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 Crime › Re: "My Late Mother Pushed Me Into Drug Trafficking" - Drug Trafficker by jona2: 11:46pm On May 04, 2009 |
lol.  |
| Politics › Re: China Executes Nigerian Mr Chibuzor Vitus Ezekwem by jona2(op): 11:46pm On May 04, 2009 |
*jona:  |
| Politics › Re: Northern Women Beaten In Ekiti by jona2(op): 10:20pm On May 04, 2009 |
nobilia: |
| Politics › China Executes Nigerian Mr Chibuzor Vitus Ezekwem by jona2(op): 10:17pm On May 04, 2009 |
[b]The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday announced the execution in China of a Mr Chibuzor Vitus Ezekwem after being found guilty of trafficking in hard drugs. The ministry quoted the Nigerian Embassy in Beijing , as stating that Mr Ezekwem was executed on April 23 2009 at 11.00 hours. "The case of Mr Ezekwem had been on for some time and the Embassy had kept a close watch on the proceedings throughout the period of his trial to ensure that he had a fair hearing throughout the period of his trial. The Mission's plea for mitigation of the death sentence was rejected and the death sentence passed on him was sadly eventually carried out in accordance with the Laws of the People's Republic of China." The statement signed by Director Public Communications Division, Ayo Olukanini explained. The ministry described this latest execution as sad adding that it brings to mind once again the need to alert Nigerians, that in China and indeed in most Asian countries trafficking in hard drugs carries the death sentence. It would be recalled that in June 2008, in Indonesia, two Nigerians were executed for trafficking in hard drugs and 18 are still on the death row in that country. This situation prompted the Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chief Ojo Maduekwe to lead a delegation, including two legislators from the National Assembly to Indonesia, to plead for leniency for these Nigerians awaiting execution. On this noted, the Ministry advised Nigerians again, to take note and desist from trafficking in hard drugs which, an act which not only tarnishes the image of the country but also leads to execution of those caught in some countries[/b] http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art200905042573295 |
| Politics › Northern Women Beaten In Ekiti by jona2(op): 12:06am On May 04, 2009 |
Northern women beaten in Ekiti [b]By Joke Kujenya Published Yesterday News Rating: Unrated Twelve northern women were penultimate Saturday, beaten and rough-handled by some suspected People’s Democratic Party (PDP) thugs in Ekiti State. One of them sustained a broken arm. The women had gone to Ekiti as independent observers to monitor the rerun elections in 10 local governments of the state. Speaking with The Nation on their ordeal, Joy, one of the women said it was a very devastating experience for each of them. She disclosed that their group, consisting of five Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs) under the aegis of Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CDEO) had been accredited by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Abuja, to embark on the national mission. She said: "It was not the first time that we would be monitoring elections. But why we were beaten and almost killed is what I still cannot understand. Recently, In fact, we were recently in Ghana for their elections under the same umbrella and rather than being beaten, we were honoured," she recounted. Joy also added that before they went, "all of us, as respective NGOs, had gone to the INEC head office in Abuja, to submit our letters of accreditation before concluding the moves to proceed to Ekiti." "But while we were at the INEC office, we were told that the commission has put in place a special committee with the responsibility to accredit NGOs to observe the elections. We were surprised and some of us even made moves to query such because it was the first time we would hear that. We have been monitoring rerun elections in different countries of the world that have such as far back as 1999 and we have never heard that a special committee would accredit us or any other NGO. "But before we could say anything, INEC officials handed each of us ‘Domestic Observers’ Tags’ and we picked courage in the fact that we wanted to do what was right,. Still, a lot of us had insisted on knowing the reason why INEC had set up such a special committee to accredit NGOs interested in observing the conduct of the rerun election. When it was obvious that we had no one to offer us explanations; we took the tags and left," Joy explained. Shouting on top of her voice as she narrated their predicament to The Nation correspondent over the telephone Joy said: "What we saw in Abuja was nothing compared to our experience . "We were just a few meters away from the Fountain Hotels in Ado-Ekiti, where we had lodged on Friday after our arrival when we saw lots of young men, about 50 or thereabout, shouting that we are agents sent to the state to scatter the elections. They rounded us up and we were afraid while also begging them that we are not working for anybody but for our respective NGOs. But they won’t listen to us. They began to shove us here-and-there, beating us and in the process, break the arm of Hajia, the woman that led us. They also wounded another woman in the leg and one other woman on her thigh. They also tore our clothes and really harassed us; but we were quickly saved by some men from the Nigerian Progress and Peace Meeting (NPPM). Their leader, Mr. Dapo Dabiri, also on election monitoring with some other people came to our rescue, spoke to the men on our behalf and got some security officers to guard us back to our hotel. They also assisted us till we left Ekiti for Abuja the next morning, Sunday. In his reaction to the plight of the women observers, Mr. Dapo Dabiri, President, Nigerian Progress and Peace Meeting (NPPM), said the harassment was uncalled for because Ekiti election was an affair that concerns all Nigerians. He derided the hooligans that molested the women as a bunch of ignoramus that do not know that the importance of Ekiti rerun is beyond their locale. [/b] http://thenationonlineng.net/web/articles/2235/1/Northern-women-beaten-in-Ekiti/Page1.html |
