The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Bauchi

  • Curfew in Bauchi after violence

    Violence that erupted over a disagreement at a birthday party has forced Bauchi State government has imposed a curfew on Yelwa community, a suburb of Bauchi metropolis.

    Gov. Mohammed Abubakar announced on Tuesday in Bauchi that the restriction of movement from 7 p.m to 6 a.m until normalcy returns to the affected area.

    A minor disagreement at a birthday party by some youths in the community turned violent.

    The fracas claimed at least three lives while two houses and a car were burnt early Nov. 19, the state police command confirmed.

    “The government has decide to impose a curfew from the hours of 7.00pm to 6.00am from today, Tuesday, 20th November 2018, until further notice in the following areas of Yelwan Tsakani, Unguwan Kusu, Unguwan Gas, Lushi and Kagadama,” the governor said.

    He explained that the measure was taken to ensure peace among the communities and to prevent hoodlums in the affected areas from further escalating the disturbance from spreading to other parts of the state.

    Abubakar regretted that the unfortunate incident had resulted in affecting the relative peace enjoyed in the state since inception of his administration.

    “This had come at a time when Federal Government is taking necessary measures to restore peace in some parts of the country ravaged by communal conflicts.

    “We must therefore not allow ourselves to be used by disgruntled elements who may want to plant seeds of discord among us,” he urged.

    The governor however appealed to traditional rulers, community and religious leaders to preach tolerance, peace and respect for one another to their followers. (NAN)

  • Birthday party clash, three dead, 18 injured – Bauchi

    The police in Bauchi State have confirmed that three persons were killed and eight others injured in a clash that erupted on Sunday night in Lushi Ward in Bauchi.

    The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Kamal Abubakar, confirmed the incident on Monday in Bauchi.

    He said that 75 suspects had been arrested in connection with the clash.

    Abubakar said that two houses were burnt during the incident.

    He said the situation had been brought under control and that investigation was going on to get to the root of the crisis.

    Read Also: Seven held over drivers’ clash

    The PPRO assured that those found wanting would be brought to book.

    According to Abubakar, the crisis started following a misunderstanding among some youths at a birthday party in Kusu area of Sakani which later spread to other parts of Yelwa Ward.

    A resident of the area, who preferred anonymity, told NAN that some youths in Lushi started throwing stones at each other and later embarked on burning houses which included that of a retired superintendent of police.

    The eye witness said that the incident might have started when two male youths fought over a young lady at the venue of the birthday party.

    According to him, a federal civil servant who worked at the Federal Secretariat in Bauchi, was suspected to be among those killed during the fight.

    He said the victim had earlier relocated his family to a safe area following tension in the area, but was killed on his return by the irate youths who also burnt the deceased’s house.

    NAN

  • INEC releases names of nominated candidates for by-elections

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has released names of political parties and their nominated candidates for by-elections in Kastina, Bauchi, Kwara and Cross River, scheduled for Nov. 17.

    The list was released in a statement signed by INEC National Commissioner, and Chairman, Information and Voter Education, Festus Okoye on Thursday in Abuja.

    The by-elections are for Kankia/Kusada/lngawa Federal Constituency of Katsina State, Toro Federal Constituency of Bauchi State, Ekiti/lrepodun/Isin/Oke-Ero Federal Constituency of Kwara, and lkom ll State Constituency of Cross River State.
    According to INEC, four political parties submitted nominations for the Kankia/Kusada/lngawa Federal Constituency of Katsina State by-election, as at Nov. 6, which was the last day for the submission of Forms CF001 and CF002.
    The parties and their nominated candidates are Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Nasiru Kankia; Yes Electorate Solidarity (YES), Abdullahi Umar; Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) , Abdussamad Abdullahi; and the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abubakar Kusada.

    Read Also: INEC begins display of voters’ register in Borno

     

    The Commission also disclosed that two political parties submitted nominations for Toro Federal Constituency of Bauchi State by-election.

