Crime Facts

Ethiopia air forces bomb Tigray as government vows to hit military targets

  Ethiopian forces on Friday carried out an airstrike on the Tigrayan capital Mekele, a rebel spokesman and humanitarian sources told AFP, as the government vowed to “take action” against military targets in the region. The developments mark an escalation in the 21-month conflict, after fresh fighting broke out on the border with Tigray on Wednesday, shattering a truce that had sparked hopes for potential peace negotiations. Kindeya Gebrehiwot, a spokesman for the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), said “a civilian residential area and kindergarten” were hit in Mekele on Friday, adding that civilians were among the casualties. Two humanitarian sources said they had been informed of an airstrike in Mekele but no other details were available. Shortly after reports of the airstrike emerged, Ethiopia’s government warned that it would “take action” against the TPLF and urged civilians to stay away from military targets in the region. “While the readiness of the federal government to talk unconditionally is preserved, it will take action targeting the military forces… of the TPLF,” the Government Communication Service said in a statement. The return to combat has alarmed the international community, which has been pushing both sides to peacefully resolve the brutal war in Africa’s second most populous nation. A truce in March paused the worst of the bloodshed and allowed aid convoys to return slowly to Tigray, where the UN says millions are severely hungry, and fuel and medicine are in short supply.

Oppressors Can’t Break My Spirit, Says Jailed Lawyer After Release

  A human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, jailed by the Chief Judge of Akwa Ibom State, Justice Ekaette Obot, has been freed after one-month imprisonment. Effiong, who announced his release on Friday in a Facebook post, said “oppressors” can’t break his spirit with imprisonment. “I am back, stronger and more determined to confront the forces of oppression and to continue to speak nothing but the hard truth to the faces of the oppressors of our people. I feel sorry for those who thought they can break my spirit by incarcerating me,” he wrote. Channels Television had reported that Justice Obot on July 27 jailed Effiong one month for contempt of court in facie curiae after the lawyer reportedly protested against the presence of armed policemen in court. The judge had sentenced the lawyer to the Ikot Ekpene Correctional Centre but Effiong was reportedly moved to the Uyo Correctional Centre. Effiong was in court to defend a colleague, Leo Ekpenyong, in a libel suit filed by the Governor of Akwa Ibom, Udom Emmanuel . A senior lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), on August 17, filed a suit against Justice Obot over the alleged violation of Effiong’s fundamental rights. Falana had also protested the “horrendous humiliation” meted out to Effiong before inmates. “The brutal torture meted out to Inibehe by the prison officials in Akwa Ibom State constitutes a violent violation of his fundamental right to dignity guaranteed by section 34 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 and Article 5 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act Cap A9 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004. “It is painful to note that the unprovoked violence unleashed on Inibehe is a sad reminder of the case of Minere Amakiri, then a reporter with Nigerian Observer, the old Bendel State owned newspapers whose head was shaved with a broken bottle in 1973 on the orders of Alfred Diette-Spiff, the then Military governor of the State. “Apart from challenging the egregious infringement of the fundamental right of Inibehe to the dignity of his person and fair hearing we shall press for the prosecution of the officials who inflicted torture on him contrary to the provision of section 2 of the Anti Torture Act of 2017. The penalty for the offence of inflicting torture on any person in Nigeria is 25 years imprisonment without any option of fine,” Falana had said.

