Northern Elder, Umaru Dikko Is Dead

 Nigeria’s Second Republic  Minister of Transport, Alhaji Umaru Dikko has died this morning in the United Kingdom.

His family in London and Zaria in Kaduna state confirmed  news of his passing to SaharaReporters.

Dikko has been ill for several months; however, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)   forced him to chair the party’s disciplinary committee set up by ousted chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur last year.

One of his close associate told this medium last year that Dikko accepted the job at the risk of his life.

Mr. Dikko was popularly known as one of the most powerful ministers under the Shehu Shagari regime in the early 1980s. When the military ousted the regime via a coup d’etat in 1983, Mr. Dikko escaped to the UK on exile. The military regime led by then head of state, Muhammadu Buhari, accused Dikko of massive corruption and official graft and thus secretly organized his kidnapping from the streets of London.

In 1984, Mr. Dikko was kidnapped, drugged and packaged as a diplomatic baggage in a cargo ready to be shipped to Lagos Nigeria unconscious.  His abductors were later arrested by the UK police as they tried to ship him through Stansed airport in London.

Dikko later returned to Nigeria where he has since participated in politics. He was aged 78.

Northern Elder, Umaru Dikko Is Dead

Boko Haram: NGO Drums up Support for Nigerian Soldiers

An Abuja-based non-governmental organisation (NGO), Put Nigeria First (PNF), has stressed the need for Nigerians to mobilise support for the country’s soldiers currently involved in the war against terrorism in the North-eastern states.

The coordinator of the PNF, Ms. Ijeoma Nwafor, made the call at the weekend in Abuja, indicating that among the three programmes of the NGO, premium was placed on the Support Our Soldiers (SOS) aspect.

“PNF plans to support widows and orphans of Nigerian soldiers; advocate for additional welfare for the soldiers and organize events to raise awareness of the plight of our soldiers and their family members,” a statement by the organisation noted.

“The project is a challenge to all of us because of the peculiarity of the problems in the country,” Nwafor said,  adding that the group “would support the soldiers based on their needs,” through donations made to the cause by Nigerians.

“We are banking on the average citizen to support the NGO. Every person knows about the insurgency in the North. We want Nigerians to be aware of the things that are happening,” she explained.

According to her, the choice of the military is because “it is an institution that has direct responsibility to stop insurgency. So, it is important to focus on the soldiers because the army is part of or national identity.”

Asking the soldiers on the frontline of crisis to be aware of their public image, the NGO pledged to engage on what it termed “Orange Ribbon” campaign to support the soldiers. Nwafor said the campaign, billed to take place July 7, will target 1 million signatures on telephone “display pictures.”

The PNF has also lined up other programmes such as “Operation Flag Flying” and “Our Anthem, Our Prayer” to project patriotism as a solution to problems of ethnic bigotry and the use of religion “as a weapon to accomplish evil self-centred agenda.”

 

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Boko Haram: NGO Drums up Support for Nigerian Soldiers

Pastor-Owner Of Ikorodu Ritualists’ Den Arrested

The General Overseer of Holy Family Ministry, a.k.a House of Mercy, located in Ogolonto area of Ikorodu, Lagos, Pastor Ernest Nwankwo, who was alleged to have sent a member of his church to kidnap a boy for ritual purpose last week has been arrested by the police.

Nwankwo, 50, an indigene of Nsugbe, Anambra East Local Government Area of Anambra State is now being held at the State Criminal Investigation Department, Yaba, Lagos.

It would be recalled that a ritualist’s den was uncovered in a building owned by the suspect last Wednesday, with at least eight victims said to have been kidnapped from different parts of the country, rescued.

The den was uncovered following the apprehension of a mother of four, Mrs Rosemary Chukwu, who hid a seven-year-old boy inside a box. She confessed to have abducted the boy, identified as Emmanuel Emeka, on the instruction of her Pastor (Ernest Nwankwo) for ritual purpose.

The police had since been on the trail of the pastor, who was reportedly nabbed at Ebute Metta yesterday, following a tip off.

Police sources hinted to Vanguard that the Pastor denied that the building on 7, Oshodi Street, where some victims were reportedly rescued, was not used for ritual purpose but was used to keep lunatics.

Commenting on the issue, Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide confirmed Nwankwo’s arrest. “Yes, the Pastor has been arrested today around Ebutte Meta,”

she said.