| Politics › Robbers Unleash Terror On Awka by jona2(op): 1:21am On May 01, 2009 |
Robbers Unleash Terror on Awka From Charles Onyekamuo in Onitsha, 04.30.2009 [b]Suspected armed robbers yesterday held Awka, Anambra State capital hostage for over an hour, while laying ambush for a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) bullion van. The robbers had as early as 11.30a.m., barricaded the Amawbia-Awka end of the Enugu-Onitsha expressway, shooting sporadically into the air, holding commuters and passers-by hostage. The hoodlums, numbering over 30, arrived in a Hummer Jeep, a Toyota Jeep and two L300 Mitsubishi buses apparently laying ambush for a bullion van allegedly belonging to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) currency centre in Awka, which was said to be returning from Enugu. As they waited, halting vehicular and human movement, another bullion van belonging to the an old generation bank sped past, and headed towards the Udoka Housing Estate in the capital city. The robbers gave the van a hot chase. They, however, missed it, and out of frustration, started shooting into some of the buildings within the estate, including secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), where a reception for the reinstated chairman of the State Chapter of PDP, Mr Uchenna Emodi was billed to hold. Sources said the CBN bullion van which the robbers laid ambush for had been alerted before getting to the point. It stopped at the Amansea junction bordering Enugu and Anambra states on the same expressway, while Commissioner of Police, Mr Amusa Bello, mobilised two truck loads of officers and men to the border to safeguard the van. [/b] http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=142179 |
| Politics › Four Months After The Bloody Multiple Bank Robberies In Osun. by jona2(op): 1:13am On May 01, 2009 |
3 robbery suspects arrested in Osun ABIODUN FELIX, Osogbo [b]in the ancient town Four months after the bloody multiple bank robberies of Ile-Ife, Osun state, the State Police command has arrested three more suspects for alleged involvement in the robbery in which no fewer than five persons including a policeman were killed. The ancient town of Ile-Ife was thrown into pandemonium on December 15, last year, when a gang of robbers took the town hostage for hours in multiple bank robberies. During the robbery, leader of the gang, One Alhaji Jelili Adebayo, an Ibadan based motor dealer was killed at a shootout with the police while, one Bunmi Babatope who claims to be a vice principal and Economics teacher at Oduduwa College, Ile-Ife was arrested. Parading the suspects in Osogbo, the state capital, yesterday, the Police Public Relations officer, (PPRO), Clement Akinola (ASP) said the additional suspects were arrested following an extensive investigation of those in the police custody. He said the two suspects were picked up by a special anti robbery Squad (SARS) at Ororuwo, a community near Iragbiji, Headquarters of Boripe Local Government of the state. The suspects were paraded alongside a Toyota car with Registration No: AQ73GNN in which two military and police AK 47 rifles and nine magazines which were recovered from the new gang. Akinnola said the newly arrested suspects, led by one Bamidele Shina had last month robbed a commercial bank in Iragbiji. Akinola described the arrest as another achievement recorded by the Osun State Police Command in connection with the Ife bank robbery. He disclosed that on April 28, SARS arrested two more suspects namely Olarenwaju Kehinde 38 and Jimoh Akeem (40) while Bamidele Oluwaseyi (Aka Tudor) was killed when he allegedly attempted to escape. He confirmed that based on interrogation of the suspects arrested and the TV Circuit camera at the banks, the police are on the trail of 10 more members of the gang who took part in the Ife bank raid and that the arrest of Kehinde and Akeem was made possible based on information from the public. According to him, since the Ife bank raid, SARS operatives have been on the case until the arrest of two more suspects at Ororuwo and Ibadan. He said the police was not in a hurry to take the suspect to court for prosecution saying "until we complete all investigations, into the robbery incident and all the suspects arrested, we are not likely to rush to court for prosecution"[/b] http://www.champion-newspapers.com/news/article_11.htm |
| Politics › Re: The Best Governor Lagos Ever Had, Jakande, Maruwa Or Fashola by jona2: 1:07am On May 01, 2009 |
PapaBrowne: |
| Politics › Northern Leaders Swindle The Region by jona2(op): 1:05am On May 01, 2009 |
