Sahara Reporters Latest News Today Monday 14th December 2020
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 14/12/20
Read also
E2%80%98only-10-schoolboys-captivity%E2%80%99-garba-shehu-disagrees-governor-masari-over-number-abducted ‘Only 10 Schoolboys In Captivity’ – Garba Shehu Disagrees With Governor Masari Over Number Of Abducted Students
Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari, has disagreed with Katsina State Governor, Bello Masari, over the number of boys abducted from Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, Katsina State.
Masari, on Sunday, while briefing a Federal Government delegation led by Minister of Defence, Maj Gen Bashir Magashi (retd.), said, “The children so far kidnapped cut across the state because of the boarding school houses all children from all parts of the state and some even from outside the state.
See Also
Insecurity
Kankara Attack: 333 Students Missing, Says Governor Masari
0 Comments
11 Hours Ago
“It has a population of 839, and so far, we are yet to account for 333 students. We are still counting because more are coming out from the forest and we are calling those parents that have phone numbers to find out whether or not their children have gone back home.”
However, BBC Hausa Service, in a bulletin on Sunday, quoted Shehu as saying only ten boys are with the bandits.
The BBC Hausa bulletin read, “The Government of Nigeria has said its security forces have surrounded the location where gunmen have kept schoolchildren abducted from a secondary school in Katsina State.
“Spokesman for the President, Mallam Garba Shehu told the BBC only ten children were remaining in the hands of the gunmen according to their colleagues who escaped from the gunmen.
The number is below figures released by school authorities at the beginning. Garba Shehu said the school children who escaped said 10 of their friends were still with their abductors.”
See Also
Insecurity
Abduction: Buhari Shuns Katsina School, Sends Delegation
0 Comments
4 Hours Ago
Politics
News
AddThis
:
Original Author
:
SaharaReporters, New York
Disable advertisements
:
BREAKING: SGF, Boss Mustapha, Wife Go Into Isolation After Family Members Test Positive For COVID-19
Boss Mustapha
Boss Mustapha, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, and his wife have gone into self-isolation after some members of their family tested positive for COVID-19.
Mustapha, who is also the Chairman of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday night.
Boss Mustapha
The statement read, “I would like to inform the general public that some members of my household tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday evening. Although they are currently asymptomatic, they have been isolated and are receiving care in one of the government treatment centres.
“My wife and I tested negative but will remain in self-isolation and work from home according to protocols by the health authorities. I want to remind all Nigerians that COVID-19 is real. As the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) announced last week, we are recording an increase in cases across several states.
“Please stay safe and protect yourself. Please adhere to all public health and safety measures so that we do not lose the gains we have made in the fight against COVID-19. As a family, we covet your prayers. Please Take responsibility for yourself and to protect our country.”
PUBLIC HEALTH
Breaking News
News
AddThis
:
Original Author
:
SaharaReporters, New York
Disable advertisements
:
18 Nigerian Army Generals Test Positive For COVID-19
At least 18 Nigerian Army generals have tested positive for COVID-19, military sources have claimed.
According to Channels Television, the generals contracted the killer virus after they earlier came in contact with Major General Olu Irefin who died from COVID-19 complications last week.
The affected senior army officers were attendees of the 2020 Chief of Army Staff Annual Conference at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre in Abuja, who were tested by officials of the NCDC.
The late General Irefin had reportedly visited some of his colleagues at home before he attended the conference.
As a result, all the officers who attended the conference, their wives, and other members of their families who live with them, have been directed to isolate themselves for a week by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control.
The venue of the aborted conference – the Nigerian Army Resource Centre in Asokoro – has also been decontaminated by health officials at the weekend.
Major General Irefin fell ill at the 2020 Chief of Army Staff Conference last week and was taken to the hospital.
He was later confirmed to be positive for COVID-19 and was receiving treatment before he died.
Irefin was the General Officer Commanding, 6 Division of the Army in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
The incident had forced the Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Tukur Buratai, to cancel most invitations to his son’s wedding last Friday as well as the Chief of Army Staff’s Annual Conference 2020 in Abuja.
Sagir Musa, Acting Director, Army Public Relations, had said in a statement that Buratai and all senior army officers had immediately proceeded on self-isolation in line with the NCDC protocol for COVID-19 and to prevent any further spread of the disease.
