OLUSEGUN Obasanjo, former Nigeria’s President, has said there is nothing that can make the country collapse again.
Mr. Obasanjo stated this while reacting to insinuations in some quarters that he said the country will collapse if the incumbent president was re-elected.
The reports claimed that the former president made the comment in a speech at the Blavatnik School of Government, Oxford University, on Friday.
But the former president said aside from when he spoke on transformational leadership in Africa at Oxford University early January he had not even been to London again.
“I won’t and can’t say that (that Nigeria will collapse if Buhari is reelected).
“There will be nothing that will make Nigeria collapse. When Nigeria did not collapse under a civil war, it won’t collapse now, he said.
“My faith and conviction about Nigeria is so strong that I don’t see the country either being dismembered or collapsing.
“The worst has passed on Nigeria. Once we were able to survive the civil war, once we are able to survive (Sani) Abacha, nothing can be worst than those two. And our democracy is waxing strong. Although there are a few things we need to get right.
"As far I am concerned, the worst is over. What remains is for all of us and for our leadership to show good faith and commitment to do what is right. Then Nigeria will grow from strength to strength,” Premium Times quoted Obasanjo to have said from Azerbaijan where he is chairing a meeting of the InterAction Council of Former Heads of State and Government.
He also noted that there’s no form of misgovernance that will lead to the crumbling of the Nation.
“Don’t forget that Abacha did more than that. Of course Abacha’s regime was not a democracy, it was a military dictatorship. If we survived that, then we will survive any shenanigan against democracy. That’s the greatest advantage of democracy,” he added.
THE last victim of billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike (popularly known as Evans), has given insights on how he merited a 50% discount on his ransom
Donatus Dunu, while providing evidence before an Ikeja Special Offences Court in Lagos, said the discount was given two days before Good Friday adding that he was abducted last year.
“Evans asked for my brother’s phone number and I gave him. They called my brother Anselm Dunu that I should tell him my bill is €1 million through a conference call. They were beating me that I should say that I have agreed that I will pay €1 million and I told my brother.
“They had been calling my brother almost every day and they will be beating me so that my brother will hear my crying. So at a time I asked my brother to start looking for where to borrow money.”
“At a time they said they have been able to raise up to ₦60 million naira which I asked the chairman (Evans) to take the ₦60 million naira and when I come out I will make the remaining money for him but he said me and my brother are saying rubbish.”
“At a time they tried to change the money to euro but Evans said no because there was a time around March when naira appreciated, he asked them not to change it anymore that it’s not euro again but naira and when naira started depreciating again he asked them to change it back to euro.”
“I pleaded that euro was too hard to get and his boys advised me to ask him to give me discount and he came down from €1million to €500,000; that is about 50% discount.”
RENO Omokri, the ex-media aide of former President Goodluck Jonathan has mocked President Muhammadu Buhari over claims of his administration defeating Boko Haram terrorists.
Mr. Buhari-led federal government had claimed it had ‘technically defeated’ the terror group.
It earlier backtracked, noting the group has not been defeated completely.
“If the operating word is ‘totally’, the answer is no obviously, but has Boko Haram been degraded? I will say yes, terribly so.
“You can compare then and now, they have been terribly, terribly degraded but is the war over? No, it is not completely over.
“Compare how Boko Haram was in 2015 when this administration came, they were virtually running riot everywhere. How many time was Kano bombed, how many time was Abuja bombed, how many time was Kogi bombed; Boko Haram was everywhere,” the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, said during his appearance on Channels Tv.
However, Omokri is of the opinion that the more the government claim to defeat the terror group, the more active they are in carrying out their attacks.
The ex-presidential aide was reacting to an alleged abduction of 8 people in Oyo State allegedly staged by Boko Haram.
Omokri also asked the President Buhari if he was not ashamed that the schoolgirls of Dapchi were abducted under his watch.
“Wow! Suspected Boko Haram terrorists kidnap 8 people in Oyo. This President Buhari’s defeat of Boko Haram is very peculiar. The more he ‘defeats’ them the more active they become! Now, they are active in the Southwest allegedly? Chai Buhari, come and defeat them again!
