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JUST IN: Supreme court dismisses trial of Major Hamza Al-Mustapha in Kudirat Abiola’s murder
The Supreme Court has dismissed the trial of Major Hamza Al-Mustapha (rtd), the former Chief Security Officer, CSO, to the late Military Head of State, General Sani Abacha in the murder of late politician, Alhaja Kudirat Abiola.....TAP TO CONTINUE READING
Kudirat Abiola was the wife of the late businessman cum politician, Chief MKO Abiola, the presumed winner of the June 12, 1993 Presidential Election that was annulled by former President Ibrahim Babangida.
Mrs Kudirat Abiola was, however, murdered in Lagos in the nationwide crisis that followed the annulment and in the course of her persistent struggle to get the annulment reversed by the military.
The trial of Al-Mustapha on the murder charges brought against him by the Lagos State government was, however, put to rest on Thursday by a 5-man panel of Justices of the Supreme Court headed by Justice Uwani Aba-Aji.
At the proceedings where the Lagos State was slated to re-open the trial, no legal representation was made while no process was filed since 2014 when order to re-open the case was granted in favour of the state government.
When the matter was called, Paul Daudu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria stood for Al-Mustapha and informed the Justices that Lagos has not taken any step to implement the order granted it in 2014 to re-open the trial.
He said that not even a notice of appeal was filed by Lagos as the appellant to demonstrate its seriousness to prosecute the trial.
The senior lawyer informed the Apex Court that in 2014 when order to re-open the trial was granted, Lagos was issued a 30 day ultimatum to file its notice of appeal.
Daudu explained that more than nine years after, nothing was done to comply with the order.
He therefore urged the Court to hold that the appellant has abandoned the case and should be dismissed in its entirety.
Justice Uwani Aba-Aji, who presided over the matter sought to know if Lagos was served with hearing notice, the question that was answered in the affirmative by the Registrar of the Court.
In a brief ruling, the Supreme Court in a unanimous decision agreed that Lagos has lost interest in the matter and consequently abandoned it.
Justice Aba-Aji held that nine years was long enough for the appellant to have filed notice of appeal and the appeal in the matter.
Besides, the Court expressed disgust that no legal representation was made by the state government while no information was made available to the Court and the respondent.
Consequently, the matter marked SC/CR/45/2014 was dismissed.
Another matter by the Lagos governor marked SC/CR/6/2014 was also dismissed on the same ground.
The Supreme Court had in 2014 in a brief ruling on the application by Lagos State for permission to re-open the case out of time, granted the request for the Lagos to challenge the Court of Appeal decision of July 12, 2013 that discharged and acquitted Al-Mustapha from the murder case.
The then Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Justice Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen in the ruling of a panel of seven Justices ordered Lagos State to file its notice of appeal within 30 days.
The decision of Justice Onnoghen on the Lagos application argued by Osunsanya Oluwayemisi, a Senior State Counsel in the Lagos Ministry of Justice followed the consent of Al-Mustapha’s lawyer, Mr. Joseph Dauda SAN, not to oppose the application.
The acting CJN had said that by the decision of the apex court, the time for Lagos to appeal against the findings of the Court of Appeal on the celebrated murder case has been extended from July 12, 2013 when the Court of Appeal judgment was delivered till January 7, 2014.
By the granted permission in 2014, the coast became cleared for the Lagos to challenge the no guilty verdict granted in favour of the military officer by the Court of Appeal in 2013
In the then move to re-open the case, the Lagos State government had sought to file a notice of appeal out of the time at the Supreme Court asking for the permission of the court to allow it to challenge the Appeal Court findings of Justices Amina Adamu Augie, Rita Nosakhare Pemu and Fatimo Omoro Akinbami on ground of mis-carriage of Justice in the matter.
The state had in the application prayed the apex court to allow it to exercise its constitutional right to test the validity and correctness of the decision of the Appeal Court.
It claimed that it wants to raise its ground of appeal on arguable legal and factual issues especially the question of whether there is any direct or circumstantial evidence establishing the guilt passed on Al-Mustapha in the murder case.
It justified its lateness in filing the appeal on the ground that it set up two legal teams to review the circumstances of the case and the verdict of the Court of Appeal.
