₦airaland Forum

Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, was, on Tuesday, brought back to Nigeria to continue facing his treasonable felony trial which he fled from almost six years ago.

“Recent steps taken by the Federal Government saw to the interception of the fugitive Kanu on Sunday,” the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, announced triumphantly on Tuesday.

Mr Malami said, evasively, at a press conference that Mr Kanu “has been arrested through the collaborative efforts of Nigerian intelligence and security services.”

He did not take questions from reporters yearning to throw more light on the development for Nigerians.

The news hit many Nigerians like a thunderbolt on Tuesday, especially as Mr Kanu’s recent history on Twitter shows he has relentlessly tweeted every day up till Monday, except last Thursday and Friday.

Fraught with vague remarks on important issues on how Mr Kanu was brought back to Nigeria, Mr Malami’s announcement has raised some questions begging for answers.


Many have also raised concerns about the legitimacy of the procedure adopted in bringing the IPOB leader back to Nigeria due to too little official information on the matter.

At the end of Mr Malami’s press conference, which was immediately followed by a court appearance put together to obtain an order for Mr Kanu’s detention in the custody of the State Security Service (SSS), what was clear was that the IPOB leader was back in the country after almost six years abroad.

Where, when, and how he was brought to Nigeria remain a matter of speculation.


Below are some of the questions many Nigerians have raised just a few hours after Mr Malami announced Mr Kanu’s return to the country on Tuesday.

Where was Mr Kanu “arrested”?

One of the major gaps in Mr Malami’s remarks was the the exact location where Mr Kanu was arrested.

For a highly prized suspect like Mr Kanu who has been repeatedly accused by the government of threatening the country’s corporate existence and instigating violence that has led to the wanton loss of lives and destruction of property, both public and private, the omission of his place of arrest in the AGF’s remark on Tuesday could not have been an oversight.

TEXEM

Mr Kanu, who has dual citizenship (British and Nigerian), is known to have escaped to Israel and later to the United Kingdom after disappearing from public space following the September 2017 invasion of his home in Afara-Ukwu, near Umuahia, Abia State, by soldiers.

The IPOB leader is believed to have been residing in the U.K., although the possibility of him travelling to other countries in the past five years cannot be ruled out.

No word has come from the British government, which has rebuffed the push by the Nigerian government to recognise IPOB as a terrorist organisation. They have not confirmed that Mr Kanu was arrested in the U.K.

Where the IPOB leader was arrested remains a matter of speculation as different places have been mentioned in media reports. Nigerians want Mr Malami to shed light on it.

When was Mr Kanu arrested?
Apart from the exact location of Mr Kanu’s arrest, the date of his arrest stated by Mr Malami has also raised questions.


Mr Malami said on Tuesday that Mr Kanu was ‘intercepted’ on Sunday, June 27, 2021.

But Mr Kanu, an avid user of social media, tweeted via his handle that has for long been identified with him, on that same day.

He tweeted, not just that day, but also on the day before (June 26) and a day after (June 29).

Was he allowed to tweet from custody or somebody else was tweeting for him? If it is taken that his tweet on Sunday was before he was arrested, what about his Monday tweet?

His Monday’s tweet was not just bereft of any hint of someone in a custodial condition, it fitted into the pattern of his regular hate campaigns against Nigeria and glorification of his dream “Biafraland”.

Mr Malami said the IPOB leader was intercepted on Sunday without stating the location or when he was brought to Nigeria.

How was Mr Kanu arrested or ‘intercepted’?
Another question begging for Mr Malami’s answer is about how Mr Kanu was arrested.

The minister said Mr Kanu “has been rearrested through the collaborative efforts of Nigerian intelligence and security services”, adding in another paragraph that “Recent steps taken by the Federal Government saw to the interception of the fugitive Kanu on Sunday the 27th day of June 2021”.

The “recent steps” referred to by Mr Malami remain unclear to Nigerians, leaving many to speculate that the IPOB leader was “abducted” or arrested through some illegitimate methods.


