The Nigerian Judicial Council (NJC) has finally dropped the name of Amina Bello, the wife of the fugitive and immediate past governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, from the list of nominees to be appointed as judges of the High Court of Kogi State.

On January 8 seven Senior Advocates of Nigeria had sued the NJC and the Kogi State government for shortlisting Amina for appointment into the state’s judiciary.

In the Originating Summons with Suit No: FCT/ABJ/CS/05/2024, the Plaintiffs are Chief Yunus Ustaz Usman and J.S. Okutepa. Others namely Patrick Okolo, Abdullahi Haruna, Reuben Atabo, Shaibu Aruwa and Johnson Usman argued that the selection process violated regulations and constitutional principles of fairness, equity, and merit.

On October 26, 2023, about 17 SANs from Kogi State had called for the suspension of the appointment of new Judges into the state judiciary until certain criteria were met.

The lawyers made the demand in a letter to the Chief Judge and Chairman of Kogi State Judicial Service Commission, Justice Josiah Majebi, which was dated October 20, 2023.

Titled “RE: Provisional Short-list Of Candidates Of Ten Judicial Officers Of The High Court Of Justice, Shariah Court Of Appeal And Customary Court Of Appeal,” the indigenous Kogi SANs stated that the appointment of Judges to superior courts of record is regulated and requires provision of basic facilities such as availability of courtrooms/Judges chambers, official cars, residential accommodation as well as equipped library in Judges’ chambers, citing Rules 1-5 of National Judicial Council Revised Guidelines.

In the 12-point issue raised in the letter signed by Yunus Ustaz Usman, Life Bencher for himself and on behalf of 16 other SANs, the legal practitioners also pointed out that the proposed candidates listed for appointments of judges did not reflect a geographical spread.

They described the list as lopsided and to the disadvantage of other parts of the state.

According to the letter, the candidates listed for the Customary Court of Appeal are all from Kogi Central. They noted that there was no candidate from Kogi East or Kogi West, adding that there were qualified persons from Kogi East and Kogi West who were not selected.

The Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, declared on Thursday that his battles were over as he had defeated his opponents, who are not sleeping with their two eyes open.

He said he had turned the tide against his opponents, noting that he was still in office about to mark his first anniversary, contrary to the plan by his detractors.

Fubara spoke on Thursday amid the ranging feud between him and his predecessor and estranged political godfather, Nyesom Wike.

Last October, Fubara survived an impeachment plot by members of the Rivers State House of Assembly loyal to Wike.

As of Wednesday, nine members of his cabinet loyal to Wike had tendered their resignation and exited.

Addressing the national and state leadership of the Ijaw Youth Council on Thursday at the Government House in Port Harcourt, Fubara said he appreciated their support and the assurance that they were with him but said, “there is nothing to call on you for because we have already defeated them.”

The IYC leadership was on a solidarity walk to the Government House in Port Harcourt, to celebrate the Isaac Adaka Boro Day.

The solidarity walk was part of activities to celebrate the heroic exploits of the late Major Isaac Adaka Boro, 56 years after his death, which is observed on May 16, every year.

Boro, it will be recalled, formed the Niger Delta Volunteer Force, an armed militia with members consisting mainly of his fellow Ijaw ethnic group who declared the Niger Delta Republic on February 23, 1966, and fought with federal forces for 12 days before they were defeated.

After he was granted amnesty, he enlisted and was commissioned as a Major in the Nigerian Army, fought on the side of the Federal Government during the civil war but was killed under mysterious circumstances in active service in 1968 at Ogu (near Okrika) in Rivers State on May 9, 1968.

Speaking with the Ijaw youths, Fubara acknowledged the assurances of brotherly support from the council and urged the Ijaw Nation to key into the ongoing celebration of the liberation the state now enjoyed.

“I am happy that you’ve told me this morning that when I call on you, you will respond. But there is nothing to call on you for because we have already defeated them.

“By the special grace of God, what they thought that they would have done to us while we were celebrating our one year in office, they are the ones sleeping with their two eyes open. It shows that we have the Ijaw blood. And what is that blood: it is the blood of action; less talk, more action,” Fubara said.

Fubara noted that Boro genuinely stood for equity, justice, and fair play, and pursued his course to ensure liberation for the Ijaw people and their clans.

He described every genuine Rivers man as a liberator, adding that he was delighted to receive them on such auspicious day to re-enact the common purpose of liberation that they shared.

“Because he (Isaac Boro) stood for that unique thing, even after his death, we still celebrate him because he was a liberator.

