Sahara Reporters Latest News Today Saturday 9th April 2022
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 09/04/22
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E2%80%99s-membership Russian Invasion: EU Vows To Speed Up Process For Ukraine’s Membership
President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has promised to offer Ukraine President, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, a speedier start to Ukraine’s bid to become a member of the European Union.During a meeting on Friday, Leyen handed Zelenskiy a questionnaire which would form a starting point for the EU to decide on membership for Kyiv, Reuters reports.
She said, “It will not, as usual, be a matter of years to form this opinion but I think a matter of weeks.” But Ukrainian President, Zelenskiy said he would come back with answers in a week.She underlined the sanctions put on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, saying, “Russia will descend into economic, financial and technological decay, while Ukraine is marching towards the European future, this is what I see.”
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University Unions, SSANU, NASU Extend Warning Strike By Two Weeks
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Education and Associated Institutions on Friday extended their warning strike by two weeks.On March 27, non-academic workers began a two-week warning strike over the Federal Government’s failure to accept their demands.
However, the strike was extended through a circular signed by SSANU President, Mohammed Ibrahim, and NASU General Secretary, Peters Adeyemi and sent to NASU and SSANU branch chairmen in universities and inter-university centres, captioned “Re: Commencement of two-week warning strike.” The circular reads in part, “Deriving from the failure of the Federal Government to act positively on the ongoing warning strike, JAC hereby directs members to continue with the warning strike for another two weeks, hoping that within the period the government will be in a position to address these issues. “However, if the present situation persists, members of NASU and SSANU will be adequately informed about the next line of action before the expiration of the additional two weeks.”
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After Seven-year Failure, Buhari Vows To Clean Mess In Nigeria Before End Of Tenure
Muhammadu Buhari
President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday says he is determined to clean the mess in the country, having made three unsuccessful attempts at becoming Nigerian president.Buhari said this while receiving a delegation of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) led by its President, Mrs. Comfort Olu Eyitayo, according to a statement signed by presidential spokesperson Femi Adesina.
Muhammadu Buhari
He was elected Nigerian president in 2015 after defeating Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).“Having served as a military Head of State, and returned to politics to serve as a president, after losing three elections, I have seen the system of accountability in the country, and the mess to be cleaned up,” Buhari said.While lauding the contributions of the institute in ensuring probity, accountability and transparency, the President called for more diligence and professionalism.He assured that his administration would continue to engage experts to gain measurable and reliable results, adding that professionals in various fields, especially accounting, provide the strength and framework for thriving economies.Describing ICAN as a “social stabiliser” of the economy, the President said he would go through reports and recommendations of the institute on inclusivity and strengthening the nation’s accounting system for growth.In her remarks, the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, congratulated the President of ICAN and the new management. According to her, ICAN had, over many years, played a key role in the domestication of some international policies in the country, urging more interest in Finance Act implementation.“As a female President in a male dominated environment, you are an example to our young girls of what can be achieved through diligence and excellence,” the minister said.President of ICAN appreciated Buhari and his administration in adhering to best accounting principles and practices to secure and revive the economy, particularly reverting to the January to December budget calendar.Eyitayo said the institute had established seven faculties to train accountants in specialized fields, which include forensic accounting.The ICAN President stated that forensic accounting, working with security outfits, could be used to reduce the security challenges facing the country by tracking all monies used in committing crimes, and payments.
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Yoruba Nation Agitator, Sunday Igboho Meets With Legal Team In Benin Republic On Next Steps
Sunday Igboho
Yoruba Nation activist, Sunday Igboho has met with his lawyers in Cotonou, Benin Republic.According to Nation, Igboho alongside leader of Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide, Prof Banji Akintoye and deputy leader of Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide, Prof Wale Adeniran, had a meeting with the lawyers.
Sunday Igboho
The meeting, according to the report, may be unconnected to how Igboho could regain his unconditional freedom.Igboho had been detained in a prison facility in the Republic of Benin, after he was arrested with Ropo, his wife, at Cardinal Bernardin International Airport, Cotonou, while on his way to Germany in July 2021.The 49-year-old agitator fled Nigeria for Benin Republic after the Nigerian government declared him wanted.But in March, the Ilana Omo Oodua, a self-determination group confirmed Igboho’s release, in a statement issued by its Communications Secretary, Maxwell Adeleye.However, Yomi Alliyu, one of the agitator’s lawyers said Igboho was released from prison to his medical practitioners.Alliyu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, said in a statement Monday that Sunday Igboho’s release was under the agreement that he should not leave the medical centre or Cotonou for any reason.Reacting, Maxwell in an interview with SaharaReporters said the agitator had regained total freedom and was permitted to hold rallies if he wished.The decision to remain in Benin Republic, he said, was taken amongst Igboho and the other Yoruba leaders and not the decision of the court.Maxwell said Igboho was not released to any medical practitioner as he stated that the Yoruba activist was sleeping at his house in Cotonou.He said, “Igboho was not stopped from holding rally, he was not released to any medical personnel he slept in his own house in Cotonou yesterday. It was an understanding that he should remain in Benin for now, to security reasons because he can be easily picked up if he returned to Nigeria.“There are no bail conditions. He has been released, he is free to enjoy his life and can do whatever he wants to do.”
