₦airaland Forum

By Dirisu Yakubu


ABUJA- Ahead of the November 16 governorship elections in Kogi and Bayelsa states, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP has pegged the cost of its nomination forms at N20 million.

The form which sold for five million naira during the 2019 general election will now cost more given what the party described as the rising cost of printing and logistics.

The decision was taken at the 86th emergency National Executive Committee, NEC, meeting of the PDP which held at the party’s national secretariat, Abuja on Thursday.

The long arm of the Oyo state Police Command has apprehended a prophet of Cherubim and Seraphim who allegedly lured and slaughtered a 25-year-old house wife, Bosede Oguntade for money rituals, following their friendship on Facebook.

The housewife from Ilorin, was strangulated to death by the prophet, Dotun Ogunlade popularly called ‘Arole Jesu’ in Igboora area of Oyo State, the police said.

The victim, Bosede who hailed from Ilorin in Kwara State was lured to Igboora in Oyo State with a view to providing solution to her economic and marital problems by the spiritualist.

The Commissioner of Police in Oyo State, Mr. Shina Olukolu who led a team of policemen from the state command to the location where the victim was buried said the head and arms of the victim were cut-off before she was buried.

Explaining how the victim was killed, the police boss said on the arrival of the woman in Igboora, the fake prophet told her to first solve the problem of fatigue occasioned by the stress of her trip from Ilorin to Igboora by taking sleeping drugs.

He said she was allegedly injected with overdose sleeping drug and subsequently over powered, strangulated and killed.

He further said her head and arms were thereafter taken for rituals while the remains of her corpse were buried in a shallow grave, at Ogboja area of Igbo-Ora.

Olukolu added that based on credible information and diligent investigation, the police in Igbo-Ora were able to smash and arrest the syndicate.

“Further investigation revealed that parts of her body were allegedly crushed into powder for rituals to become powerful and rich. Two knives used to kill and cut her body parts, a white cloth bag containing substance inside a gourd where the alleged powder parts were kept and a bottle of Stallion Schnapps were also recovered.”

Olukolu however warned people to collaborate with police by giving timely and useful information to enable them to serve the community better.

“The police will continue with their resolute determination to stamp out crimes and criminality in the society, members of the public should be careful in having absolute trust in individuals or groups who are strangers, especially those they met on social media or those who claimed to possess the power of clairvoyance or ability to combat and treat successfully terminal diseases or possessed solutions to social and marital challenges,” he said.

Speaking with journalists, the suspect said he gained experience from his former boss who happened to be a prophet of Cherubim and Seraphim.

He said: “Me and the woman have been chatting on Facebook since January, this year. I later invited her to Igbo Ora.

“Meanwhile, Mutiu, a friend had already told me about his challenges in life. He told me he was ready for money rituals. So, I decided to use the woman for money for him.

“When the woman later arrived from Ilorin, I went to pick her to Igbo-Ora, from Iseyin. On her arrival at my house, on 31st of May, this year, I gave her sleeping drugs after she complained about pains in her body, she slept off and I cut off her head, and arms. Her head was later burnt to ashes for money rituals,” he confessed .

Operatives of the Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences (Enforcement) Unit (Taskforce)
on Thursday arraigned 13 workers of Seven-Up Bottling Company for assaulting Officers of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA).


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injured officer



Chairman of Task Force, Mr. Olayinka Egbeyemi a Chief Superintendent of Police disclosed in a statement that the enforcement team of the Agency arrested the workers after they assaulted LASTMA Officers and injured three of them.

Egbeyemi disclosed further that investigations revealed that the Officers were attacked while trying to tow a truck with registration number MUS 75 XX belonging to the company which was causing serious traffic gridlock.

He noted that it was an eye-sore seeing drivers of Seven-up trucks parking illegally on one side of the road thereby causing serious traffic obstructions to other motorists along toll gate area of the State.

“The prosecution of these 13 arrested workers became imperative to serve as a deterrent to others who might want to attack law enforcement officers in the course of enforcement of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu ‘Executive Order’ on traffic offenders across the State.

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The arrested Offenders



“It is disheartening that officers employed to safeguard members of the public are always being attacked by same people whose interest are being protected”, Egbeyemi said.

According to one of the injured LASTMA officer who was transferred to LASUTH for treatment, Mr Kazim Abayomi “most times drivers and workers of this company always engaged us physically with different weapons while trying to enforce traffic laws on their illegally parked trucks on the roadside”

The two other injured LASTMA workers, towing truck operators, are Anozie Peter and Demeji Tonade.

Meanwhile, Magistrate Olajuwon Amos of the Lagos State Mobile Court who presided over the case adjourned the commencement of trail to 8th of August, 2019 after they all pleaded not guilty.

They were all charged for ‘Assault and ‘Conduct Likely to Cause Breach of Peace’ under Part III, Item 26 of the Lagos State Traffic Sector Law.
Those charged to court include: Musa Lawal, Sanni Abdullahi, Okechukwu Amaeze, Dayo Sanusi, James Water, Okunola Femi, Awotoye Afolarin, Ibrahim Umaru, Usbie Stephen, Kelvin Arueyingho, Emmanuel Uche, Salisu Haruna and Jimoh Darihutor.

National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Adams Oshiomhole has said he has refused to forgive the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the postponement of the 2019 general elections.
Oshiomhole said this, yesterday, while responding to INEC’s National Commissioner, Festus Okoye, who had said during his presentation at an Electoral Reform Roundtable, that as at 5pm of Friday, February 15, INEC leadership were still optimistic on being able to pull through with the election on February 16, hence the delayed announcement of the postponement.

INEC announced the postponement of the elections few hours from the commencement of the presidential polls initially slated for February 16; an announcement that generated widespread criticism for the commission.

Oshiomhole, at the time, had been one of the most vocal critics of the electoral body over the decision. But four months later, the former Edo State governor has remained embittered with the commission.

“As at 5pm on Friday (February 15), some of the materials you (referring to INEC’s National Commissioner, Festus Okoye) needed were still at the airports. How could you have assumed that by some native doctor’s magical something (you could pull it through).

“Obviously you knew it was not in your competence to increase the day beyond 24 hours. So, obviously you knew and you cannot be pardoned for that. And I refuse to forgive you on that because you knew it and you made us incur costs that were avoidable and you subjected us to severe shocks.

“I don’t think you can defend that. It was gross, inexcusable negligence of duty and crass incompetence on the part of INEC. There is no need to wish it away,” he said.

He, however, added that as former INEC chairman Professor Attahiru Jega said earlier, the postponement was still better than the commission giving the country an electoral process that couldn’t deliver success.

He said forgiving INEC would only be because he could not do anything about past events.

GOVERNORS are set to push for a major overhaul of the nation’s security architecture, The Nation learnt yesterday.

A National Economic Council (NEC) meeting is to hold tomorrow. It will discuss the mounting security challenges that have seen kidnapping, armed robbery and terrorism on the rise.
Also, to tackle the problem, President Muhammadu Buhari may soon order a military shake-up.

There has been pressure on the President to rejig the military apparatchik, thereby allowing fresh ideas.

Some of the Service chiefs have indicated interest to quit having been in office at the discretion of the President after their mandatory 35 years in service.

Investigation by our correspondent revealed that the governors have been notified of the Thursday meeting with security as the main agenda.

It was learnt that the governors, who are members of NEC, are worried that the security problems nationwide are affecting the economy.
Read also: Buratai explains setbacks in military operations

They feel that they should join hands with the Federal Government to resolve the security challenges.

A source, who spoke in confidence, said: “The NEC members are certainly uncomfortable with the security challenges in the country. We want to brainstorm on Thursday (tomorrow) because we do not want to leave it to the President alone.

“There are many options, including FG-State joint financing of security initiatives; outstanding report on recommendations for state police; a major overhaul of the nation’s security architecture; more investment on intelligence; agitation for the shake-up of the military; increase in manpower in the police, military and security agencies; and the involvement of locals in security network.

“We will certainly devote the whole day to weigh all options because insecurity is gradually taking a toll on the economy.”

Responding to a question, the source added: “It is within the purview of NEC to advise the President on issues which may impede the economy.”

Section H of the Third Schedule (Part 1) to the 1999 Constitution says: “The NEC shall comprise the following members—(a) Vice President; (b) the Governor of each State of the Federation; and ( C) the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria established under the CBN Decree 1991 or any enactment replacing that Decree.

