₦airaland Forum

foryourmindlol:
Shut up. What's there to celebrate

SadiqBabaSani:
Imagine wat we are still celebrating in this century

Racoon:
This is a national problem but our SW brethren said the UGM in Igboland are IPOB members. So terrible for a failed country.

The Baale of Olowe Gbagura in Abeokuta North Local Government Area of Ogun State, Chief Akin Muheedeen, is said to have been burnt to death by yet-to-be-identified persons.

This is coming one month after the Olu of Agodo, Oba Ayinde Odetola, was killed and burnt to death in Ewekoro Local Government Area of the state.

It was gathered that the community head had gone out to observe the Islamic morning prayer (Subhi), when fire was discovered within his compound.

Family sources said the man was killed by some unknown persons, who broke a window to gain access to where the man was.

They were of the belief that the assailants set the man on fire after killing him.

It was gathered that the deceased Baale currently had an issue with some people over land matters.

DAILY POST learnt that he was recently arrested and arraigned for his alleged involvement in a tussle with some individuals claiming ownership of a land he was equally laying claim to.

The village head, who was expected to appear in court on March 15, had reportedly commenced the amicable resolution of the matter before his death on Monday morning.

One of his wives, Silifat, while confirming the incident, said she was returning from the mosque around 6am when she saw fire billowing from their compound.

“When I saw the fire, I shouted, I didn’t know what was happening. I rushed down, only to discover that my husband was on fire, already dead. We later found out that a window at the back of the house was broken. We didn’t know who killed him,” Silifat said.

His second wife, Iyabode, said she slept in the same room with her husband, saying her husband left the room at dawn to urinate and pray as usual.

“He used to pray every morning, so he went out around 6am to urinate and prepare for prayer. After about 15 minutes, I heard my senior wife shouting, ‘fire, fire’. I rushed out to discover that it was Baale that was on fire. He didn’t go out with fire or matches. We don’t know who did this,” Iyabode explained.

Speaking, the Seriki of Olowe, Chief Kazeem Dauda, while condemning the incident, explained that there was an issue between the Baale and some individuals.

“Few days ago, I was here with him to talk to him so as not to panic about the case in court. Some people have been claiming ownership of his land. He was even arrested and granted bail in court. He was supposed to be in court again on the 15th of March. He was a gentleman. This would be the first time he would have an issue with anyone.

“I got a call this morning that he burnt himself to death. I said, ‘how come?’ But when I got here, we discovered the window was broken. He couldn’t have burnt himself like that,” the Seriki said.

The Ogun State Public Relations Officer, Abimbola Oyeyemi, said he had not been briefed about the incident.

Hours later, Oyeyemi said he could not contact the DPO of Imala for details about the incident.

“I will call you back when I contact the DPO of Imala,” Oyeyemi promised.

More facts have emerged on how suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Abba Kyari, was working in cahoots with drug dealers in the country for several years until his recent arrest.

According to Thisday, a reliable source in the Nigeria Police Force, who preferred to remain anonymous, in a chat with yesterday, disclosed that the ‘super cop’ whom the federal government last week announced commencement of plans to extradite to the United States of America to face fraud allegations, was allegedly operating with drug cartels from all over the country.

The source, however, shed more light on the modus operandi of Kyari and his group.

“They drug dealers usually notify him when these drugs are coming from different parts of the world into the country. Kyari would then go to the NDLEA territory, where the drugs were expected, pretend to arrest the culprits whom he usually threaten with prosecution. It was all staged.

“The expectation was he would hand them over to NDLEA for prosecution but that never happened. The next is he will release the culprits and that will be the end of the matter. And because he was so connected, the matter dies. This continued for years until Buba Marwa was appointed.

“So, the intelligence on Abba Kyari had been there all along, but because he was seen as a ‘super cop,’ he was well-respected and well-connected nothing happened. And again, the Police had been giving him cover over the years, so nothing was done. If not for Marwa, he would have continued his nefarious acts,” the source added.

Furthermore, the source alleged that Kyari had young men at the major ports and borders across the country, who would always tip him off whenever cocaine or any banned substances enter into the country and in most cases, he would strike deals with them and let them go.

