₦airaland Forum

Already the last minutes in Gaddafi’s life have gained a grisly status. A spectacle of pain and humiliation, the end of the man who once styled himself the “king of the kings of Africa” has been told in snatches of mobile phone footage and blurry stills and contradictory statements. It is the longest of these fragments of a death – a jerky three minutes and more shot by fighter Ali Algadi on his iPhone and acquired by a website, the Global Post – that describes those moments in the most detail. A dazed and confused Gaddafi is led from the drain where he was captured, bleeding heavily from a deep wound on the left side of his head, from his arm, and, apparently, from other injuries to his neck and torso, staining his tunic red with blood. He is next seen on the ground, surrounded by men with weapons shouting “God is great” and firing in the air, before being lifted on to a pickup truck as men around him shout that the ruler for more than four decades should be “kept

There are other clips that complete much of the story: Gaddafi slumped on a pickup truck, face smeared with blood, apparently unconscious; Gaddafi shirtless and bloody on the ground surrounded by a mob; Gaddafi dead in the back of an ambulance. What is not there is the moment of his death – and how it happened – amid claims that he was killed by fighters with a shot to the head or stomach. By Friday, the day after he died, the body of the former dictator once so feared by his Libyan opponents was facing a final indignity – being stored on the floor of a room-sized freezer in Misrata usually used by restaurants and shops to keep perishable goods.

If there is an irony surrounding the death of Muammar Gaddafi, it is, perhaps, that he should have met his end in Sirte, a city more than any other associated with his rule. Gaddafi was not born in the city itself but in Bou Hadi, a sprawling, largely rural area of farms and large villas on the city’s outskirts.

It was Sirte that Gaddafi turned into his second capital – a former fishing village that he transformed into a place dedicated to both his own ego and his Third Revolutionary Theory, which he embodied in his Green Book that was taught in all Libyan schools. It was here, too, that the nomenklatura of Gaddafi’s regime had their second homes, sprawling villas in roads lined by eucalyptus trees, beside well-tended parks or overlooking the Mediterranean. And as the city fell, bit by bit over the weeks, its nature was revealed.

Abandoned houses reveal evidence of a city’s dedication to the Gaddafi cult. The Observer found a discarded mobile phone belonging, it seems clear, to a friend of Mo’atissim Gaddafi with pictures of parked white stretch limousines. There are pictures in the wealthier houses of Gaddafi with their occupants and stylised beaten copper images of Gaddafi on the walls. In one building, discovered by paramedics with the government forces, there is a trove of snapshots of Gaddafi and his sons. No wonder, perhaps, that this is where he chose to make his last stand.Advertisement

The conflict around the city – during the long siege that began in September – reveals another nature of Sirte that must have made it attractive to Gaddafi. There are concrete walls within walls, compounds within those barriers, easy for Gaddafi and his protectors to defend. For those attacking Sirte they seemed for a while to be insuperable obstacles, not least the long barrier blocking access to the vast plaza of the Ouagoudougou conference centre.

During the weeks of the siege, life on the Gaddafi side of the lines in Sirte was thrown up in fragments, as disjointed as the last moments of Gaddafi’s life. There were small counter-attacks as the government forces crept forward, sometimes with rocket-propelled grenades that burst in the air or crashed into buildings. At other times machine-gun fire rattled into the bullet-pocked facades of offices, banks, schools or villas. But it was at night that Gaddafi’s forces were most active. They probed for weak positions. There were rumours of cars attempting to break out as the net closed.

Twice the Observer heard accounts of sightings of a car belonging to Mo’atissim Gaddafi. And with each day fighters posed the same question to which they could not supply an answer: why was it that those fighting on the Gaddafi side would not give up?

It is only now, after Gaddafi’s death, that any sketchy details of how he lived on the run have begun to emerge and, indeed, who was ultimately responsible for his safety. How Gaddafi came to be in Sirte – if not the reason that he went to one of the few locations still strongly supportive of him – remains murky. It is believed he fled from Tripoli shortly before it fell in August.

Motorcades carrying his wife and daughter to Algeria, and at least one other son to Niger, were spotted and the details leaked to the media by Nato. But the convoy carrying the dictator appears to have been missed. For his escape, Gaddafi had only one highway to travel – leading south of the capital to Beni Walid, 90 miles from Tripoli, the only highway not in rebel hands. A further detour would then have been necessary to avoid the rebels who were pushing in all directions out of the coastal city of Misrata, involving the convoy driving south-east, deeper into the Libyan desert, to the only traffic junction leading to Sirte at Waddan. This city, which fell to the rebels last month, was under 24-hour surveillance, according to the Pentagon, with drones keeping a close eye on the chemical weapons store five miles north of the city – home to Libya’s remaining stockpile of nine tonnes of mustard gas.

The rebels were deeply divided over where Gaddafi was. Some believed he had fled on one of the convoys carrying his wife and other sons that were spotted crossing south to Niger and east to Algeria. Misrata’s Shaheed brigade set up a special unit, suspecting that Gaddafi had been trapped in the capital by the speed of the rebel advance and for the last two months they have been carrying out raids in Tripoli hoping to find him.Still others thought he had driven to the fabled Bunker, a possibly mythical concrete complex constructed deep in the desert by the dictator for such an emergency. They were all wrong.Advertisement

The truth of Gaddafi’s last movements has now been revealed by one of his inner circle who travelled with him on his last convoy: Mansour Dhao – number “3” in the pro-Gaddafi radio codes – a former commander of Libya’s Revolutionary Guards. And like Gaddafi, Dhao was not supposed to be in Sirte. Instead, it was widely reported that Dhao had fled Libya in a convoy of cars heading for Niger. But as the weeks of the siege of Sirte went on, it became clear this was not true. Even as it was revealed that Gaddafi and his fourth son Mo’atissim were dead, Peter Bouckaert, emergencies director of Human Rights Watch, stumbled across an injured Dhao in hospital, who confirmed he had been in the same convoy with Gaddafi when the former Libyan leader had been captured and his son killed.

A day later Dhao was interviewed by a television crew. What Dhao had to say contradicted not only some previous understanding of who was conducting the war on Gaddafi’s behalf but supplied the first description of how events had unfolded on Gaddafi’s last day. While it was believed that Gaddafi’s son Khamis had directed the regime’s attempts to put down the rebellion against it, Dhao insisted that it was Mo’atissim. Not only that, Mo’atissim took control of his father’s safety, making all the key decisions until the end. “He was in charge of everything,” said Dhao. His face heavily bruised, Dhao insisted it was Mo’atissim who organised each movement of Gaddafi as he was ferried between safe houses for the two months since the fall of Tripoli, moving location on average every four days before becoming trapped in Sirte, the monument that became his living mausoleum. Crucially, it has been Dhao who has provided the most compelling account yet offered of Gaddafi’s last day of life as he attempted to leave the last pocket in the shattered seaside District Two to reach the countryside beyond Sirte’s eastern boundary.

“Gaddafi did not run away, and he did not want to escape,” Dhao said. “We left the area where we were staying, to head towards Jarif, where he comes from. The rebels were surrounding the whole area, so we had heavy clashes with them and tried to escape towards Jarif and break out of the siege. After that the rebels surrounded us outside the area and prevented us from reaching the road to Jarif. They launched heavy raids on us which led to the destruction of the cars and the death of many individuals who were with us.