Why I wore sneakers to NBA conference – Shettima

  The All Progressives Congress vice-presidential candidate, Kashim Shettima, has explained why he wrote sneakers to the Nigerian Bar Association Conference in Lagos State on Monday. Shettima, who represented APC presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, at the event, was dressed in a black suit and red tie, accompanied by a pair of gym shoes, which stirred reactions from social media users. The event was attended by the presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar and Labour Party, Peter Obi, respectively. But justifying his style in a video clip shared on social media on Thursday, Shettima, who is a former Borno State governor, stated that he deliberated wore sneakers to the event. “I was in Lagos for the NBA conference. It was held in Eko Hotels, it was largely funded by the Lagos State Government, the APC government of Lagos State. Subsequently, they moved to Eko Atlantic city, a product of an idea conceived by Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. “When I sent my recce team… One of the presidential candidates, his team held meetings for three consecutive nights to commit mischief. “When I was told it was a hostile crowd. I’m a banker, trained by one of the best bankers in the world. I’m a Jim Ovia boy. I deliberately wore sneakers to the NBA to mock (sic) at them.” Speaking at the NBA conference, Shettima had said when elected, he and the APC presidential candidate will replicate the achievements recorded by Tinubu in Lagos. He said, “Nigerians have the capability to see through the worn-out rhetoric and sophistry of pretentious politicians.” “Nigerians should follow the man wey know the road. From day one, we will hit the ground running. We’ll promptly address the issue of the economy, ecology, and security. “And we have the antecedents. I built some of the best schools in Nigeria. Go to Borno and see wonders; you will never believe that it is a state in a state of war. “So, we are going to replicate our achievements in Lagos, in Borno and some of the frontline states so that our nation will be a better place. The fundamental issue is pure leadership.”

Workers Trapped As Building Collapses In Abuja

  A two-storey building under construction has collapsed in the Kubwa area of Abuja, leaving workers trapped. Officials of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) were carrying out rescue operation when Daily Trust visited the scene. It is unclear the number of persons who were affected, but a resident said some injured persons have been rescued and taken to the hospital.

How Remi Tinubu Urged Me To Campaign For Her Husband – Dele Momodu

  Media personality and ex-presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party, Dele Momodu, has narrated how Senator Remi Tinubu sought his support to campaign for the All Progressives Congress presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu. According to Momodu in an Instagram post on Friday, himself and Tinubu’s wife, a Senator representing Lagos Central Senatorial District in the National Assembly, met at an event in Ikeja, the Lagos State capital. Momodo said though he loves the APC presidential candidate, he won’t support Tinubu’s 2023 ambition because the “APC has done too much damage to Nigeria”. He wrote, “Only two people, apart from the photographers, witnessed what happened between me and SENATOR MRS OLUREMI TINUBU yesterday, at the funeral service of CHIEF MRS KEMI NELSON, at Archbishop Vining Memorial Church in Ikeja, Lagos. Before some people add salt and pepper to it, I need to state precisely what happened. “SENATOR TOKUNBO ABIRU and DR TUNJI OLOWOLAFE and I had walked in about the same time and we went to greet my very dear Sister, SENATOR MRS OLUREMI TINUBU… Immediately she saw me, we exchanged our usual pleasantries and then she asked me “so Bob Dee, you’re not going to campaign for my husband…” I smiled and remained very calm before replying: “Your Excellency, I’m in PDP…” She apparently didn’t find it funny and regaled us with the past I shared with her husband and I tried to calm her down… “Anyway, I went back to my seat and pondered on what just happened and I soliloquised: “Before the PDP Primary, I had been asked repeatedly by journalists if I’ll dump PDP if I don’t get the ticket, my answer was NO. So if I had gotten the PDP ticket, would I step down for TINUBU of APC, the answer is NO…” “I joined PDP because APC was leading Nigeria to Golgotha. APC candidates are promising to continue BUHARI’S “good works!” I joined PDP in order to sack APC from power and to do this I needed a strong opposition party. I had preached to my younger friends that only a mainstream party like PDP can achieve this in 2023. This remains my conviction. I practice what I preach. Those who disagree are in other parties and I respect their opinions and wish them well. I’m in PDP. “I love ASIWAJU BOLA AHMED TINUBU. We’ve truly come way back. I love PROFESSOR YEMI OSINBAJO. I love RT. HON. CHIBUIKE ROTIMI AMAECHI… And all my APC friends… But APC has done too much damage to Nigeria. I choose to place Nigeria above friendship… I will try my best to support and encourage our PDP candidate ALHAJI ATIKU ABUBAKAR to do the right things in our party and to rescue our dear beloved country from the vestiges of oppression, religious intolerance, poverty, terrorism, infrastructure decay, economic wows, unemployment.”

