Sahara Reporters Latest News Today Saturday 23rd April 2022
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 23/04/22
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Transport Union, NURTW Kicks Over Arrest Of 16 Members By Oyo Government, Alleges Plan To Kill Them
Seyi Makinde
The National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Oyo State chapter whose activities were banned by the state Governor, Seyi Makinde, raised the alarm on Friday that 16 of its members were on Thursday arrested by a combined team of armed policemen from the state police command.The NURTW chairman, Alhaji Olajide Abideen (Ejiogbe) in a press statement on Friday evening said the arrested union members were apprehended at the state NURTW office in Ibadan.
Seyi Makinde
Olajide in the two-page statement he personally signed alleged that there were moves to either eliminate the suspects through poisoning or implicate the members for crimes they didn’t commit.He said, “You will recall that by letter dated 24th March 2022, we cried out to the Commissioner of Police, Oyo State, Ngozi Onadeko, of the threat to our lives by Mukaila Lamidi a.k.a Auxiliary who claimed he is not comfortable with our taking possession of our building at Aduloju Area, Iwo Road/Oojo Road, Ibadan.”To our surprise, Mrs Ngozi Onadeko rather than investigate the said allegation has descended on the union and is now harassing us by arresting our members. It will also be recalled that sometime in March, 2022, the executive members of the National Union of Road Transport Union Workers were on air at Fresh F.M (105.9) Ibadan to discuss this threat.”The host of the programme (Isaac Brown) hosted the Secretary of the State chapter of the NURTW (Alhaji Lekan Alesinloye) wherein he made it known to the general public that the Executive Governor ordered that the members of the union found in any form of gathering shall be arrested and made to face the wrath of the law.”During the course of the programme, the host put a call across to the Public Relations Officer of the Park Management System of Oyo State in person of Jelili Emiola wherein he stated on the air that the government was coming to the office of the NURTW and shall arrest and prosecute anyone found in our office.”Fast forward to the 21st day of April, 2022 at exactly 10:05am, the Commissioner of Police under the instruction of the governor arrested 16 members of our union at our office at Aduloju Area along Oojo-Iwo Express Road.”It is pertinent to note that, the policemen forcefully opened the doors of our office and found nothing incriminating in our office. Till this very moment, the arrested members have not been released neither have they been charged to court. “It has been brought to our notice that about mid-day today, some government officials including some P.M.S. members were seen at the Deputy Commissioner of Police Office, STATE CID Iyaganku, wherein we were made to believe that there is a ploy to fabricate lies against them and use the police to poison the 16 members that are in their custody presently, and also to plan on how to bring a dead body to our premises in order to implicate our members.”We are using this medium to intimate the general public that the Governor of the State and the Commissioner of Police, Oyo State are working in tandem to ensure that members of the union do not move freely in the state because of the coming general election. We believe that the Commissioner of Police and the governor are doing this in furtherance of the latter’s resolve to resort to violence during the forthcoming General Election of 2023.”We also wish to state to the general public that if anything happens to any member of the Union arrested on the 21st day of April, 2022 or any other member of the union, the governor and the Commissioner of Police, Oyo State should be held accountable,” the statement added.
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Fee Or Ransom Money? A Call On Nigerian Youths To Revolt Against Apc At The 2023 Polls By Pelumi Olajengbesi Esq.
While the forecast for the 2023 election is still clouded by uncertainties as to who and who would get the tickets of their respective parties, a few things are coming out in bold relief. One of them is that the ruling All Progressive Party are auctioning the presidency, and opposition parties must be wary. For a civil servant earning the national minimum wage to be able to purchase the APC Presidential Form pegged at a staggering N100Million naira, he or she would have to save all of his earnings for 278 years. However, for ‘privileged’ members of the APC who have had their hands in the national pie without challenge for seven years and counting, it is a simple matter of sieving serious interests from political blusters in the running.
The problem is, a Nigerian President in a four year tenure earns less than N60 Million by the books, and no level of patriotism can discountenance the absurdity of paying N100Million naira to earn less than N60 Million in a single tenure- that is even if such an aspirant clinches the party’s ticket and also wins the presidential election. There are just way too many IFS and WHAT-IFS, and so this isn’t love for one’s country, it is a public gambit for our common patrimony. A candidate who spends much more than he’d earn in a single tenure as basic salary would spend a chunk of his time in office recouping his ‘investment’. This is, of course, the mind-set behind such a brazen cost, the prebendalistic approach to government as a means to private wealth acquisition. It is this carrot, dangled before the angling APC Presidential aspirants that would see them fork out such huge payments for their party’s ticket.
When further placed in political context, at no other time since the merger of the two parties that make up the APC have they suffered from a loss of popularity owing to their evident failure in government at the national and state level. For a party for whom the funeral bells toll, one wonders as to the insight that fuels their conviction that paying such a huge sum for the party’s ticket (not just at the presidential level) is not a fruitless gamble. Again, opposition parties must be wary. In 2019, the APC demonstrated that popularity no longer wins elections, guts do.
