₦airaland Forum

Former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, and Senate Minority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has declared that Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, has executed more projects in the last two years than the All Progressives Congress, APC-led Federal Government.

The former Governor was addressing journalists after accompanying Rivers State Governor on an extensive projects inspection on Monday.Senator Akpabio said that Governor Wike’s excellent performance stems from his love for Rivers people.

Akpabio said, “Governor Wike has done more work and projects in the last two years than the Federal Government. That is my considered opinion.

"Performance is not necessarily an issue of the availability of resources. If your state gets N5 Billion, do projects of that amount.“If you get N1 Million, do projects commensurate with that figure. For Governor Wike, he has judiciously applied the scarce resources available to the state to develop needed infrastructure.

“The resources available to Rivers State is nothing compared to that of the Federal Government. Rivers State Government gets far less than a quarter than one percent of what accrues to the Federal Government, but we can see the tremendous quality of transformation taking place in the state.”

“It is not so much money that makes performance. It is love for your people. When you are elected, if you love your people you will perform, no matter the little money that you have.

“What I am seeing here in Rivers State is not like a recession economy because the Governor of Rivers State loves his people.

Let me use this opportunity to congratulate the workers at the various sites because they are acquiring a lot of skills working at the sites.“The kind of projects that Governor Wike is doing in Rivers State will attract the world to the state.

Today, there is a song, that the handwork of Wike is beautiful.”He further advised Wike never to be distracted bypolitical detractors who engage in political blackmail.

A witness in the corruption trial ofJustice Adeniyi Ademola has alleged that President Muhammadu Buhari gave the embattled judge N500,000 while his certificate controversy was pending before Mr. Ademola. Some persons had filed a suit challenging Mr. Buhari’s candidacy prior to the 2015 elections, alleging the president had no secondary school certificate as required by law. The witness said the money was given through Mr. Buhari’s former lawyer, Kola Awodeyin. The witness, however, said he does not consider the money a bribe. Mr. Ademola is being prosecuted by the Nigerian government for alleged corruption. He has denied the charges and requested accelerated hearing at the trial in Abuja‎. The federal judge is being prosecuted alongside his wife, Olubowale, and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Joe Agi.
Details later…

Indeed, the former Nigerian president was a
guest at the St Andrew home of Ambassador
Carlton Masters, Jamaica’s first representative to
the African Union, who described Obasanjo as
“my brother”.
Naturally, the reception hosted by Masters would
not have been the same had the guest list not
included his good friend and former Jamaican
Prime Minister PJ Patterson, who has known
Obasanjo for many years.
The retired Nigerian army general was also
pleased to see Opposition Leader Portia Simpson
Miller, former Finance Minister Dr Peter Phillips,
Jamaica Olympic Association President Mike
Fennell, former Cabinet ministers Anthony Hylton
and Arnold Bertram, and Verene Shepherd,
professor of social history at the University of the
West Indies, Mona campus.
Obasanjo was in the island for just a few days on
what Ambassador Masters described as “a friendly
personal visit”. Therefore, the late evening
reception was devoid of business. In fact, the
closest he came to engaging in such talk was in
his informal remarks after being officially
welcomed by Patterson.
The Jamaica Observer, though, got him to speak
a bit about international politics, especially
current events in Africa, after the newspaper
asked him for an update on his life since his
retirement in 2007.
“Jokingly I always say that I’m unemployed and
unemployable,“ he responded with a soft chuckle.
“I don’t hold any political office; I don’t even
belong to any political party now. I think I can call
myself an elder statesman in Nigeria because the
position that I have, of not belonging to any
political party or not holding any Government or
political office, allows me to be able to be advisor
to all and sundry and to make informed
comments on situations in the country and
indeed in Africa,” he added.
“I do occasionally get invited, either by the
African Union, by the Commonwealth or by
ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African
States) to be involved in election observation, or
to investigate some situations in Africa. I did that
in the case of South Sudan after the unfortunate
violence and destructive actions in 2013,” he
said.
His reference was to the flare-up of violence in
December 2013 sparked by political divisions
between President Salva Kiir and former Vice-
President Riek Machar that exacerbated deeply
rooted ethnic tensions.
“Then I was asked to observe elections in
Zimbabwe [and] Ghana. I’ve in fact now been
asked to observe elections in Gambia, which are
coming up towards the end of November. That’s
the sort of thing I do, in addition to running my
farm,” Obasanjo explained.
Farming has actually proven successful for
Obasanjo, who had to be pressed a bit to tell the
Observer that he had seven farms – four
producing poultry, and three providing maze and
cassava.
The farms, he said, employ approximately 7,000
people. Information posted in 2014 about the
business called Obasanjo Farms, states that it was
opened in October 1979 and earns up to N34
million (approx US$107,851) daily.
Asked whether his produce are for export,
Obasanjo no.
“They are purely for the domestic market,” he
said, adding that the population of Lagos, said to
be Nigeria’s largest city, is more than 20 million.
“Whatever we produce, Lagos is a good market,”
Obasanjo said.

