₦airaland Forum

Trut:
So, he should worship again because of silly court order?

Woman Convicted of Unlawfully Obtaining Citizenship Through Sham Marriage in Houston

HOUSTON – A Louisville, Kentucky, resident has admitted she unlawfully obtained citizenship by entering into a sham marriage with a Houston man, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez.

Nigerian native Euphemia Chinyeaka Okeke, 41, admitted to marrying a Houston resident and U.S. citizen while in Nigeria. She then applied for an immigrant visa and alien registration based on that marriage, claiming her permanent residence would be Houston.

However, shortly after she arrived in the United States, Okeke conceived a child and lived in Louisville with Kenneth Okeke, a Nigerian citizen with no legal status to reside in the United States. Mr. and Mrs. Okeke have since lived in Louisville and have two children together there.

In her application for naturalization, however, she testified under oath and penalty of perjury that since arriving in this country, she continuously lived in Houston with her purported husband and no one else, had not lived in any other place in the United States and had no children. She became a naturalized citizen on Sept. 14, 2011.

Less than a month later, Euphemia Okeke filed for divorce. She married Kenneth Okeke two weeks later and filed a petition for alien relative in an attempt to obtain lawful immigration status for him. In that petition, she stated under oath and penalty of perjury that she was divorced two years before she actually was and that she had lived and worked in Louisville since arriving in the United States.

U.S. District Judge Melinda Harmon accepted the plea and has set sentencing for Aug. 4, 2017. At that time, Euphemia Okeke faces up to 10 years in federal prison and possible revocation of her citizenship.

Kenneth Okeke is currently in deportation proceedings.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Goldman is prosecuting the case.

By Emma Amaize

https://thewillnigeria.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/EDO.png

WARRI—THE Ijaw People’s Development Initiative, IPDI, Delta State, stirred a fresh controversy between the Ijaw and Bini ethnic groups, yesterday, when it declared that Ijaw people had settled in the present-day Edo State before the Bini. It claimed that the Ijaw currently proclaiming ownership of the Gelegelegbene community in the state, came from Egypt after a short stay at Sudan and Ile-Ife. National president of the group, Austin Ozobo, in a statement, challenged the Edo Forum of Patriots and Bini Solidarity Movement, both of which it said alleged that Bini owned Gelegele, an Ijaw community, with misleading information, to prove their case with historical facts.

The group asserted: “Our attention has been drawn to statements credited to Edo Forum of Patriots and Bini Solidarity Movement, where they alleged that Gelegele, an Ijaw community, belonged to the Bini, citing some distorted and contorted black market court judgments. It is imperative to state that Bini is laying false claim to Gelegelegbene community. “The community is owned by Ijaw of Gelegele.

They are neither Benin visitors nor strangers. History has it that Ijaw first landed in Benin before the arrival of Edo- speaking people from Egypt after a short stay in Sudan and Ile-Ife.The aborigines of that land before the arrival of the Bini are the Ijaw of Olodiama, Egbema, Gbaraun, Okomu, and Furupagha clans in the present-day Ovia North, South-West and Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Areas.” IPDI quoted a renowned Benin traditional historian and member of the royal society of the House of Iwebo, Chief Jecob U. Egharevba of blessed memory, as saying unambiguously in his book, titled, A Short History of Benin (1968), Page 1: “Many, many years ago, the Bini came all the way from Egypt to found a more secure shelter in this part of the world after a short stay in Sudan and Ile-Ife, which the people called Uhe.

Tradition says that they met some people who were in the land before their arrival…” IPDI contended: “This implies that the Ijaw are the original natives of the current Edo State and not the Bini, who are non-natives of Edo state. Ijaw have their kingdoms which are different from Bini Kingdom. No Benin settlement is found among these aforementioned places. Ijaw are older than the Bini in current Edo State, but are being oppressed by the Bini for a very long time.

“Perhaps, another historian, who bore witness to the invasion of Ijawland by the Yoruba new visitors is E. Alademomi Kenyo, who in his book titled The Origin and Title of Yoruba Rulers (N.D) Page 3, stated: ‘Up till time, the Oba (in Benin) and his people were pure Yoruba and did not understand the language of the aborigines, who usually salute themselves and the new people (the Bini) Adoo, Dolo.” “Going by the above author, the land they refer to as Bini land today belongs to the Ijaw people.No amount of distortion of history or documents of Benin will deter Ijaw from being focused.