Northern Leaders Swindle The Region (2) By Abdullahi Mohammed [b]The result of the propaganda was many more millions of northern children afflicted by polio, in addition to those who died otherwise preventable deaths. Ironically, while this propaganda was going on, all the educated and privileged northerners I know ensured that their own children, wards and relatives were properly vaccinated. Our people should learn to accept responsibility, instead of blaming outsiders for our unimpressive development. At a conference last year in Kaduna on the collapse of virtually every industry in the North, a development which CNN featured recently, some participants attributed the tragic failure to the regime of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the very person our political leaders adopted in 1999 and 2003, over and above better materials. The number one reason for the industrial collapse was rightly identified as poor public electricity supply. Much as Obasanjo's government was a nasty piece of work, it is grossly unfair to blame it for all the mess which the Power Holding Company of Nigeria has become. PHCN, formerly called NEPA, had collapsed long before Obasanjo became a civilian President. No new power generating stations have been built in over 25 years. Nor have basic PHCN facilities been well maintained. Yet, every NEPA or PHCN Chief Executive in the last 25 years has been a northerner. So has every Power Minister except the brief periods the late Chief Bola Ige, Dr Olusegun Agagu and Liyel Imoke held the fort. So wealthy was a former Power and Steel Minister from the North during the Ibrahim Babangida regime that he had 18 state-of-the-art cars in his compound! When the late Dr Bala Usman, a radical historian at ABU, attempted to lead some students of Ahmadu Bello University, including my humble self, to protest against this obscene primitive accumulation, some emirs and other prominent leaders intervened and reminded us that the person "is our illustrious son". And today some northerners are looking for Obasanjo or any other southerner to serve as a scapegoat for electricity collapse and the consequent de-industrialisation of the North. The same royal fathers intervened against our planned protest over the massive sports stadium which the military government of Brigadier General Sani Sami, now an emir Kebbi State, was building in Bauchi State. At a series of lectures in 1984/85, the late Dr Usman pointed out that while Brigadier Sami (he was to retire as a Major-General) was building this monstrous stadium in the educationally backward state of Bauchi.come to think of it: what is the regenerative or economic value of the gigantic Bauchi State Stadium? Northern political rulers spend fortunes on non-regenerative ventures. For instance, as the 2003 general elections approached, the then Governor of Kebbi State, Alhaji Adamu Aliero, who is now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, imported from the United States and distributed a number of long-stretch limousines to emirs in the state. To state the obvious, spare parts of these very costly vehicles are not available in Nigeria, just like the expertise and the machines required to diagnose their occasional problems are very difficult to come by. In other words, the money was anything but wisely spent. Think of the number of people who would have benefited if the money had been spent on education, for example. It reminds one of the interview, which ex-Vice Atiku Abubakar granted the BBC on the eve of the 2003 presidential primary of the Peoples Democratic Party, where he disclosed that two northern governors had given him a colossal N90m just to contest. Think of the number of cottage hospitals or boreholes this amount could have built six years ago! What do we say about the week-long opulent parties Governor Isa Yuguda of Bauchi State held in different parts of the country to mark his wedding to President Yar'Adua's daughter as his fourth wife?[/b]The present northern political class is just swindling the people. The region must chart a new direction. Our people should listen to the likes of Gov. Aliyu who can engage in honest self-examination. *Concluded *Mohammed, an economist, writes from 18, Abiola Subair Street, Off Medical Road, Ikeja, Lagos. http://www.independentngonline.com/oped/article02/0905 |
| Politics › Fall Out Of Ekiti Election: Sss Storm Ait To Arrest Fayose by jona2(op): 12:11am On May 01, 2009 |
Fall out of Ekiti Election: SSS storm AIT to arrest Fayose Ayo Fayose (Former Governor of Ekiti) Operatives from the State Security Service, SSS, Abuja this morning stormed the premises of African Independent Television, AIT to arrest former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose who was on air granting interviews on an AIT morning program. The former Governor however escaped through the back door after a tip-off, leaving behind his two vehicles at the premises of the private television station. As at the time of filling this report, operatives of the SSS are still laying ambush at the premises of AIT hoping that the former Governor who has been very vocal in Ekiti Politics is hiding somewhere. Unconfirmed reports has it that the Fayose may have escaped to Lagos preparatory to leaving the country. Details coming. http://pointblanknews.com/os1680.html |
| Politics › Christ Embassy: Anatomy Of Smear Campaign by jona2(op): 12:09am On May 01, 2009 |
