₦airaland Forum

jason123:
Nchara, somethings you said were absolutely right but bros, the highlighted are wrong!

Bitumen is not contributing anything to the economy as of today. True or false?

igbaodun:
Cocoa produced in Imo? How? Hydroponics? what a bloody old f-o/o-l

If you weren't a compound ignoramus, you would have known that there are 14 cocoa-producing states in Nigeria and at least two of those are 100% Igbo states.
Yes ondo produces more per state but others contribute to the overall cocoa produced and exported.

silly thread, this is.
Bitumen is not being mined at the present time and contribute nothing to the economy as of today
Oil in Abia and Imo is greater than that in Ondo which is mainly offshore
There is gas in Imo and Abia and non in Ondo
What about the coal in Enugu?
What about the oil and gas in Anambra?

Cocoa is also produced in Imo and Abia in commercial quantities and BTW, cocoa adds little to the national foreign exchange. It goes mainly to the pockets of the farmers

The OP is an incorrigible fo/o/l. You should make a list of all the resources in each state and let's compare notes. Why the cherry-picking?

Hahahah! NL na inventor's haven

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlwEZTBA1gM&feature=share

Can this topic be discussed w/out an injection of ethnic ''irredentism''?
How can some Nigerians be so heartless, selfish and irredeemably morally corrupt?
How many people have died under his fake medical existence?

Nigeria is a silly country.
This is horrifying
Why only three years?

Fake doctor gets three years jail term

From Charles Coffie-Gyamfi, Abeokuta

A 27-YEAR OLD secondary school certificate drop-out, Mr. Olabisi Philips, who for three years impersonated as a medical doctor, was yesterday sentenced to three years imprisonment by an Abeokuta Chief Magistrate's Court.



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Before nemesis caught up with him, Philips had practised as a medical doctor at Olanrewaju Hospital, Ilorin, Kwara State, Able God Hospital, Obantoko, Abeokuta and Michael and Alice Hospital, Kemta, Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

He was said to have been involved in treatment of serious ailments such as cancer. The Ogun State Directorate of the State Security Service (SSS) arrested and charged him to court on four-count charge, including forgery of certificates and National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) discharge certificate.

The SSS Prosecuting Officer, Mr. Peter Okurunmodun, told the court that besides the said offence, Olabisi Philips stole a car belonging to one Mrs. Sola Abudulahi who resides in Ilorin and forged vehicle documents to convert it into his.

The accused, according to the charges preferred against him, stole a West African School Certificate belonging to one Sherif Abiodun. Also, Philips, the SSS official said, forged the licence of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria to practise.

The prosecuting officer added: "Another certificate he forged was the Certificate of Provisional Registration by the same Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria with Registration PMBS 48".

He also forged a Bachelor of Medicine Degree and Bachelor of Surgery (MMBS) degrees from the University of Ilorin (UNIILORIN) and University of Ibadan (UI), which he presented to his employers as genuine certificates.

Another certificate the accused admitted he forged was a Masters degree in Public Health from the UNILORIN.

The SSS said during a search of the accused residence, they discovered copies of all the said certificates in addition to four copies of forged Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria licence, "all in his (accused) name".

Narrating what led to the arrest of the accused, the SSS prosecutor disclosed that following a tip-off, the medical director of Michael and Alice Hospital carried investigations on the accused, which revealed that he often raped female patients after drugging them.

It was after the disturbing discovery that the medical director reported the case to the SSS.

"When we searched the accused house and confronted him with all the fake documents, he admitted that all the forged documents belonged to him", Okurunmodun added.

dayokanu:
Drugs

The least populated zones convene to make noise as usual.

The same North central has ruled this country for 18yrs yet these crackheads gather to make noise as usual

Don't mess with Igbo population which is 70% of Lagos.

sheyguy:
It is no mistake the ND has no quality leader. It is a jungle where only the roughest are gauranteed to make it to the top. Asari is a typical ND leader of today

You cheap hypocrite. How is Dokubo different from Tinubu or Adedibu, both criminal Yoruba leaders?

Beaf:
Congrats to Anambra for achieving an immense fit!
We are talking about handling the entire cycle, from prospecting, drilling to actual refining. It is a massive leap that has been quietly achieved, and the first such display of technological self-belief in Nigeria. They have done the country proud.

I hope they increase the size of their refinery, though. It is quite small at 55,000 bpd.

Anambra certainly doesn't have the highest onshore oil reserves (that honour goes to Rivers), but they might well have the biggest gas reserves (or be second to Delta).

Thanks Beaf. On the bolded, hopefully, you are not judging from the map that the other poster posted. And yes, we need both upstream and downstream development of the oil sector. Kudos to Anambra.

