₦airaland Forum

A 17-year-old boy has died in Ondo State after taking a psychotropic substance popularly known on the streets as ‘colorado’.

The boy identified as Joshua, who took the hard drug over the weekend, gave up the ghost after being in coma for two days.

According to sources, the deceased who was residing in Oba-Ile, Akure South Local Government Area if the State where the incident happened, took some portion of the substance from his friends who were already in the habit of taking hard drugs.

Following his weird behaviour within minutes of taking ‘colorado’, his friends were said to have called his siblings who rushed him to the hospital where he later gave up the ghost.

According to one of the sources, “when few moment after Joshua took a puff of colorado, his friends said he had difficulty in breathing and later he began to hallucinate.

“His friends were scared of his reactions and they quickly called on his people.”

‘Colorado’ is one of the banned psychotropic substances that is currently prevalent among youths. The hard drug is said to be made from synthetic plant.

At least 100 armed robbery suspects escaped from the Lagos State Police custody during the #EndSARS protest, SaharaReporters has gathered.

The suspects escaped from the disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) detention centre in Ikeja.

SaharaReporters learnt some senior police officers aided their escape a few days after the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, announced the disbandment of SARS.

Adamu had on October 11 announced the disbandment of the police unit following nationwide protests over its brutality.

"About 100 of them were released by some senior police officers immediately the IGP announced the disbandment of SARS. We have arrested two operatives; one of them confessed they did it to increase the rate of crime in Lagos which they intended to link to the disbandment of SARS.

"So far, we have arrested about 20 of the suspects; some of them couldn't jump the fence when they were told to run away. Others were arrested while committing another offence," a police source told SaharaReporters.

A notorious robber and rapist, Adeniyi Ajayi, was said to be among the fleeing suspects.

It will be recalled that Ajayi, aka Ogologo, was paraded by the Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu, in August 2020.

Speaking on how the suspect was arrested, Odumosu said he had robbed some female and male staff of a company on June 16, 2020.

Rather than showing remorse for his action, Ajayi begged the police to kill him, instead of sending him back to prison.

He said his modus operandi was to break into victims' homes, ordering them to cooperate with him or risk being killed by other members of his gang whom he claimed had surrounded the building.

He confessed to having operated at Sabo, Ijora Badia and Lagos Island areas.

SaharaReporters gathered Ajayi had already robbed two families and raped a lady after he escaped from SARS custody.

A source said, "They said he uses juju. I don't know what to believe, but the guy is quite artful and very prolific. He knows how to escape and evade arrest. We were on his trail for a while until, with the help of SARS, he was recently arrested.

"However, during the #EndSARS campaign, a neighbourhood security person informed me that the guy had been released. I didn't believe it. I made calls to some SARS officers at the Lagos State Command of Nigeria.

"They told me it's a lie, but my security source was adamant. Just last week, we got information that he robbed two homes recently and raped someone. When I confronted the SARS officers, they owned up that the guy is no longer in detention as he had escaped in the course of a purported jailbreak.

"This explanation sounded fishy because there was no report of a jailbreak anywhere in Lagos during the #EndSARS protests. So how come? Our lives are now in danger."

A mother of three, Mrs Chinyere Uzowulu, has cried for help over the alleged vandalism of the family house by her husband, Chief Afam Uzowulu, who is a retired depot manager of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, for challenging the divorce from him and refusing to vacate the house with her children.

Chinyere, who addressed journalists shortly after conducting them round the vandalised duplex located at No. 1/3 Uzowulu Street, New GRA, Enugu, disclosed that she was challenging in court his divorce and ejection from the premises with her children.

She said the case was pending before the Supreme Court in suit No. SC/CV/895/2020.

While describing the destruction of her residence in a matter before the court as unlawful, Chinyere regretted that thugs aided by the police carried out the vandalism in her absence on Friday, December 18, 2020.

She stated that she did not have any police case with her estranged husband, adding that the house she lives in with her children was a family residence and “we are presently in the Supreme Court over the house and divorce.”

She said that trouble started when Afam voluntarily left the house in 2012 “after demanding for 50 per cent of my earnings as a condition for peace.”

“When I refused, he went to court for divorce and to eject his three kids and I from the house. I opposed it because I contributed financially to the building of the house. I am also challenging the divorce and his sending of the kids to the street,” she added.

Chinyere, who showed journalists a stay of execution on a lower court judgement, which granted Afam divorce and an ejection order, said that all her belongings and those of the children, whom the father allegedly abandoned for eight years, were destroyed and looted.

“I am calling on the Enugu state Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, who is the chief security officer of the state, and civil society organisations fighting for the right of women and children to come to my aid as the police in the state have compromised and allowed his impunity to continue. My life and my children’s lives have been exposed to danger,” she lamented.

Our correspondent observed that the roofing of the house had been removed, while the doors, furniture and kitchen accessories were destroyed and clothes scattered all over the premises, with the perimeter fence and gates pulled down.

When contacted, Afam confirmed that he carried out the vandalism of the house.

“I sued her for a divorce and to vacate the house, and the court ruled in my favour. Since the judgment, she has refused to vacate the house. Although the court granted her custody of the children, she cannot stay with them in my house. So, I went to enforce the judgment of the court and take possession of the house,” he stated.

Asked if he knew about the stay of execution, Afam said, “I know she has gone to the Supreme Court to challenge the judgment of the lower court, but she has yet to obtain the stay of execution. So, I applied for an execution order and the Chief Registrar of the Customary Court of Appeal refused to approve the execution and didn’t give me any valid reason for not signing the order. In the absence of a stay of execution order, I had to use every available means to execute the judgment of the court.”

When contacted the state Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Daniel Ndukwe, denied any police involvement in the vandalism of the house and declined further comments.

Eniola Akinkuotu, Abuja


The Financial Times of London has described Nigeria as a country going backwards economically and plagued with terrorism, illiteracy, poverty, banditry, and kidnapping and risks becoming a failed state if things don’t take a drastic turn.

The UK-based newspaper said this in an editorial on Tuesday titled, ‘Nigeria at Risk of Becoming a Failed State’.

It said the abduction and subsequent rescue of over 300 schoolboys in Kankara, Katsina State, revived memories of the 276 Chibok schoolgirls abducted in Borno State in 2014.

According to the newspaper, while the government’s claim that no ransom was paid to the abductors of the schoolboys remains doubtful, other acts of criminality could not be overlooked.

The editorial read in part, “The government insists no ransom was paid. Scepticism is warranted. In a country going backwards economically, carjacking, kidnapping and banditry are among Nigeria’s rare growth industries. Just as the boys were going home, Nigerian pirates abducted six Ukrainian sailors off the coast.

“The definition of a failed state is one where the government is no longer in control. By this yardstick, Africa’s most populous country is teetering on the brink.”

The newspaper also questioned the claim by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), that Boko Haram had been technically defeated.

It said contrary to the government’s claim, Boko Haram remained an ever-present threat

The Financial Times stated, “President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015 pronounced Boko Haram technically defeated’. That has proved fanciful. Boko Haram has remained an ever-present threat. If the latest kidnapping turns out to be its work, it would mark the spread of the terrorist group from its north-eastern base.


“Even if the mass abduction was carried out by ‘ordinary’ bandits — as now looks possible — it underlines the fact of chronic criminality and violence. Deadly clashes between herders and settled farmers have spread to most parts of Nigeria. In the oil-rich, but impoverished, Delta region, extortion through the sabotage of pipelines is legendary.”

The newspaper said security is not the only area where “the state is failing”.

The Financial Times added that Nigeria has more poor people than any other country even as Nigeria has the highest number of out of school children on earth.

The newspaper stated that as oil continues to lose its value, Nigeria’s economy would worsen.

“The population, already above 200 million, is growing at a breakneck 3.2 per cent a year. The economy has stalled since 2015 and real living standards are declining. This year, the economy will shrink 4 per cent after COVID-19 dealt a further blow to oil prices.

“In any case, as the world turns greener, the elite’s scramble for oil revenue will become a game of diminishing returns. The country desperately needs to put its finances, propped up by foreign borrowing, on a sounder footing,” it said.


The newspaper said Buhari, who has less than three years left in office, must use the remainder of his term, to redouble efforts at improving security.

It advised the government to restore trust in key institutions, among them the judiciary, the security services and the electoral commission, which will preside over the 2023 elections.

The Financial Times said the #EndSARS protests led by Nigerian youths, signaled a glimmer of hope for Nigeria’s teeming youth population.

It added, “The broad coalition that found political expression this year in the EndSARS movement against police brutality provides a shard of optimism. At least Nigeria has a relatively stable democracy. Now Nigeria’s youth — creative, entrepreneurial and less tainted by the politics of extraction — should use that system to reset the country’s narrative.”

The newspaper concluded by saying that it was time for Nigeria to restructure its political system and concentrate on security, health, education, power and roads.

“At the present trajectory, the population will double to 400 million by 2050. If nothing is done, long before then, Nigeria will become a problem far too big for the world to ignore,” it warned.

A former governor of Kano State, Sen. Rabiu Kwankwaso, has warned that the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, will not allow the repetition of “inconclusive” during the 2023 governorship election in the state.

Recall that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, had declared the result of the 2019 governorship election in Kano as inconclusive, following the razor-gap difference between the PDP candidate, Abba Yusuf, and Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of the All Progressives Congress, APC.

At first, Mr Yusuf was leading with 26,655 votes but after the rerun, Mr Ganduje emerged victorious with the margin of 8,982 votes.

But, while addressing a mammoth crowd of supporters in a viral video believed to be recorded in Kano on Thursday, the leader Kwankwasiyya Movement said the party would no longer tolerate such “election rigging”.

In the 1:28 minute footage, Mr Kwankwaso accused Governor Ganduje of conniving with INEC and security agents to rig the election, warning that, “such a mess will never be repeated against us again”.

He said: “They are now intoxicated with power. He (Ganduje) thinks that he will never leave that power, not knowing that 2023 is just two years away.

“2023 bears with a different colour. You all hear what politicians say, ‘do or die’, so 2023 will be do-or-die politics. We will not condone inconclusive again.”

“I hope, our women supporters would spare their pestle, club and spoon to protect their votes come 2023.

“I warn APC and INEC to allow for proper electoral process or regret their actions,” Mr Kwankwaso warned.

Sodiq Oyeleke

The Federal Government on Monday ordered all federal civil servants on Grade Level 12 and below to stay at home for the next five weeks from Monday.

The chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, made this known in a statement on Monday.

He also announced that all schools would remain closed till January 18.

Mustapha also said restrictions have been placed on social and religious gatherings for five weeks.

He said, “Encourage virtual meetings in government offices. The leadership of such offices are to ensure that all offices are well-ventilated offices, and encourage staff to work from home where possible;

“All government staff on GL.12 and below are to stay at home for the next 5 weeks; Permanent Secretaries and Chief Executives are to be held accountable for enforcing NPI rules in their domains with frequent spot checks;

“The PTF on the advice of the Federal Ministry of Education expects that schools would have vacated from the 18th December 2020 and remain closed till at least the 18th of January, 2021 to enable the measures introduced to take effect;

“All persons above the age of 60yrs and/or with comorbidities are to be encouraged to stay at home and avoid crowds;
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“All non-essential travels – both domestic and international during the holiday season are seriously discouraged.”

The Nigeria Centre For Disease Control, on Sunday, reported 501 new infections of COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in the country.

Since the beginning of the outbreak in February, more than 874,617 samples have been tested by NCDC, out of which 78,434 were positive.

The country recorded three additional deaths in the last 24 hours, raising the overall total in the nation since the start of the pandemic to 1,221.

The NCDC also disclosed that 519 patients have been discharged after testing negative from the virus.

Ade Adesomoju, Abuja

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday ordered the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, and the Nigeria Police Force, to release a Facebook user, Mbarak Bala, who was arrested in Kaduna on February 28, 2020 for alleged blasphemous posts about Islam.

