The Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria in the Jos East Local Government Area of Plateau State, North Central Nigeria, Rev. James Kantoma who was kidnapped by gunmen has regained his freedom.
Kantoma, who doubles as the Catholic priest in charge of St Anthony’s Parish in Jos East Local Government Area of Plateau State, was abducted in his house in the community by the gunmen on Sunday night.

A resident of Angware community who confirmed the cleric’s abduction on Monday had said that when the gunmen arrived in the community at night, they moved straight to the house of the Reverend Father.
The abductors had demanded N50million as a ransom.
However, the CAN Chairman of Plateau North, Rev. Nenman Gowan, on Thursday confirmed the release of Kantoma in Jos.
He affirmed that the priest was in stable condition but undergoing treatment and rehabilitation after suffering varying degrees of traumatic experience.
He did not mention if any ransom was paid before the release of the Catholic Priest.

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The Nigeria Police Force, Lagos command, has reacted to a video circulating on the internet with the claim that an American woman raised the alarm after she was brought to Nigeria via diabolical means by internet fraudsters popularly known as “Yahoo boys.”
The video was shared widely on Instagram on Wednesday alongside a voice note.

The narrator claimed the white woman, said she came into the country three days ago but did not know how the young man (the fraudster) was able to convince her to come.
However, the spokesperson of the Lagos State Police Command, Benjamin Hundeyin had debunked the claim stating that the woman, a German, had a misunderstanding with her Nigerian husband whom she had been living with since 2019.
He said the misunderstanding escalated such that the neighbours had to intervene.
However, the couple were taken to the police station and had since resolved the issue. The woman, Hundeyin said, refused to be taken to the German embassy and had returned home to her husband. 
Hundeyin tweeted on Wednesday evening, “False narrative! The woman is German. She has been living with her husband in that same house since February 2019. They had a misunderstanding yesterday which necessitated neighbours intervening. The police arrived on time and took her to the station.
“She declined to be taken to the German embassy. She insisted on going back home with her husband. The husband too very willingly made up with her. They are happily back home. Note: I deliberately left out the names to give them their privacy."

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The Nigerian Army authorities have approved the rotation of over 100 soldiers fighting insurgency in the Northeast.

 

SaharaReporters had exclusively reported the lamentations of the soldiers who had overstayed their mission in the region and were prevented from taking any break for nearly five years.

They complained that their low morale and lack of willingness to continue to fight made it possible for terrorists to dislodge some military camps recently.

 

They said they were not sure why army commanders had refused to send those expected to relieve them to the battlefield three months after they were due for rotation.

 

In a letter titled ‘ROTATION PLAN OF OVERSTAYED NACST PERSONNEL OF HADIN KAI PHASE X 79NA/31888 WO BUKA JUMBO - DVR B1 AND 100 OTHERS’, the army authorities directed their release and transportation to “AHQ Gar ST Bde, Sect 2 ST Bde on 21 June unfailingly.”

 

The letter read, “References A conveyed list of overstayed NACST personnel in Op HADIN KAI Rotation Plan Phase X and their replacement to AHQ DAOP’s fir scheduled date of de-induction/induction.

“According, Reference B requested AHQ NAOMT to coordinate their de-induction/Induction. Consequently, I am directed to request affected fmns/units to release nominated soldiers at Annex A to assemble at AHQ Gor St Bde NLT 21 Jun 22 for onward movement to NASFS Buni Yadi 27 Jun 22 for In Theater Acclimatization Training (ITAT).

 

“In view of the above, I am further directed to add that it is a command responsibility to ensure troops are released and transported to AHQ Gar ST Bde, Sect 2 ST Bde on21 Jun 22 unfailingly.  For 77 St Bde, AHQ Gar ST Bde Sect 2 ST Bde (OPHK) and Sect 3 ST Bde (OPHK). I am to request you adequately to receive the soldiers before and after ITAT and forward your report to this Headquarters on completions of the exercise accordingly.”

 

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That the All Progressives Congress (APC) flag bearer, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is exactly where the party’s last presidential candidate President Muhammadu Buhari was when he got the ticket eight years ago, shows just how our politics has stagnated, if not regressed.

 

After Buhari won the APC ticket in December 2014, the next major hurdle was getting a running mate. In what appeared to be a breach of the understanding he had with Tinubu to be his running mate before the election - and on the basis of which Tinubu moved heaven and earth to support him - Buhari changed his mind at the last minute.

 

He broke his promise, even before the electoral contest. After pocketing the ticket, Buhari told Tinubu, with a heavy heart, that in spite of himself, he had been advised that a Muslim-Muslim ticket would be a disaster for the pair and the party.

 

Tinubu didn’t agree, but the rest, as they say, is history.

That history is in replay not because it was inevitable, but largely because Buhari is leaving a legacy of division, intolerance and identity politics, the kind of which has only a few comparisons in Nigeria’s recent history.

 

Let me be clear. Buhari did not introduce identity politics into the country. Nor is identity politics a peculiarly Nigerian thing. On his watch in the last seven years, however, ethnic and religious politics have taken on salience and frequency hardly experienced before or even thought likely.

 

It’s true that the redefinition of apostasy by Boko Haram has infused a deadlier strain in religious attacks. But it’s just as probable that Buhari’s tentativeness has been unhelpful.

 

Religiously motivated violence has grown from a handful of perfunctory incidents into a state of permanent siege, claiming dozens of lives, especially in Kaduna, and sundering once-peaceful neighbourhoods and communities. Christians, Muslims and those who are neither are hurting because all have been caught in the crossfire. The recent atrocity at Saint Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State, which claimed at least 40 lives and left many more injured, has further bruised already delicate religious sensitivities.

 

It is in this fraught climate, more complicated and fragile than it was when Buhari rejected Tinubu as his running mate on religious grounds, that Tinubu would have to decide whether he maintains his position of eight years ago that a Muslim-Muslim ticket after an outgoing Muslim president, still doesn’t matter. On top of that, Tinubu is running against a Northern Muslim who, in spite of his shortcomings, would be vigorously promoted in conservative circles up country as “our own Muslim”. It’s a serious matter.

 

I laugh at those who say it’s a simple choice or that concerns about it are irrational. To justify this position, they even go on a tour of Europe and the US for apples to compare with Nigeria’s oranges.

