Sahara Reporters Latest News Today Monday 29th March 2021
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 29/03/21
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E2%80%94suspects How We Kidnapped Edo Immigration Officer, Sold Her To Fulani Herdsmen—Suspects
The Edo State Police Command has arrested one Innocent Emonyon, a member of the notorious kidnap syndicate that abducted the spokesperson for the Nigerian Immigration Service in the state, Mrs Bridget Esene.
Two Fulani herdsmen, identified as Baguba Usman and Yusuf Ismaila, were also arrested in connection with the abduction of Mrs Esene and other victims.
It was gathered that the kidnappers, said to be from the southern part of Nigeria allegedly kidnapped people in Benin metropolis and sold them to Fulani herders in Ahor forest near Benin.
The public relations officer was abducted around Iqueniro area off Agbor Road, on Sunday morning, January 24, on her way to church in Benin City.
After her release, Esene narrated how she was abducted by the kidnappers and sold to another gang suspected to be Fulani herdsmen.
Emonyon, 40, said to be the professional driver of the gang, was arrested by operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping and Cybercrime Unit of the police command.
It was learnt that the police had in February arrested four members of the gang in their hideout in Ahor forest, however, Emonyon managed to escape.
According to Standard Gazette, Emonyon was first arrested in 2016 for kidnapping but was acquitted by the court after spending three years in police custody. The case was dropped after the family, and kidnapped victims refused to appear to give evidence in court.
Speaking to Standard Gazette, Emonyon revealed how they kidnapped the immigratiion spokesperson and other victims.
“I was the one who drove the car used in kidnapping the Edo Immigration PRO and sold her to some Fulani herdsmen in Ahor forest,” he said.
“We also kidnapped a businesswoman along Lucky Way in Benin City, where we took her to the same forest after we destroyed her two mobile phones.”
He also confessed to kidnapping another businessman in Aduwawa, Benin City and carjacking his Toyota Highlander SUV.
When asked about the four other members of his gang, he said, “I heard they were arrested, and I quickly ran to Lagos so that they would not catch me; I was shocked that the police got me now.”
Following his confession, the Anti-Kidnapping and Cybercrime unit raided the Ahor forest again on Wednesday, March 24, and arrested Baguba Usman and Yusuf Ismaila, who were named as accomplices to the several abductions.
The police identified Baguda as one of the prisoners who escaped from the Edo correctional facility on October 19 during the #EndSARS protest that was hijacked by hoodlums.
Baguda confessed to have participated in several kidnappings since his escape from prison.
“I escaped from prison on October 19, 2020, after some people broke into the prison by force and asked us to go. I knew Desmond, one of the kidnappers in prison, and we planned and carried out so many kidnappings in Benin City.” he said.
The spokesperson for the command, SP Bello Kontongs, who confirmed the arrest of the suspects, said that the state police commissioner, Philip Ogbadu, has since called for more investigations into the series of kidnappings by the gang members.
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E2%80%93-nigerias-transportation-minister-amaechi Women Far More Intelligent Than Men – Nigeria’s Transportation Minister, Amaechi
Rotimi Amaechi
The Minister of Transportation, Mr Rotimi Amaechi has stated that women are far more intelligent than men.
The former Governor of Rivers state said this while speaking at the second edition of the Association of Nigerian Women Business Network in Abuja.
Rotimi Amaechi
In a statement released by his Special Assistant on Media, Taiye Elebiyo-Edeni, the Minister noted that women are capable of holding positions of authority in society other than the mere 35 per cent affirmative action policy.
Amaechi said, “I do not support male domination, neither do I support female domination. I believe that all of you seated here are qualified to rule this nation; I don’t believe that a particular seat should be set aside for a woman; the reason is that women are by far more intelligent than men.
“The Deputy Secretary- General of the United Nations, Amina Muhammed, was selected not because she was a woman but because she performed excellently well in her previous position.
“When ‘I am invited to a function and women are gathered dancing, I just wonder why women should be dancing at a function; women should be taking more seriously than dancing at a function.
“When you get to the table, assert your authority as somebody who is brilliant, who is intelligent to get what others are getting.
“Don’t tell me you are on the table and should be given a position because you are a woman, don’t ask that any seat should be set aside for you, ask for your right, it is your right. Women in politics stay for meetings till 2am. So if your husband allows you to join politics, he should be ready to support you.