Military
PUBLIC HEALTH
News
AddThis
:
Original Author
:
SaharaReporters, New York
Disable advertisements
:
Abduction: Buhari Shuns Katsina School, Sends Delegation
Daura to Kankara takes less than three hours.
President Muhammadu Buhari has refused to visit the Government Science Secondary School, Kankara in Katsina State over the abduction of at least 333 schoolboys, even as a high-powered Federal Government delegation hit the state on Sunday to condole with the state.
Despite being in Daura on a week-long private visit, Buhari had chosen to stay away from the school, just as the Minister of Defence, Maj Gen Bashir Magashi (retd.), led the nation’s service chiefs on the sympathy visit to the state today.
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Abayomi Olonisakin; Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar; and the Director-General, National Intelligence Agency, Ahmed Abubakar, are members of the delegation.
With less than 3 hours, a car moving from the ancient city of Daura will get to Kankara, both in Katsina State, a check by Saharareporters on google map has shown.
Daura to Kankara takes less than three hours.
SaharaReporters Media/Dotun Olawoye via Google Map
See Also
Insecurity
UPDATED: How Gunmen Invaded Katsina Boarding School Few Hours After Buhari Arrived Home State
0 Comments
1 Day Ago
Bandits had stormed the school on Friday night and abducted the students after a gun duel with the police. The President arrived in the state on Friday hours before the abduction took place.
Buhari, who was yet to visit the school, however, sent a Federal Government delegation from Abuja to Katsina on Sunday to condole with the government and people of the state over the attack.
Briefing the delegation on Sunday, Governor Aminu Masari, said, “The children so far kidnapped cut across the state because of the boarding school houses all children from all parts of the state and some even from outside the state.
“It has a population of 839, and so far we are yet to account for 333 students. We are still counting because more are coming out from the forest and we are calling those parents that have phone numbers to find out whether or not their children have gone back home.”
The governor, who said the bandits were yet to contact either the government or anybody on the abduction, has also ordered the closure of schools in the state.
The defence minister, in his response, assured the state of the Federal Government’s assistance in securing the release of the schoolboys.
Insecurity
Politics
News
AddThis
:
Original Author
:
SaharaReporters, New York
Disable advertisements
:
Open Letter To The Oyo State Teaching Service Commission (Tescom) By Ademola Adeleke
I would like to start this letter with a question. “Why was an interview conducted for the ongoing TESCOM recruitment exercise in the first place?” To select the best brains which will later be deployed to secondary schools across the state to add value to the educational structure of Oyo state, right? Good!
In all sincerity, the interview process was fair enough and thus yielded its intended result. Suitable candidates were selected for the teaching category, the physically challenged inclusive.
However, following the release of the list of successful physically challenged candidates, a protest ensued after it was alleged that there were names of non-disabled persons on the list meant strictly for physically challenged candidates, hence leading to the suspension of the list.
A meeting was organised to this effect, where the TESCOM officials and delegates from associations of disabled persons deliberated on the issue on the 11th of December, 2020.
The outcome of this meeting, according to insiders, was that these associations of physically challenged persons were instructed by the TESCOM officials to compile and submit the names of their members to the TESCOM secretariat for possible employment.
This verdict, however, has been troubling to some of us who are disabled, performed wonderfully at the interview conducted, and consequently had our names on the suspended list but have no affiliation with any of these associations.
We believe that our names made the original list as a result of our performance, and that agitation from these associations which might bring about a review of the list should not alter this merit-based selection. If anything, the names of the alleged non-disabled persons on the list should be expunged to give room for more qualified disabled candidates.
In other words, we urge that whatever names will be submitted by these associations should be an addition to the original list and not a replacement of those whose names made the list on merit, but are now under the threat of disqualification because of their non-membership of these associations.
We hope that you will look into this matter with utmost consideration.
Thank you for the opportunity to join you in reimagining education in Oyo State.
Yours faithfully,
Ademola Adeleke, on behalf of concerned disabled candidates on the TESCOM list.
Letter
AddThis
:
Original Author
:
Ademola Adeleke
Disable advertisements
:
Former CBN Bankers Accuse EFCC Of Collecting Bribe To Release Them From Custody
Former staffers of the Central Bank of Nigeria, who were allegedly involved in the N8 billion mutilated naira notes scam, have claimed that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) took over their houses and rented them out after they initially paid bribes to secure their first release but failed to pay more bribes.
