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Tag: boko haram

  • Military vows again to crush Boko Haram

    Military vows again to crush Boko Haram

    T HE Chief of Defence Staff, Alex Badeh, has assured that the country will win the war against Boko Haram.

    Badeh spoke yesterday with State House correspondents after  a breakfast meeting between security chiefs and President Goodluck Jonathan at  the State House, Abuja.

    The Defence chief, who evaded most of the questions from reporters, also assured that election will hold in every where next year.

    Badeh said: “We are certainly not losing it. We are winning the war. Don’t worry. Nigerians should have faith in their military. The nation will win this war. Elections will hold there. Don’t worry.”

    On the fake Boko Haram members arrested by the DSS and his earlier ceasefire order, he said: “It is better not to discuss those things. DSS is on it; they are doing their own investigation. They did a briefing yesterday and they have told you exactly what they are doing. It is better we leave the DSS to handle that one.”

    On alleged fifth columnists in the armed forces, he said: “Don’t worry, the military is handling fifth columnists in its own way.”

    Badeh added: “Normal life is back in Mubi and around that place. We are liberating more and more communities. People are moving in; life is returning back to normal gradually.”

    He noted that the purpose of the meeting with the President was to brief him on the country’s security situation.

    “Of course, you are aware of the security situation. The President thought it fit to call us this morning for us to come and brief him about the situation of things. We have told the president exactly where we are and our future plans. As you know, we can’t talk about our future plans here. That will mean telling the enemy what we are doing,” he stated.

  • Our Boko Haram nightmares, by students

    Our Boko Haram nightmares, by students

    Higher institutions in the North have re-opened, but many students are not willing to return because of the Boko Haram insurgency. Some are contemplating dropping out of school because of the insurgency. TAIWO ISOLA (300-Level Anatomy, University of Maiduguri), IBRAHIM JATTO (Zoology), HALIMAH AKANBI (300-Level Law, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto) and ISMAT ANIFOWOSHE (300-Level Economics) report.

    The peace of many higher institutions in the North has since been shattered by the Boko Haram insurgency.

    Boko Haram means “western education is a sin” and the sect’s activities in the Northeast have crippled academic life and led to the death of many.

    Also, many public and private schools have been shut in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states, which are the epicentre of the sect’s activities. Pupils left in droves, with many vowing not to return to complete their studies. Campuses became desolate as  education was virtually suspended.

    Activities in a few schools, which were not shut, were conducted in fear.

    In the midst of all these, higher institutions have re-opened.

    A few weeks ago, a suicide bomber blew himself up at the Government Science Secondary School in Potiskum, killing more than 40 pupils. Days after, a female suicide bomber attempted to bomb the Federal College of Education in Kontagora, Niger State.

    What do students make of it all?

    “I will never return to school,” said Michael Obong, a ND II student of the Federal Polytechnic, Mubi (MUBI POLY) in Adamawa State. Michael managed to escape from Mubi  when Boko Haram invaded the polytechnic in October. He said: “I am not going back to Mubi, again. Returning to school would be suicidal for me, after all I encountered when Boko Haram insurgents came to the school. I have had enough of Boko Haram. Government cannot guarantee my safety. I have decided to secure my life by myself.”

    Hassana Abubakar, a student of Umar Ibrahim El-Kanemi College of Education in Bama, Borno State, said no student was willing to return to school after troops defeated Boko Haram insurgents in Bama. She said: “The college has not had it so good since Boko Haram struck in Bama. The college lost its essence, life and flavour. Nobody is eager to return to Bama again, even though the military has taken over the place. We have seen too many horrors, that it was almost becoming part of daily routine. It has made education unattractive. Education has simply lost its grip on us.”

    According to Idris Suleiman, a student of the University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID), bombs and bullets in Borno State cannot allow schools to have uninterrupted sessions.

    “Thousands of students in Maiduguri are living in fear, while some do not even go to school again. We cannot expect some of these dropouts not to take to crime, because there has been a sustained war against education,” he said.

