₦airaland Forum

Jack Dorsey, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and co-founder of Twitter, has been threatened for declaring his support for the ongoing campaign aimed at getting the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) reformed.

Since last week, demonstrations demanding the scrapping of Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) began nationwide and has refused to wane despite police boss, Mohammed Adamu, scrapping the brutal squad often accused of extortion, killings and violations of human rights.

In a Wednesday tweet, Mr Dorsey joined the online campaign, tweeting with the #EndSARS hashtag. He thereafter shared a link asking his followers to financially support young Nigerians who are mainly participating in the protests nationwide.

Moments later, a user on the micro-blogging site, Adamu Garba II, threatened the Twitter chief with a lawsuit, warning him to hands off the development in Nigeria.

“Dear @jack,

“It’ll do you a lot more good if you stay away from Nigerian Politics. You should know that the so-called #EndSARS protest have transformed into political agitation, capable of breaking law & order in our country. You should not be a moral & financial sponsor to this,” Mr Garba, a chieftain of the All Progressive Congress (APC) from Yobe State, said in a statement on the micro-blogging site.

“This is Nigeria, most of the demands initially presented was attended to by the responsible authorities. SARS no longer exist in this country.

“Your support for a disbanded entity was a needless interference. We cannot allow killings again in Nigeria in the name of protests.

“I understand that this may play well to your business, you have more content, more people & more activity on your platform, but to us is about life, peace & security of our dear Country, we cannot allow you to be part of the people sponsoring disorder. We need peace & prosperity.

“I can see you are even sharing a link for people to donate money for this protest, an event capable of escalation beyond our already overstretched security management.

“If this protest continued to evolved into disorder (hopefully not). As a Nigerian citizen, we’ll meet in court, Thank you,” the politician added.

Mohammed Adamu, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) says examining mobile phones of Nigerians by any police unit in the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) is not longer acceptable.

The allegation of scrutinising mobile phones of citizens is one of those violations levelled against men of the now scrapped Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).

Most of the victims alleged that due to the expensive mobile devices they carry around with them, the disbanded police brutal squad often profile them as Yahoo Boys, a nickname used in addressing internet fraudsters.

But in a fifty-five seconds video clip shared by the verified Twitter account of the Nigerian government, Mr Adamu is heard saying such behavior will no longer be tolerated.

“The issue of ANY Police Unit going to look into people’s phones, which is supposed to be their private property, or looking at the type of vehicle they‘re using, or profiling them to see whether they‘re yahoo boys or not—that era is gone. It is not acceptable!” the police chief said.

WATCH VIDEO BELOW.

President Muhammadu Buhari is going legendary for passing blames instead of taking responsibility while at the helm of affairs.

Democratically elected president in 2015, he has refused to admit or blame himself for any of the country’s woes but quick to take credits when the reverse is the case.

TODAY POLITICS will be listing down institutions, individuals and others that have been blamed by the present administration re-elected last year for another term of four years.

PDP: Before taking oath of office, the then president-elect on May 11, 2015 began his blame game on the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which took over in 1999, for the collapse of the Nigeria Airways, Nigeria Railways, and the Nigeria National Shipping Line, despite the afromentioned collapsing under military regimes. He made the blamed while hosting a delegation of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), led by second republic minister, Maitama Sule.

On April 5, 2016, he kick started and has consistently blamed the PDP for the economic meltdown, saying it wasted the resources of the nation which ought to have been invested in infrastructures, economy and security. On September 14 2016, the PDP, in its first time, asked him to resign if he is unable discharge his duties. It has continued to make that call each time the president blames others.

GOODLUCK JONATHAN: After the president took over in May 27, 2015, he refused to appoint ministers until after six months. While he told Nigerians that he was searching for competent hands, the president on November 17 2025, barely a week after forming his cabinet, blamed his predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, for the delay in appointing ministers.

Represented by Lai Mohammed, Information Minister, he said the ill preparedness of the former president to hand over power despite stepping down on May 27, caused the delay.

