June 2021 – Page 19 – Crime Facts

Post Date : June 24, 2021

INEC Launches Online Portal For Voters To Register

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has launched an online portal for eligible voters to register. Addressing journalists shortly after launching the portal, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, Chairman of the Commission, said the portal was created for intending registrants to commence the process online. He asked willing voters to register by providing relevant details before booking an appointment to visit the commission’s office. Yakubu said as a result of security challenges in some parts of the country, the commission decided to start the registration online before it commences fully at all the 2,673 registration centres nationwide. “In addition, those who are already registered as voters can carry out all the other activities such as transfers, correction of personal details and replacement of damaged or defaced PVCs online,” he said. “We hope that through this portal, we shall reduce overcrowding at our registration centres, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, make the registration processes generally easier, thereby giving Nigerians a pleasant electoral experience. “However, I must quickly reiterate that the online registration is a public service and therefore free of charge. There is no INEC-approved cybercafe, no online registration centre and no scratch card to be purchased for the exercise. All you need is a device, including your mobile phones, that can connect to the internet.” INEC halted voter registration six months to the 2019 general elections.

Post Date : June 24, 2021

Soludo wins Anambra APGA governorship primary

A former Central Bank Governor, Prof. Charles Soludo, on Tuesday, won the governorship primary of the All Progressives Grand Alliance. The Primary was conducted at the Prof. Dora Akunyili Women Development Centre, Awka by the Chief Victor Oye -ed faction of the party. Soludo polled 740 votes to defeat three other aspirants, Okwudili Ezenwankwo who scored 41 votes, Damian Okolo seven votes, and Ibeh Kenechukwu Christopher who got four votes. The Chief Returning Officer of the APGA, Deacon Samson Olalere, said a total of 812 delegates were billed to participate in the election but 795 votes were accredited, while 792 delegates. Obiano, who is the party’s BoT Chairman, in his speech, thanked the party delegates for the peaceful conduct during the election, noting that Soludo would win the November 6 governorship election in the state. Soludo, in his speech, described his emergence as divine, assuring that his administration would consolidate Obiano’s achievement to effect good governance in the state. He offered hands of fellowship to other aspirants, asking them to unite for the battle ahead in November. APGA had last week disqualified five aspirants of the party; Nze Akachukwu Nwankpo, Nonso Smart Okafor, Chukwuma Umeoji, Carter Dike Umeh, and Ozoka Odera Ifeanyi due to various reasons including insubordination to the party’s leadership, certificate mutilation, alteration of forms, among others.

Post Date : June 24, 2021

Police Arrest Teenager Who Killed 80-Year-Old Father

The Edo State Police have arrested a 13-year-old boy for allegedly killing his 80-year-old father. The Public Relations Officer of the command, superintendent of police, Bello Kontongs, disclosed this on Wednesday. He said the boy committed the offence on Sunday and is now in custody awaiting trial before the juvenile court. Kontongs warned young people against anger management, adding that they should avoid the use of drugs. Speaking on other matters, the PPRO narrated how an assistant superintendent of police serving with the command neutralised two armed robbery suspects who attacked the said officer on Sunday night. He warned residents to shun crime, saying that the command is committed to a constant fight against criminality in the area.

Post Date : June 24, 2021

“We’re satisfied’ — Arewa forum commends south-east governors for denouncing secession

The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has commended governors of the south-east for denouncing the agitations for secession in the region. In a statement released after its regional meeting on June 20, the governors condemned the activities of “violent secessionist groups” in the south-east and other parts of the country. The governors said they are commitment to a united Nigeria, adding that the impression that south-east leaders are silent about the agitations for secession is incorrect. Commending the position of the governors in a statement issued on Wednesday, Audu Ogbeh, ACF chairman, said the group is satisfied with the decision. According to the statement, the ACF “expressed satisfaction that the Igbo elders have finally disowned the agitators, and called on the elders to take concrete measures to ensure that such agitations come to an end”. Ogbe said the northern leaders will also ensure the security of Igbo indigenes living in the north as requested by governors, adding that “sometimes they enjoy security which even northerners do not enjoy”. He asked the governors to also ensure that northerners living in the south-east are safe. “On the other hand, we have received reports on a daily basis of northerners, ordinary citizens, who are earning their daily life as nail cutters, suya makers, shoe shiners, onion sellers are being bullied, beaten and even killed,” he said. “We hope these ordinary northerners are given the same protection we have given the south-easterners in our midst.” Ogbe said the forum is working on meeting with leaders of Ohanaeze, Afenifere and groups in the south-south to discuss issues fuelling ethnic crisis in the country.

