₦airaland Forum

The Commissioner of Police, Rivers State Command, Mr. Francis Odesanya, is under fire for his role in the aborted arrest of a judge of the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt, in the early hours of Saturday, The PUNCH learnt on Sunday.

The Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, was said to have rushed to No. 35, Forces Avenue, the GRA official residence of the judge and prevented operatives of the Department of State Services from arresting the judge.

Wike, who was said to have had a confrontation with the DSS officials, was said to have been joined at the scene by the police commissioner.

A highly-placed source, who spoke to The PUNCH on condition of anonymity, on Sunday, said preliminary report had shown that Odesanya prevented the security agencies from carrying out a legitimate order.

Based on the report, he said the police authorities as well as the Police Service Commission would sanction the police boss.

He, however, did not disclose the kind of punishment to be meted out to him.

The source stated, “The Rivers Commissioner of Police will be dealt with appropriately. It has been established that the DSS officials who were at the judge’s residence had with them duly signed search and arrest warrants.

“By stopping the security agents from doing their work, what he did was to obstruct justice. He stopped those people from carrying out a legitimate order.

“He will be sanctioned accordingly.”

The Public Relations Officer, Rivers State Command, Mr. Nnamdi Omoni, had told journalists that policemen were only at the judge’s residence to ensure there was no breakdown of law and order.

It was also learnt on Sunday that no fewer than 15 judges across the country were under investigation by the DSS.

It was gathered that the DSS was investigating the judges based on various petitions, which accused them of corruption.

A top Federal Government official, who confided in our correspondent on Sunday, said the 15 judges included seven that were arrested on Friday and Saturday.

The DSS had, in what it called a sting operation, arrested Sylvester Ngwuta and Inyang Okoro, both of the Supreme Court; the suspended Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeal, Ilorin Division, Justice Mohammed Tsamiya; Justice Kabiru Auta of the Kano State High Court and Justice Adeniyi Ademola of the Federal High Court, Abuja.

Other arrested were a former Chief Judge of Enugu State, Justice I. A. Umezulike, and Muazu Pindiga of the Federal High Court, Gombe Division.

It was gathered that besides the judges, the DSS had invited three court registry staff across the country as part of the investigations into the alleged corruption in the judiciary.

“Currently, we are investigation 15 judges, including the seven that were arrested. Three court registry staff have been invited and quizzed. We have facts and figures,” the source stated.

The government official faulted a claim that the DSS acted unilaterally without carrying along the National Judicial Council.

He stated that the Service sent letters to the NJC and the Ministry of Justice concerning the investigations of the judges.

According to him, while the ministry responded, the NJC did not respond, adding that the DSS did not dramatise the arrest of the judges as alleged.

The government official also explained that the fact that the judges were under the authority of the NJC did not exclude them from investigation and prosecution.

He stated, “They have no immunity. Even those (governors), who have immunity, can be investigated. There are many professional groups, including the Nigeria Union of Journalists; if you commit a crime, besides facing disciplinary actions from your union, you should be investigated and prosecuted according to the law of the country.”

The source further explained the constitutional mandate of the DSS, adding that the service had not intervened in what did not concern it by investigating the judges.

Giving an insight into the allegation against some of the judges, he alleged that some of them received bribes to compromise judgments.

He also cited the case of a judge who had a N1.5bn estate, alleging that granting of bails to defendants had been turned into an avenue for making money by some judicial officers.

It was learnt that the government was not happy with way the police handled the investigation into the alleged Senate forgery involving the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, and his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu.

Presidency backs clampdown on judges

The Presidency on Sunday backed the weekend’s raids on the residences of some judges and their arrest, saying due process was followed.

It, however, said the clampdown was not against the judiciary but against corruption.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, said this in a statement made available to journalists.

Shehu said the Presidency had been told by the DSS that all due processes of the law, including the possession of search and arrest warrants, were obtained before the searches were carried out.

Describing the raids as “surgical operation”, he said to suggest that the government acted outside the law in a dictatorial manner, was therefore to breach the interest of the state.