Delivering judgment in the fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by Bala, Justice Inyang Ekwo declared that his arrest and detention by the IGP and the NPF in an unknown detention centre since February 28, 2020 “because he expressed his option about religion on Facebook, constitutes an infraction of the applicant’s rights to personal liberty, fair hearing, freedom of thought, freedom of express and freedom of movement”.

The judge also declared that the action of the respondents (the IGP and the NPF) “in denying the applicant access to his lawyers constitutes a gross infringement of the applicant right to legal rep of his choice under section 34 and 35(2) of the 1999 Constitution”.

He, therefore, made an order “directing the respondents to release the applicant from detention to his lawyers on bail forthwith”.

He also made an award of “general/exemplary damages against the first and second respondents in the sum of N250,000 for the infraction of the fundamental rights of the applicant”.

The applicant had sued the IGP, the NPF, and the Attorney-General of the Federation in his fundamental rights enforcement suit, alleging that the respondents violated his rights.

Justice Ekwo observed in his judgment on Monday that the IGP and the NPF never showed up in the case despite being served with the processes in the suit filed by the applicant and the hearing notices with regard to the case.

But the judge discontinued the case against the AGF on the basis that the matter disclosed no cause of action against the AGF.

The judge ruled on Monday that the affidavit evidence put forward by the applicant not being challenged or controverted by the respondents was deemed admitted and could be relied on by the court.

The applicant was said to have been arrested by the respondents on Tuesday, February 28, 2020, and detained at Gbabasawa Police Station, Kaduna State, on the instruction of Kano State Police Command.

His lawyer stated in the suit that the applicant was arrested on the basis of a petition written by some Kano-based persons based in Kano, alleging “that the applicant insulted the Prophet of Islam Mohammed (PBUH)”.

Upon his arrest, his lawyers wrote to the Inspector General of Police requesting that he should be transferred to Abuja to face prosecution because his life was being threatened in Kano.

One of the applicant’s legal representatives, Mr Ibrahim Buba, said he visited the Kano State Police headquarters on May 4, 2020, following communications with the Commissioner of Police, Kano State, who was sad to have confirmed that he had the applicant in his custody undergoing interrogation.

Buba was made to wait for three hours after which he was asked to come back the following day.

On arrival a the CP’s office on May 5, 2020, he said he interacted with the CP who referred him to the Officer in Charge, Criminal Investigation, and Intelligence Bureau.

The O/C CIIB was said to have declined any information about the whereabouts of the applicant claiming he was still undergoing interrogation outside Kano.

Buba also said he interacted with other police officers at the Kano Command and the Force headquarters who said the applicant was moved to Abuja.

“As of the time the suit was filed, the whereabouts of the applicant, though within the knowledge of the first and second respondent (the IGP and the NPF), was not known to his representatives,” Justice Ekwo noted in his judgment.

Sometimes mid last year, bandits in Katsina State needed a deal badly to stop fighting. They approached a journalist about their wish.

As they said at the time, they were tired of fighting. They got a deal with government. And government kept to its side of the agreement.

But banditry in Katsina never stopped. The continuation of banditry in the state led to the kidnapping of 344 students, among other criminal activities, in Katsina penultimate Friday by bandits. The journalist, Lawal Saidu, who claimed to have met with armed bandits in Katsina last year in their hideout located in DunbunMuazu forest, after an invitation, tells his story:

Can you tell us how your journey and meeting with bandits in their hideout went?

What actually happened is that vigilantes and farmers in Dunbun Muazu, Dankolo in Sabuwa and Dandume local government areas of Katsina State realized that the farming season is around the corner and that, if there is no peace between them and bandits operating in the area, they cannot cultivate their farmlands. So the communities initiated a meeting to enable them have understanding with the bandits in such a way that they are allowed to go to their farms while the bandits are allowed to move freely, especially to visit markets to transact their businesses.

So when they held that meeting, the communities felt the need to invite somebody in the media. And you know I am from Funtua and I am known locally there as a journalist. So they got in touch with me so that I could witness the event and report it to the outside world. The bandits sent one of their low ranking members to come and meet me.

When he met me, he said I should speak with their leader, Idris Miyaya, on phone. I said “no, I don’t want that idea because if I am speaking on the phone, I cannot ascertain the identity of the person I am speaking with”. I told the bandits’ leader “I will come and see you face-to-face”. The member who came to see me was shocked and said “are you not afraid?” I said “I am not afraid and since you gave me this trust, I will try to contribute my own quota to ensure that peace returns to those areas”.

It was a Monday, so I promised to be there on Saturday. The following Friday, I left Katsina for Funtua where my family is based. I passed the night in Funtua. On Saturday, for strategic and security reasons, I refused to go there. When they called me, I said I was on my way from Katsina to Funtua but that I will arrive late. I also told them I will not be able to make it to their hideout that Saturday.

And this was strategic because if there was any evil plan, I had dislodged it. So on Sunday, I left for Dandume, and from Dandume, I headed to the hideout around Machika, Maigora. There is one village that had been completely destroyed by the bandits in the area but we agreed to meet at a primary school. When I got to the primary school, I didn’t see anyone.

So I called their telephone number and they told me that for strategic and security reasons, they were not there but they could see me from afar. After about two to three minutes, they showed up on motorcycles, fully armed with AK-47s. When they came, I said “why can’t we meet here?” They said I had to go with them to their hideout inside the bush.

The bandits’ leader who I earlier spoke with on phone, Alhaji Idris Miyaya, gave me a ride on his bike into the forest. When we got into their hideout, we sat down and, before we started talking, I told them that “I am wearing two caps – a journalist and a volunteer adviser” to them. That “this bloodshed certainly will not last, and you are destroying your economy and relationship with your local communities. So you have to find a way of settling issues”.

They told me categorically they were tired of their situation and needed peace. And that it was the reason they initiated peace with Dunbun Muazu, Dankolo and other communities around their hideout. So we continued discussing. “What happened and what do they want?” They said what they wanted was that they have two leaders, Alhaji Lawal Bardu and Alhaji Ibrahim Nakutama.

And those two leaders were arrested by security agencies two years ago in Katsina while returning from Hajj. Along the line, they could not trace them. So they said these two leaders are very important to them because they have influence to tell them to cease fire and they will stop. So they asked for the release of the two leaders. Secondly, they want vigilantes to stop attacking them whenever they come into town.

Meanwhile, I was there when the Chairman of the vigilantes of Dandume also came to the hideout in relation to the peace initiative. So, both of us discussed with them! They were fully armed and you could not estimate their numbers but, from what I saw, they were over 1, 000. And almost all of them were carrying AK-47s. They were all youths. You will see a boy of 14 years carrying AK-47. Some of them were under the influence of drug.

Where did the person they sent met you?

He came and met me in Katsina. And he wanted me to talk to their leader on phone. But I decided to go to their camp.


So you met with leaders from both sides (bandits and embattled communities)? How many of them?

Yes, the leader of the bandits, the leader of the vigilantes and the leader of another group.

Did they tell you exactly why they were doing this?

Yes, it is clear; two of their leaders were arrested.

I mean before their leaders were arrested.

If you observe it from afar, for long, the Fulani have suffered, especially in the hands of security agencies. Most of the Fulani were cheated. A Fulani man will have about 100 cattle; the moment they find out that he has these cows, some people will initiate a plot that will make him lose the cows. So, the Fulani were pushed to the wall.

Also, their cattle routes were taken over by farmers, especially rich farmers. Over time, even those in government were allocating these plots as farmlands. So, anywhere they moved, they would say they have encroached into farmlands. Definitely, there was going to be crisis. So this is actually what you could see from afar.

When you were going, did you inform security agencies?

No, I did not inform anyone for security reason. You know in Nigeria, you cannot trust anybody. There are situations where security agents will leak information. It is a known fact. If you are going on this kind of mission, you have to be very careful, because you can talk to someone and that person may leak the information and put your life in danger. So, it was kept highly confidential.


Did you know who they sent over to invite you?

No, I didn’t know him. I am not part of them but they knew that I am a journalist from that axis; that is why they sent him to me in Katsina. He also took a risk because he could have been arrested on the way. But because they are tired of this situation, they want peace; that is why they took the risk of sending their member to come and invite me.

Ever since you returned, any effort to…

The effort I made, I have written a story as a journalist to narrate what I saw.


What about government? Have you reached out to them?

Government listens to radio, if they have interest in peace, they should have consulted me but I am very careful, and any move you make may be misinterpreted. That is why I kept to myself.


Are you still in touch with the bandits?

Obviously, I am in touch with them. They still call me. Even the day I left them, when I got to my house, they called to find out how my journey went? The day after, when I was leaving Funtua for Katsina, they called me. And I told them I had left and they still contacted me because they were worried about these two leaders in government custody.

But it is like my visit to the bandits’ hideout is paying off. Last Sunday, their women, I learnt, went to Dandume market unlike before. In the past, people will attack and kill some of them anytime they came. But they went there, sold their Fura da Nono and went back home safely. So that is an achievement. What is left is for government to initiate a dialogue with them and their neighbouring communities.


You made us to understand why some of the communities also contribute to why the bandits attack them?

Initially, some of these communities were releasing information to security agencies about how to attack them. Some of the communities will also attack them physically and they had this quarrel over farmlands. It’s something that built up over the years. So that is why they are attacking the communities and there is one community that had been destroyed when I visited their hideout. When I asked why the community was attacked, they said the people there were interfering with their activities.

My worry is that you will see a boy of 14 years carrying a gun under the influence of drug. And what you should ask yourself is, where are they getting these guns? I even told their leader that “I hope when I am going you will give one AK47”. He laughed and said “if I give you, security agents will hold you on the way”. He said that secondly, it is too expensive as they used to buy each of the guns for N750, 000 but he did not tell me from where they were buying the guns.

If government makes peace with the bandits, the issue will be how to mop up these guns they are carrying…

The guns may move to another group. Another kind of threat may arise. So they told me that they were worried, that whenever they come to town, people attack them. Now, because of the agreement they reached with the communities, they no longer kidnap, commit armed robbery and rustle cattle. They are confined to one area.

They no longer kidnap for ransom or do armed robbery or cattle rustling, so they have some kind of cash crunch now. And that is why the leader said that there is a limit to which they can control the youth under them because they as leaders know how to bypass and get cash. But these youths when they are pressed, they can go back to their old ways. And that is why government has to come in quickly and use experts to address the situation.

If you say government should come in, can you be specific?

Let government quietly facilitate peace agreement between them and the local communities. It is very important. And let government have their confidence and let them give up the arms in their possession. Because their major fear is if they give up the arms, other groups and local communities may attack them. And that is why they are still holding on to the arms.

Even someone among them said “these guns we are holding is a necessity, we don’t like it because a Fulani man is known with sticks. But if we don’t have these guns, rival groups and local communities may attack us”. So, government can come in, get their confidence and assure their safety so that they can hand over the arms. Because negotiating peace without surrendering the guns does not make sense. That kind of peace will not last.


But do you see that working?

It will work. You will engage experts.

Let us look at the amnesty programme in place in Katsina.

We all know how the amnesty was done and Governor Masari recently said most of the leaders that were part of the program were killed. If leaders were killed and amnesty died, certainly you should know that there is something wrong with the agreement. You know these leaders; they may use that amnesty to exploit the youths. And you know the youths, the moment they know, they would say “so you people are benefiting and we are not part of it”. They would go after them and that is why they killed most of them.

So, if there is amnesty, it has to be holistic. Because they said they want an agreement whereby government will go into it with the fear of God because they would also go into it with the fear of God in order to have permanent peace.


But don’t you think if there is an agreement with this set of bandits, another set of bandits would wake up someday and say they want…?

They have link, use the link. Because I was made to understand they have at least four camps in that southern area of the state (Faskari, Dandume, Kankara and Sabuwa all through to part of Birnin Gwari in Kaduna). During the meeting, I was made to understand that three camps ganged up and killed the leadership of the fourth camp and absorbed members of the group. So, since they have a link, if I am part of government, what I will ask this group is to bring the other side so that we engage them. There is no harm in stretching the agreement. In that area, there are farmlands where people harvest 10, 000 to 100, 000 bags of maize.