    Joshua Medeludo, a UNIMAID student, said: “A scene of an explosion is an unpleasant sight to behold. It is an experience that can make someone to hate education. In places like Bama, Gwoza, Mubi and Yobe, where Boko Haram insurgents have crippled education, we cannot close our eyes and say ‘it doesn’t matter’; it is only happening in the North. Who knows where it will happen next?”

    Although there has been no attack in Sokoto State but, for students of the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto (UDUS), the fear of Boko Haram is the beginning of safety.

    The school has just resumed, after three months holiday. But, the renewed attacks on higher institutions have unsettled the students. Some of them, who spoke with CAMPUSLIFE, lamented the new method adopted by the insurgents to fight the government.

    Olayinka Alfa, a 300-Level Economics student, said: “The attacks on schools are getting out of hand and no one is safe anymore. The government must strengthen its efforts to contain this threat, because of the element of surprise attached to the manner of Boko Haram’s attack. No one would have expected what happened in College of Education, Kontangora but everyone could see it as a pointer to the fact that no one is safe.”

    Zaynab Abdullahi, a final year student of UDUS, said: “The attack on schools is terrible. It is already sending fear down the spine of everyone and worst still, there is little the university authority can do about it. A whole lot rests on the government. Most of us returning to school will have to pass through these troubled zones and it is not as if our campus is immune against attack. We did not expect that there would be an attack in Kontangora, which is not too far from Sokoto. This is a serious war on education, which, if not curtailed, may later see more students dropping out of school.”

    Rukkayat Hamzat, a 400-Level student of UDUS, said schooling in the North is becoming a sad experience, given the bombings. “It is now unbearable, going back to school after three months holiday. It is not interesting anymore, no excitement attached to resumption because of the fear of what is happening. I passed through Kontangora while travelling to school and I saw the havoc wreaked at the Federal College of Education there. The feeling now is that we are not safe and we don’t know which school is next on the insurgents’ list.”

    David Osu, a 500-Level Urban and Regional Planning student of the Federal University of Technology, Minna (FUT MINNA), said it was high time government halted the menace of Boko Haram. He said the incessant bombing of schools was devastating on education, the result of which, he said, may not augur well for the nation.

    He said: “This is violence against people’s right to live, move, acquire education and have a choice. Worst, it is a crime against the future of Nigeria. It is a threat against the children. For, how will they learn and grow in an environment where their lives are not secured. This appears a conspiracy by the Federal Government and the terrorists to deprive Nigeria of its promising bloom. Boko Haram is a scam, because there are many unanswered questions about its sponsors and the inability of the military to conquer the insurgents. Should we resign to fate or challenge the negligence of the Federal Government? We are waiting to see when the war declared on education by insurgents will end.”

  • Military will crush Boko Haram – CDS

    Despite the rising onslaught of the Boko Haram sect in the northeast, the Chief of Defence Staff, Alex Badeh on Wednesday assured that Nigeria will win the war against terror.

    He spoke to State House correspondents after having a breakfast meeting along with other security chiefs with President Goodluck Jonathan at his residence in the State House, Abuja.

    Badeh, who parried most of the questions from journalists, also assured that election will hold in every parts of the country in 2015.
    He said: “We are certainly not losing it. We are winning the war. Don’t worry, Nigerians should have faith in their military. The nation will win this war. Elections will hold there. Don’t worry.”

    On the fake Boko Haram members arrested by the Department of State Security and his earlier ceasefire order, he said: “It is better not to discuss those things. SSS is on it, they are doing their own investigation. They did a briefing yesterday and they have told you exactly what they are doing. It is better we leave the SSS to handle that one.”
    Also speaking on the fifth columnists in the Armed Forces, he said: “Don’t worry, the military is handling fifth columnists in its own way.

    On Mubi, he said; “Normal life is back in Mubi and around that place. We are liberating more and more communities. People are moving in, life is returning back to normal gradually.”

