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Under Buhari, Biafran Colours’ And Nigerian Colours Are Symbols Of “Incitement” – Lawyer

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The harassment and arrest of celebrated Nollywood actor, Mr. Chiwetalu Agu, on Thursday, 7th October, 2021 by the Nigerian Army is illegal, unconscionable and unwarranted, a human right lawyer has said.

Grassroots reported that the comic actor was released from the custody of the Nigerian Army after been arrested for wearing a Biafra customized regalia.

Inibehe Effiong said actor did not commit any criminal offence known to law and warned the Nigerian Army to stop ridiculing itself before the international community.

“Supposing without conceding that the dressing of the legendary actor amounts to “incitement” as claimed by the Army, it is the Nigeria Police Force that should have responded. There is no evidence of incitement against him. Nothing was inscribed on the said cloth to incite the public.

“Is the Army suggesting that wearing clothes with certain colours or identifying with certain colours amounts to inciting people to violence or that any colour identical to the Biafran flag is inciting?.

“That will be a dangerous proposition. If they are convinced about such whimsical argument, the government should test it in a competent court of law. The allegation that he is recruiting for or supporting IPOB is unsupported by evidence. It is a way of calling a dog a bad name in order to hang it. Discerning Nigerians can see through the smoke screen.

“The military has no power in a constitutional democracy to arrest citizens; except in very special and exceptional circumstances like during war, state of emergency, insurrection or riot. Even at that, it has to be shown that the Police has been overwhelmed.

“That is the purport of Section 217 of the 1999 Constitution which limits the role of the Armed Forces to defending the territorial integrity of Nigeria and acting in aid of civil authorities. Is Nigeria at war?

“What did Chiwetalu Agu do that overwhelmed the Nigeria Police Force to warrant the Army stepping in to aid the police in arresting him?

“We have become so used to lawlessness, impunity and flagrant disregard for the fundamental rights of citizens that we now condone whatever nonsense is thrown at us by the authorities.

“Wearing a cloth with colours similar to the Biafran flag is not defined as an offence under any written law in this country. It is IPOB that was proscribed, not Biafra.

“A significant portion of the Nigerian population still sees Biafra as an idea. No government can kill an idea that people are emotionally attached to by deploying the military. History has shown that the best way to defeat an idea is by propagating a superior and more persuasive idea.

“In the last six years, the Buhari regime has been propagating the idea that the best way to govern a diverse country like Nigeria is by pursuing a vindictive policy of exclusion, religious bias and ethnic supremacy which has further polarized the citizens and isolated different parts of this country.

“By promoting nepotism and ethnic irredentism, Buhari is not qualified to propagate a Pro-Nigeria ideology that can counter the renewed agitations by a section of the South East for Biafra. Rather than heal old wounds, Buhari is ferociously opening new ones. Yet, he continues to parrot the fallacy that the unity of Nigeria is non-negotiable.

“While I wholeheartedly condemn the wanton killings in the South East and the ensuing violence, there should be no tolerance for high-handedness and blatant disregard for the rights of the citizens. Rules of Engagement must be strictly followed.

“By the combined effect of Section 36 (8) and (12) of the 1999 Constitution, an act or conduct is only a crime if it is so defined in a written law which must also prescribe the punishment for the offence.

“The Supreme Court had resolved this matter long ago in the celebrated case of AOKO V. FAGBEMI (1961) 1 NLR 400 and more recently in the case of GEORGE V. FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA [2014] ALL FWLR (pt. 718) 879.

“The very idea of telling citizens what colour of cloth to wear is not only ludicrous but offensive. We are not in Communist China or North Korea.

“It is a sad commentary that the Buhari regime is working day and night to turn Nigeria into a police state.

“If the military authority has a movie role for Chiwetalu Agu, they should approach him with respect with their offer and desist from making a mockery of the security situation in the South East. The attack on Chiwetalu Agu is a painful reminder that the Buhari regime is ruling Nigeria with the mindset of the civil war.

“Under this regime, peaceful young Nigerians were shot and killed by the same Nigerian Army while raising the Nigerian flag and singing the national anthem at the Lekki Toll Gate. Till date, no single soldier has been court-martialed for that abominable desecration of what is supposed to be sacred national symbols. Yet, the same Army arrested Chiwetalu Agu for wearing a cloth identical to the Biafran flag.

“In other words, under the draconian Buhari regime, both ‘Biafran colours’ and Nigerian colours are symbols of “incitement” with severe punishment that includes death. That is not how to build and unify a nation.

“The Army should apologize to the iconic actor and pay him adequate compensation for subjecting him to harassment and public humiliation.”

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France Urged to Address Colonial Legacy as Senegalese Activists Call for Reparations in Dakar Roundtable

Reporter: Sandra Ani

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France Urged to Address Colonial Legacy in Senegal
Babacar Dioh, representative of the Thiaroye 44 Movement, speaks during the Dakar roundtable on reparations. The movement brings together descendants of Senegalese tirailleurs and advocates for historical justice.

France’s colonial legacy came under renewed scrutiny as journalists, historians, and pan-African activists gathered at African Memorial Square in Dakar for a powerful roundtable advocating reparations and economic justice. 

The event highlighted growing demands for France to take full responsibility for its historical role in Senegal and across West Africa.

France Urged to Address Colonial Legacy - Senegal
Attribution: Babacar Dioh, representative of the Thiaroye 44 Movement – a coalition advocating reparations and justice for descendants of colonial-era African soldiers.