So, if there is no farming there, it will create food security problem. So, no amount of time and resources is too much to restore peace in the area. And even if you go into agreement with these people, in the past, we were looking at them as spirits but now we know who they are, we know their leadership and how they operate, and that is useful to government. Because if I as an individual could go there and ask questions and they responded, I believe they would open up to government.

Because before I left the camp, I advised them that whenever they were going into discussion with government, they shouldn’t hesitate to table all their grievances so that government can look at them. And that is the only way, because you don’t use security agencies; if you say you will leave it like this and use naked power to coerce them, definitely, you are endangering the lives of the rural communities and their economic base.

Because about 99 to 100% of people living in that area depend largely on farming, and if they cannot go to farm for fear of bandits, what do you expect during harvest season? Certainly, another security threat will crop up. So, this is the situation. Government can engage experts (in banditry and community relations, negotiations, disarmament) and let them give advice.

Look at what they did in Dunbun Muazu. Formerly you could not see a vehicle travelling from Dandume to Birnin Gwari because bandits will attack and kill them but when I visited the hideout, I saw a lot of vehicles carrying firewood in the bush.

Another thing is to ask the imams to make announcement after prayers that nobody should attack these Fulani people. Government should build on that because there are mischief makers. It’s not all bandits that have interest in peace and even among the vigilantes. The vigilante leader, Alhaji Lawal Tsoho, told me that even among his people, there are those who are not happy with peace agreement because some are benefiting from the situation.


So what should be done in that regard?

What should be done is to get the leaders talking. If somebody is protesting against something that will benefit the society, maybe he doesn’t understand the context. Such people should be allowed to express themselves.


Lastly, what is the distance between the camp of the bandits and the town?

It is a deep forest. It will take you like an hour because it is a rough terrain, narrow path. There were farmlands. But between the farmlands, you see a narrow path. And even if you have motorcycle, they will not allow you to ride into their camp.

That is why when I was leaving where they picked me up, I had to drop my ID card inside the car so that I will not give them any room for suspicion. Because while there, anything could have happened. So you don’t give room for suspicion.

It is large expanse of forest with thatched roof houses. That’s how they live with their cows.


What about food?

They have people who supply food to them because they hardly come to town.


Was there telephone network in the forest?

Yes, I was there when somebody called me. There was network. No service failure.


How do they get their bullets?

I understand they buy each bullet for N1, 000. And most of them were carrying about 200 each in their bags.


Did they tell you how they get it?

Our borders are porous. This is a forest from which you can reach as far as Central Africa, East Africa, Libya, North Africa and Mali without coming to the main road.


And you said they are normal humans?

They are normal human beings because we joked, played and laughed together. In fact, when you are in their midst, you will feel comfortable and safe. They talk to you, no harsh words. Because when the leader spoke to me, I couldn’t look at his face but when we were about to start talking, he told me he knew me in Katsina. I was shocked when he told me he knew me as a journalist in Katsina at a time he and some of his colleagues were arrested, paraded and freed.

When I was going, I didn’t tell anybody; not even my wife. It was when I came back that I told her.

Did you see victims in their camp?

No, no. I didn’t see any victim. Maybe they hid them.

Adamsi Tar is the Borno State Commandant, Vigilante Group of Nigeria. In this interview with DOGARA BITRUS, he laments his group’s inability to get government’s support to confront the Boko Haram insurgents


What is your name?

My name is Adamsi Tar. I am the Borno State Commandant Vigilante Group of Nigeria. I have been a hunter for over 20 years. There is no bush in this area that I don’t know.


What is the nature of your operations as vigilantes?

As vigilantes we are mainly hunters who specialise in hunting animals in the bush. We operate in thick forests. We don’t hunt in nearby bushes; we gather ourselves in large numbers and embark on hunting tour to forests; we can stay in the bush for three months without coming to the town. We eat the animals we kill as food. We can travel as far as 150 kilometres in the forest for hunting activities.


Who are the members of your organisation and how do you recruit members?

In Maiduguri and Jere local government areas alone we have over 1,000 registered hunters who converge on this office every day. We bring them here to brief them on how to go about their operations and also to address issues brought before us. Our members are purely hunters who either inherited the profession or learnt it and make it their means of livelihood. Before we accept you, we do a fact check on you based on the information given to us, after the background check, we give them identity cards and make them swear to the holy Qur’an that they will not sabotage our efforts. We also put our members through fortifications of different kinds to provide protection against spirits and evil forces. Though we know protection comes from God, we also need to be conscious because we know the challenges we encounter in those bushes, so we don’t want to take anything for granted.


It is believed that Boko Haram terrorists live in forests within Borno State; have you ever had an encounter with them?

Thank you for this question. You see, these terrorists are human beings like us, they have breath like us, they have features similar to ours, so, I will tell you boldly that we are not afraid of them. There is nothing they have that we do not have except of course their thirst for human lives and the criminality they are known for. Before the issue of engaging vigilantes and Civilian Joint Task Force, we were already working in tandem with the state Ministry of Works. These criminal elements of Boko Haram were vandalising electric armoured cables, stealing them and making life unbearable; that was between 2010 and 2014 during the peak of the insurgency. We apprehended so many of them, but the commissioner abandoned us and severed ties with us.

Coming back to your question, first I have to tell you that we have members across the 27 local government areas of the state; we have been combing the bushes in hunt of these insurgents, there was a time we spent over 90 days in Chibok when the Chibok girls were kidnapped. We were contacted and taken to the town; on getting there we were told a pastor and three women were kidnapped, we went in search of the kidnappers and fortunately we met them, after exchanging fire with the terrorists for hours we eventually rescued the pastor. Though seven of our men were killed in that operation, we succeeded in rescuing the kidnapped victims. We are ready to take the fight to the insurgents in their enclaves. Are they not human beings? Is it not one life they have? If all these are true, then we can finish them within a short time if given the chance.


So why have you not been able to engage them?

You see, you cannot just engage them without arms and ammunition. We don’t have vehicles to aid our movement into the bush. There is the issue permission too from the state government; so many bottlenecks that are hindering us. Since the coming of this present administration, we have sent emissaries to the governor to register our preparedness to lead the fight against the Boko Haram terrorists but up to this moment we have not heard anything from the governor. We have written letters to the governor, we have followed up with his commissioners and even the Shehu, we paid him a visit on this matter and all they keep telling us is that the governor will grant us audience soon. We have also written to the elder brother of the governor, soliciting his assistance to get us to meet with the governor and register our desire to engage these bastards, all we want from the governor is for him to give us vehicles and if possible pump-action or double-barrelled guns and leave the rest to us. I assure you we can rout those insurgents within two months. Who are they? We don’t fear them. They are not more than ants to us, we are well fortified, nothing can pierce our bodies so long as we do not touch anything evil.


Why has it been difficult for the military and vigilantes to defeat Boko Haram all these years?

I don’t know for the military but for the vigilantes, I can tell you without fear of any repercussions that all those people parading themselves as vigilantes are political thugs who are feeding fat on government largesse. Yes, the governor has genuine intentions to end this insurgency but the handlers of those Civilian JTF are playing politics with the whole thing. Let me tell you, those boys cannot go into the bush to engage the Boko Haram, they only use the vehicles given to them to patrol within the town, they don’t go into bushes where the Boko Haram insurgents are hiding.

The other time we were summoned to the state university by Governor Zulum and were told we would be given bags of rice, semovita and food condiments; but as we speak, we have not received a single grain in respect of that pronouncement. This is how they have politicised and hijacked the efforts of His Excellency. They have succeeded in blocking us from having audience with the governor to give him our commitment to fighting the insurgents. We are not requesting for money or any personal favour, we only want His Excellency to provide us with logistics and see what we will do to those terrorists; we will catch them like flies, one after the other and bring them to him in the full glare of everybody, let him just try us. If we fail, we ask him to do anything he wishes to do to us as punishment but I can assure you that we will never fail him and the state.


The governor has said Nigeria needs mercenaries to win the Boko Haram war. What do you think about this?

How can you bring in someone from a different place to come and put your house in order for you when he doesn’t know the terrain? That person will definitely fail because the terrorists we are talking about here are locals that know the place so well and can dispatch any stranger at anytime. Sometime back, the state government engaged the services of a mercenary from Bauchi State, he came to the state and requested for the services of some of our hunters which we obliged him but due to a breakdown in agreement the boys backed out and we later learnt he went missing. Different reasons have been given for his disappearance; some say he was kidnapped by the terrorists, others say he has been executed by the same terrorists. But over and above all, his mission was not successful and this was largely due to his lack of knowledge of the terrain. So, if mercenaries are hired, how will they be able to carry out their mandate without adequate knowledge of the area? It will still be an effort in futility as they may end up not achieving the desired result. Instead of engaging mercenaries, I encourage the government to provide us with logistics, give us an area of responsibility and give us a dateline and see if we will deliver or not. I am not bragging, but we will smoke out all those Boko Haram fighters from the enclaves with our local guns. This is our state, this is our country, nobody can claim to love our state more than us and no one can guarantee the security of our state more than us; all we are asking for is are logistics, we don’t even want any kobo from the government; let the governor just give us the benefit of the doubt and see how we will smoke the insurgents out within two months.


What is your thought about the recent massacre of over 43 rice farmers in the state?

That incident is one incident that caught everyone by surprise because we were all at the polling unit trying to vote when that incident happened. I cannot say anything different from what is already in the public space. Kwashebe is a village that has been deserted for a long time which the terrorists have been using as an abode. So, that they were able to slay such number of people without any disturbance goes to show how those terrorists have capitalised on our collective fears as a people because how can Boko Haram gather such a large number of people and kill them without any resistance from the victims? See, we need to educate our people to learn to overcome their fears and take the security of their lives into their hands. If those slain people had attempted to fight those insurgents, the situation wouldn’t have been that bad. I am sure there would have been casualty on the side of the Boko Haram too. But the people have developed this fever pitch fear at the mention of the name Boko Haram and it is working to the terrorists’ advantage. You will see two, three Boko Haram insurgents come to a place, kill people and loot property and leave without any obstacle. Why? Because they have succeeded in putting fear in the mind of our people. So, if we are given the chance to face these terrorists, we will show the people that they are no more than ordinary criminals because we will expose their lapses.


Governor Babagana Zulum says government should enlist the civilian JTF as soldiers to fight Boko Haram. Are you in support of this?

We don’t need to join the military to fight the Boko Haram. Let the government give us arms and ammunition and see wonders. Joining the Army or police is not the issue at the moment. Let them mobilise us and provide us with adequate equipment, then give us a timeline of six months and wait for the outcome of our operation. How can we be so careless to allow these terrorists collect guns from us? That is embarrassing.


The governor recently revealed the hideouts of the Boko Haram insurgents in Sambisa forest. Why can’t the military and vigilantes go there?

I told you we the vigilantes are local men with local guns. The military has aircraft; they have sophisticated weaponry that can be used to fight the terrorists. We don’t have any of such weapons. If we say we are going to face them at their hideouts how do we transport ourselves to that place? Before we get there they might have got information and run before we get there, so that is the challenge. But if we can be well equipped, we will finish them, no matter their numbers.

The Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission COVID-19 Palliatives Distribution Committee, Chief Sobomabo Jackrich, has alleged that some underprivileged people in the Niger Delta region rejected the rotten food items distributed to them by the sacked Interim Management Committee of the NDDC because they could be poisonous.

He also alleged that the sacked IMC team, led by Prof Kemebradikumo Pondei, stage-managed the distribution of the food and medical items it claimed to have purchased with the N6.2bn approved for the indigent residents of the region, as palliatives by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd).

Jackrich’s allegations were contained in a petition he and other members of his committee presented to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, a copy of which was obtained by our correspondent on Friday.

According to the document, the petitioner said he was officially inaugurated along with members of his committee on May 6 to oversee the distribution of palliatives in the nine Niger Delta states.