    He disclosed that the purpose of the meeting with the President was to brief him on the security situation in the country.

    “Of course, you are aware of the security situation in the country, the President thought it fit to call us this morning for us to come and brief him about the current situation of things. We have told the President exactly where we are and our future plans. As you know, we can’t talk about our future plans here, that will mean us telling the enemy what we are doing,” he stated.

  • France urges closer regional collaboration against Boko Haram

    France’s defence minister on Monday called for Nigeria and its neighbours to set up a military liaison committee to better coordinate their response to the growing regional threat posed by the Boko Haram sect.

    Boko Haram fighters have stepped up their attacks across much of Nigeria’s northeast in the past year, raiding villages, kidnapping children and seizing territory for their declared caliphate, Reuters reports.

    The sect operations have increasingly spilled over Nigeria’s borders into Niger to the north and Cameroon to the east, and has left Chad fearing it could also be dragged into the conflict.

    Last May in Paris, the leaders of all four countries agreed to work together more closely, but despite the promises there appears to have been little tangible coordination between Abuja and neighbouring governments.

    “There is a serious threat to the integrity of Nigeria and for its neighbours be it Cameroon, Niger or Chad,” Jean-Yves Le Drian told reporters at an Africa security forum in the Senegalese capital Dakar.

    “For this reason, we’d like to see a military liaison committee set up between the authorities of these four countries to help coordinate their action and their capacity to respond,” he said.

    He said France was ready to provide several officers to help those efforts.

    The four countries, whose borders meet at Lake Chad, an area that has become a Boko Haram stronghold, pledged in July to mobilise a joint force of 2,800 soldiers to tackle the group.

    That force has yet to be put in place, and while the countries have collaborated at times, observers criticise a lack of cohesion in the effort to defeat the insurgents.

    “The action should be proportional with the magnitude of what’s at stake,” the United Nations special envoy to the Sahel region Hiroute Gebre Selassie told Reuters. “There are efforts, but there is nothing that suggests to me that the magnitude of (the problem) is reducing. On the contrary.”

  • How Chadian mercenaries run Nigerian villages

    How Chadian mercenaries run Nigerian villages

    •New equipment for troops

    Some Nigerians fleeing the insurgency in the Northeast have relived their experiences in the town and villages occupied by the Boko Haram insurgents.

    The insurgents taken over many communities in Borno and Yobe states. Among them are Chadian mercenaries who now run some border towns.

    Villagers who  escaped from Gajigana, one of the villages recently  attacked by the insurgents are crying to the Borno State Government and the Federal Government to save them from the hands of the Chadians who, according to them, have now become judges trying and punishing villagers.

    One of them, Ali Modu Kawu, who escaped to Maiduguri, the beleaguered Borno State capital, said: “The Chadian rebels from Mangal now preside over meetings in most of the villages.   They  sit in courts and hear disputes and pass judgement for the locals who are in dispute with one another.

    “Just before they attacked Gajigana last week, the Manga tribesmen of Chad normally came around to judge the people. As a matter of fact, some days before the attack on Gajigana, there was a problem between one of our friends and a Fulani man who took his herd of cattle into the farm of our friend.

    “ After our inability to resolve the ensuing dispute – which had taken a dangerous dimension, we had to report the matter to Boko Haram men, who came to resolve the matter. They found the Fulani man guilty and ruled that he must pay a fine equivalent of five bags of beans within 24 hours or  face death punishment; and the Fulani man quickly complied.

    “Government institutions such as the courts and the local government buildings have been taken over by Boko Haram members who are mostly Chadians,” Ali Modu Kawu, one of the villagers who escaped told our correspondent in Maiduguri.

    Kawu said the Chadian Boko Haram mercenaries are more brutal than the others, adding that “whatever they say is final and you dare not protest”

    Gajigana village in Mobbar Local Government Council of Borno States was last Wednesday attacked by the Boko Haram insurgents. Over 30 died. Many others were injured.