Organized by advocacy groups including the Association of Descendants of Senegalese Soldiers, the Front for the Withdrawal of French Military Bases (GASSI), and JIF’AFRIK, the roundtable brought together influential voices pushing for reparatory justice and structural transformation.

Among the key speakers were Babacar Dioh of the Thiaroye 44 Movement—a coalition of descendants of Senegalese tirailleurs—and Souleymane Jules Diallo, leader of JIF’AFRIK. Discussions centered on two central demands: official reparations for colonial-era injustices and the urgent renegotiation of trade and military agreements that activists say perpetuate economic dependence.

“The time for symbolic gestures is over,” said Dioh. “We are now filing an official reparations claim and taking concrete steps to hold France accountable.”

Speakers called for the dismantling of existing neocolonial frameworks, stressing the ecological, financial, and social harm that has endured beyond the colonial period. The roundtable marks a turning point in Dakar’s positioning as a hub for coordinated African-led advocacy aimed at restoring historical justice.

This event adds momentum to a growing continental movement seeking tangible reparative action from former colonial powers and reinforces the call for equity, autonomy, and acknowledgment of historical truths.

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Gov Mbah Inaugurates Committee to End Gender-Based Violence in Enugu

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The Enugu State government has inaugurated a steering committee to eliminate Gender-Based Violence, GBV, in the state, declaring zero tolerance for the social malaise.

The inauguration took place at the Government House Enugu.

The panel, which is chaired by the Commissioner for Children, Gender Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Ngozi Enih, draws its membership from the Nigeria Police Force, Ministry of Agriculture and Agro Industrialisation, Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Chieftaincy Affairs, Ministry of Human Development and Poverty Reduction, Ministry of Trade, Investment and Industry, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education as well as the Civil Society.

Inaugurating the panel known as the Steering Committee for Strengthening Institutional and Community Responses to End Gender-Based Violence/Domestication of Enugu State Gender Policy using the Oputa Panel approach, Governor Peter Mbah restated his administration’s commitment to not bringing perpetrators of GBV to book, but also putting in place proactive measures – activities, infrastructure, and systems in place to prevent them.

Mbah, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Chidiebere Onyia, said, “We take gender-based violence seriously. We have zero tolerance for it, and in Enugu State, we are ready to go the extra mile to deal with it.

“If you notice, the government has selected people that are very committed to this goal. This is not an activity where we just want to check-off the list. We will track this. We will monitor this, and we will have quarterly engagements on the successes that this particular committee has achieved in terms of reference that we are going to send.

“We will tighten those terms of reference indicators, so that we monitor what we are doing both in terms of cost input and the value added. It’s very important to us. Many people will be involved – civil society, the police and various ministries.”

He however, said that the effort was to protect everyone, men and women alike, as GBV was not restricted to any gender.

“The whole idea is to hold people responsible that are involved in matters relating to gender violence and deter people that by culture or by association get involved in that, protect women, protect our children, and in the case of violence against men, protect our men because most times we misconstrue gender violence to mean women, but it can also be men too.

“We encourage our men to speak out and to make sure they understand that the policy that Enugu State is soon going to domesticate is for everyone, and not only for the female gender,” he stated.

In her remark, Mrs. Enih, explained that the Oputa Panel approach was inspired by the need to cover all local peculiarities in domesticating the policy on GBV, restarting government’s confidence in the members of the panel.

“The approach we are going to use is the Oputa Panel approach, and in the Oputa Panel approach, we are going to tour the 17 Local Government Areas to get firsthand information about what our people are going through because policy is meant for the people, and a policy should suit the people.

“Again, every community has its peculiar problems, so that’s why the government decided that if we have to domesticate the gender policy, we have to hear from the people who own the policy and know the changes that they desire to see. That is the reason we are using this approach.

“The committee members are to also serve as judges. As we gather this information from our people, we will come back to tailor it in a way to suit the people of Enugu State, and then our policy is ready.

“We want the people to know that there is a gender policy for them. I can assure you that when the people are aware that there is such a policy, they will seek for the enforcement of that policy. So, this is not going to be one of those policies that will just lie on the shelf,” she said.

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Emulate Christ’s virtues, Glo urges Christians at Easter

Reporter: Sandra Ani

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Glo and Globacom
Globacom

Digital solutions provider, Globacom, has congratulated Christians in Nigeria on this year’s Easter celebration, and urged them to emulate the noble qualities of Jesus Christ.  

The company, in a goodwill message to the Christian faithful in the country, lauded their perseverance through the Lenten period which preceded Easter. It enjoined them to always promote the ideals of selflessness, love and peace among all as a way of demonstrating the virtues of the exemplary life of Jesus Christ. 

“Peace, love and sacrifice are the central message of Easter. Christ offered himself in atonement for the sins of the world and he lived a life which made Him an eternal symbol of peace and goodwill for mankind”, Globacom added. 

The company enjoined all Nigerians to share in the lessons of promoting selflessness, a necessary ingredient in the growth and development of every society. It also enjoined all Nigerians to join hands to make Nigeria a better place for all. 

Easter is celebrated yearly at the end of the Lenten season of fasting and prayer considered as a ritual of purification for the Christian faithful. It also precedes the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ on Good Friday and His eventual resurrection on Easter Sunday.

The company assured its customers of seamless voice, data and Short Messaging Service (SMS) during and after the Easter celebrations, while urging them to avail themselves of the various data and voice offerings on the network.

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