The statement read, “The recent surgical operation against some judicial officers is specifically targeted at corruption and not at the judiciary as an institution.

“In a robust democracy such as ours, there is bound to be a plurality of opinions on any given issue, but there is a convergence of views that the country has a corruption problem that needs to be corrected.

“But reports by a section of the media are giving us cause for concern.

“To suggest that the government is acting outside the law, in a dictatorial manner, is to breach the interest of the state.”

Nigeria sliding into fascism, alleges PDP

The national leadership of the PDP said the arrest of the judges was unwarranted.

A statement by the spokesperson for the PDP, Mr. Dayo Adeyeye, in Abuja on Sunday, said, “This invasion is the latest in a series of actions taken by the President Muhammadu Buhari administration which revealed its disregard for the rule of law and its abject disdain for the principle of separation of powers.”

Adeyeye alleged that the country was sliding into what he called “inexorable fascism”, adding that it began with the alleged invasion of the Akwa Ibom State Government House by the DSS and the continued detention of several people despite courts ordering their release.

He said, “This slide into fascism has included sustained attacks on the leadership of the National Assembly as President Buhari has sought to break its independence and make it a rubberstamp to suit his will.

“It is worthy to note that never in the history of our country has any President attacked the judiciary in such a manner.

“Even the late dictator, Gen. Sani Abacha, whose regime is remembered by many as the second worst regime in Nigerian history, did not carry out such Gestapo-style attacks on the members of the judiciary.”

But the APC said it was concerned about the desperation of the opposition PDP to drag the President into the raids by the DSS.

The party, in a statement by its National Secretary, Mai Buni, in Abuja on Sunday, said the Buhari-led APC administration operated strictly in line with the rule of law.

The statement partly read, “While the party calls on all security agencies to respect and be guided by the rule of law in carrying out its constitutional duties, the APC finds the actions of some PDP governors and the reckless unsubstantiated allegations levelled by the PDP against President Muhammadu Buhari as the architect of the DSS raids curious and suspicious.

“The APC suspects that the PDP and the Ekiti and Rivers states’ governors, Ayodele Fayose and Nyesom Wike respectively, have something to hide. This is a red flag that security agencies must not ignore.”

Reps, senators condemn raids

Meanwhile, some members of the House of Representatives on Sunday berated the DSS for the arrests of some judges and the raids on their residences on Friday and Saturday last week.

The PDP Caucus of the House in particular, “condemned” the action of the DSS, warning that it was a “threat to democracy.”

Similarly, the Chairman, House Committee on Federal Judiciary, Mr. Aminu Shagari, accused the DSS of “failing to follow due process of the law” by invading the homes of the judges and arresting them.

The Chairman, House Committee on Justice, Mr. Razak Atunwa, also said the DSS overstepped its bounds.

House Minority Leader and Leader of the PDP’s caucus, Mr. Leo Ogor, stated that after analysing the Act establishing the DSS, members could not find a provision to justify Friday’s action of the agency.

Ogor added, “We condemn in its entirety, the said Gestapo invasion of the residences and arrests of the judges at those odd hours. It is not only unlawful but a threat to due process, usurpation of the responsibilities of the Nigeria Police, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Offences Commission or the National Judicial Council.

“We have taken pains to further analyse the National Security Agencies Act, from where the State Security Service, under the Provision of Section 3, derives its powers.

“We make bold to state that we could not find anything like the fight against corruption or financial crimes in the SSS mandate.

“Let it be known to Nigerians and the world at large that the core functions of SSS, border on treasonable crime and nothing more.”

Shagari, a member of the ruling APC from Sokoto State, told The PUNCH on Sunday that the manner the judges were arrested humiliated the judiciary.

Shagari explained, “There are rules for handling issues such as this. These are honourable justices and of the Supreme Court especially.

“The way their houses were invaded was not proper. There are procedures of the law and the DSS flouted them.”

Also, it was learnt that the issue would be one of the major subjects of debate on the floor of the Upper Chamber of the National Assembly when plenary resumes on Tuesday.