“Were the #DapchiGirls kidnapped so you could childishly and falsely boast that you responded faster than Jonathan or were they kidnapped because you provided no security at their school? You are not even ashamed they were kidnapped under your watch!” he said in series of tweets on his twitter handle.
Omokri had faulted claims of Mr. Buhari wherein the latter claimed he acted faster on the kidnap of Dapchi girls than the previous administration when the abduction of Chibok girls took place.
BENUE State Government has expressed sadness over what it described as the failure of President Muhammadu Buhari to act in areas it least expected him to.
This is coming three days after the president visited the State. It also noted that his visit did not rekindle any hope in the people.
The Special Adviser to Governor Samuel Ortom on Media and ICT, Mr Tahaz Agerzua, stated said on Thursday during his appearance on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily.
“We appreciate the visit, but we didn’t get any hope.
“In Benue State, the President did not condole with us.
“We appreciate that he was able to take his time and come and sit down for several hours to listen to the stakeholders, but he did not sympathise with the families.
“What we expected from the President was to give us assurance that the invaders would be chased out; there are presently 170,000 displaced people in eight counts across the state, that is a huge humanitarian crisis.
“We thought that there would be some word of chasing these people so that the displaced can return to their houses,” the governor’s aide said.
He further dismissed claims that the state government had sent the herdsmen parking from the state, in retaliation for the reported killings.
Ortom’s adviser, however, maintained that the status of the grazing law remains the same while the herdsmen are advised to abide by it.
According to him, the move s to avoid cattle from further destroying farm produce that might result in more clashes between the farmers and the herders.
President Buhari had during his visit to Benue on Monday, appealed to leaders of various groups in the state to convince their constituents that the Federal Government was doing its best to end the recurring attacks by armed herdsmen in various parts of the country.
The President’s visit to Benue comes weeks after some communities in Guma and Logo Local Government Areas of the state were attacked by suspected herdsmen.
After conducting a mass burial for at least 70 persons in the wake of the killings, the state government is preparing to bury more victims of the attacks.
THE Nigerian Senate has resolved to write the Chief Justice of the Federation, Justice Walter Onnoghen, to expressed its reservations about the judgment by a Federal High Court stopping the National Assembly from overriding President Muhammadu Buhari’s veto on the amended Electoral Act.
This is sequel to a motion moved by Senator Godswill Akpabio on Thursday at the plenary.
Akpabio said the judgment amounted to “an abuse of the principle of separation of powers.”
His submission was unanimously granted, which led to the resolution of the upper legislative chamber to write the CJN.
THE House of Representatives has said it will revisit the amended electoral law, remove sections of the law that are outside the Exclusive-Legislative list, send it back to President Muhammadu Buhari and if he refuses to assent to it, they will override his veto passing the bill into law.
The chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Hon. Abdulrasak Namdas, stated this while addressing news men after Wednesday’s plenary.
However, Namdas said the sections to be removed would not include the sequence of elections.
He said after removing the sections that are outside its purview, the bill would be re-introduced in the House, passed and resent to the President for his assent.
He also noted that commencement of overriding the president’s veto should he withold his assent again has started.
This means the House will exercise its power to make a passed bill to become a law, without the assent of the president.
The House’s move, however, will only be effective if a similar decision is taken by the Senate.
The House spokesman also said the Peace Corps Bill will be among the 10 bills it intend to pass into law.
The National Assembly is empowered by Section 58(5) of the 1999 Constitution to override the president’s veto on Bills.
The House requires 240 members to make up its two-thirds, while the 109-member Senate requires 73 members to veto the president’s assent.
THE Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, has been summoned by President Muhammadu Buhari over breach of presidential order.
Mr. Idris was ordered by Mr. Buhari to relocate to Benue State with a view to check the reported cases of attacks on innocent citizens in the state.
However the president during his visit to Benue, on Monday, in an on-the-spot assessment of violence-hit areas discovered that his directed was disregarded.
He said it was just made known to him during his visit to the state that the IGP did not spend up to a day there against orders of remaining in the state until the killings were stopped.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Mr. Ibrahim on Tuesday was in the Presidential villa apparently to explain his flouting of the President’s order to remain in Benue at the height of the incidence between farmers and herdsmen.
