₦airaland Forum

The Imo State Police Command on Monday confirmed that a man identified as Chidube Onyema, has shot his girlfriend, Chinwendu, to death in Umuokirie village, Okuku autonomous community in the Owerri West Local Government Area of the state.

Police spokesperson in the state, Orlando Ikeokwu, confirmed to reporters in the state that the suspect has been arrested and the case transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department in Owerri.

"Yes, it is true. The suspect has been arrested and the case has been transferred to Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, Owerri for more investigation and prosecution," the police PRO said.

SaharaReporters gathered that Onyema killed Chinwendu for allegedly cheating on him.

One of the neighbours of the suspect told SaharaReporters that the victim visited her boyfriend from her village, Ohabele in Obosima community in the Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area of the state before the unfortunate incident.

The neighbour, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told SaharaReporters that a call received by the victim caused a disagreement between the two lovers, which later became deadly.

The source said the refusal of the victim to hand over her phone to the suspect, infuriated Onyema, who went to get his gun from the room and shot his girlfriend in her private parts.

The source said, "She usually visits Chidube (Onyema) from her village. She came from Aba (in Abia State) and was supposed to return on Sunday evening before her boyfriend killed her. Trouble started after the lady answered a phone call. The guy demanded to know who called her but she refused to tell him. He shot her in her private parts. He is our neighbour and a hunter."

Following nationwide outrage, President Muhammadu Buhari suspended the controversial Ruga policy in July 2019.

The decision proved an instant public perception lifeline for the president because it was widely seen as saving the country from another round of needless ethnic and tribal animosity — which the Ruga programme was fast degenerating into prior to its suspension.

Many were also pleased to finally see an urgent reconsideration from a leader with a reputation so rigid and sluggish he acknowledged the label of ‘baba go slow’ from his critics.

What a large chunk of the population did not know, however, was that the president’s decision came at a substantial cost to the national treasury: N12 billion.


A Groundwork Laid

In 2019, Premium Times reported that President Buhari sacked Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo from his role as the head of an inclusive committee working on resolving the deadly conflict between farmers and herdsmen in the northern and central parts of the country.

Mr. Buhari took the decision based on the recommendation of his departed chief of staff Abba Kyari. Mr. Kyari had intercepted a memo from Mr. Osinbajo to Mr. Buhari, in which the vice-president updated his principal on the progress of the livestock transformation committee and requested funding to execute a long-time proposal that would effectively resolve the decades-long crisis that has killed thousands.

Specifically, Mr. Osinbajo had requested for funds to commence resettling and compensation of people displaced by the farmers-herdsmen violence that devastated many parts of the country for many years — only recently abating for the longest stretch since Mr Buhari took office in 2015.

Mr. Osinbajo’s request for N22 billion in the April 12, 2019, memo was made in respect to the National Livestock Transformation Plan (NLTP) that Mr. Buhari had delegated him to lead. State governors were also part of the NLTP, which was coordinated by the National Economic Council (NEC).

Thirty-five billion naira was initially budgeted for the activities relating to the resolution of the farmers-herdsmen conflict. Contracts worth were awarded for Ruga projects (construction of ranches for Fulani herders along designated grazing routes).

The memo, which was addressed directly to the president as procedurally accepted of such communications, was soon hijacked by Mr. Kyari, who advised the president to disregard its prayers because they were either premature or entirely unnecessary.

He said the N12 billion that was budgeted for the Ruga projects had not been fully utilised, therefore the funding for resettling of those displaced in the conflict areas should be held back for an indefinite period of time.

Mr. Kyari also asked Mr. Buhari to disband the NLTP altogether and appropriate all its functions under the National Food Security Council (NFSC). The president is the head of the council.

Without seeking Mr. Osinbajo’s opinion on the observations of Mr. Kyari, Mr. Buhari endorsed the recommendations of his chief of staff, effectively undermining his own vice-president.

A leader of the notorious Icelander cult group in Bayelsa State, identified simply as Uzorma, yesterday shot dead one of his members at a close range because of rivalry over a girlfriend.

The incident occurred in Azikoro town in Yenagoa Local Government Area of the state.

Uzorma was reportedly engaged in an argument with the yet-to-be identified girl on Thursday evening and insisted that she must go home with him to pass the night, but the girl allegedly declined his overtures and openly declared her feelings for the yet-to-be-identified deceased; a development that sparked a confrontation between the two cult members.

It was learnt that the deceased with the support of four other members resisted attempt by Uzorma to “oppress” him over a girl.

They allegedly allowed them to fight it out without a victor on that day.

It was further learnt that at about 5 am the following day (Friday), Uzorma, reportedly born to an Igbo father and Epie mother from Yenagoa, stormed the house of the deceased and shot him at a close range.

An eyewitness, who spoke in confidence, said: “The deceased was woken up in his sleep. He was held down and his face tied with a cloth. Uzorma shot him at a close range.

“When the news of the incident filtered into town, members and other unit leaders were wondering who killed the deceased, but Uzorma boldly told them that he was the one that killed him and not any rival gang.”

The suspect and the deceased were both identified by residents of the area as notorious cult members and allegedly involved in dealing in illicit drugs and robberies around Azikoro town and Ekeki community in Yenagoa metropolis.

It was learnt that before the incident, the suspected killer was on the wanted list of the police command but was always shielded by some powerful politicians from Yenagoa LGA.

He was also said to have been fingered in a failed attempt to kill a police personnel who arrested him some years ago after he was brought out of police custody by his political friends.

Efforts made to confirm the report from the state police command no result as calls to the spokesman, Asinim Butswat, failed to connect.

In another development, following the pragmatic leadership style and efforts in combating crime and criminality in state, the Commissioner for Police, Mike Okoli, has been conferred with an international recognition award.

The PAN-African exemplary leadership honour conferred on Mike Okoli by the African Students Union Parliament (ASUP) was in recognition of the CP’s leadership acumen in fighting crime and other social vices to make Bayelsa a safe place.

Speaking on behalf of the speaker of the Parliament, Mr. Kewul Mensah-Abel, the Director of programme, Comrade Ozim Temple, from Federal University of Technology, Minna, described Okoli as a detribalised Nigerian and a nation builder with dedicated leadership style worthy of emulation.

Responding after receiving the award, Okoli said he was humbled and elated for the honour done him, noting that it would spur him to do more in his fight against criminal elements and reposition the command to wage prevailing challenges.

Okoli however dedicated the award to God Almighty and rank and file of the command for their unwavering support since he assumed office to achieve success.

The National President of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, Bello Abdullahi Bodejo has declared that the pictures of herdsmen bearing guns and other weapons in the social media are usually photoshopped. In his opinion, Fulani herders are mostly uneducated and consequently have no skills to operate guns. In an interview with VINCENT KALU, the Miyetti Allah leader noted:

“The people alleging this just want to create problems in Nigeria.

A Fulani who is not educated; didn’t go to school, how will he know how to operate gun? The people carrying guns are the Amotekun and other vigilantes being created here and there.

Herdsmen are not carrying any guns; they are just rearing their cows with their sticks.”

He called on Christian pastors to join Sheikh Abubakar Ahmad Gumi, the famous Islamic cleric, in the forest to negotiate with bandits, instead of criticizing the cleric. He also claimed that Fulani herdsmen were the first to produce national revenue for Nigeria before the discovery of oil in the Niger Delta.

He also spoke on the general insecurity bedeviling the country and other burning national issues. Excerpts:

Why do herdsmen carry guns? This is one question still waiting for an answer

Who gave the herdsmen guns?

The herdsmen you see in the social media carrying guns were photoshopped, and they are not even Nigerian herdsmen. I have many cows and my boys are rearing them. None of them has a gun; nobody is carrying gun. The people alleging this just want to create problems in Nigeria. A Fulani who is not educated, didn’t go to school, how will he know how to operate guns? The people carrying guns are the Amotekun and other vigilantes being created here and there, yet everybody sees them and keeps quiet.

Herdsmen are not carrying any guns; they are just rearing their cows with their sticks. But at any place he encounters trouble, he will stand there and confront and deal with the trouble. Whether in the bush or any other place he is threatened or killed, you won’t kill him and get away with the crime. It is the Fulani culture.

These are people without addresses; they are mobile. Today, you see them in Anambra, tomorrow in Adamawa, the other time in Sokoto and they move on to another area where there is pasture. Who can trek from Ebonyi to Maiduguri? It is only the Fulani man. When you see such a person, don’t you know that there is a special grace God gave to him? Trying to deny Fulani where they eke out their living with in this country is not right.

But you have always maintained that the Fulani allegedly killing people are not from Nigeria?

There are two types of Fulani. We have those who are well educated in government, occupying very high positions and they live in the towns and cities. You also have Fulani who are rearing cows and they live in the forests and bushes. However, there are bandits who are inside the forests, but you cannot call them Fulani bandits. Like there is Boko Haram in Borno; Borno people are Kanuri. Do you hear about them being addressed as Kanuri bandits or Kanuri Boko Haram. Nobody can address them in that manner. The militants in Niger Delta have tribes, but no one has called them by the names of their tribes. Every tribe has its own criminal. A criminal is a criminal irrespective of where he comes from and he should be condemned. Communities and security agencies should deal with those criminals, but these cattle rearers are innocent.

What’s more, they have always fallen victims of these criminals. If somebody is kidnapped in an area, any herdsmen they see around is adjudged a kidnapper. It is not right. President Buhari had earlier said that all these bandits are from Libya. The Inspector General of Police had also told the nation that these bandits are not Fulani. If the President and the IGP have said these bandits are not Fulani, then why do people still associate them with Fulani? Only God will judge the way other people call the Fulani bad names.

You can see a Fulani rearing 100 or 200 cows; how can you call such a man bandit? You didn’t build schools for him; you didn’t build hospitals for him. You didn’t give him a house and yet you don’t want to see him. You don’t want him to exist?

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has called on President Buhari to proscribe all the Miyetti Allah groups for the insecurity in the country? What is your position on this?

The Christian Association of Nigeria is a religious organisation to regulate the activities of Christians and churches in the country. But these days, it has almost become a political party. Anything that concerns security, they will be the one to talk; anything that concerns the economy, they will jump into it.

