Boko Haram: JTF foils plans to attack soft targets in Borno State

 

Colonel Sagir Musa

In less than 7 hours after the Boko Haram militants gave another condition for dialogue in a tele- conference with newsmen in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital, the Joint Task Force on Operation Restore Order have said that, information available to them indicates that the sect are plotting to attack Government officials, civil servants, politicians and other law abiding citizens in the state.
Lt. Col. Sagir Musa in a released made available to Daily Post on Thursday said that the JTF wishes to alert members of the public on the latest plot and advise these categories of Nigerians to be aware of people within their environment and restrict movements particularly during the hours of night.
The JTF also called on members of the public to report any suspicious movement, persons or groups to the Task Force through the following JTF Hot Lines for further action: 0806 4174066, 0708 5464012 and 0815 4429346.
In another development, Daily Post gathered that, over 50 people have been arrested by the JTF in a search operation at Zannari ward and Budun area of the metropolis.
A resident who does not want his name in print told Daily Post that, he had to return back to the office to pass the night as he cannot get to his house because the search operation was ongoing.
“Shortly after alighting from a taxi at about five O’clock this evening, I met somebody I know who ask me not to go home. ‘According to him, soldiers have taken over our street and ward as they were searching from house to house arresting people.’ So, I have no choice than to go back to the office to pass the night.
“My joy is that, I was told that my son also heard of it and he is taking refuge in my sister’s house. I also asked him not to return home until everything is over because both the guilty and the innocent are usually arrested and they all suffered before they are released and that is if they were released as many innocent people were killed in such operations.” He told Daily Post

SOurce Daily Post

Boko Haram wants talks …picks Buhari as mediator, Saudi Arabia venue …demands ex-gov’s arrest, compensation

 

Former Head of State, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd),
| credits:

THE violent Islamic sect, Boko Haram, on Thursday indicated its readiness to end its campaign of violence but on the conditions that ex-Borno State Governor Modu Sheriff was arrested and peace talks held in Saudi Arabia.

Also, the sect is asking for compensation for families of its members killed in the course of its terrorist acts and the rebuilding of its mosques by the Federal Government.

It also demanded the release of all its members in the custody of security agencies.

Abu Mohammed Ibn Abdulaziz, the second-in-command to the sect’s leader, Abubakar Shekau, gave the conditions on Thursday during a radio conference with journalists in Maiduguri, Borno State.

Abdulaziz did not explain why the group wanted Sheriff arrested.

Just on Wednesday, the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, said Sheriff and Senators Ali Ndume and Ahmed Zanna had been put under surveillance to determine their alleged links with the sect.

The three have been variously fingered as financiers of the group

Abdulaziz named a former Head of State, Muhammadu Buhari; Dr. Shettima Monguno; a former Yobe State Governor, Bukar Ibrahim; Ambassador Gaji Galtimari; and Aisha Alkali Wakil, and her husband, Alkali as “trusted” Nigerians it would be ready to negotiate with in Saudi Arabia.

On the sect’s team would be Abdulaziz, Abu Abbas, Sheikh Ibrahim Yusuf, Sheikh Sani Kontogora and Mamman Nur.

Abdulaziz said, “We are not actually challenging the state, as people are saying, but the security (forces) that are killing our members, children and wives.

“We are highly offended but if this government is sincere, everything (the attacks) will come to an end. We want to dialogue but government must show sincerity in its handling of the situation.”

More than 1,000 persons have been killed in attacks on places of worship, military and police facilities as well as drinking joints since the sect launched its war against the government in 2009.

Last year, suicide bombers from the sect attacked the Police headquarters and the UN Building, in Abuja, killing 44 persons. On last Christmas Day, Boko Haram also attacked St Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla, Niger State, killing at least 46 parishioners.

It has subsequently attacked several other worship centres, including the St. Rita’s Catholic Church in Kaduna last Sunday.

Before now, the Federal Government had made several claims that it was in dialogue with the sect but Abdulaziz said there had been no contact between Boko Haram and the government. He said the sect wants the talk outside the country because the government had proved not to be trustworthy.

The PUNCH could not verify the identity of the man , who claimed to be Abdulaziz even as there were minor inconsistencies in the communication between him and the journalists on Thursday.

Apart from the fact that Abdulaziz is not the usual official spokesman for the sect, he spoke in English Language instead of the Hausa/Arabic that the sect is known for .

But, the Presidency on Thursday said the proposed ceasefire by Boko Haram was a welcome development, if it was intended to achieve the objectives of peace and security.

Presidential spokesman, Reuben Abati, said the position of President Goodluck Jonathan had been that he was ready for dialogue if members of the sect could come forward.

He said, “Yes, I have seen the story in which the Boko Haram is reportedly declaring a ceasefire and the opening of dialogue. I think it is important to restate the position of government in this matter.

“The Federal Government is committed to peace and security for the benefit of all Nigerians.

“ If what the proposed ceasefire is intended to achieve are the objectives of peace and security, then it is a welcome development.

“Don’t forget that President Jonathan made it clear that if the people behind Boko Haram are ready to come forward, and table their grievances, then government will be willing to listen to those grievances.

“There have been attempts before now, by concerned persons to reach out to the Boko Haram through back channels, in response to government’s call that all efforts should be made to resolve the problem. I suspect that this latest development may be related to that.”

Meanwhile, Governor Ibrahim Shettima of Borno State on Thursday said security agencies must be alive to their responsibilities by probing the alleged involvement of politicians in the state in the activities of Boko Haram.

Shettima gave the charge while speaking with State House correspondents in Abuja.

Borno State is considered to be the hotbed of activities of the fundamental.

He said, “On the issue of the involvement of politicians, I think is within the realm and the responsibility of the security agencies to unearth the truth.

“I am more of a developmental politician and I am more interested in addressing the core issues that makes our society vulnerable to the antics of religious bigots and all sorts of misfits that are inducting our young ones to these things.

“So, I don’t want to dabble into of the work of security agencies neither do I want to respond to allegations and accusations from any quarter. But it is the responsibility of security agencies to unearth those behind Boko Haram.”

Man, 62, defiles 10-year-old stepdaughter, flees

 A 62-year-old Mr. Alabi Ibrahim has been accused of habitually having carnal knowledge of his 10-year-old-step daughter, Seyi (not) the real name.

Seyi, a primary six pupil alleged that her step-father had on several occasions molested her sexually at their residence, Opara Estate, Aiyetoro Road in Abeokuta.
The heinous act, became an open secret when the girl ignorantly shared her experience with her siblings who then informed her mother.
Angered by her husband’s incestuous act, the mother, Mrs. Adiat Ibrahim, subsequently reported Ibrahim to the police in Abeokuta.
It was learnt that the accused took to his heels when police detectives went after him in Onikolobo area.
Narrating her ordeal, the 10-year-old girl disclosed that each time her step father had sex with her, he usually threatens to kill her if she informs anybody.
She said; “Daddy always comes to me when Mummy is not at home, and warns me not to tell anybody, so that I wouldn’t die”.
The Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi who confirmed the incident described Ibrahim’s action as barbaric, promising that the police will thoroughly investigate the matter and possibly charge the suspect to court for defilement.
“The police totally condemn the act. He will not be spared. The man will be charged to court, after a thorough investigation,” Adejobi added.

