₦airaland Forum

when will dis type of thing stop.....imaging d risk the mother would av gon through coming down to Nigeria so that is kid could play for his country.

Sixteen-year old Nigerian rising star, Maduabuchi Obinwa, may be lacing boots for the United States’ U-17 side after being frustrated out of the Golden Eaglets. The parents of the immensely talented footballer, Mr and Mrs Nnanna Obinwa, had wanted their son born in the US on 15th January, 1997, to play for Nigeria and brought him home ostensibly for that purpose.

But Maduabuchi who hit Golden Eaglets’ camp on arrival in Nigeria was told by NFF medics that he failed MRI test. Not convinced, Mrs Stella Obinwa is contesting the result, insisting that her son is not over aged, arguing that it (the result) was only a poly to stop him from lacing boots for the country.

A visibly bitter Mrs Obinwa, while narrating what they went through in the Golden Eaglets’ camp said it was a shame that her son was being denied the opportunity to serve his fatherland. In her words: “My son, Maduabuchi, is a talented footballer and has been doing well in the United States. The US coaches wanted him in their youth team, but we felt he should play for Nigeria.

“We got home only to face all manner of stumbling blocks. The first hurdle was when the NFF said we should pay for his MRI test at the National hospital in Abuja which we did. We paid 100,000 naira to run the test (I have the receipt) but the big surprise was when I was told that my son is over aged going by the MRI result. I have challenged that because I know my son was born 16 years ago in the States. The amazing thing is that the NFF has refused to release the MRI scan result to me. Since I paid for it, it’s my property and I need to see the outcome of the test,” Mrs Obinwa stated.

Beyond the MRI test, she added that she was made to pick the feeding and hotel bills of his son while in camp in Calabar. “The NFF said I should pick the bills of our flight to camp where the Eaglets are camped in Calabar. I also paid for my son’s feeding and accommodation even while the governor of Cross River state was funding the camping exercise there. My boy has been frustrated out of camp and returned to the States where the coaches have since welcomed him into the US U-18 team,” Mrs Obinwa disclosed.

Soccer Star’s check revealed that Maduabuchi, a midfielder, now laces boots for Chicago Magic, a youth club affiliated to PSG soccer academy. He is billed to hit Europe next month to undergo trials with Real Madrid’s youth team.

Maduabuchi is also on the list of 60 top players called up by a U.S. soccer’s scouting network from major cities across the country. The players invited are those born in 1996 and 1997. U.S. U-18 Men’s National Team head Javier Perez is expected to call in some of the top performers from the combine for the next cycle with that age group, which kicks off its next camping in Southern California later this month.

“Out there in the US, everything is all-expenses paid by the government, but here I paid for virtually everything from transportation to MRI test down to his feeding and accommodation and at the end of the day our desire to see him play for Nigeria has not worked out,” Mrs Obinwa lamented.

www.soccerstarng.mobi/story_display_page.php?cover_story_id=856

pls am a newbie with techno...av been on able to browse with it and av send settings to 3888 on my mtn sim and they say d techno p3 cant be configured automatically... Pls hw do i configure it

mod pls help change the topic....this write up is a front page material

The Federal Government has initiated extraction
proceedings against a Nigerian, Lawal Olaniyi
Babafemi, suspected to be member of the terrorist
organisation, al-Qaeda. It has applied to a Federal High Court in Abuja for the
extradition of Babafemi (32 years) also described as
“Abdullah” and “Ayatollah Mustapher” to the
United States, where he is being wanted for his
alleged involvement in terrorism related activities. The FG, in an application for extradition filed before the
court, exhibited a four-count charge
marked:13CR-109-JG, filed against him before the U.S
District Court of the Eastern District of New York and a
bench warrant issued for his arrest by a U.S
magistrate. He is charged with “conspiracy to provide support to
a foreign terrorist organisation, provision and
attempted provision of material support to a foreign
terrorist organisation, unlawful use of firearms and
conspiracy to unlawfully use firearms.” The offences, on conviction, attract a minimum
sentence of 10 years and maximum of life
imprisonment. Babafemi, who until now, was based in the U.S, fled to
the country upon realising that he was to be arrested
by operatives of the U.S Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI). He had since been arrested and is being held by the
Department of State Services (DSS). Documents filed by the FG before the Abuja court
revealed that the U.S authorities are of the view that
Babafemi belongs to the “al-Qaeda in the Arabian
Peninsula (AQAP)” an affiliate of al-Qaeda.
Source: www.thenationonlineng.net/new/al-qaeda-fg-sets-to-extradite-nigerian-suspect/