Anything that concerns political parties, they must comment. Anything that concerns Fulani and farmers, they will carry it on their heads. It is better for them to turn the organisation into a political party and register it so that they can produce their own president in this country. What they are doing is not right.

What offence has Miyetti Allah committed against them? How have we offended them that they should call for our proscription? They don’t even know the meaning of Miyetti Allah. Miyetti Allah or not, Fulani can defend themselves wherever they are. Miyetti Allah, which I head, is Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore. It is a Fulani socio-cultural association, just like every other ethnic group in this country has its own association.

There is Afenifere for Yoruba; Ohanaeze for the Igbo; Tiv has its own and others. So, I don’t know the problem with CAN. Nobody or no power can proscribe us. Their leaders have abandoned the reason they were elected to pursue what doesn’t concern them.

They were elected to advance the preaching of the word of God, but you see them jumping from one government house to the other; from one country to the other. I travelled to London last year. I saw some of them jumping from one church to the other looking for how money will come into their personal pockets, or how to support some of these desperate politicians. I will not mention names.

Is your association registered?

Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore is a properly registered organisation. Former President Goodluck Jonathan is our grand patron. We chose him because our organisation is open; we are not clandestine; we have our constitution. We brought him because of what he has done for this country, his achievements and love for the country. There is also Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), which has to do with anything that concerns cattle breeding. But Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore is about uniting Fulani people; it is a socio- cultural association. If you are a farmer, a governor, etc, it is purely for Fulani. However, if you did something outstanding in the country, we have the reason to give you appointment.

Does Jonathan know he is your grand patron?

Yes. When he was the President we went to the Banquet Hall in Aso Rock and presented the certificate as the Grand Patron of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore to him. It was a big ceremony. We were there with prominent Fulani and he graciously accepted.

Does the fact that you are registered mean you cannot be proscribed?

We are registered with all relevant agencies and we have not done anything that should warrant our proscription. So, nobody can ban us.

The reason for the call for the proscription of your association is that it is alleged that your members are committing all sorts of crimes, fuelling insecurity across the country?

That is not true. Let the security agencies comb the forests and fish out the criminals. They think that any Fulani rearing cows in the bush or forests is a criminal. Yet innocent Fulani rearing their cows in the forests are the number one victims of these criminal elements.

Everybody is talking down on herdsmen now, but we should remember that before Nigeria started producing oil, the first revenue in this country was from Fulani. At that time, it was called Zangali. Through Zangali, money was collected as tax from each cow. Imagine the revenue from tens of millions of cows at that time. It was from this that the money for oil exploration was got.

Most people don’t know the history of this country; they just wake up and start talking anyhow. We are trying to promote peaceful and harmonious coexistence in this country, but some people would just wake up and start shouting: ‘ban Miyetti Allah, ban Miyetti Allah.’ Anybody who has not talked about Fulani is not yet satisfied. These people, nobody gave them electricity; nobody gave them education. Nobody gave them hospital and no amenities for them, yet they are not complaining but managing their lives in the forests and bushes. Any day Miyetti Allah is banned, every other tribal association will also be proscribed, including CAN.

Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom also called for the arrest of Miyetti Allah leaders for the killing of many people?

Don’t mind Ortom. He didn’t pay salaries to Benue workers for many months. He used Miyetti Allah or Fulani herders to campaign and be relevant in the state. He made Fulani people to lose up to ten million cows in Benue State. He introduced anti-grazing law to send Fulani out of the state. We are in court over it. Nigeria has a constitution, which permits anyone to stay in any part of the country and carry out his or her legitimate business, but he is trying to create his own constitution to stop Fulani from entering Benue.

He forgot that before he was born, Fulani and Tiv had been living together in that land. Before he left his kabukabu business for politics, Fulani and Tiv people were together and doing their business that is why we call them Munchi. If a Tiv sees a Fulani in another place, he is happy because we are almost the same. But the governor has brought conflict between us and Tiv.

He brought the anti-grazing law to intimidate Fulani. They arrested about 2000 cows and the owners would pay heavy fines to get them released. He should not forget that in two years now, he would be a former governor of Benue. He didn’t do anything for the state; he didn’t try for Tiv people and he didn’t try for Fulani people. He just came to put confusion between the two ethnic groups; he would be surprised after he had left office, Fulani and Tiv people will come back together.

Sheikh Gumi is asking for amnesty to be given to these bandits that have been killing people, kidnapping and rustling cow. What is your take on this?

Gumi is a very good Malam; we respect him. He is also a Fulani from Sokoto. What he is doing is very good. Anything that can bring solution to this insecurity should be encouraged and supported. The military and the police have been going there severally with the aim of ending the banditry, but they have never made any success. There is supposed to be Plan A and Plan B. Plan A is the use of military force. And, if it is not yielding any result, then Plan B is what Gumi is embarking on.

That is talking with the bandits for them to put down their guns. Don’t even try to call them Fulani; just call them bandits. There is nothing that concerns Fulani with them. Innocent Fulani are rearing their cows and are being kidnapped, their wives are being raped and their money collected. If amnesty will solve the problem, I’m totally in support of it. What Gumi is doing is very good, I urge pastors to also join him to go into the forest and preach and pray with them, as all of them may not be Muslims.

IN a rare show of bravery, a quick-thinking 14-year-old girl from Bhekani Line in Ntabazinduna, Matabeleland North province, turned into Wonder Woman when she warded off her 49-year-old grandfather, who allegedly attempted to rape her, by violently grabbing his testicles and squeezing them hard.

The Form One girl gave her grandfather a painful lesson when she reportedly gripped one of his testicles with her sharp nails as he was allegedly trying to sexually assault her in her bedroom.

After being attacked, the grandfather screamed for help while begging for forgiveness.

Circumstances of the tale read as follows:
On 8 February 2021 and at around 3pm the girl was in her bedroom cleaning her room. It is reported that her grandfather, who was peeping through the window, saw her and stormed into the bedroom and grabbed her.

While grabbing her, he forcibly fondled her breasts and took off her clothes and underwear. In the process the grandfather is also alleged to have unzipped his trousers and pulled out his manhood.

The girl is alleged to have wrestled with him and at the height of the struggle, she grabbed his testicles and squeezed them so hard that he wailed for help.

After thwarting her grandfather’s evil move, the girl is alleged to have escaped, leaving him lying helpless on the floor. She went to her grandmother’s bedroom where she narrated the nasty ordeal to her.

The matter was reported to the police leading to the man’s arrest.

For that offence of attempting to defile her granddaughter, the man was brought before the court and he appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Nomasiko Ndlovu.

He was not asked to plead to a charge of attempted rape and was remanded in custody to 23 April 2021.

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These are not the best of times for Mr. Philip Tersso, a native of Yelwata community, Nasarawa State and his wife, Mary. The once loving husband is up in arms against his wife after finding that she was pregnant for his friend and consequently resolved to bury her alive for her alleged act of infidelity.

To make good his plan, Tersso had dug a grave in which she planned to bury Mary, whose pregnancy for Tersso’s friend, Aondowase Chiahemba, was already three months old. Timely intervention of the leaders of the community and the police, however, saved Mary as Philip was arrested and taken into custody before he could complete the execution of his plan.

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Mary

Trouble was said to have begun some months ago when Tersso fell very illhe would not be able to recover from the sickness, told him that she would be getting married to Chiahemba in Tersso’s absence. Unknown to Tersso, Mary was already pregnant for Chiahemba at the point she was talking to him on his sick bed.

Angered by Mary’s words and act of infidelity, Tesso dug a grave after he had recovered from the sickness with a plan to her alive and also take his own life.

Expressing his anger in an interview with our correspondent at his base in Toto Local Government Area, Nasarawa State, the farmer cum businessman said: “Words cannot describe the agony of finding out after 10 years of marriage that my friend impregnated my wife.

“I cannot blame Mr Aondowase but my wife. I truly feel as if someone has ripped my heart out, more so that I was down with sickness and she was busy sleeping with a close friend.

“It is the cruelest betrayal in my entire life, my wife is a big disappointment and I can never forgive her. I felt utterly duped and cheated when she opened her mouth and told me with a vow not to abort it.

“My whole world has been turned upside down. The only way to pay her back is to bury her alive, so that she would feel the pains of wishing me dead while I was sick.”

Confessing to the crime before the vigilance group in Toto, Tersso said he planned to bury Mary alive because of her comment and attitude.

He said: “I cannot imagine my own wife telling me that if I die, she will remarry. Besides, she is already pregnant for the man.

“I lost my temper when I recovered from my illness and decided that she should die before me since she wished me death.

“I’m not regretting my actions or plans. Since she wanted me to die, I should send her to the grave alive so that her planned marriage after my death will not be possible.

“She shouldn’t have been pregnant for another man while I was sick. It means she wished me death.

“There is power in spoken words, so let her go into the grave before me, since I did not die as she prayed.”

Recalling how he and Mary became husband and wife, he recalled that he met her about 12 years ago at a burial in Uvir, Guma Local Government Area, Benue State.

He said: “I still have flashes from that time 12 years ago when I walked into the wake keep for the burial. It was a celebration of life because the woman was about 74 years old before she died.

“I was furling my wieldy umbrella for the coat check when I saw her standing alone in a corner. She was a woman in a state of total array, her hair was kempt, her clothing shoveled, and she moved in a gay way.

“I approached her and she responded well, and I was happy that she considered me a savoury character who was up to something good.

“She told me who she was, the conversation become more and more choate, and we spoke at length to much avail.

“We continued the relationship and ended up as husband and wife two years later.”

Tersso, 49, who holds a diploma certificate, said their 10-year-old marriage went on well.

“Even though the fertility challenge was there, we were finding ways to address it,” he said, noting that his wife suddenly lost patience “and decided to have sex with my friend when I was sick.

“I am fully aware that people were talking and asking questions. My family members were no longer comfortable with the way things were going; that we got married over 10 years now without any issue, and we were tracing the issue. But she lost patience and went into a deal with my friend

“I suspected their closeness at a point and somebody raised the issue with me but I never believed my own wife could open her legs for my own friend, more so that I was very sick.

