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RSG’s Support To Judiciary Aimed At Improving Justice Administration -Wike
The Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, has declared that his administration would not be distracted from contributing its quota to guaranteeing a seamless administration of justice both at the state and national levels.
Wike re-enacted the commitment of the state government while performing the formal opening of a legal firm, L. A. Mitee and Company (Inata Chambers), in Port Harcourt, last Friday.
The governor stated that the legal profession was part of the problem stalling the process of justice administration in the country because of the activities of some misinformed lawyers.
He said these misinformed lawyers politicise issues of justice administration, and sometimes, resort to legal battles without a clear understanding of the position of the law on such matters.
Wike disclosed that an ill-informed lawyer who does not have a grasp of how budgets function and what the role of government was in creating conducive environment for administration of justice, had dragged the state government to court over its support to the Judiciary.
“Just this morning, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice came to me that one lawyer in Port Harcourt went to court against the state government. He said we have no business in building houses for judges; we have no business providing cars for judges.
“He said we have no business in building courts for federal institutions, and that I have no right to even contribute to the structures in Nigerian Law School.
“What will be our contribution to the administration of justice, when the structures are dilapidated? That lawyer is saying that what we are doing is not budgeted for. Everybody parades as if they know the law even when they don’t know the law.
“People who are ignorant about budget will just wake up in the morning and tell you the governor has no right to donate money somewhere. They make all kinds of allegations without having the true facts”, he argued.
Wike explained that his administration was compelled to renovate the Court of Appeal and Federal High Courts in Port Harcourt because their dilapidated structures were hampering the seamless administration of justice in the state.
“As lawyers, you saw how the Court of Appeal of Nigeria was. Tell me how any Justice of the Court of Appeal will seat comfortably to preside over cases when it will be raining, and then, the rain will fall on them.
“When the government comes up to say this administration of justice that you are giving, to whose interest? Is it to the people of Rivers State and those who do business here?
“And if we are interested in moving things forward, and offer support to make such places comfortable, a lawyer will come out and tell people that all those things we are doing are illegal.”
The governor also acknowledged the enormous contributions Mr. Ledum Mitee, who was the former President of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), has made to the legal profession, and his defense of the interest of Ogoni people for which he was threatened and compelled to go on exile.
Wike, who said Mr. Ledum Mitee deserves to be accorded the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria based on his past immense contribution to the legal profession, also commended him for re-establishing his legal chambers not only for legal advocacy but to mentor junior lawyers.
“All of us in this state know the problem that Mr. Ledum Mitee passed through, things that would have taken his life. As far as electoral matters are concerned, I respect my former boss in those days; Mr E. C. Ukala (SAN) and Mr. L. A. Mitee.
“But for the problem in Ogoni land, Mitee would have been a Senior Advocate of Nigeria for years now.
But because he believes in his people, because he believes that things must be done right, he has to pay for it. That’s why up until today, he is not a senior advocate.
“Some senior lawyers don’t care about mentorship. But you have the satisfaction that you can’t be a complete lawyer without mentoring others.”
The Principle Partner of L. A. Mitee and Co. (Inata Chambers), Mr. Ledum Mitee, said what they have established in Port Harcourt was a highly competitive legal chambers that would serve as a mentoring hub for junior lawyers and for legal advocacy.
Also speaking, the President of Port Harcourt branch of Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Prince Nyekwere, urged Wike not to be weary in his support to the Judiciary, which has enhanced the process of administration of justice in the country.
He also commended Ledum Mitee for giving back to society.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted 1.63 million pills of tramadol concealed in two long trailers heading for Kano as it intensified efforts to dismantle a transnational drug trafficking syndicate operating along the Togo-Benin Republic-Nigeria corridor.
The agency also arrested an 80-year-old suspected drug dealer in Rivers State, a businesswoman linked to cannabis shipments from Canada, a Chadian woman, a couple and other suspects in coordinated operations across Lagos, Edo, Kogi and Rivers states.
The NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement, yesterday.
According to the statement, the latest intelligence-led operation came barely one week after NDLEA operatives recovered 558,900 pills of tramadol concealed in the false-bottom compartment of a truck that entered Lagos through the Togo-Benin Republic route.
Babafemi said, “Ongoing efforts to dismantle a transnational drug trafficking syndicate smuggling tramadol from Togo, through Benin Republic into Nigeria have yielded another success with the interception of two long trailers used to move One Million Six Hundred and Thirty (1,630,000) pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in fabricated compartments of the trucks across multiple borders into Lagos.”
He added that one of the two trailers was intercepted on July 2 along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, where operatives recovered 853,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor.
Babafemi said, “One of the two trucks already heading to Kano was tracked and located on 2nd July 2026 along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway where NDLEA officers recovered 853,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor of the trailer and arrested the 22-year-old driver Jabir Kabiru.”