According to him, “Kyari was actively into the drug business and was working with all the drug dealers and cartels. And I can say that the Police just turned a blind eye which begs the question about their involvement. He was their ‘good boy,’ and was probably settling them and so, they turned blind eyes to whatever he was doing.

“I am talking about the top echelon of the police. They knew what he was doing, I mean, they cannot claim not to know. He was so brazen in his nefarious activities that it is highly unlikely his bosses didn’t know about some of the illegal activities he was involved in,” the source added.

The federal government last week commenced moves to extradite Kyari to the US. Also, last week, the NDLEA, which currently has Kyari in its custody following his arrest for alleged illicit drug dealing, initiated a court process against him.

By this development, Kyari, four of his colleagues in the Inspector General of Police Special Intelligence Response Team (IRT), and two others would be arraigned any moment on drug-related charges.

NDLEA filed an eight-count criminal charge against the defendants at the Federal High Court, Abuja.

The implication of the NDLEA court action against Kyari is that he cannot be extradited to the US, even though the federal government has commenced the extradition process.

Kyari, a once celebrated officer of the Nigeria Police, is currently enmeshed in various criminal allegations in connection with cases for which the “super cop” had previously won accolades for fighting.

Following the arrest and imprisonment of Abass Ramon, a.k.a Hushpuppi, over a $1.1 million wire fraud and Ramon’s alleged implication of Kyari, who was then Commander of the Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT), the United States, had requested the extradition of Kyari to explain his alleged involvement in the crime.

Meanwhile, operatives of the NDLEA had disclosed that they intercepted no fewer than 294,440 tablets of Tramadol, Diazepam, Swinol, Rohyphnol and Exol-5 along with other illicit drugs in major operations in some parts of the country.

The operations which were conducted in the last one week in Delta, Bauchi, and at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, also saw a total of 41 suspects arrested in raids in Abuja and Kaduna state.

A statement by the spokesman of the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi, yesterday, disclosed that in Delta, one Christian Onah, 42, was arrested at Isele-Azagba junction with 23,160 tablets of Swinol and 66,000 tablets of Rohypnol, both weighing 71.6 kilogrammes while conveying the drugs from Benin, Edo State capital to Onitsha, in Anambra State.

The statement disclosed that in another arrest, a commercial vehicle from Onitsha going to Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, was intercepted at Abraka junction, Asaba, the Delta State capital, last Wednesday with 78,000 capsules of Tramadol; 5,000 tablets of Diazepam and 97,500 tablets of Exol-5, while a suspect, Olaniyan Sunday, 42, was arrested.

Babafemi also revealed that a female suspect, Patricia Saduwa, 42, was arrested with 233.7 kilogrammes cannabis during a raid operation in Orogun community close to Abbi town in Kwale Local Government Area of Delta State last Friday, adding that the raid of another house in the community same day led to the seizure of 123.7 kilogrammes cannabis while the owner is still at large.

According to him, in Bauchi State, operatives acting on credible intelligence, raided a warehouse at Gadar-Maiwa, Ningi Local Government Area of the state, where 542.5 kilogrammes of cannabis; 6,800 tablets of Diazepam and 12,400 tablets of Exol-5 were recovered last Wednesday.

Babafemi further disclosed that at least, 30 suspects were arrested at Malali area of Kaduna during raids aimed at destroying drug joints across the state.

A suspect, Usman Dahiru was arrested with 24 kilogrammes cannabis concealed in two sacks of used clothes last Thursday, along Abuja-Kaduna express road, where another suspect, Abdulrazaq Rabi’u was arrested with 100,000 counterfeit US dollars.

On the same day, operatives in Anambra State, recovered 38,862 red star cartridges along with 13 cartons of illicit drugs, when they raided a warehouse in Onitsha. In Abuja, FCT, 11 suspects were arrested and 81.2 kilogrammes of drugs seized in a major raid operation last Saturday, on black spots like Torabora, Karu Abattoir, Jabi motor park and Forest.

At the Lagos airport, the statement revealed that one Audu Muhammed, was arrested at the SAHCO export shed last Saturday with 1.550 kilogrammes cannabis concealed in Golden Morn cereal packs meant for Dubai, UAE.