He added that his committee was made up of directors in the commission covering the nine states.

The petitioner said, “The palliatives distribution was officially flagged off (sic) in Port Harcourt on May 21, 2020 with the mandate to commence distribution. Today, all of that can be regrettably described as a show of shame and a scam.

“The N6.25bn that was magnanimously approved by Mr President to help the poor and indigents of the Niger Delta during the difficult period of the pandemic as palliatives has curiously been allegedly misappropriated and embezzled by the IMC of the NDDC and their co-conspirators.

“As the Chairman of the PDC, my findings are not only that the money cannot be accounted for, but there was nothing on the ground to show that that N6.2bn of our hard-earned taxpayers’ money was invested for its original purpose which the President approved.

“The materials and supplies, according to the statement, were to be done through Emergency Procurement method as provided in Sections 42(b) (c) and 43 of the Public Procurement Act, 2007 but the Procurement Act was not complied with, particularly Section 43 Subsection 3 and 4.”

Jackrich alleged that though the palliatives were meant for the indigent and the poor, just a handful of food items, “though staged-managed,” were provided and distributed to an insignificant number of persons in the Niger Delta states under a “camera-party.”

According to him, some of the food items were politically shared among the “IMC choice areas,” including states of choice which aligned with them politically, allegedly to undermine the original essence of the palliatives approved with taxpayers’ monies.

“As the chairman of the PDC, I cannot account for the palliatives as my committee was totally sidelined and the IMC hijacked the process because of their secret plots. This happened just because I, as the chairman, demanded for accountability and transparency in the processes, as well as value for money with respect to the palliatives.

“I was handed the template for the distribution of the palliatives wherein it was indicated that nine trucks of food items would be distributed to each of the nine states in the region. However, the IMC hijacked the entire process. They called and handed me few bags of rice and beans just to induce me to play along with them, giving the false impression that the process was successful.

“This appears to me as a cover-up plot (sic). Most of the food items that they claimed to have distributed were spoilt and unhealthy for human consumption. Thus, only the IMC can tell where they got those poisonous and rotten food items from. The next thing we heard, surprisingly, was that the palliatives had been distributed,” the petition read.’’

It added, “I managed to monitor from a distance the charade and show-off since my committee and I were sidelined by the IMC in the distribution processes and (they) left us incommunicado. All needed logistics that my committee was supposed to work with were entirely denied us.

“I am aware that what was distributed under the guise of medical equipment were old goods and wares in the commission’s warehouses which were put on camera just to deceive the unsuspecting public and mislead the President. This too was staged. Not a single kit or COVID-19 test centre was set up by the commission in the nine Niger Delta states.

“The Department of State Security Services, on Monday, August 24, 2020, invited me to meet with the state Director of the DSS in Rivers State. I honoured the invitation without fear on August 25, 2020.

“The invitation which came through a phone call from an operative from the Rivers State Command was said to be in connection with a petition from the NDDC, wherein the NDDC accused me, an appointee of the commission of using the letterhead of the NDDC to petition the National Assembly against the IMC of the NDDC.”

The petition also said, “Whereas the DSS in their wisdom acting on the said petition by the IMC had engaged professionally by giving me fair hearing.

“Obviously, these moves by the IMC was aimed at using state institutions and apparatuses to both circumvent and compromise the process over the petition which is yet pending before the National Assembly.

“The IMC sought to intimidate me from further insistence on justice in the matter knowing that the issues I raised in the petition against them are incontrovertible and undeniable.”

The Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has ordered civil servants from Grade Level 14 and below to work from home.

He also asked the worship centres not to hold services for more than two hours, adding that no gathering must exceed 50 per cent of the maximum capacity of the Venue.

Sanwo-Olu also banned carnivals and street parties in the state, in a statement on Friday.

He said, “All public servants from GL 14 and below, except emergency workers and first responders, are to work from home as from Monday, December 21st for the next 14 days – in the first instance.

“All schools must shut down with immediate effect, and until further notice.

“Night Clubs have not been allowed to open yet. All Night Clubs in Lagos must immediately shut down, until further notice.

“The midnight to 4a.m curfew imposed by the Federal Government remains in place.

“The protocol of ‘No Mask No Entry’ must be enforced by all public places: Offices, Businesses, Markets, Shops, and so on.

“All Places of Worship (Churches, Mosques, etc.) must ensure that no gathering exceeds two hours, and also that no gathering exceeds 50% of the maximum capacity of the Venue.

“A minimum of 2 meters’ distance should be maintained between seated or standing guests.

“All guests and service providers at events MUST wear nose masks/coverings before entry.”

DJ Switch, a disc jockey, has pleaded with the International Criminal Court (ICC) to commence its investigation on the attacks on #EndSARS protesters by security forces across Nigeria.

She was addressing the office of Fatou Bensouda, the ICC’s prosecutor, in a virtual event on Thursday — in the wake of the court’s resolve to carry out a preliminary inquiry into the alleged crimes committed during the #EndSARS protests.

On October 20, operatives of the Nigerian army had opened fire on the youth who stationed in the Lekki toll gate area of Lagos to protest against police brutality. This was as pockets of violent attacks also broke out across the country.

Speaking to the ICC, Switch said: “#EndSARS is a movement against police brutality, which has since become a much bigger movement against bad governance. The reason is simple. From President Muhammadu Buhari downwards, they are all SARS. This is a government that would rather silence and kill its citizens rather than be guided by their concerns and cries; hide COVID-19 palliatives, that were donated, rather than feed its people.

“One that would rather spend quality time with his cows rather than address its citizens. The same government chose to inject rogue elements into peaceful protests rather than protect its people. Yet it chose to cuddle terrorists.

“It is the same government that froze the accounts of protesters and seized passports but cannot seem to trace the accounts that sponsor terrorism. It states in the constitution that the security and welfare of the Nigerian people is the primary purpose of the government, but on the 20th of October 2020, the Nigerian Army sanctioned by the government stormed the Lekki tollgate in the first wave of assault. There was no warning, just guns blazing.

“We were forced to have a crash course on medical procedures, attempting to extract a bullet from the leg of a protester until one ambulance came from the back. So, please tell me, what then was their intention if not to kill us? At this point, we had counted 15 bodies. A few hours later came the second wave of us of assault by the Nigerian police with the same modus operandi, killing and injuring those of us left at the tollgate.

“The same police also shot at us the next morning. This is just one incident. There is Obigbo. There is Nkpor. There is Zabamari and more. The Nigerian authorities under the poor, corrupt, and misguided leadership of President Buhari down to his cohorts: Governor Jide Sanwo-Olu, General Tukur Buratai, Brigadier Taiwo, FO. Omata, Lai Mohammed, and many more have all tried severally to deny these events while contradicting themselves.”

‘Crimes were committed in multiple fronts’ — ICC says it has basis to kick-start an investigation

Rod Rastan, the legal advisor to the office of the prosecutor, said that it didn’t take long after ICC commenced its preliminary inquiry for it to find that crimes within the court’s jurisdiction had been committed on multiple fronts.

“ICC has been examining what’s been going on in Nigeria for a long time. We call it a preliminary examination. It’s a stage where we’re determining whether we should open investigations. It didn’t take long to conclude that crimes were committed within the court’s jurisdiction. Our conclusion was focused on alleged crimes by Boko Haram but, in subsequent years, we’ve updated it to include our findings with respect to the Nigerian security forces,” he said.

“We’re supposed to step in if the national response isn’t effective or genuine. We have always sought to offer threats of the ICC intervening in order to create momentum domestically. If they don’t act to that, we should act. We said we were likely to conclude our assessment this year. And at the end of it, we have indeed confirmed there is a basis for the court to proceed because the national response doesn’t correspond to what we’re looking at now.”

Although he cited the logistic challenges within the court’s investigative team that might force the ICC to reconsider some of its line of inquiry, Rastan said that the court is still working on plans to roll out a formal investigation.

“We believe that crimes have been committed across multiple fronts, almost every crime within the jurisdiction of the court appears to have been committed in one formula bar or other in relation to war crimes and crimes against humanity under our statute. We’re continuing forward planning for investigations. We have a limited capacity, investigating multiple situations around the world. We only have 80 investigators,” the legal adviser added.

“It’s not that we’re looking at an excuse not to do things, but that we also are emphasizing that we also need support from state parties and from other stakeholders to also help the court have the means to deliver what it wants to do. What this means for Nigeria is that the prosecutor will make some decisions on how to roll out investigations.

“If the means do not come, then the prosecutor may have to, for example, decide to terminate some lines of inquiry or complete activities that are ongoing in order to allow the capacity of the office to open investigations relation to Nigeria. These are pragmatic considerations. It doesn’t mean that the office will not proceed with investigations.”

‘Millions of Nigerians are willing’ — Switch assures ICC of investigative aid

Responding to Rastan’s comments, Switch said: “This government continues to fail in doing its duty as what I’d have called an elected government if that was not riddled with corruption itself. I urge you as members of parts of the global governing body to take swift action in ensuring justice is served to Nigerians through your investigations.

“I believe you will find ample evidence to bring charges against the elements in the Nigerian government. Please do not continue to place us on the back burner or say we are not a priority. Do not turn a blind eye to a nation with immense potential to be on the world stage if only these potentials are harnessed and not killed off.

“It is evident the state of Nigeria has failed, our leaders too greedy too corrupt, and quite frankly unequipped intellectually, mentally, and physically to protect Nigerians or move the nation anywhere. If it is indeed true that the first lady of Nigeria, Aisha Buhari, can relocate to Dubai citing insecurity in the presidential Villa, the most secure building in Nigeria, then I asked where do we the average Nigerian go?

“I can assure you millions of Nigerians are willing to help provide all you may need to reduce the potential burden on this request. Nigeria is sitting on a keg of gunpowder because of all the things that we have been deprived of.”

Others who spoke at the virtual event are Agnès Callamard, UN’s special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings; Netsanet Belay, Amnesty International’s research director; and Hamsatu Allamin of the Nigeria stability and reconciliation program (NSRP).

The ad hoc workers engaged in the grass cutting project have filed a suit against Josmon Technologies Ltd and Rholavision Engineering Ltd, a company linked to the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal.

Mr Lawal and six others were previously facing charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja over an alleged fraudulent N500 million grass-cutting contract.

The other defendants are Hamidu Lawal, Suleiman Abubakar, Apeh Monday and two companies; Rholavision Engineering Ltd and Josmon Technologies Ltd.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had accused them of fraud, criminal conspiracy and diversion of N500 million from the federal government.

The EFCC alleged that Mr Lawal, while he was the SGF, converted and awarded cumulative proceeds of grass cutting contracts worth over N500 million to companies he had interests in.


Fresh trouble for Mr Lawal

In a fresh move, the ad hoc workers, numbering 998, sued the companies at a High Court, in Yobe State, demanding their outstanding payment.

They told the court that they cleared 230 kilometres waterways blocked by typha grass from Jigawa State to Yobe, leading to Chad.

The workers are suing the two companies and three other persons for refusing to pay their money after completing the work.


Clearing the blocked waterways from Jigawa to Yobe leading to ChadThe Ad hoc workers moving debris from the waterways.

In a suit number YBS/HC/NG/170C/2020, the workers are claiming the sum of N140m as their outstanding payment, which the defendants have refused to pay.

The plaintiffs claimed that they agreed with the defendants to do the work at N756, 000k per km and that the defendants have paid 200,000 per km amounting (238km) N47.6m while an outstanding balance of N132, 328,000 is yet to be paid.

The supervisors of the project, who happened to be the 1st and 2nd plaintiffs in the suit (Abubakar Umar-Maigari and Hassan), claimed that the defendants agreed to pay the N50,000 per km, amounting to N11.9M.

What baffled the plaintiffs and even compelled them to approach the Court is that the defendants, after paying 20 per cent of the money, promised the plaintiffs to pay the remaining balance as soon as North-East Commission releases funds.

