A former governor of Imo State, Ikedi Ohakim has described as false a report in the Daily Sun Newspaper of June 21 which alleged that he was leading a revolt against the governor of the state, Hope Uzodimma over the governor’s refusal to support his ministerial aspiration in president Bola Tinubu’s administration. Ohakim in a statement he personally issued on Thursday, said that the report was false and was sponsored to dent his image. The ex-governor who described Uzodimma as his bosom friend, said that he had no issue with Uzodimma. The statement read ”My attention has been drawn to a report in the Daily Sun newspaper of Wednesday June 21, 2023 by one Stanley Uzoaru, wherein it was claimed that I am leading a “revolt” against Imo state governor, His Excellency, Senator Hope Uzodimma over his refusal to support my ‘bid’ for a ministerial appointment under the new administration of President Bola Tinubu. The report further claims that I also hold grudges against the governor for failing to support my earlier bids for the senate and the office of the President-General of Ohaneze Ndi Igbo. “Space constraints would not permit to go into further details of the report more so as I believe that it must have been read by many in the widely circulated newspaper. “Therefore, I think it is simply sufficient for me to state that the report was a figment of the imagination of the reporter and his sponsors. Let me also hasten to add that Mr. Uzoaru, the reporter who I understand is a free-lance journalist based in Owerri, Imo state, has been used severally in the past by unscrupulous elements in pursuit of political vendetta. “In the instant case, he merely took up a brief to further a carefully plotted campaign of calumny against me by my detractors and which culminated in the January 2, 2023 attempt to assassinate me and during which I lost four of my security aides. “Before now, the same people had sponsored a report in the social media in which I was accused of being the medium through which Governor Hope Uzodimma – the same Uzodimma – channeled a whopping one million dollars to truncate the governorship primaries of the Labour Party in Imo state. “Against this backdrop, let me then state as follows: I do not have any issue, whatsoever, with my governor, Distinguished Senator Hope Uzodimma, to say the least lead a “revolt” against him. “Senator Uzodimma is a bosom friend of mine and a trusted politically ally. Apart from that, as a statesman and former governor of our state, I am obliged to support any incumbent governor or administration who is moving in the right direction – at least in the interest of the state and its people – I am personally committed to see Governor Uzodimma, whom I have known for upwards of three decades, not only succeed but also to excel as a governor. “Revolting against Governor Uzodimma would be tantamount to revolting against myself and nobody can revolt against himself. Or am I that fool hardy to revolt against a fellow whose performance as a governor has been quite overwhelming and who is getting accolades daily from the good people of Imo state. “The report claims that I led my group to a meeting in Anambra state where we perfected our plans. Fortunately for me, I have not been to any part of Anambra state in the last four years for any reason, whatsoever. “That I am not bidding for a ministerial appointment under the present administration. But even if I am, am I not intelligent enough to know that ministerial appointments are not secured through leading or participating in a revolt against a sitting Governor or anybody whatsoever. Besides, ministerial positions are not bid for neither are they contested for. “In any case, the report under reference claims that among the people I am said to be leading in the revolt is “a popular politician from Okigwe zone…” who is also bidding for a ministerial appointment. So, how can I be bidding for a ministerial job and at the same time leading another fellow from my zone (Okigwe) to bid for the same thing? Am I that naïve? ”I decided to abort my senatorial bid the other time entirely on my own volition after taking certain things into account and for reasons that had nothing to do with Governor Uzodimma. It is, however, interesting to note that in the report under reference, an allusion was made to “those powerful forces” in my zone “still there to scuttle other ambitions he may have”. “The point, therefore, in that if there are or were “powerful forces” that scuttled my senatorial ambition, and I know them, I couldn’t at the same time be holding the governor responsible. Therefore, the allusion to “powerful forces” against me is an inadvertent admission that it is the same powerful forces that are behind the fictitious report under reference. *I never nursed the ambition of becoming the President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo. It is common knowledge that I was at the forefront of the move to stop some unscrupulous elements from truncating the January 2021 Ohanaeze election that ushered in the immediate past President-General, the late Professor George Obiozor. “I personally took a court action against the decedents. The issues are yet to be completely resolved and if anything, I see myself better working from the outside to ensure that every crack in Ohanaeze is smoothened. “​The report alluded to a “dying political career” apparently in reference to me. My dying political career? Nothing can be more fallacious. My political career, which started in 1979, is currently at its peak. My political career has taken me through being a party executive, State commissioner, chairman of Nigeria’s National gas master plan, a director of Kaduna refining and petro chemical company ltd, a state governor, etc. At the risk of sounding immodest, I can state without any fear of contradictions that