Two senators, who spoke to one of our correspondents on Tuesday, condemned the DSS for the reported ‘Gestapo style’ deployed in the operations by its operatives.

The Deputy Minority Whip of the Senate, Senator Abiodun Olujimi, described the raids by the DSS as being in bad taste and a return to the anarchy prevalent during military rule.

She said, “It does not make any sense and it is not fair. We can’t bring our exalted leaders down just for the sake of it. ‘‘Granted, they (DSS) could want to investigate the judges, but there are more civilised ways to go about it.”

The Chairman, Senate Committee on the Federal Capital Territory, Mr. Dino Melaye, on Sunday, condemned the arrest and invasion of the residences of the detained judges.

He said although judges had no immunity and could be tried, the use of DSS by government was “absolutely wrong and unacceptable.”

The position of Melaye of the APC, representing Kogi West, was contained in a statement he issued in Abuja.

He added, “There is no doubt that many judges are corrupt. It is also important to state the need to sanitise the judiciary of corruption that make judges to give commercial rulings which create terrible precedent in our legal system. Judges have no immunity and can be tried and should be tried but the use of DSS is absolutely wrong.

“The DSS operatives, even when they overstretch themselves and conduct investigations into the activities of judges, they ought to hand over their findings to the appropriate institutions of government – the Police or NJC – for prosecution and punishment.’’

modelmike7:
. . . . Exactly what i meant.

modelmike7:
No more business as usual.

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

The Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) has asked the President to release some judges who were arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS). The Bar threatened that there would be consequences if these judges are not released.

But the lawyers missed a very important opportunity to advocate for the cleansing of their profession. Of course, the President will surely release these judges.

Most senior lawyers agree with the NBA’s position. One lawyer fears that we might be back to the days of military rule. Another argued that there were ways of dealing with allegations of corruption against judges: malfeasances should be taken to appropriate authorities such as the NJC. (This is correct, but it doesn’t mean the President has done anything wrong in this sting operation.)

Even though the DSS claims to have gotten warrants for their search operation, one senior advocate argued that the independence of the judiciary should exempt it from the kind of interference seen last week.

One senior advocate argues that the time of the arrests was ungodly. He says arrests shouldn’t be made at night. [One would like to ask if a man who beats up his wife in the midnight should be exempted from arrest that same night, just because the hour is ungodly.]

But the President says the judiciary has been his headache: he must have drafted unconventional means to cure this headache. Many retired chief jurists agree that many judges are corrupt. The public thinks so, as well. The question is: How do we check arbitrariness in the cleansing process?

Our lawyers are missing a very important chance. Instead, they should insist on a unified guideline on sting operations. For example, in the US, the FBI operates under guidelines laid by former Attorney General Eric Holder.

With appropriate guidelines, DSS and the police will not be able to intimidate our judges, who are supposed to be independent anyway.

It is only concrete evidence from a sting operation of this nature that can speed up prosecution. The quality of evidence matters in legal tussles.

Take America for instance. In 2014, the FBI invented a fake case involving a fictional character and a staged arrest. The FBI invented this case to see if Joseph Waters Jr., a Philadelphia judge who was suspected to be corrupt, would interfere in this case after been pressured by his rich friend, who had been ‘good’ to him, but was working for the FBI in this instance.

Walters fell for this sting operation. He called Judge Dawn Segal, who was assigned this fictitious case, to lobby her. All these were recorded in the FBI’s sting operation. This operation is synonymous to what the DSS claims to have been doing.

Even the lawmakers are not left out in sting operations in America. In 2005, the FBI worked with several lobbyists in Tennessee in order to arrest corrupt state legislators and politicians. The FBI paid over $150,000 in bribe to these corrupt politicians and lawmakers in this undercover investigation.

And Americans do not believe that these sting operations affected the independence of the judiciary and legislature. (Note that wiring a person’s home is almost the same as invading it.)

To allay fears from senior lawyers, the DSS should pass on, as quickly as possible, the evidence they have obtained to the NJC for further investigations. And on its part, the NJC should recommend prosecution where necessary. They are used to just retiring erring judges. This might have been frustrating to the President.