Pastor-Owner Of Ikorodu Ritualists’ Den Arrested

Graphic: Man stabs self to death after fiancée dumps him in Ogun State

Tragedy struck at the Onikolobo area of Abeokuta, Ogun State on Saturday when a 33-year-old man, Oluwatosin Otaiku, stabbed himself to death after his fiancee, Olaogun Oluwatoyin, discontinued the relationship.

PUNCH Metro gathered that Otaiku killed himself after his woman told him she was no longer interested in the relationship.

After the girlfriend made a U-turn, the deceased was said to have become worried, and this made neighbours, who were aware of the development, to intervene. Efforts were made to reconcile them.

On one of such occasions, an eyewitness said the duo was invited to discuss in privacy inside a shop at Safari junction in Onikolobo.

Otaiku was said to have hid a knife in his pocket, prepared to end it all if there was no truce.

It was further gathered that Olaogun stood her ground and maintained that she could not continue with the relationship.

On hearing this unfavourable verdict, the deceased reportedly brought out the knife from his pocket which made Olaogun to run out of the shop, thinking she was the target.

Olaogun was said to have immediately alerted neighbours who rushed into the shop and met the deceased stabbing himself.

He was said to have been rushed to the Mercy Hospital in the Panseke area of Abeokuta.

From there, he was referred to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, also in Abeokuta, but he died on the way to the hospital.

The case was said to have been reported at the Adigbe Police Division and policemen were sent to the scene for investigation.

While they took the remains of Otaiku to the Ijaye General Hospital mortuary, three other people were whisked away in a Hilux Van marked, NPF 7092 C.

The State Police Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, confirmed the incident, adding that the police were still holding on to Otaiku’s remains until a postmortem examination would be carried out.

Adejobi explained that the command was still examining the statements by the suspects and eyewitnesses.

He said, “The lady is still with us, she is still our suspect for now until we carry out a proper investigation on the corpse.

“We need some time to study the statements, but the expert’s opinion is to carry out a postmortem on the body which we are going to do. I can assure you that the command will do the needful in order to get to the root of the incident.”

 

Copyright PUNCH.

Graphic: Man stabs self to death after fiancée dumps him in Ogun State

Panic in national conference as Boko Haram sends message of attack to delegates

A revelation by a member of the National Conference that he had received a threat message from terrorists caused a scare at the confab on Monday.

The delegate, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), told the conference that he received a message on his telephone threatening an “attack bigger than Nyanya blast” and sought the permission of the Chairman of the confab, Justice Idris Kutigi (retd.), to read the message.

Kutigi granted the permission and Ozekhome accordingly read the text.

The message, which Ozekhome also forwarded to our correspondent later, read, “News got to us that our enemy is planning something bigger than Nyanya blast between Tuesday and Wednesday, in Abuja. Mind your movement and be careful. The date is still unknown. Please, pass it around to save loved ones.”

After listening to the text of the message, one of the delegates, who asked not to be named, shouted, “We are in trouble in this country. Bombing everywhere; when will this stop? Even here, we don’t know what is going to happen. Things are so bad in the country. Things are so bad.”

Many of the delegates were seeing discussing the development in hushed tones but with panic on their faces.

None of them was willing to speak with The PUNCH on the matter on Monday.

Another delegate, Obi Onoliefo, had on Thursday last week, raised the issue of safety of delegates when, having looked at the perimeter of the National Judicial Institute, observed that there were no security operatives manning them.

Onoliefo, therefore, called for security operatives to be drafted to the perimeter fences to forestall insurgents from breaking into the premises and causing bloodshed.

Meanwhile, some hoodlums suspected to be members of the Boko Haram sect invaded the Shani Local Government Area of Borno State on Monday and torched the Divisional Police Station, houses and shops.

It was learnt that the insurgents used Improvised Explosive Devices and petrol bombs.

The Caretaker Chairman of the council, Alhaji Modu Walama, who was said to have escaped a series of attacks by assassins and terrorists in recent past, narrowly escaped being killed by the terrorists.

The insurgents were said to have attacked the family house of Walama in Walama and killed one of his sons.

One of our correspondents learnt that the terrorists invaded Shani on motorcycles and bombed the divisional police headquarters at about 2:45pm on Monday.

The policemen on duty had fled before the attackers reached the station.

They were said to have snatched one of the patrol vehicles belonging to the police and set it ablaze after they discovered that the vehicle’s engine was faulty.

