News
Chieftaincy Stool: Court Confirms Lawyer As Eze Epara Rebisi
A Port Harcourt High Court in Rivers State has confirmed a member of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Port Harcourt Branch and a practising lawyer, Barrister Uche Isaiah Elikwu as the Eze Epara Rebisi.
The title is a first class chieftaincy stool in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area of the state.
The court said Barrister Isaiah Elikwu was the rightful person to occupy the position of Eze Epara Rebisi because his coronation and selection passed due process in accordance with Rebisi custom and chieftaincy protocols.
Delivering his judgment on the suit brought by Chief Emeka Anyabelem bordering on the selection and coronation of the new Eze Epara Rebisi, Justice Monima Danagogo, last Monday, held that the Owhor holders and chiefs that make up the entire Rebisi Clan participated in the selection and recognition of the new regent.
He argued that their participation was an affirmation that he was chosen by the people, saying that it was wrong for Elder Mirina Kwuru E. Woluchem to personally coronate Prince Victor Woluchem as Eze Epara Rebisi without other Owhor holders and chiefs from the area.
Justice Danagogo further held that based on evidence tendered before the court, it was the exclusive rights of members of the Oro-Olozu and Woyeoma families to produce a king for the Rebisi stool as the paramount ruler of the kingdom.
The trial judge directed the state government to, through the Ministry of the Chieftaincy and Community Affairs recognise Barrister Uche Isaiah Elikwu and issue him with certificate of recognition as well as staff of office without further delay.
The judge dismissed all the reliefs sought by the claimant in the suit, Chief Emeka Anyabelem of Oroworukwo community and the first defendant in the matter.
Justice Danagogo said the installation of Victor Woluchem was a gross violation of the tradition and custom of Ikwerre people, especially the Rebisi people, adding that the claimant wrongfully represented the Oroworukwo community in the matter because he did not have their consent to do so.
He averred that the Oroworukwo community, where the claimant comes from are not part of the inheritance of the stool as explained during the pendency of the case, and issued a perpetual injunction restraining the claimant and the first defendant from parading themselves as the paramount ruler of the Rebisi Kingdom.
The Tide reports that Justice T.S. Orji who was the first judge to handle the case had issued a preservative order restraining the state government from recognising any of the defendants contending for the Eze Apara Rebisi stool before the determination of the substantive suit before the court.
Justice Orji further ordered the parties, including the state government to maintain the status quo in the matter until the matter was heard on its merit.
Following the information brought before the court by the Claimant Counsel, James Ocholi (SAN) notifying the court that the state government had purportedly recognised Prince Victor Woluchem as the heir apparent to the throne, Justice Orji maintained that since the inception of the suit, the court had taken possession of the stool under litigation, adding that the court would release it to the rightful owner at the end of the trial.
According to her, “any pronouncement made by the state governor should not worry anybody but at the end of the day, the pronouncement of the court stands”.
The trial judge, while ordering the claimant’s counsel to serve a fresh notice to the 9th and 10th defendants, added that the court has taken its position in the matter.
Again, in 2017, the court, presided over by Justice Monima Danagogo confirmed the court order on the removal of Prince Victor Woluchem as the paramount ruler of Rebisi.
Justice Danagogo also said that the court order remained sacrosanct and cannot be vacated pending the determination of the substantive suit before it, and added that the decision of the court in this order is to protect the integrity of the court as well as promote confidence among all the parties involved in the matter.
The trial judge made the assertion while ruling on an application of stay of execution brought by the 1st Defendant, Prince Victor Woluchem through his lawyer, O.C.J. Okocha (SAN), which he asked the court to set aside its earlier order that restrained him from parading as Eze Apara Rebisi Kingdom.
However, Justice Danagogo, in his ruling in 2016, had refused the application of stay of execution, and added that in so doing, the court would jeopardise the case as well as lose its integrity.
According to him, the court order made on November 21, 2016, was to validate and revive the order me by Justice T. S. Orji in April, 2014, where she restrained all parties in the matter, and urged them to maintain the status quo pending the determination of the case before the court.
The suit was instituted by Chief Emeka Anyabelem and Elder Boniface Wechie for themselves and on behalf of Oroworukwo Community in Rebisi Kingdom seeking for an interlocutory injunction restraining the 1st-8th defendants and their servants, agents, privies and cohorts from choosing, selecting, presenting, parading or allowing any candidate from Oro-Olozu Community for coronation as the Eze Apara Rebisi pending the determination of the substantive suit.
Those in the suit are Elder Mirina Kwuru E. Woluchem, Prince Victor Woluchem, Chief Emmanuel Onyeche Chike, Chief Adolphus Ezebunwo Amadi, Sir Cyril Wobo Boms, Elder Godspower Nna Elikwu, Mr. Chikere Elikwu, Chief Anthony Worlu Akarolo, Chief Charles A.S. Woke Olawoka and the Rivers State Government.
