₦airaland Forum

The Lagos State Government has dismissed the rumoured suspicion of cases of the Coronavirus Disease in Gowon Estate in the Alimosho Local Government Area of the state.

The Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, dismissed the rumour making the rounds on social media that Chinese people, who recently returned from Wuhan, China and residing in Osoba Close of Gowon Estate, were having severe symptoms of Coronavirus disease and treating the symptoms themselves.

The commissioner in a statement on Wednesday noted that there is no truth in the report emanating from Gowon Estate.

Abayomi while giving an update on the investigation carried out by the Ministry through its surveillance team declared that “there are no suspected or confirmed cases of Coronavirus in Lagos State contrary to fake news being circulated in the media.”

The Commissioner said, “In a bid to further investigate the rumour, the surveillance team of the Lagos State Ministry of Health and the Alimosho community stakeholders were in Gowon Estate and its environs – the alleged scene of the suspected cases, on February 9, 2019.

“The team interrogated residents living in and around Osoba Street in Alaguntan Ward, Segun Majekodunmi Street and other randomly selected houses in Alimosho but there were no Chinese nationals residing or carrying on business in and around any of the streets and communities visited.”

Abayomi added that the team also interrogated the Chairman of Gemade Estate, who was known to have affiliations with Chinese expatriates but discovered that the six Chinese expatriates who had worked in his factory at Igbesa, Agbara, Ogun State had returned to China since 2019 when their work permit expired.

“The team expanded its search to hotels around Alimosho and Gowon Estate where a Taiwanese lady was identified to have visited one of the hotels but nothing concrete linking her to China was found. Three Egyptian nationals, who were sighted buying drugs at a particular pharmacy were also interrogated but were found to be businessmen who had no link whatsoever with China,” the Commissioner explained.

Abayomi noted that the contact phone numbers of Alimosho LGA Disease Surveillance Notification Officer were given to relevant stakeholders in Alimosho in case they come in contact or have knowledge of any Chinese national living around or anyone arriving from China.

“The State surveillance team has scaled up its search by placing hotels and other resort centres on active surveillance to closely monitor visitors, travellers and non-nationals especially those of East Asian and Chinese origin,” he added.

The Jigawa State Sharia Enforcement Command (Hisbah) on Tuesday arrested 34 suspected commercial sex workers

The Hisbah Commander in the state, Malam Ibrahim Dahiru, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Dutse.

Dahiru explained that the suspects were arrested in a raid by Shari’a enforcement agents at Gada area of Kazaure.


“Today; at about 5:00 AM, our men carried out a raid at the popular Gada joint in Kazaure LGA.

“During the raid, 34 suspected commercial sex workers and three men were arrested for alleged immoral acts” .

Dahiru added that 147 bottles of assorted beer and one sack of empty beer bottles were also seized.

The commander urged the people to stop engaging in immoral acts, warning that the
Command Would continue in its campaign against vices and alcoholism.

A Lagos woman on Tuesday stunned an Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court that her three daughters, aged 12, nine and seven were serially defiled by a muslim cleric, the family housed free for between seven and eight years.

The victim’s mother made the revelation while testifying as the second prosecution witness in the trial of Ibrahim Idris, a 26-year-old cleric, charged with defilement.

The mother of six, who is also married to a cleric while being led in evidence by the state counsel, Mr Gbenga Alagbe, told the court that she knew about the alleged defilement from a teacher in the school her daughters were attending.

“In 2017, I received a call from the teacher of the school my children go to for lessons. The teacher told me that one of my daughters told her something and that she wanted me to hear for myself what she said.

“When we got to the office at the school, my oldest daughter (Daughter A) said that Idris slept with her and her younger sisters.

“I was told by the teacher that earlier while Daughter “A” was being interrogated about the allegations, she ran out of the class.

“A woman had seen her and had taken her back into the school and when she saw a male teacher she was scared because Idris was sleeping with her and anytime she sees a male teacher, she becomes withdrawn and scared ,” the mother said.

The mother said following the revelation, she took her children home from the school and her husband who was not around during that period, arrived two days later on Aug. 11, 2017.

She noted that when the father arrived, the defendant was summoned to their residence.

“We asked him about the allegations and he insisted nothing happened. We took him to the police station for questioning and we were referred to the Mirabel Center at Ikeja for medical examinations.

“I had asked Daughter B (9-years-old) about the allegations and she said it was true, I had asked Daughter A (12-years-old) about the allegations but she was afraid to tell me what happened.

“However, when we got to the police station, Daughter A told me what had happened,” the mother said.

While being cross-examined by the defence counsel, Mr Lekan Ijelu, the woman said the defendant was living with her family when he allegedly committed the crimes.

She noted that he had stopped residing with her family when the allegations came to light.

“He lived with us for seven or eight years. When he was living with us permanently, he used to go for his Islamic classes in the morning around 8am and return around 5pm.

“When he was temporarily residing with us, he used to stay on Fridays till Sundays,” she said.

The mother told the court that there were six adult males including the defendant who had lived in her home with her husband who is also a cleric.

She said she was shocked when she heard the allegations.

“He is a gentle boy. He says the truth all the time and when I’am going out, I leave my kids with him to take care of them for me, I trusted him so much, I was shocked to hear what he did to my daughters,” she said.

Following her evidence, the state prosecutor appealed to the presiding judge to address the woman to ensure that the mother brings her three daughters to court to testify against Ibrahim.

“My lord, the witness said that she did not want to bring her daughters to testify, because she feels it may be traumatic for them,” Alagbe said.

Responding, Justice Sybil Nwaka told the woman that preventing her children from coming to court will amount to the offence of obstruction of justice.

“The children are the victims. They must come to court to testify. This case is not your case, it is the case of the Lagos State Government.

“You reported the case, the children must come to court to testify. That is the process and procedure, if not you will be regarded as a hostile witness and that is an offence,” Justice Nwaka said.

The woman responded: “My lord, I feel it has been a long time. I do not want them to be reminded of what happened.”

Justice Nwaka adjourned the case until March 4 for continuation of trial.

Earlier during proceedings, a medical doctor and first prosecution witness, Dr Oyedeji Alagbe, of the Mirabel Center (a sexual assault referral centre) had interpreted the finding of his medical examinations on the minors.

Alagbe confirmed to the court that medical examination revealed that the three daughters were defiled.

According to the prosecution, Ibrahim committed the offences sometime in 2017 at the complainants home at Agege, Lagos.

“The defendant, Idris, a cleric on various occasions defiled the sisters aged 12, nine and seven-years-old in their home.

“The offence contravenes Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos 2015 which prescribes a life sentence for anyone found guilty of the offence of defilement,” Alagbe said.

The Federal Character Commission (FCC) is operating with only one commissioner out of the 37 required by law.

Daily Trust’s findings showed that the other 36 commissioners have served out their tenures but have not been replaced by the federal government.

The current Acting Executive Chairman of the commission, Amb. Abdullahi Halidu Shinkafi, is the only remaining federal commissioner at the agency.

The commission’s official website also showed it is operating without 36 commissioners out of the 37 approved by the Federal Character Act.

It was gathered that Amb. Shinkafi’s tenure as a commissioner representing Zamfara State would expire in April and the commission would be left without a single commissioner. And so far, there are no indications as to when commissioners would be appointed as, the Presidential spokesperson, Mr Femi Adesina, when contacted on the issue told Daily Trust that he had no information on the matter.


Mandate of FCC

The FCC is a federal government body established by Act No 34 of 1995 to implement and enforce the federal character principle of fairness and equity in the distribution of public posts and socio-economic infrastructure among the various federating units of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The provisions of the 1999 Constitution in sections 14 and 153 consolidated the establishment of the FCC for operation in a democratic system of government.

The commission is mandated by Paragraphs 8(1)(a) and (b) of Section C, part 1, Third Schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to, “Work out an equitable formula, subject to the approval of the National Assembly, for distribution of all cadres of posts in the public service of the federation and of the states, the Armed Forces of the Federation, the Nigeria Police Force, other government security agencies and government-owned companies/parastatals of the states.”