Source
Daily Trust

Okada rider kills RTEAN Chairman for demanding ticket money in Ondo town

There was pandemonium in Ondo town on Saturday as a prominent leader of one of the Motorcycle Operators’ Association in the ancient town was killed by an unknown person.

Daily Post gathered that the victim, Late Ebenezer Adedeji, was The branch chairman of the RTEAN in one of the notable parks in the community.
According to a source from the community, late Adedeji was allegedly eliminated by a man also believed to be a member of an Okada Riders’ Association in the community, whose identity was not known as the time of filing this report.
Witnesses say the Late Adedeji had before the incident, stood at Shora Street in Ondo town where he allegedly accosted the suspect and demanded for N100 being the money for the daily ticket of the Association.
An argument was said to have ensued between the suspect and the deceased leading to altercation which led to a scuffle.
The suspect was said to have abandoned his motorcycle on the spot and left for his house which is located few meters to the area only to return with a matchet.
Eyewitness account disclosed that the late Ebenezer left the scene to attend a meeting of the Association within the area, during which the suspect had allegedly laid ambush at the entrance of the venue of the meeting.
“The late Adedeji was allegedly hacked down with the cutlass when he was on his way home from the meeting” the witness said
The suspected killer of the late RTEAN Chairman was later arrested by the traders in the area, before he was handed over to the police.
It was further learnt that all efforts made by the residents of the area to stop the suspect while he was macheting the deceased was to no avail as he was said to have ran after him, while the victim took to his heel.
However, a source at the Enuowa Divisional Police station where the incident was reported explained said that a detachment of policemen led by a senior police officer at the station were drafted to the scene.
The Divisional Police Officer in charge of the station, Chief David Ehighale, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, confirmed the incident.
He added that the suspect had been transferred to the homicide section at the Ondo State Police Command headquarters in Akure, for further investigation.
He also said the remains of the deceased has been deposited at the Ondo State Specialist Hospital Ondo town.
However, the matter took a new dimension when the news of the death of the suspected assailant was broken by the police.
He was said to have died while being taken away to the police command headquarters in Akure


Source

Daily trust News

Lesbians take over the city of Calabar

Mrs. Janet Ishi of Orok Orok Street, Calabar, capital of Cross River State, is currently a worried woman. The source of her bother is her eldest daughter, Eno, whose sexual preference is less than conventional. Eno is a member of the city’s growing tribe of lesbians.

And they are found everywhere–civil service, army, police as well as secondary and tertiary institutions. Queen, a dark-skinned beauty, told TheNEWS that lesbians usually seek partners among teenage secondary school, polytechnic and university students. Places like Halls 8 and 9 (Winnie Mandela Hall), Female Medical Students’ Hostel and the School of Nursing Hostel–all at the University of Calabar; Cross River University of Technology female hostel, Federal Government Girls’ College hostels and female hostels in private schools are pools where lesbians go to fish.
Ufot, a 19-year-old girl Law student, told this magazine that several girls approached her at the University of Calabar’s Winnie Mandela Hostel, but she rejected their overtures. However, while visiting Abuja during a semester break, she was introduced to lesbianism. “My sister’s neighbour kept coming to our room to woo me each time my sister was out. She was the one that bought this Nokia X3 phone for me and often gives me money. Each time I made a move to return to school, she would weep and discourage me from going back. It was when she travelled that I left Abuja,” she said.
Lesbians, as heterosexuals do, also keep regular partners and get jealous the same way.
Adun (not real name), a journalist with a national daily, narrated his experience with Cynthia, a girl he thought was going to be meeting his sexual needs. “I took her out to all the nice places in Calabar just to put her in the mood, but she was not forthcoming. I had to make some enquires about her and was told by some people who knew her that she is a lesbian and that she has two female sex partners in the neighbourhood,” he said.
A lecturer at the Department of Sociology, University of Calabar, Dr. James Akapama, told this magazine that the environment creates the atmosphere that engenders same-sex relationship. “These people are young and their minds are susceptible to corrupting influences. They may just want to explore the experience, not knowing that they would be hooked,” he said.
He warned that social influences beyond immediate pleasures can change the direction of one’s life. Dr. Irene Aniyom, Director-General of the State Action Committee Against AIDS, SACA, said lesbianism increases the spread of HIV/AIDS in the state. She said statistics show that over 35,551 persons are currently confirmed to be HIV positive in Cross River State. This figure, she said, is obtained from tests conducted in hospitals, HIV test centres and other medical facilities across the state.

PHOTONEWS: Lokoja-Abuja Road Cut Off By The Great Flood That Divided Nigeria

 

A series of photos released by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) shows the seriousness of flooding that devastated various parts of Nigeria during this raining season. Some 2 million Nigerians have been displaced from their homes while some have died or gone missing as a result of the ravaging flood.
The most striking aspect of the flooding happened on the ever-busy Abuja-Lokoja highway where for close to one week now, the key highway linking northern Nigeria to the rest of the south, generally the Southwest has been submerged under water causing traffic delays that have lasted days.
Photo credit- Yushau Shuaibu/NEMA

Expect Power Supply to Get Even Better – Presidency

 

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President Goodluck Jonathan has stated that the improvement in the quantum of power supply would not only be sustained but also improved.
The President made the statement to reassure Nigerians and international investors after the ouster of Professor Barth Nnaji as the minister of Power.
According to a statement from the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs the progress would be even more visible by the end of year 2012.
The statement read, ” “President Goodluck Jonathan expects that before the end of December 2012, with the progress being made in the area of gas supply to the National Integrated Power Project, NIPP, the present improvement in the electricity supply for domestic and industrial use will not only be sustained but also significantly improved.
“The President has set a target for the
actualisation of uninterrupted power supply, which drives economic development and Nigerians are assured that the process will not be truncated, while the privatisation of the sector will go on with utmost transparency.
“Majority of the NIPP projects that are yet to operate in full capacity despite daunting challenges will, between now and December, be able to substantially and significantly improve the generation capacity to increase the availability and sustainability of electricity power supplied nationwide for long hours.
“It is the expectation of the President that the increase in power supply will attract foreign investors and open up the flanks for job creation.
“The Roadmap to Power Sector Reform has greatly improved project planning and
management efficiency in Nigeria’s electric power system in preparation for private sector management. The President is turning words into action as evident in the
improvement in electricity power supply nationwide.
“President Jonathan is sincerely committed to ensuring that the government divests its interest in state-owned entities and
transparently entrench the key principles of restructuring and divestiture in the electric power sector.”