“The National Economic Council (NEC) shall have power to advise the President concerning the economic affairs of the Federation, and in particular on measures necessary for the coordination of the economic planning efforts or economic programmes of the various governments of the Federation.”

In spite of the NEC session, there were indications that President Muhammadu Buhari will soon effect a shake-up in the military.

Another highly-placed source added: “I think very soon, there will be a shake-up in the military as part of steps to rejig the nation’s security apparatchik.

“Stakeholders are making strong representations to the President to overhaul the military hierarchy for fresh ideas. Buhari may buy the idea.

“The interesting dimension is that some service chiefs are also willing to quit after attaining the mandatory age of 35 years in office. Surely, we need fresh initiatives.”

Meanwhile, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has updated its travel advice on the security situation in the country.

It advised its citizens against travelling to Borno; Yobe; Adamawa; Gombe states; riverine areas of Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states; and within 20km of the border with Niger in Zamfara State.

“The FCO advises against all but essential travel to: Bauchi; Zamfara; Kano; Kaduna; Jigawa; Katsina; and Kogi state; within 20km of the border with Niger in Sokoto and Kebbi states; non-riverine areas of Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Abia states.

“There’s a high threat of kidnap throughout Nigeria. Kidnaps can be motivated by criminality or terrorism, and could be carried out for financial or political gain.

“There is also a high threat of criminal kidnap in the Niger Delta region and Kogi state.”
As at press time, it was learnt that Buhari has kept the governors in the dark on the appointment of ministers.

A governor said: “When we met with the President on Tuesday, he only thanked us for rallying around him to ensure the election of the President of the Senate, Dr. Ahmed Lawan and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila and their deputies.

“He did not discuss the choice of ministers with us. The President kept mum on his next cabinet. We only advised the President to release the list on time because we have observed that those in the opposition have started capitalising on it. So, we are awaiting ministerial list like all Nigerians.”

The Gan Allah Fulani Development Association of Nigeria (GAFDAN) has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to as a matter of urgency listen to the advice of former President Olusegun Obasanjo on how to move the nation forward and halt the numerous crises bedeviling the country.

Speaking with newsmen in Jos, the Plateau State capital, the National Chairman of the group, Alhaji Sale Bayari, said the present administration ought to listen to other eminent Nigerians too in solving the nation’s problems, but that from the signs he is getting, things are not in order.

He said considering the tribal, ethnic, religious and sectional agitations from the South, East, North and West, things must be done urgently to address and avert national crises. According to him, there was no part of the country that agitation is currently not going on.

He stressed that even the crises that is already happening in the Northern states like Zamfara, Kaduna, Niger, Sokoto, Taraba, Benue, Nassarawa and so on, are not good for the country, including that of the other regions like Niger-Delta militants, IPOB, Afenifere and the rest.

“In moving the nation forward, the government must listen to some elder statesmen irrespective of whatever their political views or affiliation is. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo is one of them. I have found out that if any government in Africa is to tap one-third of what is in the brain of Obasanjo and use it, Africa will be better. Similarly, West Africa and Nigeria will be better for it.

“Obasanjo knows our problem; and then whenever he talks and explodes sometimes, I have found out that it is because he has made efforts to be listened to without success. He will then feel that posterity will judge him harshly if he does not come out to tell Nigerians and the world the truth of things”, he explained.

“Undoubtedly, Obasanjo is an embodiment of knowledge, experience and he knows very well the problem of our country, Nigeria. There is nobody dead or alive today that thinks the way Obasanjo does or knows what Obasanjo knows.

“He knows Nigeria, Africa and the entire world like the back of his hand. That is why I am advising this government to tap the brains of people like Obasanjo.

“He is a person that can lead the government into looking critically at the problem bedeviling the nation and finding a way forward.

According to him, “We know that government can do and undo, but any government desiring to move forward will require the support of statesmen and nationalists like Obasanjo.

“There are other statesmen the government should listen to; people like Yakubu Gowon, Ango Abdullahi, Sultan of Sokoto, Oni of Ife, Eze of Onitsha, and others. These are people that have this nation at heart and would not want it to disintegrate.

Bayeri maintained that, “If they put their machinery in place, I bet you that peace and progress will be achieved.

“But unfortunately, nobody is mobilizing them or seeking their input in solving the national crises. These people know what to do or the right people to call, among other things in solving the problems,” he said.

Bayeri said his fear is that if the government does not carefully handle these looming crises and they degenerate, the nation does not have the well-withal in terms of security to tackle it.

He said if the nation has been unable to tackle Boko Haram since 2009, then it is a greater danger if crises burst out in other states or regions in the nation.

“Recently, the Secretary to the Government of the Federal, Boss Mustapha said if the armed banditry is not carefully handled, it will be worse than the Boko Haram insurgency. I totally agree with him entirely because if you look at the way the thing is building up now, then you will understand what I am talking about.

“Very soon, some religious and insurgent groups may capitalize on it to recruit people for other nefarious acts. We should not allow this to happen, and we should do everything possible to halt it,” he warned.

By Magaji Isa Hunkuyi,



A middle-aged man has died three days after stealing an antiquity (idol) from a Tiv community in Taraba state. The middle aged man, it was gathered, went to Tiv community which was affected by the ongoing Tiv/Jukun crisis to loot and took away the antiquity kept in a shrine.

The man, Daily Trust further learnt, after stealing the object brought it to his room secretly without informing his co-looters what he had stolen. A source in Wukari, Shamaki Solomon, told Daily Trust that the man could not sleep the day he stole the antiquity.

The source told Daily Trust that the antiquity which is a deity in the community was used for protection by traditionalists in the village. The man, according to the Solomon, had later confessed that he heard a loud sound in his room saying ‘l need blood to drink’, saying the sound came from the position where he kept the antiquity.

According to the source, the man after hearing the sound, could not sleep for three days. Solomon stated that the man became sick, lost his senses and died later. On what happens with the antiquity, the source said everyone was afraid to touch the antiquity which the victim hid in a bag.

When contacted, Police spokesman in Taraba state, DSP David Misal, said the matter was not reported to the police command.

The Kano State police authorities have said they would not hesitate to arrest a gorilla or any other animal linked to the missing N6.8 million at the Kano Zoological Garden, in the course of their investigation into the matter. The police however maintained that at the moment there are no indications that the money was swallowed by a gorilla as earlier reported.

The state’s Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Haruna Abdullahi, told Daily Trust on Sunday that contrary to speculations, the N6.8 million went missing after an alleged robbery incident which occurred on June 9, 2019. Abdullahi said the police on June 9, received a distress call from some staff of the Garden, who informed them about the robbery incident.

He, however, said 10 staff of the Zoological Garden had been arrested by the police in connection with the missing money. The police spokesperson said so far none of the suspects has linked the missing money to any animal in the zoo. Abdullahi added that if any suspect links the missing money to any of the animals in the garden, police would not hesitate to arrest that animal.

“We have arrested the Garden’s personnel because we suspect negligence on their part. The money was proceeds generated within five days and it was during the just concluded Sallah celebrations. The personnel, instead of taking the money to the bank for safe keeping, they kept it with them, a situation that led to the alleged robbery. We are investigating the matter and I can assure you that we will unravel the truth of the matter,” he said.

by Yusuf Alli,


Senate President Ahmad Lawan and House of Representatives Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila will be facing their first major test as heads of the two chambers next month when some of their closest associates will be slugging it out to fill the remaining principal offices in the National Assembly.

In contention are the positions of Senate Majority Leader, Senate Deputy Majority Leader, Chief Whip, and Deputy Chief Whip.

The APC governors had tactically avoided zoning the offices to keep the party’s caucus in the legislature united ahead of the election of the senate president and House of Reps speaker and their deputies.

The governors feared that the jostle for the principal offices might have implications on the election of the Senate President and the Speaker.

But following growing tension over the remaining offices, there were indications yesterday that the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) might intervene with zoning formula and leave the party’s caucuses in the two chambers to elect the remaining principal officers.

The Northeast and Southsouth already have the Senate President and Deputy Senate President and are technically out of contention for the remaining offices while the Southwest and the Northcentral have the positions of Speaker and Deputy Speaker in the House of Representatives.