“After that we came out of the cars and split into several groups and we walked on foot, and I was with Gaddafi’s group that included Abu Bakr Yunis Jabr and his sons, and several volunteers and soldiers. I do not know what happened in the final moments, because I was unconscious after I was hit on my back.”

Some things do not ring true. According to Dhao, Gaddafi was moving from place to place and apartment to apartment until last week, but given the state of the siege of Sirte at that stage it seems unlikely that he could have entered the city from outside. The net was closing around the last loyalists who were squeezed into a pocket, surrounded on all sides, that was becoming ever smaller by the day.Advertisement

Dhao made no mention either of the attack on the Gaddafi convoy by a US Predator drone and a French Rafale jet as it tried to break out of Sirte, attempting to drive three kilometres through hostile territory before it was scattered and brought to a halt by rebel fighters. It is possible that Dhao did not know that the first missiles to hit the Gaddafi convoy as it tried to flee came from the air.

What is clear is that at around 8am on Thursday, as National Transitional Council fighters launched a final assault to capture the last remaining buildings in Sirte, in an area about 700 metres square, the pro-Gaddafi forces had also readied a large convoy to break out.

But if Dhao was not aware of the air strike, then neither did Nato’s air controllers and liaison officers with the NTC fighters know that Gaddafi was in the convoy of 75 cars attempting to flee Sirte, a fact revealed in a lengthy statement on Friday.

“At the time of the strike,” a spokesman said, “Nato did not know that Gaddafi was in the convoy. These armed vehicles were leaving Sirte at high speed and were attempting to force their way around the outskirts of the city. The vehicles were carrying a substantial amount of weapons and ammunition, posing a significant threat to the local civilian population. The convoy was engaged by a Nato aircraft to reduce the threat.”

It was that air attack – which destroyed around a dozen cars – that dispersed the convoy into several groups, the largest numbering about 20. As NTC fighters descended on the fleeing groups of cars, some individuals jumped from their vehicles to escape on foot, among them Gaddafi and a group of guards. Finding a trail of blood, NTC fighters followed it to a sandy culvert with two storm drains. In one of these Gaddafi was hiding.

Accounts here differ. According to some fighters quoted after the event, he begged his captors not to shoot. Others say he asked of one: “What did I do to you?” But it is what happened next that is the source of controversy.

What is certain from several of the clips of video footage – most telling that shot by Ali Algadi – is that Gaddafi was dazed but still alive, although possibly already fatally wounded. The question is what happens between this and later images of a lifeless Gaddafi lying on the ground having his shirt stripped off and propped in the back of a pickup truck and the next sequence which shows him dead.

Here the accounts differ wildly. According to one fighter, caught on camera, he was shot in the stomach with a 9mm pistol. According to doctors not present at his capture and ambulance staff, Gaddafi was shot in the head. Some NTC officials have said anonymously he was “killed after capture”, while others have said he was killed after capture in a crossfire.

If there are suspicions that Gaddafi was summarily killed, already raised by Amnesty and UN human rights officials, they have been deepened by the death, too, of his son Mo’atissim in even more dubious circumstances. He was filmed alive but wounded smoking a cigarette and drinking from a bottle of water, before the announcement that he also had died.

On Saturday, in the cold storage unit where Gaddafi’s body was being stored as the family demanded its release for burial, those filing in to film his corpse were less bothered about how he had died than the legacy of his 42-year rule. “There’s something in our hearts we want to get out,” Abdullah al-Suweisi, 30, told Reuters as he waited. “It is the injustice of 40 years. There is hatred inside. We want to see him.”

And in confirming that Gaddafi is no more, the Libyan people want to bring the final curtain down on his tyranny.

Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has reacted to the revelation by Mailafia Obadiah, former presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, on Boko Haram.

Obadiah, who is a former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, had alleged that Boko Haram was headed by a Northern governor, though he did not disclose the name of the governor.

He had alleged that a repentant Boko Haram Commander had told him that the insurgents were in the Southern part of the country and were plotting a civil war in 2022.

Obadiah also claimed that the terrorists planned to invade and kill prominent Nigerians in their residence in urban cities.

Reacting to Obadiah’s revelation, Kanu wondered what the Southern part of the country gains from being in a country where people of the region are waiting to be slaughtered by Boko Haram members.

Former CBN Deputy Gov reveals that a Northern governor is the Commander of BokoHaram & that they’re in the South already waiting for orders to begin the Great Slaughter. Let me again ask the South: What are you gaining from this escalating pain & suffering called #OneNigeria

In the history of Nigeria's mission to Sierra Leone and Liberia one man who stood out as Nigeria's foremost expeditionary commander of all time and one of the greatest general of our time is no other person than Brigadier General Maxwell Mitikishe Khobe.


This outstanding officer that most Nigerians barely know about was born on 1st January 1950 in Zekun, Adamawa State and enlisted as a foot soldier in September 1969.Subsequently, he enrolled in the Nigerian Defence Academy Short Service Combat course and was commissioned an infantry 2nd Lieutanant in 1971 alongside two other storied operational commanders, Brig Gen Olagunsoye Oyinlola & Maj Gen Gandi Zidon and several others

After playing a remarkable role during the Dimka coup, he applied for transfer to the Armored Corps as a captain and in August 1985, he led a unit of tanks during the palace coup that removed Major General Muhammadu Buhari from power ushering in fellow armored corps officer, Major General Ibrahim Babagida.


He started out the expeditionary phase of his career in Liberia with ECOMOG where he commanded a tank battalion. Khobe whose knack for good man management saw many troops jostling to serve in his unit hardly entered a tank at the front but preferred to walk armed with nothing but a radio. This single move made his men join him on foot while advancing on the enemy position and in this typical fashion, he and several officers and troops marched on foot to take town after town in Liberia until they captured Buchanan City in 1992.


After sojourn in Liberia, he went back home and in very quick succession, he was saddled with the responsibility of heading a special unit formed to protect Lagos against armed robbers, then to Abuja, and to the Armour Brigade headquarters at Yola. Afterwards,

In 1985, he turned down a political posting from the military head of state, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida but another posting was to follow. The May 1997 overthrow of President Kabbah by the AFRC junta in Sierra Leone provided him another opportunity to work abroad. He was appointed the commander of the ECOMOG Task Force in Sierra Leone.


In a lighting action, Brigadier-General M.M. Khobe stunned the world when on 12 February 1998, he personally led the ECOMOG attack that routed the forces of Major Koromah who held sway in Freetown for nine months and returned the democratically elected government of President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah. In recognition of his efforts, President Kabbah asked the Nigerian government to second him as chief of defence staff of the Sierra Leone Army.

Khobe hardly had enough time to re-build the Sierra Leone army as the chief of defence staff before the rebels invaded Freetown again on 6 January 1999,in spite of repeated intelligence warnings. However, after a protracted illness, at 10.30 am on 18 April 2000 at the aged 50, one of the very few, Nigerian military legends whose bravery is uncontested by subordinates, peers and superiors passed away ascending to the pantheon of Africa's military immortals.


The death of Brigadier-General Maxwell Khobe sent grief and anguish to millions of people in Sierra-Leone where he played a major role in the restoration of peace and democracy and in recognition of his exploits, The Rukuba Cantonment of the headquarters garrison of 3 Armoured Division in Jos was subsequently renamed in his memory.

am so happy for this young man , more anointing sir, God will strengthen you.