PHOTONEWS: Petrol Tanker Crashes, Blocks Abuja Road

 

                          

A tanker loaded with gasoline is lying on its back along Minister Hills–Mabushi highway in Abuja.
The tanker somersaulted last night as its driver lost control of the vehicle as he descended the hill. No casualty was recorded in the accident.
The tanker somersaulted two times and fell and then blocked part of the road.
The driver and other occupants of the tanker escaped unhurt.
However, this afternoon fuel began gushing out of the tanker posing serious danger to road users and residents in the city.
The accident has already caused a busy traffic snarl along Kubwa road this morning.
Policemen, Firefighters and Federal Road Safety officials were seen at the scene of the accident preventing the residents from scooping fuel and making an effort to safely discharge the content of the tanker.
A police officer on the scene said that they are making an effort to get Julius Berger construction company to vacate the tanker and move it from the way to end the blockade caused by it.
Scores of Nigerian have been killed in fires caused by explosion from petrol tankers

Suspend execution of 800 condemned prisoners in Nigeria’

The Federal Government has been asked to suspend the execution of over 800 inmates on death row in various prisons in the country.

Lawyers Without Borders France, otherwise known as ASF France, and the National Human Rights Commission, made the appeal while canvassing a review of the law on capital punishment at a news conference to mark the World Day Against Death Penalty in Abuja on Wednesday.

Head of Mission, ASF France, Celine Lemmel, noted that there were over 800 inmates on death row in Nigerian prisons.

She said, “While ASF France commends the Nigerian government for its self-imposed moratorium, it urges the government to issue an official statement clearly declaring that Nigeria has adopted a moratorium on execution of death sentences, i.e an official suspension of executions and, eventually, of death sentences.”

She noted that many of those on death row were condemned based on confessional statements made under duress.

Lemmel said, “Currently, there are over 800 inmates on death row in various prisons in Nigeria. These inmates were convicted for crimes ranging from murder, armed robbery and kidnapping.

“The majority of these convicts cannot afford the services of lawyers let alone counsel of their own choice.

“In most cases, their convictions were based on confessional statements of the accused made under duress during interrogation by law enforcement agencies.

“Besides, these agencies lack apparatus to carry out forensic investigations.

“The commission supports the call for a moratorium on death penalty.

“As far back as 2004, the National Study Group on Death Penalty called on the government to impose a moratorium on execution and commute persons on death row whose appeals have been concluded to life imprisonment.

“This is given the fact that the criminal justice system has its flaws which need to be overhauled.”

UN blames improper planning for ravaging flood

United Nations, UN, representative in the country, yesterday, attributed the major causes of flood disasters in Nigeria to improper urban planning even as it urged the Federal and state governments to urgently adopt pro-poor land and housing policy.

UN Habitat Programme Manager to Nigeria, Mr. Kabir Yayi and Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos, made the remarks at this year’s celebration of the World Habitat Day, theme ‘Changing Cities, Building Opportunities’,at the state Secretariat Audit-orium, Alausa, Ikeja.
However, Governor Babatunde Fashola has reassured residents that his administration would continue in its drive to ensure a sustainable human habitation.
Worried by the present flooding in the country which is currently ravaging some states, Yayi noted that the inability of the governments to design measures that would aid proper urban planning as the cities grow led to the chaotic development.
According to him, “It is when cities are well planned that they can continue to provide for needs of the citizens.”
Fashola, who was represented by his Deputy, Mrs. Adejoke Orelope Adefulire, said that the theme of the yearly celebration is in tandem with the state government ten-point agenda and the pursuit of becoming Africa’s model mega-city.

Dismissed policeman, two others arrested for robbery

The Lagos State Police Command yesterday, arrested three suspected members of separate robbery gangs said to have been terrorizing residents of Alakuko and Ebute-Metta areas of the state.

Surprisingly, one of the suspects was a dismissed police corporal.
This is just as three persons lost their lives Wednesday night after an Iveco Truck with number plate AAA 92 XA driven by one Samson John, hit a Hyundai Bus with plate number XU 721 BDG at Itamaga Junction, Ikorodu.
Spokes person for the command , Ngozi Braide who confirmed the arrest ,explained that policemen from Ebutte-Metta division who acted on tip-off, stormed a make shift building in Ebutte-Metta where they arrested one Chinedu Onwunure. A search conducted round the building according to her, led to the recovery of a double barrel gun with nine live ammunition.
During preliminary investigation, it was gathered that the makeshift building was used as a hide-out and also meeting place before the gang went for operation

Yes, Uduaghan has got this right

He may not have performed to the utmost satisfaction of critics who, based on the spate of recent kidnappings in the state, had to draw hasty conclusions that Delta under Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan has not only collapsed in terms of security of lives and property, but also on infrastructures.

Although, these cynics are entitled to their own opinions, but the truth strongly lies in the fact that such arm-chair criticism cannot take one laudable achievement from Dr. Uduaghan, and this is the fact that Delta is at pace!
From casual discussions to formal ones, I have actually made attempts to administering questionnaires on one project Dr. Uduaghan, the Governor of Delta State has got right since he became the executive governor of the state. Responses were not encouraging as most people spoken to, generally, have become cynical about government and nihilistic that nothing good can come from it whether in Delta State or anywhere in the country.
Severally too, I have discarded the assessment project until I met an old woman whom I offered a ride from Ughelli to Oleh. Mama Rukome was angry that her customers didn’t pay for her commodity on time, hence she was stranded at the point I met her.
When I probed further, Mama made me understand that she had not for any reason, in the past two years she has been plying the Oleh /Ughelli route trading in “tapioka or kpokpogari” missed the Uduaghan bus. Meaning Mama has been patronising the Uduaghan transit bus because it provides comfort, it is reliable and above all, it is affordable. Mama Rukome does not bask in this euphoria alone.
There are other Deltans who couldn’t hide their joy for the relief the Uduaghan’s mass transit has brought. If not for the fact that the Delta mass transit was not extended to the riverine areas of the State, the Delta mass transit would have dwarfed other projects as one project Dr. Uduaghan has got right.
Tellingly, security of lives and property has been an enormous challenge to the leadership of this country. It became monstrous soon after the civil war when arms found their ways into the hands of people who, ordinarily, were not supposed to have custody of such weapons.
The smiles brought about by a return to democracy after what seemed to have been an endless wait for it was short-lived.
Again, the despicable level of insecurity in the country got out of control when the nation’s economy took a dive down the precipice. Some sophistication was injected into robbery and other related crimes.
The militant activities of Niger Delta youths and their commercial romance with Lebanese and Russians crude oil merchants gave crime a fillip in the coast of South- South Nigeria.
The present Delta State government has demonstrated that it is learning very fast from past security pitfalls. It was an ingenious Dr. Uduaghan who realised quite on time that collaboration with the military would bring about the much deserved safety of lives and property in the state.
Deltans living outside the state can attest to the fact that the security situation in the state has improved. To be fair to Dr. Uduaghan, I think there couldn’t have been anything Deltans had wished for more than peace and security.
If you ask an Itsekiri man, or an Urhobo man or an Ijaw man, what he would like to have in place of peace and security, without hesitation, he will tell you peace and security cannot be traded for anything.
This is no thanks to the avoidable communal crises that further worsened the level of underdevelopment in the area. The Uduaghan security initiative has made it possible to drive through Sapele/Warri road and Sapele/Abraka road on one hand, and the other Ughelli/Kwale/Asaba road without encountering a bloody clash.
We should not whip up sentiments and take undue advantage of the fact that infrastructures in the state are decaying. Also we were all witnesses to the prolonged court case over who was the duly elected governor of the state. That alone was enough distraction.
Quite regretfully though, Deltans had at a time lived in feverish fear. Warri, Sapele, Ughelli, Oleh, to mention but a few, were towns in the state that were notorious for dare-devil robbery attacks.
Last year, August to be precise, Kwale (Utagba-Ogbe) witnessed one of the fiercest robbery attacks on a new generational bank in the whole of Ndukwa nation. Same last year, a youth corp member serving at Oleh was shot dead outside Emore Secondary School where he was attached to for the 12 months compulsory primary assignment.
Understandably, kidnap cases were even more dreaded than robbery. Both the mighty and the not too high in Delta State were in awe of kidnappers. In some cases, their victims were murdered in cold blood before ransom was paid. My neighbour and the Managing Director of DeltanLine, Elder Eyone Isaiah, was picked up from his country home one drizzling night in October, 2011.
He didn’t regain his freedom until an undisclosed amount of money was paid. But the good thing is that he was released and those beyond the crime are presently in police custody awaiting prosecution.
There have been so many kidnap cases that were foiled by the JTF team in the state. Before this time, it was reminiscent of a “Nightfall in Soweto”. But Dr. Uduaghan has stepped up to these challenges. Men of JTF are common sights on highways and street corners. Robbers and kidnapers now know that it is nolonger safe in to carry out their criminal trade in Delta State.
Whichever way it is looked at, Delta has made some considerable progress in the safety of lives and property. Come to think of it, development can only thrive in an environment that is safe. True, investors cannot invest in an environment deep in crisis. The return of oil servicing companies to Warri is a sure sign that things are getting better in our Delta.
Mr Okofu Ubaka a social critic, wrote from Koko in Warri-North LGA