BORNO—Sheikh Abubakar Shekau, leader of the
violent Islamic sect, Boko Haram, has reportedly been
shot and deposed by members of his own sect, Boko
Haram. A new leader, Abu Zamira Mohammed, who is the
sect’s leader negotiating with the federal
government has been appointed new leader by the
group’s Shura Council. The group also said that its ceasefire declaration is
working, pointing out that there has not been any
suicide bombing since the declaration. It noted its
condemnation of the Yobe massacre where 40
students were killed, adding that some politicians now
commit murder and ascribe it to Boko Haram.
On the Kano blasts last Monday, which led to the death
of about 45 people, the group blamed it on federal
government’s tardiness in responding to the
ceasefire agreement. A joint report published yesterday, by Dr. Stephen
Davis, a conflict resolution expert and an adviser to
the last three Nigerian Presidents and Phillip van
Niekerk, President of Calabar Africa, a strategic
advisory company focusing on Africa, and former
Editor of South Africa’s Mail & Guardian newspaper, in the US based online newspaper,
huffingtonpost.com, quoted one Imam Liman Ibrahim,
spiritual leader of Boko Haram, as saying that the
change in leadership was prelude to peace
negotiations with the federal government. A faction of Boko Haram has entered into a back-
channel dialogue with the government in the search
for an elusive peace to a conflict that has seen
multiple suicide bombings, attacks on government
buildings and churches, and has claimed thousands of
lives since 2011. The Chairman of the Presidential Committee on
Dialogue and Restoration of Peace in the North-East,
Tanimu Turaki, last month announced that his
committee had reached an “understanding for
ceasefire” with members of the Jama’atu Ahlul
Sunnah Lih Da’awa Wal Jihad, JAS, more commonly known as Boko Haram. JAS leadership also nominated
five people to enter peace discussions with the
Federal Government: Abu Liman Ibrahim, Abu Zamira
Mohammed, Abu Adam Maisandari, Kassim Imam Biu
and Mallam Modu Damaturu. In its press statement,
JAS said the ceasefire would be in effect for 60 days, and that during the period, any attacks in its name or
in the name of its leader, Imam Shekau, would be
bogus attacks. Boko Haram has been in preliminary discussions with
government emissaries since the organisation
declared a ceasefire on June 26. Abu Zamira
Mohammed told the paper that his group was still
waiting for the Federal Government’s response to
the ceasefire declaration. The contacts are still at an early, fragile stage, and there is no guarantee that the
talks will achieve a breakthrough. The writers said: “It has now come to light that Boko
Haram’s leadership sent representatives to the
capital Abuja on June 25, 2013 where they revealed to
the government that Shekau was no longer their
leader.” Imam Liman Ibrahim, the spiritual leader of Boko
Haram, explained that the teaching of Shekau was
becoming increasingly harsh and began to depart
from the Holy Qu’ran. “It was harsh, harsh, harsh,” Imam Liman said
when explaining the reasons for the change of
leadership. “The beheadings, the killings, the recent death of
students … this is not the way of the Holy Qu’ran. We
could tolerate it no longer. “Imam Liman explained that Shekau was given a
choice of joining the peace dialogue with the Nigerian
government, forming his own sect or being killed.
Several senior Boko Haram commanders including
Shekau’s Chief of Security and personal bodyguard,
Abdullahi Hassan, have claimed that Shekau has since been shot in the lower leg, thigh and shoulder,” the
paper went on. The report said,” Shekau’s exact fate is not known.
A video clip recovered from a Boko Haram camp in