Quoting a presidential source, it said President Buhari who is believed to have summoned the IGP received him in a private audience and the police boss left about 30 minutes after without speaking to anyone.
“It is believed that the president demanded for a full report on police operations till date after which he will make further decisions.
”There is a renewed resolve to make sure that the killings and bad security situation in Benue State abates,” it source learnt.
YAHAYA Bello, Kogi State Governor on Sunday dramatised the dissolution of his cabinet which includes commissioners and local government administrators.
Bello who arrived Lokoja, the state capital, from Abuja, was expected to dissolve his cabinet last Saturday.
However, on Sunday, while meeting at Glass House Lokoja, the governor formerly sacked his 15 Commissioners and the 21 Local Government Administrators.
He had also directed that all affected officials are to submit the keys to their official vehicles to the Secretary to State Government, Dr. (Mrs.) Folashade Arike.
Bello after a time frame of about thirty minutes, the governor reversed his action.
The Director-General, Media and Publicity to the governor, Mr. Kingsley Fanwo, confirmed this in a chat with newsmen.
“The Governor has reversed himself on the direction on dissolution.”
The governor demanded better performance and better relationship between the appointees and the masses.
A federal lawmaker has opined that women will overthrown men if they are given too much opportunity in all works of life.
This was the submission of Hon. Mohammed Kazure Gaduji who represents Kazaure/Roni/Gwiwa/Yankwashi constituencies at the House of Representatives.
Gaduji during plenary on Friday, while contributing his viewpoint to the gender equality bill opined that given how intelligent women were it was risky for them to be given ‘too much opportunity‘ as they are likely to overthrow the men folks.
“In my whole life I love women because, Mr Speaker if I go back to my home, I am here in the chamber, I left my children, my activities at home to my wife, but what I observed is women need the government or the people to give them opportunities, it’s good to give a woman opportunities but not too much,” HEADLINE heard him say in a video recording belonging to the lower legislative chamber.
He said women should not be given opportunities in terms of Politics, Entrepreneur and others because they care of the children and some domestic responsibilities.
He allayed his fear buttressing his point that since the women has captured men at home given the fact that they have about 70 percent responsibilities at home they should not be given the chance outside because they will capture everywhere.
“What I fear Mr Speaker (Dogara), is they control us at home so when we give them the opportunity outside and they control us outsite and home they will capture everything Mr. Speaker.
“Women are very very intelligent because you will see a big man controlled by wife, that is what I observed and experience in this life, because majority of the big people, if you need something from them do go direct to them go to the wife and you will easily get what you want.
“So when we give them more chance one day they will overthrown us,” he said while the chamber broke into laughter.
The 45years old lawmaker continued, “60-70 percent of my votes came from women so if women understand this thing they will vote us out.”
He also said if the trend was allowed one day the chamber will be taken over by women and they will mess up the arm of government.
Gaduji at his closing remarks called for the speedy rescue of the remaining Chibok girls kidnapped by Boko Haram terrorist in 2014 and Dapchi girls abducted last month while pledging his unalloyed support for President Muhammadu Buhari.
After speaking, the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, thanked him for his contribution.
AN All Progressive Congress, APC Senator, Abdullahi Adamu, (Nassarawa West), accused of spearheading alleged plot to oust Senate President, Bukola Saraki, has debunked the allegation.
Adamu was accused by Obinna Ogba, (Ebonyi Central), on Thursday, March 8, during plenary with what he called “evidence” of Adamu’s plot to oust Saraki.
Ogba said he has a transcript of Adamu speaking with other people about his plans.
“I rise this morning to bring to the notice of the senate that there is a plan by some people in this senate, maybe under the leadership of my distinguished colleague, particularly senator Abdullahi Adamu. Mr. President, you remember in January, distinguished senator Misau made a comment here that there was a plan to remove the Senate President and in fact the leadership.
“Now, I have reliable information that some people are already planning to destabilise the senate, including the senate leadership by organising demonstration of which money is already exchanging hands. I believe that all of us are all leaders in this in this country and everybody who see something that will destabilise the country or the senate or even the democracy should avoid it.
