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Maria Ezediaro, a Nigerian woman who was arrested by operatives of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT), under suspended and disgraced police chief, Abba Kyari, has regained her freedom. 
The news of her release was made known by Ifeanyi Ejiofor, Lead Counsel for the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

Ezediaro, SaharaReporters learnt, had been arrested since February 2021 while donating food items to Biafrans who were detained at the Owerri Prison.
After her arrest, she was transferred to the dreaded ‘Abattoir' of the IRT where she was subjected to torture, IPOB claimed in a statement. 
Meanwhile, Ejiofor said his legal team had filed an application for the enforcement of Ezediaro's fundamental human rights before the Abuja Federal High Court. 
He said the IRT, in reaction, hurriedly charged her to court on frivolous and smokescreen charges to truncate the suit.
But on Thursday, she was set free and damages were awarded against the police unit and its disgraced head, Abba Kyari.
He said, “Mrs. Maria Ezediaro, a mother and grandmother was abducted over a year ago in Imo state by the operatives of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT), hitherto led by the suspended, disgraced and drug baron - DCP Abba Kyari, and consequently detained at the IRT most dreaded abattoir facility has finally regained her freedom today, 21st April 2022.
“Recall that following our Application for the Enforcement of Her Fundamental Human Rights filed on her behalf before the Abuja Federal High Court, she was hurriedly charged to court on frivolous and smokescreen charge by the infamous IRT.
“This step was clearly targeted at truncating the Fundamental Human Rights Suit we filed to compel her release.
“Nevertheless, the long arm of the law has finally caught up with those monsters in uniform as the Federal High Court proceeded to hear our suit on the merit and consequently, directed for her unconditional release. 
“Damages were equally awarded against the suspended DCP - Abba Kyari together with his disbanded outfit, for the gross violation of Mrs. Ezediaro’s fundamental rights. The Federal High Court seised of the frivolous charge brought against her equally granted her bail on our Application.
“Today, Mrs. Ezediaro has finally regained her freedom and presently walking the street a free person.
“Be assured UmuChineke, that we are vigorously pursuing the bail applications of every other person arrested and detained in similar circumstances and they shall all regain their freedom in due course.
“My team and I shall stop at nothing to ensure that all UmuChineke arrested and still detained at various detention facilities of the Nigerian security agencies are released. ChukwuOkike Abiama is always on the throne. Forward ever, and backward never! Ndewo nu, Ezigbo UmuChineke."

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The National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, has criticised the Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, saying he speaks about issues he does not know about, going about the insecurity plaguing his state.
Monguno’s criticism against the governor was in reaction to recent comments credited to him, after the train incident, where bandits unleashed an attack on travellers plying the route to Kaduna.

El-Rufai had said the government agents know the hideout of bandits and that they listened to their conversations regularly.
The NSA said this on Thursday, shortly after the security council meeting with heads of security agencies and ministers, presided by President Muhammadu Buhari, Daily Post reports.
El Rufai had admitted that the Nigerian government had knowledge of the identity of bandits and their camps.
“We know where their camps are. We know their camps, we have the maps; we know everything. We have their phone numbers and listen to their conversation sometimes. But it has to be done across the five states,” Monguno added.
Monguno who briefed alongside the Inspector General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, and the Minister of Defence, Bashir Magashi also noted that the United States government, came to an agreement to sell some military equipment to Nigeria, after the Chief of Staff to the President, Ibrahim Gambari and he travelled to the US, where they made a presentation to members of the Congress.
Recall that since the attack on the Abuja-Kaduna bound train, where eight persons lost their lives and many others were abducted, the federal government has been making efforts to rescue the abductees from the terrorists.

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The All Progressives Congress has given reasons for the prices placed on its Expression of Interest and Nomination forms.
The party had on Wednesday released its primary election timetable ahead of the 2023 elections, after a meeting of its national executive committee (NEC).

APC also announced the fees for nomination forms for presidential hopefuls are expected to pay N100million, while those for governorship will pay N50million.
The price of nomination form for state house of assembly was pegged at N2million, House of Representatives is N10million, and that for the senate is N20million.
Many Nigerians however expressed shock with this development, wondering if the party was operating from a different country and if it was not aware of the current economic situation in the land.
Speaking on Wednesday in an interview with Channels Television, Frank Morka, APC spokesperson, said the decision on the form fees was “justified”.
He said, “Exorbitant for those who aspire for the highest office in Nigeria. Yes, I guess people may ask that legitimate questions around that. But don’t forget that some of the most special groups of citizens were granted high consideration. Youths between 25 and 40 are granted 50 per cent discount for all positions.
“We live in a country where people live opulent lifestyles and make legitimate money.”
Asked if APC is a party for the rich, he replied, “It is not for the rich. Economically, things are not perfect. They are not perfect anywhere. Do you have a country where the economy is perfect? Is it the United States or the United Kingdom?
“We should make decisions that reflect our situation. The party thinks that the values placed on these forms are justified.”

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An 18-year-old, Usman Hassan, is to spend 3 years in prison for stealing livestock in order to buy Sallah clothes for his siblings in Adamawa State.
The teenager reportedly stole two rabbits, six chickens, two ducks and a half carton of fish in Yola, the state capital, with the intention of selling same to buy sallah clothes for himself and siblings.

Confessing to the crime, Hassan said, "I was forced to steal so that I can raise money to buy sallah clothes for myself and brothers.
"My father had divorced my mother leaving her with many of us children; presently, we do not know his whereabouts.
"Our mother is poor and could not be able to buy clothes for us to celebrate sallah; that is why I decided to steal in order to raise money to buy clothes for Sallah.”
Accordingly, the judge, Ibrahim Musa Ulenda of the Upper Area Court 4 Yola, on Thursday, convicted and sentenced him to three years imprisonment.
He was however given an option of N50,000 fine and also ordered to pay N30,000 compensation.
The verdict came days after President Muhammadu Buhari, pardoned high profile Nigerians jailed for embezzling public funds running into billions of naira.