Imo, Abia, and now Anambra (all SE states) are oil-producing. We are getting there.
Information from RMRDC indicate that Enugu also is oil-bearing. Thus, like Anambra, Enugu should set up modalities that will facilitate the exploitation of the oil there. Needs to confirm this, but from available records, Anambra has the highest oil and gas reserves in onshore Nigeria.

Anambra joins oil-producing states
• As Orient Petroleum begins production soon
By The Sun Publishing
Saturday February 18, 2012
Photo: Sun News Publishing

More Stories on This Section

All is ready for Anambra State to join the league of oil-producing states in the country, as Orient Petroleum Resources Plc is to commence the production of crude any moment from now. Chairman, Board of Directors of the company and former Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, announced this while inspecting the company’s facilities at Aguleri Otu with Governor Peter Obi, Dr Alex Ekwueme, Managing Director of Orient Petroleum, Engr Emeka Nwoawka, Igwe Peter Anukwu of Mbaukwu and other stakeholders yesterday.

Anyaoku said the company was ready to start production of crude in a couple of weeks, which would mark the first time crude is produced in inland basin in the country. He disclosed that the company’s service contractor had made significant progress in the acquisition of high resolution 3D seismic data over 640 square kilometres of Orient’s oil blocks OPL 915 & 916 to delineate the full extent of the hydrocarbon discoveries and prospects.

The team also inspected the 20-kilometre access road to the oil wells and the 10-kilometre flow line for evacuating crude to a spot at Anambra River basin, from where evacuation of crude will be undertaken by barges to Brass in Bayelsa State.
The company, according to Anyaoku, had equally finalised the detailed engineering and sourced the modules of its 55,000 bpd refinery. It had also completed the geotechnical, geological and hydro-geological surveys and civil engineering works for installation of refinery equipment.

Orient Petroleum had also completed acquisition of seven hectares of land from Kogi State for establishment of depot for distribution of petroleum products from the refinery to the North and other parts of the country.
Conducting the delegation round the facilities, the Managing Director of Orient Petroleum gave assurance that Anambra would soon join the club of oil-producing states. He thanked Governor Obi for his interest in the project and appealed to him to continue to support it. He said the drilling environment conformed to international standards.
Responding, Obi commended the Board of Orient Petroleum for its resilience and determination to bring the project on stream. He said that when functional, the company would, among other things, create employment, fast-track overall development of the host community as well as contribute in strengthening the State and national economy. He assured of continued government support for the project.
Earlier, the Board of Orient Petroleum Plc had paid a courtesy visit to Governor Obi at the Government House before proceeding on the inspection.

http://odili.net/news/source/2012/feb/11/313.html

Untold secret of the survival of Boko Haram Sect in Yobe

Special Report Saturday, February 11, 2012

By Osita Okolo

Long before the advent of the Boko Haram insurgence, Yobe state, in north-east Nigeria was well known for its ethno-religious conflicts often leading to loss of lives and properties. But these have been largely been contained over the years and the activities of the religious extremists had limited consequences on the socio-economic life of the state.


A burnt house

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Business and social activities managed to thrive on despite the tension created by persons who seem not ready to accommodate the existence of other faiths outside their own.

But the campaigns of the Boko Haram sect were to change all that for the worse. Yobe state, with a large land mass is probably the least populated state in Nigeria. It has five major towns namely: Gashua, Ngurru, Geidam, Potiskum and Damaturu. The last two are the biggest. While Damaturu is the state capital, Potiskum remains the business hub-nub of the state. The two principal towns have since become ghost cities.

This is because most of the residents have relocated to safer places due to the Boko Haram insurgency. Southerners have since returned to their native villages. As for the natives of Yobe state doing business in the two cities, they have relocated to rural communities (where they have become refugees in their home state) with no assistance from the state government.

In Potiskum, the intransigent Igbo traders (at the expiration of the three days grace for southerners and Christians warning to leave the state) had their shops razed down by suspected members of the Boko Haram sect.

According to Mr. Igwe Mazi, an Anambra trader resident In Potiskum, "About 100 shops belonging to Igbos and other southerners were burnt in Potiskum in December, 2011 with the state government not compensating anyone. The police have been helpless in dealing with the situations. Dozens of policemen have been murdered by the sect. We have resigned the situation to God." He added that although hundreds of the dreaded sect members are in detention all over the state none had been prosecuted and convicted.

Bomo Haram (BH) in Yobe

Although the Islamic fundamentalist group originated in Kanama, Yobe state, Maiduguri has for long been its headquarters since the late Mohammed Yusuf started his romance with Borno politicians. But the sect had always maintained a very strong presence in Damaturu. Sometimes in December, 2011 at the peak of havoc done in Maiduguri by the sect members, the Yobe State Commissioner of police boasted that there were no Boko Haram members in his state. He was made to swallow his words less than a week later.

