Award-winning Nigerian author, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, has taken a swipe at Nigerian feminists.

Chimamanda in a viral video interview warned Nigerian feminists to stop using feminism to justify their wickedness.

According to her, some young Nigerian ladies in the name of feminism sound really mean and ‘nasty’ which is not the aim of feminism.

Chimamanda said: “I say to young Nigerian feminists – please do not use feminism to justify your wickedness.

“Sometimes, I see some of these young ladies and when talking to them, they sound really mean, and I say to them this isn’t feminism; you’re just being nasty.”

Feminism in the world today aims to combat gender inequality and oppression of women in society.

Watch the video from the source below:


https://www.774ngr.com/2021/04/10/stop-using-feminism-to-justify-wickedness-chimamanda-to-nigerian-young-feminists/

When you hear of military action consisting of intense machine-gun fire backed by air support of helicopter gunships all aimed at communities, the sensible guess is that the incidents described are from wars between hostile countries and the targets are military camps. But Nigeria is where sensible guesses find themselves almost perennially wrong.

The scenario described didn’t happen in a war. It was what transpired in Konshisha LGA, Benue State and the targets were largely innocent Benue indigenes being shot at and strafed by their own national army in what was a policing action. Yes, Policing.

Apparently, there had been an armed attack on a military convoy and the Nigerian Army confirmed that its actions in some communities in Benue State were in response to the armed robbery attacks that led to the death of 11 soldiers attached to Operation WhirlStroke in the Konshisha Local Government Area.

Common sense says that it is unlikely that armed robbers share details of operations with entire LGAs and the Benue State itself has been dealing with attacks from Fulani herdsmen and terrorists for years so it’s quite bizarre to see the Nigerian Army decide to lead with extremely prejudicial military action on peaceful Nigerian communities instead of conducting investigations and letting the right legal channels handle the allocation of guilt and punishment.

There is a weird ruthlessness that comes on the Nigerian Army whenever they are in the South and Middle-Belt that one almost struggles to understand but that struggle would be insincere because the truth is that there’s obviously an ethnic undertone to the entire thing.

The affected areas are in the Northeast of Benue State and the Senator representing the senatorial District, Gabriel Suswam, has criticized the Nigerian Army for treating unarmed Tiv communities like hostile enemy armies that they aren’t. The senator said that attacks like this only served to legitimise the belief in the existence of an agenda to “terrorise, destabilise and depopulate the affected Tiv communities.”

The Nigerian Army is unique among other armies in the world in that it seems to have been structured to focus on internal matters rather than external security issues. Boko Haram is the closest it has ever been to having to actually defend Nigeria from aggression and the results gotten there leave a lot to be desired.
The Nigerian Army holds the Nigerian People in contempt and doesn’t value their lives and this has come from having military rulers who have used the Army to oppress the people. This has given the Army a certain culture that is doing Nigeria no good and it will never be different as long as ex-military personnel are allowed to hold executive power in government.

This attitude didn’t start with the Buhari Administration. The Odi massacre happened under President Olusegun Obasanjo and the unhelpful inclination to violence has given Nigeria an unhelpful culture of violence that is tearing us apart and stopping us from learning to negotiate properly as individuals and communities.

The change has to begin with Nigerians committing to a demilitarisation of the society and government. This would require that we decide to stop voting for people with military experience and place a deliberate focus on improving our capacity for nonviolent interaction.

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It seemed like an act of God when in the same week that the governor of Imo state (as the alleged chief security officer of that state) instructed police officers to defend themselves with their guns when attacked by criminals, the inspector general of police who himself had fingered the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) in the Monday attack on Owerri federal corrections centre–and threatened fire and brimstone–was sacked and replaced by a deputy inspector general.

For the school of thought who believed that this was President Buhari’s damage control move in a region he seemingly bears lasting animosity for, they couldn’t have been more deceived when unconfirmed stories were reported hours later that a security operation has been launched to fish out the perpetrators of the attack which has been denied by IPOB.

The politics that led to the emergence of Usman Alkali Baba as the new inspector general of police leaves a lot to be desired, especially considering that a more senior and qualified DIG Moses Jitoboh from Bayelsa was retired to make the emergence of Baba possible. Jitoboh’s crime was simply that he is from the “wrong side” of the country. With the new IGP’s emergence, the security and paramilitary leadership of the country is now actively skewered against people from the South South and the South East. Only the offices of the Chief of Defence Staff and the Acting Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service were given to people from the South South, with both men–Leo Irabor and John Mbraure respectively–from Delta state.

This ultimately means that enormous responsibility lies with the new police chief. The presidency has already set him up against his colleagues because of the unmeritorious manner in which he emerged as IGP. It would not be the first time the Nigerian government would eschew merit and seniority as a result of influence peddling. As a matter of fact the government even broke its new law on police leadership which states that the inspector general must not be kept one day further in office at the expiration of his tenure, when it extended the immediate past IG’s tenure by two months when it expired on February 1.

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https://www.774ngr.com/2021/04/07/with-new-police-chief-old-problems-remain/

The scale or progression of Kidnapping and banditry in Nigeria is at its worst high as every now and then, national news headlines are splashed with stories of hundreds of school children being kidnapped with the federal government negotiating their release with millions of naira that would have refurbished the country’s degrading infrastructure or settled arrears of salaries owed civil servants.