  The Department of State Services has raised the alarm of planned attacks on worship and recreational centres before and during Eid Kabir celebrations. According to the service, the recovery of Improvised Explosive Devices from terrorists in joint operations by the service, personnel of the Nigerian Army and Police laid credence to the planned attack. A statement on Thursday by the spokesperson of the Service, Peter Afunanya, urged operators of malls among others to be vigilant. It partly read, “On its part, the DSS calls for vigilance before the Eid celebrations more so that reports had indicated plans to attack worship and recreational centres before and during the festivities. This is evident in the recovery of primed IEDs among the suspected terrorists. “Operators and patrons of public places including markets, malls, etc are advised to be watchful and report any suspicious movements and persons to the relevant security agencies. Accordingly, the Service will continue to partner with sister agencies for necessary proactive drills to frustrate criminals and their activities.”   In the joint operations carried out in Nasarawa, and Kogi states between June 19 and 22, a gang leader identified as Kabir Bala was killed during a gun duel in Kogi. The statement continued, “A joint security team comprising the DSS, Nigerian Army, and Police carried out operations in Nasarawa and Kogi States. On June 19, 2023, along the Abuja- Keffi Expressway in Keffi LGA of Nasarawa State, the team apprehended Abubakar Muhammad (aka Abu Direba), a suspected gunrunner. During the operation, the team seized the following insidious items: 486 rounds of 7.62 x39mm calibre ammunition;22 primed IEDs; N31,500 and One Volkswagen Golf vehicle with registration number- RBC202XA. “Also, in another joint operation in the early hours of today, June 22, 2023, a team raided the hideout of Kabir Bala (aka Okwo), one-time jailbreaker and notorious gang leader in Ejule, Ofu LGA of Kogi State. Okwo and his gang members engaged the troops in a gun duel during which he was neutralised. Others, however, fled the area. Items recovered at the scene were one AK47 rifle with three fully loaded magazines, six locally fabricated weapons, two phones, and charms.”

  The Ilorin Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, on Wednesday, arraigned an Ilorin-based associate pastor with the Living Faith Church also known as Winners Chapel, Temidayo Eseyin, for allegedly defrauding Landmark University, Omu-Aran, Kwara State, to the tune of N19.3 million. Eseyin, a lawyer and former member of the Disciplinary Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association, Ilorin Branch, was docked on a four-count bordering on dishonest misappropriation of funds belonging to the University before Justice Funsho Lawal of the Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin. In a petition to the EFCC, Eseyin, whilst being a counsel/attorney to Landmark University had access to her properties, title documents and funds. In the assumed capacity, it was alleged that Eseyin was “cheating, defrauding, misappropriating and shortchanging his client to her utmost dismay”. Specifically in one of his alleged atrocities, the defendant, between 2014 and 2022 managed a property known as “Old Midland Building” belonging to Landmark University, situated along Emir’s/Obbo Road, Ilorin, which rents Eseyin collected for 8 years and could not produce when asked. The petitioner also alleged that Eseyin attempted to sell the property without instructions from the university, hence, the petition to the EFCC. Count three of the charge reads, “That you, Temidayo Eseyin sometime in the year 2021, in Ilorin Kwara State, within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court dishonestly misappropriated the sum of Six Million, Sixty Four Thousand Naira Only (6, 064,000) representing payment of rent on property known as Old Midland Building belonging to Landmark University and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 308 of the Penal Code Law and Punishable under Section 309 of the same Law.” The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charge. Following his plea, counsel to the EFCC, Rashidat Alao, urged the court to fix a date for trial, while praying the court to remand the defendant in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Centre pending trial. However, Eseyin’s lawyer, Femi Makinde, moved an application for the bail of the defendant. He prayed the court to admit his client to bail pending trial. Justice Lawal, while ruling on the application, admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N10 million with two sureties in the sum of N5 million each. The judge ordered that the sureties must have landed property within the jurisdiction of the court. The judge, while adjourning the case to a date, which would be communicated to the parties, ordered that the defendant should be remanded in the custody of the EFCC pending the perfection of his bail conditions.