    These are PDP with Shehu Umar as its candidates, as well as the APC with Yusuf Nuhu as its candidate.

    For Ekiti/lrepodun/Isin/Oke-Ero Federal Constituency of Kwara, the Commission said five political parties nominated candidates including the Labour Party, Femi Ana-Ara; and the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), Olaniyan Ayorinde.

    Others are PDP, Jimoh Damilare; Peoples Party of Nigeria (PPN) Ajayi Bidemi; and the APC, Olawuyi Tunji.

    Okoye also disclosed that only the PDP nominated candidate, Egbong Nkoro, for the by-election in the lkom ll State Constituency of Cross River State.
    “The by-elections will hold as scheduled on Nov. 17. To this end, all arrangements have been made for the successful conduct of the elections.
    “The Commission implores all participating political parties and their candidates to cooperate with it to ensure peaceful and successful elections,” he said.

  • FG tasked on lasting solution to flood onslaught

    The federal government has been tasked to pursue ways that will bring lasting solutions to the onslaught of flooding across communities in Nigeria.

    The director of the Center for Peace and Environmental Justice (CEPEJ), Comrade Sheriff Mulade, made the call in a statement made available to newsmen in Warri on Wednesday.

    According to him, not only are properties worth millions of naira lost to the ravaging flood, several lives have been yearly, cut short.

    It will be noted that the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NMA) had warned of the impending disaster in 11 states including Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Bauchi, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Kaduna, Kwara, Nasarawa, Yobe and Zamfara. However, not much was done by relevant government agencies to avert the situation.

    Mulade, in his statement, therefore appealed to the federal and state governments, international civil society organizations, private sectors as well as well-meaning individuals to join CEPEJ to provide assistance, especially in resettling flood victims in the country.

    He said “As a non-governmental organization with a special focus on environmental justice, we are sensitizing the people living within the affected areas and call for adequate relief materials to the victims and to properly resettle them.

    “CEPEJ is also by this means advocating that the federal government provides continued assistance in the resettlement efforts towards finding a permanent solution to the problem of flooding in Nigeria. We are deeply saddened that several lives have been lost to the annual flooding in the affected areas, homes and farmlands have been destroyed, means of livelihood brought to an abrupt halt and farm produce worth millions of naira have also been destroyed.

    Read Also: Flood kills 20-year-old in Anambra

     

    “CEPEJ hopes that as part of the Federal Government’s long term measures, the construction of buffer dams on the long stretch of the Niger be considered, to intermittently break wild water tides and avoid future re-occurrence”, he said.

    Noting that many affected persons are yet to be reached with aids, he added that suffering is on the increase for cases where it was practically impossible to send relief materials or evacuate the victims.

    In September, a national disaster was declared in the worst four affected states; Anambra, Delta, Kogi and Niger, with NEMA releasing a report that about 327,052 people are affected in the flooded states with over 70 casualties.

    Also, an outbreak of malaria and water borne diseases has been reported, just as displaced persons are currently being hosted in emergency shelters such as local government offices, schools, stadiums, churches and internally displaced persons (IDP) hostels built by Presidential Committee on Flood Relief and Rehabilitation.

  • Corruption still remains our major headache – Osinbajo

    Vice president Yemi Osinbajo said on Tuesday that corruption remained the major challenge of Nigeria, saying the country was lucky to have President Muhammadu Buhari as the nation’s leader.

    Osinbajo made the statement in Bauchi when he paid a courtesy visit on the Emir of Bauchi, Alhaji Rilwanu Adamu.

    “One of the things that have surprised me the most in government is that it is not that we do not have money.

    “It is that most of the money that should be used on projects and the poor, is stolen; corruption is the major problem of this country,” he said.

    According to him, it is a blessing for Nigeria to be blessed with a leader like President Muhammadu Buhari at this material time, who is committed in tackling corruption.

    “I think it is a blessing that God has given our country Muhammadu Buhari to be the president of our country at this time. This is because everybody knows he would not steal our money.