The gunmen reportedly moved from the police station into the town and shot sporadically before fleeing towards the Gwaskara village.

Shani is the southern part of the troubled Borno State and about 245 kilometres drive from Maiduguri, the state capital. It shares boundary with some parts of Adamawa State.

A resident of Shani, Mallam Aliyu Usman, who was among those who fled the town during the attack, told journalists that they got news of the terrorists lurking around the town at about 8am.

He said some women sighted the criminals on their farmlands around Walama, on the outskirts of the town.

The terrorists were said to have scared the women off their farms, telling them that they had a deadly mission to execute in some places in Shani.

All efforts to get the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Gideon Jubrin, for confirmation was not successful as his phone line was inaccessible as of the time of filing this report.

Panic in national conference as Boko Haram sends message of attack to delegates

Obasanjo dancing to strange music – Bode George

A member, Peoples Democratic Party Board of Trustees and South-West leader of the ruling party, Chief Bode George, comments on topical national issues in this interview with TUNDE ODESOLA

As a member of the National Conference, what’s your view over the debate on immunity clause?

Delegates raised many issues for and against the clause and the proponents believe that why should there be anyone higher than the law and you remember that even in America no one is above the law. Some delegates believe that if there was an allegation, no matter how frivolous, you will be investigated and the recent one was that of Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky over the relationship he was alleged to have had with the lady. So, the fact that people trusted you to go and manage the resources of their nation on their behalf does not exclude you or make you a superhuman above the law. Proponents in support of the clause argued that why should you allow frivolous cases hold an elected executive down? I support that the clause should be removed. It will assist our democratic growth. No Nigerian can be higher than another Nigerian. We are all equal before the law and you know the beauty of it? If you go to any court of law, you will see the statue of Justice blindfolded with a sword and a scale. So, who are we to continue with immunity?

What’s your view on resource control?

The issue was so sensitive at the conference. The first conference we had in the country was supervised by the British while the second one was supervised by the military but now, no soldiers and no British. We have those who attended the 1956 conference in this conference. We have those who were ministers in the Tafawa Balewa Government in this conference. Those who fought on either side of the civil war are also there and those of us who had a bit of military and civil leaderships are there. The youth are also there. The youngest being 23 years old is there. So the spread is unique and that is what has brought about the camaraderie. We will perform to the extent that no section of this nation will go home without something tangible. The resource control was heavily debated and people reminded us of the groundnut pyramid and that it was the groundnut pyramid money that was used in sustaining other regions. What happened to the timber and cocoa? Now (we have) this mad crude oil. And it could be something else today. If you see the destruction of environment and aqua life, whatever decision that was taken that brought about the 13 per cent should remain the same. Oil is the mainstay of the economy and resource control should remain as it is now.

How do you see the public endorsement of Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, a governorship aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress by the traditional ruler of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akinolu?

I was shocked because the kabiyesi is my friend and we have known each other for a long time. We agree on everything except politics. He should be the father of all. He is the Oba of Lagos and not Oba of APC and he should follow in the footsteps of his fathers. So, how will we approach the Kabiyesi for royal blessings? Will he bless us or curse us? So, I leave it like that.

There is a call for the country to return to parliamentary system of government on the grounds that the presidential system is too expensive. Do you share this view?

Every village in an African setting would naturally have an emir or oba or obi, who would have advisers based on family houses. The presidential system is more natural to us. The culture of the British is not the same as ours. Parliamentary system requires a high level of tolerance and we don’t have it. So let us not go back. Why did the parliamentary system fail? We are not doing too badly in the Presidential system. In parliamentary system, a man will contest in his constituency and become a prime minister. Lastly, let them tell me one former British colony that is running the parliamentary system in Africa? None. And we cannot use both parliamentary and presidential as is being done in some countries. Some are arguing that the presidential system is too expensive. Let us cut down on the number of federal constituencies and reduce their salaries.

A backlash of criticism has greeted the Federal Government’s handling of Chibok abduction. What’s your view?

