Despite Allowing Adelabu’s Appeal, A’Court Retains Makinde as Oyo’s Gov Abiodun defeats Akinlade in Ogun Idowu Sowunmi in Lagos and Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan Despite finding the appeal of the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last governorship
election in Oyo State, Dr. Adebayo Adelabu, meritorious, the Court of Appeal, said yesterday that it could neither order a retrial nor rerun, because the matter was statute barred.
But the appellate court was straighter in the matter of Ogun State, refusing the appeal of the candidate of Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Hon. Adekunle Akinlade, against the election
of the APC’s Governor Dapo Abiodun. The higher court sitting in Ibadan, in a unanimous judgment delivered by Justice Abubakar Yahaya, held that but for the time limitation
placed by law, it would have remitted Adelabu's petition questioning the declaration of Makinde as winner of the March 9 governorship election in Oyo State to the lower tribunal for a retrial.
It, however, said it was unfortunate that the time limit of 180 days for the tribunal had been exhausted, stating that the judgment of the lower tribunal Continued on page 8
Risk Perception about Africa Exaggerated, Says AfDB President, Adesina... Page 6 Tuesday 12 November, 2019 Vol 24. No 8982. Price: N250
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Nigeria Losses 162,000 Children to Pneumonia Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja
SIXTY HEARTY CHEERS... L-R: Managing Director, Actis Nigeria, Mr. Zahi El Khatib; Chairman, Mouka Limited, Mr. Raymond Murphy; Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Janah Moukarim; Head of Marketing, Ms. Tolu Olanipekun; and Chief Commercial Officer, Mr. Oladimeji Osingunwa, during the company’s 60th anniversary in Lagos…recently
A leading child rights organisation, Save the Children, has revealed that pneumonia claimed the lives of 162,000 children below the age of five in Nigeria in 2018. According to the organisation, Nigeria ranked second behind India, which with 227,000 pneumonia infant mortality rate, tops the global chart. It identified pneumonia, Continued on page 8
Unending Insurgency Raises Need for Military to Double Troops Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja The unending insurgency in the North-east and rising internal security challenges, necessitating increasing military engagements in domestic security, have once again raised the need for the country to enlarge the size of its troops, security experts have told THISDAY. Although as part of the efforts to encourage professionalism and boost the morale of her officers and men, the military last weekend promoted over 300 senior officers across the three services, the Nigerian Army, Navy and Air Force, experts say much more would have
to be done to enhance the efficiency of the defence forces. THISDAY gathered that beyond the difficulties encountered by the military in the theatre of North-east operations, an area equivalent to three other countries in land mass, the military is also engaged in widespread internal operations believed to be stretching its capacity. The Senate Committee Chairman on Army, Senator Ali Ndume, had recently raised the alarm over the gap in the manpower requirements of the military. Ndume had said the Nigerian Army, for instance, had 154,000 soldiers and 6,000 officers when it needed a
minimum of 400,000. He said the gap showed that Nigeria was not sufficiently committed to ending the war against insurgency. “Let me say here that you can’t fight a war of this magnitude and this vast land with only 150,000 soldiers,” he said, adding: "Right now, the population of the Nigerian Army is 150,000 with 4,000 recently released, a total of 154,000 soldiers. Also, you can’t fight this war with less than 400,000 soldiers.’’ Given Ndume's figures, Nigeria needs to double its troops count in the next few years, say an analyst. Continued on page 8
MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT COMING... Former senator for Bayelsa East, Senator Ben Murray-Bruce (left), and popular television presenter, Mr. Steve Harvey, during the Africa Investment Forum in Johannesburg...yesterday