₦airaland Forum

By Sanni Onogu,
There were indications last night that the Senate may reject President Muhammadu Buhari’s Personal Assistant on Social Media, Ms. Lauretta Onochie, as a National Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) representing Delta State.

The Nation investigation showed that Onochie’s nomination is among the big issues on the agenda of the Senate as it plans to proceed on Sallah break and its annual vacation.

There were indications at the weekend that Onochie was among issues that have caused ripples in the Ninth Senate.

A senator, who spoke in confidence with our correspondent on Onochie’s nomination and some other matters, said there were doubts about the possibility that she would be confirmed.

When told that it appeared the Senate had made up its mind to clear Onochie for the INEC job, he disagreed, saying: “Never mind all the stories they (the media) are writing. I doubt it.”

The National Assembly has approved a N4.87bn budget for the National Intelligence Agency to track, intercept and monitor calls and messages on mobile devices, including Thuraya and WhatsApp.

The amount is part of the N895.8bn supplementary budget submitted by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), last month and approved by both chambers of the federal parliament last week after increasing it by about N87bn.

The budget according to the Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation, Senator Barau Jibrin, is meant to procure equipment for the military and to fight further spread of COVID-19.

Details of the supplementary budget obtained by our correspondent revealed that the NIA would spend N2,938,650,000 on the Thuraya interception solution, while the WhatsApp interception solution would gulp N1, 931,700,000.

Apart from this, the NIA got additional N129m to enable its personnel embark on foreign training.

The Defence Intelligence Agency, on its part, got a capital vote of N16.8bn to provide infrastructure, cyber intelligence centre/laboratory, independent lawful intercept platform (voice and advanced data monitoring) and tactical mobile geological platform.

Out of the N33.6bn approved for the Federal Ministry of Police Affairs as recurrent expenditure, the sum of N200m has been set aside to fumigate 19 police training institutes across the country.


The sum of N4.1bn was set aside for the feeding of trainees, while their allowances and salaries would gulp N910m.

Teaching allowances for training and support staff was put at N257m, while monitoring and evaluation of training would gulp N582m.

The Nigeria Police Force will also spend N2.2bn on other logistics and consumables.

In its capital component, the Federal Ministry of Police Affairs will spend N8.5bn to procure ballistic helmets, bulletproof vests and utility vehicles.

The Police Affairs ministry also got N22.5bn vote to procure drones, ammunition, discreet intelligence equipment and other requirements.

The Defence Headquarters got N3.7bn to take care of additional 2,700 troops and execute the Cimic Quick Impact project, among others.

The DHQ, in the capital component of the budget, got N33.6bn to buy arms, ammunition, vehicles, generators, combat motorcycles, communication equipment and clothing, among others.


The Nigerian Army headquarters got a total N 1.590bn as ration cash allowance/operation allowances, petroleum oil lubricants, contingency, monitoring and training, among others.

The capital vote of the Army headquarters is put at N207bn to buy arms, ammunition, vehicles, surveillance equipment, body armour/protection and all classes of tyres, among other equipment.

The breakdown of the supplementary budget further showed that the Nigerian Navy got N5.9bn to fuel capital ships and Helo.

The Nigerian Navy, however, got a capital vote of N157.7bn to procure vehicles, arms, ammunition, power supply, general hardware, body armour/protection, surveillance equipment and other requirements.

The Nigerian Air Force, on its part, got N8.2bn to carry out aircraft maintenance, fuelling and construction of airfield facilities, among others.

It also got a capital vote of N239bn to buy additional aircraft, arms, rehabilitation of barracks, special vehicles and others.

The Defence Space Administration got a capital vote of N43.3bn to provide satellite imaging, cyber security, tracking equipment, drones, infrastructure and vehicles.

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps got a capital vote of N14.8bn to purchase vehicles, communication equipment, arms and ammunition, among others.

The Office of the National Security Adviser got N17bn to complete its counter terrorism centre.

By Abankula


Former Vice-President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar has gone back to school to pick a Masters degree in a university in the UK.

Although Atiku had kept this under wraps for some time, the cat was let out of the bag today by Dr Akinwumi Adesina, AfDB President.

Adesina made this known while delivering the convocation lecture for the graduating students of American University of Nigeria, in Yola on Saturday.

Adesina said Atiku is studying for a Masters’ degree in international relations.

“He loves education and its power to create transformation change”, Adesina said of Atiku, who he described as his benefactor, mentor, big brother, and friend.

“I was joking with him recently and asked why at his age, he had gone back to study for a Masters’ degree in international relations in the UK.

“He told me that he wanted to obtain the degree, so that he could find out why he did the things he did while in government”.

Atiku who was born on 25 November 1946 in Jada Adamawa state, is 74 years old.

He started schooling at the age of eight, attending Jada Primary School.

After completing his primary school education in 1960, he was admitted into Adamawa Provincial Secondary School in the same year.

He graduated from secondary school in 1965 with a Grade 3 in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination.

Following secondary school, Abubakar studied a short while at the Nigeria Police College in Kaduna.

He left the College when he was unable to present an O-Level Mathematics result, and worked briefly as a Tax Officer in the Regional Ministry of Finance, from where he gained admission to the School of Hygiene in Kano in 1966.

He graduated with a Diploma in 1967, having served as Interim Student Union President at the school.

In 1967 he enrolled for a Law Diploma at the Ahmadu Bello University Institute of Administration, on a scholarship from the regional government.

After graduation in 1969, during the Nigerian Civil War, he was employed by the Nigeria Customs Service.

He retired from the Customs in April 1989 and plunged into politics and business.

Following the no love lost situation between the Federal Government and Southern Governors over the anti-open grazing law in their state, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) and the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF) have spoken against the viability of open grazing in modern day Nigeria.

The two main Northern groups in their separate submissions declared their support for ranching as against the reopening of grazing routes being championed by the President Muhammadu Buhari led administration. The Middlebelt Patriotic Front (MPF) also described the decision of the Southern Governors under the leadership of Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, to begin the implementation of anti-open grazing law in September, 2021, as a timely and welcome development. ACF said it was odd for the Federal Government to still be insisting on open grazing at a time like this, even when many of the stakeholders, including Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association, state governments from the North and South have agreed that the best option now should be ranching.

The forum, which also said that apart from the fact that the constitution had given the ownership of land to state governments, wondered whether the Federal Government wanted to start pulling down hospitals, airports and even schools to reopen grazing routes. On his part, the President of the AYCF, Yerima Shettima, said that time had come for the people that wanted to operate private businesses to acquire land and do so, adding that Nigeria was losing people because of the open grazing issue, saying that this was not good enough. According to him, the issue has become a threat to national unity, adding that he is in support of ranching and not open grazing.

ACF which spoke through its National Publicity Secretary, Emmanuel Yawe, told Saturday Telegraph that, “The only solution is for both parties (the Federal Government and Southern Governors) to reach a compromise. The Federal Government cannot recover some of the lands that were designated for open grazing, but are today under use for other purposes.

“The constitution has given control of land to state governors and it is difficult for the Federal Government to get land from unwilling states. Even for states that are willing, how can the government start pulling down a university, a hospital or an airport to make room for open grazing? “Additionally all stakeholders, including Miyetti Allah and state governments – North and South have agreed that it is time for ranching and that open grazing is out of date. It will be odd for the Federal Government to insist on open grazing,” he said.


On his part, Shettima said, “Open grazing, I think is a problem, based on what people are saying. For me, I believe grazing is a private business and I don’t see anything wrong with it. The only thing is let people acquire land and go into modern grazing of animals.

“I believe that it is better than the normal open grazing that we are used to, which keeps on bringing problems to the country. We are more divided now because of this. So I don’t see anything wrong if someone has his personal business, find a way to acquire land and go ahead with it. “They (herders) don’t need to move about anyhow, especially now that it is causing more harm and trouble for the country.

“So, I am not in support of open grazing with the way things are going now and that is why I commend the Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, who has made his position on the issue very clear compared to other governors who are neither here nor there. Let people acquire land for their businesses and do whatever they want to do with it because we cannot continue with this same issue over and over again.

“We are losing a lot of people as a result of this open grazing issue and gradually it is becoming a national threat. There is so much disunity and things are not okay because of this problem. So, for me there is need to change method.” The Convener of the Middlebelt Patriotic Front, Comrade Ibrahim Bunu, while Speaking with Saturday Telegraph in Jos on Friday said the Middle belt is totally in support of southern Governors’ submission to be the solution due to the rise of insecurity in all parts of the country and no region is safe.