 

I think it’s fair to say that Nigeria is not what it was in 1979 when Obafemi Awolowo, a lawyer, chose another lawyer and Southerner, Philip Umeadi, as his running mate. Or in 1993 when MKO Abiola, a Muslim, picked Babagana Kingibe, a Muslim, as his running mate, and still won the presidential election, later cancelled by the military government of General Ibrahim Babangida.

 

Yet, this current predicament could also be a turning point, an opportunity for Tinubu to show that out of the ashes of this moment, it is possible to build a future in which citizens would be safe and secure, and in which they would all have a fair shot irrespective of their religious, ethnic or political identities.

 

To do this, however, he has to win the election first. And to win the election, Tinubu might find himself arguing, like Deng Xiaoping, that white cat or black cat, he needs a cat that can catch mice. But it’s an argument that can - and should - be made with a sensitivity that resists hubris.

 

The hard truth, from Nigeria’s current political maths, is that that Deng cat - one that can give the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Atiku Abubakar, a run for the Presidency - is hardly in the Christian lair, North or South.

 

I honestly wish that in a country plagued by very serious problems of insecurity, poverty, brain drain, unemployment and broken infrastructure inflicted on us largely by persons who wear religion on their sleeves, we can look for competence, capacity and character; that the question would be, who’s the best person for the job, and not if he or she is wearing faith on a car bumper. We’re in trouble.

 

A document from a research firm, RMP for Dubai Expo 2020, showed that whereas Nigeria was one of the 10 top destinations in Africa for investment in 2014, second only to South Africa, Nigeria disappeared from that list in 2021. Egypt, the new tourist destination of the political elite, has moved from sixth to the first spot. Key metrics of well-being and development have deteriorated sharply.

 

Yet, we’ll have to play the cards we’re dealt. Emotions, experience and a raft of Nigeria’s notoriously expedient conventions make a Muslim-Muslim ticket hard to contemplate at this time. But the voting data suggests that it would be nothing short of political suicide for APC to choose a Christian as Tinubu’s running mate.

 

Tinubu didn’t come all the way, so close to “his turn”, only to hang himself on a sectarian pole. If he gets it wrong - as he’s almost certain to do by choosing a Christian running mate - the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and others urging that choice on him today would be among the first to blame him. They would even mock him that he made others president, but himself he could not make.

 

Of course, this does not also mean that just about any Muslim would guarantee APC victory. Three serving governors - Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), the habitual polariser who manoeuvred the 10 Northern governors to go South for a presidential candidate; Abdullahi Ganduje (Kano), one of the earliest Tinubu cheerleaders; and Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi), who has been praised for his role in organising the APC primary - have been tipped as front runners.

 

But so, too, has former Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima, whose recent extraordinary defence of Tinubu has made him a man to watch on the national stage. As of Wednesday, party insiders were indicating that Shettima is a sure bet, though he is from the North-East. Choosing him would divide the vote in Atiku’s North-East base and shift the battle to the North-West. Here, former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso’s party, the NNPP, could be a disrupter, but the voting pool is larger.

 

APC governors, especially those from the zone, are pressing for one of their own - a sitting governor. With the mutual acrimony and backstabbing among this clan, however, not to mention their individual K-leg, controversial reputation and a mixed record of performance, Tinubu would find a choice among North-West governors a mountain to climb.

 

Let’s return to data. In Nigeria’s complex statutory electoral system, to win, a candidate not only requires a quarter of the total votes in 24 states, but he also has to get the highest number of votes countrywide, making states with large voter bases the crucial deciders.

 

The Muslim-dominated North-West, with 20 million registered voters or 24 percent of the total voting population as of 2019, is the country’s largest vote bank. According to Researchgate.net, Kano, Katsina and Jigawa (three of its leading vote banks) have over 80 percent Muslim population, the exception being Kaduna.

 

In the last six general election cycles, going back to 1999, the best performance of a Southern candidate in the North was 23 years ago, when two Southerners - Olusegun Obasanjo and Olu Falae - were on the main ballot. Yet, Northern sympathy for the winner, Obasanjo, at the time was largely because the region was the candidate’s political orphanage.

 

From 2003 when Buhari entered the presidential race and ran until he won the election on his fourth attempt in 2015, no Southern candidate had more Northern votes than he did; not even when he lost the election in his three previous attempts.

 

In the current vice-presidential race in the APC, apart from Shettima who is from the North-East, the other contenders - El-Rufai, Ganduje, Bagudu and even late entrants, Abubakar Malami and Hadi Sirika - are Muslims from the North-West.

 

True, it’s not the vice president, but the president that is on the ballot. In fact, in lamentation to his wife, the first US Vice President, John Adams, described the position as “the most insignificant office ever the invention of man contrived.” But in a race as tight as the next one promises to be, the choice of a running mate could make a difference.

 

And for Tinubu, just out of a bitter and fractious primary, what he does and how, will significantly affect the APC’s cohesion, especially with a long list of entitled heavyweights waiting to complicate the party’s misery, if they lose out.

 

Yet, it’s only if he makes a winning choice that he can make a room in the tent for everyone, including the aggrieved.

 

Ishiekwene is the Editor-In-Chief of LEADERSHIP

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Opinion AddThis :  Original Author :  Azu Ishiekwene Disable advertisements : 

The Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) rose from its National Executive meeting in Enugu State on Thursday, resolving that it would participate fully in the 2023 general elections regardless of its agitation for separate country.
MASSOB in the meeting which was presided over by Uchenna Madu, its leader, advised the members of other pro-Biafra groups and South-Easterners in general to register and secure their permanent voter's cards (PVCs) to enable them remove their oppressors and tyrannical leaders from the federal to state government levels.

