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I didn’t forge WAEC certificate, says Adeleke

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The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the September 2018 Osun State governorship election, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has told the Court of Appeal in Abuja that he did not forge the West African Examination Council (WAEC) certificate he presented to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to get clearance for the poll.

Senator Adeleke maintained that the certificate he attached to his nomination Form CF 001 was lawfully issued to him and was confirmed by WAEC in its affidavit which it submitted as evidence to the Federal Capital Territory High Court in the Bwari area of Abuja.

He, therefore, asked the court to set aside the judgment of Justice Oathman Musa of an Abuja High Court which ‘erroneously’ held that his certificate was forged as alleged by two chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

In the final adoption of Adeleke’s  brief of argument by his lawyer, Kehinde Ogunwumiju , he told the three-man panel of the court headed by Justice Adamu Jauro that what he presented to the electoral body to secure qualification for the governorship election was exactly what the examination body presented before the lower court when it was ordered to do so by Justice Musa.

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He added that the results, scores, and content in both certificates were the same, stressing that the only difference was the format in which it was presented.

Ogunwumiju further told the appellate court that Justice Musa erred in law when he ignored the document which he had ordered WAEC to present before the court, with which he arrived at his decision that Senator Adeleke did not possess the requisite academic qualification for the office of governor.

He added that there was no case of non-qualification or forgery against the lawmaker before the lower court.

Also, the PDP in its own appeal through its counsel, Mr Emmanuel Enoidem, urged the appellate court to dismiss the suit for being incompetent and statute barred.

He said the suit was in violation of the Fourth Alteration Act to the 1999 Constitution, having not been filed within the 14 days allowed by law.

According to the PDP’s legal adviser, the suit was filed 44 four days after the cause of action had arisen, while judgment was delivered outside the 180 days prescribed by law for a pre-election matter.

On their part, the two respondents through their counsel, Mr Joel Akomolafe, urged the court to uphold the judgment of the lower court.

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Akomolafe argued that the appellants did not appeal the issue of jurisdiction at the lower court.

He informed the court that the trial court had dismissed Senator Adeleke and PDP’s motion challenging jurisdiction, on the grounds thatl it was canvassed late in the trial.

After taking arguments from all parties in the suit, the three-man panel of the appeal court led by Justice Adamu Jauro reserved judgment for a date to be communicated to parties in the matter.

 

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Crime & Court

Ex-Oyo PMS Boss, Auxiliary Paraded for Murder, Other Crimes

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Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Hamzat Adebola, on Thursday, paraded the former Chairman of the Park Management System, Lamidi Mukaila, commonly known as Auxiliary.

The arrest came following months of pursuit after the Department of State Services detained Auxiliary at his Olodo residence in Ibadan, the state capital, on the penultimate Tuesday.

Mukaila had been on the run since the police declared him wanted for his alleged involvement in a string of armed robbery, kidnapping, and murder cases.

Adebola, addressing the media while parading the suspect at the state police command, emphasised that Mukaila would face charges in court.

He stated, “Discreet intelligence-led search commenced for the sacked PMS chieftain with the help of technology, collaborative efforts with sister services and community policing, many locations were identified, traced and combed for months until his recent arrest in a concerted effort with our sister services.”

The Commissioner outlined the extensive list of exhibits recovered from Mukaila’s possession at his Diamond Hotel residence around Alakia-Isebo Egbeda under Egbeda Local Government Area.

The recovered items include one AK-47 Rifle, four AK-47 magazines, 84 live AK-47 Ammunitions, 19 pump-action rifles, one Barreta pistol, seven cut-to-size guns, one English-made Barrel Gun, 724 live cartridges, 25 cutlasses, Seven Jack knives, 33 mobile phones, one Samsung laptop, charms, one Mazda Bus, one Toyota Sienna, and a cash sum of N3,450,000.00.

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Continuing, the Police chief affirmed that Mukaila would be charged to court for the offenses committed.

He expressed gratitude to the public for providing credible information to help curb crime in the state.

Adebola also reiterated the commitment of the command to deal decisively with any criminally motivated individual or group aiming to regress the state into the historical dark ages of the “Wild West.”

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Crime & Court

Mother of 5 Convicted for Forging Late Abba Kyari’s Signature

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A Federal Capital Territory High Court sitting in Abuja has delivered its verdict in the case involving Mrs. Ramat Mba, a mother of five children, accused of forging the signature of the late Abba Kyari, former Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari.

Presiding over the case, Justice Ibrahim Mohammad deferred Mrs. Mba’s sentencing until Thursday, the 16th of May, 2024. However, he directed that she be remanded in Suleja Correctional Centre.

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) had initially arraigned Mrs. Mba in June 2022 on a 5-count charge including cheating, fraud, and forgery, contravening various sections of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 200 and the Penal Code Cap 89 laws of Northern Nigeria.

During the trial, ICPC’s Prosecutor, Mr. Hamza Sani, presented evidence detailing how Mrs. Mba allegedly deceived job seekers by promising them employment with government agencies such as the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS), National Space Research Development Agency (NASRDA), and the ICPC.

Specifically, Mrs. Mba was accused of fraudulently inducing a job seeker to pay N700,000 into her private account under the guise of securing employment at the National Space Research and Development Agency.

Moreover, documentary evidence revealed that Mrs. Mba forged a letterhead from the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President and Abba Kyari’s signature.

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The forged letter, addressed to the Chairman of ICPC, requested the recruitment of three individuals by the Commission.

However, a correspondence from the late Chief of Staff distanced his office from authorising such a letter.

In his judgment, Justice Ibrahim Muhammad convicted Mrs. Mba on counts 1, 2, 3, and 5, related to cheating and forgery, while she was discharged on count 4, which pertains to felony.

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Crime & Court

EFCC nets 64 suspected internet fraudsters in Osun raid {Photos}

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Investigators of the Ibadan Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, made a significant breakthrough on Wednesday, as they apprehended sixty-four suspected internet fraudsters in Osun State.

The crackdown targeted Ede, Osun State, where the suspects were allegedly engaging in various fraudulent activities.

According to Dele Oyewale, the Head of Media & Publicity for the EFCC, the arrests followed actionable intelligence gathered by the agency.

Among the items seized during the operation were 18 exotic vehicles, 18 laptops, 112 mobile phones, three PlayStation games, five motorcycles, and a trove of incriminating documents.

These seizures underscore the scale and sophistication of the suspected cybercriminals’ operations.

The EFCC stated that the suspects will face legal proceedings once investigations are concluded.

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