Sahara Reporters Latest News Friday 21st June 2019
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 21/06/19
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target=_blank>EFCC Re-arraigns American For Defrauding Nigerians Of $1.2 Million
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Thursday re-arraigned an American, Marco Ramirez, at an Ikeja Special Offences Court for allegedly defrauding three Nigerians of $1.2 million under the pretext of securing green cards for them.
Ramirez was re-arraigned before Justice Mojisola Dada on an amended 12-count charge of conspiracy and obtaining under false pretence.
Ramirez was arraigned alongside his companies – USA Now LLC; Eagle Ford Instalodge Group LP and USA Now Capital Group.
The EFCC said that Ramirez committed the offences between February 2013 and August 2013 in Lagos.
Ramirez is alleged to have defrauded Ambassador Godson Echejue, Mr. Abubakar Umar and Mr. Olukayode Sodimu of the money.
The offences contravene Section 1 (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, No. 14 of 2006.
The American and his companies were previously arraigned on June 22, 2017, before Justice Josephine Oyefeso, on a 16-count charge of conspiracy and obtaining under false pretence, the News Agency of Nigeria.
He had pleaded not guilty to the offences and was admitted to bail in the sum of $25,000.
However, midway to the trial, the case file was transferred to the Special Offences Court for a speedy conclusion of the matter
Following his re-arraignment before Justice Dada, Mr. N. S. Oweize, the EFCC prosecuting counsel requested for a trial date.
The defence counsel, Mr. Ademola Adefolaju, did not oppose the prosecutor’s request for a trial date but pleaded with court, for Ramirez to continue to enjoy the bail conditions earlier granted to him by Justice Oyefeso.
Dada enquired whether the defendant had fully complied with his previous bail conditions, Adefolaju answered in the affirmative, noting that Ramirez had been visiting EFCC office as directed by the court.
Following Adefolaju’s submission, Dada said, “Having not shown any breach of the bail terms granted by my brother judge, the defendant is hereby allowed to continue with the previous terms.”
The judge adjourned the case until October 7, 8, 9 and 10 for trial.
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E2%80%99s-dangerous-drift-and-shallowness-his-cheerleaders-frisky-larr target=_blank>Buhari’s Dangerous Drift And The Shallowness Of His Cheerleaders! By Frisky Larr
Frisky Larr
Frisky Larr
“Every day the bucket a go a well, one day the bottom a go drop out” – Bob Marley!
In today’s Nigeria, the ruling class and the ordinary citizens have one conspicuous character in common. They have their slogans that stand out in their perception of actions taken and actions absorbed. The ruling class while acting, often motivates itself with the words, “Go ahead and act. Heavens will not fall”. The ordinary foot-soldier while absorbing actions of public perception, has cultivated a stale, old and delusionary subterfuge for characterizing any prominent person, who dares to criticize President Buhari, as “a looter, whose source of looting has run dry”. The facts are, all too often, highly irrelevant to both sides considering the odds they seek to surmount.
Yet, the grimness of the glaring facts begins with such foot-soldiers themselves, whose recruitment for the Buhari cause, grossly contradicts, in the very first place, everything that Buhari fought against to displace President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015. The Jonathan Presidency had paid trolls everywhere on the social media to defend and advance the propaganda trail of the government. Today, shockingly, some of those hungry political jobbers, who abused and desecrated Buhari in the altar of nothingness to elevate Goodluck Jonathan in 2015, are precisely the same people eulogizing and sanctifying Muhammadu Buhari on social media, most likely, for some pots of porridge and a slice of toxic paltry. No one, who wanted Goodluck Jonathan ousted as President in the year 2015, would have imagined in his dream that Adams Oshiomole – the veteran and one-time doyen of labor union activism and erroneously-perceived redeemer of Edo State’s lost glory, would today, end up standing accused of being Buhari’s diabolic handyman of “Mr. Fix-It” acclaim to oversee election-rigging and the corrupt, self-enriching nomination of party candidates. Accusations have been flying wild and making the rounds. As in very many other issues under President Muhammadu Buhari, however, the only missing link is a credible public investigation to establish the truth or otherwise.