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Olabisi Deji-Folutile

A lot of people have asked me about my take on the video of the little child, a pupil of Chrisland schools, Lagos involved in a leaked sex video. Ordinarily, that is not a video I would rush to watch because there was nothing glorifying about it. I reluctantly did after listening to the plea of the pupil’s mother on Twitter for Nigerians’ help. I needed to have a clear understanding of what the issue was all about. And sincerely, I could barely watch it to the end, because I saw more than what I bargained for. By the way, for those doubting the age of this little child, I have been told by those who should know that she was actually 10 years old as of the time the sexual act was videoed. Remember, the whole episode took place in Dubai where the elite high school had gone to participate in the World School Games between March 10-13, 2022. She turned 11 on March 18, five days after the programme.
I have read so many comments, and analyses on this matter on social media, with many blaming either the child, the parents, the school or the society as a whole. This article is not aimed at engaging in any blame game. I know that with the best of parenting, things do go awful. I am also aware that even in mission schools, where the word of God and divine principles are practically forced down the throat of students, some of them still do things that only Satan and his cohorts could possibly contemplate.

Olabisi Deji-Folutile
As for those blaming the society, as it was in the beginning, so it is and so shall it be. There is nothing new under the sun. The society has never been known to help anyone. In fact, the 21st-century society is at its worst, hostile and at best indifferent regarding child-raising. This is no shock as most of the social media platforms we have today were developed by Dotcom millionaires, who at the time were young, childless adults who never had to consider regulation for the safety of young, innocent and curious children. The internet reeks of oversight. A simple tick of an ’18 and older’ box will give a prepubescent child the keys to pandora’s box.  
However, each generation has always had their fair share of distractions. Regarding how a child behaves, behavioural experts are apt to tell us that people’s behaviours and actions cannot be viewed in isolation. A lot of factors determine what people do. So, blaming a child without having a full understanding of who she is and what she has gone through in life will not be fair. So, I am staying clear of the blame game.
Having said that, could this case have been better handled? I think Yes. Maybe the mother shouldn’t have gone to social media to seek Nigerians’ help. That appeared to have exacerbated the whole thing. There are things to bring to the public domain via social media, there are others that require great discretion. In this case, the child’s identity which was at least protected by the school was revealed by the mother’s appearance on Twitter. We have to acknowledge the bitter truth that we live in a hypocritical world. Many people out there are just looking for what will help them ease tension, they don’t really so much care about other people’s pains. Some are just curious. Many derive pleasure from what gives others pain. People often assume that the solution to every issue in this age is to solicit social media attention for spreading awareness. However, as the details of the situation continue to unfold, it seems like the woman’s expectation that social media could be of help, in this case, may have been a big miscalculation. 
It is an unfortunate reality that cases of deviant behaviours will continue to occur in our schools even under the best system of supervision. The most important thing is to develop a pragmatic way of dealing with them. The government cannot continue to be reactive all the time. Rushing to shut down a school because a parent complained about a situation, to me, is not the best way of handling a problem. You can’t deny hundreds of other pupils the right to learning because of the misdeeds of either the school or a tiny minority of pupils.
What is the government trying to prove? Why should the innocent, who are in the majority, suffer for the sin of the minority? In this case, 76 pupils went on a trip and about five of them misbehaved, why should others be denied the right to their education because of that? Each time the government rushes to shut down a school, it denies the majority of pupils who have a right to learn, the opportunity to do so. The Lagos State government’s penchant for shutting down schools should be checked. I know that government wants to be seen as doing something, but we can’t be doing public relations with students’ lives. The government now runs like a corporation more concerned about protecting its image than solving problems. But every child’s interest should be taken into consideration before a decision is taken. That is why the government must be proactive and put in place a modality for handling problems in schools. For example, there could be a provision that schools enmeshed in difficult controversies would be managed by the government pending the outcome of investigations.
The state could establish a council saddled with the responsibility of performing that responsibility. Such a council could be made up of educationists in the public and private sectors- who have a track record of integrity. That way, a seamless process of investigation and punishment is established.
In the same vein, there should be well laid down punishment for erring schools. The sanction could be as stiff as a complete take-over of a school that failed to do the due diligence in caring for the children in their care.
The schools themselves should have proper rules of engagement. Part of the problem is that some of these elitist schools often relax their rules in order to attract students, hence they tend to overlook deviant behaviours or pretend not to know certain things. They tend to naturally want to cover some evils so that they can continue to keep the students in school. This isn’t strange. Many of them are guided by an economic motive. But by the time they know that certain things can end their existence, they are likely to weigh things before covering up for any student.
The government can ban children in primary and secondary schools from operating certain social media accounts- schools can do so too. Such a ban would have prevented a situation where a child could run a social media account with thousands of followers. In the case of the unnamed Chrisland pupil, she runs a social media account called "bhadgurl4k (bad girl fuck) that has over 526 videos with over 6,000 followers. There are schools in this country that have very strict rules and regulations. Do students obey all these rules —No. But are there consequences if they are caught—Yes. That should be the rule.
No doubt, parents have a role to play in the upbringing of their children. It is unfortunate that sometimes even with the best of input, some children still turn out badly. There are also cases where parents have completely outsourced the training of their children to the school. This won’t work. As a matter of fact, spending time with one’s children is perhaps the greatest and the most difficult aspect of parenting. It’s far more expensive than the money invested in their education. You can’t outsource this job no matter how much you pay as school fees. The earlier we all knew this, the better the society we are likely to build.
Olabisi Deji-Folutile (PhD) is the editor in chief of franktalknow.com and a member, Nigerian Guild of Editors. Email: bisideji@yahoo.co.uk
Re: What Nigerian Government is paying lecturers is insulting
I wish to appreciate, wholeheartedly, your elucidating comments on the 'nauseating salaries' of Nigerian universities Lecturers.
Your analysis/breakdown explicitly and aptly exposed the extent to which Nigerian academics have been pauperised, impoverished, and dehumanised. 
I joined millions of caring Nigerians who may have read you to commend and wish you all the best in your endeavour. 
God bless.  
Signed 
Frank Ikponmwosa