The tales of national woes from these Kidnapping gangs are not sweet sounding. From April 2014 to December 2020, government has paid Ransome to kidnappers for the release of an estimated 1,200 persons, mostly school children.



Individuals who have encountered these dare-devil gangs have narrated their gruesome and harrowing experiences. Some who were kidnapped on highways, others in their farms while the remaining were picked from their homes.Thankful that they made it back to friends and family, it is also heartbreaking that some lost their lives during those encounters.

It is a mixed reaction for Mark Amechi Emmanuel who was kidnapped in broad day light on the Benin Bypass enroute Delta state on Friday 19th February,2021.
He recounted his “… battling between life and death in the hands of Fulani Kidnappers, the most dreaded experience in Nigeria today”



“ON MY WAY TO WARRI
Friday 19th, February. It was just a very normal early morning, but with a little bit of excitement in the air. I and my family just moved in to our new apartment after making all necessary financial and legal agreements, clean ups and unpacking. As a matter of fact, Thursday night was the first night we slept together in the new apartment. So I was supposed to stay much much longer in bed so as to catch up with my strength. But I had to make this one necessary trip to Warri.

A lot of people who know me didn’t know I have relocated to lagos. Having secured a new apartment, I needed to go back to Warri to pick up some of my household stuff, return, settle and get back to work.



THE JOURNEY
In Nigeria, When you are about to hit the highway on a trip, especially with your own car, alone, you want to first settle in your subconscious that you will be meeting over 20 police, FRSC, Army and Customs check points. So your particulars must be in tact, or else…

As early as 5:30am I was already on lekki Epe express way. The moment I made it passed Ijebu Ode, like role calls, I had already gone passed 3 check points, and faced with the ones ahead. As I made it through the last one, where I was delayed for over 20 minutes, I just called my wife and informed her that I’m entering the Benin Bypass.



FULANI KIDNAPPERS
About 1:15pm. For those who know the Benin bypass area well, I have barely made the round turn coming from Benin Ore express way to settle on my speed ahead, when I heard what seemed like a car tyre burst. It sounded quiet but repeatedly so I looked at my rear mirror and in front to be sure. I also observed the other cars in front of me hitting the breaks in very swift succession. So I knew we all heard the sound. I had to also apply my break thinking something is happening up ahead. But no, it’s already happening in my very before. As I looked to my left I just saw 4 gunmen coming out of the bushes, heavily armed with sharp machetes and AK47s. Several rounds where shot in the air. There were two of them already in our front and back with 4 cars: mine, a Mercedes in my front and two trucks, trapped in the middle. As the gunmen came close, the Mercedes car just picked up acceleration and made a swerve into the Bush on the right. Immediately I heard a voice that ordered one to follow the car, as if they knew he had no where to run to. As one of them was coming close to me I could see the one that seemed to be the leader speaking with the drivers of the two trucks in Hausa language. He then told his men to let them go. By now I was out of my car with both my hands raised up and one entered into my car and was just searching everywhere.



OK, everything was just happening very fast that I wasn’t able to first comprehend the entire situation. I just knew at that moment that I was out of my car, lying face down on the road with a machine gun pointed at me, and someone else is in my car searching it. In my mind I just assumed that these guys will just search my car, maybe take whatever they want and let me go. What was I thinking? What can I even think at that moment. As my mind was going through this confusion, I just heard the leader say “take this one inside, he has family; they’ll pay for him”. What?! Did I just hear “take him inside…., pay for him”? Immediately I heard the tall one close to me saying I should get up or he’ll shoot me. So quickly replied in Hausa language that he shouldn’t shoot me that I’ll cooperate. He then asked me to put my hands slowly inside my pocket and empty it. As I was about to do that, he warned me that if I make a foul move, “one bullet to your head”. He took the money with me and threw away my wallet without considering anything else inside. He then faced the gun at me and in a very malicious tone, said: “oya, dey go inside now or I fire you!”. Turning towards the forest where he’s directing me to enter, I just said to myself, “that’s Fulani accent!”. It was at this point it became dawn on me that I have been Kidnapped by Fulani bandits.

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https://www.774ngr.com/2021/04/07/my-harrowing-experience-in-hands-of-kidnappers-enroute-warri-victim/

The menace of banditry in Kaduna State is now a booming business, though a novel source of threat to the very existence of residents of the state, especially in Giwa Local Government Area.

Giwa LGA has become a hub where the nefarious business of kidnappings, banditry and paying, collection of ransom, is now the order of the day. There has been several incidents linked to this locality.



Precisely, on March 13, 2021, one Mr Anthony Okafor left Sokoto Enroute Zaria on a mission to pay the ransom of about N1.6 million on behalf of his friend, Mr Henry who was among the passengers on a luxurious bus belonging to Ifeanyichukwu Motors Ltd, that was abducted sometimes in Feb. 2021. Unknown to him, it was a journey that was going to take him 17 days before he would be able to see his family again.

According to Mr Anthony, he got to the location somewhere in Galadimawa village in Giwa LGA, the hideout of the bandits. He called the phone number given to him and after some time a man with an AK-47 rifle came to meet him on a bike and asked him to follow him. He initially refused, but after he was threatened he hopped on the bike and rode with the man to their destination. On arrival, he was immediately chained together with the other victims numbering about 32 including a female corp member who has been in captivity for about 36days. Anthony was told that his fate lies in the hands of his family if they are able to pay his ransom.