It is also mandated to “Promote, monitor and enforce compliance with the principle of proportional sharing of all bureaucratic, economic, media and political posts at all levels of government.”

The commission is to also work out and ensure equitable distribution of infrastructure across the federating units of the country.


Gradual deterioration

In December 2018, Daily Trust reported that only seven states had commissioners representing them at the FCC: Katsina, represented by Barr Mahdi Jibril Daura; Zamfara, Ambassador Abdullahi Halidu Shinkafi; and FCT, Dr Yunusa Musa Salihu.

Others were Osun, represented by Bashorun Awofisayo; Ondo, Honourable Sheba Abayomi; Edo, Ifaluyi Isibor and Anambra, Mrs Adaeze Gloria Idigo Izundu.

Then following states had no representation at the FCC the: Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Ekiti and Enugu states.

Others were Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba and Yobe states.

By the end of December 2018, the tenures of the commissioners from Anambra, Edo and FCT expired and only four commissioners were left in the commission by January 2019.

By February 2020, the number of commissioners dropped to only one and if replacements are not made by the end of April this year, the commission would be left with no commissioners from the states to monitor its operations.

Amb. Shinkafi may likely hand over to the most senior staff in the commission as the acting executive chairman if by April the federal government still fails to appoint new commissioners to replace those that have left.

Appointment of commissioners
Section 2(1) of the Federal Character Act of 1995 provides that members of the commission shall consist of a chairman who shall be the chief executive of the commission; a representative each of the states of the federation; and a representative of the FCT, Abuja.

Subsection 2 provides that the chairman and members of the commission shall be appointed by the President, subject to confirmation by the Senate.

The act further provides in Section 3(1) that the chairman and members of the commission shall hold office for five years in the first instance and for a further term of five years on such terms and conditions as may be specified in their letters of appointment.

The commissioners are expected to meet periodically to ensure that “each state of the federation and the FCT shall be equitably represented in all national institutions and public enterprises and organisations” as outlined in the commission’s guiding principles.


FCC activities suffer

Section 7(4) provides that the quorum for a meeting of the commission shall be “not less than one-third of the total number of members of the commission at the date of the meeting.”

Daily Trust gathered that the meetings the commissioners are mandated to hold, at which recruitments into MDAs are supposed to be reviewed to ensure equitable distribution, have not been held for a long time since they could not form a quorum.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a source within the FCC said the absence of commissioners has affected policy making and monitoring of recruitment exercises and provided room for job racketeering in MDAs.

The source said there are about 24 committees overseeing over 600 MDAs, adding that it is impossible for the single commissioner available now to monitor them.

Besides, the commissioners protect the interests of their individual states and may be unlikely to advance the interests of other states not represented at the commission.

Due to poor monitoring by the FCC, secret recruitments are said to be on going in Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

MDAs are legally required to advertise vacancies before recruitment, but in some cases, they obtain waivers from the FCC not to advertise.

Some agencies reported to have indulged in secret recruitments included the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD), Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), National Space Research and Development Agency, and National Open University (NOU).

Others are the Federal Civil Service Commission, University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Rural Electrification Agency, Nigerian Navy and many more.

In October 2019, chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) Bolaji Owasanoye revealed that after the commission discovered N9.2bn as over-bloated personnel costs of MDAs, they went on secret recruitments for a cover-up.

“They hurriedly started employing people. Appointments given yesterday were backdated one year, and ad hoc staff upgraded,” he told the joint Senate and House of Representatives Committee on Anti-corruption and Financial Crimes at the 2020 budget defence.

He advised that recruitment templates in all agencies of government be changed from offline to prevent recruitment scandals, a task clearly within the mandate of the FCC.

Also, the FCC has, since its inception, not carried out its second mandate, which involves ensuring equitable distribution of infrastructures across the country.

The former acting executive chairman of the commission, Dr Shettima Bukar Abba, moved to implement the second mandate, but he served out his tenure and exited the commission without doing that.

Under Dr Abba, the FCC, in collaboration with the Budget Ministry initiated an audit of the spread of Nigeria’s total infrastructure stock across the country with the aim of identifying possible lopsidedness and addressing them.

It is not certain if the audit was ever conducted, but certainly the commission has largely ignored the second mandate even as recruitment scandals rock MDAs.

P/HARCOURT – There have been mixed reactions following the Federal Government’s approval of the construction of two new sea ports in Bonny Island in Rivers State and Warri in Delta state, both in the south-south geo-political zone of Nigeria.

Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi, the Minister of transportation, who made this disclosure recently in Lagos state, also noted that President Mohammadu Buhari also assured him that a railway line would be constructed from Port Harcourt, Rivers state, to Maiduguri, capital of Borno state.

But Checks by our Correspondent had it that since the pronouncement, some stakeholders in the maritime industry have lashed out on the idea, saying that it would have been more honorable for the Federal Government to put the existing ports in Warri, Onne and Calabar to a maximum use instead of muting an idea for two new ones.

One of the stakeholders, a clearing Agent who wants to be simply identified as Iyke said: “Here in Rivers State for example, we don’t have much cargo, while Lagos is over-congested”.

Pointing to the road, he said: “look at the road leading to the ports; they are in deplorable condition, Sea pirates attacking vessels every day in the high sea.

“Shipping Companies are battling with obsolete equipment ranging from pilot cutters and other navigational aids including insecurity. They have not solved one problem, they are busy creating another”, he said.

“Government should try and fix the Eastern ports, make them viable and competitive like Lagos instead of venturing into another jamboree”.

Another stakeholder, John Mark who has been in the shipping business for the past ten years said: “in as much as it is good for the government to establish other sea ports and if possible dry ports, the important thing is for the Ports to work. Every day, one committee or the other will visit this port, what has their visit achieved?

“The other day, it was committee on why Eastern ports are not being properly utilised. The other day, House of Representatives committee on Ports and Harbors, last week, it was Senate committee on Customs, what actually are they coming to do? “, he asked. Has it changed anything?

It would be recalled that the minister had made this known while speaking on “Railway Infrastructure: Progress and Plan” at the 2020 national economic outlook in Lagos, recently when he said: “the new seaports will be in Bonny, Rivers, and in Warri, Delta state”, adding that President Buhari had also assured him that a railway would be constructed from Port Harcourt, Rivers state, to Maiduguri, capital of Borno state.

The minister went further to posit that the current administration was more business friendly, noting that several infrastructure would be completed before the end of the tenure.

“We will provide railway from Port Harcourt to Maiduguri, the President has assured me. We are discussing and announcement would be made on the project soon,” he said.

UYO – A mysterious rain on Monday morning pulled down a make-shift structure erected in preparation for the funeral of the Akwa Ibom State Governor’s father, Late Emmanuel Gabriel Nkanang, scheduled for February 15, 2020.

The structure which was recently constructed to accommodate dignitaries expected to grace the burial of the 90-year-old patriarch was completely scattered by the rain which concentrated within the governor’s immediate community.

A member of the community who declined to have his name in print told newsmen that he had suspected some mysterious sabotage and had earlier cautioned planners of the event to engage the services of rain-makers.

“How do you explain a rain that circulated within a particular area? I had told the planners of this burial that not everyone would be happy to see a successful burial of the governor’s father.

“I earlier suggested the need to engage a traditional rain-maker so that in a situation like this, such mysterious rain would have been diverted to nearby communities,” he said.

It would be recalled that this would not be the first time a mysterious rain is reported in the state. Last year similar incident was reported at a particular location in Ukanafun, presumably to obstruct an ongoing construction work.

Meanwhile, many have however seen a positive side to the disappointing incident, as they opined that it might have prevented the state from recording another disaster after the 2016 Reigners Bible Church Collapse, as they suspect the make-shift structure might have been constructed with sub-standard materials.

Lagos – Yinka Odumakin, spokesperson of Afenifere has berated the Attorney -General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami for looking the other way, following the launch on Wednesday of Northern security outfit, codenamed Operation Shege Ka Fasa.