That was when the sect closed down Damaturu after effectively destroying police headquarters, Federal Secretariat, State Secretariat, JTF headquarters and three commercial banks (after looting the funds inside them) in the state capital. The sect also bombed or razed to the ground the entire churches in the town along with several houses belonging to southerners. In spite of what northern leaders say about the sect killing more Muslims than Christians, Boko Haram had never hidden its objective of seeing the total eradication of Christianity from Nigeria.

The operation which started from 6pm and lasted till 6am the next day led to the loss of over 100 lives including 17 policemen and was only rivaled by the recent Kano serial bombing incident of January 20 2012 claimed over 200 lives including a journalist with the Silver Bird Media outfit, Mr. Akogwu Enenche.

Grassroots support

In Damaturu and Potiskum- towns separated by about 100 kilometers, Boko Haram members abound everywhere: the business sector, academia and even in the civil service. But it was not until their first major operation in Damaturu last December did people stop underrating their strength and influence in the state. The second major encounter sometimes in late December was equally shocking. The sect had openly told the police that they were in Pompamari residential ward, an area close to the Federal government owned polytechnic.

The police ordered the residents of the area to vacate immediately. The ensuing confrontation led to the death of the Assistant Commissioner of police in charge of the operation to flush them out and the Officer in charge of the Damaturu anti-riot mobile police squad, both men northern Muslims. The hapless officers were ambushed and killed. It was reported that the sect had armored vehicles and practically outgunned the police and the JTF members who were drawn from the army. The JTF that were supposed to flush the criminals had their office complex and all their operational vehicles burnt to ashes. Government was thoroughly embarrassed. Thousands fled the state in droves.

During the December clash, the sect effectively mobilized an estimated 500 fighters who lined up at major streets of Damaturu and held sway for 12 hours. Mallam Isa Damaturu (not real name), a three bedroom Gujba Road resident related how the men mounted heavy guns from his house and faced the adjacent police headquarters. He observed that the sect did not attack the residents of the estate who were kept awake by sounds of heavy guns throughout the night.

Observers who saw the fighters noted that many of them were well known members of the community with some obviously unknown. Their ability to mobilize over 500 fighters undetected without the knowledge of the State security agencies, including the police only shocked those who were unfamiliar with the secret behind the successes. Those identified fighters were not unemployed youths or thugs as wrongly propagated by arm-chair analysts in their attempt to misinform the public on the reason behind the insurgence. They were traders, artisans and business men.

Not many people are aware that religious motivated killings in Yobe did not start with BH. A look at the turbulent history of the state since its creation will help unearth the remote cause that gave birth to the sect. Musa Soho, a native of Kukar Gadu in Fika LGA and a minority Christian told this reporter that 'The seed of Boko Haram which is today being harvested in the entire Nigerian society was sown by those who decided to throw Nigeria's constitution that stipulates secularity. Before the advent of Boko Haram, everything started and ended with Religion. Your religion would determine whether you will become a permanent secretary or Director in the civil service. Most of us have had to change our names to Arabic name for us to gain admission into higher institutions of learning, gain employment or scholarships for our ward. So the road to Boko Haram started long ago. Nobody is addressing all that now. Nobody is talking about respecting people's right to their personal faith, " lamented the retired civil servant in his early 60s.

How BH gets weapons

A police officer who spoke to this writer claimed the sect captured the big weapon from the police after a surprise raid in Damaturu that caught the police napping. As for their notorious AK 47, a good number of these were believed to have been smuggled into the country through Machina- a border town with Niger Republic some 350 kilometers from Damaturu through sea of sand dunes. Substantial arms and ammunition were equally smuggled through Baga, a town about an hour's drives from Maiduguri that borders with northern Cameroon. Some of their arms were also smuggled through the borders with Chad. The one advantage for the sect is that Maiduguri had borders with three countries: Chad, Niger and Cameroon. All these borders are very wide and porous and are all within an hour's drive from Maiduguri. The recent war in Libya that led to the toppling and killing of Muamar Ghaddafi reportedly made more arms cheaper and more easily accessible to the rebellious sect.

A BH member and his Igbo friend

There was this story of this young man, Obinna Ikechukwu. Obinna lived with his parents in New Jerusalem area of Damaturu. In an interview with this writer, Obinna said, "My parents traded in palm oil and my three siblings graduated from the Federal Polytechnic, Damaturu.

I decidedto continue with my parents' trade after obtaining my School Certificate. I hada friend, Ibrahim (real name withheld). We both graduated from the same secondary school and had remained friends, years after leaving school.

One day, I told Ibrahim that the family would be relocating to the east for fear of being harmed in the crisis. That was after the sect's major attack on the city in the month of December, 2012."

Ibrahim told Obinna not to worry and that he would ensure that his family and their properties would not be attacked. Obinna was shocked. Who was Ibrahim to give such assurance which even the state Police commissioner could not give? But in the subsequent attack at the New Jerusalem area of the town, Ibrahim kept his words. Even when all the surrounding houses near Obinna's own were torched or bombed, nothing happened to his family house.