In the same book, the author stated: ‘About 1170 AD, Prince Oranmiyan, one of the sons of Oduduwa of Ife, the father and progenitor of the Yoruba Obas………succeeded in reaching the city after much trouble at Ovia River with the ferryman (ibid) Page 6. About a century later, another Oba, Ewedo, had to undergo similar troubles to those which his great-grand father, Prince Oranmiyan, had from the ferryman at Ovia River, (ibid page 9).” “These are clear facts that Benins are occupying Ijaw land and should be grateful to Ijaw for accommodating them. No wonder, the ferryman in Ovia River was fighting them, we concede that he knew their expansionist and land rustling agenda, hence he was fighting and resisting the Yoruba visitors,” the group further said.

It added: “It is wrong for Edo Forum of Patriots, Benin Solidarity Movement and other Benin people to have stated that Gelegelegbene is under the kingship of Oba of Benin, we make bold to challenge them to support their claims with historical facts.” “Prof. Alan Ryder, a British national and former professor of history at University of Ibadan in his book, ‘Benin and the Europeans 1485-1897,’ Page 27 writes, ‘Whichever of the slave rivers the Portuguese frequented, the people they first met and traded with, would have belonged to Ijo (Ijaw) tribe, which at that time dominated the coastal belt of the swamp forest, extending inland to a depth of 30-40miles in the region. It is shocking for Benin Solidarity Movement to equally say that government and oil companies should not have direct dealings with Gelegelegbene community, what a disappointment. We should respect our individual rights. It is Ijaw’s right to benefit whatever is emanating from their land.

“The Bini cannot decide for them, Ijaw cannot cede Gelegele to Bein, it is on record that up till now, Israel is still fighting for their lost lands. Such inflammatory utterances by the Binis will do nobody any good, but will only propel Ijaw to continue to fight like the Israelite to reclaim its lost lands. Ijaw are not greedy people, the proposed EPZ and seaport projects in Gelegelegbene community will benefit everybody, including the Binis. They do not need to unlawfully claim Gelegelegbene to benefit. They should apologize for calling Ijaw in Edo state non- natives and stop further infuriating comments. There is no history that says that Bini gave land to Ijaw to settle in the current Edo state, such lies are meant to mislead the general public and such is capable of fanning ethnic discord,”

walls01:
You need to ask your self the right questions, why all this religion. It is clear that no matter how you reason it life cannot start with a dot as the evolution theory puts it, or a non living thing giving rise to a living thing, having make this points clear there is a God, why not do research to know what is really happening in the world and why so many religions

krispycash:
Brother...
It is not in the reading... Before u pick up a bible ... U should have faith... Believe that God is your source and Jesus Christ is His son....
Not everything is black and white as u would want to believe... Because it is easier to believe ....
The Bible isn't disjointed... It takes wisdom and spiritually assisted insight to understand the bible... It isn't just another dean koontz novel...

So u do not understand what it entails to be a Christian... The shaded grey areas between black and white is where spirituality lays....

Chikelue2000:
May Gods mercy shine upon ur life, may d death of Jesus make meaning in u

By Murtala Muhammad, Kano | 11 May 2017

The Kano State House of Assembly yesterday raised an eight-man committee to investigate fresh allegations against the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II.

Headed by the Chief Whip and member representing Warawa constituency, Labaran Abdul Masai, the panel is mandated to probe the alleged false claims made by the monarch against the state government to ridicule Governor Adullahi Umar Ganduje.

It is also to look into his alleged ventilation at the President Muhammadu Buhari administration among other accusations. It has 14 days to submit its report.


The decision followed a motion raised during plenary by the representative of Nassarawa constituency, Ibrahim Ahmad Gama, wherein he accused the traditional ruler of going against rules and constituted authority in the state.
He told the House that Sanusi had allegedly tarnished the image of the governor and some members of the Assembly while on an official visit to China. Gana further claimed that the monarch, on that trip, accused the concerned people of financial reckless and wasteful spending of scarce resources.

The lawmaker, who also accused the emir of bringing the emirate into disrepute when he sent his daughter to represent him at an official function in Abuja, equally demanded for a revisit of the N4 billion financial malfeasance earlier levelled against Sanusi. The fund was claimed to have been left behind by his predecessor, the late Alhajo Ado Bayero.

Seconding the motion, the member representing Municipal constituency, Baffa Baba Danagundi, called for a swift action to mitigate the effect of the alleged damage caused by state.

sarrki:
How ?

A renowned political economist and former presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress party, Prof. Pat Utomi, tells TOBI AWORINDE that the Federal Government should initiate dialogue with Biafra agitators

What is your reaction to the release of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu?