In a press statement made available to journalists on Sunday, Odumakin maintained that the clash of civilisations, as manifested by the response of some Northern people to Operation Amotekun, which he said was won by the defiance of the West and its allies for progress across Nigeria against the internal colonialists in Abuja.

He said that the launch of Amotekun might have informed the decision for the formation of the Northern security outfit by the Coalition of Northern groups when it unveiled the security outfit code-named Operation ‘Shege Ka Fasa.’ which means “I dare you” on Wednesday, a day before Northern security summit.

“We know the lumpen youth are not daring the bandits who are natives but the assertive will of the governors and people of Oduduwa land on Amotekun with the thinking that their federal government will now come in and ban all regional security outfits.

Eight Local Government Council chairmen elected on the platform of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Zamfara State, on Saturday, announced their defection to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The Local Government Council chairmen who joined the ruling PDP in Zamfara State are; the Birnin magaji local Government council chairman, Alh Muhammadu Umar; Maru Local Government Council chairman, Alh Salisu Isah Dangulbi; Bukkuyum Local Government Council Chairman, Alh Nasiru Zarumi Masamar mudi; and Anka Local Government Council Chairman, Alh Ahmed Balarabe Anka. Others are; Kaura Namoda Local Government Council Chairman, Alh Lawali Abdullahi; Maradun Local Government Council Chairman, Alh Shehu Muhammad Faru; Bungudu Local Government Council Chairman, Alh Abdulaziz Ahmed Nahuche; and Tsafe Local Government Council Chairman, Alh Aminu mudi Tsafe. The council Chairmen announced their defection shortly after a meeting with Governor Bello Muhammad Matawallen Maradun in Sokoto.

The Executive Chairman of Anka Local Government Council, Alh Ahmed Balarabe Anka, who briefed newsmen shortly after the meeting, said their decision to join the ruling PDP in Zamfara State was as a result of Governor Bello Muhammad’s leadership style in restoring peace and tranquility in all parts of the state within a short period of time.

Alhaji Anka maintained that political stability, unity and peaceful coexistence witnessed during the first 100 days of the governor in Office was an indication of Matawalle’s leadership qualities.

The Council chairmen said they defected to the PDP-led administration alongside thousands of their supporters. Receiving the council chairmen into the party, Governor Matawalle thanked them for their foresight in joining the ruling PDP in Zamfara State, pointing out that with this development, the party was moving stronger. Governor Matawalle assured the council chairmen of equal treatment in the party.

A 43-year-old truck driver, Abubakar Musa,appeared in a Chief Magistrates’ Court in Ikeja, Lagos, for allegedly driving recklessly and swerving into the motorcade of the Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.

Musa, who resides in Oshodi, Lagos, is charge with reckless driving and obstruction on public road.

The defendant, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The Prosecution Counsel, Insp. Samuel Mishozumu, alleged that the defendant drove his truck with registration number LND 976 XF in a reckless manner on the public highway and obstructed the convoy of the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Yemi Osinbajo.

“The defendant, who refused to adhere to the signals, drove the truck into the convoy, dividing it into two, despite efforts made by the convoy officers to clear the road,” he said.

Mishozumu told the court that the defendant committed the offence on Jan. 19 at about 10. 15 p.m. on the Oshodi Apapa Expressway, Oshodi, Lagos.

The offence, he said, contravened the provisions of sections 19(1) and 45 of the Road Traffic Laws of Lagos State.

Chief Magistrate O. D. Njoku admitted the defendant to bail in the N50,000 with two sureties in like sum.

Njoku ordered that the sureties must be gainfully employed.

He adjourned the case until Feb. 19 for trial.

Prof. Suleiman Ambali of the Department of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Ilorin, has warned that continuous exposure of humans to pesticides is causing decline in male sperm count.

Ambali disclosed this on Thursday night in his paper presentation at the 192nd Inaugural Lecture of the University (UNILORIN), entitled: “Preventing pesticides from poisoning away our health and future – the oxidative approach”.

The don, who teaches in the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the university, warned that there were evidence which suggest human species was approaching a fertility crisis based on trends in male reproductive health.

He said based on the troubling data from laboratory, clinical epidemiology studies, it was obvious that the world would witness fertility crisis.

Corroborating his reports, he explained that some Danish scientists’ research has also indicated that sperm counts of men have declined by about 50 per cent since 1940 worldwide.

“The researchers analysed the result of sperm counts between 1938 and 1991. Since then several other studies have confirmed the decline.

“Environmental causes including pesticides especially those that causes endocrine changes in fetal and pre-puberty life prior to birth or during childhood or during breastfeeding, are involved in the decline of semen quality,” he said.

According to him, the effect of chemical pesticides on birth sex ratio is in favour of more females than males.

He explained that this trend was worrisome as human activities continue to change the natural demography in favour of women, as a lesser number of male births occur.

Ambali said that the use of pesticides by people have led to reduction in quantity and quality of food available for the well-being.

He also said that pesticides have further led to causes and enhanced diseases to plants, animals and humans.

The expert in toxicology who quoted WHO, said about three million workers in agriculture in developing world experience pesticides poisoning annually with about 18,000 deaths.

He also disclosed that there was an estimated 250,000 deaths annually from pesticides self-poisoning world-wide, accounting for about 30 per cent of the suicide rates globally.

Ambali therefore warned that the use of pesticides have led people to “poison away the future of our children”, while calling on government and non-governmental organisations to sensitise the populace against indoor use of pesticides.

“Policies aimed at reducing the use of pesticides in agriculture should be put in place.

“Farmers should be encouraged to use an integrated approach in controlling pests and develop alternative cropping systems less dependent on pesticides,” he said.

The Nigeria Customs Service has called on the federal government to broaden its excise tax net to include carbonated drinks.

The Comptroller General of the Service, Col. Hameed Ali (rtd), made the call at a public hearing by the House of Representatives Committee on Finance on Thursday.

He said the move will help the service step up its efforts in revenue collection to meet up its revenue target.

According to him, as at present, excise duty is being collected on alcoholic beverages and tobacco because of their effects on health.

He, therefore, said that carbonated drinks are also injurious to health like tobacco and alcohol, saying as such, they should be included in excise duty payable commodities.

The Diaspora Professional Health Initiative (DPHI) has accused the federal government of frustrating its efforts to improve healthcare in the country.

The association comprise of Nigerian medical practitioners who are based in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, South Africa, among others.

A member of the association, who did not want to be named, told TheCable that those in DPHI were inspired by other professionals from the African continent, especially Ethiopians, who are now being supported by the Medical school of University of Toronto, Canada, to create more solutions in their country.

He said for three years, they worked on strategies they could use in sharing skills with their counterparts back home but the Nigerian government turned its back against them just when they were about implementing their ideas.

The doctor said at an event to discuss the project in Washington, in 2019, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, chairperson of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), had described the idea as “a win-win situation for both sides, and ultimately for our country.”

The doctors’ hopes were, however, dashed in January when Osagie Ehanire, the health minister, wrote to inform them that the project, scheduled to kick off on 27th of that month, had been “suspended till further notice”.

The source said in preparation for the January 27 kick off, “27 physicians and nurses in oncology neurology nephrology and ophthalmology had bought tickets and volunteered to be in Abuja last week for the pilot phase of the DPHI that we have spent the last three years fleshing out with the ministry of health.”

“I am aware the Federal Ministry of Health has been in cordial partnership with your associations to develop and improve Healthcare delivery services in Nigeria. I use this opportunity to express my delight, and appreciation of your various collective and individual contributions to the Health sector of your country,” Ehanire wrote in his letter dated January 20.

“I wish to also commend all your contributions and enthusiasm for the launch of the pilot programme of the brand new ‘Diaspora Professionals Healthcare initiative.’ It is a laudable Idea which has been embraced by the Ministry of Health.

“However, I regret that due to salient circumstances around programme design and preparation, this initiative, scheduled to be launched on the 27th January, 2020 had to be abrogated and deferred till further notice. This will give us time for more detailed preparation to broaden and deepen the scope of your engagement and magnify the value to your service to country and people.”

Ehanire told DPHI members that the project would be redesigned “for far more impactful and beneficial delivery of service and utilisation of knowledge and skills, better ‘ownership’ and appreciation by all stakeholders.”