Post Date : June 23, 2021

Bank documents expose how Buhari administration funded Adamu Garba’s Crowwe to rival Facebook, Twitter

Peoples overed how the Buhari administration provided seed capital for Adamu Garba’s Crowwe social media platform, hoping the firm would help the government dominate internal narratives while squaring an ardent challenge to Facebook and Twitter for the Nigerian audience. The Gazette obtained bank documents that carried a transfer of funds from the Central Bank of Nigeria to Mr Garba’s IPI Solutions, a software engineering firm run by Mr Garba. The company developed and deployed the Crowwe social media app. The CBN on May 21, 2019, transferred N136.8 million to Mr Garba’s IPI Solutions, documents said, marking one of several transfers that our sources said the Buhari regime advanced to Mr Garba in the course of building the Crowwe app. Although a major beneficiary of the social media storm that weakened the Jonathan administration and amplified the opposition’s messages ahead of the 2015 presidential election, Mr Buhari has relentlessly railed against the negative influence of social media since coming to power. After realising the enormous control that social media has in shaping public opinion, even amongst citizens with little education or financial ability to be on the Internet, Mr Buhari started introducing different tactics to regulate online speech. A few months after assuming office in 2015, members of his ruling APC pushed a so-called social media bill that civil liberties campaigners said was too offensive to be accepted in a democratic system. The bill was summarily defeated, but the government pushed at least two other similar bills, including one that proposed death penalty for online speech, that were defeated under the Bukola Saraki-led parliament. But shortly after narrowly securing a second term, Mr Buhari agreed with his aides that it was necessary to control social media, according to sources familiar with the matter. Several ways to ensure that the government’s message dominated the public space with little to no pushback from citizens were suggested. “It was while the government was trying to find ways to control the media space that Adamu Garba’s company was picked as one of the promising businesses that could proffer solutions,” an administration official said. “The seriousness of controlling social media cannot be overplayed.” Mr Garba earned instant name recognition in 2018 after showing interest in running for president against Mr Buhari. He summarily abandoned his campaign and became a recognisable voice in support of the president. The regime provided hundreds of millions to Mr Garba’s firm in anticipation that its Crowwe platform would make a sufficient dent on the appeal of Facebook and Twitter, officials briefed on the matter said under our policy on anonymous sources. But two years after funding began and several months after Crowwe was introduced to the public, the app has not appealed to Nigerians on the scale expected by both the regime and its developers. Only a few thousands users have signed up, and even then the app has been riddled with complaints around its functionality. As part of efforts to give life to Crowwe, Mr Garba sought to push Twitter out of Nigeria, filing a lawsuit against the platform in the wake of last October’s historic #EndSARS campaign. More than any other social media rivals, Mr Garba saw Twitter’s presence in Nigeria as an existential threat to his own platform and assumed its exit would push Nigerians to his own platform by default. But his expectation was again dashed this month when his platform failed to pick up despite the government’s ban on Twitter. Instead, Mr Garba found his Crowwe app removed from Google Play Store a week after the Twitter ban following a deluge of complaints from users. He said the app was taken down to upload, but failed to explain why it was only Crowwe that required being taken down before an update could be pushed to enhance user experience. The app was largely unusable that Mr Buhari, his administration officials and supporters had to move to Indian platform Koo following their exit from Twitter earlier this month. The presidency did not return a request seeking comments from The Gazette about its dealings with Mr Garba. Mr Garba confirmed to The Gazette that he received funds from the government, but said it was one of several payments the government paid for a series of “intervention” projects his company executed for the government. “We do projects and receive payments from the Central Bank,” Mr Garba said. “I think it is a project we did for the EFCC.” He was silent on whether or not the projects were through competitive bidding in line with extant public procurement regulations. Crowwe was “100 per cent developed by us internally,’’ Mr Adamu added. “We are even looking for investors locally and internationally. We are looking for investors to further scale up and improve Crowwe capacity.” Source: People’s Gazette