No one needs to be reminded that the highly expected fight against corruption under President Muhammadu Buhari ended up being a farce and a badly restrained operation. Not the least, his readiness to sacrifice Abdulmumin Jibrin at the altar of corruption in the wake of budget-padding at the House of Representatives, signaled the representative dawn of Buhari’s treacherous trip down the path of deception. It will be recalled that the lawmaker cried his voice coarse begging to offer our anti-corruption Crusader-in-Chief, potent and credible evidence of a gang-up by the Principal Officers of the House of Representatives to pad the budget of the time for personal enrichment. The President declined to even dignify him with an audience – not even a demonstrative one to send a strong symbolic signal to errant actors. On the contrary, the President hosted the main accused person, Speaker of the House of Representative, Mr. Yakubu Dogara, to repeated audiences as if to help strategize on the best way to get him out of the murky waters.
As if that was not enough, graphic details of fraudulent misdeeds and abuse of office were presented in public domain, against President Buhari’s Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, in a well-publicized talk show. A man claimed to have been defrauded directly by Abba Kyari. Another, a ranking police officer, claimed to have been incarcerated, abused and humiliated at the behest of Abba Kyari. This was not only aired on a popular YouTube channel – “Berekete Family”, it was given wide publicity. No single sign of President Buhari’s “Integrity” was brought to bear on the case, at least, not to public knowledge. It’s no use citing the foot-dragging episode of the grass-cutting scandal that was strategically rolled out again on election period for maximum deceptive exploits.
Indeed, President Buhari’s best and most potent fight against corruption so far, happened in his pre-inauguration period in 2015, when expectations were high. At least people trembled then. Some chased him in flights and sought to strike a deal with him for a soft landing. Today, it has all become a matter of vindictiveness and the generation of smokescreens.
Now, the country stands so high on the polarization scale than it has ever been before – higher even than the fear-ridden days of the 2007 transition to Yar’Adua. The fear of disintegration now looms far larger than ever before, amid a barrage of unmitigated violence. The East makes no secret anymore of an erstwhile post-civil war taboo issue of breaking away. The West now openly strategizes on autonomy and independence murmuring Oduduwa Republic. The Southern campaign of sabotaging the mainstay of the country’s economy with a helpless interregnum that was bought most expensively with cash disbursement is an old story.
The most potent and palpable insurrection in the East was decisively quelled by violence on the spur of the moment. No gainsaying that the misguided young man, who led the insurrection with the mixed motive of self-enrichment and idealism hardly gave a thought to the idea of inclusion for a unity of purpose. Instead, maps were drawn arbitrarily to include folks, who had no clue, what game was on course. Consultation and collaboration in the fight for a cause that should, ordinarily, be recognized as common to all Nigerians, were substituted by confrontation.
After quelling IPOB though, President Buhari has failed to take measures to foster unity among the regions in the spirit of one nationhood. On the contrary, he has continued, unperturbed and sometimes, almost in mocking defiance, on the divisive course of installing people of his own geographical extraction in all vital and crucial positions of power to relive the stale, obsolete doctrine of our colonial legacy. Today, we have the three arms of government headed by one tribal region alone.
Even though the menace of herdsmen in search of grazing land spans several successive governments in this dispensation, it has peaked with unspeakable intensity under the present government. The IPOB menace was contained overnight with some Python or Cobra dance in spite of the military being over-stretched in its fight against Boko Haram. Funnily, murderous herdsmen are hardly ever arrested. The arm of the law is never displayed in restless areas. Nigeria is drifting aimlessly like a country without a legal system to say the least of a law-enforcement apparatus while a parallel open-door policy is deliberately nurtured to promote the free inflow of sister natives from neighboring countries to boost tribal electoral gains for vested interests. The resultant spike in the cattle-rearers population and ever-widening geographical spread of savagery, robbery and kidnappings seems to be of no interest to anyone in particular. Then, there was a call for compensation to appease the criminals like a state without a structure of any sort.