    No less than 12 local government councils  from northern Borno  comprising   Abadam, Kukawa, Marte, Ngala, Dikwa, Mobbar, Nganzai, Magumeri, Marte, Kala-Balge, and Monguo, states including Gwoza and some parts of Damboa are under the control of the Boko Haram sect with no military or police presence.

    One of the villagers who prefers anonymity  said the terrorist were angry with Gajigana community for leaking information to security agents that they were embarking on forcible recruitment of youth into Boko Haram in their villages hence their reason to attack the community.

    “I overheard some of them when they were attacking the village   saying that we were the ones that went to report their secret recruitments around Gajiganna so they will teach us a lesson,” he said.

    Another villager who identified himself as Zaana, lamented that they are in a life of bondage in the hands of the Chadian conquerors who place a strict surveillance on them to monitor their movement and what they discuss with one another.

    “We are very careful about what you say to who and what and at what time because these boys have agents everywhere in the town monitoring the affairs of everyone,” Zaana said.

    There were strong indications yesterday that the Chad-brokered ceasefire deal between the Federal Government and Boko Haram might have collapsed.

    The botched deal was designed to effect the release of the abducted 219 Chibok girls.

    Faced with unworkable negotiation, the Federal Government has opted to engage the sect headlong in all the states in the Northeast.

    It was also learnt that the Defence Headquarters has given timelines to troops to regain Gwoza and Bama. Investigation by our correspondent revealed that the ceasefire has got stuck along the line because of what a source described as “interwoven interests and power play.”

    It was gathered that the non-involvement of the nation’s security agencies and military hierarchy contributed to the failure of the negotiation on the freedom for the Chibok girls.

    A highly-placed source, who spoke in confidence, yesterday said: “The so-called ceasefire pact or agreement is virtually dead. Those driving the deal in the country have also lost the steam because there is no headway. In the past two weeks, the talks had been stalled.

    “The negotiation was purely political without the knowledge and the input of the military and security agencies. Those who spearheaded the deal knew little about intelligence and military diplomacy.”

    The source added:  “The Chadian government has the capacity to attack the Boko Haram group which is partially operating within its territory.

    “It is suspected that there is a kind of truce between Chad and the insurgents who have not been striking in Chadian territory. So, it is a case of ‘don’t attack me, I will not attack you.’

    “And the backlash of the negotiation on Chadian government has made it not to get too much involved again.

    “The Chadian government is unhappy that its intervention was misinterpreted to the extent that it has to be reacting to certain allegations on its relationship with Boko Haram.”

    It was gathered that the military hierarchy had directed troops to “go ahead” with the reclaiming of all seized territories from Boko Haram’

    It was learnt that the military had given timelines to the troops to recover Gwoza and Bama where the insurgents had proclaimed Islamic Republic.

    A military source said: ‘The government has taken delivery of more fighter helicopters and military hardware from Russia. These equipment have assisted troops to fight Boko Haram and retake seized towns like Mubi, Garkida, Vimtim, Kumare-Uba, Mararaba, Mubi, and others.

    “Most of the towns and villages occupied by Boko Haram in Adamawa State had been reclaimed by troops in the last two to three weeks. The success recorded has buoyed the spirit of troops that the won is winnable.

    “The insurgents are on the run. This explains why they are now attacking Ashaka, Bajoga and a few isolated places in Gombe State.

    “Troops now have the mandate of the military hierarchy to sack Boko Haram from Gwoza and Bama which had been under the control of the insurgents.”

    Responding to a question, the source said: “We are still hopeful that we can liberate the Chibok girls who had been in captivity in the last 245 days.”