“Two days earlier, on Thursday, a suspect, Olalekan Ayinde, was also arrested at the export shed with 4,980 capsules of Tramadol; 600 capsules of Rohypnol and some designer drugs concealed inside locust beans and hidden among food items for export to South Africa.

“A principal suspect in the importation of 451,807 Captagon tablets weighing 79.119 kilogrammes in September, 2021 at Apapa Seaport Lagos, Nwoku Uche, 36, has been taken into custody after six months on the run,” it revealed.

Known as Jihadist drug, the consignment was the first ever recorded seizure of Captagon in West and Central African Sub-Region.

“In his statements, Uche claimed to have met the person, who gave him the job on LinkedIn while he was paid N5 million to clear the container. He then used a third party bank account to process the Form M for the clearing of the illicit consignment,” it added.

However, commending officers and men of the Delta, Bauchi, Kaduna, Anambra, FCT, Apapa port and MMIA Commands of the agency for the arrests and seizures, Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Retd), was quoted in the statement to have charged them and their compatriots across the country to remain vigilant and on the offensive until all drug cartels in Nigeria were completely dismantled.

The controversial national carrier, Nigeria Air, may now see the light of the day in second quarter of this year, as request for proposal will go public this week.

The Guardian, yesterday, learnt that yet another shift in take-off date, earlier proposed for the first quarter, was due to delays in mandatory approvals that have now been granted for the commencement of the bidding phase.

Though the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, has hinted on speedy wrap up ahead of takeoff next month, findings from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) showed that the request for the Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) and Air Transport Licence (ATL) has not been tabled as at weekend.

The national carrier is to replace the defunct Nigeria Airways that ceased operations in 2003. The replacement was designed as a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) project with the Federal Government owning five per cent stake.

In 2018, the national carrier and its christening in London set the minister on a collision course with the Nigerian public. Harsh criticism of alleged prodigal roll-out at the Farnborough Airshow in London was instrumental to ‘temporary’ suspension of the launch, earlier scheduled for December 24, 2018.

Findings then showed that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) did not also warm up to the proposed airline because it had no provision in the 2018 appropriation law. But since then to date, the project has been rattling-up votes, with about seven shifts in take-off date.

The project has racked up a total of N14.65 billion in appropriation votes between 2019 and 2022. About 40 per cent of the sum (N6.25 billion) has been channeled to working capital, consultancy and transaction advisers’ fees.

Sirika, at the weekend, confirmed the commencement for the issuance of requests for proposal to intending investors on March 8, 2022, coupled with plans to secure the AOC, constitution of a nine-man board to manage the carrier temporarily, among others.

He reaffirmed that the Federal Government would own five per cent stake of the airline while general public will own 46 per cent and the international partners airlines take 49 per cent shares.

“We will give them some weeks to respond to the request, then we will announce the winning bidder. Because government intends to own only five per cent of the airline shares, we are going to go ahead with the AOC, which has commenced since.

“I believe that by April, we should be able to have our AOC ready, which means, we are ready to start. And once the AOC is in our hands, the offices are secured, the interim board is being constituted, and when they finish signing the contract, we will announce who they are.

“Currently, they are called interim because they will hold the airline on an interim bases up to the time the investors will come and take over. The interim members are noble people, some are Nigerians, some are not. I think they are about nine of them to run the airline and they will begin operations between now and July,” the minister said.

As at yesterday, a top official in the NCAA, said they were yet to see a request on behalf of the new airline, “but we expect one soon.”

The hurried April 2022 roll-out date, without technical partners in place nor the mandatory ATL and AOC in the works, raised suspicion of a government-protected airline that may circumvent standard procedure and edge unfair competition to get by.

Operators, who are apparently unsettled by the prospect, said it would be unfair for the government to be the regulator and operator at the same time, and egg on a “national airline” without transparency.

A stakeholder, who did not want to be mentioned, intoned that the “noble initiative” began with a wrong footing and has continued in errors that naturally discredit the merits.