“We are totally in support of the Southern Governors’ submission because the matter is giving rise to insecurity in today’s Nigeria. No region is safe because a single tribe is in every state causing mayhem and President Buhari regime refused to take action against them.

“At a point, we keep hearing killer herdsmen, herders and farmers’ clashes, kidnappers, bandits, terrorists and Boko Haram and sincerely the people behind all these are Fulani herdsmen.” Bunu said time had now come that no region is comfortable allowing herders to be moving about its territory because it’s an opening to disaster where people are killed in their sleep.


He said the Middlebelt is solidly in support of the Southern Governors’ decision to protect the lives and properties of their citizens. “Why will some people be allowed to have access to forests that are not monitored or checked? Innocent citizens are being killed daily, kidnappers are everywhere and no action is taken by the Federal Government, this is pathetic.

“The action of the Presidency has taught Nigerians a lesson on the kind of leaders we voted into office. I remember in 2015, when Nigerians were warned not to vote the present administration of All Progressives Congress (APC) into power, but we were so stubborn. Now is payback time for us, insecurity everywhere, bad government and religious favouritism are very clear.

We overlooked the advice not to vote this administration, but we are really reaping the result now,” he said. Bunu however called on governors in all the regions, especially the Middlebelt governors, to take a cue from the Southern Governors and implement anti-grazing law so as to defend the lives and properties of their citizens.

He said over the past months, debt service cost has taken up more than 90 per cent of government revenue.



Former Presidential Candidate, Kingsley Moghalu says the accumulating debt President Muhammadu Buhari has incurred is forfeiting the future of the country’s youths.

He said over the past months, debt service cost has taken up more than 90 per cent of government revenue.

According to him, it means, for every one naira generated in public revenue, more than 90 kobo is used to pay the interest on government’s loans

He, then, advised the Buhari-led government to stop borrowing, adding that further debts will amount ‘to a disastrous debt bubble bust.’

Moghalu said this in a statement he released made available to SaharaReporters on Thursday while reacting to the recent Senate’s approval of N2.3 trillion foreign loan.

“The rate at which Nigeria’s public debt has increased in the last six years is unprecedented, alarming, and unsustainable. From $10.31 billion at the end of June 2015, the total external debt increased to $32.85 billion at the end of March 2021, which represents a 218 per cent increase.

“The total outstanding public debt stock increased by 173 per cent in the same period, from N12.11 trillion to N33.10 trillion. On the average, over N3.6 trillion is being added to the public debt annually,” the former United Nations official lamented in the statement.

Moghalu, a former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, enumerated the adverse effects of the nation’s mounting debts which are underwhelming 2 per cent growth and 42.5 per cent youth employment.

He bemoaned that Nigeria has continued to earmarked funds for capital development to debts servicing.

“This massive borrowing, and the infrastructure investment that has been used to justify it, have grossly under-performed. Instead of delivering economic growth, the economy has been twice in recession, and when out of it, growth has been underwhelming at 2 per cent at best.

“And rather than the debt-funded infrastructure projects creating an ample number of jobs for the citizens, the national unemployment rate has increased to 33.1 per cent while youth unemployment has reached 42.5 per cent.

“Under a scenario of a coordinated economic policy by a competent government, the debt capital outlay would have catalyzed private sector investments and sizeable foreign direct investment (FDI) flows into the economy.

“Public-private partnerships should be the dominant approach to infrastructure development in a country like Nigeria, instead of contract awards that, from information available from comparable projects in countries such as Ghana and Ethiopia, are at best overvalued and, at worst, grossly inflated in their costs. But in the real situation of the incompetence of the government in the last six years, businesses have been groaning and FDI inflows have decreased.

“Over the past months, debt service cost has taken up more than 90 per cent of government revenue. This means, for every one naira generated in public revenue, more than 90 kobo is used to pay the interest on government’s loans.

“It is debilitating that Nigeria is spending so much money that should go to development toward merely servicing the interest on our debt, not repaying the debt. It also makes justifications based on our debt to GDP ratio off-point.

“The country is now on a dangerous, debt-induced fiscal cliff. Put simply, the Government of Nigeria is mortgaging the future of our country’s youth. We have to stop further borrowing and start to manage the current obligations in order to avoid a sovereign debt default or, at best, a costly restructuring. Further borrowing will lead to a disastrous debt bubble bust,” the ex-deputy CBN governor said in the statement.

Speaking on remedies, Moghalu advised the Nigerian government to focus on increasing domestic revenue and also introduce tax reforms that would make paying taxes convenient and also eliminate multiple taxation.

“As alternatives to debt, the government needs to focus on increasing domestic revenue, by expanding the tax base – not by increasing tax rates as has been done with the value added tax (VAT) – and by introducing reforms for ease of paying taxes while abolishing multiple taxation.

“Taxation requires the government to maintain a social contract with the people. At the minimum, the government must restore security to the country so that citizens can go about their business, assured of their safety.

“When I ran for president in 2019, I said I would introduce a forensic audit of the budgets if elected, as part of a broader reform initiative for transparency and accountability in public finance.

“This remains very important for ensuring value for money and to support public revenue growth by restoring investor confidence in the economy. To realise a positive long-term public revenue outlook, the economy must be successfully diversified through value-added exports,” the statement added.

A female police officer, Caroline Kangongo has murdered two men believed to be her estranged lovers and fathers of her two kids in Kenya.

Corporal Caroline is largely suspected to be on a revenge mission against those she believes were responsible for breaking her heart.

According to reports, the first victim was her colleague, Constable John Ogweno from Kasarani police station, Nakuru County.

John was allegedly her long time lover and the father of one of her kids.

The second victim, Peter Ndwiga Njiru, was a 32- year- old man from Embu.

Caroline had reportedly lured Peter into having a good moment with him at Dedamax Hotel in Ruiru, Kiambu County.

According to the receipt, she booked room no. 107 with Kshs 3, 020 at around 3: 30 pm carelessly giving her ID details.

After a long moment of pleasure, Caroline moved out of the hotel hurried at around 12 midnight lying to the receptionist that she is going to the shop.

In the morning, the hotel attendants became suspicious and decided to check the room only to find Peter lying dead on the bed with a bullet hole on the head which entered on the right ear and exited on the left ear. One empty spent cartilage of 9mm was found in the room.

A wallet containing a national identity card with the names Peter Ndwiga Njiru, Embu male adult aged 32 years and car keys with a holder written toyota probox KDB 506U was found in his pockets.

Peter is alleged to be the lover of Caroline for a very long time and is also suspected to be the father of the other kid.

The Police Service Commission (PSC), Thursday, announced the promotion of a total of 332 senior officers to the next ranks, as well as confirmation of the acting appointments of three Deputy Inspectors General (DIGs) of Police.

While 24 Commissioners of Police (CPs) were promoted to the rank of Assistant Inspectors General of Police (AIGs), a total of 35 Deputy Commissioners of Police were elevated to the rank of CP.

The PSC, which made the disclosure in a statement by its spokesperson, Mr. Ikechukwu Ani, said it declined the promotion of suspended Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ibrahim Magu, pending clearance from the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation (OAGF) and Minister of Justice, as well as that of the Inspector General of Police.

The development comes few days after reports of possible promotion of Magu, who is a CP, to the rank of AIG, surfaced online, forcing reactions from some individuals and groups, including the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). According to the statement, the decisions were the highpoints of the commission’s 12th plenary meeting held on Tuesday and Wednesday. Apart from the CPs and DCPs, the Commission also approved the elevation of 52 Assistant Commissioners of Police (ACPs) to DCPs, 46 Chief Superintendents of Police (CSPs) to Assistant Commissioners, 10 Superintendents of Police (SPs) to the next rank of CSP, among others. “The Commission also approved the promotion of 24 Commissioners of Police to the next rank of Assistant Inspectors General of Police.

“The Commission, however, declined the promotion of CP, Ibrahim Magu, former Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) pending clearance from the office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice and the Office of the Inspector General of Police.

“Similarly the Commission approved the promotion of 35 Deputy Commissioners of Police, to the rank of Commissioners, 52 Assistant Commissioners of Police to Deputy Commissioners and 46 Chief Superintendents of Police to Assistant Commissioners.”

The government had on June 4, 2021, announced the suspension of Twitter two days after the platform deleted a tweet by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), which many users found offensive.

