The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Adamawa State

  • Democracy a mirage with continuing attacks, abductions – EYN Church

    Attacks and abductions by Boko Haram and herders are still constant and the government has a lot to do in curbing them if it means business about protecting the citizens and democratic governance, a church group has said.

    The Church of the Brethren in Nigeria, otherwise named Ekklesiyar ‘Yan’uwa A Nijeriya (EYN), which took the position during a conference of its leaders at the church’s headquarters in Kwarhi, in Hong Local Government Area of Adamawa State, said Nigeria had failed woefully in the restoration of peace to troubled communities.

    The President of the EYN, Rev Joel Billi, who delivered a speech at the 72nd General Church Council (GCC) Conference currently holding in Kwsrhi, said, “Boko Haram attack is almost on a daily basis. Thilamakalama (in Chibok LGA, Borno State) suffered several attacks before they were finally displaced from the village. Ngurthlavu (in Danboa LGA also Borno State) was attacked on March 13, 2019 where many houses were burnt and the terrorists left with two girls.”

    Read Also: Boko Haram attacks Michika, bombs bank

    He said people in government who had failed to secure the country were going about heavily guarded on public account while the rest of the people were left almost completely at the mercy of incessant attackers.

    “Nigeria is drifting day by day towards state of anarchy while we are busy blowing big grammar that we are practicing democracy. Honestly, we are far away from real democracy,” the EYN president asserted.

    The EYN General Church Council Conference, which started on Tuesday March 2 and will run up to Friday March 5 under the theme, ‘Looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our Faith,’ attracts about 1,500 pastors and other church leaders from about 700 congregations of the EYN in Nigeria and abroad.

     

  • Fintiri to transition committee: I want small, cost-effective cabinet

    The Adamawa State Governor-elect, Ahmadu Umar Fintiri, has inaugurated a 65-member transition committee, asking it to design for him a lean, cost effective cabinet and other structure of governance.

    Inaugurating the committee at the state capital, Yola, on Monday, Fintiri asked the committee to recommend a functional cost-effective structure and composition of the incoming government.

    “The recommendations should avoid making the administration top heavy with political appointments at the expense of a modest size cabinet to enable us deliver prompt socio-economic services to the people of the state,” he said.

    He told the committee to be fast in its work as he intends to be quick in carrying out the responsibilities of his office to Adamawa people as soon as he assumes office.

    He said, “We hope to receive as soon as possible the interim report so that we can set the ball rolling. Our people expect so much from us and we will not delay in doing whatever we can to meet their expectations.”

    Read Also: Let’s run Adamawa together, Fintiri tells Bindow, others

    He mandated the committee to suggest a detailed description of the structure of government: its institutions, the number of the workforce, those on the pension roaster, names of political office holders, including commissioners and special advisers; among others.

    He also asked the committee to obtain detailed information on the assets and liabilities of Adamawa State, including ongoing contracts, level of execution, amount of money expended, outstanding balance, among others, to guide his government on decisions to be made as soon as it takes effect.

    The transition committee is headed by a former federal permanent secretary at the Ministry of Defence, Alhaji Aliyu Ismaila. In his speech, the committee chairman assured that the committee would be prompt and fast in discharging its briefs.

    The committee would be expected to work with a parallel committee to be set up by the outgoing governor of the state, Sen. Mohammed Jibrilla Bindow.

     

  • Six die in Adamawa highway robbery

    Six people have died following a highway robbery attack along the Ngurore-Yola road in Yola South Local Government Area of Adamawa State.

    Witnesses on Saturday said the robbers blocked the road and operated from 7pm to 9pm Friday night. They added that the bandits shot a commercial taxi driver named Ababakar Ibrahim, whose car consequently somersaulted into a ditch and resulted in the death of all the five passengers in the car.

    The robbers had allegedly robbed many vehicles before they killed the more unfortunate driver and caused the fatal accident. Our correspondent gathered that angry residents and members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in the area responded to the incident by barricading the busy highway which links the southern senatorial zone of the state with the capital, Yola.

    An elder brother of the deceased driver, Aliyu Ibrahim, who confirmed the development, described the death of his brother and the other five people as a sad reminder of a common occurrence along the highway. “Armed robbers on daily basis rob people of their valuables once it is 7:00 pm on this road. They operate with impunity, without any resistance from security agencies,” he said.

    The Police Public Relations Officer in Adamawa State, SP Othman Abubakar, who spoke to our correspondent on phone in the early afternoon of Saturday, said he did not have sufficient information on the incident. He said, “I do not have enough information yet. Can I get back to you later please? I will do my findings and get back to you.”