  The General Superintendent of Deeper Christian Life Ministry, Dr William Kumuyi, has urged leaders in the country to provide selfless service to the people. He also advised Nigerians not to lose hope in the face of economic and other hardships they are experiencing. Kumuyi gave the advice while speaking to newsmen at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa in Rivers State on Wednesday night, shortly after his arrival for a Global Crusade theme ‘Supernatural Freedom’. He was received by the Rivers State Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria, Most Reverend Dokiboeriya Kaladolubo, the South-South Overseer of the Church, and other religious leaders. Kumuyi stressed the need for leaders to always acknowledge God in the position they find themselves, noting that they should be selfless. The cleric said, “Our leaders should fulfil the purpose why God has appointed them to serve. So they should be a blessing to the nation “Not of themselves, but what they can do, what they should do, and what they must do to allow freedom to reign in the country, in every life, in every section of the society.” Kumuyi also called on Nigerians to always put their trust in God in the face of challenges being experienced While noting that there are challenges in various spheres, he stated that God always have solutions to any problem plaguing people. “The challenges are there. And we know that our God is alive. So we need to have faith in the Lord. When there is hope, we know there is a future. “My counsel to everyone is that we look up to God and we do not lose hope. We know that whatever challenges there are, God has the solution. “And when we link up to God we are going to have the solution expect and we will even go beyond what we are expecting, ” he added. On the expectations during the crusade, Kumuyi said, “The purpose we have come is to be a blessing to the state (Rivers). “That means to individuals, families, and everyone. And from here take the message of love, the message of life of the supernatural power of God to the rest of the world. The crusade will commence in Port Harcourt, the state capital from Thursday, June 22, to Tuesday, June 27, 2023.

  At least 31 people were killed when a gas explosion ripped through a barbecue restaurant in the northwestern Chinese city of Yinchuan, state media said Thursday. The Wednesday night blast occurred on the eve of the three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday, when many in China go out and socialise with friends. The explosion took place around 8:40 pm (1240 GMT) at the Fuyang Barbecue Restaurant in a residential area of downtown Yinchuan, the capital of the Ningxia autonomous region. Footage on state broadcaster CCTV showed more than a dozen firefighters working at the site as smoke poured out of a gaping hole in the restaurant’s facade.   Shards of glass and other debris littered the darkened street, which is also home to a number of other eateries and entertainment venues. Nine people, including the restaurant’s “owner, shareholders and staff”, were held by police following the explosion, CCTV said, adding that “their assets have been frozen”. “A leak of liquefied petroleum gas… caused an explosion during the operation of a barbecue restaurant,” state news agency Xinhua said of the Wednesday evening blast, citing the regional Communist Party committee. Seven more people were injured, with one in a “critical condition”, the agency initially reported, adding later that six of them were “stable” while the other had been discharged from hospital with minor injuries. Those hospitalised suffered burns and scratches caused by flying glass, according to Xinhua. High school students and retirees were among the casualties, many of whom died due to suffocation likely caused by smoke inhalation, state-backed media outlet The Paper said, citing anonymous officials involved in the rescue. Xi orders probe Chinese President Xi Jinping “demanded all-out efforts in treating the wounded and the strengthening of safety supervision and management in key industries and fields to effectively protect people’s lives and property”, Xinhua said Thursday. Xi “urged efforts to ascertain the cause of the accident as soon as possible and hold the relevant people accountable in accordance with the law”. “All regions and related departments should screen for and rectify all types of risks and hidden dangers,” Xinhua quoted Xi as saying. The Ministry of Emergency Management said local fire and rescue services had dispatched more than 100 people and 20 vehicles to the scene in the wake of the blast. Local authorities “immediately… demanded that all-out search and rescue efforts be organised, the wounded be properly treated and casualties be reduced as much as possible”, the ministry said. The rescue efforts had concluded by 4:00 am Thursday, it said. At a press conference on Thursday evening, city officials in dark suits and ties bowed solemnly. “On behalf of the city’s party committee and government, I express deep mourning for the deceased, my sincere condolences to their relatives and the injured… and a profound apology to all the people of our city,” said Yinchuan Mayor Tao Shaohua. Authorities would “clarify the cause of the accident as quickly as possible and announce the results of the investigation in a timely manner”, Tao said. Officials would also carry out a “great screening and rectification campaign to eliminate (safety) risks and hidden dangers at the root,” he added. Scenes of chaos One video posted on social media in the blast’s aftermath showed two shirtless men, their trousers tattered and upper bodies covered in dust, crouching and standing dazed on a busy street sprayed with broken glass. Another clip showed fire engines and ambulances tearing through nearby streets, flashing blue and red lights and sounding their sirens. Social media images showed dozens of people gathering behind an emergency cordon on the opposite side of the street, with some visibly distressed. AFP was able to geolocate the clips by matching the buildings to state media footage. Explosions and other deadly incidents are relatively common in China, where building codes are often poorly enforced and widespread unauthorised construction can make it hard for people to flee burning structures. At least 17 people died in a fire at a restaurant in the northeastern city of Changchun in September last year, according to statements given at the time by local authorities. In January 2022, an explosion triggered by a suspected gas leak brought down a building in the city of Chongqing, killing more than a dozen people. And 25 people were killed in a gas blast that ripped through a residential compound in Hubei province’s Shiyan in June 2021, also striking a busy two-storey building packed with shoppers.