However, at the Senate Committee investigating the grass cutting scandal, the defendants told the committee of having paid the entire money for the job a development, which baffled the plaintiffs, thus, seek court redress.

The workers approached the court on December 8 in Nguru, Yobe State.

The presiding judge, Inusa Buzi, adjourned the case to January 26, 2021, for hearing.

Boko Haram recruited three local gangs in northwest Nigeria to kidnap hundreds of schoolboys on its behalf, security and local sources said Wednesday.

The jihadist group has claimed responsibility for Friday's attack, which targeted a secondary school in the town of Kankara, in Katsina state.

But sources told AFP the operation was carried out on Boko Haram's orders by a notorious local gangster called Awwalun Daudawa.

The 43-year-old worked in collaboration with Idi Minorti and Dankarami, two other crime chiefs with strong local followings, they said.

Criminal gangs, known as bandits, have terrorised communities in northwest Nigeria for years, and experts had recently warned of attempts by jihadists to forge an alliance with them.

Daudawa "was an armed robber and a cattle rustler before he turned to gun-running, bringing in weapons from Libya, where he had received training, and selling them to bandits," said a security source.

"Over time, he forged an alliance with Boko Haram and became their gunrunner, taking weapons the group seizes from the Nigerian security forces in raids and ambushes and selling them to bandits for a cut."

The source added: "Awwalun Daudawa was spotted in the forest in the Kankara area where he recently relocated and there were reports that he was planning something but it was not clear what it was."

Another source with intimate knowledge of "bandit" activities in Katsina and Zamfara states said: "From available information, Awwalun Daudawa was ordered by Abubakar Shekau to kidnap the schoolboys and he enlisted the help of Idi Minorti and Dankarami."

"After the children were taken, they went across the border into Zamfara state and split them among different gangs 'for safekeeping'. And some of the gangs have been in touch with the authorities for the release of the boys."

The attack occurred hundreds of kilometres (miles) from Boko Haram's stronghold in northeast Nigeria, where it launched a brutal insurgency a decade ago.

The jihadists made a claim of responsibility in a four-minute audio, sent to AFP through the same channel as previous messages from the group.

"I am Abubakar Shekau and our brothers are behind the kidnapping in Katsina," said the voice in the recording, resembling that of the elusive Boko Haram leader.

'Contacts'

Shekau was behind the 2014 abduction of 276 schoolgirls in Chibok that sparked global outrage, but another source said that the two incidents were not immediately comparable.

"There is an ongoing peace pact between bandits and (the) Zamfara state government which the bandits don't want to breach. They have been under intense pressure to release the boys," the source said.

"This situation makes the Kankara abduction different from that of Chibok schoolgirls who were directly in the custody of Boko Haram. This time, the bandits who are keeping the children hold the ace, not Shekau."

The governor of Katsina State, Aminu Bello Masari, said late Monday that the abductors "have made contacts with the government."

"Talks are ongoing to ensure their safety and return to their respective families," he said on Twitter.

The government has not immediately reacted to Boko Haram's claim or confirmed its authenticity, and the number of missing students remains unclear -- 320 or 333, according to two accounts by officials, while locals in Kankara put it at more than 500.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan says the corruption allegations levelled against him could have sent him into political oblivion but God did not allow that happen.

Speaking at a book presentation in Abuja on Tuesday, Jonathan said officials of the current administration tagged him and some members of his former cabinet as corrupt.

Jonathan was in charge of the country between 2010 and 2015. President Muhammadu Buhari defeated him in the 2015 election and he conceded even before the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) made a final pronouncement on the exercise.

In his remarks at the presentation of “Dear President Goodluck Jonathan”, a book written in his honour by Bonaventure Melah, a former managing editor of Daily Times, Jonathan said the wrong perception about him is gradually changing.


“That is the problem myself and some members of my cabinet are still suffering since the beginning this administration when we were all tagged corrupt people,” he said.

“But I thank God that people can come together to celebrate me today. It is God. Otherwise, I would have been completely buried (politically).”

He also narrated how he was advised to sack Aruma Oteh as the director-general of the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) in 2012 to avoid trouble with the house of representatives.

The former president said some of his associates had suggested the removal of Oteh in order to appease the federal lawmakers whom Oteh had accused of corruption.

Oteh, who was at the helm of affairs at SEC from 2010 to 2015, had at the time alleged that the leadership of the house committee on capital market solicited N44 million bribe from SEC.

The allegation had ruffled feathers at the national assembly with Herman Hembe, then chairman of the committee, accusing her of offering him N30 million.

It had also pitched the legislative arm against the executive.


“When my close political allies, advised me to sacrifice Arunma Oteh so that I don’t have problems with the house of representatives,” he said.

“I said I won’t sacrifice any Nigerian just for me to be in the good books of the lawmakers. Rather, I would sacrifice myself. I took that decision because I was convinced she was not corrupt.

“If I had sacked her undeservedly that may have been the end of her career with the World Bank.”

He also dispelled rumour that he sacked Azubuike Ihejirika as chief of army staff “because of pressures from the North.”

“If somebody is going the right thing, even if you want to split my head, I would not sack the person,” the former president said.


‘MY VISION TO ELEVATE NIGERIA THROUGH EDUCATION’

Jonathan added that one of his core objectives while in office was to bring about national development through the instrument of education.

“My interest was to change the society through education. No matter what we do to elevate Nigeria, without education, society would find it difficult to change. That was my personal view,” he said.

“That was also why I intervened in the almajirai case. We needed to elevate them above that level, because of the many social problems they were causing.

“I strongly believe that if there must be a change in Nigeria, we must be competent scientifically and technologically, because technology rules the world today.”

Against the backdrop heightened insecurity, especially the recent kidnap of over 300 hundred students in Katsina, senators, yesterday, threatened impeachment and suspension of Budget 2021 Bill to force President Muhammadu Buhari to act on the grave situation in the country.

Also, yesterday, the House of Representatives asked the authorities to urgently implement the Safe Schools Declaration to protect children and their teachers from attacks.

These came as Zamfara State closed boarding schools, northern elders, the Peoples Democratic Party, the Sultan of Sokoto, among others, raised the insecurity alarm to a higher pitch.

At the Senate, there was palpable anger as senators took turns to air their views on the deplorable security situation.

Debating on a motion sponsored by Senator Bello Mandiya (APC, Katsina South), which sought investigation into the missing students, senators rejected, angrily, a call to invite service chiefs and Inspector General of Police for deliberation.

They submitted that the country had moved into a state of total collapse and urged the President to take full responsibility for massive security failure.

In his contribution, Senator Olubunmi Adetunbu (APC, Ekiti North) asked President Muhammadu Buhari to remember and fulfil the pledge he made in Chatham House, London in 2015, to tackle insecurity head on across the country.

Buhari had on February 26, 2015 in a speech in Chatham House, said that if elected President, the world would have no cause to worry about Nigeria “as it has had to recently.” He promised that Nigeria would return to its stabilising role in West Africa and that no inch of Nigerian territory would ever be lost to the enemy because “we will pay special attention to the welfare of our soldiers in and out of service, we will give them adequate and modern arms and ammunitions to work with.”

BUT reacting, yesterday, former Senate minority leader, Abiodun Olujimi, suggested that the National Assembly should halt work on the 2021 Budget Bill to compel President Muhammadu Buhari to listen to suggestions from Senate.


She said: “The presidency is not an award, it is a call to duty. And when you call a man to duty, he must be able to know when the buck stops on his table. Right now the buck stops on the President’s table as far as security in this country is concerned.”

She argued that the time had come for the Senate to take drastic action before the budget.

“We must think outside the box, we must hold government accountable because this is the third arm and we are equal in all,” she contended.

Senate spokesman, Ajibola Basiru, said the National Assembly should amend existing laws to empower the Legislature to play serious roles in securing the country. Such amendments, according to him, should allow the National Assembly to mete out sanctions to erring public officers.

Also, Senator Matthew Urhoghide, lamented the failure of President Muhammadu to execute motions passed by the Senate on growing insecurity in the country. He expressed the need to activate Section 143 of the Constitution, which deals with impeachment and removal of the President. He, however, said the intention was not to remove the President but to send warning signals.

He was of the opinion that the Senate immediately begins to gather signatures of at least one third of its members to be attached to its resolutions and sent to the President to make him realise that the Senate has powers to sanction him.

Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger State) urged his colleagues to take decisions that could change the situation, saying: “We cannot continue to be leaders when the people we are leading are dying everyday. What are the police doing? Yesterday, armed bandits were roaming streets of towns buying bread and geisha and nobody said anything. There is need to draw the attention of the President that enough is enough, the service chiefs should go.”


AT the House, representatives asked the authorities to urgently implement the Safe Schools Declaration to protect children and their teachers from attacks.

Adopting a motion sponsored by Musa Sarkin-Adar and 75 other lawmakers at the plenary presided by Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila, the House demanded an expedited action on the safe return of all abducted schoolchildren, from the incidents of Chibok to the most recent one at Kankara town in Katsina State.

They urged the authorities to forward the Safe Schools Declaration to the National Assembly for ratification and domestication.

It further called for a review of the security architecture of the country because of the seeming demonstration of diminishing returns.

Adar (Sokoto: APC) said the security challenges in the country, particularly in the North, were backsliding into the former state of affairs before the coming of this Administration in 2015.

He expressed concerns that the attacks and kidnappings had taken such a dangerous dimension that security agencies seemed to be overwhelmed.

Lawmakers’ reaction came as it was feared that two of the students kidnapped from the Katsina school had been killed by their abductors.

Mrs. Faiza Kankara, whose son is amongst those kidnapped, said one of the students that escaped from the attackers, claimed the kidnappers killed two of the students.

Kankara also said the student told them that while in captivity, they were made to go through inhumane experiences, including being flogged like animals and fed with wild flora.

Governor Masari had, in an interview with German radio, Deutsche Welle (DW) Monday evening, said 17 of the students had been found, and reunited with their parents.

SCARED by the Kankara kidnap incident, Zamfara State Government has ordered closure of 10 border schools with immediate affect.

The state Commissioner of Education Dr. Ibrahim Abdullahi Gusau, disclosed this, yesterday, to newsmen in his office.

He said the hovering insecurity facing the front line states of Katsina, Sokoto, Kebbi, Kaduna and Zamfara could not be overlooked, stressing that in a situation like this “there is urgent need for proactive measure to stay safe”.

He said the schools affected include seven boarding and three day schools,

EXPRESSING worry over the crisis, northern elders, under the aegis Coalition of Northern Elders for Peace and Development (CNEPD) condemned Monday disruption of security and peace summit at Arewa House in Kaduna by some hoodlums.

The elders described the action as heartless considering that the summit organised by the Coalition of Northern Group (CNG) was meant to address insecurity plaguing the north and fashion out ways of restoring peace to the region.

In a statement issued yesterday in Abuja by its National Coordinator, Engr. Zana Goni and National Women Leader, Mairo Bichi, condemned “in the strongest terms the heartless, evil and sponsored well-organised attack on our members and other well-meaning northern groups under the umbrella of Coalition of Northern Groups at Arewa House in Kaduna State, where we schedule to discuss the high-level insecurity in the country particularly the North.”

He said: “We strongly suspect that the hoodlums who carried out the act were sponsored by some highly placed people benefiting from insecurity in the North.”

THE Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad II, yesterday, renewed the call on the Federal Government and governors to end insecurity in the country.

The monarch made the call in Maiduguri, when he led a delegation of the National Council of Traditional Rulers (NCTRs) to sympathise with Governor Babagana Zulum over the recent slaying of Zabarmari farmers.

Describing the killing of innocent people as; “unacceptable with grief,” he also urged the military and other security agencies to take more decisive action to end threats to lives and property.

“We decided to come together as a council of traditional rulers to make this statement to all and sundry. This message is not only to Governor Zulum, but all other 35 governors to please rise up to the occasion.

“You should see how we can come together and fight this menace of shedding innocent people’s blood on a daily basis.”