On May 4, 2018, Jonathan was also blamed for neglecting the health sector while he held sway between 2010 and 2015.

PETROLEUM STAKEHOLDERS: While presenting the 2016 budget to the National Assembly on December 22, President Buhari blames the stakeholders for the fuel scarcity bedeviling the nation at the time. According to him the scarcity was caused by the unwilling attitudes of theirs to embrace change.

MTN: On March 8, 2016, the present administration blamed MTN for the increasing Boko Haram attacks. At a joint press conference with South African President Jacob Zuma, the Nigerian leader accused the giant telecommunication network of aiding the terrorists by refusing to block all unregistered lines.

Earlier this year, Isa Pantami, Communication, Minister, unveiled plans to limit the number of sim cards an individual is expected to own, the policy earned him a warning from the terrorist group.

CLERICS: On December 4, 2017, the president through his aide, Femi Adesina, blamed Muslim clerics over their inability to tame the activities of insurgents whose insidious preachings continue to attract members into their fold.

GADAFFI: The late military dictator in Libya got his own share of the blame on April 4, 2018. Buhari attributed the alarming dimension the attacks in the North Central region of the country to Muammar Gaddafi. He exonerated herdsmen, who are mostly from the Fulani extraction which he hails from, of being behind the farmers and herders clashes mostly occurring in the area.

On September 25 of same year, and January 9, 2019, he reinterated his position that terrorism and insurgency in the Sahel region and Lake Chad Basin are fuelled by local runaway fighters from Iraq and Syria and arms from the disintegration of Libya.

POLITICS: On November 18, 2018, the seemingly dirty game in Nigeria has been blamed for the continued existence of Boko Haram terrorists. “It is common knowledge that though we require substantial military input in combating an insurgency, its root cause is inherently political in nature,” the president said while delivering a keynote address at the maiden Nigerian Air Force International Air Power Seminar, with the theme “Air Power in Irregular Warfare: A Framework for Understanding and Responding.”

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY: The legislative arm of government is not left out, especially the past 8th Senate described as a clog in the wheel of progress by the Buhari administration. The president is in harmony with the leadership of the present 9th National Assembly whom he helped in emerging. His requests to the lawmaking arm have never been turned down even if Nigerians are opposed to it. This has earned them the sobriquet, “Rubber Stamp” by Nigerians.

OLUSEGUN OBASANJO: At the buildup to the 2019 general election, Buhari blamed the former president for the rot in the electricity sector and promised to revisit it if re-elected, its been over a year since he began his second term and nothing in that direction has been heard again.

NIGERIANS: On May 27, 2019, while featuring on National Television Authority (NTA) Network Service, the president blamed citizens for rising unemployment and economic woes. He said Nigerians are the ones habouring criminals who kidnap expatriates and foreign multinationals, thereby sending bad signals to investors who are meant to build factories and employ millions of Nigerians.

ATIKU ABUBAKAR: The president, on February 16, 2019, blamed the presidential candidate of the opposition party for the postponement of the last year general election. The former vice president pushed back the blame.

TRADITIONAL RULERS: Traditional rulers, particularly those in the North were on April 10, 2019, knocked by the president for aiding criminals in their domain while promising to prosecute an indicted but high monarch found cupable. Like other vows made, it ended there.

POLITICIANS/OIL FIRMS: While signing the amended Deep Offshore Act into law on November 5, 2019, president Buhari blamed politicians and oil companies for conspiring to deny the country commensurate revenue from oil production and sales, particularly taxes over the years.

HEALTH WORKERS: On November 6, 2019, Buhari said that the poor attitude of health workers across the country is a major reason for the growing culture of Nigerians seeking medical care outside the country.

COMMUNITY LEADERS: The president on February 13, 2020, blamed the leaders of Borno communities for not doing enough in terms of cooperation with the military to end the Boko Haram insurgency.

CORONAVIRUS: The deadly virus has been blamed for rising criminal activities in Katsina, Kaduna and Borno. While addressing Nigerians on June 12, the president in his democracy day speech said insecurity in those areas were as a result of COVID-19 restrictions.

