Sahara Reporters Latest News Today Wednesday 15th June 2022
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 15/06/22
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BREAKING: Nigerian Professor Of Dermatology, Femi Soyinka Dies At 85
Femi Soyinka, a professor of Dermatology, Venereology and Clinical Immunology, has passed on.
He was 85 years old.
The don died in the early hours of Tuesday, June 14, 2022, at his home in Kukumada Village, Ibadan, Oyo State, a statement signed by Ayodele Soyinka, son of the deceased on behalf of the family, said.
The family said burial arrangements would be announced by the family later.
The Soyinka Family of Ake/Isara, Ogun State, on Tuesday announced the passing of Prof. Soyinka in a statement obtained by SaharaReporters.
His profile obtained by SaharaReporters reads, “Born in 1937, Professor Femi Soyinka received a medical degree in Medicine and Surgery MBchB from University of Heidelberg, 1964; and Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree from the same University in 1965. He specialised and practised as a Dermatologist, Venereologist and Allergologist at the University of Giessen, 1969.
“In 1972, he obtained a Master of Public Health degree from Hadassah Medical School, (MPH) Israel.
“He worked in the academic field for 30 years, holding various positions from Chief Medical Director to Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences and the Provost of College of Health Sciences of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria.
“He was also involved in extensive research work on Tropical Skin Diseases and Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in collaboration with the Federal government, international donor agencies and organisations such as the World Bank, UNDP, DFID, the British Council; and the International Development Research Centre, Canada.
“He pioneered several researches in the field of HIV/AIDS and worked as a consultant to various international and local agencies including the World Health Organization, DFID, UNDP and Nigerian Federal Ministry of Health based on his extensive experience on the subject in various parts of the country.
“Prof. Femi Soyinka was at the forefront of mitigating the impact of HIV/AIDS in Nigeria. By translating the outcomes of his researches into clinical practice. He impacted significantly not only in the lives of numerous individuals and families living with the disease, but also on the nation as a whole.
“He initiated the Ambassador of Hope program in Nigeria, encouraging people living with HIV/AIDs (PLWHAs) to speak up, thereby bringing the much-needed public awareness to the disease at a time when knowledge was low and stigma was high.
“He also demonstrated technical knowledge and was involved with many other HIV/AIDs related programs including HIV/AIDS prevention, care and support, prevention of mother-to-child transmission, ARV programs, voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) and home-based care for PLWHAs in Nigeria.
“Subsequently, he contributed significantly to capacity building of indigenous organizations across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria through his non-governmental organization – New Initiative for the Enhancement of Life and Health (NELAH) previously known as; Network on Ethics/Human Rights, Law, HIV/AIDS-Prevention, Support and Care (NELA). He was a past president of Society for AIDS in Africa and he successfully coordinated the International Conference on AIDS and STIs In Africa (ICASA) in Abuja, Nigeria in the year 2005.
Prof Soyinka is survived by his wife, children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
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E2%80%99t-care-about-religion-%E2%80%93-northern-elders-forum-says-amid-apc-muslim Ordinary Nigerians Don’t Care About Religion – Northern Elders Forum Says Amid APC Muslim-Muslim Ticket Controversy
The Northern Elders Forum has said ordinary Nigerians do not care about religion.It only becomes a factor during elections, the group added.