the Sambisa Forest Reserve in the northeast Nigeria,
raided by the military on May 16, shows Shekau
limping, providing confirmation of reports he had been
shot. “However, Shekau has been noticeably absent from
recent public statements and is not one of the leaders
who have engaged with government emissaries. It
had been presumed that Shekau chose to voluntarily
leave peace discussions in the hands of Boko
Haram’s leadership group,” the duo wrote. The JAS leadership were quoted as citing the Qu’ran
as their inspiration for seeking peace. “In the Holy
Qu’ran, Sura At Tauba: Wa-injanahuu-Lisalmi Faji
Nahlahaa, we are encouraged to seek peace. The Holy
Qu’ran also tells us it is good to negotiate. Sura At
Nisa Ayih: Wa-sulhu Haira.” In June, the Boko Haram leadership demanded that
women held by the military under the state of the
emergency in the north be released. President
Jonathan authorised the release, which opened the
door to the ceasefire and the peace dialogue. The report also said “the Boko Haram leadership has
appointed Abubakar Babasani Ibn Yusuf as
spokesman to replace Zamirah. Babasani says the
leadership has been consulting all senior commanders
to assure compliance with the ceasefire. He said
commanders as far afield as Niger, Chad, Sudan and Cameroon have agreed to the ceasefire and
discussions with the Nigerian government on the
subject of a peace deal.” The June 26 ceasefire announcement has been
accompanied by an absence of suicide bombings,
giving credibility to the new leadership and their
intention of signing a peace accord. However, the
administration’s tardiness in responding to the
group’s ceasefire announcement is believed to have precipitated three car bomb attacks in the northern
city of Kano this week that left at least 15 people
dead. Other attacks have persisted including the recent
horrific killings of students in Yobe where about 40
students were incinerated in their school building. The
latest Boko Haram statement is highly critical of the
Yobe deaths and denies responsibility for the attacks. The leadership blames such atrocities on politicians in
the northeast whom they accuse of arming gangs and
committing crimes in the name of Boko Haram. Shekau was deputy leader under Boko Haram founder
Imam Mohammed Yusuf who was captured in July
2009 in fighting in the northeast of Nigeria and
executed by Nigeria’s Police force in what appears
to have been an extrajudicial killing. The interrogation
and Yusuf’s bullet-riddled body were filmed on video. Yusuf’s death radicalized the Boko Haram leaders
and led them to move underground and identify more
closely with Al Qaeda. Following the founder’s
killing, Shekau emerged as the new leader of a
revitalised Boko Haram in 2010 and he and other
commanders refocused the group towards global jihad. Shekau launched a series of well-planned
assassinations and suicide bombings that targeted
Nigerian police headquarters and the UN offices in
Abuja among many other locations. Through a series
of video appearances on television stations, notably
Al Jazeera, Shekau emerged as the face of Boko Haram. Earlier this year, the U.S. placed a $7-million
bounty on his head. The military’s Joint Task Force has recently arrested
Alhaji Mala Othman, Chairman of the opposition All
Nigeria People’s Party in Borno state, the epicentre
of the insurrection, on terrorism charges. “Jonathan declared a state of emergency on May 14
and launched a military offensive that has seen some
successes. But reprisal attacks by Boko Haram,
including the freeing of 105 of their members from
prison, indicate that without a peace deal, Boko
Haram has the resources to continue the fight,” the duo wrote.
Source: www.vanguardngr.com/2013/08/shekau-shot-deposed-boko-haram-spiritual-leader/

