Nigeria
Katsina spends N4.2 billion on war against bandits, kidnappers – official
The Katsina State Government has said it has expended the sum of over N4.2 billion on infrastructure, logistics and security personnel allowances to tackle the wave of banditry and kidnapping bedevilling the state from June 2015 to August 2020. The Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Dr. Mustapha Inuwa, disclosed this to journalists on Monday while unveiling the state government’s scorecard under his office. He said: “By way of summary, the state government’s financial support on security through the office of the Secretary to the Government of the state in terms of infrastructure, logistics and security personnel allowances from June 2015 to August, 2020 is as follows: “January to December 2015 (N691,985,088.00); January to December 2016 (N827,449, 214.30); January to December 2017 (...
Cleric cautions Nigerians on dangers of unforgiveness
A Catholic cleric, Rev. Fr. Kingsley Ferdinand, has advised Nigerians to cultivate the spirit of forgiveness as it is the only way to make heaven. Ferdinand, the Associate Priest at St. Peter and Paul Catholic Church, Nyanya, Abuja, gave the advice during the Holy Mass on Sunday. According to him, one of the greatest tragedies of a life is to miss heaven not because the person stole, killed or told lies but because he or she refused to forgive another. “The dangers of unforgiveness are: it makes a soul a candidate of hell, it attracts torments upon a life (spiritual, medical and physical torments) and waters down the voice of prayer (mark 11:25),’’ Ferdinand said. He said that forgiveness was better than vengeance because it led to healing of the body and soul while vengeance led to anger ...
Nigeria will witness massive progress if it learns from past mistakes – cleric
Rev Christopher Edeh, the Archbishop of Enugu Diocese, Methodist Church, Nigeria, says Nigeria will witness better progress, growth and patriotism by learning from past mistakes. Edeh said this in a Sunday sermon during the 20th Anniversary of the Central Methodist Church, Enugu. The clergy said that the major problem of present-day Nigeria was lack of basic knowledge of the evolution of the country as well as its various stages of nationhood by young Nigerians. He said it was sad that most secondary schools in the country do not teach history as a subject and called for the reinstatement of history in all secondary schools. Edeh said that there would be less mistakes in the country when Nigerians remember their past. “If we remember our mistakes and the pains of the past, we can then say ...
MURIC urges Nigerian government to deploy security task force in Southern Kaduna
The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), an NGO, has called for the deployment of joint security task force to stop the incessant killings in Southern Kaduna. The Director of the group, Prof. Ishaq Akintola, gave the advice on Monday in a statement. Akintola said, the measures will go along way in curtailing the ethno-religious killings and other forms of criminality been perpetuated in the area. The group however condemned the recent killings of some youths in Zangon Kataf, which according to him violated the peace agreement initiated by the Agwa Atyap, Sir Dominic Yahaya between the Atyap and Hausa/Fulani. “MURIC strongly condemns these killings and attacks on law-abiding Muslims. We call for stronger presence of security agents. ”It is high time soldiers are drafted to Southern Kaduna to enfo...
Edo election: PDP, Comrade Oshiomhole bicker over ‘intimidation’ of voters
File Photo The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo and a former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, are in a war of words over alleged planned intimidation of Edo’s voters with soldiers and stockpiling of arms. Edo PDP, through its Publicity Secretary, Chris Nehikhare, at a news conference in Benin, accused Oshiomhole, an ex-governor, of using soldiers to intimidate voters in Benin City and Auchi. It also accused Oshiomhole of stockpiling arms in his house at Iyamho hometown in Etsako West Local Government Area for the election next Saturday. It asked security agents to search the Iyamho house of the former governor while urging the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, and President Muhammadu Buhari, to call Oshiomhole to order. The...
Former Zamfara governor’s ally arrested over ‘secret meeting’ with bandits
Operatives of the Zamfara State Police Command have arrested Abu Dan-Tabawa, an ally of former Governor of the state, Abdulaziz Yari, after allegedly holding a secret meeting with bandits in Gusau, the state capital. The development was confirmed by the spokesman of the Zamfara State Police Command, Mohammed Shehu, in a statement on Sunday. Shehu said Dan-Tabawa was arrested along with 17 other suspects. He said: “The arrest was an intelligent driven and proactive action by the state police command to prevent a possible breach of public peace and ensure that the state continues to enjoy the relative peace that is been enjoying in the recent time. “The arrest was carried out in the overall interest of public peace, public security and public safety. “The Command wishes to warn all citizens ...
