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PRESIDENT TINUBU AT NBA CONFERENCE: We’ll Continue To Promote Rule Of Law, Tolerate Dissenting Voices

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PRESIDENT TINUBU AT NBA CONFERENCE: We’ll Continue To Promote Rule Of Law, Tolerate Dissenting Voices

  • Says his government’s policies, actions will soon bring enormous relief to Nigerians

By: Our Reporter

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has vowed to keep promoting the rule of law, adhere to the principles of separation of powers, and tolerate dissenting views within the ambit of the laws of Nigeria.

This, he said, explains why since he assumed office, his administration had been making steady progress in rebuilding the nation through legal and judicial reforms.

The President made the vow on Sunday when he declared open the Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in Lagos.

President Tinubu, who was represented at the event by his deputy, Vice President Kashim Shettima, acknowledged the association’s sterling history of championing democratic ideals, as well as promoting the rule of law.

“Let me reassure you all that this administration will continue to promote the rule of law, adherence to the principles of separation of powers and tolerance of dissent within the bounds of the law,” he declared.

The President implored Nigerian lawyers and other citizens to join hands with his administration in resolutely working towards a Nigeria of everybody’s dreams, saying the nation cannot continue to toe the path threaded in the past, if it must achieve sustainable development.

He assured that though making difficult decisions to change the way things were being done in the past would produce hard results, his administration’s policies and actions will bring relief to Nigerians very soon.

President Tinubu noted: “Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, while I acknowledge the temporal existence of some daunting challenges besetting us as a nation, I would like to urge you all not to adopt a defeatist approach; rather, we should remain resolute in working for a country of our dreams.

“It is obvious that Nigeria as a nation cannot continue to sojourn on the trajectory of the past if we must be assured of sustainable development; hence, the need to sanitize the Augean stable and chart a proper course of rebuilding the nation.

“I acknowledge that altering the status quo requires difficult decisions and changes, which also inevitably come with hard outcomes. However, I am confident that this is a passing phase and our policies and actions, as an administration, are bound to usher in relief in no distant time.”

The President thanked the Supreme Court for consistently sustaining good governance and the tenets of democracy in Nigeria, citing the recent verdict of the highest court in the land which granted financial autonomy to the local government councils.

The judgment, he noted, “will spur the much-desired developments at the grassroots level,” even as he expressed confidence “that more of such strategic and reform-oriented legal interventions will be achieved” by the third arm of government.

On the part of the executive arm, President Tinubu restated his administration’s commitment to continue making the welfare of the judiciary a top priority of his administration.

He stated: “I want to assure the Learned members of the Bench and the Bar that this government will continue to accord top priority to the welfare of the judiciary to ease avoidable burden on their Lordships and speed up the adjudicatory process which is a sine qua non for social order and economic development.

“It is, therefore, my fervent expectation that the NBA would provide the appropriate legal compass for all persons, government, and businesses towards rebuilding our dear nation”.

He outlined efforts being made by his administration in reforming the judiciary including signing the Judicial Office Holders (Salaries and Allowances) Act 2024, leading to a 300% increase in the remuneration of our judicial officers, and putting in place the full complement of Justices of the Supreme Court.

The President also disclosed that his administration “is also working on the construction of a permanent and befitting edifice for the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal.

“Furthermore, provisions are being made to provide conducive accommodation for federal judicial officers within the Federal Capital Territory. All these are part of measures to boost the independence, welfare, and capacity of the judiciary,” he added.

President Tinubu applauded the theme, “Pressing Forward: A National Posture for Rebuilding Nigeria,” chosen by the NBA for this year’s annual national conference, just as he commended the Association for always being part of “the vanguard for initiating and driving reforms to stimulate economic growth and development”.

On her part, Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said efforts must be made towards accelerating growth and development, as Nigeria has all it takes to succeed.