     

  • Highway robbery claims six in Adamawa

    Six people have died following a highway robbery attack along the Ngurore-Yola road in Yola South Local Government Area of Adamawa State.

    Witnesses said Saturday that the robbers blocked the road and operated from 7pm to 9pm on Friday, and that they shot a commercial taxi driver named Ababakar Ibrahim whose car somersaulted into a ditch and resulted in the death of all the five passengers in the car.

    The robbers had allegedly robbed many vehicles before they killed the more unfortunate driver and caused the fatal accident.

    Our correspondent gathered that angry residents and members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in the area responded to the incident by barricading the road, a busy highway which links the southern senatorial zone of the state with the capital, Yola.

    An elder brother of the deceased driver, Aliyu Ibrahim, who confirmed the development, described the death of his brother and the other five people as a sad reminder of a common occurrence along the highway.

    Read Also: Let’s run Adamawa together, Fintiri tells Bindow, others

    “Armed robbers on daily basis rob people of their valuables once it is 7:00 pm on this road. They operate with impunity, without any resistance from security agencies,” he said.

    The Police Public Relations Officer in Adamawa  State, SP Othman Abubakar, who spoke to our correspondent on phone  in the early afternoon of Saturday, said he did not have sufficient information on the incident.

    He said, “I do not have enough information yet. Can I get back to you later please? I will do my findings and get back to you.”

     

  • Breaking: INEC declares Fintiri winner of Adamawa guber election

    Rt Hon Umaru Fintiri of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been declared winner of the Adamawa State governorship election.

    This followed the conclusion of collation of results of the supplementary governorship election which was conducted in 44 polling units in 14 local government areas of the state on Thursday.

    Fintiri polled a total of 376,552 from the I main election on March 9 and the supplementary election of March 28 to beat his closest rival, Governor Mohammed Jibrilla Bindow of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who got a total of 336,386 from both elections.

    Read also: Adamawa supplementary election result collation shifts to 8pm — REC

    Sen Abdulaziz Nyako of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) came third with 113,237 and was followed by Chief Emmanuel Bello of to the Social Democratic Party (SDP) who polled 29,792 votes. Rev Abel Behora of the Alliance for New Nigeria came next with 2,545 votes.

    Making the final declaration over the election in the early hours of Friday, the returning officer, Prof Andrew Haruna, said Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, having polled the highest votes and satisfied other requirements, “is hereby declared winner and returned elected.”

  • PDP to APC: rig election, risk people’s wrath

    THE People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has cautioned the All Progressives Congress (APC) against any attempt to rig the governorship supplementary election holding today in some polling units in the Adamawa State.

    A statement yesterday by the PDP spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan, warned that whoever toys with the idea of rigging the poll would be doing so at their own peril.

    The main opposition party said it’s in possession of details of how the APC allegedly hired thugs and miscreants from other states with instructions to cause confusion, invade polling units, disrupt the electoral process, snatch ballot boxes, engage in ballot stuffing and assist the APC to allocate votes for its candidate.

    Read also: Atiku, PDP get tribunal’s nod to serve Buhari through APC

    Accusing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and some security agents of compromise, the PDP also alleged that the APC had already cloned Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) for the purpose of manipulating the process.

    The statement warned that the APC would not be allowed to stage a repeat performance of what the governing party did with the Kano supplementary election in Adamawa.

    “The party, therefore, directs our teeming members and supporters to come out en-masse to vote and defend their votes from the polling unit to collation and the final announcement of results,” the PDP said

  • We’re ready for Adamawa governorship rerun, says INEC

    ALL is now set for Adamawa State supplementary governorship election as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday insisted on holding the election today.

    The rerun will, however, hold as the court, which earlier granted the injunction against it, is yet to give judgment on a motion by a governorship candidate asking for the nullification of the original March 9 election.

    The candidate claimed that his party’s logo was not on the ballot paper for the election.

    The court, at a sitting yesterday in Yola, adjourned till today for a ruling on preliminary objections against its insistence on jurisdiction over the case and then on the motion seeking the annulment of the election.

    With INEC going ahead with the supplementary election despite the continuing court process and the indisposition of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to it, the PDP will be going into it with the advantage of an unassailable lead.

    The state governorship election on March 9 had been declared inconclusive with the PDP already having 367,471 votes. About 32,467 votes higher than the 334,995 votes polled by the next leading party, the APC.

    INEC declared the election inconclusive because the 32,467 margin of lead was lower than the 40,948 registered voters in the polling units, where voting was cancelled.

