Oscar Pistorius starts serving 5 year prison term

Oscar Pistorius

Oscar Pistorius sits in court in Pretoria, South Africa, Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2014. Pistorius will finally learn his fate when judge Thokozile Masipais is expected to announce the Olympic runner's sentence for killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, Pool)

PRETORIA, South Africa (AP) — Oscar Pistorius was taken away in a police van Tuesday to start serving a five-year prison sentence for killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

A South African judge cited the "gross negligence" the Olympic runner showed when he shot Steenkamp multiple times through a toilet cubicle door in his home when she delivered the sentence. Pistorius' prison term begins immediately.
Pistorius could be released after 10 months in jail to serve the remainder under house arrest, according to legal experts.

Masipa also sentenced Pistorius to three years in prison for unlawfully firing a gun in a restaurant in a separate incident weeks before Steenkamp's 2013 shooting death. She ordered that sentence to be wholly suspended for five years on condition that Pistorius is not found guilty of another firearm offense.
Masipa delivered her ruling after reviewing prosecution arguments for a tough sentence as well as the defense case for a more lenient punishment for Pistorius. She said it was a balancing act after defense lawyers had argued that Pistorius had already suffered emotionally and financially after what he called an accidental killing.
Masipa last month convicted Pistorius of culpable homicide, but acquitted him of murder after he testified he mistook Steenkamp for a nighttime intruder.

"The following is what I consider is a sentence that is fair and just both to society and the accused," Masipa said as she announced her decision.
She asked Pistorius to stand as she delivered the sentence, and the world-famous disabled runner faced her with his hands clasped in front of him. Pistorius then left the Pretoria courtroom down a flight of stairs that lead to holding cells. His sentence starts immediately and he was taken straight to the cells, a spokesman for the National Prosecuting Authority said.

Pistorius' defense and the prosecution can both appeal the decision.
Nathi Mncube, the prosecution spokesman, said his office is disappointed in the culpable homicide conviction and has not yet decided whether to appeal the sentence.
"We have not made up our minds whether we're going to appeal it or not," he said. He added that there was an "appetite" to appeal but that prosecutors have 14 days to review their options.
"We are satisfied with the fact that he will be serving some time in prison," he said.
He said he thought the South African public would be satisfied because their justice system had been shown to be "functional."
"It's not only about vengeance but it is about making sure that there is a fair and just process," he said.

Masipa had a wide range of options available to her because South Africa does not have a minimum sentence for culpable homicide, which is comparable to manslaughter. Pistorius faced up to 15 years in jail, but could also have received a completely suspended sentence or house arrest.
"I am of the view that a non-custodial sentence would send a wrong message to the community," Masipa said after summarizing parts of the case and explaining why she reached her decision. "On the other hand, a long sentence would not be appropriate either as it would lack the element of mercy."
Marius du Toit, a legal analyst and criminal defense lawyer, said Pistorius would have to serve one-sixth of his sentence in prison — 10 months — before he could be eligible to be moved to house arrest.
"It's an appropriate sentence," du Toit said. He said a higher sentence would have been impossible because "you cannot elevate the sentence to murder."

Pistorius, 27, was earlier escorted through crowds of onlookers and into the Pretoria courthouse ahead of sentencing by police officers wearing blue berets. The parents of Steenkamp, the 29-year-old model he shot in the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 14, 2013, were also in court to hear the sentence.
The courtroom was packed, reflecting heightened media and public interest. Police officers stood guard in the aisles.

A Pistorius supporter laid three white roses near Pistorius.
"I just wanted to bestow a little bit of inner happiness on Oscar," said the supporter.

Outside the courthouse, a man in orange garb carried chains and a large sign that read: "Are certain offenders more equal than other offenders before the law?"

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PDP ready to kill to win Lagos — Igbokwe

 

 

Joe Igbokwe

The Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress in Lagos State, Joe Igbokwe, in this interview with BAYO AKINLOYE, alleges that the Peoples Democratic Party is using thugs in the state to foment trouble in a bid to wrest power from the ruling party in 2015

The Peoples Democratic Party has accused your party, the All Progressives Congress, of carrying out violent attacks against its members in Lagos State. How true is that?

The PDP members are the ones who perpetrate violence. Just consider the last time President Goodluck Jonathan came to Lagos for a rally; on that occasion, one of our staunch loyalists, Alhaji Azeez Asake, was killed. The suspected killers were later identified as PDP thugs. Their violent acts are unacceptable. Also, consider the Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose; he is an example of what to expect, in terms of violent activities by the PDP. Even when he had yet to become a governor, he already started breaking the law; making policy statements, nullifying a curfew imposed by a sitting governor of the APC. Who is violent? Who is lawless here?

We know that the PDP has always been training thugs and they parade these ones as highway patrol personnel in Lagos. Go to the old toll gate, you will see them receiving training under the guise of the Subsidy Re-Investment Empowerment Programme. The PDP thugs’ violence in Lagos in recent time is a dangerous sign staring us in the face. What the PDP thugs and their patrons don’t realise is that nobody needs to die because of politics. It is even sadder when you realise that at the end of the day, those who usually lose their lives in this violence are ordinary people. We don’t need to kill people for the sake of power. It is frightening that nationwide, anything the PDP touches turns to ashes. Does the party think it is through violence it is going to win the 2015 presidential election?