In her keynote address titled, “A Social Contract for Nigeria’s Future,” the former Nigerian Finance Minister as well as the first woman and first African to lead the WTO regretted that Nigeria is not progressing as much as it should in its over 60 years of existence.

“Strong macro economic reforms is something we need in Nigeria. Oil has dominated Nigerian exports but we must diversify to agricultural and solid minerals exports,” she added.

Lamenting the lack of policy consistency which, according to her, has also affected the growth of the nation, the WTO DG said that to minimize the volatility of inconsistent policies, Nigeria needs a social contract, stressing that achieving a social contract involves the security of lives and national assets.

She said an organization like the NBA has a role in achieving a social contract.

“We need a new social contract to achieve growth in our country. My conviction on the need for a social contract is based on the need to tolerate different political parties and past administrations that preceded any administration in power,” Dr. Okonjo-Iweala noted.

For his part, the host Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, maintained that the security of lives and property was one of the cardinal things that the social contract was all about.

Urging the judiciary to strengthen the nation’s electoral process, he assured that Lagos, as a state, is ready to take on the social contract, even as he said for five years, he has not taken a kobo from the local government treasury.

“And we have demonstrated that even in the legal profession that all of you are part of we have more women in our judiciary consistently than any other part of the country and we kept faith in that,” Sanwo-Olu added.

Earlier in his welcome address, President of the NBA, Mr. Yakubu Maikyau (SAN), assured that the bar will continue to work for the course of justice in Nigeria, adding that the respect the bar has is a symbol of freedom in the county.

“The bar is represented primarily by the need to serve justice to the people. Our existence as a people is intricately connected to our responsibility as the defenders of the people,” he said.

Mr. Maikyau urged lawyers to ensure that they discharged their duties to the people of Nigeria with determination like the resilience of an eagle and eschew corruption at all levels.

The occasion also featured the launch of a book titled, “History of the Nigerian Bar Association,” written by a Nigerian lawyer, Olanrewaju Akinsola.

Other dignitaries present at the event included Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang; former President of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama; Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN); President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, the Ooni of Ife, His Imperial Majesty, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi (the Ọjájá II), and representatives of the Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives, among others.

PRESIDENT TINUBU AT NBA CONFERENCE: We’ll Continue To Promote Rule Of Law, Tolerate Dissenting Voices

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VP SHETTIMA AND THE ILLOGICAL PERMUTATIONS FOR 2027

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VP SHETTIMA AND THE ILLOGICAL PERMUTATIONS FOR 2027


By: Inuwa Bwala

As happened in 2023, when President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was to name his running mate, vested interests are again up in arms, trying to hoodwink or armstwist him into doing their bids.
What people forget, however, is that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is a master schemer and knows exactly what to do at the appropriate time. Contrary to what many people think, he has his own game plan and can not be compelled to play to the gallery.
In the last few weeks, I have read a plethora of writeups trying to give President Bola Ahmed Tinubu prescriptions on how to chart a new political course if he hopes to achieve his second term bid in the 2027 general elections.
Many of the write ups contain permutations in the event of the emergence of a perceived strong opposition and that unless he drops his Vice President for another person, he will have a difficult task.
As a student of political history, and given our experiences, I dare say that if Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Kashim Shettima could win in the face of all the obstacles placed in their ways from within and from without there does not appear any threat to this same ticket in 2027.
I must confess that I have not yet met a shrewed political strategist in Nigeria like the President who against all permutations settled for Kashim Shettima neither am I aware of any politician who could be as loyal dedicated and determined to his Boss as Shettima has demonstrated over the years.
The game is already on, and the biggest threat to Tinubu in 2027 is indeed any attempt to shift the goalpost in the mu
middle of the game.
As far as I know, the combination has given a very good account of itself, and with the rays of hope beyond the immediate horizon, Kashim Shettima remains President Bola Ahmed Tinubu best choice
I am aware that people have been trying to drive a wedge between them by framing false narratives that are neither here nor there. So as not to embolden those who are heating up the polity unnecessarily, the silence maintained on political permutations remains the best by both the president and the vice president.
Silence on certain issues has paid off for both of them before, and it will again pay off.
When people thought Bola Ahmed Tinubu was sick and weak and may even die before the end of his first tenure, he maintained a golden silence on his health status and rather magnified it as real thereby tricking all Nigerians into believing it was true.
Now that he has proven to be healthy and strong, the voices that predicted a doom for the presidency are silent.