Amnesty International has accused an elite
Nigerian police unit of torture and bribery
demands. In its report, Nigeria: You have signed
your death warrant, Amnesty has claimed that
police officers of Special Anti-Robbery Squad
(SARS) torture inmates for bribe and also steal
money from them and their families for their
freedom.
The squad was set up to probe serious violent
crimes, primarily armed robberies and
kidnappings.
The report, which was published on Wednesday
(21 September), contains horrific details of the
former detainees. It also encloses reports from
lawyers, human rights defenders, journalists and
collected testimonies.
"A police unit created to protect the people has
instead become a danger to society, torturing its
victims with complete impunity while fomenting a
toxic climate of fear and corruption," Damian
Ugwu, Amnesty International's Nigeria researcher,
said.
The human rights group has alleged that the
suspects held by the SARS were subjected to
hanging, starvation, beatings, shootings and
mock executions until "they either make a
'confession' or pay officers a bribe to be released".
It also claimed that they were treated like animals
and were not allowed to contact a lawyer, a
doctor or their family during their detention
period.
"SARS officers are getting rich through their
brutality. In Nigeria, it seems that torture is a
lucrative business," Ugwu said.
However, SARS has denied any wrongdoing and
said no torture had taken place. But one senior
officer on the condition of anonymity told the
human rights campaign group that at least 40
officers, believed to have carried out several acts
of torture and ill-treatment of detainees, were
shifted to other stations in April 2016. However,
he was unable to claim whether the charges
against them were investigated or not.
According to a case study featured in the report,
32-year-old Chidi Oluchi was tortured after being
arrested by SARS officers in the Nigerian city of
Enugu. "They told me to slap myself and, when I
refused, they started beating me with the side of
their machetes and heavy sticks. My mouth was
bleeding and my vision became blurred," Oluchi
claimed and added that he was freed only after
he paid N25, 500 ($100) to the authorities.
Meanwhile, it was reported that in December
2014, the Nigerian police had launched a human
rights manual that put complete ban on torture
of inmates, but SARS has failed to execute it.
"With the Nigerian government's previous
attempts at stamping out torture proving
completely ineffective, it is time for the authorities
to ensure that officers responsible for such
human rights violations are finally held
accountable.
"There is also an urgent need for robust
legislation that ensures all acts of torture are
offences under Nigeria's criminal law," Ugwu
asserted.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama will review military strategy against the Islamic State group, press nations to admit more refugees and review progress around the world, despite new challenges, when he makes his final appearance at the U.N. General Assembly session in New York next week, the White House said Friday.

On the sidelines of the session, Obama has scheduled meetings with the leaders of Iraq, Nigeria and Colombia and plans to promote trade between the U.S. and Africa.

Obama heads to New York on Sunday for the General Assembly session that opens Monday, his eighth and final as president.

He plans to sit down Monday with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to discuss progress the country has made countering the Islamic State group, a coming Iraqi military operation to take back the city of Mosul from IS militants, and a brewing humanitarian crisis inside Iraq, said Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy national security adviser.

Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this week while visiting Baghdad that Iraqi forces aided by the U.S.-led coalition against IS had retaken half the territory that militants once held in the country. He also announced more than $181 million in aid to address a humanitarian crisis that has festered in Iraq as a result of the insurgency.

Despite a series of major defeats in recent months, IS has maintained its grip on Mosul, Iraq's second largest city. Iraq hopes to launch an operation this year to retake Mosul.

Obama delivers his final address to the yearly gathering of world leaders on Tuesday, and will use the opportunity to "step back" and review some of the progress over the past eight years along with "some of the trends that have been shaping our international order," said Rhodes, previewing the trip for reporters.

The Syrian conflict continues to confound world leaders, although a recent cease-fire agreement appears to be holding, but Syria has not yet allowed humanitarian aid to flow to the city of Aleppo and other affected areas. Meanwhile, North Korea continues to defy the international community with its recent nuclear and ballistic missile tests.

Obama also plans to meet Tuesday with Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, who has held office for just over a year, to talk about continued U.S. support for security and economic changes in the country, as well the government's efforts to counter the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram.

At a summit on refugees that the president is hosting, Obama is expected to press more nations to open their borders and help double the number of refugees who are resettled around the world. Mexico, Sweden, Canada, Germany, Jordan and Ethiopia are co-hosting the summit along with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

Europe has shouldered a large portion of the Syrian refugee crisis. Canada welcomed 25,000 Syrian refugees, and the U.S. recently met its goal of resettling 10,000 Syrian refugees this year.

Obama will devote a portion of Wednesday, the final day of the General Assembly session, to promoting trade between the U.S. and Africa. He was attending a summit with some 200 American and African CEOs, and African heads of state.

The president also plans to meet with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, mainly to discuss a historic peace agreement recently struck between Santos' government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia rebel group to end 52 years of hostilities, the Western Hemisphere's longest-running war.

The U.S. supported the peace effort, and the people of Colombia will vote on it a nationwide referendum in early October.

On Sunday evening in New York, Obama was headlining a Democratic Party fundraiser.

A proposed service tax on certain electronically supplied services in Nigeria will increase the costs of doing business and make internet access unaffordable for a vast swathe of the population, the Government has been warned.

The Communication Service Tax (CST) Bill 2015, which is currently moving through the National Assembly, would add a nine percent tax to payments for voice, data, SMS, MMS, and pay-TV services. Service providers will be responsible for collecting the service tax from consumers and passing it on to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

Under the proposal, services providers would be required to submit a service tax return and pay any tax due by the end of the month subsequent to the one in which they collected the tax from consumers. Companies will face a penalty of NGN50,000 (USD154) for failure to file a service tax return by the due date, with an additional daily penalty of NGN10,000 for each day the return is outstanding. In addition, late payments will be subject to monthly interest of 150 percent of the average interest rate charged by banks.

With the Government highly dependent on revenue from oil, the service tax will help to diversify its revenue base and the NGN240bn in annual revenue it expects to collect from the new tax would also help its deficit reduction efforts. However, critics argue that the additional revenues will come at a price, making Nigeria's tax system more complex, increasing businesses' compliance costs and driving up prices for consumers.

"The focus instead, should be on stimulating the economy and ensuring that the tax system is efficient by widening the tax net and creating an effective framework for tax compliance," PwC Nigeria said in a briefing on the tax.

Opponents of the service tax also point out that the proposal will add to the already considerable tax burden faced by businesses and consumers in the IT and telecommunications sector, who are already subject to a five percent value-added tax and 12 percent import tax on electronic devices, and a 20 percent tax on mobile telephone SIM cards.

It is also feared that the tax would severally hamper the Government's broadband internet roll-out plans.

According to the Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI), the tax would result in a broadband connection being unaffordable for 10 percent of the Nigerian population, or for nearly 20 million people.