But another doctor told TheCable that the project is “as good as dead” because of the role played by government.

“When you hear something like ‘put on hold till further notice’ in Nigeria, just know that, that project is as good as dead,” he said.

“We spent about three years doing meetings physically and virtually aimed at skills transfer between Nigerian physicians in diaspora and those back home.

“Of about 80,000 registered physicians with the medical council in Nigeria, 45,000 are now outside of Nigeria. The basic minimum of informing the professionals in Nigeria and putting required materials in place in Nigeria, they did not do and yet they set the date and we sought for and told our initial batch of volunteers to buy air tickets. Then, abrupt cancellation of the programme or postponement till whenever. Three years of planning!”

Ehanire did not answer calls placed to his telephone and also failed to respond to a text message, seeking his reaction on the matter.
Dabiri-Erewa did not also respond to inquiries on the issue.

Corpses of intended couple were discovered naked Wednesday night at Badawa quarters in Nasarawa Local Government Area of Kano State.

Spokesman of the Kano State police command, DSP Abdullahi Haruna confirmed the incident to DAILY POST.

He explained that the incident occurred Wednesday night around 10:00pm at Badawa quarters in Kano.

Haruna explained that the couple were discovered naked in the kitchen by occupants of the compound.

He said the cause of their death is yet known and corpses were taken to hospital for verification.

Spokesman of the command said owners of the compound were invited for clarifications.

He said the case is still under investigation.

Molly Kilete, Abuja



The police force headquarters in Abuja has said its special operatives from Operation Puff Adder alongside personnel of the special forces have killed over 250 high-profile members of the Ansaru terror group.

The terrorists were said to have been killed at their hideout and stronghold located at Kuduru Forest, in Birnin Gwari, village in Kaduna State.

The camp is said to be the largest operational base of the terror group.

A police helicopter used for the operation which was shot by the terrorists was able to make an emergency landing at the Nigerian Air Force base in Kaduna, while the pilots who sustained gunshot injuries have since been treated.

Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, in a statement, said the operation which commenced early on Tuesday morning was carried out by a combined team of operatives of Operation Puff Adder made up of the Police Mobile Force (PMF), Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU), Special Forces, Intelligence Response Team (IRT), Special Tactical Squad (STS) and Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS),


Mba, in the statement, said

“Special Operatives of Operation Puff Adder of the Nigeria Police backed by the Special Forces of the Police Airwing, in a daring offensive operation, stormed one of the largest operational camps of the Ansaru Terror Group (also housing other bandits and kidnappers) located in Kuduru Forest, Birnin Gwari, Kaduna State and successfully neutralised over 250 high-profile members of the Ansaru Terror Group.

“The operation which commenced in the early hours of today, 5th February 2020, was carried out by a combined team of operatives of Operation Puff Adder made up of the Police Mobile Force (PMF), Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU), Special Forces, Intelligence Response Team (IRT), Special Tactical Squad (STS) and Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS). The operation was necessitated by actionable intelligence linking terror and criminal elements in the super camp to a series of terror-related violence, kidnappings, gun-running, cattle rustling and other heinous crimes across the country.

“Unfortunately, during the operation, a police bell helicopter, which provided aerial and intelligence cover for the ground troops came under attack from the bandits using sophisticated anti-aircraft rifles and GPMG. Commendably, the pilot and the co-pilot who demonstrated uncommon courage and expertise, successfully landed the aircraft at the Air Force Base, Kaduna without further incident. They were thereafter evacuated for medical treatment. Both officers who sustained non-life threatening injuries are currently receiving treatment and are in stable condition.

“The police helicopter has since been flown out of the Kaduna Air Force Base by police pilots en-route to Abuja.

“Meanwhile, the Inspector-General of Police assures citizens of safety and sustained intelligence-led operations against bandits across the length and breadth of the nation. He has equally applauded the unparalleled bravery, commitment, and dedication of the police operatives currently conducting the special mission.”

An undergraduate student of the Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta (FUNAAB) has duped his colleague, professors, lecturers of 6billion naira in a forex scam gone wrong.

Mr. Nwabuba Victor Ifeanyi of Vickson enterprise run a forex investment scheme that attracts investors to receive 20% of their money back after 2weeks. The scheme has been running for about 3months now, and he has been paying out, but late yesterday it was discovered that he had plans of running away with investors’ money, which summed up to 6 billion Nigerian Naira, Daily Independent can authoritatively report.

He has not been able to pay his investors for the past 2 days which got everyone involved worried as to the recent development. Other middlemen in the scheme are currently in debt because he failed to deliver within the past few days.

A verifiable source told Daily Independent that professors, lecturers and students and some outsiders got involved in this scheme.

A middle aged man, who is yet to be identified, has died during a sex romp with an unnamed lady in a hotel, in Onitsha.

A source told DAILY POST that the man checked into a hotel in the city with a lady at about 5pm on Thursday, but not quite 30 minutes after, he started shouting for help, clutching his chest.

The source said, “He clutched his chest and was shouting for help, and the hotel management took him to hospital, but he was said to have been certified dead by a medical personnel.”

The Anambra State Police Command has also confirmed his death. The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Haruna Mohammed who confirmed it, said the management of the hotel had reported the incident at Central Police Station, Onitsha.

“He is a middle aged man, and allegedly took a lady whose identity is yet unknown to the hotel.

“After about thirty minutes the manager heard someone shouting for help and holding his chest.The victim was immediately rushed to the hospital for medical attention but certified dead by a medical doctor on duty.

“Meanwhile, scene was visited by Police detectives attached to CPS Onitsha and photograph of the victim obtained.

“No mark of violence on the deceased body. Corpse deposited at Boromeo hospital for autopsy while investigation is ongoing to ascertain circumstances surrounding the incident,” he said.

Meanwhile, no mention of the lady involved in the inciident was made, neither did the police claim to have arrested her.

The federal government has denied stifling freedom of expression especially when it involves criticism from the media.

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, stated this on Conflict Zone, a political programme on Deutsche Welle when he appeared before Tim Sebastian.

He said there is a lot ignorance and mischief by the international community with regards to Nigeria stressing that the clampdown of some media houses by the federal government was because of the news they were pushing out.

“We are doing extremely well when it comes to freedom of the press. If papers run fowl of the law, they must face the consequences. We have a very robust free press. On the contrary, at a point in time I felt it was the government that was at the receiving end of government” he said.

Speaking on why government backed the Hate Speech Bill given the penalties involved, Alhaji Mohammed said “I feel what is more shocking is the ignorance of people. There is what is called separation of power in major democracies.

“This particular bill you are talking about is a bill submitted not by the Executive but by the Legislative arm of government. So, how can you accuse the Executive? We did not submit the bill.

This is private members bill, by a Senator and the Executive does not have a choice in which bills come through. You see the government does not come in until when the bill has been passed and we didn’t use any influence to get that done.

“The only thing we can do as a president is to refused to assent such a law, the law has not been passed yet. How does the President stop it without being accused of dictatorship? I think when we get to that bridge we look at the contents of that law; in what form will it be passed. But you see, people jump hastily to judgement. We don’t micromanage the parliament.”

The minister also denied knowing the protection of internet falsehood and manipulations bill stating that there is no such bill before the National Assembly.

While addressing questions on human rights abuses, the minister said the administration has suffered a lot of misrepresentation, stressing that the federal government has been sensitive to the issue of human rights.

“Sometimes terrorists, politicians, activists are confused to what is human rights but I do not know of any policy that is deliberately targeted at infringing anybody’s rights.

“Nigeria has been locked in a war with Boko Haram, for almost a decade and the kind of war we are fighting is a war amongst people; even the military has been careful to ensure that as much as possible, rights are not violated. As a matter of policy, government does not violate anybody’s right,” he said.

While acknowledging that several cases of abuses of rights by soldiers have not only been investigated, Alhaji Mohammed said they have been punished and have been made public.

Electricity consumers in Nigeria, who are still battling with estimated billing and insufficient power supply, will pay more tariff and cost on meters beginning from this week.