By: Akujobi Amadi
President Bola Tinubu has approved the nomination of four new members to the Governing Council of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).
The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, in a statement yesterday, said the appointment is to fill existing vacancies and strengthen the board’s capacity.
The statement said the approved nominees are Mr. Olusegun Omosehin of the National Insurance Commission and Engr. Wole Ogunsanya of the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria.
Tinubu also endorsed the nomination of Sam Onyechi, who represents the Nigerian Content Consultative Forum and Barrister Owei Oyanbo from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
The President encouraged the new members to leverage their expertise and dedication to enhance local content development within Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
It added, “The nominations arose from the exit of previous institutional representatives from the Governing Council.
“The NCDMB Governing Council, established under Section 69 of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, 2010, comprises representatives from key institutions.
“These include the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria, the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, the Nigerian Content Consultative Forum, and the National Insurance Commission.”
The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has announced plans to construct additional hostels, rehabilitate roads, and enhance power supply in the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT).
NDDC’s Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, disclosed this during a visit to the commission’s headquarters in Port Harcourt, yesterday by a delegation from the UNIPORT’s Governing Council.
Ogbuku stated that the NDDC had committed to upgrading facilities at UNIPORT as part of efforts to foster partnership with educational institutions across the Niger Delta.
According to him, the implementation of additional projects at the university forms part of a broader strategy to improve education standards in the region.
“Aside from the construction of new hostel blocks and installation of a 300 KVA solar inverter system, the NDDC will also facilitate more projects in the university.
“The commission will also deploy its engineers to assess the condition of UNIPORT’s roads and hostels for potential rehabilitation,” he said.
Ogbuku noted that upon completion, the projects would add to various initiatives previously undertaken by the commission at the university.
“These and other projects reflect our commitment to actualising President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda in the Niger Delta region,” he added.
He reaffirmed the NDDC’s dedication to fostering development and strengthening partnerships across the region.
Earlier, Sen. Mao Ohuanbunwa, Chairman of UNIPORT’s Governing Council, who led the delegation commended the current leadership of the NDDC for its achievements in accelerating development in the Niger Delta.
He highlighted the university’s infrastructural challenges, noting that it lacked adequate facilities to accommodate its growing student population, and appealed for the NDDC’s support in addressing the shortfall.
“Currently, UNIPORT has a total student population of about 50,000, while its hostel accommodation capacity can only cater for 5,000 students.
“We therefore urge the NDDC to assist in the construction of additional hostels, improve transportation facilities, and facilitate the acquisition of gas turbines to enhance power supply for our students,” Ohuanbunwa pleaded.
The Vice Chancellor of UNIPORT, Prof. Owunari Georgewill, commended NDDC for its impactful projects across the Niger Delta and extended an invitation to the commission to participate in the institution’s forthcoming 50th anniversary celebrations.
The Senate has rejected a motion to rename the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) headquarters after the former chairman of the defunct National Electoral Commission, late Prof Humphrey Nwosu.
Nwosu presided over the June 12, 1993, presidential election, which was truncated by the former military President, General Ibrahim Babangida (rtd).
The election which was won by the late business mogul, Chief MKO Abiola, was adjudged to be the freest and fairest in the electoral history of Nigeria.
The motion to rename INEC after Nwosu was re-sponsored by Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe yesterday after lawmakers threw it out last Wednesday.
Abaribe called for posthumous national honours to be conferred on Nwosu in recognition of his role in Nigeria’s democratic evolution.
However, the proposal sparked a heated debate once again, with lawmakers deeply divided over Nwosu’s legacy.
Senator Osita Ngwu acknowledged that Nwosu operated under a military regime, which restricted his ability to announce the results.
He argued that “there was no way he would have announced the results with a gun to his head. That doesn’t change the fact that some of us see him as a hero.”
Senator Austin Akobundu, however, described it as most uncharitable for lawmakers to dismiss Nwosu’s contributions, insisting that he deserved a place in Nigeria’s hall of honour.
On the other hand, several senators like Senator Jimoh Ibrahim dismissed the idea outright, questioning why the Senate should honour someone who failed to announce the results insisting that “nothing should be named after him”.
Senator Cyril Fasuyi argued that history does not reward efforts, but only results.
“As long as he did not announce the result, whether under duress or not, I am against naming INEC headquarters after him,” he submitted.
Also, Senator Sunday Karimi criticised Nwosu for lacking the courage to speak out, while Senator Afolabi Salisu warned that immortalising him would undermine the memory of MKO Abiola, the widely accepted winner of the June 12, 1993, annulled election.
“Any attempt to do anything beyond a one-minute silence is to rubbish Abiola’s legacy,” he tendered.
After intense deliberation, most senators rejected the motion through a voice vote.
They, however, agreed to honour him with a one-minute silence and extend condolences to his family, effectively dismissing the other prayers to immortalise Nwosu.