Hope Uzodinma
Hope Uzodinma

Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State has reacted to the gruesome killing of 14 youths returning home from a traditional marriage in Awo-Omamma by operatives of the state Ebubeagu South-East security outfit.

Uzodinma, who confirmed the massacre of the youths said, operatives of the Nigeria secret police, Department of State Services (DSS) carried the killings, while absorbing Ebubeagu Security.

Hope Uzodinma

SaharaReporters reported that Otulu community protested the gruesome killing of their youths who were attacked without committing any offence.

It was reported on Monday that a viral video circulating on social media showed indigenes of the community conveying the bodies of the murdered youths to the market square in wheelbarrows.

The locals had accused the Imo State local security outfit, Ebubeagu of wrongfully labelling the deceased youths as bandits and killing them as they were returning home after attending a traditional marriage ceremony in the area on Sunday evening.

But Governor Uzodinma while briefing journalists at the Government House, Owerri after the weekly Security Council meeting, said contrary to stories making the rounds, the operation was carried out by men of the DSS who stormed a bandits’ hideout in the community, following what he called, intelligence reports.

He said the “government would not succumb to any campaign of calumny or blackmail in the course of fighting insecurity in the state.”

He maintained that all the youths killed were criminals, and vowed to sustain the killing of hoodlums.

 

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President Muhammadu Buhari has said that the newly unveiled Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Limited) would strengthen the Nigerian energy sector and guarantee energy security.
Buhari, who gave the assurance on Tuesday during the official unveiling of the company, said it would also support sustainable growth across other sectors of the economy in the country as it delivers energy to the world.

In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, Buhari said, “We are transforming our petroleum industry, to strengthen its capacity and market relevance for the present and future global energy priorities.”
He said that the NNPC Limited would sustainably deliver value to its over 200 million shareholders and the global energy community; operate without relying on government funding and be free from institutional regulations such as the Treasury Single Account (TSA).
Buhari said, “Our country places high premium in creating the right atmosphere that supports investment and growth to boost our economy and continue to play an important role in sustaining global energy requirements.
“We are transforming our petroleum industry, to strengthen its capacity and market relevance for the present and future global energy priorities.
“By chance of history, I was privileged to lead the creation of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation on the 1st July 1977. 44 years later, I was again privileged to sign the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) in 2021, heralding the long-awaited reform of our petroleum sector.
“The provisions of PIA 2021, have given the Nigerian petroleum industry a new impetus, with an improved fiscal framework, transparent governance, enhanced regulation and the creation of a commercially-driven and independent National Oil Company that will operate without relying on government funding and free from institutional regulations such as the Treasury Single Account, Public Procurement and Fiscal Responsibility Acts.
“It will, of course, conduct itself under the best international business practice in transparency, governance and commercial viability.
“Coincidentally, I, on the 1st of July 2022 authorized the transfer of assets from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation to its successor company, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, and steered the implementation leading to the unveiling of Africa’s largest National Oil Company today.”
Similarly, the NNPC Limited Group Managing Director, Mele Kyari, said that the company had adopted a strategic initiative to achieve the mandate of energy security by rolling out a comprehensive expansion plan to grow its fuel retail presence from 547 to over 1500 outlets within the next six months.
Buhari was accompanied to the NNPC Limited unveiling ceremony which was held at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja by the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila among other dignitaries.

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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) says it has extradited one Fatade Idowu Olamilekan, who had been on wanted list of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) over $3.5million dollars to the United States.
EFCC in statement posted on its official twitter handle @officialEFCC on Tuesday, said the suspect was extradited on July 14, 2022.

The statement read, "A wire fraud suspect, Fatade Idowu Olamilekan on wanted list of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, was on Thursday July 14, 2022, extradited to the United States for allegedly stealing over Three Million, Five Hundred Thousand United State Dollars ($3.5M) worth of equipment in various cities across the US.
"His extradition was coordinated by the EFCC, following a notice from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI New York, through the US Legal Attache for his role in impersonating various cities, state and academic institutions across the United States."

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Three personnel of the Nigeria Police Force have been captured in a video assaulting a young man along the Victoria Island Road in Lagos State.
The officers are of the Rapid Response Squad, a unit of the Lagos State Police Command.

The 22-second clip was uploaded by Connect Hub NG (@HubNGR) on Twitter.
“19/07/22 : 10:57am BRUTALITY : 3 Nigerian RRS ‪@PoliceNG‬ Officers Are Seen Brutally Assaulting a Young Man At Ozumba Mbadiwe, Victoria Island Lagos.”

19/07/22 : 10:57am

BRUTALITY : 3 Nigerian RRS @PoliceNG Officers Are Seen Brutally Assaulting a Young Man At Ozumba Mbadiwe, Victoria Island Lagos. #EndSARS #EndImpunity #EndPoliceBrutalityInNigeria pic.twitter.com/guNc6eKS5h

— Connect Hub NG (@HubNGR) July 19, 2022
The officers were in their uniforms and armed.
One of the officers first gave the victim a slap on his head, before the rest started dragging him on the ground.
He was later forced to enter a pick-up truck belonging to the police which was parked in the middle of the road.

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Teacher

At least 700 teachers have failed the Primary Six Mathematics, English language and essay writing examinations in Bauchi State.
The Bauchi State commissioner of Education, Aliyu Usman Tilde, disclosed this on Monday, noting that over 700 out of 1,000 women, trained in partnership with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) failed the examinations which were part of steps to employ them as teachers.

Teacher

The prospective teachers had staged a peaceful demonstration to protest their non-employment into the state's teaching service.
However, while addressing them, Tilde said employing unqualified teachers would jeopardise the future of millions of education seeking pupils in the state.
Tilde noted that some of the protesting women were among the beneficiaries of the 1000 female teachers’ training scheme, introduced in 2019.
"UNICEF trained 50 of them, while the Bauchi State Government trained 950", he added.
As gathered, the trainees were promised immediate employment to teach in primary schools after acquiring National Certificate in Education (NCE), but failed the aptitude test.
“The government was ready to employ all of them, but only if they passed a recruitment test; we tested them on primary six mathematics, English and essays.”
“But because of their massive failure, we came down to employing anyone who has at least 50% in maths or English and a grade C in English", Tilde said.
He further disclosed that only 249 of them who passed the examinations and scaled the recruitment interview were employed.
“They have not studied well enough, as you can see from these terrible scripts, to be sent to classrooms as teachers. They are free to say anything on social media, seek the aid of human rights groups or even go to court,” he added.