“I also did not believe my friend would ever contemplate doing such to me, especially when I was down. But both of them have proved me wrong.

“My anger is with my wife. When she told me that she was pregnant, both of us knew that I was not responsible for it, because we did not have sex during my sickness.

“She has shamed me. She has ruined my life and I have decided that if I have my way, I will pay her back in almost the same way by burying her alive, because I don’t want to see her any longer in my life.

“I want to eliminate her completely from this world. That was why I dug this grave to put her inside and cover her.”

Tersso said that he was not unaware of the consequences of his planned actions, but he could not understand why his wife would have an affair with his friend at the time he was sick, reiterating that burying his wife alive was the only punishment that could compare to what she did to him. She also said that Mary committed an abomination by having sex with a man other than her husband.

Asked how his in-laws would have felt about burying his wife alive, he said: “It is their own business. Their daughter disappointed me and I will also disappoint them. She is very lucky that I revealed my plans to her out of anger and she escaped it.”

In her own response, Mary told our correspondent about the threats she had received from her husband before the incident.

She said: “When my husband told me that he would cut me into pieces and put me in a sack, I thought he was joking. But he went ahead and dug a 10-feet grave beside his late father’s grave.

“My offence was that when he was sick, I concluded that he might die because we went to several hospitals to no avail. We resorted to traditional herbs.

“In the process, I decided to test my fertility with another man who, unfortunately, is his friend, and I took in.

“I refused to abort the pregnancy and never hid it from him when he recovered.”

“My neighbours advised me to seek refuge elsewhere since my husband’s illness had turned his brain. He was bitter and wanted to revenge by burying me alive. He wanted to kill me because I had sex with another man and I am pregnant for him.

“I regret my actions. It was the devil’s work. I made a mistake and I feel so guilty.

“My husband and I have been trying for about nine years to have a baby, and if this baby is not his, it will destroy him.

“I know from day one that he would feel bad, but I have no choice but to prepare his mind that the baby does not belong to him but to his close friend.

“For about 10 years now, he was not able to get me pregnant and I decided to test my fertility elsewhere.

“My husband has been denying me sex. He had not slept with me for a long time before he fell sick.

“I almost thought of leaving him because I am a human being and he cannot starve me of sex for that long. That also contributed to my mistakenly falling in love with his friend. I have feelings too”

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•Tersso at the graveside

Although she said she regretted her actions, she insisted that she would not abort the pregnancy because age is no longer on her side. She also said she planned to deliver the baby in her father’s house.

Our correspondent attempted to speak with Mary’s father on the phone but the father insisted that he could not say anything until he had seen his daughter and hear her own side of the story

He, however, said he would not support any act of infidelity.

“I don’t support the idea of having sex with your husband’s friend just because you are desperate for a child, especially when he is sick. And then you have the guts to tell your husband about it.

“Even at that, the husband over-reacted. His decision (to bury her alive) was not the best, and I wouldn’t have allowed him to go free.

“I am not saying my daughter is right, but his plans were too shocking if he had succeeded. That is all I can say for now. But I thank God he did not succeed.

Village elders, headed by Audu Ode, were said to be handling the matter, trying to sort out certain areas of grievances with Tersso before the option of handing him over to the appropriate authorities.

Audu said he would report the matter to the police but would plead with them to hold on until certain traditional rites are performed, adding that the man might be suffering from brain damage arising from his sickness.

Efforts made by our correspondent to reach out to Mr Aondiwase yielded no result as he was said to have gone underground for fear of being harmed by his friend.

The Public Relations Officer of Nasarawa State Police Command, Ramham Nansel, said the headquarters of the police command was yet to receive any report on the matter.

Eniola Akinkuotu, Abuja

A former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Dr Obadiah Mailafia, says many of the bandits terrorising the country were sponsored by persons who wanted to push former President Goodluck Jonathan out of power at all cost.

Mailafia said this during an interview with The PUNCH on Thursday.

He said, “During the 2015 elections they brought in thousands of foreigners into this country, armed them because it was a case of if Goodluck Jonathan doesn’t surrender, there will be war. They were ready for civil war; they were not ready for peace.

“Of course, Jonathan handed over to them and then they turned their backs on the hoodlums and the hoodlums said ‘look, you brought us here and we are still here’.”

Mailafia, who was the Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress in the last election, said he was also convinced that some foreign powers were behind the bandits.

“There are certain world powers that want to destroy our country. That is what I believe. There was a container load of weapons that were brought in from Turkey. Another time some were brought in from Iran. But nobody probed further and everything was swept under the carpet and that was the end of it,” he said.

The former CBN deputy governor, who was last year invited by the Department of State Services and the police for saying that an unnamed northern governor was a Boko Haram commander, said the fact that other people have come out to say far worse but have not been invited, shows that he was unfairly targeted.

“My name is Mailafia and I am always for peace. I want peace in this country because I know without peace there can be no development but I think the people in government have to be objective and treat us equally. Someone says one thing and they go after him. Others say worse things and they are treated with kid gloves,” he said.

The former CBN deputy governor also disagreed with the approach of Sheikh Ahmad Gumi on the issue of amnesty for bandits.

Mailafia said it was wrong to offer such hoodlums amnesty and then make no provision for the victims, adding that they have no agenda other than to destroy.

He argued that appeasing the bandits would never work even as he said the Niger Delta militancy and the banditry ravaging the country are two different things.

“I do not believe that the Niger Delta militancy can be compared to the terrorists. These people (terrorists) are not even bandits. A bandit is a common thief or a brigand. The ‘agbero’ are bandits. These people carrying sophisticated weapons and rockets are not bandits. They are terrorists.

“They have killed, they have maimed, they have raped and they have wreaked havoc,” Mailafia said.

One of the teachers of Government Girls Secondary School, Jangebe, Zamfara State, has narrated how some angry parents pulled down doors and windows of the school after Friday’s kidnap incident.

Gunmen had stormed the school in the early hours of Friday, abducting many students.

Speaking with Daily Trust, the teacher said many parents trooped to the school after the incident.

He said some of those whose children were abducted slumped in the school while those who found their children unharmed, made efforts to take them away but the school authorities initially stopped them for safety concerns.

However, the parents were said to have reacted negatively, forcing the authorities to allow them have their way.

“Initially, the school authorities prevented them from going with the remaining students but they got angry and began to pull down doors and windows of the buildings in the school and the authorities had to yield to their demands,” he said.

The teacher said after the abduction, not more than 50 students could be accounted for in the school which has a population of over 600 students.

He said the gunmen first attacked soldiers in the town before storming the school.

“When the gunmen laid siege, they attacked the soldiers stationed in the community before they gained entry into the school. Some people told us that they stationed vehicles at the outskirts of the school.”

“Security Operatives and the local vigilante groups are trailing the gunmen and dozens of other residents have volunteered to take part in the search,” he said.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has arrested a man for supplying rich people in Lagos with cakes, biscuits and others produced with drugs.

The man, who is the leader of the syndicate, was identified as Samuel Ebenezer.

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NDLEA officials had raided some drug spots in Agege, Ikorodu, Lekki, Okokomaiko and other parts of the state, where they dismantled major drug syndicates and arrested suspects.

The agency said it also seized large quantities of hard drugs.

It said, “One of the drug syndicates bust during the raids is coordinated by one Samuel Ebenezer in Lekki. His cartel imports special sophisticated drugs baked in cakes, biscuits and cookies from the United States and sells to the rich and affluent people in Lekki and Lagos Island.

“During the raids, a total of 90 suspects, including an Indian were arrested, while over 614 kg of various types of drugs were seized.”

The Lagos State Commander of the agency, Mr. Ralph Igwenagu, gave the breakdown of the seizures as follows: “Cannabis sativa 577.020 kg; cocaine 0.183kg, heroine 0.003 kg, tramadol 36.202 kg (7,697 tablets), Rohypnol 0.208kg (646 tablets), Diazepam 0.462 kg (2066 tablets), Exol-5 0.52 kg (316 tablets), making a total of 614.396 kg of different types of hard drugs seized.”

The agency also impounded a container-load of tramadol at the Apapa seaport.

Islamic State’s West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters erroneously eliminated one of their top commanders known as Ba’ana Okocha.

The indigene of Gamboru area of Borno and four others were shot dead at a heavily protected ISWAP location called Arinna Sorro.

The enclave serves as an armoury and hideout for top militant commanders, including foreign ISIS mercenaries who regularly visit from neighbouring countries.

According to EON Intelligence, Okocha and his guards were wrongly identified by the ISWAP snipers. The squad maintained position throughout the day, it was gathered.

The shooters perceived Okocha and his team as aggressors from the Abubakar Shekau led Boko Haram faction.

Since Shekau’s loyalists were evicted from ISWAP strongholds, the camps had remained fortified. Nobody leaves or enters without permission.

Okocha reportedly led last week’s attack on a military base in Marte and some settlements within the Local Government Area. The terrorists chased out civilians and occupied villages.

On Tuesday, the Nigerian military recaptured Marte and environs after hours of fierce battle. Ground air assets were deployed in the operation that claimed scores of insurgents.

The disunity among the Jama’tu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS) factions continues to deepen. There have been coordinated attacks against each other.

They engaged in a shootout recently over the ISWAP kidnap of some women linked to Boko Haram. The latter reportedly went on a rescue mission.

Boko Haram and ISWAP still maintain pact with organised jihadist groups – Al-Qaeda and ISIS-linked JNIM and ISGS; Liptako-Gourma Authority in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger; AZWAJ in Libya; Al-Shabaab in Somalia.

Many people have been killed and scores injured on Tuesday when Boko Haram fighters launched multiple attacks on Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

Nine boys were killed while playing football at Gwange, near the house of the late General Mamman Shuwa, when rockets landed in the area, witnesses said.

“Four people have been confirmed dead in our area, known as Adam Kolo,” said a Maiduguri based journalists, Ali Chiroma.

“The explosive fell a few metres from our house. All the people that sustained injuries have been rushed to the UMTH for treatment,” he said.