     

  • Displaced by Boko Haram, neglected in Abuja

    Displaced by Boko Haram, neglected in Abuja

    Fleeing from the guns and bombs of insurgents, internally displaced persons (IDPs) from the Northeast hoping to find shelter and relief in the Federal Capital Territory are ignored by the authorities. GBENGA OMOKHUNU and GRACE OBIKE report that they are grappling with the worst circumstances

    They must be grateful for surviving the insurgents but after that, daily living has presented internally displaced people (IDPs) from the Northeast with unspeakable challenges. Several towns in their home states have been overrun by Boko Haram fighters, the invaders’ black flags announcing the conquest. So many have been gunned down or killed by bombs. A good number have been kidnapped. Many more, though, survived and have fled to just about anywhere they can find shelter and relief. The less terrorised parts of the region are saturated with these fleeing residents of the frontline states such as Yobe, Adamawa and Borno.

    The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is not spared. The IDPs are continuously streaming in, first finding shelter with relatives and friends but soon discovering that they are putting undue pressure on their hosts. Such problems as overcrowding and feeding challenges have pushed them further on to various locations.

    At those locations, life is almost unbearable. Neither the FCT leadership nor the Federal Government has made any provisions for them. Feeding is as much a problem as is shelter. When they find something to eat, there is no water, so they make do with filthy stream water. With the cold season setting in, the displaced people are at the mercy of the elements, too.

    Some individuals once offered the IDPs farmlands to build temporary shanties until they could return home but some yet-to-be-identified armed people, said to be security agents, raided the location and reportedly shot at some of the displaced people, even arresting a few. Some escaped with bullet wounds and fled to Nasarawa State and some villages in the FCT.

    Although the Federal Government and FCT administration are aware of the existence of these people, they have refused to assist or associate with them. The IDPs now survive from assistance from well-meaning Nigerians or on odd jobs since they do not have any certificate or means of identification that can provide them with better jobs at the seat of power.

    The Nation discovered that there are about eight settlements of IDPs in Abuja alone documented by the organisation, Ending Terrorism and the Restoration of our Ancestral Homeland, Northeast Nigeria. There are four settlements around Apo which include Waru, Wa’asa, Zintili and Panteka; there is another around Jabi Airport Road after the bridge and some around Area 1 but they are living inside and one can hardly identify them until you go there with some aid. They are scared after the experience with the security agents.

    Although well-meaning Nigerians have tried to assist the displaced people, there are reports that some politicians about a month ago tried to take advantage of their situation. The report said that the politicians visited the displaced people and offered them T-shirts and cap, promising to give them N10,000 if they agreed to return to their troubled communities to vote for them.

    A non-governmental organisa-tion was said to have visited the IDPs, attracting much media presence only to give the over 1,000 displaced people very little relief materials which caused a fight among them as they struggled to get the little they saw.

    Aisha Hammid, an IDP from Gwoza, who is now sheltering in Wa’asa, said: “My husband is a welder but since we have been here only one organisation came to present some items to us but they were not enough. They brought ten bags of rice, one bag of sugar and nine blankets. They were shared and at the end of the day people fought because some did not get and my family did not even get any of the materials.

    “The living conditions in most of the IDP settlements are so horrible and these people who obviously had comfortable houses back home have to live in degrading conditions; some live in shanties, others sleep in open fields while a few who can be said to be a bit lucky, like the Wa’asa community, live in an abandoned estate with no light and water and in some cases, no toilets, so they have to defecate in the bushes.

    The stream in the Wa’asa community is almost dried up; snakes and cattle drink and defecate in the dirty yellowish water that the people drink and bathe in. When asked, the women explained that they throw alum into the water and lets it sit for a while before drinking. They also complained of the effects that the water was having on their children who now easily fall sick and have contracted various skin diseases.

    A resident of Wa’asa, Mariam Muhammed, said, “I have five children. We have Gwoza, Bama people here and many others. We ran for our lives to settle here in Waasa village and we are about 3000. We are staying in an uncompleted estate by the mercy of those who are taking care of the houses. If by tomorrow peace is restored to these troubled villages we are willing to go back. We are struggling to survive here.