Madam,
May the Lord bless you so much beyond your imagination on this exposition on the humiliation of university teachers by the government operatives.
I am not a lecturer neither a student, and neither do any of my children attend Nigerian university but I felt extremely sad on their salary structure as highlighted.
I write mainly to encourage you to keep up the flame until your other senior colleagues can buy into this and continue talking about it for our government to do the needful.
God bless you, madam.
Tijani, A.O.


I have read your writeup on ASSU strike, actually you have spoken the minds of many Nigerians. I suggest that "NO ELECTION IN 2023 IF ASUU ARE STILL ON STRIKE" May be this will be the only language that the federal government would listen to. My Opinion. 
Hapsat Babajo

Dear Ma'am,
 
Good morning from Vienna! I am compelled to put down few lines for you – call it, if you please – an APPRECIATION.
 
It is by a stroke of chance that I stumbled upon an article you wrote in “SAHARA” on the MOST DEPLORABLE CONDITIONS OF SERVICE IN NIGERIA PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES. NOTHING could readily be added to your most excellent analysis AND CALL FOR ACTION! 
Personally, I cannot be more ashamed and furious about the WILLFUL CALLOUSNESS OF THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT to systematically destroy EDUCATION in that country that is widely acclaimed a “FAILED STATE” (YOU surely must have read Karl Maier’s “THIS HOUSE HAS FALLEN. MIDNIGHT IN NIGERIA”). 
The neglect of EDUCATION hastens this process!!! Cry the Would-be-Beloved-Country!!!
 
Now, I know why MANY Professors have gone into the practice of “wanting something” from their candidates before they moderate their thesis! Unfortunately, my wards have been VICTIMS of this order!!!
 
Well, thanks for your insightful publication!
 
Rev. Fr. Ndubueze Fabian MMAGU (B. Phil., M. A. theol., PhD theol, MSc-Psychotherapy)


Dear Ma’am,
Thank you for your lucid writeup on the ASUU strike action.
It was heart-warming that someone understood the REAL issues.
Unfortunately, addressing the drift in our educational system may require more than strike actions. It will be welcome if civil society groups and the private sector will engage government and ASUU with a view to finding a more robust approach to funding the tertiary institutions.
Once again, thank you ma’am.
I declare my conflict of interest that I am a lecturer at the College of Medicine, University of Lagos.
Have a graceful weekend.
Kind regards
Adeseye Michael Akinsete
Senior Lecturer
College of Medicine, University of Lagos
Honorary Pediatric Haematologist & Oncologist
Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi-Araba
seye.akinsete@gmail.com, aakinsete@unilag.edu.ng


You are super. Just to commend you on your article about ASUU. 
Obinne Obiefuna

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Civil society organisations in Imo State have rejected a ruling by an Owerri Magistrate Court that two stolen babies be handed back to Chinyere Ohanyere, a suspected kidnapper.
Recall that the suspects, 55-year old Chinyere Ohanyere, popularly known as Madam Chichi, and Ngozi Egbuson Ebuzoaju, a nurse, were arrested in October 2021 for alleged stealing and trafficking in two children suspected to have been stolen from a yet to be disclosed location in Rivers State.

The suspects were arraigned before an Owerri Magistrate Court in suite nos. OW/54C/2021 between the Commissioner of Police Vs Ebuzoaju, and at Owerri Magistrate Court in suit no. OW/505C/2021 Commissioner of Police Vs Chinyere and Anor, which is now consolidated in suit no. HOW/86C/2021.
The suit is between the State Vs 1. Ngozi Ebuzoaju, 2. Anayo Duru, 3. Ohanyere Lilian Chinyere, and 4. Dr. Princewill Mbabie, now pending before an Owerri High Court.
The court presided over by Chief Magistrate, Adekibe, had ordered the return of the stolen but recovered babies to Ohanyere on the grounds that there was no other claimant to the babies other than the suspect.
Reacting, in a statement issued by Maureen Udeagha, Head, Child Protection and Communication, the CSOs under the auspices of the South- East/South-South Civil Society Forum faulted the judgment stating that the court ignored the fact of the information filed and brought to her notice.
They also noted that the case is a subset of the same matter and subject matter (the babies) pending before an Owerri High Court 5, which has a higher jurisdiction.
According to the statement, the children were reportedly stolen from Rivers State, so there's no way anyone is reasonably expected to make claim to the children in Imo State.
“This is an act short of prudence as the court not only failed to transfer the matter to the High Court 5 where all the other accused including the buyer winner of her judgement whom she gave the children is being heard indeed adjourned to the 12th of April, she also never ordered a DNA test to ensure the child stealer is not given the children," the statement noted.
Speaking on behalf of the civil society groups during a media briefing in Owerri, Tombari Dumka-Kote, Founder, Centre for Justice, Empowerment & Development (C4J), said they are displeased with the ruling as it exposes vulnerable children to greater danger of being stolen and trafficked.
He also stated that the judgement is an encouragement to human traffickers in and around not only Imo State, but the entire South-East and South-South geopolitical zones of the country.
Dumka-Kote said the discharge and acquittal of the suspects by the court, while key suspects in similar case were denied bail, puts the integrity of the magistrate to test, leaving the question of why the hasty ruling by the lower court without granting the application for a DNA test to be carried out to ascertain the claims of the first defendant.
He insisted that the court ruling is not in the best interest of the children as enshrined in the Child Rights Act (2003), describing it as an amputation of the judicial system.
He said the court had done the biddings of the Imo State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Cyprian Akaolisa, whose office, after filing a motion on notice at the High Court, had denied same through the Prosecution Counsel.
In his reaction, ThankGod Robinson of the South-East/South-South CSOs forum, described the action of the office of the Attorney-General and commissioner for Justice as a deliberate ploy by the Imo State Government to frustrate the matter and deny the infant children justice.
Robinson said the forum will file a formal complaint against the magistrate before the Judicial Service Commission, the Nigerian Bar Association to investigate the reasons for the magistrate's hasty and unprofessional ruling on the matter without a DNA test carried out on the children, while the same action is going on at the High Court 5.

