₦airaland Forum

Palpable fear has gripped the entire parishioners of Catholic Diocese of Enugu following a midnight attack on St Leo The Great Catholic Church on Monday.

An unidentified group broke into the church and destroyed the altar, where the sacrifice of the Most Precious Body and Blood of Christ was being celebrated and venerated.

The hoodlums committed sacrilege by smashing holy statues in the church, tearing the sacred clothes on the altar and destroying seats meant for the priests and other worshippers in the church. However, they were unable to gain access to the Holy Tabernacle that houses the Holy Eucharist (Body and Blood of Christ). The attack came barely few weeks after a similar attack was recorded at Seat of Wisdom Parish, Abakpa, Enugu, where sacred materials were destroyed. The attackers left a message on the wall, warning the church against idolatry.

Efforts made by our reporter to speak with the priest in-charge of the St Leo The Great Parish, Monsignor Prof Obiora Ike, who is also the Director of the Catholic Institute for Development, Justice and Peace (CIDJAP), was not successful. He failed to pick repeated calls to his mobile phone and equally didn't respond to the message sent to him, informing him of the purpose of the call. However, a priest serving in the diocese, Revd Fr Paulinus Ike Ogara, confirmed the incident. He told Daily Sun that the attackers left monumental damage in the church, as they cut the electrical installations in the area, destroyed the public address system that served the worshippers.

According to him, they left a warning on the wall of the church, warning against the worship of idols. Ogara, who was the former Editor-in-Chief of The Shepherd Newspaper, said the church was being attacked by unknown enemies and warned the perpetrators of the dastardly act to beware of God's wrath. "Terrorists are public enemies.

We must put up a good fight in order to cope with the situation,"he said. Investigations by our reporter revealed that members of the Catholic Church had been sleeping with their eyes open, following incessant attack on the church. Recently, St. Theresa Catholic Cathedral, Nsukka, a few miles away from Enugu, banned bringing bags into the church.

According to the report, the Cathedral Administrator, Revd Fr. Uche Obodoechina, said the ban would commence on September 9. Motorists have also been banned from parking in the church premises and commercial motorcyclists restricted to a designated space within the compound.

http://sunnewsonline.com/new/cover/sacrilege-hoodlums-attack-catholic-church-warn-against-idolatry/

Here is mine

I just spoke with him, he was not arrested nor handcuffed. A petition was written against him by a Coperal, the allegations investigated and found to be misleading and mischievous and subsequently thrown away.

The Officer in question is my childhood friend and we graduated together from the university, I just called him on phone and he denied all the trash Sahara reporters wrote, infact I suggest he sue their a*s*s