Explosion rocks Zaria hotel, injures 10

KADUNA—NO fewer than 10 persons, including commercial sex workers, were injured, yesterday, when a polythene bag laden with explosives went off in a hotel in Zaria, Kaduna State.

The incident took place at Cosmopolitan Hotel, located on Uche Road, Sabo Garin area in the city.
According to Vanguard findings, a man had strolled into the hotel, dropped the bag and attempted to sneak away.
However, some watchful guests, who sighted the bomber, raised alarm and pursued him, but they could not apprehend him. While the suspect was being pursued, the bag exploded, injuring those around the area.
A manhunt for the lone bomber was said to have commenced in the area.
Confirming the incident, Kaduna State Police Command Public Relations Officer, DSP Aminu Lawan, said only four people were injured in what he described as a minor blast.
Aminu said: “Our men were able to get to the scene of the incident immediately we were told and condoned off the area. We were also able to recover some particles of the materials used for the IED. It was only workers of the hotel that were injured. Investigation is, however, on.”

Ogun State Govt has suspended the Olu of Itori, Oba Fatai Akorede Akamo and the Baale of Lapeleke, Chief Adisa Akinremi, till further notice

Ogun State Govt has suspended the Olu of Itori, Oba Fatai Akorede Akamo and the Baale of Lapeleke, Chief Adisa Akinremi, till further notice

Southern leaders dare North over Jonathan’s impeachment

ABUJA—Alleged plot to remove President Goodluck Jonathan from power took a new twist yesterday as Southern leaders dared the Northerners allegedly behind the repeated impeachment threats against the President to carry out their plot and rock the Nigerian boat.

The leaders, under the aegis of Southern Mandate, in a statement issued in Abuja at the end of its meeting, said it was aware of clandestine meetings by a group of Northern leaders, made up of wealthy, retired Army Generals, politicians and businessmen “to map out new strategies and mobilise funds to intensify a long-drawn battle to ease President Goodluck Jonathan out of office through whatever means.”
Representatives of various southern groups at the meeting included Tito Zuokumor, Onengiye Elekima, Victor Akpe, Ekene Nwachukwu, Zacheaus Odera, Obi Okoroma, Demola Oloruntoba, Tope Ismail and Fadairo Bamidele.
The statement said: “The Southern Mandate hereby declares its resolve to protect and defend the office and person of President Goodluck Jonathan through appropriate and legal means. Let it be noted that no individual, group or region has a monopoly of coercion, force or ability to create chaos.
“Enough of these acts of disunity, which had been the basis of persistent calls for a Sovereign National Conference to discuss the future of our dear country. It is either we decide to live peacefully or go our separate ways with a simple handshake. But we are also ready to sink the boat when push gets to shove.”
The group, with representatives from the three southern geo-political zones, said those involved in the move were partly responsible for the heightened massive killings in various parts of the North, in line with their vow to make Nigeria ungovernable under President Jonathan.
They said when that strategy did not yield the desired result, they enlisted members of the House of Representatives, three months ago, to impeach the President, using the plank of an alleged poor 2012 budget implementation.

Idris fires at Obasanjo again: “You be bad Papa”

The ‘war’ between former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and dancehall music star, Ediris Abdulkareem over his 2004 hit track, Jaga Jaga is fast becoming a tale of ‘a child who says his mother will not sleep, he too will not sleep.” Mr. Lecturer, as fans and admirers would call him is ready to ‘dance’ with OBJ, since he’s not ready to let the sleeping dog lies.

In 2004, Abdulkareem’s third album, Jaga Jaga, which lamented the corruption and suffering in Nigeria was banned from playing on radio by Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, although, it continued playing in nightclubs and parties.
Since then, many thought the case had been interred and faded into a cultural pot of time, only to resurface recently at a forum in Lagos when the retired military general lambasted the singer again, an indication that his indignation towards the Kano-born crooner is still raging and roiling. If you missed it, read it here
Angered by OBJ’s comment, the singer fought back through his twit account, by calling the Ota farmer his ‘mugu.’ He tweeted: ‘It’s obvious that Obasanjo can’t do without me. I’m his joy therapy. Mr ex-president, Nigeria still dey jagajaga, in fact worse pass jagajaga‘, @idrisAbdulkarm twitted.
‘President Obasanjo if you truly love Goodluck as u claimed, why don’t you talk to your fellow Boko Haram member to let Goodluck rule in peace’.

Eedris didn’t stop there as he went on to call the PDP leader a ‘mugu’, ‘Mr expresident, I heard you were talking about me in ur last interview hahahahahhahah its obvious you can’t do without me. You are my mugu. Obasanjo na my mugu oooo na jeje i dey, u dey look for trouble oooo…. hahahahahhahahahahhahahah’. ‘Mr ex president, u be my mugu!’ he added.
Not still satisfied, Idris has released a new single, entitled ‘ Baba’ in his defense and to buttress his point that Nigeria is truly ‘Jaga Jaga.’
The lyric goes thus: “Papa na you born me but I no send you again because you no be good Papa,” he chants. “Which kind Papa dey oppress im pikin/Which kind Papa no like im pikin/Which kind Papa no want make im pikin grow. I tire, I never see this kind papa. For this moment I disown you/I no like you/ I dey look for another papa.”