Meanwhile, they collected the money he came with and subsequently freed the said Mr Henry that same night.

That night marked the beginning of his ordeal in the hands of these evil men. They were fed parboiled rice with palm oil, a quantity of food meant for two was shared by about 15 adults, without water. They wore the same clothing and were not allowed to take their bath. They were made to sleep in the open at night still in chains and on the bare ground. Every other day, in the morning, some herdsmen were invited to come and give them “shayi”, a local hot tea in Hausa parlance. They were subjected to flogging with a horsewhip, to the entertainment of their “Ogas”.



Meanwhile, his wife and kinsmen back in Sokoto were making frantic efforts to secure his release by running around to raise the ransom. They eventually succeeded in doing so and then made a transfer to an account given to them.

Mr. Anthony Okafor was among the eight persons the police in Kaduna State claimed to have rescued from the hands of bandits on March 30. After a ransom of N1m was paid on his behalf, he along with 7 others whose ransom were also paid were released at the dead of the night and escorted to a location where they were left to their fate. They walked throughout the night in the bush until they found themselves in a town, asked for the nearest police station and reported themselves there.

They were then subjected to thorough medical treatment and then fed before taking their statements and thereafter allowed to go.

Click the link below to continue reading..

https://www.774ngr.com/2021/04/06/police-rescued-us-from-our-abductors-untrue-kidnapped-victim-reveals/

The menace of banditry in Kaduna State is now a booming business, though a novel source of threat to the very existence of residents of the state, especially in Giwa Local Government Area.

Giwa LGA has become a hub where the nefarious business of kidnappings, banditry and paying, collection of ransom, is now the order of the day. There have been several incidents linked to this locality.

Precisely, on March 13, 2021, one Mr Anthony Okafor left Sokoto Enroute Zaria on a mission to pay the ransom of about N1.6 million on behalf of his friend, Mr Henry who was among the passengers on a luxurious bus belonging to Ifeanyichukwu Motors Ltd, that was abducted sometimes in Feb. 2021. Unknown to him, it was a journey that was going to take him 17 days before he would be able to see his family again.

According to Mr Anthony, he got to the location somewhere in Galadimawa village in Giwa LGA, the hideout of the bandits. He called the phone number given to him and after some time a man with an AK-47 rifle came to meet him on a bike and asked him to follow him. He initially refused, but after he was threatened he hopped on the bike and rode with the man to their destination. On arrival, he was immediately chained together with the other victims numbering about 32 including a female corp member who has been in captivity for about 36days. Anthony was told that his fate lies in the hands of his family if they are able to pay his ransom.

Meanwhile, they collected the money he came with and subsequently freed the said Mr Henry that same night.

That night marked the beginning of his ordeal in the hands of these evil men. They were fed parboiled rice with palm oil, a quantity of food meant for two was shared by about 15 adults, without water. They wore the same clothing and were not allowed to take their bath. They were made to sleep in the open at night still in chains and on the bare ground. Every other day, in the morning, some herdsmen were invited to come and give them “shayi”, a local hot tea in Hausa parlance. They were subjected to flogging with a horsewhip, to the entertainment of their “Ogas”.

Meanwhile, his wife and kinsmen back in Sokoto were making frantic efforts to secure his release by running around to raise the ransom. They eventually succeeded in doing so and then made a transfer to an account given to them.

Mr. Anthony Okafor was among the eight persons the police in Kaduna State claimed to have rescued from the hands of bandits on March 30. After a ransom of N1m was paid on his behalf, he along with 7 others whose ransom were also paid were released at the dead of the night and escorted to a location where they were left to their fate. They walked throughout the night in the bush until they found themselves in a town, asked for the nearest police station and reported themselves there.

They were then subjected to thorough medical treatment and then fed before taking their statements and thereafter allowed to go.

Click the below link to continue reading
https://www.774ngr.com/2021/04/06/police-rescued-us-from-our-abductors-untrue-kidnapped-victim-reveals/

A suspected kidnapper Abubakar Musa aged 27 was arrested after the Police raided a house in Rurum village at Tudun Wada local Government Area, Kano State.

According to The police spokesperson in Kano, Abdullahi Kiyawa, who confirmed the arrest on Sunday, the Kidnapper was arrested after the abduction of his uncle for N1m ransom.

He said the suspect was arrested with two AK 47 riffles which he affirmed using for his criminal operations and also one of the bandits operating in Kano, Birnin Gwari in Kaduna state and other northern states.

The suspect said he borrowed the guns found in his possession from Muhammadu Bakanoma in Zamfara state to confront another bandit he called Malam at Birnin Gwari, whom he accused of abducting his wife and daughter.

The Police force has reaffirmed its commitment to ensure the protection of the citizens and that these Kidnappers would be put to justice.

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https://www.774ngr.com/2021/04/06/suspect-arrested-for-kidnapping-his-uncle-for-ransom/

Attacks and counter-attacks between the president’s media handlers and Bishop Mathew Hassan Kukah of Sokoto catholic Archdiocese would are ordinarily as polarizing as they come. In his Easter message, the bishop had attacked the Buhari led federal government of “letting the glory depart from Nigeria”, an allegorical reference to the story of Eli in the Christian Bible. The government’s description of the sermon as an “ungodly” and “unfair” attack leaves only one submission: the state of being of the generality of the people they lead is in a better position to judge.