CHRIST EMBASSY: ANATOMY OF SMEAR CAMPAIGN BY: SAINT AZUH Ordinarily, stories and personal attacks against the activities of Christ Embassy Church in South Africa, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, his family members and everybody that has anything to do with the church would have been ignored or taken as the usual journalistic prying but for the well-established concern that such reports have become episodic and now very irritating. How else would anybody describe the use of words and language in stories that concern Pastor Chris and Christ Embassy Church by just one news website- Huhuonline, if not to say that it makes a mockery of the very rudiments of journalism? It is very curious that within a very short span of time Huhu and its print collaborator, the National Mirror Newspapers have ran over ten stories on one person and the organization he represents. Haba! As a journalist and media analyst vast on reportage- investigative, development and even mischief, it is very surprising that a media outfit can run stories every week on one particular individual. The only import of this is that such outfit or some of its reporters/editors are on a clearly agreed smear campaign or vendetta for whatever reasons. A look at this vexed issued of the reportage of Chris Oyahkilome and Christ Embassy Church by Huhu and Mirror Newspapers would clearly establish the above allegation. On continuous basis, Huhu had ran over ten reports on one person. Some of the reports: Christ Embassy: Haleluyah or Highway to Hell; South Africans Vow to Sack Christ Embassy; Christ Embassy: Concealed Sex Scandal Exposed Part III and this means that there are parts I and II; Crisis Rocks Christ Embassy South Africa over Scandalous Dealings; South Africa: Christ Embassy’s Night of Bliss Scandal Victims Account. Others are: South Africans Vow to Sack Christ Embassy… As authorities humiliate Chris Oyakhilome at airport; Red Alert: Chris Oyakhilome‘s Christ Embassy Plc Initial Public Offer of N3bn…, Employers Beware; Christ Embassy (South Africa): Pastor offered me R10 000 to sit in a wheelchair, stand up and walk; South African Authorities Close-In On Christ Embassy; .Six members barred from entering South Africa- .Internal feud deepens, as top pastors struggle with moral woes; and Christ Embassy South Africa: Christian & Kenneth Oyakhilome bribery scandal revealed • Tom Amekhiena unleashes assault and battery on a church member • Open challenge to Chris Oyakhilome. The question is: why this particular interest in Christ Embassy and Pastor Chris? Is Christ Embassy the only church or rather Nigerian church in South Africa? And why is it that a Nigerian took it upon himself to fight for the coalition of South African churches and South African government against his fellow Nigerian from the same south-south region? These are very curious or rather interesting issues? advertisement It is very unfortunate because those of us that have followed Huhu had a very different believe of what Emmanuel Asiwe, the publisher represents and that may have been why some of us joined in the campaign for his immediate release when he was recently arrested by security agents in Nigeria for alleged wrong reporting, misinformation, blackmail, and felony against the government. Interestingly, any experienced reporter would agree that the entire library of stories on Christ Embassy South Africa by Huhu were just rolled out from two story lines. And for whatever reason, Huhu decided to always re-write and re-run the stories with even a spec of new rumour in Soweto main market as an update. Although this is an aside, those of us that joined the campaign for your release from detention were meant to believe that you are operating from one of the western countries. And now we are confused. Is Huhu/Emmanuel Asiwe based in South Africa or in Europe/America? Huhu should be more interested in improving the quality of both its reports and the website rather than embarking on flimsy campaign of calumny to pull down another young Nigeria in his calling. Without bias, Huhu should look at other offshore news websites including Saharareporters, Pointblanknews, Thetimesofnigeria, Gamji, Ngex amongst others and see how it can line up with their mindsets. Nigerians especially those of us at home are really proud of the offshore web-based news media outfits as they have been at the forefront of canvassing issues of national concern and challenging the nation’s leaders to accountability rather market women’s busy-body journalism. Another interesting aspect of the smear campaign against Christ Embassy Church is the now clearly established relationship between Huhu website and National Mirror Newspapers. Is Asiwe a staff or on the payroll of National Mirror Newspaper? And if not, why is it that the newspaper runs all the Huhu Christ Embassy South African stories verbatim on its cover? Even when all the national newspapers published in this country on April 26, 2009 had on their covers stories and issues on the Ekiti re-run election of Saturday April 25, Mirror, a newspaper, had as its lead story on the cover: “Christ Embassy in Crisis” , a story of an alleged event that happened in September 2007 according to the newspaper. This should concern any practicing and credible journalist as it borders heavily on the sense of judgment of what is news by the editors of Mirror. How can any editor lift a stale story wholesale from a website and slam it on the front page as lead? Initially, the smear campaign by National Mirror newspaper was interpreted as a personal vendetta by its former publisher, Emeka Obasi. Now, the ownership has changed but the smear has continued and it couldn’t have been on the instruction or support of the new owner- Jimoh Ibrahim. National Mirror should help Nigerians see