The spokesperson for the NEF, Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed during an interview on Channels TV on Tuesday, monitored by SaharaReporters, accused politicians of playing games with the faith of the people.Who emerges the running mate to the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, has been a major subject of discourse in the country.There have been arguments and counterarguments over whether Tinubu, a Muslim, can pick another Muslim as his running mate, especially as the party has zoned its vice-presidential ticket to the Muslim-dominated North.“Ordinary Nigerians don’t care. The politicians are playing a game with the faith, intelligence and future of our people.“It becomes a factor only during elections,” Baba-Ahmed said.He said most of the attacks happening in Nigeria have nothing to do with religion.“We have had situations where people have been vulnerable and they have been attacked; all those have nothing to do with faith. Will those attacks seize because somebody of a particular faith is the Vice President or President?” he asked.“This is a game that’s being played by an elite that has to identify faith as a decisive weapon for fighting each other. The pregnant lady who died with four children in the South-East, who was slaughtered, she didn’t die because (President Muhammadu) Buhari is the president. Maybe the people who killed her then just killed her.”Baba-Ahmed said if religion is a dominant factor in the country, adherents of the two prominent religions – Christians and Muslims – will be fighting each other every day.He said, “If religion was such a dominant factor in terms of how Muslims and Christians live all the time, we will be fighting each other every single day. We will be fighting over ‘I didn’t get anything because I’m a Muslim.’”He said the clashes that happen in the country are sometimes “between communities that are entirely Christians or sometimes Muslims”.“Sometimes in a few instances, like we have seen in the last few years in Adamawa, Gombe and Bauchi, they involve Muslims and Christians. If you go down to the bottom of it, there’s nothing to do with the church or the mosque; it has to do with some communal issues,” he said.According to him, Nigerians are wiser now “as they have learnt terrible lessons from recent leaders who might have benefited from religious politics”.He said, “I’m telling you, ordinary Nigerians do not consider the faith of leaders now as central to the way they exist. We have been taught some terrible lessons from recent leaders who may have benefitted from religious politics but have abandoned the people with who they share the same faith, I think people are wiser now.“The north doesn’t belong to Muslims, it belongs to Muslims and Christians and if a political party is willing to field a northerner because he believes he’s the most competent person to get a ticket, then why not.“In Kaduna state, which had a governor who won and the Christian population is in the minority. Late (Patrick Ibrahim) Yakowa, he was voted as a governor, he was from Southern Kaduna, he became a governor, he died in a plane accident and Kaduna is the frontline for all, no religious conflict that we had.”“I haven’t seen anybody that said I got an advantage as a Christian because I have a senior pastor in the Redeemed Church who’s a Vice President of Nigeria,” he added.
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Anambra Police Kill Armed Robber, Recover AK-47, Live Ammunition
The Anambra State Police Command on Tuesday confirmed that its operatives killed one of the armed robbers operating along Ogidi-Oraukwu Road in the Idemili North Local Government Area of the state. The police command also said its personnel recovered one AK-47 rifle and six rounds of live ammunition from the robbers.
According to a police report made available to SaharaReporters, the incident occurred at about 1:05 pm when police operatives on patrol around the area engaged the armed robbery gang numbering four in a gun duel. The criminals were reportedly operating with a white Toyota Hilux van without a registration number.They attempted to dispossess motorists and their passengers of their valuables when the security operatives countered them, leading to a heavy gun duel, the police added. The statement by the police said unfortunately for the robbers, the police personnel overwhelmed them, killing one while the other three fled with bullet wounds. The statement from the spokesperson for the state police command, DSP Tochukwu Ikenga, said, “The Anambra State Police Operatives today 14/6/2022 at about 1:05 pm on patrol demobilized one out of four armed robbery gang operating along Ogidi/Oraukwu Road, recover one Ak-47 and six rounds of live ammunition. “The Police Operatives engaged the armed robbers operating in white hilux without registration number, attempted to dispossess motorists and their passengers of their belongings. Due to the superior fire of the Police, the robbers fled the scene with the white hilux. “Meanwhile operation is still ongoing in the area. Further details shall be communicated please.”
Activities of armed men terrorising Anambra and other states in the South-East have been on the steady rise, with members of the public being kidnapped, killed, and maimed.
Property worth millions of naira is also destroyed on a regular basis.
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Wike Allegedly Buys PDP Panel Members, Others With $5Million, Promises N10,000 Per Vote In 2023 To Clinch Vice-Presidential Ticket, Emerge Atiku’s Running Mate
Governor Wike
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has reportedly beaten Ifeanyi Okowa, his Delta state counterpart in the contest to emerge as the running mate to the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar.However, Wike allegedly bribed the PDP panel members and some members of the National Working Committee of the party with $5 million (N2.1 billion at the official exchange rates) to beat Okowa.