Brimmie: [size=20]ReppingFUTA: Strike Continua! [/size]

Hmmm, lazy student

ABUJA -THE hope for the re-opening of universities in
the shortest possible time was dashed Thursday after
the Federal Government constituted committee
chaired by the Benue State Governor, Hon. Gabriel
Suswan in a meeting with the leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, failed to
agree on the contentious issues. There were expectations that ASUU could call off the
strike after the meeting as the National President of
the union Dr. Nasir Fagge had previously said that
calling off the strike was dependent upon what the
Federal government would place on the table in
respect of the implementation of the 2009 agreement.ABUJA -THE hope for the re-opening of universities in
the shortest possible time was dashed Thursday after
the Federal Government constituted committee
chaired by the Benue State Governor, Hon. Gabriel
Suswan in a meeting with the leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, failed to
agree on the contentious issues. There were expectations that ASUU could call off the
strike after the meeting as the National President of
the union Dr. Nasir Fagge had previously said that
calling off the strike was dependent upon what the
Federal government would place on the table in
respect of the implementation of the 2009 agreement.
Speaking to Vanguard on the outcome of the meeting,
Dr. Fagge said, “Well it was inaugural meeting, so
naturally nothing much was achieved. It is just that
the chairman (Governor Gabriel Suswan) told us how
he wants to carry out the assignment. “And then he said that he thinks we should have a
sub-committee that will liaise with TETFund and
National Planning Commission to get more information
on the technical report that was submitted by the
Needs Assessment Committee and on the basis of
that, projects will be identified and will now look for the funding.” On the promise he made that after the meeting the
union would take a stand depending on what the
government would place on the table, he said,
“There is no change any way because the meeting
today is just considering one aspect of the agreement,
which is funding. “So what we did today was to have an inaugural
meeting on funding and our members nation wide
said nothing short of implementation of all aspects of
the agreement will make them call off the strike, so
like I said whatever meeting we are invited, we will
go and give our members information. “ like I said today’s meeting was an inaugural
meeting nothing much was achieved there order than
how to go and implementing the Needs Assessment
Report which is an aspect of funding aspect of the
agreement, so we will wait and see whatever
government decides to do with the agreement, we are there.”
Source: www.vanguardngr.com/2013/08/ASUU-fg-fail-to-agree-on-contentious-issues/

has d date for the entrance exam been announced yet?

sheyie2007: if anyone finds sheakau, pls burn him with extreme prejudice..and pls use diesel so he'll burn slowly.. thanks

ebucha: No pity for Boko Haram sect members at all now.

samuelkaykay: This is not jungle justice,it is 100% bravery.BURN MORE.

mr_king: I strongly commend their effort!!!

You all are not different from boko haram::::: Muderers!!!!!!!