Another facet to the price tags the APC have placed on their party tickets is its exclusionary and discriminatory nature. Clearly, the #Not Too Young To Run campaign was a train on which the APC hopped to achieve its aim in deceiving young Nigerians to vote them in but a cause in which they place zero premium and regards. In private discourse I have suggested to APC faithfuls that they start a #Just Too Poor To Run counter-campaign as the latter best represents the ideologue of the party. It should be embarrassing to the party that under their mis-governance, Nigerian youths are poorer and can simply not compete for the party’s ticket but the APC are demonstrably without shame. On social media streets we say, ‘you cannot shame the shameless’. Even the irony of the farce of the APC’s ransom-like price tags are lost on the clowns who tout the party as one with considerations for youths.
A recently released NBS statistics states that over 92% of Nigerians earn less than N62, 000 a month, and overall inflation between 2014 and 2022 in food, transport, health, education and communication have gone from single figures to alarming double figures. Nigeria’s economic infamy within the same time frame has earned it the notoriety of being Africa and the world’s poverty capital, with a population surviving on less than a dollar per day. Clearly, the fortunes of an overwhelming 92 to 95% of the citizenry (75% of which are youths) have taken a turn for the worst, and the latest ‘salt to injury’ that the APC terms its nomination fees should receive resounding condemnation from the youths demographics. A revolution in the form of non-violent civil disobedience, protest and revolt is in fact in order and past due.
No truly sensitive government would come to the kind of conclusions that drive the APC’s politics. It is a party insulated to the realities of Nigeria and Nigerians and one in whose hands the apparatus of government will continue to suffer abuse and the wealth of the nation decline. It behoves on the Nigerian youths whose immediate future is threatened by the monetisation of governance to say enough is enough by having their voices heard loud and hard at the polls.
I must confess that my first thought on finding out the cost of the APC’s Presidential Form Fee was whether the party is taking a cue from the dare-devil terrorist-bandits that kidnap people for ransom. Those bandits might be inspired to go higher in their demands! The paradigm of a failed party overseeing a failed government auctioning its party’s form at such outrageous fees is ominous. There is no integrity in these fees having the backing of General Muhammadu Buhari who claimed to have struggled through a loan to obtain the APC’s N20Million Form Fee in 2015. A leader should lessen and not aggravate difficulties, unless of course, it is an admission of the biting inflation that has plagued this government from inception to date. All things considered, it is an embarrassing affair.
Pelumi Olajengbesi Esq., is a Public Interest Lawyer and Managing Partner at Law Corridor Lawcorridor@gmail.com
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University Unions, NASU, SSANU Extend Warning Strike By One Month
The Joint Action Committee of the Non-Academic Staff Union, NASU, and the Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Universities, SSANU, on Friday again extended their 14-day warning strike in Nigerian universities by one month.The National President, SSANU, Mohammed H. Ibrahim and General Secretary, NASU, Peter A. Adeyemi, respectively, in a statement dated April 21, 2022, informed the members that the strike has been extended by one month.
“It was unfortunate that the government had kept mute and remained indifferent to the demands of JAC of NASU and SSANU,” the statement noted.“Deriving from the feedback received from our branches in respect of the resolutions conducted which supported fully the ongoing strike and other actions taken by the leadership of JAC, this is to inform members that the strike has been extended by one month to commence on midnight of Sunday, 24th April 2022, pending when the Federal government would have change of heart and be favourably disposed to our demands as highlighted in our letters dated March 1st, 2022, to the representative of the government, the Hon. Minister of Labour and Employment,” the statement added.The body also took note of the media statement credited to the representative of the government, Dr Chris Ngige, Minister of Labour and Employment on the “No Work No Pay” policy to its members.The demands of the two unions include the inconsistent issue of IPPIS, unpaid earned allowances and delay in renegotiation of the Federal Government of Nigeria, NASU, SSANU agreement and non-payment of minimum wage arrears.Others included neglect and poor funding of state universities, non-payment of retirement benefits to outgoing members of the unions and usurpation of headship of non-teaching units in clear violation of conditions of service and establishment procedures, among others.
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C2%A3175million-mansion EXCLUSIVE: How Nigerian Ports Authority Managing Director, Koko Bought £1.75Million Mansion In London While ‘Serving As Amaechi’s Bank Account Officer’
Mohammed Bello Koko
Mohammed Bello Koko, the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) bought a house worth £1,750,000 in the United Kingdom in 2015, a document seen by SaharaReporters has revealed.
SaharaReporters gathered that the Kebbi state-born banker was the Zenith Bank accounts officer to Rivers state government when Rotimi Amaechi was governor.
Mohammed Bello Koko
He had worked in the banking circles in Rivers for a long time, rising to become deputy regional manager at Zenith Bank Plc.
In 2016, the 53-year-old Bello-Koko was appointed executive Director of NPA after he proceeded on a leave of absence from the bank in 2015.
He was in charge of finance and admin under the sacked MD, Hadiza Bala-Usman.
The document seen by SaharaReporters showed that the mansion located at 2A Beech Hill, Barnet, Greater London, EN4 0JP was bought by Bello-Koko on November 06, 2015, at £1,750,000.
The 7-bedroom freehold detached house is currently ranked as the 11th most expensive property in EN4 0JP, with a valuation of £2,274,000.
“Since it last sold in November 2015 for £1,750,000, its value has increased by £524,000,” an estate developer website, The Move Market said.
“2A Beech Hill, Barnet has 3 transactions recorded with HM Land Registry – its market value today is £2,274,000.
