06112109

10 — VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2019
Operation Positive Identification:
Maintain status quo, court
orders army
By Innocent Anaba
L Rilwanu AGOS—JUSTICE
Aikawa of a
Federal High Court sitting
in Lagos, yesterday,
ordered status quo ante in
the plan by the Nigerian
Army to extend its
Operation Positive
Identification nationwide.
Also affected by the order
are the Chief of Army Staff,
COAS, Lt. Gen. Tukur
Buratai and the Attorney-
General of the Federation.
Justice Aikawa granted
the status quo ante order
pending the determination
of a suit by rights activist,
Mr. Femi Falana, SAN,
challenging the operation,
which he insisted violates
his right and that of other
Nigerian citizens to liberty,
“as encapsulated in Section
35 respectively of the
Constitution of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria, 1999
as Amended and Article 6
of the African Charter on
Human and Peoples Rights
(Ratification and
Enforcement) Act, (Cap
A10) Laws of the
Federation of Nigeria,
2004.”
Order stopping the
operation
Falana is seeking, among
others, an order stopping
the operation.
At the hearing in the
matter, yesterday, the
respondents were in court.
Falana informed the court
that the respondents had
been served the processes
and the proof of service was
in the court’s file.
Justice Aikawa confirmed
that the proof of service was
in the court’s file.
But a Principal State
Counsel from the Ministry
of Justice prayed the judge
to grant an adjournment to
enable the Solicitor-
General, Mr. Dayo Apata,
handle the matter
personally and also give
the respondents time to
harmonise their positions.
This was, however, not
opposed by Falana.
Justice Aikawa in
granting the application for
adjournment, said: “Given
the agreement between
counsel, I, hereby, order the
first and second defendants
to maintain the status quo,
pending the determination
of the case,” and adjourned
the further hearing till
November 18.
Falana, in the substantive
suit, is arguing that the
planned nationwide
operation which will run
from November 1 to
December 23, 2019, by
which Nigerian citizens
would be required to move
about with means of
identification is
unconstitutional, illegal,
null and void.
He is, in the suit, urging
the court to restrain the
respondents from going on
with the plan pending the
hearing of the substantive
suit.
In a supporting affidavit,
Falana recalled that on
October 8, 2019, the Chief
of Army Staff, disclosed that
Operation Positive
Identification, said to be
ongoing in the North East
theatre of Boko Haram
insurgency would be
extended to cover the entire
nation.
He averred that the
COAS said the operation
required Nigerian citizens
to move about with
legitimate means of
identification such as the
National Identification
Card, Voters Registration
Card, Drivers’ Licence and
passports or other valid
official identification.
Falana noted that the
increase in deployment of
security forces nationwide
would be with a potential
of movement disruption.
He also said the army
had thus advised Nigerians
to ensure that they always
carry valid means of
identification.
Falana argued that by
Section 215 (3) of the
Constitution, the Nigerian
Police “has the exclusive
power to maintain law and
order and secure public
safety and public order in
the country” and not the
army.
According to him, going
by section 217(1) of the
Constitution, the President
could only deploy the
armed forces for the
suppression of insurrection
and acting in aid of civil
authorities to restore law
and order.
He noted:“There is no
insurrection in every part of
the country which the
Nigeria police cannot
contain to warrant the
deployment of armed troops
all over the country from
November 1, 2019, to
December 23, 2019.
“Neither the Constitution
nor the Armed Forces Act
Cap A20 LFN, 2004 has
empowered the Nigeria
Army to arrest any citizen
who is not subject to service
law.
“The Nigerian Army,
under the leadership of the
COAS, is not empowered
to take over police duties
and the President and
Commander-in-Chief of the
Armed Forces lacks the
power to deploy members
of the armed forces in the
maintenance of internal
security in any part of the
country by virtue of Section
217 (a) (b) and (c) of the
1999 Constitution, as
amended."
Freight forwarders to down tools over
Apapa gridlock •Record 3 deaths in one week
•Tanker drivers indict Task Team of extortion
By Kingsley
Adegboye, Godwin
Oritse & Gabriel
Olawale
LAGOS—AS the Apapa-
Oshodi Expressway
gridlock continues to cause
nightmare to road users
plying the route, a group,
Concerned Freight
Forwarders of Nigeria,
CFFN, has said that it lost
three of its members to the
gridlock, and has
threatened to down tools if
a permanent solution to the
traffic crisis is not sought.
Disclosing this yesterday,
Chairman of the group,
Andy Omenogo, said that
a member of the group died
last Friday, just as it also lost
another member on
Saturday.
Omenogo also revealed
that only three days ago,
another member of the
group slumped and died
while in the traffic.
He said: “Last Friday, we
lost a friend at Tin-Can
Island Port. Then on
Saturday, we lost another
friend and colleague and
only last Monday, another
member collapsed and died
while in the traffic.”
While it blamed the
deaths to the perennial
Bonnke’s crusade commences tomorrow in Ogun
A gospel BEOKUTA—THE
crusade of
renowned Televangelist,
Evangelist Reinhard
Bonnke, is set to hold
tomorrow in Abeokuta,
Ogun State.
The crusade is led by
Evangelist Daniel Kolenda,
the successor of retiring
Bonnke.
