of their slanderous misadventure, in order to re-open the now uninhabitable overgrown and weed infested expanse of land, because they are now in government themselves, is a reprehensibly diabolical action that should be roundly condemned by all right thinking people”, he said.

ENDS

Headline

Parties’ Deregistration: ADC, Not NDC, is the Target

Published

1 day ago

June 29, 2026

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

As the 2027 presidential election draws closer, intrigues, manipulations and maneuvers have continued to be the order of the day as political parties engage in one gimmick or another to outdo and undo one another.

While some are playing politics of numbers and conviction, others are engaging tendencies that tend to question the status quo and established principles under which genuine democracy is formed. As a matter of fact, fingers have been pointed at the President Bola Tinubu-led Federal government as the brain behind all machinations that have attempted to derail multi-party democracy, and institute a one-party state, which is alien to the Nigerian democratic roots. This is as a result of the constant imbroglio that has consistently engulf almost all the major political parties in the country.

Fresh facts have however, emerged to prove that every act of frustration thrown at the opposition has been indirectly aimed at the main opposition party, the African Democratic Congress (ADC), and its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.

According to reliable sources, the recent deregistration of parties, especially the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), was actually targeted at the ADC.

Recall that the Federal High Court in Lokoja, Kogi State, on June, 26, set aside its earlier judgement directing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to register the NDC as a political party. A ruling that put a question mark on the eligibility of the party presenting candidates in the forthcoming 2027 elections

The presiding judge, Isah Dashen, held that all relevant parties must be heard before any substantive decision can be made in the matter.

The court upheld the application filed by a certain organization, the Peace Movement Party (PMP), ruling that the party was a necessary party to the suit.

According to the judge, the earlier judgement was constitutionally defective as it was delivered without hearing from all interested parties.

He declared that such an omission rendered the entire process null and void.

Mr Dashen further ruled that the status quo be restored to what it was before the December 10, 2025 judgement, pending the determination of the substantive suit.

He also observed that certain material facts were suppressed in the earlier proceedings, which justified the decision to set aside the judgment.

Consequently, the court ordered that the substantive suit should begin afresh, with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the PMP and the NDC as parties to the case.

According to NAN’s reports, the applicant’s lawyer, Chikezie Ekeocha, told journalists that the PMP approached the court after discovering that NDC’s registration was based on a logo it had previously submitted to INEC before the commencement of the suit.

According to Mr Ekeocha, the court agreed that the applicant’s rights had been affected and consequently vacated the earlier judgement.

“The court has ordered all parties to return to the position they occupied before the judgment of 10 December 2025, and directed the claimants to join all necessary parties to ensure the issues in dispute are effectually and completely determined,” he said.

He explained that the implication of the ruling is that every action taken by INEC in compliance with the now-vacated judgment stands reversed.

“The recognition of the NDC, the issuance of its certificate of registration, its inclusion in INEC’s records, and any appearance on ballot papers arising from that judgement must be withdrawn pending the final determination of the substantive suit,” Mr Ekeocha stated.

He, however, clarified that the substantive case remains before the court and has not been decided.

“The matter has not been concluded. The court merely set aside its previous judgment and directed that the party whose interests were affected be joined so that all sides can be heard before a fresh decision is reached.”

Mr Ekeocha also dismissed suggestions that the court merely ordered parties to maintain the status quo, insisting that the ruling specifically directed a restoration of the position that existed before the 10 December 2025 judgement.

The ruling effectively returns the dispute over the registration of the NDC to the Federal High Court for a fresh hearing, with all relevant parties expected to participate before a new determination is made.

It would also be recalled that a few weeks earlier, the Federal High Court in Abuja, had ordered the deregistration of five political parties including the African Democratic Congress (ADC). The others are Action People’s Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) and Accord Party.

However, on June 16, the Court of Appeal in Abuja halted the enforcement of the judgement, ruling that it violated its earlier ruling staying proceedings before the Federal High Court.

While INEC awaits the release of the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgment to deregister the NDC, the NDC has reacted, rejecting the judgment as travesty of justice.