Kukah’s accusation that the Boko Haram insurgency is a lot worse than it was in 2015 is founded on the reality that the longer the war has lasted over the years, despite the government’s claim of technically defeating the terrorists have done more to harm the people living in these war-torn areas. The significant gains the Nigerian military made, which impacted the possibility of the 2015 general election in some of these areas have been eroded because of the increase in sophistication and the hydra-headed nature of the insurgency. This is even as splinter groups have emerged with even more egregious ferocity. If the government believes that things are much better compared with 2014 because Boko Haram does not control large swathes of territories, it should simply drive from Maiduguri to Baga without armed escort to see if it would make it back alive. This has been the reality of Governor Zulum of Borno state who have accused the military of collusion and sabotage.


In Sokoto where Kukah is from, the Boko Haram styled insurgency is gaining roots, with peculiar focus and intensity in Kaduna. Ilela, Goronyo, Sabon Birni as just three out of a number of local governments in which terrorists have taken over, latching unto vast lands of ungoverned spaces. On this particular note, the government scored a huge own goal because the Boko Haram insurgency which it prefers to believe has been largely confined to the northern part of Borno and the Lake Chad Islands have seeped through the established perimetres in the North East, and has become a thriving economy in the North West and Central, given how the Kankara Boys abduction in December 2020 was linked to the Abubakar Shekau led faction of Boko Haram. These things were not a thing in 2014 especially as Ansaru which split from Boko Haram and sought to maintain a stronghold in the north central was largely decimated by the State Security Service with the arrest of its leader in Lokoja in 2016.

The government does not get to tag criticisms of its achievements as unfair. Granted that most of the security crises have existed for decades before 2015 but a central part of the current ruling party’s manifesto and election campaign promises was to solve the problem. What it solved for the first four years instead, was a hitherto unknown levels of blame game never seen before in government circles in the history of Nigeria. Every government that has come to power has either taken responsibility for the country’s woes or identified those within their time who were responsible. There’s no record of throwing blames at previous governments. Only the Buhari regime of 1984 and his government since 2015 stand out exceptionally. And to add, the blame game afforded costly mistakes a lot of time so much so that the distraction of blaming the past administration made it lose sight of the task at hand and ahead, one of the consequences of which was improperly identifying a fast rising insurgency in the North West region by wrongly tagging it as mere “banditry”.

The essence of this piece is not to draw comparisons between the past and present governments. The differences are very clear for anyone to see. The facts are there. Facts are not emotional. Facts don’t care about Garba Shehu’s or Femi Adesina’s feelings. The fact that Nigerians spend 60% of their income on food, or currently have a large amount unemployed people that could rival combined populations in Central Europe does not care about President Buhari’s feelings. At the receiving end of the squabbles between the archbishop of the catholic diocese of Sokoto and the Buhari administration is the poor, destitute Nigerian living on less than $2 a day. The Nigerian farmer in Oyo who cannot access his farm because of militant herders is the real loser. The Ebonyi rice farmer who fears stepping out of his farm either because of communal clashes between Ezza and Effium communities in Ohaukwu, or clashes between the Eastern Security Network and Fulani settlers is the sore loser. It’s the same as the northerner fleeing Boko Haram or bandit and cannot hold down a well-paying job in Lagos because of his limited education.


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https://www.774ngr.com/2021/04/05/between-kukah-nigeria-government-average-nigerian-is-the-sore-loser/

The Kaduna State Government has announced the release of five out of the 39 students kidnapped from the Federal College of Forestry Mechanization in Kaduna.

The students, 23 female and 16 male, were abducted from their hostel on March 11, 2021.

A statement issued in Kaduna Monday by the state Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, said that the five students are undergoing medical checks.

“The Nigerian military has informed the Kaduna State Government that five of the many kidnapped students of the Federal College of Forestry Mechanization, Afaka, Kaduna were recovered this afternoon.

“And are presently in a military facility where they are undergoing a thorough medical check-up.”

Continue reading https://www.774ngr.com/2021/04/05/5-among-kidnapped-forestry-college-students-regain-freedom/

The Chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), Justice Danladi Umar while speaking over his altercation with security guards at Banex Plaza, Abuja said that the mob that attacked was “chanting secessionist and sectional slogan.”

Umar told PRNigeria that the assault has left him traumatised and disappointed.



A viral video on social media had showed that Umar ordered his security details to attack a security guard after a brawl over a breach of parking space.

The CCT chairman was also caught on in the video hitting the security man who had told him his vehicle was parked in the wrong space.

In his defence, Ibraheem Al-Hassan, CCT spokesperson, said the guard was rude and that some “Biafran boys” also harassed his boss.

Continue reading https://www.774ngr.com/2021/04/05/my-attackers-in-abuja-chanted-biafran-slogans-cct-chairman-umar/

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The National Reconciliation and Strategy Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has recommended exemption of nomination fees for youth aspirants seeking elective positions.

The committee made the recommendation in a letter by its chairman and former Senate President, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki, to the PDP National Chairman, Uche Secondus.