Commander Of Mobile Police Base In Oghara, Admin Officer In Financial Scam. SaharaReporters has learnt that two officials of
the Mobile Police base in Oghara, Ethiope East
local government area of Delta state, are mired
in deep trouble over serious allegations of
corrupt practices. At the center of the scandal
are the commander, CSP Sylvester Ozuofena, a
chief superintendent of police (CSP), and the
base’s administrative officer, Bala Yusuf, a
deputy superintendent of police (DSP). The two
officers are accused of defrauding their
subordinates of entitlements running into billions
of naira. One source said the two officers may
have been ordered to refund what they looted.
Sources at the base told our reporter that the
duo’s fraudulent practices were uncovered
following a series of petitions by rank and file
members of the base, commonly called MOPOL
Base 51.
Some of the junior officers who confided in our
reporter accused their boss, CSP Sylvester
Eziofono, of illegal deduction from their out-
station duty payments. Several of them insisted
that the illegal deductions totaled billions of
naira. They disclosed that a team of
investigators from police headquarters in Abuja,
who recently visited the base to investigate the
allegations, were stunned by the scale of the
two officers’ illicit financial activities.
Several rank and file officers said they were
delighted that the Inspector General of Police
decided to send a team to investigate the two
officers. They told SaharaReporters that similar
petitions they wrote to past IGs were never
addressed.
“Because the petitions we forwarded to the
former IGs did not see the light of the day, the
commander and admin officer continued to do
what they were doing,” said one source. “Now
we are expecting that the team that Abuja sent
will uncover the truth and ensure that these
officers face the music.”
Several sources said the investigating team from
Abuja stormed the base and arrested the
administration officer, DSP Bala Yusuf, and
handcuffed him. “Having seen that the game
was up, DSP Yusuf started crying and started
confessing that he was not alone in the crime.
Without wasting time, he named the
Commander, CSP Sylvester Eziofono, as the
prime suspect,” another source disclosed.
Numerous officers narrated their ordeal at the
hands of the commander. In the words of a
sergeant, “We the rank and file are really
suffering in the hands of these senior officers
overseeing our day to day activities. We are over
200 MOPOL [mobile police] posted to guide
banks, companies, corporate organizations, VIPs
and others. But the painful and lamenting thing is
that whenever we are paid our money, which is
not given to us directly [but] rather to our
commander, he will now deduct 70-80 percent
from the money and we will be given peanuts at
the end of the day.”
The source added: “It might interest you to know
that when the investigating team from Abuja
came they were shocked to their bone marrow at
the colossal corruption.”
Several sources said the commander and his
cohorts had defrauded officers of billions of
naira.
“It is after the investigation team arrested and
handcuffed the administrative officer, DSP Bala
Yusuf, that he now confessed that the
commander was the main one involved in the
scam,” said the source.
Another officer, who gave details of being
cheated out of his allowances, rhetorically
asked, “Now tell us why won’t our spirits be
down when all these fraudulent practices are still
been perpetrated by some of the bad eggs in
the force.” He added that the investigating team
from Abuja has asked the rogue cops to refund
monies they illegally deducted. SaharaReporters
could not ascertain whether the police
investigators from Abuja found the bank
accounts where the officers lodged their loot.
Some of the officers who spoke to us called on
the Federal Government to look into the total
welfare of junior officers in the force. They
asserted that the issue of illegal deduction was
not peculiar to the base in Oghara, but happens
across the police formation in Delta State where
police officers are assigned to guard facilities as
well as highly connected individuals. “We are
faced with the issue of monkey dey work and
baboon dey eat,” said one of the defrauded
police men.
A correspondent of SaharaReporters made
efforts to contact the embattled commander.
However, he refused to respond to the SMS sent
to him and did not answer calls to his mobile
telephone number.
On the other hand, the admin officer spoke to
our reporter on the phone. But after denying that
any fraud occurred, he added that he has a lot
to say on the issue but would await permission
from the state police public relations officer
(PPRO), Charles Muka, a deputy superintendent
of police.
Contacted by our correspondent, Mr. Muka
debunked all the allegations, but swiftly blamed
“disgruntled elements.” “The issue at hand is
been orchestrated by some disgruntled elements
in the base,” said the police spokesman, adding
that such stories give the police a bad image.
Meanwhile, our reporter gathered that the
embattled commander and the admin officer
have been transferred out of the base. A police
source said the two men “have been asked to
report at the force headquarters [in Abuja], while
new officers from Niger State have been told to
take over from them pending the completion of
investigations.”

Baba Ganaru: Kano Pillars are derserved Champions of the Nigeria Premier League The Kano Pillars coach says nobody should be surprised that Kano Pillars are the new champions this season. Kano Pillars coach Baba Ganaru has told Goal.com that the team are deserved champions of the Nigeria Premier League this season after Ocean Boys were expelled on Wednesday, an act that means Pillars are now
tecchnically champions. He noted that Pillars played the best brand of football and have been rewarded with the League title this year.

"I want to say that we are the best team in the country
right now and nobody should be surprised that we have
won the NPL title," Ganaru told Goal.com.
"When you look at the way we have played this season,
you will realise that we truly merited the position we are
in now.
"I know that some people will say we won the League
title by default, but rules are meant to be obeyed.
Before Ocean Boys were expelled, Kano Pillars was on
top of the table.
"We travelled to Uyo and got the three points against
Akwa United and the team was in the right frame of
mind to also travel to Ijebu Ode to beat Sunshine Stars
[on Friday].
"Ocean Boys contravened the rules governing the
Premier League and the only logical thing to do is to
apply the rules where neccessary and that is exactly
what the board of the Nigeria Premier League did.
"We are the Champions because we have the best team
in the country," Ganaru said.

Breaking News: Rangers FC fans go on demonstration in Enugu over NPL decision Supporters of the Flying Antelopes have begun demonstrating against the late expulsion of Ocean Boys which gives Kano Pillars the title as they are denied of winning again. Enugu Rangers FC fans took to the street on Thursday
morning in Enugu to demonstrate against the Nigeria
Premier League’s decision to expel Ocean Boy which
inadvertently gives the NPL title to Kano Pillars ahead of Friday’s finale. Fans blocked the streets along Ogui Road and inside the stadium premises. The Nigeria Premier League (NPL) expelled Ocean Boys from the league and took away all their points according to Article 4.2 sub-section 3 of the NPL statutes.