The government said that it took a long time for the two legal teams to present their findings and recommended that an appeal case can be filed and sustained.
The Lagos State Government said that it will ask the Supreme Court to set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal which on July 12, 2013 discharged and acquitted Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, in the murder case of late Alhaja Kudirat Abiola.
In place of the Appeal Court decision, the state government said that it will plead with the apex court to uphold and restore the death sentence by hanging placed on the former Chief Security Officer (CSO) to the former dictator and late Head of State, General Sani Abacha by a Lagos High Court on January 30, 2012.
Al-Mustapha, Mohammed Abacha and one Lateef Shofolahan were arraigned before a Lagos high court on two-count criminal charge of conspiracy to commit murder and the murder of the late Alhaja Kudirat Abiola on June 4, 1996 in Lagos State.
In the judgment of the high court delivered on January 30, 2012 by Justice Moji Dada, the accused persons were found culpable as charged and sentenced them to death by hanging.
However at the Court of Appeal approached by Al-Mustapha on April 27, 2012 for the review of the trial and the conviction, the 3-member appellate court Justices in a unanimous judgment of July 12, 2013 voided the decision of the high court, set it aside and discharged and acquitted the accused on the ground that the evidence against them was not strong enough to warrant the death sentence.
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The Oyo State Police Command has announced an operational success recorded following an intelligence-led operation.....TAP TO CONTINUE READING
Acting on credible intelligence, operatives of the Command intercepted a truck conveying materials suspected to be explosive devices during a stop-and-search operation in Saki, Oyo State. The truck and the suspected materials were promptly secured and are currently in police custody.
Upon receiving a briefing on the development, the Commissioner of Police, Oyo State Command, CP Femi Haruna, immediately ordered a comprehensive investigation into the matter.
Consequently, specialised personnel of the Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Unit and the Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) Unit were deployed to safely secure the items for safekeeping and forensic examination. Detailed forensic analysis has since commenced, alongside a thorough and robust investigation to determine the exact nature of the items and their intended use.
The truck driver has been taken into custody and is cooperating fully with investigators as efforts continue to unravel all the circumstances surrounding the incident.
The Commissioner of Police commended the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, for his unwavering support, strategic leadership, and continued provision of operational guidance that enhance proactive, intelligence-driven policing across the country.
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Art & Commercial students don’t fail JAMB because they’re dull. They fail because they’re taught like Science students. Science students calculate — JAMB rewards that. Art students explain — JAMB doesn’t. So you read hard, attend lessons, yet your score disappoints you. This online class fixes that. No theory overload. No confusion. Just real JAMB questions, clear breakdowns, and winning strategies. 📌 JAMB is not hard — you were just taught the wrong way.Click The Link To Reach Us Now 👉 https://wa.me/2349063958940
One person has died and another sustained injuries following an assault by suspected armed bandits in Apa Local Government Area of Benue State.....TAP TO CONTINUE READING
According to sources, the attack took place on January 24 around 4:00 p.m. along the Amoke–Odugbo road in Ukpogo Village, Edikwu Ward.
The victims, identified as Mr Joseph Okoh and Miss Aneh Sunday, both from Ogodumo, Adoka in Otukpo LGA, were reportedly riding a motorcycle when the assailants struck.
“They were rushed to the Comprehensive Health Centre, Ugbokpo, where Mr Okoh was confirmed dead while receiving treatment. Miss Sunday is currently admitted and responding to treatment,” the source stated.
Nigerian troops were quickly deployed to the area, and a search operation in the surrounding bushes is ongoing to apprehend the attackers.
“The Criminal Investigation Department has commenced an investigation into the incident,” the source added.
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Art & Commercial students don’t fail JAMB because they’re dull. They fail because they’re taught like Science students. Science students calculate — JAMB rewards that. Art students explain — JAMB doesn’t. So you read hard, attend lessons, yet your score disappoints you. This online class fixes that. No theory overload. No confusion. Just real JAMB questions, clear breakdowns, and winning strategies. 📌 JAMB is not hard — you were just taught the wrong way.Click The Link To Reach Us Now 👉 https://wa.me/2349063958940
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has scrapped special concessions and registration procedures previously granted to candidates with albinism for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, citing abuse of the privilege to perpetrate examination malpractice.....TAP TO CONTINUE READING
The Board also warned faith-based tertiary institutions to clearly declare their religious status at the point of admission, saying it is deceptive to present as secular and later impose religious rules on students.