Three weeks after the suspension, on June 22, the President set up a committee consisting of five ministers to negotiate with Twitter.

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, was appointed as the head of the committee. Others appointed include the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami; the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyema; the Minister for Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola(SAN), the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo (SAN),and the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN).

However, nearly three weeks after the committee was set up, it was learnt that the negotiations had yet to begin.

Malami’s spokesman, Dr Umar Gwandu, however, said all was set for negotiations to begin.

He said, “The negotiations have not started yet. The process for negotiation has started by the formation of the Federal Government’s committee.”

“The process is ongoing. The public will be properly informed through the media at the appropriate time when resolutions are reached.”

An inquiry, which was sent to Twitter on Wednesday, had not yet been responded to as of press time.

AHMED OLUWASANJO

Nigerian justice minister Abubakar Malami has been fingered using his official privilege to secure federal jobs at the National Industrial Court for his northern protégés.

Mohammed Lameer Sani Gado, Shuaibu Ahmed, and Abdulhadi Usman Bayaro were the beneficiaries of Mr Malami’s high-profile connection.

Making what appeared as nepotistic appointments public, an overly excited Mr Gado, who hails from the same state (Kebbi) as the justice minister, disclosed on his Facebook page that the appointment letters were issued on June 24, 2021, and took effect on June 30, 2021.

“Our sincere gratitude goes to the Almighty for making it a reality. Today Friday, 25.06.2021, we received our offer of provisional appointment with the national industrial court,” Mr Gado wrote.

Thanking the Attorney general for using his office to facilitate their appointments at the court, Mr Gado added, “Our sincere appreciation goes to Attorney General Abubakar Malami, who is solidly behind this. May Allah reward you with jannatul firdausil Aalah, Amin.

“The three of us are Mohammed Lameer Sani, Shuaibu Ahmed, Abdulhadi Usman Bayaro.”

In the letters seen by Peoples Gazette, Messrs Gado, Bayaro, and Ahmed all had the Federal Ministry of Justice Abuja as their address.

While the court offered Messrs Gado and Bayaro appointments as ‘assistant executive officer,’ Mr Ahmed was employed as ‘assistant data processing officer’ at its Sokoto division.

“Your appointment will take effect from 30th June 2021 and you are accordingly advised to report to the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, Sokoto Judicial Division at Opposite Federal Government College, Kano Road, Sokoto, Sokoto State for the documentation of your appointment while the authenticity of your certificate/statement of result is being verified,” the letters stated.

Mr Malami could not be reached for a comment on his role in the appointments. The Gazette contacted his spokesman, Umar Gwandu, on whether the justice ministry advertised vacancies for the jobs.

Instead of responding to the inquiry, Mr Gwandu requested The Gazette should forward its inquiry to him via WhatsApp, but he had yet to respond to it several hours after receiving the message.

Mr Gwandu also refused to pick a follow-up call from The Gazette.

In February, The Gazette exposed how President Muhammadu Buhari secretly recruited his new media aide Bashir Ahmad and four others into the Department of Petroleum Resources in violation of the law.

The Gazette also exposed how top NIA job was secretly approved for Mr Buhari’s nephew, Tunde Sabiu, while Aisha Buhari’s brother landed an appointment at PTDF, another top-tier agency of the Nigerian government, despite Mr Buhari’s claim on leading a transparent and corruption-free regime.

The Police Service Commission (PSC), on Thursday, rejected the promotion of a former Acting Chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu.

The Commission said it is awaiting clearance from the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice and the Office of the Inspector General of Police.

The announcement was contained in a statement made available to newsmen by its spokesman, Ikechukwu Ani.

Daily Trust reports that rumours were rife few days ago that President Muhammadu was planning to promote embattled former boss of the anti-graft agency.

The ruling All Progressives Congress APC has said it is examining the recent outburst made by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed against the Kwara state Governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, with a view to punishing the minister.

Chairman, Caretaker Committee of the party in Kwara state, Abdullahi Samari Abubakar disclosed this in an interview Wednesday in Abuja.

He said the party may apply disciplinary measures according to its constitution.

The minister had recently claimed that he singlehandedly bankrolled the election of the governor in 2019, accusing Mr Abdulrazaq of biting the fingers that fed him.

However, Samari said: “I still see the Minister as a member of our party. Because he has not formally told us that he is moving out of the party which I doubt if he will go. He is a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria where the APC as a ruling party is running the administration of government.

So I would not think he will want to move out, but from those utterances he made, the party, APC as a structure has guidelines over issues. If we feel that what he said publicly amounts to disrespect or causing acrimony within the party, honestly, we are going to make sure the rules of the party are applied against him and any other person.”

Asked whether the minister will be suspended or expelled from the APC, the Kwara party Chairman said: “Well, there are guidelines like I told you. If the offence is commensurate with suspending him, or any other, definitely the rules of the party are going to apply because nobody is too big to be sanctioned. We want to have sanity in the party.”

The sanction, Samari said will take place “very soon”.

“There are steps according to the party. It has to start from the particular Ward of that fellow. Then, come down to the Local Government than to the state. So, whatever decision is taken at the Ward, to Local government then to state, it will then be forwarded to the national level for ratification.”

The APC chieftain also confirmed that Lai Mohammed had earlier revalidated his membership of the APC in the state.

“There are certain facts that some of you do not know. When the appeal committee came to Kwara, we met with them. There was this allegation that some people were not allowed to register, but mind you, that was wrong.

If you come in then, the rooms were open. It was just that some people were discouraging others not to come out and register. For whatever reason, we may not know. Let me tell you categorically that Alhaji Lai Muhammed as a minister registered. Quote me anywhere. I can show the date he registered.

“He registered at his ward at Oro, Kwara state. You can confirm that from me. The extension of registration is not a new thing. It is not that the Alhaji Lai group or camp has won anything.

Remember that I also authorized a document that the APC national secretariat should extend the registration in Kwara state for at least one week because a lot of people came into the party. And, we just have to allow them as members of the party whereby they will have the equal rights to take part in whatever is going on during the congresses.

“I authored a paper signed under the leadership of the governor who is the leader of the party in Kwara state, that is Governor Abdulrahman urging the national secretariat to please extend the registration exercise for at least a week in Kwara.

If they are now extending it to two weeks, it is not glory to anyone who wants to claim because we requested for that, and I think the national leadership only acted in recognition of our letter.”

Former governor of Imo State, Senator Rochas Okorocha has said that he gave the name: All Progressives Congress (APC) to the ruling party.

The Senator and Presidential hopeful, who spoke at the National Secretariat of the party in Abuja on Tuesday when he led the Imo APC pioneer group to meet with members of the Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee, also posited that any Congress conducted in Imo State outside the Chief Daniel Nwafor-led state caretaker executive would be illegal.

According to him, Nwafor Exco has won all the cases against its dissolution to the Appeal Court and has not been overturned.

Okorocha, who was in the company of Sen. Ifeanyi Ararume, Ugwumba Uche Nwosu, Sir Jude Ejiogu, Hon. Pascual Obi, Hon. Ugonna Ozuruigbo, Hon Kingsley Uju, Hon. Dan Nwafor, Dr. Chidinma Uwajimogu, Barr. Steve Asimobi, Chief Stanley Nzekwe, amongst others, decried the treatment the pioneer APC members are receiving in Imo State.

He called on the Caretaker Committee to make sure that the party was restored back to its dignity in the state.

Barring any last-minute change in plan, the six governors in the South-West geopolitical zone will meet the Senators and House of Representatives members from the zone in Abuja on Tuesday to discuss the recently passed Petroleum Industry Bill and the Electoral Act Amendment Bill which will be debated on the floor of the Senate during plenary on Tuesday

Governors expected at the meeting include Rotimi Akeredolu (Ondo), Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Gboyega Oyetola (Osun), Seyi Makinde (Oyo), Dapo Abiodun (Ogun) and Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos).

A member of the Senate from the zone, Opeyemi Bamidele; and a member of the House from the zone, Olufemi Fakeye, announced the meeting in a statement on Monday.

The statement was titled, ‘Urgent Meeting Of South West Governors With Senators And Hon. Members From The South West’ .

It reads, “Dear Distinguished Senators and Honourable Members;

“We are directed by the Leadership of the South West Caucus in the National Assembly to communicate the invitation of South West Governors to an urgent meeting of the Governors with Distinguished Senators and Hon. Members of the House of Representatives as follows:

“Date: Tuesday, 6th July, 2021.

