Zamfara State Governor Bello Matawalle has advised his Niger State counterpart, Abubakar Sani Bello, to emulate him in initiating a peace deal with bandits in the state.

Addressing State House reporters in Abuja after meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari, he said he realised that not all of bandits were criminals after his decision to initiate a peace deal with the bandits.

He said: “I’ve been calling my colleague the Governor of Niger State, to sit down with all stakeholders and find out the root cause of the crisis so that they can be able to dialogue and initiate reconciliation so as to also achieve what I’ve been able to achieve in my State.

“Most of the criminals that caused trouble in Zamfara, were not form my State. Two months back, we had some repentant bandits who submitted their weapons to the State government. One was fromm Yobe State, two from Kaduna, two form Niger State; so, you see, it’s a gang.

“In any case, we’re in discussions with the governor of Niger State and he’s following the steps so as to initiate a peace deal and very soon we shall see an end to such crisis.”

Matawalle said the current challenge might not be resolved if the herders continued to move from one state to the other in search of greener pasture.

Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigeria’s former Finance Minister, says she was surprised that the administration of President Donald Trump could stand in her way of leading the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

At a press briefing monitored by Daily Trust, the new Director-General of WTO said she did not see it coming.

She said she felt she had a good understanding with the US government which interviewed her about the job twice.

“I think I was quite surprised when that came (opposition from Trump) because there was no indication that there was any problem with the US.

“I had two good interviews with the authorities and with the administration so it was a surprise. But that’s the way life works. When things happen, you take them in your stride and you move on.

“It was absolutely wonderful when the Biden/Harris administration broke that logjam. They joined the consensus and gave such a strong endorsement to my candidacy. They joined the other 163 members to endorse my candidacy,” she said.

The United States government had last week announced its endorsement of Mrs Okonjo-Iweala for the top job.

It became clear earlier on Friday that Okonjo-Iweala, a former World Bank executive, would clinch the coveted post after her final challenger, South Korean Trade Minister and candidate, Yoo Myung-hee, announced her withdrawal.

Although 163 member countries had elected Okonjo-Iweala in October, the US under Trump was critical of WTO’s handling of global trade, saying South Korea’s Yoo Myung-hee could reform the body.

The four-month selection process for the next WTO director-general hit a road block when Washington said it would continue to back South Korea’s trade minister.

The US had said WTO “must be led by someone with real, hands-on experience in the field”.

“Ms Yoo has distinguished herself as a trade expert and has all the skills necessary to be an effective leader of the organisation.

“This is a very difficult time for the WTO and international trade. There have been no multilateral tariff negotiations in 25 years, the dispute settlement system has gotten out of control, and too few members fulfill basic transparency obligations. The WTO is badly in need of major reform,” said the office of US Trade Representative, which advises Trump.

Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State on Sunday blocked the leadership of the National Road Transport Workers (NUTRW) in the state from resuming collection of dues and revenues on behalf of the government at motor parks and garages in the state.

Abiodun had banned the NURTW from collecting dues and revenues at parks following internal wrangling within the ranks of the union over leadership.

However, the leadership crisis has been laid to rest with the taking over and re-opening of the union’s secretariat in Asero, Abeokuta, last year, under the chairmanship of Mustapha Ismail.

But Abiodun, who spoke through the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Abdulwaheed Odusile, on Sunday, warned the leadership of the NURTW and their operatives to stay away from all parks and garages in the state to avoid incurring the wrath of the law.

According to him, the warning became necessary in view of intelligence reports that the union was planning to resume collection of dues and revenues on behalf of the government at the motor parks and garages in the state.

That, he said, is “against the existing decision of the government banning the activities of the NURTW in all motor parks and garages in the State.”

“It will be recalled that following crisis in the leadership of the NURTW in the state that threatened the security of lives and property, particularly public transport in the state, the House of Assembly in June 2020 passed a resolution suspending the activities of the union in the state.

“The government subsequently banned the activities of the union in all motor parks and garages in the state,” Odusile quoted the governor as saying.

The governor said security agencies had been ordered to arrest and prosecute any NURTW member that went against the warning.

Nobel Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to address the nation and declare that he is not in support of criminal activities of some herdsmen in parts of Nigeria.

Soyinka made the call in an interview with BBC News Pidgin.

He urged Buhari to state categorically that: “Yes, I (the president) am a patron of cattle rearers association, I’m a rancher, and it’s a business I engage in on business terms. I do not rape, torture or displace people to occupy their land.

“I warn everyone in the food commodity chain, and cattle rearers that anyone seen illegally occupying or trespassing other people’s property should be prosecuted and the army as well as other security forces to back efforts of citizens to flush them out.”