As reported by Vanguard, these decisions were taken on Saturday at a meeting between JAMB management, led by its Registrar, Prof. Isaq Oloyede, and Commissioners for Education from the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, held in Ikeja, Lagos.
Oloyede said the meeting was convened to review and assess previous admission exercises.
He noted that despite safeguards introduced by the Board, some individuals remained determined to circumvent the system.
“We have stopped some concessions we gave albino candidates. This is because some are using artificial intelligence to manipulate the registration process to look like they are albinos because of the consideration we gave them.
“Last year alone, over 7,000 claimed to be albinos. We have stopped special registration procedures for albinos,” he said.
Addressing complaints from candidates admitted into some private institutions over compulsory religious instruction, Oloyede urged faith-based schools to be transparent.
“Faith-based institutions should declare from the onset what they are, so that whoever applies there will know what he is going to meet there. But some don’t do that. They will pretend to be secular, but once students are admitted, trouble will begin over religious instruction and injunctions.
“If you are a faith-based institution, say so. The law allows you to set up faith-based schools,” he said.
On last year’s UTME, where the highest-scoring candidate was later found to be a 300-level university student, the JAMB registrar said investigations showed that some undergraduates sit for the examination to change courses or assist others to secure admission.
“Students who are already in school but want to change courses and are applying again must declare and disclose their status.
“We have found that some candidates already in school are writing the examination for other candidates. Last year, the candidate who scored the highest was found to be a 300-level student in the university.
“Henceforth, any candidate found engaging in such an act, and who fails to disclose that he is already in school but wants to change course, will be disqualified and will also lose his current admission,” he said.
On admission criteria, Oloyede explained that federal government-owned institutions allocate 45 per cent on merit, 20 per cent on catchment area, 20 per cent to educationally disadvantaged states, while the remaining slots are allocated to other considerations.
“Each owner or state has the right to decide what its admission criteria will be. But for states, we encourage them to allocate at least 10 per cent to merit, regardless of where the candidates come from.
“This is to diversify the student population and admit eggheads from different communities,” he said.
He criticised some states for establishing new universities despite not fully utilising their admission quotas in existing federal institutions.
On underage candidates, Oloyede said 16 years remained the minimum admission age, noting that an attestation process was in place for exceptional cases.
“Last year, about 42,000 claimed to be underage. After evaluation, only 78 met the criteria and were admitted. We are not saying there are no talented candidates, but the figure looks outlandish,” he said.
The issue of how to engage underage candidates during a gap year divided opinions at the meeting, but a majority voted for JAMB to continue its special assessment process.
The meeting also observed that parental pressure on children to complete their education too quickly was a major contributor to the problem.
On efforts to curb examination malpractice, Oloyede said JAMB had stopped the movement of computers between Computer-Based Test centres.
“A computer registered in a particular centre will remain there and is not transferable to another centre. Some people borrow computers to get accredited and later move them around,” he said.
He dismissed claims that candidates were posted to towns they did not choose, saying personal data used for registration were drawn directly from the National Identification Number submitted by candidates.
Providing an update on the 2025 UTME, Oloyede said 974,855 candidates had so far been admitted out of about 1.95 million who sat for the examination.
He added that over N2.4 billion had been disbursed to institutions that consistently complied with JAMB’s rules over the past 10 years, and that the meeting agreed that schools producing the best candidates should be compensated.
On accreditation of CBT centres, Oloyede said the process involved teams comprising university vice-chancellors, rectors and provosts in each state.
He warned state governments against agreements with private promoters who might use centres to facilitate malpractice.
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Art & Commercial students don’t fail JAMB because they’re dull. They fail because they’re taught like Science students. Science students calculate — JAMB rewards that. Art students explain — JAMB doesn’t. So you read hard, attend lessons, yet your score disappoints you. This online class fixes that. No theory overload. No confusion. Just real JAMB questions, clear breakdowns, and winning strategies. 📌 JAMB is not hard — you were just taught the wrong way.Click The Link To Reach Us Now 👉 https://wa.me/2349063958940
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