“Time: 7pm

“Venue: Osun Hall, Transcorp Hilton, Maitama, Abuja.


The announcement of the meeting was made after 17 Southern governors, on Monday, rejected the proposed allocation of at least 30 per cent of the profit generated by the proposed Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited for the exploration of oil in ‘frontier basins’ as identified by Section 9 of the recently passed PIB.

The bill will regulate the oil sector if signed by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.).

Although the proposed law doesn’t identify the frontier basins, a statement by the President in 2019 identified the frontier basins as Chad Basin, Gongola Basin, Sokoto Basin, Dahomey Basin, Bida Basin, Benue Trough, amongst others.

Currently, crude oil is obtained from eight states in the Niger Delta region which include: Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, Imo, Ondo and Rivers States.

The recently passed PIB has been heavily criticised by stakeholders in Southern Nigeria with the Pan-Niger Delta Forum describing its provisions as “unjust, satanic and provocative”.

The PUNCH earlier reported that some powerful members of the Independent National Electoral Commission panel in the Senate had inserted “a danger clause” into the report of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill.

The report of the committee barred INEC from transmitting results of elections by electronic means, one which was also rejected when Southern governors met on Monday in Lagos.

Ibrahim Magu, former acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), is set to be promoted to the rank of assistant inspector-general (AIG) this week by the Police Service Commission (PSC), TheCable understands.

Magu, who was promoted to commissioner of police in 2018, had been recommended for removal as EFCC boss by the Justice Ayo Salami panel, which also asked that he be prosecuted over allegations of abuse of office.

The panel had specifically recommended that Magu should be removed “for failing to properly account for N431,000,000.00 security votes/information fund released to the office of the Executive Chairman of EFCC between November 2015 and May 2020”.

He was also accused of causing “disappearance of evidence, stoppage and suppression of cases under investigation and prosecution, and omitting to arrest suspects” in cases involving a former deputy senate president and a former MD of Pipelines and Product Marketing Company (PPMC).

Magu was further accused of supressing high profile cases involving four former governors, one of whom is currently a senator.

The panel recommended that Magu should be referred to the inspector-general of police for “necessary disciplinary action”.

However, since the panel submitted the report in November 2020, only a few of the recommendations have been implemented.

A new chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, was appointed in February 2021 while several police officers were recalled to the headquarters.

Magu, who has been in limbo since his probe by the panel, is believed to be in the good books of the PSC chairman, Musiliu Smith, a former inspector-general of police from Lagos state.

Some senior police officers are reportedly grumbling over the failure to discipline Magu, who has always denied all the allegations against him.

TheCable had revealed in August 2020 that the panel, in its interim report, recommended Magu’s sack and prosecution over allegations of corruption and abuse of office.

In July, TheCable had also reported that the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) was preparing charges against Magu.
Abubakar Malami, the attorney-general of the federation, had petitioned the president, levelling allegations of corruption and insubordination against Magu.

Magu was arrested on July 7, 2020, detained and suspended as the acting chairman of the anti-graft agency.

Two popular Lagos big boys, Boniface Odenigbo Amandianeze and Olasunmbo Olawale Winfunke, owners of Buzz Barr, have been arrested and paraded by Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, EFCC, for alleged internet fraud and money laundering.

Winfunke is married to a socialite and a popular Lagos fashion entrepreneur, Tania Omotayo.

The suspects, who run one of Lagos’ biggest nightclubs located on Adetokunbo Ademola Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, were recently arrested at No 2A and 2B Oniru Estate, Lagos.

Buzz Barr, an exclusive premium lounge, which opened for business December 2017, is known for its casual and intimate lounge setting and famous for its strip clubs and exotic dancers.

The commission said their arrest followed credible intelligence it received about their alleged involvement in romance scam, business email compromise, benefit scam, credit card fraud and money laundering.

They are also said to be held due to their involvement in an alleged multimillionaire fraud in the U.S. based on a request by the FBI.

EFCC’s spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren, said upon their arrest, four exotic cars, mobile devices, laptop computers, jewelry and wrist watches worth hundreds of millions were recovered from them.

Further investigations have also established nexus with other associates who are suspected to be into computer-related fraud.

It was gathered that they are facing a likely extradition to the U.S.

However, they have been granted stringent bail conditions which they have been unable to fulfill as the investigation into the alleged crime continues.

They will be charged to court soon.

In the last two years, the EFCC has arrested a number of nightclub owners in Lagos and major Nigerian cities over allegations of fraud and internet scam.

In May, Emeka Williams Kingsley,owner of Glass House, a club in Abule Egba, Lagos, was arrested alongside 14 other suspected internet fraudsters in Lagos.

About a year ago, a 30-year-old Oladimeji Olusegun Ogunfolaju, owner of Lakers Hotel and Lake County Entertainment, and 79 others were nabbed by the anti-graft agency in Lagos over their alleged involvement in internet fraud.

A woman complained bitterly after a stray tear gas canister hit her residence on Saturday during the Yoruba Nation rally in Ojota, Lagos.

She accused government agents of putting the lives of civilians in danger.

The resident, who said she has two kids, wondered how the canister landed in a densely populated area far away from the protest venue.

“I have kids of 8 and 5 years old. Look at…all the way from Abiola Garden. I’m a Yoruba lady, I’m a citizen of this country.

“I did not go to fight at the Yoruba Nation rally, I did not attend. Why should they come and kill me? They threw tear gas, it’s even hot”, she lamented picking it.

“Look at the tear gas that was thrown into my house. What should we say to this. Is this a country? This is wickedness.”

The development coincided with the discovery of the lifeless body of a teenager within the compound of a building in Ojota. The impact on the deceased was visible on the right side of her chest.

Residents gathered and accused the police of using live bullets to disperse those clamouring for the exit of Yorubas from Nigeria.

“This is strange to us. Will find out and revert”, Police Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi said.

Despite Police warning, the agitators found their way to Ojota for the gathering called by Sunday Igboho.

Security agencies have declared the secessionist wanted. On Thursday, the Department of State Services (DSS) advised him to surrender.

The Ojota rally has been disrupted with Police firing tear gas and used water cannons. DAILY POST reported that guns were fired at some point.

Nigerian forces have taken over Ojota, environs, and other areas prone to volatility.

They include Ajah, Abule Egba, Lekki, Agege, Ikeja, Maryland, Berger, Obalende, Yaba, Oshodi, Ogba and Lagos Island.


Video of the tear gas canister found.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjlayEh24WY

Farmers in crises-prone areas are finding it difficult to access their farmlands due to the spate of insecurity. Daily Trust Saturday reports their plight in some of the affected states with many of them saying there would be food crisis if nothing is done to tackle the situation.

In the last few weeks, security operatives have succeeded in reducing the excesses of criminals like the Boko Haram fighters in the North-East, and bandits and kidnappers in parts of the North-West and North-Central.

However, the fear among farmers is that the rainy season is already here and many of the red spots are still not safe for farming activities.


Katsina

In Katsina State, many villages have been deserted due to incessant attacks by bandits. A resident of Sheme in Faskari Local Government Area said, “Though I cannot give you the exact figure, about 100 villages have been deserted, of which some are being occupied by bandits and others burnt.

“In Ruwan Godiya ward alone, we have Shawu, Unguwar Goga, Yantuwaru, Gidan Dogo, Unguwar Nadaji, Hayin Najafa, Unguwar Baidu, Kanawa, Hitaru and Unguwar Haji villages. Some of them are currently occupied by the bandits, and even those that are not taken over by bandits, the villagers cannot go to their farms as they will be chased away,” he said.

He added that in ‘Yar Malamai ward also, farmers don’t attempt going to farms in villages like Mununu, Zari, Kuka Shida, Dogon Fako, Kibai, Bakarya, Liggel, Zarin Dudu and Zarin Kwari, for fear that they would be killed.

“Recently, the bandits were at Unguwar Duna, where they left with the remaining goats in the town,” he said.

Daily Trust Saturday also gathered that the western part of Kankara, especially Pawwa town, has become a safe entry and exit route for the gunmen, who come in from Zamfara State to launch attacks in the state.

The major crops in these villages are maize, millet, beans, guinea corn, sweet potatoes, cassava among others.

The story is the same in some villages in Jibia Local Government, where villagers said they were making efforts to return to their farms but bandits constantly terrorise them.