Aspiring to become Senate leader are ex-Governor Abdullahi Adamu (North-Central); former Governor Orji Uzor Kalu (Southeast), a former Deputy Senate Leader, Bala Na’Allah (Northwest); Prof. Ajayi Borrofice and Sen. Olubunmi Adetumbi( Southwest); Sen. Aisha Dahiru Modibbo ( Binani)- Northeast but representing women folk; Sen. Kabiru Gaya (Northwest) and Sen. Adamu Aliero (Northwest); a former spokesman for the Senate, Sen. Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi (Northcentral); and ex- Chief Whip, Francis Alimikhena ( Southsouth).

A reliable source said: “The jostle for Senate Leader is more intense because those interested are heavyweights.

“As the leader of the Parliamentary Support Group (PSG) which was used to confront the administration of the immediate past President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki, the former Governor of Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Adamu feels he should automatically be compensated for coordinating the assault which staved off some impeachment plots against the President.

“But old age is counting against him because the position of the Senate Leader is highly demanding as the engine room of the upper chamber. Also, the PDP, which is the main opposition party in the Senate will not be comfortable with the ex-governor as Senate Leader more so after the emergence of a strong member of PSG is now the Deputy President of the Senate (Omo-Agege).

“Having lost out in the race for the President of the Senate, Abdullahi Adamu is overwhelmed with suspicion that he might be left in the lurch by the President and the party.

“The thinking of some of the APC governors is that Abdullahi Adamu does not have the capacity; but for political expediency, he can be Senate Leader and an agile ranking Senator can be Deputy Senate Leader to make the office vibrant.

“But the young elements among APC Senators are insisting on a middle aged Senate Leader in view of the enormous tasks at hand.

“We are looking forward to the zoning formula by the party. Once we have it other positions might be resolved through consensus or election by caucuses.”

The race to be principal officers is tighter in the House of Representatives with the emergence of three blocs.

Sources said it has reached a point that a member, Emeka Nwajiuba of the Accord Party is being prevailed upon to defect to APC to be able to occupy any of the offices available for contest.

The blocs are Northwest, Northeast and Southeast.

The competition has further split the Northwest into sub-groups as follows: Sokoto-Kebbi axis; Kano-Jigawa alliance, and Zamfara- Kaduna challenge.

Top aspirants are former Deputy Speaker nominee to Gbajabiamila in 2015, M. T. Monguno (Northeast); ex-Chief Whip, Ado Doguwa; Garba Datti; Musa Sarki Ada; Goro Aminu Suleiman (Northwest); Johnson Egwahido Oguma (Southsouth); Nkiru Onyejeocha who stepped down for the Speaker ;and Emeka Nwajiuba (Southeast).

Both the Northeast and Northwest say they deserve the office.

Also, the Southeast said it would be absurd to lose out at the Executive level and in the National Assembly.

It was gathered that the Northeast has resolved its differences and opted to present Monguno (a fourth termer) as its candidate for the House Leader.

But it seems difficult to foster any agreement in the Northwest because most states in the zone are claiming that Kano-Jigawa axis has dominated principal offices conceded to the zone in the past.

A source said: “We are trying as much as possible to negotiate so that there will be no rancour when we resume. As it is now, we are thinking of conceding the House Leader either to the North-East or the North-West.

“If the Northeast produces the House Leader, the Northwest will automatically secure the Chief Whip. Also, some concerned members are thinking of the Deputy Majority Leader slot either for the Southeast or the Southsouth. If the Southeast produces Deputy Leader, then the Southsouth may go for Deputy Chief Whip.

“All these suggestions are in the realm of permutations until the party meets and agrees on power sharing formula.

“Where there is no consensus, whatever is concedes to each zone, the APC caucus in the zone will conduct election to choose who they prefer to be their candidate for their slot.”

Checks indicated that while APC is trying to wriggle out of its challenge, the PDP has a bigger problem in picking Minority Leader and Deputy Minority Leader for the House of Representatives.

Those in the race to be Minority Leader are a former House Majority Leader/ Minority Leader, Leo Ogor; Chukwuma Onyema; Nicholas Osai Osai; Kingsley Chinda; Ndudi Elumelu; and Muraina Ajibola, who was once favoured to be the Speaker.

A PDP lawmaker said: “What is making our party’s decision difficult is that Governor Nyesom Wike is pushing for Kingsley Chinda from Rivers State as Minority Leader. He said he wants an opposition leader in the House who can put APC on its toes.

“But some of us are saying since Leo Ogor has fully recovered from his recent illness, he should be allowed to continue as the Minority Leader. Wike and other PDP governors have not been able to reach any compromise on any candidate.

“They have been able to decide the positions for PDP in the Senate, we may have to go for election in the House.

“Ogor has however said it is not a do-or-die affair. He said he is taking it easy. APC lawmakers however prefer to work with Ogor than Chinda.”

Meanwhile, the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives have been careful in managing pressure from those who want to be principal officers.

A ranking House member said: “The choice of other principal officers is a litmus test for Lawan and Gbajabiamila. It is always a bigger aspect of the banana peel in the National Assembly.

“If they get it right, there will be peace in the National Assembly. Otherwise, it is going to be four years of treachery.”

A Senator said: “The appointment or election of principal officers will determine the leadership direction of the Senate President and the Speaker, We will be able to determine whether we can trust them or not.

“So far, they have applied wisdom in shifting everything to the party. We however know better.”

The opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has already picked Chief Enyinnaya Abaribe,a former deputy governor of Abia State , as Minority Leader , Emmanuel Bwacha (Taraba South) as Deputy Minority Leader and Philip Aduda (FCT) , as Minority Whip. To assist him is Clifford Odia (Edo Central).

By Evelyn Usman


For sometime, residents of Lugbe community in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, have been going through hellish experiences in the hands of a deadly robbery gang. But a particular gang did not only dispossess their victims of cash, telephones , laptops and other valuables, they also raped women; whether married or single.

Some of these female victims were raped right in front of their husbands who were forced to lie flat on the ground, with guns pointed on their heads and a threat to blow them off should they attempt to put up any resistance . At the end of the operation cum rape, the affected couples are left to brood over the bloodcurdling picture , all the days of their lives.

The good news is that Operatives of the Inspector- General of Police Intelligence Response Team, IRT have smashed the syndicate, following the arrest of four of its suspected members.

Incidentally, the suspects, Tochukwu Otu, 22; Ikechukwu Udechukwu, 31; Ebuka Aniegu 25 and Monday Osueke, 32, are indigenes of Enugu State. Crime Guard gathered that the suspects had stormed some houses in Lugbe last week, where they raped some married women, among who was a nursing mother.

The nursing mother (names withheld) had forced one of her breasts into her baby’s mouth that fateful night , to prevent him from crying, in a bid to avoid attracting the robbers attention to her apartment.

Unknown to her, the uninvited thieves had gained entrance into her apartment, having cut off the burglary wedge of one of her windows with an iron bar.


Arrested


They however, met their waterloo, following the arrest of one of them, Osueke , who was tracked via a telephone that was abandoned during the operation.
In their confessional statement, the suspects said that the fleeing leader of the gang, whose identity they gave simply as Osas , was responsible for the rape indulgences.

According to 22 –year-old Otu, “ We usually operated at midnight when all occupants were asleep. In this case at Lugbe, we operated in three houses. The first apartment we entered, the man we met said he had no money . We only collected phones and laptops.

“ In the second house, we saw a fat woman breastfeeding her baby. Like the first apartment, she and her husband said there was no money and we collected their phones.

At that point, our boss, Osas, told us to go outside . By the time we came back, he was till handling with the nursing mother’s breast , while one of us was fingering her. The woman was just begging them to leave her alone.

” From there , we went to a third house where a fair complexioned woman was raped by Osas. He took her from where she was on the bed with her husband, to the sitting room and asked us to remain In the bedroom with the man. By the time he finished, he called us inside.

“I joined the gang six months ago because of lack of job. I am an apprentice in a barbing saloon. But my boss traveled and locked the shop. At the end of each operation, Osas, would sell the stolen phones and laptops and share the money among us. I usually got between N20,000 and N50,000 at the end of each operation”.


My role is to finger women


On his part, Udechukwu, 31, a truck driver, said his role in the said operation that led to their arrest was to finger the nursing mother.