Electricity Distribution companies (DisCos) have, according to checks by New Telegraph , slated February 1 to begin the implementation of 2.5 per cent increase, which had raised Value Added Tax (VAT) on meters to 7.5 per cent.

VAT on tariffs have also been adjusted to accommodate the new 7.5 per cent rate, and service charges on installment meter payments through Meter Assets Provider (MAP) will be reviewed to accommodate the new VAT charge.

The Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC), one of the two major power utility firms in Lagos, commercial hub of Nigeria, confirmed this to this newspaper yesterday, noting that from February 1, the prices of meters sold to customers under the Meter Asset Provider scheme would be reviewed to reflect the increase in VAT recently implemented by the Federal Government.

This, the EKEDC Corporate Communications General Manager, Godwin Idemudia, said in a statement, was in compliance with the 2019 Federal Government’s directive which would see an increase in VAT from 5 per cent to 7.5 per cent from the first day of February 2020.

Idemudia further stated that customers should now expect to pay “N39,765.86 (VAT inclusive) for a single-phase meter and N72,085.68 (VAT inclusive) for a three-phase meter.”

The power firm also disclosed that VAT on tariffs have been adjusted to accommodate the new 7.5 per cent rate, and service charges on installment meter payments through MAP will be reviewed to accommodate the new VAT charge.

Meanwhile, the management of Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) has decried a situation whereby the available power it generates has not been getting to the end-users or final consumers.

Managing Director of NDPHC, Mr. Cheidu Ugbo, who said this in Oke Aro, Ogun State, maintained that his company is collaborating with the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources in Lagos State to find lasting solution to the challenges of stranded power and ensure that such stranded power gets to the final consumers.

According to him, “We have electricity to serve Nigerians, but it is stranded either at power stations or transmission stations like this one, because there are few challenges (which are) why people are not being serviced and the DisCos cannot pick the load from here.

“We are collaborating seriously with the Lagos State government to make sure that this available electricity gets to the end-users.”

He said the project, which includes construction of 132Kv Multi Circuit Transmission Lines, is facing the problem of Way Leave, which means a right of way to be granted by landowners to erect the transmission lines.

“The project has been on, but we have serious Way Leave challenges. We have enlisted the support of Lagos State Government and also Ogun State Government and they are actively trying to assist us to resolve the challenges along the line routes.

“We have come to see, to assess and know where the challenges are. Lagos State Government has a programme and they need to see availability of energy here and ascertain that they can actually take the energy here and make sure it gets to the consumers in Lagos State.

“After the site visit, I’m sure the commissioner has seen and he is convinced that energy here is stranded as a matter of fact because we have seven feeders going out of here that should have taken at least 100MW, but the feeders between the two distribution companies (Ibadan and Ikeja DisCos) are doing less than 30MW,” he said.

A married woman who got N30,000 for acting a pornographic video which went viral in Jos, Plateau state, has committed suicide.

According to NAN, the video which was uploaded on the internet weeks ago showed some young girls and married women engaging in sexual acts.

It was gathered that a man identified as Emeka, who resides at the Rayfield area of Jos, took the girls and women to a hotel in the same area to shoot the videos.

Emeka was said to have interviewed the women before stripping them naked and having sex with them on camera.

He paid the victims N30,000 each with a promise to pay additional N100,000 at a later date.
The practice had reportedly gone on for about three years, with over 50 girls and women featuring in the videos.

The video had generated reactions from the public with the victims becoming stigmatized.
Two girls who approached the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) office in the state said poverty and lack of need forced them to engage in the immoral act.

“This happened two years ago. My nephew was at the point of death and I needed to help my sister with money for his treatment. I met a lady at a beer parlour who told me about the man and I quickly agreed to do it,” one of the girls said.

“The painful part is that after I took the money home, my nephew still died. He promised us that he would release the videos outside Jos, but I later realised he only played us as we are not literate enough to know that once it’s on the internet, everybody can see it.”

Mary Izam, FIDA chairperson, said the association in collaboration with Red Cross and Teens Partners, has organised a rehabilitation process to save the victims from depression.

She said a married woman, who was one of the victims, had committed suicide after being stigmatized by members of the society.

Izam described the act as unacceptable and a crime against woman dignity and right as well as an offence against the nation.

She said the association and its partners would do all they can to ensure that the perpetrator was brought to book.

The chairperson urged women to engage in moral activities in order to avoid tarnishing their names and bringing the state to disrepute.

She called on other victims to utilise the rehabilitation process, adding that running away will be of no good to them and their loved ones.

Among other things, the Federal Government is working towards the production of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) as an alternative fuel to the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) petrol this year.

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva that revealed this in an interview with the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), said that although the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) had made several trips to the National Assembly without translating into law, this year shall be its last trip to the federal lawmakers.

He based his hope in the passage of the bill on the renewed relationship between the legislature and the executive.

The video clip of his interview which The Nation obtained on Wednesday, noted that the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt Refinery will commence in the first quarter of 2020.

Also slated for commencement this year, according to him, is the construction of the Ajaokuta, Kaduna and Kano gas pipeline project.

The project, which is expected to take gas from the Niger Delta to Kano, is also targeted at feeding the industries in the area with gas.

He lamented that Nigeria is a very rich gas country, yet it has the lowest Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) penetration in the world. The minister said that the government is working to ensure LPG penetration this year.

Besides, he revealed that Nigeria has never looked for gas except the one it found from oil production. Now, according to him, the federal government is to begin gas exploration.

His words: “The gas sector will definitely grow. Nigeria is described as a gas territory with oil in it. Unfortunately, we have not taken advantage of our gas resources. All the gas we have found in Nigeria has been found while looking for oil not looking for gas. “We are going to have some targeted exploration for gas. And we also want the people of Nigeria to have an alternative to PMS. We want to see how gas can be converted to CNG.

“And also we are trying to improve the LPG penetration. Unfortunately, Nigeria has the lowest LPG penetration in the world. We are very rich in gas. This year we are going to focus on this area.”

Stressing that most nations are now exiting fossil fuel for renewable energy as gas, he confirmed that Nigeria was still far from joining the race for renewable energy utilization.

Meanwhile, the minister said that at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, Nigeria was able to add its voice to the global discussion of transition to renewable energy.

He said that “Gas is a lesser source of carbon emission and we have abundant gas resource. So also the world has to take us into account of its discussion in the transition to renewables. It is also in those kinds of forum that you can put our point of view forward.”

Asked to state what he has achieved so far in office as a minister, Sylva said that he is already in the process of rejigging the PIB.

He noted that the sector under his watch has been able to pass the Deep Offshore Amendment Bill.

He added that “We have also been able to superintendent over the discovery of oil in the North East. The evaluation is ongoing but oil has been discovered in the North East. We have been able to take FID on Train 7.

These are what have happened and we are very ready to move on this year.”

In what looks like a reprisal attach following the killing of 13 persons in Kwatas village of Bokkos local government area of Plateau State, some angry youths have attacked Fulani settlements, setting ablaze 23 houses and a mosque within the locality.

Addressing newsmen on Tuesday, the state chapter of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, MACBAN, and a sister Fulani organisation, GAN Allah Association, confirmed the attack, saying that the incident is barbaric and condemnable.

While condemning the earlier attack that led to the killing of 13 persons, the groups described as unfortunate how the incident was hung on the necks of Fulani herdsmen in the area.

According to them, it is inconclusive to conclude that the attack was carried out by the Fulani as there was no evidence to prove same.

“We urge the security agencies to always do its homework before any declaration,” the MACBAN caretaker chairman, Isa Bappa, said.

He added: “It is equally regrettable for some youth in Kwatas to launch attack on Fulani communities as reprisal. Both incidents are barbaric and condemnable.

“We call on the security agencies in the state to as a matter of urgency ensure the arrest of the perpetrators all the attacks.”

While calling on the government and the security to investigate and fish out the perpetrators to face the wrath of the law, Mr Bappa urged all law-abiding citizens of the state to remind calm and embrace peace.

