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Court Upholds Senate’s Power To Reject Magu …As Upper Chamber Orders Immediate Sack Of EFCC Boss …Summons IGP Over Continued Killings In Benue

Published

8 years ago

February 2, 2018

The Federal High Court in Abuja has held that the Nigerian Senate acted within the law when it rejected President Muhammadu Buhari’s nomination of Mr. Ibrahim Magu as the substantive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
The court, in a judgement that was delivered on January 15, but made available to newsmen yesterday held that Section 2 (3) of the EFCC (Establishment) Act, 2004, conferred the Senate with the authority to ensure the choice of only suitable and credible persons for appointment into the EFCC’s chairmanship position.
Justice John Tsoho who delivered the verdict based on a suit that was lodged before the court by a legal practitioner, Mr. Oluwatosin Ajaomo said the import of the EFCC Act was that the Senate does not only exist to rubberstamp the President’s appointment of any person to head the anti-graft agency.
He held that the Senate was empowered to confirm or reject any appointee to the office of the Chairman of the EFCC by the President, based on facts available to it.
According to the court, Section 2(3) of the EFCC Act provided that appointment of Chairman and members of the commission other than ex-officio members shall be subject to confirmation of the Senate, stressing that the wordings of the Act were very instructive to the effect that they introduced a condition that must be fulfilled.
Justice Tsoho held: “On the strength of these authorities therefore, the expression ‘subject to’ should be understood to simply mean ‘depending on’. Accordingly, the import of Section 2(3) of the EFCC Act is that the appointment of a Chairman made by the President is dependent on confirmation by the Senate.
The 1st defendant can therefore reject a statutory appointment of a Chairman of the EFCC made by the President, if there is good basis for doing so. Issue 1 stands resolved. “On issue 2 for determination, there is no doubt that the 1st defendant is bound by the provisions of the EFCC Act with respect to appointment of Chairman of the EFCC by the President.
It should be realised that the provisions of Section 2(3) of the EFCC Act empower the Senate, headed by the 1st defendant to confirm an appointee to the Office of the Chairman of the EFCC by the President. “The Senate is thus conferred with authority to ensure the choice of only suitable and credible persons for appointment to that office.
The submission of the plaintiff however gives the impression that the Senate only exists to rubberstamp the President’s appointment of a Chairman. Such viewpoint runs counter to the proper intendment of Section 2(3) of the EFCC Act and is misconceived. Issue 2 is also resolved.
“The point must be made that it is trite law generally, that where a plaintiff’s claim is unchallenged and uncontroverted, the court will accept the available evidence and act on it. There is however exception to this, where the court finds that the plaintiff’s action is not maintainable, despite being unchallenged.
This, I humbly hold to be the position in the instant suit, as I regard as doubtful, the plaintiff’s capacity or competence to maintain the action”, Justice Tsoho held.
The plaintiff had in a suit he filed on January 24, 2017, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/59/2017, which had the Senate President and the Attorney General of the Federation as defendants, prayed the court to determine “Whether or not the 1st defendant can reject a valid statutory appointment made by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to the office of the EFCC in accordance with the provisions of the EFCC (Establishment) Act 2004.
As well as, “Whether or not the Senate was bound by the provisions of the EFCC Act, 2004 with respect to the confirmation of any appointment made by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”.
He further sought an interpretation of the provisions of section 2 (1) (a) (i) (ii) (iii) and 2(3) of the EFCC (Establishment) Act 2004 with respect to the appointment of the Chairman of the EFCC by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the subsequent confirmation of the appointment by the Senate of the National Assembly of the Federal Republic of Nigeria according to the dictates of the law.
He argued that the reason Senate gave for its refusal of Magu’s nomination was a security report, which he said was mere advisory. However, the court held that the locus-standi of the plaintiff to institute the action was doubtful, saying he failed to disclose sufficient stake or peculiar interest of the plaintiff above others that entitled him to institute the action.
Meanwhile, the Senate has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to as a matter of urgency sack the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ibrahim Magu.
According to the Senate, failure to do that, it would henceforth not attend to nominations from the Presidency, just as it vowed that it will not in any way, jettison its earlier position on the EFCC boss.
According to the Senate, the impasse would persist until its power of confirmation of nominees to the boards of commissions established by enabling laws, but not listed in the 1999 Constitution as amended was clarified.
Senate spokesman, Sabi Abdullahi made this known yesterday while clearing the air on the controversies surrounding its suspension of the confirmation of nominees from President Muhmmadu Buhari.
Similarly, the Senate yesterday resolved to summon the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, over the failure to meet the two-week ultimatum to arrest those who perpetrated the New Year Day attacks in Guma and Logo Local Government Areas of Benue State.
The Senate’s decision was sequel to a point of order raised by Senator Joshua Lidani, who demanded for the appearance of the IGP before the Senate.
Lidani said the two weeks given to Idris to arrest the killer herdsmen has expired and nobody has been arrested in connection to the killings in the state.
According to him, “two weeks was given to the IGP to arrest and arraign the killers, up till now, no arrest has been made, no information has been brought before us.
“Therefore, I want us to summon the IGP to appear before the Senate to give us update.”
Thereafter, the Senate unanimously adopted the request of Lidani for Idris to appear before the Joint Senate Committee on Police and National Security with his report.
In his remarks, the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki said the resolution of the Senate must be taken seriously and therefore the IGP must appear before the relevant Senate Committee to give the update.
Saraki added that the Senate is not going to be doing what is necessary until people are accountable.
“Something needs to be done,” he said.