It cannot be lost on President Buhari that his tribal Fulani origin has largely been suspected as a reason that many people murmur behind closed doors, that he confronts the issue with some degree of heightened understanding for his Fulani kinsmen. Be that as it may, however, his inaction and silence on the issue is louder than the cries of the bereaved families and victims. He alone controls the security apparatus.
During his futile attempt to clinch the Presidency on three previous occasions, President Buhari like Adamu Ciroma and other invisible members of the Northern “Deep State” never made a secret of his disdain of and anger towards former President Olusegun Obasanjo for resetting the geographical equilibrium in the distribution of political power. Proven or not, dangerous statements (like Boko Haram fighting for justice or “a military offensive against Boko Haram being anti-North”) have been attributed to leading Northern politicians at one point or the other. The loss of the northern domination of political power in Nigeria to a more balanced spread has always angered them all. With the actions of President Buhari today, however, one cannot help but suspect that the Presidency has given him the power to “correct” and actualize this dream with safeguards for perpetuation beyond his tenure.
Little wonder then that the sudden shift of headlines to a newfound Democracy Day on June 12 and the renaming of a dilapidated stadium in Abuja served as a welcome break from a pestering trail of negative tidings. Now, I hear that some power brokers of the western region pride themselves with influencing the decisions that culminated in the elevation of June 12 for their own political gains. Yet, some may have to be doubly cautious of dreaming to mount a presidency that will ever elude them when they dine with the devil in the shadows of the fate suffered by Abiola.
If anything, Nigeria was thrilled to some awful revelations during the last presidential campaign that President Buhari set out to clinch by all possible means. Ahmed Kadaria conducted an eye-opening interview with the President and his Deputy and was wrongly accused of giving a whitewash. Ever since though, those, who have ears have had a lot to hear and those, who have eyes have had a lot to see. The lingering question they all have in their “eyes” and “ears” though, is simply “How much does President Buhari know or cares to know about the running of his Presidency?” Who sets the agenda? Who defines the pace?
Someone somewhere keeps pushing the cart of political activities harder and harder, yelling “go ahead and act. Heavens will not fall. Arrest this. Arrest that. Install a Northern President again come what may in 2023. Heavens will not fall.”
But they fail to realize, “Every day the bucket a go a well, one day, the bottom a go drop out”! – Bob Marley
Frisky Larr is a political analyst and author of several books on political affairs
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target=_blank>Nigerian Professor Killed In His Port Harcourt Apartment
A professor at the Rivers State University (RSU), Emmanuel Amadi, a lecturer at the Department of Microbiology has been killed in his house at Rumuorlumeni, Port Harcourt, the state capital.
It was rumoured that some suspected armed robbers killed him in the early hours of yesterday.
Port Harcourt has been an area notorious for criminal activities, especially incessant kidnapping, cultism, armed robbery, and assassination.
Some of the residents appealed to security agencies to capture and arraign the killers in the court of law.
However, the spokesman for RSU, Mr. Sydney Enyindah, confirmed the news and said it was a great loss to the university.
He said “Prof. Amadi was attacked in his house at Rumuorlumeni, Port Harcourt in the early hours of today (yesterday) by armed robbers. The sad information came while we were having a management meeting today.”
The State Commissioner of Police, Usman Belle, has said the killing would be investigated and all the perpetrators must be brought to book.
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target=_blank>Aisha Buhari Tweets Cryptic Message Condemning President Buhari’s Appointments
Aisha Buhari, first lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has lashed out yet again at her husband’s administration, this time over appointment of people into his cabinet.
She posted a video by @Ayourb, a staunch supporter of President Muhammadu Buhari who was calling out the President for appointing those who do not believe in his vision.