The Yenagoa club was expelled because it missed two
consecutive matches and from the deductions that will
be made, Kano Pillars sit on top of the table with
61points, Lobi Stars are second with 57 points and
Rangers third on 55 points with the last matches to take place tomorrow.
So technically, Kano Pillars are champions and the
Rangers fans are angry that the decision is coming very late. Foster Chime, media officer for Rangers, told Goal.com that they have been trying to appease the fans so that there will not be a breakdown of law and order. "The fans are really angry at the situation of things but we are trying to calm them down,” said Chime. Rangers were looking to win their first league title in almost three decades but will now have to wait another
year.

Read my post again

Poetic licence is the answer to this coinage of words; even in music when real grammar doesnt give the rhyme and rhythm, loose grammar is allowed to convey the message; remember Bongos Ikwue in one of his songs "Tell me the man who 'dont' like a woman" but the message is delivered.

There is no harm in coining new words. When one read Wole Soyinka's books, he will come across new words like "penklemes" from peculiar mess and "Nobelization". Some people insist that Dr Nuruddeen Muhammad was wrong to use the word "Islamo-christian" because it is not existing in English dictionary. Neologism is a known thing in English language. May be Dr Nuruddeen is emulating Wole Soyinka. The right thing is to ask him what is the meaning of the word even when it is not found in English dictionary.

Initially the minister was quoted to have said "Nigeria is an Islamic nation with majority christians". When the video clip was released where he said "Islamo-christian nation", the accusation now turned into lack of presence of the word in the dictionary. This same guy called on christians to attack all muslims because of boko haram who are attacking both muslims and christians. Unfortunately, they did just the opposite during this last ramadan by joining their muslim brothers to breakfast together and even celebrate Sallah.he word in english language. That is how nigerians can go to an extent to condemn somebody

Armed men believed to be cultists have killed four men at the popular Granduer Restaurant and Bar along Ikwerre Road in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

Daily Trust

This is a transcribed copy of what the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs said on the NTA Network News by 9pm, 16.8.2012 from Mecca

"The King extended invitation to the Heads of the 57th member states of OIC, including his Colleague and Brother Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, who mandated the Vice President to sit in for Nigeria. The basic agenda for the meeting is to discuss the barrage of problems facing the muslim world. The crisis in Syria, the crisis in Northern Mali that is threatening the Sahelian region. And you know the Sahelian Region is very important to OIC. Because out of the 15 member states of ECOWAS, 14, I mean 13 are OIC members. And of course the issue of inter faith dialogue; in that respect Nigeria featured prominently. We are the LARGEST Islamo-Christian country in the world, and any dialogue between faiths will come out to the greatest advantage of Nigeria......... ''

hmmm. like father like son

I guess shirk Gummi was right, the army are fighting innocent people instead of Boko Haram

@elrufai: Even Afghanistan won a medal at the 2012 Olympics......says a lot about where we rank even among terror-challenged nations....sad..

Moderators FRONT PAGE

check her twitter account and follow her then, maybe and perhaps her beauty will convince you.