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A blogger and publisher of EaglesForeSight, Olamilekan Hammed, has been arraigned before a judge at the Federal High Court, Abeokuta, Ogun State, over a report on Dapo Abiodun, the governor of the state.
The State Security Service (SSS), Ogun State is accusing Hammed of defamation of character and cybercrime, citing a publication made by the blogger on April 23, 2022.

The publication was titled, “2023; I Was Arrested (convicted) for Fraud in US, But APC Lacks Power to Disqualify Me — Governor Abiodun Bragged.”
FIJ reports that Hammed was forced by the DSS to delete the publication from his website.
Hammed was said to have been first arrested on April 29, six days after the publication, and released on bail. He was rearrested on May 13, 2022, and has been in detention ever since.
It was learnt that Hammed was accused of collecting money from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), a major opposition party in the state, and taken by the SSS to Ibara Correctional Facility on April 29.
“The first charge they brought against me was that I quoted the PDP in the story on how he was arrested in the USA on money laundering charges. They forced me to pull it down, but despite pulling it down, they are still using it against me.
“The DSS arrested me at about 9:40am on April 29. I was coming out of Conference Hotel, Abeokuta, when I saw their Hilux. I recognised them but they handcuffed me immediately, masked me and took me away.
“I did not see anything until 6pm when they started interrogating me. From morning till 6pm, I was in handcuffs and a mask. During the interrogation, they asked who sponsored the story and I told them no one paid me to conjecture the story.
“They told me to bail myself and provide a surety. I did, and was released at night, sometime around 9:20pm.”
According to the report, Hammed went home that night and things seemingly went back to normal. But a week after, he made a WhatsApp post on his experience with the secret service, not knowing they had succeeded in infiltrating his phone and had been monitoring. They arrested him again.
Someone who saw the status told FIJ it was along the lines of: “My ordeal in the hands of government last week: I met myself in the lions’ den. I was silenced, but maybe one day I will be able to say my mind out.”
After the second invitation, Hammed was handcuffed and detained, before he was later arraigned before a judge at the Federal High Court, Abeokuta, where he is to appear on Tuesday.

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First awarded in 2007, the Panyam-Bokkos-Wamba road project in Plateau State would have been completed around 2010, based on the contractual agreement between the Federal Government and the first construction firm.
However, 15 years after, construction work remained abysmal, leaving communities along the 90km road in agony-causing them to lose their loved ones, farm produce worth millions, armed robbery attacks and stress occasioned by tedious prolonged journeys.

Not only is Panyam-Bokkos-Wamba road project suffering from neglect, the same is the fate of Babban Lamba-Lanshi-Sharam and Pankshin-Tapshin-Gindiri roads awarded at various times, but abandoned for years.
WIkkiTimes tracked releases of money by the Federal government to contractors handling these projects running into billions of Naira, including questionable payments.
To the families of Datet Mud Audu Gambo-the Traditional Leader of Kombun, a village in Mangu LGA along the 90km panyam-Bokkos-Wamba road, the deplorable condition of the road will indelibly remain in their minds for as long as they live.
This royal family lost 2 of their agile and promising young ones: Nandong Gambo, 38yrs and Yusuf Garba 30years to the bad condition of the road within a span of three weeks.

Both of them died on the road before reaching the nearby medical facility in Mangu, on 26 May and 10th June 2022 respectively as the family raced to save their lives following sudden different illnesses.
Late Namdong left behind 3 children while Yusuf Garba left 6 heirs.
“Ordinarily the about 30km journey to the hospital in Mangu would have taken us around 20 minutes if the condition of the road is good and I believed if we had reached hospital 30mins after the onset of their illness both of them would have been by my side as I grant you this interview” claims Datet Audu.
WikkiTimes gathered that the about 30km distance from Kombun through Panyam and to Mangu now takes 2hrs to accomplish, and their woes become even compounded whenever it rains in the area. “It takes us two hours to reach the main road which is not supposed to be more than 15 minutes”, he said.
When it rains, especially in the afternoon, residents of the village who go to Mangu for their daily bread sometimes have to sleep there, due to the muddy nature of the road that makes movement nearly impossible and some narrow streams that overflow their channels.