I think that it begins a process of redeeming Nigeria. The regard that nations have in today’s world is defined by a few basic things, amongst them human freedom, regard for the rule of law, and institutions that try to ensure that our conduct essentially gives dignity to the human person. So, I think that any decision that brings us more into line with civilised conduct takes us away from attribution of impunity, which is really what has described the story of Nigeria in the last 50 years, a country with extraordinary potential, which sadly has been in a mood of state capture. There has been a state capture in Nigeria since 1966 and the culture and tradition of those who have dominated this society completely for 50 years has been a culture of arbitrariness and exercise of personal authority over due process. Part of what this has done is that it has created a level of uncertainty that has struck me remarkably in the last one week, travelling and speaking in the US.

Years ago, I wrote a piece titled The Generation That Left Town, in which I was talking about the talented Nigerians who just couldn’t take it anymore, and one by one, one ticket after the other, they left our country. I travel all the time; I’m in the States and in Europe several times every year, sometimes, almost every month. Day before yesterday (Monday), I was at the Atlanta airport, from one flight to another, a total of about two hours or so. I am not joking, up to 12 different sets of Nigerians came to say hello to me — Nigerians who live in America, some of them working in the airports there. It struck me: my God, we’ve lost a generation in this country and this is the result of the impunity and arbitrariness of the Class of ’66 that exercised state capture over Nigeria, which caused this country to lose its best talents.

So, when you see some moving away from that tradition, like releasing a person who has not been found guilty after being held for two years, then you would think to yourself, ‘Perhaps this is a redeeming process.’

In the run-up to the 2015 presidential election and even after winning, there were some concerns about President Muhammadu Buhari’s antecedent as a military head of state. But the President claimed that he had become a converted democrat. Do you think that Kanu’s 18-month detention points to the President’s dictatorial history?

I don’t want to think anything. Everything now is guesswork. All I want to do is hope that my country continues in the tradition of the rule of law, in the tradition of institutions that respect the dignity of the human person. Forget what they say about the so-called strongmen of Asia that built strong economies. (There is) no modern state that makes continuous progress that does not try to build strong institutions. The reason is very simple: when people are making decisions, including economic choices like investment decisions, what they ask themselves is, if I cannot anticipate behaviour, what is the likelihood that I will lose this investment I’m making? Imagine a civilian governor, just like the military in Nigeria, your predecessor made a decision, followed rules, and without even blinking an eye, you violate the property rights of the person (citizen) that is involved and you think, because of arbitrariness that is the way of Nigeria, ‘who can do anything to me, I’m governor?’ Well, you’ll be governor for eight years and come out, and somebody else will do the same thing to you. That is how limited they are; they don’t think.

The point is that the arbitrariness continues, and because it continues, many people will not invest in a country like Nigeria. So, the growth, the development, the future of our children that we all look forward to continues to elude us and Nigeria continues to be a laughing stock in the world in terms of its prospect, its possibilities and what it manages to accomplish. It is important that people in public positions of authority recognise how consequential acting properly — according to the rule of law, respect of property rights of others, etc. — is for development and progress. Of course, a book that has come to summarise it fairly well for many people was written by a Turkish-American professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the London School of Economics, (Daron) Acemoğlu, and (James) Robinson. The book is titled Why Nations Fail (2012). People forget that I wrote almost exactly the same thing in a book titled Why Nations Are Poor (2006), several years before Robinson and Acemoğlu’s book. And it has not changed. In 1998, I wrote a book titled Managing Uncertainty, looking exactly at the same phenomenon: institutions, state failure, and economic performance. So, honestly, it is painful to see Nigerian leaders, one after the other, not recognising the full consequences of their behaviour for the long-term good of all.

Several prominent members of the South-East were unhappy about the bail conditions for Kanu’s release. Do you feel the same way?

I find some of them sort of strange. I’m not sure where they come from. I was not deeply involved, so I don’t know how they came about the thing about a Jewish leader. Is Nnamdi Kanu a Jew?

Reports say the court asked Kanu what religion he professes and he replied saying he practises Judaism.

Oh, so that’s where the Jewish leader came from. Anyhow, those are peripheral issues. I think the important thing is that bail conditions, if they are too harsh, amount to the same thing as not granting a bail. However, it seems that they were not so harsh that he could not meet them.

Did you participate at all in the process to secure his release?