Lalong orders arrest of perpetrators

Governor Simon Lalong has met with security officers, major stakeholders, insisting that the perpetrators of Sunday night killings and destruction of properties must be fished out and arrested.

A statement by his director of press and public affairs Dr. Makut Macham, quoted the governor as giving the order during a security meeting he summoned at the Government House Tuesday.

He said: “How can they say that people are killed and there is no arrest. Are those killing others spirits? I don’t think you can kill 15 human beings and claim you are spirit and there is not arrest.

“Commissioner of Police, you should take the community leaders and the Ardos with you so that they can tell you those behind these killings. By the time you go to cell, you will bring out those people that are doing it. If you want to give evidence, give it to the commissioner of police. We are not afraid of criminals.”

He, however, commended the efforts of some community leaders.

“Some community leaders and Ardos have done their best but within us, there are criminals. We must expose them no matter how high. If you are one of them, you better take yourself to the police station.

“The Army is here, Police, Civil Defence, DSS, Operation Rainbow. I want those people today.
They should not sleep in their houses. By the time they are arrested, we will solve this problem,” the governor said.

Former Chairman of the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on an investigation into fuel subsidy regime in 2012, Hon. Farouk Lawan, yesterday told the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Abuja that his first defence witness’ brother in his ongoing bribery case was killed by Lassa fever in Kano, on Sunday.

Lawan disclosed this as the reason for his inability to open his defence in the bribery case instituted against him since 2012.

The former legislator, who was present in court yesterday, is being prosecuted for allegedly accepting $500,000 as bribe for the removal of billionaire businessman, Mr. Femi Otedola’s company’s name, Zenon Petroleum and Gas Limited, from the list of firms indicted by the House committee for alleged fraud in the subsidy scheme.

Justice Angela Otaluka, had in her ruling delivered on October 17, 2019, dismissed the no-case submission, which Lawan filed after the prosecution closed its case with five witnesses, including Otedola.

The judge had ruled that contrary to Lawan’s contention in his no-case submission, the prosecution made out a prima facie case against him, which he had to defend.

The court directed him to open his defence on November 11, 2019.

Due to unconfirmed reasons, the trial was further adjourned till Tuesday (yesterday).

But at the resumed trial yesterday, Mr. Benson Igbanoi, who stood in for Lawan’s lead counsel, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), said despite being ready for the trial, they were unable to proceed to open the defendant’s case because his “sole witness” who was meant to testify at the hearing could not attend proceedings because he was bereaved.

Igbanoi said they received the news of the loss of the witness’ brother to Lassa fever on Sunday.
He said, “We are very much ready to open our defence today.

“However, late Sunday night, we received news that the sole witness of the defendant lost a brother to the dreaded Lassa fever that hit Kano city.

“My lord in the circumstance, regrettably, we are unable to go on to open our defence today.
“We are therefore constrained to plead with my noble lord to grant us a short adjournment because our sole witness is so devastated.”

He said his team had written a letter to the court and a copy of which was served on the prosecution stating the defence team’s “predicament” and suggesting an adjournment of the case till February 11.

The lead prosecuting counsel, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), confirmed that he received the letter dated January 27, 2020 (Monday) from Ozekhome’s law firm.

He said he had to “reluctantly concede to another adjournment” since the reason adduced for it involved the loss of a human being.

But urged the court to direct the defendant “to keep to February 11 so that he does not come that day and say he is asking for another adjournment of the case.”

The judge granted the defence’s request and adjourned the case till February 11.

The inability of the Bayelsa State government to run a water project handed over to it by the Federal Government has led to the wastage of N5.9 billion and lack of potable water in the state, writes MIKE ODIEGWU.

There is no potable water in Bayelsa State. While people in the rural areas depend heavily on polluted rivers, rivulets and streams for water, those living in Yenagoa, the state capital, buy water from vendors, mostly northerners, who purchase in gallons from privately-owned boreholes.

On September 9, 2016, the Federal Government inaugurated a massive water intervention scheme, the Central Ogbia Regional Water Supply Project in Bayelsa State.

The project, which gulped N5.9 billion, was sited at Otuoke, the community of former President Goodluck Jonathan in Ogbia Local Government Area of the state.

The inauguration, which was greeted with fanfare, brought fresh hope to the people, especially the downtrodden, who since the creation of Bayelsa State had been denied access to potable water. The project inuaguration made people to heave a sigh of relief.

While the then Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, led Federal Government’s entourage to inaugurate the project, the then Secretary to Bayelsa State Government (SSG), Chief Serena Dokubo, led the state delegation.

The project was not designed to serve Otuoke alone, it was established to provide potable water to 13 Ogbia communities to be extended to Yenagoa, the state capital.

Adamu acknowledged the importance of adequate water supply, adding that it was a crucial aspect of social and economic development.

“The project we are inaugurating today is among the high priority projects for water supply. This project commissioning, therefore, further demonstrates that the Buhari administration is committed to completing all viable projects that have a positive impact on the lives of our people without any political sentiments,” the minister had said.

He tasked the host communities to take ownership of the water project by maintaining it for improvement of livelihood and reducing water-borne diseases.

Serena Dokubo, who represented Governor Seriake Dickson, at the event, commended the Federal Government for the project, saying such a project was needed in other communities.

Senator Ben Murray-Bruce, who then represented Bayelsa East said: “A lot of children die from consumption of unclean water, a lot fall sick, you have to spend more to take them to the hospital to get cured.”

However, all those hopes and promises have become a mirage. The project, which had the Fibow Petroleum Engineering Consult Nigeria Limited and the NARDA Limited, as contractors, died shortly after it was inaugurated and handed over to the state government.

For a few weeks, the people surrounded taps at designated areas in their communities to fetch water flowing from the facility. They were excited. But the excitement was ephemeral.
They woke up one day and met the tap dry and against their expectations the taps have remained dry for over three years.

The project has become a sorry sight and an unpardonable waste of public resources. Standing on the bumpy, portholed road leading to Otuoke before the Otuoke bridge, it is difficult to see the walls of the fence securing the facility. The fence has been overgrown by weeds.

Only two massive elevated tanks and a faded project’s signpost can indicate to a visitor that a serious project was once inuagurated in the area.
Walking through the unpaved sandy path leading to the project site, it is common to see women and children carrying buckets or gallons of water trekking out of the site to their homes inside the community.

“We come here to fetch water directly from the tank in that complex because our taps are no longer running. We walk many kilometres to get the water,” one of the residents with a dejected look said as she walked slowly on the sandy road with a bucket of water on her head.

Inside the complex, the taps located at strategic points have also been overgrown by weeds. Water no longer flows from them.

The generator house has gathered dust and cobwebs. The place looked desolate as no feet appeared to have walked its path for a long time. A massive CAT generator installed to power activities in the complex has been abandoned.
Curiously, the offices and apartments built for water workers in the complex have been rented out to some families and students.

The occupants spread their washed cloths on the walls and windows of the buildings. Some of them were seen making fire within the compound to cook their food. No guard secures the gate.

Six massive tanks, two sitting on raised platforms and others on the ground are almost covered by bush.

“This project has failed,” one of the occupants, who spoke in confidence said. “We now live here and pay rent to the community. We pay N30,000 per room to the Otuoke Community Development Committee (CDC). We pay every year.

“All the rooms and apartments have been occupied. Some students of the Federal University, Otuoke also pay rents to stay here. We are not happy that the project has failed. You can see that even the taps within this complex are not working.

“We live on a waterworks site, yet, we buy sachets water to drink. We are begging all the stakeholders of this project to make it work again. When it was commissioned, it worked for some weeks and stopped,” she said.
When The Nation visited the Deputy Paramount Ruler of Otuoke, Chief Otazi Moses, he refused to talk about it.

Also, the Otuoke CDC Chairman, Robert Oru, said he needed a clearance from the Paramount Ruler of the community before he could speak on any matter concerning the community.

“Everybody wants to know something about Otuoke. So, I won’t talk to you until I get clearance from our king,” he said.

When reminded that the people in the community and other areas were suffering because the project was not working, Oru stuck to his guns.
But the CDC Chairman of Otu-Aba, a neighbouring community to Otuoke, Sunday Afili, lamented the inability of the project to live up to its benefits.