This according to Datet Audu was exactly what happened the day Yusuf Garba died. School teachers posted to town have also absconded, due to difficulty on the road.
People of Daffo, Per, and Bot also suffer the same agony as they ply the road daily for their livelihoods.
A local blog documented that the contract for the construction of the road was initially awarded on April 19, 2007, to STATECO Nigeria Ltd, at the cost of N5,338,200,930.90, with a 24-month tenure.
The contract was however revoked in 2012 for attaining less than 20% completion and this was after over 66 months, with two extensions granted over the contract period.
WikkiTimes could not establish the total amount paid to the first contractor before the project was revoked. Similarly, this medium could not lay hands on any verifiable information on what happened on the project between 2012 when it was first revoked by the Federal Government up to 2019 when it was rewarded to a new firm, Uniglobe Construction Engineering Nigeria Ltd.
It was a Zonal Intervention Project renominated by the duos of Hon. Solomon Maren, Member Representing Mangu/Bokkos Federal Constituency of Plateau State in the House of Representatives and Senator Hezekiah Dimka, a Senator representing Plateau Central Zone.
From 2019 to date, series of monies have been released to the construction firm to the tune of over NGN643,503,408.74 in 5 instalments, with little work on the ground.
Data obtained from govspend.ng showed that the firm was paid NGN180,952,381.00 on 19 Sept, 2018, N163,567,303.80 on 16, Jan 2019, and N28,864,818.33 on 14 May 2019. Other installments were N130,892,026.56 on 16 April 2020 and N139,226,879.05 on 29 May 2021 respectively.
The 2 lawmakers Hon. Solomon Maren and Senator Hezekiah Dimka had, at various fora promised timely completion of the project to their constituents, but 4 years after work resumed no appreciable progress has been achieved.
Citizens plying the road continue to perish with attendant socioeconomic bruises.
Solomon Kefas, a driver from Bokkos, described the road as a mirage. He bemoaned that they resorted to taking a longer Mararaban Jama’a road in all their journeys instead of the dreadful Panyam – Wamba road.
“It’s too stressful to follow that road, (Panyam – Bokkos – Wamba), in fact, it is not motorable”. He said he followed the route about three months ago and he had to pay about N10,000 to fix his vehicle.
Kefas however prayed that the government should construct the road to make it easier for transportation within the communities describing them as agrarian.
Ibrahim Buwa, a resident of Bokkos, faulted politicians, and accused them of telling lies during campaigns to solicit voters’ votes, “You see we don’t have a road. They (politicians) feed us with juicy promises only to find out that they were telling lies”.
WikkiTimes’ visit to the site revealed that the road is in tatters, with ditches, off-road lanes, and a heavy accumulation of mud in areas where construction work has begun. This situation even becomes worst whenever it rains. Despite this condition, no construction firm was seen on-site at the time of the visit.
The decade-long abandoned culverts constructed in some streams became obstacles and therefore increased the deplorable condition of the road as cars hardly ply it.
Villagers now resorted to using motorcycles on an interstate federal road. Even with the motorcycles, villagers spend an average of four hours to get to their destinations, a journey that otherwise would last only for about 40 minutes.
Similarly, the construction of the 45km Babban Lamba – Sharam road has been lingering for four years with no end yet in sight. Awarded in 2018 to 2 construction firms Ric Rock Construction Nigeria Ltd and Kanacruz Nigeria Ltd at N19.392 billion, the road is a lifeline for people in Babban Lamba, Langun, Garram, Langshi, and Sharam towns in Plateau State.
A visit to the construction site showed only the first 5km from Sharam to Dungum was made motorable, with the rest of the 40km barely unattended.
Gigantic troughs make journeys on the road unbearable, while communities still have to construct fragile culverts over powerful streams which are usually washed away after rainfalls.
Motorcycles remain the only means of transportation between some of the communities. In many portions of the road, motorcycle passengers have to alight to allow the riders to navigate their way through rough and difficult terrains.
The 2 construction firms have so far been paid N955,645,950 in different instalments.
On 22, Oct 2019, N226,190,476.20 was released to Ric Rock Construction Nigeria Limited. Likewise on 30, Dec 2019; N106,372,033.80, on 17, Apr 2020; N174,522,702.10, on 20 Oct 2021; N358,095,238.10 totaling N865,180,450.2. While on 19 and 20 Dec 2019 N45,232,749.90 was released each day totalling N90,465,499.8 to Kanacruz Nig Ltd.
Nde James Beka Galadima (District Head) of Belnung, recalled how they were excited when the project was announced, “we first heard the news on radio and we saw the signboard installed at the junction. We were so excited then”.
But years after, the Babban Lamba – Sharam road project become a mirage – “it is in tatters”, Galadima repeated.
Mr. Beka, said in the last few years the community might have lost up to 30 people mostly snake bite victims and women in labour who could not make it to the nearby health facility due to the bad condition of the road.
Corroborating this, Yelkang Iliya, one of the Youth leaders in Langum claimed that “we sometimes carry our sick ones on our shoulders”. A 10km distance takes Langum community hours, “we spent 3 hours to Babban Lamba, especially during the rainy season”.
Nde Beka said transporting their agricultural produce to the markets around is a herculean task, pointing out that what they produce sometimes gets spoiled or becomes less beneficial to them. “We produce groundnut, rice, millet, maize, and yam to mention but a few and it takes us hours to reach the main road from here”.
The traditional ruler however acknowledged that “about 5km was constructed then from Sharam to Dungung but nothing more, and no contractor present at the site”.
Cyclists Transport Corpses From Hospitals to Communities for Burial
Andrew Peter, a cyclist and resident of Munkot Community told WikkiTimes how they use motorcycles to transport corpses from hospitals to their communities for burial as a result of the unmotorable nature of Babban Lamba/Sharam road.
“For several times I took corpses to Garam, Talbalong, etc on my motorcycle. For instance, a female corpse was tight up on my back and her legs were tight up with the shock absorber of my motorcycle.
Tapshin – Gindiri Road
For this road, N2,164,414,870.97 was paid for the construction of the road. The site was officially handed over to the contractor on September 14, 2017, after receiving an advance payment of N1,381,000,000.00.
WikkiTimes met the construction firm on-site, but work on the 54km road awarded to Metropolitan Construction Company Limited at N15.3 billion, lingered beyond the stipulated completion period of 20th August 2019.
For 5 years, only a few parts of the 54 km road have been completed, while the larger part remained untouched.
Most parts of the road remain horrible and the residents continued to experience hardship as their access to the towns remains not easy.
Wild gravels and streams worsen the movement along the road of the agrarian communities which produce huge amounts of onions and other cereal crops as well.
Besides the mobilisation fee, the contractor was also paid various sums of money including N85,265,019.19 paid twice on the same day on 12th October 2018, N226,190,476.20 in May 2019, N180,952,381.00 in October 2019 and  N205,741,975.39.
Shandam – Nasarawa Road
For the 85 km Shendam Namu Pandam road, over N532,972,449 was paid to different companies in different instalments and dates. Over N78.7 million was released to Stelo General Products for the maintenance of the “critically failed section” of the road.
Again, findings from govspend.com revealed that on 26, Oct 2021, N49,372,093 was paid to H & M Nigeria Limited for the repairs of the road and another N44,883,721 was paid on 09, Oct 2021.
Similarly, on 15, Jul 2021 N111,059,742 and another N8,163,933 were paid to Gursha Integrated World-Wide Ltd on the same date. While on 21, May 2021 another N240,792,960 was paid to Dexterity Development Ltd all for the repairs of the road.
WikkiTimes’ visit to the site revealed that despite the works carried out, there is a considerable number of potholes needing urgent repairs.
Mustafa Borgah, a driver on the Shendam, Numan Nasarawa, and a resident of Shendam decried the deplorable condition of the road.
“The road is really bad, especially on the Plateau side of the road. That is from Pandang, Namu to Shendam”. He explained that they pay about N200 to locals from the surrounding communities who usually work to put sand on the potholes developed on the road. “The journey that wouldn’t be supposed to take you 30 minutes, you will end up spending hours.
Mr. Borgah, cited instances of accidents along the road as, “Just after Dabat, there was a vehicle that some days ago tumbled there and all the seven passengers on board died”. As a witness, he added that “There are cases of road accidents daily, as well as robbery on the road especially from Namu to Konde as a result of the bad condition of the road”.
Ibrahim Abdullahi, a resident of Quan Pan and one of the road users emphasized the need for the reconstruction or genuine overhaul of the Shendam/Nasarawa road, “there are a lot of dangerous potholes on the road.”
The year, 2021 saw the highest incidences of road crashes in Plateau State
The Federal Road Safety Corps FRSC statistical digest indicated that 11,107 people were involved in road accidents in Plateau State in five years. Whereas 7,123 survived without injuries, 3,622 were victims of injuries while 362 people died.
WikkiTimes Freedom of Information Act requests for clarification on among other things, why the road projects were not completed despite funds released, being sent to the Plateau State Ministry of Works as well as the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, were all ignored since they were sent over a month ago.
Yet, the defenceless residents of the communities would not have any option but to continue feeling the pains of the dreadful road as a result of bad governance and the absence of accountability.