Post Date : June 23, 2021

Man kills aunt, buries body in shallow grave

A 24-year-old man identified as Christian Edem Eyo has been arrested for allegedly killing his aunty in Calabar. It was gathered that the incident happened on Wednesday morning in the compound where they live along Inyang Street in Calabar South Local Government Area. Eyewitnesses said after killing the woman identified as Uduak Effiong, Eyo buried her body in a shallow grave in front of the compound, took the victim’s head and dumped it in a pit inside his room. It was gathered that Eyo, also known as Etteobong, lives in a two-room apartment while the late woman with her two children lived in a different apartment within the compound. Eyewitnesses said they saw the fresh head of the woman after she was killed that morning and also saw bloodstains in the room as well as in front of the compound. According to one of the victim’s children named Nkoyo, the incident happened between 5am and 6am. She said she heard some noise made by vigilante youths who came to the compound that early morning. When she came out, she heard that someone had been killed and buried in the compound. Nkoyo also said that she saw Etteobong and asked him what happened and he said that he had killed Uduak her mother. “It was at that point that the police arrived and started shooting in the air which made me run into the house. “He used a machete to injure one of the policemen before he was arrested,” she said. She said her mother usually goes outside to take her bath in the morning, adding that it was someone in a nearby building that sighted the young man when he was trying to bury her mother’s body in the shallow grave he dug. She said the person then informed the vigilante who contacted the police who came and arrested him. When contacted, the Deputy Police Public Relations Officer, Igiri Ewa, confirmed the incident, saying “the suspect is under our custody.”

Post Date : June 23, 2021

PDP suspends Senator Nwaoboshi for anti-party activities

Senator Peter Nwaoboshi representing Delta North at the Senate has been suspended for one month by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) over anti-party activities. The PDP State Publicity Secretary, Delta State, Dr Ifeanyi M. Osuoza, made this known Wednesday afternoon in a statement he signed and made available to journalists. He said the decision was reached at the party’s State Working Committee (SWC) after an emergency meeting. “The State Working Committee (SWC) of the Delta State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), rising from an emergency meeting, has suspended the Senator representing Delta North Senatorial District in the National Assembly SENATOR PETER ONYELUKA NWAOBOSHI, for a period of ONE MONTH. “This action has become necessary against the backdrop of the recent romance with an opposition Party, verbal recklessness, and unprovoked utterances of Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, particularly against the person of His Excellency, Senator Dr Ifeanyi Okowa, the Executive Governor of Delta State, which the PDP State Working Committee views strongly as totally unacceptable, disturbing and unbecoming of a politician and party member of his stature. “The PDP State Working Committee is in no doubt that the rash, unguarded, confused and heavily noxious, and vitriolic attacks by Senator Nwaoboshi, a serving Senator and a very recent Chairman of our great Party, are potentially inimical to the peace and harmony of the Party and tantamount to causing discord and disaffection among loyal Party members. “The suspension, therefore, though obligatory, has sadly become imperative and inevitable, especially given the dramatic spontaneity and overzealousness of his verbal attacks, which are totally out of character and may have suspiciously been induced by circumstances which defy immediate rational analysis and comprehension. “The matter has been referred to the State Disciplinary Committee, in order to afford Senator Nwaoboshi a fair hearing and the opportunity to appear before it and defend himself over his recent utterances and actions against the Party and its leadership, in the state. “We urge all Party faithful to remain calm in the face of these provocations and maintain the peace, maturity, and Party harmony which have been and will continue to remain the hallmarks of our great Party,” the statement read. Meanwhile, Senator Nwaoboshi has yet to react to the suspension as of the time of filing the report.