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EXCLUSIVE: Nigerian Ports Authority’s Managing Director, Koko Exposed By Anti-graft Agency, EFCC For Receiving N829million As Kickbacks, Engaging In Money Laundering
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“The current owner bought the property in November 2015 for £1,750,000 and has lived here for 5 years. Since the current owner purchased the property, its value has increased by £524,000 (29.9%).
“The previous owner had the property for 4 years, having purchased it in October 2011 for £1,200,000.
“During this time, the price rose by £550,000 (45.8%), which equates to it increasing in value by 9.7% each year. The property turned out to be a really good investment for the previous owner.”
Anti-corruption Group Speaks
Meanwhile, an anti-corruption group, ‘Say No To Corruption In Nigeria’ has asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to extend its searchlight on Bello-Koko and the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi.
“It’s no more a secret that Bello-Koko was Amaechi’s account officer for years. He has been a crony for Amaechi’s corrupt practices,” the coordinator of the group, Ahmed Abubakar said.
“How will it be that in 2015, Bello-Koko acquired a property worth £1,750,000 in the United Kingdom, a few months after Amaechi left office as governor and him being his account officer?
“His last position in Zenith Bank before he went on leave was deputy regional manager, how was he able to afford a house of that amount in 2015? These are questions begging for answers.
“This man was in charge of finance and admin under Bala-Usman in NPA then. Under normal circumstances, he should be the primary target for the probe that sacked the woman. After all, the allegations investigated fell directly under his department.”
Abubakar added, “As Nigerians prepare for the elections, it is critical that the world pays significant attention to the ongoing campaigns to determine who becomes the President of Nigeria come May 2023. While many candidates appear to have the right pedigree to be seeking this exalted office, Rotimi Amaechi stands out as too decidedly corrupt and morally bankrupt to be doing so. “Amaechi served as Speaker of Rivers State (an oil-rich state in Southern Nigeria) for 8 years and went on to serve as governor of the state for another 8 years. For the past 7 years, he has been Nigeria’s Minister of Transportation.
“During these 23 years, Amaechi has become a master of awarding dubious contracts to phoney companies, for non-existent jobs, often to political cronies, who it appears, served as his own purses for the proceeds of these contracts. “Amaechi’s pattern of corruption reared its head recently in the wake of the unfortunate attack on a train travelling between Abuja, the nation’s capital city, and Kaduna, a critical metropolis in the Northwest of the country. During his inspection of the damage, he blamed the current government, of which he is a member of the Executive, for moving too slowly to award the contract he had pushed for securing the rail lines.
“The very next day, minutes from that Executive Council Meeting were released to show that Mr. Amaechi had intended to award the contract worth N3.7 billion (about $8.5 million) to a company that was registered only two years ago with no prior record of security jobs, and a turnover of less than $190,000. It is on the basis of these questionable details that the proposal was denied. “Sad as this episode might be for Nigerians given the loss of lives on that train attack and the continuing hostage of many of the passengers on that train, this pattern of fictitious contracting is one that Mr. Amaechi appears to have unfortunately mastered to perfection. And it is one that Nigerians should be aware of and as such, not reward him with the highest office in their country. “During his term as governor of Rivers State, Amaechi routinely broke his own procurement laws and awarded contracts involving large sums of money to many questionable causes and invisible services. Using several personal and corporate proxies, hundreds of billions of Rivers State taxpayers’ monies were simply siphoned off the state’s coffers by his cronies. “For example, Amaechi’s government awarded a contract and paid a company named Magnum and Hunter Limited received several hundreds of millions from the Rivers State Sport Ministry Account Number 0006786960 in a leading Nigerian Bank. Yet, a search of this company in Nigeria’s Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) suggests the company is not registered and has no track record upon which that contract should have been awarded. “Similarly, a few weeks after Lemaco Engineering Limited was registered in Port-Harcourt, the State capital, the government awarded it a lucrative contract for which it received almost N850 million from the Rivers State Sports Ministry’s account in the same bank. A search on CAC’s website indicates the current status of this company is now unknown. Unsurprisingly, and in line with Amaechi’s modus operandi, Lemaco Engineering Limited was floated by his close confidant, Victor Giadom, who for several years served as a critical cabinet member in Amaechi’s government. “Many other contracts were awarded like Lemaco’s in which the companies are formed hurriedly by apparent cronies, they receive a huge contract, monies are paid upfront, with no discernible goods supplied, services rendered or benefits received for the citizens of the State. Such companies and deals include ones given to Opriala Integrated Services which received N103 million, Faribo Nigeria Limited which got over N920 million, Klear Image Limited, which received N216 million, and Tawfik Engineering Limited which received N143 million from the River State Ministry of Works.
“A search of these companies in CAC’s database indicates they do not exist and may have been Special Purpose Vehicles in a grand scheme of money laundering and corruption. Another pattern of transactions that pervaded his time as Governor were basically huge sums of payments in cash to individuals. These transactions appeared fraudulent because they were not only conducted in cash but with no descriptions whatsoever for their benefits to the taxpayers Mr. Amaechi swore to serve. “For example, in a single day and for no recorded purpose, a senior official of the Finance Ministry named J. P. Brown made cash withdrawals of N10 million each totalling N950 million from the Rivers State Sub Treasury Pension Account Number 6010944734 in a first-rate commercial bank. At the time of this withdrawal, the main account officer of Rivers State was a gentleman named Mohammed Bello-Koko, who was later arrested and imprisoned by Nigeria’s anti-graft agency.