  The All Progressives Congress in Rivers State has expressed readiness to receive former governor of the State, Nyesom Wike if he decides to defect to the ruling party. A chieftain of the APC and former Chief of Staff, Rivers State Government House, Chief Tony Okocha stated this at a news briefing in Port Harcourt. This followed speculations that Wike may dump the Peoples Democratic Party for the APC. Okocha who was the Coordinator of the BAT-Vanguard, an acronym for the disbanded Bola Ahmed Tinubu Vanguard in the South-South said Wike has the right to join any party. He said the role Wike played in the emergence of Tinubu as Nigeria’s incumbent President cannot be overemphasised, noting that some persons want to reap where they didn’t sow. Okocha stated, “We are noticing that some persons who abandoned Tinubu when Tinubu needed them most and voyaged outside the shores are now relying on their personal relationships one way or the other to begin to make some sense of entitlement. “That they are entitled to whatever. In the leadership of the Tinubu family in Rivers State, we are at peace 100 per cent with His Excellency, Barr Nyesom Wike, the immediate past Governor of Rivers State as our leader. “He who pays the Piper dictates the tune. When it was difficult, even when the national body could not oblige us with funds for the national rally here, the magic was done by somebody.” He also urged the former Rivers State Governor not to delay in joining the APC to reap from his efforts in seeing Tinubu as President. “Our demand is that nobody should rob Peter to pay Paul. Our own share of the booty given to us should be handed over to His Excellency Nyesom Wike. “We are confident that as soon as it gets to him, he knows those who worked for Tinubu, and it will get to us. “It is only natural, that is how it should go, ” he added. While replying to an aide to the presidential candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abunakar who said Wike was not poisoned but suffering from excessive alcohol, he said it was a show of disrespect from the party leadership. According to him, “The leadership of the PDP in Nigeria does not appreciate the influence and pedigree embedded in Wike. “A man goes to thank God for surviving poisoning and somebody said it was not poison but as a result of excessive alcohol. “It does appear to us that the PDP does not know what they have in Wike. So we are asking and calling on Wike to come over to Macedonia and lead us.”

  A former coordinator in the dissolved All Progressives Congress Campaign Council, Dr. Ene Ogbole, has called on the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, and his counterpart in the Labour Party, Peter Obi, to withdraw their cases from the election petition tribunal and join President Bola Tinubu in his quest for a government of national unity. Ogbole made the appeal at a press conference in Abuja on Thursday. She said, “Even though we are aware that it is the fundamental right of all aggrieved candidates to seek redress in the court of law, in the national interest we wish to use this avenue to crave the indulgence of all aggrieved candidates including Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi who are seeking for redress in the tribunal to withdraw their litigations against the president and join hands with him in the proposed national unity and all-inclusive government. “We are saying this confidently because we can see from all indications that the Tinubu-led administration is ready to work assiduously to install peace, development, and progress in Nigeria. We are certain that the priority of all candidates of other political parties is to do the same selflessly in the national interest since Tinubu is playing out their intentions they could and should go a step further to synergize with him to achieve the same patriotic purpose in the national interest.” Her appeal is coming hours after Atiku called up a digital forensic expert to testify in aid of its petition against the president at the tribunal. During the resumed hearing of their petition, the 26th witness in the petition, the witness, Hitler Nwala, led in evidence by the petitioners’ counsel, Chris Uche, SAN, submitted a report of his investigation carried out on the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System. The witness asserted that his findings show that the election results of the Federal Capital Territory during the presidential elections were deliberately deleted from the BVAS machine. But the former coordinator of Tinubu’s campaign council stated that the only way to prove to the world that Obi and Atiku’s struggles are not personal or for selfish gain is for them to withdraw their cases from the court and work together with the president to actualise his ‘Renewed Hope’ promises to Nigerians. According to her, Tinubu’s government has proven beyond every reasonable doubt to be transformational in nature with huge potential to reunite and reposition Nigeria for a breakthrough. “The present administration is doing excellent well already as evident in most of the nation-building steps he has embarked on such as the fuel subsidy removal, the education bill that was signed to law, the display of uncommon fairness and equity in the appointment of keys principal office holders and of course, his monitory and economic policies only to mention but a few. “We are also using this opportunity to call on all our elder statesmen from across the length and breadth of Nigeria to swiftly without further delays invite all aggrieved parties to a round table meeting and appeal to them not to subvert the will of the people through distractions but to join hands with the government that was willingly elected by Nigerians to change their story through unprecedented development for the betterment of all and Sundry. “You will agree with us that it is certainly not the time for further distractions; it is time to move Nigeria forward in a positive direction. This is a call for a unity government in the national interest,” she said. A former presidential aspirant of the Social Democratic Party in the build-up to the 2023 election, Cesnabmihilo Nihu-Aken’Ova also joined her voice in making the same appeal, saying the outcome of the poll was evident that the former Lagos governor won it. “It was clear that Tinubu won this election. Those going to court are wasting our time from what we have seen so far. We have passed the stage of the campaign and even Atiku and Obi’s candidates at the governorship and National Assembly level have all been sworn in. I am speaking from my own point of view as a presidential aspirant,” she said.