It is surprising that no senior lawyer has talked about the evidences obtained from the residences of these judges.

More importantly, the judges should not be detained longer than necessary. They should also be given fair hearings. That some are billionaires doesn’t mean they are corrupt!

Here’s one thing the NBA should insist on: The DSS should be made to be independent in terms of funding and appointments into top positions. This is one way of checking abuse.

chiamaka21:
pls don't mind him. pls leave him alone. he derive so much noise from any story that is against the Yoruba.

The Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Operations Unit, Zone ‘A’ Ikeja Lagos in its fight against smuggling has yielded another positive result in the Month of September 2016 by intercepting various prohibited items with a duty paid value (DPV) of N101,546,650.00.


Similarly, the Unit through its interventions recovered N30,154,174.75 from vehicles and other goods that tried to beat the system from the seaports and border stations in the guise of false declaration, undervaluation and shortchange in duty payment that are meant for the Federal Government of Nigeria, making a cumulative of N131,7008,24.75 in the Month of September 2016.

In the month of September 2016 alone, about 98 different seizures were recorded comprising vegetable oil, foreign parboiled rice, frozen poultry products, fairly used vehicles popularly known as tokunbo, and various general merchandise.

The breakdowns are as follows:
S/N GENERAL GOODS QUANTITY DPV
1 Foreign Parboiled Rice 2,513 (50kg) 16,334,500.00
2 Frozen Poultry Products 3,778 Cartons 20,401,200.00
3 Vegetable Oil 528 Jerricans 4,711,500.00
4 Assorted vehicles 7 Units 14,310,000.00
5 General merchandise including
new and used textiles material,
shoes, bags, used tyres , Mosquito
insecticide, soaps, compressors,
Bonita Spaghetti amongst others 45,789,450.00

Sub-Total 101,546,650
Revenue intervention 30,154,174.75
Total 131,7008,24.75

While commending the displayed sheer courage, patriotism and intelligence in a well coordinated action by the Operatives of FOU ‘A’that eventually led to these remarkable seizures and intervention in the month of September 2016, the Controller, Federal Operations Unit, Zone ‘A’ Ikeja, Comptroller Umar Mohammed Dahiru Said that the Unit has what it takes in delivering one of the Service statutory functions of suppression of smuggling within his areas of jurisdiction in the South West zones.In order to keep this feat, the Controller has further tasked all field operatives of Federal Operations Unit to intensify their border patrols in order to bring smugglers to book.

He warned those dare devil smugglers who see ‘ember’ months as a peak period for their nefarious acts to desist from such illegal business as the Unit has deployed other tactical strategies that will make them run for their monies and count their loses. He added that 14 suspects were also apprehended and will be charged to court for prosecution after thorough investigation.

Jerry Attah
Public Relations Officer
For: Controller, FOU ‘A’

rexel99:
When this man go get sense. Smh

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

President Muhammadu Buhari says his administration inherited a badly managed Boko Haram insurgency in the north-east but it has succeeded in significantly curtailing the threat of the insurgents.

The president said this on Saturday at the passing out parade of the 63rd regular course cadets comprising the first set of female combatants cadets at the Nigeria Defence Academy (NDA), Kaduna state.

The cadets comprised of 59 personnel for the Nigerian army, 40 for the navy and 29 for the air force.

Buhari commended the troops, saying their commitment had helped a great deal in gaining the upper hand over Boko Haram.

“You will all recall that this administration inherited a badly managed Boko Haram insurgency in the north-east,” he aid.

“The violence even spread beyond north-eastern states, but the capacity of the insurgents to launch attacks has now been significantly curtailed.

“Boko Haram’s capacity to hold territories has been obliterated. What is ongoing now are mop up operations to clear the remnants of the insurgents from their numerous hideouts.

“All these successes are largely the efforts of our gallant troops of the Nigerian military. I therefore commend our men and women in uniform and the intelligence community for their roles in dealing with the emerging threats.”