This is the kind of people God want in His kingdom. Nobody should claim self righteousness. We should pray for grace to make heaven. Apostle Paul said he placed himself under subjection that he after preaching to others should not be a castaway

Majid Michel born 22 September 1980 is a Ghanaian actor and currently a pastor, he is popularly known for his romantic scenes in his movies, he is so handsome and romantic that every woman would want to act with him.

Prior to his ordainment as a pastor, Michel entered professional acting by auditioning for a modelling agency; a neighbour had introduced him to that agency. He was invited to join the modelling agency, Super Model Agency, on the behest of his next-door neighbour.

I bring you pictures of Majid Michael doing God's work as he was Ordained in 2016 as a pastor. He never quite acting, but some kind of indecent scene he abolished and stop acting.

He would believe Majid Michael could ever dream of quitting romantic and love roles in his career, today he no longer s**x in his movies. Looking at him as a pastor suits and fits him, if all sinners could listen to God's call, this is how they will end up.

It's no longer news that protests have been ongoing in Lebanon following last Tuesday's explosion in Beruit which has so far claimed 200 lives and seen over 6000 people injured, mounting pressure on the government to resign.


The Lebanese population are actually protesting because they consider last tuesday's explosion a product of years of neglect on the part of the government.

In his final speech as a prime minister Hassan Dieb blames the explosion on the 'endemic corruption' in the Lebanese government. He kept emphasizing it in his entire speech which lasted almost 20 minutes before finally declaring the resignation of the entire Lebanese government.

Prior to Hassan Dieb's announcement a lot of top cabinet members have been resigning one after the other following intense protest outside the parliamentary house . The protest was more intense today as lots of protests sought to break down the parliamentary house barricade, before they were dispersed by the law enforcement. Labannon would now be managed by a caretaker government for the time being.

Islam in a song he circulated via WhatsApp in March 2020.

Following the incident, protesters burnt down the singer’s family home and led a procession to the Kano Hisbah command’s headquarters.

The Hisbah is a Kano State-owned security outfit that enforces the Shariah law in the highly conservative state.

Mr Sharif’s father, Aminu Sharif, had disowned him, saying he was not living at his house when he committed the crime.

He also said that he did not share his son’s religious views.

“I want to categorically inform the general public that blasphemy is not my ideology, and I promise to arrest him (my son) and hand him over to security agents whenever he is found.

“If I had the authority to punish him by law, I will do that right away,” Aminu Sharif had said of his son.

On Monday, the court also sentenced one Umar Farouq of Sharada quarters of Kano metropolis to 10 years imprisonment with hard labour for making derogatory statements concerning the Almighty Allah in a public argument.

The judge said the convict committed the offence at a younger age, and his trial was delayed to enable him to attain adulthood as proscribed by Maliki Islamic jurisprudence and the administration of criminal justice law.

Both convicts have 30 days to appeal the judgment.

frozen70:
That's her business

She can expand it to be like express road so that she can accommodate more cars and keys

Women with material things are 5 and 6

During a program tagged “Let’s talk Southern Kaduna Crisis” on Nigeria Info FM News.
Dr Mailafia Obadiah, the former Deputy Governor, Central Bank Of Nigeria made some shocking revelations about the plans of the bandits and Boko Haram who are currently wrecking havoc in the Northeast Nigeria.

He was asked, do you think the Government is unwilling or unable to protect the people of southern Kaduna ?

Responding to the question, he said the fact is that it is not only unable to but it is unwilling and we have good reason to feel that they are part of parcel of killers.

Let me some revelation for you, he said. How will Government will just say it is revenge killing and they left it there.

Oh, because it is revenge killing. The body language of this administration , the body language of the state government shows clearly that they have the hand in the killings.

You see General Abacha, and people didn’t give me his due, do you think he would have tolerated that nonsense ? He asked.

Let me some revelation for you, because of some of us don’t have our own intelligence network.

I have meant with some of the bandits, we have meant with some of their high commanders, one or two have repented they have sat down with us not once, not twice.

They told us that one of the Northern governors is the Commander of Boko Haram in Nigeria.

Boko Haram and Bandits are one and the same thing. They have sophisticated network, during this lockdown their planes were moving as if there was no lockdown. Moving ammunitions, logistics, moving money and distributing them to different part of the country.

They are already in the South, in the rain forest of the south, they are everywhere, he said.

They told us, when they finish this rural killings, they will move to phase two.

The phase two is that they go into urban cities, going from house to house killing prominents people.

He said by 2022, they want to start a civil war in Nigeria.

Watch the video here:

You need to listen to this, more is yet to come. 😳 #EnoughIsEnough pic.twitter.com/HNF0EqPEf0

— ayemojubar 🫆 (@ayemojubar) August 10, 2020

A lady has sparked mixed reactions on social media after she shared a video where she talked about her desires in a man.


According to the lady, her legs spread out very fast when she sees a very rich guy who has a car of his own. She said she has no dealings with poor guys and a single look at a car key will definitely turn her on.

Speaking further, she expressed her desire to finally meet the man of her dreams and tie the knot with him.

“My legs, they spread out so fast, especially when I see a car key. I hope I’m going to find that man”, she said.

Following the current crisis in Edo State ahead of the 2020 Edo State governorship election, there has been series of events happening with the Edo State national assembly complex being destroyed, Speaker of the House being impeached with his deputy as a new speaker was appointed by 17 lawmakers of the Edo State House Of Assembly under the All Progressive Congress.

Following this, former Lagos State Governor, Bola Ahmed Tinubu who is the member of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has addressed the issue of Edo Crisis as he claimed that Obaseki Has committed Impeachable offences.

APC have made a mistake by letting Tinubu come into the picture following the Edo State crisis.

1. As we all know that the current slogan in the mouth of all Edo citizens ahead of the 2020 edo state election is "Edo no be Lagos", why allow a former leader of Lagos state interfere as the Edo citizens hope to eliminate godfatherism in the state?
This might make them think otherwise.

2. Bringing Tinubu into the picture is just like going against the will of the Edo State citizens.

Now, most of them we'll see it from the angle that they want to make Edo State like Lagos even stigma of "Edo no be Lagos" is very rife.

How could they have allowed Tinubu to address Edo when a stigma of "Edo no be Lagos" is very rife

3. Also, with the introduction of Tinubu, they just successfully made the election between Obaseki and Oshomole, removing the governorship candidate, Ize-Iyamu from the picture.

What's your opinion on this?

Fresh attacks on three communities in Zangon Kataf Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The fresh killings came barely days after security agencies were deployed to the vulnerable communities of the state to prevent residents from further attacks.

The attack was said to have been carried out by suspected militia men in such communities as Kurmin Masara, Apyia Shyim, and Takmawai, as torrential rain-pounded the communities.

Kaduna State Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Mohammed Jalinge, who confirmed the attack, described the incident as unfortunate.

He said: “21 persons were killed and three were injured. We have beefed up security there to prevent further occurrence. Investigations are ongoing to ascertain who the attackers were and to effect their arrest.’’

Chairman of Zango Kataf Local Government, Elias Manza, said the gunmen, suspected to be Fulani militia, invaded the three communities in the early hours of Thursday morning, and started shooting indiscriminately at peoples houses.

