The Ondo State House of Assembly on Thursday, withdrew the appeal against the Deputy Governor of the state, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, at the appeal court sitting in Abuja.

Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja had on September 26 restrained the Ondo State Governor, its Chief Judge, the House of Assembly, its Speaker, and others from proceeding with their planned impeachment of Aiyedatiwa pending the determination of a pending motion on notice for interlocutory injunctions.

But the Speaker and the National Assembly on October 3, 2023, filed an appeal

At the proceedings, the counsel for the applicants, Remi Olatubora, SAN announced to the court that the parties in the matter have found a political solution to the issue.

A Chief Magistrate Court sitting in Isabo, Abeokuta, Ogun State, has sentenced the Osolo of Ado-Odo, Muftau Dosunmu, to six months in prison for presenting himself as an Oba.

The Osolo title, which is one of the high chiefs in Ado-Odo, Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State, was upgraded to a coronet Oba by the past administration of Senator Ibikunle Amosun, among 74 others across the state.

But, the Governor Dapo Abiodun administration has since its assumption of office reversed the upgrade of all 75 Obas.

Though the monarchs claimed they had secured a high court judgement against the state, the government had insisted that they should stop parading themselves as traditional rulers.

In his case, the Osolo was dragged to court for alleged impersonation and disturbance of peace within the Ado-Odo magisterial district.

He was accused of parading himself as an Oba, donning regalia and a beaded crown, despite lacking the rightful title, thereby violating Section 23(2)(c) of the Obas and Chiefs Law of Ogun State.

Dosunmu was said to have installed one Alabi Afizu as Babaloja of Ado-Odo in March 2022, contravening Section 249(1)(d) of the Criminal Code Law.

Dosunmu was additionally charged for instructing a town crier to announce movement restrictions due to spiritual rites between April 2022 and August 2022, leading to charges under Section 249(1)(d) and 200 of the Criminal Code Law.

Another count stated that Dosunmu identified himself as the Olofin of Ado-Odo and paraded himself as the Osolo of Ado-Odo, a kingmaker, between April 2022 and July 2023.

The prosecution counsel, Adebayo Adesanya, had informed the court that his actions were punishable offences under Section 249(1)(d) and punishable under Section 249(3) of the Criminal Code Law.

Dosunmu was also charged for parading himself as a kingmaker without the traditional council’s approval, a violation of Section 41 of the Chief’s Law of Ogun State, 2021, punishable under Section 41(6) of the Obas and Chiefs Law.

In her ruling, Chief Magistrate E. O. Idowu declared that Dosunmu was found guilty of six counts and sentenced him to six months imprisonment.

“The convict is sentenced to one-month imprisonment on the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th counts of the charge, with an option of a fine of N50,000 on each count for which he has been convicted. The sentences shall run consecutively from today, 28th November 2023,” the court ruled.

Speaking with PUNCH Metro on Wednesday, Dosunmu said he was being persecuted by some individuals over the installation of the next of Olofin Ado-Odo, following the demise of Oba Lateef Adeniran on January 7, 2022.

In a phone conversation, Osolo said, “I got a letter of upgrading as a coronet Oba and I waited till we won a case filed before Justice Adeyemi of the State High Court before I did my traditional rites. We have a High Court judgement clearing the 75 Obas. I was joined in the case, even though I wasn’t a party initially. I didn’t do anything wrong after my traditional rites, I was only awarded honorary titles. That’s where the problem started with a few people in the town, who cooked lies against me.

“These people threatened me with the police. I was dragged to Zone 2 Police headquarters in Lagos, but the police said I didn’t do anything wrong. They returned to Ogun to continue with the police threat. But my lawyer told them that they could not be victimising a man who had a high court judgement. So, they filed a suit against me at the magistrate’s court.”

The Osolo said he tendered all necessary documents before the court, saying the written addresses were also adopted.

However, he said he was suddenly accused of lying before the court and was thereafter arrested by policemen from the Ogun State Police headquarters in Eleweran, Abeokuta.

He spoke further, “So, yesterday the court read a ruling against me. I was asked to pay N300,000, which I did. But, immediately, another suit was filed against me at Court 3. My lawyer said this is not done anywhere. I have returned to Ado-Odo after paying the fine. I am going to appeal that judgment without further delay.”

Meanwhile, Dosunmu told our correspondent that the Ado-Odo community was almost in chaos when news broke out that he was convicted.

“Crisis almost broke out this morning when people got the information. I had to go out in my car, wound down to placate the people not to fight anybody,” he stated.

Asked to state what he felt could be responsible for the crisis, the Osolo said it was as a result of who becomes the next Oba of Ado-Odo.

He explained, “They think I am the one disturbing the installation of the next Olofin of Ado-Odo because I am the Chairman of the Kingmakers; which is not true. I am not disturbing the installation of anybody as the Olofin.”

However, he kicked against the interference of external forces in the selection of the new first-class monarch, saying “I don’t how the Ministry (of Chieftaincy Affairs) or the Yewa Traditional Council will be installing unqualified persons as kingmakers. This is the time the whole of Nigeria will hear about this matter.”

It could be recalled that the late Olofin of Ado-Odo, Adeniran was in April 2013 attacked by some angry youths of the town.

