Insurgency
Former Nigerian soldier who trains ESN militants arrested in Abuja
The police have arrested a dismissed army lance corporal allegedly responsible for training and recruiting people into the Eastern Security Network (ESN), the militant arm of the outlawed pro-Biafra group, IPOB, according to a report. He was arrested a few days after a top commander of the terror group, Awurum Eze, was arrested in Aba, Abia State. The group is alleged to have been responsible for killings of security agents and destruction of public properties in the South-east and South-south zones. They have, however, denied the allegations. According to sources, the 32 years old dismissed soldier, whose name was given as Livinus Owalum-Barnabas, was arrested on Sunday, at Gwagwalada Area Council of the FCT by men of the Inspector General of Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT). The e...
Plateau governor mourns ex-CDS Dogonyaro
Gov. Simon Lalong of Plateau, has expressed sadness over the death of the former Chief of Defence Staff, Lt. Gen. (Rtd.) Joshua Dogonyaro, at the age of 80. Lalong in a statement by his Director of Press and Public Affairs, Dr. Makut Macham, described his death as a great loss to the nation. He described Dogonyaro as a patriotic and loyal military officer, who served Nigeria with courage, dignity and selflessness, in several commands in his military career, saying he accomplished his assignments with tremendous success. He lauded his outstanding leadership skills in International peace keeping as Field Commander in Liberia, for the Economic Community of West Africa States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG), saying Nigeria’s contribution during his tenure remained a reference point in the Nigerian A...
NMA: Worsening insecurity affecting healthcare delivery
File Photo The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), has raised the alarm over the poor delivery of healthcare services, as a result of the worsening state of insecurity in the country. This was contained in a communique signed by President of the NMA, Prof. Innocent Ujah and the Secretary General, Dr. Philips Ekpe, issued at the end of the NMA’s Annual General Conference and Delegates Meeting held in Jos, and made available to newsmen on Wednesday in Abuja. The NMA urged the Federal Government to renew efforts to quickly bring what was described as a “humanitarian disaster” under control, and appealed to all citizens to jettison dangerous unpatriotic and tendencies. The communique reads in part: “The Conference is saddened by the worsening spate of killings, maiming, kidnapping, banditry, a...
Police: 21 officers killed by gunmen in Akwa Ibom
The police authorities in Akwa Ibom State said they have so far lost 21 officers due to gun attacks in the state. The commissioner of police in the state, Amiengheme Andrew, disclosed this on Monday while briefing Governor Udom Emmanuel who visited the police headquarters in the state to condole with the families of the slain officers and the police over the loss. Mr Andrew also informed the governor that the police in the state lost 11 vehicles and seven firearms in the various attacks. Mr Emmanuel, who visited the police headquarters immediately after the State Executive Council meeting, announced a donation of N60 million to the families of the slain officers. Besides meeting with the police commissioner in his office, Mr Emmanuel met with officers inside a hall where he thanked them fo...
CBN governor vows to block maize importation
Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele on Thursday vowed to resist importation of maize as Nigerians have the capacity and capability to grow the crop locally to meet consumption demand. On that note, he has urged youths across the country to embrace agriculture, declaring the bank’s readiness to support those ready to venture into it. Emefiele made the declaration in Katsina at the unveiling of the first maize pyramid and flag-off of the 2021 maize wet season farming under the CBN-Maize Association of Nigeria (MAAN) Anchor Borrowers’ Programme. He averred that Nigerian youths could leverage their talents, along with technological tools to improve farm productivity and delivery of agricultural produce to markets. While noting that agriculture offered significant benefi...
35 killed in Boko Haram attacks in Borno
Jihadists have killed 35 people, including five troops and 15 militiamen, in two attacks in Nigeria’s troubled northern Borno state, sources told AFP Tuesday. Islamic State-aligned militants have intensified attacks on army camps in recent weeks as part of a decade-long insurgency that has killed 36 000 people and forced more than two million to flee their homes. Fighters from Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) came in several trucks fitted with machine guns and stormed Ajiri town late on Monday. They attacked a military base, leading to intense fighting in which five soldiers and 15 anti-jihadist militia were killed, two military sources said. ISWAP had raided the same base on Sunday, killing the base commander along with six civilians and carting away weapons, military sources sa...