“12 years ago Nigeria Jagajaga/Today Nigeria don pafuka/You be bad Papa/You no be fine Papa/You dey oppress pikin/Even for Abeokuta they no gbadun your style,” he says.

“I de my house dey watch television na im I see baba Ota dey yarn say my papa na yamayama/Say my mama na jagajaga. He say na Eedris be the problem of Nigeria. If you talk again, I go sing another. You say make them no give me show but I still dey survive. The road to your house for Ota na jagajaga/Make you sidon for your house make I live mylife,” he says.
The song is currently trending online as people are beginning to air their national frustration through it.
It would be recalled that Idris was one of the Remedies group before going solo. His debut album, P.A.S.S. (Pains and Stress = Success) was released in 2002 on Kennis Music. Released the same year and also on same label was Mr. Lecturer, which addressed the problem of students using money and sex to solicit higher grades in Nigerian colleges and universities. Also in 2004, Abdulkareem came to international attention as a result of a scuffle with American rapper 50 Cent on board an aircraft at Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos.
In November 2005, Abdulkareem launched his own record label, La Kreem Music, and released his fourth album, Letter to Mr. President. The album’s title track addressed Obasanjo’s criticisms of “JagaJaga”; the album also featured “Flash Up Unu Lighter”, a tribute to Obasanjo’s wife, Stella, who died while undergoing surgery in Spain, and then victims of the Belleview Airline crash of October 2005.
Since music is no more paying the rapper, he has resorted to other things that could pay his bills faster. The man is now the founder of EedrisAbdulkareem Foundation, a fundraising organization dedicated to fighting the spread of HIV AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa in collaboration with the Pat Utomi Foundation.
Meanwhile, at the time of filling this report, the ex president is yet to reply the singer.
We’ll keep you posted while the ‘war’ lasts

Call this minister to order

OUR attention has been drawn to the  controversy over allegations that the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Dr. Nurudeen Mohammed, described Nigeria as “an Islamic country with the largest Christian population.”

He was said to have made the statement in a Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) programme aired in Abuja on Wednesday, August 15, 2012.
Already, the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, has debunked such characterisation, calling for the sanctioning of the Minister. But in a rebuttal, Dr. Mohammed denied ever making such a statement.
According to him, he only said Nigeria was “the largest Islamo-Christian country in the world” during the meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation  (OIC) which recently took place in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
This issue is causing quite a stir in an already super-charged atmosphere in a country wracked by the murderous campaigns of Boko Haram extremists demanding for the Islamisation of Nigeria. It sends a very worrisome signal.
Given the fact that as the Deputy Foreign Minister of Nigeria Dr. Mohammed is one of the foremost officials that represent the voice and face Nigeria in the international arena, it is important that we establish exactly what he said.
We want to know whether he actually said those words attributed to him or he is simply being maligned or quoted out of context. The NTA, fortunately, should have the records and should be able to provide it for independent and credible scrutiny.
It will be a most unfortunate disservice to this nation if indeed he said so. In fact, Dr. Nurudeen Mohammed’s admission that he described Nigeria as an “Islamo-Christian country” shows he does not understand the true constitutional definition of Nigeria. Nigeria as an “Islamo-Christian country” means that the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has accorded Islam and Christianity the status of official state religions of the country, which is definitely not so. Nigeria has no state religion.
But Nigeria has given Christianity and Islam special preferences, which account for the fact that offiicials are sworn into office with the Bible or Qur’an only because the overwhelming majority of Nigerians are followers of the two faiths. Professor Wande Abimbola once declined to be sworn in on the Qur’an or Bible, opting to be sworn in according to Ifa religion and he was obliged.
We call on the Federal Government to look into this matter and establish Dr. Nurudeen’s culpability or otherwise, as well as his motives for delving into this sensitive issue in this most inappropriate manner.
If found ill-qualified or psychologically too immature to hold such a sensitive high office he should be relieved of his position immediately. We cannot afford keeping irresponsible officers on the job when we are going through the worst region-related violent threat to our national survival.

Fuel Subsidy Scam: 3 Oil Marketers on the Run, Declared Wanted by EFCC

 

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Friday have declared that three more oil marketers are wanted in connection with fraudulent subsidy claims running into billions of Naira taken from the Federal Government.

The three persons, according to the EFCC are: Abdul Afeez Olarenwaju Olabisi of Fargo Petroleum and Gas Limited, Abubakar Peters Ali Jeldi, owner of Nadabo Energy Limited and Ikechukwu Onuabuchi Nworgu of Star Inspection Services Nigeria Limited. They are wanted over alleged forgery, conspiracy, obtaining money under false pretences and engaging in money laundering.
Statement by the EFCC’s Acting Head, Media and Publicity, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, titled “Fuel Subsidy Scam: EFCC declare marketers wanted,” states that the suspects obtained billions of naira as subsidy payments from the Petroleum Support Fund, PSF, under false pretences, and disappeared in the wake of the commission’s investigation of the subsidy regime.
The statement reads: “The EFCC, has declared three oil marketers implicated in the multi- billion naira fuel subsidy scam wanted… The trio of Abdul Afeez Olarenwaju Olabisi of Fargo Petroleum and Gas Limited, Abubakar Peters Ali Jeldi, managing director of Nadabo Energy Limited and Ikechukwu Onuabuchi Nworgu of Star Inspection Services Nigeria Limited are wanted by the Commission for offences bordering on criminal conspiracy, forgery, obtaining money by false pretences and money laundering running into several billions of Naira.”
The Commission enjoins anyone with useful information as to their whereabouts to contact its Enugu, Kano, Lagos, Gombe, Port Harcourt and Abuja offices or through these numbers: 09-4604620, 070-26350721,070-26350722,070-26350723,070-6350724, 070-26350725; or by e-mail to: info@efccnigeria.org or the nearest Police Station.’’ eldi, 34, is of the Igala sor the nearest Police Vanguard gathered that the EFCC declared the suspects wanted when they consistently failed to show up and clear themselves of allegations of fraud and money laundering after several invitations.”

86 yr old female bodybuilder

At 86, great-grandmother Marjorie Newlin keeps pumping iron.

Fourteen years ago, when Marjorie Newlin was 72, her neighborhood supermarket had 50-pound bags of kitty litter on sale. Without anyone to help her carry the bags back to her house, she struggled mightily under the load. Never a particularly athletic woman, but staunchly independent, she decided that she had to do something about her deteriorating physical capabilities.

Though osteoporosis was also on her mind, the septuagenarian began lifting weights — for her cat. "I want to be as independent as I can be, for as long as I can," says Newlin, a great-grandmother and retired nurse who wil be 87 in August. "I just want to do things for myself."

After 13 years of weight training, Newlin is more than taking care of herself. At her two-story home in Mt. Airy, Newlin, who runs up the stairs with the sprightliness of a 10-year-old, has a room dedicated entirely to plaques, certificates and trophies (some almost as tall as her) from bodybuilding competitions that have taken her as far away as Italy, France and Germany. She's won more than 40 trophies in her late-blooming career. "There are so many, I don't know what to do with all of them," she says.