The five northern governors: Sule Lamido (Jigawa),
Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano), Babangida Aliyu (Niger),
Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto), and Muritala Nyako
(Adamawa), critical of the purported move by
President Goodluck Jonathan to seek re-election in
2015, yesterday met with the President at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja. The meeting, described by sources as private, lasted
several hours. Details of what was discussed at the parley were
unclear at press time, although it was learnt that it
was not unconnected with the crisis plaguing their
party – the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Sunday Vanguard was made to understand that the
five governors insisted on the removal of the PDP
National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, as their
condition to be at peace with the party and the
Presidency. The President and the governors held the crucial talks
just as sources said the Presidency was banking on
the seeming popularity of recently freed ex-Chief
Security Officer (CSO) to the late Head of State, General
Sani Abacha, Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, in his home
region of the North to initiate subtle moves to recruit him into Jonathan’s re-election campaign. The sources said case was also being made for a role for the ex-CSO in the Jonathan government. The overture to Al-Mustapha by the pro-Jonathan
elements was, however, causing a row among some northern leaders. Appeasement Sunday Vanguard sources said the Aso Rock meeting
with the five northern governors was initiated by the President to enable him listen to their grievances with a view to appeasing them and preventing them from joining the opposition.
The crucial meeting, said to have started around noon, was held under closed doors and the outcome not made known to journalists. During the meeting, Jonathan was said to have
pleaded with the governors to sheath their sword and promised to personally look into the sources of their anger.
Jonathan reportedly assured the governors that he was aware of their face-off with some influential people close to him and the PDP and was poised to address them in the interest of the party and the country. But the governors allegedly gave the President the condition under which they would support him and the PDP in the 2015 contest, which is that he must sack the PDP National Chairman, Tukur, with
immediate effect.
The governors, according to the sources, said Tukur was their major headache and they did not see how they could continue to work with him. They allegedly insisted that they would never have anything to do with the PDP as long as Tukur
continued to preside over it’s affairs. Dictatorship One of the sources said,”The clear message delivered to the President was that the National Chairman of the PDP, Bamanga Tukur, must be sacked urgently. ”The governors made it clear to Mr. President that the leadership of Tukur has brought an era of dictatorship to the party and alienated the major stakeholders, leaving those who do not have the interest of the party to hold sway. ”It is either the President sacks him to appease the governors and others who are with them or keeps the Chairman and loses them”.
Sunday Vanguard learnt that the governors had
earlier met for 45 minutes at the Sokoto State
Governor’s Lodge in Asokoro to take a common position on what to discuss with Jonathan. After the meeting, they proceeded to the Villa at
about noon.
The governors had, last week, expressed anger with the Presidency and the PDP leadership over the way things were going in the party and the country. They met with three former heads of state – Olusegun Obasanjo, Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar – in Abeokuta, Ogun State and Minna, Niger State, and complained to them about how they were being alienated and maltreated by the Presidency and the PDP despite their enormous contributions to the party. Although the outcome of their deliberations with the former leaders was not made public, IBB
lauded the five governors and described them as
‘real patriots’. Lamido is said to have been singled out by the Presidency for isolation for daring to declare to
contest against Jonathan in 2015 while Aliyu is seen as being penalised for saying that Jonathan signed a deal with northern governors to run for only a term.
Nyako is being castigated and kept at bay for trying to contest the control of PDP structures of Adamawa with Tukur. The Political Adviser to the President, Ahmed Gulak,described the five governors as agents of the opposition and warned them to stop heatinth g up the polity.

President Goodluck Jonathan on Saturday met with
five northern governors behind closed-doors at the
Presidential villa, Abuja. The governors at the meeting included Kano State
Governor, Alhaji Rabiu Kwankwaso, Adamawa State
Governor, Murtala Nyako and Niger State Governor,
Babangida Aliyu. Also at the meeting were Yobe State Governor,
Ibrahim Geidam and his Borno State counterpart,
Governor Kashim Shettima. The details of the closed-door meeting were not made
public. Some of the northern governors recently met with
some former leaders including former President
Olusegun Obasanjo and former Military President,
Ibrahim Babangida.
www.thenationonlineng.net/new/jonathan-meets-five-northern-governors/

Volunteer Vigilance Youths Group (VVYG) otherwise
known as 'Civilian JTF' on Thursday arrested and set
ablaze an alleged notorious Boko Haram sect member
at Gwange ward in Maiduguri, Borno State capital,
residents and witnesses said. This is the second time the youths would burn a
suspected member of the Boko Haram in less than a
week. Some of the vigilante members who took part in the
burning said the suspect had once killed and burned a
soldier in the area sometime last year. The claim could not be verified from the spokesman of
the Joint Task Force, JTF, Lt Col Sagir Musa but a
security source confirmed that the youths had burnt
the suspect. "This (the action of the vigilantes) is a serious source
of concern to us... jungle justice is a crime in itself and
we want parents to caution their wards against it,"
the source said. Weekly Trust gathered that the suspected Boko
Haram member had led insurgents in the killing of
many people and perpetrated "many atrocities" at
Gwange Sabon Layi. "The actions of the suspect who fled to the forest last
December prompted soldiers to sack residents from
the area," a resident of Gwange said. One of the vigilantes also corroborated. "Only Allah
knows how eager we were to catch that guy (burnt
suspect) alive. As a result of his bad deeds, soldiers
sacked and closed our area completely. But we were
then told that the guy had escaped into the forest.
Some even believed that he has been killed since. We were on operations when we saw him. "On seeing him, all the youths shouted 'here he is'.
Then everyone of us was jubilating, seeing our
'wanted guy'. "So, we instantly reminded him of what he did last
year, but to our surprise, he started begging us to
pardon him. As he was crying, we tied him up, poured
fuel on his body and set him on fire. No pity for Boko
Haram sect members at all now. Thousands have
been displaced and hundreds were killed because of his bad deeds," the vigilante said.
www.allafrica.com/stories/201307270089.html/?maneref=http%3A%2F%2Fmobile.newsnow.co.uk%2FA%2F658670064%3F-395

pistol: "I will change my name if APC still exist by 2014"