On the issue of Chibok, I look at it from both military and civilian perspective. In a typical warfare, you can discern but in this scenario, you don’t know who the enemy is. They may be at the table with you, planning and discussing. In insurgency, the tactics is different. They are opening their mouths saying Jonathan does not know what to do. Bola Tinubu too is opening his mouth to say this. Does he know what to do? When he hears the sounds of a gun can he wait? Every Nigerian must be concerned about this. Our military has performed brilliantly in every part of the world they have been sent to. Now, do you think it’s a matter of just going there and rooting them out? The President said something at the inter-party conference. He said he would love to be President but not at the expense of the life of one Nigerian. The Chibok case is a national disaster and should be of concern to all Nigerians. I detest the methodology adopted by Oby Ezekwesili, she is looking for cheap popularity. If it was her daughter that was there, she would not be castigating the government but her sympathy would be suggestive.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo is always at loggerheads with the Goodluck Jonathan administration. Why?

He is dancing to music which only he can hear. He has no need to be getting himself involved unnecessarily. Baba Obasanjo should stay in Ogun State, where we would all go to consult him. Look at former President Sheu Shagari and Gen. Abdusalami Abubakar (retd.), who many say birthed democracy. Abdulsalami is being praised today. You should do things that will make you be remembered for good tomorrow. After two terms and a glorious ending, he should be a father to all.

Nigerians have condemned the multi-million pension being giving to some serving and ex-governors in the country. As a former military administrator, are you benefiting from this too?

The Lagos State Guest House on Kofo Abayomi was given to Bola Tinubu as his parting gift. What did he do to deserve this? Does someone like him deserve pension after eight years in Government House? The pension law says that he must have two houses in Lagos, two in Abuja plus the financial benefit. When they said on the floor of the plenary that this was what was approved in Akwa Ibom. I called the governor and he said they have cancelled it and I said God will bless you. That is a man that respects the public opinion. but Tinubu is still collecting his own, he has not rescinded, he will say his Assembly approved it. But I can tell you something, the next election as the governor of the PDP is sworn in Lagos, that money will be used to alleviate the suffering of the people of Lagos. As a former governor during the military era, we were purely on a non-regimental appointment. So, your salary was still being paid and your rank remained your rank and when you leave, you will be paid as an ex-general and that is what I am still getting which is just about N100,000 every month. The money is too small and we have been shouting that there is a need to take care of our retirees so that we don’t end up in penury but that is not to say that Ondo State, where I served as military governor should pay me pension.

Religion has become a factor in Lagos politics. Is the PDP going to choose its governorship candidates along religious lines?

Religion has never played out in Lagos politics. For example, my immediate older sister is an alhaja, born in a Christian family but married to a Muslim, I sent her to hajj. My younger brother is married to a Muslim. Bola Tinubu did two terms and Babatunde Fashola too. Fashola’s wife is also a Christian but people are agitating somehow. On our political calculation we cannot wish that away. We must put it there for us to land properly. Unnecessary political interference is already an issue in the polity of Lagos and if you don’t care, you do so at your peril but when we get to the bridge, we will cross it but it is a very strong parameter in our political calculation. We have a lot of high quality people and people are demanding for a reliable and mature candidate and we are still searching. As the leader, I don’t dictate, we allow everybody, both Christians and Muslims, we consider the opposition as well, and that is the methodology. We will know by September, October when the heat begins. All options are on the table, we won’t shut our doors.

 

Copyright PUNCH.

Obasanjo dancing to strange music – Bode George

Jonathan’s re-election: Ex-militants vow to cut off fuel supply to North if -

ORON—Repentant militant leaders in the Niger Delta have threatened to cut off the supply of petroleum products to Northern Nigeria, should the North oppose the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015. 

The ex-militants, at their meeting in Oron, Akwa Ibom State,  also threatened to ensure that the North did not benefit from crude oil proceeds generated from the Niger Delta region.

The ex-militants converged in Oron under the aegis of the Leadership, Peace and Cultural Development Initiative, where they assessed the handling of Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, projects by contractors.

President of the group, Mr. Reuben Wilson, said that their interest was to ensure that Jonathan returned to office in 2015, while  anybody opposed to the idea would be considered an enemy of the region.

He said: “We met in Oron to review developments in the country, particularly the interest of the Niger Delta people. You will agree that the Niger Delta is the main stay of the nation’s economy. You will also agree with me that the Niger Delta people are sustaining the economy at great inconveniences and pains to its people and the environment. This has been the only time that the region has had the privilege of producing a president for the country.

“It is unthinkable that the North will be plotting against our son, intimidating him with bomb blasts here and there and causing the untimely death of scores of innocent Nigerians, all because they want to take back power.

“We have always seen the need for us to live together as one indivisible country and that is what Mr. President believes in.”

 

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Jonathan’s re-election: Ex-militants vow to cut off fuel supply to North if -