“As we are here, if there is any is going on, you have the opportunity to raise it and not to go outside the chambers to start planning civil resistance, market women to come for demonstration against the leadership of the senate.
“Mr. President, I want this senate to investigate this matter properly. I have evidence to show what I’m saying. There is a telephone conversation going on which any other person can also print it out, between senator Abdullahi Adamu and some other people,” Ogba said before laying hi evidence.
Ike Ekeweremadu, deputy senate president, who presided over plenary said anyone planning to destabilise the country “is not doing us good”.
“The difference between military, autocratic regime and any other oppressive regime is the parliament. Once we remove the parliament, there is going to be problem. In whatever we do, we must continue to preserve the sanctity of the parliament,” Ekeweremadu said.
But reacting, Adamu said Saraki is like a son to him denying being involved in the alleged plot to remove him.
Speaking with reporters hours after the statement of Ogba, the accused lawmaker said he found what transpired at the chamber as “amusing”.
“A colleague called me and drew my attention to what happened on the floor of the senate today. It is amusing but very sadden at the same time.
“I am not in anyway after Saraki. Saraki is like a son to me. I had the right to contest for the senate president seat three years ago when the 8th senate was inaugurated, but I never did because I wasn’t interested.
“It is therefore, not logical for anyone to say I’m interested in the seat now, and will be planning to destabilise the senate. To achieve what? For what purpose? It is not right for anyone to make such unfounded insinuations.
“We are almost three years in office, the election year is drawing nearer, and I think anyone thinking of upstaging the leadership of the senate for any reason will only be fighting a lost battle because it is not what should naturally occupy the mind of any serious-minded lawmaker.
“As for me, let me repeat that I’m not in anyway after Saraki, I can’t be after Saraki, and I won’t do anything to upstage the leadership as being claimed because it’s a fruitless venture.
“But if I believe strongly in a cause, I stand by it. If I’ve offended anyone by my strong stand on some issues in the senate in accordance with my conviction, I stand by it anytime. But the issue of trying to cause disaffection in the senate is a no issues at all.
“Whatever we do in this world, we must be ready to bear our cross, I’m ready to bear mine. Anyone who knows me will say clearly that I’m not plotting to remove Saraki. Let them look for another thing to say,” he said.
Adamu challenged those who levelled the allegations against him to provide “incontrovertible facts” to prove their claims.
Adamu is one of the senator’s who kicked against the amended election timetable for 2019.
He was later removed as chairman of the northern senators’ forum after being accused “financial mismanagement and maladministration”.
ANAMBRA State Government has debunked rumored dissolution of its executive cabinet.
This clarification is coming from the State Commissioner of Information, Tony Nnacheta, insisting that no political appointee of governor Willie Obiano was sacked as reported.
He said the internal memo dated March 2 and signed by Prof Solo Chukwulobelu, the Secretary to the State Government directing all commissioners and political appointees to prepare their handover notes and properties for submission to permanent secretaries and secretary to the state government was misinterpreted.
Nnacheta said the governor merely asked the political appointees that their handover notes be completed on or before March 16 when the tenure of the administration would end.
He added that the memo was in line with best practices and not a sack letter as purportedly reported.
“The memo was done on March 2, that is; two weeks to the end of this administration, on that day the governor’s tenure ends and every political appointee’s tenure end as well.
“From March 16, the government will be in the hands of senior civil servants until the governor is sworn in on March 17.
“The memo says; hand over your notes and the project vehicles in your possession, so all political appointees in the state have two weeks to prepare and hand over these things.
“So, Anambra State Executive Council has not been sacked, not been dissolved and has not been removed, you do not issue a man letter and tell him you are sacked in two weeks.
“Some media houses which did not deem it fit to confirm ran that story to the embarrassment of Anambra Government and the good people of the state.
“Next week another EXCO meeting would be convened and that will be the valedictory session and EXCO will eventually stand dissolved on March 16,” he said.
THE False Assets declaration trial of Senate President Bukola Saraki has been adjourned indefinitely.
