The Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has called on Nigerians to embrace zero tolerance for corruption, saying accountable conduct is essential to sustaining the country’s ongoing reforms.

Olukoyede made the call in his Independence Day message to Nigerians on Thursday, as the country marked its 66th anniversary of independence.

He said the reforms and efforts aimed at strengthening the country’s institutions and economy were “building blocks of the greater nation we desire”, urging citizens to complement such initiatives by rejecting corrupt practices.

“At 66, Nigeria has come a long way. Independence has offered us liberty and self-determination. We are also making considerable progress in nation building.

“All these efforts are significant. They are the building blocks of the greater nation we desire. Let’s therefore couple all our reform-focused initiatives with zero tolerance for corruption,” he said.

The EFCC chairman stressed that corruption could undermine the gains of ongoing reforms if citizens and institutions failed to uphold accountability.

“We cannot be building and allow corrupt practices to vitiate our efforts.

“Progress only comes with purposeful rejection of compromises. Nigeria will surely get better!” Olukoyede said.

He expressed optimism about Nigeria’s future, while urging Nigerians to reject corruption in all its forms and support efforts aimed at strengthening the country’s development.

Amnesty International has rejected the Nigerian Police Force’s claim that five men arrested in Maiduguri while wearing “Tinubu Must Go” T-shirts were in possession of drugs, describing the explanation as an attempt to justify what it called their unlawful detention.

Recall that after the nationwide outrage which trailed their arrests, the Borno State Police Command denied that the motive of arrest was political.

In a statement on Wednesday, Nahum Daso Kenneth , Police Public Relations Officer in the state, said, “The Command wishes to categorically state that the Nigeria Police Force is a professional, non-partisan institution and does not discriminate against persons on the basis of political affiliation or viewpoint.”

The police alleged that they conspired to print and wear T-shirts bearing the inscription “Tinubu Must Go” with the intention of causing a breach of public peace around the West End Roundabout area of the city.

The police subsequently defended the arrests, saying the suspects were also in possession of drugs.

But in a statement, Amnesty dismissed the drug allegation and accused the police of introducing a new narrative in an attempt to justify the continued detention of the men.

The rights organisation demanded the immediate and unconditional release of the five men — Baba Aji Gremami, Mustapha Abba Yemen, Abacha Mohammed Ali, Adam Umar Gubio and Abdulhamid Mohammed — insisting that expressing a dissenting political opinion is not a criminal offence.

The organisation said the Borno State Police Command must end what it described as “bizarre and desperate attempts” to justify the arrests.

It said linking the five men to drugs and other crimes was a “familiar playbook” aimed at justifying political repression and undermining democratic freedoms.

“Earlier, police accused the five men for alleged inciting disturbance, breach of public peace, and thuggery, and now linking them to drugs manifests a desperate attempt to punish them for their peaceful political activities,” Amnesty said.

The organisation argued that, in the absence of a recognisable criminal offence arising from the men’s political expression, the new drug allegation appeared to be an additional attempt to build a case against them.

Amnesty maintained that citizens in Borno State and across Nigeria have the right to support or oppose political parties and candidates without fear of arrest or reprisal.

It said freedom of political expression was not constitutionally reserved for supporters of any particular political party.

“The five men must be released immediately and unconditionally. Holding and expressing dissenting political opinion is not a crime,” the organisation said.

Amnesty also called on the Nigeria Police and the Borno State Government to end what it described as arbitrary arrests and detention of opposition members and supporters.

It warned that continued arrests over peaceful political expression could further restrict civic space and freedom of expression in the state.

The men were reportedly arraigned before a Chief Magistrate Court in Maiduguri, where they pleaded not guilty

. Their lawyers subsequently applied for bail, with the court expected to rule on the application on October 6, while the substantive case was adjourned to October 26.

The police allegations and Amnesty’s characterisation of the arrests remain contested, with the police maintaining that the suspects committed offences beyond merely wearing the T-shirts.

The Jigawa State High Court No. 11, sitting in Ringim, has sentenced a 50-year-old man, Abubakar Biniya, to 10 years’ imprisonment for raping an 11-year-old girl.

Justice Muhammad El-Usman handed down the judgment yesterday,after finding Biniya, of Galadanchi Quarters, Ringim Local Government Area, guilty of the offence.

According to a statement issued by the Director of Information and Protocol of the Jigawa State High Court, Abbas Rufa’i Wangara, the convict committed the offence in January 2024 at Galadanchi Quarters, Ringim.

The prosecution, led by the Ministry of Justice, called six witnesses and tendered five exhibits, including a medical report, in support of the case.

Biniya testified in his defence but did not call any other witness.

The court, while sentencing him, considered his plea for leniency and the fact that he was a first-time offender.

In addition to the 10-year custodial sentence, the court ordered the convict to pay N500,000 in compensation to the victim.

The court also ordered that his name be published in the Jigawa State Sexual Offenders Register maintained by the Ministry of Justice.

It further directed that the convict be publicly shamed through radio announcements, pursuant to Section 3(2), (4) and (5) of the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Law No. 02 of 2021.

The court gave the parties three months within which to appeal the judgment.