The Nation Newspaper
The resolution of the meeting circulated in Enugu, which was signed by MASSOB's National Director of Information Samuel Edeson, said their stand became necessary because "a stitch in time saves nine.”
The five points’ communique reads, "That though MASSOB quest for Biafra actualisation and restoration can never be abandoned or jeopardized, our belief for Biafra is infallible and unshakable. We advise the oppressed, abandoned, deprived and mesmerised youths, women, men and students to secure their PVCs to enable them remove their oppressors and tyrannical leaders from the federal to state governments.
"That MASSOB warns that 2023 general election must be peaceful, fair and credible. That INEC must maintain the independency of their name in discharging their electoral duties."
On the killing of their members and dumping their corpses at Ezu River, MASSOB absorbed former Anambra Governor, Peter Obi, of any involvement.
It said, "That MASSOB expresses surprise that one Simon Ekpa that is based in Finland will use the instrument of social media to distort the open truth about Ezu river killings of MASSOB members.
“Members of MASSOB were arrested by the defunct SARS in Anambra State led by James Nwafor, a notorious policeman. He later killed them alongside other suspected criminals and dumped their bodies at Ezu river, Amansea Awka.
"MASSOB advises distorters of truth and paid agents of destructions to stop attaching Mr Peter Obi's name to Ezu river killings, he did not order or supervised the arrest and subsequent gruesome killing of MASSOB members."
On the issue of members and other pro-Biafra groups held captive in Nigeria detention camps, the separatist group urged the Federal Government to release them, adding that no amount of intimidation would stop their Biafra struggle.
"That MASSOB demands for the release of our members, IPOB members and other members of pro Biafra agitators from Nigerian police cells and prisons.
"That MASSOB shows solidarity to the detained leader of IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. Arrest and detentions does not break the spirit of Biafra in us. The continuous detaining of our brother, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and rigmaroling of his court processes will never break him or jeopardise our quest for Biafra actualisation and restoration."

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The Bauchi State Government has suspended Rallatu Moh’d Kashim, a staff member of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi.

 

Sources told SaharaReporters that Kashim was suspended for allegedly posting the picture of the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in the 2023 election, Marshal Saddique Baba Abubakar (rtd) on his WhatsApp status.

“She was suspended for posting the picture of APC guber candidate, former Air Force chief, Sadiq Abubakar on her status,” one of the sources told SaharaReporters.

 

“The instruction to have her suspended came from the Bauchi State governor (Bala Mohammed) through the Secretary to the State Government.

 

“So, the school is acting on the instruction passed by the governor through the SSG.”

 

Her letter of suspension dated June 14 and signed by the registrar of institution, Abdulahi Adamu read, “Following the suspension from the duty of the Polytechnic which directly affects all other duties. I have directed to further suspend you from the duties of Deputy General Manager (Operations) of the ATAP CONSULTANCY SERVICES LTD with immediate effects.

 

“You are to hand over all properties of the Company in you possession to the General Manager of the Company and vacate your office. Rallatu Moh’d Kashim, School of Science and Technology.

 

“I’m directed to refer to the query issued to you on Thursday, 9th June, 2022 and your subsequent reply dated 10th June, 2022. However, your reply to the query and the excuses expressed therein were not accepted.”

 

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The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has released the names of people allegedly behind the activities of unknown gunmen in the Southeast and declared them wanted.

 

IPOB had in April vowed to disclose the identities of those behind unknown gunmen terrorising the southeast in the nearest future.

Emma Powerful, the spokesman for the separatist group, maintained that IPOB and its militant wing, Eastern Security Network, ESN, are not behind the activities of unknown gunmen in the Southeast.

 

He pointed out that atrocities are perpetrated more in areas where politicians are fighting, insisting that criminalities in the Southeast are carried out to implicate IPOB and ESN.

 

However, the group which released some names allegedly behind killings in the region, said since IPOB and ESN are often accused of committing the crimes, the separatist group would not allow the criminals to succeed.

This is contained in a statement released on Thursday by Comrade Emma Powerful, IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary.

He accused one Nkechi Kalu and her eight-man kidnap gang of committing crimes around Abia and Igweocha in Rivers State, saying they are not IPOB members.

He said their activities should not be linked with 'IPOB Family'.

 

IPOB also accused the Nigerian government and its security agencies of sponsoring people to join IPOB and ESN.

According to Powerful, this happened when their leader, Nnamdi Kanu called for the massive resignation of Igbo people from Nigerian security forces and asked them to join the ESN to protect their motherland against marauding Fulani terrorists.

 

The statement reads in part, "We the global movement and family of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) under the command and leadership of our great leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, wish to reiterate once again that IPOB has never been part or behind the ongoing insecurity and criminalities in our dear region and against our people for whose security and safety the ESN was established.

 

"IPOB formed and inaugurated ESN to checkmate Fulani terrorist activities in the region and would never get involved in such evil and wicked acts as kidnapping for ransom.

 

"We are working towards exposing to the public those behind the ongoing criminalities in Anambra State, Enugu State and Imo State.

 

"Those behind these devilish activities are neither IPOB nor ESN members as always, unfortunately, ‘alleged’ and we cannot allow them to succeed in our land.

 

"In Abia State, particularly a certain Nkechi Kalu and her gang of about 8 kidnap gang (sic) operating between Abia state and Igweocha Rivers State are not IPOB members, they and their activities should not be associated with 'IPOB Family' membership.

 

"In Enugu State, a certain group of criminal elements turned themselves into enemies of the people, the names of their gang leaders are as follows; Chocho and Mazi Ejiofor are not IPOB members and anybody associating with them is a confirmed criminal. The above-named persons who were formerly IPOB members were expelled as a result of indiscipline and insubordination which is not tolerated by IPOB leadership.

 

"These men and women neither represent the cherished values for which IPOB is known for nor do they have any mandate to represent, transact, discuss, operate, or enter into any binding agreement for and on behalf of IPOB/ ESN.

 

"In Anambra State, our painstaking investigation revealed the kidnapping syndicates of gang leaders such as Mazi Chijioke Aloy Emechie (pastor), Uchenna Nnadi, Nwamami water, Michael and Mark Okpulor. These men are also not members of IPOB and do not represent the cherished values of the Indigenous People of Biafra.

 

"It is evidently certain that the above-mentioned persons were masterminds of kidnappings in and around Nnewi North LGA, Nnewi South, Ekwulobia Aguata and other places in Anambra State. Anybody that comes across them should treat them as the criminals that they are.

 

"The above-mentioned people who recently joined IPOB came with very dubious and criminal intents. However, our well-tested and trusted guiding principles exposed their ulterior intent and motive and unworthy of being part of the noble IPOB family and were therefore expelled to avoid contamination with disciplined members of IPOB.

 

"The public should note that the above-named persons were sponsored by the Nigeria Government and its compromised security agencies particularly DSS (Department of State Services) and Army personnel to join IPOB ESN when our leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu called for massive resignation of Biafrans from the Nigerian Security forces and join the ESN to protect their motherland against marauding Fulani terrorist herdsmen.