    Read also: We’re ready for Adamawa governorship rerun, says INEC

    The polling units where voting was cancelled are 44 and they are located in 14 local government areas.

    But, the APC has in many ways shown reluctance towards the supplementary election.

    Its state organising secretary, Ahmed Lawan, has been quoted as saying the party would boycott the supplementary election because INEC rushed to pick a week day for it when many voters might be unable to go for voting.

    It was unclear if Ahmed was expressing the party’s view, because when asked for an update of the party’s position on the matter yesterday afternoon, its Public Relations Officer, Mohammed Abdullahi, merely said the party would speak on the matter at the appropriate time.

    The Resident Electoral Commissioner, Kassim Gaidam, said INEC would organise the supplementary election today.

  • The future of the two dominant parties

    With the exception of Adamawa and Rivers States, the 2019 elections are  practically over. What is left in the electoral war are the legal moping up operations. The judiciary has to be very careful about a rash of decisions that seem tilted in favour of the opposition. For keen observers, it seems that quite a few unreasonable judgements are coming out of the courts giving the impression that the courts are fighting back the Buhari government that is perhaps perceived as being anti-judiciary. I believe it is a dangerous combat for an unelected body to  appear to take on an elected government. Even in a settled democracy like the United States of America where an autocrat is in the White House, the American judiciary moves gingerly not to go  head-butting the presidency of Donald Trump. Recent judgements on Osun, Zamfara, Bauchi and

    Adamawa seem rather one sided.

    Having said this, the outcome of the elections and the distribution of political control at the gubernatorial levels gives the impression of a balanced equation of power. The APC, unless the courts decide otherwise, is in control of the following 20 states of  Borno, Yobe,  Gombe, Plateau, Jigawa, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Zamfara, Kaduna, Nassarawa,  Niger, Kwara, Kogi, Edo, Ondo, Ogun, Ekiti,  Ogun and Lagos. Osun’s  Electoral tribunal’s decision to switch the state from APC to PDP is being appealed. On the other hand, unless the courts decide otherwise, the PDP is in control of the following 13 states and the Federal Capital Territory namely, Oyo, Sokoto, Bauchi, Taraba, Benue, Enugu, Ebonyi, Imo, Delta, Akwa Ibom, Abia, Cross Rivers, Bayelsa and possibly Adamawa, and Rivers while APGA is in control of Anambra. The balance of political power is not lopsided at all and courts decision may still flip one or two states in either direction. My advice to the courts is to beware or legalistic activism which in the long run always runs the danger of  political illegitimacy and political confrontation as had happened in the much copied USA.

    From current disposition of the two political parties, the future of two strong political parties appears settled. The PDP as some of its members have argued, appear to have better national spread than the APC. The APC appears to be entrenched in the distressed Northeast excluding the important states of  Adamawa and Bauchi where the APC lost by a slim margin because of the unpopularity of Governor Abubakar to a legally-besieged Bala Muhammad, former minister of Federal capital Territory who has several cases of fraud and corruption arising from his allegedly selling plots of land and collecting bribes from allottees of land and alienating hectares of land to himself, his companies and family members. It will be a pity if by being elected governor, he gets to keep his loot of part of the national patrimony. Unfortunately, it is being reported that the current administration of the FCT is involved in the same land alienation and appropriation to current members of the executive and legislature.

    PDP will probably take Adamawa which is the home of Abubakar Atiku and unless for serious reasons of envy, it should support their own son. But from the gravevine we understand Atiku is not too popular in his state because of his wealth in the midst of general poverty and complaints by the people that they don’t benefit from his stupendous wealth and have no money to send their children to his expensive “American” university in Yola. The APC is not too popular in Taraba because it is perceived as a Fulani and Islamic party. It is a victim of the multitudinal ethnic complexity of both Taraba and neighbouring Adamawa states.

    The APC is supreme in the Northwest in spite of Sokoto where it lost the gubernatorial seat by a few tens of votes which may call for recount. The APC is also quite strong in the North-central winning in Niger, Kwara, Nassarawa, Plateau and  Kogi. It lost in  Benue because of the issue of Fulani herders killing local farmers and alienating their land without serious repercussions from the federal government.  The APC remains formidable in the Southwest but here the lack of performance of the Muhammadu Buhari government in its first term drew negative vibes to the government in voters perceptions. The campaign of associating the party with a plan of Islamization pushed the large population of Christians there to the PDP which aggressively marketed the campaign of clandestine plans of Islamization. This was so strong that even apparently nominal Christians fell for the ploy. The apparent nepotism and Islamic and regional bias in Buhari’s appointment did not go down well in Yorubaland in spite of its  almost equal division of the place between the two monotheistic religions. The issue of restructuring/ devolution was also a selling point for the PDP.