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

The price of petrol has finally been raised above N165 per litre across regions of the country.
Although the product has been selling above N165 in some parts of the country, a new price regime was released on Tuesday, Daily Trust reports.

Petrol marketers also claimed that the Federal Government gave approval for the raise, but the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) is yet to react to this.
Daily Trust attempted to get a confirmation from the NMDPRA on Tuesday morning but the spokesman of the agency, Mr Apollo Kimchi, did not respond to enquiries.
According to the regional price list effective from Tuesday, the rate rose from N165 to N179 per litre in the South West, South South and South East regions.
The price was raised to N184 in the North West and N189 in the North East being a N24 increase, the highest in the new adjustment.
Petrol will now sell at N179 in the north central region. Although the product will sell for N169 in Lagos, marketers will sell for N174 in Abuja.
There is also an upward adjustment in the ex-depot price in the Lagos axis from N148.17 to a range of N160 and 162.
Depots in Warri/Ogbarra have their rates adjusted to N162-N165 while Port Harcourt depots will sell for N165 to167.

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Ifeanyi Ejiofor, the lawyer to the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has said that the legal team was not allowed to see the IPOB leader on Monday during their routine visit.
In a statement made available to newsmen, Ejiofor said that Kanu’s legal team was not allowed to see him because the officials of Department of State Services (DSS) in charge of receiving them “were out of the facility on other official assignment.”

According to the statement, Ejiofor said that the visit was rescheduled to hold on Thursday.
“We were at the headquarters of the Department of State Services, DSS, for the Court-Ordered routine visit to our indefatigable client — Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu — but unfortunately, we could not meet with Onyendu.
“We were informed by the DSS official that Onyendu’s authorised handlers, who were to receive the visiting team, were out of the facility on other official assignment. Hence, the visit was aborted.
“This is not the first time we were confronted with such flimsy reason for aborting our visit, but the visit has now been rescheduled to Thursday, July 21,” part of the statement read.
Ejiofor further debunked the rumour that made the rounds last week that Kanu was missing from the DSS custody and warned such rumour mongers to desist as it exposes Kanu’s legal team to dangers.
“Be that as it may, it is important to further clarify that the approved relatives of Onyendu, visited Onyendu last week Thursday, July 14, 2022, and they spent ample time with him.
“This information is necessary to address false news which trended on some relatively unpopular blogs early last week, to the effect that Onyendu was missing in the Facility of the DSS Abuja.
“In view of the unpleasant consequences, the legal team is being exposed to in the course of managing avoidable distractions arising from unhealthy outburst from certain quarters, it has become compelling that we squarely address the following concerns:
“We respectfully wish to urge UmuChineke to henceforth, desist from listening to anybody or person(s), who publicly dish out ORDER(S) through their social media handles, claiming such orders as purportedly emanating from Onyendu.
“Onyendu is specifically and primarily concerned with legal steps being taken by his team of lawyers to ensure his unconditional release from custody, which methodology are usually prohibited from being discussed in our updates/publicly.
“Onyendu only relays his message(s) through his lawyers whenever issues of compelling public concerns require his public view,” he said.
“Please note that Onyendu is a freedom fighter, held in solitary confinement at the custody of the DSS, and currently undergoing persecution in the hands of the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN). Nevertheless, he must surely regain his freedom and it will be soon.
“Every well-meaning supporter of Onyendu’s cause should be more interested in protecting the legal measures being taken to ensure his freedom, rather than sabotaging them.
“UmuChineke must treat with the greatest circumspect, the resolve of those, who by their unhealthy pronouncement(s) are directly interfering with the strategies of the legal team, and further jeopardising the welfare of ONYENDU, and it must STOP NOW.”
 

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Adeola Soetan

I perceived Oyetola's campaign team as more intellectualised than Adeleke's mostly dancing team. I knew some of the guys there and their good activist backgrounds before enmeshing into bourgeois politics of anything goes.
But the moment they brought a seminude rascally Portable to come and literally fart in Awolowo's mouth publicly, an obscenity and desecration of the sage and the meritorious virtues Baba Awo was known for, as the most philosophical, cerebral, visionary and achiever Yoruba leader and a distinguished national icon while alive, it became apparent that the Oyetola's team was too desperate to lose the election.

Adeola Soetan

Ordinarily, a political campaign must have a theme, and content and should never be arbitrary in response to field eventualities or be panic-struck, to make it qualitative and principled. This elementary thoughtfulness seemed to be lacking in this case. 
No candidate or campaigner in the north can be that desperate to desecrate the image of the great Ahmadu Bello or Igbo desecrating the Zik of Africa in the east. The organisers of the show of shame were even too arrogant or naive to immediately apologize to the people based on feedback about the absurdity. Assuming the whole bad scene was a creation of the Zazuze crooner they should have immediately bundled the uncouth singer back to Lagos. It's possible the young musician didn't even know who Awo was or have read about him and his unforgettable achievements as an intellectual, philosopher leader.
Up till now, I still don't know the relevance or the political gains APC intended to make with that Awolowo statue and its desecration by that young cantankerous societal deviant musician. That's a very bad PR for the party and its candidate whose outward calm gentlemanly personality doesn't speak of the street. Perhaps a big statue of Bola Tinubu wouldn't have assaulted our collective sense of the political history of Awoism. That's a big minus.
Well, I have written much to alert us on the deliberate obliteration of the remnant virtues of Yoruba political culture and leadership as that of "omoluabi" as epitomized by the late sage Awolowo and his group essentially. And this obliteration is being gradually replaced by a rogue political culture of anything goes, integrity, ethics and ennobling attributes don't matter again to secure political victory because the ends justify the means as they arrogantly postulate around. 
Major bourgeois parties including APC and PDP are culprits in this ascendancy of rogue political culture right from the Obasanjo government of garrison "politics is a do or die affair" to Tinubu's "Jeun Soke" and now its variants - "dibo ko sebe" "see and buy" "gbagas gbogos" "mo ti ko dollar, pounds, euro de" and other crude formalization of vote buying and selling openly.
It's shameful, that such rogue culture can never guarantee free and fair election and good governance by these political merchants who have been winning elections but lost in good governance.
If the roguish conservative wing of the criminal ruling elite started it, the roguish progressives have escalated the brand of politics without principle and integrity to a  higher level as a state art and made it a political philosophy despite their promise of change and good governance which has turned out to be a deception.
Sadly, many middle-class professionals including lawyers, doctors, lecturers/teachers, journalists, and broadcasters among others shamelessly kowtow and promote rogue politics and leadership without integrity for patronage, partisan, pecuniary, ethnic, and religious interests. More sad is that most of these people who should be role models to our youths are parents and guardians.
Rogue leaders and their criminal enablers can never change Nigeria qualitatively and guarantee good governance. The ball is in the court of all discerning citizens to save the country and their future from political banditry across parties and determine their own fate by organizing around their collective interests for a good Nigeria. It's a historical challenge and responsibility, failure to do it is Doom.
Adeola Soetan 
 