MIDDLEMEN: They are currently the last to being blamed for the rise in prices of commodities nationwide. A screenshot of a defunct national daily making rounds on the social media showed the president had previously blamed them in 1984 when he held sway as military head of state.

ebuka440:
Sorry for all that voted for him. I saw this coming but before they kill poor and vulnerable Nigerians, God will show them that he is God.

What a clueless government!

The Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) says it will no longer tolerate the impunity of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

The group gave the warning in a Friday press conference in Kaduna State while reacting to the price hike of electricity tariff, petrol and food items nationwide.

Prices of goods and services have recently been on the increase, with Mr Buhari blaming middlemen for the spike in prices like he did in 1984 when he held sway as military head of state.

In his reaction, the spokesman of the CNG, Abdul-Azeez Suleiman, admitted that the president has failed in his three campaign promises he made to Nigerians while seeking the top office and his alleged impunity will no longer be tolerated.

The group also threatened to demonstrate should the government fail to backtrack from the price hike.

“Whereas the present administration had upon inception identified economic revival and security as major components of the three pillars of its change agenda, its entire national economy and law and order assets appear incapable of arresting an imminent drift towards poverty and the likelihood of the setting in of anarchy,” Suleiman said.

“The government’s mismanagement of an economy already adjudged in a second recession, is characterized by significant loss of output, massive youth unemployment, a rising level of poverty, instability, and irregular migration of skilled and unskilled labour.

“Despite the administration’s claims to fighting a war against corruption, the entrenchment of mediocrity has left the country worse than it was five years ago in the global corruption perception index. That the present administration had been tolerated for too long even with its level of impunity in the dispatch of goods and services which gravely endanger the peace, unity and development of the country.

“The administration’s audacious impunity climaxed with hikes in fuel pump prices from an initial N87 to N151.50k per litre; electricity tariff from N22 to N66 ; and Value Added Tax (VAT) to 7.5% from 5%. These unjustified and unjustifiably indiscriminate increases with concomitant effects on life sustaining essentials like foodstuff and foreign exchange rates have resulted in exponential escalation of inflation, despair, crime and criminality.

“The government has lost the courage to assume sole responsibility for the regulation and control of market forces thereby abandoning Nigerians to the mercy of cutthroat multinational communication and sundry service providers, unscrupulous internal profiteers that infest the banking and other financial institutions and largely extortionist government policies of multiple taxation.

“We’ll put the public on the alert for a possible prolonged nationwide resistance in the likely event of government opting to grandstand.

“For the avoidance of doubt, government and all concerned institutions should note that the excesses and impunity by government have been tolerated for too long and the younger generation of Nigerians is no longer going to be disposed to their collective future destiny being taken for granted. We are strongly convinced that the President’s desperation to shift the blame for this hardship on some middlemen only confirms failure to provide leadership,” he added.

President Muhammadu Buhari has been described as the same yesterday, today and forever by a legal practitioner, Inibehe Effiong.

Mr Effiong gave the description while reacting to the recent assertion of the Nigerian leader blaming middlemen for the spike in prices of food items nationwide.

The blame on middlemen came days after the prices of the petrol and electricity tariff were increased.

“A tragedy foretold. Buhari is the same yesterday, today & forever. As Buhari was in 1984, so is he in 2020; failure without end. Buhari lives by excuses & never gets anything done. Buhari is neither competent nor teachable. Check these reports: different dates, same misery,” the lawyer said on social media while attaching screenshots of his blames on middlemen in 1984 and 2020.

Mr Buhari, a retired military general and a one time head of state, was democratically elected president in 2015 after seeking the position thrice but failed.

TODAY POLITICS recalls that while seeking the top position, those opposed to his ambition have always cited the maladministration of his military regime, saying he was unfit for the office as it is impossible for one to resort to left handedness at old age.

As military head of the state, his regime reportedly shattered the economy, threw critics into jail, disregarded the constitution, among others but was said to have fought corruption.