“Once Amaechi became a powerful Minister, he worked out his release and made Mr. Bello-Koko an Executive Director in charge of Finance at the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), an agency under Mr. Amaechi’s Transportation Ministry. As a reward for continued cooperation and connivance for such corrupt deals, Mr. Amaechi recently ensured the promotion of Mr. Bello-Koko to the post of CEO of the NPA. A forthcoming essay will expose such recent deals at the NPA. “Similar to the withdrawal above, Amaechi presided over many such cash withdrawals from the state’s treasury by cronies and friends. In August 2012, an individual named Atu Komily received a cash payment of N110 million in tranches of N10 million each from the Deputy Governor’s Overhead Account Number 5030000382 domiciled in a mid-level Nigerian bank. The same individual received N430 million in cash payments from the same bank a few weeks later. Similarly, cash payments of N230 million and N190 million were made from the same account to Kiri Okeanyi and Mabel Worika respectively.
“These withdrawals were done in tranches of N10 million and N20 million each in July 2012. Also, cash payments in tranches totalling N350 million were made to an individual named Daobu Harry in September 2012 from the Rivers State Sports Ministry Account Number 5030032978 in the same mid-level Nigerian bank. “In a brazen display of corruption, impunity and non-accountability, such transactions became the order of business throughout Mr. Amaechi’s tenure as governor. Similar cash withdrawals, with no description for work done or service rendered, were made to Bright Ezebuola (N180 million), Innocent Amadi (N120 million), Abaate Godson (N110 million), Christopher Quakers (N130 million), Leyira Pyagbara (N280 million) and J.P. Brown (N1.2 billion). “There are many other such transactions that were directly ordered by Mr. Amaechi and marked “Executive Governor’s Office totalling over N98 billion in one bank alone that will be the subject of another essay.
“Despite these and many other well-documented allegations, President Buhari, who otherwise appears not to condone corruption in any guise and from anyone, continues to tolerate Mr. Amaechi, leading many to suspect he may be doing something for the President’s inner circle who are protecting him. “Regardless of what the President or anti-graft agencies might do with these verifiable information, it is important that Nigerian voters are aware of Mr. Amaechi’s pattern of governance, which is riddled with opacity, cronyism, and corruption.”
Pandora Papers
Meanwhile, a Pandora Papers in 2021 revealed that Bello-Koko was behind two shell companies incorporated in a tax haven to anonymously invest in the United Kingdom property market.
This potentially violates Nigeria’s public service code of conduct laws.
Pandora Papers also disclosed that he and his wife, Agatha Anne Koko, enlisted the services of financial secrecy seller, Cook Worldwide and Alemán, Cordero, Galindo & Lee (Alcogal), an offshore law firm, to register Coulwood Limited (reg. number: 1487897) and Marney Limited (reg. number: 1487944) in the British Virgin Islands (BVI), one of the world’s most commonly used tax havens, in 2008. Both companies were registered on the same day, June 19, 2008.
Though a public servant, Bello-Koko is also a director of the two companies, in violation of Nigeria’s Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act (Sections 5 and 6).
Pandora Papers project is led by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).
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Again, Nnamdi Kanu’s American Lawyer, Bruce Fein Petitions ICC, Wants Federal High Court Judge, Tsoho Charged For Crimes Against Humanity, Others
Bruce Fein
Bruce Fein, the American counsel for the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has filed a petition against Justice John Terhemba Tsoho, Chief Judge (CJ) of Nigeria’s Federal High Court to the International Criminal Court (ICC).Fein, an international lawyer and spokesperson for Kanu, addressed the petition to Karim Khan, Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, in The Hague, asking the ICC to charge Tsoho with his “co-conspirators, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, Nigerian Attorney General Abubakar Malami, and Federal High Court Justice Binta Nyako, for committing crimes of genocide and crimes against humanity against Biafran leader Nnamdi Kanu.