The ex-bankers, who spent over four years in prison, said their wives and children were sent out of their houses immediately they were sent to jail for crimes they did not commit.
They urged the EFCC and the federal government to investigate all allegations against Hamnadama Bello, an investigator in EFCC, who was assigned to investigate the case in 2014.
“We want the EFCC, police, the presidency and the national assembly and other relevant agencies to investigate activities of Hammadama Bello, an EFCC investigator. He is victimising us because he discovered that we have some property and he wanted to take over the property,” said Ayodele Festus Adeyemo, who is one of the alleged offenders and spoke on behalf of the other five at a press briefing this weekend in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The other accused persons who had been facing trials, include Isiaka Akano, Sunday Ajiwe, Oyebanji Akeem, Ayodeji Alese and Demola Oni.
They said that the EFCC investigator Bello had caused them so much hardship because they refused to give him further bribe, adding that they were innocent of the crime they were charged with.
“We don’t know anything about the money,” Adeyemi said. “The money was deposited four years before we were arrested. Bello arrested us and demanded money from us. About a week ago, we swore an affidavit at the court that the EFCC investigator is persecuting us for our failure to pay a bribe to him for the closing of the case.
“Bello had in December 2014 collected five hundred thousand naira each from six of us making N3 million. He collected the money through a lawyer, Nathaniel Oni. We gave him the money because he said that he could not release us for Christmas. And we paid the money because of the condition of the cell in Abuja. Bello also said we should pay N12 million each for him to close our case.”
Adeyemi urged relevant authorities to investigate wide-spread corruption in EFCC.
“I want the EFCC to investigate his activities. I was told that the EFCC investigators have been collecting money. I could not believe it until Bello asked us to pay money for our release and our case to be closed. I want the EFCC, NBA and other relevant agencies to investigate his activities.
“We are not mentioned in the CBN report. The people that were mentioned are not being prosecuted because they had paid money to him. The only problem he has is that he will victimise anyone he found to have property. Eighty-seven of us were taken to Abuja, and only 24 of us are being prosecuted because we did not pay money.”
Isiaka Akano, one of the persons being prosecuted by EFCC, said that EFCC officials took over his house.
“Bello used Oke to collect the money from us,” Akano said. “He invited him to Abuja and I am the one that gathered the money. I collected the money from the five of us and each paid N500,000. He collected the N3 million through Oke before we were released in December 2014.
“We were later re-arrested in 2015. We spent almost five years at Agodi prison before we were released in 2019. We are not fabricating the story,” Akano added.
Corruption
News
AddThis
:
Original Author
:
SaharaReporters, New York
Disable advertisements
:
Nigerians Gather At Wedding Of 46-Year-Old American Mum And 23-year-old Kano Lover
There was a mammoth crowd on Sunday at the Barracks Mosque in Panshekara, Kano State, as 46-year-old American woman, Janine Sanchez Reimann, finally tied the knot with the love of her life, Suleiman Isah, a 23-year-old Kano State indigene.
The Islamic wedding between both lovers, who met on social media, made the Panshekara area come alive on Sunday.
The wedding was attended by many Nigerians, including a former Kaduna senator, Shehu Sani.
Isa Suleiman and Janine Sanchez;Pronounced as husband and wife in Kano today. pic.twitter.com/GOe2H6TUd0— Senator Shehu Sani (@ShehuSani) December 13, 2020
pic.twitter.com/bRiM5CSCEQ— Senator Shehu Sani (@ShehuSani) December 13, 2020
See Also
News
46-Year-Old American Mum Arrives Nigeria To Marry 23-Year-Old Kano Indigene
0 Comments
4 Days Ago
The pair’s love journey began in 2019 when they both met on Instagram, after which they exchanged pictures and continued an online courtship that would eventually be resulting in marriage.
Janine, a chef, based in Lindon, California had, during a visit to Nigeria in January 2020, revealed that Isah’s sincerity endeared him to her.
The woman has said that she will not mind returning to America with her new love after the marriage in Kano.
News
AddThis
:
Original Author
:
SaharaReporters, New York
Disable advertisements
:
Shiite Asks International Criminal Court To Indict ‘Oppressive Buhari Regime’ Over Zaria Massacree
The Islamic Movement in Nigeria, popularly known as Shiite, has again called on the International Criminal Court to expedite action by holding the Nigerian government accountable over the Zaria massacre where many of its members were killed by the Nigerian Army in December 2015.