Soyinka said the country might enter a phase of serial skirmishes “which may get more and more violent and develop – I hate to use the word – may develop into a civil war and a very untidy and messy one at that. That is my biggest fear.”

He advocated a civil mobilization to tackle the herdsmen crisis as “it is now at the doorstep of the Southwest region.”

He further warned that “waiting for the problem to be handled by the Federal Government, we are all going to become, if not already, slaves in our land. That, for me, is intolerable and unacceptable.”

The Oyo State Government on Sunday raised alarm over plot by some members of the public, especially politicans to cause religious and ethnic crises in the state, with a view to derailing the state government from its focus.

Department of State Security (DSS) had recently released an intelligence report that some people were planning to cause religious and ethnic crises in Oyo and some other states in Nigeria.

But the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, who made the revelation in Ibadan on Sunday, warned individual and group of the people engaging in such unholy dealings against the growing false security alarms in the form of fake audio and video posts on social media.

The governor’s aide warned against raising false alarms on the security situation in Ibarapaland and parts of Oke-Ogun, adding that security agencies will readily deal with anyone seeking to cause ethnic tension.

Adisa particularly mentioned that some viral social media video and audio messages in which false and inciting claims were made about Ayete, Igangan, and other parts of the state have been on the rise in recent weeks.

He said “some of such unfounded and baseless posts include the claim that Amotekun Corps killed some Fulani herdsmen, which amounts to a hoax; the claim that an imaginary 200 houses were razed by hoodlums in Labiran, Ibadan, which the Police vehemently denied; and the claims that the insecurity situation in Ibarapa has escalated, which is outright falsehood.

He said, “Our attention has been drawn to a grand plot to precipitate unrest in Oyo State through the use of fake news in the social media.

“This plot seeks to promote false alarms, misinformation and sponsored fake news through audio, video and Facebook messages and it is with a view to making the state ungovernable.

“As a government, the contents of some of these audio and video releases have been investigated and mostly found to be outright falsehood, baseless claims and products of hate speech, targeted only at discrediting the government and inciting the people.

“As a proactive government, the Makinde-led administration has risen to the occasion on the issue of insecurity and we are already winning the war against criminality, with several measures rolled out to tackle kidnapping and banditry in Ibarapa and some parts of Oke-Ogun, while efforts have also been increased to tame the violent gang wars in Ibadan.”

The Kano State government says it has arrested 500 beggars for allegedly violating the law that bans street begging in the state.

The State’s Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Dr Zahra’u Muhammad-Umar, made the disclosure while repatriating the beggars in Kano on Friday.

Muhammad-Umar said that the beggars were arrested in Kano metropolis with 70 per cent being women and children, and 30 per cent men.

“Those arrested included women, children, men and Almajiris. The children don’t go to school and have no good food to eat,” she said.

According to her, the decision to arrest the street beggars is to safeguard their future and make Kano and Nigeria a better place for all.

“We noticed that bad behaviour is mostly found within the beggars.

“We will continue to arrest them to ensure sanity and rid the streets of all forms of crimes,” she said.

Muhammad-Umar explained that a 70-year-old woman was also arrested with cigarette and matches found in her possession.

“This kind of woman could spoil our children’s behaviour and the society at large.

“Street begging affects the lives of our children, especially when you employ Almajiris to work in your house,” she stated.

She commended Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje for supporting the ministry to empower the beggars.

“We have taken down their names, local governments, phone numbers and repatriated them back to their various homes and states, while they will be empowered.

“For those beggars repatriated to neighbouring states, an agreement letter will be written by their Ward head and any one arrested for the second time would be charged to court,” she said.

The commissioner said the ministry would soon begin the evacuation of street hawkers, especially young girls hawking on the streets.

She urged the people of the state, especially women, to take care of their children to be good citizens.

“As long as I remain the commissioner, I will make sure Kano is free from street begging,” she said.

She further revealed that the ministry would also go to Islamic schools and repatriate the Almajiris to their homes and neighbouring states, especially those who go out to beg for food.

“The government has since met with Tsangaya teachers not to let their students roam on the street in other to address the lingering problems of begging,” she said. (NAN)

President Muhammadu Buhari, on Thursday, extended the tenure of the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, by three months.

This is in contrast to the Police Act signed by President Muhammadu Buhari last year which pegs the retirement age of police officers at 60 or 35 years in service.

Section 18( of the new Police Act states: “Every police officer shall, on recruitment or appointment, serve in the Nigeria Police Force for 35 years or until the age of 60 years whichever is earlier.”

The Act provides for a tenure of four years for the Inspector-General of Police. Section 7 subsection 2 of the Act provides that: “The person to be appointed as Inspector-General of Police shall be a senior police officer not below the rank of Assistant Inspector-General of Police with the requisite academic qualification of not less than a first degree or its equivalent in addition to professional or management experience.”