Mr Buhari, who became the military dictator after a democratic government was overthrown, pushed back the claim of being unfit to rule in a democracy, saying he was now a reformed democrat.

After contesting thrice but failed under the defunct Congress for Progressive Change ( CPC), he merged his party with other opposition parties, including an aggrieved faction of the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) known as new PDP and defeated incumbent president, Goodluck Jonathan.

He promised to fight corruption, insecurity and boast the economy if elected but critics including the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) say he has failed woefully to fulfill his promises.

After taking oath of office, he spent six months searching for capable hands to appoint into ministries, a decision analysts say was responsible for the economic recession in 2016. The president who was re-elected last year seems to have slowed down the fight against corruption unlike what was obtained when he began his first term while insecurity continued in bedeviling the nation.

The habit of addressing Nigerians once every two weeks over the rising Coronavirus disease in the country by President Muhammadu Buhari has been described as “totally unacceptable.” Pro-democracy group, Concerned Nigerians, made the remarks on Thursday while calling on Mr Buhari to cease hiding or step aside from the saddle of leadership. Since the outbreak of the pandemic in the country late February, the president officially addressed Nigerians twice at intervals of two weeks each. Led by Deji Adeyanju, the group in a statement signed by its convener said, presently, the country has no leader, a development that has forced state governors to unconstitutionally hijack the responsibility of the Federal Government. “The President needs to show leadership. Everyday we watch the American President, Donald Trump addressing Americans and meeting with his cabinet on efforts being made to curtail the virus from spreading. This lackadaisical attitude of addressing Nigerians every two-week by President Muhammadu Buhari in such a time like this is totally unacceptable,” Mr Adeyanju said. “The demise of the President’s Chief of Staff, Mr. Abba Kyari to the COVID-19 pandemic should ordinarily, be an eye opener for the president to see that he must act decisively and timely in order to contain this deadly virus. “I am also tempted to ask, where are all the testing kits and equipment donated by Chinese billionaire, Jack ma? Why is Kano complaining of not having enough testing kits? And why are we not investigating the alleged mysterious deaths and secret burials happening in Kano? “If President Buhari is afraid of getting infected or leading the country from the front, he should resign so that a more competent hand can take over. This is not the time to be hiding under the bed in Aso Rock. Thousands of citizens will die if the president doesn’t show leadership. Come out of hiding. “The president has not convened the Federal Executive Council meeting for weeks now. He should do that immediately either through Skype, teleconferencing or physically at the villa to set our clear cut agendas to prevent more unavoidable deaths of Nigerians and spread of the virus. The president should not leave the country on auto pilot without clear direction or leadership. “Currently, there is a leadership vacuum in Nigeria and it’s so sad that it’s the Governors who are now rising to the occasion. The 36 state governor just agreed for a nationwide lockdown of the country since the Commander-in-Chief has absconded from his duties and responsibilities. Under our laws, the governors cannot lockdown the country but when the president is missing in action during a pandemic, then we must all commend the decisive actions of the governors no matter how unconstitutional the act may be. “Conclusively, one must ask: where is the our president and the Vice President?” the activist queried.

Read more at: https://todaypoliticsng.com/covid-19-addressing-nigerians-once-every-two-weeks-unacceptable-activist-tells-buhari/

The sacked Kano State Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Muazu Magaji, says his critics misunderstood his reaction to the demise of Abba Kyari, the late Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari.

Mr Magaji had at the weekend made comments which critics described as mocking the deceased. His principal and governor of the state, Umar Ganduje, relieved him of his position when his attention was brought to the reaction of the ousted commissioner.



Explaining what he meant in a statement on Monday, the former commissioner said his critics misunderstood him and denied celebrating the death of the deceased.

“…I want to sincerely clear up what a lot of people may have misunderstood and set the record straight. As a Muslim and a patriotic Nigerian, I was only misunderstood by people to think that I celebrated Kyari’s death, the truth is I did not,” he said in the statement also reproduced on his social media accounts.