As stated in the copy of the committee’s letter made available to newsmen in Abuja Sunday, the committee recommended that any PDP aspirant under the age of 35 contesting elective position should be exempted from the payment of nomination fees.

It also recommended immediate amendment of PDP constitution to that effect.

It advised the constitution should state that “only persons not less than 18 years old and not more than 35 years could contest for the position of youth leader at all levels of the party structure – wards, local government, state and national”.

The committee explained that the recommendation was as a result of the meeting held with the party’s national youth leader and other youth leaders across the 36 states on March 19.

President Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated Bola Tinubu on his 69th birthday.

Buhari hailed the former two-term Governor of Lagos State, “whose acumen and influence according to him, continue to resonate around the country and beyond”.



Buhari joined the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and its members in congratulating Tinubu, according to his spokesman, Femi Adesina.

On the 12th colloquium, an academic meeting to celebrate his birthday, the President remembered the “patriot and statesman.”

Buhari said that the event had evolved over the years into a veritable forum for debating current national issues and generating ideas that would propel the country forward.


Continue reading here...https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/28/tinubu-remains-influential-in-nigeria-buhari/

On the theme, “Our Common Bond, Our Common Wealth: Imperative of National Cohesion for Growth and Prosperity’’, Buhari said the choice further highlights progressives’ loyalty to the country.

The National Reconciliation and Strategy Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has recommended exemption of nomination fees for youth aspirants seeking elective positions.

The committee made the recommendation in a letter by its chairman and former Senate President, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki, to the PDP National Chairman, Uche Secondus.

As stated in the copy of the committee’s letter made available to newsmen in Abuja Sunday, the committee recommended that any PDP aspirant under the age of 35 contesting elective position should be exempted from the payment of nomination fees.

It also recommended immediate amendment of PDP constitution to that effect.

It advised the constitution should state that “only persons not less than 18 years old and not more than 35 years could contest for the position of youth leader at all levels of the party structure – wards, local government, state and national”.

Continue reading here... https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/28/pdp-youths-may-get-nomination-fees-waiver/

Operatives of the Lagos Zonal Office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, have arrested 24 suspected internet fraudsters in Ogun state.

The suspects are: Oladitan Olakunle Dauda, Olapade Olawale Segun, Babayemi Oluwaseun Adeyemi Yahyah, Adesoye Olayode Samuel, Sani Lekan Olaniyi, Sulaimon Adeyinka abdulahi, Sanni Olanrewaju Saheed, Oladele Adebola Felix, Idowu Afis Olamilekan, Adeniran Emmanuel Oluwaseun, Alarape Sakiru Olawale,Yusuf Waheed, Olajide Segun Yinka, Aderibigbe Ibikunle Adedeji, Okerin Olamilekan Emmanuel and Adelakun Owolabi Samuel.

Others are: Olajide Ayobami Paul, Okenla Hammed Adetola, Akorede Adebayo Aderemi, Ajibola Azeez Olayinka, Salaudeen Taofeeq Olawale, Solomon Akintoye Omisakin, Ibraheem Saheed Ayinde and Odusanya Olawale Abiodun.

They were arrested at their various residences in the Sango area of Ogun State, on Sunday, following intelligence reports received by the Commission about their involvement in the alleged criminal activities.

Items recovered from the suspects include exotic cars, mobile phones of various brands, laptop computers, Wi-Fi and modem devices.

The suspects will soon be charged to court.

Rangers International FC of Enugu, on Thursday at the main bowl of Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu thrashed a local club side, AC United 4-2 in a friendly encounter.

The test match is in preparation for the Flying Antelopes’ matchday 18 away encounter with Plateau United FC in the ongoing Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) season.

AC United, an amateur club side based in Enugu unexpectedly took the lead in the 20th minute through Maduabuchi Okah.

Ifeanyi Nwobodo compounded the woes of the NPFL club side when he doubled the lead of the amateur side in the 34th minute.

However, Rangers FC reduced the scoreline in the 40th minute through a well-taken spot-kick by Okey Nwadike.

Ojukwu Ifegwu, however, restored parity for the Rangers when he made it 2-2 in the 52nd minute of the game.

In the 60th minute, Kelvin Itoya failed to put Rangers FC in front when he missed a spot-kick in an effort that drew a fantastic save from the goalkeeper of AC United, Chinedu Udeh.

However, Ifegwu completed his brace in the 85th minute to make it 3-2 for Rangers FC before Ugochukwu Ugwuoke added one more goal to make the tally 4-2 from the spot-kick in the 89th minute.

In an interview after the match, the Chief Coach of AC United, Callistus Ezebuike described the match as a grade one test game for his team.

Ezebuike said that such friendlies were needed to give his players the needed exposure and confidence.

He applauded the resilience of his players for the mental strength they exhibited which he said overstretched the Rangers players.



“Rangers FC has international players so the exposure and experience of this match are all we need,’’ Ezebuike said.

https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/25/rangers-fc-win-big-in-npfl-test-match/

The chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Buba Marwa has said young Nigerians would soon be required to certify themselves free from illicit drugs before they could get married.

Marwa said that parents will be asked to list drug-free documents as part of requirements for approving their children’s marriage.