Adults including men and women as well as children were among the fatalities, with sources saying some of the victims have lost their limbs.

The areas worst affected are Kalere, behind the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH); Gwange; Adam Kolo, not far from the Shehu of Borno’s Palace and adjoining densely populated areas.

Residents and security sources said following the first set of bombs launched at densely populated areas of the city, the terrorists made attempts to use the opportunity to go into the town but were repelled.

It was the first major and audacious assault on Maiduguri in years, heightening fears among residents that the terrorists might be lurking around, observers said.

A top security source said the terrorists deployed mortar bombs and rocket launchers from the outskirt of Maiduguri and targeted the civilian population, killing many and inflicting serious injuries in others.

It was learnt that the terrorists fired the first assault around 6.04 pm and sustained the attacks for over 30 minutes, prompting thunderous sound that caused a scare as people scampered for safety.

Some of the victims were rushed to UMTH while others were taken to the Specialists Hospital around the Post Office area.

Governor Babagana Zulum was at the UMTH where he sympathized with the injured.

All efforts to reach out to the military in Maiduguri; NEMA and SEMA, for official comments were not successful.

Victims soaked in blood in hospitals

At the UMTH along Bama Road, humanitarian workers, family of victims and acquaintances rushed their injured loved ones for treatment.

There was high traffic at the Accident and Emergency Unit of the hospital with relatives struggling to get the attention of health workers to treat the injured.

“We would most likely stabilise some of the injured but the case of some of them is bad,” a doctor said, asking for anonymity.

“Some of the victims would require surgery and others would need blood transfusion. There are some who lost their limbs…” he said.

Another source at the hospital confirmed that they have 9 dead bodies brought to the facility following the multiple blasts in Maiduguri.

“It is an overwhelming situation; we have many injured persons currently receiving treatment now,” he said.

It was learnt that in other areas that similar attacks were launched, families of people that sustained serious injuries were treated at private clinics and taken back home long before the arrival of humanitarian workers.


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Pandemonium in Maiduguri on Tuesday after Boko Haram fighters fired mortar bombs into the state capital

How the attack was launched

A security source said dozens of terrorists mobilised towards Maiduguri with some of them taking cover in the bush, while those with lethal weapons advanced and took a cover in trenches.

A resident, Modu Lawal, said: “I was at a friend’s house located near the UMTH when I heard the violent explosions. I saw people running to places of safety and I had to stay at my friend’s.”

Lawal said his brother later told him on the phone that another device fired by the attackers injured people at the Gwange area.

Fighter jets and helicopter gunships were deployed and hovered in the sky, forcing the attackers to retreat.

The surprising attack came barely two hours after the military claimed to have recaptured Marte town and three other communities seized by the insurgents a week ago.

“I am sure the terrorists took time and planned the multiple attacks and targeted the city towards the evening,” a Maiduguri resident, Malam Umaru, said.

He said the terrorists deployed many mortar bombs and rocket launchers that fell on houses in areas populated by locals.

A mortar is an artillery weapon that fires explosive shells. Another source said it was the dry broad ditch (moat) dug years ago around Maiduguri that saved the day.

“The terrorists would have infiltrated the city centre if not for the ditch and considering that soldiers have been deployed to many entry points of Maiduguri. The attackers were left with no option but to use rocket launchers and mortars,” he said.

Abubakar Mohammed, a resident of Maiduguri, said, “What happened today is unfortunate, especially at a time when people around Maiduguri were happy.

“Maiduguri had enjoyed relative peace in recent times but people in the city have been weakened today following multiple assaults on the city.

“The Nigerian Armed Forces need to change their operational tactics and information flow, a lot need to be done to sustain public confidence,” he said.

In his reaction, the Chairman of the Network Civil Society Organisation, Borno State, Ambassador Ahmed Shehu, said the attack revealed the vulnerability of surrounding communities despite the security plans on ground.

A Nigerian man based abroad, Ogunshakin Emmanuel, got what he did not bargain for after he reportedly sent about N10m to his fiancée, Miss Mary Egodo, 30, for her to buy a property in Lagos in preparation for their marriage only to come back to discover that she swindled him and bolted away with another lover.

P.M.EXPRESS reports that the suspect, Mary, not only duped Emmanuel, she blocked every contact and relocated to an unknown place so that Emmanuel will not locate her when he returns to Nigeria.

The lady, Mary, was said to have relocated and was enjoying the money with another lover without buying any property and was not ready to get married to Emmanuel.

However, the alleged scam was reported to the Police, who trailed and eventually arrested Mary in her hideout. She was asked to refund the money but she said that she had spent the whole money.

According to Police sources, the man, Emmanuel, who hails from Ekiti State, met Mary, who is from Delta State in Ibafo area of Ogun State, where Mary lives with her parents.

In the course of their relationship, they agreed to get married before Emmanuel traveled abroad for greener pastures with the consent of Mary.
While Emmanuel was abroad, he sent money at different times through Mary’s First Bank account with number 0491076066, with the agreement that Mary will use the money to buy land and develop it before he will return to consummate the relationship.

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Unknown to Emmanuel, Mary was busy enjoying the money with her other lover and deceived him that he had already acquired the property as they agreed.

However, when Emmanuel informed her that he will be coming back to Nigeria to formalize the marriage and to see the property she bought with the money sent to her, Mary blocked all his numbers and relocated without any trace to reach her. Emmanuel was shocked and reported what happened to the Police.

The Police then tracked and eventually arrested her. After interrogation and having been found culpable, she was charged before the Ejigbo Magistrate Court for fraud and conversion of the money.
She pleaded not guilty.

The prosecutor, Inspector Bernard Aigbokhan, asked the Court to give a date for hearing for the Police to prove that she actually committed the alleged offence.

Thus, the Presiding Magistrate, Mr. E.O. Ogunkanmi, granted Mary bail in the sum of N3m with two sureties in like sum.
She was remanded in Correctional Centre at Kirikiri town, Lagos, pending when she will perfect her bail conditions.
The matter was adjourned till 19th April, 2021, for mention.

By Andrew Orolua

A fierce battle between Abubakar Shekau-led Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) has erupted in Sunawa village near Nigeria Niger border over women, resulting in an specified number of casualties on both sides.

The incident which took place in a border area between Nigeria and the Niger Republic was revealed by Al Thabat, an al-Qaida affiliated media outfit.

Al Thabat, in a statement, said Jama’at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da’wah wa’l-Jihad, commonly known as Boko Haram, killed Islamic State West Africa Province insurgents in the village of Sunawa on the Nigeria-Niger border.

The battle occurred after ISWAP abducted dozens of women linked to Boko Haram. The group subsequently attacked the ISWAP base and rescued the women.

It will be recalled that ISWAP broke off from the Shekau led Boko Haram in 2016, and since then, bitter war of attrition and violent confrontations between both factions have been recurrent.

This incident has once again exposed the disorganized and disoriented nature of these criminals, Nigerian Army spokesman Brigadier General Mohammed Yerima said.

The Nigerian Army in recent Operations under the leadership of the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Major General Ibrahim Attahiru, has continued to dismantle all logistics and operational bases of the insurgents along the Lake Chad Basin axis and Sambisa forest area.

The troops in one of its operations along Sambisa forest discovered and destroyed Abubakar Shekau’ farm and rescued abducted victims.

Yerima reassured Nigerians of the determination of troops to clear the remnants terrorists out of the Nigerian territory

The federal government says it will grant licence for individuals to build, operate and maintain highways.

The arrangement is under the new highway development and management initiative (HDMI).

This development is coming after the federal ministry of works and housing received the Outline Business Case Certificate of Compliance to commence procurement process for the concession of 12 federal highways under the HDMI.

The certificate was issued by the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC).

In a document released by the ministry and signed by Boade Akinola, its director of press and publicity, the FMWH said the concession process will be classified into two categories — value-added concession and unbundled assets approvals.

For the value-added concession, the road pavement and entire right-of-way will be on concession for development and management by the concessionaire.

While for the unbundled assets approvals initiative, “approvals/permits are issued for individual assets on the right-of-way on a build, operate and or maintain basis”.

This will lead to the use of tollgates for concessionaires to recoup investments.

The ministry said the consessionaire agreement will provide adequate highway services through the development of revenue-generating assets along the highways. It added that over 200,000 jobs will also be created by the initiative.

‌”Both approaches aim to provide adequate highway services through the development of revenue-generating assets along the Highway. This is key to maintaining the functionality of the highway as well as engaging and generating wealth for indigenous small and medium enterprises,” it said.

“The main objective of the initiative is to attract expertise and sustainable investment/funding in the development of road infrastructure and to maximise the use of assets along the Right of Way and develop other highway infrastructure.

“It’s not really about revenue, it’s about the expected injection into the economy. The estimated private sector investment required for the development and maintenance of the 12 routes is N1.34 trillion and the impact such investment will have on the economy cannot be overstated.

“A minimum 50,000 direct jobs and over 200,000 indirect jobs are envisaged to be created spanning construction works, installations, steel fabrication, security, hospitality, vehicle repairs, waste management and administrative work as the value chain along the highway economy is activated.”

Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom on Monday accused Bala Mohammed, Bauchi State governor, of being a terrorist.

“I am beginning to think that my brother, the governor of Bauchi State is part of the terrorist Fulani organisation that is terrorising this country,” Ortom said while addressing journalists in Makurdi, Benue State capital.

“Why do I say this? This is the same governor who took the oath of office to protect the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This constitution does not leave room for allowing foreign herdsmen to come in without valid papers,” he added.

He also referred to the assertion by Mohammed that herders should carry AK-47 to defend themselves as being “unconstitutional.”

“His recent outburst that Fulani herdsmen are justified for carrying AK-47 to protect themselves. I don’t know where the constitution of this country allows that,” he said.

Ortom, therefore, called Mohammed to render an unreserved apology to Nigerians and learn from the provisions of the constitution that, land both territorial, forest, and aquatic, are vested on the governor of a state who holds them in trust.

Mohammed’s comment on armed herdsmen had earlier triggered a wave of condemnation from his counterparts and Nigerians alike, increasing calls for the prohibition of open grazing.