Desperation is written all over the party’s activities. But, note: APC members are not cowards. Though we don’t have the police or other security forces at our disposal, we can deal with the PDP’s violence. We are not violent; we deal with ideas. Why should we be violent when we don’t have security backup? The PDP does. However, these perpetrators of lawlessness should know that they do not have a monopoly of violence.

Does the Lagos APC have political thugs?

I have just told you we are not violent people in the APC. Although, that does not mean we will continue to take anything the PDP throws at us. There is a limit to which the PDP can go with its violence. If we are pushed to the wall, we will fight back. Violence cannot give them Lagos; it’s ideas. They should play according to the rules. If the police can’t protect us, we will find a way to defend ourselves. Nobody has a monopoly of violence. The PDP cannot intimidate APC fans by inflicting maximum pain on the people. APC supporters are not violent. The PDP has demonstrated its appetite for lawlessness with Fayose, breaking the law in broad daylight, asking the people of Ekiti State to disobey the curfew by a legitimate, sitting governor. And nobody is saying anything against him; the police couldn’t even call him to order. Obviously, impunity belongs to the PDP.

Are you claiming that the PDP is the only party with thugs?

The people in the PDP are desperate people. Their action is even beyond desperation; it is tending toward the destruction of anything good in the opposition. They want to use all means possible to take over Lagos State. They want to use the police, the Army and the secret service. The way they are going, if possible, they will like to take over the Independent National Electoral Commission and get it to prepare election results ahead of 2015 elections. But, this is Lagos. We will not allow them. We did not allow them in Osun State. We will not allow them here in Lagos; even if they bring in all the security forces, APC members will not be intimidated or subjugated.

With pockets of violence by thugs alleged to be members of the APC and the PDP in Lagos, what is your advice to members of your party?

They should be resilient. They should continue to play politics as decent people. We want to win arguments through robust debates; we don’t need to die to enjoy dividends of democracy. We have to be alive to do that. The PDP is ready to kill — they are desperate to pull down Lagos State in order to conquer it. They want to rule Nigeria for 60 years. Knowing that they can’t take over Lagos, they are ready to do anything. Our members should remain calm in the face of their provocation. The PDP is like a drowning man trying to clutch to anything to keep afloat. They are ready to create monumental damage. Nevertheless, let them not try to provoke us beyond what we can bear.

What do you make of the statement by the Governor of Ondo State, Olusegun Mimiko, that the APC can’t hold on to Lagos much longer?

Talk is cheap. We don’t believe in merely talking. He is a desperate man; he can’t be trusted. Right now, in Ondo State, the leaders of the Labour Party are crying over the way he treated them. He pretended to be in the Labour Party all along, but now, he has shown his true colour by returning to where he really belongs. This is a fact of history that many seem to have forgotten: Lagos has never fallen into the hands of the conservatives; it is always ruled by the progressives. The PDP has failed. You can’t equate their empty words with something.

You seem to suggest that the security operatives are complicit in the violence allegedly carried out by PDP thugs. Why?

The police, I must say, have to do their job the way it should be done. I think the biggest problem of the security forces is that they have become the property of the President and his party — the PDP. They use the security operatives to suppress the opposition. But the police are meant to defend and protect the people, not the PDP. Security forces must understand that they are being paid by the masses with their tax. They should not allow themselves to be used by political parties—they should be neutral.

In view of recent violent clashes between your party and the PDP, how prepared is Lagos APC ahead of the 2015 governorship election?

We will do our best. We are the party of ideas. We want to bring about change; it is all about common sense. We are talking about ideas and how to rebuild the nation; how to restore international confidence in our country. Our plan is to do things differently. And we have to be alive to do this. We eschew violence. We just want the police to protect innocent citizens and nip any violent act in the bud. We need to be provided a level playing ground. We don’t need intimidation and violence against our people. We are pleading with the security forces to do their work legitimately. The PDP has failed. The world is watching; 2015 elections are critical to the survival of this country.

Stomach infrastructure, an insult to Ekiti people —Fayemi

Dr. Kayode Fayemi

The immediate past Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has defended his performance in office, saying he made life better for the people of the state.

The ex-governor said he could not indulge in the distribution of rice and money to woo voters, an act which is now commonly referred to as “stomach infrastructure.” He described the act as an insult to the people and a mockery of governance.

Fayemi spoke during a programme on Channels Television titled, “Politics Today” which was monitored by our correspondent, on Monday.

He said during his tenure, teachers in the state became the highest paid in the country, adding that he ensured that civil servants’ salaries were increased thrice during his administration.

He, therefore, wondered why the new Governor, Ayodele Fayose, and his supporters had been criticising him.

He said, “What they mean by stomach infrastructure abhors me and many people know that I am not going to partake in it. I am not going to go out on the streets and start distributing N200 to the people because I want people to hail me.