NOTED

There are indications that the Independent National Electoral Commission may suspend the registration of the new mega opposition party, All Progressives Congress. Saturday PUNCH learnt on Friday that the decision to halt the registration was reached at a meeting involving the National Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, and other top officials of the commission on Tuesday. It was gathered that besides putting the APC's registration in abeyance, INEC might write the merging parties on Tuesday, to choose another name. Opposition parties, including the Congress for Progressive Change, Action Congress of Nigeria and the All Nigeria Peoples Party, on June 5, 2013, had written the commission on their plan to merge under a new name, APC. Saturday PUNCH learnt that the commission was hinging its decision to suspend the APC's registration on the separate suits filed by the African Peoples Party and the All Progressive Congress of Nigeria at a Federal High Court, Abuja. A top official of the commission, who spoke in confidence with Saturday PUNCH, said, "We have put their (merging parties) registration on hold. A letter will be written to them on Tuesday asking them to choose another name. "You are aware that some parties have been fighting over the acronym (APC) and in actual fact, two of them have gone to court to compel INEC not to register
opposition parties' APC. "Although the court has not issued any order, we do not want any problem. That is why we agreed on Tuesday that we should ask the opposition parties to choose a new name." The African People's Congress and the APCN, last month, had filed separate suits at a Federal High Court,
Abuja asking INEC not to register opposition's APC because of the contention over the acronym. It was gathered that at Tuesday's meeting, legal officers of the commission advised that the commission should go ahead to register the mega opposition party as APC since there was no court order that asked INEC not to do so. Saturday PUNCH learnt that the commission would take the parties' letter dated July 1, 2013 as the date it was informed of the merger plan, not the initial letter written on June 5, 2013. The merging parties had, in a letter dated June 5, 2013, written the INEC, informing it of their plan to merge under a new name. In response to the letter, the Secretary to the commission, Abdullahi Kaugama, wrote the parties, asking them to submit 35 copies of the new party's proposed constitution, 35 copies of its manifesto and an affidavit in support of the claims in Form PA 1. The parties, in response to INEC's demand, had written the commission and submitted the documents on July 1. Saturday PUNCH learnt that there was a disagreement among the officials at the Tuesday meeting on whether to take June 5 or July 1 as the date the parties informed the commission of their merger plan. Saturday PUNCH, however, learnt that the commission had settled for July 1. Based on Section 84 (4 ) of the 2010 Electoral Act as amended, the opposition parties' APC would be deemed to have been registered, if June 5 was taken by the commission as the date it received the application. Section 84 (4) of the Electoral Act states, "On receipt of the request for merger of political parties, the commission shall consider the request; and if the parties have fulfilled the requirements of the constitution and this Act, approve the proposed merger and communicate its decision to the parties concerned before the expiration of thirty (30) days from the date of the receipt of the formal request. "Provided that if the commission fails to communicate its decision within 30 days, the merger shall be deemed to be effective." A team of INEC officials, led by Director of Political Party Monitoring, Bala Shittu, had on July 9, inspected APC's headquarters. After the inspection, the party's interim National Chairman, Chief Bisi Akande, said that he was optimistic that the APC would be registered. When contacted, the Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Mr. Kayode Idowu, said, "I am not aware of such a decision or the meeting you are talking about." He said since there was no court order asking the commission not to register the party, it could not on its own decide not to do so. On the effective date of APC's application, Idowu asked, "Is it proper that we should take the date of application from the day APC wrote INEC for recognition in the merger arrangement or on the day they furnished the commission with the necessary documents? "I am sure the proper date is the one they submitted the required documents and with such date in mind, the 30 days stipulated by the Electoral Act has not expired. And even if it does, the law is also very clear that whether we write them or not, the law takes care of any ambiguity. I don't see any reason for confusion in the matter so far until the expiration of 30 days provided for by the law." But in a swift reaction, the CPC said suspending the APC registration would be a dangerous thing for INEC to do. When contacted, the spokesman of the CPC, Mr. Rotimi Fashakin, warned INEC against suspending registration of the APC. Fashakin, in a telephone interview with our correspondent, said that such a decision would put INEC in bad light. He stated, "It is too late in the day for INEC to attempt to do a thing like that. It will definitely put INEC in bad light. It is too expensive for this leadership of INEC to try to do." "It is a dangerous trend because it will make us to believe that this leadership of INEC is not capable of conducting free and fair elections come 2015." Fashakin said that the people behind rival APC were products of the ruling People's Democratic Party. He asked, "Does that mean that anything that will affect the PDP's interest, INEC is not ready to do justice to it. We are going into elections. Does that mean INEC will short-change Nigerians again like it did in 2011?"