He explained that seven people were killed in Takmawai, while 13 others were killed in Kurmin Masara in what seemed like a coordinated attack.

A native, who craved anonymity, said the gunmen attacked the villages as rain continued all through the night.

He said: “They launched coordinated attacks on Apyia’Shyim, A’Piako, Atak’Mawei and Kibori villages all in Atyap Chiefdom of Zangon Kataf, which is among the local governments under 24-hour curfew since June 11.

“It rained all through the night in the area and the attackers had unchallenged operations from around 10 pm Wednesday till early morning yesterday.

“By the time they were done, 20 corpses were recovered at about 12 pm on Thursday, while the search is still on. They also burnt several houses.’’

The Secretary, Atyap Traditional Council, Mr Stephen Akut, who also confirmed the carnage, told journalists that the current casualty figures were sketchy and could rise further by the time those still missing were found.

He said many of the residents fled their communities to avoid the attacks, stressing that nobody knew what had befallen them.

‘’Security operatives have been mobilized to the affected communities,’’ Akut said.

The Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, had directed the Commissioner of Police, Kaduna State Police Command, to deploy both human and material assets of the Intervention Squad currently on the ground in the state to safeguard the lives and property of people in the communities.

It will be recalled that Kaduna State government had imposed a 24-hour curfew in Zangon Kataf and Kauru local government areas on June 11, 2020.

The state governor, Nasir el-Rufai linked the attacks on the state, especially the southern part to banditry. A few days later, Governor el-Rufai met with traditional rulers to solicit their support to end the killings.

The governor stressed the need for all hands to be on deck towards bringing a lasting solution to the troubled area and other parts of the state.

He also challenged the traditional rulers to fish out criminal elements in their midst.

proeast:
If you think that North is naive or doesn't know what they're doing then you're mistaken! These guys are indirectly handing over the ports of SW to the Chinese. They know that having the ports in the hands of a neutral foriegn country will ensure they have unfettered access to it when nigger-area finally breaks up.

The afonjas have been played

In 2015, Afonjas voted for Change
In 2019 Afonjas voted for 4+4 next level

Enjoy your Sai Baba Buhari Afonjas

MASTAkiLLAh:
You people gladly voted in an economic disaster twice and now you’re crying

Crocodile tears won’t do the needful o

In 2015, They voted for Change
In 2019 They voted for 4+4 for next level

Enjoy your Sai Baba Buhari

proeast:
Let me address your own points respectively

1. Igbos are not threatening anyone, at least we aren't saying we are going to kill anyone or to set Nigeria on fire. Rather, it is a promise. Telling Nigerians that we will chart our own course where we will have our dignity is not a threat. We have the right to self determination.

2. Having a secession clause in the Constitution or not doesn't change anything in the long run. We have the numbers and global spread to bring Nigeria to its knees. At the moment, the percentage of Igbos asking for Biafra is not up 30% yet Nigeria is feeling the pressure, then imagine what will happen when up to 80% of us become passionate about it. Igbos make up the highest number of Nigerians abroad and if they form a critical mass against Nigeria, the result will be devastating on our corporate image. Also, we have influential personalities in strategic places globally that could help us dismantle Nigeria. Nigeria is a very weak country and it would be gone once the US and UN are convinced to break it.

You said it all

The U.S. on Wednesday said that it has alerted the Nigerian authorities that the Al-Qaeda terrorist group has started penetrating the country through the north-western region.

This was disclosed by the Commander of the U.S. Special Operations Command, Africa, Dagvin Anderson, during a press briefing, according the US Department of State

He said the dreaded terrorist group is also expanding to other parts of West Africa.

In the briefing obtained by The Cable, Anderson pointed out the US will continue to partner with Nigeria in sharing intelligence.


“We have engaged with Nigeria and continue to engage with them in intel sharing and in understanding what these violent extremists are doing,” he said.

“And that has been absolutely critical to their engagements up in the Borno State and into an emerging area of northwest Nigeria that we’re seeing al-Qaida starting to make some inroad.

He said intelligence sharing is vital and that the US will stay fully engaged with the Nigerian government to provide the country with the understanding of what these terrorists are doing.

In his apology drama, Oshiomhole was seen kneeling down why Ize-Iyamu sat down, before the council of chiefs. Implicatively, Ize-Iyamu was too big as the governorship candidate, to kneel before the council of chiefs to support Oshiomhole, in his begging for forgiveness for the crime that only him knows; and the request for support for Ize-Iyamu's bid to be governor. This setting upon which Oshiomhole and Ize-Iyamu acted their drama, presented Ize-Iyamu as a man who is arrogant while asking for help, which means he will increase the arrogancy should he be elected. So, it was a direct self demarketing.


Oshiomhole said "to those I sold the product that turned out to be fake, God you know I didn’t know he was fake." Speaking further, Oshiomhole said "Only time shall tell who a man is. Lord, You know we voted him in innocence and in trust. He has abused the trust... Enable us Lord," Oshiomhole continued, "with our PVCs we shall punish him". This again is gross; here Oshiomhole is assuming the position of the all in all in determining who becomes the governor of the state. He forgot that, though he imposed Obaseki on the party as the candidate for the governorship election in 2016, it took Obasek's supporters and the members of the party voting, to make Obaseki the governor. Besides, it is ironic that Oshiomhole is telling Edo people who are singing the praises of Obaseki, for the good work he has so far done, that Obaseki has failed. That means, Oshiomhole just revealed himself as an anti people politician, who would have been happy, had Obaseki pleased him to the detriment of the people. And by extension, is also means that Oshiomhole is actually pushing Ize-Iyamu who will do his bidding, than serving the people as Obaseki has done.


Then to sell Ize-Iyamu to the people Oshiomhole added as if praying that "With our broom we shall sweep him (Obaseki) out. Together, we will bring your servant who is God-fearing, who will not repeat his mistakes and will complete the project of taking Edo to the next level. All these and many more we say in the mighty name of our Lord Jesus Christ". Sadly, it is the same Oshiomhole who had in 2016, laid all manners of unimaginable allegations against Ize-Iyamu, which he was then ready to wave his immunity for, that is today calling Ize-Iyamu God servant and God fearing that needs to be voted into power. Certainly, no one will trust a double speak, who is fighting against his known ally - Obaseki, because he has refused him the godfather position. All Edo people are not oblivion of the fight between Oshiomhole and Obaseki, over Oshiomhole godfather status demand that was declined by Obaseki. So this state, is that of self-mockery and one that is actually anti-Ize-Iyamu.

Thus, Oshiomhole with his kneeling before the council of chiefs to beg for forgiveness and support for Ize-Iyamu, only succeeded in attracting negativity to Ize-Iyamu in his current effort to becoming the next governor of Edo state.

Goldp5988:
"The Director, Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Aviation, James Odaudu, said the ministry was not aware of such incidents at the moment."

Go to Abuja Airport and Lagos Airport you will see foreign Airline flight coming in and going out of this country on daily basis.

COVID-19: Charter airlines defy flight ban, fly rich Nigerians abroad.

They charge passengers $4,000-$8,000 per seat to UK,
others
Only evacuation, essential service flights approved –FG
Okechukwu Nnodim and Olaleye Aluko

Some charter airlines have begun offering services to members of the public despite a ban on international flights by the Federal Government due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Sunday PUNCH has learnt.