He said, “ I am not the person that raped the women. What I did was to finger one of them. I was ordered by leader of the gang, Osas, to finger her, while he fondled with her breasts. He always raped women and if he wanted to do it, he would order us to leave the place . I have gone on operation with him twice. On both occasions, he raped the female victims even before their husbands.

“ I left Lagos for Abuja in January 2019 , after I stopped work at Dangote Refinery . But a financial challenge came my family’s way , after my younger brother was involved in an accident. He had a nail pierced into one of his eyes and needed to undergo surgery that would cost N200,000.

“On arrival in Abuja, I shared my problem with Osas , whom I met through my friend, Tochukwu. He promised to assist me raise some money. On a particular day, he invited me, Tochukwu and another person out. We went for an operation and at the end, he gave me N100,000 from the money realized from the sale of stolen phones and laptops. We usually scaled the fence and broke the burglary with an iron bar “

As for Ebuka, he said that he only followed them to the scene of crime but did not rape nor violate any of their female victims sexually.

He said, “ I knew they were going to rob. I only followed them to watch how they operated. When we got there, they gave me some laptops they collected from victims’ apartment . All I did was to put them inside the bag we went there with . I was into business before I came to Abuja, from Kaduna state”, said the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination holder.

But unlike Ebuka, 32-year-old Osueke , said he left the gang close to three months ago, to live a clean life. Unfortunately for him, one of the suspects telephone which mistakenly dropped from his pocket, gave him out.

Said he : “ I used to follow them to previous operations. But I had to leave the gang because I did not like the job. When I left, I went into drilling of borehole.

” I did not follow them to the operation that led to their arrest. When they returned, Ikechukwu told me to go and help him buy sim card because he misplaced his phone on the operation ground. Two days after I bought him the sim card, policemen tracked me through the sim card”.

The IRT operatives as gathered are still on the trail of fleeing members of the gang, while those arrested would soon be charged to court.

Saturday Vanguard has reliably gathered that Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-rufai and the National Chairman of All Progressives Congress, APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole are currently playing key roles in the selection of ministerial nominees to ensure that competent party members are appointed.

It was gathered that the three strong men have the ears of President Muhammadu Buhari in his determination to appoint people, who would truly deliver in their respective portfolios. “But he (the President) is doing that separately and not as a team, so each of them may not know what the other is suggesting,” a source close to the Presidency said.

Multiple sources told Saturday Vanguard that the President was not only concentrating on competent party members but also on credible people in the private sector, who would drive the implementation of pro-people policies to be formulated.

One of the sources said the trio has identified some party members among who are the Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority, Hadiza Bala-Usman, immediate past Minister of Transport, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, former Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Raji Fashola, ex-Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, among others.

The source said: “President Muhammadu Buhari is considering merit this time because he wants results from his ministers. That was why he is listening to the Vice President, APC party chairman, and Governor Nasir El-rufai to assist in choosing competent hands among party members and from the private sector. He does not want noise makers but those who can do the job. The Managing Director of NPA, Hadiza Bala-Usman and Rotimi Amaechi may make the list because they possess the qualities needed. Another person is Fashola.”

Saturday Vanguard had reported that unlike the usual practice of placing party and other considerations above merit in the appointment of ministers, President Buhari’s cabinet members could emerge strictly on competence.

The development was informed by the perception of underperformance by most of the immediate past ministers, especially heads of key ministries, and in-fighting among junior and senior ministers which characterised the activities of the ministers.

These resulted in the absence of synergy that could have emanated from interministerial interface.
The situation informed sustained calls from the public for the rejigging of the cabinet and even outright sack of some ministers.

Such calls were not heeded by Buhari, who only witnessed the resignation of five ministers and the death of one.

The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Khadija Abba Ibrahim, had resigned on February 16, 2019, to run for an elective office in Damaturu/Tarmuwa/Gujba/Gulani Federal Constituency of Yobe State.

Alhaji Ibrahim Jubiril also resigned his appointment as Minister of State for Environment following his declaration as an Emir.

Hajiya Amina Mohammed, on February 24, 2017, resigned as Minister of Environment following her appointment at the United Nations as Deputy Secretary-General.

The incumbent Governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi also resigned on May 30, 2018, to contest for the governorship position of his state.

Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Senator Aisha Alhassan, also known as Mama Taraba, resigned from the cabinet and from the APC, hinging her resignation on her disqualification in the screening for the 2019 Taraba State governorship election by the party’s National Working Committee.

In September 2018, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun resigned as the Minister of Finance as a result of allegations that she falsified her National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, Exemption Certificate.

In March 2016, Minister of State for Labour and Productivity, Mr. James Ocholi ,SAN, died in a road crash that occurred at Kilometre 57, along Kaduna-Abuja highway.

Some ministers gave a bad face to the President’s anti-corruption fight. But they survived. There were ministers who were even so petty that they applied and collected estacodes of aides for trips the aides never made. There were some who collected full estacodes and paid their aides half or even less. One aide even went public with corrupt activities in his ministry.

There were also some the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC simply failed to investigate allegations brought against them. They all survived a Buhari administration that allowed the ministers so much freedom and didn’t do enough to monitor them.

All that, we gathered, may change in this second coming they have tagged The Next Level even as some ministers may be retained while some may be re-assigned to other ministries.

Olufemi Atoyebi , Abuja



The negotiation committee set up by the Federal Government to negotiate the consequential adjustment arising from the N 30 ,000 new minimum wage has rejected what the government is offering .

The committee , which was inaugurated on May 14 , has also failed to meet the four - week deadline to submit its report .

However, members met twice last week with the enlarged membership collapsed into one technical committee of six members each from both sides.

The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Winifred Oyo- Ita, who was appointed as chairman of the panel , stepped down for the chairman of the National Wages , Salaries and Income Commission to head the technical committee .

A principal officer of a labour union , who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity, said government ’ s position on the consequential adjustment had been rejected by labour representatives in the committee.

He said labour decided to be careful in reaching an agreement based on what happened when minimum wage was last increased and also to avoid being blackmailed by the FG .

He said, “ We are monitoring the negotiations between our representatives and government . There is likely to be some challenges which is normal. The government negotiating team is looking at what the government can pay conveniently, but labour is also looking at what will be good for workers to avoid a situation where workers found themselves when the minimum wage was last increased .

“ What happened then was that government came up with a block figure and out of poor negotiations because of insufficient time , a paltry sum was spread on workers ’ salaries , translating into about N 900 increase monthly .”
The source said the Nigeria Labour Congress was not involved in the ongoing negotiations .

Everest Amaefule , John Ameh and Olaleye Aluko



Payment of overhead allowances to lawmakers inaugurated on Tuesday in the first three months will increase their total allowances to N 19 .89 bn , investigations by Saturday PUNCH has shown .

The PUNCH had exclusively reported that 469 lawmakers would get N 4 . 68 bn as welcome package to sort out accommodation and furniture issues .

Further investigations showed that each senator will receive N 40 . 5m for three months as overhead allowance, with each member of the House of Representatives receiving N 30 m for the same purpose .

This means that 109 senators will get N 4. 41 bn as overhead allowance for the first three months while the 360 Reps will get N 10 . 8 bn in their first three months .

Added to the N 4. 68 bn for accommodation and furniture , the legislators will get N 19 . 89 bn within their first three months in the red and green chambers .

Following the PUNCH ’ s earlier report , some Non- Governmental Organisations led by the Socio -Economic Rights and Accountability Project had been strident in opposing the N 4 . 68 bn welcome package .


FG frustrates bill to reduce emoluments

Meanwhile, further investigations also showed that the process of reviewing downwards the entitlements of lawmakers and other office holders was aborted by the Presidency , which refused to officially receive a bill for the review of salaries and allowances of public office holders prepared by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission .

Following a public outcry that the remuneration of lawmakers was not in tune with the economic realities in the country , RMAFC embarked on downward review of allowances of all political office holders.

The ratification of the new packages prepared by a committee headed by a former Chairman of Remuneration Committee , Mr Abdullahi Inde, followed a retreat held for commissioners of the agency in Owerri in November 2015 .

Although the recommendation was informally sent to the Presidency , it was not formally received along with a bill for new revenue formula which was also prepared by RMAFC.
It is the responsibility of the President to present the recommendation to the Federal Executive Council for approval before being forwarded to the National Assembly as a bill .