The group also called on the government to release Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, their leader, from detention.
Ibrahim Musa, president of the media forum of the sect, disclosed this in a statement released on Sunday to mark the fifth anniversary of the Zaria massacre.
El-Zakzaky has been in the custody of the Department of State Services since December 2015, forcing his followers to demand his release by staging massive protests which sometimes resulted in clashes with the police.
Here is the full statement:
“The days 12-14th December 2020 marked the fifth anniversary of the Zaria Massacre. On days like those, Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky, the leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria and thousands of his followers faced the most brutal crackdown ever, spearheaded by the Nigerian Army, at the behest of the Buhari-led Nigerian regime and its foreign backers. In those forty-eight hours of that eventful weekend, over a thousand unarmed Nigerian citizens were extra-judicially gunned down in cold blood, and many hundred others were arrested.
“It was in those two cruel days that many infants and babies that knew nothing about the crimes their parents were allegedly accused of were mercilessly killed. It was during that black period too that even the elderly were not spared. The seventy-year-old elder sister of Sheikh Zakzaky was gruesomely thrown in a raging blaze while still alive, as she cried for water to quench her thirst.
“It was during that period that many families were completely wiped out of existence. It was during that period that not less than 193 children were butchered without any pity. Over 297 women, 548 men and 23 pregnant women were all killed within those two eventful days in December 2015. Valuable properties worth millions of Naira were torched and vandalised.
“Within those terrifying days, graves of martyrs, earlier killed by the same Nigerian Army extra judicially, were desecrated and bodies were exhumed. In those same petrifying days, they secretly buried their victims in mass graves at a location several kilometres away from the crime scene. It was during those days that worship and educational centres, graveyard and the residence of Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky were razed and completely demolished.
“In the meantime, five years on, the government has never been able to prove any of their allegations against Sheikh Zakzaky or any of his supporters in any court of law. The Sheikh has remained unlawfully detained in spite of a judgement by an Abuja Federal High Court that his continued detention is a breach of the constitution and his fundamental rights, and indeed all known laws.
“For most of his years in detention since then, Sheikh Zakzaky has been held virtually incommunicado with only limited access to his legal representation. He was poisoned in detention and is being denied medical treatment, putting his life at very great risk.
“This oppressive Buhari regime has also since gone ahead to escalate their tyranny against members of the Islamic Movement, further killing many hundreds and arresting and detaining equally many hundreds more. The rights of Sheikh Zakzaky and his supporters are continually being violated with impunity.
“We unequivocally reiterate that enough of this systematic oppression of Sheikh Zakzaky and members of the Islamic Movement. We call for the immediate and unconditional release of the Sheikh from this unjustifiable detention, along with those still in detention on this account. We also demand the immediate arrest and prosecution of all the culprits involved in the Zaria genocide of December 2015 and its aftermath.
“Earlier, the lopsided Commission they instituted to cover their tracks, could not entirely cover up the gravity of these crimes. The Commission had observed the highhandedness of the military, which did not align with their rules of engagement or any known international best practices. It, therefore, had recommended the trial of the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Army’s 1st Division Kaduna, Gen. Oyebade, who led the operation and all other officers who participated in the operation before a court of competent jurisdiction.
“Years after, none of these Army officers has been arrested for these heinous crimes and atrocities.
“We, therefore, call on the International community, especially the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague and the UN to expedite action to hold the Nigerian government accountable for its crimes, and help uphold the inviolable human rights of the people of Nigeria.”
Human Rights
News
AddThis
:
Original Author
:
SaharaReporters, New York
Disable advertisements
:
#EndSARS: Falana-led Panel Asks Nigerians To Submit Complaints On Human Rights Violation
Femi Falana (SAN)
The Alliance on Survival of COVID-19 and Beyond has again condemned the military onslaught against the #EndSARS protesters leading to the death of unarmed protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos State on October 20.
The alliance noted that responsibility for the incident should be fully laid on the Federal Government of Nigeria.
Femi Falana (SAN)
ASCAB, in a statement on Sunday, asked Nigerians to submit complaints of human right violations encountered, witnessed or heard during the protest which rocked the country to approach an independent panel set up by the group.