Bruce Fein
He said this was part of “a widespread and systematic attack by the Fulani-controlled Federal Government of Nigeria, against the Biafran civilian population in the southeast.”Kanu is being held by the Department of State Services (DSS) at its headquarters in Abuja, after the Nigerian government repatriated him from Kenya in June 2021, an action his lawyers termed “illegal, unlawful, unconstitutional extradition”.He is standing trial on charges bordering on treasonable felony and terrorism before the Federal High Court, Abuja.In the document obtained by SaharaReporters on Friday, Fein said, “The Federal Government of Nigeria ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on September 27, 2001. The Federal Government of Nigeria has initiated no investigation of the crimes alleged herein under Article 17 of the Rome Statute. The ICC possesses jurisdiction over genocide and crimes against humanity as defined by Articles 6 and 7 of the Rome Statute.“The accused, Chief Judge of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, John Terhemba Tosoho, is engaged in an ongoing conspiracy involving co-conspirators Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, Nigerian Attorney General Abubakar Malami, and Federal High Court Justice Binta Nyako, to commit crimes of genocide and crimes against humanity against Biafran leader Nnamdi Kanu, as part of a widespread and systematic attack by the Fulani-controlled Federal Government of Nigeria, against the Biafran civilian population in the south-east.“Chief Judge Tosoho has acted with knowledge of the ongoing systematic Fulani attacks on Biafrans when he conspired with co-conspirators President Buhari, President Kenyatta, Attorney General Malami, and Justice Nyako in Nnamdi Kanu’s kidnapping, torture, extraordinary rendition, arbitrary detention, and persecution because of political views, ethnicity, or religion as amplified anon.“Chief Judge Tosoho conspired with co-conspirators President Buhari, Attorney General Malami, and Justice Nyako to authorize an illegal secret faux trial of Nnamdi Kanu on April 7, 2022, for alleged terrorist crimes carrying the death penalty as part of an ongoing genocide of Biafrans and crimes against humanity because of their ethnicity, Christianity, and legitimate political objective of self-determination guaranteed by Article 1 (1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).“According to Nigeria’s Orwellian legal regime, Nnamdi Kanu is guilty of terrorism and treason through exercising his rights to free speech and association protected by the Nigerian Constitution and multiple international human rights covenants in seeking a Biafran independence referendum by peaceful, Gandhi-like means. The Federal Government of Nigeria, after more than ten months of Kanu’s arbitrary detention, has yet to proffer a crumb of evidence implicating him in terrorism or violence. In October 2020, five human rights experts of the United Nations Human Rights Council asked President Buhari within 60 days to submit evidence of Mr. Kanu’s terrorism.“Mr. Kanu’s seeking a Biafran sovereignty a referendum is not special pleading. South Sudan voted independence from Sudan in a 2011 referendum. The United Kingdom recently afforded Scotland a secession. It did so earlier for Northern Ireland. Canada has afforded Quebec a self-determination vote. The United States periodically permits Puerto Rico to vote between statehood, independence, or commonwealth status. The legal and moral case for Biafran independence is overwhelming. A few pages of history are worth volumes of logic.“On the other hand, the widely believed Nigerian State protected Jihadists especially the Jihadist Fulani Herdsmen are responsible for hacking to death in 2021 alone of at least 270 Igbo Christians. Their death had majorly occurred in Ebonyi, Enugu, Anambra, Imo, Abia and Igbo parts of Delta, Edo (Obiaruku and Igbo-Akiri), Benue and Kogi States. The killings by Jihadist Fulani Herdsmen have brought the total number of defenseless citizens traceably killed in Eastern Nigeria in the past 14 months to at least 1,400. This is when added to 1,150 defenseless civilian deaths perpetrated by security forces.“The Death Toll Could Be 2,400 If 1000 Missing/Presumed Dead Citizens Are Added It is therefore likely correct to say that in all, not less than 2,400 unarmed civilians lost their lives to Nigerian security forces and the Jihadists in Eastern Nigeria in the past 14 months-covering October 2020 to December 2021. This is on account of the fact that the not less than 1000 missing persons are likely to have been killed in custodies and most unlikely to be returned alive to their families again. This is more so when strong evidence abounds showing no traces of location and securing the release of citizens abducted by soldiers of the Nigerian Army in Eastern Nigeria since January 2021. They also hardly handover or transfer those arrested or abducted to the Police. From our investigation, most, if not all those abducted by them since January 2021 have never been located by families or seen alive till date.“This Special Investigative Report also found that not less than 400 leaders/members of the African Instituted Churches, derogatorily called “White Garment Churches” including Sabbath sects and their likes have been abducted or killed in security custodies. Through religious profiling and persecution and fueled by false labeling and without concrete and indictable pieces of evidence, the Nigerian security forces have designated them as ‘terrorist religious group’ and hatefully accused them of membership and sponsorship of “ESN/IPOB”. Many, if not most of their sacred sanctuaries and symbols of worship and dwelling houses have also been burnt down or destroyed by security forces. Traditional herbalists across Eastern Nigeria have also become endangered species in the hands of security forces. From the camps of about five designated categories of “Unknown Gunmen” operating in Igbo parts of Eastern Nigeria, not less than 100 civilian deaths have been recorded in the Region since July 2021 with Imo, Anambra, Enugu and Abia as the worst hit. From the angle of international law’s recognized “legitimate deaths” or deaths arising from battlefields’ combats between security forces and armed opposition groups (i.e. ESN/’Unknown Gunmen’), a total of 300 security operatives and 100 opposition armed men have lost their lives in the past 14 months.“It was our further investigative discovery that no fewer than 100 Igbo communities have been invaded by security forces in the past 14 months and caused not less than 1000 homes or dwelling houses to be raided and razed during which properties such as the land housing each of the buildings, the building structure, electronics and electrical appliances, chairs and house utensils, food items, economic trees, domestic animals, automobiles and other valuable items were destroyed or burnt to ashes or looted. From our conservative estimates, each house, its land and properties is worth not less than N35m, translating to N35billion for the estimated 1000 dwelling houses destroyed or burnt down. The remaining N5b arises from other outside-the-house properties destroyed or burnt down including market stores and their wares-totaling N40billion as total properties’ value lost in the hands of the Nigerian security forces particularly soldiers of the Nigerian Army and other branches of the Armed Forces.