WHILE the ruling All progressive congress (APC) expressed concern over the abduction of Katsina students, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) condemned President Muhammadu Buhari’s visit to his cattle ranch instead of visiting Kankara.

APC’s Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee Chairman , Mai Mala Buni called on the nation’s security agencies to dig deeper and do better by ensuring that students could go to school safely and learn across the country.

The PDP, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, expressed dismay that Buhari could not cut short his unnecessary holiday and make efforts to rescue the abducted students.

“Indeed, the preference for the welfare of Mr. President’s cattle over the safety of our young students, who are now languishing in their abductors’ den, foregrounds APC’s disdain for Nigerians, for which it should never be entrusted with governance at any level in future,” it stated.

The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Tanko Muhammad has tested positive for COVID-19.

The CJN is presently in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, receiving treatment.

A member of the Supreme Court, Justice Ibrahim Saulawa disclosed this at the unveiling of the national headquarters of the Muslim Lawyers’ Association of Nigeria (MULAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.

Justice Muhammad was absent at the swearing – in of 72 new Senior Advocates of Nigeria on Monday.

His duty was performed by the next most senior Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Olabode Rhodes-Vivour who administered oaths to the new SANs.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday congratulated Joe Biden on his victory in the U.S. presidential election, after Biden won the state-by-state Electoral College vote that officially determines the U.S. presidency, the Kremlin said.

The Kremlin had said it would wait for the official results of the election before commenting on its outcome, even as other nations congratulated Biden on the win in the days after the November 3 vote, reports Reuters.

“For my part, I am ready for interaction and contact with you,” the Kremlin cited Putin as saying in a statement.

“Putin wished the president-elect every success and expressed confidence that Russia and the United States, which have a special responsibility for global security and stability, could, despite their differences, really help to solve the many problems and challenges facing the world,” the Kremlin said.

The gunmen who attacked Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, Katsina state, have reportedly contacted one of the parents of the abducted students.

According to Kadaria Ahmed, media personality, Abdul Labaran, spokesman of the Katsina government, disclosed this in a chat with RadioNow FM.

She quoted Labaran as saying the gunmen have asked the parents to start making preparations for ransom to facilitate the release of the students.

Labaran also reportedly said the gunmen also asked the parent to warn security operatives to stop the surveillance of their hideouts to guarantee the safety of the students.


“Abdul Labaran DG Media for the Katsina govt just told @RadioNow953FM gunmen who abducted Kankara Students have phoned a parent and told him to begin gathering ransom money and asked him to tell the military to desist from air surveillance of their hiding place or else,” Kadaria tweeted.


But the defence headquarters has said the military action will continue despite talks with the suspected bandits by the state government.

When he featured on a Channels Television programme on Monday night, John Eneche, defence spokesman, said the military operation to rescue the kidnapped students is ongoing.

,“You don’t stop whatever efforts you are putting up militarily for what we call the non-kinetic (or) the other approach. No, you don’t stop, all of them go concurrently,” he said.

“For instance, if they (the students) are kept in a place that is known, if you relax, they will slip out. So, all actions are on the table to ensure that we come to a meeting point and the meeting point is to ensure that we don’t get collateral damage in our efforts to get them (the students) out.”

“The troops and other security agencies have been adequately deployed to ensure that they (the students) are rescued alive, that is the most important thing for us. And that is what we have for the general public that there is hope, we need them out alive.”

Gunmen had stormed the school on Friday night and abducted the students.

Fromer senators and members of House of representatives loyal to the national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Hammed Tinubu in the southwest on Monday stormed the palaces of Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi and the Olubadan of Ibadan land, Oba Soliu Adetunji to seek royal support for the former governor of Lagos State.

The delegation led by the chairman, planning committee of the group and a former Minister of state for works, Senator Dayo Adeyeye, said the group, named South West Agenda (SWAGA ’23) is a group of rainbow coalition of like minded politicians in the South West extraction.


Other members of the group are; Senator Rilwan Adesoji Akanbi, Hon. Oyetunji Ojo, Hon. Bosun Oladele, Hon. Rotimi Makinde,Hon. Kafilat Ogbara, Hon. Toba Oke, Hon. Deji Jakande, Hon. Gboyega Okegbemi and immediate past Secretary to Ondo State Government, Ifedayo Abegunde.

Speaking at the palaces, the former minister of state for works, Senator Dayo Adeyeye said Asiwaju Bola Tinubu remains the only Southerner who cut across the country with his structure who could defeat his opponent in his ward, just as the late Basorun Moshood Abiola did in 1993.

Adeyeye said, “The tour is not a political campaign but a sensitization drive.

“The agenda of the group is to call out all well meaning South-Westerners to encourage, market and support the candidature of their Principal His Excellency Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu (the Jagaban Borgu) for the office of the President of Nigeria in 2023.

“Their goal is driven by desire for a common front to push the Yoruba Agenda for leadership of Nigeria.

The former minister said even though Asiwaju Bola Tinubu has not commissioned the group to market him but they decided to embark on the mission because of his contributions to human development and development of Lagos State.

‘I believe the mission’

Reacting, the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi said he was very happy to receive the delegates, adding that he believes in their mission.

Alaafin who prayed for the group said “We Yoruba people believe that you don’t break covenant even if it is not written. We believe that if we do, it will have a repercussion. It is not too early for you to go round.

“In the northern states, federal government said Boko Haram have been defeated but they are still slaughtering people. Your mission is well thought of but I won’t say more than that. I believe in your mission.”

On his part, the Olubadan of Ibadan land, Oba Saliu Adeunji said his palace is opened to all politicians from the south west who wish to participate in the elections.

He said, “I appreciate you all. I am proud of you, if you don’t demand for your right, they many not give you. You will prosper with this group.

“Let me tell you that the doors of the palace is widely opened to all Yoruba politicians who wishes to seek votes.”

A former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Dr. Obadiah Mailafia, has urged the Nigerian Army to stop making ‘reassuring noises’ and do everything possible to secure the release of the schoolboys abducted last Friday from the Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, Katsina State.

Bandits had stormed the school on Friday night and abducted at least 333 students after a gun duel with the police. The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), had arrived in the state on Friday, hours before the abduction took place.


The former CBN deputy governor described the incident as unfortunate, adding that bandits must be treated as terrorists because they are enemies of the state.

He spoke Monday on Arise TV’s The Morning Show monitored by The PUNCH.

Mailafia said, “My heart goes out to the parents who must be going through a traumatising, agonising time.

“The security forces must do everything they can. We’ve heard some reassuring noises from the Army, saying that they have zeroed down on the exact location of the bandits and where the children are being held.

“All those children must be brought back alive and brought back to their parents. This is not a time for braggadocio. This is not the time for machismo. This is the time to ensure that we bring them (the students) back safely.”

On the prospect of a negotiation with the bandits by the Governor Aminu Masari-led government, Mailafia said, “I don’t expect that the negotiations will be done in the open but a lot of underground work must be done and there must be enough inducement and enough of backups.”



The Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress in the last election also advised the Federal Government to approach countries like Russia and Israel for support to combat the terrorism and banditry in the country.

“I don’t know why we have not spoken to Russia. Russia’s Vladimir Putin has found a rigorous way of dealing with terrorists. Putin does not negotiate with terrorists. We should talk to Israel; we should talk to countries that have dealt with terrorism. We should talk to countries willing to help,” Mailafia stated.

The Kankara students’ abduction is not the first in the history of the nation. Non-state actors had in the past abducted hundreds of secondary school girls from Chibok, in Borno State; and Dapchi in Yobe State. Some of them eventually regained freedom while a number of them were detained in the enclaves of their abductors and sexual abusers.

A total of 668 schoolboys of the Government Science Secondary School Kankara, Katsina State are still missing, according to a Daily Trust report.

Armed bandits on Friday night stormed the school and shepherded hundreds of boys into bush.

Quoting the school register, the newspaper said: “One of our reporters, who was at the school yesterday gathered that at the time of the incident, the school had 1,074 students in both its Junior and Senior Secondary sections in session.”

The report quoted a source in the school as saying, “in the junior section, there are six classes, comprising JSS 1A, which has 58 students, 1B, which has 62 students and 1C, which has 64 students; JSS 2A has 74 students, 2B has 79 students and 2C has 75 students.

“As for the senior section, we have seven classes, which include SS1A, 97; 1B, 108; 1C, 106 and 1D, 118. While in SS2, we have 2A, 74; 2B, 79 and 2C, 80, giving a total of 1074 students.”

The source added that both SS3 and JSS 3 students have completed their exams, hence they were not in school during the attack.

The report also said 270 students were rescued from the school on the night of the attack and with the number of those who returned from the bush the following night or those who were reported to have gone home by their parents, the number of those found rose to 406 as on Sunday morning.

The state governor, Aminu Masari, had claimed that only 333 students are missing in the wake of the attack.

Gone are the days when local aphrodisiac sellers were mostly illiterates who wore make-up with loud colours and were often restricted to hawking their wares on the streets or at ‘motor parks’.

In recent times, thanks to the advent of social media, they have now ‘repackaged’. There is a booming market for these products, which is now sold by educated people, most of whom are ladies under the age of 30 but still, they smile to the bank daily.

Top on their shelves is a product called, Kayanmata, among other things.

Kayanmata originated from the Northern part of Nigeria and it refers to herbs or potions that act as sex or love enhancers for couples.

In Hausa language, the word, Kayanmata means women’s things. Funnily, there is a no refund policy for these aphrodisiac products.

The PUNCH highlights the luxurious lifestyle of these Nigerian aphrodisiac sellers.

Hauwa Saidu Mohammed

Known as Jaaruma, she is probably the most popular of the lot as she commands followership of 1.1 million followers on her verified Instagram account and over 42,000 subscribers on YouTube.

Also known as Queen Jaaruma, P Sweetener or The Luxurious Big Girl; regardless of what you want to call her, she is rumoured to be one of Nigeria’s most successful and highly-paid sex therapist

She reportedly founded her business in 2010 and is mostly known for selling a local aphrodisiac known as Kayanmata, among other things.

Jaaruma is known to flaunt her wealth on social media unapologetically. For instance, about five days ago, she announced N1m cash give away via an Instagram post where she was pictured leaning on a yellow luxurious supercar.

Jaaruma is known to give out millions of naira. She once gave a social media influencer, Pamilerin, a million naira for promoting her brand. It was reported that the 27-year-old also gave a former Big Brother Naija housemate, Ella, about N3.4m.

In another video on her Instagram page, she was seen flaunting about N120m. She captioned the video, “AED1,000,000 Dirhams = N120,000,000 Million Naira Make Jaruma’s s€x sound in this video in writing & win N100,000.”

Asides flaunting and doling out cash, Jaaruma is known for showing off her expensive accessories as well, like her diamond ring and designer bags. Most of her YouTube videos also ooze of opulence. Some online reports claim her net worth is about $2m but that is yet to be ascertained.

Deborah Erioluwapo Ajayi

Fondly known as Omoshola, she has garnered over 500,000 followers on her Instagram account. Although part of the bio on her websites reads that her craft ‘is a unique blend of day spa and sexual wellness spa stepping in to meet the challenges of today’s major skin and sexual crises,’ the young lady is known to trade in local aphrodisiac products.

A peep at her Instagram account and one can easily assume that business is booming for the 24-year-old who is planning a tour of West Africa. She is seen in several pictures posing in a private jet.

In several interviews, she has divulged that she ventured into business at the tender age of 12 while she started selling aphrodisiac some years ago.

So far, she sits atop an empire of different business concerns in two cities of Abuja, Nigeria and Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Often described as a sex therapist, Omoshola owns a farm in Karu area of the Federal Capital Territory where she rears livestock. She also owns a body enhancement spa in Maitama area of Abuja, as well as a salon and body spa in Dubai known as HBG Beauty Lounge at the Dubai Investment Park.

Akinola Oluwatomiwa Balqees

Known in the sex industry as Miwa Signature, Akinola Oluwatomiwa Balqees, is another big player in the game.

The electrical engineering graduate of the University of Ilorin is proud to be called the Kayanmata goddess.