 

"We have fought so hard and will continue to expose and dislodge these agents in our midst and in our land. Of note is that some of these vermin fluently speak Igbo language, dress as Igbo men but they are Fulani and their main target was to destroy IPOB and ESN members and destroy Biafraland.  However, we promise them that they will regret their actions soon as we are ever determined to expose and confront them.

 

"Once again, these Criminals in different states in Biafraland are: In Anambra State are Mazi Chijioke Aloy Emechie (pastor), Uchenna Nnadi, Nwamamiwater, Michael, and Mark Okpulor. These people are disturbing and kidnapping our people in Anambra State and must not be allowed to associate with IPOB activities. The leadership hereby direct all IPOB members to take note and never to have any dealings with them.

 

"Abia State, operating from Abia State to Igweocha Rivers State are Madam Nkechi Kalu and her eight-man gang of kidnappers. They are neither IPOB members nor ESN operatives and anybody who see them must bring them down.

 

"Criminals operating in Enugu State include Mazi Ejiofor and Mazi Chocho anybody associating with these people are regarded as also criminal and not IPOB members.

 

"These people are declared wanted by IPOB leadership and ESN operatives, anyone that sees them or knows their whereabouts should report to IPOB leadership.”

 

 

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Delta Governor Ifeanyi Okowa

Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, on Thursday accepted to be the running mate to the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar.

Atiku earlier on Thursday announced Okowa as his running mate, describing it as a tough decision to make.

Delta Governor Ifeanyi Okowa

Okowa, who spoke at the party’s headquarters in Abuja, acknowledged that the decision must have been tough for Atiku to make.

The competition was between Okowa and the Rivers governor, Nyesom Wike.  

Okowa in his speech said, “I appreciate the party for having a successful convention. The convention produced a very experienced candidate who could rescue Nigeria from the terrible situation.

“I know it was a tough decision to pick me like you (Atiku) said this afternoon. I understand there is great work ahead of us and I know God designed this, and we will work hard for the party’s victory.

 

“Each and every one of us must support our principal to ensure the party wins in a landslide victory.

“And in doing so, we must be committed in our various wards. We need PDP to return to power; we have the answers to the questions of the country. By the grace of God, we will take on the president and win in a landslide, and I wholeheartedly accept the offer.”

 

Prior to the announcement made by Atiku, he explained that it was a tough decision to arrive at his choice of a running mate, stating that he selected Okowa due to the perceived qualities of the latter in governance and politics.

 

According to Atiku, the Delta governor possesses the relevant qualities for the position of Vice-President coupled with appropriate experiences in both the legislative and executive arms of governance.

 

Atiku had noted, “It is a difficult decision that I was called upon to take but I am not afraid to take difficult decisions.

 

“Someone hoping to lead a complex country such as ours, tough and difficult decisions will remain part of my everyday life, let me, therefore, start this momentous journey with a crucial decision about who among the eminently qualified shortlist will be my running mate.

 

“Accordingly, let me state that the person who I have chosen as my running mate possesses those identified qualities; he personifies not only the seriousness the current moment represents for our country but also the future that our young people yearn for and also deserve.

 

“He's a serving governor who has demonstrated in his state and through his conduct that governance is about service to the people. I know that he will not only add excitement to our energized campaign but will also help to bring focus, discipline and stability to our government come 2023.

 

"I am pleased therefore to announce here my choice of a running mate who will help to lead us to victory next year not only in the presidential elections but also in the governorship and legislative elections.

“He will be by my side as I work hard every day to provide people with security, revive our economy, improve education and unite our country, he has both legislative and executive experiences; His Excellency Governor Ifeanyi Authur Okowa."

 

 

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The Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar earlier on Thursday announced Ifeanyi Okowa, Governor of Delta State, as his running mate.

 

Prior to the announcement, Atiku explained that it was a tough decision to arrive at his choice of a running mate, stating that he selected Okowa due to the perceived qualities of the latter in governance and politics.

According to Atiku, the Delta governor possesses the relevant qualities for the position of Vice-President coupled with appropriate experiences in both the legislative and executive arms of governance.

 

Atiku noted, “It is a difficult decision that I was called upon to take but I am not afraid to take difficult decisions.

 

“Someone hoping to lead a complex country such as ours, tough and difficult decisions will remain part of my everyday life, let me, therefore, start this momentous journey with a crucial decision about who among the eminently qualified shortlist will be my running mate.

 

“Accordingly, let me state that the person who I have chosen as my running mate possesses those identified qualities; he personifies not only the seriousness the current moment represents for our country but also the future that our young people yearn for and also deserve.

 

“He's a serving governor who has demonstrated in his state and through his conduct that governance is about service to the people. I know that he will not only add excitement to our energized campaign but will also help to bring focus, discipline and stability to our government come 2023.

 

"I am pleased therefore to announce here my choice of a running mate who will help to lead us to victory next year not only in the presidential elections but also in the governorship and legislative elections.

“He will be by my side as I work hard every day to provide people with security, revive our economy, improve education and unite our country, he has both legislative and executive experiences; His Excellency Governor Ifeanyi Authur Okowa."

 

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A Magistrate Court sitting in Gusau, Zamfara State capital, has remanded a former deputy Chief of Staff to Governor Bello Matawalle of Zamfara, Bashir Mohammed Maru, and four others over misappropriation of an official Hilux vehicle.
The defendants were charged with criminal conspiracy and misappropriation of a public vehicle given to the former deputy Chief of Staff while in service.

The other four defendants are; Isah Usman, Shuiabu Musa, Yusuf Bello, and Mallam Yazid.
But it was only the first accused person, Isah Usman, and the second accused person who appeared in court and pleaded not guilty to the two offences for which they were being accused.
The remaining persons were not yet to be arrested by the police. 
The state counsel, Mohammed Aminu, told newsmen after the trial that the Zamfara State Government had asked the court to adjourn the matter to a later date to enable the police to conduct further investigation and apprehend the three fleeing suspects who were at large.
But the counsel to the first accused challenged the plea of the state counsel. He noted that the state’s Attorney General had taken over the matter from the Nigerian police and therefore should be conversant with the matter in question.
He further asserted that the Chief Magistrate Court 1 did not have the power to grant the application and to sit over the case, urging the court to reject the application and transfer the matter to a sharia court of competence jurisdiction given the fact the accused persons professed Islamic faith.
Meanwhile, the presiding magistrate, Magistrate Sa’adu Garba ruled as follows;
He said, “I would not waste my time, taking into cognizance of the Zamfara State law number 7 and the court with greater power that can handle this kind of matter is the State’s high court and for that reason.
“The matter shall be referred to the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice to transfer to the State’s high court.”
He, therefore, ordered that the two accused persons be remanded in the correctional facility to appear in the higher court.
The court will consider the application for a bail of the two accused persons brought to court at a date to be communicated to both parties on the matter.