Declare national emergency on oil theft, NUPRC tells FG

  The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has asked the federal government to declare an emergency on the country’s oil and industry due to oil theft and underproduction. Gbenga Komolafe, chief executive officer (CEO), NUPRC, made this known on Thursday while delivering his keynote address at the Association of Energy Correspondents of Nigeria (NAEC) strategic international conference in Lagos. The event is themed “Energy Transition: “Shaping the Future of Nigeria’s Energy Industry, an Appraisal of PIA, Evolving Benefits and Challenges”. Komolafe, represented by Abel Nsa, director of the National Oil and Gas Excellence Centre (NOGEC), an arm of the commission, said the challenges restraining optimal production in the form of crude oil theft and sabotage were still with the country despite several efforts made by the commission and the government.   “The imperative is on Nigeria to declare some sort of emergency for the oil and gas industry. Aside from energy transition, other issues bedevil our industry — such as oil theft, security, ageing and decaying infrastructure, amongst others,” he said. “All these contribute to high production costs, which must be minimised. The commission, in line with the spirit of the PIA, will champion urgent access to the industry for all serious-minded players so that unexplored reserves can be tapped into to derive value for investors as well as for Nigeria.” Komolafe said the commission had developed initiatives to reduce the menace of oil theft to the barest minimum in the short run and eventual elimination in the long run.   He listed such initiatives as the roadmap for tackling the security challenges through identifying and implementing areas of collaboration between the government and operators, ensuring that operators realise their full production potential. He added that other areas include collaboration with top-ranking security forces for a robust security framework that ensures they provide pipeline and asset security. Other measures listed include the implementation of security protocols and an enlightenment campaign on the dangers associated with crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism. In June, Gbenga Komolafe said Nigeria lost at least $1 billion in the first quarter of 2022 due to oil theft. The presidency had said it would soon reveal the identities of high-profile Nigerians behind oil theft.

Fani-Kayode berates Shettima’s NBA outfit critics

  Former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode has said those mocking the vice-presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Kashim Shettima’s outfit at the Nigeria Bar Association Annual General Conference (NBA-AGC) exposed themselves to childish and foolish activities. Shettima, at the NBA-AGC which held at Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos on Monday appeared in an oversized suit and sneakers combination which later became #ShettimaChallenge on social media. Some sections of the public criticised the former Borno state governor for sitting without unbottoning his suit, which made his red tie flapping oddly underneath the suit. Reacting to the issue yesterday via his verified Twitter account, Fani-Kayode, in a series of tweets, also said those who mocked Shettima have only succeeded in elevating him. Fani-Kayode tweeted, “When grown men in their 40’s, 50’s, 60’s and 70’s take pictures in strange garb in an attempt to mock Senator Kashim Shettima, our incoming VP, they do nothing but expose themselves for the infantile, asinine and jobless clowns and godless and disrespectful Phillistines and infidels that they are. “Nothing reflects the obsessive and narcissistic disposition, sociopathic tendencies, intellectual degeneration and moral turpitude of some of those in our midst than this imbecilic idiocy and repugnant behaviour. “They behave more like bling-wearing ghetto gangbangers and hoodlum slum kings than supposedly enlightened, educated, exemplary and civilised adults. “They belong in a zoo or better still a jungle filled with wild animals. That is their natural habitat. jungle filled with wild animals. That is their natural habitat. Read also: Present APC is not same as one I criticised ― Fani Kayode “They are nothing but toxic and ravenous beasts and spiritual vampires who seek to feed off the misfortune of others and sap their energy and who live to attempt to ridicule, humiliate and falsely accuse good men in a futile attempt to pull them down. “They seek to mock Shettima but they have only succeeded in exalting him, lifting him up and mocking themselves.” The APC chieftain also berated Shettima’s critics for not appreciating his brilliant speech at the lawyers’ colloquium. “Whilst he is displaying his natural and sheer brilliance with his informed commentary and powerful speeches, which were so well displayed at the NBA conference where he stole the show, and whilst he is on the road towards becoming VP, the miscreants are taking selfies of themselves in strange garb in an attempt to undermine and belittle him. “Yet whether they continue to do so or not makes no difference to him or to those of us that stand with him and Bola Ahmed Tinubu in this great quest and mighty battle. “Whether they like it or not he is on the move and regardless of their antics he is marching on whilst they will, more likely than not, continue to take childish little selfies and post them on social media for the rest of their sorry lives in an attempt to find relevance and seek validation from a faceless mob and their equally lost and deluded cheerleaders, friends and colleagues. “That is all they have to offer or show for their miserable and frustrated lives and and sorry existence.” Rounding off the tweets, the former minister said, “I have one message for them: Grow up, act your age and not your shoe size and get a life! “We have far more important issues to discuss and focus on in this country and far bigger problems to solve than someone else’s attire and the type of shoes, ties and suits that he chooses to wear.”