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Fubara Dissolves Rivers Executive Council

Published

6 days ago

February 13, 2026

The Tide

Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminialayi Fubara, has dissolved the State Executive Council.

The governor announced the cabinet dissolution yesterday in a statement titled ‘Government Special Announcement’, signed by his new Chief Press Secretary, Onwuka Nzeshi.

Governor Fubara directed all Commissioners and Special Advisers to hand over to the Permanent Secretaries or the most Senior officers in their Ministries with immediate effect.

He thanked the outgoing members of the State Executive Council for their service and wished them the best in their future endeavours.

The three-paragraph special announcement read, “His Excellency, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, GSSRS, Governor of Rivers State, has dissolved the State Executive Council.

“His Excellency, the Governor, has therefore directed all Commissioners and Special Advisers to hand over to the Permanent Secretaries or the most Senior officers in their Ministries with immediate effect.

“His Excellency further expresses his deepest appreciation to the outgoing members of the Executive Council wishing them the best in their future endeavours.”

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INEC Proposes N873.78bn For 2027 Elections, N171bn For 2026 Operations

Published

6 days ago

February 13, 2026

The Tide

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday told the National Assembly that it requires N873.78bn to conduct the 2027 general elections, even as it seeks N171bn to fund its operations in the 2026 fiscal year.

INEC Chairman, Prof Joash Amupitan, made the disclosure while presenting the commission’s 2026 budget proposal and the projected cost for the 2027 general elections before the National Assembly Joint Committee on Electoral Matters in Abuja.

According to Amupitan, the N873.78bn election budget covers the full conduct of national polls in 2027.

An additional N171bn is needed to support INEC’s routine activities in 2026, including bye-elections and off-season elections, the commission stated.

The INEC boss said the proposed election budget does not include a fresh request from the National Youth Service Corps seeking increased allowances for corps members engaged as ad-hoc staff during elections.

He explained that, although the details of specific line items were not exhaustively presented, the almost N1tn election budget is structured across five major components.

“N379.75bn is for operational costs, N92.32bn for administrative costs, N209.21bn for technological costs, N154.91bn for election capital costs and N42.61bn for miscellaneous expenses,” Amupitan said.

The INEC chief noted that the budget was prepared “in line with Section 3(3) of the Electoral Act 2022, which mandates the Commission to prepare its election budget at least one year before the general election.”

On the 2026 fiscal year, Amupitan disclosed that the Ministry of Finance provided an envelope of N140bn, stressing, however, that “INEC is proposing a total expenditure of N171bn.”