Was it a due extradition process and in which country? Conflicting dispositions of Nigeria and the U.K governments towards IPOB, separatist activities in the Igbo-dominated South-east region and Mr Kanu, are well known.

The U.K. reportedly played a crucial role in helping Mr Kanu return to the U.K. after he fled Nigeria in 2017.


As recent as April 2021, the Nigerian government through the information minister, Lai Mohammed, described as “disrespectful” to Nigeria the reported plan by the U.K government to grant asylum to “secessionists being persecuted in the South-east.”

Trial
While the questions mount, Binta Nyako, a judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, on Tuesday ordered Mr Kanu remanded in the custody of the State Security Service (SSS).

It was his first court appearance after he escaped from the country in 2017.

He is being prosecuted by the AGF’s office on charges of treasonable felony, among others, bordering on his group’s secessionist campaigns for the actualisation of the Republic of Biafra which will comprise the states in the South-east region and other neighbouring states.

The judge had earlier in March 2019 revoked the bail earlier granted the IPOB leader.

She also separated his trial from that of his co-defendants.

On Tuesday, she adjourned Mr Kanu’s trial till July 26.

I am sure there is no breathing being around the world who does not know that Nigeria is at the brink of collapse and disintegration. Every nook and cranny of our nation is bedevilled by deafening demurrer from Nigerians who are tired of Nigeria. There are groups in the Northern axis that want out. There is a legion of them in the South. Even on soils far away across the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and away from Lagos and Abuja are huge assemblages of disenchanted Nigerians demanding outs from the contraption.

Fat-cat elites in Nigeria may be denying the possibility of a balkanised nation. Many of them think it is a joke, and they believe its present attending applause and ovation will soon run into a nosediving diminuendo. Tell those fat cats that what’s going on around now is more than the buccal rattling of jobless rabble-rousers. It is getting clearer by the day that Nigeria may be broken into parts that may never be gathered together again. Why are people chanting this song of balkanisation? They are tired of an asphyxiating system that will not allow them to achieve their life dreams. Before our eyes, destinies of our children are destroyed. And there are wicked men behind the lingering debacle. These wicked men are living large with more than enough for their children’s children. Nigeria’s extant dilemma is not just about kidnappings and killings that have become a lifestyle we are forced to endure. Nigeria has become a burden to Nigerians, and that is why groups are springing up desiring to leave the contraption and embrace their own Republics. No matter how anyone spins it, the government is not only labile and lame, it is also confused about how to tackle what’s pulling Nigeria apart. In some instances, the government is making it worse, exacerbating division and disunity with its action and inaction. There is just something about Nigeria that’s not working; and that may never work.

Anytime a nation is dealing with problems that will not go away, wise leaders should check out its foundation. It is only wise that the problems be dealt with from its foundation. Otherwise, we will only be dealing with the symptoms, not the disease entity itself. If the beginning and foundation of a nation are not revisited and overhauled, forever, that country will engage in witless shadow-boxing that will be rewarded with a crown of thorns. Let’s examine our history. Nigeria was conceived as a sick baby from the British fashioning womb. Our union was profoundly fraudulent. Its mortars and bricks were fashioned in deception. The Nigerian union was not built to last. It was a convenient business enterprise conjured by the British to wet their coffers. Nigeria is like one big square-peg ethnic groups rammed into a big, smothering round-hole geographical expression. A slice in the nation’s anthem infers that Nigeria is “one nation bound in freedom, peace, and unity”. Nigeria is too far from the dreamland of freedom, peace, and unity. How long can we hold on to a bond that appears like a mirage without talking about how to make it real and workable for all? A coerced relationship cannot run the long-haul course. The fundamental of our union is coerced. The spillover effects lurk in today’s widespread palpable tension. History is always a reminder of that which is the truth. The sooner we faced the truth, the better it will be to curtail injuries we continue to inflict on ourselves and on our destinies as different peoples.