“Not only that, I made several posts mourning Kyari’s death on my same facebook account and through my special assistants but the general public couldn’t commend such or claim I did such post, rather tend to capitalize on a full-phrase post that is given another set of Definition and direction as well as negativity in other to tarnish my reputable image as a member of H.E. Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje Administration and his loyalist and that of our National Party APC.



“The use of “win win phrase” is basically an attempt to explain the Islamic Promise on the people that died as a result of any kind of pandemic. The late Mallam Abba Kyari was privileged to die as a result of Covid-19,making him among the beneficiaries in Islam. He is conferred with the automatic privilege of martyrdom.

“Our Rasul S. A. W assured on the path of martyrdom in Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab al-Jihad wal-Siyar. Even Sheik Isah Ali Pantami has taken time to explain more of this..By this, the death of Mallam Abba Kyari is a big win for him, which is almost the dream of every Muslim.

“On the other hand, Nigeria equally have the opportunity to restructure the office of the Chief of staff, where I called Mr President to ensure that we can utilize the pandemic challenges into more strengths, by disintegrating the power of the office for a rapid administrative flow, which over and above anything, our constitutional democracy is meant to achieve and function so often.



“However, in an emotional reaction to my posting, agents around the office of the Chief of staff misunderstood my whole meaning, infuriated from the loss of their benefactor, as such petitioned my principal His Excellency Abdullahi Umar Ganduje the Governor of Kano State, they twisted the narrative with explanation completely out of context and lacing it with religious and cultural connotations that made it necessary for our Principal the Executive Governor to show leadership and solidarity with the dead by relieving me off my position in Kano State as his Commissioner of Works and Infrastructural.

“I am confident that the Governor must make such a difficult decision as a conditional sacrifice to appease the aggrieved individuals who are aggrieved especially from their loss. I understand the difficulty of the circumstances, both from misunderstanding my post, to the Governor’s decision and in general the pains of people in Abuja. l understand perfectly well.



“Wholeheartedly, I want to use this opportunity to reiterate that as a devout Muslim, I could not have celebrated the death of any human being; because its against my culture, social civilization and most importantly the teaching of my religion. I equally want to appeal to all people, especially those in Kano to give people the benefit of doubts by accepting their explanation on what they actually and truly mean by themselves.

“I sincerely apologised for any misunderstood action, reaction and inactions, we are all in a difficult times that anxiety, worries and depression makes understanding and misunderstanding becomes difficult. I am so sorry for any pain I may have caused both the families of the late chief of staff and my boss His Excellency Abdullahi Umar Ganduje. I am forever loyal to my boss; the Governor of Kano State and indebted to all the people of Kano state.

“I want to plentifully remain grateful to His Excellency for the opportunity he gave me to serve my state under his administration and am pleased to leave not on account of fraud, insubordination, dishonesty, treachery, disloyalty, betrayal, act of incompetence or undermining the government or the people of Kano; but due to this unfortunate misunderstanding and miscommunication of my Facebook post. I assure you that everyone will calmly understand my meaning by revisiting everything I’ve said. I am only humane, perfection is never part of our creation.

“I pray for Allah to grant the late chief of staff eternal rest in AlJannah Firdaus and give his family and associates the fortitude to bear his loss. May Allah continue to help the people and government of Kano State to achieve higher advancements,” it added.

Residents of Eket Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State are currently panicking over alleged Coronavirus status of a popular cleric and his wife.

The wife of the cleric was said to have returned from one of the foreign high risk countries last month and began manifesting symptoms of the deadly virus.



Anonymous sources told TODAY POLITICS that the church of the cleric held services with the wife present during Easter celebration.

This medium learnt that the state government lifted it’s total lockdown to enable worshippers in the state celebrate the festive season. The new development, we learnt, has forced the government to lockdown the state for another one week.

The rumored cleric also owns a hotel in the area and the church is said to be sharing same premises with the business.

Although residents were disobeying the previous lockdown order, the present one coupled with the rumored status of the hotelier and his households have forced residents to stay indoor.