"Nigeria is far behind the more developed countries of the world when it comes to broadband use, and the introduction of the CST will only widen this gap," said Dr Ernest Ndukwe, National Coordinator for the A4AI-Nigeria Coalition.

"The National Assembly must reconsider the passage of the CST and its impact on the development of broadband in Nigeria," he said. "After such a review, if the introduction of a CST is deemed an absolute necessity, it must consider a lower tax rate than nine percent, one that would enable it to achieve fiscal revenue targets without undermining broadband affordability and access."

Nigeria aims to achieve 30 percent broadband penetration by December 2018. However, the A4AI believes the Government will fall well short of this target if it persists with the CST.

President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Ambassador Enikanolaiye, Audu-Rafiu Olusola as a Permanent Secretary in the Federal Civil Service. Until his appointment, Ambassador Enikanolaiye was the Charge-de affairs at the Nigerian High Commission India. In addition, President Buhari has also redeployed 8 Federal Permanent Secretaries. Those affected are;



The circular announcing the redeployments signed by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Winifred Ekanem Oyo-Ita, stated that the process of handing and taking over should be completed on or before the 5th of August, 2016.

Agents of Nigeria’s secret police, State Security
Service, on Saturday sealed the secretariat of the
House Committee on Appropriation, PREMIUM
TIMES learnt.
The closure marked the latest development in the
ongoing political and media war between the
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu
Dogara, and a lawmaker from Kano State,
Abdulmumin Jibrin, over alleged manipulation of
line items and figures in the 2016 Appropriation
Bill.
Mr. Jibrin began working to oust Mr. Dogara from
office a day after the Speaker announced his
removal as chairman of Appropriation Committee
on allegations that he committed serial betrayal of
trust.
PREMIUM TIMES sources said SSS officials
stormed the secretariat, which serves as offices
for the 40-member appropriation committee and
its staff, and immediately placed it under lock and
key.
The sources said the SSS also sealed Mr. Jibrin’s
office at Room 1.05 in the New House of
Representatives building.
The development followed Mr. Jibrin’s statement
on Thursday that Mr. Dogara ordered removal of
workstation from the Appropriation Committee
Secretariat and allegedly attempted to break into
his office.
Mr. Jibrin had reportedly visited the SSS
Headquarters on Friday to brief the agency about
the budget padding scandal rocking the House.
He also called on EFCC and ICPC to commence
investigation into the crisis with a view to
prosecuting those involved.
Efforts to reach the spokesperson of the House of
Representatives, Abdulrazak Namdas, were
unsuccessful as his phone was switched off.
Speaker Dogara’s spokesperson, Turaki Hassan,
disconnected a phone call upon hearing it was a
PREMIUM TIMES’ enquiry.

The Nigerian government has announced the deportation of three South Koreans from the country over alleged immigration offences.
The three persons, according to a statement by the spokesperson for the Nigeria Immigration Service, Ekpedeme King, were removed from Africa’s most populous country on July 20.
They remained ineligible to enter the country for 10 years.

Read full press release announcing the deportation below.

FEDERAL GOVT DEPORTS 3 KOREANS

The Federal Government of Nigeria had on the 20th of July, 2016 deported three (3) South Koreans namely Lee Yoo Song, Lee Byeung Woo and Moon Een Soo for Immigration related offences. The Hon. Minister of Interior, Lt. Gen. Abdulrahaman Dambazau (Rtd) in the exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 45(2) and (3) and 44( 1e) of the Immigration Act 2015 signed the Deportation Order.
With the deportation order in force, the three (3) Koreans will not be eligible to enter Nigeria again through any port in the next ten years.
Without prejudice to the Foreign Investment Drive of Government, the Comptroller – General of Immigration, Muhammad Babandede, wishes to use this opportunity to caution all expatriates and their employers in Nigeria to respect the laws of the country as the Nigeria Immigration Service is determined to implement all aspect of immigration laws in the public interest.
However expatriates resident in Nigeria with correct documentation are assured of the protection of their rights and dignity.
Ekpedeme King
(Deputy Comptroller of Immigration)
Service Public Relations Officer
26th July, 2016.

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Elias Nwalem Mbam, an engineer as chairman for the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission. The President also approved the appointment of Dr. (Mrs) Marilyn Amobi as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company. A statement issued in Abuja on Tuesday by the Director of Press and Public Relations in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Bolaji Adebiyi, obtained by THE PUNCH did not give details about their states of origin but said Amobi’s appointment was “for a tenure of four years.”

THE Minister of
Labour and Employment,
Senator Chris Ngige said
weekend that the election of
President Muhammadu Buhari
last year saved Nigeria from
being a laughing stock among
the comity of nations,
arguing that the country
would have collapsed totally
by now if the Peoples
Democratic Party, PDP, had
remained in government
beyond May 29, 2015.
Ngige, who addressed
officials of All Progressives
Congress, APC, from the 326
wards in the three senatorial
zones of Anambra State, said
Buhari was taken aback with
what he saw on assumption
of office, adding that though
APC knew that PDP was
running the country aground,
the magnitude of
mismanagement of the
economy was beyond human
imagination.
While acknowledging the
present hardship in the
country, the Minister
appealed to members of the
party to be patient, assuring
that the Buhari administration
was making serious efforts
to turn things around for the
better.
According to him, part of the
delay in constituting the
cabinet by the president was
due to the bad shape of the
economy when APC took over
government, as most
ministries, departments and
agencies were discovered to
be heavily indebted to their
contractors to the tune of
trillions of naira.
He said: “There was virtually
nothing in the country’s
reserve, despite what the
PDP government officials
were telling Nigerians. But
the APC government has
started organizing the
economy by formulating
policies that will put smiles on
the faces of our people.
“For instance, the Federal
Government has created job
centers in all states of the
federation where the
unemployed will be exposed
to skills acquiring on various
trades. We are also
introducing empowerment
schemes and our party
members will be given
priority.
“In addition, government is
also planning to introduce
scholarship and bursary
schemes and our party
members will also be the first
to benefit from it.”
Ngige also said that in
addition to the 500000 jobs
for the unemployed youths,
government would also offer
employment to all graduates
of agriculture and allied
fields, in view of the
renewed emphasis on food
security in the country.
On federal roads in the
South East, the minister said
that the federal government
had mobilized RCC, the
construction giants, for the
reconstruction of the
dilapidated Enugu –Onitsha
expressway, while SETRACO
is to handle the Enugu –
Umuahia –Aba expressway.
He said the main problem
delaying the Second Niger
Bridge was the problem
created by some people, who
were insisting that
government must pay them
compensation before the
work could go on.