Ortom and his Ondo counterpart, Rotimi Akeredolu, were quick to knock the Bauchi governor’s statement.

“Bala Mohammed has even poured more petrol into the fire because his speech is unexpected of him. It will become very serious and nobody will be spared,” Akeredolu said.

After widespread criticism, Mohammed on Friday defended his comment about armed herders, explaining that he used AK-47 as a figure of speech for protection.

“It is a figure of speech to show you the despondence, the desperation and frustration and the agony that this particular person is exposed to by his own people, by his own tribe and by other tribes who have all seen him as a criminal and therefore, he has the inalienable right to protect himself,” the governor said during an interview on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily.

The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party has been thrown into panic following an attempt by the All Progressives Congress to bring in Governor Bello Matawalle of Zamfara State, Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State and his Cross River State counterpart, Governor Ben Ayade, The PUNCH has learnt.

The negotiations are being handled by the Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, who is also the Chairman of the APC Caretaker Committee; and Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State.

An impeccable source within the APC told Sunday PUNCH that Governor Ifeanyi Uguwanyi of Enugu State was also being targeted by the APC but had declined their advances.

“Uguwanyi has been targeted but he is proving stubborn. Our aim is to ensure that we have at least three South-East states out of the five ahead of the 2023 elections. If we cannot get Ugwuanyi, we will ensure that we win the Anambra governorship election which comes up later in the year,” he said.

It was learnt that Governor Matawalle of Zamfara State had already been accepted by top All Progressives Congress leaders in Zamfara State like a former governor of the state, Senator Ahmed Yerima, who had stated publicly that Matawalle would defect.

A PDP chieftain said, “Matawalle became governor through a Supreme Court ruling. Zamfara State is still very much APC and Matawalle is seeking a second term in office. He has been able to establish a good relationship with President Muhammadu Buhari.

“He has also been at loggerheads with the leadership of the PDP. In November 2020, Matawalle lashed out at the South-South governors of the PDP for generating bad blood in the party.

“He said he was disappointed with the South-South governors for sparking the controversy over the Zamfara gold issue and even said he was not surprised by the decision of Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State to dump the PDP for the APC. He is therefore expected to join APC soon.”

It was learnt that Governor Mohammed of Bauchi State was also expected to join the APC soon and had already begun taking pro-APC positions on several matters.

“Bala Mohammed is also seeking a second term. His recent statements on herdsmen and his refusal to blame the Federal Government are due to his relationship with the Presidency. We have made frantic efforts to keep him in the party but it seems he may have made up his mind,” he said.

For Governor Ayade of Cross River State, it was learnt that he had fallen out with his predecessor, Senator Liyel Imoke.

It was learnt that Ayade had lost control of the PDP structure in the state.

A former Minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, is also expected to leave the PDP soon along with some governors before the registration exercise of the APC ends.

“The recent membership drive is being championed by Governor Buni, Governor Yahaya Bello; Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State and the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN). These are people who have the power to give you what the PDP cannot give.

“They have the President’s backing to make promises and keep them. They are not like Bola Tinubu and Adams Oshiomhole who were not empowered by the President,” a former governor stated.

Meanwhile, it was learnt that former President Goodluck Jonathan had not made any commitment to join the APC as of Saturday evening.

An associate of the former President said indeed Jonathan was not happy with the PDP which informed his support for the APC candidate in the last governorship election in his home state of Bayelsa, Mr. David Lyon.

It was, however, learnt that Jonathan saw the move as too risky.

“Jonathan would have joined the APC but the problem is that it is too risky. At his level, the only thing you can promise him is the Presidency and no one can promise him that seat because politics is too unpredictable. So, for now, he will remain in the PDP,” he said.

The National Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, had on Saturday alleged that the leadership of the APC is giving false promises to some members of the opposition party to enable them to defect to the ruling party.

Secondus told The PUNCH that there had been many moves by the ruling party to woo members of the PDP into its fold, saying the purpose of the APC was to snatch the PDP members but later refuse to give them any meaningful role in the party in future.

Blame foreign herders for killings, kidnappings, other atrocities

Fresh facts have emerged on the swirling controversy over the instruction given by Northern Elders Forum, NEF, to Fulani herdsmen in parts of Southern Nigeria, to return to the North, on account of the quit notice allegedly given to them.

The Ondo State government had first ordered the herdsmen to leave its forest reserves and this was followed by Yoruba activist, Sunday Igboho, who allegedly sacked the Sarkin Fulani in Oyo State. Since the quit notices and NEF directives were issued, high level consultations at governorship level have been ongoing to resolve the crisis occasioned by these socio-political developments. The NEF had even urged governors of the northern states to prepare to receive law abiding herders who want to return to the North.

However, the body of Sarkin Fulani (heads of Fulani communities in parts of the Southern Nigeria), who are at the centre of the controversy, have stridently said they were aware of the “Return-to-the-North” directive issued by the NEF, arguing that it was never communicated to them. In interviews with Sunday Sun correspondents, the various Sarkins Fulani expressed their views on the NEF directive.

IMO

Northerners in Imo State have declared that they did not get any return-to-North notice, stressing that even if such directive was given, they have no plans to leave the state. Senior Special Assistant to Imo State governor, Suleiman Ibrahim, who spoke with Sunday Sun added that Imo has never been detrimental to them, maintaining that his people had sworn never to leave the state.

Ibrahim said: “We never received any notice from anybody to quit from the state. Why should we leave, we are in Nigeria, where are we going to? We shall continue to live in peace with our hosts. We don’t have any issues with the people here, they love us and we love them; I thank Almighty Allah for bringing us to Imo, there is no home like Imo.”

OGUN

In Ogun State, the Sarkin-Fulani, Muhammad Kabir Labar, said that his office never received any directive from the Northern Elders Forum, to leave Ogun and move their cattle up North. He expressed serious concerns over the clashes between farmers and herders in the state, which had claimed lives on both sides, while cattle and farms had been destroyed.

Labar explained that of all the Southwest states, Ogun State remains the best location to carry out cattle rearing business. He blamed foreign herders for the killings, maiming, arson and wanton destruction that have occurred recently. The Sarkin Fulani commended the Ogun State governor, Dapo Abiodun, for his timely intervention, noting that move by the governor prevented the recent crisis in Yewa North Local Government Area of the state from escalating and snowballing into a conflagration.

The governor’s prompt intervention in the crisis, he said, doused the tension that had been rising on both sides and saved lives.

“Killings, no matter the circumstance, are detestable and can never be the solution to the issues at hand; we do not have to further aggravate the already tense situation by pandering to ethnic sentiments,” he added.

Labar said that various ethnic nationalities had been living as one in Ogun State for centuries with mutual respect for one another, noting that things would continue in that manner, as agreed at the stakeholders’ parley organised by the Ogun State government, to find lasting solution to the incessant herders/farmers clashes.

While harping on the need to be wary of mischief makers trying to reap from the mindless cycle of bloodletting by fabricating casualty figures and losses on both sides, Labar said that efforts would be doubled to strengthen unity between herdsmen and the host communities in Ogun State.

“I call on the people and the media to exercise restraint in what is said and reported on the crisis as the state government and the security services have demonstrated unwavering commitment to the safety of our lives and property.

“Already, we have seen the deployment of patrol vehicles, armed personnel and the political will of the governor to bring the situation under control. We thank him for his sincerity and commitment to restore peace,” Labar said.

He further noted that a conflict resolution mechanism would be put in place by his office, to ensure timely settlement of issues before they degenerate into situations capable of leading to a skirmish.

ANAMBRA

In Anambra State, Chairman, South East Zone of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), Alhaji Gidado Siddiki, told Sunday Sun that his people, the Fulani herdsmen, have been living peacefully with the people of Southeast.

He said that there has not been any formal communication from the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) or any other relevant authority from the North asking herdsmen to return to the North.
His words: “The challenges our people are having in Southern Nigeria prompted the call or suggestion by the Northern Elders Forum.

However, nobody has informed me officially. Nobody is planning to go back to the North unless we are forced to go. The only thing that will make them to go is if they feel unprotected. If there is protection, why should they go? But if there is no protection they will have no other option than to go.”

Asked if he was making any effort to ensure that there is peaceful coexistence between the herders and their host communities in the Southeast, he said: “There is cordiality between my members and our hosts. Some of these things that are happening, I don’t know their origin. But I don’t think it is from the good people of the Southeast. I don’t know what prompted these challenges we are facing in Southern Nigeria because what I know is that we have cordiality with the people of the Southeast.

“We always partner with some groups in the Southeast to broker peace. So, I don’t know why this thing is happening. But what I know is that it is just a trial and it will come to an end.”
On how he intends to settle disputes between herdsmen and farmers in the future, he said: “Whenever farmlands are destroyed by Fulani herdsmen, we go there and assess the level of damage and then pay the owner of the farm. It is the same thing when a cow gets killed. The leaders of the community facilitate the payment for the cow.”

DELTA

On their part, members of the Hausa/Fulani community in Delta State have insisted that they have no intention of leaving the state owing to what they described as a very robust harmonious relationship with their respective host communities across the state.

Spokesman of the Hausa/Fulani community in the state, Alhaji Muktar Usman, told Sunday Sun in Asaba that they were not making plans to return to their states of origin in the foreseeable future.

Usman who is an influential figure in the community said that such appeal by NEF to northern governors was not meant for Hausa/Fulani residents in Delta State. He said the peculiar problem which led to such appeal, in the first instance, was not being experienced in the oil rich Delta State.

According to him, there is no official correspondence from the North, calling on them to return home.

“As you can see, we don’t have that problem in Delta State. So that appeal is not for us here in Delta because we have a very cordial relationship with our host communities,” Usman said.
He explained that there was an existing mechanism to douse tension and deal with any possible security challenge.

“We have zonal LGA and senatorial security meetings were issues are promptly addressed to the satisfaction of all. We liaise with the security agencies to promptly address matters that may come up, reported and referred to the appropriate quarters for actions to be taken,” Usman added.

Besides, he said that members of the Hausa/Fulani community in the state were in constant dialogue with traditional rulers and opinion leaders of their host communities on how to sustain harmony and ensure peaceful co-existence.