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The Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI) has urged Muslims to intensify prayer during Ramadan for Allah to end the insecurity ravaging the country.
JNI, which is the umbrella body of Northern Muslims, is headed by Sa’ad Abubakar III, the Sultan of Sokoto State.

According to the group, 2022 Ramadan came in a difficult time, as the country under the Muhammadu Buhari-led government is bedevilled with multifaceted challenges; ranging from insecurity, to abject poverty, incessant inflation thus making life difficult for the common people.
JNI Secretary-General, Dr. Abubakar Khalid, urged Muslims to stay away from their many ungodly acts and imbibe the pious acts and teachings of Prophet Mohammed (SAW).
The statement read, “This year’s Ramadan came in a difficult time, as the nation is bedeviledwith multifaceted challenges; ranging from insecurity, to abject poverty, incessant inflation thus making life difficult for the common people. Despite these challenges, we say AlhamdulilLah as the Ummah slowly pulled through to the ending days of Ramadan. We pray Allah (SWT) shall continue to make life much easier for us and heal Nigeria of all its ailments. Amin.
“It should be noted that the last ten (10) days of Ramadan comes with the best of nights in the history of the world, as confirmed by various Ahadith(plural: sayings of the Prophet – SAW). Within these last nights is the night of majesty, also called the night of power (LailatulQadr) which Allah (SWT)stated that it is better than one thousand nights (equivalent to over 83 years). It is therefore recommended that Muslims should seek for this very night within the last ten (10) nights and it is sought in the last odd nights of Ramadan i.e. 21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th and 29th due to its importance, and the search for it commences today in-sha’Allah.
“The JNI is therefore using this auspicious occasion to urge the Ummah to intensify prayers for self, immediate families, neighbours, the government and leaders at all levels. We should fervently pray to Allah, the Most High for emancipation from the pang of insecurity, poverty, hunger, diseases and all other ills distressing us, our societies and the nation at large. On the other hand, as the 2023 General Elections is drawing closer, we should use the Ramadan period especially these last ten (10) days to cry out to Allah (SWT) for a rancour free electioneering, as well as free, fair and peaceful elections. We should use these days to persistently pray to Allah (SWT) to give us good and pious leaders that will lead us out of the unfortunate conundrum Nigeria has found itself, to a prosperous future. We should pray, pray and pray!
“Similarly, the JNI calls on the Muslims especially the well-to-do among them to increase their generosity by assisting and supporting the needy among us, as every act of kindness is fully noticed and reciprocated by Allah (SWT) in manifold. The orphans’ care should be given great consideration at this point in time, as the Ummah is tried with a large army of orphans due to acts of insurgency and other forms of brigandage. Taking care of the orphans attracts the mercy of Allah (SWT) to us thereby getting a way out of our present predicaments. In this regards, Muslims are reminded of the Zakatul Fitr (Ordained Alms Giving at the end of Ramadan Fasting), which is supposed to be given out to the needy in the last three days of Ramadan or in the early hours of ‘Eid-el-Fitr day before the commencement of the ‘Eid prayer.
“The last ten (10) days of Ramadan are for thoughtful introspection, sober reflections, as well intensification of effort geared towards attaining forgiveness, acceptance, mercy and all the good things promised by Allah, the Most High in this month. May Allah (SWT) increase us in sound health, strength, will and opportunity to make the best out of this year’s Ramadan. We also pray to Allah to accept our fasting, prayers, acts of kindness, glorifications, recitation of the glorious Quran, as well as every single act of worship we perform within and beyond the month of Ramadan.
“While wishing all Muslim faithful Allah’s pardon in these sacred days and after, we pray fervently for His benevolent acceptance of our Ramadan Fasting, even as we urge all Muslims never to return to abominable acts after the Ramadan. Likewise, we reiterate our call to the Muslim faithful to intensify prayers for the Ummah against all manners of misfortunes, relief and succour to the security and economic challenges threatening our survival in Nigeria. Lest we forget, 2023 General Elections is by the corner, we must as an Ummah intensify prayers for a hitch-free General Elections and disregard politicians trying to cause anarchy in the Nigerian state.
“While beseeching Allah (SWT) to preserve us upon Iman(faith) and goodness and give us long life to witness many more Ramadan, the Sultan of Sokoto and President-General, JNI wishes all an accepted Ramadan fasting and Eid-el-fitr.”
 

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At least 17 fake Colleges of Health have been discovered in Kano, Northwest Nigeria.
The Kano State Primary Health Care Management Board (PHCMB) discovered the 17 illegal health institutions offering training in health-related courses across the state.