In an interview, Balqees noted that her passion stemmed from her parent’s separation after 13 years of marriage. Being a product of a broken home, she vowed to help mend troubled marriages with her business, which she started in 2016.

From her personal Instagram page with about 413 followers, it can be deduced that she is quite conservative but that does not stop the young lady from taking rides in private jets as she has some pictures to show for it.

Although she may not ostentatiously display her wealth via her post on social media, her clothes, jewellery, designer bags and wigs show that she is truly a big girl. A typical case of “if you know, you know”.

A peek into her business page on Instagram, which has garnered over 500,000 followers, one would easily know that business is booming for Balquees. She frequently posts orders, reviews and payment receipts, which range from N100,000 to N5m.

In the caption on one of her posts, she stated that she sent a picture of her in the first-class section of a plane to her mother who simply referred to her as “Miwa Gbajumo;” meaning Miwa the prominent/wealthy one.

The only time she gave the world a glimpse of her deep pocket was in a video post she made on her business page on Instagram where she was seen spraying money on some friends at a party, and indeed she made it rain cash.

Oji Oghenetejiri

Oji Oghenetejiri may have started her business about two years ago, but she is definitely a name to reckon with in the aphrodisiac business.

Fondly called Teji Gold by her friends and customers, the 26-year-old brags of a verified Instagram account with over 200,000 followers.

Not only is the self-acclaimed sex therapist popular in her industry, she also seems to move with popular celebrities. For instance, her Instagram page shows the likes of popular Nollywood actress, Iyabo Ojo; former Big Brother Naija contestant, Wathoni, and Bobrisky endorsing her product.

In a recent interview, the self-acclaimed sex therapist revealed that she dumped her beauty, cosmetics and make-up business and “it was the best decision of my life,” adding that “it is quite lucrative.”

In a video she posted on her personal Instagram page, she was seen playing with money as she kept saying, “I need more of this, more of this,” while she giggled excitedly. She also flaunted her designer bags in a post.

Oji Akponehwe Miracle

Miracle is also a big player in the game despite her petite stature and she has the likes of Nollywood actress, Nkechi Blessing, who recently became brand ambassador to back her up.

Fondly referred to as Mimi by her close associates, another known face, Bobrisky, in a post on her Instagram excitedly yelled, “Mimi is your new plug guys, Mimi is your new plug.”

With over 40,000 followers on her Instagram business page and 5,000 followers on her personal Instagram account, it appears that business may be booming for the young lady who posted a picture showing a bundle of N1,000 notes with the caption, “How my office table looks every day.”

While much might not be known about her background, based on her post, it seems her bank account is fat as she also posted a picture of her expensive bag, as well as videos of her cruising in an exotic car.

Although there have been mixed reactions about their craft and their mode of advertisement via the social media space, it does not dim the fact that these young ladies are not only smiling to the bank, but they are building empires from a trade that was ploughed by the dredges of the society.

By Kazeem Ugbodaga
Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai has gone into isolation again after being exposed to persons who tested positive for COVID-19.

The Governor, in a tweet early Saturday said he had been notified of more positive COVID-19 test results of persons close to him.

He said these included an immediate family member and senior officials of the Kaduna State Government.

He said as a precautionary measure and in line with COVID-19 protocols, he had to isolate himself.

El-Rufai said he would be carrying out a COVID-19 test on Sunday.

He urged residents to take precautionary measures by wearing masks anytime they were going out.

“Malam Nasir El-Rufai has been notified of more positive Covid-19 test results of persons close to him, including an immediate family member and senior officials of the Kaduna State Government.

“As a precaution, he is in self-isolation pending a test by Sunday.

“It is a precautionary measure to abide in line with protocols of coved-19. Wear your mask at any time you are going out and avoid gathering of more than six people. I will report back to you on the test I will be taken on Sunday,” he stated.

El-Rufai had on 28 March, 2020 tested positive for Coronavirus and survived after over a month of being treated in isolation.

The Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Tukur Buratai, has cancelled invitations to his son, Hamisu Tukur Buratai's wedding after a senior military officer tested positive for COVID-19 at the ongoing Chief of Army Staff Annual Conference in Abuja.

Hamisu is expected to get married on Friday, December 11, 2020.

Sagir Musa, Acting Director, Army Public Relations, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.

Musa also announced the cancellation of the remaining activities of the conference and urged all the participants to immediately proceed on self-isolation in line with the Nigerian government's protocol for COVID-19 and to prevent any further spread of the disease.

The statement reads, "This is to inform your excellencies, your royal highnesses, distinguished senators, honourable members, respected elders, friends, brothers, sisters and other invited guests that due to resurgence of COVID-19 pandemic in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja in what appears to be a second wave of infection cycle and the unfortunate incident on Tuesday, December 8, 2020, where an officer participating in the ongoing Chief of Army Staff's annual conference 2020 here in Abuja tested positive to COVID-19, it resulted in the cancellation of the remaining activities of the conference.

"All the participants have been mandated to immediately proceed on self-isolation in line with the Federal Government's protocol for COVID-19 and to prevent any further spread of the disease.

"Consequently, the Chief of Army Staff wishes to inform all dignitaries and other guests that activities earlier scheduled for the wedding of his son, Hamisu Tukur Buratai, will proceed as arranged albeit pruned down without the participation of all those who were at the conference.

"The Chief of Army Staff, on behalf of his family, feels honoured to appreciate, thank and welcome all dignitaries sincerely and invited guests to his son's wedding Fatiha slated for Friday. However, due to the resurgence of the pandemic in the FCT, General Buratai will be unable to personally attend to, receive or meet you at the event. All inconveniences hereby regretted please."

According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, the country has recorded a total of 70,699 confirmed cases, 65,242 recoveries and 1,184 deaths.

Since the second week of October, youths across the country led the #EndSARS protests which were peaceful gatherings to protest against police brutality and bad governance until October 20, 2020, when the Nigerian Army dispersed #EndSARS protesters with gunshots at the Lekki toll gate in Lagos.

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday said the foreign press coverage of the recent #EndSARS violence was not balanced, citing specifically the Cable News Network and the British Broadcasting Corporation.

Since the second week of October, youths across the country led the #EndSARS protests which were peaceful gatherings to protest against police brutality and bad governance until October 20, 2020, when the Nigerian Army dispersed #EndSARS protesters with gunshots at the Lekki toll gate in Lagos.

In a report on the incident, CNN alleged that soldiers used live bullets on the protesters, but the army has repeatedly denied this allegation, claiming it only fired blank shots into the air.

The BBC also showed the footage of the shooting and confirmed that peaceful protesters were shot at.

Speaking during a meeting with governors of the 36 states, President Buhari said he was disgusted with the coverage of the two foreign press organizations.

"I was disgusted by the coverage, which did not give attention to the policemen that were killed, the stations that were burnt, and prisons that were opened. (They said we are all at fault. We don't have the sympathy of anyone. We are on our own)," Garba Shehu, the presidential spokesman, quoted Buhari to have said.

It must be said that foreign press coverage of the ENDSARS violence was not balanced, especially from CNN and BBC. I was disgusted by the coverage, which did not give attention to the policemen that were killed, the stations that were burnt, and prisons that were opened.

Robbers have invaded the Akwa Ibom State Government House and carted away an undisclosed amount of money running into millions of naira meant to pay journalists.

According to internal sources, the office of the Secretary to the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Ekerette Udoh, where the money was kept was burgled, as the thieves reportedly tampered with the locks.

The sources who preferred to remain unnamed explained that the burglar emptied the contents of the Ghana-must-go bag, in which the money was kept and left on the floor.


A correspondent who visited the scene of the incident, met the Secretary to the CPS lamenting, saying it was the first time the money, which has always been in her custody over the years was stolen.

Another source said the chief Security Officer to the Governor came to the press centre a day after the incident to invite the driver to the Chief Press Secretary for interrogations.

“The money came in since yesterday afternoon but they refused to share it to the people it was meant for. So, the thief came in the night and destroyed the keys and gained access to the office of the Secretary to the CPS.

“This is not the first time the government house press centre is being robbed. We have lost about three Plasma Televisions, one at the reception, one in the reporter’s office and the other in the office used by cameramen. In all of these, no meeting, no replacement,” he said.

It was learnt that except at the entrance gate of the government house, no security camera is located anywhere at the centre, as such, tracing the criminal or criminals was impossible.

When the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Udom Emmanuel, Mr Ekerete Udoh was contacted on the incident, he declined to make comments, but rather assured that those who were meant to be paid would get their money.

After being handicapped by law from using an unqualified AIG from the North to replace Adamu, Buhari has decided to promote several commissioners to the position of AIG hurriedly. The law requires that an IG can only be appointed from a position no less than AIG, i.e., only a DIG or an AIG could be made an IG.


President Muhammadu Buhari has engineered a desperate and sectional move to hedge out yet another southerner from clinching a crucial federal position under his administration, all aimed at elongating the Northern grip on the nation’s security architecture.

According to Peoples Gazette, a deep-laid plot to suddenly promote Moses Jitoboh, an Assistant Inspector-General of police from Bayelsa, to a higher rank of Deputy Inspector-General has been uncovered, despite having nine service years remaining and currently not the most-senior AIG from the South-South.

Section Seven of the Nigeria Police Act 2020 (PDF) has positioned Jitoboh, 50, as the only qualified officer to become the next Inspector-General out of all the 24 AIGs currently in the Nigeria Police Force.

The presidency-induced promotion scheme, if allowed to stand, will all but guarantee Jitoboh’s elimination from consideration as the next police Inspector-General; while clearing a dubious path for another northerner to take over from Mohammed Adamu.

At least four sources at the Force Headquarters, Police Service Commission and the State House told the newspaper that President Buhari was part of the strategy to forcibly promote Jitoboh to DIG to make his enduring stay in the police untenable beyond February 1, 2021 — when all his DIG peers will retire with Adamu.

To advance the plan, a Deputy Inspector-General has summarily retired from service under apparently puzzling but undisclosed circumstances.

Michael Ogbizi, from Cross River, handed in his early retirement filings late November, even though he had barely two months left to properly retire alongside Adamu and other colleagues from the 1986 course.

Following Ogbizi’s exit, Adamu swiftly requested for Jitoboh’s annual performance evaluation results (APER) to recommend him for urgent promotion to DIG. Extant police leadership order requires a deputy inspector-general from each of Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones to make up the police management team.

The Peoples Gazette’s findings showed that none of the six DIGs representing the six geopolitical zones in the police management structure is eligible for appointment as IG, having fallen short of the required years of service mandated by law.

The police service records showed that two of the DIGs — Celestine Okoye (Southeast) and Lawal Shehu (Northwest) are due for retirement in December 2020, while Aminchi Samaila Baraya (Northeast), Anthony Ogbizi Michael (South-South) and Adeleye Olusola (Southwest) will retire alongside IG Adamu (Northcentral) in February 2021. DIG Sanusi Lemu (Northcentral) is expected to proceed on retirement in January 2023.

The most-recent police staff list (PDF) obtained by the newspaper showed that there are 24 general duty officers in the rank of AIG. Previously, either of the 24 officers could have been appointed as IG by the President.

But the new police law signed by Buhari in September 2020 mandated that only an officer with at least four more service years’ grace could be appointed as IG.

Twenty-three of the 24 AIGs are up for retirement between January 8, 2021, and March 1, 2023, either based on enlistment or age. Only Jitoboh, the youngest of them all, has more than eight years left in service — twice the legal requirement.

Jitoboh’s status should have triggered his preparation to take charge of police affairs from Adamu, a Muslim northerner from Nasarawa, in two months.

But the President and his associates are loath to accept a Christian southerner of Ijaw extraction with the potential to lead the police for nine years — and are now racing to circumvent the law and pave the way for four northern Commissioners of Police to be the only available candidates for the top law enforcement officer.