It was also learnt that some commercial flights that were contracted by foreign missions to evacuate stranded citizens from Nigeria were also being used to convey passengers at an extra fee.

According to multiple Ministry of Aviation and airline sources, several Nigerians and foreigners have been travelling in and out of the country via the private charter and evacuation flights.

A top source at the Ministry of Aviation told Sunday PUNCH that the process of seeking approval from the ministry had become very easy and porous hence the current development.

While passengers with very deep pockets patronise charter airlines, others without the means join evacuation flights that have been commercialised.

“If you have a valid American residence/passport or British visa and the right money, I get you on a flight by Sunday morning,” a source in the ministry boasted.

When asked to explain, he stated, “If you own a private jet, all you need to do is write a letter to the minister indicating that you need to travel for medical reasons. And you would be given approval almost immediately. Once you are given the approval, you can add people to the flight under the guise that they are your personal staff or family members.

“These people who are supposed family members or personal aides are actually passengers who could pay you between $4,000 and $8,000 and sometimes $14, 000 depending on your destination and the kind of aeroplane you are flying.”


The official explained that nobody really investigates who is being conveyed on the plane.

The official added, “If you recall the case of Naira Marley, Executive Jet Services which flew him had received approval from the ministry under the guise that it was flying an Appeal Court Judge, Justice Adefope Okogie, from Lagos to Abuja.


“The names of Naira Marley and nine others were on the list but different names were given to the control tower by the captain and everything went smoothly and they would have got away with it if not for the controversy generated by the concert. That is how things have been going on in the aviation sector lately.”


On the evacuation flights, the official further explained that some officials of foreign missions were colluding with some international commercial airlines to fly Nigerians in and out of the country.


He explained that when some flights come for evacuation, they also take some Nigerian citizens at a different and more expensive fee.

The official stated, “Most times, when they want to evacuate foreign nationals, the ambassador of the foreign country would write to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the approval is usually automatic, based on international law.

“Once they get the approval, a letter is sent to the Ministry of Aviation which gives the final approval. These approvals are given automatically. Once the planes arrive, they evacuate their citizens along with Nigerians who have valid visas. Don’t you find it strange that more evacuations are going on now than during the lockdown itself?

“Have you asked yourself why during this ban on flights, several artistes and VIPs have been travelling to give birth abroad?

“I know several international airlines that have been doing this. The two biggest culprits are based in Western Europe. They come on a regular basis under the pretext that they want to evacuate and then move Nigerians along with them.

A former chief executive officer of a local airline said many people he knew had been travelling in and out of the country in the past few months through the so-called evacuation flights.

The source said, “I have a friend that has travelled three times to the United States of America in the past four months. He just left Lagos last night again on one of the European airlines which have been running evacuation flights. He has American permanent residence too. So it is easy for him to join the evacuation flights.”


Easy approvals for VIPs

A report by Sahara Reporters a few weeks ago showed that even during the lockdown, several VIPs and government functionaries took their families abroad.

For instance, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, moved his wife and two children to the UK on a chartered flight.

According to the manifest published by the media organisation, the jet owned by Executive Jet Services – which was later suspended for conveying Naira Marley – flew Emefiele’s wife, Mrs Margaret; and his sons – Godwin Pammichukwu Jnr. and Andrew Olisehike Emefiele on flight N104DA from Lagos to the UK on June 1, 2020. The pilot was identified as Captain Kolawole King.

Seyi Tinubu, the son of a former Governor of Lagos State, also travelled on a private jet – a Bombardier Express 7000 with registration number VP-CBT –on June 7, 2020 from Lagos to Stansted Airport, London, to witness the birth of his son, Tobias. The plane was flown by Captain Giannetakis Michail.

Popular actress, Omotola Jolade-Ekeinde, on July 19 posted a video on Instagram of how her husband, who is a pilot, flew home their children from abroad.

She wrote, “Thank you lord. My babies are home. When all fails and your dad has to fly a PJ (private jet) to come get you himself. Captain Matthew Ekeinde, na man you be. This is to appreciate you for being such a superhero. Thank you lord for journey mercies.”

Booking a flight

One of our correspondents who posed as a businessman, reached out to a travel service firm, Etam Avitat Services Limited, on the availability of flights to the UK.

He was immediately informed that a flight would be available for 2.45pm on Saturday at a cost of $4, 500 and subsequently sent a Guaranty Trust Bank account number.

Some other travel agencies organising such flights include April Travels Limited and www.Wontra.com which offers economy, premium economy and business class services.

Two travel agencies, Global Links and Services Limited and FlyBoku, confirmed to one of our correspondents on Friday that they were conducting evacuation (commercial) flights to London and South Africa respectively in separate inquiries.

An official of the Global Links and Services Limited told one of our correspondents on Friday that the Lagos to London flight was scheduled for August 2 and it was a charter flight with economy and business classes.

She said, “On Lagos to London for Monday, let me make some inquiries and get back to you. There are some things we are trying to sort out tonight (Friday). There is economy fare at N550,000 for adults, N499,000 for children and business class for N1.1m. Just put that at the back of your mind. Let me get back to you because of this Sallah, we will need to sort out some things quickly. One thing that is sure is that we will still go.

“If we don’t go on Sunday, we will go during the week by next week (this week). If you don’t hear from me on Friday, you will hear from me tomorrow (Saturday). Almost everything has been put in place. It is just because of the public holiday but let me just get back to you.

“For Lagos to London flight, you will not need the COVID-19 result but why we are asking for it is for the safety of the rest of the passengers.”

Meanwhile, the official at FlyBoku, said, “The one we did (on July 31) was from Johannesburg to Lagos. For now, we don’t have Lagos to Johannesburg.”

On the Fly Boku flyer obtained by our correspondent, the fare charged for South Africa to Lagos was $1,250.


When contacted to speak on what the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority was doing to sanction errant private jet owners and foreign airlines contravening the international flight ban of the Federal Government, the NCAA said it would investigate the matter.

The agency’s spokesperson, Sam Adurogboye, requested for some of the adverts on such international flights and after receiving them, he promised to forward them to the appropriate directorate for further investigation.

“Thanks for this. It will help our investigation. I will give you feedback thereafter,” he told one of our correspondents.

The Director, Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Aviation, James Odaudu, said the ministry was not aware of such incidents at the moment.

“As far as the Federal Ministry of Aviation is concerned, there are only two categories of flights that are allowed internationally into and out of Nigeria. And they include evacuation flights or those on essential services,” he stated.

He, however, noted that the government would not hesitate to sanction any airline found culpable of breaching federal directives as regards international flight operations.

Meanwhile, towards the end of March this year, the Federal Government slammed a N1m fine on a British charter carrier, FlairJet, for violating some sections of Nigeria’s Civil Aviation Regulations.

The Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, said the carrier was also reported to stipulated authorities in the United Kingdom.

The Legacy 600 aircraft belonging to FlairJet with registration G-ERFX was impounded by the Federal Government at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos for conducting commercial flight operations despite the ban on such flights in Nigeria.

After impounding the aircraft, the Federal Government quarantined the pilots and other crew members for 14 days, and declared that all necessary sanctions against the British aviation company would be applied to the fullest.