The Director, Administration of the board, Suleiman Tanimu, has accordingly directed that students from the 17 health institutions be barred from internship at any government healthcare facility in the state.
The fake health institutions include, “Unity College of Health Science and Technology, Dorayi Konannen Gidan Mai Kano, Ibrahinm Khalil College of Health Science and Technology with three branches and Shamila College of Health Science and Technology, Gezawa Local government.
"Others are; Autan Bawo College of Health Science and Technology, Rano LGA, Trustee College of Health Science and Technology, Jakara Dala LGA, Eagle College of Health Science and Technology, Bichi and Albakari College of Health Science and Technology, Rijiyar Zaki, Kano.
"Furthermore, Jamaátu College of Health Science and Technology, Kura, Savannah College of Health Science and Technology Wudil, Royal College of Health Science and Technology, Wudil, Institute of Basic Health Education, Jakara Garden, Airport Road and Jamilu Chiroma College of Health Science and Technology, Zungeru.”
"Also on the list are; Sir Sunusi College of Health Science and Technology, Matan Fada, College of Health Science and Remedial studies, Dawakin Dakata Nassarawa, Sahaba College of Health Science and Technology, Dorayi Chiranchi Kumbotso, Standard school of Health Science and Technology Rijiyar Lemo Fagge and Annur College of Health Science and Technology with three branches", Tanimu noted.
The discovery followed a complaint received from the National Association of Community Health Practitioners of Nigeria, on February 27, 2022, according to Tanimu.

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No fewer than 100 suspects have been arrested by men of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at a party venue in the Asokoro area of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, who confirmed the development, noted that the party was held on Wednesday night.

He accused the party-goers of being possession of cannabis, which is illegal in Nigeria.
“We arrested some youths holding a hemp party in Abuja. In addition to the party is the launching of a new drink. The party was organised by three ladies. They are in our custody. We will issue a statement on the incident shortly,” Babafemi disclosed.
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, had in February 2022 stormed a popular nightlife relaxation garden at Wuse area of Abuja and arrested eight persons for indulgence in drugs use.
Also, SaharaReporters reported on April 13 that the agency said it had convicted 677 traffickers between January and March 2022, with a total of 3,359 arrests and 65,915.891 kilogrammes of assorted drugs seized within the same period.
No fewer than 2,223 drug users were also counselled through brief interventions and rehabilitated in NDLEA facilities across the country in the first quarter of the year; figures that represent a fair balance between the agency’s drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction activities.
Lagos has the highest figure of drug seizures with 22,192.62 kilograms of illicit substances recovered from parts of the state, followed by the Murtala Muhammed International Airport Command, Ikeja, also in Lagos, with 8,979.869kg of drugs seized between January and March, while Kano and Kaduna led the pack in the arrests of offenders with 194 arrests each within the same period.
While a total of 257 hectares of Cannabis farms were destroyed in forests across Ondo State, 14.869 hectares suffered same fate in Edo and an hectare destroyed in Bayelsa State within the same period, the NDLEA said.

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President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Mrs Matilda Mmegwa as the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Employment and Job Creation (Office of the Honourable Minister of Labour and Employment).
This was contained in a statement issued on Thursday by Femi Adesina, the Special Adviser to the President on Media & Publicity.

According to the statement, the Senior Special Assistant, who has held a number of posts in the private sector in Canada and international organisations, will work under the leadership of the Minister of Labour and Employment on issues of job creation.
Mmegwa has over 30 years of experience in the field of strategic leadership, corporate governance, social inclusion and economic development, the statement added.
It reads in part, “She is an internationally decorated Presenter/Keynote Speaker and was the lead discussant at the Commonwealth Association for Public Administration and Management (CAPAM) conference in Tanzania in 2009.
“Mrs Mmegwa has served as Senior Consultant and Strategy Advisor with the Ghana Agricultural Sector Investment Programme (GASIP) an initiative of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Government of Ghana.
“She holds a degree in Industrial Chemistry, professional qualifications as Chartered Accountant in both Nigeria and Canada, a Master’s degree in Strategy and Corporate Governance."
Nigeria is currently grappling with a rising rate of unemployment with the National Bureau of Statistics putting the unemployment rate at more than half of the employable population.

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President Muhammadu Buhari has directed security chiefs to rescue all persons abducted during the Abuja-Kaduna train attack and other persons still in captivity.
The National Security Adviser, Maj Gen Babagana Monguno (retd.) disclosed this on Thursday after a meeting of the National Security Council presided over by Buhari at the council chamber of the presidential villa.

The meeting came about a week after the national council of state met to discuss the country’s security challenges and other issues.
In recent times, the Northern part of the country has been experiencing a spike in banditry and kidnapping.
Terrorists on March 26 attacked facilities at the Kaduna Airport, killing an airport worker.
Two days later, the gunmen blew up rail tracks on the Abuja-Kaduna route, killing eight passengers and abducting many others.
According to Munguno, the President was saddened by the security situation in the country and demanded immediate action from the security chiefs.
He also called for the strengthening of the nation’s borders to curb insecurity.
The national security adviser lamented that without the intelligence and support of the local communities, it would be difficult to tame the rising insecurity in the country.

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Most parents like to think that their generation’s burden was the heaviest. And that today’s children are too soft and spoilt by the easy life to be up to any good. Well, I disagree. Or let me put that a bit differently: I don’t agree completely.
 
The debate about just how far astray today’s children have gone was sparked afresh by the juvenile sex video of students of Chrisland School, VGC, Lagos, who had gone for the World Schools Games in Dubai between March 8 and 14.
 
Since that video was leaked a few days ago, the “Dubai Five”, the children involved, have taken a serious verbal beating. Deeply distraught members of the public have been holding up the video as proof that after many years of parental negligence, we may have succeeded in raising aliens who will succeed us.
 