This was the ruling of the Code of Conduct Tribunal, CCT, on Thursdays, March 8, as a result of a letter from the Saraki dated January 19, 2018, seeking a stay in the criminal proceedings due to two appeals pending before the Supreme Court.
The defendant is being tried on three of the 18-count charge of false assets declaration filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Danladi Umar, CCT chairman, at the resumed hearing, today, said going by sections 305 and 306 of the administration of criminal justice act, an appeal does not mean stay in proceedings “but in view of the fact that there are some issues in the appeal before the supreme court which are involved in this case, we think it is germane to consider the integrity of the apex court.”
Though the stay of proceedings was kicked against by the prosecuting counsel to the federal government, Rotimi Jacobs, Saraki’s counsel, Kanu Agabi, urged the court to adjourn.
The tribunal subsequently suspended the case indefinitely pending the decision of the supreme court.
TUNDE Bakare, the serving overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly, LRA, has said God will sweep off President Muhammadu Buhari alongside the 22 governors who attended Kano Wedding for being heartless.
Bakare said this in a new video which recently emerged online but HEADLINE could not ascertain the actual day he made the comment.
Bakare who was the running mate of Mr. Buhari in 2011 presidential election in the video which has him in the midst of his congregation criticised the president and the governors saying they were insensitive to the plight of Nigerians for attending the wedding at a time 110 Dapchi schoolgirls kidnapped by terrorists were still missing.
The schoolgirls were abducted by the Boko Haram insurgents on February 19, 2018.
The wedding was between, Idris and Fatima, the children of Governors Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State and Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State.
Idris is Ajimobi’s son while Fatima is Ganduje’s daughter.
In 2014, Boko Haram terrorists abducted over 200 Chibok school girls from their school while the general election was billed for 2015. In 2018 the same fate befell the Dapchi school girl and Bakare is asking, “Is it an accident or is it a mere coincidence?
“That exactly about one year to another election, 110 girls were abducted again?
“And as if they were not citizens’ daughters, in the season we are still looking for them, a governor’s daughter and son got married and 22 governors and the President went there.
‘Are they sensitive at all?
“And it is front page of newspapers. That it doesn’t matter what happens to other people’s daughters.
“You can spend that moment to conduct your own children’s wedding and you all left your states to go there to appear front page of newspapers, something is wrong.
“And when judgement will begin, God will sweep them all off (loud shout of Amen).
DEPUTY Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, has said that all his colleagues at the 8th will be re-elected and returned to the legislative chamber in the coming general election.
Ekweremadu stated this on Wednesday at the Senate plenary while contributing to a debate on a motion sponsored by Ahmed Ogembe, senator representing Kogi central.
Ogembe had alleged that Yahaya Bello, governor of Kogi, sponsored thugs to disrupt an empowerment programme he organised for his constituents.
Making his contribution, the deputy Senate President warned the governor to desist from further wasting the state’s money on attacking lawmakers from the state.
He described as a wasteful venture the governor’s effort in recalling Senator Dino Melaye (Kogi West) warning that the attack on Ogembe will soon go the same way as that of Melaye.
He said the road the governor is travelling on will not lead him anywhere as lawmakers in the chamber will all be return in the next Senate.
“You will recall that sometime last year when they wanted to recall Dino I advised the governor that they are wasting the resources of that state, that it is mission impossible.
“They took three pages in the newspaper abusing me. Are we still hearing the recall today? Money has been wasted. Money that has been used to pay salaries of people in Kogi state was used to mobilise people to recall senator Dino yet those people have not been paid and Dino is still here.
“So today I am advising the governor again, that road he is travelling will not lead him to anywhere. Ultimately, these people he is seeing here will be back here and he will leave office.
“If he doesn’t stop, there is no how he will come back in 2019, never, no he will not. God will show him that he is a God of justice and this is a message to all those people who have caused all kinds of problem in Nigeria at different level. The problem in Nigeria is that our democracy is receding. Who says army cannot take over, let us not joke with our democracy that is the issue.
“The house of a senator was destroyed in Kaduna state, we are talking about Kwankwaso who was stopped from going to his state where he ruled for eight years. In Kaduna, Shehu Sani cannot organise a meeting and we are about a democracy? The international community needs to know this because they helped us install democracy,” Ekweremadu said.