Hon Chidi Lloyd was brought into the state
yesterday by security men. At press time, Saturday
Vanguard could not establish contact with him. His
Counsel, Nwafor, SAN, said he was worried over the
safety of his client because of the way the Police was
allegedly treating him. He said Hon Lloyd was driven in, blind folded and driven in a Black Maria from the
Port Harcourt International Airport. “Because of my client’s information to me that he
was detained at the Force Headquarters above the
one-day that was allowed, Chidi Lloyd was flown into
Port Harcourt yesterday, and instead of bringing him
to court to defend himself , we found, he was
blindfolded and we don’t know what is happening to him. There is genuine fear for his life. “If the Police have nothing to hide, they would have
brought Chidi Lloyd to court this morning. He is still not
brought to court till about 5pm. Even an armed robber
is brought to court in a Black Maria, so why won’t he
(Chidi) be brought to court. If he is brought to court,
then, we will know that he is alive. “The Chief Justice of the Federation has made rules
that we are following at the Federal High Court and
the High Court and both have concurrent jurisdiction to
hear fundamental rights application” Nwafor said. Emenike Ebete who is also one of his lawyers said it
was sad that the Police was yet to arraign the
lawmaker twenty four hours after he went to the
Force Headquarters, Abuja . Continuing, he
corroborated claim by Nwafor, that his client was
blindfolded when he arrived Port Harcourt, adding that at the moment, he could not say where he was.
He further expressed deep worries over his security. “We arrived Port Harcourt at 8.45am this morning
and over 500 policemen escorted Chidi Lloyd from the
Port Harcourt Airport to the office of the Commissioner
of Police. He was blindfolded when he alighted from
the Black Maria as if he was a common criminal. He
walked into the CP’s office and spent about three minutes. After that, we don’t know his where
about.” Saturday Vanguard gathered that there were plans to
prosecute Hon Lloyd over the fracas on the floor of the
House of Assembly recently. On his part, the member representing Andoni/Opobo
Nkoro Federal Constituency, Rivers State in the House
of Representatives, Hon Dakuku Peterside condemned
the alleged torture of Hon Lloyd by Police in the state
yesterday. “This is not only condemnable but regrettable. Rivers
State Police Command under Mbu seems not to be
bothered by the fact that any evidence that is
obtained by force, torture, intimidation or by any form
of abuse is not admissible in the court of law, and this
is unfortunate. “This inhuman conduct by Rivers State Police
Command is not only a gross abuse of the
fundamental human rights of the accused but further
confirms our fears that Mbu is out to eliminate Lloyd
who has been subjected to horrific ordeal since his
return to Rivers State. “This ugly development in our country today is anti-
thetical to the Geneva Convention which expressly
demands that countries take effective measures to
prevent torture within their borders. Other
international laws also confirm that torture and other
mistreatment of persons in custody are also prohibited in all circumstances under international
human rights law. This, no doubt, is diminishing and a major setback to
our nascent democracy. “The Police High Command should do the needful and
stop subjecting the accused to this inhumanity until full
investigation into the crisis is concluded. He has
neither been convicted of any offence nor condemned
to perpetual incarceration in police custody by any
court of law,” Peterside said in a statement by his media aide, Sylvester Asoya. The statement further lauded the Inspector General of
Police, for the way Hon Lloyd was allegedly treated
while at the Force Headquarters, Abuja. On his part, the Deputy Speaker of the House of
Assembly, Hon Leyii Kwanee also expressed worry
over the whereabout of Lloyd. “ There are dangers of his where about. You can
recall the case of Abiola, when he was arrested and
held in custody, few days after he was released, he
died. So, we don’t know what the police authorities
are doing with Chidi Lloyd. I gathered few hours ago that he was at the Police Officers’ Mess, but now it is about 5pm, Chidi Lloyd is not in court and nobody knows what might happen to him. I was told that he was handcuffed and tortured. Even if there are assumptions that he committed any crime, he deserves an opportunity to express himself before he
can be charged to court. Nobody has the right to torture Chidi Lloyd, not to talk of any Nigerian”,
Kwanee said “If you’ll recall what happened, Chidi Lloyd was
invited by the Police Force Headquarters, Abuja for
alleged conspiracy. It is not possible to conspire with
oneself. Who are the conspirators? I have spoken
severally that there is a grand plan, a design to
undermine democracy in Rivers State. There are elements that are anti-democratic, working to
undermine the developmental efforts of Governor
Amaechi. It is the grand plan by those who are
against the progress of the current administration.
There is development everywhere, but, the enemies are at work”, he said.