When this reporter went round the oil rich city on Saturday, 95% of those living in the area complied with the order.

The business premises of the cleric was also shut down as details of their Coronavirus status remained sketchy as of the time of filling this report.

The state currently has 6 confirmed cases of the pandemic disease which originated from China with 66 contacts traced so far.

Abba Kyari, the deceased Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, will be buried privately, says the presidency.

This is said to be incompliance with the protocol of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) which does not allow public burial for those who died of the Coronavirus disease.



Mr Kyari tested positive to the deadly virus last month, commenced treatment and was unlucky to survive, giving up the ghost on Friday.

Presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, who relayed that the body of the deceased has arrived for burial according to Islamic rites, says it will be done privately with no condolence visit.

“We just received the body of Abba Kyari the deceased Chief of Staff the President in Abuja,” Mr Garba announced on Twitter this morning.

“In strict observation of the protocol put in place for the burial of Coronavirus victims by the @NCDCgov and the Federal Ministry of Health, the funeral prayer and burial will be private.

“Thereafter,there will be no such ceremonies as condolence visits. Well meaning friends, family members and the general public are encouraged to pray for the repose of Abba Kyari’s soul.

“May Allah grant the family and nation the fortitude to bear the loss,” he added.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says nothing sensitive was destroyed when it national headquarters was engulfed in flames earlier today.

The electoral commission stated this in a statement signed by Festus Okoye, its national commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee.

The fire incident is coming two days after a similar situation at the headquarters of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). It also occurred weeks after the inferno broke out at the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation.

Mr Okoye while narrating what transpired said apart from office furniture and equipment, nothing sensitive was destroyed by the inferno.

He said the fire which was quickly extinguished affected one office in the Election and Party Monitoring Department, which is an annex detached from the main building.

“Apart from some office furniture and equipment, nothing sensitive was destroyed. Reports of party primaries and conventions are intact. The campaign finance database is also not affected,” Okoye said in the statement.

“The incident will therefore not affect the administrative and technical operations of the commission in any way,” he said adding that investigation into the cause of the inferno has began.

The fire outbreak at the Abuja headquarters of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) today was caused by a power surge from one of the split units of air conditioners in the building.

The Registrar-General of the CAC, Garba Abubakar, gave the explanation while addressing newsmen after the inferno was quenched by the men of the Federal Fire Service.

This is coming a week after an air conditioner triggered a similar situation at the office of the Account General of the Federation.

“One of the outer units of the split air conditioners on the 6th floor in the main building exploded due to power surge,” Mr Abubakar explained.

“The sound attracted few personnel within the premises and they immediately mobilised to quench the fire, using fire extinguishers and fire hose reels within the building.

“The fire had descended through the outer AC ducts to the 5th and 4th floors which necessitated a call to the Federal Capital Territory Fire Service and they promptly responded.

“The fire has since been contained. Only one unit of 2hp split air conditioner and electric cabling leading to it were affected.

“There was no casualty arising from the incident.

“Furthermore, the Commission’s main building and all records and other vital information have not been affected by the incident,” he added.

Shehu Sani, a former Senator, has called on state governors bragging their states can feed the nation to show up as their services will now be needed.

Mr Sani made the call Tuesday night amidst calls by Nigerians that the government should provide palliatives for Nigerians to help cushion the economic effects of Coronavirus disease in the country.



Most states in the Northern region of the country pride themselves as producing enough food that can feed the nation despite their citizens begging for alms daily.

For the former lawmaker, the time for the states to render their services has come and they should all come out.

“Most Governors used to brag that their states can feed the nation;Thy hour hath come where are thee?,” Sani said on Twitter.

Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information, says funds donated for the fight against Coronavirus disease will be used for the development of the nation’s healthcare infrastructure.

Mr Mohammed, a member of the presidential taskforce on COVID-19 disclosed this on Tuesday while featuring on Politics Nationwide, a Radio Nigeria programme.

