Nigerian newspapers: 10 things you need to know this Monday morning

Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers:

1. A former President, Dr. Olusegun Obasanjo has said that he is not neutral in the battle of who becomes Nigeria’s president in 2019. The former Head of State was reacting to reports that emerged yesterday that he (Obasanjo) has decided not to back any candidate for the presidential election. He said only a fool will be neutral when their country was being destroyed with incompetence, corruption, lack of focus, insecurity, nepotism, brazen impunity and denial of the obvious.

2. The chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Humanitarian Affairs, Sani Mohammed, has said that the claim by the President Muhammadu Buhari administration that Boko Haram has been defeated in the North East was a “lie. ” Mohammed, who is a member of the All Progressives Congress, APC, insisted that claims by the Buhari government that normalcy has been restored to the North East was a “lie”.

3. The Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, ACF, on Sunday rubbished the insinuation by the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu that President Muhammadu Buhari was dead and replaced with one Jubril from Sudan. Speaking, the National President of AYCF, Yerima Shettima described the IPOB leader as a drug addict who should not be taken seriously.

4. Nigeria’s Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo on Sunday left for Germany to address a group of notable German business leaders in Berlin on Monday, December 10. Osinbajo would be speaking on the potential of the Nigerian market and the gains recorded by the country through its Ease of Doing Business reforms.

5. Mike Ozekhome, a Constitutional lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, has said that President Muhammadu Buhari is afraid of imminent defeat in 2019 presidential election, hence the reason for refusing assent to Electoral Amendment Bill. Ozekhome said that Buhari by refusing to put assent to the Electoral Amendment Bill is to provide a suitable environment to enhance electoral manipulation to pave way for his re-election.
He called on the National Assembly to muster 2/3 majority votes to override the President under section 58 of the 1999 Constitution.

6. The Catholic Bishop of Enugu, Most Rev. Callistus. Onaga has rejected the recent apology tendered by Fr. Ejike Mbaka to former Governor Peter Obi for the embarrassing episode the priest created during a church bazaar sales. Onaga, said the apology by Mbaka was no apology but apologetics that did not comply with what the Bishops directed him to do. He said Mbaka had written another letter to Obi during their last meeting with him, warning all catholic priest to remain neutral on political matters.

7. A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana, on Sunday advised the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to stop sealing up assets belonging to suspects of financial crimes. Falana said sealing up of properties while cases were still pending in courts did not do the public any good as the assets waste away with no economic value.

8. President Muhammadu Buhari has constituted a Presidential Implementation Committee on Autonomy of State Legislature and State Judiciary in accordance with the 4th Alteration to the 1999 Constitution. Mr Femi Adesina, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, said the committee will drive the actualisation of the autonomy granted to the legislature and judiciary at the State level.

9. The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu Saturday released six ‘scientific’ facts to back his claim that one Jubril Aminu Al-Sudani is impersonating President Muhammadu Buhari. Kanu spoke Saturday night in a two-and-half-hour special radio broadcast from Israel, saying the facts were necessary to clarify the point he raised earlier that what was playing out before Nigerians was not a case of President Buhari’s clone in Aso Rock but a body double.

10. The Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo has urged Nigerians against voting for the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. Osinbajo said PDP stole Nigeria’s money during it’s 16 years in power, hence must not be allowed to return in 2019. He spoke at the inauguration of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Door-To-Door-Campaign flag-off of the Professor Yemi Osinbajo, PYO, Support Group over the weekend in Lagos.