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Kaduna State Governor Nasiru Ahmed El-Rufai

 

Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has been fuming over the decision of former Lagos State governor, Bola Tinubu, who is also the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to pick former Borno State governor, Kashim Shettima, as his running mate.
Credible sources in the APC told Daily Independent that the APC leadership was trying to manage the issue so that it would not blow open like that of the major opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Kaduna State Governor Nasiru Ahmed El-Rufai

In the APC, the list of potential running mates was narrowed to el-Rufai from the North-West and Shettima from the North-East. While many had thought Tinubu would settle for el-Rufai, the former Lagos State governor announced Shettima.

It was gathered that the northern APC governors had agreed that based on the role they played in his emergence as APC flag bearer, especially the communique they issued declaring support for power shift to South, Tinubu should pick one of them as his running mate.
It was equally gathered that Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State, who is the chairman of the Northern Governors’ Forum, was penciled down if Tinubu decided to fly a Muslim-Christian ticket.
But when it was obvious that he wanted a fellow Muslim as his running mate, Shettima and el-Rufai were shortlisted and without consulting with the governors, Tinubu opted for the former Borno governor who is one of his staunch loyalists.
Despite the development, the governors managed to keep their grievances from public glare and turned up in Osun last week for the grand finale of the party’s governorship campaign. Its candidate, Gboyega Oyetola, lost to the PDP candidate, Ademola Adeleke.
“El-Rufai is not in good terms with Tinubu. El-Rufai also enjoys the sympathy of some APC governors, especially those in the North as they had always insisted that for supporting Tinubu in the primary, he must pick one of them as his running mate.
"Announcing Shettima, a former governor, as his choice without consulting with the governors was seen as an affront by the APC governors who are major stakeholders in the party”, one of the sources said.
 

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We are officially in the election season. Things are not the way they should be and I am happy that Nigerians know it and they are showing it. What happened in Edo State played itself out again in Osun on Saturday. The woeful performance of the All Progressive Congress cannot but reflect upon its outings during elections. The situation of things in Nigeria is getting tougher and tougher every single day. Inflation is at its highest, there is no electricity supply and the cost of maintaining generators is draining everyone. Companies are shutting down, the universities are under lock and key, insecurity is worse than we have ever known and it takes prayers to travel on our roads. People are losing their jobs and those employed are either not being paid or their take home package is not sufficient to address the soaring inflationary trend.
 
The galloping exchange rate of the major foreign currencies has continued to hurt the Nigerian economy and the government itself has resorted to borrowing. Everyone is affected one way or the other and this is part of why the ruling APC lost the Osun election. People are tired of stories and propaganda over very serious national issues. Why is the government unable to stand up to the terrorists, the bandits, the kidnappers, the cultists, the armed robbers and the other criminals generally? These are some of the issues that will shape the 2023 general elections.
 
THE CANDIDATES
 
Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the flagbearer of the ruling APC has always had baggage, even from his stint as the governor of Lagos State, concerning his true age, his origin, his educational qualifications, his health and even his wealth. The expectation was that a man in such troubled waters would walk circumspectly in order not to step upon the landmines of Nigerian politics. But alas, Tinubu decided to dare Nigerians in one of the areas that affect them most. He wanted to revive the Hope 93 scenario of late Chief MKO Abiola, by fielding a Muslim-Muslim ticket in a secular environment like Nigeria. There is no better way to incur the wrath of voters than to arrogantly dare them. Underlying the Muslim-Muslim ticket is the impression unwittingly created that others do not matter. How can a candidate aspiring to be the President of Nigeria not be mindful of the sensitive nature of religion and its role in our national life? Although this is proving to be Tinubu’s albatross, there are other serious issues about his life ambition. 

In 2015, Tinubu sold Buhari to Nigerians as the messiah that was needed to turn things around. Tinubu was everyday mouthing fiscal federalism, state police, restructuring and such other empty slogans meant to woo the people to vote for his candidate. Tinubu could not implement these promises thereafter other than to remain in Lagos with the illegal title of national leader of the APC. Tinubu’s choice in 2015 has driven Nigeria to the very brink not ever thought possible. Buhari has divided us more than ever before and he has also pauperized our people beyond tolerance. He is the perfect example of how not to raise a leader. Without apologizing for misleading the people, Tinubu himself has now joined the race to succeed his candidate. The APC itself as an entity has not helped Tinubu and it is most unfortunate. The impression that the APC has given to Nigerians is that the party can win the presidential election without the people. Perhaps that is the reason for the Osun State shocker. No one should be allowed to assert with such unbridled arrogance that there is a hold on power, unless there is a hidden agenda to win elections through other means beyond the open ballot.
 
It is rather too early for Tinubu to have been caged, captured and hijacked by the APC cabal, the latter which has presented Tinubu as a weakling. Tinubu has suddenly lost his voice since his emergence. It was Governor Abdullahi Ganduje that announced to Nigerians that Tinubu had accepted to pair with a Muslim vice presidential candidate and it took Tinubu a visit to Buhari in Katsina to be able to unveil his choice. The proverb goes that what you would not eat as a rich man you would not bother to even sniff at it as a poor man. If this is the sign of what is to come for the Tinubu presidency, then we should better forget it as we cannot afford another eight years of leadership by proxy. The impression has already been created that Tinubu is not acceptable to the Northern Muslims or else they would not have insisted on one of their own. The APC will do well to discard the toga of being a Muslim party by spreading its major offices to accommodate all interests.
 