VP SHETTIMA AND THE ILLOGICAL PERMUTATIONS FOR 2027

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Nigerien Army Deserter Who Joined Boko Haram Surrenders in Diffa Region

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Nigerien Army Deserter Who Joined Boko Haram Surrenders in Diffa Region

By: Our Reporter

A deserter from the Niger Republic Armed Forces who reportedly joined the terrorist group Boko Haram has surrendered to local authorities in Kindjandi, located in the Diffa Region of southeastern Niger Republic.
The individual, identified as Abba Ibrahim, had been serving with the Nigerien Armed Forces since 2022 before deserting his post in Bosso on March 8, 2025, according to military intelligence sources. He fled alongside a fellow soldier, Bandam Dala, and subsequently joined a Boko Haram faction active in the Lake Chad area.
Security sources disclosed that Ibrahim surrendered on April 21, 2025, arriving in Kindjandi on horseback with a rifle. He was accompanied by an unidentified young man whose details are yet to be confirmed.
Ibrahim was taken into custody by the Nigerien Armed Forces on the morning of April 22, 2025, and is currently undergoing debriefing and interrogation by military intelligence.
The Diffa Region has remained a hotspot for insurgent activity due to its proximity to Lake Chad and border areas with Nigeria, where Boko Haram and other extremist groups operate.

Nigerien Army Deserter Who Joined Boko Haram Surrenders in Diffa Region

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ECOWAS @50: WADEMOS Commends Subregional bloc for Inviting Mali, Burkina-Faso, Niger to Launch

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ECOWAS @50: WADEMOS Commends Subregional bloc for Inviting Mali, Burkina-Faso, Niger to Launch

By: Michael Mike

The West Africa Democracy Solidarity Network (WADEMOS) has commended the initiative by ECOWAS to extend an invitation to the governments of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger for the official launch of ECOWAS’ golden jubilee in Accra.

The Network, in a press statement on Tuesday, said it supports the initiative by ECOWAS to ease tensions and foster diplomacy in a bid to sustain the common heritage, shared history, and longstanding socio-cultural ties of the peoples.

The statement read: “As ECOWAS opens its doors and extends an arm of friendship and collaboration to Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, the Network encourages the three countries to reciprocate the gesture, upholding the spirit of good neighbourliness and cross-border cooperation. Such
cooperation is necessary now more than ever, especially as we require a concerted effort to confront matters of common interest to the subregion, such as security and trade.

“WADEMOS maintains the position that the restoration of trust and confidence between
Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, on the one hand, and ECOWAS, on the other hand,
remains critical to sustaining cooperation and enhancing the free movement of goods and people. Building trust and confidence, we believe, is also critical to effectively combat the growing threat of terrorism across the subregion.

“Considering the close ties that exist among the West African peoples, WADEMOS
continues to urge the three Sahelian countries to be reconciliatory in their engagements with ECOWAS.”

WADEMOS is an independent and non-partisan network of diverse national and transnational civil society organisations and civic groups working to promote and defend democracy, good governance, and inclusive development in the West Africa region.

It mobilizes, coordinates, and leverages the collective voice and power of civil society and other pro-democracy actors, resources, and opportunities within the West Africa region to advance its mission. The current membership of WADEMOS stands at 47 spread across West Africa.

The WADEMOS Secretariat is based in Accra, Ghana.

ECOWAS @50: WADEMOS Commends Subregional bloc for Inviting Mali, Burkina-Faso, Niger to Launch

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