April 2021 – Page 41

Post Date : April 14, 2021

Bandits Committing Crimes Under The Guise Of ESN, Says Umahi

Ebonyi State Governor David Umahi on Wednesday said bandits are committing crimes in the South-East of the country under the guise of the Eastern Security Network (ESN), but insisted governors of the region will not allow what he termed illegality to reign in the area. “Of late, we have bandits that are now doing a lot of evil and saying that they are Eastern Security Network (ESN),” Umahi who is also the chairman of the South-East Governors’ Forum, said during an interview on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily. “They commit a lot of crimes and say they are IPOB and most of the time, IPOB will come and say, ‘We have no hands in this, we have no hands in that.” While admitting that the development makes it a bit complex in fighting crime, the governor vowed that leaders of the region will not allow criminals to have a field day in the area, stressing that the establishment of the South-East security outfit codenamed Ebube Agu, will tackle insecurity in Igboland. “We have the command of the law to protect the lives of our people and we would not allow illegality to thrive in our land,” he assured. “Conflict will not resolve conflict.” The governor explained that herders-farmers clashes are not the only threat facing the region, noting that the new security outfit was created to flush out crimes of all forms in the South-East. He also raised the alarm that there are grand plots to incite war in the South-East, asking the people not to fall for such plans. “The problem of this country is that people will leave their problems and make your problem their problem,” the 57-year-old added. “But what some of these people are doing is to incite the South-East into war and step aside, and we are not going to buy into that; we’re not going to be deceived again.” The proscribed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) had in December 2020 launched the ESN, a group he said was established to shield the South-East and South-South region from banditry and terrorists. But on Sunday, Nigeria’s South-East governors announced the establishment of the region’s security outfit in a move reminiscent of the Amotekun in the South-West region of Nigeria. “That the political leadership in the South East has resolved to bring together all the arsenals at their command, as one united zone, to fight and flush out criminals and terrorist from the zone,” Umahi said in a communique while announcing the setup of Ebube Agu.

Post Date : April 14, 2021

Chibok girls: Over 20 parents have died from waiting, says BBOG

Allen Manasseh, strategic team member of the Bring Back Our Girls (BBOG) group, says over 20 parents of the Chibok girls have died from health complications induced by the protracted wait for the return of their children. In April 2014, 276 schoolgirls of Government Girls’ Secondary School (GGSS) Chibok, Borno state, were abducted by Boko Haram insurgents. The girls were preparing for their final examinations when the insurgents attacked in the middle of the night and abducted them. Seven years later, 112 of the girls are still missing. In a chat with Arise TV on Wednesday, Manasseh said over 20 parents have died while waiting anxiously for the missing girls. He accused the government of doing the minimum to address the concerns of the parents, demanding that the matter be moved to the office of the vice-president. “The level of engagement with the parents should change; there’s no date on the issue of rescue. We have over 20 parents that died already from blood pressure-related complications; renal failure as a result of blood pressure. 20 plus parents died, nothing happened,” Manasseh said. “The level of engagement to the Chibok parents is nothing to write home about. The Chibok girls issue was domiciled in the ministry of women affairs. What authority or administrative function does the minister of women affairs have to do with security, rescue, or anything about the Chibok girls. The ministry can support the Chibok parents in terms of welfare but this issue is more critical and it should be domiciled in at least the office of vice-president. That’s what we asked for. “It was domiciled in the office of women affairs and nobody knows what’s happening there. Periodically, all that happens is when it’s the commemoration of April 14, some people will be mobilised to go to Chibok with some bags of rice and some change to be given to Chibok parents.” BBOG has renewed its campaign for the release of the remaining Chibok schoolgirls.