Hours before the sect commenced their nefarious operations, Ibrahim called Obinna asking him to remain indoors and not to panic, adding that nothing would happen to him or any member of his family so long as they did not leave the compound. Ibrahim kept his words.

Obinna, his family and property were protected from harm. That was how Obinna confirmed that Ibrahim was a member of the sect.

When this writer asked Obinna why he did not report the matter to the police, he looked confused. Initially, he said he could not trust the police. Next, he said his friend had done a favour to him and it would amount to betrayal if he reported him. But for sometimes now, Obinna has neither heard nor seen his friend. He believes he may have been killed or detained by the security agents.

The killing of Ibekwe, wealthiest Igbo man in Yobe

The Igbo communities living in Yobe have suffered several losses. One of such irreparable losses was the death of Mr. Ibekwe. A native of Isuofia, Anambra state, he was one of the wealthiest business men in Damaturu. According to Obinna, 'The man had one of his big shops along Potiskum-Maiduguri road, near the Damaturu roundabout, opposite AP petrol station. The Islamists had stormed the shop one sunny afternoon in December and ordered Ibekwe to recite Alhamdu (the first chapter of the Islam's sacred book, the Koran). He offered them the sum of N650 cash on the spot.

But they insisted on their demand. Although a non Muslim, he tried but the men were not impressed with his efforts and shot him six times in the head. Although the Isuofia community organized a peaceful protest at Isuofia in Aguata LGA of Anambra state, nothing came out of it. Neither the Anambra state government nor that of Yobe paid any compensation for the terrible loss.

Ibekwe was not just rich, he was very generous. His killing along with several others in Damaturu and Potiskum shocked and pained many. But we were helpless against the onslaught of the fundamentalist group that has become notorious for their heartlessness in dispatching innocent people to their premature graves."

History of Religious Crisis in the State

Yobe state was carved out of the old Borno State in August 1991. The splitting of Old Borno State into two was done in such a manner calculated to produce Christian minorities on both states. No thanks to the northern military juntas whose divide and rule tactics gave birth to endless religious killings.

Had the creation of the state been done otherwise, southern Borno (dominated by the Bura tribe in Biu) and parts of the Babur tribe in Yobe would have resulted to a state where the Christians are dominant and would therefore settle domination by the Muslims and save the loss of thousands of innocent lives and properties wasted in the endless carnages resulting from religious intolerance by majority Muslims.

In September 1994, precisely three years after Yobe state was excised from Borno, a group of young Islamic extremist stormed Potiskum and razed down all the churches in that town including Baptist, Church of Christ in Nigeria (COCIN), EYN, the Anglican Church and of course, the Evangelical Church of West Africa (ECWA). For some mysterious reasons, only the Catholic Church was spared. ECWA, the biggest of the churches suffered the highest losses.

Two of their officiating priests, Pastor Yahaya Tsalibi (from Potiskum minority Christian tribe of Karai-Karai- pronounced Kare-Kare ) and his Deputy Pastor Ezra were murdered on the altar by the extremists. Six worshippers were killed. Countless were wounded. All the cars, motorcycles and bicycles belonging to the worshippers were burnt. The barbaric acts were the handiwork of young Muslim militants.

Although, the survivors positively identified the perpetrators, government neither arrested nor punished them. On the contrary, they took the option of compensating the victims. This effectively confirmed the fact that the killers were agents of prominent leaders of the state who ensured that their messengers were shielded from justice.

The only crime of the victims was that they were Christians. Of course, so long as the killers keep getting away with mass killing in the name of going to heaven, the atrocities will never stop. Mrs. Maimuna Joseph, a ember of Potiskum branch of ECWA Church said 'My husband was given N40, 000 for his destroyed car. He had no option than to collect the money although there was a big division within CAN on whether or not to collect the money.

Many of them prefer to have the culprits punished, after all we know them. Sadly, it was during the military era when government agents were used to persecute Christians. The aim was to make being a Christian unattractive and to Islamize the state. But the campaign is not working. Christianity is rapidly spreading. For every church that is burnt, a bigger one is built in its place when the dust settles. Our leaders who are today crying against the killings by Boko Haram created the atmosphere for the sect to thrive. Now the monster is out of control and consuming those that nurtured it," lamented the ex- school teacher.

In 2004, Mr. Gayus Bala, a Christian (from the Kilba minority tribe of Adamawa state), provost of the Federal College of Education (Technical) located in Potiskum, Yobe state was removed from office by the Federal Government and sent on a course. . This was after a riot by the students of the school. The rioters had gone to town and were later joined by political thugs who burnt houses and shops belonging to Igbos. Their grouse? A female student of the college had alleged that her Koran was desecrated by a female Igbo student.