He said, “We are not talking about appointment, it’s about bringing on board people who do not believe in your agenda, it is different from just appointing anybody but if you have a change manager, that manager will work with a team of people who believe in the vision but when you sideline them and bring in people who fought violently against that agenda and you want them to help you drive your agenda, how will you achieve this?”You cannot drive an agenda with people who don’t believe in that agenda…how will you achieve your purpose If you bring in people who fought against your agenda.” – @Ayourb#APCYouths #MissionandVision #BelieveinBuharisIdeology pic.twitter.com/Wqjuz4c0WA— Aisha M. Buhari (@aishambuhari) June 20, 2019
“So let us take it away from the fact that people are angry about appointment. We are saying people you are bringing in to work with you do not believe in your vision and your purpose and your plan.”
Tweeting @aishambuhari, the first lady said, “You cannot drive an agenda with people who don’t believe in that agenda…how will you achieve your purpose if you bring in people who fought against your agenda.”
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target=_blank>How Gov Wike Plans To Assassinate AAC’s Guber Candidate Awara With N1bn Bounty Over Election Petition Tribunal Case, Infiltrates Tribunal
Nyesome Wike, Governor of Rivers state has placed a bounty of N1bn on Engineer Awara Biokpomabo, the guber candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) over his refusal withdraw his petition contesting the 2019 governorship elections in the state.
Wike of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) polled 886,264 votes while Awara came second with 179,859 votes.
A source told SaharaReporters that Wike had sent Awara’s kinsmen from the Kula council of chiefs from Akuku-Toru local government area to visit AAC’s Awara in a bid to convince him to pull out his petition before the Rivers state election petition tribunal. Wike has succeeded already in bribing candidates of two other political parties to withdraw their petition.
Parties such as the Labour Party (LP) on May 23, 2019, withdrew its petition filed by its guber candidate Isaac Wonwu after inducement from governor Wike. On the same day, the Peoples Progressive Party (PPP) through its counsel Chibuzor Ezike withdrew it’s petition after it was also settled by the governor.
After the entreaties, Awara told the chiefs he would consult with Rivers stakeholders and the AAC party leadership; a move which infuriated the governor.
King of Kula, King Amabibi Eleki, Sara XIV appealed to Awara on behalf of Wike to seek out-of-court settlement and withdraw his petition from the election petition tribunal.
The source added that despite the money expended by Governor Wike to facilitate the visit (which is more than money paid to his deputy running mate Bombaye), Awara had remained ‘stubborn’ and unyielding.
Wike’s anger the source told SaharaReporters is heightened by the relaxed stance of the PDP in Rivers state on the matter which he considers urgent as well as the fact that the tribunal judges “cannot be trusted”.
Last week, all members of the tribunal were replaced by the President of the Court of Appeal after it was revealed that Wike might have infiltrated the tribunal.
Inside sources in Gov. Wike’s circle said he has designated a squad mandated with silencing Awara for giving him “sleepless nights knowing how the election was announced”.
Governor Wike is said to have boasted that he can bribe INEC with N20bn to announce him winner, he also insisted that can bribe election petition tribunal members with no less than N30bn while Supreme Court Justices he said will get N50bn if needs be.
Election Petition Tribunal Compromised
Governor Wike is said to have compromised the former election petition tribunal judges who are Justice G.K Kagama, (Chairman), Justice L.G Abdulkadiri and Justice Ola Tokunmbo Bambosha. The judges were quietly relieved of their duties last week.
Under the tribunal led by Dogon-Daji, Wike had tried to forcibly change the Awara’s lawyer, Tawo E. Tawo (SAN) through a letter sent by the expelled Secretary of the AAC, Leonard Ezenwa who is known to be financed by the Rivers state governor.
Wike sought to replace Tawo with H.A Bello, Esq a known PDP sympathizer as a way to whittle down the case and get it tossed out.
The new panel of judges Wike plans to bribe consists of three members, Honorable Justice K.C Ojiako, Honorable Justice Olawoyin and Justice Khadi Ahmed Mohammed.
Wike recently financed the disgraced former Secretary of the AAC, Leonard Ezenwa to stage a takeover of the party claiming he was elected by a group of non-party members as “Acting Chairman”.