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E2%80%93-governor-soludo Criminals Attacking Anambra Come From Other South-East States – Governor Soludo
Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State has condemned the recent attacks launched by unknown gunmen on citizens of the state.SaharaReporters had reported how gunmen on Thursday, set on fire the secretariat of Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State.
It was learnt that several buildings, including administrative blocks and parked vehicles, were among the facilities torched.Reacting, Soludo said the criminals who perpetrated the act were not from Anambra but from neighbouring South-East states according to information from those arrested. He said the act was carried out by those who had been sacked from their operational camp by joint operations of Nigerian Security forces.According to him, military operations around the borders of Aguluezechukwu and Ogborji communities in the council led to the dislodging of the arsonists who had operated for about two years.He said information from those arrested revealed that they were not from Anambra.According to Soludo, combined forces got to a criminal camp between Agulezechukwu and Ogborji, and from there, they had operated unhindered for over two years.”They attacked, kidnapped, maimed and burnt in so many places. They were smoked out, the camp destroyed and as they were fleeing cowardly, they decided to set the Local Government Secretariat ablaze but thank God the police came on time and smoked them out.“From the statistics so far, 85 per cent of people arrested come from one of the states in the South-East and the remaining 15 per cent from another state in the South-East.”It is really our people doing this to themselves. From the items recovered from them, they are common criminals, there is a register of those kidnapped, how much they paid, balance remaining, date of kidnap and how, shrines, arms and food items,” he said.He, however, urged agitators to embrace the olive branch extended to them by coming out of the forests and dropping their guns for rehabilitation.He warned that anybody in the bush with guns would be regarded as a criminal and treated as one.“We have offered an olive branch to all those who are in the bush to come out, surrender your guns and we will help to rehabilitate them to play critical roles in the development of Nigeria.“Those who refuse to take that option and decide to continue their nefarious activities in the bushes around, we assure that they cannot cow us.“This too shall come to pass, peace must return to Anambra and the South-East; anybody in the bush with a gun is a criminal and will be treated as such. There is no hiding place in Anambra, if you want to be in the bush to carry out criminality, you better find space elsewhere, Anambra is determined to take back their land. “If you fail to take the police branch, we will come after you, no amount of warning will cow, the people’s power must triumph, we are resolved to stamp out criminals in Anambra, we are irrepressible,” he said.
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BREAKING: American Actor, Will Smith Banned From Attending Oscars For 10 Years After Slap
Hollywood’s film academy on Friday said its board of governors banned Will Smith from any of its events, including the Oscars, for 10 years after the best actor winner slapped presenter Chris Rock on stage at the Academy Awards ceremony.”The 94th Oscars were meant to be a celebration of the many individuals in our community who did incredible work this past year,” Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President David Rubin and Chief Executive Dawn Hudson said in a statement.
“However, those moments were overshadowed by the unacceptable and harmful behaviour we saw Mr. Smith exhibit on stage.” In a statement, Smith said, “I accept and respect the Academy’s decision. The actor had resigned from the academy on April 1 and has issued statements apologizing to Rock, the Oscars producers, nominees and viewers. At the March 27 televised ceremony, Smith strode up to the stage after comedian Rock made a joke about the appearance of the actor’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, then smacked Rock across the face.Less than an hour later, Smith gave a tearful speech on stage as he accepted the best actor award for his role in “King Richard.” After the ceremony, he was seen dancing at Vanity Fair’s annual post-Oscars party.Rock’s joke about Pinkett Smith made a reference to the 1997 film “G.I. Jane” in which actress Demi Moore shaved her head. It was unclear whether Rock was aware that she has a condition that causes hair loss.
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Governor Udom Plots To Hijack Akwa Ibom PDP Membership Cards From Abuja, Delegates List To Favour Anointed Candidate – Sources
Emmanuel Udom
There is currently an alleged plot by the Akwa Ibom State Governor, Emmanuel Udom, to hijack delegates list for ward congresses of the state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in favour of his anointed candidate, Pastor Umo Eno, SaharaReporters has learnt.The PDP in Akwa Ibom has been embroiled in crisis since the announcement of the Commissioner of Lands and Water resources, Eno by the governor as his preferred successor at a meeting with few leaders and some religious leaders known as “Fathers of Faith.”