    “Things are hard to come by. We the women stay at home while our husbands go out to look for what we will eat. My husband drives taxi while others ride Okada; the children are no more going to school because there is not much money; even to feed is a problem. We have been here now for about four months. Many of our people are still joining us but there is no more accommodation in this settlement. Many families are managing; for example, two families of 12 are sharing two rooms. No electricity, no potable water. The only water we drink, cook and wash with is from a dirty stream. We defecate inside the forest because there is no toilet facility. We are begging Government to come to our aid and save our soul. We are also Nigerians.”

    Acting coordinator, Ending Terrorism and the Restoration of our Ancestral Homeland, Northeast Nigeria, Mr. Baba Oliver, an engineer, said that Northeastern youths are ready to take up arms and assist the military in the fight against Boko Haram to take back their ancestral homes if only the government is willing to train and give them weapons.

    He also lamented that most aged parents, including his, are still trapped in their troubled communities, with some dying of hunger and exhaustion in caves and bushes since they cannot walk long distances like the younger ones to escape the insurgency.

    His words, “From Gwoza, Madagali, Michika, up to Mubi, there is no way anybody can go back to Maiduguri; all those people displaced there ran through Cameroon to Yola and Yola is congested with no place to sleep; now what happened is that Abuja happens to be the centre of Nigeria where everybody from every Local Government has a brother, so if you run to your headquarters and there is nowhere for you to lay your head, what do you do? You try to run to where you can see your brothers to seek help.

    “That was why people rushed to Abuja but when they came to Abuja, the houses of the brothers got filled up. What did they do? They now tried to live in camps which, we know, government went to disperse like the one in Durumi where security agents attacked the IDPs at night shooting at them, so they now dispersed all over like in Nasarawa State and some villages in Abuja like towards the end of Apo and other places.

    “We have to talk because our first need is for the government to recapture our land for us; let us go back and cast our votes for the leaders we want and so that we can continue our businesses; all of us lost our houses, businesses; we lost everything. Our communities are now filled with dead bodies and burnt-down houses; we are just asking for the return of our land.

    “We are not only willing but on standby; if today we see that killing has stopped, by tomorrow, almost 90% of the IDPs in Abuja will go back because they do not have a source of living; most of them are in farm settlements and stay there trying to farm to feed or engage in menial jobs.”

    He also said, “In our letter to the President and speech at the National Assembly, we made it known that we the youths came out to protest because our leaders have refused to talk; they will go to a board room or hotel room and sit down to pass a memorandum on paper which they have never acted on, or they have never come out to tell the government anything tangible or put any pressure.

    “That is why this insurgency is coming out because the government does not do anything that people do in a civilised way; the only good thing that I know is that the youths are willing to even go to the war front because what happened in Mubi, everybody knows that it is the determination of local hunters and vigilante groups that went with the army together to fight Boko Haram.

    “Right now, the survival of the Abuja IDPs is by the grace of God and sheer determination of the people. Our people are hardworking most of them are farmers so they go out there to engage in menial jobs to earn money to take care of their families; then there are good-hearted Nigerians who go there every day to give them money or foodstuff.

    “If the government refuses to recognise the existence of IDPs in Abuja, then what will NEMA do, since it is a parastatal under the government, this people are simply surviving from the help of well-meaning Nigerians and their sheer determination.

    “To be honest, I cannot tell you the actual number of IDPs in Abuja but I will speak from the records we have. As of today, we have the records of about eight settlements; we have four settlements around Apo and they include Waru, Wa’asa, Zintili and Panteka, we have one around Jabi airport road after the bridge, we have some around Area 1 but the people are inside and you can hardly identify them except you go there with some aid. They are scared of people after what happened in Durumi.

     

     

     

  • Boko Haram: Mark urges military to fight harder

    Boko Haram: Mark urges military to fight harder

    Senate President, David Mark, has called on the Armed Forces to fight harder to keep Nigeria united and secured.