INEC threw about Ezenwa’s claims by releasing a public memo distancing itself from the actions of the expelled Secretary as well as denying knowledge of his plans or meetings as required by law.
Mr. Ezenwa has since gone to a Federal High Court where he presented forged documents and fake meeting notes to obtain a court injunction against authentic party leaders while he arduously works to help Wike frustrate Mr. Awara’s petition at the tribunal.
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target=_blank>Ghana University Dismissal Of Nigerian Professor Appropriate, Says Country’s Minister, Mensah Bonsu
Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, Ghana’s Majority Leader and Minister for Parliamentary Affairs
Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, Ghana’s Majority Leader and Minister for Parliamentary Affairs
Ghana’s Majority Leader and Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, has backed the decision of the University of Education Winneba to terminate the appointment of the visiting Nigerian professor, Austin Nwagbara, who was seen in a video inciting Nigerians against Ghana.
Speaking to Francis Abban on the Morning Starr Thursday, the Suame MP said the professor’s conduct was inappropriate, Ghana’s Star FM reports.
“What the university has done is appropriate and we can’t continue to have such persons in our midst. No country will encourage that sort of thing in its backyard,” he said.
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Ghanaians Vs Nigerians: Ghana University Dismisses Vocal Nigerian Professor Nwagbara
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The decision to terminate the contract with academic was taken after a disciplinary committee of the university conducted a probe into the content of the video. Starr News sources say the professor told the committee the video was doctored.
“The university after subjecting Prof. Augustine Uzoma Nwagbara to internal disciplinary process finds him culpable of gross misconduct and has, accordingly, dismissed him,” the university said in a statement.
Content of the video has been widely condemned by Ghanaians over fears it could further polarise the recent tensed relationship between locals and Nigerians residing in the country.
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E2%80%93-police target=_blank>Masterminds Of Attacks On Nigerians, Looting Of Their Shops In Ghana Will Be Arrested – Police
Police in Kumasi have given assurance that masterminds of the looting of some Nigerian shops in Suame Magazine in Kumasi will be arrested.
The Police said a search party was currently working to arrest two persons mentioned in connection with the crime, Ghana radio station, Star FM, reports.
Some Nigerian shops were attacked following a spillover of trade tensions between the locals and the foreigners in the Suame spare parts business centre.
“So far, two names have been mentioned to the Police as the mastermind of the attacks and efforts are underway to get them arrested. Other persons who have also been captured on video destroying properties belonging to Nigerian Traders and burning car tyres will duly be identified and arrested,” the statement said.
Government has condemned the attacks and warned offenders will be punished.
Below is a statement by the Ghanaian police:
UPDATE ON RECENT IMPASSE BETWEEN GUTA AND NUTAG SUAME MAGAZINE-BRANCH
In view of the recent impasse between the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) and the Nigerian Union of Traders Association Ghana (NUTAG) Suame Magazine branch in Kumasi, Ashanti Region.
The Regional Police Command had meetings with the Executives of both GUTA and NUTAG on Monday 17th and Tuesday 18th June 2019 respectively, in order to find a lasting solution to the impasse. Both parties assured the Command of peaceful dialogue on the matter to ensure that peace and harmony prevail between their members.
However, yesterday 19th June 2019 in the morning, a group of young men believed to be members of GUTA clad in red bands attacked a shop belonging to a Nigerian trader destroying items in the shop and burning car tyres amidst chanting of war songs as a way of protest.
The Command has taken a serious view of the attacks and has since deployed Police officers with the assistance of the Military to the area to restore calm and ensure sanity.
So far, two names have been mentioned to the Police as the mastermind of the attacks and efforts are underway to get them arrested. Other persons who have also been captured on video destroying properties belonging to Nigerian Traders and burning car tyres will duly be identified and arrested
Officers who have been deployed to the area will continue to announce their presence until the situation is normalized.
Meanwhile, a meeting convened by both executives yesterday 19th June 2019 have resolved that nobody should be prevented from doing his or her business, as such all shops will be opened for business today Thursday 20th June 2019.