Making his contribution the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, said the harassment of federal lawmakers must stop as Nigeria’s democracy ought to be a good example to other countries.
“This is not what democracy is all about. For the role we play in the comity of nations we need to be good examples to other parts of the world.
“These kind of actions are unacceptable, it starts with one state – many of us have been privileged to be governors and we are almost 20 years in democracy, this is not the democracy that we should be talking about. We saw the case in Kaduna state, how a governor would go and bulldoze a house, in Nigeria? At this time and we are all still keeping quiet. These are things we must condemn totally,” Saraki said.
Afterwards, the senate set up an ad hoc committee to investigate the incident.
SENATOR Dino Melaye (Kogi West) has said the government of President Muhammadu Buhari has in three years borrowed more than previous governments of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, without any clearly defined or identified programme to point at.
The lawmaker was reacting to the refusal by the president to assent to a bill seeking the establishment of Peace Corps of Nigeria.
Mr. Buhari had rebuffed to append his assent to the bill citing unavailability of resources as his reason for his refusal as funding the organisation will be a financial burden on the federal government.
But Melaye, adopting a point of order on Wednesday during plenary at the Senate and relying on it rules, persuaded the upper legislative chamber to revisit the bill with a view to veto the President if he fails to rescind his rejection of the bill.
“The same thing happened when the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps was to be established; there was also the same complaint that there was no money and all of that.
“But today, we can see the advantages of the civil defence and how they have helped in safeguarding government infrastructure.
“About $5.5bn was borrowed from euro bond; what part of it will the youths of this country benefit from?
“About $1bn is to be spent on security and how does this affect the youth of this country. “Without fear or favour, the Peoples Democratic Party, in 16 years, borrowed N6tn and this government in three years, has borrowed N11tn but there is no specific programme that will empower the youth.
“Also, N500bn was earmarked for the social investment programme of the Federal Government, but we have not seen any impact.
“If the Peace Corps is given an opportunity to exist, thousands will be employed and this will help to fight unemployment in this country.
“We may need to write Mr. President to review his position; if not, we have the power on behalf of the Nigerian youths who voted us to veto him so that people will become the ultimate beneficiaries of this bill.
“The youth of this country must be given priority and they must be respected,” he said.
Thereafter, the Senate urged the President to review his position in withholding assent on the bill.
SamoaJoe: Common will you zuzupu here. Odika ina apu ara? Isi ona emebi gi? Nna ekwekwana ka moto gbuchie gi uzo today.
Unu na apito ihea unu na apito ebea, ichalum na uzo. Maka ikpasuem iwe dis morning, ewelum okpo kulie gi onu. Otoro Mgbagbu agbabukwana gi.... You baga. Makana obi adirom mma dis morning.
Ewu Taraba.
Oga behave matured, stop showcasing how stupid you are in public.
PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has stated why Boko Haram terrorists abducted the 110 Dapchi School Girls from their school.
He also revealed the reason behind the terrorist attack at Rann which saw the death of international aid workers in Rann, Borno State on March 1.
The president said the attacks were being carried out by the terrorist to give the notion that it was still around and not decimated as claimed by the government.
He stated this at the National Defence College, Abuja, while declaring open the eighth edition of the National Security Seminar 2018 organised by the Alumni Association of NDC in collaboration with the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and the NDC, on Tuesday.
“The persistent attacks of the terrorists on soft targets such as schoolgirls and the incident at Rann were carried out to create the impression that the terrorists are still very much around,” Mr. Buhari who was represented by the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo said.
“Boko Haram as we all know rejects authority and strives to take over territory, establishing a caliphate in line with ISIS’ objectives. Between 2012 and 2015, they seemed to be well on their way to achieving their objectives by annexing some territories in Nigeria and contesting territory with it.
“As of March 2015, Boko Haram controlled about 20,000 square kilometres of Nigeria, that is about the size of Belgium, from the eastern border of Cameroun to parts of Lake Chad.
“In Borno, 20 out of 27 local governments were under Boko Haram control, including Mubi in Adamawa and some villages.