No Compulsion In Religion By Hannatu Musawa
August 8, 2012 - 19:57 — siteadmin
Admin Fields
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Hannatu Musawa
Columnist:
Hannatu Musawa
Sheikh Dr. Ahmad Abubakar Gumi is not only a
knowledgeable Islamic scholar; he exemplifies
the character of a Muslim nurtured from an early
age in a virtuous environment. Having been
taught and raised by his late father, Sheikh
Abubakar Mahmoud Gumi, he serves as a role
model for the spirit and virtue that Muslims can
aspire for and attain.
In the spate of the recent unabashed religious
threats and violence by misguided elements, it
has been necessary for notable and respected
members of the Nigerian Islamic society to
speak out on the outrageously arrogant, criminal
and aggressive actions of people purporting to
speak and act on behalf of Islam. Up until the
recent sermons Sheikh Gumi has given, in which
he has contradicted much of what these
unsavory elements spew, hardly anyone within
the Nigerian Islamic leadership order has had the
courage and persuasion to speak out. Few
Scholars have been brave enough to set the
record straight on the fact that the individuals
and groups presently attacking the peace and
stability in Nigeria by claiming an Islamic
affiliation are operating with a vile distortion of
the noble and peaceful teachings of Islam.
It is regrettable that Islam, a religion of peace,
harmony, goodwill and brotherhood has been
used by unruly and ghastly people to justify
unwarranted acts of violence such as suicide
bombings, threats and other forms of violence.
At the very base of Islam is the quest for
freedom, justice and equality and when a Muslim
uses Islam to threaten and condemn another
because they do not share the same faith, that
discrimination is totally foreign to the pure
teachings and doctrines of Islam. In the Quran,
God bestowed honour on every single individual,
no matter their background, race or tribe. Liberty
and everything that emerges from it are some of
the great favours God has given us and
concepts such as kidnappings, threats and the
kind of unprovoked violence we are seeing in
Nigeria today towards people of a different faith
to Islam, especially the Christian community, are
not part of the true teachings of Islam.
It is so shocking that people claiming to promote
Islam can issue an ultimatum in which they
threaten a Christian president to convert to Islam
or face their wrath. How on earth can they give
a Christian who believes in his religion as much
or even more than they believe in their religion
that kind of ultimatum? Under Islamic
dispensation, it is clearly taught that “There is
no compulsion in religion…” The Qur’an was very
clear on the issue of forced conversion by
stating, “Had your Lord wanted, all the people
on earth would have believed. So will you force
people to believe?”
Throughout history, Muslims themselves were the
targets of forced conversion during the Spanish
Inquisition and the Crusades and the Communist
era of the 20th century and first hand Muslims
understand how unacceptable and unreasonable
such a notion is. Threatening people who don’t
convert to Islam, persecuting non-Muslims and
treating a society in the unjust manner that
extremist elements have been doing most
definitely is not what Islam is about. When one
reads in the Qur’an that Allah encourages
Muslims to deal kindly and justly with anyone of
any faith who has not fought Muslims for our
faith and driven us out of our homes because
God loves the just, one wonders why anyone
would want to put a negative interpretation to
what is clearly a message of patience, peace
and harmony between different faiths cohabiting.
The second source in Islam, after the Qur’an,
are the statements made by the Prophet
Muhammad (SAW), who in his lifetime gave a
clear view on the persecution of non-Muslims
when he stated, “Whoever kills an innocent non-
Muslim will not even smell the fragrance of
Paradise.” How could such statement possibly
be compatible with the extremist ideal for Islam
to force itself onto others? Instead, it makes it
clear that non-Muslims should by no means be
harmed by Muslims.
The one doctrine that is used by extremists to
lend credibility to the notion that Islam
encourages violence is the concept of jihad. The
word Jihad brings into play the vision of a
marching band of religious fanatics with savage
beards, short trousers and fiery eyes,
brandishing swords, screaming in Arabic and
attacking everyone and everything in their wake.
However, the true spirit of Jihad in Islamic terms
means to endeavour and strive in a noble way.
Over time this meaning of Jihad has been
eradicated or at least diluted. The critical
juncture in the Islamic world requires reviving
and recapturing the true and pristine meaning of
Jihad. Jihad can be divided into two broad
categories. First is ‘Jihad-e-akbar’. This is Jihad
against one's own person to curb sinful
inclinations, which is the purification of self. This
is the most difficult Jihad and hence in terms of
rewards and blessings is the highest category of
Jihad. The second is ‘Jihad-e-asghar’. This is
Jihad of the sword. This is communal Jihad and
presupposes certain specific conditions. The
Quran speaks of fighting only as a self defence
and this is the very condition laid down in
several verses of the Holy Quran. The so-called
verse of the sword in the Islamic scripture is
often taken out of context as if it inculcates an
indiscriminate massacre of all non-Muslims. The
Quranic words such as “kill whatever you find
them” apply only in cases of self-defence and a
state of unprovoked war; they do not apply to
provoked wars and battles. The Muslims who
interpret these verses in any other manner
commit a travesty of the lofty ideals of Islam.
There is not a single instance in the life of the
Holy Prophet where he offered the alternative of
the sword or Islam to anyone.
The Holy Quran does not make Jihad in context
of an article of faith. The sayings and traditions
of the Holy Prophet render it into a formula for
active struggle that invariably and incorrectly
tended towards a militant expression. Suicide
bombings, violent threats and killing those of
different faiths just for the sake of killing are
contrary to the purview of the real spirit of the
Islamic Jihad. It is pure and simple mass murder.
The presentation of Islam as a crude and
barbaric religion which gives itself the right to
cause unwarranted human and material suffering
and destruction under the guise of Divine
authority is not the kind of Islam we find in the
precepts of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW).
The basic unity of the followers of all faiths is
emphatically stressed in the Holy Quran and the
creation of discord and disunity by terrorism or
otherwise has no place in Islam. Islam is an all-
encompassing codes of values and conduct and
with those values, those of us that practice it
from the depths of our heart and soul must use
its teachings as a ground of hope to
progressively promote unity and accord in Nigeria
rather than mischievously and maliciously using
it as a justification for violence.
The Holy Quran teaches that God has sent His
revelation to all people from time to time. Jesus
Christ and many of the Prophets of the Old
Testament are mentioned by name and they are
all honoured and revered by all true believing
Muslims. Indeed, the Quran requires belief in the
truth of all the Messengers of God and requires
an affirmation in them all wherever they appear.
And therefore it seeks to bring about
reconciliation between the followers of different
faiths and to establish a basis of respect and
honour among them. The Quran says: “Surely,
those who believe and the Jews and the
Christians and the Sabians - whichever party
from among these truly believes in Allah (God)
and the Last Day and does good deeds, shall
have their reward with their Lord, and no fear
shall come upon them nor shall they grieve.”
In the Holy Scriptures, the Qur’an, Torah and the
Bible, both Christians and Muslims are taught
that God is the Source of peace and the
bestower of security. And since the doctrine of
peace and security are ‘His’’, the establishment
of that peace and maintenance of security must,
therefore, be the constant objective of all
Muslims and Christians alike. Those who choose
to exact a campaign of hatred, violence and
threats against others who have done nothing to
provoke them, purely because others worship in
a different way to them, must revaluate Allah’s
message of peace and harmony and understand
that, only through conformity to the spirit of
peace, patience, conscience and the promotion
of human welfare can we achieve a society
where all can co-exist. If they don’t, they have
only themselves to blame in the hereafter when
they have to make the real account to the
Almighty, All seeing and All Knowing.
Sheikh Dr. Ahmad Abubakar Gumi is a beacon to
the inherent justice in Islam and a brave Scholar,
especially when examined with the lenses of the
present Islamic leadership in Nigeria. Like his
father, he lives a life outstanding in its
dedication to the cause of Allah. May God
protect him and guide him to continue speaking
out against those within the Muslim Ummah
choose to distort the message and meaning of
Islam. Nigerian Muslim, extremists especially,
can learn from Sheikh Gumi when he explores
them to follow Allah accordingly and advises
them that there is no compulsion to Islam.
Hannatu Musawa
I invite you to follow me on Twitter -
@hanneymusawa