How can children sent on a special programme at great expense by their parents for only a few days and in the care of their teachers, turn a learning opportunity into a sex orgy? How can children enrolled in one of the country’s most expensive private schools and who may have been selected for this programme on merit, let themselves, their parents and school down so badly?
 
Isn’t that video the final piece in the jigsaw puzzle that shows that years of namby-pamby parenting can only raise a generation of self-indulgent, grasping and self-absorbed children whose only interest is instant gratification at any cost?
 
The short answer, is, not exactly. But the explanation is long and complicated.
 
What happened in Dubai was a nightmare beyond description and even for a country so used to stumbling from one painful distraction to the next, this one would be hard to sweep under the rug. Yet, I think it would be a bridge too far to cite it as evidence of the final takeover of the wayward generation.
 
Far from being lost and wayward, I think that today’s youngsters, particularly those belonging to Generation Z, the closest demographic cousins of the Dubai Five, are perhaps more vocal, more diverse, more socially connected, smarter and certainly more curious than any generation before them.
 
Interestingly, the smartphone, that pervasive device and perhaps the single most powerful force in the lifestyle of this generation is both an extraordinary source of pleasure and a huge source of misery for them. It’s their playground, of course. But sadly also, it’s their trap – the most intrusive tool ever invented since George Orwell’s Big Brother.
 
That is not to downplay the gravity of what happened in Dubai. It’s simply an invitation to be a little less sanctimonious, a call to put aside the heart-breaking foolishness of the Dubai Five, and to reflect for a moment, on what might have been only, say, 40 years ago.
 
If our parents had the benefit of smartphones to scrutinise and monitor us at school and play, would they have seen something dramatically different in our secret lives from what we see in the Dubai Five today?
 
We should be shocked and outraged and sad that out of 76 children who went on a weeklong sport competition, what we’re being reminded of is not the laurels they competed for or the strides made, but a video that reminds us of how disastrously we’re failing in our duties as schools and parents.
 
I’m appalled that Chrisland is once again at the centre of this scandal less than three years after a teacher in the school was tried and convicted for raping a two-year-old girl in the school and after it also came short of a public showdown with parent and actress Mercy Johnson-Okojie over allegations of child bullying.
 
The school has explained that it went to extraordinary lengths to keep the children safe and away from mischief; that it kept them seven floors apart in the Dubai hotel where they were lodged. It also denied carrying out any pregnancy tests on the child as her parents alleged, saying what was done was the mandatory Covid-19 test on their return from the trip and actually named the laboratory where the test was done.
 
On top of that, it has explained that the authorities went the extra mile to engage the mother of the child after the matter came to light in a post-travel review, but that she refused to cooperate and at a stage, threatened to “take the matter to social media,” because she believed that her daughter had been drugged and “raped” and that the school was trying to cover up.
 
The school failed in its duty of care, even though the board insists that the authorities had been implementing a higher standard of child care and protection since the unfortunate incidents of the past and, in fact, awarded itself a pass mark that out of 76 children taken to Dubai only five let the school down.
 
But the five, even one, is 100 per cent to the parents involved. Having nine staff members, comprising seven male teachers and two females, look after 76 students of 50 boys and 26 girls, was a recipe for trouble.
 
But the parents didn’t do better. Listening to the recorded video of the mother of the girl, you would almost think her daughter’s fees were the price for outsourcing the responsibility of parental care. And it breaks your heart to think that while her daughter was still nursing the trauma from the exposure, she had time to be coached by a social media influencer for a PR dogfight with the school.
 
Part of the disease of the rich is that they not only boast of sending their children to big schools and also boast of paying hefty fees, they think that their money should buy them a presence in their children’s lives. That is apart from payments for regular indulgences like a smartphone before they have left the crib and a trip to Dubai with Uncle T and the rest of the creche family while the parents are watching Zee-World at home. It’s not funny.
 
In the blame game between the school and the parents, care for the Dubai Five – which should be the real focus of the unfortunate incident – is missing. The ego of the feuding parties makes them want to protect their own turf, while busybodies swoon with testosterone over the explicit video. In between the real question is lost: who recorded the video and how did it go out?  
 
Whether the sex was consensual or not and whether the juveniles had the cognitive capacity to recognise what they were doing, it is improbable that any of the parties involved would have authorised the sharing of the video, as part of the so-called “Truth or Dare” game. And that unauthorised sharing was a crime. It was a ghastly infringement on the rights of the children and can only deepen their wound.
 
If we care about the children beyond nailing them to the cross of social gossip, we must come down from our high horses and refrain from tossing them out like a few bad apples. That would only further damage their esteem and impair their recovery. And here, I’m concerned not only about the treatment of the juveniles involved in the act, but also those present in the room and all 76 on that trip.
 
Lagos State has to do better than closing the school. It has to investigate the source of the recording and leakage and provide a common ground for the school and parents of the Dubai Five to rehabilitate the children, perhaps with help from child welfare specialists outside the government. It’s time to put the children front and centre.
 
Though Lagos is considered perhaps the most socially responsive state in the country, its handling of the tragic death of Bowen College student Sylvester Oromoni, who died under very suspicious circumstances leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Chrisland would be a good place for the state to redeem itself and to show that at least when children’s lives are involved it is not a captive to the mob or special interests.
 
The story of the “Central Park Five”, a group of five teenagers in the U.S. wrongly accused and convicted of a crime they didn’t commit shows that where technology is rudimentary the state’s malicious incompetence could be exploited to ruin young lives and families.
 
The story of the Dubai Five shows, however, that surrendering our lives completely to technology, in a race in which children are destined to lead, also comes with a heavy price. And our absence from their lives could sometimes make the price even heavier.  
 