Governor Wike
The party’s National Advisory Committee had been given the task of picking the vice-presidential candidate of the PDP by the National Chairman of the party, Senator Iyorchia Ayu.The committee was chaired by the Deputy National Chairman (North) of the PDP, Amb. Umar Iliya Damagum while its inauguration took place earlier on Tuesday at NWC Hall, National Secretariat, Wadata Plaza, Wuse Zone 5, in Abuja.Wike had 16 votes to Okowa’s 3 votes, making the Rivers governor the winner of the contest.But sources told SaharaReporters on Tuesday that Wike doled out $5 million and promised to pay N10,000 for each vote cast for the party in the 2023 presidential election.“The panel was set up by the chairman and members of NWC of PDP to choose and recommend a running mate to Atiku Abubakar.“The panel has recommended that Governor Wike should be appointed by Atiku Abubakar as his running mate. This is because of over $5 million that Governor Wike doled out to them and he promised to use Rivers State funds to buy one vote for N10,000 nationwide during 2023 general elections,” one of the sources alleged.Another source who lamented that the PDP is desperate ahead of the next general elections, said, “The question on the lips of every Nigerian is why are PDP and Governor Wike very desperate to buy Nigeria off and return Nigeria to darker and worse ages and time?“Atiku Abubakar will name Governor Wike ad his running mate any moment from now. lt appears that Atiku Abubakar, PDP NWC and the panel members that nominated and recommended Governor Wike to be Atiku’s running mate are in a conspiracy together.“Nigerians will surely reject the desperadoes in the 2023 Presidential election.”Some southeasterners had hoped that the region would produce the running mate to Atiku after it lost out on producing the presidential candidate of the PDP or the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
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Mama Boko Haram, Aisha Wakil Jailed 5 Years For Fraud
A high court in Maiduguri, Borno state capital, has sentenced Aisha Alkali Wakil, aka Mama Boko Haram, to five years imprisonment for fraud without the option of a fine. Mama Boko Haram was jailed alongside Tahiru Saidu Daura and Prince Lawal Shoyode, following their prosecution by the Maiduguri Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The trial commenced in September 2020.
The EFCC had accused the defendants of conspiring and falsely presenting to one Mohammad Umar Mohammed, purported contracts for installation and servicing of 10 pieces of Chison 600A, 2009 version deluxe ultrasound system and the supply of white beans through their non-governmental organisation, Complete Care and Aid Foundation. Count five of the charge against the convicts read: “That you, Aisha Alkali Wakil, Tahiru Saidu Daura, and Prince Shoyade, whilst being chief executive officer, programme manager and country director respectively of Complete Care and Aid Foundation (a non-governmental organisation) and Saidu Muktar (now at large) sometime in October 2018 at Maiduguri, Borno State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court with intent to defraud, induced one Mohammed Umar Mohammed of Nyeuro International Limited to deliver to you 3,000 (three thousand) bags of 50kg white beans worth N65,000,000.00 (Sixty Five Million Naira) under the guise of executing a purported contract of supply of the said beans which you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 320(a) and punishable under Section 322 of the Borno State Penal Code Laws Cap 102.” They had pleaded not guilty to all the charges.Benjamin Manji, the prosecution counsel had applied for a trial date and prayed the court to remand the defendants to the Nigerian Correctional Centre pending the determination of the case. In the course of the trial, the prosecution counsel, Mukhtar Ali Ahmed, had presented four witnesses and tendered several documents which were admitted as exhibits, PM News reports. However, delivering judgement on Tuesday, Justice Aisha Kumaliya of the Borno State High Court ruled that the prosecution had proved the case against the defendants and consequently pronounced them guilty as charged. The judge sentenced them to five years imprisonment without the option of paying a fine. The Judge also ordered the convicts to pay the sum of N30,500.000 as compensation to the victim, noting that they shall serve an additional ten-year prison term in default.
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Nigerian Man Jailed For Life For Raping 14-year-old Schoolgirl
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Justice Adekunle Adeyeye of Ado-Ekiti High Court has convicted and sentenced 30-year-old Shola Oguntuase to life imprisonment for defiling a 14-year-old Junior Secondary School student. Delivering judgement on the one count preferred against the convict, Justice Adeyeye held that the prosecution proved its case beyond all reasonable doubts, hence, his conviction to life imprisonment.