Post Date : April 12, 2021

I Was Not Elected To Pay Salaries, Says El-Rufai

Governor of Kaduna State, Nasiru El-Rufai, has said that his government was elected to develop the state and not just to pay salaries. This is coming after 4000 workers across the 23 local government areas of the state received their disengagement letters from service. The governor further added that he “was elected to promote equality of opportunity, to build and run schools and hospitals, upgrade infrastructure and make the state more secure and attractive to the private sector for jobs and investments. El-Rufai, in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Communication, Mr Muyiwa Adekeye, said its public finances have been severely stretched by the high wage bills at a time when revenues from the Federation Account Allocations Committee (FAAC) have not increased. “In November 2020, KDSG had only N162.9m left after paying salaries after receiving N4.83bn from FAAC and paid N4.66bn as wages,” he said. The government pointed out that what it has been receiving from FAAC since the middle of 2020, like most other sub-nationals, could barely pay salaries and overheads. According to him, “In the last six months, personnel costs have accounted for between 84.97% and 96.63% of FAAC transfers received by the Kaduna State Government. “In March 2021, Kaduna State had only N321m left after settling personnel costs.” The statement pointed out that in March 2021, it got N4.819 billion from FAAC and paid out N4.498 billion, representing 93% of the money received saying, “This does not include standing orders for overheads, funding security operations, running costs of schools and hospitals, and other overhead costs that the state has to bear for the machinery of government to run, for which the state government taps into IGR earnings.” The statement recalled that: “In September 2019, Kaduna State Government became the first government in the country to pay the new minimum wage and consequential adjustments. “The state government followed this up by increasing the minimum pension of persons on the defined benefits scheme to N30,000 monthly. “This step to advance the welfare of workers significantly increased the wage burden of the state government and immediately sapped up the funds of many local governments. “While the Kaduna State Government believes that public sector wages overall are still relatively low, their current levels are obviously limited by the resources available to the government.” El-Rufai pointed out that: “What each public servant earns might be puny in comparison to private-sector wages, but the total wage bill consumes much of the revenues of the state. “The desire to pay more is a sentiment that must bow to the limits prescribed by the ability to pay, therefore, the state government has no choice but to shed some weight and reduce the size of the public service. “It is a painful but necessary step to take, for the sake of the majority of the people of this state.” While justifying the job cut, the statement however described it as “A painful but necessary step to take, for the sake of the majority of the people of this state, the public service of the state with less than 100,000 employees (and their families) cannot be consuming more than 90% of government resources, with little left to positively impact the lives of the more than nine million that are not political appointees or civil servants. “It is gross injustice for such a micro-minority to consume the majority of the resources of the state.” He pointed out that the rationalisation behind the exercise will also affect political appointees and its purpose is to save funds and ensure that a strong and efficient public service exists to use those resources to implement progressive programmes and projects for the people, and thereby develop the state.

Post Date : April 12, 2021

Twitter set it’s first African headquarters in Ghana

Twitter has explained why it chose Ghana to set up its first African presence. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, tweeted on Monday that the company is setting up its first presence in Africa. The country of choice is Ghana. “Twitter is now present on the continent. Thank you, Ghana and Nana Akufo-Addo,” he tweeted. TwitterGhana https://t.co/tt7KR3kvDg — jack (@jack) April 12, 2021 In an explainer on its website, Twitter gave an explanation on why it choose Ghana over other countries including Nigeria. The population of Nigeria on social media only (33 million) is greater than the entire population of Ghana (30.42 million). This is what Twitter gave as an explanation on its choice of Ghana: “As a champion for democracy, Ghana is a supporter of free speech, online freedom, and the Open Internet, of which Twitter is also an advocate. Furthermore, Ghana’s recent appointment to host The Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area aligns with our overarching goal to establish a presence in the region that will support our efforts to improve and tailor our service across Africa. “Whenever we enter new markets, we work hard to ensure that we are not just investing in the talent that we hire, but also investing in local communities and the social fabric that supports them. We have already laid foundations through partnerships with Amref Health Africa in Kenya, Afrochella in Ghana, Mentally Aware Nigeria Initiative (MANI) in Nigeria, and The HackLab Foundation in Ghana. As part of our long-term commitment to the region, we’ll continue to explore compelling ways we can use the positive power of Twitter to strengthen our communities through employee engagement, platform activation, and corporate giving. “We still have much to learn but we are excited to listen, learn, and engage. Public conversation is essential to solving problems, building shared ideas, and pushing us all forward together. We can’t wait for the next step on that journey.”

Post Date : April 12, 2021

ALERT: Criminal elements planning attacks on airports, says FG

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) says it has received an alert from the ministry of aviation over planned attacks on airports across the country. This was contained in a memo signed by S.M. Mamman, FAAN deputy general manager of administration and logistics, and addressed to airport chiefs of security. According to the document seen by TheCable and dated April 9, 2021, airports on the list include those in Kaduna, Maiduguri, Sokoto, Kano, Abuja, and Lagos. “I am directed to convey an alert from the Ministry of Aviation regarding security threats by criminal elements against Airports in Nigeria and to request for the immediate enumeration of necessary countermeasures for the protection of Airports/Facilities under your purview,” the memo reads. “Specifically, the Airports top on the list for which criminals are considering carrying out attacks include those in Kaduna, Maiduguri, Sokoto, Kano, Abuja, and Lagos amongst others. However, all airports are hereby alerted and requested to operate at a heightened threat level.” The airport chiefs have been directed to “submit a list of existing and additional countermeasures to address the threats, along with their cost implications where applicable”. Also, they are expected to urgently convene an emergency meeting of airport security committees “to review the status of airport security, jointly recommend appropriate measures and share responsibility for effective implementation”.

