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We Must Prosecute Wike, Predecessors for Economic Crimes – EFCC

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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday expressed its determination to prosecute Rivers State Governor, Mr. Nyesom Wike as well as his predecessors, Mr. Chibuike Amaechi and Dr. Peter Odili, notwithstanding the perpetual court injunction restraining it from doing so.

EFCC acting Chairman, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, told reporters in Port Harcourt that the restraining order would not stand.

He also listed the state as second only to Lagos in money laundering.

Magu spoke against the backdrop of a petition aimed at stopping the ambition of Odili who was clearly the frontrunner in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential primaries in December 2006, on the premises of which the then EFCC Chairman, Nuhu Ribadu, arrested the then commissioner for finance and other top officials.

The petitioner had alleged that Odili as governor misappropriated N100 billion belonging to the state.

This led the state government to institute a suit against the anti-graft agency to challenge its powers to investigate the state, saying that only the state House of Assembly is constitutionally vested with such powers.

The state government also challenged the EFCC powers and got subsisting judgments of the High Court of Rivers State and the Federal High Court barring the EFCC from investigating the finances of the state.

Justice Peter Agumagu of the Rivers State High Court on February 16, 2007, said by the combined effects of section 125 subsections (2), (5) and (6) of the 1999 Constitution, it was the Rivers State House of Assembly that had the final say on matters pertaining to the funds of the state as laid before it by the Auditor-General’s audit report of all public accounts and the Accountant-General’s financial statements and published annual accounts.

When the EFCC rejected the judgment because it was delivered by a state high court, the case was again filed at the Federal High Court where Justice Ibrahim Buba in line with the tenor of the judgment of the state High Court after upholding the judgment, made specific injunctive orders in its judgment delivered on March 20, 2007, restraining the EFCC from arresting Odili.More in Home

On the judgment restraining the commission from investigating and prosecuting Rivers governors on financial crimes, Magu said: “Nothing is going to stop us; even the issue of the court order allegedly obtained by Dr. Peter Odili and co to stop the EFCC from investigation and prosecution has been overtaken by events even though the matter is still at the Supreme Court.

“I am telling you that that judgment cannot stand; it will only take some time. It cannot hold and we are going to conclude the investigation. There are so many investigations we are doing; we will take it before the court; let the court refuse to prosecute their case. I am sure the matter has suffered for about 13 years now. We are going to test it. The matter is in the Supreme Court. We will follow it up.”

He stated that the court judgment restraining the commission from prosecuting the state governors had been overtaken by events and other declarations, adding that nothing would stop the commission again.

“That decision that is pending in the Supreme Court does not actually hold water again. There are subsequent judgments that have discarded it. Clearly, there are other judgments that came up and said nobody, not even the judge, not even the judiciary, not even the court can stop us from investigating and prosecuting,” he added.

Magu also identified Rivers State as the second capital of money laundering in Nigeria, after Lagos.

The EFCC boss, who said the commission would leave nothing unturned to track and expose crimes in the country, noted that the reason for the rate of money laundering crime in Rivers State was because of the nature of its oil business terrain.

He said: “I think Rivers State is next to Lagos in terms of crime. This is the headquarters of money laundering because there is a lot of oil money here. I think you can rate Port Harcourt the second to maybe Lagos when you talk of people playing with sinking, diving, hiding, maybe because of the large space of oil deals.”

On the achievements of the commission last year, Magu said the EFCC had “gotten about three conviction of governors who are presently cooling off in the prison” while 1,245 convictions were recorded last year.

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The Peruvian Government Has Officially Classified Transgender, Nonbinary And Intersex People As “Mentally ill”

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According to the country’s ministry of health, the controversial decision was made to ensure the country’s public health services could “guarantee full coverage of medical attention for mental health” for the trans community.

It also categorises “dual-role transvestitism,” “fetishistic transvestism,” and “other gender identity disorders” under the same bracket of mental illness.

The new law will change language in the Essential Health Insurance Plan (PEAS) to reflect the view of trans and intersex people as a mental health disorder.

Trans groups across Peru have loudly condemned the decision as a step backwards for the country’s already complex relationship with LGBTQ+ rights.