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The Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar, on Thursday, announced Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State as his running mate in the general election.

The former Vice-President of Nigeria unveiled Okowa as his running mate in Abuja.

He said, “He will be by my side and work hard every day to provide our people the security, revive our economy, improve education and unite our country..."

 

Atiku said making a choice between the three names given to him was difficult.

Atiku also tweeted on his official Twitter handle, “I am delighted to announce Governor @IAOkowa as my Vice Presidential candidate. I look forward to travelling our great country together, engaging with all Nigerians and building a shared future of peace, unity, and prosperity for all. As One We Can Get It Done. #OneNigeria. -AA.”

I am delighted to announce Governor @IAOkowa as my Vice Presidential candidate. I look forward to travelling our great country together, engaging with all Nigerians and building a shared future of peace, unity, and prosperity for all. As One We Can Get It Done. #OneNigeria. -AA pic.twitter.com/JyKxTIhiUh

— Atiku Abubakar (@atiku) June 16, 2022

 

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Some 204 Boko Haram terrorists and their family members have ‘surrendered’ in northeast Nigeria in the past week, Nigerian Army has said.

 

The Boko Haram fighters ‘surrendered’ to troops in the Bama Local Government Area of Borno State.

On Wednesday, Nigerian Army on its verified Twitter handle affirmed that an onslaught targeting Boko Haram fighters has continued to record significant success.

 

The tweet reads, "The ongoing offensive onslaught against terrorism in the North East recorded another feat today, 15 June 2022 as 204 Boko Haram fighters including their family members surrendered to troops in Bama LGA of Borno State.

 

"Profiling of the surrendered terrorists is ongoing." https://t.co/MJzB9uqssY

 

The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) had in March said a total of 47,975 terrorists and their families had so far ‘surrendered’ to troops of Operation Hadin Kai in the Northeast from September 2021 till then.

 

It also said 17 top terror commanders and 35 armed bandits were killed even as naval troops of Operation Delta Safe, operating in the Niger Delta region, discovered and deactivated 49 illegal refineries and arrested 22 vessels involved in illegal fishing.

 

At a media briefing in Abuja, the Director, Defence Media Operations (DDMO), Maj. Gen. Bernard Onyeuko, who spoke while giving an update on military operations between March 10 and March 24, said 7,000 fighters of Boko Haram and the Islamic State for West African Province (ISWAP) surrendered to troops with members of their families bringing the number of insurgents, who had laid down their arms to 47,975.

 

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The stage is set for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) slated for June 20 to 26 in Kigali, Rwanda’s capital. With four of the seven East African Community partner states being members of the Commonwealth of Nations, the EAC Secretary-General, Peter Mathuki, says it will be an opportunity for the four partner states - Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda - to reap the benefits.

 

Indeed, the Commonwealth will no doubt bring vast opportunities as it is home to almost one-third of the world's population, and predictably all eyes will be on the host, Rwanda, a key member of the EAC.

 

About 2.6 billion people - out of the world’s 7.9 billion population - live in the Commonwealth's 54 countries.

 

Rwanda’s President, Paul Kagame, will assume Chair-in-Office of the Commonwealth, taking over from British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and will hold the position for a period of two years when the next CHOGM will be held.

Rwanda is understandably excited to be hosting the esteemed CHOGM gathering on its soil after joining the group in 2009.

Among its achievements, CHOGM is touted for assisting the economically poor member states to meet their needs.

It provides technical assistance and expertise to the less developed members, promotes the development of education by offering scholarships and exchange programmes, promotes mutual understanding and cooperation among members by holding joint sports and cultural activities, and promotes the development of the youth through the Commonwealth youth programme

CHOGM also promotes good governance, and above all, it encourages trade among member states. Supporters of the Commonwealth say apart from the United Nations, the group is the only major international organisation to unite a diverse range of developed and developing countries, covering 30% of the world’s population.

“This makes it valuable in fostering dialogue on democracy and development, as well as a great deal of cultural and academic exchange,” said one supporter, adding, that the Commonwealth’s Harare Declaration of 1991 committed the group to principles of human rights and democratic government, and provided practical and moral support for states in transition from dictatorship or democratic rule.

Another advocate of the Commonwealth said developed and developing countries “discuss and negotiate bilateral trade and investment deals in an atmosphere of goodwill”, and the Commonwealth provides practical help in maintaining permanent missions to the UN.  Others say all the countries of the Commonwealth have equal status and Britain is no longer dominant in the way it was in the immediate post-colonial era.

But despite the obvious advantages associated with being part of the 54-member group, critics say the group is a “pointless legacy of the British Empire, which serves only to bolster Britain’s sense of importance in the world and to make it appear that its monarch still has a role in the modern world”.

“The Commonwealth professes high ideas but fails to live up to them,” said one critic.

Another critic weighed in, accusing the Commonwealth of being a sham as its members always pursue self-interest when it conflicts with Commonwealth solidarity.

“On important issues,” another critic added, “naked self-interest always wins over Commonwealth solidarity, for example, Britain’s refusal to place sanctions on South Africa in the 1980s. In practice the Commonwealth is ineffectual.”

While some of these weaknesses are glaring, hopes are high that with Kagame at the helm for a good two years, these flaws will be addressed as Rwanda’s President is a tried and tested leader.

When he took over the rotating chair of the African Union, his critics queried if he would succeed in re-modelling the continental body into an effective institution. The AU was widely ridiculed as an organisation with “the bark of a bulldog, and the bite of a poodle”.

 

But when Kagame took over in 2018, he hit the ground running.  He championed a proposal to levy a 0.2% tax on each country’s imports to finance the AU to provide the organisation with $1.2 billion and wean it off from its donor dependence. Kagame launched the African Union Peace Fund aimed at developing a mechanism of self-financing of Africa’s peace and security activities.

 

The AU passport was introduced during his tenure with the aim of facilitating the free movement of people, spurring economic growth, and promoting trade within the continent.

 

In short, the advent of the result-oriented Rwandan leader brought a new sense of urgency into the otherwise lethargic continental body.