“Igbo Nation Target Of The Killings – the killings by Nigerian security forces had occurred mostly in Igbo-Christian parts of Eastern Nigeria including Imo, Rivers, Abia, Ebonyi, Anambra, Enugu and Akwa Ibom States as well as Delta and Cross River States which recorded the lowest number of deaths. Further breakdown indicates that the Nigerian security forces were specifically responsible for killing of at least 1000 defenseless citizens in the East in 2021 while Jihadist Fulani Herdsmen killed not less than 270 in the same 2021. The Nigerian Army had also between October and November 2020 killed not less 150 defenseless civilians in Obigbo (Oyigbo Local Government Area) and its environs in Rivers State and abducted over 700 civilians; and out of the number, 418 have been independently located and freed. While no fewer than 110 defenseless citizens were killed in Obigbo and its environs, the remaining 40 deaths occurred in different secret Army custodies where the Obigbo abductees were secretly detained amidst torture and starvation. Another 100 abducted defenseless citizens were recently (in late November 2021) traced and discovered to have been dumped at Kaduna Prisons and Lock Centers, out of the number, five died. Over 40 of the over 700 abductees were also found to have been killed in various secret Army custodies.“CHIEF JUDGE JOHN TSOHO’S PARTCIPATION IN AN ONGOING ATTEMPTED JUDCICIAL MURDER OF NNAMDI KANU BY AUTHORIZING A SECRET SHOW TRIAL OF TERRORISM CHARGES CARRYING THE DEATH PENALTY AS PART OF ONGOING GENOCIDE AND CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY AGAINST BIAFRANS THROUGH KILLING, RAPE, TORTURE, STARVATION, DEPRIVATION OF MEDICAL CARE, AND CREATION OF SUBSISTENCE CONDTIONS OF LIFE INTENDED TO DESTORY THE GROUP IN WHOLE OR IN PART BECAUSE OF THEIR ETHNICITY, RELIGION, OR POLITICAL OPINION.“On or about May 5, 2021, Nnamdi Kanu entered the Republic of Nigeria on his British passport at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Nairobi, Kenya, and occupied temporary quarters. On June 19, 2021, Mr. Kanu drove himself to the airport to depart. Immediately upon stopping at the basement parking lot and alighting, several armed men abducted, handcuffed, blindfolded, and bundled him into a vehicle and sped away. Mr. Kanu was taken to a nondescript private house somewhere in Nairobi and chained to the floor. He was systematically beaten and tortured to the point where he repeatedly fainted. His abductors used water to revive him.“Throughout the torture and beatings, they hurled taunts and derogatory comments at Nnamdi Kanu including calling him “terrorist Jew Biafran.” To prevent screaming that could alter third parties, Nnamdi Kanu’s abductors tied cloth over his mouth and nose which made breathing problematic. He remained chained to the floor for eight (8) days and denied ordinary toilet or bathing facilities. He survived on bread and water once a day.“Mr. Kanu’s abductors spoke English. They repeatedly referenced a “chief of police” and “Nigerian High Commissioner.” They did not care that Nnamdi Kanu was a British citizen and entered Kenya on a British passport. Their maltreatment and torture caused Nnamdi Kanu external and internal injuries and engendered fear that he would die chained to the floor. On the eighth day, Nnamdi Kanu’s abductors drove him to the tarmac of the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and delivered him to Nigerian security officials.“They forced him into a private jet that departed around noon on June 27, 2021, and landed in Abuja, Nigeria, that evening. Upon arrival, Nnamdi Kanu was detained at the headquarters of Nigeria’s secret police known as State Security Services (SSS). The first night there, he was required to sleep in the floor with bright electric lights and extreme heat causing sleep interruptions and mental anguish. On July 1, 2021, the British High Commissioner in Nigeria, acting in accord with Article 36 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, to which Britain and Nigeria are parties, met with the Attorney General of Nigeria to obtain information about the abduction, extraordinary rendition, and detention of Nnamdi Kanu.”
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Three Killed, Others Injured In Lagos Tanker Explosion
At least three persons have been reportedly killed while others were injured as a tanker, fully loaded with Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), popularly known as petrol exploded at the Ajegunle Bus Stop along the Lagos- Abeokuta expressway.It was learnt that the people that died in the incident that happened on Friday, included a teenage girl, who was assisting her mother to sell alcoholic drinks, an unidentified man and another man from the northern part of Nigeria, who had gone to scoop fuel from the exploded tanker.
A driver told Tribune that the fire did not emanate from the tanker but from far down the toll gate area, where the petrol spilt through the drainage.The driver said “It happened around 3am. The tanker was already in front of the filling station and was about to turn into the police station when it fell on its side.”He continued that “the petrol in the tanker began to spill into the drainage down to the toll gate area. Some area boys started scooping fuel from the drainage.”“Suddenly, we heard a loud bang down the toll gate area and the fire traced the petrol spillage to where the tanker had fallen and there was a pound explosion.”“Everybody ran in different directions. Nobody could wait to say what happened after that. The explosion was very big.”Confirming the incident was the director of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, Margaret Adeseye who said that “the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service has successfully combated a fire outbreak at Ajegunle via Toll Gate Bus Stop, Abeokuta Expressway, bordering Lagos and Ogun states.“The situation is however being brought under control by the Agege, Ikeja and Alausa Fire Crews of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service with the use of tactical Firefighting application of Chemical Foam Compound to suppress the fire.“The public is hereby assured that the situation is under control as the process of mopping up and evacuation of the remains of the fire is ongoing.“They should however exercise caution and restraint as outbound Lagos traffic has been diverted to travel with the inbound vehicular traffic.“Unfortunately, a male adult was recovered suspected dead likewise three various brands of vehicles involved in the fire aside from the tanker and shops.”