    “Despite the fact that we are earning 60 per cent less than they were earning in the previous government, we are spending almost five times more on projects today.

    “For the first time, we are spending N2.7trillion on capital projects ,” he said.

    The vice president also said that the Federal Government would be launching a “One Stop Shop” programme for the regulatory agencies in Bauchi, where traders could go and have their problems solved with ease.

    “For the first time in Bauchi, we are launching what we call ‘One Stop Shop’ for the regulatory authorities.

    “This means we would have the NAFDAC, SON and Corporate Affairs Commission under one roof here in Bauchi, so that any trader or small businesses owner can go and have his or her problems solved,” Osibanjo revealed.

    Read Also: NDDC plans industrial development centre in A/Ibom

    In his remark, the Emir of Bauchi, Alhaji Rilwanu Adamu, thanked the Federal government for its kind gesture towards the state, adding that Presidnet Muhammadu Buhari’s administration had been addressing issues that the people considered relevant in their lives.

    “We are optimistic that the Federal Government has come to this state in big way; the present scheme will lead to improvement and success stories in the state,” he said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the Vice President was in Bauchi to launch the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) clinic.

  • Police arrests robbery gang leader, members in Jigawa

    The Jigawa state police command smashed a gang of armed robbers, arrested the gang leader and three other members whom were terrorizing of Gwaram local government in Jigawa state and some parts of Bauchi state.

    Parading the suspected criminals on Tuesday at the state’s police headquarter, the police commissioner in the state, Bala Zama Senchi represented by the command’s public relations officer, SP Abdu Jinjiri said “in one of the operations of the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (F-SARS) of the command, four notorious armed robbers wee arrested in Gwaram local government area”.

    The commissioner explained that “a team of policemen attached to F-SARS Dutse arrested one Sa’adu Sulaiman of Yafi village in Gwaram local government area who was suspected to be a criminal, in the course of interrogation Sa’adu confessed to be a member of armed robbers who took parts in some armed robbery operations in the area”.

    According to him “Their gang was responsible for the armed robbery attacks at Rambazau village where they collected N975,000, Yadda village where they collected N150,000 and a new Bajaj motorcycle and Sara town where N2 million was collected from an Igbo trader”.

    Read Also: ICRC confirms death of abducted midwife

    Senchi maintained that those arrested includes the gang leader identified as Moh’d Shehu alias Dunkule, Bature Lawan and Isa Babba.

    He added that “while Malam Niga, Ibrahim, Sale Kaduna, Yellow Nafara and Maiunguwa all of various addresses in Jigawa and Bauchi states are still at large”.

    The PPRO stated that two locally made Dane-guns where recovered, as efforts are being intensified to apprehends the fleeing other gang members and recover their two operational AK 47 rifles.

  • Find General Alkali, other missing Nigerians, Senate tells FG

    The Senate on Wednesday asked the Federal Government to intensify efforts aimed at finding the missing Director of Administration of the Nigerian Army, Major General Ibrahim Alkali (rtd).

    Alkali was reported to have disappeared in Dura Du area of Plateau State on Monday, September 4, barely two months after his retirement from the army.

    The upper chamber also urged the government to take steps to locate other missing Nigerians.

    It prayed the government to set up an investigative panel of inquiries to unravel the circumstances surrounding the dumping of cars found in ponds of Lafande community in the Du District of the state.

    The Senate asked the government to identify possible suspects in the dastardly act and ensure that the perpetrators face the full wrath of the law to serve as deterrent to other criminally-minded persons in the strongest possible terms.

    The resolutions followed a motion, on “The disappearance of retired Major General I. M. Alkali”, sponsored by Senator Mohammed Hassan (PDP Yobe South) at plenary yesterday.

    Senator Hassan in his lead debate noted that the wife of General Alkali, Salamatu had on September 4, alerted the Army authorities that her husband who departed Abuja in the morning of the previous day for Bauchi had not reached his destination.

