A one-year-old boy lost his life when he fell into a bucket of water. The boy made his way to where the buckets of water were arranged outside and fell inside one of the buckets as the siblings were busy playing. It was gathered that the incident happened on Saturday in Nnewi, Anambra State, after his parents left him in the care of his siblings. He had already died before his corpse was found. Videos circulating online showed when people gathered and were praying for the boy to come back to life. As of the time of filing this report, the boy’s parents had not been reachable, but residents confirmed the incident. Details later…

  The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed has said that presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, is not aware of the achievements of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration because he lives in Dubai. Atiku, had, during his campaign in Akure, Ondo State, said the Buhari government has not done anything for Nigerians in its eight years in office. Mohammed reacted to Atiku’s comments while speaking at the seventh edition of the presidential scorecard series in Abuja on Monday, December 5. The minister said, “During his recent campaign in Akure, the former VP was quoted as saying the APC had not done anything for Nigeria in eight years. “What a preposterous statement from somebody who should know. I guess we can excuse His Excellency the former vice-president who, until recently, had fully relocated to Dubai, thus losing touch with Nigeria.” Mohammed claimed the Buhari administration has brought peace and stability to different parts of Nigeria, including Adamawa, Atiku’s state. He said, “Before this administration came into office, all the five local government areas in Adamawa’s Northern Senatorial District were effectively under the control of the Boko Haram terrorists. “All state institutions, the local government administration, the police, the judiciary, schools, hospitals and markets had been sacked. Today, not an inch of these local governments in Adamawa, the home state of the former vice-president, is under the control of terrorists. “All institutions of state have relocated back and are operational. All emirs and chiefs have returned to their palaces. “You can also see the irony of someone who held the number two position in the country for all of eight years but could not positively impact on his own hometown, state or region now condemning an administration that has made it possible for him to even access his hometown — anytime he flies in from his new hometown of Dubai!” The minister stressed that Atiku and his party, the PDP, have no moral justification to criticize the APC administration headed by Buhari.

  Monday 05 December 2022 Oyegun’s ex-aide dumps APC Rufai: Ogun govt refutes $50,000 payment allegation Don’t blame us, you failed Nigerians, govs reply FG Gunmen kidnap Benue commissioner, three others Why I issued executive orders – Adeleke Atiku, Obi, Kwankwaso agree security, education are key to poverty reduction Tinubu: Votes from one Kano LG more than entire South-East, says commissioner Tinubu-Shettima Campaign’s threat to media unpardonable, says PDP Health, education separate rich countries from poor ones, says Obi Buhari charges new ECOWAS leaders on reforms Iran morality police status unclear after ‘closure’ comment Man flogs daughter to death for relating with neighbour 2023: Don’t be deceived by fake promises, Okowa tells Nigerians NDLEA nabs grandma, pregnant woman in Oyo, Rivers with drugs You’ve no electoral value, even in your LGA, Tinubu fires back at ex-SGF Lawal Oil, gas can’t feed Nigeria’s growing population — Obasanjo 2023: Obi-Datti, NNPP, ADP flay Dogara over group’s adoption of Atiku 2023: APC, PDP Are As Good As Gone, Only LP Is Standing – Baba-Ahmed Student Critic Adamu Apologises To Aisha Buhari, To Deactivate Social Media Accounts Why Naira Redesign May Be Declared Illegal In Court – Falana IGP Deploys Personnel As Abuja-Kaduna Train Resumes Today Atiku: How governors protested direct allocation of funds to LGs while I was VP IPOB Behind Attack On Imo INEC Office — Police Visit a newspaper stand this morning, buy and read a copy for yourself…

  Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, on Sunday faulted the recent endorsement of the naira redesign by President Muhammadu Buhari, saying it does not translate to the legitimising of the policy. On October 26, the Central Bank of Nigeria said it will redesign the N200, N500, and N1,000 notes in order to take control of the currency in circulation. Though the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, said she wasn’t consulted by the apex bank on the initiative, President Buhari backed the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, saying he is fully in support of the policy. But Falana, in a statement, said the President is expected to present a money bill to the National Assembly for approval. “The official endorsement is not sufficient as the President is mandatorily required to present a Money Bill to the National Assembly for the withdrawal of the billions of Naira from the public fund earmarked for the printing of the new naira notes,” the statement read. “Specifically, section 59 of the Constitution requires “an appropriation bill or supplementary bill including any other bill for the payment, issue or withdrawal from the Consolidated Revenue Fund or any other public fund of the Federation of any money charged thereon or any alteration in the amount of such payment, issue or withdrawal…” See the full statement below: PRESIDENTIAL ENDORSEMENT NOT SUFFICIENT TO LEGITIMISE NAIRA REDESIGN On October 26, 2022, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele announced that the CBN would issue the redesigned N200, N500, and N1,000 notes, effective December 15, 2022. In kicking against the policy, the Minister of Finance, Mrs Zainab Ahmed claimed that she was not consulted prior to the announcement. But President Muhammadu Buhari confirmed that he endorsed the redesign of the Naira in line with section 18 of the Central Bank Act. Indeed, the President has since unveiled the re-designed Naira Notes as proposed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) However, the official endorsement is not sufficient as the President is mandatorily required to present a Money Bill to the National Assembly for the withdrawal of the billions of Naira from public fund earmarked for the printing of the new Naira notes. Specifically, section 59 of the Constitution requires “an appropriation bill or supplementary bill including any other bill for the payment, issue or withdrawal from the Consolidated Revenue Fund or any other public fund of the Federation of any money charged thereon thereon or any alteration in the amount of such payment, issue or withdrawal…” Since the fund for the printing of the new Naira notes is not captured in the 2022 Appropriation Bill the President is advised to prepare and present a supplementary bill to the National Assembly to authorize the withdrawal of public funds from any Account of the Federation for printing the new Naira notes. Otherwise, the printing of the new Naira without appropriation by the National Assembly may be declared illegal and unconstitutional if it is challenged in a court of competent jurisdiction. Femi Falana SAN Chair, Alliance on Surviving Covid 19 and Beyond (ASCAB) 4th December 2022

  A woman, Balaraba Shehu, and her man friend, Amadu Sale have been arrested by operatives of Police in Jigawa State for burying their newborn baby alive in the state. The Command’s spokesperson, DSP Lawan Shiisu who confirmed the development said, Balaraba after delivering the baby out of wedlock conspired with Amadu to commit the crime. DSP Shiisu said the baby was exhumed from a grave the mother dug near a toilet within their residence. According to him, “On 2nd December, 2022, at about 2350hrs, Intel at Command’s disposal revealed that one Balaraba Shehu, 30-year-old, of Tsurma village, Kiyawa LGA is suspected to have given birth and buried the newborn baby. “On receipt of the report, a team of Policemen mobilized and proceeded to the scene of the crime. “On arrival, detectives swung into action and exhumed the newborn baby from a grave dug near a toilet in their residence and where the suspected mother buried it. The baby was rushed to General Hospital Dutse, and certified dead by a medical doctor. “The suspect was arrested and is now in Police custody. “Preliminary investigation led to the arrest of one Amadu Sale alias Dan Kwairo, 25-year-old of Akar village in Kiyawa LGA. “He (Amadu) was alleged to be responsible for the unwanted pregnancy to the said Balaraba and conspired to bury the baby after delivery,” DSP Shiisu said. The police image-maker, however, said the State Commissioner of Police, CP Emmanuel Ekot Effiom has directed that the case be transferred to the Investigative Department of the command, SCID Dutse, for discreet investigation. “The suspects would be charged to court to face the full wrath of the law upon completion of investigation,” DSP Shiisu stated.