The Nigerian National
Petroleum Corporation
(NNPC) has said that
Nigeria’s plans as contained
in its 2016 budget are now
being grossly impacted by
renewed militancy in the
Niger Delta.
It also said pipeline
vandalism in the region has
led to the curtailment of
about 700,000 barrels of
crude oil per day.
NNPC’s Group Managing
Director, Dr. Maikanti Baru
disclosed this to the Chief of
Defence Staff (CDS), Major-
General Abayomi Gabriel
Olonishakin on Thursday
when he paid him a courtesy
visit in Abuja.
Baru’s remarks during the
meeting were made available
to THISDAY by the
corporation.
He told the CDS that the
country’s power sector was
also impacted by the
development, and that from
January to May this year, an
equivalent of 1447 vandalism
incidents have been
recorded in the country
resulting to a loss of an
equivalent of 109 million
litres of petroleum products
and an equivalent of 560,000
barrels of crude oil to the
nation’s refineries in Warri;
Port Harcourt; and Kaduna.
“CDS sir, as you may be
aware, Nigeria’s energy
supply security is
underpinned by a robust
network of over 8000kms of
pipeline assets used in the
transportation of crude oil,
petroleum products and
natural gas.”

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir David Lawal, on Wednesday said Nigerians in Diaspora remitted to the country a total sum of $21 billion in the last one year. He made the remark during a press briefing to mark the 2016 Diaspora Day. Lawal, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Political Affairs, Office of the SGF, Olakunle Bamgbose, also said the Federal Government is partnering with Nigerians in Diaspora on meeting the needs of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the country. To this end, he said the government has approved waivers for drugs, roofing sheets and other items imported by Nigerians in Diaspora to aid youth empowerment. He said, “This year’s conference will be a complete departure from our past experiences, when our nationals come home only to highlight the challenges that confront our nation. The government and citizens of Nigeria at home are not ignorant of our challenges as a nation. What our nation requires are solutions to specific problems. “This year’s conference, in essence, will focus on obtaining firm commitments from Nigerians in the Diaspora, directed at solving some of our national challenges. This administration is ready to partner with Nigerians in Diaspora on how they can assist Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the Northeast; on how through medical interventions they can improve healthcare delivery across the country and on how they can assist government in youth empowerment and employment generation. “I am happy to confirm that already, we have received commitments from Nigerians in line with the new thinking. We intend to obtain more commitments during the conference and as follow-up to ensure that such commitments are redeemed.” He disclosed that this year’s conference will be declared open by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, while the Ministers of Finance and Foreign Affairs will make presentations amongst other speakers. He added, “Let me assure you that the Federal Government will continue to partner with our compatriots outside the country. This is because we appreciate the invaluable contributions they continue to make towards the growth and development of the nation. This partnership is more critical today that we pursue a total national rebirth.”

ExxonMobil subsidiary Mobil Producing Nigeria has declared force majeure on exports of Nigeria's Qua Iboe crude oil, the country's largest export stream, a spokesman said on Friday. The declaration came after the company observed a "system anomaly" during a routine check of its loading facility on July 14. "We are working to ensure loading activities at the facility return to normal. We cannot speculate on any timeline for repairs," the spokesman said. "Qua Iboe Terminal is operating and production activities continue." Nigeria has struggled to maintain its crude oil production following a spate of militant attacks and technical problems that in May pushed production briefly to 30-year lows. While the cause of the latest issue was not immediately clear, traders said it would take least two to four weeks to repair. Earlier this week, Exxon denied claims from militant group the Niger Delta Avengers to have blown up the Qua Iboe 48" crude oil export pipeline operated by the company. Spokesman Todd Spitler said on Friday there was no connection between the force majeure and militant attacks. Exxon has struggled to bring production of Qua Iboe back to normal after an accident in May on a drilling rig that damaged a pipeline, after which the company also declared force majeure. Since lifting that declaration in early June, there have been roughly three revisions to loading schedules, attributed to a slower-than- expected re

Speaking in an interview with the State House Press Corp shortly after their behind closed door meeting, Mr. Obasanjo said he had discussed with the Gambian leader an array of issues including the current situation of the continent. “It is quite some time that the President and I have not had opportunity to exchange views on the situation between our two countries, our region of West Africa, ECOWAS and the situation within our continent of Africa. The last time the President and I had very short opportunity to have such exchange of views was after I won election and the President was around for an ECOWAS meeting. So on this occasion we were able to update ourselves on the situation in Nigeria and The Gambia,” he said. “From our discussion, the President brought me up to date on the situation here, what is going on, the preparation for election and what the electoral commission is doing and so I also briefed him on the areas where he expressed some form of anxiety about the situation in Nigeria. So on the whole, I came out feeling quite informed and I believe the President is also fairly informed about the situation in Nigeria and we jointly agreed that there are areas where we have to work for progress to be made in ECOWAS.” According to him, during his recent meeting with ECOWAS, they talked about a common currency and what they need to do about the sub-regional bloc. “We have ECOWAS that has been in existence for forty years and we haven’t really gone beyond the so-called free movement of goods and people and even that free movement is shackled; you try to move between here