EKITI

When he spoke to Sunday Sun on the issue of the NEF directive, the Chairman, Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association, Ekiti State chapter, Alhaji Mohammed Nasamu, said: “There was no formal communication to them to return to the North. No Fulani herder in Ekiti is ready to return to the North because Fulani people are Nigerians, the people from the Southwest are also Nigerians, we are not from another country.”

On how they (Fulani) intend to maintain harmony with their host communities, the chairman said: “Insha Allah, we will ensure that peace reigns. Fulani herders in Ekiti State are peaceful people, and the governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, has an open heart to all and has always taken all residents as one, irrespective of tribe, whether Yoruba, Igbo, Fulani, Ebira, Ijaw, Edo, Efik and others, the governor has always taken everyone as one.

I have always spoken to my people on peaceful coexistence and I will continue to do so. We will ensure oneness with all the people in Ekiti State.
“We will hold a meeting with herders in Ekiti State and we will remind them not to engage in anything bad. We will tell every Fulani herder in all the local governments in the state to register. They are going to register with their traditional rulers and any town without an Oba will definitely have a Baale (Chief) or Regent. They will register there.”

On how to settle herders disputes in future, the chairman said: “I pray God will never allow fight in Ekiti State. We will ensure no Fulani herder foments trouble.”

On the sensitive issue of Fulani herders carrying guns while grazing, Nasamu said: “I have personally not seen any Fulani herder carry guns while grazing.”

KOGI

The Kogi State chapter, Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), has said herders in the state are not affected by the relocation advice given to some of its members living in Southern parts of the country.

Worried by the rising conflicts between herders and farmers, the Northern Elders Forum had asked northern state governors to prepare to receive law abiding herders who want to return back to the North.

The Assistant Secretary of MACBAN in the state, Abubakar Adamu, who spoke with our correspondent, said that the herders in Kogi State are living peacefully with their host communities and are therefore not affected by the order.

He said the herders affected are those living in the South-south, Southeast and the Southwest where there are recurring clashes between herders and farmers.

While commending the Northern Elders Forum for taking the initiative, he said that his members in the state will always embrace peace and live in harmony with their host communities.
Adamu also praised the state governor, Yahaya Bello, for his efforts in ensuring security of lives and property in the state.

Three herdsmen have been arrested by police operatives in the Ayetoro area of Ogun State, after burning several houses and injuring some residents.

The police recovered a gun and “a bloodstained cutlass” from the herdsmen after they were arrested on Saturday.

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The herdsmen are identified as Musa Yusuf, Usman Mohammed, and Aliyu Abubakar.

SaharaReporters learnt that they inflicted a deep matchet cut on a resident identified as Ismaila Alabi.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, said the operatives combed the Igboaje bush where the herders were arrested.

He said, “Three herdsmen were arrested by operatives of Ogun State command for the role they played in the attack on Bamajo village in the Ayetoro area of the state. In the early hours of the day, the men attacked the village where they set some houses ablaze and inflicted a deep matchet cut injury on one Ismaila Alabi.

“On receiving the report, the Area Commander mobilised his men, hunters, and youths to the scene where the entire area was thoroughly combed. The combing exercise was extended to Igboaje bush where one Musa Yusuf was apprehended with a gun and a bloodstained cutlass.

“His arrest led to the arrest of two others namely: Usman Mohammed and Aliyu Abubakar, who are strongly believed to be part of those who launched the violent attack.

"The injured victim was quickly rushed to a general hospital for treatment.

Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police has ordered the immediate transfer of the suspects to the state Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department for further investigation.

“He also directed a massive manhunt for the rest of the arsonists with a view to bringing them to justice.”

Yewa communities have been troubled in recent weeks by Fulani herdsmen and reprisals also by residents leading to ethnic clashes in the area.

Governor Dapo Abiodun had last Tuesday met with some northern governors including Kebbi State Governor, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu; Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje; Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle and Niger State Governor, Abubakar Sanni.

They were also in Ibadan, Oyo State last week to visit the area where violence raged between herdsmen and residents, leading to the destruction of lives and property.

In Oyo, Governor Bagudu, who lamented the sad incident between the two groups, however, promised that the northern governors would give necessary support to restore normalcy and redeem the lost property.

KADUNA – A Kaduna based pensioner, Musa Aga, has shocked his neighbours in the Gonin-Gora area of popular LEA Primary School in Kaduna by burning down his two-bedroom flat to prevent his estranged wife, with whom he had been separated for over 20 years, from returning to live with him.

His children, who had insisted on their mother returning to live with their father despite Musa’s insistence to the contrary, had forcefully broken into the house through the roof to bring back into the house, the former Mrs Aga’s belongings.

Musa, who had retired from Kaduna State Ministry of Rural and Community Development in 2015, is from Kagoro in the Southern part of Kaduna State.

Narrating the reason why he burnt down his house, Musa said, “I divorced my wife for about 20 years now. But now the children are forcing me to stay with their mother. But I said no because when the elders and pastors of our church pleaded with her to come back to me she had earlier said no.

“But now she said she wants to come back to me. I also said no but the children are forcing me saying that their mother must stay with me. They brought her and her property to meet me at my house. They removed the roof and the ceiling to enter my house. That’s why I was annoyed and I didn’t like it, so I set my house on fire. This is the match box, that I used. So let bygones be bygones.”

Asked if the house was built from his gratuity, he said, “Yes, it was from my gratuity. But because of the annoyance with my family, I decided to burn it down. Let bygones be bygones.

When asked if the children will not feel bad about his actions he said, “Yes, I want them to feel it that’s why I did it. They want to force me to stay with their mother but I don’t want to. They said it is their father’s house, but now their father’s house is no more there. Do you see why I burnt it?

Musa when said that such actions are very rare with people of his age who normally would want to keep legacy for their children to inherit, when they are no more, he said, “Yes but when they are not good you don’t keep anything for them, except if they are good and they listen to you. They are not good.

“If they are good can they force their father to stay with their mother like that? I trained them for them to look after me when I grow old but now they are treating me badly.

Efforts by the neighborhood to put out the inferno failed as the fire was fuelled by the powerful harmattan breeze.

The breeze heightened the fear of close neighbors that their houses might be affected, hence they concentrated and controlled it against spreading.

While some were battling to control the fire, emergency local youthful village scavengers were busy gathering burnt zincs, metal and iron scraps, even as some were onlookers, some commentators, some wailers.

One of the daughters was crying because of her credentials and according to insiders, they didn’t envisage the setting of the house on fire.

It was also learnt that one of the daughters was alleged to have insisted that the father must accept her dowry even though he didn’t accept the dowry of the other daughters, therefore their mother must return to their father’s house and accept her dowry.

Sources told SATURDAY INDEPENDENT that a woman In her 40s was overheard saying that the ex-wife was allegedly flirting since she knew Musa was struggling to build the house and was living in rented apartment for many years.

Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State has given young persons the clue they can use in chasing “old men like me out of politics”.

Speaking at ‘Radio Now’s Urgent Conversation’ in Lagos on Friday, he called on youths, corporate professionals and religious leaders to join active politics to contribute their quota and make the country work.

El-Rufai also said protests or activism will not take anybody anywhere until good people surrender themselves for public service and endure the humiliation associated with serving fatherland.

He said, “Good people must offer themselves for public service and suffer the indignity that we all suffer every day, we get abused, we get insulted, we get accused but we must have our best people in public service, we must have our bet people in politics; we should not have them in banks, in telecom companies, in oil companies, in civil societies protesting. Protesting will take you nowhere unless you have a seat at the table. The most important table is that political table.

“I got into government in a technocratic way, I didn’t get into government to be appointed minister because of politics. I was appointed because the President liked me and thought I could do the job. But I realised after that, politics trumps everything.

“So, my call to Nigerians is if you want to see better governance, be part of the selection process of those that offer themselves for public service and politics. And the only way to do so is to join political parties and be active and influence the leadership that emerges in the political parties which usually influences the leadership that are offered for election. There is no other way, there is no shortcut to it.

“I appeal to young Nigerians, comfortable Nigerians –because public service pay is very poor. So, comfortable Nigerians should leave what they are doing; the pastors and imams that have made money, the bankers, the telecoms guys, leave that thing, come and make Nigeria work, because if it doesn’t work, you will not sleep at night no matter how much money you have made.

“I believe that there is hope, I believe if we have more and more young people, we have five million of them attaining the age of 18 every year, they can come and overwhelm the parties and chase out old men like me and take over but they must come; they cannot stand by the side lines and keep criticising.

“Solutions are what this country needs and you can only propose this solution, fight for them in the system.”

A witch doctor, contracted to exhume the body of a woman said to have suffered injustice in the hands of her in-laws, collapsed and died inside the grave.

The witch doctor, named Idike Ezikanyi from Uwani-Amaogbo, Amabokwu village in Aku town, Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area of Enugu State, was allegedly recruited by the late woman’s husband, one Nnadi, and other members of his family.

Ezikanyi was to secretly dig up the body of Nnadi’s wife, Stella, who died five years ago and was buried in her husband’s compound.

An eyewitness told Vanguard that on the fateful night, the Nnadi family got more than they bargained for when the witch doctor suddenly shouted from the grave, begging the ghost of the dead woman to have mercy on him.

However, before those around could react, Ezikanyi, who made to jump out of the grave, fell back in and died instantly.

Sources revealed that the widower had succumbed to pressure from his family members to secretly exhume the body of his late wife and throw it away so that her spirit would be blinded from disturbing those living in the house which she built.

The sources said the family members of the husband had hated his late wife with passion and even disinherited their son.

The late wife had a bad leg; a deformity due to an infection in infancy. They didn’t want their son to marry her, even though the son depended on the lady who was very industrious despite her deformity.

Despite their pressure and blackmail, the two got married and completed a three-bedroom house of their own.

The sources further alleged that the jealousy and recrimination against her escalated, alleging that the lady died after a spiritual attack.

It was gathered that after she died mysteriously, the husband’s family refused to pay the outstanding bride price and also failed to accord her full burial rites.