I don’t know what process took place, but I know that Nzuko Umunna (a global group of Igbo’s thought leaders) had created a committee to engage in any discussion regarding Nnamdi Kanu release. I was supposed to be chairman of that committee, but as it turned out, I don’t think that the committee formally went into any negotiation at the time that the bail condition was finally announced.

Since he got out of prison, have you contacted him? Has he spoken with you?

No, as you know very well, I’ve been out of the country travelling. I just got in this afternoon (Wednesday). But the leadership of Nzuko Umunna, I trust, have in different ways probably been reaching out to him.

One of the conditions given for Kanu’s release on bail was that he would not be in a crowd of up to 10 people. A picture has since emerged on social media of Kanu, moments after his release, where he is posing with a group of about 12 and some have argued that he violated that condition. Do you agree?

(Laugh) I didn’t see the picture. I think I am even more fascinated by (Ekiti State Governor) Ayo Fayose’s visit and — who was it that drove him from the prison? Femi (Fani-Kayode)?

That was former aviation minister, Osita…

Osita Chidoka, yes. I think I’m fascinated by all of that. Maybe it might even become a rallying point to unite Nigeria. In many ways, I am fascinated by Fayose. Sometimes, people who are strong-willed and focused on certain things eventually have become symbols of some things. And Fayose may yet surprise people to be a major factor in the realignment and rebuilding of this country. I find it fascinating; he has good political judgment.

But a lot of people see Fayose as …

Opportunistic?

Exactly, he is perceived as opportunistic.

All politics is opportunistic. I don’t understand it, but I think that all this touchiness in the politics of the South-West/South-East needs to blow over. In my view, we have two stages of quick moves in Nigerian politics now: we need to build a South-South/South-East zone of development, where all of the South-South and the South-East works as a zonal development and it should go into a quick partnership, in terms of development strategy, with the South-West, and then engage other parts of the country that are interested in such a partnership. And I believe that there are many elements reaching for progress in the North that would like to engage with these kinds of partnership for development and the whole of Nigeria can profit from it.

What people miss, which I find very sad, is that the story of state capture in Nigeria is the story of opportunism by a few people. Then people will say that they are representing northern interests. It is just a couple of 100 of them in their own self-interest. If not, the North would not be as poor as it is today. If they (northern ruling class) really represented northern interests, the North would flourish. But that is not the case. This is a group of selfish people who have taken the possibility of progress for Nigeria and have hurt their own people even more.

What do you make of the title given to Fayose by IPOB, Honorary Governor of Biafra?

(Laughs hysterically) I think that’s part of the fun of the moment. Biafra is not a state, so how come it has a governor? But I think that his move should inspire a number of people. People forget that one of the great heroes of Biafra was (Prof.) Wole Soyinka. He was actually jailed for speaking up (against) the injustices of 1966/1967 that happened to the Igbo people. He was harassed. So, it is not a new tradition from Yorubaland that people of conscience recognise that something is wrong somewhere. Therefore, wherever there are opportunistic people who try to capitalise on these in their own interests, there are people of goodwill and strong conscience who recognise differently. And I think this must be the project now, to get those people of good conscience to break this thing.

The reason Lagos is as developed as it is, to the envy of everybody, is every simple. During the Civil War, the divide-and-rule game played by the Federal Government led to Igbos being eviscerated in Port Harcourt (Rivers State), which is part of Igboland. Igbos then turned to Lagos and the people of Lagos were welcoming of the Igbo people, and that is why Lagos is the way it is today as a strong centre of commerce in the world. I think that the lessons from that, which is the point I tried to make when the Oba (of Lagos) made a joking remark during the election that people took too far.

The one about Igbo people jumping into the lagoon?

Yes. Nowhere in Nigeria has been more welcoming of the Igbo nation than Lagos. The consequence of this welcome should be a bridge across the Niger, a handshake across the Niger, which has been used in terminology previously. The Yoruba nation and Igbo nation, which share a lot in terms of enterprise and values, should be able to work together and engage any other part of Nigeria, because it is in the interest of Nigeria to build a whole of all.

Do you think Soyinka also deserves honour from IPOB?

Certainly. I spoke at a conference at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, two weeks ago on 50 years of Biafra. Part of my remarks was a tribute to Soyinka and what he stood for back in those days. I think he is deserving of being honoured.

IPOB appreciated you and the likes of former Central Bank Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, for your support. How do you feel about the honour?

I think that where the person does what is his duty, which is what I was doing, I don’t think that there is any need for honour. It is a call to duty to do the right thing and one just did what was right.