“We live in a country where nobody can trust politicians or the government. The reason is simply, you can easily pick holes in their claims. The minister, a trained aviator and someone that should know, should not say that a new airline will employ 70,000 people and expect Nigerians to clap for him. Even the best airlines in the world don’t have such numbers despite decades of operation. The figures are all in the public domain. So, when you start with a lie, you make nonsense of the whole thing.

“It is unheard of that a government borrowing to pay salaries will be funding a national carrier, albeit camouflaging with foreign investment, which has been nonexistent. In 2017, a prominent Middle Eastern carrier rejected the offer of partnership with the Nigerian Air project, advising the minister of aviation to first go and fix the infrastructure in the industry – terminals, aids, seamless connection between domestic and international flights, aids, and so on.

“These should be the priority of the minister. Fix the infrastructure! Why is he championing the national carrier, if the government is having only five per cent interest? How can he set up a start date without even naming the foreign partners? Who are the local partners? Why has it taken five years and he has not succeeded in this project? He is Nigeria’s longest serving minister and has received every financial and budgetary support to succeed, but there’s very little to show for it,” he claimed.

Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has faulted the Nigeria Police Force over the arrest of Abubakar Marshall, a lawyer to activist Omoyele Sowore.

Falana also debunked claims by police that Sowore jumped bail, saying that the activist had presented himself for any possible arraignment.

The PUNCH had reported that Marshal was arrested on Friday for allegedly failing to produce Sowore on February 25.

Sowore, the publisher of Sahara Reporters, was arrested on February 24, following a petition of criminal defamation, injurious falsehood publication of news known to be false, against him.

His arrest followed a petition by billionaire Ned Nwoko, through his lawyers, Trifold Law & Partners, against Sahara Reporters Foundation.

Lawyer Marshall had stood as surety for Sowore after he was granted an administrative bail with a promise to produce him on February 25.

Falana said, “In a bid to justify the illegal arrest of Abubakar Marshall Esq. the Police claimed that the lawyer contravened an unspecified provision of the Criminal Code because he failed to produce a client, Mr. Omoyele Sowore at a police station in the Federal Capital Territory.

“It is public knowledge that the movement of Mr Sowore has been restricted to the Federal Capital Territory for the past two years on the orders of the Federal Capital Territory. Since his abode is well known to the security agencies, it is grossly misleading to claim that his surety has contravened any provision of the Penal Code.

“However, in spite of the indiscretion of Abubakar Marshall to stand surety for Mr. Sowore, his arrest, detention and prosecution by the Federal Capital Territory Police Command cannot be justified under the law
“It is trite law that a surety cannot be arrested, detained and charged with any criminal offence before any court in Nigeria on the ground that a suspect has jumped bail or failed to report for investigation or arraignment.

“The penalty is that the surety is legally obligated to pay the sum stated in the recognisance or bail bond. Before the bail bond can be forfeited the surety is entitled to show a cause or justify before a Court why it should not be forfeited.

“However, if the surety fails to pay the sum stipulated in the bond the court shall proceed to recover it from the surety like a fine under the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.

“In view of the several decisions of Nigerian courts on the contractual nature of suretyship, Abubakar Marshall has not committed any offence whatsoever. The authorities of the Federal Capital Territory Police Command are advised to withdraw the criminal charge erroneously filed before the Upper Area Court in Kubwa. However, since Mr. Sowore is not on the run he has decided to report himself to the Police for any possible arraignment.”

Matina Agawua, a native of Yelwata, a remote settlement in Nasarawa State, has opened up on the reason for being involved in an abominable act.

In an interview with The Nation, Agawua said when she lost her first husband, she decided to remain a widow for 13 years.

She said but she could not conceive in the marriage which had lasted more than six years.

The woman said her in-laws threatened to show her the way out on the ground of not being able to have a child for their son.

“We had been married for more than six years but were still childless due to my husband’s fault, according to doctor’s report, and I was hearing from the grapevine that he was planning to take a second wife on the grounds that I could not give him a child.”

She said while she took fertility test, her husband did not deem it necessary to go for a medical check-up to ascertain the source of the problem.