“In addition to this, their footprint was registered in Abuja, Kaduna and Kano with the bombings of the UN building and Police HQ in Abuja . That was the state of affairs as of early 2015.
“Today, Boko Haram does not occupy any local government area in Nigeria. And they no longer have the capacity to hold a territory and challenge the sovereignty of the state.
“Gone are the days when they operated outside the precincts of the northeast, leaving behind carnage and bloodshed. They are now operating as desperate criminal gangs, mostly as relics or groups taking over some communities, using children as suicide bombers, kidnapping innocent girls and children,” he added.
The president also promised that his administration would never allow such incidents to happen again.
“The administration would strengthen the intelligence gathering capabilities of the Armed Forces, adopt cutting edge technology to fight the insurgents and develop counter narratives that would make recruitment of young men and women into the Boko Haram group impossible.”
He also contended that since the kidnapping of the girls, the nation’s armed forces had been fully mobilised to Borno and Yobe States to ensure the security and safety of their residents, as well as schools in that part of the country.
He also stated that besides the Safe School Initiative, the government would rebuild and secure communities destroyed by the insurgents, adding that all material conditions that make people take up arms against the state would be addressed.
He also stated that besides the Safe School Initiative, the government would rebuild and secure communities destroyed by the insurgents, adding that all material conditions that make people take up arms against the state would be addressed.
PLATEAU State governor, Simon Lalong, has dissolved the State Executive Cabinet.
This action has all the commissioners in the state relieved of their portfolios.
Lalong’s resolution was contained in a statement issued in the early hours of Thursday and signed by the Director of Press and Public Affairs in Government Affairs, Samuel Nanle.
“The Executive Governor of Plateau State, Rt. Hon. Simon Bako Lalong has dissolved the State Executive Cabinet with effect from the 8th of February 2018.
“The Governor expresses his sincere appreciation to the Honourable Commissioners for their selfless service and immense contributions in delivering to the people of Plateau State, the dividends of democracy and in engendering hope in the All Progress Congress-led administration in the State.
“The Executive Governor while wishing the Commissioners the best in their future endeavours assures them that as stakeholders in the Plateau Project, their wealth of experience would continuously be relied upon in building the Plateau of our dream. He, therefore, calls on them not to relent in availing their services when called upon in the future to serve the State.
The Honourable Commissioners are to hand over to Permanent Secretaries in their respective Ministries,” the statement read.
FORMER President, Olusegun Obasanjo, has reaffirmed his earlier stand that he has left the scene of partisan politics in the country.
Mr. Obasanjo confirmed his earlier stance when he played host to a youth group from Delta State, led by a governorship aspirant, Frank Ufuoma Esanubi, at his Presidential Library, Abeokuta on Wednesday.
He had last month in an open letter advised President Muhammadu Buhari not to seek a second term in office.
Citing underperformance as his major reason for his highly critical epistle, he noted that it was not meant to disrespect the office of the president or embarrass him, but to articulate his views about the situations in the country and offer his candid advice.
Obasanjo recently launched what he called a socio-political movement, Coalition For Nigeria, emphasizing that he would cease to be a member of the organization the moment it becomes partisan.
The move by the former Nigerian leader has been described in some quarters as another attempt to foist on Nigerians his preferred candidate.
But speaking during the courtesy visit, the former president noted that he does not have a preferred candidate for the coming general election.
“In the year 2015, I said I would no longer participate in partisan politics. And I still stand by my decision.
“I have no candidate, whatsoever, for any political office. I just believe that things must be done differently in Nigeria to get different result,” he said.
He, however, warned Nigerians against repeating “the past mistakes,” adding that the process and system that would produce quality leaders in the country must be right and inclusive.
Earlier, Esanubi said his group’s visit to Obasanjo was to pay homage and intimate him on their resolve to heed his clarion call for Nigerians to come together under the CNM, for a better Nigeria. Esanubi said professionals have left politics in the hands of less qualified persons under the guise that politics is a dirty game.
Politics › Nothing Can Make Nigeria Collapse Again – Obasanjo by sharpden(op): 6:03pm On Mar 18, 2018