What do you think about IPOB’s claim that South-East governors and leaders failed to identify with Kanu?

When principles don’t define how people engage in public life, they become arbitrary, looking at their self-interest, looking at who will say they did so, and they tend to fall into the tepidity of neutrality. And if you recall from Dante’s Inferno, where it is said that the hottest part of hell belongs to those who, in the face of the moral crisis, take refuge in neutrality. So, in the pursuit of narrow self-interest, in not making principles the basis of public engagement, yes, many of the people there just disappeared into voicelessness. And if there is a very important habit that we need in this century, as Stephen Covey says to us in his The Eighth Habit, it is to help people find their voice. If there is one thing that my life’s journey represents, it is that commitment to helping people find their voice.

Do you think this indecision on the part of South-East leaders could haunt them in the 2019 elections?

I don’t know. It could. It may. But what matters is that there should be accountability for everything. There must be a time to account.

Kanu is facing charges of sedition against the Federal Government in court. Do you think there could be a possible political solution to end the trial?

The only way that societies that want to move forward have dealt with problems of people expressing dissatisfaction is political engagement. I very frequently turn to (former Prime Minister) Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia and his reference to the words of (late US President) Lyndon B. Johnson when he says it is better for everybody to be inside the house pissing out than for some people to be outside the house pissing in. The reason Nigeria smells so bad is that there are too many people outside the house pissing in. The biggest leadership failure of the last 50 years in Nigeria is the politics of exclusion. The Class of ’66 specialised in excluding: ‘We don’t want these people.’ ‘Oh! It’s those people.’ ‘It’s this group.’ And so, they kept excluding till most Nigerians who could contribute to Nigeria’s development left Nigeria, either physically, as in those ones I ran into at the Atlanta airport and many other places, or mentally. There are many people who live in Nigeria but don’t live in Nigeria. They gave up on Nigeria a long time ago. What leadership requires now in Nigeria now is to bring people back into the house. That’s the capacity which the current leadership elite that’s come out of the Class of ’66 and their cronies lack. They don t have that capacity.

Are you and other Igbo leaders of thought planning to visit Kanu anytime soon?

It is a regular thing that we all continue to talk as brothers about things, and I don’t think there is a grand, special reason to walk any other path. We will continue to dialogue as brothers on things that we would like to do to uplift the common good of all of our people.

How do you feel about the pan-Igbo socio-political group, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, saying it will convince Kanu to accept restructuring?

When brothers meet, they will have conversations. The direction of the conversation is not a matter for the marketplace.

What is your response to people who believe Biafra is a lost cause that died with Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu?

To start with, I have always expressed a view that Biafra is a metaphor for discontent writ large and what has happened in Nigeria is that, in the words of Chido Onumah’s We Are All Biafrans, people in the North-East are Biafrans because they are unhappy with Nigeria. Many in the North-Central dealing with herdsmen issues are Biafrans because they are unhappy with Nigeria. Many in the South-South are Biafrans because they are unhappy in Nigeria, and so on. Across Nigeria, there is a democratisation of discontent. Nigerians are all Biafrans now. Until we can purge Nigeria of the sins that breed discontent, every Nigerian is a Biafran.

Do you think that Buhari has to implement the recommendations of the 2014 National Conference report to resolve the Biafra agitation and other sectional grievances in the country?

I think it is a starting point, not the very end. I think that we need a new national consciousness, a new spirit of development, dignity for all Nigerians, social justice and equity. And really, the people who do a better job of those kinds of things are political parties in the kind of people they recruit, in the way they socialise them into certain bodies of ideas about how society is organised. Unfortunately, we’ve done a terrible job of political parties in Nigeria. At this time, I’m not even sure that I can say there is a political party in the country. So, what is desperately needed are social movements that are strong in values and identification with certain ways of doing things, strong in certain principles of how you make society triumph over its limitations and ensure that the collective travels farther than the individual. Africans say Ubuntu: ‘I am because we are.’ How are we?

What has happened strangely is that in the past 50 years, through a very self-centred prism that we see reality, we have allowed mindless pursuit of individuals (to steal) out of the commonwealth without even encouraging a work ethic. They go to the commonwealth and extract for the self. The result is the corruption crisis that we are in. People say to me as I travel round the world: ‘What kind of disease is in your country that people are burying money in cemeteries, etc.? And it is very simple: it is the outcome of not socialising people to understand that the real goal of being alive is the pursuit of immortality; to be remembered, rather than the size of your bank account because very few people with big bank accounts really get remembered, if you think of it. The people who get remembered are the ones who touch other people’s lives for good. But we’ve not educated our people to do the right things because we’ve not had the kind of leaders who have been able to understand the right things.