“Any woman I have ever given appointment merited it, but you are also a problem unto yourselves. If appointment is given to a woman, a fellow woman will start saying the man is dating the woman and that she did not get the appointment because she merited it, which is one of the reasons I stopped.”
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E2%80%99ll-defeat-him-says-okupe 2023: Tinubu Is A Strong Opponent But I’ll Defeat Him, Says Okupe
Doyin Okupe
A former aide to President Goodluck Jonathan has said he is the only politician from the South-West region that can defeat former Governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, in the 2023 Presidential race.
There are indications that the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress is eyeing the country’s number one seat but he has not declared interest yet.
Doyin Okupe
Okupe, in a series of tweets on Sunday, said Tinubu remains a formidable opponent but he can send him out of the race.
“I believe I have a slight edge over him in that I understand national and Presidential politics more than him and in terms of intellectual resourcefulness, we are at par; if I am not better.
“On my part, a great advantage is that I am the only Yoruba of note in the presidential race from the PDP,” Okupe said.
Tinubu is presently in Kano where he’s expected to meet with the Northern Council of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria.
While speaking on what he believes could work against Tinubu in the presidential race, Okupe said the former governor has many antagonists in his party.
“Bola Tinubu is coming in from a wrong party where he has such powerful antagonists with the capacity to stop him. The flagrant excesses of his party to which he never reacted publicly, especially with issues concerning the South-West have made him not to be favoured by some of his own people.
“The other misfortune is that though Bola Tinubu has spent his life and his huge resources on developing political powerful lieutenants who now occupy very high and influential offices, now at his own point of need his major challengers are virtually all from his stable.”
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Nigerians Are Crying Everyday, Need Someone To Liberate Them, CAN Tells Buhari
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) on Sunday asked President Muhammadu Buhari to provide succour to Nigerians “crying for someone to librate them every day.”
The President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev. Olasupo Ayokunle who made the observation during his lecture entitled “Call To Lead At A Difficult Time” at a thanksgiving service to honour Bishop Wale Oke as the 7th National President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), said it is disheartening that the President could appoint 13 judges from the North without considering a Christian among them.
Oke was on March 2, 2021 elected as the new PFN National President during its biennial convention in Enugu, Enugu State.Speaking further, the CAN president said such appointments and other reasons peculiar to each region is the reason why many Nigerians are agitating for secession.
Ayokunle said, “Everybody must be giving a sense of belonging in Nigeria. We have not respected the plurality that brought us together, that’s why some people are agitating to breakup. They have their peculiar regional challenges. It is unreasonable that Buhari appointed 13 judges from the North and none of them is a Christian. Does that mean that we don’t have educated Christians in the North?
“Does it mean that Christians in the North are dullards? Nigerians are crying every day and needs someone to liberate them.
“Constantly speak truth to the power, so as to proffer solutions to insecurity in Nigeria, it seems those is power don’t know the way out again. The way security issues are been handled in Nigeria by the present administration is frustrating.
“People will hate you because you are saying the truth, speak the truth. Be ready for religious tension. We are the watchmen for Nigeria, leadership is about delivery and satisfying who has called you.”
On his part, Oke advised President Buhari to be ruthless with bandits and not negotiate with them.
He said, “A good government would not negotitate with killers. A good government won’t negotitate with bandits. A good government won’t negotitate with killers herdsmen. Buhari must act now.”
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Sheikh Gumi Receives COVID-19 Vaccine In Kaduna
Controversial islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi has received the COVID-19 AstraZeneca vaccine.
According to BBC Pidgin, Gumi received the COVID-19 jab in Kaduna State.
Nigerians generally have been wary of the COVID-19 vaccine due to controversies surrounding it.
The National Primary Health Care Development Agency, an agency of the Nigerian government, had confirmed that only one person in Kebbi and Taraba states each had after about two weeks received the Astrazeneca COVID-19 vaccine.
The agency did not say if the only person was the state governor.
But it added that over 300,000 people had received their first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 in Nigeria.
The NPHCDA said on its official Twitter on Friday, noting that those vaccinated so far in the country were 9.5 per cent as at March 26, 2021.
It said over 374, 585 people had been vaccinated across 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory.Sheikh Dr. Ahmad Gumi received his first shot of the #COVID19 Vaccine, earlier today.#YesToCOVID19Vaccine pic.twitter.com/HK1cRKf7ST— NPHCDA (@NphcdaNG) March 27, 2021
The Nigeria Immunisation Agency data showed that all states except Kogi have commenced vaccination against the infection in the country.