Beyond religion however, there is nothing to cheer in the Tinubu/Shettima ticket. The leading billionaires in the world today have no political relationship with the governments of their countries and they have no contractual arrangement to suck their national treasuries. Once the wealth of anyone is tied to the government, then such a person should not seek to be in control of political power. Let Tinubu retire and continue with his revenue management strategies for the various governments that have been patronizing him. He cannot seek to hold economic and political power all at once. Since Tinubu is already in the race however, it is advisable for him to pick his vice presidential candidate from another faith, in order to balance the equation and give a sense of belonging to others.
 
The case of the former Vice-President of Nigeria, His Excellency Alhaji Atiku Abubakar is worse than that of Tinubu in a million ways. In Atiku, we are likely to have another government of vengeance. Atiku has been vying for president for a very long time, just like Buhari. Atiku must and will hold some people or institutions responsible for his defeats in the past. The emergence of Atiku as the candidate of the PDP has presented a dilemma that should not be allowed to fester. Whether in or out of power, the North remains the North and thus we cannot ignore the presidency of Buhari to invent the selfish argument that PDP cannot apply the rotation principle because it is in the opposition. This cannot engender national unity and cohesion which Nigeria needs urgently. The desperation for power should not close the eyes to truth, equity and fairness. What story is Atiku seeking to tell the people of Southern Nigeria with his candidature? That they should endure the marginalization for another eight years? And this is why the stand of Governor Nyesom Wike to ignore the PDP is very commendable, even though Wike himself is another story altogether.
 
Furthermore, Atiku’s candidature is a big slap upon the plurality and unity of Nigeria. An Atiku presidency will translate to sixteen years of unbroken presidency of the North, which will lead to more agitations and may snowball into disintegration. An Atiku presidency will translate to sixteen years of Muslim-Muslim presidency, in a nation where there are two dominant religions. Is it possible that this may encourage the terrorists and bandits to seek to further their violent agenda against Nigeria? 
 
Atiku as the Vice-President of General Olusegun Obasanjo (Retd) was in charge of the economy. Under his tenure, Nigeria suffered loss of its national assets, due to the IMF/World Bank-inspired privatization policy. This led to job losses and indeed the pauperization of the masses of our people. What will then happen when Atiku becomes the president? There are also concerns about Atiku’s health, his true origin and his loyalty to Nigeria. Atiku is almost always in Dubai, which has become more like a haven for many political leaders who go there to spend quality time but are unable to replicate good governance and development for the benefit of their country. Unlike Tinubu, Atiku is already showing signs of civilian dictatorship, by jettisoning the decision of the Committee set up by his party to choose his vice presidential candidate. Whereas this should have counted in his favour as a man of his own, the failure of Atiku to consult with those to be affected by his decision is a bad omen for the presidency that he seeks to occupy. Like Tinubu, Atiku is yet to dismantle the toga of corruption hung on him by his former boss and his businesses are also tied to the government.
 
Sensing the anger, frustration and apathy of Nigerian youths, the political class quickly picked the former governor of Anambra State, His Excellency, Mr. Peter Obi to raise false hopes of a revolutionary change. This has worked to some extent because in Nigeria presently, the youths have come to embrace the leprous transition programme of Buhari and they have been cajoled to join the 2023 bandwagon through Obi. I have always advocated for an end to the marginalization of the South East by the ‘owners’ of Nigeria. So if we say that Obi should be president in order to give the Igbos a sense of belonging, I will gladly accept and support that venture. But to portray Obi as the new face of any transformation agenda for Nigeria, please perish the thought. This was the same way that Buhari was paraded as the messiah for Nigeria in 2015. Buhari even presented a ‘progressive’ manifesto to us with fantastic promises only to turn around to disown it after his election. Obi snatched the ticket of the Labour Party that is meant for the genuine representatives of the working class and he is cashing in on the boiling anger of the youths and other Nigerians to project himself as a friend of the masses when he is indeed part of their problems. Obi has jumped from the All Progressive Grand Alliance which gave him the platform to be governor, to the PDP and now to the Labour Party. With the way Nigeria is presently structured, a million Obis will end up worse than Buhari.
 
There is an urgent need to restructure Nigeria and if we keep recycling politicians every four years, there will be nothing for the masses except lamentations. The 1999 Constitution of Nigeria is itself the enemy of our development and progress. It is time to discard it and enact a new Constitution that will reflect the will of the people, instead of jumping around with politicians every four years with no mission in focus. That is the 2023 dilemma. Restructuring is the answer, after all.
Life without Christ is Crisis
 

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Nigerian workers under the aegis of Workers and Youth Solidarity Network (WYSW) have described President Muhammadu Buhari’s statement on the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) as outrageous and an attempt to vilify the striking university teachers.
The group in a statement by its Secretary, Sammy Owot, said that it believed that Nigeria had enough wealth to fund its education but had chosen to turn its back at the striking university teachers and the students who had been at home for over four months because “Nigerian ruling class is well known for sponsoring their children to go to schools in the rich industrialised countries.”

