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[JUST IN]: Fani-Kayode Cleared Of Money Laundering Charges

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<b>LAGOS, NIGERIA - A Federal High Court in Lagos has discharged and acquitted a former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, of corruption charges.</b></div>
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In her judgment, the judge, Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia, said the prosecution’s case was "feeble" and failed to provide "copious evidence" linking Mr. Fani-Kayode to money laundering.</div>
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Mr. Fani-Kayode, whose trial began in 2008 before Justice Ramat Mohammed, was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, for allegedly laundering about ₦100 million while he was Minister of Culture and Tourism and subsequently, Aviation Minister.</div>
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The allegedly laundered sum was, however, reduced to ₦2.1million on November 17, 2014 after the court dismissed 38 of the 40-count charge levelled against Mr. Fani-Kayode for want of proof. The EFCC prosecutor, Festus Keyamo, while urging the court to uphold the remaining two counts and to accordingly convict Mr. Fani-Kayode, said the former minister failed to exonerate himself of the allegations.</div>
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Mr. Keyamo pointed out that the object of the charge was that Mr. Fani-Kayode transacted in cash sums above ₦500,000, which was the threshold stipulated by the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.</div>
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Mr. Keyamo had argued that Mr. Fani-Kayode admitted making such transactions in his confessional statement of Dec. 22, 2008 made to the EFCC.</div>
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Mr. Keyamo had argued that the prosecution had discharged its duty once it established that Mr. Fani-Kayode transacted in large sums above the Money Laundering threshold, adding that it was left for Mr. Fani-Kayode to explain the source of the money.</div>
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“Once you cannot explain the source of the large sum of money found on you, you are guilty of money laundering. If the prosecution must show where the money is coming from, then the whole essence of the money laundering law is defeated.</div>
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“It is not in all cases that the burden of proof lies on the prosecution; the burden at this point shifts to the accused person,” Mr. Keyamo argued.</div>
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But Mr. Fani-Kayode’s lawyer, Ifedayo Adedipe (SAN), in his summary argument, maintained that Mr. Fani-Kayode made no confession to the EFCC, adding that the anti-graft agency failed to show that Mr. Fani-Kayode actually accepted a cash sum of N1million as alleged.</div>
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Mr. Adedipe said the EFCC also failed to show to the court the person who handed the cash sum to the accused person.</div>
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He said for the case of the prosecution to succeed, it had to be proven beyond reasonable doubts.</div>
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[JUST IN]: Fani-Kayode Cleared Of Money Laundering Charges

LAGOS, NIGERIA - A Federal High Court in Lagos has discharged and acquitted a former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, of corruption...

Oklahoma Supreme Court Rules 10 Commandments Monument Be Removed

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<b>News coming out of the United States of America these days might be pointing to the beginning of the end of the US. The #SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the US) had ruled in favour of #LGBT the other day. And, now the Supreme Court of Oklahoma gave the following ruling.</b></div>
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<a href="http://bigstory.ap.org/article/07c1ab083f96419baf5547a666004bd2/oklahoma-court-ten-commandments-monument-must-come-down">The Associated Press reported</a>:</div>
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Oklahoma's highest court said the Ten Commandments chiseled into the 6-foot-tall granite monument, which was privately funded by a Republican legislator, are "obviously religious in nature and are an integral part of the Jewish and Christian faiths."</div>
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The 7-2 ruling overturns a decision by a district court judge who determined the monument could stay.</div>
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Attorney General Scott Pruitt had argued that the monument was historical in nature and nearly identical to a Texas monument that was found constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Oklahoma justices said the local monument violated the state's constitution, not the U.S. Constitution.</div>
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"Quite simply, the Oklahoma Supreme Court got it wrong," Pruitt said in a statement. "The court completely ignored the profound historical impact of the Ten Commandments on the foundation of Western law."</div>
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Pruitt said his office would ask the court for a rehearing and request that the monument be allowed to stay until the court considers his request.</div>
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Since the original monument was erected in 2012, several other groups have asked to put up their own monuments on the Capitol grounds. Among them is a group that wants to erect a 7-foot-tall statue that depicts Satan as Baphomet, a goat-headed figure with horns, wings and a long beard.</div>
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A Hindu leader in Nevada, an animal rights group, and the satirical Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster also have made requests.</div>
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Rep. Mike Ritze, a Republican from Broken Arrow whose family paid about $10,000 for the monument's construction, pushed the bill authorizing the monument. He said Tuesday he hoped the attorney general would appeal the ruling.</div>
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The original monument was smashed into pieces in October, when someone drove a car across the Capitol lawn and crashed into it. A 29-year-old man who was arrested the next day was admitted to a hospital for mental health treatment, and formal charges were never filed.</div>
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A new monument was built and put up again in January.</div>
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<b>Fox News</b></div>
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Oklahoma Supreme Court Rules 10 Commandments Monument Be Removed

News coming out of the United States of America these days might be pointing to the beginning of the end of the US. The #SCOTUS (Suprem...