The group, led by Nigeria’s foremost civil rights defender, Femi Falana (SAN), is the country’s leading coalition of some 80 civil society groups including but not limited to the country’s leading labour movements.
The statement, tagged, “Call for complaints of Human Rights Violations by Police, Military and Other Law Enforcement Agencies in Nigeria” asked Nigerians to come forward to submit reports of human right violations linked to #EndSARS.
ASCAB said the Citizen Tribunal would enrich the investigations into the age-long abuses suffered by Nigerians in the hands of the now disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad.
“The call is not restricted to victims who have already submitted to panels set up by the government since outcomes and investigations might defer in form or content. ASCAB’s panel is backed by eminent resource persons drawn from labour, civil society and a retinue of experts from the international community.
“The panel is to receive complaints from the general public of violations, before, during and after the #EndSARS protests across Nigeria. To this end, the panel hereby calls on the general public, especially families of those who lost their lives or who suffer one form of human rights violation or another,” a statement signed by the ASCAB panel’s Chairman, Chino Obiagwu, reads.
“The complaints are expected to contain the names of the victim(s), date, time and place of violations, type of violation suffered, name of the perpetrator (if known), name of agency of the perpetrator and any action already taken in the matter,” he added.
Obiagwu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, said the panel would hold public sittings at various locations across the country to hear oral testimonies of complainants and demand accountability from the concerned law enforcement agency.
He said, “Where it is not possible to have physical meetings with any victim and his or her family, the panel will arrange virtual meetings.
“All interested victims regardless of whether they have approached the official commissions of inquiry set up by the state governments or not can submit memos to the Citizens Tribunal.
“To this end, all victims that have submitted a petition to the official commissions of inquiry should indicate if they have, and specify which of the commissions they submitted their petitions to.
“This will enable us to follow up and track petitions at the official commissions. Complaints can be submitted in writing or by SMS, WhatsApp message, email or by telephone call to the address and telephone numbers through citizenstribunalng@gmail.com, peoplestribunalng@gmail.com, 09153684686 (Whatsapp), 09025243545, 08098944313, 09134868681.”
The group said the Citizen Panel is open to all Nigerians including the media.
News
AddThis
:
Original Author
:
SaharaReporters, New York
Disable advertisements
:
Insecurity: Nigerians React To Nnamdi Kanu’s Newly Launched Security Outfit
Many people from the South-Eastern part of Nigeria have thrown their weight behind the creation of the Eastern Security Network by the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu.
Kanu had, on Saturday, launched the regional outfit via a live Facebook broadcast, which he explained, was necessitated by the current security situation in major parts of the country.
See Also
Politics
Nnamdi Kanu Launches Eastern Security Network, Says Not Different From Amotekun, Miyetti Allah
0 Comments
14 Hours Ago
At the beginning of the podcast, he said, “We have decided to take it upon ourselves to defend the land of Biafra. We are determined and persistent, and we are not going to stop until we eradicate every form of terrorism. We are going to defend our land from terrorism. We are sending a note of caution that any attempt to kill innocent people will be kindly reciprocated.”
The development has since continued to dominate discussions on social media platforms.
Checks by SaharaReporters revealed the initiative is backed by several people from the South East, particularly those supporting calls for self-determination and the creation of Biafra.
Some of them who commended the move also expressed their willingness to be part of the security outfit.
Trump Kelly said, “Eastern Security Network, that’s what I want to hear.”
Prince Frederick Michaels wrote, “The commands you have given shall stand firm, and we’ll support. Ikenga Biafra, go on sir, Almighty is with you.”
Nweri Fabian said, “Don’t worry, henceforth we join hands to research and refine 500 pieces of the chemical cylinder. It’s over for them.”
Innocent Mannix Ekeh, “I am overwhelmed that after this announcement, Nigeria will cease to exist.”
Vicky Okwuosa said, “We must do something significant to stop the unending slaughter of the innocent.”
Nnabuike Ebube said, “We have resolved to die in what we believe in.”
Merie Jim Mezie also said, “Security is zero in the contraption called Nigeria; therefore, Biafrans must defend themselves by all means possible.”
News
AddThis
:
Original Author
:
SaharaReporters, New York
Disable advertisements
:
Read also
You can also check