    Mark, according to a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Paul Mumeh, in Abuja, spoke after the National Coordinator of 2015 Armed Forces Remembrance Day, Brig. Gen. Rogers Nicholas, decorated him with the emblem.

    The Senate President noted that the security situation has become so worrisome that Nigerians seems to be worried about their future.

    He, however, insisted that the Armed Forces “remains the last man standing in this difficult situation.

    “It is therefore incumbent on our Armed Forces to rise up to the challenge in order to secure Nigeria and Nigerians.”

    He said the government is conscious of the challenges faced by the officers and men of the Armed Forces especially in the Northeast region where militants believed to be Boko Haram members are holding the region captive.

    He promised that the government is more than ever before prepared to improve on their welfare including modern equipment to fight the war.

    He added: “Government is appreciative of your pains and sacrifices to keep Nigeria united.

    “We can only encourage you to keep on the good work in order to make Nigeria a safer and better place.”

    The Senate President, however, enjoined the military training and doctrine unit to propose a legislation to the National Assembly on how to provide for the upkeep of family members of soldiers who died fighting to keep Nigeria one.

    This, he opined is imperative so that their efforts and sacrifices would not be in vain.

     

  • Bursting some 2015 myths

    One of the great unknowns as polling day draws ever closer is how the ‘North’ will vote. For the past five years, the region has been devastated by the Boko Haram insurgency as well as communal clashes that set indigenous farming communities against itinerant Fulani herdsmen in places like Benue and Plateau States.

    Unpredictable voter behaviour is compounded by the fact that the regional elite is divided between sustaining the status quo or lining up behind Buhari. For some, four more years of Jonathan might not be such a bad idea as it opens the door for them to run at the next contest.

    In reality, the electoral picture that might emerge two months down the line could throw up a clear winner in the region, but it would also bury almost permanently that myth of ‘one North’ as it probably existed in the days of the Sardauna of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello.

    The same thing applies down south. I hear people repeat lazy assumptions suggesting that every South-south vote is already in Jonathan’s column. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

    The South-south zone is artificial – a product of the General Sani Abacha constitutional conference. This is one part of Nigeria where you would find one of the most diverse collections of ethnic groups – each with its own unique identity and political interests.

    The Niger Delta insurgency and the emergence of Jonathan as president has helped project the Ijaws into the limelight – but not always in a positive sense. Some ethnic groups have complained that access to the most powerful office in the land has made them more domineering. A case in point is the president’s abandonment of his visit to Ogidigben to inaugurate the Export Processing Zone (EPZ) project because of pressure from his Ijaw kinsmen. That action almost reignited bloodletting with the neighbouring Itsekiris.

    Just as in the North, all zones of the country present opportunities for hardworking and imaginative campaigns to exploit. It would be foolish for any candidate to write off a zone because his opponent comes from there or supposedly has an iron grip on the area.

  • Boko Haram victim cries out: Where are my seven children and their mother?

    Boko Haram victim cries out: Where are my seven children and their mother?

    A man in his early 40s is frantically searching for his wife and seven children. He has not sighted them for more than three months after their Vi village in Adamawa State was invaded by the deadly Boko Haram sect on September 7. Matthew Zira said he had conducted all the search he could without the luck of finding any of them alive or dead. Now, he is roaming the streets of Jos, the Plateau State capital, frantically searching for his beloved family members.

    Narrating his ordeal to our correspondent in Jos, Zira said: “My name is Matthew Zira. I am from Vi village in Minchika Local Government Area, Adamawa State. I was living comfortably with my family until that fateful Friday.

    “Before that day, there had been rumours that Boko Haram would attack the village, but no one knew when they would come. So on that day, as usual, I went out of the house to look for my daily bread. I ride commercial motorcycle in the village, I am also a farmer, and did the commercial motorcycle work when farm work was over.

    “So, I left home as early as 6 am on the 7th of September 2014 on my motorcycle to commence the business of the day. But at about noon, I started hearing gunshots and everyone said Boko Haram had arrived town. I immediately rushed back home to go and evacuate my family, but before I got home, they had fled along with other villagers to an unknown destination.