This aspect of the process was never completed as the Presidency allegedly avoided anything that would lead to completing the process for the review of the existing revenue formula , findings by Saturday PUNCH revealed .

A top executive of RMAFC confirmed that the process for the review of the remuneration of political office holders could not be completed .
The source , who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity, said, “ The commission made an attempt to review the package . There was an attempt but it did not see the light of the day .

“ It is still on because it has to reflect the current economic realities . Maybe when the new board comes in , they will look into it again because of public outcry . ”

Speaking on the call for the review of the welcome package of lawmakers , the RMFAC official said except for the ‘ overhead’ payment, the furniture and accommodation allowances were backed by the law .

He said , “ Some NGOs make blanket statements without looking at what the law says. They do not know the mandate of public institutions . Sometimes , they don’ t look at the position of the law . If it is within the law , it is not illegal.

“ It is not really a welcome package . It is part of the Remuneration Act . It is also not only the legislature that benefits ; the executive also benefits ; the same with the judiciary. In fact , all public office holders, whether civil servants or public servants , are entitled to those things .

“ If you are employed newly , you are supposed to be given some allowances to enable you to settle down . So, as legislators they are entitled to furniture and accommodation allowances . If they are seen as welcome packages, yes, they are. But they are backed by law . There is an Act which you cannot change .

“ They cannot be paid anything outside the law in terms of furniture allowance and accommodation allowance. They cannot be paid anything outside what the law stipulates except it is for overhead as Senator Shehu Sani had revealed .

“ The money will come from the National Assembly Service Commission . They have their own budget. But for ministers , their salaries and allowances come from the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
“ It must have been captured in the budget. They must provide for their members in their budget salaries and allowances . ”

Each member of the House of Representatives on resumption , therefore , is entitled to N 9, 926 , 062 . 5 , according to the prescription of RMAFC in its Remuneration Package for Political , Public and Judicial Office Holders 2007 to Date.
They are entitled to furniture allowance of N 5 , 955 , 637. 5 and accommodation allowance of N 3, 970 ,425 .

Therefore, the 360 members of the House of Representatives are entitled to accommodation and furniture allowances of N 3 .57 bn .

On the other hand , each senator is entitled to a combined furniture and accommodation allowances of N 10 , 132 ,000 on assumption of office . While the accommodation allowance of a senator is N 4 , 052, 800 , the furniture allowance is N 6 , 079 ,200 .

For motor vehicle, each of the senators is entitled to N 8 , 105 ,600 while each Rep is entitled to N 7 , 940 ,850 . 50 .

The allowance for motor vehicle has been controversial . According to the RMAFC , this allowance payable once in four years is a loan and optional . This means that it is repayable.
However, lawmakers that received such money in the past had asked the government to convert it into a grant .

Apart from these allowances , other perks of office that are paid to lawmakers on a monthly basis include motor vehicle maintenance and fuelling. This is pegged at 75 per cent of their monthly salary .

Others are personal assistant – 25 per cent ; domestic staff – 75 per cent ; entertainment – 30 per cent ; utilities – 30 per cent ; newspapers/ periodicals – 15 per cent ; wardrobe – 25 per cent ; house maintenance – five per cent ; constituency – 250 per cent .

The lawmakers are also entitled to tour duty allowance, estacode ( when they travel overseas ) and recess allowances . For a senator , the tour duty allowance is N 37 , 000 per night; the estacode is $ 950 per night and the recess allowance is 10 per cent of their annual salary .

For a member of the House of Representatives, the tour duty allowance is N 35 , 000 per night ; the estacode is $ 900 per night and the recess allowance is 10 per cent of their annual salary .


Presidency denies getting any proposal

When contacted for reactions , the Presidency said Buhari could only act on a formal recommendation sent to him .

His Senior Special Assistant on National Assembly Matters , Senator Ita Enang , who spoke on the issue , asked for evidence of the proposal said to have been sent to the President .

Enang said , “ It can only be turned down if it was passed and sent. So, who passed it , who sent it and when was it passed ?
“ What was the content of what you said was passed or presented ?”
When he was told that the RMAFC reportedly made a presentation to Buhari on the issue , Enang replied , “ I am not aware .”


SERAP , CACOL tackle ninth Assembly , say allowances unsustainable

Meanwhile, two civil society organisations , the Socio - Economic Right and Accountability Project and the Centre for Anti - Corruption and Open Leadership , have condemned the humongus allowances to be paid to members of the ninth National Assembly , saying such allowances are not sustainable .

The SERAP Executive Director , Adetokunbo Mumuni, said, “ We insist that allowances which the Nigerian workers are not entitled to and an average Nigerian is not entitled to , should not be paid to members of the National Assembly . How sustainable , equitable and conscionable are those allowances ?”

Also, the CACOL Director , Mr Debo Adeniran , said, “ We are dissatisfied with the welcome package . This is because most members of the National Assembly have benefitted one way or the other from the same system . Some members of the senate are former governors, board chairmen and other government appointees. They don’ t need furniture and house allowances .

“ This country is broke . There is violence everywhere because of the anger bottled up in people due to mismanagement of our economic resources which has taken people away from their jobs . The government has to work harder to reduce the allowances of these legislators.

“ The reason why the people scramble tooth and nail to become members of the National Assembly is because of the allowances . We have also said that if there is no clear -cut policy direction that deliberately revisits the cost of governance , the members will not want to deliberately bring down their allowances . ”

Meanwhile a Northern elder statesman and Second Republic lawmaker, Dr Junaid Muhammed, has said the Federal Government should allow RMAFC to review the allowances downward .

Junaid said, “ The President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House are yet to prove themselves and have to prove to us that they are different from the last batch of leaders . And if they don ’t prove leadership , everything that has been done to get them into office would be a waste of time .

“ The government should be aware of the counter- economic effects of this financial recklessness . For me , the solution to this problem is to return to the law . The law says the National Assembly should take their salaries and allowances as determined by RMAFC .

A businessman, Alhaji Shehu Marafa , on Friday prayed a Gudu Grade II Court to order his estranged fiancee to return the N 500 ,000 he gave her to plan their wedding.

Marafa filed a suit against Aisha Shetima over her failure to honor the marriage agreement between them .

He alleged that Shetima collected N 500, 000 to plan for their wedding.

In his testimony before the court , Marafa claimed that in February , he went to meet Shetima ’s parents in Bauchi after which he paid N 50,000 as bride price and gave the parents N20,000 , a basket of Kola nuts and a carton of sweets as part of the marriage negotiations.

He then said that after the engagement , the wedding was fixed for April 27 .

Marafa also told the court that 2 weeks after the introduction , she called him and cancelled the wedding because she was no longer interested.

He then said the father returned the N 70 , 000 given to them during the introduction but Shetima refused to return the N 500 , 000 he gave her.

“ I gave her N 200 ,000 cash to her as part of the marriage expenses.

“ I also transferred N 300 , 000 to her account when she started disturbing me for her balance.

“ After she said she wouldn’t marry me again without giving a reason, I pleaded with her repeatedly but she bluntly refused to reconsider.
“ I then informed her father who said he was going to talk to her.

“ A week after , her father called and said she still insisted on calling of the wedding.

“ Her father then returned the N 70 ,000 and paid it into my brother ’ s account who then transferred the money to me .

“ My brother then told me that he told her father that he has forgiven the basket of kolanuts and carton of sweet and so he didn’ t need to return them .

“ Aisha , however, has refused to pay my N 500 , 000 back .” He told the court.

In her defense , Shetima told the court that the reason she called off the wedding was that Marafa didn’ t give her an option .

She said she informed Marafa that the date they fixed would not be convenient for her but he insisted on that date.

“ After telling him that April would not be convenient , he told me that if I didn’ t go ahead with it , he would begin to suspect me .

“ As a result , I decided to call off the wedding, ” she said.

The Judge, Ado Muktar adjourned the case till July 3 for judgment .
( NAN )

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja



The Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), an agency of the United Nations, has raised alarm over what it described as worrisome levels contamination of foods in Lagos and Kano States.

The FAO said a “Total Diet” study it carried out in two major Nigerian cities, Lagos and Kano showed various levels of contamination of foods at the point of consumption.