But at a panel set up by the Federal Ministry of Education (to investigate the crisis and recommend recipe for averting further riots) the girl admitted she had no Koran in the first instance. It was discovered that the girl was used by those who do not want a Christian to head the federal government owned institution. Mr. Gayus was replaced by Dr. Shettima Saidu Abdulkadir, a native of Ngurru and former Deputy Rector of the Federal Polytechnic, Damaturu. Again, no compensation was paid to anybody. However, some of he principal officers of the college were transferred out of the school for their alleged involvement in instigating the crisis.

In 2001, a mob stormed the Damaturu central police station in apparent attempt to kill a minority Christian who was alleged to have desecrated the Islamic holy book. Luckily the mob scattered when police fired live bullets at them when they persisted to storm the police station and kill the accused, a Michika commercial bike operator who persistently maintained that he had never touched a Koran before not to talk of desecrating one,

In 2007, a faceless individual entered the female hostel toilet of the Federal Polytechnic, Damaturu and wrote some negative things about the Prophet of Islam. And the devil was set loose. Students went to town and as usual churches and business outfits owned by Christians were razed to the ground. The list of the religious riots in Yobe were endless before the master of them all, Boko Haram entered the scene and changed everything.

Why BH strives

Many analysts have attributed the disturbances to unemployment rather than religion. An American envoy recently attributed it to the rivalry between the south and north. Yet again, the Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi attributed it to the revenue sharing formula. Yet another northern elder, Adamu Ciroma, a Yobe indigene and a former governor of Central Bank of Nigeria blamed bad leadership. Nothing could be more misleading.

It is true that Yobe state had its own share of problems emanating from the Nigerian state, nobody can deny the fact that the various governments of the state allowed religion to steal the peace of the people only for it to turn round to blame poverty and 'disgruntled elements in the society'. Take for example, as poor as Yobe state is, it boasts of probably the largest Mosques in West Africa (or so it was thought when it was commissioned some few years back).

The mosque which was strategically located along Maiduguri-Potiskum road has Koranic schools and Islamic library all built at government expenses. No similar edifice was built for the Christians even though the state belongs to both Muslims and Christians alike.

But Boko Haram, Emeka Okereke, an Igbo resident of the state responded 'The state gets its own share of oil allocation as at when due. If they decide to use their own share to promote religion rather than provide essentia, whose fault?"

The painful thing however is that all of us living here are paying the price of the attempt to Arabize the state at all cost."

Then there are several Koranic schools where people were indoctrinated from childhood. It is on records that that the foot soldiers of Boko Haram were trained in the local Koranic school where the pupils are taught that their primary allegiance goes to Islam and not the state and that they have the duty as Muslims to work towards enthroning the ideal Islamic state in Nigeria during their lifetime.

So when Mohammed Yusuf came with his message of replacing the man made laws with the laws of God, thousands flocked to him in drove as the messiah they had been waiting for.

He lambasted western democracy which Nigeria has adopted as anti-Islam and attributed the spread of corruption and poverty to the system. He advocated the enthronement of the ideal Islamic state as the recipe to the Nigeria problem of poverty and corruption.

Non Muslims who could understand his sermons in Hausa shivered as the preaching were practically inciting Muslims against the non-Muslims in the state. Although Yusuf was regularly invited by the security agencies that put him under watch, nothing came out of it as his disciples always bailed him out. He was the beautiful bride courted by top government officials, judicial officers, politicians and students. He was very popular because he said the things people were trained from childhood to accept as gospel truth. Politicians went to him for counseling and for successes in their endeavors.

Business men went to him for prayers. Students approached him for success in their examinations. In return, they supported his 'missionary endeavors'. At Kanama in Yobe in the early 200s, his group was called 'The Talibans'. A popular member of the group then was the son of a former governor of the state.

'There was a time that Mohammed Yusuf got an Igbo to preach Islam in Igbo language. The preaching which was done in Igbo was usually recorded and played at the Damaturu motor park. Those of us who were Igbo saw it as novice. Not many have heard Islamic sermons in Igbo language. Many Igbos would pause and listen to the strange development and would sometimes smile with amusement', related Emma Ike, a former Damaturu resident now relocated to his home town of Enugwu-Agidi.

Mohammed Yusuf later gained power in Maiduguri but clashed with the police leading to his death following the 2009 riot where the sect burnt several churches in Borno, Bauchi Gombe, Damboa and Potiskum and other northern towns.

His group in the ensuing riots attacked several police stations killing a total of 39 police officers. His members also killed, several Christians including Reverend Orji and the Deputy Pastor of the National Evangelical Mission, Wulari in Maiduguri, Pastor Usen Obong (see pix of burnt church and pastor) and his younger brother who came visiting a day before, Patrick Obong was equally axed to death the sect and hundreds of Christians some of whom were kidnapped and taken to his enclave behind the Maiduguri railway station where they were forcibly converted to Islam and given Islamic names. Pastor Usoro Obong whose wife gave birth a week after his death got no compensation from government. Yusuf's followers were killed when the police stormed the enclave.