APC chieftain asks President Buhari to declare state of emergency on security
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State, Otunba Olusegun Agbalajobi, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently declare a state of emergency on security in the country. This, he said has become a child of necessity following the rising waves of kidnappings, killings, banditry, insurgency and other manifestations of insecurity bedeviling the country. Agbalajobi, in a statement titled, ‘Nigeria and its preponderance of insecurity’ issued in Ado-Ekiti on Tuesday, said declaring emergency on security would help to stem the rising waves of security challenges that are fast pushing Nigeria to precipice. He stressed that the worsening security situation in the country requires desperate and decisive measure in the best interest of Nigerians, hence, the need to ...
Delta governor: We inherited N100 billion unpaid pension under compulsory pension scheme
Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta on Sunday said his administration inherited about N100 billion unpaid pensions under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS). Okowa disclosed this at the third session of the 8th Synod of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Ughelli Diocese. The session was held at Bishop Agori-Iwe Memorial Church, Ughelli. Okowa said that the financial burden forced 18 state governments out of 26 that enlisted on the scheme to withdraw, leaving only eight state governments, including Delta, in the Programme. The governor explained that the major challenge which forced the states to withdraw and others not to enrol in the scheme, was the huge backlog running into billions of naira. He said that his administration was up-to-date with payment of pensioners in the old scheme. ...
Ex-NOC official: National Sports Festival remains good investment in youths
Elias Gora, a former Secretary-General of Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC), says the biennial National Sports Festival (NSF) remains a good investment in ensuring Nigerian youths are positively engaged. Gora told newsmen in Lagos on Monday that the Festival could however be improved upon to discover more talents for Nigeria. He emphasised on the need to also use the Festival to continue to promote peace and unity in the country. “It is an investment, and it has kept the youths busy. Other youths who watched would have been motivated. “So, with the height of insecurity in the country, such distraction is needed. “I was part of the officials and one thing I understand is the fact that these youths will rather focus on what they enjoy doing. They can’t be bothered about anything. “If we can in...
Ohanaeze: No ‘no man’s land’ in Igbo land
The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, has warned non-Igbo indigenes residing in the South-East to erase ‘no man’s land’ from their minds. President General Of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Prof George Obiozor, stated this during a press briefing at the headquarters of Ohanaeze Ndigbo worldwide in Enugu on Thursday. He also welcomed the formation of South-East security outfit, Ebubeagu, while assuring the governors of the zone of his support. Obiozor said, “Once more, I state that there is no No Man’s land in Igbo land. Land is a very sensitive issue in Igbo land because land has owners including some Igbo Deities. Those encroaching on land in Alaigbo are provoking our people and our Deities.” Obiozor’s comment was a veiled reference to the herdsmen crisis rocking the nat...
NNPC to partner Borno government to establish gas power plant
The Group Managing Director, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Alhaji Mele Kyari has said that the corporation will partner with Borno State Government to establish a Gas Power Plant following the vandalization of the national grid by insurgents which put the state almost three months into total blackout. Kyari who led a powerful delegation on a courtesy call on Governor Babagana Umara Zulum on Friday said, the Federal Government will not fold its arms and neglect the state which is been ravaged by insurgents, especially cut off from the national grid, as power is a source of income to the teaming people of the state. “We are here with my colleagues, the Head of Gas and Power Business, Engineer Yusuf Usman, Representatives of Greensville Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), which is a...
OPC berates ex-COAS for equating group with Boko Haram
The Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) yesterday berated a former Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau, for comparing the group with the terrorist organisation, Boko Haram. In a statement, the group’s newly-elected President, Mr. Wasiu Afolabi, said the former army chief displayed a dangerous level of mischief, prejudice and narrow-mindedness by equating what it termed a pro-democracy group like the OPC with a world-acclaimed terrorist organisation. Afolabi maintained that the comments by Dambazzau were an attempt to give a dog a bad name in order to hang it, insisting that the move will not work. “We shall not succumb to this cheap attempt at blackmail and negative profiling. OPC is not, has never been and will never be a terrorist organisation. Nobody should link us or lik...