The family members later packed onto the house and, feeling guilty and afraid of spiritual attack from the dead woman, they contracted the witch doctor exhume her body and throw it into an evil forest.

It was during this bizarre occasion that the witch doctor died.

Again, one of the widower’s sisters visited the witch doctor’s house to condole the family.

However, it was reported, after she finished crying she instantly suffered a stroke and had to be carried back to her home at Umuidu Amabokwu.

A 28-year-old lady, Ebiere Ezekiel, has reportedly stabbed her boyfriend, Godgift Aboh, 21 to death, over an argument about missing N1,500.

It was learnt that the incident occurred at Obele in Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.

The suspect, Ezekiel, a hairdresser, is said to have been dating the deceased (Aboh) for over 12 months.

It was learnt that trouble started when the deceased allegedly slapped her (Ezekiel) for daring to ask her for her missing N1, 500 resulting in the suspect stabbing him to death with a weapon.

She allegedly stabbed her boyfriend in the stomach during the argument and he died thereafter.

The suspect, who was paraded on Thursday by the Bayelsa State Police Command alongside other suspected criminals in connection with kidnapping, murder, burglary, stealing and vandalism, regretted her action.

The Bayelsa State Commissioner for Police, Mr Mike Okoli, during the parade, also paraded one Promise Oliver, who allegedly slapped his teenage girlfriend, Esther Uko, twice, leading to her death.

Okoli further said one Iniobong Maffat was arrested for allegedly conspiring with his gang members to rob one Mr Nhene Chinedu.

The suspects, according to the CP, allegedly robbed the victim of his company’s Toyota Corolla car loaded with pharmaceutical drugs worth N650, 000 along the Sani Abacha expressway in Yenagoa metropolis.

He said investigation by a team of Operation Puff Adder led to the arrest of the suspect at a in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital.

The CP said the command also arrested one Gigi Christopher, Kingsley Okulolo, Godbless Raymond and Vivian Christopher for alleged burglary and stealing at a shop in Amarata area of the state capital.

According to him, the Items recovered were one locally-made single barrelled gun, one Sumec Firman generator, one Elepaq generator, 43 inch LG TV, 32 inch LG led TV, 24 inch LG TV and an invoice.

The Zamfara State Government has earmarked a total of N200 million for its amnesty programme for 'repentant' bandits in 2021.

The figure was contained in the budget details passed by the Zamfara State House of Assembly in December 2020.

In a copy of the budget seen by SaharaReporters, N354 million was also budgeted for projects related to grazing reserves.

The Bello Matawalle-led government had in 2019 entered a peace agreement with bandits.

The governor said negotiation with the gunmen is the best option for lasting peace in the state.

Matawalle while hosting Mohammed Adamu, Inspector-General of Police; Yusuf Bichi, Director-General, Department of State Services (DSS); and other security heads on July 16, 2020 also offered bandits in the state two cows in exchange for every AK47 rifle surrendered.

He explained that he chose to offer cows because the bandits need the cows to advance their economic interests.

In January, SaharaReporters exposed how 15 brand new Hilux vehicles and cash gifts were given to leaders of different 'repentant' banditry groups by Matawalle.

“Those bandits have different group, so if they say they repent, the governor will give them a Hilux vehicle but unfortunately they are now using the vehicles to carry out attacks,” a military source told SaharaReporters

“It’s so sad, he called it peace and reconciliation programme, but all you need to be rich now in Zamfara is to take up arms against the people.”

Also, the state government recently granted amnesty to Auwalun Daudawa, the leader of the gang of bandits that abducted over 300 schoolboys in the Kankara Local Government Area of Katsina State.

Daudawa and his gang on December 11, 2020 invaded the school, shooting indiscriminately to scare residents. The operation led to the disappearance of over 300 students.

The abduction happened when President Muhammadu Buhari was visiting his home state of Katsina.

After their release on December 17, 2020, Matawalle, said the boys were rescued through the help of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) and that no ransom was paid.

Zamfara, like other North-West states, has in the last 10 years faced devastating attacks from armed bandits.

A committee set up to investigate the menace of armed banditry in the region, headed by Mohammed Abubakar, a former Inspector General of Police, reported that in Zamfara State between June 2011 and May 2019, 4,983 women were widowed; 25,050 children were orphaned; and more than 190,000 people were displaced as a result of armed banditry.

Last year, Governor Aminu Masari, Matawalle's counterpart in Katsina State, said his administration had to pull out of the peace deal it had with bandits that had been terrorising residents of the state.

Masari said despite the peace deal, the gunmen continued to carry out attacks with their accomplices from Zamfara, Kaduna and Niger Republic, leading to “indiscriminate killings” and kidnappings in the state.

Matthew Ochei, Asaba

The immediate past Commissioner of Environment, Delta State, John Nani, narrowly escaped death on Monday, as his orderly was killed by a mobile policeman.

Nani, who is the Executive Director, Finance and Administration of the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, escaped death when his orderly tried to intervene in a matter between him and the policeman allegedly attached to Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc in Sapele.

PUNCH Metro gathered that a Toyota Hilux van conveying Seplat staff hit Nani’s car at Ajogodo around 7pm.

A source told our correspondent that the van bashed Nani’s car from behind.

While the ex-commissioner parked to check the level of damage done to his vehicle, he was reportedly assaulted by the mobile policeman.

Our correspondent gathered that the deceased officer, who tried to intervene, was shot in the thigh.

“The mobile policeman wanted to shoot Nani, but his orderly threw himself and took the bullet.

“He was rushed to a hospital, but he couldn’t survive it,” he added.

The source said the mobile policeman had been arrested.

Efforts to reach the state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Onome Onovwakpoyeya, failed as she did not take her calls.

By Dayo Johnson

A housewife, Queen Beatrice has reportedly killed her husband Emmanuel lkukuni with a plank in Okitipupa area of Ondo state.

Vanguard gathered that the ugly incident occurred at Omotosho in Okitipupa council area of the state.

The suspect it was learnt attacked her husband for receiving a call from another woman in her presence

A fight was said to have ensued and the suspect used a plank to hit her husband on the head.

Sources said the husband slumped and before help could come from their neighbours, the husband gave up the ghost.

An eyewitness said ” by the time the neighbours could rushed the husband to a nearby hospital he had died.

Speaking to newsmen, a sister to the deceased, Imoleayo Ikujuni confirmed that the wife challenged her late brother for calling another lady in her presence

“During the fight, she hit him with a plank and he died instantly. They have arrested her.

” The suspect has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, SCIID, in Akure for further investigation”.

A family member of the deceased said the corpse has been deposited at the mortuary forautopsy examination.

Contacted, the state police image maker Tee-Leo Ikoro, confirmed the report and said that police detectives have commenced investigation.

The United Kingdom has reported new cases of a variant of the coronavirus, said to have emerged from Nigeria.

Described as the B1525, a report by researchers at the University of Edinburg, traces the earliest discovery of the variant to December 29, 2020.

At least 29 sequences of the B1525 reported in the UK have been traced to Nigeria, with scientists insisting that there is a need for more research to understand its peculiarities.

According to The Guardian, “the variant has similarities in its genome to the Kent variant, B117, and it contains a number of mutations that have worried researchers, including the E484K mutation to the spike protein – a protein found on the outside of the virus that plays an important role in helping the virus to enter cells.”

Simon Clarke, an associate professor of cellular microbiology at the University of Reading, also explained that the new mutation may affect the efficacy of vaccines, but the degree of transmission and severity of symptoms have not yet been clearly determined.

“We don’t yet know how well this [new] variant will spread, but if it is successful it can be presumed that immunity from any vaccine or previous infection will be blunted,” Clarke was quoted to have said.

“I think that until we know more about these variants, any variants which carry E484K should be subject to surge testing as it seems to confer resistance to immunity, however that is generated.”

The development comes six weeks after John Nkengasong, director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), had said a new variant of COVID-19 had been reported in Nigeria.

In its report on the variant referred to by Nkengasong, a paper titled ‘Detection of SARS-CoV-2 P681H Spike Protein Variant in Nigeria’, published in the ‘Virological’ journal, with the collaboration of the African Centre of Excellence for Genomics of Infectious Diseases (ACEGID); Redeemer’s University, Osun State; the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), and the Africa CDC, draws slight similarities between the variant found in Nigeria and that of the UK’s B.1.1.7, but puts it at less than two percent.

“At the moment, only about 1% of the SARS-CoV-2 genomes from Nigeria share any of the 17 protein-altering variants from the UK lineage of concern (B.1.1.7). However, this might change in the next few weeks when we sequence more samples from the recently reported surge of covid-19 in Nigeria,” a summary of the report, reads.

By Henry Umahi

“Good morning fellow Nigerians, this is Lt. Col Bukar Sukar Dimka of the Nigeria Army calling. I bring you good tidings. Murtala Muhammed’s hypocrisy has been detected. His government is now overthrown by the Young Revolutionaries. All the Nigeria military governors have no powers over the states they now govern. The state affairs will be run by the military brigade commanders until further notice. All commissioners are sacked except for the armed forces and police commissioners who will be deployed.

All senior officers should remain calm in their respective posts. No divisional commander will issue orders to his formations until further notice. Any attempt to foil this plan from any quarter will be met with death. You are warned, it is all over the 19 states. All acts of … (word unclear) observed will be death. Everyone should be calm. Please stay by your radios for further announcements. All borders, airports and seaports are closed until further notice. Curfew is imposed as from 6am to 6pm. Thank you. We are all together.”

These were the words of Bukar Sukar Dimka of the Nigeria Army Physical Training Corps, representing those he called the Young Revolutionaries, as they attempted to take over the General Murtala Mohammed-led military regime. Although the attempted coup failed, Mohammed, his ADC, Lt. Akintunde Akinsehinwa, and driver were killed.

A volley of bullets were sprayed on Muhammed’s official Mercedez Benz car near a petrol station, opposite the Federal Secretariat, Ikoyi, Lagos. Dateline: Friday, February 13, 1976.

Following the failure of the coup, Dimka and his co-conspirators were declared wanted by the military authorities. Intermittently, the radio gave information about the fugitives.