Travel agents selling flight tickets to survive, says ex-NANTA president

Commenting on the development, the immediate past President, National Association of Nigerian Travel Agencies, Bernard Bankole, said most travel agents had been out of business for about five months.

Bankole also argued that there was nothing absolutely wrong with the actions by agents who sell tickets for such flights.

He said, “When you are very hungry, if they give you garri, it becomes a suitable food, forget about the ban on international flights.

“For how long are we going to continue like this? Five months and counting, people have been out of business. This is the situation on the ground.”

He said when approvals for such flights come from the Federal Ministry of Aviation after communication with the foreign affairs ministry, people use the opportunity to move passengers into or out of Nigeria, all in a bid to survive.

Bankole insisted that the situation on the ground warranted what was happening, adding that until international flights resume, operators in the downstream aviation sector would continue to seek measures to stay alive.

Charter airlines can operate private charter flights abroad — CEO

The chief executive officer of local charter airline, who spoke on condition of anonymity, argued if people had to pay for evacuation flights, then the flights could be commercialised after meeting the government requirements.

He said, “These are chartered flights. Although international flights have been banned, you can always arrange group charters. That is what they are doing now. This means that they can get special flight permits for one flight and they will sell off all the seats in both directions.

“The airspace is open and international flights have not yet been opened. The government can, however, allow international flights. They call them evacuation flights. Either way you look at it, it is commercial because the people have to pay money.

“But as evacuation flights, the charters have to fulfil some requirements from the government. Technically, it is only scheduled international flights that are banned. Both for domestic and international flights, chartered flights can operate. What that means is that you can apply to the minister to get clearance after which you can operate your flights. That is how it is done.”

Some Nigerians travel after clearance from three govt ministries – Pilot

A pilot with one of the airlines, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the charter airlines are often patronised by Nigerians who prefer less crowded planes because of the fear of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The pilot, who also does charter business, noted that although the country’s airspace was closed for international commercial flights, most of the rich Nigerians who were travelling abroad on their private jets or chartered aircraft, had got clearance from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Health and Ministry of Aviation.

He said, “So yes, the airspace is closed for general commercial flights but we can call what is going on repatriation flights and private charter flights. They will advertise them and call for people to come. It is a special VIP flight. But they must have been approved by the Ministries of Aviation, Health and Foreign Affairs. The airline would be fined heavily if this is not done.


“There are flights for repatriation but if the government is not paying, I have the right to choose the flight I want. A lot of people won’t go with crowded planes.”

FG’s special flights have been abused — Aviation stakeholders

The Secretary-General, Aviation Safety Round Table Initiative, and an aviation security consultant, Group Capt. John Ojikutu (retd.), said the special flights plan of government had been abused.

He said there was a need to define what the government meant by special flights, as the aviation minister had earlier stated that only special flights were allowed to come in or move out internationally.

Ojikutu said, “Now, are such flights evacuation flights? Are the evacuations done by government or done by an individual? And, of course, an individual cannot evacuate himself.

“Evacuation needs to be done by government or an internationally recognised organisation such as the Red Cross, United Nations, who pay for the flight while moving people.”

He added, “But when an individual is now paying for his or her flight, I wonder what kind of evacuation that is, because such individual is now a passenger of that airline he is paying to.”

Ojikutu insisted that the government of a country or a reputable organisation should pay for an evacuation flight and not for an individual to pay for his or her own ticket.

“Now, I’ve also asked, are these airlines paying the statutory fees to government since the passengers are paying them for the tickets?” he asked.

He added, “Also the landing and parking charges, is FAAN collecting these stipulated charges? And this include chartered flights.”

On his part, a renowned aviation analyst, Olumide Ohunayo, stated that what the foreign airlines were doing was wrong.

“It is wrong to see that the process is ongoing despite the investigation that the NCAA has said that it will conduct,” he said.

He noted that international operators now boldly advertised flights and wondered what some of these foreign airlines were doing at the airports when there was supposed to be a ban on international travels.

Ohunayo said, “They are siphoning the funds of stranded Nigerians who need to get back into country.

“The solution right now is that the opening of the international airspace is long overdue and the government should urgently address that.”

Igbos Owns Nigeria Not Fulani, Come to the North and see investments worth Billions owned by Igbo men – Prof. Yusuf Says

Former Executive Secretary of National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Prof Usman Yusuf, has described claims that the Fulani “own” Nigeria as a fallacy and “sentimental nonsense”.

“Igbo own all the hotels, they own banks, and Yoruba own the newspapers and banks. What do the Fulani own? It is just sentimental nonsense,” Yusuf told Saturday Sun.

He said that the erroneous narrative was being pushed by unscrupulous elements with a nefarious agenda.

According to him, Fulani people were in the minority in the federal civil service compared to Yoruba and Igbo people.

The Katsina-born professor added that Yoruba and Igbo people were also far richer than their Fulani counterparts.

Yusuf said that there was, therefore, no justification for claiming that the Fulani own or control Nigeria.

“Which part of Nigeria do they own? Igbo people are richer than Fulani people; Yoruba people are also richer than Fulani people. There are more Igbo and Yoruba in federal civil service than Fulani.

“Does any Fulani own a bank? Does any Fulani own a media house? Does any Fulani own a hotel? All the hotels in Abuja and land are owned by the Igbo. Is Abuja Igbo land? Can Fulani own in the East what Igbo own in the North? No. If you have never been to the North, come and see the landed properties that the Igbo have, which the Fulani do not have and cannot have in Igbo land.

“Whoever that says Fulani man owns Nigeria, let him come and say how. Fulani man occupies Aso Rock, and so what? An Igbo man should come and occupy Aso Rock and give the Fulani all the material wealth he has in the North.
That is nonsense.

The Igbo National Council (INC) has said that the new vigilante group recently launched by the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) will not be welcomed in the South East.

The National President of the group, Chilos Godsent, in a communiqué after a meeting in Enugu State, warned the association to restrict the activities of its vigilante group, known as Kautal Hore to only the northern part of the country.

Daily Times had reported that Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, the Fulani socio-cultural association announced the establishment of its nationwide security outfit in order to curtail security challenges confronting the country on Wednesday, July 29.

This statement came after the leadership of Miyetti Allah said that they would extend their security outfit to Benue and other parts of the country, the Sun news reports.

Reacting to this, the group warned the herders vigilante to stay clear of its territories or face the consequences just as it has also urged the southeast governors to help shed off the local security outfit.

Its president, Godsent, also called on the Governors of the southeast zone to immediately pass the Anti-Open Grazing Laws in other to stop what it termed as “the deliberate reckless, balkanization of farm lands in the Igbo territory by the devilish Jihadists Herdsmen.”

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has declared that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) flag bearer in the forth coming Governorship election in Edo state, Governor Godwin Obaseki, has no opponent.

Speaking as a guest on a live television programme today, Governor Wike said that the people of Edo state already know the type of candidate the All Progressives Congress (APC) is presenting going by what Adams Oshiomhole said of him four years ago.

“Adams Oshiomhole told Edo people that Ize Iyamu was rusticated from school; that he poured acid on a fellow student that destroyed his manhood. That he is an armed robber that cannot be trusted with money.

“Such a character cannot be accepted by Edo people as Governor during the election.