The royal father was in his SUV when he was flagged down by some angry youths. He was beaten and stripped naked by the people, who were said to have earlier invaded his palace to vandalise cars and torch his house.

It was gathered that the youths at the time were protesting a Supreme Court judgment of January 12, 2009, which validated Adeniran’s appointment as the Oba of Ado-Odo.

Since 2013, the deceased Osolo has been in exile in Abeokuta. He returned to Ado-Odo in December 2020.

Economist Bismarck Rewane has stated that Nigerians are more concerned about the prices of essential commodities like rice, bread, and garri than budgetary numbers.

During his appearance on Channels Television’s Business Morning show on Thursday, Rewane, the Managing Director of Financial Derivatives Company Limited, emphasized the public’s focus on the cost of basic necessities over complex budget figures.

He said, “In the end, budgetary arithmetics, budgetary mathematics in economics is of no use to anybody except when by this time, six months’ time if we are buying rice at N40,000 a bag rather than N60,000 a bag if we are buying bread N900 a big loaf instead of N1,300 which we are doing today. If we are buying garri at lower prices.

“The people are not interested in whether the budget is balanced and what the debt is. How does it (the budget) affect their day-to-day livelihood? That is the key thing.”

President Bola Tinubu at his maiden budget presentation before the National Assembly on Wednesday said the proposed N27.5trn 2024 budget will ensure micro-economic stability, poverty reduction, and greater access to social security, amongst others.

He highlighted priority areas such as security, local job creation, macro-economic stability, investment environment optimization, human capital development, poverty reduction, and social security.

Giving a breakdown of the budget estimates, the President fixed recurrent non-debit expenditure at N9.92trn, capital expenditure at N8.73trn, debt service at N8.25trn, revenue at N18.32trn, new borrowings at N7.83trn and deficit at N9.18trn.

Rewane, analysing the budget proposal, said in the final analysis, the people are not interested in figures but want to feel the impact of the government’s economic policies as many are under pressure.

He added that the rate of poverty in the country is driving people mad.

Rewane said, “And as you know, prices are up and people are under tremendous pressure.

“You will notice that on the streets of Lagos in particular, the number of lunatics has increased and part of it is driven by poverty. Many mental health issues. People are pushed to the wall. Some of them walk across the road even in moving traffic.

“People need to feel the impact. the impact is not going to be felt because of 10 or 12% of GDP, that is N27trn; it has to be more. Where is the more going to come from? It’s going to come from investors and investors are going to come here when they are sure that their money is safe and the environment is clean, and they can look forward to a brighter future.”

The economist said the government must be honest with Nigerians on the economic realities, saying that “honesty is in short supply”.

According to him, people cannot start pretending to be happy.

He said, “You can fake news but you can’t fake prosperity.”

The Abia State government has revealed that the past administration of Dr Okezie Ikpeazu, left a vandalized old Government House and an uncompleted, unfurnished new Government House complex at Ogurube layout Umuahia.

This is in reaction to a recent media report that the state governor, Alex Otti, abandoned a newly built multi-billion naira Government House in Umuahia, the state capital, since assuming office about six months ago, accusing him of running the government from his country home.

Dismissing this report, the Chief Press Secretary, to the state governor, Kazie Uko, who conducted newsmen round the old and new Government Houses’ rooms and offices, regretted the level of vandalization of what used to be the Government House, used by the last administration.

He said, “At what was designated as the Governor’s Office, the level of vandalization was so much that not even a single furniture was left, even as cable television dishes, decoders, televisions and wires were removed. This is what we inherited.

“At the new Government House complex, a section of the peripheral wall has caved in, while inside apartments are yet to be completed as carpenter’s wastes and planks filled the rooms.

“But for the left wing of the ground floor of the new Government House, which has three air-conditioner units and some furniture, the rest of the two-storey building are yet to be completed.”

Continuing, he lamented, “This is where Governor Alex Otti is expected to live. There was no handover, and our administration did not even know what was here, except that it was an uncompleted building. They called it New Government House, when it is supposed to be Governor’s Lodge.”

Recall that the Okezie Ikpeazu administration had commissioned the new Government House on 28 May, a day before the end of its tenure, but according to the CPS, “If fully built, how come we have a bottomless pit in place of lifts, no electricity, uncompleted wiring, no furniture, dilapidation in and outside the building, unfixed doors, carpenter’s wastes and materials littering everywhere?

“The New Government House is a mere workman’s workshop. Hence, the last governor finished his building at his village and relocated there and that was where he operated from for eight years. It wasn’t until the eve of the handover that he hurriedly commissioned the so-called new Government House.

“The whole place was barren. It was like a huge carpentry workshop, with huge heaps of wastes, dusts, woods here and there, rubbles, absolutely nothing.

“That was a clear indication that they never prepared for the incumbent governor to live and work from any Government House, whether old or new. Apparently, they never believed that he, Otti, was going to win the election

“They had clear three months after the election to hand over and didn’t do anything about these facilities, to refurbish the old Government House, furnish the new Government House or build and complete it as it ought to be and furnish it adequately. So there was no provision made for him to live and work in any Government House environment.”