Sahara Reporters Latest News Today Thursday 28th May 2020
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 28/05/20
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Senior Army Officer Dies In Auto Accident In Benue
A senior army officer, Lieutenant Colonel A. A. Gbileve, is dead.
The late army officer died in an auto accident in Makurdi, Benue State, on Tuesday.
“Until his death, he was the Commanding Officer, 2 Battalion Kaduna,” an official source told SaharaReporters on Wednesday.
Lt Col Gbileve is survived by wife and children.
The Nigerian Army is yet to officially announce the death of Gbileve.
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Nigerian Government Considers Morning, Afternoon Classes Ahead Of Reopening Of Schools
Emeka Nwajiuba
The Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 has said that the Federal Government is considering sectionalising classes for primary, secondary, and tertiary institutions in the country ahead of the reopening of schools amid the Coronavirus pandemic.
The Minister of State for Education, Emeka Nwajiuba, stated this on Wednesday during a briefing by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in Abuja.
He said, “Until we are sure these children can go to school, return safely and not bring up with them COVID-19 and infect people who are more susceptible than they are, then we are running a huge risk and God forbid, in our hurry, something happens to our children, I am not sure how anybody will be able to retrieve what has been lost.”
Emeka Nwajiuba
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Nwajiuba said the ministry was being guided by the advice of experts including those of the World Health Organisation, noting that the decision to reopen schools would be carefully arrived at because education was on the concurrent list of the Nigerian constitution.
He added, “We are going to publish a specification on what we expect COVID-19 or post-COVID-19 reopening to look like. We are not talking about coping with COVID-19 but in spite of COVID-19, we expect that we will adapt.
“For a country that has over 115,000 primary schools, you will understand that 35,000 of these who are private must agree to set up the same standard in other to allow children to go in.”
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Nigerian Government Directs States, Proprietors To Reopen Schools
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Make Diaspora Voting Possible, Former Minister, Prof Tunde Adeniran, Tells Nigerian Government
Prof Tunde Adeniran
Prof Tunde Adeniran, former Minister of Education and Ambassador of Nigeria to Germany, has asked the Nigerian Government to facilitate voting for Nigerians in the Diaspora.Adeniran, who also worked for the United Nations and retired as a political science lecturer at the University of Ibadan, said Nigeria must look beyond giving excuses and serve as a pacesetter that other African nations look up to.He made the comments in an interview with SaharaReporters while reacting to the announcement by the Independent National Electoral Commission that it would implement electronic voting in major elections starting from 2021.He said, “I don’t think it is a bad idea, my concern is that they should do thorough homework before they embark on it. I believe that there is so much we should be doing now.
Prof Tunde Adeniran
“I believe Nigerians in the Diaspora should be voting by now, nothing should be stopping them from voting so if INEC is seeking the online option now, it is timely and worthwhile. All they need is to do adequate preparation before they launch out, between 2021 and now there is sufficient time to do necessary preparation.”Democracy should be something that gives the majority of the people the opportunity to exercise their civic rights and those who are not able to, it should be on the basis of choice and not because they are handicapped by the system in operation.”If we say that we have to wait till we have adequate supply of electricity to vote electronically, we may wait endlessly but when we are compelled we need to work with what we have. It is not a luxury, electricity is not a luxury, it is a necessity so the needful has to be done to put that in place.”With the way this country worked in the 60’s, we shouldn’t be were we are today talking about lack of electricity and so forth. Electricity used to be regular, there was no disruptions that means so many things have gone wrong.”We cannot be giving excuses. Are we going to say we should not vote again until we have good roads for people to move around? Are we going to say we will not vote until we do not have some gangsters using violence during elections?”Get the infrastructures right and do the right thing. We are resourceful enough to lay the example for other African countries. If we are still doubting our capacity to do electronic voting in 2020, then we are not serious. We have to get our acts right and be disciplined as a people.”
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Group Asks President Buhari To Order Release Of Detained Abia Lawyer, Gabriel Ogbonna
Emperor Gabriel Ogbonna
The Rule of Law and Accountability Center has asked Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari, to order the release of Abia State-based lawyer, Emperor Gabriel Ogbonna, who is being detained by the State Security Services.The group in statement signed by Okechukwu Nwanguma on Wednesday said the continued detention of Ogbonna was in flagrant disobedience of a court order calling for his release on bail.
It reads, “The SSS has now established itself as a lawless organisation with an ignoble pattern of engaging in politically-motivated arrest and indefinite detention incommunicado of government criticsand disobedience to court orders.”The President must at this time intervene and save our democracy from being derailed by the SSS. It’s time for the President to curtail the excesses of the SSS and call its leaders to order.