The NDLEA chairman made agency’s decision known Thursday in Ado-Ekiti at a colloquium tagged: “Walk Away from Drugs’’, a programme organised by Ekiti Ministry of Justice He described the menace of drug use in the country as “worrisome’’.

He said, “In Nigeria today, there is no challenge that is more worrisome than drug abuse.



“For instance, insurgency, kidnapping and banditry are seen as peculiar to certain parts of the country, but drug abuse has no boundary or respect for ethnicity or religion.

“The menace is so worrisome that within the last two months, more than N60 billion worth of illicit drugs have been seized and perpetrators arrested and prosecuted.

https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/20/ndlea-drug-free-certificates-to-be-requirement-before-marriage-buba-marwa/

Armed bandits have killed two staff of the Federal Polytechnic, Kaura Namoda in Zamfara State, Usama Nazifi and Bashiru Muhammad.

The gunmen who raided a low-cost area of Kaura Namoda in the early hours of Wednesday, March 24, shot Nazifi, 37, and Muhammad, 39, dead, according to reports.

According to Nazifi’s brother, who spoke to journalists, bandits broke into the deceased’s home around 2:30 a.m. and demanded that he open his door, but he screamed and called for help.

“When my brother realised that the unknown gunmen invaded his house, he raised alarm shouting for help from his neighbours, and after asking his family to go back inside the house, he went straight to the main gate of the house to know what was exactly happened but unfortunately, the gunmen opened fire on him” he said. 

https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/24/armed-bandits-kill-two-poly-staff-in-zamfara/

Heavyweight contender, Dillian Whyte, believes the scheduled unification fight between heavyweight champions Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury could go either way.

Fury and Joshua have signed a mega-contract for two fights, and will put their titles on the line in an undisputed clash, with the first likely to take place this summer.



Former undisputed heavyweight champion Iron Mike Tyson predicted that Fury would be “too elusive” for Joshua when they meet. But Whyte, in an op-ed for the BBC, wrote: “Joshua is strong, has good speed and he’s shown resilience coming back when he’s been hurt against other fighters.

“Against Andy Ruiz he got knocked out, but he showed versatility second time around in the rematch, not taking any chances.

https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/24/anthony-joshua-tyson-fury-fight-could-go-either-way-says-dillian-whyte/

Does Nigeria get optimal value as a nation for the effective subsidy Dangote gets via lenient forex rates and tax exemptions?



It is amazing to see the extent to which Nigeria’s macroeconomic policies are tweaked to give Dangote’s companies favourable treatment that doesn’t translate into cost-effective benefits for the rest of the nation. Macroeconomic policy should help create a stable economic environment for the majority.

Nigeria today reminds one of the George Orwell book Animal Farm in so many ways. Apart from the sacred Cows, there’s also how much discomfort we face because of the actions of the many, who for narcissistic reasons are committed to putting the cart before the horse. One of such actions happened over the last week of February, but this event quietly slipped through the cracks because of a slew of high-profile school kidnappings. It bears looking at, however.

On February 28, the Chief Strategy Officer of Dangote Group, Aliyu Suleiman said that the importation rights for petrol should be awarded only to licensed and active refineries in Nigeria. This demand was in his speech to members of the National Assembly’s Joint committee on the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) who paid a visit to the site of the Dangote Refinery, which is under construction, and slated to be soon finished.

Suleiman insisted that any need to supplement shortfalls in the local production of petroleum products, due to maintenance procedures or whatever else, should be legally limited to the companies with active refining licences. This means that they should be the ones to benefit from their own failure to do what they were licensed and partly subsidised to deliver to the marketplace. This idea could also prevent the forces of demand and supply from determining market trends, with imports not being allowed to compete with local supply and hopefully get us a truly competitive pricing regime.

The very fact that demands like this can be made openly and to members of a National Assembly that should be made up of people who look out for their respective constituencies, shows us how unbalanced things are. For starters, we ought to understand that Nigeria will not move forward just by virtue of Dangote being made wealthier. You do not lift a society by taking from everyone so you can make one person a god. The deification of an individual at the expense of the majority is not useful.

We really should not have to remind people who have spent almost half a century in and around government that the personalisation of government policy is a flawed approach that’s responsible for much of the damage associated with less balanced government models like monarchies and theocracies.

A public policy is a course or principle of action chosen by a government for the achievement of specific goals that should ideally favour as much of the society as possible.

What exactly does Nigeria gain from even contemplating personalising its petroleum importation policy and resource for Dangote and agreeing to reward the company for failure in production, if the outcomes won’t alleviate the problems?

https://www.premiumtimesng.com/opinion/450128-of-dangote-and-near-absolute-monopolies-by-cheta-nwanze.html

Does Nigeria get optimal value as a nation for the effective subsidy Dangote gets via lenient forex rates and tax exemptions?



It is amazing to see the extent to which Nigeria’s macroeconomic policies are tweaked to give Dangote’s companies favourable treatment that doesn’t translate into cost-effective benefits for the rest of the nation. Macroeconomic policy should help create a stable economic environment for the majority.

Nigeria today reminds one of the George Orwell book Animal Farm in so many ways. Apart from the sacred Cows, there’s also how much discomfort we face because of the actions of the many, who for narcissistic reasons are committed to putting the cart before the horse. One of such actions happened over the last week of February, but this event quietly slipped through the cracks because of a slew of high-profile school kidnappings. It bears looking at, however.