 

Perhaps Kagame’s most outstanding accomplishment was the establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCTA), which if successfully implemented, will see Africa becoming the world’s largest free trade area with 55 countries merged into a single market of 1.2 billion people with a combined GDP of US$2.5 trillion.

 

The AfCTA creates a single continental market for goods and services as well as a customs union with free movement of capital and business.

 

To demonstrate his resolve to have a peaceful Africa, Kagame has played a significant role in providing Rwandan peacekeepers in war-torn countries under several United Nations and AU missions.

Recently, Rwanda deployed its crack troops to neutralise an Islamic insurgency which was wreaking havoc in northern Mozambique at a time Sadc member states were dithering.

 

Apart from these accomplishments, Kagame is widely revered for transforming a devastated and traumatised Rwanda into a model country touted as the Singapore of Africa.

 

Rwanda was reduced to ground zero during the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, which ended after Kagame bravely led a rebel movement that stopped the massacres and drove the genocidal regime out of power.

 

As Kagame takes over the Commonwealth mantle, all eyes are on him, especially from Zimbabwe, a country that wants to be readmitted into the family of nations following decades of isolation.

Zimbabwe quit the Commonwealth in dramatic fashion in December 2003 after the group resolved to extend sanctions against the then President Robert Mugabe's government.

With President Emmerson Mnangagwa eager to reengage the international community, his focus will be on how Kagame will manoeuvre to ensure Zimbabwe is readmitted into the Commonwealth.

After all Rwanda and Zimbabwe have struck a common chord.

 

Jakachira writes from Harare, Zimbabwe.

 

 

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The former Dean of Law, University of Nigeria and former United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Trafficking Professor Joy Ezeilo, has decried the rising inflation in Nigeria.

 

Ezeilo, who is the founder, Women Aid Collective (WACOL) and Tamar Sexual Assault Referral Centre and the West African Women’s Rights Coalition (WAWORC), took to her verified Twitter handle Prof. Joy Ngozi Ezeilo (OON) @NgoziEzeilo to lament the worsening inflation across the country.

She expressed worry about how Nigerians would survive the unfolding hardship.

 

She said, "We're in troubled waters with crippling inflation."

 

She disclosed that as a law professor that has reached the last step and stage in promotion at a Federal University, she is paid about N400,000 per month after taxes.

After buying 50 litres of diesel at N40,000 to fuel her car for the week, she lamented that by the end of the month, she would have spent 40 per cent of her salary to go to work.

 

SaharaReporters had reported that the umbrella body of lecturers in public universities, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has been on strike since February 14, 2022, to demand among other things that their welfare should be improved.

The strike has lasted about 120 days yet the Nigerian government has failed to resolve the issues so public universities can reopen.

 

Her series of tweets which have attracted 5,966 retweets, 559 comments and 18,300 likes, read, "Which way is Nigeria headed? I bought 50 litres of diesel for my car at the cost of N40, 000 in Enugu.  I’m wondering how we will all survive this hardship.

 

"As a Law Professor that has reached the last step and stage in promotion at a Federal University, I’m paid about 400k per Month after taxes so if I spend forty thousand conservatively for fuelling my car on a weekly basis that’s if I remain within my city times that by at least 200 litres per Month it means 40 percent of my salary in fuelling.

 

"What about other utilities, electricity, water, rent, food, children’s school fees, medical, phone and internet etc.

 

"Cooking gas is up by over 200 percent? Do we resort to firewood? World Bank’s prediction that millions of Nigerians would be driven to the poverty level is real. We’re in troubled waters with crippling inflation!" 

Which way is Nigeria headed? I bought 50 litres of diesel for my car at the cost of N40, 000 in Enugu.  I’m wondering how we will all survive this hardship. As a Law Professor that has reached the last step and stage in promotion at a Federal University, I’m paid about 400k per

— Prof. Joy N. Ezeilo (OON) (@NgoziEzeilo) June 15, 2022

Meanwhile, Twitter users have reacted to the excessive inflation in the country.

A Twitter user, Ejiofor Onyishi tweeted, "And APC presidential candidate is promising to start where Buhari stopped, which is a big threat to Nigerians, the only solution at hand is Peter obi, get your PVC and vote wisely come 2023 or you keep on complaining"

And APC presidential candidate is promising to start where Buhari stopped, which is a big threat to Nigerians, the only solution at hand is Peter obi, get your PVC and vote wisely come 2023 or you keep on complaining

— Ejiofor Onyishi (@EjioforOnyishi) June 15, 2022

Another user, Brother_Mouzone @franz411 tweeted "when you import diesel instead of refining in your own country, what do you expect?"

when you import diesel instead of refining in your own country, what do you expect?

— Brother_Mouzone (@franz411) June 15, 2022

 

Some other Twitter users have also blamed the increase in the inflation rate on the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

Diesel has been deregulated, no subsidy. Let us join hands to beg Putin to stop his fight with Ukraine so that things will go back to normal.

— Code name: Black Wolf 🇳🇬 🇬🇧 (@babaottee) June 15, 2022

A Twitter user with Twitter handle @babaottee tweeted, "Diesel has been deregulated, no subsidy. Let us join hands to beg Putin to stop his fight with Ukraine so that things will go back to normal."

 

Another user with Twitter handle@Ambvoicez tweeted, "It is global challenge, Russia vs Ukraine war will bring more hardship than expected. There will be food crisis across the globe and gas will be more expensive"

It is global challenge, Russia vs Ukraine war will bring more hardship than expected. There will be food crisis across the globe and gas will be more expensive

— Ambvoice (@Ambvoicez) June 15, 2022

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The leader of the INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele has said the insecurity in the country will affect the scheduled dates for the 2023 general elections.

 

The cleric, in a statement on Thursday, lamented the security situation in the country, adding that elections would not hold in Nigeria on the dates set by the Independent National Electoral Commission as they would be shifted for security reasons.

The statement signed by Oluwatosin Osho, Ayodele's spokesperson warned that the security challenge will worsen, urging churches to brace themselves and put security measures in place to protect their congregants.

 

He urged the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) to convene a meeting of stakeholders to address the issue of providing security for churches.

 

He said: “Our security situation is going to be alarming because the security network is weak, and the government has not taken steps to address it. Nowhere is safe in Nigeria as we speak; attackers have been penetrating churches and abducting pastors; it’s sad.