it as a newspaper with credibility, Sometime ago, offensive pornographic pictures were ran on its cover purported to be some wayward female students of the University of Port Harcourt with some expatriates. It was however later confirmed by this writer (an alumnus of Uniport) in the newsroom of the organisation that the pictures were lifted wholesale from a pornographic site on the web and re-captioned. Needless to say that this kind of journalism cannot help the Mirror and its editors especially now that the newspaper is trying to re-brand under its new owner- Jimoh Ibrahim who is “well known” in this country and beyond. A word is enough for a wise. We all know the right thing. Let’s do it. SAINT AZUH (Lords and Kings), CHRIST EMBASSY ABUJA, UTAKO SATELLITE CHURCH ( saint_azuh@yahoo.com) You got News for us, give us a tip at: newstip@pointblanknews.com. We treat them confidential as we investigate! http://pointblanknews.com/os1676.html |
| Politics › Re: Lord Lugard And His Impression Of Nigerians And Africans In General by jona2: 7:12pm On Apr 30, 2009 |
AjanleKoko: |
| Politics › Re: Ekiti Women Protested Over Stolen Mandate by jona2: 2:06pm On Apr 30, 2009 |
lol. |
| Politics › Eze Ndigbo Title: Ohazulike Appeals For Calm by jona2(op): 9:28pm On Apr 29, 2009 |
Eze Ndigbo title: Ohazulike appeals for calm Written by Akoma Chinweoke Thursday, 30 April 2009 As anxiety mounts following recent warning by the Lagos State government that it would henceforth accord no recognition to any personality with the title of the Eze Ndigbo of Lagos, the former National President of the Association of Ndi Eze Ndi-igbo in diaspora, Igwe Hyacinth Ohazulike has appealed for calm and understanding from members of the public, assuring that the mystery behind the decision would be unravelled soon. The Lagos State Commissioner for Local Government and [b]Chieftaincy Affairs, Prince Rotimi Agunsoye, had announced at a ministerial media briefing to commemorate the second anniversary of Governor Babatunde Fashola in office that the decision to ban the title from the state was reached after due consultation with the various leaders of the Igbo community on the grounds that it was an abuse of the Igbo culture and tradition. But reacting to the development, the national media adviser to the Association of Eze Ndi Igbo in the Diaspora, Mr. Ugochukwu Ekwebelem, in a statement said: “We woke up this morning to hear reports over the media that the Lagos State Government, represented by the state Commisioner for Local Government and Chieftancy Affairs, Prince Rotimi Agunsoye, has withdrawn recognition for the title of Eze Ndigbo in the state. “This announcement has caused apprehension and panic for our friends, loved ones, well wishers, well-meaning and public spirited individuals, and Igbo sons and daughters. “We appeal for calm and proper composure from our friends and believers at this moment,” it said.[/b] http://www.vanguardngr.com/content/view/34688/46/ |
| Politics › Re: As Kidnapping Spreads Across The Nation by jona2(op): 8:17pm On Apr 29, 2009 |
ikeyman00: |
| Politics › Re: As Kidnapping Spreads Across The Nation by jona2(op): 5:01pm On Apr 29, 2009 |
*jona:http://nigerianobservernews.com/29042009/news/othernews3.html |
| Politics › As Kidnapping Spreads Across The Nation by jona2(op): 4:58pm On Apr 29, 2009 |
As kidnapping spreads across the nation By Punch Editorial Board Published: Wednesday, 29 Apr 2009 [b]WHATever has remained of internal security in our country is under threat of further erosion as armed gangs of ransom-seeking kidnappers now prowl the streets in virtually all major cities, seizing law-abiding citizens and foreigners at will. The April 16, 2009 abduction of a Canadian guest of Rotary Club International, District 9120, Mrs. Julie Ann Mulligan, in Kaduna, Kaduna State, is typical of a trend that has become commonplace in the Niger Delta and South East states, just as the response of the Kaduna State Police Command is a chilling reminder that the nation’s internal security apparatus is far from efficient and dependable. Moments after the 45-year-old Canadian was seized at gunpoint and taken away, the kidnappers reportedly communicated a condition for her release to the Police, that is, payment of a ransom of N100 million. The Police authorities, rather than express regrets at the security lapses exploited by the hoodlums, allegedly suggested to Rotary that the said amount could be negotiated downwards to N20 million. They also, curiously, attributed the unfortunate incident to Rotary’s failure to notify the Police Command of the arrival of its foreign guests in the city. Aside from its international dimension, especially in regard to country-risk analysis and rating, the April 16 incident throws up issues hitherto glossed over by the Federal and state governments. Ransom payment, for instance, has become a strong motivation for criminally-minded individuals because governments and multinational oil corporations, as well as wealthy individuals, have consistently opted for the payment of huge sums of money to secure the freedom of the victims. Kidnapping has thus blossomed into a lucrative industry for criminal elements seeking fortunes without productive work. Also of particular note is the apparent laxity of the security agencies. The rather curious operational orientation of the Kaduna State Police Command, as evidenced by its aforesaid query to Rotary International, is a cause for concern. Except policing responsibilities have been whittled down