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Judge locks up six journalists over court photos taken ‘without authorisation’

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Six journalists were locked up at a federal capital territory (FCT) high court in Abuja on Tuesday.

The journalists, who are accredited judiciary correspondents, were locked up in the court against their will for over two hours on the order of Chizoba Orji, judge of the court.

Trouble started shortly after the judge stood down a matter and entered her chambers to prepare a ruling.

As the court proceedings were paused, Wunmi Obabori, a reporter with the Africa Independent Television (AIT), sought to take pictures and video footage for her story, but a female registrar of the court stopped her, saying journalists have no right to cover the court.

Efforts by the reporter to explain that journalists could take cut-aways — short videos and pictures — once the court is not in session yielded no result, as the court official immediately summoned a police officer attached to the judge to arrest the reporter.

Gusar Dauda, a policeman who claimed that he had the authority of the judge, swiftly locked the main gate to the courtroom with a chain, pulled his gun and ordered all the journalists to surrender their phones.

Despite the intervention of lawyers and litigants, the police officer and court officials stood their ground that no journalist would leave the courtroom without complying with the order.

After a scuffle that lasted over one hour, the judge re-entered the courtroom and summoned the AIT reporter to step forward.

“Why were you taking pictures and videos in my court? Who gave you the permission to do that?” she fumed.

“My lord, I am an accredited judiciary reporter. It is a normal practice for us to take pictures and videos when the court is not sitting, even up to the supreme court,” Obabori responded.

“You don’t have such right! If there is such permission, it must be in writing. Who gave you the permission? Show me the authorisation?” the judge said.

At that point, other journalists in the courtroom stood up and took turns to identify themselves.

“I don’t want to hear from any of you. Now, where is the device you used to take the pictures and videos?” the judge queried the AIT reporter.

Orji, thereafter, ordered her orderly to delete all the pictures and videos on the phone, after which she told the court official to unlock the gate and walk all the journalists out of the courtroom.

Other reporters who were ordered out are Godwin Tsa of The Sun newspaper, Ikechukwu Nnochiri of Vanguard, Austin Okezie of Raypower FM, Kunle Olasanmi of Leadership, and  Charles Ozoemena.

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Drama as minors collapse in court as FG arraigns 76 #EndBadGovernance protesters

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There was chaos at a federal high court in Abuja on Friday after some children who allegedly took part in the #EndBadGovernance protests collapsed while waiting to be arraigned.

The court had fixed Friday for the arraignment of the defendants who are mostly minors.

At the commencement of proceedings, the children who looked ill and malnourished, were asked to come forward to take their plea.

While some huddled in the dock, others stood outside the cubicle due to insufficient space.

However, four of them hurriedly rushed out of the courtroom after they collapsed and writhed in pain.

Obiora Egwuatu, presiding judge, had to rise abruptly before calm returned to the courtroom.

When the court session resumed, the prosecution asked that the names of the four ill children be removed from the charge.

The application was granted and the other defendants were arraigned.

The 76 defendants, who were arrested in Abuja, Kaduna, Gombe, Jos, Katsina, and Kano states, are being accused of treason, among other offences.

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Reps consider raising retirement age of health workers to 65

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A bill seeking to raise the retirement age of health workers has scaled the second reading at the house of representatives.

Adewale Hammed, the lawmaker representing the Agege federal constituency of Lagos state, sponsored the bill to raise the retirement age of health workers from 60 to 65 and from 35 to 40 years in service.

Leading the debate on the bill during the plenary on Thursday, the lawmaker argued that the law will enable experienced healthcare workers will continue to contribute their expertise to the sector until they reach the age of 65.

“Nigeria’s healthcare sector is currently experiencing a significant depletion in both the number and quality of professionals due to two main factors,” Hammed said.

“Firstly, a substantial number of health workers are migrating abroad in search of the proverbial golden fleece — a trend difficult to stop given the fundamental human rights of the individuals concerned.

“Secondly, the compulsory retirement age of 60 and the mandatory 35 years of service, as stipulated in the public service rules, are contributing to the exodus of experienced professionals.

“While we cannot control the former, the latter can be addressed through the upward review of the retirement age, which will be achieved by this bill.”

The lawmaker said the retirement age of judges, lecturers, and teachers has been raised, noting that health workers should not be left out.

Mark Esset, a lawmaker from Akwa, opposed the bill, contending that opportunities should be given to many well-trained Nigerians who are searching for jobs rather than extending the service years of those who are due for retirement.

Nwaeke Felix from Rivers also spoke against the bill, backing Esset’s argument.

However, Ahmed Jaha from Borno spoke in favour of the bill, noting that it will not stop the recruitment of new graduates.

Lawmakers voted in support of the bill when Benjamin Kalu, the deputy speaker of the house, subjected it to a voice vote.

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Realtor goes missing after being called to check property in Lagos

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A 43-year-old man identified as Jimi Folarin, a realtor, has gone missing after being called by a client to inspect properties in the Imota area of Ikorodu, Lagos State.

According to his sister, Iremide Omowunmi, Folarin left the house at exactly 4 PM on Wednesday for the property inspection and has not answered his phone since.

She stated, “At about 4 PM, my brother called me to say that the clients he was waiting for had contacted him to come and inspect the properties. This was exactly at 4 PM.

“My brother is a real estate agent who sells land and assists people in buying land. Around 5 PM, I tried calling him to see if he had arrived, but although the phone rang, he did not pick up. I thought maybe he was busy with the clients, so I stopped calling. It wasn’t until 10 PM that I tried reaching him again, but he still didn’t respond. I then texted him on WhatsApp, but he didn’t reply either, which is unlike him.

“While I was calling him, my brother’s friend was also trying to reach him. After a while, a strange number called my brother’s friend, asking who he wanted to speak to. When my brother’s friend questioned the caller, they immediately hung up.

“This morning, I called that strange number, and the person answered. But when I asked for Folarin, my brother, they abruptly ended the call. I have reported the case to the Gbogbo Police Station in Ikorodu,” she added.

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Bodex F. Hungbo, SPMIIM is a multiple award-winning Nigerian Digital Media Practitioner, Digital Strategist, PR consultant, Brand and Event Expert, Tv Presenter, Tier-A Blogger/Influencer, and a top cobbler in Nigeria.

She has widespread experiences across different professions and skills, which includes experiences in; Marketing, Media, Broadcasting, Brand and Event Management, Administration and Management with prior stints at MTN, NAPIMS-NNPC, GLOBAL FLEET OIL AND GAS, LTV, Silverbird and a host of others

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