Speaking at an event jointly orgainised by the Federal Ministries of Health and its agriculture counterpart to mark 2019 World Food Safety Day in Abuja, the Country Representative, FAO in Nigeria, Suffyan Koruna said streets foods are now being consumed more than ever before, adding that Nigerians eat at least one meal out of home in restaurants, bukkas and other food vendors.

The FAO country representative who was represented by Mr. Alphonsus Onwuemeka said the organisation conducted a diet study in Lagos and Kano where it discovered rampant unsafe food consumption.

He said: “A Total Diet Study carried out in Lagos and Kano states showed worrisome levels of contamination of foods at the points of consumption with aflatoxins, mycotoxins, heavy metals such as lead and pesticides residues. This should reaweaken Nigeria to the looming health challenges and economic losses that could result from a lack of attention to food safety.”

Onwuemeka said there is a likelihood that similar cases of food contamination exist in other major cities across the country. He said that FAO is in the process of carrying out similar diet studies in other cities.

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Mr. A. M. Abdullahi who presided over the event said unsafe food practices can lead to health problems such as typhoid, cholera, diarrhoea, botuslim, listeriosis, hapatitis A and cancer.

He said in order to address food safety threats, the Federal Ministry of Health is working with the state Ministries of Health and Agriculture as well as the Environmental Health Officers Registration Council of Nigeria to further strengthen the work of Environmental Health Officers across the states to be able to check unsafe food practices.

Abdullahi listed unsafe food practices prevalent in the country to include; ” unhealthy cultivation practices through the use of unapproved chemicals (such as calcium carbide in fruit and vegetable ripening) and fertilizers; poor food storage and processing facilities as seen in a number of abattoirs and along the roads; the use of disused tires and kerosene in roasting animals for human consumption; non-hygienic food preparation environments as seen in the way foods are prepared by the roadsides, gutters and near open faecal defecation areas.”

As part of the longterm policy solution, Abdullahi said the Federal Goverment along with other Food Safety stakeholders under the auspices of the National Food Safety Management Committee (NFSMC) have developed the National Food Safety and Quality Bill which was approved by the Federal Executive Council and it is currently at the National Assembly for passage into law.

According to Abdullahi, the Bill is to ensure food control in the country where all tiers of government and MDAs will work together with the Organised Private Sectors (OPS) to ensure the wholesomeness of our food.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), foodborne diseases in 2015 was found to have made approximately 600 million people sick and caused 420,000 untimely deaths.

Unsafe foods have also been shown to lead to yearly productivity losses of about US$95billion in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC).

President Muhammadu Buhari said his administration would assemble a strong team of Nigerians and allies to implement transformative plans and proposals to reposition Nigeria’s workforce for the modern technological age.

President Buhari said this in his speech at the June 12, 2019 National Democracy Day in Abuja on Wednesday.

He said that toward that end, his administration would ensure significant focus, provide resources, and where necessary, reform in tertiary and technical education.

“Over the next four years, we are committed to assembling a strong team of Nigerians, and allies, to implement our transformative plans and proposals.

“We will see significant focus, resource and, where necessary reform, in tertiary and technical education to reposition Nigeria’s workforce for the modern technological age.

“We will accelerate investments in primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare programs, interventions and infrastructure as well as in upgrading of our medical personnel to stem the flight of our best trained people,” he said.

On food security, he said: “Our farmers have made great strides in local production of rice, maize, cassava, poultry, fertilizer, fisheries and sesame.

“We remain resolute in supporting private sector in emphasizing backward integration and export expansion plans.

“Felling of trees to provide energy for domestic use is taking its toll on our rain forests, our ecology and our climate.’’

The President also said: “We are taking steps to harness cleaner and more sustainable sources of electricity. We export over 2 million tons of cooking gas, yet we consume less than half a million tons.

“We will work to address this issue and support rural communities with challenges of safely switching from firewood to cooking gas.

“Dedicated agro-industrial processing zones will be developed on a PPP basis to increase farming yields, agricultural productivity and industrial output.

“Over 2,000 kilometers of ongoing Federal road and bridge projects across the country will be completed to reduce journey times and the cost of doing business.

“As I mentioned earlier, critical feeder roads will be built to facilitate easier transportation for people and goods from rural areas to major roads.

“We are at advanced stages of securing investments to modernize and expand our transmission and distribution infrastructure, ensuring that electricity is available and affordable for all Nigerians.

“Several rail, seaport and airport projects are at various stages of completion. We will open the arteries of transportation nationwide.

“It is a fact that Nigeria has more gas reserves than it has in oil. Over the last four years, we have become a net exporter of urea, which is made from natural gas. We invite investors to develop more natural gas-based petrochemical projects.’’

President Buhari insisted that his government would not tolerate actions by any individual or groups of individuals seeking to attack our way of life or those who seek to corruptly enrich themselves at the expense of others.

“We will crack down on those, who incite innocent people to violence and unrest and ensure that such actions are met with the strong arm of the law,” he added..

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Ado-Ekiti – There was confusion at Ilasa-Ekiti in Ekiti East yesterday as an unidentified young herdsman chopped off the head of his girlfriend with Cutlass.

The incident which occurred at a streamside on Tuesday evening in the agrarian community, popular for its huge yams’ market, has thrown it into serious bewilderment. The victim who was said to be a very young lady, and of the same tribe with her suspected assailant was attacked beside a stream where she had gone to fetch water with her younger sister.

The assailant was said to have ambushed the lady, grabbed her from behind, while she bent down to collect some water from the stream, held her by the head and chopped it off. He was said to have took to his heel after the dastard act but was later arrested through the information provided by the younger sister of the deceased who was at the scene of the incident.

Multiple sources in the community including the traditional rulers of the community the Alasa of Ilasa, Oba Ajayi Omolagba revealed that the young lady had been allegedly been betrothed to the suspected assailant as a future wife while she was still a teenager in line with their custom and tradition. According to the sources, trouble started last month when the suspect requested the lady to spend the Eld-el-Fitr with him but the family of the lady refused to release her, a situation which angered the suspect who assumed the contract had been breeched by the family hence the dastardly act.

A separate source told Vanguard that the lady after growing up observed that the supposed husband was a drunkard and drug addict, which had made her to start avoiding him, thwarting further plans for marriage arrangements. Some relatives of the deceased who preferred to be anonymous expressed sadness over the development, affirmed that the suspected murderer had indeed requested her late fiancé spend the Eld-el-Fitr with him and the marriage was supposed to be officially finalised a day before he took her life.

The Alasa of Ilasa Oba Ajayi Omolagba said the community has been in shock since the incident occurred. He said he had summoned the families of all parties involved and their landlords to a meeting where resolutions were reached on how to forestall future occurrence. Oba Omolagba noted that the community would also make necessary appease to God as such incident was strange and a taboo in the land. When contacted, the Ekiti State Police Public Relations Officer, Caleb Ikechukwu, confirmed the incident. He said investigation has been launched into the unfortunate incident by the Command, to unravel the causes of such dastardly act.

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Abuja – People’s Democratic Party (PDP) on Wednesday said that it is a national tragedy that the national Democracy Day is being celebrated under the President Muhammadu Buhari-led All Progressives Congress (APC) administration that has allegedly desecrated all the democratic values and despoiled the electoral processes just to have itself in office.

Greeting Nigerians on democracy day, the party said that President Buhari’s speech clearly shows a disregard for the tenets of democracy as he had no clear commitments or assurances on fundamental issues of constitutionality, rule of law, separation of power, justice, fairness, free speech and rights of citizens, which are the hallmarks of democracy.

PDP, in a statement by its spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan urged Nigerians to use the occasion to reflect and redouble their efforts in the collective quest for the re-entrenchment of true democracy and its tenets of rule of law, freedom, tolerance, dialogue, peaceful co-existence, justice and the sanctity of the electoral process.

PDP said: “It is a national tragedy that our Democracy Day is being celebrated under the President Muhammadu Buhari-led All Progressives Congress (APC) administration that has desecrated all our democratic values and despoiled our electoral processes just to have itself in office.”

The party said that the Buhari Presidency and the APC cannot celebrate Democracy Day when they are still overburdened by the guilt of their questionable presidential electoral victory.

“Mr President also had no regrets for the manipulations, infractions and violence that characterized the 2019 general elections, under his watch, for which the nation now has an unprecedented 766 election petitions, including the highly manipulated Presidential election.