After being handicapped by law from using an unqualified AIG from the North to replace Adamu, Buhari has decided to promote several commissioners to the position of AIG hurriedly. The law requires that an IG can only be appointed from a position no less than AIG, i.e., only a DIG or an AIG could be made an IG.

Recent administrations have, however, adopted the convention of appointing IGs from AIGs. Senior ranking officers (DIGs) are summarily sacrificed when a junior colleague is appointed in furtherance of the controversial practice.

There are currently 89 officers in the rank of the commissioner in the police, but only 20-24 of them can be promoted as AIGs to replace the current 24 AIGs. They will either be promoted as DIGs or forced to retire alongside Adamu in February.

But out of the 24 commissioners that the presidency is looking to promote to AIG, only four of them have at least four years left in service. And all the four are northerners.

They are Hafiz Inuwa from Jigawa (Northwest, retiring 2024); Dasuki Galandachi from Kano (Northwest, retiring 2025); Habu Sani Ahmadu from Sokoto (Northwest, retiring 2025) and Bala Ciroma from Yobe (Northeast, retiring 2025).

After resolving that only Northern police Commissioners will meet the legal requirements to become IG out of the 24 potential commissioners to be promoted to AIG, the presidency then sought to finalise Jitoboh’s promotion as DIG forthwith, police sources said.

Buhari’s associates quickly found an ally in Ogbizi, who agreed to proceed on retirement to create an excuse for promoting Jitoboh to become the new DIG for the South-South.

Ogbizi’s sudden decision to initiate his voluntary retirement in late November, when he could have just waited for additional two months when he would be officially due to retire, has continued to unsettle senior police officers from the South.

“We are still shocked that he agreed to such a desperate plot to deprive another officer of his region the opportunity of being the next IG,” a police chief told Peoples Gazette under anonymity over the weekend, adding that officers are still seething about the “messy plots.”

Following Ogbizi’s retirement, Adamu on November 26 asked Jitoboh to forward his annual performance results for 2018 and 2019 within a week, according to a memo obtained by the Gazette.

The Force Headquarters is now preparing to forward Jitoboh’s records to the Police Service Commission to approve his promotion as DIG.

But Jitoboh is not the most-senior AIG from the South-South. Austin Agbonlahor from Edo is scheduled for retirement in August 2021 and should have been the one promoted to replace Ogbizi in the police management team, staff records showed.

The newspaper learnt that the President told Ogbizi that he would be made the next chairman of the EFCC if he agreed to go along with the plan.

A PSC source said the presidency had already informed the commission to expedite Jitoboh’s promotion. But the official said the process would be stalled because there was no basis to circumvent the law to prevent the officer from becoming the next IG.

Quite frankly, we have no basis for ignoring the law because we want to prevent one man from attaining a position in the police,” a PSC official said. “The fight is currently being fought from within.”

A presidency source confirmed that two meetings had been held over the past week on who would be the next IG, and it was concluded that Jitoboh should be frustrated from getting the position in favour of Galandachi.

“I can confirm that Dasuki Galadanchi is the first option of the president to become the next IG,” the presidency source said under anonymity to comment on an internal matter.

President Buhari’s strong stance against the emergence of Jitoboh follows his pattern of nepotistic appointments into top positions, said police reform activist Okechukwu Nwanguma — considering that northerners appointed by Buhari currently fills top military and national security positions.

“The president must immediately withdraw from this plot, and the police council should also immediately reject it,” Nwanguma said. “An IG whose loyalty would be to the law and the people rather than to one man that created a path for him to emerge.”

Nwanguma described Buhari as a ‘dyed-in-the-wool sectionalist’, calling on him to ensure compliance with the law he signed and allow Jitoboh to be elevated to the top police job.

Despite glaring evidence, the President has frequently denied allegations of being sectional, often citing his appointment of ministers from southern states without noting that it is a constitutional requirement for all states to have at least one minister in the federal cabinet.

Yet in 2017, Buhari declined to appoint Walter Onnoghen as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, despite a looming constitutional crisis. But when he fell ill and was flown to London for extended medical treatment, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo quickly moved to avert the crisis by forwarding Onnoghen’s name to the Senate for confirmation.

Barely two years later, Buhari ultimately plotted the inglorious ouster of Mr Onnoghen, a southern Christian, expectedly sourcing his replacement from the North.

In 2018, Buhari oversaw the infamous removal and controversial replacement of Matthew Seiyefa, a former acting Director-General of the State Security Service from Bayelsa. After seeing that the senior positions from which he could appoint the next SSS DG were occupied by southerners, Buhari ignored them to name Yusuf Bichi from Kano, years after he retired from service.

Last year, Azuka Azinge was removed from office as registrar-general of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) on allegations of false assets filings. Azinge was subsequently replaced with a Northerner and was never prosecuted to the purported allegations.

Ex-PenCom chief Chinelo Anohu was similarly booted out of the office and her position immediately ceded to the North.

The Nigerian Embassy in Germany has sacked a security guard, Martins Oni, found guilty of sexual abuse and other criminal activities.

Last month, footage on social media showed Oni in a hotel room half-naked arguing with an unknown person who accused him of demanding sex from females who applied for passport renewals.

The Embassy had suspended Oni while the Nigerian Ambassador to Germany, Yusuf Tuggar­, had ordered an investigation into the incident.

Giving an update on Tuesday, the Embassy, in a statement, said the probe committee found Oni guilty of the allegations.

The statement partly read, “The Investigation Committee interviewed Mr Oni and other witnesses as part of a thorough examination of these very serious charges.

“It concluded that Mr Oni was culpable and in violation of all the relevant codes.

“As a result, Mr. Martins Adedeji Oni’s contract with the Embassy as a Local Staff has been terminated.”

The Embassy, while thanking the public for exposing the unethical former employee, stressed its zero-tolerance policy towards all abuses of office, and especially of sexual misconduct.

When Mohammed Adamu, the inspector-general of police, called 77 commanders of the anti-riot squad, known as mobile police (MOPOL), to a post-End SARS protests review meeting, he got more than he bargained for.

Also present at the meeting, which was held at the force headquarters in Abuja on Monday, November 30, were members of the police management team, counter-terrorism commanders and special protection unit commanders who were brought together to “take stock” of the End SARS protests.

Most of the MOPOL commanders who raised complaints were initially diplomatic — and the message was most likely lost on the inspector-general, who had told them to speak their minds so that the mayhem would not repeat itself.

His aim, he had said, was to study what they got wrong and what they could have done better.

Of the five MOPOL squadron leaders from Lagos state, the epicentre of the uprising, only one managed to speak up, TheCable understands. He told a stupefied IGP that the state police commissioner, Hakeem Olusegun Odumosu, “let us down”.

“The CP did not know what to do. At that critical moment, he was either confused or out of ideas. We were just sitting there, waiting for him to give directives. Nothing was forthcoming at a time that was one of the most challenging in police history,” the commander said, according to an insider who briefed TheCable extensively but would not like to be quoted.

Odumosu was accused of being more interested in protecting Lagos politicians and other VIPs than the public.

“And that he did very well,” the insider added.

The #EndSARS protests, which were aimed at fighting police brutality, went out of control and on October 21 and 22, several buildings — including the palace of the Oba of Lagos, Lagos state high court and media houses — were burnt and shops looted by the rampaging mobsters.

Ajah police station in Lagos was attacked and its armoury looted by the mob. More than 10 police stations across the state were also torched.

Philip Sule Maku, the commissioner of police in Ebonyi state, was also accused of “lacking ideas” when demonstrators swooped on the police command headquarters and it took the efforts of “a few brave officers” to prevent their building from being set ablaze.

Police authorities said 22 officers were killed nationwide during the protests.

‘NO TEARGAS, NO HELMET’

A MOPOL commander told the meeting that the Lagos state police command did not have tear gas, which is the first line of deterrence officers deploy when a mob action is getting out of hand.

He said some officers took initiative and went to the neighbouring Republic of Benin to buy tear gas from illegal markets.

“The IGP was shocked. He asked, ‘You mean there is a black market for tear gas?’ He was incredulous. But things are so bad with the Nigeria police today that Nigerians would cringe if they know how vulnerable we are to criminals and mobsters,” the insider told TheCable.

“In the absence of tear gas, the only option left for us in Lagos was to use live ammunition. It would have been bloody. We don’t have water cannons. We don’t have rubber bullets. We were caught between using live rounds to quell the uprising — which would have brought things under control — or yielding the streets to the rioters and minimising the casualty figure.”

A senior police officer told TheCable: “We have a police force in our country that does not have a very vital operational tool known as ‘tear gas’ in the armoury to tackle civil unrest. The remnants of tear gas in our armouries are all expired. This is just tear gas, not to talk of inadequate bullet-proof jackets and bullet-proof helmets.

“The question then is where is the money and equipment that the federal government budgeted to be procured for the last elections? Nothing was bought or distributed to any command or squadron. We now send our men on Boko Haram operations without the required equipment to fight such a war.

“Another question being asked is: where are the yearly allocations for procurement of uniforms and accoutrements? It is more than 10 years now that I can remember that the authorities of the Nigeria Police Force issued even a yard of fabric to its men as uniform. We buy all these things in the open market from civilians.”

He said MOPOL commanders are allocated as low as N50,000 per quarter to run their squadrons and fund operations, including fuelling and maintaining their vehicles.


‘NO NEED FOR TROOPS’

On October 20, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the governor of Lagos, declared a curfew and invited the military to clear the streets as protesters stood their ground.

At least one death has been confirmed from the Lekki tollgate shooting amidst an allegation that there was a massacre — which has been denied by both the state government and the military authorities.

Adamu was told by the MOPOL commanders at the Abuja review meeting that there would have been no need to invite the military if the police had been properly equipped.

“Every time you hear that billions of naira have been approved for the police, you have to ask where the money is going. We are expected to maintain peace and order and fight bandits and terrorists with bare hands. No bullet-proof vest, no helmet, no tear-gas, no training, nothing,” the insider lamented.

“It will very hard to get a true and holistic police reform without inputs from operational/field commanders and middle-level officers who are the real commanders on ground and therefore know the problems of the force and can also proffer solutions.”

Tukur Buratai, chief of army staff, says spiritual warfare helped prevent deaths during military intervention at the Lekki toll plaza, Lagos state, on October 20.

Controversies have trailed army involvement in the #EndSARS protests against police brutality, particularly the shootings in Lekki.

Speaking on Friday at the decoration of 39 newly promoted major-generals, Buratai said a spiritual warfare seminar held by the army helped in preventing deaths at the protest ground — although there are still controversies on the casualty figure.

The army chief said most of the newly decorated generals are also graduates of spiritual warfare seminar.

“I am glad that we held the Spiritual Warfare Seminar on Wednesday and most of the decorated generals today are graduates of the seminar,” he said.

“I must say that the spiritual warfare seminar we had last time helped us during the last #EndSARS protest to the extent that there was no single corpse, but some persons were seeing double at Lekki toll gate in Lagos state.

“We will continue to protect every law abiding Nigerian anywhere in the country and we will do that in accordance with the rules of engagement and confines of the constitution.”

Buratai said military rule in Nigeria “is over” as democracy is here to stay.

He urged the decorated generals to desist from lobbying for appointments or collaborating with politicians for anti-democratic actions.

“Democracy has come to stay. We will not tolerate any agent of destabilization. The years of military misadventure in politics have never carried us anywhere. It is over,” he said.

“Do not hobnob with politicians. At this rank of two star generals, do not lobby for appointment. If you want to lobby for appointment, lobby the chief of army staff and you can only do this through hard work, discipline and loyalty.

“The crop of officers (39 major generals) decorated yesterday will never be dragged into any interest that is contrary to the sustenance of democracy in our nation.

“All our eyes are on you. We know there are several moves to get your attention. You must make sure that whatever you are doing, and when some persons approach you, you must act within the confines of the constitution.”

A CNN investigation named Victor Sunday Ibanga as a protester who died on the night of the military involvement and linked shells of live rounds found at the scene to the Nigerian army.

The army insisted it fired only blank bullets and did not shoot into the crowd.