The section also pegs the tenure of the police IG as four years.

The Minister of Police Affairs, Mohammed Dingyadi, who announced the extension of Adamu’s tenure to reporters yesterday, explained that it was to give room for the proper selection of a successor and proper handover.

“Mr President has decided that the present IGP, Mohammed Adamu, will continue to serve as the IG for the next three months, to allow for a robust and efficient process of appointing a new IG.

“This is not unconnected to the desire of Mr President to, not only have a smooth handover but to also ensure that the right officer is appointed into that position.

“Mr President is extending by three months to allow him to get into the process of allowing a new one.

“There’s no lacuna. Mr President can decide to extend his tenure for three months,” the minister said.

In its reaction, the Northern Elders Forum yesterday described the three-month extension of the tenure of the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, as a big disappointment.

The Director, Publicity and Advocacy for the forum, Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, in a chat with Daily Trust, said: “The president had all the time in the world, he knew the former IG was going to retire, he knew that there is a process for which a new IG should be appointed and so, extending his term by another three months under the excuse that he needs time to consider who will succeed him is disappointing.”

Baba-Ahmed said by extending Adamu’s tenure, “Buhari is seen to encourage and condone people staying in duty posts beyond the dates that are statutorily expected of them adding that such action causes a lot of problems.

“It affects morale, it affects careers of those below him (IG) and there is no reason and no excuse for this. Obviously, this is going to be a big disappointment for Nigerians.”

In the same vein, the pan-Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere, yesterday rejected the extension of Adamu’s tenure, wondering if there was no officer within the police hierarchy that could be chosen as the next IGP.

Afenifere spokesman, Yinka Odumakin, in a chat with Daily Trust, described the president’s decision as “nepotism.”

“There are some of the nepotic agenda of this administration for the past six years.

“Is it that there is no more policeman who can take over from the retiring IG, no.

“It is the nepotistic agenda that have been taken to the next level that we are witnessing.

“Is it not the same police force? Are there no colleagues of him who can take over the position and continue from where he stops?

“For us, it’s nepotism, naked nepotism,” Odumakin said.

A security expert and Professor of Counselling and Criminal Justice, University of Ibadan, Oyesoji Aremu, said: “The nomination of the immediate past service chiefs as non-career ambassadors indicates in a very clear term that the Presidency still reckons with their services this time, as private citizens.”

A former assistant director at the Department of State Service, Dennis Amachree, said: “The extension of the tenure of the IGP is more of seeking extra time to scout for a suitable replacement.

“People are raising issues because the president would have been served a notice of retirement earlier and for the president to have taken a proactive measure of having a new IGP in waiting.”

Also reacting, Chairman, Media Committee, Coalition of United Political Parties, Chukwudi Ezeobika, said the extension of the IGP tenure was illegal and unconstitutional.”

Executive Director, CLEEN Foundation, Benson Olugbuo, said. though it is the prerogative of the president to appoint or extend the tenure of whom he wishes in the interest of the country, it is also the responsibility of the National Assembly to do its constitutionally assigned roles.

By Muideen Olaniyi, Idowu Isamotu, Abbas Jimoh (Abuja), Lami Sadiq (Kaduna) & Abdullateef Aliyu (Lagos)

At least 13 died and several others were injured on Wednesday night when a Lagos-bound Iveco truck crashed along Kaita-Dankama Road.

Witnesses said the truck, conveying many people and small ruminant animals, was on high speed after leaving Dankama border market when it suddenly fell on its side.

At least 70 ruminants animals also perished.

It was reported that the remains of the 13 deceased persons were taken to the Katsina General Hospital where their relatives retrieved them for burial, except six who were from Niger Republic.

The vice chairman of the Association of Nigeriens in Nigeria, Katsina Chapter, who participated in the funeral prayers, expressed shock over the fatal incident and thanked Katsina state government for shouldering the burial rites and medication for the injured.

Katsina State Government sent a delegation to attend the funeral prayers of the six Nigeriens who were buried at Dan Takum Graveyard in Katsina metropolis, after the funeral rites at the hospital led by Imam Yahaya Haruna.

The delegation comprised of Commissioners of Local Governments, Alhaji Ya’u Umar Gwajo-Gwajo, Sports and Social Development Alhaji Sani Aliyu Danlami, Senior Special Assistant on Restoration Alhaji Sabo Musa and Head of Kaita Local Government Administration among others.

Similarly, the delegation sympathized with other victims who sustained various degrees of injury at General Hospital Katsina, Federal Medical Centre and Amadi Rimi Orthopedic Hospital.