He said: “The project was a good one. We were happy that our community was part of those to benefit from it. But when it stopped almost immediately it was inaugurated, we became sad.
“Look at the tap over there,” pointing at one of the dried taps, “we once went there to fetch potable water. We no longer depended on the river behind me. That river is always polluted.

“But now the project is not working and we are suffering. We don’t know why it stopped. Nobody has told us. I know a lot of money was spent there. Whatever the problem is, they should make it work,” he said.

But some Ogbia indigenes blamed the government of Seriake Dickson for abandoning the project. They alleged that it was one of the ways Dickson used in expressing his hatred for Ogbia people.

A prostitute from Delta State named Onyinye who works in a brothel along Warri road in Agbor have packed her belongings to a customer's house saying the man must marry her. The man identified as Simon is a bus driver that plies Onitsha-Asaba Expressway.

The fair prostitute came very early and has assumed the position of a legal wife
Simon who was ashamed as well as confused tried to force the prostitute out but she meant business as she fully came prepared with all her belongings. She was said to have boarded a tricycle popularly known as Keke to Simon's house located at Agbor Obi.

When Simon saw that the lady was serious, he called his friends and neighbors to come and help him beg the prostitute to go. That was how the issue went public. Onyinye who was very happy was said to have laid on Simon's bed.

Everyone was laughing at the turn of event.

Onyinye said Simon owed her a lot of money and that she has lost count. She told Simon that there was no need for him to continue paying for her services, that she must become his wife so that he do anytime he wants without pay.

Simon was said to have told her that he was not yet ready for marriage but his customer didn't agree. People gradually dispersed leaving the two in the house.

According to a neighbor we contacted on the phone, Onyinye is still in his house and have even tied wrapper sitting at the veranda. She was said to have cooked meals waiting for her husband's return.

Ola Ajayi – Ibadan



The peace that residents of Oyo State have been enjoying since assumption of office of Governor Seyi Makinde may be ruptured as both members of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Congress (APC) are claiming the control of the local government areas and Local Council Development Areas in the state.

The fresh crisis was ignited by a letter from the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Justice Abubakar Malami directing the Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Adamu to ensure compliance with a Supreme Court judgment asking the state governor, Engr Seyi Makinde to dissolve the caretaker chairmen in the councils.

Governor Makinde had sacked the local government executive put in place by the past administration and appointed caretaker chairmen to fill their vacancies.

Acting on the instruction by the AGF, Prince Abass Aleshinloye, ALGON Chairman, Oyo State, in a statement, said, “the democratically elected chairmen and councillors of local government and council areas will return peacefully to their duty posts to perform our constitutional duties to the grassroots in obedience to the electoral mandate of the people of Oyo state.”

“This is legitimate after the Attorney General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami, has again called the attention of Oyo State Government and the Inspector General of Police to the subsisting Supreme Court judgment reinforcing Section 7 (1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and pronounced as illegal and unconstitutional the dissolution of elected local council administration by state governors or state assemblies in Nigeria with no court order to back it up.”

“Indeed, there could not have been any court order in view of the extant locus cladsicus decision of the Supreme Court in GOV, EKITI STATE V OLUBUNMO which settled the issues with finality.

“The Supreme Court is a court of with national jurisdiction, which also reinforced the Oyo State High Court’s earlier issued perpetual injunction against the Oyo state government forbidding dissolution of elected local government administration.

“As a peace-loving organisation of responsible people and local government administrators, ALGON has taken the path of law to reclaim our mandate freely given by our people at the grassroots before achieving the well-deserved victory after long-drawn legal and political battles to defend democracy and the rule of law.”

But, responding, the Special Adviser to Governor Seyi Makinde on Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Prince Yemi Aderibigbe, said ALGON no longer exists in the state.

“As far as we are concerned, there is no ALGON in Oyo state, ALGON ceased to exist with the last government, we don’t have any interface and we believe we are doing something that will be of benefit to the people and not something inimical.”

“You cannot compare what happened here to Ekiti, the conduct of election into the LCDAs made that election illegal and the state government is just trying to exercise its duty in respect of the formation of the new caretaker committee in Oyo state.”

“IGP cannot claim to be a court, he is not the Chief law officer and he is not a judge. In as much as the case in question is still in court, nobody has the power to exercise enforcement on a matter that is still in court, both the High Court and the Court of Appeal. The IG has no power to issue such a directive and we cannot build on illegality, I believe it is a joke taken too far,” he noted.

Deji Elumoye in Abuja

A member of the National Assembly, Senator Ibrahim Hadejia, has declared that the N128 billion voted for the National Assembly in the 2020 Appropriation Act is covered in secrecy.

Hadejia, who is Vice Chairman of Senate Committee on Public Accounts, said at the weekend in Abuja that he did not have the breakdown of the N128 billion voted for the Assembly.

Answering reporters’ questions on the budget, the senator stated, “The details of the N128 billion budgeted for the National Assembly in 2020 are never there. I don’ know anything about the breakdown, I cannot give you details about budget which I am not privy to and I was not part of those who put it together.”

According to him, the Appropriation Committee that put the budget estimates together for approval will be in a better position to speak on it.

“You need to forward your question to the appropriate quarters. You can meet the appropriation committee because they know what goes into where in the 2020 federal budget,” he told reporters.

Hadejia, however, stated that details of the other aspects of the N10.59 trillion budget were made public except the vote of the National Assembly.

He said, “I am not aware that the details of the 2020 budget are not given. Was it not the details that gave birth to the N37billion earmarked for the renovation of the National Assembly by the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) this year? So, if the details were not there, how would people have known this?”

Also speaking on the non-availability of the details of National Assembly budget, senate spokesman, Senator Godiya Akwashiki, explained that the Clerk of the National Assembly was in the best position to give the breakdown.

Akwashiki stated, “The Clerk to the National Assembly is supposed to be in charge of that. Being the accounting officer of the National Assembly, he is in the best position to give the details. The disbursement of funds for the capital component of the budget is the duty of the National Assembly bureaucracy.

“We don’t execute capital projects as senators, we only collect our salaries and allowances. We don’t award contracts, neither do we determine the contractors that would get the jobs. The National Assembly budget is a public document and since the Senate President has promised to make the budget transparent, the Clerk should be in the best position to speak on the issue.”

Political analysts must concede that Kogi State holds a special place in the standings of the Nigerian political chessboard. The workings of statecraft in the north-central state have always led many to tip the hat to the transcendent alleyways of power. Even leaving aside the suspected metaphysical finger-writings on the wall, the current government has always given the media much buzz.

The most recent of this is an alleged silent war between Governor Yahaya Bello and Deputy Governor Edward Onoja. According to insiders, Bello inflexibly rejected the names Onoja recommended for key positions, after the governor unceremoniously cleared his cabinet, top and bottom drawers promptly cleaned out. In actuality, more shocking than the cleanout is the reported hostility between the duo.

A merry band like Mario and Luigi, Bello – from the Ebira tribe – and Onoja – from the Igala tribe – have been friends for as long as any onlooker can remember. Thick as thieves, as the saying goes, the inter-tribal siblings have been the envy of power in the confluence state. One to command, the other to execute, Bello and Onoja have taken large strides together, going from young voices in the struggle to frontline helmsmen.

Bello was declared governor after Prince Abubakar Audu died before the results were announced. James Faleke, the late Audu’s running mate, turned down the deputy governor role, leading to Simon Achuba coming on board as Bello’s deputy – allegedly on the recommendation of Onoja.

However, Achuba did not take well to being a figurehead, and the struggles led to a tumultuous impeachment process. Four years into the clichéd eight years, Onoja came to replace Achuba as the deputy governor. This has been described as a masterstroke of genius on the part of Bello, who is from the purported 20% tribal minority. He had, some reported, gathered to his side the over 40% majority to which Onoja belongs.