Emperor Gabriel Ogbonna
“RULAAC is informed that Emperor Ogbonna was initially arrested in his office by operatives of the State Security Service and armed policemen and had been in detention since March 24, 2020. He was first taken to the Abia State Police Command where he was confronted with a petition written against him alleging that he published falsehood against the governor of Abia State, and that the governor swore to an oath at the Ancient Harashima.”He was eventually arraigned before the Magistrate’s Court which remanded him in custody. He was later charged before the Federal High Court, Umuahia, and was admitted to bail by the said court.”Ogbonna perfected the conditions of his bail and was released from the correctional centre on April 28, 2020, but he was again arrested immediately by the Abia State Director of SSS who later transferred him to the headquarters in Abuja.
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DSS Rearrests Lawyer Hours After Being Granted Bail For Criticising Abia Governor
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“The SSS is reported to have claimed that Ogbonna was re-arrested for another complaint against him, different from his alleged false claims against the Abia State governor. But even if this were to be true, his continued detention beyond the constitutionally permissible duration still makes it unlawful and a flagrant violation of his constitutional rights to liberty, presumption of innocence, human dignity and due process.”If the SSS believes they have any reasonable grounds to re-arrest him or credible charges against him, they ought to have promptly handed him over to the police for prosecution, in accordance with due process.”It is not only illegal, but also malicious and high-handed for the SSS to refuse to release Emperor Ogbonna or charge him to court and to also refuse his lawyers and family access to visit him despite his precarious health condition.”Emperor Ogbonna’s lawyer has disclosed that he is sick yet the SSS will not allow his family, lawyer and doctor to visit him. His family is seriously worried about the condition of his health and safety.”His wife who is in her eighth month of pregnancy says her husband’s continued detention, her not being allowed access to him and her anxiety about his condition are impacting seriously on her condition.”RULAAC therefore called on Buhari to prove his commitment to democracy and dictates of the rule of law by ordering the release of Ogbonna.
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E2%80%94odumakin Why Buhari Will Not Intervene In Pantami And Dabiri-Erewa Face off —Odumakin
Yinka Odumakin
Yinka Odumakin, Secretary-General of Afenifere, has attributed the recent war of words between Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, and Isa Ali Pantami, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, to the lack of integration within the All Progressives Congress and the Presidency.
Recall that Dabiri-Erewa revealed in an interview how gunmen chased the commission’s staff from office on the orders of Pantami.
The matter degenerated with key agencies taking sides as well as the United Kingdom Chapter of the APC backing Dabiri-Erewa.
Reacting to the face-off during an interview with SaharaReporters, Odumakin said the Presidency act like people not united and are targeting personal goals and victory.
Yinka Odumakin
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He stated that Nigerians should not expect President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene or react to the issue as the President only reacts to issues that affects him.
He said, “Buhari doesn’t intervene in this kind of thing just like the case of the late Chief of Staff and Defence Minister. He doesn’t intervene in this kind of thing except it is a matter that affects him.
“A place that people there are not integrated and everybody is pursuing his or her agenda, you will have the kind of thing that you are having now.
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How Late Chief Of Staff To President Muhammadu Buhari, Abba Kyari, Triggered ‘Fight’ Between Abike Dabiri-Erewa And Communications Minister, Pantami
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“Aside from this, at times when you listen to three or four officials talking, it is as if they are representing four different government and it is basically because there is no integrated government with a clear agenda that people are pursuing.
“Everybody is just pursuing his or her interest and it’s as if everybody is representing himself in government and not integrated government. We should expect this kind of thing.”
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Nigeria’s Communication Minister, Pantami, Asks Gunmen To Chase Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Other NIDCOM Staff From Office Complex In Abuja
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He added that the face-off would continue to exist except all members of the presidency work together.
He added, “You cannot but have this kind of situation until you have integrated governance where there is a clear agenda being pursued and everybody is working in his corner towards that overall government.”
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An Islamic Scholar Should Not Lie, Your Disrespect For Women Legendary —Abike Dabiri-Erewa Blasts Nigeria’s Communications Minister, Pantami
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JUST IN: Adamawa Records Three COVID-19 Deaths, 11 New Cases
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Three persons have been reported to have died of Coronavirus in Adamawa State.
The state also recorded 11 new cases of the virus on Wednesday.
Commissioner for Health, Prof Abdullahi Isa, gave the confirmation during a briefing with journalists in Yola, the state capital.
COVID-19 Test
He said, “11 new cases have been recorded in Adamawa State and sadly, we have also recorded three fatalities.”
The commissioner also confirmed that 20 patients have been discharged so far, after they tested negative for the infectious virus.
Adamawa State now has 18 active cases of COVID-19.
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JUST IN: Lagos Discharges 87 More COVID-19 Patients
The Lagos State Government on Wednesday discharged 87 more patients, who recovered and tested negative to Coronavirus.