He also said the federal government cannot provide palliatives from the donated funds because the donors are not handing over the funds to the government.

“The private sector donors are not giving any cash to the federal government and they have made this clear to the people,” the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quoted him as saying.

“They said they will support the fight against the pandemic by asking government where they want healthcare infrastructure to be provided.

“What government has done is to request them to build a 30-bed isolation ward and a 10-bed Intensive Care Unit in each state in the country.

“In addition, the federal government has given them a list of equipment and commodities that will also be needed

“Therefore, the issue of using their donations to provide palliative cannot arise,” the minister said.

Osagie Ehanire, the Minister of Health has announced that 9,000 persons have met with confirmed cases of Coronavirus since the pandemic broke out in the country.

Mr Ehanire made this known on Tuesday afternoon at the press briefing of the Presidential Taskforce on COVID-19 in Abuja.

At the moment, the country has recorded 343 confirmed cases of the disease since it came into the country on February 28, 2020. While 91 patients have recovered, 10 deaths were recorded at the last count.

“The country has made significant progress in contact tracing. 9,000 contacts have been traced so far,” the minister said.

tatatar:
Like he said,the onus is on the journalist to prove that he threatened rape.Its time some journalist come to their senses with their sensational and misleading headlines.

Bello El-rufai, son of Nasir El-rufai, governor of Kaduna State has threatened to file a lawsuit against a journalist who published his misconduct on Twitter.

The young El-rufai had at the weekend threatened to gang rape the mother of his rival on the micro-blogging site. TODAY POLITICS alongside other new medium reported the argument between the duo.

Although his mother initially supported him, she has apologised for backing her son’s misconduct saying she reacted before understanding what led to the dispute.

But on Monday, Mr El-rufai threatened to sue Samuel Ogundipe, a journalist with Premium Times, one of the mediums that published the story. He described Mr Ogundipe as a columnist of the opposition party.

“Oh @SamuelOgundipe, our hired PDP columnist, you in particular were the last piece of the puzzle. I assure you that my lawyers will get to you to prove the usage/threat of rape. The onus is on you. I eagerly anticipate the #FreeSamuel hashtag. Thanks for completing the jigsaw.,” he said in a tweet.

His father’s administration in Kaduna is notoriously known for arresting critics including journalists whose whereabouts are currently unknown.

Our repeated efforts to get the reaction of the journalist proved abortive as his known telephone numbers were off as at press time.

Oh @SamuelOgundipe, our hired PDP columnist, you in particular were the last piece of the puzzle. I assure you that my lawyers will get to you to prove the usage/threat of rape. The onus is on you. I eagerly anticipate the #FreeSamuel hashtag. Thanks for completing the jigsaw.

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the immediate release of a N15billion grant for the fight against Coronavirus disease.

With the latest update as at press time, the country has recorded 65 cases of the pandemic disease which originated from China.

In a statement reproduced on Twitter Thursday evening, Mr Buhari said he approved N10billion to Lagos State and N5billion to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) for use against the disease.

Read the statement below:

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Thursday evening confirmed fourteen new cases of Coronavirus in the country.

Following the new cases, the country now has a total of 65 cases including one death recorded.



Lagos State has 12 of the new cases while the Federal Capital Territory has two cases. Of the 14, 6 were detected on a vessel, 3 are returning travellers into Nigeria & 1 is close contact of a confirmed case

With 65 confirmed cases, 61 are now active cases,3 have been discharged while 1 death.

For a breakdown of cases by states in real time, Lagos leads witb 44 cases, followed by the FCT with 12 cases, Ogun 3 cases while Ekiti, Oyo, Edo, Bauchi, Osun and Rivers has one case each.

Yemi Osinbajo, Nigeria’s vice president, has tested negative for Coronavirus disease, the presidency has said.

Mr Osinbajo who went into self-isolation on Tuesday is believed to have had several contacts with Abba Kyari, his principal’s Chief of Staff, who tested positive to the pandemic disease.

In a tweet Wednesday morning, the special adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on political matters, Babafemi Ojudu, announced that the number two citizen tested negative.