Bonnke entrusted
Evangelist Kolenda, with
the mantle of leadership on
instruction from God to
continue the mission of
global evangelistic
campaigns in Nigeria and
Africa.
COURTESY VISIT: From left—Council Member, Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, CITN, Dr.
Titilayo Fowokan; Vice President, CITN, Mr. Adesina Adedayo; President, CITN, Dame Olajumoke
Simplice; Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu; Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat,
and Commissioner for Finance, Dr. Rabiu Olowo, during a courtesy visit by the executive members
of CITN, at Lagos House, Alausa, on yesterday.
In a statement by Africa's
Director of CFAN, Rev.
John Darku, and Chairman
Christian Association of
Nigeria, CAN, in Ogun
State, Bishop Akin
Akinsanya, said the 2001
crusade success led to the
coming of all Christian
churches in Ogun State
together as a body of
Christ.
The Fire Conference
Chairman, Rev. Akintayo,
said the exercise will
charge the crusade
atmosphere making it ideal
for Holy Ghost fire to come
down and prevail at the
crusade.
traffic that has led to the
loss of lives of its members,
the group lamented that
billions of Naira have also
been lost to the problem.
In his reaction to the
development, Vice
President of the Association
of Nigerian Licensed
Customs Agents, ANLCA,
Mr. Kayode Farinto, said
that 40 percent of members
of the group now suffer
from high blood pressure.
Farinto also said that the
country will continue to
lose to the chaotic traffic
situation if urgent steps
were not taken to address
the crisis.
Tanker drivers indict
Osinbajo’s Task team
Meanwhile, tankers
drivers plying Mile2-
Apapa road, yesterday,
opened up on their plight
in the process of
transporting empty
containers into the port.
The drivers, who spoke in
their hundreds, alleged that
the Task Team headed by
the Vice President, Prof.
Yemi Osinbajo, has turned
managing traffic on the
road, to business ventures
as the officials make tanker
drivers pay various sums of
money before they can gain
access to the port.
The organizers said:
“Evangelist Kolenda who
also succeeds Bonnke as
President and Chief
Executive Officer, Christ for
All Nations (CfAN), has
carried out the largest
missionary evangelistic
campaigns in the most
dangerous, difficult and
remote locations on earth
“All necessary
arrangements have been
put in place to ensure a
highly rewarding and
hitch-free crusade. The Fire
Conference would kickstart
the crusade on
Thursday 7th November
2019 at 6.00 am local time.”
They pointed out that the
action of the Task Team,
supervised by Executive
Vice Chairman, Comrade
Kayode Opeifa, was a pure
disgrace to the campaign
against corruption.
When Vanguard spoke
with some of the drives,
they were of the view that
the team was doing more
harm than good on the
road.
N500,000 daily extortion
A driver, who identified
himself as Kunle Abifarin,
said that each member of
the team goes home with
nothing less than N500,
000 on a daily basis.
Abifarin said: “It is difficult
for you to access ports on
your own without the help
of area boys or thugs, who
will help you negotiate your
way. The prominent the
area boy is, the lesser the
amount you pay. But you
cannot spend less than
N70,000 per container.
“The task team charges
start from Fagbems filling
station and the amount
varies depending on your
negotiating power. Once
you get to Mile 2 up, where
you have the Navy, Army,
Police, LASTMA officials
among others, the charges
become different. At UBA
Bank beside Fort Oil filling
station, there is another
checkpoint. That is how all
of them arrange
themselves until you get to
the ports”, Abifarin noted.
Another driver, who
identified himself as Azeez
Abdulateef, revealed that if
a tanker driver wants to
prove stubborn by not
cooperating, there is a
special treatment for him.
“There is a separate lane
created for those that are
not ready to pay and a
driver can be on that lane
for two months without
being passed”, Abdulateef
said.
Adamu Ali, who said his
religion forbids giving bribe,
disclosed that he has been
on the road for a week and
five days.
Narrating his ordeal, Ali
said: “My experience here
shows that Nigeria can
never get better. A lot of
people are corrupt; the
saints among them are very
few and are victimized. I
have been insulted
severally here for standing
for what I believe is right.
“The task team officials
are wicked fellows and they
comprise different religions
and ethnicity but united in
their evil doing. At night,
their operation of extortion
becomes more daring as
they barricade the road to
ensure that no driver passes
without paying their
monies.”
“Trucks like Yah Salam,
J.O. among others are
allowed to enter the port in
their hundreds without
following due process”, Ali
stated.
Activist moves to
curb
environmental
hazards in Lagos
LAGOS—A
rights
activist, Comrade
Razaq Olokoba, has floated
a voluntary non-
Governmental outfit to
assist the Lagos State
government and residents
in reducing the
environmental hazards
resulting from the dirty
environment and blocked
drains.
Olokoba said the outfit,
Sanwo-Olu Vanguard on
Environmental Sanitation,
is for the members to serve
as volunteers to go round
periodically to assist in
clearing refuses at strategic
places throughout the nook
and cranny of the state
The founder, Olokoba,
while addressing
journalists in Lagos,
highlighted the danger of
indiscriminate dumping of
refuse saying it can cause
environmental pollution
through stench oozing out
of the carelessly dumped
wastes.