The Lagos State Ministry of Health made this known via its twitter handle.
The ministry said that 824 patients had now been discharged from the isolation centres.
“#COVID19Lagos Update! 87 #COVID19Lagos patients; 40 females and 47 males, all Nigerians have been discharged from our isolation facilities to reunite with the society.
“The patients; 26 from Mainland Infectious Disease Hospital, Yaba, 24 from Onikan, 12 from Eti-Osa (LandMark),11 from Agidingbi, 9 from Gbagada and five LUTH Isolation Centres were discharged having fully recovered and tested negative to #COVID19.
“With this, the number of COVID19 cases successfully managed and discharged in Lagos State has risen to 825.”
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COVID-19: West African Traders Losing 30 Per Cent Of Produce To Movement Restrictions
Thirty per cent of perishable produce and livestock traded in West Africa have been lost due to restrictions in movement caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
This is according to data collected by the Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS) and sighted by Reuters.
CILSS explained that the disruption in the movement of fruits, food items and domestic animals for consumption is as a result of market closures and transport delays.
The Burkina Faso-based institute notes that this was not a universal trend however.
Although governments across the region have said food items are among a list of essential items that can move freely, a senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute, Antoine Bouet, said most of the trade in the country are done informally and in small quantities.
These products are moved either in transport vehicles or across land borders, where they are subjected to health checks.
“Very often, these measures consist in the screening of trucks crossing the border while movement of people is forbidden,” he said. “These measures stop informal trade of small quantities,” he added.
The Nigerian Government still maintains an inter-state ban, while land borders into the country have been partially closed since last August to check rice smuggling.
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Nigerian Lawmaker Wants Inter-state Travel Ban Lifted
A federal lawmaker in Nigeria, Akinola Alabi, has asked the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 to open up the country’s airports and ALSO allow inter-state travel to resume.
Alabi, who represents Egbeda/Ona-Ara Federal Constituency, said this on his Twitter handle on Wednesday.
He said, “Next phase of easing lockdown. Allow inter-state travel. Then open the airports and introduce some safety measures.”
In other countries like South Africa and Ghana, easing of lockdown had been fingered as the cause of rise in Coronavirus cases.
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BREAKING: DSS Releases Detained Akwa Ibom Journalist After Public Outcry
The Department of State Services has finally released Kufre Carter, a journalist with XL 106.9 FM Uyo in Akwa Ibom State, after public outcry condemning the action of the security agency.
Carter was arrested by the DSS on April 27, 2020 over a private phone conversation with an anonymous medical doctor, which the Akwa Ibom State Government alleged castigated the state’s Commissioner for Health, Dr Dominic Ukpong, over his poor handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He was arraigned on a three-count charge bothering on alleged defamation, which carries a maximum punishment of three years imprisonment in the event of conviction.
However, after meeting his bail conditions, the DSS failed to release him, insisting on getting approval from Governor Udom Emmanuel before obeying the court order.
Confirming his release to our correspondent, Carter’s counsel, Inibehe Effiong said the Director General of the DSS ordered the security outfit to comply with the court order to release the journalist.
He said, “On Wednesday, 27th May, 2020 at about 9:30 a.m., our client, Kufre Carter, a sport’s journalist with XL 106.9 FM in Uyo regained freedom after spending one month in the custody of the State Security Service (SSS) at the instance and on the instigation of the Akwa Ibom State Government,” Effiong said in a statement.
“This came after the Director-General of the SSS, Alhaji Yusuf Bichi, ordered the SSS Command in Akwa Ibom State to comply with the valid and subsisting Order of the Court and release our client.”
Effiong called on the DG of the DSS to initiate an investigation to probe the illegal deployment of the DSS by the Akwa Ibom State Government to arrest the journalist.
He said, “While we are discomfited with the abusive deployment of the SSS by the Akwa Ibom State Government against our client, we nonetheless wish to thank the Director-General of the SSS for halting the voyage of illegality at the SSS Command in Akwa Ibom State.
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EXPOSED: Despite Fulfilling Bail Conditions, Akwa Ibom Governor Connives With DSS To Keep Journalist In Perpetual Detention By Manipulating Judicial Process
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“We appeal to Mr Bichi to probe the illegal deployment of the SSS by the Akwa Ibom State Government to arrest our client over a purported case of defamation, which has no bearing whatsoever with its statutory mandate under Section 2 (3) of the National Security Agencies Act of preventing and detecting crimes against the internal security of Nigeria.
“Nigerians will like to know how a purported case of “defamation of character” affects the internal security of Nigeria? This probe is necessary to forestall future abuse of the SSS by vindictive, vicious, wicked and oppressive politicians who have failed in their most basic responsibilities to the citizens.”
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