Justice Olukayode Adeniyi of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Apo, Abuja, will on Friday hear a N500m suit filed by an ally of Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State, Abiodun Agbele, seeking an order releasing him from the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. Agbele was reportedly arrested on June 27 for his role in the handling of over N1.219bn on behalf of Fayose during the Ekiti State governorship election in 2014. The money was said to have been part of the N4.7bn that was siphoned from the Office of the National Security Adviser and deposited into the bank account of a company belonging to the sons of a former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro. In his suit filed on his behalf by his lawyers – Mike Ozekhome (SAN) and Olalekan Ojo – Agbele urged the court to declare his arrest and detention unlawful and award N500m as compensatory damages against the EFCC for his unlawful arrest and detention. Agbele argued, in the fundamental rights enforcement suit, that his arrest and continued detention beyond the 48 hours allowed by the Constitution, amounted to violation of his rights to freedom of liberty, human dignity and the right to acquire and own properties. He said unless and except the court comes to his rescue, the EFCC will continue to infringe on his rights to freedom of liberty.

A militant group,
Niger Delta Revolutionary
Crusaders, NDRC, based in
Bayelsa State, Wednesday,
declared a two-week
armistice within which it
urged President Muhammadu
Buhari to review his hard-
line stance to consequential
dialogue with militants and
first-rate leaders of Niger
Delta to prevent total
devastation of crude oil
export facilities.
This came as the Niger Delta
Avengers, NDA, accused
ExxonMobil of telling lies
about the bombing of its Qua
Iboe 48-inch crude export
pipeline on Monday evening.
Spokesperson of the militant
group, self-appointed Brig
Gen Mudoch Agbinibo, stated:
“ExxonMobil can deny and
fool the general public about
their Export Pipeline blown,
yesterday (Monday). How
long can they lie to their
investors? Just in matter of
days, the whole world will
see the truth. Qua Iboe 48”
crude oil export pipeline is
down, so said the
Avengers.”
NDRC, which recently blew up
the Brass Creek Manifold,
the largest in West Africa,
situated in Peretorugbene,
Ekeremor local government
area, Bayelsa state, said:
“With clear evaluation of the
happenings and advice of
well- meaning Nigerians and
Niger Delta stakeholders, we
hereby declare a two- week
ceasefire for a sincere and
proper dialogue.”
Spokesperson of the group,
WOI Izon-Ebi, said in a
statement: “We want the
Federal Government to
consult distinguished
personalities, royal fathers
and chiefs of the Niger Delta
communities. Government
should disassociate itself
from negotiating with political
jobbers in Abuja, but come
down to the Niger Delta
communities.”
“If after the two weeks of
ceasefire, nothing meaningful
happens, we have no option
but to redirect our next
phase of action to the
exporting terminals to stop
total export of our
resources.
“We hereby call on Mr.
President to do the needful
by being sincere to himself
and Nigerians to engage in
meaningful dialogue to
ensure a lasting peace in the
Niger Delta and Nigeria in
particular,” it added.
NDRC asserted: “We have
lived all our lives as victims
and like fishes constantly
immersed in pools of
pollution, so it is no longer
new to us,” adding, “Come to
talk about explosion and
degradation it does not start
today, it has been for the
past fifty (50) years. That is
why the colonial masters
pointed it out categorically
clear to Nigerians before
independence that the Ijaws
and the Ogoni communities
are priority areas of
concentration and
development by the Nigerian
government.”
“All what we need is a clean
environment devoid of
pollution, development, good
drinking water, motor-able
roads cutting across our
communities, electricity,
universities, resource
control,” it said.
The militant group, however,
expressed reservation
about the Minister of
Transport, Rt Hon Rotimi
Amaechi, saying, “He is
taking his hatred against
former President, Dr.
Goodluck Jonathan and Ijaw
nation too far, which is too
bad for the peace and unity
of Niger Delta and Nigeria in
general.”
“Maybe Mr. Rotimi Amaechi,
the current minister of
Transport is not a good
historian; otherwise, he
should have known that the
three higher institutions in
his Ikwerre land except
Rivers State Polytechnic
were established by an Ijaw
man, Chief Diette Spiff, the
then military administrator of
Rivers State. They are
Rivers State University of
Science and Technology and
University of Port-Harcourt,"
NDRC said.
“Why should a man that has
three universities in his
land, Ikwerre, recommend the
scrapping of the one and
only Maritime University in
Ijaw land, which if fully
operational will create
qualified manpower to man
the petroleum and maritime
sectors. Is Rotimi Amaechi an
instrument in the hands of
Niger Delta oppressors
manipulating him in order to
achieve their Northern
agenda? The militant group
asked.

The Petroleum and
Natural Gas Senior Staff
Association of Nigeria
(PENGASSAN) and
Nigeria Union of
Petroleum and Natural
Gas Workers (NUPENG)
have suspended the
strike after a meeting
with the Federal
Government on
Wednesday.
The meeting which ended at
1am was attended by the
Minister of Labour and
Employment, Dr Chris Ngige,
the oil unions and
international companies.
They discussed issues on
job security, causalisation of
workers and improved
welfare.
Dr Ngige appealed to the
companies not to lay off
workers as government is
trying to make the
environment more conducive
for their businesses.

President Muhammadu Buhari has requested the House of Representatives to expeditiously pass the 2016 budget proposal of 38 federal government agencies and corporations to enable them to effectively execute their mandates.
The president’s request was contained in a letter dated June 30, 2016, addressed to the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, which was read on the floor of the House on Tuesday in Abuja.
In the letter, Mr. Buhari sought the House’s approval for the 2016 budget proposals of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Oil and Gas Free Zones Authority and Nigeria Nuclear Regulatory Authority.
Others include Nigerian Ports Authority, National Maritime Authority, Nigerian Shippers Council, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria.
Also in the list were Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Radio Nigeria, and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), among others.
The president’s letter, in compliance with the Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2007, however noted that budgets of agencies and corporations that had been privatised or otherwise ceased to exist were not included in the proposal.
“May I please pray the House of Representatives to expeditiously consider and approve the budgets of these agencies and corporations to enable them to effectively execute their mandates,” the president wrote.

The Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu on Tuesday said the current government takes into cognisance the life of every Nigerian. Shehu, in a terse statement on his Facebook page, made the declaration in the wake of the recent killings by suspected Fulani herdsmen across the country and soft attacks by Boko Haram insurgents in the North East. “The life of every single Nigerian matters to this government and the security agencies, under the command of President Buhari, will continue to exert all its powers to ensure that every Nigerian is safe from the brutality of terrorists and terrorism. Good Morning!,” Shehu said.

LONDON, July 11 (Reuters) - Nigeria's Trans Niger Pipeline, one of two major pipelines that carries the Bonny Light crude grade for export, was shut down on Monday, an industry source familiar with the matter said.
The cause for the shutdown or impact on production was not known.
Oil major Shell (LSE: RDSB.L - news) , which manages exports of Bonny Light, could not immediately be reached for comment. (Reporting By Julia Payne; Editing by David Goodman)

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)is investigating more personal aides of former President Goodluck Jonathan. According to an official of the agency, who preferred anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the issue, the decision to investigate the ex- presidential aides –– some of who were Special Advisers and Personal Assistants –– is not unconnected with some findings which allegedly linked them to fraud-related offences and other financial improprieties. It was gathered that preminary findings suggest varying levels of involvement of the ex-aides in the alleged large-scale frauds. Although the source refused to disclose whether or not the allegations against the former aides were related to the arms procuments deals probes, he said documentary evidence indicting the aides in various frauds necessitated the investigation. The affected aides, according to the source, included some ex-service men and full-time politicians from the Southsouth, Southwest and North. He added that the affected Nigerians were yet to be invited for interrogation. The source said the names of all the indicted aides in the alleged financial improprieties would be sent to the offices of the National Security Adviser (NSA) and Attorney- General of the Federation and Minister for Justice for further clarification and legal advice. “We have gone far on our investigation on the affected aides. We are concentrating on the ex-service men among them for now because we are working on the substantive and overwhelming documents at our disposal to carry out the investigation after that we will move to other individuals or core politicians. “We are not on a witch- hunting mission; we rely on information from members of the public to uncover financial frauds. Going by preliminary findings, most, if not all the affected former presidential aides involved in the allegations would soon face the wrath of the law.” The commission’s spokesperson, Wilson Uwujare’s mobile telephone number was not available when he was called to comment on these issues as at the time of filing this report.

National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, says the party is sad that a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is the Deputy Senate President.

Reacting to a comment by Senator Dino Melaye that the APC should be grateful that it didn’t lose the National Assembly leadership to the PDP instead of persecuting Saraki, Oyegun told Punch that “the thing that rankled us most was the election of Ekweremadu as Deputy Senate President.”


“Saraki is a member of the APC, much as the main line of the party would have wished a different result and a different scenario but we all find it very, very difficult to accept the emergence of a PDP person as his deputy”, he declared.

On investigation of PDP over its campaign funds, while there are no prosecution of APC members over its own campaign funds, Oyegun replied: “We are not investigating PDP campaign funds. We are investigating records as to how public funds were hijacked for illegal purposes which were not budgeted for by the National Assembly.

“Nobody in business who contributed a lot of money has been dragged to any tribunal because he gave PDP funds. Public funds, public resources, money that belongs to you, me and the people of this country were stolen and diverted.

“Crude oil was being illegally sold to fund the campaigns and other political activities. Not just the campaigns, people just shared money and pocketed.


“Anybody who steals from the treasury either to fund campaign, or to put in his pocket or to buy an estate in every part of the world would be asked questions. It must not be allowed.

“Nobody must be allowed to get away with that. It is not the same with campaign funding. We are not investigating PDP campaign funds.”

Insisting that the APC did not make too many promises, Oyegun stated that “The President promised security; he promised the people jobs.

“He promised the people revitalisation of the economy and strongly promised the people the taming of corruption.

“A lot of things are under this and up till today, we still stand by this and we stand behind because these are the things he promised and he is determined to do them for the people.

“The results are already showing all over the place. The President did not make too many promises. A lot of other things people are saying are neither here nor there; people are saying things he never said.

“Things like: he will make the Naira equivalent to the Dollar; he never said things like that but people just manufacture and read what they want to read into these issues.‎”

Italian energy company Eni confirmed Friday that it was the target of sabotage in the Niger Delta, with a minorimpact on its equity production.A group calling itself the Niger Delta Avengerstook creditfor an attack on pipeline infrastructurein the southern Bayelsa state that's operated by a subsidiary of Italian energy company Eni. A spokesperson for the company confirmed the attack in a statement emailed to UPI. About 4,000barrels of oil equivalent production equity to Eni was impacted, though the spokesperson said overall operations were still under force majeure, meaning it's freed from fulfilling its contract because of circumstances beyond its control.The attack come nearly one month to the day after the group said it blew up a pipeline in Bayelsa state said to be the largest operated by Eni's subsidiary in the Niger Delta region.The Niger Delta Avengers surfaced early this year, launching a militant campaign against national and international energy companies working in the Niger Delta. The group accuses the government of Nigerian PresidentMuhammadu Buhariof favoring oil and gas interests over the interests of the people in the Niger Delta.