“Sometimes the bandits ask us to go back to our farms, but when we go, their youth collects whatever we have. When we call the leaders to complain, they claim they are not aware of who did it, but they will find out,” a resident in Jibia said.


Yobe

Some internally displaced persons in Yobe are yet to access their farms for over six years.

Farmers, who make up the greater population of this area, have been forced to abandon their ancestral farmlands, especially those in villages under Gujba Local Government, which was one of the Boko Haram strongholds.

From January, the town suffered six different attacks, leading to loss of lives, injuries and destruction of properties, including schools, health facilities, houses and farm produce.

Most of these rural dwellers depend largely on farming and livestock as their major sources of livelihood. However, they now face a shortage of farm space in places other than their homes due to incessant conflicts in the North-East in recent years.

Speaking to Daily Trust Saturday, Bulama Zarabe, a large-scale farmer and community leader who migrated from Bulturam Kura in Gujba Local Government, said his farm was inaccessible.

Zarabe noted that one could only risk his life to return to the Bulturam Kura axis for farming.

He said, “My prayer is to see that we return to our domain so that people would continue their farming activities, but the location is still not safe because the insurgents are reported to regularly ply that route.

“To be frank, our current condition here is pathetic, only God knows what we have been losing since we lost access to our farms.

“Can you imagine a large-scale farmer who harvested more than 100 bags of guinea in the past not being able to go to farm for six years? While at home, we did not only eat, we sold and generated income, fed our livestock, all from our farm produce. That’s the only business we know.

“I can tell you now that we are forcefully plunged into hunger; we lack food and livestock. We now wait on non-governmental organisations to feed us because we can no longer produce what to eat.”

Another 67-year-old farmer from Bulturam Kura, Baba Dawamami, said his extended family relied on what the older children could bring home from the farms they were able to get in relatively peaceful zones.

“I have never been lazy like this in my life despite my old age. Even my children ate from my produce, with their families.

“We were the richest producers of guinea corn across bigger markets in the state in the last couple of years, but look at what insecurity has turned us into.

“What we are given here is just a piece of land by some good Samaritans, very small in size and not really fertile as ours. So the only thing we can produce here are three to five bags that we can finish within three months,” he lamented.

Kyari Konto Ali, who defied fear and returned to his farm in Bulturam Burin, also in Gujba Local Government Area, lamented the difficulty in accessing farmlands in Damaturu. Ali decided to return to Bulturam Burin because, to him, it was better to die making efforts than to allow hunger kill him.

“I know there are challenges along the routes, but I can’t continue begging for food. Another challenge we face is the flock of herders who are taking advantage of our absence and encroaching on our farms.

“We lost a lot last year. We got only seven bags when we returned to a farm we used to harvest nothing less than 50 bags annually,” he said.

He added that they intended to stay around their farms this time around, but they needed security presence to achieve that.

Apart from displaced persons who couldn’t go to their farms, some residents within the state capital are also finding it difficult to access theirs following the excavation of military trenches that covered Damaturu and environs.

Haruna Matari disclosed that the trenches, although meant for security, were dug through his 20 hectares, thus preventing him from accessing his farmlands for three years. He said the military had declared locations of the trenches as no-go-areas.

He said, “When the security situation significantly improved, they asked us to return to our farms, but it was impossible because our cows, vehicles and other machinery such as tractors could not cross the deep trenches.

“We expect the government to provide alternatives after tampering with our farms.”

Speaking with Daily Trust Saturday, displaced persons appealed to the government to provide them with farms and inputs in safe areas before the full return of normalcy in their areas.

Meanwhile, the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), in collaboration with the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), has pledged to support 6,000 farmers in displaced communities with inputs, including seeds, chemicals and fertiliser.

The executive secretary of the SEMA, Dr Mohammed Goje, said the emergency project was intended to respond to the plight of 500 farmers from Gujba and Fika local government areas. He said about 40 per cent of the project would target women, who would be given improved seeds.


Zamfara

Many farmers in Zamfara State are also finding it difficult to go to their farms owing to rampant abductions and killings by suspected bandits.

For many years, dozens of residents, especially farmers, have been kidnapped and millions of naira paid in ransom for their freedom.

Daily Trust Saturday learnt that the abductions are more rampant around the Jangeme-Magami-Dansadau and Kawaye-Gobirawa-Wuya axis in Maru and Anka local government areas of the state.

In Kawaye district in Anka Local Government Area, about 12 villages have been deserted owing to the series of abductions by bandits in the last four years.

A farmer, Aliyu Muhammad Kawaye, told Daily Trust Saturday that some of the residents who fled their homes were taking shelter in his village before they were displaced by another attack.

“Residents abandoned their crops on farms and fled after suspected bandits and cattle rustlers slammed heavy levies on them as a precondition for peace,” he added.

According to him, most of the people affected were sorghum and millet farmers; hence production of food crops has been adversely affected as many farmlands have remained uncultivated for many years.

“From Daze to Dawan Jiya, Duhuwa and Gobirawa communities, uncultivated lands are a common sight. At the beginning of the rainy season in April and May this year, many farmers were either kidnapped or killed on their farms.

“This instilled fear in us and we decided to abandon the lands. These criminals are everywhere. The moment you go at least five kilometres away from your community you will see them. I fear a serious shortage of food, unless something is done to address the problem,” a farmer, Yunusa Muhammad said.

In Dansadau, a district with a very fertile land for crop farming, the story is the same. The criminals have slammed levies on many farming communities as a precondition to access their farms. Our correspondent learnt that most of the residents of these communities have fled.

“Some of these farmers have migrated to cities and towns, engaging in one form of business or another. For example, the youth engage in commercial motorcycle riding, popularly called okada in local parlance,” a farmer, Ali Kabir said.

Reacting to the development, the chairman the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Abdulhafiz Abdullahi Alkali, acknowledged the challenges and called for more measures to tackle them.

“In Zamfara State, there are five million hectares of cultivable lands and more than two million are uncultivated. In Tofa-Dansadau, more than 6,000 hectares cannot be accessed by majority of the farmers.

“There was a case of a farmer in a community who was kidnapped but freed after millions of naira was paid. That farmer could receive at least 10 trucks of fertiliser for onward distribution to small-scale farmers.

“He was kidnapped after some internal collaborators, including his family members, leaked information to criminals on how he received and distributed trucks of fertiliser to farmers,” he said.


Kebbi

Clearance activities by the military and sister agencies in Zamfara and Niger states have pushed bandits and other sundry criminals to neighbouring Kebbi State.

Findings revealed that farmers are having it tough accessing their farms as the hoodlums are constantly harassing or picking them for ransom.

John Mani, the head of vigilante in Zuru Emirate, said “Bandits from Zamfara and Niger states invaded some communities in Sakaba Local Government Area of Kebbi State and rustled five herds of cattle. In each herd there were 100 cattle. However, no life was lost as they only targeted cattle.”

Humanitarian crisis also looms in the state as over 16,000 households, including farmers, have been displaced in Zuru emirate following the activities of bandits in the last six months.

It is reported that over 20,000 farmers from 50 communities would not be able to engage in farming this year.

“Humanitarian crisis will be at its peak this year because majority of the displaced persons, who are predominantly farmers, will not be able to go to their farms. When food security is threatened you can understand the volume of crisis at hand,” Mani said.

When contacted, a farmer from Sakaba Local Government Area, Isiaku Mohammed, said with the heavy presence of security personnel in the area, farmers had started going back to their farms. He added that out of the displaced people, about 20 per cent had made attempts to return to their farms.

Another farmer who did not want his name in print said there would be a record decline in the production of food this year in Kebbi State. He noted that majority of farmers in Danko-Wasagu Local Government Area would hardly farm this year as the trauma of attacks had affected most of them.


Borno

In Borno State, most rural dwellers, who are predominantly farmers, reportedly fled their homes and sources of livelihood due to the spate of insurgency in various communities for over six years, especially in the northern part of the state.

Thousands of displaced persons have no access to their farms. They relied on handouts from government and interest groups until recently when authorities facilitated their return home.

To avoid attacks by insurgents, those who remained in their respective communities could not go to their farms.

A rice farmer in Zabarmari village, Mikailu Mohammed, said although his village was not dislodged by insurgency, for years, farmers were scared to cultivate their farms in distant locations.

“Dozens of our relatives were last year slaughtered in their paddy fields. This scared off most farmers.