According to NYSW, “It is not new that the children of the rich were having a ride from elite schools into universities abroad with looted public money, while the children of ordinary people are badly affected by the shutdown that the government generated.”
The group, while calling on every Nigerian to join the planned nationwide protest by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), scheduled to hold on July 26th and July 27th, noted that “The continuation of this deadlock has stopped activities in public universities and has pushed over one million students out of school, only because the government refuses to accept some basic demands.”
The workers group in the statement reaffirmed their principled support for the industrial action by ASUU and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU).
The group noted, “Few days ago, the Nigerian president said, “We hope that ASUU will sympathise with the people on the prolonged strike. Truly, enough is enough for keeping students at home. Don’t hurt the next generation for goodness sake.”
“Workers and Youth Solidarity Network finds this statement outrageous. It is an attempt to blame ASUU for the prolonged character of the strikes, instead of putting the blame where it belongs, to the Federal Government for not meeting the demands of the striking unions.”
According to NYSW, “The Federal Government has frozen the payment of salaries of the striking education workers, through its “no work-no pay” policy. We have condemned this. We believe that Nigeria has enough wealth to fund its education. Nigeria education funding is under 10% of the budget, while the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNESCO recommends 15-20%.
“But the corrupt capitalist politicians that have got their hands on Nigeria’s resources prefer to spend it on cosmetic projects and dubious contracts. This explains why strikes remain the last option for unions and workers.
“The Nigerian ruling class is well known for sponsoring their children to go to schools in the rich industrialised countries, where they pay huge amounts of money. Recently, it was reported that Mohammed Sani Badaru, the son of Jigawa state Governor, Badaru Abubakar, has graduated from Brunel University in London, UK. This comes a few days after the pictures of the graduation of Governor Nyesom Wike’s son flooded the internet, who has just graduated from another United Kingdom university.
“We believe that the government has enough money to fund education, even beyond the current demands of the education sector unions for a one-off funding intervention in the sector.
“As we speak, 11,800 political appointees in Nigeria are living a provocative lifestyle with public resources through their outrageous remuneration and inflated cost of contracts or outsourcing of government's projects. The same government provided the controversial Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) that enabled corruption in the payments system. 
“One of the major reasons for the deadlock of the strike was that the University Transparency Account System (UTAS), presented by ASUU as an alternative payroll system, was refused by the FG.
“The WYSN holds that the root cause of the problem of education in Nigeria today is the false priorities of the capitalist system itself. That explains why the government neglects funding education sectors that are important to ordinary people, and instead funds big capital, the monopolies and the multinationals. 
“This is why the struggle for education and better living conditions for workers must be linked with the general struggle of the working people and masses to get rid of this system.
“To finally end this crisis, we must fight for unity of workers, students and youth, in order to mobilise against the government. At the same time, we need to build a mass workers political alternative, armed with socialist policies, which will advance the struggle to end capitalism and install a workers and poor people’s government.”

 

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Hope Uzodinma

 

The youth wing of South-East socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has reacted to the alleged killing of seven wedding guests by Ebube-Agu security outfit in Imo State.
It was reported on Sunday that Ebube-Agu, a state security outfit opened fire and killed seven youths when they were returning to their community in Otulu, Oru East Local Government Area of the State from Awomama in the neighbouring Oru West LGA.

Hope Uzodinma

The incident was confirmed by the President General of Otulu community, Nnamdi Agbor and the Imo State Police Command.
However, the National President of OYC, Mazi Okwu Nnabuike on Tuesday said he was saddened that the lives of promising young men were cut short by reckless Ebube Agu security operatives.
The group lamented on the grave silence of the Imo State Government days after that brutal killing.
Nnabuike alleged that in Ebonyi State, there had been reported cases of the use of Ebube Agu by the state forces to settle scores.
He said, “Our hearts are filled with rage over this mindless and reckless killing of innocent people by Ebube-Agu security operatives. It is inconceivable that a local security outfit could just open fire on armed civilians for no clear reason. We are even sadder owing to the grave silence of the Imo State Government days after that brutal killing.
“Ndigbo are very concerned that nothing good has ever come out of the government of Hope Uzodinma ever since he came to power. It has been one form of crisis or the other and now this strange action by the government-controlled Ebube Agu. His reign has only brought sorrow to the people of the state.
“In Ebonyi State, there have been reported cases of the use of Ebube Agu by State forces to settle scores; now, the onslaught appears to have spread to Imo State. This is totally unacceptable and should be condemned by all men of goodwill.
“We demand for a private enquiry over this matter and though no life could be paid for, adequate compensation must be made to the families of the victims,” Okwu declared.
“The continuous virulent unprovoked attack on the residents of Isi-Uzo Local Government Area of Enugu State by Fulani herdsmen can no longer be condoned.
“We find it hard to understand why the security agencies cannot put an end to this mayhem, which has led to the loss of several lives.
“The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide, therefore, calls on Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi’s administration to find an immediate end to this carnage. The primary purpose of the government is to provide security to the people.
“The time has come for the government to take decisive action and restore normalcy to the troubled Isi-Uzo Council Area.
“We are also urging the people of the Area to begin to explore measures of defending themselves because Ndigbo are not known to the cowards,” he added.

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The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has directed all churches in Nigeria to advise their members to vote against presidential candidates who have been linked to hard drugs, Boko Haram, corruption or any violent religious groups before.
This was disclosed in a circular which emanated from the Political and Strategy Committee of CAN and was sent to all churches in Nigeria.

According to the circular, titled “2023 General Elections; Whom To Vote For,” CAN enumerated qualities that the presidential candidate must possess and the policies that should either be implemented or rejected.
Among the qualities CAN said Christians should look out for in a candidate are honesty, truthfulness, respect for the rule of law, respect for religious and ethnic diversity, compassion, disciplined and credibility.
The body said the candidate must not be a member of any cult, and must not have any involvement with drugs, witchcraft, Boko Haram or any violent religious group.
CAN said the candidate is required to have performed excellently in previous positions, must have good education sufficient to manage a complex society, and have effective management skills of human and natural resources.
The circular reads: "Offices must be shared fairly to every section of Nigeria. There must be equal ethnic and religious representation in military and security agencies. We say no to the RUGA settlement policy and yes to ranching. There should be education and free healthcare for all Nigerians including almajiris. We reject open grazing, rather, there should be modernisation of animal husbandry, local control of economy including waters, rivers and forests. Everyone should control what we have.
“The candidate must not be a member of any cult, must have no involvement in drugs and witchcraft, no fanaticism, no relationship to Boko Haram or other violent religious groups. The person must have quality performance in previous positions, good education sufficient to manage a complex society, effective management of human and natural resources.  The person must have the ability to envision transformation, ability to communicate the vision to diverse peoples, ability to effectively effect the vision of transformation, must be in good health, sound mind and physical fitness for the job.”
 

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The Presidential Candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, will on Wednesday officially present the former governor of Borno State, Senator Kashim Shettima, as his running mate for the 2023 general elections.

This is however coming despite nationwide criticisms and rejection of the choice of Tinubu and the leadership of the APC to go with Muslim-Muslim ticket.

For over a week since the former Lagos State and national leader of the party picked Shettima as his running mate, many members, especially some lawmakers and other leaders of the ruling party have not only faulted the Muslim-Muslim ticket but have dumped the party, while groups, opinion leaders and the Christian community have largely condemned the party’s choice, describing it as insensitivity to principle of inclusiveness, equity and fairness.

However, a statement released on Tuesday morning by the APC National Organising Secretary, Suleiman Argungu, stated that Shettima will be officially presented by 1pm at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja.

“The All Progressives Congress will formally unveil its Vice Presidential Candidate, Senator Kashim Shettima, to the Nigerian public.

