…As FG set to arraign Adeleke, others Oct. 31 over alleged exam malpractices***
A faction of Boko Haram, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), has executed another aid worker with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), abducted in March this year.
The terrorists killed Hauwa Liman after a deadline they gave to the Federal Government to meet their demands expired, TheCable reported on Monday.
The insurgents also threatened to enslave Leah and the remaining aid worker, Alice Ngaddah, a Christian who works with UNICEF.
Leah is the only one out of the 110 girls abducted at the Government Girls’ Science and Technical College, Dapchi, Yobe State, on February 19, 2018, who is still in captivity.
She was held back by the terrorists for refusing to renounce her faith.
TheCable, which said its correspondent saw a clip of the execution, quoted ISWAP as saying, “We have kept our word exactly as we said, by killing another humanitarian worker, Hauwa Liman, who is working with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) that were abducted during a raid on a military facility in Rann, Kala Balge in March 2018.
“Saifura and Hauwa were killed because they are considered as Murtads (apostates) by the group because they were once Muslims that have abandoned their Islam, the moment they chose to work with the Red Cross, and for us, there is no difference between Red Cross and UNICEF.”
The Nigerian Government said it was shocked and saddened at the killing of another aid worker despite the actions taken by the government and the widespread appeal to save the young woman.
In a statement issued in London on Monday, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, described the killing as dastardly, inhuman and ungodly, saying nothing can justify the shedding of the blood of innocent people.
He commiserated with the family of the aid worker, and said the Federal Government did all within its powers to save her life.
”It is very unfortunate that it has come to this. Before and after the deadline issued by her abductors, the Federal Government did everything any responsible government should do to save the aid worker.
”As we have been doing since these young women were abducted, we kept the line of negotiations open all through. In all the negotiations, we acted in the best interest of the women and the country as a whole.
”We are deeply pained by this killing, just like we were by the recent killing of the first aid worker. However, we will keep the negotiations open and continue to work to free the innocent women who remain in the custody of their abductors,” the Minister said.
He thanked all the friendly governments that have continued to work with Nigeria for the safe release of the abducted women, and the clerics across religious lines who have been pleading for their release.
The 24-year-old nurse and student of Health Education at the University of Maiduguri was among the three aid workers abducted by the insurgents in an attack on a heavily-guarded military facility in the small town of Rann, Borno State on March 1, 2018.
Aside Liman, the insurgents also abducted Alice Loksha Ngaddah, a nurse and mother of two, and Saifura Husseini Ahmed, a midwife.
They killed four soldiers and four policemen as well.
In the meantime, the Federal High Court in Abuja, on Monday, fixed October 31 for the arraignment of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in the September 22, 2018 election in Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke, and four others, on charges of examination malpractices.
The judge, Justice I.E Ekwo, during a brief hearing, which was stalled due to Adeleke’s absence on Monday, directed the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, to ensure all the five defendants were brought to court for arraignment on October 31.
“The prosecution is ordered to ensure the defendants are in court at the next date, to take their plea,” the judge ruled.
The IG, through the prosecuting counsel, Mr. Simon Lough, had on September 19, 2018 filed four counts of examination malpractices against Adeleke and his four co-accused.
Adeleke, who was defeated by the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the Osun State governorship election, Adegboyega Oyetola, has filed a petition before the election petition tribunal challenging the cumulative results of the September 22 election and the September 27 re-run declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
The prosecutor, Lough, informed the judge on Monday that the matter marked, FHC/ABJ/CR/156/2018, was coming up for the first time on Monday.
The prosecution accused the five defendants of committing examination malpractices by fraudulently, through personation, registering Adeleke and another Sikiru Adeleke, as students of Ojo-Aro Community Grammar School, in Ojo-Aro in Osun State, for the National Examination Council’s June/July 2017 Senior School Certificate Examination in February 2017.
Charged by the police alongside Adeleke were, Sikiru Adeleke; the principal of Ojo-Aro Community Grammar School, Alhaji Aregbesola Muftau; the registrar of the school, Gbadamosi Ojo; and a teacher in the school, Dare Samuel Olutope.
While the four other defendants were present in court on Monday, Adeleke was absent.
His lawyer, Dr. Alex Izinyon (SAN), informing the judge that the governorship candidate not in court because of ill health.
Izinyon said, “His Personal Assistant informed me yesterday (Sunday) that he was indisposed because he was stooling.
“He sent a sent medical report to that effect.”
Izinyon said he had served the medical report, showing his client was on medication, on the prosecution.
He pleaded with the court to grant a short adjournment to enable the first defendant to recover.
The prosecuting counsel, Lough, acknowledged that the medical report had been served on him.
He also urged the court to grant a short adjournment.
The Citizen