    He said that Salamatu said that her husband told her at about noon of the previous day that he arrived Jos safely and would be passing Du road to Bauchi.

    He said, “That was the last communication she had with her husband until this moment as his where-about is presently unknown”.

    Hassan said that “following his disappearance, the Nigerian Army, with the support of the Nigeria Police, Department of State Services, Fire Service and other security agencies embark on intensive search vide tracking of his phone up to when it was switched off as well as relying on tips-off”.

    He explained that when earlier efforts of the Army and other security agencies didn’t yield the desired result, a pool of water in Lafande community was drained amid protest by the local women, who claimed that it was their only source of drinking water.

    The lawmaker lamented that “after two days of draining of the pond, a bus was found in it alleged to belong to a new young man that had earlier disappeared along that road, while on 29th September, 2018 at about 6.00pm, a Toyota car with registration number MUN 670 AA belonging to Major General I.M. Alkali was pulled out of the water with some of his belongings without any trace of his person, while another car, Rover was recovered from the pond whose owner disappeared in 2013”.

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    He said that concern over reported disappearance of numerous commuters along the Du axis for the past years, especially Bauchi onward bound travellers, should be addressed urgently.

    The incident, according to him, raises some pertinent questions, including “Why did the people from Du community refuse to assist the security agencies during the search.”

    “Why did the people (women) try to prevent the Army from draining the water.”

    “Why didn’t the community raise a formal complaint from the local government to the state government about the draining of the water”, and “Who were those spreading false information about the circumstances of the disappearance of Major General I.M. Alkali and what were their motives”.

    Senate President, Bukola Saraki commended Senator Hassan for the motion and urged the security agencies to intensify their efforts in finding the retired Army officer and other missing Nigerians.

  • Power supply dips to 2006mw

    …as transmission line trips North East to blackout

     

    The power supply from the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) at the weekend dropped to 83,570.30mwh (2006mw), according to the Independent System Operator (ISO) of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).

    Its operational report of Sunday showed that the industry recorded a peak generation of 4,452mw and lowest generation of 3,041mw on the previous day.

    The report also noted that “energy recorded on 22/09/2018 was 83,570.30MWH.” It however added that the generation at 06:00hour on Sunday was 3,340mw.

    The TCN however explained in a press statement that due to the tripping on fault of the Jos-Gombe 330kV Transmission Line, which had just undergone Annual Scheduled Maintenance, the North Eastern States including Bauchi, Gombe, Adamawa Borno, Yobe and Taraba are currently out of power supply.

    Its General Manager Public Affairs, Mrs. Ndidi Mbah, who issued the statement, noted that the line tripping occurred on 19:09 hour Saturday after it was re-energized.

    All efforts are being made by the company’s line engineering crew to resolve the problem and restore the transmission line accordingly.

    The statement added that the company took advantage of the outage to undertake the Annual Scheduled Maintenance of the 330kV transmission line from Jos to Gombe.

    Read Also: Power supply dips to 2006mw

    After the maintenance work has been completed by the combined engineering maintenance crew from Gombe and Jos Transmission Substations, the transmission line was re closed and energized at about 15:09 hours Saturday at 19:09 hours however, the line tripped due to fault on the line. TCN quickly initiated the patrol of the transmission line to detect and rectify the fault.

    The release noted that as at 18:30 pm, on Sunday the line engineering crew patrolling the Jos part of the 330kV transmission line has completed investigations on that part of the line, while the Gombe part of the transmission line trace is still ongoing. The entire line cannot be energized until both ends of the line trace have been concluded. Once completed, the findings would be analyzed and faults cleared, TCN will then re-energized the transmission line.

    Mbah said that the “TCN sincerely regrets inconveniences caused by the outage and also apologizes to the Government and people of the six North Eastern states affected by the outage, while assuring that efforts are ongoing to ensure a speedy completion of the transmission line trace and faults clearance in other to re close and energize the 330kV transmission line. Please bear with us.”