What is the next line of action for the Igbo in terms of Kanu’s release?

It is just one phase in the evolution of a process of building virile communities where the future of the children can have a greater assurance that they will live in dignity and not in deprivation, being looked down on and taken advantage of. I think we need to begin to rethink and reteach history. I suspect that that’s part of the reason history disappeared from the curriculum in Nigeria. There were people too ashamed to tell the story of Biafra. Until Nigeria accepts that the Nigerian Civil War was one of the great genocides of the 20th Century, we will continue to make mistakes. It is not a story told me. I witnessed it. I saw people, unarmed civilians, being shot. Our story happened in my presence. Pretending about it is going to just breed anger in the Balkans, the people are remembering a hurt 1,000 years after and they went through what we went through. Let’s purge ourselves of the error of the past and begin to move forward. That’s what Nigeria requires and that must be the commitment of the new leadership in the land that wants its children to know that they are people of a certain dignity, not people looked down at.

Should we expect a similar news with regard to the other IPOB members who are still in detention?

For Strive Masiyiwa’s refusal to allegedly give a bribe of $9million demanded by ex-Governor Ibori, Econet Nigeria dream was killed.

Strive Masiyiwa, CEO and Founder of Econet Wireless has alleged that a sum of $9million bribe was demanded from him by ex-Governor of Delta State, James Ibori.

According to Masiyiwa’s blog, the London based Zimbabwean said the ex-governor had threatened to chase him and his business out of Nigeria if he fails to yield to his demand.

In his words: “Then came the fateful day when I was told that our company must pay a total of $9m in bribes to senior politicians (in state government) who had facilitated the raising of the money to pay for the license.

“I refused to authorize the illegal payments. Meeting after meeting was held to try to get me to agree, but I would not. The money would not be paid as long as Econet was the operator and I had signing authority.

“James Ibori, the Governor of Delta State, was demanding $4,5m be paid to him in his personal capacity. He was one of the most powerful men in the country and had a reputation for violence.

“When he heard that I was refusing to approve payment he issued an ultimatum: “Pay or I will chase you and your people out of the country.” I refused. The shareholders met and voted Econet Wireless Nigeria out of management. They cancelled our management contract.

James Ibori and his colleagues personally attended the meeting to remove us. After the meeting one of them (a prominent local businessman even today) came up to me and said: “Unfortunately for you, God does not have a vote.” I had to withdraw all my staff and their families: 200 people in all. We left Nigeria.

A consortium of 22 investors that include leading banks, businessmen, Lagos State and Delta State government put up $285m to bid for the licence of Econet Nigeria under ex- President Olusegun Obasanjo.

By Ifeanyi okolie

Leader of the dreaded kidnap gang, Evans, who is a native of Amambra State, has been on the police wanted list for a long time. His father is from Anambra State, while his mother is from Agbor in Delta State. He has been in crime for a long time and together with members of his gang, they have coordinated several bank robberies, in Oyo, Port-Harcourt, Abia States, etc.

A retired police officer (name withheld) intimated Crime Guard that, Evans normally leaves the country after every successful operation. The officer who was once an Anti-Robbery operative at the Oyo State Police Command, Ibadan, said that he and his colleagues killed several members of Evan’s gang during robbery operations. According to him; “I heard about Evans first in 2010, when he and members of his gang attacked some banks in Oyo State and two weeks after, they attacked some other banks in Port-Harcourt, Rivers State and Aba, Abia State. We were at the top of the investigations after the robbery and succeeded in arresting some members of the gang and all of them gave us Evans name but they told us that we can’t arrest him because he barely stay’s in the country. They told us that he has visas to several countries and can easily leave the country after every operation.”

Investigations revealed that Evans has been able to evade arrest due to his ability to change his identity. Police operatives who have been trailing him over time can’t actually say what he truly looks like. It was also gathered that, aside his ability to change his identity, Evans is conversant with modern police tracking devices. A member of police team assigned to trail the dreaded kingpin officially for the past three years (name withheld) told Crime Guard that Evans has evaded arrest because he thinks faster than the police.