Lending credence to the notion that the President Tinubu-led administration is basically targeting the establishment of the ADC as a party, and the candidature of its presidential flagbearer, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who is also the presidential candidate of the ADC, has stated categorically that there are plots to prevent the party from participating in the 2027 general election.

Atiku’s position is stated in a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu on Monday, notifying the public that he had received credible information suggesting that political and legal manoeuvres were being deployed against the ADC, stressing that the persecution that has been thrown towards the NDC was a clear distraction as the main target is the ADC.

Atiku alleged that anti-democratic elements within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) were working to ensure that the ADC is excluded from the ballot.

“We are fully aware of their plots. While they seek to sow confusion within the opposition, we know their real target is the ADC because it represents the most credible alternative,” he said.

Atiku called on Nigerians to reject any attempt to determine which opposition parties participate in the election.

“We therefore call on all Nigerians — not just ADC members and supporters — to rise in defense of democracy and reject any attempt by the ruling party to cherry-pick which opposition parties are permitted to participate in the next general election,” he said.

“Our message to the APC and the hooded men plotting in dark chambers is simple: you may conspire, but you will not succeed.

“If the APC is truly confident in its popularity, why is it so terrified of the ADC?”

He said he hoped the information available to him would not materialise but argued that recent political developments made such concerns difficult to dismiss.

“The pattern has become all too familiar. First, institutions that ought to be neutral are drawn into partisan contests,” he said.

“Then, frivolous litigations suddenly gain unusual momentum. Administrative powers are selectively deployed.

“Political pressure is mounted behind closed doors. Before long, democracy itself becomes the casualty.”

Atiku alleged that the ruling party has focused more on weakening the opposition than addressing the country’s economic and security challenges.

“The obsession with silencing the opposition has become so consuming that governance itself has taken a back seat,” he said.

“At a time when Nigerians are battling hunger, inflation, unemployment, insecurity, and collapsing purchasing power, those entrusted with public office appear preoccupied with political survival rather than national survival.”

Nigerians recall that ever since the official rejuvenation of the ADC in June/July of 2025, where the duo of Senator David Mark and Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola emerged as the party’s chairman and secretary respectively, the party has not known moments of peaceful coexistence as litigations from corners unknown have sprang up in a bid to destabilize the party and deprive it of the opportunity of featuring on the ballot paper come 2027.

ADC, as a child of circumstance emerged from the rumbles of the litigation-ridden former main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), where two factions have consistently remelained at loggerheads over leadership. While the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, who is working assiduously to ensure the reelection of Bola Tinubu, leads one faction, Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, who became a defacto head, leads the other faction. In all, PDP appeared to have no direction, forcing many of its members to jump ship, thereby birthing the ADC, and to a large extent, the NDC, which is presenting Peter Obi as the presidential candidate, with former Kano governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, as his running mate.

Sources also informed The Boss that the hasty reading and passage of the Electoral Act 2026 by the Godswill Akpabio-led National Assembly, with many great areas left unattended to, were also part of the grand design to deprive the ADC the constitutional rights of presenting candidates for the 2027 elections.

But both the ADC and the NDC has vowed that they would follow every process to ensure that the crackdown on opposition parties by the Tinubu administration comes to an abrupt end.

But beyond the intrigues, Nigerians are gearing up to participate fully in the forthcoming election with cross sections of the population either hailing Tinubu for his policies or knocking him for the untold hardship in the land.

Headline

South Africa Nothing Without Africa – MTN Boss, Mcebisi Jonas

Published

4 days ago

June 27, 2026

Eric

The MTN Group Chairman, Mcebisi Jonas, has condemned the ongoing anti-foreigner sentiment in South Africa, describing it as a symptom of State failure being cynically exploited by politicians with no interest in genuine solutions.

The speech is seen as one of the most substantive interventions by a senior business figure into xenophobic crisis currently plaguing South Africa.

Delivered during the funeral service of Zimbabwean-born activist and public servant, Thokozani Damasane, Jonas’ words have sparked a wave of discussion across South African civil society.