But then serious action is need. Kogi is not the same thing as Kano

Add Boko Haram terrorism to their popular trade of thuggery and cultism. The FG must watch Okene. For those that school in ABU Zaria & BUK Kano will tell how the Ebiras & to a lesser extend Igalas practically spearheaded the fight against indecent dress code, clubbing & male - female access to each other campuses.

YEKINI IS NOT AN ARABIC NAME.
YEKINI Is a Yoruba Name.
How do I know, am Hausa and I read Arabic.
Infact apart from Yoruba, which other country, tribe, or ethnic group use YEKINI? NONE of course.

What can you say about this picture

Every time bomb discovered in Lagos. How come all the bombs planted in Lagos never blow off. Are they not the same bombs used in the north? It is either a new different Yoruba sect is perfecting the art of terrorism or all these attempted bombing are mare scripted show by the central government.

I have read more than 50 attempted bombing in the southwest, from that of seme border, to the recent hotel bombing and now a catholic school and yet in all instances the police will say it is a lie.

nice one

The Bomb Blast occurred in an Islamic School in Gero area of Bukuru. The Islamic School was badly damage and a 10 year old boy is the comfimed victim. Below is the lifeless body of the victim at Bukuru Division. Tension is currently high in Bukuru and Jos midtown, but members of the STF & other security agencies have curtailed any possible outbreak of law &
order.

The blast occurred in Gero area of Bukuru, am an eye witness one boy of 10 years is the only victim .