On February 28, the Chief Strategy Officer of Dangote Group, Aliyu Suleiman said that the importation rights for petrol should be awarded only to licensed and active refineries in Nigeria. This demand was in his speech to members of the National Assembly’s Joint committee on the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) who paid a visit to the site of the Dangote Refinery, which is under construction, and slated to be soon finished.

Suleiman insisted that any need to supplement shortfalls in the local production of petroleum products, due to maintenance procedures or whatever else, should be legally limited to the companies with active refining licences. This means that they should be the ones to benefit from their own failure to do what they were licensed and partly subsidised to deliver to the marketplace. This idea could also prevent the forces of demand and supply from determining market trends, with imports not being allowed to compete with local supply and hopefully get us a truly competitive pricing regime.

The very fact that demands like this can be made openly and to members of a National Assembly that should be made up of people who look out for their respective constituencies, shows us how unbalanced things are. For starters, we ought to understand that Nigeria will not move forward just by virtue of Dangote being made wealthier. You do not lift a society by taking from everyone so you can make one person a god. The deification of an individual at the expense of the majority is not useful.

We really should not have to remind people who have spent almost half a century in and around government that the personalisation of government policy is a flawed approach that’s responsible for much of the damage associated with less balanced government models like monarchies and theocracies.

A public policy is a course or principle of action chosen by a government for the achievement of specific goals that should ideally favour as much of the society as possible.

What exactly does Nigeria gain from even contemplating personalising its petroleum importation policy and resource for Dangote and agreeing to reward the company for failure in production, if the outcomes won’t alleviate the problems?

https://www.premiumtimesng.com/opinion/450128-of-dangote-and-near-absolute-monopolies-by-cheta-nwanze.html

One of the easiest things to steal without planning a heist is a married man! It’s beginning to seem like a great number of this class of commodity are eager to be snatched away temporarily and if you are lucky to get a good or fair deal, they come with lots and lots benefits and little or no baggage. If you are determined and temporarily want him to yourself, here are a few very easy steps to steal him.

Greet him with a smile

It’s as simple as putting on a smile when you greet them, it means a lot to them when a young lady acknowledges them with a smile. just smile at him from time to time, and before you know it, he’ll be all yours.

Walk past him

Once you have set your eyes on your man crush, you don’t have to do much after that. Just walk past him a few times and occasionally lock eyes with him, he will walk up to you and finish the job himself.

Follow him on social media

Send him a request on instagram and face-book, this is a way to get him to notice you and visit your profile see the hot stuff you are made of.

Like his pictures on social media

This works like magic. This will make him feel like a hot stuff and get him to be on the lookout for your likes when next he posts.


https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/18/best-way-to-snatch-married-nigerian-man/

Residents of a community in Lagos state assaulted a staff of Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company while carrying out his job.

It was gathered that he had gone to disconnect the power line of bill defaulters when he was attacked by members of the area who claimed they have not seen power for three weeks.

In a picture which surfaced online, a man with deep cuts in his head was being stitched up by medical personnel.

According to Twitter user, @Nigeriangod_, who posted the photo, residents of the community attacked the IKEDC for disconnecting electricity shortly after coming out of three weeks power outage in the area.

In the picture the man could be seen bleeding and groaning in pain as he received medical attention.

@Nigeriangod_ wrote;

“Bottles was smashed on a staff of ikeja Electricity staff that came to disconnect light in a community that have (sic) no light for the past 3weeks.

Well deserved punishment or undeserving?”


https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/18/20-injured-as-gas-explodes-at-filling-station-in-ilorin/

As many as 20 people have sustained injuries after a gas explosion occurred at Bovas filling station, in Ilorin, Kwara state capital.

It was gathered that the incident which happened on Wednesday at Offa Garage saw many people scampering to safety.

Speaking with journalists, a bread seller who witnessed the incident at the filling station, Iyabo Olorunnisola, said:

“The explosion happened some minutes to 11a.m and we just heard a loud bang and smoke taking over the whole filling station and we all scampered to safety, not knowing what was happening.

“In the ensuing melee, several people sustained bruises, while some of those in the filling station like hawkers, petrol attendants and those buying fuel were injured.”

Also, a shop owner, Azeez Iyiola, who spoke on the incident, said:

“The explosion was from the commercial gas plant located inside the filling station.

“It was dispensing and suddenly exploded, it was however immediately brought under control, although several people sustained varying degrees of injury.”



https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/18/20-injured-as-gas-explodes-at-filling-station-in-ilorin/

A 97-year-old rape victim in Yobe State has said she had not had sex in over 40 years until the encounter with her infatuated assailant recently.

It was gathered that the woman lost two teeth from the pounding she received from her rapist who forcibly tried to cover her mouth.



The woman was brought to the state CID headquarters in Damaturu from Gadaka for investigation.

She looked tired and fatigued but could still speak clearly and answer a few questions.

Her 35-year-old rape suspect has been remanded in police custody by a magistrate court.

Mohammed Faruk on February 8, 2021 invaded the woman’s house at Gadaka, Fika Local Government Area, and assaulted and raped her.



A police statement released by spokesman Dungus Abdulkarim said the suspect confessed to the crime.