“Every Rivers man, it doesn’t matter whether you are Ijaw or upland, the most important thing is that every genuine Rivers man must be a liberator.

“And I’m happy that you have come here today. I have also received you because we have one common purpose: to liberate our dear state. We are not going back on that.”

The governor thanked the crowd for their assurances of being available to respond to his call and stand by him and appealed to Ijaw youths to conduct themselves peacefully as they celebrate Major Isaac Adaka Boro Day.

He stressed that it should be done in the same spirit that had enveloped the state now, celebrating victory over his political detractors.

In his speech, the National President of IYC, Mr Jonathan Lokpobiri, described the day as historic, because Ijaw people were meeting with their governor on Major Isaac Adaka Boro Day of Memorial.

He warned all detractors to retrace their steps and allow the governor, who had the full mandate of the people, to discharge his duties to Rivers people.

An Algerian man, Omar Bin Omran, who went missing at the age of 17, 26 years ago following an alleged kidnapping, has been found alive in his neighbour’s house.

According to Daily Mail on Wednesday, Omar was discovered in a hole in the ground within a sheep pen, concealed under stacks of hay.

Omar, one of nine children, disappeared in the city of Djelfa, Algeria, 26 years ago. His family believed he had been killed during the civil war that ravaged the nation in the 1990s and early 2000s.

According to reports, Omar was found less than 200 meters from his family’s home. A 61-year-old neighbour is now in police custody after Omar, now 45, was rescued on May 12.

The missing man found

Footage was shared on social media and broadcast on Algerian television networks of the moment that he was found in what appeared to be a hole in the ground, described by authorities as a sheep pen, within the home of his alleged captor.

The blurry video shows torchlights shining into a pit surrounded by hay as Omar furtively looks up, seemingly in shock at the search party surrounding him, with stray pieces of straw in his hair.

Other images have since been circulated of the bearded man emerging from the hole, thought to be a sheep pen, and of him as a teenager, sitting with a dog and with young children before he disappeared.

According to the Algerian newspaper El Khabar, his dog recognized his scent and stayed near where Omar was held. It was alleged that the captor poisoned the dog to ward the family off.

Omar went missing in 1998 while heading to a vocational school. He was found after the captor’s brother aired grievances on social media, reportedly over an inheritance dispute.

This led Omar’s family to search the neighbour’s house, where they found him. The captor attempted to flee but was restrained and arrested.

Tragically, Omar’s mother died in 2013 without knowing the fate of her son. Reports suggest Omar was informed of his mother’s death while in captivity.

A relative said on Facebook: ‘Thank god my cousin was found. Bin Imran Omar is in good health after 26 years of disappearance. Awaiting details of the case and investigations.’

Public prosecutors in Djelfa, a mountain city of around 500,000 people around 140 miles south of coastal capital Algiers, say Omar will receive psychological care after being rescued as they vowed to get him justice.

‘The Djelfa Attorney General’s Office informs the public that on May 12 at 8 pm local time, it found victim Omar B, aged 45, in the case of his neighbour, B.A., aged 61,’ they said in a statement.

A court official in Djelfa was quoted as saying: “Two days ago, on 12 May 2024, the Public Prosecutor’s Office received, through the regional department of the National Gendarmerie in El Jadid, a complaint against an anonymous person claiming that the complainant’s brother, Omar bin Omran, who has been missing for about 30 years, is in the house of one of his neighbours, inside a sheepfold.

Following this report, the General Prosecutor of the Court of Idrisiya in the province of Djelfa ordered the National Gendarmerie to open an in-depth investigation and officers went to the house in question.

He added: “The Public Prosecutor’s Office ordered that the victim receive medical and psychological treatment, and the suspect will be presented to the Public Prosecutor’s Office immediately after the completion of the investigation.”

Officials have promised the ‘perpetrator of this heinous crime’ will be tried with ‘severity.’

The suspect, a civil servant, lived alone but was often seen buying enough food for two people. A neighbour recounted to Algerian TV station Bilad that Omar’s mother died without knowing her son was so close by.

Questions have arisen about why Omar did not call for help during his captivity. Some reports claim Omar said he was unable to call out because of a spell cast by his captor, while others suggest his psychological state may have prevented him from seeking help.

The case may be among the world’s longest-running kidnapping cases. Eleven-year-old Jaycee Dugard was kidnapped in Meyers, California in 1991 and remained missing for over 18 years after she was captured by Phillip and Nancy Garrido.

Dugard was kept in depraved conditions and was subjected to extreme sexual abuse, having two children by Phillip Garrido, and later said she adapted to sympathising with her captors to survive.