  • Ex-minister warns against indirect primary in Bauchi

    Former Minister of State for Health Dr. Mohammed Ali Pate has warned the All Progressives Congress (APC) against using indirect primary in Bauchi State, saying it may lose the state if an unpopular candidate is forced on the people through indirect primary.

    Pate, who is a governorship hopeful, said his group has made its case known to the national leadership of the party that without direct primary, winning Bauchi might be difficult.

    He said: “We have made our case, if the party wants to win Bauchi, it should put forward a credible, popular candidate. At this point, we know that majority of the people in Bauchi are worried that an imposition will not bud well in the general elections, and so we place our faith in the party’s leadership to do the right thing and allow fair process, otherwise we cannot guarantee APC winning Bauchi State.

    “There is a structured process to winning elective posts. I have done mine and for Bauchi State, we have an agenda to bring development which has so far eluded our people.

    “So, though we have an incumbent governor, we know his term ends in 2019, and we are sure to take over, even as we believe in the party to do the right thing and ensure that members and aspirants get the justice they deserve if the party wants to succeed in Bauchi.”

  • I am back in PDP, Dogara declares

    As Speaker submits nomination form

     

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara on Thursday confirmed his defection from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP).

    Dogara made the declaration at the national secretariat of the PDP while submitting his nomination form for his Bogoro/Dass/Tafawa Balewa federal constituency of Bauchi State.

    This has ended speculations about his defection and political career in the past few weeks. The Speaker, who was elected on the platform of the APC, was silent on whether or not he has formally resigned his membership of the ruling party.

    On his decision to dump the APC for the PDP, Dogara said he had decided to come back to his original roots, adding that he did not defect to the PDP because the APC denied him a return ticket.

    The Speaker said, “I have decided to come back to my original root because the truth is that when we went into APC after the general elections, there was never an occasion in which we were not reminded that we do not belong.

    “When there are discussions, you will hear reference to the fact that those who joined us from the PDP are our problems. So, that discussion will end from today since we have left.

    “So, I have decided to join my brothers – members of this great party, the PDP so that we can chart a new frontier in our state of Bauchi and for our dear nation, Nigeria”.

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    “I am here not because they have denied me ticket to contest in APC. And I am not bothered about contesting election; what bothers me is the state of my state.

    “The situation in which our people are and the state of this country. So, even if you give me a ticket to work in a situation where my conscience is totally not aligned with, to be candid, I cannot function effectively there”.

    Dogara said he was still in shock over happenings within the APC, particularly at the national level, adding however that he would reserve the details for another occasion.

    “When I recover from my shock, I will now tell my story in a way that is devoid of sentiments so that people can clearly understand the reason why I am taking the decision that leads me to the PDP today. And I will certainly do that.

    “But permit me to say that in the APC when we moved in, obviously they are not all devils. There are wonderful people in APC but there are equally some people who have a ravenously wayward sense of personal entitlement.

    “And this really are the problems with the APC. When it serves their interests, they said ‘the party is supreme’. When it doesn’t serve their interests, they castigate the party, including the leadership of the party.

    “These are people who are the lots of the family. They do what they will while others are required to do what they must. And in such environment, I am disabled.

    “We have a lot of bouncers in the party. And in such a situation where I had a very clear conscience, even though a lot of people were happy with me. But I can tell you that I would rather be hated for who I am than be loved for who I am not”.

    In apparent reference to the frosty relationship between him and the governor of Bauchi State, Mohammed Abubakar, the Speaker said he was ready for the challenge from those who said they would retire him from politics.

    Daring his political adversaries, Dogara said he would be waiting for them in his constituency, adding that he had to prove to those who said he could not move from the APC to any other political party.

    “Permit me to say that for some of us who are here and who are wondering becsuse it has been said that I cannot move from where I was to perhaps any other political party. That discussion has been ongoing. But today’s event marks the end of all speculations”, he declared.