Emmanuel Udom
The ward congresses which have been scheduled for Saturday April 23, 2022, will lead to the PDP primaries in the state.A source at the National Secretariat of the PDP who spoke with SaharaReporters disclosed that Udom had spent millions of tax payers’ money to bribe party officials in order to hijack 500,000 new membership cards meant for party members in the state.The plot, it is alleged, is to ensure that the cards are issued only to trusted associates of the governor who will in turn ensure the emergence of ad-hoc delegates who will do his bidding.At a recent meeting with some state party executives, the governor directed them to commence the compilation of lists from the various wards. In the aftermath of the meeting and directive, the State Chairman, Mr. Aniekan Akpan, convened a meeting of all LGA and ward Chairmen where he instructed them to surrender sensitive registration documents in their custody Including Ward Registers and new Party membership cards intended for distribution to members of the Party in their respective wards.There have been reports that ward chairmen were also instructed by some government officials from their domains not to issue the cards to members, while those who had already compiled names of members for issuance were directed to withhold the cards.SaharaReporters gathered that the governor and his allies intended retrieving the unused party cards and the registers, and then inviting selected people to certain locations over the next few days to fill out the remaining cards and their names listed in the various registers to enable them vote in the congress.Some members of the party who spoke with SaharaReporters expressed fears that the desperation being demonstrated by the governor’s camp was capable of endangering the relative peace that characterised the Akwa Ibom State Chapter of the PDP and undermining its chances at the general election.Another source said, “The governor is desperate to impose an unpopular candidate on the party but it won’t fly. His choice, Umo Eno, lacks the pedigree and popularity to win this election ahead of other aspirants.”SaharaReporters had on September 24, 2021 reported how the governor chose Umo as his successor.The choice of Umo has raised serious dust in the party with many aspirants and leaders of the party insisting they would resist any form of imposition by the governor.Key members of Gov. Udom’s cabinet including his Chief of Staff, Ephraim Inyang and two Commissioners resigned out of protest to pitch tent with other aspirants in the race.No fewer than 14 aspirants picked the Nomination and Expression of interest forms to contest for governor in defiance of Udom.There has been anxiety within the governor’s camp that his anointed candidate has no chance of emerging as a candidate in a free and fair contest, hence the resort to under-the-hand tactics to skew the delegates’ list in Udom’s favour.
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Abuja-Kaduna Train Bombing: 141 Passengers Still Missing As Railway Corporation Recovers More Coaches
At least 141 persons out of the 362 onboard the AK-9 train bombed by terrorists recently, are still missing, says the Nigerian Railway Corporation, NRC.The NRC Managing Director, Fidet Okhiria, in an update on Friday noted that half of the capsised Coach SP 00003 had been pushed back to a standing position while Coach SPA 00002 had been re-railed and pushed back to Rigasa station, Kaduna.
He said, “The total number of recovered Coaches is now 12 out of 14. These include all the 11 Coaches of the attacked AK9 train and a Coach of the Rescue Train. All 12 Coaches recovered have been moved safely to our stations.“Efforts are continuing to recover the remaining two Coaches and Loco 2809.”Intensive and more expansive track repair works have also been achieved at the incident site.”
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NIN-SIM Deadline: Civic Group, SERAP Threatens To Sue Buhari Government For Blocking 72million Nigerians
The Socio-Economic Right and Accountability Project, SERAP says it will sue President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration for blocking 72million telecommunication subscribers in the country.Over 72.77 million active telecommunication subscribers have been barred from making calls on their SIMs, after a directive from the Federal Government to telecommunication companies.
Reacting in a tweet, SERAP faulted the blocking of lines without due process.The tweet reads: “BREAKING: NIN-SIM registration: We’re suing the Buhari administration over the blocking of 72 million subscribers from making calls without due process of law.” Nigerian Government, on Monday, ordered telecommunications companies to bar outgoing calls on mobile lines not linked with the National Identification Number (NIN).The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, announced this in a statement on Monday.Some days ago, the Nigerian government again announced the extension of the deadline for the ongoing national identification number (NIN) and subscriber identity module (SIM) integration exercise by a few days. The exercise was meant to end on Thursday, March 31, 2022.
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Nigeria Under Buhari Overtakes Iraq As Country With Highest Attacks By Islamic State Terrorists
Jihad Analytics, a consultancy company which processes data on global and cyber jihad says Nigeria now has the highest number of attacks by the Islamic State (IS).According the report, half of the attacks claimed by IS since the beginning of 2022 were in Africa, while the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP), an affiliate of IS, is now more active in Nigeria.
Data by Jihad Analytics showed that while Nigeria has recorded a total of 162 IS operations since January 2022, Iraq has recorded 120.“Since the beginning of the year, the Islamic State has conducted half of its attacks in #Africa,” the company wrote in a tweet on Friday.“For the first time in the history of the jihadi group, Iraq is no longer the country where #IS claims the highest number of operations: the group #ISWAP is now more active in Nigeria.”As of March, Nigeria ranked sixth on the 2022 global terrorism index (GTI).The ranking was viewed as a relative improvement as Nigeria dropped two places from the fourth position — a position it had been since 2017.IS has killed thousands and displaced millions in North-Eastern Nigeria.It has also severally attacked the convoy of the Governor of Borno state, Babagana Umara Zulum.The group has killed thousands and displaced millions in North-Eastern Nigeria.The Nigerian military has repeatedly claimed that the insurgency had been largely defeated and frequently underplays any losses.In the past months, soldiers have been targeted by the insurgents, who lay in ambush on their path.
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