Attackers blew
up an oil pipeline in Nigeria's
southern Bayelsa state
operated by a subsidiary of
Italy's Eni on Friday, the
Nigeria Security and Civil
Defence Corps (NSDC) said.
Nobody has claimed
responsibility for the blast,
the latest in a spate of
attacks on oil and gas
facilities in the OPEC
member's Niger Delta region
over the last few months
which have pushed oil
production to 30-year lows.
The attack took place at
Lasukugbene, said
spokesman Desmond Agwu.
"There was a blast (on the)
pipeline and my men were
exchanging fire with some of
the hoodlums," he said.
Eni, which operates in
Nigeria through its
subsidiary Nigerian Agip Oil
Company, could not be
reached for immediate
comment.
Petroleum Ministry sources
said in late June that a
month-long truce had been
agreed with militants but a
group called the Niger Delta
Avengers, which has carried
out most of the attacks, said
it did not "remember"
agreeing to a ceasefire.
The Avengers have claimed
responsibility for at least
five attacks since Sunday,
after aroun

• Sagay’s anti-corruption panel trains 20 teams led by SANs

Ade Adesomoju, Abuja

The Federal Government has set up 20 teams of prosecutors, comprising 80 lawyers, who will handle a number of high profile criminal cases investigated by law enforcement agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

The PUNCH learnt that each of the teams had four lawyers with a Senior Advocate of Nigeria as the leader.

The identities of the lawyers, who were said to have been specially trained for the tasks ahead, have not been made known.

It was learnt that the Prof. Itse Sagay-led Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption was involved in the training of the special prosecutors.

Our correspondent gathered that the training, which ended in June, lasted for over one month.

Sources in the Federal Ministry of Justice in Abuja confirmed to our correspondent on Thursday that one of the teams of prosecutors had been assigned the forgery case recently instituted against Senate President Bukola Saraki; his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu, and two others.

The new prosecuting team will fully take over the forgery case from the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Mr. Mohammed Diri, when the trial resumes on Monday, a source confirmed to The PUNCH.

The Federal Government, through the office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minster of Justice, had, on June 10, preferred against Saraki, Ekweremadu and others, two counts of criminal conspiracy and forgery of Senate Standing Rules used for the leadership election of the presiding officers of the 8th Senate on June 4, 2015.

The two other co-accused persons are a former Clerk to the National Assembly, Salisu Maikasuwa, and his then deputy, Benedict Efeturi.

The Federal Government stated that the offence of conspiracy is punishable under Section 97 (1) of the Penal Code Act and offence of forgery with “fraudulent intent” punishable under Section 364 of the same law.

On June 27, the four accused persons were arraigned and they pleaded not guilty to the charges before Justice Yusuf Halilu of a Federal Capital Territory High Court in Jabi, Abuja.

Shortly after their arraignment on June 27, they were granted bail on the conditions that each of them should produce two sureties, who must have property either in Asokoro, Maitama, Wuse 2 or Garki (all in Abuja).

Sources confirmed to our correspondent on Thursday that the AGF and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, deliberately assigned the case to the special prosecution team for “efficient prosecution and management of the case”.

It was learnt that the team was given the liberty by the AGF to review the case file “and make necessary adjustments or amendments” where necessary to enhance the prospect of a successful prosecution of the case.

When contacted, the AGF’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Salihu Isah, confirmed to our correspondent that the forgery case was one of the high-profile criminal cases that had been assigned to one of the special teams of prosecutors.

“The prosecutors, 80 in all, are constituted into 20 teams. After they were trained, cases have been assigned to the first six and one of the cases is the Saraki’s case that you mentioned,” Isah said.

Though he declined to mention the names of the lawyers in the team, Isah said the matters assigned to the various teams varied from terrorism to corruption cases, among others.

According to him, the National Prosecution Coordination Committee, inaugurated by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, would review some of the cases either being prosecuted or still being investigated by the EFCC, the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission and others agencies.

The committee, he added, would also recommend the re-assignment of suitable cases among them to the teams of prosecutors.



“The teams will take up cases investigated by the various law enforcement agencies – ICPC, EFCC, DSS – and even some being handled by the ministry,” he said.

A source explained that some of the cases that would be assigned to the teams of prosecutors were the over 1,500 terrorism cases said to have been filed before the Federal High Court in Abuja since last year while the accused persons had yet to be arraigned.

President
Muhammadu Buhari on
Thursday, commended the
military for the progress
recorded in the clearance
operations in northern
Borno.
This is contained in sallah
message by the president to
the 119 Task Force and
Armed Forces Special Forces
Battalions’ temporary
harbour at Kangarwa.
The message was conveyed
to the troops by the Chief of
Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur
Buratai, who visited them at
the base.
Buhari acknowledged the
impact of the operations on
the North-East, and said
that Nigerians were proud of
them ``grateful for the
sacrifice’’.
He said the entire country
was behind the troops and
praying for the successful
completion of their task in
the region.
He reiterated his
administration's commitment
to troops’ logistics and other
needs required to finally
clear the remnant of the
Boko Haram terrorists on
Nigerian territory.
In his address to the troops,
Buratai commended their
efforts and urged them to
sustain the tempo as they
advanced towards other
border communities in
northern Borno.
"The president is proud of
you; he is satisfied with your
progress and he conveys
his greetings to you all.
"Since you advanced from
Baga, you have made
progress and I must
commend you for it.
"I am aware of the
challenges you are facing
and we will address them
accordingly.
"You must continue with the
good job that you are doing;
the remnant of these
criminals must be flushed out
as soon as possible," he
said.
Buratai later told newsmen in
an interview that more men
and equipment would be sent
to the unit as they advanced
to other hideouts of the
insurgents.
He expressed satisfaction
with the troops' conduct
since the commencement of
the northern Borno operation
tagged "Operation Gaman
Aiki".
He said that the operation in
the area would be intensified
in the coming days as ground
forces cleared remnants of
terrorists in northern Borno.
"I am here to further raise
the troops' morale in the
fight against insurgency.
"We will ensure that the
morale remains high amid the
momentum and to also keep
the initiative on our side.
"This area extends to the
border toward Niger and
Chad; this is also where
these insurgents sneak into
the country whenever they
are pushed in Niger, Chad or
even in Nigeria.
"We are on the final push to
ensure that we defeat them;
they are the remnants of the
Boko Haram insurgents that
we have been talking about,"
he said.
The Commanding Officer of
the Battalion, Lt. -Col.
Muhammadu Ali, conducted
Buratai and the Commander,
``Operation Lafiya Dole’’,
Maj.-Gen. Lucky Irabor,
round the unit's defensive
positions.
NAN also reports that the
army chief distributed food
and drinks to the troops in
the spirit of the Eid-el-fitri
celebration.
The ground clearance
operation is strongly
supported by aerial
reconnaissance and
bombardments by Nigerian
Air Forces fighter jets

PORTHARCOURT- NIGER Delta Avengers, NDA, shifted its hostilities from Delta State to Rivers State, Wednesday, blowing up a Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, pipeline at Eleme leading to the Nigeria Liquefied National Gas, NLNG in the state.