"I chuckled when I saw this little old lady walk inside the gym," says Richard Brown, a personal trainer at Rivers Gym in Mt. Airy, where Newlin began her training. "I was a little leery. I was just training young athletes at the time."

The little old lady quickly showed him what an older athlete could do. "She kept coming in day after day, week after week, and month after month," Brown remembers. "She didn't want to do 'girly' workouts. She wanted to train with us fellows." "After a few months of training, I looked at her physique and knew she was ready for a [bodybuilding] show," he continues. "She definitely had something to show." Newlin was bench-pressing 65 pounds when she was 73 years old. A year later she was throwing up 85.

The bodybuilding competitions are broken into two divisions. Newlin's first competition was in the Amateur Athletic Union, which is open to the public. Newlin recalls being a little reluctant when she saw the string bikini she'd have to wear in front of the bodybuilding audience. "I knew the contest meant a lot to my trainer so I went along with it," she says. To everyone's surprise, Newlin won. The crowd went crazy on hearing she was 74 years old.

Newlin began her competition career in that AAU's Master's Division, which splits contestants into two categories: under and over a certain age limit, usually 35 or 45 years old. Newlin obviously fell way over the dividing line, wherever it was set, but was competing and winning against women half her age. "I was always the oldest in all my competitions," says Newlin.

The daughter of very active Barbadian immigrants, Newlin admits that athleticism is in her genes: "My family is used to walking and running long distances."

Although she's taking a break from bodybuilding competitions for now, Newlin is still training at least three days a week, now at Bally Total Fitness in Cedarbrook, and can still throw down with the best of them. "I could bench-press 90 pounds with a spotter. I can dead lift 95 pounds. I can squat 135 pounds," says Newlin.

She's been featured on Oprah and The View, and has appeared in commercials in Barbados. She spends her time out of the gym as a motivational speaker at schools and banquets, discussing the importance of exercise, weight training and dieting. "A lady called me earlier this week from Hawaii," Newlin says. "She asked questions about how to use weights."

Though some in her position might wonder how much longer they can keep it up — or how far they might have come if they'd started earlier — those questions never cross Newlin's mind. "Every day is different. The next day will take care of itself," she says with Zen-like calm.

"Age is only a number," says Brown. "There is only one Marjorie Newlin. ... She could do this for as long as she wants."

President John Attah Mills’ Death Was Divine And Could Not Be Tampered With” – TB Joshua

Samuel Atta Mills, son of late Ghanian president, Professor John Atta Mills, Thursday, paid a courtesy visit to the Synagogue Church Of All Nations (SCOAN) where he told Prophet TB Joshua that he was there to thank God for the life of his father.
Prophet TB Joshua called on Ghanaians not to mourn the death of President Mills, because he “was a martyr who knew where he was going”.
According to the prophet, President Atta Mills did not die of any illness, rather it was God’s time for him to go home, he said.

TB Joshua noted that if President Mills death was due to illness, he would have died long ago, stressing that the former President’s death was “divine and could not be tempered with”. The prophet described President Atta Mills as a martyr who had completed his work on earth. He said President Mills’s death would “bring glory and honour to Ghana”.
It would be recalled that the late President was a frequent visitor to the Synagogue whenever he visited Nigeria and enjoyed a personal and close relationship with Prophet TB Joshua until his sad passing away in July of 2012.

Blessing in disguise: Burnt Ogunpa Market to be converted ultra-modern market

Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State, on Friday, said that the Ogunpa Market, which was gutted by fire on Wednesday, would be pulled down to give way for an ultra-modern market.
Ajimobi, who made the promise when he visited the market to assess the extent of damage, said that the market would be equipped with infrastructural facilities while the road that passes through it would be reconstructed.It would be recalled that the market was gutted by fire on Wednesday with three structures – a storey building and two bungalows – accommodating traders numbering 75, completely burnt while goods worth millions of Naira destroyed.
No life was, however, lost.Ajimobi, who visited the market in company with the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Mrs. Monsurat Sunmonu, state lawmakers and other top government officials, said that the rebuilding of the market would be done in conjunction with the Ibadan South-West Local Government Area and the market association.While promising that the fire station, which is few metres away from the market, would be well-equipped to be able to respond immediately to possible future occurrence, enjoined shop owners to equip their shops with fire extinguishers that would be on hand for emergency situations.Ajimobi said: “We will re-design the market and re-allocate the shops to the original shop owners and not to outsiders.
“Nobody here will lose his or her shop.”We promised them certain things while on election campaign, over a year ago. “We have fulfilled majority of them. “We promised them water; we have given them boreholes. “We promised them public toilets; we have provided them.
“We also promised them electricity; transformers have been erected.”The road here is in a bad state. “It was blocked by traders. “We will clear the road, repair and rehabilitate it and ensure that nobody is allowed to block the road again.”Ajimobi also promised to assist the traders affected by the inferno, adding that the traders’ cooperative society would also be provided with soft loans to alleviate the suffering of members.
He also enjoined them to cooperate with government by paying their tenement rates as at when due and to key into the environmental sanitation efforts of the state government to ensure clean environment and help in the aesthetics of the state capital.The governor also addressed the displaced traders at the old toll gate at the Ibadan end of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, assuring them that new set of shops would be erected by government for onward allocation to them.

Will Nigeria's Boko Haram add fuel to Jos fires?

Sharon Shade (pictured with her mother) was injured in a suicide bomb attack

The Nigerian city of Jos has become synonymous for the bloody violence which occasionally breaks out between its Christian and Muslim communities. The BBC's Will Ross asks whether bombings by the Islamist group Boko Haram will further inflame tensions.

Looking at the rubble of what was once "God's Chosen Church" it is staggering that only two people died; one member of the congregation and the suicide bomber who drove the car up to the building in this largely Christian part of Jos city.
Lying on a hospital bed, 11-year-old Sharon Shade writhes in pain from the deep cut on her leg.
She was with her mother and brother in the church on the morning of 10 June.
"The pastor wanted to preach about unity and when he started explaining I heard 'boom'.
"Then I saw blood pouring from my leg and the next thing I knew I found myself in hospital," said Sharon before tearfully asking: "Why did this have to happen to me?"
The Islamist group popularly known as Boko Haram later said it was behind the attack.
What happened immediately after the blast is deeply worrying for Nigeria.
An angry mob of young men took over the street and set upon people they believed to be Muslim.
An emergency worker said that because of the violence it had been impossible to get his vehicle close to the church and when he walked the last few hundred metres he saw several dead bodies on the road.

“Start Quote

There is no Bible and no Koran that says one should kill somebody”

End Quote Zainab Mustapha

The arrival of the military and police prevented the retaliatory violence from escalating to the level recently witnessed in Kaduna City where up to 100 lives were lost.

"You only need to study the reprisals in Jos and Kaduna and you'll see that the young people are getting out of control," says the Archbishop of Jos, Benjamin Kwashi.
"The young people are learning that if Boko Haram is getting away with evil, with crime and criminality, then why shouldn't they?
"After all what have they got to lose? They are jobless, they are unemployable, they are hungry, they are angry and it may spiral into anything.
"The way the politicians are approaching these life and death issues gives me no reason to be optimistic."
'Terrifying'
In Jos and the surrounding Plateau State, the bombings threaten to reignite a long-running conflict that has left thousands dead in recent decades.
Different ethnic groups are in dispute over who are the rightful inhabitants of this part of the country, and that ethnic fault line happens to pit Christians on one side against Muslims on the other.