Meanwhile, Mr Buhari has reportedly gone into self-isolation after he was discovered to be constant cough which is one of the symptoms of the disease.

Days ago, Abba Kyari, the chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari accused lawmakers from the House of Representatives of failing to self-isolate themselves having recently returned to the country .

In his own words he described their actions as a threat to the country and ordered those he accused to unfailing submit themselves to the authorities for further medical assessment.

But Mr Kyari tested positive to Coronavirus on Monday, March 23 according to NCDC after symptoms of the disease started manifesting in him. He was reported to have returned to the country on March 14 from Germany, one of the high risk countries battling COVID-19.

Nigeria recorded its first case of the pandemic last month and since then calls for Nigerians to practise social distancing and self-isolation have repeatedly been canvassed for.

If the presidential aide practice what he preaches, he should still be in self-isolation until March 28 having returned on March 14. Self-isolation takes 14 days but he felt he is above the law and went on to spread the disease.

He went to Kogi for a function, attended a wedding somewhere in the North with the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu and held series of meetings that has forced the vice president, Yemi Osinbajo, to self-isolate.

Kyari deserves his Coronavirus status and should be punished additionally for his recklessness which is going to cause the country some hard earned money which it does not have.

Joseph Sunday writes from Kaduna State.

Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, was missing when the Presidential Task Force on Coronavirus Disease stormed his office today.

Mr Osinbajo, according to Sun Newspapers, went into self-isolation having discovered that Abba Kyari, the Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, who he sat close to recently has tested positive to the pandemic disease.



The paper reports that messrs Osinbajo and Kyari sat close to each other with the seat of Boss Mustapha, the Secretary of the Government of the Federation, being in-between them at the last Federal Executive Council meeting last week.

Mr Mustapha heads the president task force team which consists of ministers and top health experts.

Philip Obin, the aide of the vice president, posted a tweet which similarly corroborated with the claim of the paper.

Mr Obin said his principal has resorted to video conferencing while discharging his duties as the number two citizen of the country.

The tweet was accompanied by three photos which showed other participants distancing themselves from the vice president during the video conference.

Garba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on New Media has denied contacting Coronavirus disease.

Mr Shehu made this known while denying social media reports that he met with Abba Kyari, the president’s Chief of Staff, after the latter tested positive to the pandemic disease.

An online news medium had reported that the presidential spokesman recently met with Mr Kyari alongside the state governor of Kogi, Yahaya Bello.

But in a tweet on Tuesday evening, Mr Shehu dismissed the claim, saying he was pleased with his current state of health.

“If it is @SaharaReporters, ignore them. It’s their wishful thinking. Allah is the giver of health. I am pleased with my current health endowment. Alhamdu Lillah!” he tweeted.

Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture, has said over 1,300 persons said to have had contact with Coronavirus cases in the country are yet to be traced.

Mr Mohammed stated this on Monday while announcing that tougher measures to curtial the spread of the pandemic disease will be effective soon.

He said the government is yet to trace over 1,300 persons who have met with those who have currently tested positive to COVID-19, the official name of the zoonotic disease which originated from China.

He advised that those who have met with COVID-19 cases should willingly submit themselves to authority or risk being fished out by security agencies.

“We should be ready for tougher measures. The forms they will take will be out from the end of today or tomorrow. But Nigerians should be ready for tougher measures,” the minister announced at a press briefing in Abuja.

ALSO READ: COVID-19: Nigerian gov embarks on self-isolation

“If we don’t do proper contact tracing, the figure will multiply every five days. Nigerians must take ownership of this initiative.

“We won’t hesitate to use whatever measure to ensure that you do not endanger other Nigerians. Containment is
very cheaper than cure. A few people have helped. If you know you traveled recently, give yourself up to relevant agencies.

”If the situation warrants, we may be forced to use the police and the military for contact tracing. The police is already working on that. We don’t want the figure we have now to multiply. We should work towards containment which is cheaper,” he said.