“There is every indication that the attacks on farmers will stop because apart the insurgents’ incursion in December last year, which was immediately repelled by the military, this area is peaceful. Residents have started clearing their farms, with the intension of growing rice and maize, which are the major crops here, apart from vegetables,” he said.

He, however, said the attacks were unpredictable and called on both farmers and troops to intensify surveillance.

Another farmer, Malam Iliya Abdul said, “Most farmers have given up as a result of previous attacks on civilians by the insurgents, including the one in neighbouring Zabarmari. However, even though we do not get farm inputs from the government, authorities have encouraged and advised us to return home and cultivate our farms; and that is what we are doing. We grow cash and food crops,” he said.

Governor Babagana Umara Zulum recently visited Mulai and Dalwa communities in Konduga Local Government Area and also met with security forces to begin modalities for reopening of farmlands.

This was in compliance with Thursday’s directive to the military and other security agencies by President Muhammadu Buhari.

President Buhari, during his one-day visit to Borno said, “I have directed the Theatre Command of Operation Hadin Kai and other security agencies to work out modalities, together with the Borno State Government and associations of farmers on ways to increase safe access by farmers to their farms, forests and fishing grounds.”

In a related development, the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) also flagged off the 2021 rainy season cultivation to help 63, 000 smallholder farmers in the North-East recently.

This is just to counter the report from the presidency.
https://www.nairaland.com/6631796/buhari-nigerians-now-leaving-offices

The Muslim Rights Concern, MURIC, has faulted the recent recruitment by paramilitary organizations in the country, saying it lacked federal character.

Prof. Ishaq Akintola, MURIC Director, said this in a statement on Friday in Lagos.

“The list of successful candidates in the 2019/2021 Replacement and Recruitment Supplementary exercise of the Civil Defence Corps, Correctional Service, NCS, Fire and Immigration Services Board, CDIPB, is being circulated in the media.

“The lopsided nature of the recruitment list speaks volume of official corruption in the system capable of denying Nigeria the services of best hands in country.

“Out of 411 names of successful candidates that appeared on the list, only five were in the Sokoto State column.

“As if that is not enough, a closer look at the names spring another surprise,” he said.

Mr Akintola added: “None of the names in Sokoto column appears to have come from the state by origin, the names are Abdurrazaq Adinoyi, Y, Mercy Chukwukeru, Nwauzor Peace, Ezema Emeka and Umar Tijani.

“It is just natural that this incident will raise public curiosity particularly when some are making an issue out of the federal character principle and leveraging on it as evidence in support of their agitations.

“But here we have a case that looks very much like relegation by substitution. There is no iota of doubt that indigenes of Sokoto may have been short-changed in this arrangement.

“Why was there no single Sokoto indigene among the five by virtue of origin of the names.”

He frowned at the infraction and demanded that the board provide explanations for the glaring anomaly without delay, to avoid breeding bad blood.

Mr Akintola said that it was not impossible that the list was fake.

“If that was so, the board must quickly disown it and make the authentic list public.

NAN

There was tension at the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Secretariat on Thursday evening over rumour of building collapse.

The APC national headquarters is located at no 40, Blantyre street, Wuse 11, Abuja, in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

An eyewitness, who spoke with our correspondent, said a staff member at the fourth floor raised alarm that the building was shaking.

He said the alarm caused pandemonium as all party officials started running helter skelter.

Secretariat staff; journalists, security men and other workers scampered for safety.

An eye witness said,” It’s unfortunate that this has to go to the media. There was nothing like building collapse. There was nothing like the building shaking.”

“We have been here for many years but nothing like this has happened. I think something is wrong somewhere,” he said.

Daily Trust reports that all the staff who ran out of the 4-storey building did not return.

The British High Commission says it is “in the process of seeking clarification” from the federal government regarding the arrest of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

Dean Hurlock, a spokesperson of the British High Commission, disclosed this in a message sent to TheCable on Wednesday.

Kanu, who is also a British citizen, was arrested on Sunday and extradited to Nigeria to face trial for alleged treason.

Abubakar Malami, the attorney-general of the federation (AGF), said on Tuesday that the IPOB leader was “intercepted through the collaborative efforts of Nigerian intelligence and Security Services.”

He did not state where the separatist leader was arrested, but TheCable learnt that Kanu, who is based in the UK, was lured to an African country with a promise of cash donations and was then picked up.

In the message shared with TheCable, Hurlock said the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office “stands ready to provide consular assistance”.

The Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Isiaka Oladayo Amao disclosed this during the disbursement of NOTAP-Industry Technology Transfer Fellowship (NITTF) award letters and presentation of patent certificates in Abuja on Tuesday.

Air Marshal Amao who was represented at the event by the Nigerian Airforce’s Chief of Standard and Evaluation (COSE) Air Vice Marshal Olusegun Risalvato Philip said the rocket launcher which had already been mass produced was wholly owned by the NAF.

“What Nigerians don’t know is that the rocket launcher we currently use in fight against insurgency in the north east was developed and made in Nigeria here by the Nigerian Airforce (NAF)”, he said.

The Airforce chief said the NAF has the highest number of technological and scientific innovations among the three military services in the country.

Amao said the rocket launcher which has been patented by the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) is as good and effective as any other made by foreign companies.

In his address, the Minister of State for Science and Technology Barrister Mohammed H. Abdullahi said the federal government was not relenting in its effort to reduce importation of goods and products that could be produced in Nigeria.

Abdullahi said the government would work to smoothen the relationship between academic and industry to facilitate technology transfer process.

The minister noted Nigeria’s weak culture of Intellectual Property protection and lack of synergy between the academic and private sector had resulted in absence of value creation and stagnated economy.

He said that federal government through NOTAP had issued about 308 patents to Nigerian researchers and inventors.

This, he said, has no doubt set the country on the path of economic and technological greatness.

Daily Trust reports that 41 fresh patents were issued to Nigerian researchers and inventors at the event.

By Mumini AbdulKareem,

The Department of State Services (DSS) has apprehended eight prime suspects over the murder and rape of Olajide Blessing, a 300-level agricultural science of the University of Ilorin.

The deceased was gagged before her attackers raped her to death.

She was left with injuries all over her body at her Tanke residence, University road, Ilorin.

The incident had sparked protests by many civil society organizations across the country.

They had demanded that the perpetrators of the dastardly act be be brought to justice.

Several DSS sources who spoke with our reporter under the condition of anonymity confirmed the development, adding that the suspects are helping the service with the investigation.

But when contacted for comment on their arrest, the spokesperson of DSS, Nnochirionye Afunanya, requested that a text message be sent.

He was yet to respond to the message after over seven hours before this report was filed.

But the Kwara State Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Mumini Jimoh (SAN), confirmed that some suspects had been arrested over the issue and will be arraigned before Justice I.A. Jusuf on Wednesday.

Insurgent groups; Jama’atu Ahlul Sunnah lid Da’awatu wal Jihad (JAS, better known as Boko Haram), Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) and Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina fii Biladis Sudan (Vanguard for the Protection of Muslims in Black Africa, also known as Ansaru) are competing with one another in a mass membership drive among the ranks of Fulani bandits terrorising most of the North West and part of North Central states, Daily Trust reliably gathered.

Locals, security sources and experts who spoke with our reporter said the push is already yielding fruits for the insurgent groups with some prominent bandits declaring allegiance to the terrorist groups or consenting to a close working relationship; sharing intelligence and logistics support among themselves.

States worst hit by the intractable rural banditry are; Niger, Kaduna, Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto and Kebbi. The states share boundaries and are easily navigated through large swathes of unmanned forests.

The six states have 249,143 square kilometres of landmass, an area more than the size of the United Kingdom. Most of the landmass is ungoverned, with a significant part occupied by inaccessible forests and rural communities.

Investigation by Daily Trust revealed that there are at least three active Islamic insurgent groups operating in the banditry-ravaged states, and pushing for deeper roots.

An expert on the insurgency and researcher at the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change in London, Audu Bulama Bukarti, told Daily Trust at the weekend, that the “Boko Haram’s infiltration of the criminals in the North West is extremely dangerous on several levels”.

Department for States Services (DSS), the agency in charge of intelligence gathering and internal security did not respond to a request for comment on this story.

For a long time, security sources said, Boko Haram, ISWAP and Ansaru have been struggling for space within the expanse of land covering these states. The terrorist groups are in active moves with the aim of benefitting from the chaos created by bandits, especially in the worst-hit states.