“I respect the Benin tradition and I know that Edo people are educated to know that Oshiomhole cannot play on their intelligence. If he is now retracting what he said of Ize Iyamu, who is sure that he’s saying the correct thing now.

“Adams Oshiomole’s sudden u-turn is a great insult on Edo people. This is an opportunity for Edo people both at home and in the diaspora to use their votes to tell Oshiomole they cannot take his lies anymore.

“From all indications, it is obvious that there is no strong opposition against Obaseki and he will win convincingly”, he said.

Governor Wike stated that the PDP has continued to take steps in strengthening the nation’s democracy.

According to him, the Party does so with the promotion of internal politics and resolving conflict of interests of members to achieve common goals.

He noted the success recorded by the PDP in conducting free and fair party primaries in Edo state.

The Governor said all the aspirants decided to work together to support the candidature of Governor Godwin Obaseki who is the party’s flag bearer.

“It was not easy to have a sole candidate for the Party in Edo state. People thought there will be problems, given the fact that Obaseki was coming from another Party. But Party members who are grounded and believe in the Party didn’t see any sacrifice too much to make.

“Even in Ondo State, the former Deputy Governor, Agboola Ajayi, who decamped to PDP contested keenly during the primaries and lost . If there are other pending issues in the South West, be sure that the Party will resolve them.

“That is exactly what Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, as the chairman of South-South States’ Governors had done. He is making sure that we are all on the same page to ensure that all states in the South-South are controlled by PDP,” he stated.

Shakara or blow guy

Means self-pride

Yawa

Yawa means Problem

Yawa done cast means There is problem

Wahala

Wahala means trouble

pepper done rest.

Pepper means money

Pepper done rest means money done come

The Deputy Governor of Edo State and the running mate to Governor Godwin Obaseki in the September 19 election, Philip Shaibu, has said no amount of kneeling stunt would save the former National Chairman of the Allies Progressives Congress, Adams Oshiomhole, and his party’s candidate, Osagie Ize-Iyamu, from defeat.

Shaibu said this during a campaign that started from Akpakpava Road in Benin City, through Ekpoma to Jattu, in the Etsako West Local Government Area of the state.


He, however, noted that the governorship electioneering would be issue-based, with a focus on performance and not on persons nor throwing of tantrums and making deceptive public appearances.

He said, “No amount of kneeling stunt will save the former national chairman of the APC, Adams Oshiomhole, and his candidate, Osagie Ize-Iyamu, from defeat.”

The Deputy Governor explained that the election would present Edo people the opportunity to decide the future of their unborn children and not a time to think about pecuniary gains and egos of wannabe godfathers.

Loan Deals: Parts of Nigeria Could Become Chinese Territory if the Country Defaults, Amaechi Wants an end to Investigations Into Loan Deals.

The Nigerian government may have ceded the nation’s sovereignty to China in the event of a default in loan agreements signed with the Asian country, the House of Representatives Committee on Treaties and Agreements said on Tuesday.

Chairman of the Committee, Rep Ossai Nicholas Ossai, raised the alarm over lethal clauses in Article 8(1) of the commercial loan agreement signed between Nigeria and Export-Import Bank of China which indirectly “wills the sovereignty of Nigeria” in the $400 million loan for the Nigeria National Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Infrastructure Backbone Phase II Project, signed in 2018.

Ossai raised the alarm during an investigative hearing into some of the agreements signed between Nigeria and China, during which the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi responded to various questions on the ongoing modernisation of railway projects being implemented by the Federal Ministry of Transport.

One of the agreements in contention, which was signed by Federal Ministry of Finance (Borrower) on behalf of Nigeria and the Export-Import Bank of China (Lender) on 5th September, 2018, reads in Article 8(1) of the agreement: “The Borrower hereby irrevocably waives any immunity on the grounds of sovereign or otherwise for itself or its property in connection with any arbitration proceeding pursuant to Article 8(5), thereof with the enforcement of any arbitral award pursuant thereto, except for the military assets and diplomatic assets.”

Alarmed by the clause, Ossai said: “I have also seen from the Ministry of Communications where Nigeria signed off some certain level of its sovereignty if part of the clauses is breached? So, when the National Assembly reacts in this manner, to question some level of agreements being entered into by any ministry of this country with any other nation, we have every right to question that because anything that is going to happen will happen to our generations unborn. Whether we get it from China or not is immaterial.

“The most important thing is that we must save and protect our people as regard agreements, because most of the agreements that have been signed, the National Assembly has no knowledge (of them). Even the details embedded in those agreements are not forwarded to you when demanding counterpart funding.

“You don’t have the details, clause by clause, in line with the Act that established DMO. We need to know those details even before going to sign such agreements. But those details are not provided to the parliament. So, we have the right to question them.”

The committee chairman thereafter summoned the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Usman; Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Ali Isa Pantami and Director-General of Debt Management Office (DMO), Ms Patience Oniha, to appear before the Committee on August 17, 2020 with all relevant documents on the controversial agreements.

The committee, also, during the investigation into various railway contract agreements signed between Nigeria and CCECC on the modernisation of railway projects, demanded details of the agreements signed on the construction of various railway lines including Abuja-Kaduna, Lagos-Ibadan and Lagos-Kano rail projects.

The DMO had said that as at March 31, 2020, a total of $96.15 million had been paid on the loan, leaving a balance of $403.85 million as outstanding, while the interest has been paid based on semi-annually on reducing balance basis, with 30 years maturity date (leaving 10 years pay-off window).

Ossai, who expressed concern over the conflicting positions between the Director (Legal) in the Ministry of Finance, Budget & National Planning, Mr Gabriel Christopher, warned the minister against blackmailing the Parliament.

He said: “You are trying to blackmail this committee. You are trying to put this committee against Nigerians,” adding that there was the need to investigate the “variations on interest rates,” which he described as “an aberration.”

“We are not saying because the money is not paid directly to people in this country. We have seen the agreement. We have also seen a clause where sovereignty is waived if we default. We have seen it in the document. It is here in the document where the sovereignty of our country is waived and we believe that the particular clause is not part of what they brought to the National Assembly to approve.

“No National Assembly member will look at that clause and approve such. In your own way, you might be right with what you are doing to defend this country when reaching and signing these agreements. Others might not be so. So, we must take a critical look at them one by one. This committee had not been functioning in the National Assembly before but now, the committee has started functioning, and we must use this committee to defend Nigerians,” he said.

However, while responding to queries, Amaechi disclosed that the sum of $500 million was the loan component borrowed from China while the balance of $349 million is the counterpart funding from Nigeria.

He appealed to the Committee to defer the investigative hearing till December to enable Nigeria conclude the process of the loan

He said: “I have said here to the House, and it is a pity that I’m saying it in public, this government, outside Nigeria, they are sensitive to what you say. Nobody is stopping you from your investigation and no government from outside Nigeria can stop you from doing it.

“We are saying that Nigeria has applied for three loans already. For Port Harcourt-Maiduguri (Eastern Rail Line), the Minister of Finance told me that she was stopped and told that the next borrowing plan would not be approved unless you get Port Harcourt-Maiduguri. Port Harcourt-Maiduguri goes through the South-East and the North-East. The only South-South town is Port Harcourt.

“We are about to apply for a loan. They will not grant that loan.

“Then you summoned us back to the House to ask why we are constructing Lagos-Kano and we are not constructing Port Harcourt-Maiduguri.