to the customary tasks of ragtag private security outfits, it is simply untenable that a police command has to be officially notified of the presence of foreign participants in a public event as Rotary’s, in a major city as Kaduna, before security operatives could perform their routine, statutory functions. It is commendable that Rotary refused to pay ransom as suggested by the Police. Nobody should encourage criminality by making payments to kidnappers. Different police commands have, however, responded with varying degrees of effectiveness to cases of abduction. In Lagos, Oyo and Anambra states, the approach has been markedly different from what obtains in the majority of states like Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Akwa Ibom, Abia, Imo, Enugu, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and Kaduna, where the governments and politicians appear to receive encouragement from the security agencies to negotiate with kidnappers and to pay ransom. In Lagos, last month, six suspected kidnappers lost their lives in a gun battle with the Police, while the kidnapped Lebanese was freed. Also in Oyo State, a three-year-old boy was rescued and one of his abductors arrested by the Police while attempting to take delivery of the ransom promised the gang. A crime of the nature of kidnapping, with a very thin line between it and armed robbery, calls for a penalty of sufficient severity to serve as a deterrent. The absence of appropriate legislation, coupled with the well-known, pervasive weakness in law enforcement, generally, has made the crime attractive to miscreants. Let it be clear enough to the authorities in Abuja and Kaduna that the Government and people of Canada, and, indeed, the entire international community, are all anxiously awaiting the freedom of Mrs. Mulligan and her safe return home. That she is reported to be very ill, while in captivity, is bound to deepen foreign disenchantment with Nigeria and its people. Her circumstances, which place our country in the same category as terrorism-prone countries, are definitely a huge blow to our quest for favourable international perception and foreign investment. The Federal Government must exert itself to the fullest and bring freedom to Mrs. Mulligan. http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?thea , 4282313529 http://www.nigerianobservernews.com/290 , news3.html[/b] igbos don enter kidnapping business,419 and drugs don finish.  |
| Politics › Nigeria's Vigilante 'jungle Justice' -bbc News. by jona2(op): 9:32pm On Apr 28, 2009 |
Nigeria's vigilante 'jungle justice' In the second of a series of articles looking at policing in Nigeria, the BBC's Andrew Walker meets a group of vigilantes who guard residential neighbourhoods in the south-eastern city of Enugu. [b]Paul Eze [r] goes out at night with a gun and a bell to protect his family Paul Oparaji is the chairman of a local neighbourhood watch group in Enugu - quite normal for a pensioner, one might think. But in Nigeria "neighbourhood watch" means taking to the streets with a gun or machete and possibly lynching armed robbers. At an age where other men are keen to put their feet up and enjoy the company of their family, Mr Oparaji is a vigilante, prepared to dispense what he calls "jungle justice". "Imagine myself, at 73 I haven't had a full night's sleep in eight years," he says. "But if I don't do it, and robbers come here, my family and I will be maimed." Every night at around 2230, he and 18 other men strap their ancient shotguns to their backs and walk through their neighbourhood banging a large metal bell to let the people in their houses know someone is watching over them, and let the robbers know someone is coming. 'Magic cutlass' This "informal policing" happens in cities across Nigeria. The vigilantes are the only ones that stand between robbers and residents. If you catch a thief you are expected to take him to the police, but we can give him jungle justice if he is armed Paul Oparaji Vigilante On patrol with Nigeria's police Are your police accountable? And if they get caught, a robber can expect to be killed before the authorities arrive. The police say the presence of vigilante groups is "welcome". "They predate the police, and they compliment our efforts. The police can't get into every nook and cranny," says police spokesman Emmanuel Ojukwu. The police try to send officers out on patrol with as many vigilante groups as possible, but with one policeman for every 400 Nigerians this is difficult. Any vigilantes who kill suspects would face the law, he said. Until two years ago, the infamous Bakassi Boys policed the streets of neighbouring Anambra State. They executed suspects with a "magic cutlass" which they said glowed in the presence of armed robbers - but only the Bakassi Boys themselves could see the glow. Following a change in state administration, the Bakassi Boys were chased away, and other groups have taken their place. The British government's Department for International Development (DfID) is working with vigilante squads like Mr Oparaji's, trying to educate them about the law and human rights to prevent them executing suspects. They want to prevent groups like the Bakassi Boys from becoming popular again. But on the streets of many Nigerian cities, people would rather police themselves and mete out their own punishment. 