A recent report by the International Crisis Group (ICG) pointed out that since late 2019, ISWAP and Ansaru have started taking credit for attacks in the North West. In October last year, according to the report, ISWAP claimed responsibility for an attack on Nigerian troops in Sokoto.

“Many Nigerian security and other independent local sources interviewed by Crisis Group corroborate that amid the breakdown of stability in Zamfara and elsewhere, two Boko Haram offshoots are making inroads into the the region, where they are forging tighter relationships with aggrieved communities, herder-affiliated armed groups and criminal gangs,” the report released last month reads in part.


The recruitment drive

Informed sources confided in this newspaper that for a long time, the Abubakar Shekau-led Boko Haram and ISWAP have made a deliberate policy of setting up presence in the North West states and Niger to benefit from the confusion created by the unruly activities of bandits and divide the attention of security forces whose concentration was on the groups’ hotbed of Borno and Yobe states.

Ansaru, which had hitherto maintained sleeper cells following bursting of its main cell in Okene, Kogi State, is said to have pioneered this collaboration by co-habiting closely with bandits under the leadership of Dogo Gide, around Kwiambana Forest in Kaduna State.

A senior political leader from the zone had last year told our reporter that Dogo Gide had collaborated with Ansaru elements to hoist a telecommunication booster in one of the rocky formations in the Birnin Gwari Forest to aid communication with the outside world.

A source familiar with Gide, who craved anonymity for fear of being targeted, said the man, who commandeers huge followership among bandits has been working with Ansaru for some three years.

“Ansaru has been based in the North West since its formation in 2012, but they have recently been trying to make a comeback. Part of their plan is recruiting the criminal elements and residents in the North West. That is why they have been releasing preaching in Fulfulde and offering microeconomic loans to local farmers,” Bukarti told Daily Trust.

In a recent audio clip of a conversation between Gide and an unidentified man who called in relation to the abduction of students of Federal Government College, Birnin Yauri, the bandits’ leader could be heard alluding to his relationship with Islamic insurgents. In one video clip, he referred to himself as “Abu Abdallah”, in a naming pattern typical of Boko Haram and similar terror groups.

Though Daily Trust cannot independently verify the veracity of the audio, a source who had interfaced with Gide in the past confirmed the voice to be his.

But contrary to some of his claims in the audio clip, a security source said Gide has no established relationship with foreign insurgents.

Daily Trust gathered however that Gide’s claim to religion was based on his relationship with Ansaru, whose leaders respect him because of his vast network and control over most of the armed Fulani youths.

In its report, Crisis Group said ISWAP, which has been developing cells in much of northern Nigeria is also building the capacity of several smaller radical groups in the North West, particularly by offering livelihood support, including monthly stipends, to some of their members.

Sources on ground in Niger, Kaduna and Zamfara, said the insurgents infiltrated the ranks of the bandits through offers for logistics and intelligence support, as well as Islamic messaging.

At various times, the terror groups also sent out special emissaries to woo the Fulani bandits into their fold. They reportedly make use of preachers who emphasise fault lines of injustice and unfair treatment allegedly meted on herders.

A security operative in Zamfara said only recently, gunmen believed to be insurgents arrived Dunburum Forest in Zurmi Local Government of the state in seven Hilux vans. They were hosted by a bandits leader, known as Alhaji Shingi and have set up their own camps in the forest.


The hot spots

Boko Haram elements, Daily Trust authoritatively gathered, have taken camps in Wawa Forest in Niger State, converting a lot of wallowing bandits from nearby Zamfara into their own fold.

A Fulani man who has relatives living in the area said the insurgents set the rules among residents and hold court to hear disputes and pass judgments.

The insurgents in Wawa neighbouring areas are controlled by Gide, which extends into Dangulbi Forest in Zamfara and areas around Zuru in Kebbi State. Gide was the one who brokered the deal that led to the release of Kagara schoolboys and teachers abducted in February.

Ansaru’s presence, according to sources, is mostly around Kwiambana Forest in Birnin Gwari to other nearby forests in Igabi and Giwa Local Governments of Kaduna State, as well as Shiroro and Kagara areas of Niger State.

In Zamfara and Sokoto states, the insurgents are said to have wooed some of the bandits through the supply of arms and ammunitions from nearby Niger Republic, thereby endearing themselves to the bandits terrorising places like Sabon Birni and Isa in Sokoto and Zurmi in Zamfara, and parts of Katsina State.

However, some of the bandits were said to have rebuffed entreaties by Boko Haram emissaries to the area.


Bandits’ leaders applying ‘Shari’a’ law

Some of the bandits’ leaders who are said to have accepted the evangelical missions of the insurgents are said to have started enforcement of strict Islamic codes in their domains.

Some of them, Daily Trust gathered, have banned vices such as fornication, use of intoxicants and cattle rustling in their domains.

In his recorded telephone conversation, Gide repeatedly mentioned that he has a Qur’anic school in which he enrolled the abducted students.

He also threatened to convert them into fighters and marry off the girls to his men, in what was similar to Boko Haram and ISWAP modus operandi.

In the area between Zurmi in Zamfara State and Kagara, in Sokoto State, another renowned bandit, Turji, is said to be applying the same tactics as locals said rumours of him aligning with terrorist groups is ripe.

“He has fixed prayer times and has preachers preaching in the community. He has also chased out all those selling drugs and engaging in all forms of lascivious acts,” said a source in one of the neighbouring communities.

He said Turji may soon declare for Boko Haram fully even as men from his gang had recently moved in large numbers to join fighters belonging to Gide camp in a new camp springing up in Dangulbi Forest.

It is unclear what is the motive of the combined forces.


Alliance extremely dangerous – Expert

In his reaction Bukarti, who has studied the Islamic insurgency in the Sahel region closely, said the incursion of Boko Haram and similar groups to other states outside the North East is a dangerous move that should be halted by the authorities.

“Firstly, Boko Haram can give groups moral justification for their killings and criminality,” he said.

“If a criminal that has been massacring people and abducting them starts to believe that what he is doing is not a crime but a Jihad, he will get even more brutal and cruel. Secondly, enlisting in Boko Haram will allow criminal groups to recruit young people who might not have otherwise joined them.”

Bukarti also expressed fears that Boko Haram can transfer its skills of making weapons such as improvised explosive devices to the criminal gangs they are linked with and boost their weapon supply.

“On Boko Haram’s part, a link with the criminal elements in the North is a fulfilment of its expansionist ambitions. The relationship can also give Boko Haram access to the kidnapping industry in the North West as well the cattle rustling and mining ones. This will boost Boko Haram’s finances,” he said.

The researcher said the Nigerian government must take quick steps to stop the terrorist groups in their expansionist agenda.

“For Nigeria, this alliance is extremely dangerous. That is why government must work flat out to disrupt it. Continuing to deny in the face of clear evidence will only allow the criminals and terrorists time to consolidate their relationship.

“If that happens, the situation in the North West will get even worse and, in addition to the human cost, Northern Nigeria’s economy will take a serious hit,” he explained.

Spokesperson of the DSS, Peter Afunaya, did not respond to the request for comments on this story. He did not answer repeated calls and did not reply to two text messages sent to him by this reporter.

Preparations for the planned wedding of President Muhammadu Buhari’s son, Yusuf Buhari, have started in earnest.

On Sunday, the President’s delegation visited the Emir of Kano’s palace where talks about the wedding were held.

Governor of Jigawa State, Abubakar Badaru, led the President’s delegation to the Palace of Emir of Kano alongside other top government officials.

It was gathered that Yusuf, the only son of President Buhari met his heart-throb, Zarah Ado Bayero, in the United Kingdom where they both had their undergraduate studies.

Here are the interesting things to know about the ‘incoming’ daughter-in-law of the President:

Emir of Bichi’s Daughter

Zarah Ado Bayero is a 19-year daughter of Emir of Bichi, Alhaji Nasir Ado Bayero, who is the fourth child of late Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero. Her father, aside being an Emir, is also the Chairman of 9mobile. He was the first child born at the official residence of Kano Emirate known as Gidan Dabo.

He was the district head of Fagge, Tarauni and Nassarawa Local Government Areas before he was appointed a first-class monarch by the administration of Governor Abdullahi Ganduje.

Link to Sokoto

While Zarah’s mother, Farida Imam, is the daughter of famous Kano educationist, Mal Abubakar Imam (Imamu Galandanci), a former Executive Director at Afribank Plc, the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Saad Abubakar III, is married to Farida’s biological sister.