“Can we be allowed to get this loan? Then you can summon us, not to start what you are doing and the whole process will then be stopped,” he observed.

Appealing further that the investigation should be stepped down, the minister said: “My fear is that at the end of the day, some sections of this country will suffer if they stop giving us loans; two projects that will suffer: the first one is Lagos-Ibadan (rail line), we have not finished disbursement. We are asking for a loan to commence work from Ibadan to Kano. The day they (China) say ‘the government is not supporting the loans you people are taking, we are no longer giving you,’ that is the end of the project.

“I completely concede to you, chairman, and to the House of your powers to investigate, to oversight the Executive but in over-sighting the Executive, there is what is called national interest. You don’t underhand the pressure I suffer when I travel down the East and I’m being told that we are not doing any railway in the East.

“Again, the economy of this country can only be propelled by transportation. We don’t mind this investigation but can we please shift it to December or January when we would have possibly taken these loans. Once we get these loans, Chairman, turn me upside down, I will answer you.

“There are rumblings up there in China and there are loans we have asked for. If your government is not in agreement with this – don’t forget that there are all sorts of allegations against China here and there – we can stop. And the moment it is stopped, the following things will happen: Lagos-Ibadan is not completed. And I want to put it on record, so that when it happens, they would know that I said it; Ibadan to Kano too,” the minister noted.

The executive governor of Lagos state, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Wednesday, July 29, asked to meet the boy in the viral video imploring his mom to calm down during punishment.

- Sanwo-Olu said the video struck an emotional chord in him as he was moved by the boy's plea of one more last chance

- The governor, therefore, appealed to Lagosians to be safe as he asked them to calm down and celebrate Sallah by adhering to safety measures.

Sanwo-Olu said he was "moved by the boy's sobriety" as the boy begged for one more chance as a "regular offender".

He said that the video showed that parents put in a lot of work to raise their kids as he added that he hoped that the mother really "calmed down" as the boy asked.

The governor used the opportunity to tell Lagosians to calm down during this festive period as they mark the 2020 Sallah celebration with the consciousness of protecting themselves against Covid-19.

He also said he would like to meet the boy.

Babajide Sanwo-Olu
@jidesanwoolu
I saw a video of a charming young boy online asking his mom to ‘calm down’ as she was set to punish him for a misdemeanour. I was moved by his sobriety, which reflected in his promise of “last chance”, when confronted with the fact that he is a regular offender.

Founder, Igbo Youth Movement (IYM) and Secretary, Eastern Consultative Assembly (ECA), Evang. Elliot Ugochukwu-Uko, has berated Nigeria’s president, Muhammadu Buhari for ‘abandoning’ the country to go to Mali in search of peace when his own country is beset by worse crisis.

Uko who registered his displeasure with Buhari’s handling of ongoing killings in Southern Kaduna and other parts of the country in a statement on Saturday, regretted that the president has failed to show leadership while the country dances on the brink.

“Mr President just returned from Mali, where he went to broker peace over political differences in that country.

“For five straight days in Kajuri and other local government councils in southern Kaduna, innocent men, women and children are daily slaughtered while they sleep, by rampaging Fulani herdsmen. Gory photos of their badly mutilated corpses are currently awash online,” he said.

“Katsina and other North west states are boiling, whole communities sacked by armed gangs, as the hapless residents run into the bushes.

“The North east remains Boko haram territory, as military formations are not spared by the bloodthirsty vermin. They kill our soldiers weekly, even as the morale of our soldiers remains low, over the performance of the non performing over-stayed service chiefs.

Few days ago, 5 aide workers were gruesomely murdered in a horrific video trending online.

“Okene -Lokoja road has become kidnappers haven. The horror of Lagos to Abuja travellers. Ajaokuta-Lokoja axis has also become impassable. Kidnappers shoot, abduct, rape and slaughter Nigerians unchallenged.

“Illegal mining of solid minerals thrive in the North, mostly run by Chinese Mafia. Every body looks the other way. Our country is drifting.

“All over the country, armed robbers and kidnappers hold sway from the Niger Delta, through the South east, down to the South west. Nigerians cannot sleep with both eyes closed.

“But our President found time to visit Mali, to settle political disagreement amongst top Malian politicians. For how long would traumatised Nigerians watch in consternation?” he wondered.

Uko who is also Deputy Secretary, Igbo Leaders of Thought ILT, noted that corruption under the present government has reached unprecedented levels, as officials revel in mindless stealing of public funds while the masses wallow in poverty.

“The politicos have been entertaining and shocking citizens this penultimate week. Reeling from the ruling party’s leadership battle, EFCC, and NDDC drama exposed the rot in the system, in a bizarre and embarrassing manner,” he said.

“Citizens are shocked at the mindless looting and daylight robbery going on under the watch of Mr Integrity. Only God knows what mindboggling discovery, searchlight on NNPC, FIRS or CBN will unearth. We can be sure that very many actors will collapse and pass out during questioning. Nigeria cannot work this way.

“Weddings and all sorts of celebrations by the children of top Government officials in this season of hardship, sorrow and despair, reek of offensive opulence and mindless display of unearned easy money. This provocative display of excess cash runs contrary to the promises General Buhari reeled out as he ran his campaign five and half years ago. Did we enter one chance vehicle?

“For how long do we stand aside and look? Our leaders have ran out of ideas. The economy is certainly heading towards a recession. The dollar, today exchanges at an all time high. Unemployment keeps rising, poverty keeps increasing, our politicians are busy shouting it’s OK, it’s OK, off the mic. For how long? Silence of the lambs.

“Juxtaposing the current pitiable condition of the citizens with the grand promises flown five and half years ago, is simply heart rending. Insecurity, poverty, hunger and hardship rule the land. It is clear the ruling party is overwhelmed. The opposition party also seems confused. Silence in the land, suggests folks may have given up on Nigeria. Our country can’t grow this way.

“Painful, our image terribly battered abroad. Our young men die daily in the deserts of North Africa as they struggle to migrate to better climes by road. Theirs organs harvested and sold. So many of them in foreign jails even as many more dream of travelling out to escape the unfriendly environment.

“There are well over a hundred thousand trapped Nigerian young females hawking their bodies as prostitutes all over the world and another hundred thousand held as sex slaves, in Arab countries, their government is not bothered one bit.

“The lifestyle of politicians encourages sleaze. Nobody batts an eyelid. Unique Nigeria, where over 90% of the Abuja billionaires don’t have any source of livelihood to backup their stupendous wealth. Except being close to the corridors of power, either as a government official, ex official or influence peddler. For how long would we live this way? For how long?

“Everybody knows the 1999 constitution and the unitary structure practiced today encourages a lot of bad behaviour from our political leaders. What are we waiting for to reconstruct the structure of the country and move Nigeria forward? The unitary structure can no longer carry the edifice. Nigeria is at cross roads, only the truth can save Nigeria now.

“For how much longer, do we have to continue the self deception and false hope?Our country isn’t working and will never work this way. What are we waiting for?

“Delay in restructuring Nigeria is a great disservice to the fatherland. Which is why I plead with Nigerians from every region, to identify with and support the recent call by the Yoruba summit group for all, to join hands and drive the early restructuring of Nigeria in order to save Nigeria. Time is running out.”