Aso Rock: CSO Overrules ADC On DSS' Quit Order

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<b>President Muhammadu Buhari’s Chief Security Officer, Abdulrahman Mani, has revoked the order by the Aide-De-Camp to the President, Lt.-Col. Lawal Abubakar, removing operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) from giving Buhari close body protection.</b></div>
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Mani, in a memo countermanding the ADC’s order, said the DSS operatives should disregard the directive by Abubakar. He said the order was a misrepresentation of Buhari’s directive.</div>
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Buhari’s ADC had on Wednesday last week issued a memo redeploying the DSS officials from 10 beats that they had hitherto manned inside the Presidential villa, explaining that the decision to strip the DSS officials of their traditional roles was part of efforts to enhance general security within the villa.</div>
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He also claimed that the development was necessitated by “recent events,” which he did not disclose.</div>
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The ADC consequently directed personnel of the Armed Forces and the Nigeria Police to take over the DSS officials’ duties of providing “close/immediate protection” for the President with immediate effect.</div>
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But in a June 26, 2015, memo by the CSO, a copy of which was obtained by our correspondent on Sunday, Mani directed the DSS officials to disregard the ADC’s order, saying the duties being performed by the DSS personnel in the Presidential villa were backed by relevant statutes and gazetted instruments.</div>
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These roles, he added, included close body protection of the President in line with standard operational procedures and international best practices.</div>
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He cited Section 2(I )(ii) of Instrument No.SSS 1 of May 23, 1999 made pursuant to Section 6 of the National Security Agencies Decree of 1986, which has been re-enacted as Section 6 of NSA Act CAP N74 LFN 2004.</div>
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He said the law empowered personnel of the DSS to provide protective security for designated principal government functionaries.</div>
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The functionaries, he said, included but not limited to the President and Vice President as well as members of their immediate families.</div>
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He said the law also mandates the DSS to provide protective security for sensitive installations such as the Presidential Villa and visiting foreign dignitaries.</div>
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The CSO said it was for that reason that personnel of the DSS near the President were carefully selected and properly trained and that background checks were constantly carried out on them to confirm their suitability and loyalty.</div>
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Mani said the issues raised in the ADC’s memo suggested that he ventured into an unfamiliar terrain.</div>
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The CSO’s memo read, “In fact, the issues raised in the aforementioned (ADC’s) circular tend to suggest that the author may have ventured into a not-too-familiar terrain.</div>
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“The extant practice, the world over, is that VIP protection, which is a specialised field, is usually handled by the Secret Service, under whatever nomenclature.</div>
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“They usually constitute the inner core security ring around every principal. The Police and the military by training and mandate are often required to provide secondary and tertiary security cordons around venues and routes.</div>
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“However, all other security agencies, including the army, the police and others, also have their roles to play. It is on this note that heads of all security agencies currently in the Presidential Villa and their subordinates are enjoined to key into the existing command and control structure. They are to work in harmony with each other in full and strict compliance with the demands of their statutorily prescribed responsibilities.</div>
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“Meanwhile, joint training programmes and other incentives will be worked out in the days ahead to ensure that all security personnel at the Presidential Villa are properly educated to understand their statutory roles and responsibilities.</div>
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“This is with a view to avoiding obvious grandstanding, overzealousness, limited knowledge or outright display of ignorance in future.”</div>
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Mani asked all the unit and departmental heads to bring the content of his memo to the attention of all personnel for compliance.</div>
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He copied the National Security Adviser; the Chief of Defence Staff and the Director-General of DSS.</div>
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A source however told our correspondent on Sunday that although the CSO’s directive had been widely circulated, it has yet to take effect as the military men drafted to replace the DSS officials were still at their beats.</div>
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The source however introduced another dimension when he blamed a top DSS official in the Presidential Villa for the confrontation.</div>
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He claimed that trouble started when the official ordered that soldiers should be blocked from residence reception.</div>
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Infuriated by that action, he said the soldiers contacted the ADC who became angry and vowed to report to the President.</div>
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“Before that incident, the soldiers have been cooperative and well-behaved. The situation we find ourselves is painful but it is also avoidable,” the source added.</div>
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A security expert, Mike Ejiofor, had told our correspondent in an interview on Friday that the ADC’s directive could not stand because it could not be backed by law.</div>
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The Presidency had in a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, on Wednesday, said Buhari had not given any order for the expulsion of the DSS officials from the Presidential Villa.</div>
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Adesina however admitted that a reorganisation of security at the seat of power was underway.</div>
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Aso Rock: CSO Overrules ADC On DSS' Quit Order

President Muhammadu Buhari’s Chief Security Officer, Abdulrahman Mani, has revoked the order by the Aide-De-Camp to the President, Lt.-...