It is very obvious that Nigerians are tired of one another. The Arewa in the North are already marketing the Republic of Arewa. Biafra in the East is marketing The Republic of Biafra. Oduduwa in the South-West is marketing Republic of Oodua. If everybody has resolved to leave, is that not enough an indication that there is something wrong with this relationship? What are we waiting for? What can anyone point to that indicates sincere love and enthusiasm to remain one? Before the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), came on board, there was ethnic division in Nigeria. But Mr. President has made ethnic co-existence and collaboration worse under his watch. He loaded up vital organs of government with his own people, and he is unrepentant about it. He said in his recent interview with ARISE TV that he doesn’t need to balance his appointments to powerful positions. He said he is about the longevity of service. I wish that was the same ‘fair’ rule for admission to Unity schools across Nigeria. Are admissions not balanced to favour one bloc of the nation? I wish that was the same approach in many of Nigeria’s government offices where merit is heave-hoed out of the window. We now know that in Mr. President’s dictionary, more qualified people for plum jobs in Nigeria are Northerners. When you have a blatantly displayed presidential double-standard such as this, you know Nigeria is in trouble. These are all evidence that we are far apart as a people.

I’ve always been a determined advocate of restructuring as a panacea for lasting peaceful coexistence among ethnic groups in Nigeria. But lately, I observed that the enthusiasm to keep going as one nation has evanesced from the hearts and minds of Nigerians. The honeymoon seems over. We all know it. Now, shouldn’t we take advantage of this mutual feeling; sit down, and peacefully slice off the pie and go about our businesses? Some may call this assertion ‘ignorant’. It is not. It is wise. It is smart. It is rooted in evidential truth that stares Nigerians in the face every day they wake up and go to bed. We will be better off apart than together. North, South, East, and West, we will all be alright independently. Those who think one region will suffer in the aftermath of a break-up don’t know what God has deposited all over the Nigerian soil. Too many precious stones and landmass for agriculture in the North. Too many precious stones under the ground and sufficient landmass too for agriculture in the South-West. The South-East and South-South have more than enough to remain buoyant. Everywhere in Nigeria is blessed.

Ethnic suspicion and hate will never end in Nigeria. The country can be broken down into autonomous nations and still benefit from one another as separate entities. We will forever be neighbours. We will still be friends. Obviously, staying together seems to be irritating everybody except for the elites who feed off of being together. I don’t know why we can’t just call for a referendum and end this endless bickering. We don’t have to shed a pint of blood. We don’t have to fire a shot! We don’t have to go to war. Narrow may be that road that takes every group peacefully to its tent, but war must not be the choice. Dividing Nigeria is better for all than all-consuming belligerence that may wipe the country off the map like Amalek.

Hashabiah:
Igbo Muslims are suppose to be nonexistent in Nigeria. So how did this come about or have they started loving money more than their conscience?

‘Igbo Muslims Making Life Difficult For Themselves’


By
Khadijat Lawal
Thu May 20 2021

Ibrahim Adike, an Igbo Muslim in Awka, the Anambra state capital, says the lack of love between Igbo Muslims is making life difficult for them.

Adike made the statement while commenting on the lack of harmony among Muslims in the Eastern part of Nigeria.

Islam is a religion, Igbo an ethnic group, says Sheik on persecution of Muslims

“Igbo Muslims make life difficult for themselves. They think that joining Islam will make you rich. Many of us are not educated, so they cannot get into places. If you are educated, and you are seeking for an appointment, they will give it to you.”

Adike added that the lack of unity amongst the Igbo Muslims is also a contributing factor to the challenges they are facing.

“Since we are not together, we will have challenges. It’s because we do not show love to each other, that we have problems moving together as a group.”

President Recep Erdogan of Turkey has told the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), that he expects Nigeria to show solidarity with Palestinians following the latest attacks by Israel on Jerusalem and Gaza.

Erdogan made the call when he spoke with Buhari on the telephone on Thursday evening.

The Turkish Presidency disclosed this in a message posted on its Twitter handle, @trpresidency.

The Turkish President told Buhari that his country was trying to get the international community to teach Isreal, which he described as “unlawful, unjust and unscrupulous” a lesson.

He expressed the belief that Nigeria will support Palestinians in “this rightful cause.”