    The APC is, with the exception of Edo, virtually non existent in the South-south and the Southeast. This makes the PDP to boast of being more national than the APC.

    What is the prognosis for the future for these two parties?

    The performance of the Buhari government during its second term will determine the future of the APC. Since the president will not be running again, he must help the party to survive after him. The only way for this is performance. The party must also be known as the party of the  common man as well as the struggling lower middle class (petite bourgeoisie); it must also be identified with the party of modernization and innovation in the areas of infrastructure, electricity generation and distribution and  affordable quality education.  All the electricity generation plans under construction must be finished within the next four years.

    Above all, it must do something quickly to guarantee security  and if it is needed for this purpose, it should restructure or devolve power and resources to the states and the periphery.  It must also prevail on its governors to key into its platform of development and  must prevail on the National Assembly to support  the implementation of the party’s manifesto so that plans and budgets are not held prisoner by padding and frivolous demands for constituency projects that are always marred by corruption. President Buhari cannot hands off the government and the party as he appeared to have done in the past. He must carry his party members along with him. Decisions must be taken as quickly as they are needed. A bad decision is better than no decision. If he fails this time around, the party will collapse in both the north where his domineering and charismatic presence will no longer be available when he leaves office. The PDP in Oyo will spread to Osun  if the governors there do well especially in resuscitation of tertiary institutions and payment of salaries to their bloated bureaucracy. If poor governance continues in Ondo  under Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, the PDP will take the state. Before you know it, Ogun, Ekiti and Lagos may remain the redoubts of the APC in the Southwest.

    Without Buhari, the APC may peter out in the northeast and northwest whose natural political tendency and inclination is towards conservatism. Kano may remain with the APC because of its old time radical tradition. With the South-south and Southeast remaining in the PDP and with a disintegrating APC without Buhari, the PDP will be the party to beat  in the future. All this will depend on whether Buhari rises to his historical calling and help the party that brought him to power survive his leaving it. He holds the party this debt of gratitude. This is not the time to be saying he will be neutral in the legislature’s choice of its leaders or to be saying he belongs to nobody. One is not saying he should discriminate against any section of the country. What one is saying is that he must help his party to consolidate its hold in the states it controls.

    His government could have helped Aregbesola more in Osun  by reconstruction of federal roads like Osogbo-Ilesha and Osogbo-Offa-Ilorin roads which could have boosted the popularity of his party in the state. This is the kind of what should be done in the second term with the help of a politically sensitive National Assembly. One hopes such political sensitivity will play out in Ado Ekiti – Akure-Ilesha-Akure dualisation long promised during the Obasanjo years. This eye on the future of the party must be kept open so that it does not appear people have just been used  to fulfill personal political ambitions. If the second Buhari administration is able to do well, people will not leave the party in droves over  the abandonment  for example of  Oyo-Ogbomosho road that seems to take eternity to complete while thousands of souls are perishing on the road.

    All these suggestions would require huge amount of money. This money must be found by cutting off fat from government administration, radically whittling down the salaries and allowances of the members of the National Assembly and the executive branch of government. We must diversify the economy or we die economically. It is as serious as that. Buhari must also pay attention  to all the states of the federation to ensure that the states are also working towards the same end of development and job creation and security improvement. This is the only way to prevent a rebellion of the masses in 2023 and a possible rejection of not only the APC and PDP  but the entire political system that seems to have held everybody down since the end of our first attempt at democratic governance in 1966.

  • Boko Haram: Michika elders request for more troops, armoured tanks

    Community leaders in Michika, Adamawa State have  appealed to the Nigerian Army to deploy more troops and armoured tanks to the town to enhance security.

    The appeal followed  Monday’s  attack by Boko Haram insurgents on the only commercial bank building in the town on a robbery mission but were repelled by the army.

    Some of the leaders made the appeal yesterday during an operational visit to the town by Brig.-Gen. Bulama Biu, the acting General Officer Commanding,7 Division of the army, and Commander Sector 1.

    Muhammed Usman, an elder and Head of Muslim Community in Michika, said the call was imperative to fast track and revamp socio-economic activities in the community.

    He explained that additional checkpoints should be mounted in Kuburshosho Goni and Shuwa areas in the town to check future attacks.

    He also urged the army to furnish residents with means of reaching out to them when distressed, saying many locals heard the news of the Monday attack but were constrained to reach out to military authorities.