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Airtel Nigeria Used My Song ‘Nigeria Go Survive’ To Promote TV App, ‘The Voice Nigeria’ Without Authorisation, Veteran Artiste, Veno Mbanefo Insists
Veteran singer, Veno Marioghae Mbanefo, has dismissed the reaction of a telecommunications company, Airtel Network Limited to her demand for N50 million compensation, among others over the “unauthorised use” of her musical work by the company.
Veno Mbanefo said she was standing by her letter demanding N50 million compensation among others, adding, “In fact, we should up the amount because they are slandering me”.
Airtel in its earlier statement dated April 22, 2022, and addressed to the artiste’s counsel, the Managing Partner, Felix, Igelige & Associates, denied any wrongdoing.
Airtel Nigeria reacted in a letter signed by Joachim Okere and Adebayo Àjàyí, the Head of Legal Services and Lead, Litigation and Dispute Management respectively, denying the claims, which it described as ‘false and defamatory’.
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Airtel Reacts To N50 Million Suit By Veteran Nigerian Singer, Mbanefo Over ‘Unauthorised Use’ Of Her Hit Song
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The company further demanded a letter of retraction/apology from Mbanefo within seven days from receipt of its letter or risk civil/criminal legal actions instituted against her.
The telecoms said, “With no alleged receipt of the demand letter and right of response from Airtel, your Client has wrongfully and maliciously damaged the good reputation of Airtel by deliberately publishing false and defamatory statements about the Company.
“Airtel emphatically denies promoting its TV App with your Client’s musical work. As you are aware, Airtel’s TV App has been in wide circulation within Nigeria since January 2020 and has gained prominence within Nigeria and the larger African continent since then.
“You are also aware that ‘The Voice Nigeria’ is a global musical event not owned by Airtel or any of its affiliates. Airtel and other Nigerian organizations have sponsored a few seasons/episodes of the event and nothing more. “Your Client’s online publications failed to provide the details or instances of any publication by Airtel of the said musical work and how the musical work was used by Airtel to promote the TV App and ‘The Voice Nigeria’ musical event. It is therefore clear to us that your Client’s online publications were calculated to mislead members of the public and to damage the good reputation of the Company in the eyes of the public without any justification or legal basis.
“Take notice therefore that unless we receive a letter of retraction/apology from your Client within (7) seven days from your receipt of this letter, we shall instruct our solicitors to proceed with the necessary civil/criminal legal actions against your Client to ensure that the law runs its full course in this matter.
“Be assured of Airtel’s resolve to pursue this matter to a logical conclusion notwithstanding the cost and length of proceedings, and we trust that you will give our letter the attention it deserves.”
Veno Mbanefo, however, dismissed Airtel’s claims, saying, “I, Veno Marioghae Mbanefo, having read the response of Airtel to our claim of their copyright infringement in which they used my song, ‘Nigeria Go Survive’ to promote their TV app and also ‘The Voice Nigeria’ stand by our letter of notice to them. It is perplexing that even with proof of our claim, they are denying and playing the injured party. But the truth will come out ultimately. We stand firmly on our claim. Thank you.”
07080601379 and 08127577222 were identified as Airtel lines on which the tune is played after a welcome message.
Mbanefo had in a letter to the Chief Executive Officer of Airtel Network Limited, Ikoyi, Lagos, accused the telecoms company of using her song, ‘Nigeria Go Survive’ to promote its TV app and ‘The Voice Nigeria’, without her permission.
The letter signed by her lawyer, R. A. Igelige Esq and obtained by SaharaReporters on Tuesday, asked the telecoms company to “cease and desist forthwith from further infringing on the copyright of our Client to the aforementioned musical work”.
It also asked Airtel to “pay to our Client the sum of N50, 000,000 (Fifty Million Naira) for the unauthorised commercial and also derogatory use of her musical work”.
But the telecoms company said it had not promoted its TV App with Mbanefo’s musical work.
The company further demanded a letter of retraction/apology from Mbanefo within seven days from receipt of this letter or risk civil/criminal legal actions instituted against her.
A letter from the company reads in part, “We have become aware of certain online publications sponsored by Ms. Veno Marioghae Mbanefo (your “Client”) against Airtel Networks Limited (“Airtel”) demanding the sum of N50,000,000 (Fifty Million Naira) for alleged copyright infringement in respect of your Client’s musical work, ‘Nigeria Go Survive’.
“We have carefully reviewed the online publications sponsored by your Client on: www.9jaflavber.com; www.today.ng; www.premiumtimesng.com; www.saharareporters.com and www.nigeriacommunicationsweek.com.ng and we hereby respond as follows:
“Airtel is yet to receive any demand letter from your offices or your Client in respect of this matter. Your Client’s online publications indicate that Airtel was given 21 (Twenty-One) days to respond to your demand.”
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Ruling Party, APC Delegates Get N250,000 Each During Meeting With Vice President, Osinbajo
Some presidential delegates of the ruling All Progressives Congress in the Sout-West on Friday went home with N250,000 each after attending a meeting with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in Ibadan, Oyo State.“This was what we were giving by Osinbajo today,” a delegate said while showing the money packaged in an envelope.
Osinbajo had on Friday begun his second round nationwide consultation ahead of the presidential primary of the APC slated for June 1, 2022.The move, according to his aide was designed to cement efforts already put in place by the Vice President in a bid to fortify his chances of clinching the party’s presidential ticket.