Education

Zarah, is the second daughter of the Emir and she studied Architecture in the United Kingdom.

Despite claiming Nigeria is broke and should keep borrowing to fund critical infrastructures, the President of the Senate, Ahmad Ibrahim Lawan has splashed over N100m on his new wife, Zainab Algoni Abdulwahid.

SaharaReporters had reported how Lawan secretly married Zainab at a very private ceremony in Borno State on Friday.

The low-key marriage was solemnised at the Sheikh Sharif Ibrahim Saleh's mosque in Maiduguri.

SaharaReporters gathered that the event was performed secretly to avoid public criticism while Zainab is expected to relocate to Abuja on Sunday.

A mini party was also held at the bride's family residence in Gwange 1 Ward, Malut Shuwa Street, Maiduguri.

A source close to Zainab told SaharaReporters on Saturday that the Senate President gifted her N100 million a few days after they were introduced to each other.

The bride was said to have bought three houses in Maiduguri out of the money.

"Lawan personally gave her N100 million days after he saw her pictures. The money was so huge that Zainab bought three houses here in Maiduguri," the source said.

SaharaReporters gathered that Aisha Buhari, wife of the President, is also expected to join them today (Sunday).



Ahead of President Muhammadu Buhari's medical trip to London, United Kingdom, his wife, his children have left Nigeria for the European country.

SaharaReporters gathered that Aisha Buhari, wife of the President, is also expected to join them today (Sunday).

“All President Muhammadu Buhari’s children have moved to London in advance of his medical trip. He will travel anytime from now. His wife, Aisha will join the children today,” a source told SaharaReporters.

The Presidency had earlier announced the postponement of Buhari’s medical trip to London, earlier scheduled for Friday.

See Also Breaking News BREAKING: Buhari Postpones London Medical Trip 0 Comments 1 Day Ago

Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, did not give reasons for the postponement in a statement he issued.

The statement only said a new date will be announced in due course.

Buhari and members of his family routinely travel to the UK for medical treatment amidst the abysmal state of health care and poorly equipped hospitals in Nigeria.

In March, the Nigerian leader went to the UK for what the Presidency described as a “routine” check-up.

The trip sparked off a controversy as it coincided with the strike by the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD).

Since he assumed office on May 29, 2015, Buhari has embarked on medical trips abroad at least five times, covering a period of no fewer than 170 days of the five years he had been in power.

The following is a timeline of the President's trips for medical treatment; on February 5 to 10, 2016, the President took a six-day vacation in the United Kingdom, saying that his doctors lived in England.

Between June 6 and 19, 2016, Buhari went on a 10-day medical trip to England for an ear infection surgery. He extended his trip by three days to rest.

On January 19, 2017, the President was back in London again on a medical vacation.

On February 5, 2017, he wrote to the National Assembly, seeking an extension of his London medical leave. Later on March 10, 2017, Buhari returned to Nigeria but didn't resume work immediately at Aso Villa.

The Presidency had claimed that "he was working from home."

On May 7, 2017, Buhari embarked on a trip to London for another medical vacation. He returned after 104 days – the longest he had stayed outside the country.

On August 19, 2017, Buhari returned to Nigeria, and it took him a while to resume work because rats had purportedly damaged furniture in his office.

The Presidency, therefore, announced that he would be working from home.

On May 8, 2018, Buhari went to London for a four-day "medical review."

On April 26, 2019, Buhari again left for the UK on a 10-day private visit to seek medical care. He came back to the country on May 5.

Also, from March 30 to April 6, 2021, the President embarked on another trip for a routine medical check-up in London.

THE University of Lagos (UNILAG), Akoka, has said that it is yet to take any decision against Chidinma Adaora Ojukwu, a 300-level Mass Communication student who, on Thursday, publicly recounted how she stabbed her lover, Super TV CEO, Mr Usifo Ataga, to death some days earlier in the Lekki area of Lagos.

Chidinma, 21, narrated the incident to newsmen while she was being paraded for the crime by the Lagos State police command at its headquarters in Ikeja.

Speaking to Saturday Tribune on Friday on the matter, UNILAG’s Deputy ViceChancellor (Academics and Research), Professor Oluwole Familoni, said although the university received the news with shock, it could not take any instant decision against the student.

Professor Familoni said this was because the university was yet to receive any official report from the appropriate quarters, especially the police, on the allegation levelled against the student.

He said Chidinma committed the alleged crime far away from the university campus and therefore her action was personal and had nothing to do with UNILAG.

According to him, even though the university is not claiming that all its students are saints, it doesn’t teach its students how to murder people or do wrong things.

“So, to us in UNILAG, it is very unfortunate that the girl is not a good ambassador of our university. But then, we can’t disown her because of her alleged action which the school totally condemns,” he said.

He insisted that what Chidinma had done, “as of today” (Friday), was still on the pages of newspapers and other media platforms and the university could not act based on that.

“So, if the university will do anything on the matter, particularly now, it will require official communication from appropriate authorities, particularly the police, to the university,” he stressed.

Professor Familoni pointed out that even at that, one thing is clear and that is, once a student is in police or correctional custody, such a student cannot at the same time be in school let alone register for courses, nor attend lectures nor do any examination.

“So, if they write us that our student has committed a criminal offence of any type, definitely, the law will take its course and that invariably means she will not be able to qualify to remain as our student.

“But as I have said, that could only be when the matter is officially communicated to us,” Professor Familoni emphasised.

The 2018 government’s audit report, obtained by SaharaReporters, revealed that SMEDAN, which disbursed the grants, failed to document “the names of the micro enterprises, physical addresses, phone numbers, electronic mail and key contact persons.”



The President Muhammadu Buhari’s government under the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) disbursed N762,730,000 grants to 13,160 beneficiaries but could not produce the names and addresses of the people.

The 2018 government’s audit report, obtained by SaharaReporters, revealed that SMEDAN, which disbursed the grants, failed to document “the names of the micro enterprises, physical addresses, phone numbers, electronic mail and key contact persons.”

SaharaReporters learnt that the N762 million was disbursed under the Conditional Grant Scheme for Micro and Small Enterprises growth across the six geopolitical zones of the country.

SaharaReporters gathered that the benefiting states were Benue, Katsina, Gombe, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi and Oyo.

The SMEDAN authorities in the audit report by the 2018 Auditor-General of the Federation’s Report of the Accounts of the Federation of Nigeria, had stated that 13,160 micro enterprises selected from the six pilot states benefitted from the grants.

The government’s audit report noted that SMEDAN, however, could not produce the names of enterprises it disbursed the monies to, while asking the Director-General to account for the N762 million grants and recover the same to the treasury of the Federal Government.

The audit report partly reads, “Unsubstantiated Payment of Conditional grant to micro enterprises – N762,730,000; the provision of Financial Regulation 603 states that, 'All vouchers shall contain full particulars of each service, such as dates, numbers, quantities, distances and rates, so as to enable them to be checked without reference to any other documents and will invariably be supported will relevant documents such as local purchase orders, invoices, special letters of authority, timesheets, etc.'

“We observed during the audit that, the sum of N762,730,000.00 was disbursed through various financial institutions to beneficiaries of Conditional Grant Scheme for Micro and Small Enterprises growth in the six geopolitical zones.

“However, vital information such as names of micro enterprises, physical addresses, phone numbers, email addresses and key contact persons was not made available for verification, in contravention of extant laws and regulations.

“This infraction was due to the failure of the Director-General to strictly comply with extant laws and regulations, especially as it relates to providing vital information and attaching key supporting documents to payment vouchers.

“The risk is that the agency may carry out expenditures without providing vital information and supporting documents thereby exposing the government to possibility of fraud and ultimately loss of funds.”

SaharaReporters was told that when the audit department contacted SMEDAN, it hurriedly provided only the list of beneficiaries in Akwa Ibom State, but “the attachment made for Akwa Ibom did not contain the amounts disbursed to each of the beneficiaries and their signatures showing completion of transaction. Their response therefore did not adequately address the audit issue raised.”

The report said further, “The Director General is required to provide full list of the beneficiaries containing their location in the six pilot states i.e. names, amount disbursed, contact addresses, phone numbers, email addresses and signatures showing evidence of collection of this fund to the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly and the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation. Otherwise he should account for the sum of N762,730,000.00 supposedly disbursed to the financial institutions on behalf of the beneficiaries.”