He further disclosed that another trailer was intercepted two days later on the same route.
“Two days later, 4th July, NDLEA operatives acting on processed intelligence successfully tracked and recovered the second trailer from the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway while heading to Kano. A total of 777,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor of the truck were evacuated and the 22-year-old driver Muhammed Nuhu arrested,” the statement read.
According to Babafemi, investigations established a link between the three intercepted consignments.
He said, “Investigations revealed that all three trucks and consignments intercepted on 21st June, 2nd July and 4th July belong to the same transnational drug trafficking syndicate operating along the Togo-Benin Republic-Nigeria axis.”
The agency also intercepted 4.70 kilograms of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.
Babafemi said, “Two consignments of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, with a combined weight of 4.70 kilograms have been intercepted at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos. The cargoes, which arrived the Lagos airport from Canada in cartons with ‘Odugwu’ boldly written on them, came aboard British Airways and Ethiopian Airlines flights on 24th June and 3rd July respectively.”
He said two cargo agents, Ali Rotimi Samson and Orimolade Oluwagbenga, were initially arrested in connection with the shipments, while another suspect, Edeh Onyeamachi Stanislus, was apprehended after arriving at a logistics company to take delivery of the consignments.
The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction has denied claims that it has commenced registration for a purported ?50,000 National Support Allowance.
The ministry, in a public notice posted on its official X handle, yesterday, described messages, links and websites advertising the alleged programme as fraudulent.
It urged Nigerians to disregard such claims and verify information only through official government channels.
“The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction has NOT commenced registration for any ?50,000 National Support Allowance,” the ministry said.
It added, “Disregard fraudulent messages, links and websites claiming otherwise. Verify any info only through official govt channels.”
The alert is in response to a circulating scam flyer that falsely claims the program is ongoing under President Bola Tinubu’s directives.
The fake advertisement, which includes text in Hausa and English, directs victims to a suspicious website (kluspz.com) for applications.
The ministry’s warning comes amid heightened concerns over digital fraud targeting vulnerable populations seeking social support.
Similar scams have previously surfaced around programs like N-Power, prompting questions from citizens in replies to the official post.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has expressed its preparedness for a major national struggle for a comprehensive review of the national minimum wage.
NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, hinted at this while making his remarks at the commissioning of the Comrade Godwin Abumisi Pensioners Legacy House and Multipurpose Hall in Abuja.
Ajaero said it is no longer acceptable to discuss the welfare of workers without also discussing the welfare of those who have completed their active years of service.
He advised workers and pensioners to get prepared for the ideological and economic battles that lie ahead.
According to the NLC president, “The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) is one of the proud affiliates of the Nigeria Labour Congress. Therefore, your struggle is our struggle, and your welfare remains a priority for the organised labour movement.
“We are currently in the preparatory stages for a major national struggle for a comprehensive review of the national minimum wage.
“However, let me state unequivocally that it is no longer acceptable to discuss the welfare of workers without also discussing the welfare of those who have completed their active years of service.
“Accordingly, the Nigeria Labour Congress will not only push for a new national minimum wage but will also demand the establishment of a national minimum pension. It is a historical injustice that men and women who devoted their youth, strength and productive years to the service of this nation should be condemned to live below the poverty line after retirement.”
Ajaero noted that the cost of living has risen astronomically as food, healthcare and transportation have become increasingly unaffordable.
“We cannot continue to allow our senior citizens to survive on pensions that have become poverty wages. Every retiree deserves to live with dignity after decades of faithful service to the nation,” he said.
He urged pensioners across the country to remain united and prepared as the process begins, adding: “This Legacy House should not merely be seen as a physical structure; it should become a centre for mobilisation, strategic engagement and solidarity as we prepare for the struggles ahead.”
The NLC president pointed out that the working class has always understood that “those who exploit workers are united in advancing their interests. We too must remain united in defending our collective interests and ensuring that government fulfils its obligations to both serving workers and retirees.”
He urged pensioners across the country to remain united and prepared as the process begins, adding: “This Legacy House should not merely be seen as a physical structure; it should become a centre for mobilisation, strategic engagement and solidarity as we prepare for the struggles ahead.”
The NLC president pointed out that the working class has always understood that “those who exploit workers are united in advancing their interests. We too must remain united in defending our collective interests and ensuring that government fulfils its obligations to both serving workers and retirees.”
He said the completion of the project should serve as a clarion call to all workers and lovers of the masses.
“We must not only build physical structures but also build a strong movement capable of compelling government to honour its commitments,” he said.
Ajaero further stated: “We will continue to demand the immediate payment of all outstanding pension arrears and the implementation of a pension regime that guarantees every retiree a life of dignity and security.
“Together, we shall continue to fight until every Nigerian worker and pensioner receives the justice, respect and welfare they deserve.”
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