The leader of the police team, a Superintendent of police, an Igbo from Ihiala in Anambra state popularly called KC lost his life in the encounter. The story of how the sect's AK 47 could not penetrate his bullet proof body and how he fought the fundamentalists courageously before he was eventually killed with an axe is still celebrated in Maiduguri today by his fellow Igbos. KC who was in his mid 30s was planning for his marriage when he met his untimely death. Yusuf himself was captured by soldiers and was later killed. But that was after he had killed a total of 39 law enforcement officers in Borno state including KC who was heading the anti-robbery taskforce in the state.

Mohammed Yusuf's movement has since outlived him. In spite of the numerous pains the sect had visited on the Nigerian masses, they remained popular in Yobe state. According a Damaturu resident Usman Gashua (real name withheld) 'If government finds it difficult tackling the menace of the sect, it is simply because of the grass root support the sect enjoys in the state. This grassroots support ensured the sect completely take over Potiskum and Damaturu with little effort after a heavy mobilization that escaped the eyes of security agencies. The 'successes' they recorded at two major campaigns in December, 2011 that led to the killings of at least 100 people were facilitated by their supporters who housed them at various houses including government owned facilities before they finally attacked. In Yobe, influential members of the society who supports the group believes that the group were working for God. For those who could not come out and join the group in the campaign of mass murder and arson, it is all envy for the Jihadists as everyone agrees that it takes extraordinary courage to shed the blood of fellow human beings without baiting an eyelid'

Practically all the churches in Potiskum and Damaturu have been burnt and Christian worshippers afraid of being killed have stopped going to church. As things are now, the sect appears to be on their way to attaining their goals where Christianity is eradicated. The situation is not made better by the Yobe state government that has bluntly refused to cooperate with CAN for the reconstruction of the churches and for compensation to be paid to Christians and southerners who lost their business. Nor have the Federal government made any serous move to rehabilitate the thousands of refugees streaming from the north as a result of the unfortunate incidents.

Nothing could be most devastating than when a bread winner is killed at the prime of his life for no just cause. And that was why the kinsmen of Mr. Yusuf Yamari Msheliza, a Chief lecturer in the Dept of Business and Management Studies of the Federal Polytechnic Damaturu, a minority Christian was slaughtered in Damaturu in December by the Boko Haram Sect. His kinsmen were so aggrieved that went to government House Damaturu and demonstrated against the killing and to ask for compensation. But like the demonstration against the killing of Mr. Ibekwe by his Isuofia kinsmen, nothing came out of it.

On the bolded: any lessons fo Ndigbo?
How long shall you continue to wash your palms and crack kernels for chickens?

Boko Haram: Ndigbo returnees recount tales of woe

by OZIOMA UBABUKOH

Many Ndigbo, who have just fled Northern Nigeria, paint vivid pictures of terror, writes OZIOMA UBABUKOH


Chinonyelum Alumona

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Most Igbo returnees from the North, like Mrs. Patricia Agballakwe, sounded only too happy to be back home, safe and out of the reach of the activities of the violent Islamic sect, Boko Haram.

Boko Haram has turned many parts of northern Nigeria, especially the North-East, into killing fields through persistent bombing and armed attacks on innocent citizens and police stations.

Following an increase in violence, occasioned by additional bombings and the killing of Ndigbo, as well as a specific warning to other Christians resident in the North to leave or face dire consequences, many Igbo men and women and their families had deemed it urgent to return home.

Too happy to shake off the grime and dust of the crisis-ridden North, many of those who returned to Enugu State told SATURDAY PUNCH about days spent in sheer dread of Boko Haram and the unknown.

Putting it mildly, Agballakwe, a native of Nnewi in Anambra State, says, "We came back because of Boko Haram. My family and I were hiding in the bush in Borno until we heard that free buses had been provided for us and we quickly came out and returned home. As you can see, I'm a happy woman now because I'm out of the reach of Boko Haram."

Yet, not so many others could quite easily put away the sad memories of the murderous activities of the violent sect. One such person, Afamefuna Okonkwo, a former resident of Damaturu, capital of Yobe State, painted a picture of horror, perpetual tension and resignation.

Okonkwo recalls, "I was living in Damaturu when the Boko Haram crisis started. Initially, it came as a joke, one of those things that we thought with time would fade. But it did not. Instead, it grew worse.

"The crisis got so bad that at some point, we thought we were living in Sudan or Libya or one of those countries where people slept with one eye open. I must note here that not every attack, with or without bombs, that was reported in the media. And this affected us adversely.

"There were times we went out in threes or more, just to buy something from a nearby shop. No one could walk alone because virtually everyone on the streets looked like a suspect and we didn't know who to trust."