The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and its allies are currently at the National Assembly Complex, protesting moves by lawmakers to remove minimum wage from Exclusive Legislative List to Concurrent Legislative List.

The union had on Tuesday, mobilised its members across the country to embark on the protest today (Wednesday).



Those residing in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, were asked to converge at the National Assembly complex, while members in the 36 states were also urged to block state assemblies.


In a circular by NLC in Abuja on Tuesday, labour leaders disclosed that the protest would start from the Unity Fountain Abuja at 7:30am, to the National Assembly complex.

The bill to remove the minimum wage from Exclusive List to Concurrent List was sponsored by Garba Datti Mohammed of Sabon Gari Federal Constituency, Kaduna State, and has passed the first and second reading in the House of Representatives.


https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/10/labour-union-storms-national-assembly-in-protest-against-reclassifying-minimum-wage-photos/

Reports had it that a fisherman in Warri Delta State, days ago, caught a Blue Marlin fish and ate it with people in his community.

Though there are immense nutritional benefits derived from consuming the Blue Marlin fish, like smooth blood circulation, lowering high cholesterol, prevention of acne, maintaining bone and teeth health ,healthy development of brain cells and other perks, the fish is highly prized in tournaments and are worth thousands of pounds.



Nigeria has one of the longest coastlines in Africa which if properly muzzled can boost the economy by the multiple value chain that would emanate from the enormous untapped market within our sovereign territory.

The Blue Marlin fish is one of the fastest fishes on earth and one of the top sporting fishes in the world. A Blue Marlin fish is valued at about $31,000 per pound which is about N14.5 million. Although the adult males seldom exceed 150 kg, females may reach far larger sizes well in excess of 450 kg.



In the United States , the week long fishing competition held annually called The White Marlin Open in Ocean City, Maryland pegs the star prize at $2.6million and sees more than 300 boats participating.

The warri Fisher man who caught the Blue Marlin fish may have been ignorant of these and other details but as Comrade Phils a Facebook User believes that eating the fish was the best option for the warri Fisher man and actually puts it this way
‘I heard this fish is worth N14m per pound and about 1.2B in full.It is called the Blue Marlin Fish. It was caught of Nigerian coast by a Nigerian fisherman and shared among villagers.

https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/09/warri-blue-marlin-fish-hunger-ignorance-killing-nigeria-economy/

President Mohammadu Buhari will today perform the ground breaking ceremony to flag off the construction of Eastern railway corridor (PH-Maiduguri rail way).

The Port Harcourt to Maiduguri rail starts from Bonny, with a deep seaport approved by the President already but handled by a private firm, and then a rail line from Bonny to Port Harcourt, connecting the whole states in South East (Aba-Umuahia-Awka-Abakaliki-Enugu) to Makurdi – Lafia – Jos – Kafanchan – Bauchi – Gombe – Damaturu and Maiduguri, with a spur from Port Harcourt to Owerri.

https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/09/buhari-to-flag-off-construction-of-ph-maiduguri-rail-way/

A Swedish woman who joined the so-called Islamic State (IS) in Syria was sentenced Monday to three years in prison for taking her young son with her, the first time Sweden has convicted an IS woman.

The 31-year-old woman, who arrived in Syria via Turkey in mid-2014, was convicted of “arbitrary conduct with a child” for putting her then two-year-old son’s life at risk, the court said in a ruling obtained by AFP.



After her arrest by Kurdish forces in early 2018 followed by lengthy detentions in prison camps, the woman managed to flee to Turkey in early 2020. She was expelled to Sweden in November, with her son and two other children born from her marriage to an IS fighter.

The court in the southern town of Lund ruled that the woman must have known she was travelling to a war zone controlled by the jihadist organisation which had just declared a caliphate in the territories it controlled in Syria and Iraq.

https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/09/is-mother-jailed-for-jeopardising-sons-life/

That Nigeria is facing its worst security crisis in decades is no longer in question. What is often not examined or talked about is the human cost of Nigeria’s slow descent into doom.

According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, 55,000 people were displaced between December 2018 and February 2019, over 30,000 of whom arrived in Borno’s capital Maiduguri. Maiduguri already hosts more than one million internally displaced persons (IDP) in 14 camps and host communities. Because the existing camps cannot cope with the sudden influx, the authorities are in the process of opening a new IDP camp.



Nearly 22,000 Nigerians have been reported as missing to the ICRC during a decade of conflict in northeast Nigeria, the highest number of missing persons registered with the ICRC in any country.



What is more damning in this development is that nearly 60 per cent were minors at the time they went missing, meaning thousands of parents don’t know where their children are and if they are alive or dead.

Continue reading here .. https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/08/__trashed-5/

The Edo State Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu, has provided reasons he joined forces with Governor Godwin Obaseki to wrestle former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.

According to him, Oshiomhole and his followers fell by the road because the former Governor did not actually believe in the agenda of the current administration in the State.

Speaking in Benin, Shaibu said they began the revolution to liberate Edo out of the hands of individuals that will mortgage their collective heritage and wealth and be flying jets all over.

“We said there must be a change and that godfathers must be brought to their knees and people must decide who lead them while leaders must be accountable to the people and not a few godfathers,” he said.

Continue reading here... https://www.774ngr.com/2021/03/09/i-brought-oshiomhole-others-to-their-kneels-edo-deputy-gov-boasts/