He also warned‎ the Niger Delta militants against continuous destruction of oil installations in the region. He urged them to embrace peace, else his administration would take decisive military action against them.

“Today’s challenges, however, go beyond Boko Haram. We have seen the negative impacts of kidnapping, cattle rustling and renewed militancy in the Niger Delta on our economy,” he said.

“The repeated attacks in the Niger Delta have been impacting negatively on oil revenues. The scourge of illegal small arms and light weapons, and the drugs war, among others, remain issues which we are tackling seriously.

“Recently, we flagged off the clean-up of Ogoniland as part of the programmes to salvage the ravaged environment. We are convinced that undertaking such a monumental project will contribute to addressing the root causes of militancy in some parts of the Niger Delta region.

“However, for the avoidance of doubt, let me state that other options are still open, including decisive military action, if necessary, to deal with the criminal elements disguised in ethnic regalia to sabotage the country largely for their selfish and parochial interests.”

Still, he maintained that the priority of his government was “constructive engagement of the stakeholders for peace”.

The ceremony was attended by the likes of Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna state; Mansur Dan-Ali, minister of defence; Gabriel Olonishakin, chief of defence staff; Tukur Buratai, chief of army staff; Ibit-Ete Ibas, chief of naval staff.

After a brief period of ceasefire, the militants, led by the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA)< have recently resumed attacks on oil installations.

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

Keneking:
Source - amazing decision by ZA Republic.

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

simpleseyi:
How many wailer or wailer's fathers have this credential? Iyalaya eyin olote.

President Muhammadu Buhari has written to the South African Government to commend the country’s Supreme Court of Appeal’s judgement that confirmed the conviction of Mr. Henry Okah over terrorism charges.

The court was said to have on Monday upheld a 20-year prison term for Okah having found him guilty on two out of the six-counts relating to the Warri bombings labeled against him.

The court was also said to have affirmed a 12-year sentence for his role in the October 1, 2010 Abuja bombing.

The convictions that were upheld were said to be those in respect of the Warri bombing, relating to Mr. Okah’s providing finance and equipment without which the bombing would not have been executed.

A Presidency source told State House correspondents on the condition of anonymity on Saturday that the Federal Government had sent what he called “a measured letter” to the South African government on the matter.

In the letter, President Muhammadu Buhari was said to have described the the judicial decision as a big step forward towards removing terrorism from the continent.

“South Africa has projected itself an enduring partner to Nigeria in the war against terrorism.

“When African countries act jointly against terrorism, they send out clear and unambiguous signals that there is no more place for terrorism on our continent,” the source quoted part of the letter to the South African authorities.

He added that the latest judgment is being seen by the Presidency as a victory for the fight against terrorism in all its forms and shapes.

He said the decision should be hailed by all well-meaning Nigerians and citizens of the world.

“The South African authorities are therefore, urged to ensure that Mr. Okah is made to face the full wrath of the law for his acts of international terrorism.

“The scourge of terrorism as perpetrated by the Boko Haram terrorists and the so-called Niger Delta Avengers or militants has led to the death of several Nigerians and the monumental destruction of national assets,” he added.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, confirmed the development to journalists.

Shehu said the Presidency viewed Okah’s conviction positively “as serious signal in cleansing Nigeria of terrorism.”

The court was said to have held that Okah provided more than N2m to three individuals for the purpose of acquiring vehicles and explosives for use in the Warri bombing.

On the Abuja bombing, the Court upheld that Okah conspired, planned and instructed people in relation to its execution while he was in South Africa.

The Court therefore, held that exemption clause on extra-territorial application could not apply as Okah orchestrated the Abuja bombing while in South African territory.

The Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa, by this judgment has effectively reduced the 12-year sentence for Warri bombing to eight years but maintaining the 12–year sentence for the Abuja bombing, making the period 20 years all together as against the 24 years ruling by a lower Court.

Okah was granted Permanent Residency in South Africa in 2007, and was arrested in Johannesburg on October 2.