The militant group claimed responsibility for the attack, saying on its Facebook page Niger Delta Avengers: “By 3.00 am, yesterday, strike team 2, carried out a major strike, bombing NNPC pipeline at Eleme leading to NLNG. You won’t stop us.”

Meanwhile, the Joint Niger Delta Liberation Force, JNDLF, yesterday, threatened to set seven flow stations ablaze in Bayelsa state.

However, the Egbesu Boys of Niger Delta, a militant group said that the ongoing warfare in the Niger Delta region was an Ijaw fight for self-determination and not Niger Delta struggle as generally assumed by many.

Before the Rivers attack, NDA daringly posted at about 8.12 pm on its Facebook page: “Another major pipe about to go up in flames! Brass, LNG, Boom.”

It said any attack by the Nigeria Army might result to human casualties but the group does not want to take life, otherwise, it would have dared the army.

“”For every life you take, we take two. We have our reason, we play cool, we are ready, and we must cripple the economy. Boom, Share,” the group added.

Former Deputy Governor of
Osun State, Otunba Iyiola
Omisore, on Monday
contended that the Economic
and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC) has given
him stringent conditions for
his release.
Omisore in a statement by
his spokesperson, Prince
Diran Odeyemi, and
made available to THISDAY
on Monday in Osogbo , noted
that “EFCC in a letter handed
over to Senator Omisore
after several hours of
interrogation asked him to
produce two serving
Directors In any of the
federal ministries or
agencies with landed
property in millionaires
quarters of Maitama or
Asokoro area of Abuja while
the sureties must
submit the original C of O of
the said landed properties.”
According to him, “We know
too well of a standing
instruction to serving civil
servants not to stand as
sureties in any matter and
wonder why EFCC is giving a
condition they have already
blocked.”

Some officers and soldiers of
the 121 Task Force Battalion
based in Pulka, Borno State,
have voiced their grievance
against officials at the
Nigeria Army Headquarters in
Abuja, accusing the officials
of indifference to their needs
and effective abandonment
of soldiers in the frontlines
of the war against Islamist
insurgent
Some of the soldiers told our
correspondent that they had
been deployed to the war
zone since 2013, spending
three years on the front
lines without rotation to
another, less stressful
location. “And yet there are
soldiers and officers who
have never been to the
frontline since the
insurgency began,” one of
the mid-level officers at the
base told our correspondent.
A number of the soldiers
complained of a prolonged
loss of a sense of normalcy
in their lives. Two of the
soldiers, who are both
married, stated that they had
had neither physical contact
nor communication with their
spouses, children and other
loved ones. “We have no
connection with even our
wives and children because
we don’t have
telecommunication network
here,” one of them stated.
The soldiers disclosed that
all masts in the war zone had
been destroyed, adding that
the lack of communication had
frayed relationships.
“Let the world know that we
came in here as a battalion
with a full battalion strength,
but now we have been so
much battered that we are
less than a company
strength,” said a sergeant.
He added, “We are losing
hope in the commanders in
Abuja. The Army
Headquarters have now
officially withdrawn our unit
(121 Task Force Battalion)
only in name, but we, the
troops, are still here, now
attached as a company to
another unit just coming into
Operation Lafiya Doyle.”
The soldiers said they were
demoralized, adding that
their low morale was rubbing
off on the newly deployed
troops. “We feel we are on
our own, and some of us may
stop giving it our all as we
used to do. 250 of us came
here. Now we are not up to
100. Some of us were killed
in action while others are
missing in action,” one of the
dispirited soldiers said.
Photo Credit

The All Progressives
Congress (APC) on Sunday in
Enugu accused Deputy
Senate President, Ike
Ekweremadu, of a deliberate
attempt to rubbish the
administration of President
Muhammadu Buhari before
the international community
following his communication to
various international bodies,
including the United Nations,
European Union and the
United States Congress over
his arraignment last week at
the Federal High Court,
Abuja, for alleged forgery of
the Senate’s Standing Rules.
The party also rose in
defence of the Attorney
General of the Federation
and Minister of Justice,
Abubakar Malami for his
refusal to honour the
invitation of the Senate’s
Committee on Judiciary to
explain his role in the
forgery suit against Saraki,
Ekweremadu and two others,
, that doing such would have
amounted to succumbing to
intimidation from the senate.
Ekweremadu had written the
international community in the
wake of the arraignment of
Senate President, Bukola
Saraki himself and two
others by the federal
government, warning that
Nigeria’s democracy was
under theat and as such
needed urgent intervention
of world bodies.
The lawmaker, who
represents Enugu West
Senatorial district at the
National Assembly, raised
the alarm over what he
described as attempt to
truncate Nigeria’s democracy
and silence him as the leader
and highest ranking member
of the opposition party in
Nigeria.
Briefing newsmen at the
party’s Secretariat at the
GRA, Enugu, the chairman of
APC in the state, Dr. Ben
Nwoye said the action of the
Deputy Senate President was
totally uncalled for, noting
that the law must be allowed
to take its full course no
matter “how highly or lowly
placed, the persons involved
are”.
Nwoye wondered why a top
member of the nation’s
legislative arm should take
an internal matter of a
sovereign nation to a foreign
land, adding that the action
was only aimed at impeding
the judicial process as well
as to tarnish the image of