Amidst strike, Education minister jets out of Nigeria

  Amidst the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, the minister of education, Adamu Adamu is said to be out of the country, The PUNCH reliably learnt. A highly reliable source disclosed this in an interview with our correspondent on Thursday in Abuja. Though the source did not disclose the country the minister went to, nor the reason for the travel, it was revealed that the minister is expected to come back to the country on September 2, 2022. Our correspondent had sought to inquire about the plans of the government as regards the lingering strike by ASUU. But the source said, “The supervisory minister (Adamu Adamu) who is now in charge of negotiations is currently out of the country. He is expected to be back September 2. As of now, he is one with all the details”. The spokesperson of the ministry of education, Ben Goong, did not immediately respond to inquiries by The PUNCH as regards the details of the minister’s travels. The PUNCH reports that ASUU had on Monday, February 14, 2022, announced the commencement of an indefinite strike at the University of Lagos. The union cited lots of reasons why it decided to go on strike. The union’s national president, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, while briefing the press listed the demands of the union. Some of the demands include the release of revitalization fund for universities; release of earned allowances for lecturers; release of the report of the visitation panels to universities; deployment of the University Transparency Accountability System for the payment of salaries and allowances of university lecturers; renegotiation of the ASUU-FGN 2009 agreement among others. In a bid to end the strike, the minister of labour and employment, Chris Ngige had led conciliatory meetings between the union and the government. However, the president, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) few weeks ago mandated the minister of education, Adamu Adamu to take over negotiations. Adamu had during a press briefing recently noted that the government would not pay the union for the months it did not work. The union has however remained adamant.

Sources: Obasanjo lobbying Wike to support Peter Obi’s presidential bid

  Former President Olusegun Obasanjo is backing Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), for the country’s highest office, TheCable understands. The former president is said to have asked Nyesom Wike, governor of Rivers state, to throw his weight behind the presidential bid of Obi. Obasanjo is said to have made the request at a meeting he held with the Rivers governor in London on Thursday. “Obasanjo wants a southerner to be president but does not think Bola Tinubu is the best option,” a source privy to the meeting said. “The former president has also asked Wike and his supporters to back Obi.” In the last few days, Wike has been sought after by Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC); Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Obasanjo on behalf of Obi. On Tuesday, TheCable reported that Wike and Tinubu met in France to explore the possibility of the Rivers governor working for the ruling party at the polls in February 2023. Ibrahim Masari, who was a placeholder for the vice-presidential position of the APC, expressed optimism that the Rivers governor would work for the ruling party. “The meeting was basically on the 2023 presidential election and, by God’s grace, we are going to work with governor Nyesom Wike, he will assist and we are going to win the election with ease, by the will of God,” the politician had said. In a last-ditch effort, Abubakar embarked on a trip to London on Wednesday in an attempt to get Wike on his good side. A crisis has rocked the main opposition party since it held its presidential primary election in May. Atiku clinched the party’s ticket after the dramatic withdrawal of Aminu Tambuwal, governor of Sokoto, from the race. Tambuwal had asked his supporters to support the former vice-president. The crisis in the party escalated after Atiku chose Ifeanyi Okowa, governor of Delta, as his running mate. Party stakeholders expressed concerns that Abubakar ignored Wike.

Human Right Lawyer, Inibehe Effiong released from Alwa Ibom prison

  Human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, has just come out the the Uyo Correctional Centre. Inibehe came out one month after he was sent to prison by Akwa Ibom Chief Judge, Ekaette Obot, for contempt of court. He was seen given a heroic welcome march by a team of supporters. The lawyer, who posted a video on his Facebook, Friday morning, captioned it “History will vindicate the just.”