Pro, Anti Ekweremadu Protesters Storm UK Trial

Published

2 months ago

February 1, 2023

Eric

The human trafficking case against a former Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, and his wife, Beatrice, resumed in a London court on Tuesday.

However, anti- and pro-Ekweremadu protests were staged in front of the court ahead of the proceedings.

AFP reported that before court proceedings, there was a gathering of protesters, some of whom were in support of the lawmaker while others were against him.

The lawmaker was in June 2022 arrested alongside his wife at Heathrow Airport in London on the allegation that they flew a young man from Nigeria to the UK to harvest his organ.

The allegation added that the organ was meant for Ekweremadu’s daughter, Sonia, who is currently hospitalised with a kidney-related illness.

Some Nigerians had in October 2022 protested in Abuja against the continued detention of the lawmaker who has now spent 223 days in the custody of UK authorities.

Protesters, once again, gathered at the court on Tuesday to either support the embattled lawmaker or protest his continued detention in UK custody.

“I mean, this case is unbelievable,” one protester, Citizen Gbola, was quoted by AFP as saying.

“Where else in the world would you have a deputy senate president, who is still a serving senator, he’s still getting his regular wage?”

According to Daily Mail, Sonia couldn’t make it to court on Tuesday but sought permission with a psychological report by her team claiming she was not fit to stand trial.

She had pleaded not guilty to the allegation of trafficking a homeless man into the UK to harvest his organs for herself, when she appeared in court on November 7, 2022.

The young man, who levelled the allegation against the Ekweremadus, told Staines Police Station that he was made to undergo some medical tests, none of which he consented to.

A 50-year-old medical doctor from South London, Obinna Obeta, was also arrested in connection to the allegation.

During proceedings at the Old Bailey court, Ekweremadu who wore a grey tracksuit top only said “Yes, miss” when asked to confirm his name.

Seated beside the lawmaker in the dock and dressed in black was his wife who was granted bail in July 2022 while her husband was said to be a flight risk.

The Punch

NLC Directs Workers to Shut Down CBN Offices Nationwide

Published

11 hours ago

March 22, 2023

Eric

The leadership of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has directed workers to picket all offices of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) nationwide starting from next week, over the lingering cash crunch in the country.

The NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, gave the directive while addressing a press conference in Abuja, on Wednesday.

The labour leader said the directive became imperative following the expiration of one week ultimatum given to the apex bank to make cash available for Nigerians.

The NLC last week gave the CBN and commercial banks a one week ultimatum to make naira notes available to workers and Nigerians.

The Congress said it would direct workers to stay at home if the apex bank fails to make the Naira notes available to Nigerians.

Featured

Presidential Election: Peter Obi Officially Files Petition at Tribunal

Published

2 days ago

March 21, 2023

Eric

The Labour Party, LP, presidential candidate, Peter Obi has officially filed petitions at the presidential election tribunal.

Obi filed the petition to challenge the outcome of the 2023 presidential election.

The former Anambra State governor lost the presidential election after he came third.

Obi trailed Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and winner, Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress, APC.

But, he had faulted the process of the election that led to Tinubu’s emergence as president.

He had vowed to challenge the process that led to the outcome of the election because he was robbed of his victory.

Spokesman of the Obi-Datti Presidential Campaign, Dr. Yunusa Tanko, disclosed the submission of the petition.

“It is official the Labor Party Presidential candidate Peter OBI has filed his petition to the presidential elections tribunal in Abuja. The process of reclaiming the people’s mandate has started,” he said.

Featured

Stop Deceiving Yourself, You Selected Yourself, Not Re-elected, Falz Tells Sanwo-Olu

Published

2 days ago

March 21, 2023

Eric

Popular musician and lawyer, Folarin Falana aka Falz has tackled Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu over his re-election as Governor of Lagos State.

The Governor in an appreciation post on his verified Twitter handle @jidesanwoolu thanked Lagosians for coming out in their numbers to seal his reelection.

However, his post did not go down well with Falz who promptly responded thus: “You were not re-elected. You selected yourself. Everybody saw it unfold. You are only deceiving yourselves.”

Recall that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Monday declared Sanwo-Olu winner of the governorship poll having polled a total of 762,134 votes to win a second term of four years.

The Labour Party (LP) came second with 312,329 votes, while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) trailed in third place with 62,449 votes.