NOW IS THE TIME TO STAND UP AND BE COUNTED

Their homes were raided by hundreds of fully armed DSS commandos between 1.00 and 2.00 a.m. this morning.

Their streets were surrounded and sealed up. Their gates and front doors were smashed open and they forcefully and violently arrested and detained.
Their families and loved ones were traumatised and terrorised.

Their staff and members of their household were held captive, threatened and sent scampering for cover under their beds.

Yet those that suffered these gross violations of their fundamental human rights, civil liberties and indignities were not wily and desperate politicians or hardened miltary men that were fighting and conspiring against the government or plotting a military coup d'etat.

They were not dangerous dissidents or Boko Haram terrorists.
They were not battle-hardened Niger Deltan Avengers or seasoned OPC and IPOB fighters.

They were not members of a dangerous and evil armed cult that were plotting to kill innocent people and they were not a group of radical and desperate secessionists or freedom fighters.

They were not angry students or trade unionists that were planning to block the streets, to stop all movement and activity, to bring the country to a standstill or to burn the nation down.
They were none of these things and included none of these groups or people.
Instead they were all senior and respected members of the Nigerian judiciary.
They included two Supreme Court judges (one of whom is next in line to be the Chief Justice of the Federation) and three Federal High Court judges.
Three are Igbo, one is Yoruba and one is from the south south.
All of them are southerners.

Governor Wike of Rivers state was almost shot dead when he attempted to protect the home of one of the judges in Port Harcourt and stop them from arresting him.

The truth is that we are in trouble in this country. The motherland and all that we hold dear is under attack from a ravenous and dictatorial President and government.

When those that are constitutionally charged and empowered to protect us from tyranny and the abuse of power by a vicious, violent, murderous and lawless government and its murderous security agencies are themselves under siege all hope is lost.

If the judges cannot protect us and if they themselves have become victims of barbarous tyranny then it is time for the people to rise up, take to the streets, resist the evil and fight against our oppressors.
Sons and daughters of Nigeria, we must not give in to fear and we must not be silenced.

We must defend the rights of our people and fight for our homeland.
Now is the time to protest in any way that we possibly can and to take our country back from these animals and barbarians. Now is the the time to say "enough is enough!"

If we do not do so we shall be slaves forever. It is our God-given right and sacred duty to resist tyranny in every shape and form.

If nothing else history, scripture and all the Holy Books of the three great faiths of Christianity, Islam and Judaism teach us that.

Now is the time to shed our fears and to stand up like the true patriots and free men and women that we were born to be and do so.

Now is the time to say "thus far and no further" and to say "no more" and be our brothers keeper.
Now is the time to stop sitting on the fence and acting as if all is well.

May the Living God fill us with His Spirit and grant us courage. May He strengthen and embolden us.
May He guide, lead, protect and deliver us as we move forward to confront the evil that plagues our land and speak truth to power.
May He, at the very end, bless our land and grant us victory.

Presidency has described as totally untrue the allegation that president Muhammadu Buhari has ordered the freezing of the account of former President Goodluck Jonathan and also stopped his allowances and those of other past leaders of the country.

The presidency’s reaction came on the heels of the allegation by demonstrators in Bayelsa State on Thursday that allowances due to a former President have been stopped and his bank accounts were frozen.

It however said that third quarter allowances had not been paid.

In a statement on Friday by the Senior Special Assistant to the president on media and publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, the presidency said that Buhari accused the demonstrators of a hidden agenda, stressing that Buhari would never engage in any vendetta.


President Muhammadu Buhar
“We have confirmed with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) that the former President and the other past leaders were paid their allowances up to the second quarter.

“The past leaders have not been paid third quarter allowances but will get their dues when remittances are received by the SGF from the Ministry of Finance.

“Also, the story of account closure is false. It is not known to the investigation agencies.

“The National Security Adviser to the President is not aware of this bank account closure; the DG SSS is unaware of it, the EFCC is unaware and the IG of Police is not in the know.

“With all of these agencies not being involved, how then could a thing like that happen? In a dream perhaps!