The breakdown includes N109bn for personnel costs, N18.7bn for overheads, N42.63bn for election-related activities and N1.4bn for capital expenditure.

He argued that the envelope budgeting system is not suitable for the Commission’s operations, noting that INEC’s activities often require urgent and flexible funding.

Amupitan also identified the lack of a dedicated communications network as a major operational challenge, adding that if the commission develops its own network infrastructure, Nigerians would be in a better position to hold it accountable for any technical glitches.

Speaking at the session, Senator Adams Oshiomhole (APC, Edo North) said external agencies should not dictate the budgeting framework for INEC, given the unique and sensitive nature of its mandate.

He advocated that the envelope budgeting model should be set aside.

He urged the National Assembly to work with INEC’s financial proposal to avoid future instances of possible underfunding.

In the same vein, a member of the House of Representatives from Edo State, Billy Osawaru, called for INEC’s budget to be placed on first-line charge as provided in the Constitution, with funds released in full and on time to enable the Commission to plan early enough for the 2027 general election.

The Joint Committee approved a motion recommending the one-time release of the Commission’s annual budget.

The committee also said it would consider the NYSC’s request for about N32bn to increase allowances for corps members to N125,000 each when engaged for election duties.

The Chairman of the Senate Committee on INEC, Senator Simon Along, assured that the National Assembly would work closely with the Commission to ensure it receives the necessary support for the successful conduct of the 2027 general elections.

Similarly, the Chairman of the House Committee on Electoral Matters, Bayo Balogun, also pledged legislative support, warning INEC to be careful about promises it might be unable to keep.

He recalled that during the 2023 general election, INEC made strong assurances about uploading results to the INEC Result Viewing portal, creating the impression that results could be monitored in real time.

“iREV was not even in the Electoral Act; it was only in INEC regulations. So, be careful how you make promises,” Balogun warned.

The N873.78bn proposed by INEC for next year’s general election is a significant increase from the N313.4bn released to the Commission by the Federal Government for the conduct of the 2023 general election.

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Tinubu Mourns Literary Icon, Biodun Jeyifo

Published

6 days ago

February 13, 2026

The Tide

President Bola Tinubu yesterday expressed grief over the death of a former President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities and one of Africa’s foremost literary scholars, Professor Emeritus Biodun Jeyifo.

Jeyifo passed away on Wednesday, drawing tributes from across Nigeria and the global academic community.

In a condolence message to the family, friends, and associates of the late scholar, Tinubu in a statement by his spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, described Jeyifo as a towering intellectual whose contributions to African literature, postcolonial studies, and cultural theory left an enduring legacy.

He noted that the late professor would be sorely missed for his incisive criticism and masterful interpretations of the works of Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka.

The President also recalled Jeyifo’s leadership of ASUU, praising the temperance, foresight, and wisdom he brought to the union over the years.

Tinubu said Jeyifo played a key role in shaping negotiation frameworks with the government aimed at improving working conditions for university staff and enhancing the learning environment in Nigerian universities.

According to the President, Professor Jeyifo’s longstanding advocacy for academic freedom and social justice will continue to inspire generations.

He added that the late scholar’s influence extended beyond academia into political and cultural journalism, where he served as a mentor to numerous scholars, writers, and activists.

Tinubu condoled with ASUU, the Nigerian Academy of Letters, the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism, the University of Ibadan, Obafemi Awolowo University, Oberlin University, Cornell University, and Harvard University—institutions where Jeyifo studied, taught, or made significant scholarly contributions.

“Nigeria and the global academic community have lost a towering figure and outstanding global citizen,” the President said.

“Professor Biodun Jeyifo was an intellectual giant who dedicated his entire life to knowledge production and the promotion of human dignity. I share a strong personal relationship with him. His contributions to literary and cultural advancement and to society at large will be missed.”

Jeyifo was widely regarded as one of Africa’s most influential literary critics and public intellectuals. Among several honours, he received the prestigious W.E.B. Du Bois Medal in 2019.