“I don’t come from that school of politics because it does not add value to my people; it diminishes their self-esteem, it diminishes their sense of self-worth, it really denigrates what politics ought to be about, even as despicable as it has become in our clime.

“I don’t subscribe to that. It is very easy for me, out of the N3bn average income that accrues to the state, to go out there, distribute N500,000 among street urchins and then everybody says, ‘what a good governor.’ 

But when someone throws N500, 000 to you and pockets N2bn of state funds and put it in a private account, is that what really people want?”

Jonathan, PDP govs debate Buhari challenge

President Goodluck Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan has warned the Peoples Democratic Party governors against backing unpopular candidates as their successors in their respective states.

This is one of the issues discussed at the meeting the President had with the governors at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Sunday night.

The meeting ended in the early hours of Monday.

The meeting was said to have discussed the presidential ambition of a former Head of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) on the platform of the All Progressives Congress.

While some of the governors were said to have asked the President for “a Buhari challenge”, others were said to have dismissed it, saying that the former leader could not defeat the President in 2015 if he emerged as the candidate of the APC.

President Jonathan was said to have invited the governors to the meeting over the growing complaints of endorsements in their states.

A source at the meeting, who spoke with one of our correspondents on condition of anonymity, said the President said he was not against the governors picking and working for their preferred candidates as their successors.

The source said, “The President said he was not against us (governors) picking our candidates, but that we should make sure we have a popular person without blemish. He said such a candidate must also be acceptable to the generality of the members of the party in our states and that the candidates must be able to win the election.

“It is wrong to say the President is against us. He also said that we should also make sure that the candidate must have a clean record so that the opposition will not capitalise on this against such a candidate at the election petition tribunal.”

The source said that the meeting also discussed the desire of some of the governors to vie for senatorial seats on the platform of the party.

While saying that no concrete agreement was reached on this, he said the meeting agreed that there would be another round of discussions, which he said would involve the national leadership of the party.

The issue of senatorial seats involving the governors and sitting senators is also causing confusion in some states as senators who the governors are angling to replace are said to be demanding that they should be made to also replace their state governors in 2015.

“If the governors want to take our position, they should also allow us to take their positions as governors,” one of the aggrieved senators was said to have complained to the President.

Earlier, some state governors who spoke with State House correspondents at the end of the meeting had confirmed that the President summoned the parley to enable them to further strategise ahead of the 2015 elections.

Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State said the meeting devised means of ensuring that the party’s primaries were rancour-free.

He said, “We discussed our party and the primaries that will soon come. We looked at how to fortify our party to avoid rancour or infighting to enable us to do very well both in the primaries and general elections in 2015.”

He said the issue of the alleged rancour between state governors and members of the party’s National Working Committee over endorsements of candidates was not discussed at the meeting.

He however assured all stakeholders that the party’s primaries would be free and fair.

Governor Ibrahim Shema of Katsina State, Governor James Ngilari of Adamawa State and the deputy governor of Kogi State, Yomi Awoniyi, also corroborated Orji’s position.

Fayose attacks Fayemi again, says gov lodge too expensive

Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose

The Ekiti Governor, Ayodele Fayose, on Monday branded the N3.3bn worth Governor’s Lodge built by the ex-Governor Kayode Fayemi as an ill-conceived project too costly for the state to maintain.

The governor said the building was too expensive for the state to maintain considering the level of poverty in the state.

He spoke while administering the oath of office on the newly appointed Secretary to the State Government, Dr. Modupe Alade, and other special assistants in Ado Ekiti.

Fayose berated Fayemi for spending such an amount of money on a building when the masses were facing serious challenges of abject poverty.

He said, “My heart nearly failed me when I got to the new Government Lodge on Thursday. The mansion cost N3.3bn. It was initially awarded for N2.3bn and later increased to N2.7bn, while a sum of N640m was used to procure fittings and furniture.

“And this building will cost a sum of N150m for maintenance annually. Ekiti cannot sustain this and we have to do something about it. How can a governor be living in such a house when the masses are living in abject poverty?”

Reacting to the allegation that the Government Lodge was too expensive, Fayemi’s media aide, Mr. Olayinka Oyebode, said he would not dignify Fayose by responding to the allegation.

He said, “That is a non-issue and does not deserve a reaction. He is entitled to his opinion.”

Earlier, Fayose had assured that his administration would ensure strict compliance to the 35 per cent affirmative action for women in government in consonance with the Beijing Declaration of 1993.

He said that the appointment of Alade underscored the enormous respect he had for women, pledging that his government would protect them and allot more appointments and elective positions to them during the 2015 state and federal legislative polls.

He declared, “Let me tell the men here who are politicians to know that some of them will be asked to step down for women in the next year’s elections.

“I want to assure you that those that will step down have nothing to lose, we are going to reward you accordingly. But if you disobey us, we will still go ahead and do it so far what we are pursuing is in the interest of the Ekiti people.”

The governor promised that his government would reward loyalty and hard work, particularly for politicians and those in the civil service to promote the culture of brotherliness in Ekiti.