  Iran has scrapped its controversial morality police units after more than two months of protests. The country witnessed its biggest uprising in decades after the death of Mahsa Amini, a Kurdish woman from the north-western city of Saqez, who was said to have been arrested by the morality police on September 13 for not wearing a proper hijab. The 22-year-old Amini died three days after her arrest and detention, and during her funeral, protests broke out. She was said to have fallen into a coma shortly after collapsing at a detention centre before she died. The police denied reports that the deceased was mistreated and said she suffered a “sudden heart failure” but her family insisted she was in good health. Her death sparked criticisms from the international community, including the United Nations and other human rights organisations. Some of the protests saw women burning their headscarves in a defiant act of resistance against the Islamic country’s strict dress code. The Iranian government took measures, including restricting access to Whatsapp and Instagram and other internet services to control the protests. Two weeks ago, in a surprise move, Iran players refused to sing their national anthem before the start of their World Cup match against England at the Khalifa International Stadium. In solidarity with the players, the fans also booed their anthem. In a statement on Saturday, Mohammad Montazeri, Iran’s attorney-general, said the morality police would be abolished as they “have nothing to do with the judiciary,” the ISNA news agency quoted him as saying. “Of course, the judiciary continues to monitor behavioural actions,” he added. However, it is unclear whether the force will be set up again in a different context or under a different name. WHO ARE THE “MORALITY POLICE”? “Gasht-e-Ershad,” which translates as “guidance patrols” and is widely known as the “morality police,” were a unit of Iran’s police force established under former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. They were tasked with enforcing the laws on Islamic dress codes in public and began patrolling the streets in 2006. According to Iranian law, all women above puberty must wear a head covering and “decent” clothing in public, although the exact age is not clearly defined. There are also no clear guidelines or details on what types of clothing qualify as inappropriate, leaving room for personal interpretation and sparking accusations that the “morality” enforcers inexcusably detain women. Following Amini’s death, hundreds of women have begun to speak up against compulsory hijab-wearing online. Even some conservative figures, including members of parliament, have been seen criticising the law and the police force, saying that it has had a negative impact on public attitudes toward the hijab and religion in general.

  Bandits have attacked a mosque in Maigamji village along Funtua-Dandume road, Funtua Local Government Area of Katsina, disrupting Isha’i prayer that was being observed by worshippers on Saturday. A former councillor of Maigamji ward in Funtua LGA of Katsina, Alhaji Lawal Maigamji, said when the bandits came, they opened fire on two people, including the Imam leading the prayers. He identified those shot as Malam Yusha’u, the Imam and Hussaini Jamo, a worshipper, disclosing that they were both receiving treatment at a hospital in Funtua. “They surrounded the mosque when Ishaa’i congregational prayer was being conducted, after shooting Imam Yusha’u and Hussaini Jamo, they abducted 18 people and made away with them into the bush,” Lawal Maigamji said. He added that four of the abducted victims escaped from their captors while in transit. In a related development at least 31 people were reportedly abducted in Karare and Kokiya villages of Batsari Local Government Area of Katsina State in the early hours of Friday. The terrorists, which were said to number about 40 riding on motorcycles, invaded the village where they killed one person and abducted the people including women and children. Daily Trust gathered that some of the abductees were students heading to the Government Day Secondary School, Karare from Kokiya village. As of the time of compiling this report, residents of Karare and Kokiya villages were yet to ascertain the number of abducted victims. Some residents who spoke to our reporter in Katsina expressed worry over the increasing spate of kidnappings for ransom, cattle rustlings and heinous killings of innocent people. When contacted for confirmation, the police spokesman, SP Gambo Isah, said he would contact the DPO of the area and get back to our reporter. However, while admitting the abduction of some residents the chairman Batsari Local Government area, Yusuf Yanji, however, refuted the allegations of the students’ abduction, saying the story was unfounded.

  Aminu Muhammad, a student of Federal University Dutse (FUD) who criticised Aisha, wife of President Muhammadu Buhari, has apologised. In June, Muhammad captioned a now-deleted tweet, “Su mama anchi kudin talkawa ankoshi” in Hausa. The tweet, accompanied by a photograph of Aisha Buhari, loosely translates as “Mama has eaten poor people’s money and is now full”. Security operatives arrested the final-year student on November 18 over his tweet. He was later arraigned on a one-count charge by the police before a federal capital territory (FCT) high court on November 30. Muhammad’s arrest spurred harsh reactions as many Nigerians knocked the first lady for what they described as “oppression and intimidation”. Amid the outrage, Aisha withdrew the suit against him on Friday.   Hours after regaining his freedom, Muhammad took to his Twitter page to apologise to the first lady for his actions, saying he had no intention of hurting her feelings. “I would like to use this medium to express my sincere apologies to those I’ve hurt, especially our mother, Aisha Buhari, it was never my intention to hurt your feelings and Insha Allah, I will change for the better. However, I’m also grateful for your forgiveness, thank u mama,” he tweeted.