It said Kogi State was not supplied with the vaccines because their cold store was still under repair following vandalisation during the EndSARS protest.
It stated that Lagos State, the epicentre of coronavirus in the country, had vaccinated almost 92,000 people, making it the highest in the country; followed by Ogun with 36,953, Bauchi – 31,321, Kaduna – 29,426, Jigawa – 22, 420 and Kwara – 20,060.
The agency noted that “states with the lowest number of vaccinated people were Kebbi, Taraba, with one each, while Abia had four.”
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Short Note From The Alarmist To The UNILAG Management, By ‘Femi Adeyeye
I am seized by this happenstance at the University of Lagos and it is my obligation as an active citizen to bring to the notice of other active citizens the situation at the University, especially what the scholars who are managing the University have invented as a solution. The “solution” after many months of academic stagnancy due to the COVID-19 pandemic has been tough and wobbled online classes crowned now with an invention of an indemnity form that contains irresponsible and exculpation-from-irresponsibility statements. In summary, this form was designed for students to sign off their rights to learn under a safe environment. This attempt is not just inhumane but criminal.
If nothing has concerned you before, the situation at UNILAG should interest every stakeholder in and outside Nigeria as it concerns public health.
The University is a place where both the young and old meet to learn , so if it was a claim that the young have got strong immunity, what about the old? It has been reported in the news how the school lost 2 (not exact figure) Professors to the corona virus in the space of a month; adumbrating the fact that the University does not exist as a separate entity from the rest of the World. People who attend the school come from all over the world and they move around the world to interact. More reason we all need to pay attention to this whole issue.
The online learning system that came months after the lockdown was eased has continued to be awful with many complaints over the whole scheme. This is expected in a country where “can you hear me?” takes half of our zoom meetings and the cost of data is pocket-tearing. Till this moment, some lectures have not been completed. Yet students are forced to sit tests and now, exams.
Many lecturers are not digitally inclined. Many can’t use WhatsApp let alone a learning management system that requires uploading of course materials, grading and all sorts. Some reach out to students to help them with the uploading. If God would shower blessings on students this semester, same lecturers would forgetfully give the exam questions to students to upload.
The recent GST online exams have been greeted with protests. The GST office responded with wrong statistics of the success rate and have now classified complaints of students who had varying issues as “genuine” and “not genuine“. This is just failure being transferred.
The twist in all of these drama is now the physical examinations being forced on 300 Level to 500 Level who also studied “virtually”. I used the word “forced” because the management can not tell me that there was a full consensus among all stakeholders; students inclusive that exams should hold physically. I sent a message to the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Toyin Ogundipe wherein i highlighted reasons why it was unfair to do such. As expected, he ignored.
To solidify the preparation for physical exams, the management has now come up with an indemnity form to shield itself should anything go wrong when students gather to sit these exams. Physical exams that involve students from 300 Level to 500 Level is not just a gathering but mass gathering.
To clearly understand this inhumane invention of the Management, here are some of the questions the whole world needs to ask the University of Lagos management-
1. What are the measures they have taken in line with the protocols of the Presidential Taskforce on COVID-19 asides providing 1 wash-hand basin per faculty? A faculty has an average of 5000 scholars.
2. In line with the PTF guidelines, will less than 50 students be arranged in our halls. The halls we know. If that would be done, how long will the exam period be?
3. The rulers of Nigeria celebrated the arrival of vaccines recently. Has the UNILAG Management met with the Presidential Taskforce to see if vaccination can start from schools? Would all students coming to sit exams be vaccinated as a measure? You can’t just heap irresponsibility on students while you run away from your own responsibility.
4. What’s the level of hygiene in these halls of residence? Are they the halls we know or new ones have been built?
5. On the aspect of bed spaces, most rooms in halls of residence are to accommodate 8 persons (undergraduate) – an already uncomfortable arrangement. For this invention, what the Management has not said on paper is that they are allowing squatters “officially” this time, for the sake of the exams. This would now make the uncomfortable 8 to increase to an average of excruciating 16. There was a room in 2014/15 at Biobaku Hall where 36 students (bonafide, squatters, floaters, hangers, standers) housed themselves. Yes! 36 human beings in a room. I’m not exaggerating at all. There are witnesses here. Yet the management is already extenuating itself if any student contracts the virus or spreads it during the exam period. This is illogicality that went to Harvard!