She said she suspected that her husband was suffering from low sperm count which made him unable to father a child as the test she took showed that there was nothing wrong with her.

The woman said it was amid this crisis that she slept with her only son from her first marriage.

She added that to further convince herself about her fertility status, she decided to lure her son, a student in Akwanga, into a secret affair .

She said: “Since he is not comfortable with us going for medical checkup on the assumption that nothing was wrong with him, I decided to convince my little son, who is just about 16 years old and schooling in Akwanga

“I visited him regularly. He stays in a private apartment with my relatives, so I was going there to spend some time with them, especially on weekends when my market is off.

“It was actually difficult making love with my own son, but circumstances forced me to go into it. I needed to be sure of my fertility.

“I know my husband very well. If he discovered I had an affair with a man outside, he would kill me.

“I love him so much and I’m afraid of him, so this evil plan kept ringing in my mind to know how fertile I am. I tried to visit my son in Akwanga mostly when I was on my ovulation period. I decided to develop a crush on him and draw him very close to me. We got intimate and ended up having s*x.

“One faithful day while I was on my ovulation period, I visited him. It was at about 11pm. I held his hand and made him sit beside me.

“I asked him if he had ever had s*x and he said no. I held him in my arms. This time, I felt warm and I think he too did. After that night, I felt extremely embarrassed, and guilty that I committed such an abomination with my own son.

“It was actually a taboo, but I warned him to keep it secret.”

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

Abba Kyari, a suspended Nigeria Deputy Commissioner of Police, appears to be heading to the United States, no visa required, as Nigeria finally surrenders to that country’s extradition squeeze.

It could have been no less embarrassing. Kyari was no ordinary cop, according to the legend he was the “Super Cop.” But he may have been far more crook than cop: the allegations against him in the US include wire fraud, money laundering and aggravated identity theft.

The case of the suspended “Super Creep” became even more embarrassing glocally in mid-February when it was discovered that even as his extradition request was being processed, he was being arrested by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency for an offence. An agency video, which went viral, appeared to show him negotiating a drug deal.

In an ongoing case, Isa Ali Pantami, Buhari’s cabinet minister, who had previously been exposed as a hypocritical terrorist-sympathizer, was also denounced by the Academic Staff Union of Universities for something Pantami had claimed to be a “promotion” to professor by the Federal University of Technology, Owerri.

In general, a promotion normally implies that the beneficiary has been serving in a lower capacity in the same institution and is being elevated—within the applicable regulations—as a reward for hard work or additional training.

But Pantami was on the staff of the Federal Government, not in a university let alone one in Owerri. He did not know FUTO. Had never studied there. Never taught there. Never undertaken any research there. Never written his name on a fig leaf there, let alone on a sheet of paper. Probably never even visited the place.

But he had somehow contrived to be “promoted” to professor by FUTO, breaking all the laws of time and space to somehow hold two full-time jobs for two different employers in two places.

And he appeared to have had no qualms about it. In the Buhari era, such quackery has become standard.

Think about it: apart from the obvious and colossal economic loss every year, exactly what do the hours of sitting in traffic in Nigerian cities mean?

I am not talking about the human suffering, which, to governments which have failed to do enough about it, is a contradiction in terms. I mean: if you must sit in traffic and suffer, they seem to imply that that is your problem.

But what if you are sitting in traffic that is not moving at all, such as on a petrol queue about one mile from a fuel station which does not even have a drop of fuel, in the hope that someday soon, it will receive supplies that will still be available when it is your turn?

In Nigeria, as another petrol shortage hits the nation, that is the current state of play: horrendous stretches of motor vehicles and fuel cans in the blazing sun in the cities—and sometimes at night—as Nigerians hope and pray and fight for a few gallons of the precious stuff.

Each of those stations features not just the long lines of motor vehicles but also a long assembly of jerry cans that pedestrians use to purchase petrol that they then re-sell nearby at exorbitant prices.

One of the ironies is that motorists who obtain this petrol are often compelled to squander it in traffic. They then find themselves at the back of another long petrol line somewhere else, hoping for yet another miracle.

But where, in all this, is President Muhammadu Buhari?