Archbishop Benjamin Kwashi says young people in Nigeria are "getting out of control"

Some areas of the city are completely off limits if you are perceived to be from the "wrong" religion.
It seems likely that the spate of Boko Haram bomb attacks is intended to fuel inter-religious violence, possibly in an effort to make the country ungovernable.
President Goodluck Jonathan recently warned that Boko Haram could also start targeting mosques in order to instigate attacks by Muslim youths on Christians.
On Fridays ahead of Muslim prayers and for the Sunday church services, roads are blocked off, checkpoints are increased and the tension in Jos is palpable.
Boko Haram has been so active across northern Nigeria people are not asking if there will be an attack, they are wondering where the bombers will strike next.
"The situation is terrifying. In a society where people's security is not guaranteed it is terrible," said Mohammed Tanku, standing in a long line outside the central mosque, waiting to be frisked.
"From the government we need social justice.
"We need practical steps to bring an end to this," he said as a military helicopter circled above the city.
'Reprisal attacks'
In a large hall in the mosque several hundred Muslim women came together for hours of special peace prayers.

Salihu Onnana Mohammed blames the violence on politicians

"Both the Christians and the Muslims, we are praying to Almighty God that whoever is planting the bombs - may God make them to be known and may God disgrace them," said one of the organisers of the event, Zainab Mustapha, who condemned all the violence.
"If they stop and they repent, God should forgive them.
"If they do not, may God make them regret their lives because there is no Bible and no Koran that says one should kill somebody," she said.
Following Friday prayers, the commander of the Special Task Force for Jos arrived for a peace-building meeting, accompanied by masked soldiers.
"We are meeting with all sides of the divide here to ensure the youths are kept in check... to ensure they don't jump on the bandwagon of any kind of reprisal attacks," said Major General Henry Ayoola.
"We should pretty soon be seeing the end of the whole matter."
But that faith in the system is not shared by everyone in the region.
"Unless the politicians change, the violence will continue," said Salihu Onnana Mohammed, who mends watches.
"They are the ones fuelling the conflict in order to enrich themselves.
"If there is no crisis they can't steal as much," he said pointing out that vast security budgets are allocated but no-one knows how the money is spent.

Nigeria troops 'kill Boko Haram fighters' in Maiduguri

Police are guarding mobile phone masts in the north

The Nigerian army says it has killed seven suspected members of the Islamist militant group Boko Haram in a gun battle in the north of the country.

A spokesman said a further 13 people were arrested after an attack on an army checkpoint in Maiduguri.
Earlier, Nigerian police said they would mount a 24-hour guard of mobile-phone installations following Boko Haram attacks on masts in the north.
Boko Haram said it believed the masts were being used to track its members.
Giving details of the incident in Maiduguri, Lt Col Sagir Musa said: "A group of gunmen suspected to be Boko Haram terrorists opened fire on a military checkpoint where soldiers were conducting a cordon-and-search operation.
"The soldiers responded with gunfire, leading to a shootout. Seven gunmen were killed in the fire exchange and 13 others were arrested while the rest fled. No casualty was recorded on the part of the soldiers."
Boko Haram wants to impose Sharia law across Nigeria.
It launched a military campaign in 2009 to fight for Islamic rule, bombing government buildings and churches, and assassinating moderate Muslim clerics.
The country is roughly divided between a mainly Muslim north and predominately Christian and animist south.

Airfrance-KLM introduces new ground services at Lagos airport

As part of its customer relations efforts, European airline group, AirFrance-KLM, has introduced a range of consistent ground services called SkyPriority for its premium passengers at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport Lagos.

A statement by the airline office in Nigeria said the new service, which would be gradually implemented in more than a thousand airports worldwide in 2013, offered ‘exclusive’ benefits from check-in to baggage delivery.

The services, it said, were offered free of charge to all its premium passengers. The Franco-Dutch carrier listed the benefits to include priority at check-in which included dedicated check-in counters and priority baggage drop-off desks at the Lagos airport and also on onward journeys through Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam-Schiphol airports; priority right up to the boarding gate, which include faster and privileged access through security checkpoints and passport control.

The benefits, it said, also included priority at boarding and priority baggage delivery. The airline group noted that there would be faster access for passengers with no checked in bags.

“My sex life multiplied by 10, I use Facebook to pick up all my women” – AC Milan’s El Shaarawy

 

El Shaarawy

AC Milan forward, Stephan El Shaarawy, revealed sensitive information in his interview with French magazine, Max.
Speaking about his love life, the attacker said: “The moment I got to Serie A, my sex life multiplied by 10. I use Facebook to pick up all my women. You find so much stuff on the internet.
“People from outside the football world see footballers and think ‘how can they be so arrogant?’ It has been hard for me to keep my feet on the ground this past year, but fortunately I have my father to help me.”
The 19-year-old also spoke after his former team mate at the Italian club, Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
“To tell you the truth, it was never easy playing with Ibrahimovic. You have to know how to handle him. Really, what you needed to do was just pass him the ball, or else he’d scream at you, or just play tricks on you afterwards.”

Senate Blames DPP over the number of inmates awaiting trial in Nigerian prisons

The Nigerian Senate Committee on Interior has showed an overwhelming concern over how inmates are been treated in Nigerian prisons. The committee lamented over the issue of inmates who are languishing in jail without being tried for the offence they allegedly committed.  The committee tends to hold the Public Prosecution, DPPs, across the country responsible for the unfortunate development.

Chairman, Senate Committee on Interior, Senator Abubakar Bagudu had observed recently in Benin city when he led other  members of the Committee to Oko Medium Prison that  that over 900 inmates were awaiting trial in the 608-bed capacity prison, stating that the visit to the prison was to check the condition of inmates and to find a better way to address the issue of innocent people who continuously await trial.
He said: “We are interested in understanding the welfare needs of the staff and inmates and the security needs of various prisons. We at the National Assembly and the Senate in particular, are concerned about awaiting trial detainee problems because we feel that people should receive prompt justice and there is the need to look at those who are in the prison that ought not to be there.”

Ekiti varsity mourns law teacher killed in Borno

ADO EKITI—Both students and staff of Ekiti State University, EKSU, Ado Ekiti, were Tuesday thrown into mournful mood as the news of the gruesome murder of Mallam Mohammed Sani, a Senior Lecturer at the institution’s Faculty of Law, filtered to the university’s community.