The message read, “President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by phone with President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria.

“Exchanging Eid al-Fitr greetings, the two leaders discussed bilateral relations and regional developments.

“Drawing attention to Turkey’s efforts exerted in order for the international community to teach the necessary lesson to unlawful, unjust and unscrupulous Israel due to its attacks against Palestine, President Erdogan voiced his belief that Nigeria would show solidarity with the Palestinians in this rightful cause.”

Apart from Buhari, reports say Erdogan had also spoken with some other world leaders on the matter.

He was said to have spoken with Kyrgyz President, Sadyr Japarov; his Afghan counterpart, Ashraf Ghani; Iraqi Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kadhimi, a former Malaysian Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad; and Libya’s Prime Minister, Abdul Dbeibeh.

According to media reports, Israel’s ongoing offensive on Gaza has left 103 dead, including 27 children and 11 women.

The reports quoted the Palestinian Health Ministry.

Another 580 people were said to have been injured.

Folarxn:
Even when civil servants like myself, who are currently in service are telling you and have repeatedly mentioned it on this same thread, that age is inconsequential in the civil service when determining who's senior and who isn't.

Anyway, continue… I guess you love basking in blissful ignorance.

Unityp:
Two staff in one of the Federal Ministries got employment letter the same time,with the same grade level and step,both of them did documentation/assumption of duty the same day.One did in the morning while the other did his in the afternoon but the time was not recorded.
Now the question is how do you determine seniority between this two on the nominal roll?Pls admin gurus in the civil service should help out here because this is exactly what a friend is passing through in her place of work.

The Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Eboka Friday has confirmed an attack on some police stations and checkpoints in Rivers State during which seven policemen were feared dead Friday night.

Speaking to the press on the matter, the CP said he was leading an investigation team to ascertain what actually happened.

The Rivers State Police boss on Saturday morning said he was leading a team to the place.


“Yes, that is what we heard. I am on my way to the place. I want to confirm it myself,” CP Friday.

Gunmen were on Friday night reported having attacked security checkpoints and police stations in Rivers State, with no fewer than seven security operatives allegedly killed.

A source told Tribune Online that the hoodlums attacked a police station along the Rumuji axis of the East-West Road in Emohua Local Government Area of Rivers State.

The Rumuji police station was also burnt and two policemen feared killed, while some vehicles were burnt.

The source added that the gun all also attacked a police checkpoint at Ogbakiri junction in the same Emuoha LGA with two policemen feared killed and a vehicle burnt.

A checkpoint of the security outfit called C-4-i along the East-West Road was also attacked, with three operatives were feared killed there.

A spokesman for the State Police Command, Nnamdi Omoni, also confirmed the attack to newsmen saying he would make details available after visiting the areas attacked.

The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB has clarified that the murdered Commander of its security outfit, Eastern Security Network, ESN was killed while he was sleeping in his father’s compound.

This was contrary to the previous report by the Nigerian army that the commander was killed during a gun battle.

Recall that Nigerian security forces carried out a joint operation in Imo State on Saturday, April 24 which led to the death of the ESN Commander, Ikoson and several others.



In a statement on Tuesday by its spokesman, Emma Powerful, IPOB alleged that the Nigerian security forces eliminated the commander over his decision to eradicate herdsmen from the Southeast.

“The bitter truth the Nigerian Government didn’t want people to hear, which IPOB disclosed at the said interview, was that Ikonso was murdered in his father’s house, not in any imaginary ESN camp or battlefield as the liars would hope to have us believe.

“The same Army, Police and DSS in Imo State that never for one day arrested or prosecuted any Fulani terror herdsman ravaging Imo State before the coming of Ikonso; the same Nigerian security agents that have always provided cover for terrorists and bandits, had the guts to ambush and kill the only man that drove Fulani terrorist herdsmen out of Imo State.

The group which accused the Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma of plotting the death of the commander, had in a statement, vowed to launch a reprisal attack.

A fresh attack has been carried out by gunmen on a security formation in Rivers State and five soldiers have been reported killed.