“To put it starkly, we believe there is a clear motive for the demonstration that is different from that which was being canvassed.

“This is a premeditated attempt to blame President Muhammadu Buhari for something he knows nothing about.

“These claims are false and poorly sourced to present a picture of vendetta; and they should be disregarded by well-meaning members of the public.”

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

9jatatafo:
Oceanic banks love their guys slim too putting their undergrounds lords into consideration for deeper penetration! !

NairaMaster1:
144 mallams

drnoel:
Bros, I hear that thing fever catch me. Ur country Nigeria is a joke

peterdrury:
Who placed a curse on Nigeria?

cindyrocks:
How many equipment has Buhari provided so far?

AuroraB:
I thought no ransom was paid to secure her release

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

The Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, has blamed failure of the immediate past government to provide equipment and supplies to the military for the spread of Boko Haram insurgency in the North-East

He made the statement on Thursday at the graduation of Cadets of 63rd Regular Course of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) in Kaduna.

Osinbajo, who was the special guest at the graduation, said that the failure resulted to the death of over 20, 000 people with over two million displaced and more than 75, 000 children orphaned.

He expressed regret that several billions of dollars meant for procurement of arms and ammunition to prosecute the war were cornered by few persons.

“This has left the region with one of the worst humanitarian crisis,” he added.

The VP commended the military for defeating the terrorists and for the sacrifices it made to defend the nation.

‪He said that the fastest way for Nigeria to get out of the current recession was for militant groups in the Niger Delta to stop bombing oil pipelines.

He said that the activities of the militants had adversely affected crude oil output which had dropped from 2.2 million barrels per day to below 1 million barrels per day.

Osinbajo said the destruction had also affected the revenue accruing to the country by 60 per cent.

While comparing the 2008/2009 recession in United States with Nigeria’s, the VP said Nigeria’s recession was caused by massive corruption, lack of saving and destruction of oil pipelines.

‪The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 133 cadets, including 17 female cadets, were for the first time awarded first degree certificates in various discipline at the occasion.

One hundred and twenty seven (127) cadets were awarded master’s degree while 14 cadets bagged doctorate degree.

Three prominent Nigerians, Grace Alele-Willaims, former Vice Chancellor, University of Benin; Paul Tarfa, ex-military administrator of Old Oyo State and business mongul, Innocent Chukwuma, were conferred with honorary doctorate degrees.

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

Two and a dismissed military personnel, have been arrested by operatives of the Inspector General of Police Special Intelligence Response Team, IRT, for their alleged involvement in the kidnap of the wife of Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Margaret Emefiele and three others, last Friday.

Six other suspects were earlier arrested by police, following a directive from the Inspector General of Police, who deployed reconnaissance helicopter, sniffing dogs and his operatives of the IRT to Delta and Edo states.

The arrest of the military personnel, who were picked up in Auchi and Benin in Edo State and Otupko in Benue State, has increased the number of suspects arrested in connection with the kidnap of the CBN Governor’s wife to nine.

Vanguard gathered that six of the suspects were Fulani herdsmen, while the three serving and dismissed military personnel were from Gombe, Benue and Delta states.

Share of loot

It was further gathered that the two serving military personnel arrested had bought two exotic cars with their share of the loot, while the dismissed soldier had bought a car and also rented an apartment with his share few days after the operation.

A source at the Edo State Police Command disclosed that the military officer arrested in Benue State was found with an unregistered Honda Accord saloon car and millions of naira.

His serving colleague, who was arrested in Auchi, was said to have stashed his share with his relatives in Anambra State.

Mrs Emefiele and three others were abducted last Friday on the Benin-Agbor Expressway.

Her police escorts were said to have been overpowered as the hoodlums opened fire on them.

After kidnapping her, the abductors demanded a N100 million ransom.

Sources at Police High Command, Abuja, said that a large part of the ransom had been recovered and that the IRT operatives, led by Abba Kyari, were on the trail of the three remaining members of the gang.

CplusJason:
Your're sighted bro! But i rep the other half.

CplusJason:
Awumen!!!