In any case, barely a month after his re-election, Bello conducted the cabinet cleanout, rejected the Onoja-sponsored appointment list, and allegedly effectively began side-lining Onoja. Are Bello and Onoja going the way of Caesar and his Brutus? Et tu, Bello? Et tu, Onoja? Is history being repeated? Is Onoja, like his predecessor, to expect an impeachment notice?

Intense gunfire between two rival jihadist groups in northeast Nigeria has left several fighters dead, two sources with close knowledge of the incident told AFP on Monday.

Fighters in pickup trucks from a Boko Haram faction loyal to Abubakar Shekau stormed a camp belonging to rival IS-aligned Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), resulting in a fierce gunbattle that caused several fatalities, the sources said.

The Boko Haram jihadists attacked the camp in Sunnawa village in Abadam district near the border with Niger to reclaim their women seized by ISWAP fighters in an earlier raid on their camp across the border in Niger.

Details of the clashes which happened on Wednesday were slow to emerge due to limited telecom services in the remote region.

“It was a deadly fight that left several fighters on both sides dead,” said the first source, while the other source said both sides suffered substantial losses as “the fighting was intense.”

ISWAP militants had earlier raided a Boko Haram camp in the Diffa region of neighbouring Niger where they kidnapped 13 women.

Boko Haram traced the women to Sunnawa in Lake Chad area which is under ISWAP control and decided to “extricate” them, said the second source.

“The operation didn’t succeed, the women are still in the hands of their captors,” he said.
ISWAP broke away from Boko Haram in 2016 with IS-support in part due to its rejection of indiscriminate attacks on civilians.

The group has focused attacking soldiers and military installations although it has increasingly been targeting civilians since its takeover in 2018 by more hardline fighters who deposed its leader and executed his deputy.

Since the split the two factions have been locked in deadly skirmishes which saw ISWAP winning over Boko Haram fighters and territories controlled by Shekau.

“They have been killing each other, with each side declaring the other infidels”, said the first source.
Since the split the two factions have been locked in deadly skirmishes which saw ISWAP winning over Boko Haram fighters and territories controlled by Shekau. “They have been killing each other, with each side declaring the other infidels”, said the first source.

Shekau’s execution of many of his commanders he accused of insubordination is seen by fighters loyal to them who switched to ISWAP as unforgivable, the sources said.

In December, a jihadist delegation from Mali and Libya met the leaders of both factions in the ISWAP-controlled Lake Chad area in a failed attempt to broker peace, the sources said.

Both camps refused to make concessions and the delegation left without achieving their mission as the two factions refused to recognise each other as Muslims.

“Shekau’s flat refusal to stop indiscriminate killings and branding anyone who does not share his view as an apostate is the major wedge to truce,” said the first source, as is both groups’ rejection of power-sharing.

IS only recognises ISWAP leadership since its split from Boko Haram and once the two factions coalesced.Shekau would have to abdicate and his faction absorbed into ISWAP, said the first source.

“Shekau would rather die than give in and play second fiddle,” he said. (AFP)

The current peace in Nigeria’s public university system may be ruptured beginning from the end of this month as the Federal Government has directed the Finance Ministry to stop the salary of federal institutions’ workers that are yet to register on the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS).

The issue of federal universities lecturers registering on IPPIS has been a subject of controversy between the Federal Government and the Academic Staff Union of Universities for some time now.

While the Federal Government has insisted that all workers in public tertiary institutions must be registered on IPPIS, ostensibly as part of efforts to check fraud in the system, ASUU has insisted that its members will not register on the platform, as the policy runs against the spirit of the university autonomy.

The government initially gave an October 31st 2019 ultimatum for all tertiary institutions’ workers to register on the platform. It also deployed teams of the finance ministry staff to institutions to effect the registration, while those who were willing to register but failed to register during the teams’ visits would have to go to Abuja to register.

However, due to logistic reasons, the ultimatum had to be extended till the end of December 2019 so as to be able to capture as many workers as possible.

But a letter from the office of the Accountant-General of the Federation dated January 21, 2020 signed on behalf of the accountant-general by the Director, IPPIS, Mr Olufehinti D.J., has now ‘requested’ the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning “not to release the funds for payment of salaries to the tertiary institutions as their salaries will henceforth be paid on the IPPIS platform with effect from January 2020.”

The letter, a copy of which was obtained by Saturday Tribune noted that the preparation of the January 2020 salary payroll and warrants of the federal tertiary institutions are ongoing and will be ready for submission on or before 29th of January 2020.

“This is to give effect to the directive of the Federal Government that all ministries, departments and agencies drawing personnel cost from the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) should be enrolled on the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System,” it stated.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities on Friday said it would wait till the end of the month to see if the Federal Government would, indeed, carry out its threat to stop university lecturers’ salaries.

ASUU had vowed to resist attempts to force its members to register on the IPPIS platform, threatening to throw the university system into another indefinite round of nationwide strike.
Meanwhile, university lecturers have threatened a`No Pay, No Work’ action over the Federal Government’s plan.

The lecturers, under aegis of ASUU issued the threat in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja.

ASUU’s National President, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi , said a circular by the Federal Government calling for such step was uncalled for, as the union’s engagement with the government on the issue was ongoing.

“ASUU has a resolution, that, should government go ahead to stop the salaries of our workers on the account of the IPPIS, we shall invoke our own resolution of “No Pay, No Work’’. So, that is where we stand.

“We believed that we are engaging them and we believe they will give us the opportunity to demonstrate the aspect of our proposed alternative to IPPIS which we think will address the peculiarities.

“But if that circular is true and they want to go ahead and stop the salaries of our workers, we shall react and respond appropriately.

The ASUU president also said that he felt that the meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari three weeks ago, was to find a common ground to integrate the two platforms.

“We thought our meeting with Mr President as we understood is that we should meet and see where there are common grounds and see how we can integrate the two platforms, ‘’he said.

The union had proposed the University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS) to address the peculiar cases of lecturers in the payment of salaries and other emoluments.

Also, chairman of a federal university branch of the union told Saturday Tribune that lecturers would wait till the end of the month (January) and see what the Federal Government would do before deciding on the next line of action.

“We saw the circular from the accountant-general’s office purportedly stopping salaries of federal institutions’ workers not registered on IPPIS, but we (ASUU) won’t take them serious yet.

“Normally, we don’t get our salaries until around 30th of the month. It is when the month ends and our salaries are not paid that we will know what to do,” he told Saturday Tribune.

Abuja – As the battle for who emerges as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum Chairman rages, it was learnt that the Rivers State government is lobbying for Sokoto State governor, Aminu Tambuwal.

The new Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum, who will take over from the outgoing governor of Bayelsa State, Seriake Dickson, is likely to emerge on Sunday before the PDP National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting scheduled for Monday.

While it was gathered that the Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike is lobbying for Tambuwal, it was also gathered that some governors are backing Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom as the rightful person for the position.

Those backing Ortom said that the Benue state governor has strong characters that cannot be easily manipulated, noting his position against the invasion of herdsmen in his state.

Recall that after the tenure of former governor of Akwa Ibom State, Godswill Akpabio, the pioneer Chairman of the Forum, who is from South-South, Olusegun Mimiko, former governor of Ondo State, who is from South-West took over. After his tenure, Ayo Fayose, former governor of Ekiti State, also from South-West took the position, before Ibrahim Dankwambo, former governor of Gombe State, from North East took over briefly, before the position came to Bayelsa State governor, Seriake Dickson, from South-South.
North Central, North West and South-East are the zones that have not occupied the chairmanship position of the Forum.

A source close to one of the governors said that the governors are not too comfortable with Tambuwal as Chairman of the Forum, as he will use the Forum as pivotal for his ambition in 2023.

Recall Tambuwal contested against Atiku Abubakar during the PDP National Congress in Port Harcourt, where he emerged second.

It was further gathered that Wike, who was the arrow head of Tambuwal ambition in the past PDP national congress, where Atiku emerged as the party flag bearer, is already putting modality in place to ensure that the Sokoto State governor emerged as the Forum Chairman.

Meanwhile, Tambuwal is the Deputy Chairman of Nigeria Governors Forum, the overall body of the 36 states governors across party line.