Friendship

March 4, 1976 began like a normal day in Amachi, Afikpo, Ebonyi State. (Afikpo was in Imo State then). However, before the sun went to bed, things began to change in an extraordinary way.

In the evening of that day, a white Renault car with registration number ECC 6253 entered the premises of Ikenyi Friendship Hotel in Afikpo. The front number plate was dangling.

The sole occupant was a well-built man in his mid 30s, five feet six-inch tall with one deep tribal mark on each cheek. He wore a traditional robe.

The young man approached the hotel staff and asked to be shown around before checking in. He was taken to all the rooms in the hotel, which was a bungalow at the time. Finally, the man chose a room at the back of the building. Interestingly, the room had a special feature: It had no burglar proof; other rooms had.

Subsequently, the guest checked in as Mr C. Godwin, an official of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Enugu.
A staff of the hotel, Ogbonnaya Nwaogwu, who was about 20-years-old at the time, told the reporter: “After checking in, the man made a request. He asked for a woman to spend the night with. So, a woman was brought for him from a brothel around. But when he saw the lady, he said he did not want an ashawo (prostitute).

We wondered how he knew that the lady was an ashawo; after all ashawo is not written on anybody’s face. When the woman came out, she said that he had been to their place (hotel) before and played with the ladies there. I think he must have also noticed the woman with others there.

“So, when he rejected the first girl, we went to a neighbouring village, Ukpa, and brought another girl for him. He didn’t complain about the girl and he shut the door when the girl entered into his room. Her name was Beatrice Ugochi.

“Some of us who were here did not know Dimka in person. All we knew was that there was a coup, but some people in Afikpo knew Dimka. That was the problem.
“When he came to Afikpo, some people recognized him.

So, they reported to the police that they had seen someone who looked like Dimka. You know, you cannot just go there and say you have seen Dimka just like that.

“Not long after, security men stormed the hotel, saying that they wanted to know the people who were lodging in the hotel. We told them that we were having only one guest and they asked if he was Dimka. We told them that the guest was an agric officer from Enugu. They insisted on seeing the guest.

“When the officers insisted on seeing our guest, Mr Godwin, we went and knocked on his door. When the lodger asked who was knocking, he was told that some people wanted to see him. The lodger said that he would come and see the visitors shortly, explaining that he was having a shower. They waited for him for some time but he didn’t come out. The officers surrounded the building and some went and knocked on his door.

“After waiting without answer, the officers forced the door open and found Ugochi sitting on the bed. The men asked her about the man she was supposed to be with and she pointed to the bathroom.

Again, they knocked on the bathroom door but there was no response. They broke the bathroom door but the lodger was nowhere to be found. He had vanished.”

It was later discovered that the guest escaped through the bathroom window, which had no protector. The suspicion that the lodger, Mr C. Godwin and Dimka were the same person became more profound. Then the officers started beating the girl.

The disappearance of the lodger threw the security agents into confusion and panic. According to a witness, “the security agents began to sweat profusely. They painted pathetic pictures as they searched all over the place, looking for the escapee lodger who slipped through their fingers, and abandoned his gateway car loaded with cash. They didn’t know how long he had been gone or the route he took. In fact, they all looked stupid. Dimka had outsmarted them.”

The security men unleashed their anger and frustration on Ugochi, beating and battering her like a thief. They took her and the hotel manager to the police station and later transferred them to Owerri.

Dimka’s physical ability was deployed when it mattered most. While the men pursuing Dimka were chasing shadows in Afikpo, he walked away through the bush behind the hotel at the time. He walked in the bush all through the night for several kilometers. The bubble, however, burst at Abaomege, near Abakaliki.

Dimka’s plan was to enter Cameroun through neighbouring Cross River State. Investigation revealed that during the Ngeria/Biafra civil war, Dimka had operated in Afikpo, so he was conversant with the area.

Victim of the flesh

Dimka gave himself away by frolicking with women of easy virtues at a nearby brothel before checking into Ikenyi Friendship Hotel. While there, some people had noticed him and reported to the local police. But before the security personnel arrived, he had gone. They finally traced him to Ikenyi Friendship Hotel. Anyway, Dimka was just being himself. While appealing for information on his whereabouts, the police had noted that, “he drinks and he is fond of pub houses.”

Ikenyi Friendship Hotel was undergoing renovation when Daily Sun visited last week.

The Federal Government, on March 6, 1976, issued a statement regarding Dimka’s arrest. The statement said: “His arrest followed a massive manhunt operation mounted by a combined team of the army and police in the area.

“The previous day, Lt. Col. Dimka had checked into a local hotel in Afikpo under the name of Mr C. Godwin of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Enugu. Later, on his request, the hotel manager secured for him a girl, Miss Beatrice (Ugochi) Agboti, with whom to spend the night.
“A few hours later, the local police security was alerted and they closed up on him. At about 10.30pm, he bolted away through the toilet of his hotel room into a nearby thick bush, abandoning his car with a dandling registration number ECC 6253.

“The continuous joint manhunt operation by the army and police resulted in his subsequent arrest near Abakaliki.”

And the man died

Dimka was tried and convicted by a military tribunal. On Saturday, May 15, 1976, he and six others, including the former governor of Benue Plateau State, Joseph D. Gomwalk, were executed by firing squad.

Thirty-two others had earlier been executed on March 11, 1976, for their alleged roles in the events of February 13. They included the federal commissioner for defence, Maj. Gen. Illiya Bisalla, who had attended the burial of the slain Head of State in Kano. He had maintained his innocence even as he was being tied to the stake, saying: “I am going to heaven. I need no prayer any longer.”

After Dimka’s execution, Obasanjo made a nationwide broadcast, saying: “We have now substantially disposed off the major issues arising from the coup attempt".

A 35-old-old house wife and one-year-old baby boy suffered varying degree of injuries in Kano following an early morning of gas explosion, which partially destroyed properties and part of the building.

The Kano State Police Command Spokesman, Abdullahi Haruna, said following a distress call from a Good Samaritan in Badawa layout, the Police Command dispatched a team of experts to the scene.

According to the PPRO, on arrival, the experts swung into action and discovered that it was an explosion, caused by domestic cooking gas in the early hours of Monday morning, precisely 6:30am.

Shortly on arriving at the scene, the police experts arranged for an ambulance, which conveyed the woman and the one-year-old boy to the International Clinic but were promptly referred to the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, where they are currently receiving medical attention.

When our correspondent visited the scene of the incident at Hasiya, Badawa layout, it was discovered that the explosion partially damaged two cars, parked within the compound, as well as extensively damaged the metal gate at the entrance of the compound.

In addition, the roof of an extension building in the compound was severely damaged, while household utensils were strewn and scattered within three adjoining rooms at the ground floor of the one storey building.

Following the disaster, the PPRO appealed to the good people of Kano not to panic but to go about their daily chores.

He advised residents to be more careful when handling cooking gas, especially at the ongoing harmattan season.

One Mrs Ajoke Ishola, who was abducted on Monday by some suspected Fulani herdsmen has been killed by her abductors.

DAILY POST learnt that the lifeless body of Ishola was found inside the bush around 7pm yesterday.

A son-in-law to the deceased, Engr Aremu Rafiu, confirmed the incident to our correspondent in a telephone conversation.

Rafiu had earlier disclosed that his mother-in-law was kidnapped along Igbo-Ori around 11am on Monday.

He recalled how the abductors accosted the commercial motorcyclist conveying Ishola to farm, shooting him and injuring another woman on the bike.

On Monday night, Aremu revealed to our correspondent that, “We have found my mother-in-law’s dead body. The Fulani herdsmen killed her and dumped her body behind Obasanjo’s farm in our area.

“But, what we observed was that the killer Fulani herdsmen did not go away with their cows initially. The OPC members saw the cows while searching for Mrs Ishola. After the OPC operatives had combed the entire bush and left, the herdsmen came out of their hiding to drop her body and took away their cows.

“We made findings and discovered that the cows belong to one Fulani man called Orebe. So, those who committed that crime were Orebe boys.

“We have informed the police, but they said they won’t be able to visit the place at night, promising to be there on Tuesday.

“The police said they would take the corpse to the mortuary. I told them I don’t have any money to waste at the mortuary. We only informed the police to be witnesses.

“The corpse was dropped by these wicked people near Obasanjo’s farm along Oke-Irori village,” the distraught son-in-law told DAILY POST.

Aremu expressed sadness that the killing of innocent souls continue unabated in Yewa axis of the state.

No fewer than 12 persons have been reportedly killed in Owode Ketu, Ebute Igbooro, Agbon Ojodu and Imeko in the last one week.

Governor Dapo Abiodun was in the area on Monday to sympathise with the people.

Today, Abiodun said he would hold an all-important meeting with about five northern governors and other major stakeholders so as to find a lasting solution to the killings.

Adelani Adepegba, Abuja

The Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, has ordered the immediate deployment of four units of riot policemen to address the violence in parts of Oyo State.

The intervention and stabilization forces also include the Force Intelligence Bureau operatives and one surveillance helicopter from the police airwing department.

Oyo State has been lately wracked by violence, including the killings of farmers by suspected herdsmen, abductions and the clashes between some Hausa and Yoruba traders at Shasha market.

But the force spokesman, CP Frank Mba, in a statement on Monday, titled, ‘Oyo crisis: IGP deploys intervention and stabilization forces,’ said the operatives would reclaim the public space, reinforce security and bolster public confidence in the areas affected by the crisis.

It stated, “The deployments, consisting largely of intelligence and operational assets of the Force, include four units of the Police Mobile Force, seasoned operatives from the Force Intelligence Bureau and one operational/surveillance police helicopter from the police Air-wing department.

“The intervention force is being coordinated by a Deputy Inspector General of Police, David Folawiyo, who is expected to mobilize all relevant stakeholders towards achieving the mandate of the squad.”

The statement said the IG assured that the force was committed to the safety of the lives and properties of the citizens in the country.

He called on the citizens and residents of Oyo State and other Nigerians to embrace peace and cooperate with the police and the security community “as they redouble their efforts in ensuring that sustainable peace and security are restored to the affected areas.”