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S’Court Gaff: Rights Lawyer Sues Igbokwe …Seeks AGF’s Prosecution
The case of the Facebook post of the Lagos State Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Joe Igbokwe, accusing the Supreme Court of selling justice to the Governor of Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike, has taken a new dimension, as a Lagos-based human rights lawyer, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, has filed an action before the Federal High Court in Lagos, seeking to sanction Igbokwe for what he described as his reckless utterance against the judiciary.
Named as defendants in the suit are the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami and Igbokwe.
In the suit, Adegboruwa is asking the court to direct the AGF and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), to invite the APC chieftain for interview in order to give him the opportunity to substantiate his allegation against the judiciary, failing which he should be prosecuted and sanctioned.
He is also asking Igbokwe to step down and vacate his office as general manager of Lagos State Wharf Land Fee Collecting Authority and publicity secretary of the APC in the state.
Adegboruwa said Igbokwe was not a fit to be elected or appointed into any public office in any part of Nigeria.
It would be recalled that on July 16, 2018, at about 15:20p.m, Igbokwe published the following statement on his Facebook page: “Wike will not have the audacity and the temerity to kill again in Rivers State and run to the Supreme Court to buy justice. It will never happen again in Nigeria where Buhari is the president.”
Adegboruwa stated that upon reading it, he immediately took up Igbokwe, to substantiate the allegation.
Similarly, the Rivers State Government also demanded explanations from Igbokwe and threatened court action.
Subsequently, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, invited security agencies to probe Igbokwe’s allegations and deal with the judges found culpable, and if the allegations are false, to take appropriate steps to prosecute him.
He said rather than withdraw the offending post; Igbokwe proceeded to issue a more comprehensive post, wherein he specifically stated that the Chief Justice of Nigeria was under the influence and payroll of Wike.
In a 32-paragraph affidavit deposed to in support of the new suit, Adegboruwa is claiming that Igbokwe’s post was capable of generating loss of confidence in the judicial system, which would discourage people from seeking redress from the law courts and would in turn lead to lawlessness and resort to self-help and rule of the might.
He also said it would lead to loss of patronage for lawyers, who would no longer be able to handle cases in court, given that it was now possible to buy justice with money.
The activist is contending that as a public officer, Igbokwe should not be involved in disparaging other public institutions and that his offending post was a clear case of abuse of public trust for which he should be sanctioned appropriately.
He contended further that the AGF, being the leader of the official Bar in Nigeria and chief law officer of the federation, was the one best placed to take up the case against Igbokwe, on behalf of the judiciary, lawyers, and indeed, the general public.
Among other reliefs sought in the case are: “a declaration that the 2nd defendant is not entitled to make any statement to the effect that a judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria was bought and paid for; a declaration that the statement of the 2nd defendant, to the effect that the judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria was bought and paid for is reckless, unjustifiable and amounts to an unwarranted denigration of the integrity and authority of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in particular and the judiciary in general.”
He asked the court for “an order directing the 1st defendant to forthwith interview, engage and demand proof from the 2nd defendant, of the latter’s statement that the judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria was bought and paid for, failing which, the said 1st defendant should forthwith prosecute the said 2nd defendant.”
The case is yet to be assigned to any court for hearing.
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has charged the newly appointed Secretary to the State Government (SSG) and Chief of Staff (CoS) to carry out their duties with discipline, loyalty and a firm commitment to the success of the administration and the wellbeing of the people of Rivers State.
The governor warned that any involvement in unauthorised nocturnal meetings or any conduct capable of embarrassing the government will attract immediate dismissal.
Fubara gave the warning yesterday shortly after the newly appointed Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Dr Dagogo S.A. Wokoma and the new Chief of Staff (CoS), Barrister Sunny Ewule, were sworn in at the Executive Council Chambers of Government House, Port Harcourt.
As part of the ceremony, the Chief Registrar of the State High Court, David Ihua-Maduenyi administered the Oath of Allegiance and Oath of Office on the duo before the governor gave his charge.
Addressing the appointees, Fubara reminded them that their elevation to the new positions was a call to service and not a platform for political grandstanding or the pursuit of personal ambition.
He stressed that their foremost responsibility should be to themselves and to the people of Rivers State, stressing that their conduct must always reflect integrity, restraint and dedication to public good.
Speaking directly to Dr. Wokoma, whom he described as an accomplished academic and mathematician, the governor expressed confidence in his intellectual depth and capacity to deliver on the new assignment.
The office of the Secretary to the State Government, Fubara stressed, demands thoroughness, discipline and a deep sense of responsibility. He charged the SSG to represent the State with honour at all times.
“Your duty includes representing the state government. You need to represent us in a way and manner that will bring honour to us.
“What is important to this administration is to see that the good works that we started and the ones that we met, are concluded in a way that will bring progress and development to our dear state,” he stated.
Turning to the new Chief of Staff, the governor explained that he is expected to ensure smooth administrative coordination, managing official engagements effectively and safeguarding the image of the Government House.
He underscored the sensitive and personal nature of the role and emphasised that the position operates strictly under the authority of the governor.
Fubara stressed that the role does not permit independent political engagements or private strategy meetings without his knowledge and consent.
“Let me sound it here very clearly. Your duty is to make sure that you handle the administrative duties and image making roles perfectly well, liaising with whoever is coming for any official assignment here.
“If you involve yourself in nocturnal meetings and all those things, I will sack you. I’m very serious. What is important to me today is peace, progress and prosperity of this state. I’m not going to compromise anything for it,” he said.
The governor cautioned that involvement of the new appointees in any action capable of bringing the government or his office to disrepute would attract appropriate sanctions.
While congratulating the new appointees, Fubara expressed optimism that they would justify the confidence reposed in them.
He called on all public officials to work together in unity, observing that collective success is stronger and more enduring than individual achievement.
The governor who also addressed the Permanent Secretaries present at the ceremony, directed those of them who have reached retirement age to start preparing their handover notes without delay.
The notice, he said, was not intended to scare anybody but to prepare their minds towards the inevitability of exiting the service one day and to pave way for an orderly transition.
He warned against any attempt to engage in financial misconduct or last-minute irregularities, stressing that he was closely monitoring the system to ensure strict enforcement of accountability rules.
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.”
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.