“I was thinking, what is home to Damasane?” he said. “Because I understand, and I understood very early in life, that home is where humanity is. Home is about humanness. It is about the good of humanity and striving for the good of humanity.”

Thokozani Damasane was born and educated in Zimbabwe before relocating to South Africa during the post-apartheid transition period. Jonas described him as arriving “as an outcast” into a country still finding its post-liberation footing – and choosing, nonetheless, to commit himself entirely to its struggles and its people.

“He immersed himself deeply into the struggles, into the pains of South Africans, and he became one of us,” Jonas said.

“In Damasane’s strength, our strength as South Africa and South Africans is reflected. And in his weaknesses, our own weaknesses are reflected.”

Speaking further, Jonas blamed the state for the failure being witnessed, emphasising that if foreigners leave South Africa today, the country’s problems will still persist.

“Foreigners can leave tomorrow – inequality will be with us,” he told the congregation.

“Foreigners will leave tomorrow – unemployment will be with us. Foreigners will leave tomorrow – our police will remain corrupt. Foreigners will leave tomorrow – our politicians will still be concerned with one thing: being elected and re-elected.

“The problem is the failure of the state. The State doesn’t manage immigration. It doesn’t manage its borders. It doesn’t enforce
law enforcement. It doesn’t manage education. What are you expecting?”

Jonas argued that this failure created fertile ground for political manipulation. “When people feel the burn, they become vulnerable to politicians whose sole purpose is to be elected and re-elected. Some of them have no credibility whatsoever. But they lead marches and tell our people that the problem is not us – it is foreigners.”

Jonas recounted a conversation he had witnessed between Damasane and a young man who had challenged the right of foreigners to be in South Africa. Damasane’s response, Jonas said, had stayed with him ever since.

“Damasane said to this guy: Just wait fifteen or twenty years. You will also want to leave your country.”

Jonas told mourners those words now carry a weight Damasane may not have anticipated. “As I stand up today, I look at South Africa. The level of oppression and inequality, the level of exclusion of our people, the level of corruption, the betrayal of the dream of liberation – those words of Damasane ring very loud in my ears.”

South Africa is nothing without Africa

Jonas closed with a call for what he described as a return to “national consciousness” – one rooted in continental solidarity and economic interdependence rather than ethnic exclusion.

“We are a nation embedded in Africa,” he said. “And without Africa, our growth as a country – economically – our fortune is intertwined with the growth of Africa. South Africa is nothing without Africa. And Africa is nothing without South Africa.”

He also reframed the question of legacy and identity for Damasane’s children, who were present. “Sometimes this thing called meritocracy is measured in wealth. No. It is values, it is principles, it is integrity. And your father had all of that.”

“We cannot judge people by their origin,” he told mourners. “We cannot determine the legal status of people by their origin.”

Headline

NDC Rejects Court Ruling on Party’s Registration, Heads to Appeal Court

Published

4 days ago

June 27, 2026

Eric

The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), on Friday, vowed to challenge the judgment nullifying its registration by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), insisting that it would exercise its constitutional right of appeal.

Reacting to the ruling on Thursday, the party’s spokesman, Osa Director, said the NDC was still awaiting the certified copy of the judgment before making a comprehensive statement on the court’s decision.

He, however, confirmed that the party had resolved to head to the appellate court.

“We are still waiting to obtain a copy of the judgment. After reading the comprehensive judgment, we will make a detailed statement,” he said.

The spokesman added: “For now, what is certain is that we will exercise our right of appeal.”

Insisting that the party would challenge the ruling, he said: “It is our constitutional right to appeal, and we intend to exercise that right.”

When asked specifically whether the NDC would appeal the judgment voiding its registration, the spokesman replied: “Yes, the party will appeal the case.”

The party’s reaction came shortly after a Federal High Court sitting in Lokoja, Kogi State, in a judgement that nullified its registration by INEC, a development that could have significant implications for the NDC’s participation in the country’s political process ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The NDC, however, maintained that it would refrain from making further comments on the substance of the judgment until it had studied the full text of the court’s decision.

The party’s planned appeal is expected to set the stage for a fresh legal battle over its status and continued existence as a registered political party.