“President Buhari did not express any form of remorse for the barefaced constitutional violations, assault on institutions of democracy, particularly the legislature and the judiciary; human rights violations, assault on the media and the general siege mentality in the polity under his watch.

“It is sad that on a day like this, Mr President dwelt on false performance claims and had no soothing word for millions of compatriots that have been subjected to the worst form of economic misery, that they are now resorting to suicide and slavery mission abroad.

“He also had no words of hope for the victims of escalated insurgency, kidnapping, banditry and bloodletting in various parts of our nation.

“How can this administration superintend over a Democracy Day celebration when it has questions of constitutional violations, electoral manipulations, media clampdown, victimization of opposition, the emasculation of free speech, brutalization, arbitrary arrests and illegal detention, as already detailed in various reports, including those by the United States Department of State.

“It is disheartening that the same electoral manipulation, violations and injustices for which the icon of June 12 Democracy Day, Chief MKO Abiola died, have brazenly taken centre stage under the APC misrule,” PDP said.

Comparing June 12, 1993, and what is obtainable today, the party noted that just like the years past, the citizens are despondent, particularly over the alleged rigging of the February 23, 2019, Presidential election.

Chukwudi Nweje

The People’s Democratic Party, Lagos State chapter, has asked Lagos State governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to declare his assets and make it public within seven days.

The party warned that if its request was not honoured it would invoke the Freedom of Information Act to compel the governor to do so.

Publicity Secretary of the party Mr Taofik Gani, gave the warning in a statement issued on Sunday, in Lagos.

He said: “The PDP posits that if Mr. Sanwoolu does not on his own, make public, information of his declared assets for Lagosians to know and verify within seven days, the party shall compel him to be morally responsive to Lagosians by adopting the FOI Act to get the said information.”

The party also criticised the governor for allegedly buying a N187 million SUV as his official vehicle.

It said for the Lagos State governor to buy the vehicle is “prodigal and insensitive” and urged him to be humble especially in the face of abandoned and uncompleted projects that litter the state.

“Gov. Sanwo-Olu should show humble beginning especially at this period that the residents need the abandoned projects completed and the provision of improved welfare services.

“One of such manifestations is to follow the humble, humanitarian and servant postures of his fellow governors of Oyo and Zamfara states, both whom have donated all their salaries to their pensioners and orphanages. It is only when and if Mr Sanwo-Olu manifests such selfless and austere gestures as a lifestyle that Lagosians can take him seriously and sympathise with him as he claims to be losing weight, otherwise Mr. Sanwo-olu is advised to as a matter of emergency, to consult his medical doctor to diagnose real reasons for him losing weight,” Gani said.

Godswill Akpabio, senator who represented Akwa Ibom north-west district in the 8th assembly, says God will soon expose those who “fraudulently orchestrated” his loss in the last national assembly election.

Speaking at Ukana, Essien Udim local government area of the state while empowering some of his constituents, Akpabio accused Mike Igini, resident electoral commissioner of the state, of denying him of the mandate freely given to him.

He described Igini as the “most compromised electoral officer in Nigeria and should not be allowed to hold public office”.

He insisted that he did not lose the election, and urged his people not to be dismayed by the temporary setback.

“Please nobody should have any headache, nobody should cry because there is no need. You know your senator cannot lose election because we were all there,” he said.

“But many of them thought they can go and write whatever they like and even cancel what you won. I have never in my life experienced a resident electoral commissioner like Mike Igini and my message to him is that his hypocrisy will be exposed.

“There is no way you can come into Akwa Ibom and commit that kind of electoral fraud you committed then you go back to Channels Television and sit down and talk as if you are a pope.

“Very soon the world will know… All the materials we are recovering everyday will expose you.

“Just yesterday, the police arrested people carrying materials from where they voted and were trying to sneak into INEC. The other day, they arrested someone with card readers. He was frantically calling and trying to say that they were used for training three months after election so that they will continue to manipulate.”

Akpabio said he intends to join President Muhammadu Buhari to sanitise the nation’s electoral system.

”For me, it is important as a former governor and elder statesman to join the President to sanitize the electoral process so that we will ensure that votes count in future elections,” he said.

”There is no need for Nigeria to continue taking one step forward and five steps backward.”

On several occasions, I have heard phrases like “English no be money, grammar no be success, grammar no be money”.

Yes! I totally I agree, one hundred per cent. So, putting things in view, why do we now go out of our ways to make English language our own? We have our own Pidgin English which has spread across the country. Thanks to Warri indigenes. I can even say it has now become almost a global (sic) language. It is safer to speak it than scatter the regular English language.

Recently, a huge fight broke out in my neighborhood, resulting to an arrest that led a jail term of one of our neighbours. The fight was so massive that others who knew nothing about it even joined.

Some took sides, it was just crazy.

Frantically, there was bloodshed, it really went out of hand. The guy in question was put behind bars, not because he physically assaulted his neighbor. No, not even because he raised a finger at her. His crime was that his neighbour’s wife greeted him and responded by saying “oh hello my dear!” That was it. The woman, at first corrected him by asking him to withdraw the statement and respond appropriately to her. Sighting the instance that she greeted him respectful and as a married woman, she deserved to be accorded with the same respect. The man, thinking it was a trivial issue brushed her outburst aside. She thereafter held unto his shirt, insisting that he must withdraw the response to her greeting because she was not “his dear”.

The raising of their voices drew the attention of other neighbours and passersby. Not long after, the husband who was a retired police officer insisted that the man must be arrested for addressing his wife inappropriately.

Ha! “My dear.” What could be wrong with these two words? They sound harmless, but critically analysing it, one could begin to see that it could sometimes sound condescending. In my part of the country, we address one with “my dear” when the person is younger or of lower economic status.

For instance, your younger sibling, or your junior colleague. I don’t recall us using it for a contemporary or even a friend. We should perhaps learn to draw the line on how we address people. I know of a particular part of the country where my “my dear” is used on all individuals. I gave a friend a ride and could recall her talking on the phone with a cleric and as she was ending the call , I heard her address him as ‘my dear’.

To some, it might be just nothing but it could be sensitive to other people’s disposition and ideologies. Be respectful. What’s wrong with, Good morning sir, and the man responds, good morning madam. Good morning Mama Buky. I have heard younger people say to their elders , how are you ma, how are you sir. This is very civil if you ask me. Civil and respectful. We need to understand that we are not whites. We should not be ‘ over sabi’.

Respect begets respect. If only my neighbour was civil enough to say ” how are you madam”? Or better still, good morning madam, he would be in his house today… Lol

“My dear” maybe nothing to you but some people think otherwise. It is no skin off your nose if we exchange pleasantries in an African way.

You never know, it could get you out of trouble.

A 35-year-old trader, Mr Chike Okwunwanne, has petitioned the Nigeria Police Force over an alleged harassment by his estranged lover, Chinasa (surname witheld), who is a former police woman now based in United States of America (USA), following failed marriage plans.

In a petition forwarded to the Assistant Inspector General of Police, in charge of Zone 2 Police Command, Onikan, Lagos, Mr Umar Manko, Okwunwanne’s lawyer, Barrister Omobolaji Adejumo, explained how Okwunwanne and Chinasa were match-made by a couple based in US.

A copy of the petition obtained by our correspondent read in part: “Sometime in June 2013, a family friend and boss to our client (Okwunanne), Chief Benny Iwule, a Nigerian resident in the United States, introduced our client to one Chinasa, that she is desirous of settlling down with a Nigerian man. In the course of their discussions after phone numbers and contact details had been exchanged, she informed our client that she was 36 years old and our client agreed to the marriage proposal based on the assumption that they were within the same age grade. Not long after marital promises were sealed, she started bossing our client around such that he got fed up with her overbearing attitude, however, he condoned her.

“Sometime around July/August 2013, she (Chinasa) volunteered to send some goods to our client to help her resell but he declined. He was therefore surprised when she sent him a message to receive a carton at a clearing agent’s place in Ajao Estate, Lagos. Upon opening the package, he realised that what she sent were fairly used goods. Our client then told her he doesn’t deal in second- hand or fairly used goods, he then decided to keep the goods for her.”

Trouble, however, started when Chinasa visited Nigeria late 2013, when Chike discovered she is a 50-year-old.