“All members of the National Executive Committee, Progressives Governors’ Forum, APC Caucus in the National Assembly, Federal Executive Council, diplomatic corps and presidential aspirants at the June 2022 Special National Convention, APC state chairmen, secretaries and organising secretaries are hereby invited to witness this landmark official unveiling of our great party’s vice presidential candidate,” part of the statement read.

Recall that after a closed door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari on July 10 in Daura, Katsina State, Tinubu had told journalists that Shettima was the “chosen one.”

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The residence of Nathaniel Agunbiade, the Osun State Commissioner for Lands and Physical Planning, has been attacked by thugs who were suspected to be loyalists of the ruling All Progress Congress(APC).

SaharaReporters gathered that the hoodlums on Monday morning launched the attack on Agunbiade's house in the Erinmo Ijesa town of the state, vandalised his properties and many of his cars because he failed to pay their delegate fees during the last Saturday governorship election in the state.

It was also reported that several aides of the Commissioner were injured while attempting to resist the attackers.

A reliable source confirmed to SaharaReporters that the thugs were members of APC and not that of the opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party as was insinuated in some quarters.

"They attacked the commissioner because he failed to settle them for the role they played during the election," the source confirmed.

When SaharaReporters contacted the Osun State Police Command’s spokesperson, Yemisi Opalola, she confirmed the incident.

"They truly attacked the commissioner and planned to kill him but Thank God, he escaped.

"But when we asked him if he suspected anybody to aid our investigation, he said he did not know them," the police spokesperson told SaharaReporters.

SaharaReporters had reported that the Independent National Electoral Commission on Sunday morning declared Ademola Adeleke the Governor-Elect of Osun State after garnering a majority of votes cast in the governorship election in the state.

The victory came for Adeleke nearly four years after failing by a small margin in his bid to govern Osun State when he lost to the incumbent governor, Gboyega Oyetola.

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Bandits who kidnapped 25 women and others in three communities within Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State have refused to release their victims despite collecting N9million as ransom.
The terrorists on more than 30 motorbikes had on June 30 stormed the villages and murdered over 20 residents, before kidnapping the victims.

A source told SaharaReporters that the bandits later contacted their families and demanded a sum of N100million for their release.
He said the families were able to raise N9million which was sent to the gunmen, but they had refused to release the victims.
“The kidnappers have refused to release the 40 people including 25 women after paying them N9million as ransom,” the source said.
In recent months, Kaduna has witnessed a spate of violent attacks which has led to killings and abduction of residents.
On March 28, a Kaduna-bound train was attacked by gunmen, which led to the death of eight people. Many persons were also kidnapped.
Some of the abducted people have regained their freedom while others are still being held captive by the terrorists.
Days after the train attack, 11 soldiers were killed in an attack by gunmen on a military base in the Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of the state.

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Osun State governor-elect, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has admitted that some associates of former state governor and serving minister, Rauf Aregbesola, worked for him in last Saturday’s election.

Adeleke, from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said this in a Channels Television interview.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Adeleke governor-elect, on Sunday.

He polled a total of 403,371 votes ahead of outgoing Governor Gboyega Oyetola of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who polled 375,027 votes.

Adeleke secured victory in the stronghold of the APC, a development which many attributed to the rift between Oyetola and Aregbesola.

Commenting on this, the governor-elect said, “I did not work with Aregbesola. I didn’t even talk to him, but all I know is his associates, for example, Kolapo Alimi, one of the lawyers that represented Oyetola at the tribunal,” he said.

“Then, anytime I saw him (Alimi) in court, because I’m a civilised person, I will go to them and greet them and say ‘how are you doing?’ It was later he apologised and said ‘he was thinking ‘why is senator Adeleke greeting me? We are trying to mess him up and he is still greeting me’.

“But he later told me that while I was greeting him, I didn’t know that I was giving them poison. They knew that I won the election and they rigged me out and I was still greeting them. I believe that Aregbesola and Oyetola fell out.

“He (Alimi) came to me and said he has watched me and that he wants to join our party and we accepted. But Aregbesola directly? No. But we know a lot of top APC that joined. Assuming that I had been talking to Aregbesola one way or the other, then I would say that maybe he gave them go-ahead to support me.

“These people have grown; they have their own minds to decide if they want to join me or not. They believed that I was the one to beat and they came to me. I won’t know whether Aregbesola gave them go-ahead or not, because I have not been talking to Aregbesola.”

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Ifeanyi Ejiofor

Ifeanyi Ejiofor, the lawyer to the detained leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has condemned the gruesome killing of 14 young men returning from a traditional wedding ceremony in Awo-Omamma in the Oru East local government area of Imo State by members of Ebube-Agu security outfit.

 

He described the tragic incident as barbaric, unacceptable and an unforgivable crime against humanity.

Ifeanyi Ejiofor

SaharaReporters had on Monday reported how the members of security outfit allegedly opened fired and killed the young men on Sunday evening following a viral video where tens of people were seen gathered around a Hiace bus that fell into a ditch, where the bodies of the victims were reportedly seen.

 

The people in the video were heard crying and calling for revenge, threatening to wipe out the family members of the Ebube-Agu Security outfit that participated in the alleged killings.

 

Ejiofor stated this in a statement titled, “A State that eats up her own is DOOMED" on Monday in Abuja while reacting to the incident called on well-meaning individuals to condemn the barbaric act, and further seek justice by calling the Imo State Government to question.

 

He also called on Governor Hope Uzodimma to ensure that the perpetrators of the heinous crime were brought to book.

 

The statement read, "It is with a very heavy and broken heart that I demand for an immediate probe into the gruesome killings of 14 unarmed and innocent civilians by the Ebube-Agu outfit set up by the Imo State Government.

"We reliably gathered that 14 able bodied men who were all in their primes, were gruesomely murdered by the Imo State Ebube-Agu Security Outfit, while returning from a traditional wedding ceremony this past weekend.

“They were waylaid by the trigger-happy and soulless Ebube-Agu militia and gruesomely murdered around Mgbidi, in Imo State. This barbaric act is totally condemnable, unacceptable and an unforgivable crime against humanity.

“How did we get here??? How can a state hack up her young ones in thIS most gruesome manner? What is the difference between these monstrous Ebube-Agu militia and those they were purportedly set up to eradicate? The difference is that the killer Ebube-Agu militia have the backing, the license and authority of the State Government to kill without being called to question. Enough should be enough! Every well-meaning individual must rise up and condemn this atrocious act, and further seek justice by calling the Imo State Government to question. The perpetrators of this heinous crime must be brought to book."

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