Ishiekwene is the Editor-In-Chief of LEADERSHIP
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Opinion AddThis :  Original Author :  Azu Ishiekwene Disable advertisements : 

Olusegun Obasanjo

A former President of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo says it is time to establish state police to curtail the worsening insecurity problems in the country.
 
Obasanjo stated this while receiving the leadership of the National Association of Ex-local Government Chairmen in Nigeria, led by pioneer National Chairman, Hon. Albert Asipa.
  Olusegun Obasanjo
In a statement by Obasanjo's spokesperson, Kehinde Akinyemi, the former Nigerian leader advised Muhammadu Buhari’s government, saying community policing is not what is needed at the moment but state police.
President Buhari in October 2021 approved N13.3 billion for the take-off of the Community Policing initiative across the country.
The President had said the approval was part of measures aimed at improving security nationwide.
“Our situation in Nigeria concerns everyone, particularly the case of terrorism. It has gotten over the issue of community police.
 
“It is now State Police. It is from that State Police that we can now be talking about community police,” Obasanjo, however, said.
 
He further called for the strengthening of the traditional system and local government administration which he prepared during the Murtala/Obasanjo administration.
 
“I believe there is a need to enable that tier of government to work truly like a local government. They have their own Executive, Judiciary and Legislature.
 
“They were working and were very visible. Building and managing roads, looking into education, health, local administration, agriculture. But they were all gone,” he added.
 
Obasanjo, who commended the formation of the body, said some local chairmen in the country were better than some top elected leaders.
 
He also stated that the experience of the ex-chairmen in local government administration was enough for them to aspire for higher positions.

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The Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorist group has claimed responsibility for an explosion that it said killed or injured 30 people at a market where alcohol was sold in Taraba State, Al Jazeera reports.

The explosion which occurred on Tuesday marks an expansion of the area where the ISIL affiliate operates in Nigeria.

The explosion took place on Tuesday in the rural town of Iware and local police initially said three people were killed and 19 injured.

In a statement posted late on Wednesday on a Telegram messaging channel used by ISWAP, the group described those who detonated the bomb in the market as “soldiers of the caliphate in central Nigeria”.
 
The statement said the attack had struck “a gathering of infidel Christians” and expressed satisfaction that the drinking spot had been damaged. It did not break down the casualty figure into dead and injured.
 
Northeast Nigeria has been in the grip of rebellions for more than a decade, but Taraba, located at the eastern end of Nigeria’s central region, has not witnessed such attacks before.
 
Across Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, there has been a rise in crime and violence, exacerbated by the economic hardship caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
Armed robberies are rife and kidnappings for ransom have become increasingly common, while the country’s northwest has been hit by mass abductions of children from schools as well as indiscriminate attacks on towns and villages by armed gangs.
 
The worst and longest-running security crisis, however, remains the one in the northeast, where Boko Haram and ISWAP, which broke out of the former, have killed, abducted and looted on a massive scale while fighting against the Nigerian military.

Terrorism News AddThis :  Original Author :  Saharareporters, New York Disable advertisements : 

The most wanted high ranking intelligence spy of the Boko Haram/Islamic State of the West African Province (ISWAP) terrorists, Modu Babagana, who escaped from military detention in Bama has been re-arrested by troops of 21 Special Forces Brigade in Borno State.
 
Zagazola Makama, a Counter Insurgency Expert and Security Analyst disclosed this in a tweet on Thursday.

“The Nigerian Army Troops of 21 Special Forces Brigade, Bama have arrested a most wanted high ranking Intelligence spy of the Boko Haram/ISWAP, Modu Babagana, who escaped from military detention in Bama,” he said.
 
“An Intelligence Officer told Zagazola Makama, a Counter Insurgency Expert in the LakeChad, that the notorious Boko Haram/ ISWAP member was arrested in January 2020 for carrying out espionage activities on troops in the general area of Bama and Banki.
 
“The sources said a few days after Babagana was taken to prison, he used charms to facilitate his jailbreak as well as evaded himself from being caught by anyone, particularly his own troops.
 
“Upon realising that he escaped by troops manning the prison, he was declared wanted with his pictures shared at every nook and cranny of the city.
 
“Luck ran out with him when he was rearrested with the help of the gallant men of the Civilian Joint Task Force in Bama Main market while on a task to buy logistics for the terrorists with a huge amount of money.
 
“During preliminary investigation, the spy suspect confessed to have monitored and disclosed troops’ location and movements to the terrorists.”

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The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has again extended the date for its sale of nomination and expression of interest forms to Friday, April 22, 2022.

 

The party announced that the last day for submitting completed forms is now April 25, 2022, saying the decision was taken after various considerations were made.

It also announced the dates for the screening of candidates and appeals arising from the screening of aspirants for various positions.

 

It, however, said that all dates for primary election into various positions remain the same.

 

This is contained in a statement by its spokesman Debo Ologunagba on Thursday.

 

It said, “Under the reviewed timetable, the last day for the submission of already completed Forms has been extended to April 25. “Consequently, the following new dates have been fixed for the screening as well as appeals arising from the screening of aspirants for various positions: the state House of Assembly and National Assembly, April 27; governorship, April 28; presidential, April 29.”

 

The party also announced that the appeal on all screening exercises will be heard on May 2, 2022.

 

Also, the party’s three-member ad hoc ward congress has been fixed for April 30, while the local government area national delegates congresses will now hold on May 5.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin

Russia says it has “liberated” the strategic port city of Mariupol, apart from the sprawling Azovstal steel plant which Ukrainian forces have made their last stronghold.
 
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin on Thursday that the Azovstal steel plant, where Ukrainian forces and hundreds of civilians have been holed up, was “securely blocked” while the rest of the city was “liberated”, which Putin hailed as “success”, according to The Associated Press news agency.