samuelkaykay: Good politician,clap for yoursef !nobody is pushing you out of PDP rather you chose a very wrong method in actualizing your ambition.

how is his method wrong? And which method did he choose?

ABUJA — The presidency, yesterday, described the
five northern governors, who carpeted Peoples
Democratic Party over alleged poor leadership and
internal crises, as agents of the opposition. It warned them to desist from continuing to engage in
acts capable of unduly heating up the polity and
distracting President Goodluck Jonathan from
delivering on his promises to Nigerians. Political Adviser to the President, Alhaji Ahmed Gulak,
made the allegation in an exclusive interview with
Vanguard in Abuja. He also said that Jonathan never signed any
agreement with northern governors or traditional
rulers, arguing that he (Gulak) would have been part
of the process because of his position in the
administration.
Gulak said that in the first place, it was not the duty of
the five governors to constitute themselves into a
group to go round the country consulting with former
heads of state, since they were not commissioned by
the party or the leader. He said: “I can tell you that the five governors do not
mean well for the party and the country. They are
acting the script of some elements bent on distracting
Mr. President and causing confusion where none exist. “A discernible pattern from what the five governors
are doing is that their grandstanding is not about a
genuine concern to put things right in the country as
they claim, but how to bring down President Jonathan
so that one of them can step in. “What I can assure them is that they are bound to
fail woefully because Nigerians know that they
don’t have any genuine concern for the country.” Gulak, who stated that Jonathan was not worried
about their antics, said that the President was only
unhappy over the decision of the five governors to
raise false alarm about the party and its leadership. He particularly had harsh words for Governor Murtala
Nyako of Adamawa and his Sokoto State counterpart,
Aliyu Wamakko, who was suspended last month and
recalled a week after. Gulak described them as
ingrates. Gulak said it was painful to the leadership of PDP for
the duo of Nyako and Wamakko not to show a debt of
gratitude to the party. He said the party welcomed them with open arms
from All Nigeria’s Peoples Party, ANPP, thereby
paving the way for them to win elections in their
respective states. He said that despite the forces working against the
party, PDP was still solid, predicting that the party
would win the next election without any hassle.