 

“Christians should brace up to put security in place both physically and spiritually because this government will not be able to handle the issue till 2023. The security situation of the country will also affect the elections in 2023; the date will be shifted again due to the security crisis that will be facing the country.

 

 

“The fact is churches, mosques, students, schools, and even security operatives are not safe; only God will help us with this issue of insecurity because the suicide bombers and killers are ready to destroy the security network in Nigeria.

 

“Everyone has to be vigilant, especially in churches. Church leaders must take the security of their members very seriously. I expect the CAN chairman to have called for a meeting to address stakeholders in Christendom on security issues in churches.”

 

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A popular controversial Catholic priest and spiritual director of the Adoration Ministry, Enugu, Nigeria (AMEN), Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka, has said that his apologies over his derogatory comments against the former governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, prior to the 2019 general elections was done “under duress”.

 

Obi, then Atiku Abubakar’s presidential running mate had visited Mbaka’s Adoration ministry but failed to donate money to the ministry, making the priest to make some derogatory statements against him and his then Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

He had declared that because of Obi’s action, the party would lose the presidential election. Atiku and Obi eventually lost to the ruling All Progressives Congress’ candidates, President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

 

However, Mbaka eventually apologised to Obi in a video that went viral, claiming that he never meant to ridicule the personality of the former governor of Anambra State.

 

But in one of his recent ministrations where he spoke mostly in Igbo language, Mbaka said that against the popular belief that he willingly apologised to Obi, he only obeyed his bishop who forced him to do so.  

 

The cleric who said that his apologies were a poisonous curse against Obi described him as “A stingy man that cannot give people his money,” saying that those supporting his presidential ambition for the 2023 elections are wasting their money because he can never become Nigerian president.

 

He said, “I should not have talked but I saw my video going around everywhere as if Fr. Mbaka wholeheartedly came out and apologised. No, I didn’t apologise wholeheartedly, it was out of duress. I had to obey my Bishop, in obedience I had to, it is not of my volition. I did it because I am a Catholic Priest, my Bishop said, do it, my own is ‘Yes my Lord.’”

 

Mbaka added that "If he is wise, he should have come here after that apology to say he is sorry but he waited. Anybody supporting him is wasting his money, he is going nowhere.”

 

Recounting how he helped Obi when he was the governor, Mbaka said,

 

“He is my friend. When he was chased out of Government House, he knew the role I played to bring him back, but how did he pay me back?

 

“Night meetings we attended to bring him back, ask him, ask Eselu Uga, ask Archbishop Anikwenwa, they know where and how we did it. I placed my hands on my Bible and he was brought back.

 

“Ask Peter since then what he used to reward Adoration. If you like Peter Obi, tell him to come and ask for forgiveness. Let him come and redo what he did. There is an altar of God he blasphemed; he defiled an altar of God, the Holy Spirit.”

 

 

 

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On Wednesday, there was a viral claim circulated via various social media platforms that Zamfara State Government was again planning to shut down telecommunications networks within the state to curb incessant terrorist attacks.

SaharaReporters gathered that the claim was generated from the speech made by the state governor, Bello Matawalle, while assuring relatives of victims of terrorist attacks that his government would take all the necessary measures to curb insecurity in the state.

 A tweet made by Yusuf Anka, claimed that "Zamfara state govt is again moulding plans to block access to communications in the state over escalation of bandit attack. Are these people serious? What was the impact of the last black out? Is this really about security?”

 

SaharaReoorters also found a viral WhatsApp post purporting that Governor Matawalle had disclosed one of the measures he would take to curb banditry, including a possible shutdown of the network again.

 

Verification

Findings by SaharaReporters show that the claim is false and misleading.

SaharaReportors called the media aide to Zamfara State Governor, Zailani Bappa, to verify this claim.

"That claim is not true. Governor Matawalle's words were misinterpreted. The government does not have any plan to shut down the network again.

 

"What the governor meant was that his administration would take measures to deal with bandits the same way it was done when the network was shut down.

"It is false news that people should disregard," Zailani told SaharaReporters.

Background

Zamfara state govt is again moulding plans to block access to communications in the state over escalation of bandit attack. Are these people serious? What was the impact of the last black out? Is this really about security?
Hmm

— Yusuf Anka (@ankaboy) June 15, 2022

Last September, The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) ordered telecom operators to suspend their networks in Zamfara.

The development followed the suspension of weekly markets and other drastic measures in the adjoining troubled North-west and North Central states to check the activities of bandits in the regions.

Following the development, bandits reportedly intensified attacks in Zamfara and Katsina, looting foodstuff to stock up while the measures remained in place.

 

According to residents, the situation grounded the economy, with prices of food items going far above 100 per cent for the few ones that were available, while some were out of reach.

 

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The All Progressives Congress has written the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), asking it to adopt Senate President, Ahmad Lawan as its senatorial candidate for Yobe North in 2023.

 

Following Lawan's failure to clinch the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential ticket, there are claims that he has made moves to return to the Senate to continue to represent the people of Yobe North Senatorial District, People's Gazette reports.

Meanwhile, during the primary elections, Bashir Machina emerged as the Yobe North Senatorial candidate of the APC. But the party, in a letter to INEC dated June 14 asked the electoral body to adopt Lawan as its candidate.

 

The APC in the letter conveyed its intention to have INEC upload Lawan’s name as the party’s candidate from the district, sidelining Machina who won the election.

 

In the past few weeks, following rumours of Lawan's interest in the senatorial ticket, Machina had insisted that he won't cede his mandate to anyone as he duly won the senatorial primary.

 

With the move taken by the APC, it appears as if the party had relied on a clause that mandated primary contenders to withdraw from a race voluntarily or be arbitrarily substituted by the party as the case may arise.

 

Machina acknowledged the clause but said during a Channels TV interview on Wednesday, monitored by SaharaReporters that he deliberately did not fill out the withdrawal form mandated for all aspirants in the APC to fill because he was not in the contest to withdraw.

Machina had expressed confidence that the leaders of the party, whom he described as law-abiding, would not want to go against the Constitution and the Electoral Act.

According to him, he is sure Lawan is not planning to return to the Senate after his tenure ends in 2023.

 

“He (Lawan) didn’t believe and I’m sure he didn’t plan to go back to the National Assembly; that’s why he contested for President and lost,” he said.