According to the source; “he is an expert in this business. He does his homework properly by knowing the financial worth of his victims before going after them and after abducting them, he keeps them in obscure apartments within Lagos State, where no one could locate them and when he does his negotiations, he uses mobile phones that are not traceable and does not reveal locations of the caller. The source explained that security operatives are suspecting that Evans may have been using satellite phones during his negotiations with relatives of the victims and this has proved difficult for security operatives to track the kingpin.

His exploits, Victims

(1) Mbarikatta William Uboma, 35, kidnapped June 16th, 2012 at about 11am on his arrival from Hungary while he was close to his house. He was in his Toyota Car 2010 model in company of his brother to drop him at his house when a Passat car emerged from nowhere and blocked his car. They blindfolded him and forcefully abducted him to an unknown destination. They later demanded a ransom of N10M. However, N2M was later paid while they collected other personal accessories. He was finally dropped at Okota on the third day.

2. Paul Cole, 34, from Ohafia in Abia state. A Director with Ocean Glory Commodities, Apapa. Kidnapped August 33rd, 2012 at Festac town together with his General Manager, Jude Ugoje and another staff, Piriye Gogo, and taken to an unknown destination. They demanded for N10M. On August 6th, 2012, they collected N5M ransom at Maza-maza.

3. Mohammed Jamal, 22, a Lebanese kidnapped on August 19, 2012 at Ajah by three armed men, taken away blindfolded. N7M ransom was later paid at Ojo Barracks.

4. Kingsley Nwokenta, 34, kidnapped September 19, 2012 after he left Lebanana Bar in Festac at Mile two under bridge. Later, paid N1.5M ransom while they made away with his black Toyota Venza and other accessories.

5. Anthony Ozoanidobi, 41, kidnapped in October 10th 2012 along Marwa road Satellite town. Ransom of N1.5M paid after which he was released at Apple junction, Amuwo-Odofin

6. Leo Abraham 58, Kidnapped August 20, 2012. Paid ransom of N5M and was later released along Badagry road, Lagos.

7. Ojukwu Cosmas, 45, sells Toyota parts at Aspanda Trade fair. Kidnapped January 21, 2016 at Festac town. It was not clear when and how he was released.

8. James Uduji; Kidnapped close to his house at 7th Avenue Festac late last year. Held for 6 six weeks. Paid $1M.

9. Chief Raymond Okoye – Odu- Na –Ichida. Kidnapped 2015. Paid $1M as ransom, held captive for 2months

(10) Uche Okoroafor, trader at Alaba, kidnapped 2015, held captive for three months, paid $1M.

(11)Elias Ukachukwu kidnapped November 2015. Paid $1M. Date of release unknown but it was gathered that his abductors were insisting on another $1M claiming family members were rude to them during negotiation.

(12) Francis Umeh also a spare parts dealer at Aspanda. Kidnapped July 2016 at Raji Rasaki Estate. Released after two months in captivity.

By Dennis Udoma UYO

Two expatriate workers in Akwa Ibom were allegedly kidnapped in the early hours of Monday by unknown gunmen. The source, who craved anonymity told Vanguard in Uyo on Monday. Kidnap-syndicate Although, the identities of the victims were not available at press time, he said, ‘‘the expatriates were kidnapped in their hotel room at Eket’’.

The incident occurred almost simultaneously with the kidnap of Dr. Idongesit Udom, a proprietor of Sure Foundation Polytechnic in another part of the state, Ukanafun Local Government Area. Reports said, Dr. Udom was abducted on Sunday morning, at about 10 am, while going to the Church, Qua Iboe at Idung Nneke, a stone throw to his residence.

The kidnappers, the source maintained were said to have used a light brown Sienna wagon where they forced in their victim, while shooting randomly into the air to cause panic. It was also gathered that, police have begun manhunt for the seized expatriates, even as they have relocated security chiefs to the area to comb for their release.

Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, ASP Chukwu Okechwu who confirmed the incident on the telephone to our correspondent said, they were on ground to rescue the victims. According to him, ‘‘Unknown gunmen have kidnapped two expatraites from their hotel room in Eket. ‘‘We are aware of the incident; I am assuring you efforts are at top gear to rescue them.

As I am talking to you, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Donald Awunah and some senior police officers are on ground here at Eket and, its environs searching first, the two white men and even that other man from Ukanafun Local Government Area. ‘‘The two white men were kidnapped from their hotel rooms, the place of their work is not known now but, in the course of investigation, I will let you know their names and place of work’’, he said.

April 9, 20170137

Mike Ozekhome
Christopher Isiguzo in Enugu

Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr. Mike Ozekhome, has asked the acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, to take over the on-going investigation into the disbursement of N450 million, allegedly, sent to the Enugu State chapter of Peoples Democratic Party by the party’s national headquarters during the 2015 presidential election.