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Math Teacher Accused Of Having Sex With 2 Students And Getting Pregnant For One Tearfully Reveals The Baby Was Taken Away From Her

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The UK teacher who had a baby with an underage student while on trial for having sex with another teenage boy broke down in court after revealing her newborn baby girl had been “taken away” from her.

Manchester math teacher Rebecca Joynes, 30, sobbed to jurors over how her baby was taken “24 hours after being born” this past January — and now she only sees her for nine hours a week, Joynes told jurors on Monday, May 13, according to the Manchester Evening News.

“At the moment I have contact with her three times a week for three hours and that’s it,” she said through tears.

Joynes was arrested and released on bail on orders not to have unsupervised contact with anyone under 18 after allegedly grooming her pupil, known as Boy A in court, by buying him a $430 Gucci belt before bringing him to her apartment for unprotected sex.

She was suspended from school and eventually fired, but soon after, she began having a relationship with a 15-year-old boy, known in court as Boy B, whom she had a baby with in January.

Joynes, who has denied having sex with either boy when they were underage, told the court that when she learned of the allegations against her she had gone to the second boy in a “panic” and he deleted all of her phone’s content.

The former teacher denied having a sexual relationship with the second boy until after he turned 16 and she was already suspended from teaching.

According to her narration,

She said he had added her on Snapchat twice, which she only accepted the second time because she thought he “wanted to tell her something.”

Joynes said a friendship developed and he quickly became her “best friend” even though the boy would make flirtatious and sexualized comments toward her when he was drunk.

She told jurors that it wasn’t until after his 16th birthday that he messaged her saying “I’ve left school now” with a winky face.

After she received notice that she had been dismissed from her job, he went to her apartment, where following an emotional conversation, they had sex.

The two then entered a relationship that Joynes described as “quite toxic” telling the court how the teenager was “very controlling.”

After discovering she was pregnant, Joynes hid love notes for the boy to find around her apartment.

The notes eventually led to a piece of baby clothing that had the words “I love my daddy to the moon and back” written on it.

The court was told that she gave birth to their baby girl in January, but following an emergency court hearing, the newborn was taken away from Joynes.

Joynes has denied two counts of sexual activity with Boy A; two counts of sexual activity with Boy B; and two counts of sexual activity with Boy B while being a person in a position of trust.

Her trial is ongoing.

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First Man To Receive Pig Kidney Transplant Has Died

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The first Man to receive a genetically modified pig kidney transplant has died two months after the operation.

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), which carried out the procedure in March, announced Sunday, May 12, that Richard “Rick” Slayman, 62, has died.

They said there was no indication his death was a result of the transplant.

Transplants of other organs from genetically modified pigs have failed in the past, but the operation on Mr Slayman, who was suffering with end-stage kidney disease, was hailed as a historic milestone.

In addition to kidney disease, Mr Slayman also suffered from Type 2 diabetes and hypertension.

In 2018, he had a human kidney transplant, but it began to fail after five years.

Following his pig kidney transplant on March 16, his doctors confirmed he no longer needed dialysis after the new organ was said to be functioning well.

“Mr Slayman will forever be seen as a beacon of hope to countless transplant patients worldwide and we are deeply grateful for his trust and willingness to advance the field of xenotransplantation,” MGH said in a statement.

Xenotransplantation is the transplanting of living cells, tissues or organs from one species to another.

MGH said it was “deeply saddened” at his sudden death and offered condolences to his family.

Mr Slayman’s relatives said his story was an inspiration.

“Rick said that one of the reasons he underwent this procedure was to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive,” they said.

“Rick accomplished that goal and his hope and optimism will endure forever.

“To us, Rick was a kind-hearted man with a quick-witted sense of humour who was fiercely dedicated to his family, friends, and co-workers,” they added.

While Mr Slayman received the first pig kidney to be transplanted into a human, it is not the first pig organ to be used in a transplant procedure.

Two other patients have received pig heart transplants, but those procedures were unsuccessful as the recipients died a few weeks later.

In one case, there were signs the patient’s immune system had rejected the organ, which is a common risk in transplants.

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