“No, Ahmad Lawan did not contest for the Senate, of course, it’s a known fact that he contested for president and lost and when I contested for the senatorial ticket, Senator Ahmad Lawan did not participate or contest so I don’t think that may be in any way an issue.

“The motto of APC is justice and peace and then, of course, this is a party that’s being led by responsible law-abiding citizens, so being law-abiding, you think that it will be part of the law or it will be considered as justice for you to say well, somebody had a mandate from the people who elected him and then you change him suddenly overnight. No, I’m sure my party will not just do that, I’m confident my leaders are very fair and just, going by the motto of the party – justice and peace,” he said.

 

Machina also noted that it would be wrong for the leaders of the party to replace his name with that of Lawan in the list to be submitted to the electoral body, INEC.

He said, “I won’t say my name is serendipitously replaced or whatever, you know the electoral act is very clear. Somebody, I don’t think in this era, will just sit down and remove someone’s name and replace another person’s name, especially somebody that didn’t undergo the process of that primary election. Somebody that didn’t contest an election, naturally can’t be in that election that’s covered by the law and the Electoral Act.”

 

 

 

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Nigerians Tweeps Lambast Father Mbaka For Saying Peter Obi Is Stingy, Under A Curse

 

The controversial Enugu Catholic priest, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka has come under fire after he reportedly described the presidential aspirant of the Labour Party, Peter Obi as a ‘stingy man'.

Mbaka, who is the Spiritual Director of Adoration Ministry in Enugu State, said Obi was not concerned about the plights of those around him.

 

He also said Obi was under a curse, adding that except if the aspirant comes to apologise to him, he will never be Nigeria's president.

 

However, many Nigerians on social media have lambasted Mbaka for making such comments, urging him to apologise to Obi for such “derogatory remarks”. 

 

Some netizens in turn described Mbaka as a false prophet who had once called President Muhammadu Buhari, ‘a Messiah,' alleging that he was also a greedy prophet seeking bribes.

 

Below are some of the comments on Twitter:

Ejike Mbaka, a supposed clergy, lacks the knowledge of the Bible.
He wanted Peter Obi, a laity, to go against the Word of God in Matthew 6:1-4, by making a public display of his charity but Obi refused.
It's better to obey God than man.
Mbaka has failed!

— Cyril Ahuama (@AhuamaCyril) June 16, 2022

It is high time a Bishop starts questioning the interference of Mbaka's utterances in partisan politics. That man is becoming a nuisance to Catholics and please someone needs to tell him we like OBI stingy. He is not father Christmas

— Bold Steps....Be OBIdient 🇳🇬🇧🇯 (@edozieken) June 16, 2022

C eh when bible said judgement will start from d house of God, it wasn't misquoting. The nonsense I have seen from many so called "men of God" in ds country ehhhh... Father Mbaka using God's name to look for bribe... Collected from Buhari n kept mute on d disaster he became

— AmazingG (@G1Amazing) June 16, 2022

I remember that video in 2019 where Fr. Mbaka tried to bully Peter Obi to make public financial commitment to his ministry. Obi insisted he should first be shown the project to which he'd contribute. Mbaka called him names but he stood his ground. That day Obi won my respect. 💖

— 𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐧 𝐔𝐤𝐚𝐆𝐨𝐝 (𝐀𝐏𝐄𝐗) (@Brendan_ukagod) June 16, 2022

From this prophecy, one can easily conclude that Mbaka is a false prophet. But blind folks go still dey follow this blind man. Blind prophet leading blind followers. 😭😭😭

— Henry Great (@HenryGr84400276) June 16, 2022

Father Mbaka "A Pastor" is calling Peter Obi a "Stingy man" He said "Obi wont be my President cos he is too stingy" We are campaigning for Obi to take over d reins of Power in 2023 inorder for him to develop Nigeria not to share money.

— Tope Rapper (@TopeRapper) June 16, 2022

So now that Mbaka said Peter Obi cannot win, does it mean he will win?
He said the same thing about Soludo and he won.
It's like his prophecy works in reverse.

— Reaper147 (@binang_joe) June 16, 2022

Mbaka rest IJN. How can you be this selfish at this critical time? I weep for my country

— Eneje Isabella (@EnejeIsabella) June 16, 2022

I think it's high time we nigerians teach this priest a bitter lesson by placing a petition online to the Pope (Rome) and the catholic family worldwide to expel fr Mbaka so he can participate fully in politics and leave the work of God, what a shame.

— Adams Apple🇨🇦 (@Walter69_Joesph) June 16, 2022

Mbaka should be focused on his adoration work not on politics,he really messed himself up with APC,i taught he has left politics or has he been paid by another politician to bring down peter obi, let me ask mbaka"who are you supporting"

— Chukwuma Igwe (@chukwuma_Igwe10) June 16, 2022

With the Mbaka comment, I understand why people are still supporting the likes of Atiku, and even Tinubu. Some Nigerians don't want good governance, they want money and favours. Mbaka is a corrupt clergy Man who is afraid of losing his contracts if Peter Obi becomes President.

— DT Tsayum (@PrinceAtsea) June 16, 2022

Igbo is their own problem, This man supporter buhari in 2015, what is the definition of “stingy”you need bribery to ask God to make him the President? Who is speaking when the Lord has not spoken? Funny man.

— King's Men Global investments (@kay_kingsmen12) June 16, 2022

Obviously he has received bags of naira again as he did before and propagated rubbish against Johnathan. Obi is not cursed he only refused to be blackmailed emotionally by Mbaka to make unnecessary donation to adoration ministries. Obi will win and that for me should be enough

— Hingle (@UgwuchukwuN) June 16, 2022

 

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Passengers onboard Overland Airways’ flight from Ilorin to Lagos on Wednesday, reportedly had to disembark after the aircraft experienced an unusual high turbine temperature on one of its engines.

Some reports said one of the engines caught fire while in the air, while others said the incident occurred in the approach phase of flight.

The crew implemented standard procedures for such abnormal situations and evacuated the passengers immediately, Business Day reports.

 

In a statement by Overland, it disclosed that on board the aircraft were 33 passengers who disembarked after the aircraft came to a halt on the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos runway 18 Right.

 

The airline said, “No passenger was hurt in any way.”

“Overland Airways salutes the professional interventions of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, (FAAN); Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, (NAMA); Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, (NCAA) and the Accident Investigation Bureau Nigeria, (AIB-N) which were very prompt and reassuring,” the airline added.

 

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