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In the ruling, the court held that there is “no doubt that the prosecution established beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant raped the victim. “The defendant is hereby sentenced to life imprisonment.” Vanguard News reported that the prosecution counsel, Mr Marcus Olowoyo, had earlier during the trial, told the court that Oguntuase defiled the minor on July 7, 2020, at Ire- Ekiti in the Oye Local Government Area of Ekiti State. Olowoyo, in proving his case, presented the victim’s statement to the police before the court as evidence. The prosecutor further called four witnesses and tendered medical reports as exhibits before the court to prove her case of rape. However, the defence counsel Mr Rotimi Adabembe called no witnesses.
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E2%80%99-salaries-wages-%E2%80%93-acting-accountant Nigeria In Very Difficult Times, Has To Borrow To Pay Workers’ Salaries, Wages – Acting Accountant General, Anamekwe
The Acting Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF), Mr Chukwuyere Anamekwe, has decried Nigeria’s dwindling economic fortune, saying the country has to borrow to pay workers’ salaries and wages and finance the budget shortfall. Anamekwe said the current economic situation in the country is evidence that the country is facing a huge financial crisis, The Sun reports.
Speaking at a retreat organised on Tuesday, by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation for members of the Technical Sub-committee On Cash Management (TSCM), he said serious efforts must be made to revert the trend through fiscal discipline, economic diversification, boosting export, and plugging revenue leakages, among others. With the theme: “Enthroning fiscal discipline in Nigeria’s public Financial management: A Clarion Call to Stakeholders,” the acting AGF lamented that insecurity across the country has increased the government expenditure. He said, “We have to borrow to augment payment of salaries and wages. This shows we are in very difficult times. Government income is highly challenged. “The theme and objective of the retreat couldn’t have been better captioned, given the fiscal challenges at the moment. Records available indicate that due to dwindling revenues, the Treasury had to resort to other sources in order to augment the payment of Federal Government public servants! “There is an increase in government expenditure due to increasing security challenges and social needs of the citizenry.” He noted that the myriads of socio-economic challenges call for an articulated deployment of fiscal discipline and strategies that will help mitigate them. “Now that these challenges stare us in the face, you are all expected at this gathering to come out with ideas that will push us through. “Therefore, we must all, at this retreat strive towards identifying the challenges to revenue generation and other means of enhancing inflow into Federal Government coffers; ensuring the cutting down the cost of governance in the most acceptable way and ensuring synergy amongst and within stakeholders in the sub-committee,” he added. Anamekwe also charged the sub-committee to ensure that it gives quality and profitable advice to the Federal Cash Management Committee. While commending the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, for her consistent support in approving them, he noted that the gesture has continued to help in improving the capacities of members and stakeholders; thereby getting them more acquainted with Nigeria’s fiscal challenges and other cash management related matters. He urged the attendees to ensure that the event helps in the advancement of the desired recovery strategies since it has become a veritable tool providing the needed platform for sharing quality information and knowledge that help to keep public servants abreast with public financial management reforms; managing fiscal challenges, evolving effective and efficient cash management tool, among others.
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E2%80%99t-dare-pair-ailing-tinubu-northern-christian-2023-presidential-election-islamic Don’t Dare Pair Ailing Tinubu With Northern Christian For 2023 Presidential Election, Islamic Cleric Warns Governors From Region
An Islamic preacher from northern Nigeria has warned against pairing the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu with a Christian from the northern region as his running mate ahead of the 2023 general elections.
The preacher and some others like him have threatened to mobilise Muslims to reject Tinubu and the APC during the forthcoming presidential election.
In a viral video, Sheikh Ibrahim Aliyu Kaduna accused northern governors of trading the destiny of northern Muslims for a sick candidate’s money. He said, “Northern governors, especially Muslims amongst you are treacherous because you’ve sold our destiny; and God will punish you for that. “You set aside a critical Islamic requirement because the first criterion for choosing a leader in Islam is that the person must be healthy and physically fit.” “Now your second error will be to pair him (Tinubu) with a Christian from our region. This will be disastrous because we would mobilise the people to reject the ticket at the polling units,” he added.