Sani who holds Otunba chieftaincy title in Isinbode Ekiti,  is a pioneer lecturer at the university’s Faculty of Law haven taught in the school for 17 years.
The law teacher who hails from Biu, Borno State, was said to have been  killed along with his uncle by yet-to-be identified assassins while on a private visit to the troubled northern state
The Public Relations Officer of the university, Mr. Bunmi Ajibade, confirmed the incident, lamenting that the university community received the sad news with shock
According to asjibade: “Immediately the Vice Chancellor, Professor Patrick Aina, heard the news he paid a condolence visit to the Dean of the Faculty of Law and the deceased’s family who are still in Ado Ekiti.
He added, “Sani was a brilliant guy in the university and he always insisted that the school recruits brilliant brains to teach in the university. It is unfortunate that the he died in such a gruesome way.
We will miss him.”
Also, Prof Eddy Olanipekun, Dean, School of Post Graduate Studies, described the killing of the law teacher as unfortunate, considering his immense contribution to the development of the university for many years
Reports from the university indicated that some lecturers boycotted lectures to mark the demise of their colleague when they heard about the sad development.
Also, students of the faculty described the late Sani as a fine gentleman who was always serious with his work and prayed to God to grant him eternal rest

Cynthia: Police arrest more suspects

 

 

 

The Lagos State Police Command has arrested two more suspects for the alleged murder of Cynthia Osokogu.

It was learnt that they were arrested by policemen attached to Area E Command, FESTAC, on Monday.

Osokogu was drugged and killed on July 22, 2012 at Cosmilla Hotel, FESTAC after being lured to Lagos for the purpose of business.

Four suspects – Okwumo Nwabufo and Ezike Olisaeloka, Orji Osita and Maduakor Chukwunonso – had been charged to court for the murder.

It was learnt that one of the newly arrested suspects, Nonso Ezeike, is the younger brother of Olisaeloka.

The other suspect arrested  was the driver who allegedly aided the prime suspects to escape from the hotel.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the police were able to trail Nonso because he had sold Osokogu’s phone to someone for N68, 000.

The police were said to have obtained Osokogu’s BlackBerry Personal Identification Number and convinced the buyer to disclose the identity of the seller (Nonso).

A senior police officer, who craved anonymity because he was not authorised to speak with the press, said, “We were having problems on how to get Osokogu’s phone so we met her father who gave us her BlackBerry PIN. After that, we started chatting with the person on BB Messenger and he told us he bought it from someone.

“We told him that we needed the phone and we pledged to pay him back the money but he said the phone was giving him problems and he intended to send it back to the person who sold it to him.

“We traced the mast and discovered he was chatting from Port Harcourt. He said he bought the phone from Lagos. Few days later, he called to say he had returned the phone to the seller (Nonso). We urged him to ask Nonso to return the said phone to our office in Area E Command, Festac.

“Nonso eventually came to our office with a lawyer to drop the phone and I asked my men to arrest him immediately.

“He claimed to be a graduate of Mathematics and Computer Science at the Federal University of Science and Technology, Owerri and the brother of Olisaeloka. He confessed to the police of having sold three telephones given to him by his brothers. He also confessed that he sold Cynthia’s Blackberry telephone for N68, 000.”

Meanwhile, while the accused persons had been remanded in prison till October 3, the adjourned date, the incarceration of Orji and Maduakor, who were pharmacists that sold the drug used to weaken Osokogu, has continued to attract public fury.

Our correspondent, who visited the Ikoyi prison where the four are being incarcerated on Tuesday, observed that they were accomodated at Block E2.

However, the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria said the sale of the drug by the pharmacists was not criminal.

It was also learnt that counsels to the pharmacists were working to secure their release before the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

A family source said, “Our lawyers have said they will institute a suit for the enforcement of their fundamental human rights at a high court” he said.

However, a senior police officer who craved anonymity said the pharmacists had a case to answer because they might have been aware of the purpose the drug was going to be used for.

He said, “I don’t know why the pharmacists were charged with rape but they could be guilty of some other offences such as administering a harmful substance.”

Lagos State Police Command spokesperson, Ngozi Briade, confirmed the arrest of the new suspects, but said she had no detail.

7 Types Of Men Every Woman Should Date

 

Obviously one can see that this is a suggestion from one person based on perceptions and personal experiences. Please find a way to pick out the positive impact this should have on you and never allow its full content make you who you are. It is a piece everywherenigeria decided to put up and its very purpose is to help us channel our energies to the real thing one should be looking for in a man.
1. The Unmarried Man -
This may seem obvious, but it is very necessary to mention. There are too many women attempting have relationships with married men. Married men are not a candidate for single women to date… period! This includes married men who are separated (legally or otherwise). They are still married and not available to date. Married people have their own families and concerns to deal with. That being said, the unmarried man, who is devoted to the things of God, is the type of man you should be interested in dating. (1 Corinthians 7:32-35). 7 types of men every woman should date
2. The Kingdom Seeker -
A man who is seeking God’s Will for His life will, not only seek out a woman to date, but will seek out his wife. The Bible says, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). Ladies, you should be an asset; the thing that is *added* to him as he is FIRST seeking the kingdom of God. This is why I say, run as fast as you can for Jesus and the one who can keep up might be the one.
3. The Real Man -
No, I am not talking about machismo behavior (all the shoulders back, chest out, fist curling gestures and such)… Real men don’t need all of that. That’s what grown-boys do to get a woman’s attention. Real men “pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace” (2. Timothy 2:22). Real men regard women as a gift that is not to be taken advantage of; they see her as priceless and desire to cling to her (Matthew 19:5). A real man’s character shows his high regard for a woman long before the dating stage.
4. The Learner -
A man who is in continual pursuit of knowledge is better equipped to handle life and execute on goals / plans. He should read, seek counsel, study continuously, etc… The Bible says, “Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisers they succeed”( Proverbs 15:22). Also, “My people are destroyed because of lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). A man who is willing to learn and gain knowledge in life should also be more open to gaining knowledge about love and having successful relationships.
5. The Multiplier -
A man shouldn’t just balance you out, he should constantly add to you. His presence should multiply your potential. He should add to the beauty of who you are and never take away from anything that is precious about you. ( “Relationship Coaching: Do you multiply or divide?”) The Bible says, “Do not be deceived: ‘Bad company ruins good morals.’” (1 Corinthians 15:33). The man you date should never cause you to compromise good morals. He should seek ways to support you in your values. His values should complement yours.
6. The Servant –
A man who has demonstrated a pattern of submitting to authorities in his life (leadership, pastors, parents, etc…) will also have an understanding of how to submit to God as the head of his life and, subsequently, how to commit to his future wife. The Bible says, “Obey your leaders and submit to them… Let them do this with joy and not with groaning,” (Hebrews 13:17). His positive attitude towards authority figures is an indication of his servant’s heart and also provides a picture of how he can be in a dating relationship.
7. The Consistent Man -
Emotions rise and fall, but character shows with consistency. The consistent man is not in a rush because he does not have poor intentions, nor is he interested in manipulating a woman to be led by her emotions (“ Warning: Don’t Follow Your Heart”). He will take his time to get to know you and will allow you to get to know him as well. The Bible says, “Whoever walks in integrity will be delivered, but he who is crooked in his ways will suddenly fall.” (Proverbs 28:18). Over time, the consistent man’s good character will still stand, while the man with bad intentions will also come to light.
Remember, the purpose of dating is to get to know a person. If you take your time to get to know him, you will be able to find out if he is the type of man you should date.