Okonkwo said non-Northerners were perpetually on the look out for marauding Boko Haram militants, particularly at night. Damaturu suddenly became a preferred graveyard for those who were scared of not getting decent burial in event of being attacked and killed outside the city.

He says, "Our brothers and kinsmen who had flourishing businesses in towns outside the capital city immediately relocated to Damaturu when the crisis got so bad, as it was better to live in an area where people could easily trace your body if anything bad happens.

"We did not find the corpses of our people, who lived outside Damaturu to bury when they were attacked and killed by Boko Haram members. Whenever it was time for us to sleep at night, we did so in turns because these marauders attacked mostly at night.

"I remember vividly an incident that occurred just before Christmas. My neighbour, a woman from Cross River State, had gone out to pack some clothes that she spread outside when some boys appeared from nowhere and poured acid on her, asking why she should wear expensive clothes whereas they were fighting against Western education.

"But let me ask, that substance they poured on the woman's face, isn't it a product of Western education? Things got so bad and we decided to leave for the East, because there was no need staying back when we could not sleep well, eat well, and our blood pressure was rising. Now, we are regretting having invested so much up there. We spent so much money."

Scared by the bloodshed across Northern Nigeria, even members of of the National Youth Service Corps avoided contact with that part of the country. For example, Chinonye Alumona, a corps member, was posted to serve in Yobe State in November 2011.

But she ended up at the NYSC camp in Nasarawa State for the orientation exercise because the authorities would not endanger the lives of corps members.

She says, "Many graduates who were posted to Yobe never picked up their call-up letter. And those who did never reported to camp. They never turned up because they never knew we would be taken to Nasarawa. Only a few of us went to Nasarawa.

"In the camp, my colleagues, who initially travelled to Yobe before coming over to Nasarawa, said that everywhere was so tense that they thought they were in a warring country.

"Some corps members caught two guys in the middle of the night as they gained entry into their hostels through the fence. When we heard the shouts that night, there was panic and stampede, such that some people fainted because they thought Boko Haram had invaded the camp.

"The soldiers attached to the camp begged the fleeing corps members to stay and promised that there would be no such incident again. The culprits were nabbed while they were searching people's bags. They were handed over to the soldiers who interrogated them and found out that they were not corps members, but carried NYSC identification cards.

"After that incident, corps members started to gather their things and insisted that they wanted to leave, that they were tired of the whole NYSC programme. They said they didn't want to serve again.

"We were not allowed to go for the traditional endurance trek because the NYSC officials were scared that Boko Haram could strike. So what our mates in other NYSC orientation camps across the country enjoyed, we never did.

"Towards the end of our orientation exercise, NYSC officials kept encouraging us to go back to Yobe. It was at that point that the coordinator of the NYSC in the state visited us and we learnt that members of Boko Haram had set the NYSC camp in Yobe on fire."

Another returnee, Nicholas Chinonso, who counted himself fortunate to have left Maidudguri, which is the bloodiest of the northern killing fields, in one piece, gives a chilling account of large-scale murders, most of the time in cold blood, of the Igbo and other Southerners resident in the city.

He says, "In Maiduguri, there were many police officers, soldiers, armed men everywhere, but things still happened. Things you cannot say how they happened, happened. I'm married and was trading in Babalan Market, but I decided to return home (Enugu State), when we saw the way things were going.

"My good friend died in Maiduguri before Christmas. He was travelling alongside other Igbo citizens in an L300 bus when those Boko Haram people stopped them and killed all of them. At that point, all of us who were Igbo told ourselves that Borno was no longer safe for us; that it was about time we returned home

"Some of them, who chose to return to the East sometime in January, were killed on the highway. And a big bus that was conveying our brothers home was attacked in Potiskum when they stopped to buy fuel. The Boko Haram members did not even spare anybody; they killed them with matchetes, daggers and other weapons.

"After that incident, I just could not return home by road, so I took a flight to Lagos and thereafter, found my way to Enugu. My biggest problem now is that most Igbo have huge investments in Borno State and we can't even sell off our houses because their people are not willing to buy them. It's a big problem. I wonder how we will cope."

Many Igbo businessmen and women left their businesses valued at millions of naira behind in the North.

For others, such as Onyekwelu Obiora, who naturally had to make a clear choice between riches and safety, the cost is almost unbearable.

Obiora says, "You have businesses there, but you cannot get anything from January to December because of the crisis and bombings. It is a very sad situation. I don't know what we can do about it.

"We pray that the government will come to our aid. I'm a hotelier, but right now I don't have anything to do. My hotel has been shut for two years now because people are afraid to come to our area in Plateau State. I've a family to feed. We have just returned to the East and setting up a business here is not just easy."