I await answers to these questions and more.
Like I have said in a previous article that COVID-19 has only come to expose us, our generational failures, our corruption and dysfunctionalities. We are now caught in the dilemma of doing what is right or running away from responsibilities. It is not supposed to be a dilemma but because doing what is right is not in our DNA.
Finally, are our schools; UNILAG in this particular case, about learning to make human living meaningful or we just want to generate funds that will be mismanaged by Ogundipe-ism?
– ‘Femi Adeyeye
Lagos, Nigeria
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20 Worshippers Injured As Suicide Bombers Attack Indonesian Church On Palm Sunday
Two suspected suicide bombers blew themselves up outside a Catholic church in the Indonesian city of Makassar on Sunday, March 28, wounding about 20 people on the first day of the Easter Holy Week.
The National police spokesman, Inspector General Argo Yuwono, said at a press conference in Jakarta, that the worshippers suffered from wounds around their necks, chests and legs. Some had blisters on their hands and feet.
The explosion occurred when the congregation had been inside the church on the island of Sulawesi, South Sulawesi police spokesman, E Zulpan told Reuters.
The two suspected suicide bombers are confirmed dead, said Coodinating Minister for Polical, Legal and Security Affairs, Mahfud MD.
The minister said he has ordered the police and military to increase security in places of worship throughout Indonesia.
South Sulawesi police chief Merdisyam said that five church staff members and four worshippers are among the wounded. Due to health restrictions, there were few people in attendance at mass.
The two suspected bombers had arrived at the church around 10.20 am on a motorcycle, said Mr Yuwono. They tried to enter the cathedral but a security officer stopped them.
“Then the explosion happened. Based on information on the ground, the vehicle is destroyed, there are several human remains, and of course this will be part of our investigation,” said Yuwono.
Father Wilhemus Tulak, a priest at the church, told Indonesian media that a person who was holding off a suspected suicide bomber was wounded.
Security camera footage showed a blast that blew flame, smoke and debris into the middle of the road. Photos from the scene showed police had set up a cordon around the church and cars parked nearby were damaged.
Police did not say who might be responsible for the attack and there was no immediate claim of responsibility. Police are investigating whether the suspects belong to a network, said Mr Yuwono.
Meanwhile, Indonesian President Joko Widodo has condemned the attack, and called on the public to remain calm.
“I strongly condemn the act of terrorism and I have ordered the police chief to thoroughly investigate the perpetrators’ networks and expose the network to its roots,” said the president, known popularly as Jokowi, in an online live broadcast.
“Terrorism is a crime against humanity and has nothing to do with any religion. All religious teachings reject terrorism. The entire state apparatus will not tolerate this kind of terrorism, and I ask the public to remain calm and carry out worship because the state guarantees the security of religious people to worship without fear,” he added.
Jokowi also asked the public to work together to fight terrorism and radicalism.
“For the victims who were injured, we pray that they are given a speedy recovery and the state guarantees all medical expenses and care for the victims,” said Jokowi.
Boy Rafli Amar, the head of the country’s National Counterterrorism Agency, described Sunday’s attack as an act of terrorism.
Makassar Mayor Danny Pomanto said Sunday’s blast could have caused far more casualties if it had taken place at the church’s main gate instead of a side entrance.
“Whatever the motive is, this act isn’t justified by any religion because it harms not just one person but others, too,” Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, Indonesia’s religious affairs minister, said in a statement.
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E2%80%94ogun-police Why We Arrested 35-Year-Old Woman Who Killed Her One-Month-Old Baby —Ogun Police
The Ogun State Police Command has arrested a 35-year-old woman, Sukurat Olajoke, for killing her one-month-old baby and dumping her corpse in Ogun River.
The police stated that the suspect was arrested by policemen attached to the Enugada divisional headquarters, Abeokuta, who were on a routine patrol.
According to the police in a release, the detectives saw the woman throw something into the river.
The police stated that the suspicious behaviour of the woman, after throwing the object into the river, attracted the policemen who quickly apprehended her for questioning.
The police spokesperson, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, said, “It was on interrogation that the suspect, who lives at Agboole Alakoye area of Igbo Ora in Oyo state, confessed that what she threw into the river was the corpse of her one-month-old baby, who she killed out of frustration.
“She confessed further that the person responsible for her pregnancy and the baby, rejected her and the baby, and since she had no means of taking care of the child, she decided to kill and throw her into the river.