OMG!!! See How Smugglers Almost Killed This Journalist

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioTYtBAqbTeN-PeUnWZ6ZgvNsnpsNfs-K0lmnqY0FSp6CSitvkq1fmO-a6uO38Cz7NFgBJHNxcGiKsbSxV28xKn420t9s7hgwXsO0jG_B1ntdvBJf133Uc9GOWKhsQtpGZHqonc01Uqv7x/s1600/Journalist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioTYtBAqbTeN-PeUnWZ6ZgvNsnpsNfs-K0lmnqY0FSp6CSitvkq1fmO-a6uO38Cz7NFgBJHNxcGiKsbSxV28xKn420t9s7hgwXsO0jG_B1ntdvBJf133Uc9GOWKhsQtpGZHqonc01Uqv7x/s1600/Journalist.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>The Executive publisher of <i>Prime Magazine</i>, a Badagry based publication, Yomi Olomofe was on Thursday June 25th beaten to a pulp by hoodlums suspected to be smugglers for allegedly reporting their illicit activities in Badagry, Lagos state.</b></div>
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Narrating his ordeal to <b><i>Vanguard</i></b>, Mr Olomofe said:</div>
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I was with another colleague of mine on a visit to the command, when some smugglers, who claimed that journalists have been writing negative stories about them, pounced on me. While beating me, they threatened to kill me so as to serve as deterrent to journalists writing stories about them. I was there with the correspondent of <i>Tide Newspaper,</i> thank God a friend from Rotary Club came to take me away, I would have been dead, because I was left there almost lifeless. These hoodlums are not unknown. They are known to everybody, but they are above the law. They even told me that they have killed many people and nothing happened, he said.</blockquote>
You'll agree this is one of the hazards of this job! OMG!!! How on earth will some people think they are above the law.<br />
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OMG!!! See How Smugglers Almost Killed This Journalist

The Executive publisher of Prime Magazine , a Badagry based publication, Yomi Olomofe was on Thursday June 25th beaten to a pulp by hoo...

Buhari Inaugurates National Economic Council

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<b>President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday inaugurated the National Economic Council led by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.</b></div>
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The council, which has the 36 state governors and the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria as members, is saddled with the responsibility of advising the President on economic affairs of the country.</div>
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Buhari tasked members to come up with ways of liquidating outstanding salaries and wages across the country.</div>
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He restated his administration’s commitment to tackling insecurity, corruption and other social vices.</div>
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<b>The Punch</b></div>
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Buhari Inaugurates National Economic Council

President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday inaugurated the National Economic Council led by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo. The council, wh...