Speaking at the Ibadan event, Osinbajo had said his experience in the last seven years had prepared him to become Nigeria’s next president.The Vice-President said he had been exposed to everything related to governance at the local and international levels which informed his intention to run for president.According to him, it is time to reward all politicians and delegates of the party who worked for the success of the party, as he noted that “every politician deserves to be treated well and properly.”He also added that his administration as president would create a partnership based on trust between the delegates and the political class for the reward of all.
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E2%80%98unauthorised-use%E2%80%99 Airtel Reacts To N50 Million Suit By Veteran Nigerian Singer, Mbanefo Over ‘Unauthorised Use’ Of Her Hit Song
Telecommunications company, Airtel Network Limited has reacted to the N50 million compensation demanded by Veno Marioghae Mbanefo, a veteran artiste over the “unauthorised use” of her musical work by the company.
Mbanefo, in a letter to the Chief Executive Officer of Airtel Network Limited, Ikoyi, Lagos, accused the telecoms company of using her song, ‘Nigeria Go Survive’ to promote its TV app and ‘The Voice Nigeria’, without her permission.
The letter signed by her lawyer, R. A. Igelige Esq and obtained by SaharaReporters on Tuesday, asked the telecoms company to “cease and desist forthwith from further infringing on the copyright of our Client to the aforementioned musical work”.
It also asked Airtel to “pay to our Client the sum of N50, 000,000 (Fifty Million Naira) for the unauthorised commercial and also derogatory use of her musical work”.
Reacting in a letter signed by Joachim Okere and Adebayo Àjàyí, the head of legal services and lead, Litigation and Dispute Management respectively, Airtel Nigeria denied the claims which it described as ‘false and defamatory’.
The telecoms company said it had not promoted its TV App with Mbanefo’s musical work.
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Veteran Nigerian Singer, Mbanefo Seeks N50Million Compensation, Other From Telecoms Company, Airtel Over ‘Unauthorised Use’ Of Her Hit Song
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The company further demanded a letter of retraction/apology from Mbanefo within seven days from receipt of this letter or risk civil/criminal legal actions instituted against her.
A letter from the company reads, “We have become aware of certain online publications sponsored by Ms. Veno Marioghae Mbanefo (your “Client”) against Airtel Networks Limited (“Airtel”) demanding the sum of N50,000,000 (Fifty Million Naira) for alleged copyright infringement in respect of your Client’s musical work, ‘Nigeria Go Survive’.
“We have carefully reviewed the online publications sponsored by your Client on: www.9jaflavber.com; www.today.ng; www.premiumtimesng.com; www.saharareporters.com and www.nigeriacommunicationsweek.com.ng and we hereby respond as follows:
“Airtel is yet to receive any demand letter from your offices or your Client in respect of this matter. Your Client’s online publications indicate that Airtel was given 21 (Twenty-One) days to respond to your demand.
“With no alleged receipt of the demand letter and right of response from Airtel, your Client has wrongfully and maliciously damaged the good reputation of Airtel by deliberately publishing false and defamatory statements about the Company.
“Airtel emphatically denies promoting its TV App with your Client’s musical work. As you are aware, Airtel’s TV App has been in wide circulation within Nigeria since January 2020 and has gained prominence within Nigeria and the larger African continent since then.
“You are also aware that ‘The Voice Nigeria’ is a global musical event not owned by Airtel or any of its affiliates. Airtel and other Nigerian organizations have sponsored a few seasons/episodes of the event and nothing more.
“Your Client’s online publications failed to provide the details or instances of any publication by Airtel of the said musical work and how the musical work was used by Airtel to promote the TV App and ‘The Voice Nigeria’ musical event. It is therefore clear to us that your Client’s online publications were calculated to mislead members of the public and to damage the good reputation of the Company in the eyes of the public without any justification or legal basis.
“Take notice therefore that unless we receive a letter of retraction/apology from your Client within (7) seven days from your receipt of this letter, we shall instruct our solicitors to proceed with the necessary civil/criminal legal actions against your Client to ensure that the law runs its full course in this matter.
“Be assured of Airtel’s resolve to pursue this matter to a logical conclusion notwithstanding the cost and length of proceedings, and we trust that you will give our letter the attention it deserves.”
Airtel’s Response to Felix Igelige Associates 22-04-2022 by Sahara Reporters on Scribd
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E2%80%99s-wife Two Persons Arrested For Forging Signature Of Benue Governor’s Wife
At least two persons have been arrested by security agents for alleged impersonation and forgery of documents from the Office of the First Lady of Benue State.It was learnt that the persons Adzaigba Terhile Philip and Dugeri Tyover submitted the forged documents to the Board of Internal Revenue Services (BIRS), seeking considerations for employment and transfer for them.
The management of BIRS, upon receipt of the mails, which were said to be suspicious in nature contacted the Office of the First Lady for verification of the said documents and it was confirmed that they were actually forged.The matter was immediately reported to the security agencies who after an intensive manhunt, picked up the suspects in Gboko and Makurdi respectively.Adzaigba Philip and Dugeri Tyover reportedly confessed to committing the crime during the investigation after which they were taken into custody.A statement by the Press Coordinator, Office of the First Lady, Shimataver Aondoakaa, has cautioned the public to be mindful of fraudsters using the name of the office to defraud unsuspecting persons online or on any other platforms.
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