“Preliminary investigation revealed that the suspect had given birth to six other children for three different men, before getting pregnant for one man simply identified as Hakeem, who refused to accept the paternity of the child.
“The DPO later engaged the services of local divers, who helped in recovering the corpse of the child, and it has been deposited at the general hospital mortuary.
“Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, Edward Ajogun, has ordered the immediate transfer of the suspect to homicide section of the state criminal investigation and intelligence department for further investigation and prosecution.”
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How Frustrated Residents Of Abuja Community Are Dealing With Incessant Kidnappings
Following incessant kidnapping cases in the Abaji Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory, many residents have fled and abandoned their homes.
According to Daily Trust, residents of Anguwar Hausawa and Kekeshi communities have been the worst-hit.
Although the police and members of the vigilante group in the area had foiled three different kidnap attempts, in which two of the kidnappers were shot dead, the gunmen have been returning to the area.
After abducting a top civil servant on Thursday, the gunmen raided a Fulani settlement at Kekeshi, still in Abaji.
After the incident, retired civil servants and some politicians were forced to relocate from the community.
A resident of Anguwar Hausawa, Ibrahim Saleh, said he decided to move his family to Abaji town over fears that they might be kidnapped.
The petty trader said he stays in the town to make ends meet and goes back to his house during the day.
He said, “You know Anguwar Hausawa has suffered several attacks by kidnappers. And you can also remember that the recent one was the one where two of the kidnappers were killed and yet, they still abducted four residents who are still being held captive.”
Also, a teacher identified as Mrs Christiana said last Thursday’s attacks forced her to relocate from the area.
“Even though, the attack was carried out at the senior staff quarters, the sound of gunshots that night alone can cause high blood pressure. Hence, I had to relocate,” she said.
Another resident, Edward Musa, who has also relocated, said he was forced to move with his family because of the frequent attacks.
He said he had rented a two-bedroomed apartment for his family elsewhere, even though his house rent had yet to expire.
A retired civil servant, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said he couldn’t cope with the incessant attacks, hence, he decided to relocate from the area.
“I just retired last year, and I realised that with the way the kidnappers were attacking residents, it was not safe for me and my family,” he said.
The spokesperson for the FCT police command, ASP Maryam Yusuf, neither answered calls nor replied a text message sent to her phone to find out the security measures put in place to tackle the spate of kidnappings in the area.
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Tinubu Celebrates Birthday In Kano, Visits Emir
The National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, has arrived in Kano State to celebrate his birthday in the state.
This comes despite opposition to such in from some quarters.
For instance, Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF) had asked Governor Abdullahi Ganduje not to host Tinubu’s birthday in the state.
According to Daily Trust, on Sunday, Ganduje accompanied the former Lagos State governor to the palace of the Emir of Kano, Aminu Ado Bayero, where he paid homage.
Tinubu is expected to meet with the Northern Council of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria on Monday.
There are indications that Tinubu is eyeing the presidency, though he has not publicly declared his intention.
Speaking at the palace, Tinubu admitted that the country is passing through a trying moment, noting that only unity and prosperity will allow it to excel.
“Nigeria is at critical stage of its life and the only thing that would make it survive is unity and understanding, therefore, Lagos and Kano, which have come through these over time, must show the way.
“Peace and development would be eluded if the nation continues the way it is going, therefore unity and tranquility must be the hope that could be ridden on.
“One can see that today I, Bola Tinubu, is sitting side by side with Governor Ganduje and this is a clear testimony that people regardless of their tribes and religions could come together and make a change,” he said.
The Emir of Kano, Bayero, lauded Tinubu for choosing to celebrate his 69th birthday in Kano, describing it as a testimony to the unity and love he has for Nigeria.
This is the second time in four months that Tinubu will visit the state.
In December 2020, he met with some scholars who threw their weight behind his “2023 presidential ambition”.
In less than a week, Tinubu has been to Kaduna and Katsina states, which are among the states with the largest voting populations in the country.
Last week, Tinubu donated the sum of N50 million to victims of a recent fire outbreak at Katsina Central Market in Katsina State.
He also sympathy visits to traders and other victims of the fire outbreak in company with the state governor, Aminu Bello Masari.
Many Nigerians have however criticised Tinubu for the gesture, describing it as proof as that the APC chieftain is desperate to win over northerners in his bid to become Nigeria’s president as he was not known to have extended such gestures to victims of fire outbreaks in Lagos or other southern states.
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