Post Date : April 12, 2021

PDP Congress: Makinde is my leader, Fayose declares

The embers of disagreement between former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose; and Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, seemed to be permanently quenched on Monday when the former declared his submission to the leadership of the latter. Speaking at the Wocdiff Centre, Osogbo, venue of the Zonal Congress of the Peoples Democratic Party, Fayose acknowledged, “The Governor of Oyo State, Governor Seyi Makinde, my brother, my friend and by the grace of God, our leader.” The ex-Ekiti State governor also apologised to members of the party not in his faction for all they have all gone through over the years. “I and Seyi Makinde are one from the beginning,” Fayose said, praying that the tenure of Makinde as the party leader in the South-West will usher the PDP into a season of great accomplishments. “Nothing last forever, if I offend anybody, I apologise,” he added. Of late, the leadership of the South-West arm of the PDP had been embroiled in crisis with Fayose and Makinde at the centre of the ruckus. Makinde, a first term governor, is the only PDP governor in the South-West zone while the other five states in the region are ruled by the governors of the All Progressives Congress. The leadership tussle between Makinde and Fayose had since generated verbal confrontations. The PUNCH had earlier reported that Fayose threatened to “work against” Makinde in the 2023 elections if the Oyo governor continues to “disrespect” him. However, the party last Wednesday called a meeting and settled the differences between Makinde and Fayose.

Post Date : April 12, 2021

Police sergeant dismissed for shooting girlfriend who quit relationship

A Police Sergeant, Eze Aiwansoba, attached to the Special Protection Unit, Base 16, Ikeja, Lagos who shot his girlfriend, Joy Ndubueze, October last year, at Salvation road, in Opebi area of Ikeja, has been dismissed from the Nigeria Police Force. The duo were reportedly in a relationship until the lady decided to quit over physical abuse by the policeman. However, the police Sergeant accused her of cheating on him. A verbal confrontation ensued between the duo at the bus stop that fateful night and the policeman fired a shot at Ndubueze in the face, causing other frightened commuters to scamper in different directions. On noticing the magnitude of his deed, the policeman fled the scene, abandoning dying Ndubueze to her fate. Fortunately, she survived at the hospital where she was rushed to. During an investigation on his whereabouts, the Sergeant was discovered to be off duty and not issued a police rifle or arms as at the time of the incident. He later underwent an Orderly Room Trial after he was fished out at the State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, Yaba, where he was found culpable. The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, explained that “ The Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, CP Hakeem Odumosu, ordered for the orderly room trial of the suspect where he was found guilty and recommended for dismissal. The approval for his dismissal was contained in a letter numbered PC. 458465/LS/DFA/2, dated 2nd February 2021. “After his dismissal, Ex-Sergeant Eze Aiwansoba was transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for prosecution via letter numbered AR:3100/LS/SPM/Vol.2/311 dated 3rd February 2021. “The State CID had written a letter to the Director of Public Prosecution, Lagos State, for legal advice which was eventually replied. It noted that the sergeant should be charged to court for attempted Murder contrary to Sec 230, Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015. The Ex-sergeant was charged to Magistrate Court, Yaba, on February 9, 2021, with attempted murder of Joy Ndubueze; and the case is still on.

Post Date : April 12, 2021

Ballot Not Courts Should Decide Election Winners’, Jonathan Pushes For Reforms

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has advocated the need for legislation that will prevent the courts from declaring a winner in an election. Speaking with journalists on Monday in Abuja, Jonathan insisted that the situation where the judiciary is allowed to declare winners in an election, because of electoral fraud should not be abhorred, as it is undemocratic. He explained that the ballot papers should be the only means of choosing political leaders, adding that when a politician or the electoral system is found wanting, the courts should only be made to order for a re-run and not to declare a winner. “Ballot papers should be the basis of selecting political officeholders. If it is the judiciary that should select them then we are not yet there,” Jonathan said. “I am not saying the judiciary is not doing well but our laws should suppress the idea of our judiciary returning candidates. The ballots should decide who occupies the councillorship seat up to the presidency; that is democracy.” While lamenting a situation whereby politicians use gifts to sway voters during the electoral process, the ex-President called for punitive measures against those who indulged in the unwholesome act. He noted that in Nigeria where politicians induced voters with money and foodstuff on election day, such action is a criminal offence in other African countries. “The problem we have in Nigeria is the use of money to induce some voters. Compared to other African countries, we spend too much money here. Probably, we need to review our laws because I have observed a number of elections in African countries. “Here, if somebody is contesting elections, you buy bags of rice, wrappers, and all manner of items to induce the electorates. Ordinarily, our electoral laws are supposed to frown on such practices. “If you do that, you are supposed to be disqualified from contesting in the election. So these are the things that make our elections expensive. I think if the young people are willing, things should begin to change. “For instance in Tanzania, a candidate does not need to print his name on matchbox or any items to woo voters. If you do that, they say that you are inducing the electorates. It is against their laws,” he added.