    He said: “sometimes we hear news of the movement of the insurgents just five kilometers away from the town but we don’t know how to communicate to army. There is the need for army to give us telephone numbers to call when distressed.”

    Mr Jidda Kwache, an elder and District Head of Michika, said that the deployment of more troops in the area would complement the efforts of the fighting troops on ground.

    Kwacha said that the last time the town witnessed any attack was in 2014, noting that the Monday attack left uncertainty in the minds of the people in the community.

    Yakubu Jaha-Michika, the Commander of Hunters in Michika, appealed to the Adamawa Government to deploy more security operatives to the area.

    Jaha-Michika said that the state government should arm and equip local hunters to help in providing local vigilance patrol.

    Reacting, Brig.-Gen. Bulama Biu said he was in the town to sympathise with the people on behalf of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai.

    He urged the community, traditional and religious leaders in the town to support the military’s effort to defeat Boko Haram and other undesirable elements.

    He said “security is everybody’s business and not for army alone, I, therefore, urge you to always provide prompt information on any suspicious activities.”

  • Five die in Boko Haram attack on Adamawa town

    THE Police in Adamawa State have confirmed that five residents of Michika died following an attack on a bank in the town on Monday night.

    Against earlier impression that the attack was the usual Boko Haram mission of causing a scare and destroying things and killing people and going away, the police command said the insurgents went purposely for a raid on the town’s only bank.

    The Nation gathered yesterday morning that the insurgents got into the town about 7pm on Monday after overpowering the military unit stationed there.

    Witnesses said the insurgents seized control of the town for a while, scaring hundreds of residents, who ran inside the surrounding bushes until soldiers arrived from Madagali after a reinforcement call.

    Michika lies in the northern part of Adamawa State, an immediate neighbour to Madagali Local Government Area, which was haunted by Boko Haram insurgents for weeks before the February 16 and March 9 general elections.

    During the Monday attack, the insurgents bombed the Union Bank branch – the only banking facility in the town.

    Sources said the insurgents also burnt houses in Koppa village as they fled towards Sambisa with soldiers and mobilised local hunters on their trail.

    Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Othman Abubakar, who gave an update on the attack to The Nation, said: “Five people died and the place they went to attack, the Union Bank, was badly destroyed. But they were unable to gain access to the strong room. They couldn’t penetrate.”

    The PPRO said: “Their motive must have been to go and get money. That would be why they went directly to hit the bank. I was made to understand that money was moved to the bank  earlier that day. They must have monitored the bank and went purposely for the money.”

    He said the insurgents were, however, unable to get to the money, especially as soldiers and other security agents stormed the place and succeeded in forcing the insurgents off and seizing cars and motorcycles they used in entering the town.

    He said the five residents who died might have been victims of stray bullets as they ran helter-skelter or directly from the guns of the insurgents.

    “They must have died from crossfire and from the sporadic shootings by the insurgents,” Othman said.

    Some residents were not comfortable yesterday about returning to their homes immediately .

    A native of Michika, who lives in Yola, Felicia Jacob, said her mother was on her way to Yola “to rest after the horror of the deadly attack”.

    But, the Army said yesterday that the troops of 115 Task Force Battalion and 143 Battalion in a two Front coordinated attacks successfully repelled the Boko Haram terrorists, who attacked Michika.

    According to the Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Colonel Sagir Musa, scores of Boko Haram terrorists were neutralised during the encounter, with some of them fleeing with gunshot wounds.

    Colonel Musa said in a statement issued in Abuja that the terrorists attacked Michika late night on Monday, but were dealt with severely by troops who organised blocking positions against them.

    He said the terrorists also hurriedly made away with dead bodies of some of their fighters.

    Read also: What do politicians think at death’s door?

    Colonel Musa said: “Boko Haram terrorists met their waterloo and suffered heavy casualties yesterday evening, March 18 2019, when they attempted to infiltrate Michika in Adamawa State.

    “At about 7.20pm, gallant troops of 115 Task Force Battalion deployed at Lassa in Borno State received a distress call from vigilance group at Maikadiri village on movement of suspected Boko Haram terrorists on Maikadiri – Shuwari Road enroute Michika.

    “The troops immediately organised blocking positions and swooped on the terrorists, which  led to an exchange of fire. The terrorists attempted to escape, but were intercepted and suppressed with heavy volume of fire.

    “Consequently, the troops with reinforcement from 143 Battalion Gulak engaged the terrorists on two front coordinated attacks.

    “The BHTs were completely routed by the troops, neutralising many of them, while others fled in disarray due to superior firepower.”