[OPINION]: Wike The Wicked - By Tola Adeniyi

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0XLBvWbeOdyOoqh_P-SVMSnU4OnoYme9evOWqL8pZHE6kI-waaY3PwWptY_j_Iff3No_pNRXU1TnKZz6zpa1sQY7ywtp5IxvVnF9LEv1WKDeLhmt2sk8ndtliQsRuzVTpf4sy6Op-V5lU/s1600/Wike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0XLBvWbeOdyOoqh_P-SVMSnU4OnoYme9evOWqL8pZHE6kI-waaY3PwWptY_j_Iff3No_pNRXU1TnKZz6zpa1sQY7ywtp5IxvVnF9LEv1WKDeLhmt2sk8ndtliQsRuzVTpf4sy6Op-V5lU/s1600/Wike.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>Nobody expected it to be so soon. Hardly had Barrister Nyesom Wike taken office as Governor of oil-rich Rivers state that his people were reported to have given him a new alias. Words came from some indigenes of the state that their newly sworn in governor is now called <i>Wike the Wicked</i>. I thought it was a joke until my attention was drawn to many activities the governor had reeled out since assuming office that were believed could only have emanated from a sadistic mind!</b></div>
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First was the very crude and uncivilized manner the governor was reported to have pursued the issue of property recovery from some members of the immediate past government in the state. All the newspapers and not a few television stations reported the ugly scene of the invasion of the residence of the state’s former Commissioner of Information.</div>
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With close to a battalion of heavily armed police men and sundry security operatives, the peace of the home of the said commissioner was rudely assaulted by heavy forklifts and pay-loaders to physically ‘arrest’ and impound vehicles alleged to be government property. The poor woman ex-commissioner was not at home when the invaders arrived, and without a Warrant, brutishly carted away two vehicles.</div>
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The question on the lips of most impartial observers was, ‘why the show of such quantum of naked power?’ If government had any reason to suspect that some vehicles were in the possession of unauthorised persons or quarters, a more decent way to recover such property was to invite the possessor to explain why the vehicles or any government property should be in their possession. A simple procedure of courtesy.</div>
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It bothers on brigandage and rough-neckedness for a man occupying exalted office of the Chief Executive of a state to get associated in whatever form with such act.</div>
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Almost in a rampage, a mass sack of 344 lecturers and others employed at the Rivers State Polytechnic, Bori since September, 2014 by the state’s immediate past administration led by Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi has also been reported.</div>
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So also was the disbandment of the Rivers State Road Traffic Management Authority (TIMA-RIV) and other actions bordering on witch–hunt and outright victimization which have made the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) to believe that the new governor of the state, Barrister Nyesom Wike, was out to play politics of vendetta. The Congress posited that such actions would not be in tandem with what the nation in general and Rivers State in particular needed at the moment.</div>
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The General Manager of the State Television has also been booted out in a manner that really outraged the people of the state. The woman head of the station was believed to be a thorough professional who discharged her duties with the best ethics of her calling. Her only offence as narrated by people in the state was that she served under Wike’s purported enemies.</div>
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Every public officer in the state now lives in fear and trepidation that the rampaging axe of the Wicked may descend on their neck any time soon!</div>
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Matters have now come to a head to warrant non-indigenes in Rivers State under the aegis of Endangered Non Indigenes Forum in Rivers State (EINFRS) to cry out to President Muhammadu Buhari, pleading with him to come to their rescue following an alleged threat by Governor Nyesom Wike to crack down on them as part of his determination to deal ruthlessly with associates and loyalties of the immediate past government.</div>
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The concern of this writer is not whether Wike has a right to settle scores with his perceived political enemies. Politicians have their own peculiar way of dealing with each other. And Nigerian politicians are a special breed when it comes to extremisms.</div>
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The Rivers state has probably not known peace for almost 3 years now. The immediate past governments at the Federal and state levels flexed muscles to no end, and the fall-out of the maddening drama may be the visit of wickedness and high-handedness on the losers in the long-drawn battle.</div>
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This scenario does not however justify unmitigated wickedness and sadistic display of power. Even in armed conflict, winners are still expected to be civil to their victims. There is a minimum level of human decency expected in all human relationships. And people who wield temporary and ephemeral power are reminded to always bear in mind that power is transient.</div>
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It does not speak well of any one in power to behave as if drunk and intoxicated. It is the height of insensitivity and cruelty for some one in authority to derive joy in inflicting pain on those under his authority.</div>
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Governor Wike surely will not like to be remembered as a wicked, vengeful and sadistic governor. And the earlier he calls his overzealous aides to order the better for the reputation he would like to carve for himself and be remembered by. ‘Wike the Wicked’ should not be allowed to stick.</div>
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After all, whatever be the case, he has triumphed, so to say. He is currently the governor unless the tribunal decides otherwise. He should therefore have no cause or reason to be vindictive or allow people to run away with a name his parents did not give him.</div>
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It is also not too late in the day to make amends. If vehicles needed to be recovered, simple, decent procedure can still be followed. If appointments needed be terminated, there are better and less painful ways to go about it. But a situation where a leader deliberately uses or mi-uses power to oppress or victimise or inflict pain on others is certainly not acceptable.</div>
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I don’t think I want that alias to stick. And I don’t want the Yoruba speaking people to dub him ‘Wike weke-weke’!</div>
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<b>The Opinion</b></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue;">YOU TOO CAN HAVE YOUR TEXT ADVERTS PLACED HERE. CONTACT US AT </span><span style="color: red;">tnn.ng1@gmail.com</span><span style="color: blue;"> FOR AD PLACEMENT DETAILS</span></b></div>

[OPINION]: Wike The Wicked - By Tola Adeniyi

Nobody expected it to be so soon. Hardly had Barrister Nyesom Wike taken office as Governor of oil-rich Rivers state that his people we...

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Buhari Inaugurates National Economic Council

[OPINION]: Wike The Wicked - By Tola Adeniyi

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