I Need Corps Members, Borno Governor Begs Youth Minister

Kashim Shettima
, promises water-tight security

The executive Governor of Borno State, Kashim Shettima has made a passionate appeal to the Federal Government to deploy more National Youths Service Corp (NYSC) members in the state, assuring that arrangements were in place to guarantee their security from the Boko Haram insurgence throughout the duration of their service.

Making the appeal when he paid a courtesy visit to the Minister of Youth Development, Alhaji Bolaji Abduallahi, in Abuja yesterday, the governor argued that no corps member was killed throughout the duration of the Muslim sect's occupation of the state.

"I feel highly honoured to pay this courtesy call on the Honourable Minister of Youths Development. I came specifically for three reasons, especially regarding the National Youths Service Corps (NYSC) scheme, which fell under the honourable minister.

"Yes, we are passing through some security challenges, especially in the North-east part of the country. I'm talking about the Boko Haram insurgence. However, I want to assure the honourable minister and the management staff of the ministry that the war is over.

"It took ethnic dimension but I want to announce that we have survived the criminal occupation of Borno State by this insurgence after seven years, seven months and seven days. I believe this time around that the war is over. We are on the part of peace and progress," he assured.

Continuing, Governor Shettima further noted: "It is on record that no corps member in Borno was killed throughout the duration of the occupation. "I'm also aware that parents were understandably apprehensive about posting their sons and daughters to serve in Borno and other parts of the North-east, but I want to assure the honourable minister that we are clearly on top of the situation. We have made all necessary arrangements to protect the lives of both visitors and indigenes of the state."

Reacting, the minister promised to do everything within the ministry's powers to reappraise the scheme, commending the governor for the efforts he had put to arrest the situation. "You are the first governor from the North of Nigeria. I know the security challenge you are facing, I want to commend the efforts, and the Federal government and your State were making to arrest the Boko Haram insurgence.

We are glad that the situation is getting better by the day. You know that government is very dynamic, we will continue to explore the situation and options. I can assure you his Excellency that we would continue to reappraise our position in line with the current security challenges. "The NYSC is specifically created to promote national integration. 38 years after, the scheme has remained the vehicle for the promotion of national integration. I served in Sokoto and that was my first time of visiting that State.

"One of the things that the vendors of violence would want to achieve is to create a situation where we can no longer see ourselves as one country. It would be a victory to them to see a situation where we can no longer post corps members freely to some parts of the country. I can assure you that we would do everything we could to ensure that they did not succeed. We are going to sit down and review the whole scheme," he noted

Via The Sun

P.S: Dear readers, can we take the word of the Governor for it? Although, the Governor was right by saying that no corps member was killed by Boko Haram militants in Borno State, does that then suggest we should gamble with the life of innocent people and say 'ok, let us post corps members to Borno and see what happens'? As a Nigerian/student, if you were posted to Borno State to work/serve would you reject it? Please, what is the way forward as it affects Borno and NYSC?

All comments should be kept on point. Scathing, uncouth or abusive comments will be deleted.

Question of the day:
Do we have NURTW in other zones of Nigeria? If so, why don't we hear about them? Why do they not play deadly motor park politics like the ones reported in the above article and we also have read uncountable times from other states in one zone alone?

Police arrest 50 over Lagos NURTW clash
By VICTOR EBIMOMI
Sunday, February 12, 2012




More Stories on This Section

More than 50 people are now cooling their heels in different cells over the bloody clash among some units of the Lagos State chapter of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) a few days ago.
The feud, which occurred [b]on Lagos Island, claimed nine lives [/b]before the intervention of the police and the Special Task Force on the Environment.

The confrontation started on Wednesday and before the dust settled down, [b]five persons lost their lives. A reprisal attack on Thursday claimed four lives. [/b]The casualty figure would have been higher but for the intervention of the police. The Lagos State Police Command spokesman, Joseph Jaiyeoba, said the divisional police in the area arrested four persons while two suspects that capitalised on the mayhem to rob were killed and two others arrested.

Those arrested, he said, were immediately transferred to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) for further interrogation. He said men of the Lagos State Task Force on the Environment however made some arrests which he could not confirm, but a source at the task force office in Alausa confirmed that on Wednesday alone, 47 arrests were made while a good number of arrests were made the following day. “Forty-seven persons were arrested on Wednesday but I have not confirmed the number of arrests the following day,” the source said.
The clash which was over supremacy, was between the Onola and Isale-Eko units.

The Onola boys were allegedly led by a unit chairman of the Oyebanji motor park known as Seego while the Isale Eko faction was reportedly led by one Omo Ashake, said to be a supporter of the former chairman of the state chapter, Alhaji Olohunwa. The state chapter has been enmeshed in crisis, particularly at the leadership level. The former chairman and treasurer, popularly called Alhaji Olu-omo, were perennially at daggers-drawn, forcing the national body to ban the duo from the union’s activities.