  Tech titans Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk are in a fierce business rivalry that has spilt over into a playground spat, with the two men offering to fight each other in a cage. Months after Musk took over Twitter, Zuckerberg’s Meta hinted it was planning to launch its own text-based social media platform — essentially a direct rival. Musk has trolled Zuckerberg ever since with messages on Twitter, telling his fans this week: “I’m up for a cage match if he is lol.” Zuckerberg, who has followed the trend of tech bosses getting buff and posting martial arts videos, responded on Wednesday on his Instagram Stories with a screenshot of the message and a response: “Send me location.” Meta confirmed to AFP that Zuckerberg’s message was genuine. The exchange has provoked mirth on social media with plenty of fight predictions — Zuckerberg emerging as the clear favourite. “Please god let this happen,” technology journalist Taylor Lorenz wrote on Twitter. “The best Musk-Zuckerberg cage match is one in which two men enter and no men leave,” wrote podcaster Bennett Tomlin. ‘Sane’ Twitter jibe The two men have baited each other for years with opposing views on everything from politics to artificial intelligence. But their new business rivalry has supercharged the animosity. Musk responded angrily to a recent claim by a Meta official that there was appetite for a “sanely run” Twitter alternative. The Tesla and SpaceX boss bought the social media firm for $44 billion before sacking much of its staff and allowing banned right-wing conspiracy theorists back onto the platform — sending advertisers fleeing. Musk defended his handling of Twitter at an event in Paris last week, saying advertisers had come back and he had eliminated almost all bots. In an interview earlier this month with US podcaster Lex Fridman, Zuckerberg was asked to say something positive about Musk’s handling of Twitter. After an eight-second pause for thought, he said Musk had “led a push early on to make Twitter a lot leaner”, a move he said was good for the industry. Zuckerberg announced thousands of job cuts at his firm months after Musk did so at Twitter. AFP

  Dele Alake, the Special Adviser to President Tinubu on Special Duties, Communications and Strategy has said that there is no approval for salary increase for political office holders, judicial officers. This was contained in State House press release on Thursday. The statement reads, “We have followed with consternation the viral story of the purported 114% increase in the salary of the President, Vice President, elected Federal and State political office holders and judicial officers. “We state without any equivocation that President Bola Tinubu has not approved any salary increase, and no such proposal has been brought before him for consideration. “While we recognise that it is within the constitutional remit of Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission to propose and fix salaries and allowances of political office holders and Judicial Officers, such can not come to effect until it has equally been considered and approved by the President. “It is important to note that RMAFC, through its Public Relations Manager, has responded to this fake story being circulated and has already set the record straight. “However, that this unfounded story gained prominence on social media and in a section of mainstream media, again, brings to the fore the danger fake news poses to the society and our national well-being. The misinformation was, obviously, contrived to create ill-will for the new administration, slow down the upward momentum and massive goodwill the Tinubu-led administration is currently enjoying among Nigerians as a result of its fast paced, dynamic and progressive policies. “It is important to reiterate to journalists, media managers, and members of the public that stories on government activities and policy issues that do not emanate from approved official communication channels should be ignored. “Media practitioners are enjoined to, at all times, cross-check their stories to ensure accurate reportage, which is the hallmark of responsible journalism.