    “I went round town looking for them but could not find them. I went to the police station, hospitals and everywhere but could not find them. Before the evening of that day, Boko Haram had already taken over the entire village completely. I was advised not to go back home because all the houses in the village had been razed by Boko Haram.

    “I fled to Minchika to continue the search for my children. Later, we had to flee to Yola when we heard that Boko Haram would attack Minchika. I spent one month in Yola searching everywhere for my children but I could not find them. Those of us who escaped from Vi village and other surrounding villages were camped at the NYSC camp in Yola. I thought of meeting my children there in the camp but they were not there.

    “I had to come to Jos because I was told that thousands of Adamawa people ran to Jos. But I have searched all the IDP camps in Jos since the 5th of November when I arrived, I can’t still find them. There is even no iota of information about where I could find them. “Others who lost their families during the rush to escape have found their people, but in my own case, I’m still searching in vain. It is only God that will reveal to me what happened to my family. So, I am only looking up to God now because I have done all that is humanly possible.

    “I am really in trauma; at night I can’t sleep, I keep thinking of my children. At times, if I am eating and the thought of the whereabouts of my children came to my mind, I will not be able to eat any longer, from that moment I will lose appetite.

    “I am pleading with any Nigerian who knows where I can locate my children to contact me on my phone – 07037728905. My wife’s name is Tinana Mathew. My seven children are Rita, Ziramatu, Tumbamatu, Kwata, Racheal and one-yearold Doris. Please, I am eagerly waiting for any information on their whereabouts.”

  • PFN donates to Boko Haram victims

    PFN donates to Boko Haram victims

    Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) has distributed relief materials worth over ten million naira to internally displaced persons in Adamawa and Borno States respectively.

    Several thousands of internally displayed persons (IDPs), particularly the Boko Haram victims benefited from the PFN relief materials which were distributed between November 20 and November 21, 2014.

    The relief materials are mainly food items and clothing materials.

    The relief materials distribution teams were headed by prominent leaders of the PFN such as Apostle Emmanuel Kure, Evangelist Matthew Owojaiye and Bishop Ransom Stephen amongst others.

    Interestingly, the PFN philanthropic gesture was enjoyed by displaced people irrespective of their religious affiliations.

    Speaking to journalists in Benin, the head of the team, Apostle Kure said the gesture was in accordance with the directive of the PFN national president, Dr. Felix Omobude.

    Also in a press statement endorsed by the media officer to the national president of PFN, Deacon Ralph Okhiria stated that the Permanent Secretary of NEMA, who is in charge of IDPs, witnessed the massive distribution of relief materials to the Boko Haram displaced persons.

    The NEMA Permanent Secretary, who lauded the fellowship for the kind gesture, appealed to well-meaning individuals and organizations to emulate the example of the PFN by reaching out to the internally displaced persons with relief materials. Some beneficiaries of the PFN kind gesture described the massive relief materials distribution as, ‘historic’, even as they commended the PFN members for showing them human kindness in their moment of need.

    They however appealed to their benefactors not to let their Godly gesture be a once and for all affair.

    Meanwhile, the national president of Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), Dr. Felix Omobude has thanked all those who have contributed and made donations to the PFN welfare purse and further called on all and sundry to always show kindness to the needy in the society.

    Dr. Omobude stated that the recent demonstration of love to the internally displaced people in Adamawa and Borno States was just the beginning of such Godly gesture, noting that efforts were being made to also send relief materials to the Boko Haram victims in Yobe.

    He disclosed that the PFN had earlier in the year sent a whopping seven million naira (cash) as aid to the Boko Haram victims in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States.

    He however called on well-meaning individuals and organizations particularly the Christians to make financial contributions to the welfare purse of the PFN to enable the fellowship reach more needy in the society with relief materials. Such financial contribution should be paid into: Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, UBA Account No. 1000751213.