PDP: Edo people will resist attempt to tamper with scheduled date of election
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), on Sunday said that the people of Edo state would resist any attempt by anybody to tamper with the state governorship election schedule for Sept. 19. PDP National Publicity Secretary, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan, at a news conference on Sunday in Abuja alleged that there were plots by certain interests to use frivolous lawsuits to scuttle the scheduled date. “The PDP revealed that the said interests masquerading through certain political groups were seeking to blackmail the judiciary and stampede the court to violate the clear provisions of the Electoral Act and illegally halt the Edo election. “Nigerians are already aware that section 87(10) (11) of the Electoral Act, clearly prohibits the courts from restraining the conduct of party primaries and general elec...
JOHESU declares nationwide strike
The Joint Health Workers Union, JOHESU, has asked its members to withdraw their services and embark on a nationwide strike starting from midnight on Sunday, September 13, 2020. This decision was reached at the National Executive Council (NEC) of the union’s meeting on Saturday. The Union in a statement on Sunday said, it gave the Federal Government one week to address all lingering issues and nothing concrete had been achieved. The health workers are asking the Federal Government to address the failures and decaying infrastructure in the health sector and pay the shortfall in COVID-19 hazard allowances for their members. The Union is also seeking the adjustment of the Consolidated Health Salary Structure, implementation of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria consent judgment and other...
Lagos Police command deploys 1,000 officers for Edo election
The Lagos State Police Command has deployed 1,000 officers to complement other security personnel drafted for the Edo governorship election scheduled for Sept. 19. This is contained in a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday by the Command’s Police Public Relations Officer, SP qqq. Adejobi said that the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, Hakeem Odumosu, admonished officers from the Command to be of good conduct and exhibit professionalism in discharging their duties during the election. “He further reiterated the commitment of the IGP to sustain the core values of democracy in Nigeria via fair, free and credible elections,” the police spokesman said. Odumosu said that adequate incentives and welfare packages as approved by the IGP had been provided to encourage and boost the morale of the ...
President Buhari prevented Nigeria from becoming a failed state – minister
The Federal Government has said if not for President Muhammadu Buhari, Nigeria would have become a failed state in 2015. The government’s response may not be unconnected to ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo’s recent statement that the country was fast drifting to a failed and badly divided state. Obasanjo gave the damning verdict last week at a closed door two-day consultative dialogue convened by him which involved major socio-cultural political organisations such as Afenifere, Northern Elders’ Forum, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the Middle Belt Forum and Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF). The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in a statement by the Special Assistant to the President (Media), Office of the Minister of Information and Culture, Segun Adeyemi, said Buhari’s assumption o...
NCDC reports 160 new virus infections, two deaths
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has reported 160 new infections of COVID-19 in the country, bringing the nation’s confirmed cases to 56,177. The NCDC made this known on its official twitter handle on Saturday. Newsmen report that the 160 new infections were down slightly from 188 recorded on Friday in the country. The agency said that in the last 24 hours, two people died from the virus, bringing the death toll nationwide to 1,078. The NCDC stated that the number of recovered patients increased by 90, bringing total number of discharged cases to 44,088. “As of Sept. 12, 2020, 160 new confirmed cases and two deaths were recorded in Nigeria. “Till date, 56,177 cases have been confirmed, 44,088 cases discharged and 1,078 deaths recorded in 36 states and the Federal Capital Terri...
Gunmen storm funeral, shoot top politicians, kidnap guests in Rivers
Unknown gunmen, Saturday, stormed Banigo Isile-Ogono community in Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State, shot sporadically and abducted several persons in a gory operation. Some of the abducted victims are identified as Sunny Hart, Thomas Allison and Theophilus Ibiama, among several others. Chairman of Bonny Local Government Council, David Irimagha and lawmaker representing Bonny Constituency in the Rivers State House of Assembly, Abinye Blessing Pepple, escaped being killed in the attack. The incident happened during a funeral at Finiapiri-Ama, Banigo Isile-Ogono community in Bonny Local Government Area of the State. While the LGA Chairman and the State lawmaker escaped, the leader of the Bonny Local Government Legislative Assembly, Miriam Hart who was among the guests was unlucky. ...