Ozekhome, who is counsel to the secretary of the Goodluck Jonathan Campaign Committee in Enugu State during the presidential election, Hon. Rita Mbah, expressed dismay at the handling of the matter by the Enugu Zonal office of the EFCC. There are insinuations that the fund may be part of the $2.1 billion arms procurement money that was diverted during the Jonathan administration.

In a nine-page letter to Magu titled, ‘A Clear Case of Victimisation, Perversion of Justice, illegal and unlawful detention, palpable bias, distorted and compromised investigation: Our Repressed Ms, Mbah’, Ozekhome said it had become necessary for the matter to be transferred from Enugu to Abuja in view of the compromised attitudes displayed by the officers in Enugu.

He asked Magu to immediately constitute an unbiased and uncompromised team to investigate the receipt and disbursement of the fund, with the intent to possibly prosecute former governor of Enugu State, Sullivan Chime, who allegedly disbursed the money, and all others involved.

According to him, “developments since the commencement of the investigation in Enugu had shown that justice will eventually not be served. Mbah had lost confidence in the neutrality and impartiality of the Zonal office, given their palpable compromise and bias as can be gleaned from the chronology of the ugly events detailed in the letter.”

The letter, which detailed how the money was, allegedly, disbursed, said former Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo; chairman of the campaign team, Charles Egungbe; and Prof. Osita Ogbu received N5 million each. It alleged that the then Commissioner of Police in the state, GOC 82 Division, and one DIG of police also got similar amounts.

The Department of State Services and other security agents got N30 million, while one Dr. Festus Uzor got N38.3 million for distribution to officers of the Independent National Electoral Commission, the letter stated. It said other party leaders, including, Ikeje Asogwa, Eric Oluedo, Emeka Ujam and one Chime Oji, among others, equally received various sums of money from Chime.

Ozekhome alleged that rather than invite the affected persons, ‘The commission has continued to invite, arrest, detain, harass, intimidate, humiliate and victimise our client on the instructions of some influential persons in Enugu State whom Mbah alleges have heavily compromised the officers in the EFCC, Enugu zone, to look the other way and avert possible prosecution.

“Our client complains that in furtherance of this grand cover up, some of these influential persons in Enugu have recently decamped to APC to cover up their tracks. Our client, upon return to Nigeria and barely two weeks after her surgery, turned herself up to EFCC, Enugu Zonal office to honour the EFCC’s earlier invitation and to inquire as to why her family members were chased out of her personal house and same sealed up. She requested that her house be unsealed, given her critical medical condition as she was now residing in hotel.

“Our client has been arrested by EFCC in two occasions and detained once. She has been invited five times and she honoured all. Her house has been searched and some of her vital documents illegally carted away by the EFCC, Enugu Zonal office.

“She had clearly told EFCC that she did not benefit in any manner howsoever from the said fund, nor signed for it from the bank. She detailed how it was disbursed by Chime and the fact that the balance was still in his custody, yet your Enugu zone has not deemed it fit to invite or arrest or even conduct a search on the former governor or even the bigwigs mentioned in her earlier petition.

“Our client was shocked when her house was sealed only four days after EFCC Enugu received her letter detailing how the said fund was disbursed by Chime.”

Ozekhome told Magu in the letter, “Your Enugu office has been thoroughly compromised, otherwise, how can a mere messenger, an agent of a disclosed principal be made to suffer the iniquities of her disclosed principal. They just want to make her the scapegoat of a transaction she never directly participated in and never benefited from.”

The lawyer further averred that even when the governor admitted in a recent interview published in the Vanguard Newspapers of March 20, 2017 the personal receipt and disbursement of the said fund as well as in a stakeholders meeting held sometime in October last year, the commission in Enugu still turned blind eye.

He appealed to Magu to quickly investigate his staff in Enugu, as “it’s now common knowledge within the region that they have a proclivity towards compromising the high neutral standards set up by the commission by allowing monetary inducements and societal positions to determine the outcome of matters reported to them."

giles14:
75% of UK Fdi agreed not 75% of Nigeria total fdi

olatemitayo:
While I can't disagree with the op, I still have to say that what seems to be the problem is actually an opportunity in disguise but the thing is this, how 'dirty' are we willing to get?

It will shock you to know that these states you mention provide the butter that garnishes the bread of Lagos. Let's wake up guyz and create the jobs. Thank you.