That, their members have spoken to their members, as such whoever does anything contrary should be arrested and prosecuted in order to serve as a deterrent to others.
The Command is, therefore, assuring the Nigerian Traders to go back and open their shops and continue to do their business without any fear of attack. That the Police officers and the Military will be within Suame magazine and its surrounding areas to ensure that whoever does anything untoward is arrested and made to face the full rigours of the law without any fear or favor.
The Media persons reporting on the issue are once again being urged to be circumspect in their reportage. As some of the reports do not reflect the facts on the ground.
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target=_blank>Ghanaians Vs Nigerians: Ghana University Dismisses Vocal Nigerian Professor Nwagbara
The University of Education Winneba in Ghana has terminated the appointment of the visiting Nigerian English professor who was seen urging Nigerians, in a video that has gone viral, to stand up against Ghanaians who are mistreating.
The decision was taken after a disciplinary Committee of the university conducted a probe into the content of the video.
Starr News sources say the professor told the committee the video was doctored.
“The University after subjecting Prof. Augustine Uzoma Nwagbara to internal disciplinary process finds him culpable of gross misconduct and has, accordingly, dismissed him,” the university said in a statement.
Content of the video has been widely condemned by Ghanaians over fears it could further polarise the recent tensed relationship between locals and Nigerians residing in the country.
Below are details of a statement issued by the university.
PROFESSOR AUGUSTINE UZOMANWAGBARA DISMISSED FROM UEW
The University of Education Winneba wishes to inform the general public that it has taken a very serious view of the video circulating on social media, involving Prof. Augustine UzomaNwagbara.
Augustine UzomaNwagbara, a Professor of English Language, has been on sabbatical at the Department of Applied Linguistics since October, 2018.
In the said video, Prof. Nwagbara makes several unsavoury, unethical and damning comments about our country, its history as well as its educational system.
The University totally dissociates itself from the grossly irresponsible comments and condemns it in no uncertain terms.
The University is highly disturbed by the huge embarrassment his unguarded statement has brought to the institution, the Ministry of Education, and, indeed, Ghana as a whole.
The University, upon receipt of the video, immediately invoked its internal disciplinary process to fully examine his conduct relative to the content of the video.
The University wishes to indicate that it has in the past hosted several scholars on sabbatical leave from various countries, including Nigeria, and same have conducted themselves with high degree of decorum and professionalism during their stay.
Prof. Augustine Uzoma Nwagbara’s behaviour is totally deviant and an aberration that runs contrary to those of his predecessors or the others currently at post.
The University after subjecting Prof. Augustine Uzoma Nwagbara to internal disciplinary process finds him culpable of gross misconduct and has, accordingly, dismissed him.
The University apologises to Ghanaians for Prof. Nwagbara’s disparaging remarks about this country’s educational system and further indicates that the comments were full of factual inaccuracies.
Thank you
Signed
Registrar
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target=_blank>President Buhari In Closed-door Meeting With Benin Republic President Over Killings
President Muhammadu Buhari is currently in a closed-door meeting with the President of Benin Republic, Patrice Talon, over a new wave of killings in the country.
The meeting which started at 11:30 am is coming against the backdrop of shocking videos and images out of the country which is one of Nigeria’s closest economic neighbours.
The crisis is emanating from parliamentary elections which took place in Benin on April 28, 2019 which denied opposition parties participation in the electoral process.
More to come…
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BREAKING: Eleven Out Of 31 Bauchi Lawmakers ‘Elect’ New Speaker
Eleven out of 31 lawmakers of the 9th Bauchi state house of assembly have reportedly picked a new speaker.
The lawmakers elected Abubakar Suleiman, the lawmaker representing Ningi Central Constituency (APC), as the speaker, on Thursday.
According to PUNCH, Suleiman emerged ‘unopposed’.
Danlami Kawule, assembly member representing Zungur/Galambi, was elected as deputy speaker.
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