About this time seven years ago, candidate Buhari was crisscrossing the landscape, proudly declaring how he would “change” Nigeria. When it came to President Goodluck Jonathan, for instance, the All Progressives Congress hopeful routinely assailed the existence of the presidential fleet, swearing he would travel commercially if elected.

it may look like a joke now, but at a meeting with Nigerians in the United Kingdom, he is remembered for asking, “What is the difference between me and those who elected us to represent them?”

Answering his own question, Buhari said, “Absolutely nothing! Why should [the] Nigerian President not fly with [the] Nigerian public?”

He swore he would bring Nigerian Airways. “We shall do this by bringing all the aircraft in the presidential fleet into the Nigerian Airways and within a year increase the fleet to about 20,” Buhari said.

Of course, he also swore he would never embark on medical tourism, saying he would make Nigerian hospitals “functional” and thereby protect public funds.

As Nigeria reels from problems that have either multiplied or been nurtured under Buhari’s watch, it is not difficult to think of him in Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde terms, or to consider that our predicament is due as much to his malice as to his incompetence.

But what about the present, as “Mr Integrity” returns to London, in one of the jets he swore to sell or send into Nigeria Airways, to continue to squander on himself the scarce public funds he swore he would preserve? Is he smiling in pleasure, idly picking his teeth in front of the television, or is he in conceivably embarrassed?

As Buhari and his entourage enjoy life in London for another two weeks, paid for by Nigeria’s poor, the deprived and the cheated, ignoring the chaos at home and the warning signs of a country in the last stages of decay, his wife is in Dubai: rebellious, resentful, and removed, their seven years in control a lesson in exploitation.

In their absence, one man bidding to replace them in Aso Rock and make Nigeria into Lagos State continues to sow quotations.

Bola Tinubu, 80 going 70, has said, among others, “No amount of intimidation can stop me. I am ready to get dirty. I am out to become President of Nigeria.”

And: “[Buhari] will soon finish his tenure. I am saying they should not just leave the post; they should hand it over to me.”

And: “My driving vision is the transformation of this nation into a robust decentralised democracy…a nation founded on justice…a Nigeria that is for all Nigerians.”

We once believed rhetoric such as this, to our detriment. For our infantile faith in his words, Buhari has spent his two terms practically insulting all those who voted for him. In place of merit and achievement, his has emerged as an era of fakery and duplicity and certificate marketers and character forgers such as Kyari and Pantami.

Tinubu’s Nigeria, should he have his way, would be infinitely worse. In Lagos State, he has demonstrated his concept of “robust democracy” to mean one-man-only-vote where that man’s name is his.

As I have written previously, I am willing to grant him the benefit of the conversation if he publicly renounces his anti-democratic behavior in Lagos since he left office as governor in 2006, and discloses the source of his wealth. That is democracy, and it would be even more so when we invoke the concept of justice.

Otherwise, Tinubu is a mistake Nigerians must resoundingly reject and refuse to add to Buhari.Whatever his image-makers write for him to say, Nigeria cannot be returned to a foreign hospital bed.

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

Mooh247:

Expired milk .. Baba endorser.. calamity endorser that forced Yar'Adua and Jonathan on us to destroy Zoning arrangements

Baba we too can endorse our leaders by ourselves

Each candidate and aspirants should publish their Curriculum vitae

We want to know how each Aspirants previously governed their individual state of origin, what companies did they create to provide unemployment, how much tax they pay and most importantly what their future plans are.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Saturday said he was not in a hurry to endorse any presidential aspirant ahead of the 2023 general elections.

Obasanjo stated this against the backdrop of consultations by politicians aspiring to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari at an international symposium organised to mark his 85th birthday at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

Political bigwigs, particularly those with the ambition to rule Nigeria, have started consulting with those they think can brighten their chances of assuming the highest office in the country.

Some of these politicians have taken their consultation visits to the residences of Obasanjo, former Military Head of State, Gen. Ibrahim Babaginda and Gen. AbdulSalam Abubakar.

Those that have visited Obasanjo at his penthouse residence located in Abeokuta included the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Iyorchia Ayu, Chief Dele Momodu, Senator Bukola Saraki and the Bauchi State Governor, Bala Muhammed.