Similarly, after congratulating Tinubu for emerging as the APC presidential candidate, a radical Muslim who identified himself as Aminu Jetaun, cautioned him against considering a northern Christian as his running mate.
He said, “You, Tinubu, make no mistake about this; do not pick a Christian as your running mate because we’ve yet to completely trust your own version of Islam.”
The issue has been a major subject of discourse since the election of Tinubu as the APC presidential candidate. It has dominated sermons in many mosques in Yola, the Adamawa State capital. Our correspondent observed that some clerics have been urging their congregants and indeed Muslim faithful to reject the APC if Tinubu is paired with a Christian from the region.
This comes as Christian leaders in the region are mobilising against a Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket.
SaharaReporters earlier reported on Tuesday that the ruling APC may force a Muslim-Muslim ticket on Nigerians as Tinubu’s camp narrows down to Kashim Shettima, a former governor of Borno, to be his running mate.
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E2%80%99t-consult-widely-picking-peter-obi-running-mate-2019-presidential-election Atiku Didn’t Consult Widely Before Picking Peter Obi As Running Mate For 2019 Presidential Election, Says PDP National Chairman, Ayu
The national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Iyorchia Ayu, says the party will announce the running mate for Atiku Abubakar, the party’s presidential candidate by Friday. The party’s chairman spoke on Tuesday at a meeting with members of the party’s consultative committee set up to assist Atiku in choosing a running mate.
He said Atiku didn’t consult widely before picking his running mate in the 2019 presidential election, Peter Obi.
Obi’s choice was rejected by some top PDP members, including Ebonyi State governor, Dave Umahi and the PDP later lost the election to President Muhammadu Buhari, who secured the second term in office.
Obi is the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) for the 2023 general elections.
According to him, Atiku’s running mate will be someone Nigerians can relate well with and vote into office. Ayu added that the meeting was in furtherance of consultations aimed at arriving at a choice that Nigerians would be glad to elect into office. He said: “The presidential candidate of our party would have been here, but this morning he suddenly dashed somewhere. “He apologised and if he comes early, he will join us. But we will go ahead with the assignment he has given us. “The candidate wrote to us, as the administrative arm of the party, on the choice of his running mate. “Various organs of the party are well represented in his committee —NWC, Governors Forum, National Assembly, former governors which have put forward their candidate. This deliberation will be chaired by my able Deputy, Ambassador Umaru Damagum. “I wish you a successful deliberation and I hope you come up with a conclusion between tomorrow and Friday. “Our presidential candidate, this time, has decided to carry everybody along unlike 2019 when he didn’t consult widely in his choice of running mate.” The Independent National Electoral Commission had earlier given all political parties till Friday to submit the names of their presidential candidates and their running mates.
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BREAKING: Suspected Terrorists Release Abducted Anglican Bishop Of Jebba, Wife
The abducted Anglican Communion Bishop of Jebba Diocese, Rt Rev Oluwaseun Aderogba and his wife have been freed by suspected terrorists on Tuesday, about 48 hours after they were kidnapped by suspected terrorists.The Diocese of Osun Anglican Communion -@anglicanosun- disclosed this on its Twitter handle, stating that the victims were being taken to the hospital for medical attention.
“Praise be to God. Bishop Adeyinka Aderogba, his wife and driver were released from the den of kidnappers after 48 hours.”They are being taken to the hospital for medical attention,” the church said.However, it is not clear if any ransom was paid to secure the release of the bishop, his wife and the driver.SaharaReporters had reported that the bishop and his wife were kidnapped by terrorists on Sunday evening along Ogbomoso-Oyo Road.The Bishop’s Chaplain who was with the victims narrated how he escaped from the ambush.He said, “We were travelling from Jebba to Oyo, when it was a few kilometres to Oyo, our vehicle developed a fault. My Lord bishop called the Lord bishop of Oyo Bishop Aladekugbe for help.“However, before help could come, some armed men surrounded and ordered them into the bush. I was lucky. They didn’t see me because of my black cassock.“I fell flat on my belly to hide myself while they marched my bishop and wife deep into the forest,” he added.
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