'Robbers deserve it' "If you catch a thief you are expected to take him to the police, but we can give him jungle justice if he is armed," says Mr Oparaji, himself a retired policeman. "If he is armed, if he wants to kill us, we don't feel sorry for him," he says. Mr Oparaji is keen to say that he has never seen his vigilante group kill anyone, but he has heard of other groups catching and killing thieves. "When I hear about that, I feel sorry because it means our people are not yet wise, but the robbers deserved it." He appeals to the government to give vigilante groups like his guns. "You cannot pursue the thief with an empty hand, or with a knife you cannot attack the thief with a gun." No police The problem is that the police don't patrol many areas during the night. "There is no-one who can protect us, they come and rob us and rape our children," said Paul Eze, 52, another vigilante group member. "We aren't paid for this, it's a voluntary thing." "Nigerian police only work in the afternoon, from midnight you can hardly see a policeman on the streets." They accuse the police of hiring themselves out to rich people and businesses as armed security at night. Trust Vigilante groups are a well established part of Nigerian society. People trust them more than they trust the police. If they catch someone red-handed, they would much rather exact punishment on them then and there Chris Ugwu Vigilante expert They are members of the community, and in the past robbers have been released by corrupt police officers and returned to torment the communities who handed them over. Vigilante expert Chris Ugwu says many Nigerians see the rule of law as an alien concept. "Some police have been compromised - the robber hands over some money and is released. He will go back and gloat to the people who handed him over." "If they catch someone red-handed, they would much rather exact punishment on them then and there," he says. Training Since 2006 the British government has been working with vigilante groups trying to educate them about the law and prevent them from lynching suspects. It is part of the £30million Security Justice and Growth programme, which has been running in Nigeria since 2002. They provide the groups with training and some equipment, like boots and rain coats. They have registered vigilante groups and asked them to sign up to a charter requiring them not to execute suspects. "There was a need to mobilise the public to compliment the efforts of the police," says Mr Ugwu, who works as a consultant for the British Council. "But they were engaging in extra-judicial killing, torture, and there was the need to teach them about human rights." He says it will be impossible to get rid of vigilante groups. In the future he hopes they will have a different role, providing local intelligence for a more effective police force. But Mr Oparaji says that in Nigeria people must be self-reliant. "This is a country where wealth is flowing, but nobody protects anyone." "If you can't protect yourself, you are finished," he says. [/b] http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8021468.stm |
| Politics › Re: Lagos Metropolitian Not Yoruba! 1st Settler Not Yoruba Either by jona2: 9:27pm On Apr 28, 2009 |
ThiefOfHearts:na wa.Ekiti for all.what will happen if one tribe is able to moved nigeria into a first world country,the rest tribe will have to bow down. |
| Politics › Re: Ekiti Inec Resident Commissioner Resignation Letter by jona2: 9:19pm On Apr 28, 2009 |
Ekiti State. |
| Politics › Re: Lagos Metropolitian Not Yoruba! 1st Settler Not Yoruba Either by jona2: 9:17pm On Apr 28, 2009 |
ThiefOfHearts: |
| Politics › Lagos Withdraws Recognition For Eze Ndigbo Title by jona2(op): 8:18pm On Apr 28, 2009 |
Lagos withdraws recognition for Eze Ndigbo title Written by Olasunkanmi Akoni Tuesday, 28 April 2009 The Lagos State Government has said it would henceforth not recognise any personality with the title of the Eze Ndigbo of Lagos, warning that anybody parading himself as such in the state is doing so without state recognition. It will be recalled that earlier, a 10-man delegation of South Eastern traditional rulers led by its Chairman, Eze Cletus Ikechukwu, visited the palace of the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwanu Akiolu I, with an appeal for the state to ban anyone parading himself as the Eze Ndigbo of Lagos on the basis that it is an abuse of the Igbo culture and tradition. State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Prince Rotimi Agunsoye, announced yesterday at a ministerial media briefing to commemorate the second anniversary of Governor Babatunde Fashola in office that the decision to ban the title from the state was reached after due consultation with the various leaders of the Igbo community. “After meeting with the Igbo community brothers, we set in motion how that issue will be resolved, it was agreed that Eze Ndigbo title should not be allowed,” Agunsoye stated. Speaking on the activities of the ministry in the last12 months, the commissioner noted that government had embarked on massive capacity building and training for officials of the 20 local Government Areas and 37 Local Council Development Areas to make them more efficient. Agunsoye further stated that in ensuring that the last tranch of the withheld LG funds from the federation accounts which was released by the Federal Government was judiciously utilised, the ministry set up a review committee which scrutinised the proposed capital projects of all LGs and LCDAs. http://www.vanguardngr.com/content/view/34544/46/ |
| Politics › On Patrol With Nigeria's Police In Enugu-bbc News. by jona2(op): 3:26pm On Apr 27, 2009 |