According to the petition, “Eventually when they met and had serious discussions, our client realised that the lady in question cannot be less than 50 years old. At that stage, our client told her he couldn’t in all honesty continue with the relationship as the foundation was built on deceit. Around this period, our client’s dad was hospitalised and he had to travel to his village to take care of his father.The lady asked for our client to wed her. She then started harassing our client for abandoning her to tend to his father on his death bed. Though the father later died owing to complications from his sickness, yet she refused to show compassion or understanding or any empathy whatsoever.

‘’When our client told her he had expended all his money on his father’s sickness, she asked him to borrow or face her wrath. Not long after, policemen from the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti Street, Lagos, came to pick up our client based on a phantom complaint of theft by Chinasa. On getting to the station, the lady (Chinasa) cornered our client again asking him if he was ready to marry her so she can drop the charges against him. Our client had to agree with her so as not to jeopardise his own freedom as it was three days to the burial of his late father. Our client is not desirous of marrying a lady old enough to be his mother and she has been threatening fire and brimstone that she would use the police to make our client’s life a living hell.’’

The controversial goods as gathered have since been taken into police custody at SCID, Panti,Lagos.__

Responding on the telephone, Chinasa, however, denied ever dating Chike. She explained that their relationship was just for business transactions.

“Chike is my wanted suspect; he is a wanted man. He sold my goods worth $8,000 and used the money to buy a car. He has been invited by the police at SCID. I cannot date somebody like Chike and if we had dated, how come he does not know where I stay in Nigeria? How come he was not at the airport to pick me on my arrival? He was introduced to me for business purposes and not for marriage.

“Although I have been told that the goods are with the police but I gave him the goods and not the_ police.He should be the one that will return the goods to me.He is _running from me because I asked for my money. I have not seen Chike and my goods. He duped me and ran away with my money. Tell him to give me my goods. We don’t have anything in common except for business. He sold the goods and has refused to give me my money. Chike was introduced to me by Chief Benny Iwule, who is _ based in US.

“How does he know I am older than him? Is he my father or parent? I lost my husband but I have a fiancée. With my level and exposure, marriage is not an issue to me.”

A few hours later, one Pastor Bello Balogun Olusanya of Mountain of Solution, Owo, Ondo State, precisely 10.39 pm on Wednesday, called our correspondent on the telephone on behalf of Chinasa.

Contrary to Chinasa’s denial that she never dated Chike, Pastor Balogun, during the phone conversation, _explained that Chinasa and Chike actually dated.

He said: “Chinasa gave me your phone number to speak with you because she claimed you wanted to publish a story about her. She is one of my members and she is very close to me. She claimed that Chike had duped her of the proceeds of some goods she sent to him for sale. She was actually introduced to that Chike for marriage. She sent me his name in 2013 asking me to pray in order to know if they are compatible for marriage and I told her that God does not approve of their relationship.I told her that even though Chike is single, still he won’t marry her.”

Speaking from her base in US, Mrs Mercy Iwule, whose husband had introduced Chinasa to Chike, explained that Chinasa was peddling falsehood against Chike.

“Chinasa is just harassing Chike for no just reason. My husband and I actually introduced her to Chike, who had been managing our businesses in Nigeria. She said she wanted to marry a Nigerian man and we introduced her to_ Chike not knowing that she was older than him because she has a petite figure. Chike did not steal her goods or use the money to buy a_ car. I was the one who asked Chike to start using the Toyota Sienna car I left in Nigeria because I also have another Toyota Pathfinder Sports Utility Vehicle in our house in Lagos.

“She lied to Chike that she was 36 and Chike said he does not want to continue with the relationship when he discovered she was older than him. She then vowed to punish him for breaking her heart and had been using law enforcement agents to harass the poor boy.’’

There is strong indication that raging crisis between the governor of Kano State Abdullahi Ganduje and the Emir of Kano Muhammadu Sanusi II has come to an end, following a truce reached on Friday night in Abuja.

Earlier on Friday, DAILY NIGERIAN reported that President Muhammadu Buhari had mediated in matter, following calls for his intervention and that of Northern elders as the estrangement between the governor and the emir raised tension in the state.



The president’s intervention comes a day to the expiration of a query issued to the emir by the state government, seeking answer on alleged misappropriation of the emirate’s finances.

At the peace meeting held Friday night in Abuja, the governor and the emir have agreed to sheath the sword for the interest of Kano as well as to de-escalate tension and prevent break down of law and order.

Although details of the meeting are sketchy, a credible source at the Presidency told DAILY NIGERIAN that the chairman of Nigerian Governors’ Forum and governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi, chaired the meeting attended by “a very few notable personalities”.

“All I can tell you is that the meeting is positive. The parties have agreed to work together in the interest of peace, stability and progress of Kano,” said the source.

“The president will be briefed on the outcome of the meeting. Alhamdulillah the emir and the governor are no more quarreling.”



DAILY NIGERIAN also gathered that despite the truce, the emir has chosen to clear his name by responding to the query of the state government regarding allegations leveled against him by the Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption Commission.

The governor and the emir have been at dagger drawn, following the emir’s alleged support for the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP candidate, Abba Yusuf, in the last general election.

In order to whittle down the emir’s influence, the governor created four rival emirates in Bichi, Rano, Gaya and Karaye and appointed emirs in each emirate.

A court action was instituted by the four kingmakers of Kano Emirate, challenging the government decision to balkanize the emirate.

Babajide Sanwo-Olu, governor of Lagos, says governing the state is not an easy task, as he has lost weight in just one week of assuming office.

Sanwo-Olu spoke with state house correspondents after a private meeting with Yemi Osinbajo, vice-president, shortly after the expanded security council meeting on Friday, at the presidential villa, Abuja.

According to him, governing Lagos is not a tea party, as the experience and challenges are real.

“It is not a tea party; you don’t sleep and wake up and the traffic has gone down; you don’t sleep and wake up and there is no rain or say that you have resolved Apapa gridlock; it’s real,” he said.

“So, it is something that one has psychologically prepared for; the best thing you can do, is to make sure that you are not about looking for what the other person did.

“It is for Lagosians to see you do what you promised to do for them. And if you don’t do it from your office; you have to do it on the road; you have to do it where the issues are, so that people will truly know that you mean business.

“In one week, I will say I have lost weight; I will probably still lose a bit more, but I think it is worth the job.

“It is also important to ensure that you have the right team; people that will also support you; so, when as a leader you can show that leadership support, then the message itself trickles down and trickles very well.”

He said that clearing of the Apapa gridlock was work in progress, as efforts were being made to solve the problem.

Sanwo-Olu said that the concern of his government was to ensure that what was done concerning the gridlock was sustained as sustainability was critical.

He further said that his administration was engaging all the stakeholders in the conversation around port utility–shippers’ council, shipping lines, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and others, in order to achieve a sustained resolution.

On security in Lagos, the governor said it was something he attached much importance.

He said that security was everybody’s business but as a governor, he had a major responsibility of protecting lives and property of Lagosians.

“So, it is a work in progress and for me in particular, it is something that I take so seriously,” he said.

“We are not just mouthing it; we will ensure that we put resources and strategies that can help in place,

“We have been talking about domesticating; the security trust fund that we have done is part of the initiative

“We will continue to engage and identify what are the sources; what are the underlying issues that bring about insecurity.

“Are they economic or more than that? So, we can also attack the root cause.

“For us, as a government that is looking for investors. We certainly must continue to be in a position where we can give confidence to all our investors that Lagos State is a safe haven to come.’’

The missing Oluwakemi Soyebo has now been fund barely 24 hours she was declared missing by her family members, in Lagos.

The joy in the heart of her family members and the residents of her street know no bound as she majestically walked into the street, Thursday evening.


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According to a family member, Sulaimon Adekunle, he Oluwakemi walked home Thursday evening, and has been crying uncontrollably and unable to speak with anybody since her arrival.

He said since Oluwakemi has been declared missing, her family members have been engaged by different clerics across the states and several prayer sessions were conducted.

“All her belongings including bag containing her ATM cards, money and phones were collected from her.

“The mother, Mrs Soyebo Bukola, in ‘tears of joy’ could not speak with Tribuneonline correspondent engaging her,” Adekunle said.

He said Oluwakemi who has been continually vomiting, has now been taken to the hospital for medical checkup.