The gunmen on Monday morning attacked the camp at Abua, in Abua/Odual Local Government Area, killing the officers.

Although the six Division of the Nigerian Army in Port Harcourt is yet to release an official statement, two top security personnel in Rivers State confirmed the attack and killings to Channels Television.

Meanwhile, all heads of security agencies in Rivers State are currently at a meeting at the headquarters of the Rivers State Police Command, ostensibly to re-strategise ahead of the new scale of insecurity in the state.

This attack comes barely 24 hours after gunmen killed some police and customs officers at their patrol base in Isiokpo, the Headquarters of Ikwerre Local Government, which is along the Port Harcourt-Owerri road.

While the Police are yet to reveal the casualty figure for Saturday night’s attack in Isiokpo, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) had said three of its personnel were killed by the gunmen.

The spokesperson for Zone C, Custom’s Federal Operations Unit, Mr Jerry Atta, told Channels Television on Sunday that the gunmen also went away with an AK-47 rifle and two Toyota Hilux vans belonging to the service.

He said a thorough investigation would be carried out to unravel the circumstances that led to the attack and to unravel the motive of the assailants.

Atta blamed the killing of the security operatives on armed smugglers whose businesses have been frustrated by the customs in recent times.

DubaiLandLord:
You're wrong. Majority of the students there are igbo muslims.

for me now I don’t even live in the Government House. I have parked out, even though I still have two more years, I am tired so I had to leave.

Rivers Governor Nyesom Wike has said he is prepared to face political persecution after he hands over in 2023.
He said he is too sure political forces will come after him because of his strong views on issues.

Wike said he is more than prepared for such travails, stating he has moved out of the Government House two years before his tenure ends as part of his preparation.
He spoke at the weekend in Abuja during the dedication of Uche Nwosu’s son, grandson of former Imo Governor Senator Rocha Okorocha.

He described the current travails of Okorocha and his family as political persecution, counseling him to be strong because he will come out of it stronger.

Okorocha has been having a running battle with his successor, Governor Hope Uzodinma, resulting in the seizure of properties belonging to his family members as well as facing probe by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

He was recently detained by the anti-graft agency for 48 hours before he was granted bail.
Wike said: “Political prosecution will come especially after you have left office so what you’re going through today is not peculiar with you and your family. I know they will come after me but am prepared, I am ready for them.

“You should be strong and put your trust in God. I don’t stay close to people in power, particularly this kind of power, you see in life, I was looking around to see Governors, I know if Uche Nwosu is a sitting governor, you will see a lot of governors here.

“If Rochas was Governor you would have seen a lot of governors here, life is like that, for me now I don’t even live in the Government House. I have parked out, even though I still have two more years, I am tired so I had to leave.
“Particularly again when you have a system that is not doing well, the truth must be told. Many people don’t like the truth that is why they don’t like me.
“You said this is APC hall, I came here I didn’t see any APC member, today I’ve converted it to Christian hall. The way I do my thing, nobody can stop me or tell me who can be my friend. Nobody in this country can tell where to go, nobody.”

He added: “I am happy he is no longer in power that is why I am coming close to him now to learn the experience of those who are no longer in power, so that by the time it gets to me I will be used to it.
“Owelle is facing a lot of crisis, it is not easy to pass through these crises but it will come but it will be over.

“I want to encourage you and your son-in-law to be strong. If it doesn’t happen like this you won’t know that God loves you. You will go through these battles for you to know that there is God. We have passed through these battles and we are still waiting to pass through them again.

“Just like Rochas, God has given everyone his talent, when I watch your son-in-law from far, I say you have a good son-in-law that is not arrogant, not a son-in-law that does not understand what marriage is all about, I wouldn’t have come. I will be in Imo State soon and I will tell them my mind. You should thank God”.

edo3:
I wonder how one man made himself demi-god...pull out his security details,,he is just a nobody..

Enskynelson:
On masturbation...
The lady felt disgusted at that habit of Mustapha. So, I can say, it wasn't really portrayed as a good thing in the movie.