Others are: Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the Convener of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), Prof. Ango Abdullahi, PDP Vice Presidential candidate in 2019 election, Peter Obi, former governors, Sule Lamido (Jigawa), Olusegun Mimiko (Ondo), Liyel Imoke (Cross River) and Donald Duke (Cross River).

But, Obasanjo declared that he had not endorsed any of the aspirants jostling to succeed Buhari.

He disclosed that his choice of any candidate would be informed by wide consultation and counsel from his friends from both within and outside the country.

The former president denied rumours making the round on the social media that he had endorsed a candidate and a political party, saying, “I have neither named names nor stated my position”.

Obasanjo hinted that he would be looking beyond personality of any candidate and urged Nigerians to learn from the events of the past and put aside sentiments in choosing the next president of the country.

He also also denied forming any political party to serve as a third force to wrestle power from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

He said, “As the quadrennial madness builds a head of steam and the runners and riders crisscross the nation in the quest for nomination as the party flag bearer to the highest office in the land, I read and hear about endorsement and statements in support of candidates that I frankly have not made and forming next political parties that I can never get involved in. I was told that social media credited to me names of three people from the south that I am sponsoring for Presidency in 2023.

“My friend, Professor Ango Abdullah, who brought this to my knowledge remarked that he did not believe that I made such a statement because it was out of my character. I have neither named names nor stated my position.

“In situation like the one we are in, I will not rush into naming names without necessary consultations and well-defined principles and criteria. We need to be clear about what Nigeria needs today and why Nigeria needs it. Only then can we answer the question of how that will inform us of the criteria.”

No fewer than 368 Nigerian students still trapped in Sumy State University (SumDU), Ukraine are drinking and cooking with ice and snow following water shortage in the city of Sumy.

They are part of the over 800 international students hiding in bunkers at hostel 3 in SumDU.

They told The Nation that their water supply was disrupted and the city plunged into the darkness since March 3 when bombs destroyed a water plant and power substation serving the northeastern Ukrainian city.

The country has seen heavy fighting following a Russian invasion on February 24 and Sumy is facing heavy shelling by Russian forces.

Sumy is approximately 48km from the Russian border – an area surrounded by conflict – and the bombings were reported to have resumed there at about 6 am on Saturday morning.

But it was learnt that the students had to risk stepping outside – despite continuous shelling – and in sub-zero temperatures to gather snow and ice for basic needs.

“People had to use snow to cook food because there was no water,” said first-year medical student Emmanuella Oiza.

Oiza, 17, told The Nation that she and the other students could hear the bombings from their hiding place.

She said: “The bombings are audible from everywhere in the city. We hide in bunkers.


“We heard some sounds although it’s not near the hostel we’re in and due to the bomb the day before yesterday, our light and water were cut off.

“We had to trek to another hostel which is closer to the city centre to get light because no light means no data connection.

“In this hostel there’s light but no water and the population increased drastically today (Saturday) and yesterday (Friday). More than half of the population of hostels 4 and 5 are in this hostel which is hostel 3.

“So it’s congested; no bed space, the toilets aren’t working so everywhere smells and it’s just tiring. It doesn’t help that it’s really cold and snowing at this point.”

Oiza said many of the Nigerians are medical students while others are studying computer science, management and other courses.

Most of the others are from Tanzania (159); Ghana (150); Zimbabwe (18); Zambia (14); Morocco (12); Namibia (4); Angola (4); South Africa (2), and Botswana (1).

Others are from Ethiopia, Rwanda, Ireland, India, Lebanon and Turkey.

The Nation learnt that all routes out of Sumy are blocked with trains and buses no longer running.

Roads and bridges have also been bombed, with fighting reported in the streets.

But some are sometimes lucky to leave the city by taxis.

Oiza said: “As for taxis, hardly anyone is willing to move. If they’re moving they take only four or three people, and they’re calling outrageous prices for transportation just out of Sumy to Poltava, a neighbouring state.

“Taxis was $500 or more per student. I have a friend that booked a cab on Thursday to move on Friday but when Friday came, the cab guy picked someone who paid extra money.”