On patrol with Nigeria's police In the first of a series of articles looking at policing in Nigeria, the BBC's Andrew Walker goes on a patrol with the newly formed, elite Specialist Anti-Robbery Squad (Sars) in the eastern city of Enugu. With machine-gun at the ready, a policeman flags down a car with his torch. "You! Out Now!" he barks. The driver wordlessly complies, standing with hands raised before being asked, the routine is now so familiar. Enugu's Special Anti Robbery Squad are an elite police unit The Nigerian police have a terrible reputation for corruption and brutality. But they also have problems with their technical capacity to fight crime. The main method used by this elite unit of police officers is to stop cars at random looking for guns. "When criminals see us, their behaviour changes. We're looking for people who try and run from us," Sars' Commanding Officer Stephen Osaghae told the BBC. Their aggressive manner, which includes pointing loaded automatic weapons at drivers who have done nothing to arouse suspicion, is necessary, they say. "You have to make everyone think when Sars are around, they are the owners of the job," says Inspector Olawole Ohiolebo. On the night the BBC was out with them, Sars did not find any weapons. Mr Osaghae admits there is probably a better way of catching armed robbers. "But we don't have the equipment. In Europe you have helicopters and other sophisticated gadgets, we don't." Chase At one of the patrol stops, a van approaching them does a quick u-turn. What kind of human being are we working with, we needed back-up! Stephen Osaghae Sars commander It's the moment the police have been waiting for. But it takes them too long to get into their truck and by the time they are in pursuit, the van has gone. The radio they have doesn't work properly and they can't inform other police of where they are for several minutes. Only one truck has been pursuing the suspects. When they meet up with their second police car, Mr Osaghae is furious. "What kind of human being are we working with? We needed back-up!" he yells at his men. They return to the barracks without making any arrests. Ambush The life of a policeman in Nigeria is dangerous. A few weeks before the BBC caught up with the men from Sars, their patrol was ambushed by a gang. The robbers we come up against have sophisticated weapons, better than ours Patrolman Tiku Someone sent them into a trap. Their pick-up truck was blown up with dynamite placed by the side of the road. Three officers were killed in the gunfight that followed. Inspector Godspower points to a line shaved into his scalp. "The bullet went here. Fsst!" He motions over his head, tracing the path of the shot that nearly killed him. Another one went right through his arm. The police officers say armed robbers are unredeemable evil misfits who smoke marijuana to dull their senses, kill without remorse and use black magic charms to protect themselves. Patrolmen say Enugu's robbers are led by a notorious bandit called Ngukelomo, who has political connections which have enabled him to be released from custody in the past. Capacity Some of the men admit to being afraid they might one day get killed. "[b]The robbers we come up against have sophisticated weapons, better than ours. We have no bulletproof vests. We need better equipment to protect us," says patrolman Tiku, a 34-year-old officer who has been with the police for 10 years. Kemi Okenyodo, of police reform group the Cleen Foundation, says the police need more than just expensive gadgets to improve their ability to work effectively. "The police capacity to investigate crime is next to zero," she says. Officers are not trained in policing techniques - if they do have qualifications, they are often irrelevant to police work, she says. Nowhere is the police's lack of capacity more evident, reformers say, than in the interrogation of suspects. Interrogation Back at the Sars office the next day, two suspects are brought to Mr Osaghae's office. One, a young man is accused of organising the rape and robbery of a woman who lives in a building he used to guard. Police have been accused of torture and executing suspects "You will take us to your accomplices," orders Mr Osaghae. "I don't know who you are talking about," says the man. "Why are you lying? Take him back to the cells. In 15 minutes you will tell the truth," says Mr Osaghae. When asked what he meant by that, he refuses to elaborate. Before speaking to another suspect, Mr Osaghae asks for 15 minutes alone with him. When the BBC is let back in the room, the man tearfully confesses to being a kidnapper. Mrs Okenyodo says the Cleen Foundation has pictures and witness statements that accuse Sars police of torture and killing of suspects. Enugu Commissioner of Police Mohammed Zarewa denies his men beat confessions out of people - the deaths are likely to be as a result of fire-fights with armed criminals, he says. "Any criminal can get a lawyer and make up a story," he says. Mr Zarewa has just been posted to Enugu, and he promises to investigate any accusation levelled against his officers. But Mrs Okenyodo says none of the cases brought up by police reform activists have been investigated. "The east of Nigeria, in terms of policing, is crazy," she says. [/b] http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7986039.stm |
| Politics › Re: So Some Yoruba Sell Other Yoruba To Hausa And Igbo? by jona2: 3:16pm On Apr 27, 2009 |
Aloy.Emeka: |
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