Post Date : April 12, 2021

Motorcycle passenger, child die in Anambra accidents

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has confirmed the death of a motorcycle passenger in an accident involving a motorcycle and Toyota vehicle at Ebenesi in Nnobi area of Anambra on Sunday night. Mr Andrew Kumapayi, the FRSC Sector Commander in Anambra, confirmed the incident to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Awka on Monday. Kumapayi said that the accident was due to poor visibility as it was raining at the time of the crash. The FRSC sector commander said that two male adults were involved in the accident, while one of them died in the crash. “An unidentified hit-and-run driver of a Toyota vehicle knocked down a CG125 motorcycle rider and his passenger. “The rider of the motorcycle who sustained some degree of injuries, was taken to St Paul’s hospital, Nnobi, by a sympathiser, while the passenger was confirmed dead by the doctor on duty at the same hospital. “His body has been deposited at Fatima Morgue, Awka-Etiti, by FRSC rescue team from Nnewi Command, “he said. In another accident on Sunday night, a yet-to-be-identified speeding driver of a Toyota Camry car with registration number KJA-172CE knocked down a male child crossing the road. Kumapayi said that the accident happened opposite Oyi Divisional Police Headquarters in Nteje area of the state. He said that a total of six persons – one male adult, one female adult, two male children, and two female children, were involved in the accident. “One male child crossing the road was knocked down by the speeding driver, and was rushed to Chira hospital, Awkuzu by FRSC rescue team from Nteje. “The child was later confirmed dead by the doctor on duty. His body has been deposited at Wisdom Mortuary, Nteje,” he said. While condoling with the families of the deceased, the sector commander, urged motorists to always exercise patience and avoid unnecessary speeding on the road. “I’m appealing to motorists to avoid driving when there is poor visibility especially when it is raining. If they cannot see properly, they can park off the road to avoid unnecessary crash. “Motorcycle riders and their passengers should always wear crash helmets and put on reflective clothes while riding at night so they can be seen by motorists. “And to pedestrians, they should always use pedestrian bridges provided and avoid any form of distraction while crossing the road,” he said. (NAN)

Post Date : April 12, 2021

Houses burnt, one feared killed as gunmen attack Ebonyi community

No fewer than 20 houses were, on Monday, burnt by gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen, in Umu-Ugadu and Obodo Ocha villages, Umuogodo-Akpu Ngbo community, in the Ohaukwu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State. According to a reliable community source, the attackers who invaded the area at about 4am equally killed a native of the community. The source, who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity, said many houses were razed down in the area by the invaders. The source said the incident had caused panic in the area, as natives had left the area for other neighbouring communities for the safety of their lives. “My brother, it was not a small thing this morning. They have hit our community again. This morning, they burnt down many houses. As soon as they started, I had to move my parents to Okwor Area for safety. “In fact, my father just informed me now that he saw a vehicle carrying a dead body from the area. One person was killed in the incident. “They came into the community and started shooting sporadically and burning down houses. It took the intervention of some of our people who came out to engage them in a gun battle. “We are suspecting Fulani herdsmen. Recently, because of the way they were dealing with farmers in the community, we are no longer comfortable with them and we asked them to leave. And two weeks ago, they were sighted in the area around the community. So, they could be responsible for the attack,” the source said. The Ebonyi State Government, on Monday, confirmed the incident, saying an investigation was ongoing to unearth the attackers. The Commissioner for Internal Security and Border Peace, Chief Stanley Okoro-Emegha, stated this in a telephone interview with our correspondent in Abakaliki. According to the Commissioner, “They said it’s Agila people, but for now, nobody can say where the attackers came from. That part of Ngbo has issues with the Agila people of Benue State, and so, we are still not certain about the attackers. “If it’s the Agila people, that means it’s an inter-communal issue that has been existing between the Ngbo and the Agila people. “But if it’s herdsmen, then it means we will start tracing where they came from. This is actually what happened in the early hours of this morning and we are investigating it. “As for the number of death, nobody has told us that anybody died. There is no such record yet. He added, “Yes, some houses were burnt. Those who we contacted from the place, said there were some casualties. “But troops of soldiers and many policemen were mobilised and moved to the area as early as 5.30am today and we are making sure that those who attacked the area are fished out. “They mentioned that three persons died, but we are yet to confirm that. We don’t have such a record yet, but we are investigating.” The Commissioner of Police in the state, CP Aliyu Garba, said his men had been mobilised and deployed to the area. He said, “Yes, I have sent some of my men to the place, but am yet to hear from them. I have not been around, but my men are there. They will soon brief me.”