On Friday, 630 Nigerians including three infants stranded in Ukraine arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, in two batches.

This followed President Muhammadu Buhari’s approval of $8.5 million for the immediate evacuation of at least 5,000 Nigerians fleeing the Ukrainian crisis.

But Oiza and her compatriots are unable to leave because of the violence.

She appealed for help to leave the war-torn country, urging the Nigerian, Ukrainian and Russian governments to negotiate a green corridor so civilians can flee.

“We’ve been waiting for the green corridor,” Oiza said.

A Computer Science Masters student, Ojo Olajide said soldiers appeared to be preventing people from leaving.

Olajide said: “The situation of things is terrible. There’s no movement from Sumy to anywhere. There’s no water, light, food.
The Ukrainian soldiers are not allowing us to leave even though we find a driver that’s willing to go.

“They’re using us as war hostages, in my opinion, because I feel they should be the ones to help us pass easily.”

A fifth-year medical student, Elkanemi Joseph also pleaded for help in a video sent to The Nation.

Joseph said: “The situation in Sumy is quite bad. Russian troops have shelled out the city. There’s no way out by road, railway and air. We’re currently in the bunker of our dormitory. I’m pleading with anyone out there to help my university secure a humanitarian corridor to safely evacuate all citizens – both foreign and Ukrainians out of the city to a safe place. Please do all you can to help us.”

In another video, six other Nigerian students said the situation was bleak. “We’re running out of food and water. Our government is trying to evacuate us but we don’t know how long that is going to be for. Please help us,” they said.

Receiving the 630, the director of consular and legal services, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Akinremi Bolaji, told journalists at the Abuja airport that the government was aware of the plight of Nigerians in Sumy.

“We also still have 350 in Sumy College which has been cut off… as soon as we are through with the safe corridor, we will go for those ones,” Bolaji said.

A lecturer in the Management Department, Dr. Tetyana Mayboroda, also appealed for safe passage for the students and civilians.

“Air attack on Sumy!!! Substation targeted. Currently no light, water, electricity. We appeal for a green corridor for foreign students and civilians,” Mayboroda said in a post on her Twitter feed.

nedekid:
I actually checked dictionary for the meaning of vawulence.

The Emir of Katsina, Dr. Abdulmuminin Kabir Usman, has promised to look into the political aspiration of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, with the view to contributing, advising and correcting where necessary.

Dr Usman said there was no way he could disown the leader of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the event that he needed his support considering their long lasting relationship.

“We will look into whatever movement he is into, where we will support where there is need to support and we will correct where necessary. I knew Tinubu when he was governor while I was district head and he has assisted me in many ways. Now that I am on the throne, he is contesting for president, tell me why I should disown him,” the emir has said.

The emir was speaking in his palace in Katsina when he received members of the Arewa Organisations Movement for Asiwaju led by Senator Abu Ibrahim.

He maintained that with the security challenges raging particularly in the northern part of the country, which he said was man made, there was the need to elect somebody with the ability to return normalcy and that must be done with all sincerity.

“So, this man that you brought, Tinubu, is home here, he is son of the soil and he has done a lot for me. I was in Lagos some three weeks ago, the first since 1967 and I have seen how Lagos is transformed and I concluded that all the country’s wealth is in Lagos,” he said.

The emir said Nigeria is the only country Nigerians have and therefore urged them avoid myopic sentiments and work together for peace and socio-economic activities to thrive in the country.

Speaking earlier, the leader of the delegation, told the emir that if supported, Tinubu has the wherewithal of addressing the challenges of the country.

He said the delegation was therefore at the emir’s palace to solicit his blessings, support and advice on the actualisation of the dream of the Arewa Organisations Movement for Asiwaju 2023.

The delegation was earlier at the Katsina Government House where they met Governor Aminu Bello Masari on the same mission.

Frigga13:
Dem go see am .. hail am .. doable .. collect him money.. turn back yimu am.. with long mouth and nose abuse am well ..
Then spend the money.. come vote for North..

No be yoruba again

Power returns North.

Ecos:
na true na. I know wan talk too dey before dem come for me