Post Date : June 23, 2021

We Can’t Comment On Gumi’s Allegation – Police

The Nigerian Police Force has said it will not comment on the allegation of Sheik Ahmad Gumi that security operatives are working with bandits. The notable Islamic scholar made the allegation when he appeared on ARISE TV on Wednesday morning. While describing banditry as a business, the cleric said, “These bandits, if you don’t know, are cooperating with a lot of bad elements in our security system. This is a business. So many people are involved, you’ll be so surprised. “They were caught in Zamfara; they were caught everywhere, how do these big weapons cross our borders? How can these big weapons cross our borders and get into the forest without the cooperation of some bad element of the security operatives assisting them? It’s not possible.” But when contacted, the Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, a Commissioner of Police, said he would not speak on Gumi’s allegation till he gets the right context. “I don’t have anything to say. I have been very busy. I can’t speak on that matter. I have not studied what exactly the man said, the context in which he said it. When I see the words “security agents”, I don’t know whether he’s referring to the police. I can’t say anything for now.” Similarly, when contacted, Director of Nigerian Army Public Relations, Brig.-Gen. Onyema Nwachukwu, said a statement would be issued on the allegations as soon as possible. Banditry, cattle rustling and kidnapping have been ravaging the country, especially the North West and North Central zones.

Post Date : June 23, 2021

Policemen flee as soldiers invade station in Osun, free detained colleague

Gunshots rented the Obelawo area along Ikirun road in Osogbo, capital of Osun State on Tuesday night when three soldiers invaded a police post in the area to free their colleague detained by policemen. The Nation gathered the gunshots led to palpable tension in the area as residents scampered for safety. A source close to the police post, who pleaded not to be named, told The Nation policemen had arrested some suspected cultists and kept them in the custody. He said: “One of the suspected cultists that were arrested is related to a soldier. The man (soldier) came to the station in the afternoon on Tuesday to secure administrative bail for his brother. “During interaction with the policemen, an argument ensued and the soldier was put inside the custody with the cultists. “However, he had communicated his colleagues informing them that he had been detained in the police post.” It was learnt that three soldiers, armed with knives and wearing camouflage vests, invaded the police post around 8pm to forcefully free their detained colleague. Another source said: “The policemen started shooting to the air to scare the soldiers but when they observed that they were resolute, they fired bullets on the three soldiers which did not penetrate. “The policemen in the station fled their station as the soldiers chased them away from the station. “The soldiers returned to the station and freed their colleague.” Osun Police spokesman, SP Yemisi Opalola, confirmed the incident to The Nation. She said: “Suspects who claimed they are military men from Ede took the suspected cultist away to Ede Military Barrack. We have made arrests.”

Post Date : June 23, 2021

Presidency: Buhari has nothing to do with proposed amendment of press council bill

Femi Adesina, senior adviser to the president on media and publicity, says President Muhammadu Buhari “has nothing to do” with the plan to amend the Nigerian Press Council (NPC) act. The bill, which seeks to repeal and re-enact the NPC act, was considered at a public hearing organised by the house of representatives committee on information, national orientation, ethics and values. Media stakeholders had subsequently kicked against the proposed amendment over some provisions they described as unconstitutional. Azu Ishiekwene, a member of the Nigerian Press Organisation (NPO) — the NPO covers the Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN); Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), and the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) — had said almost half of the 39 clauses in the bill contained unconstitutional regulations capable of stifling journalism practice. Ishiekwene said the NPO had challenged the clauses up to the supreme court, and that continuing with the amendment would amount to preempting the court on the matter. However, Adesina clarified the position of the presidency while fielding questions from state house correspondents, after the weekly meeting of the federal executive council (FEC) on Wednesday, in Abuja. He said the proposed amendment is a federal government initiative, and as such, only the minister of information and culture, Lai Mohammed, can address it. “That is not strictly a presidency thing because the president has nothing to do with that. It’s a government thing and it’s the minister that can talk about it. So, thank you,” he said. On the ECOWAS court ruling regarding the prosecution of violators of the ban on Twitter, Adesina said Abubakar Malami, attorney-general of the federation, will study the report and advise the federal government on what to do. “The attorney-general of the federation is going to study that report, and then he’ll advise the government on the way forward,” he said. “The committee set up by the president to engage with Twitter is actually holding a meeting about now, or it will hold a meeting this afternoon (Wednesday) towards engaging with Twitter.”