Russian President Vladimir Putin Sputnik/Alexei Babushkin/Kremlin via REUTERS

Putin told Shoigu that the military should not storm the site, and blockade the steelworks instead.
 
“There is no need to climb into these catacombs and crawl underground through these industrial facilities. Block off this … area so that not even a fly can escape,” Putin said during the televised meeting.
 
Putin also called on Ukrainian fighters at the site to surrender, saying Russia would treat them with respect and would provide medical assistance to those injured, BBC reports.
 
It is unclear how many soldiers are at the site. According to some estimates, as many as 2,000 soldiers remain at Azovstal.
 
Ukraine’s deputy prime minister called on Moscow to facilitate the evacuation of what she said were 500 wounded soldiers and about 1,000 civilians.
 
“I urge world leaders and the international community to focus now their efforts exactly on Azovstal. Now this is a key point and a key moment for humanitarian efforts,” Iryna Vereshchuk said in a post on Facebook.
 
Mariupol has witnessed intense fighting during the weeks-long war, and its capture has strategic and symbolic importance.

Much of the city has been reduced to a smoking ruin in a nearly two-month siege, with tens of thousands of people feared dead.
 
Its definitive fall would enable the Kremlin to create a land bridge between Russia and the annexed Crimean Peninsula, while Russian troops could move elsewhere in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region.

International News AddThis :  Original Author :  SaharaReporters, New York Disable advertisements : 

The Osinbajo Support Movement (OSM) says it knows the group behind the 'Judas who betrayed his master' poster, which had described Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo.
 
Following Osinbajo’s declaration of his intention to run for president, a poster likening him to Judas and accusing him of “betrayal” was circulated on social media.

The vice president was the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Lagos State between 1999 and 2007 when Ahmed Tinubu served as governor.
 
Adejuwon Babatunde, director of media and publicity of the OSM in a statement claimed that telephone chats and call logs of a suspect arrested by security agencies indicate that a campaign team working for Tinubu was responsible for the posting of the ‘blasphemous’ posters.
 
The statement noted that though the prime suspect, Mike Oluwole, a 52-year-old Abuja-based graphics designer from Osun state, denied working for the former Lagos governor’s campaign team, records of his phone chats with a member of the team, contradicted his statement to the police.
 
“Records of his phone chats with one Alhaji Aminu Suleiman and one Tosin Adeyanju from the Tinubu media group, dated Thursday, March 24, and Tuesday, April 12 revealed the involvement of the campaign team in the despicable act.
 
“The exchanges between Mr. Oluwole and the other persons contradict his claims that he wasn’t working for anyone including Tinubu supporters.
 
“The action by Tinubu’s supporters has exposed the desperation of the Vice President’s political opponents and the apprehension in their camp over Osinbajo’s increasing popularity and wide acceptability by Nigerians.
 
“We urge the VP not to be distracted as the race for the 2023 elections intensifies. Nigerians however need to be vigilant and beware of the antics of those who do not mean well for our country, and who are deploying desperate strategies in an abortive attempt to revive a failing campaign,” the statement read.

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File photo used to illustrate story.

Several women abducted by Boko Haram who regained their freedom have opened up about their ordeals while being held captive by the terrorist group.
 
The women were rescued by Nigerian troops in the ongoing operations by the military against Boko Haram/ISWAP insurgents in the Sambisa Forest and on the fringes of Lake Chad.

File photo used to illustrate story.

The women spoke in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) after they arrived at the headquarters of Joint Task Force North East of “Operation Hadin Kai” in Maiduguri on Wednesday.
 
One of them identified as Suzan Lazarus was abducted in April 2021 in the Hong Local Government Area of Adamawa when the insurgents invaded Kupre, her village.
 
According to her, about 50 people were abducted by the insurgents on that day.
 
The 28-year-old woman said her abductors took them to an area known as the Timbuktu Triangle before taking them to the shores of Lake Chad.
 
“I give glory to God and say thank you to the military for our rescue but I am still worried about the fate of others,” Lazarus said.
 
Also speaking, Jummai Inuwa, who was abducted on the Maiduguri- Damaturu Road on October 10, 2020, said she was taken to the shores of Lake Chad where she was subjected to work as a slave.
 
Inuwa said: “Some of us tried to escape but the place is like an island surrounded by water. It was difficult to escape because it was very muddy. We seized the opportunity to escape when the military bombed the area."
 
In the same vein, Marta Malu, 25, said she was kidnapped on the Damboa – Askira Road in December 2021 alongside six government construction workers and a policeman.
 
“We were eight. They took us to Sambisa and after one week they killed the policeman,” Malu said.
 
Other rescued women who lauded the effort of the military include Grace Daniel, 38, who was kidnapped on the Maiduguri–Damaturu Road on December18, 2020; Maria Adamu, 27, who was kidnapped in the Madagali area of Adamawa on December 6, 2020, and Malakaiya Dambade, 37, who was kidnapped on the Maiduguri–Damaturu Road.
 
Speaking on the development, the Theatre Commander of the Joint Task Force North East of Operation Hadin Kai, Christopher Musa, said the renewed onslaught under the ongoing “Operation Lake Chad Sanity” being conducted by Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) and “Operation Desert Sanity” being conducted by the Theatre Commander has been yielding results.
 
Musa said, "We have synergy and together we are able to achieve a lot. We assure the public that we remain focused, dedicated and committed to our task of bringing peace to the northeast.
 
“Wherever the insurgents are, we will go after them. We will ensure that all those being held hostage are freed.
 
“We thank Mr President and Service Chiefs for the support they are giving us which has made it possible for us to be achieving successes."

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