The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Mike Odiegwu

  • PDP killed my husband – Alamieyeseigha’s widow

    PDP killed my husband – Alamieyeseigha’s widow

    Margaret, the widow of late former Governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, has said that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) betrayed and eventually killed her husband.

    Mrs Margaret Alamieyeseigha said despite all the sacrifices of her husband in the formation and advancement of PDP’s interest, the party killed him before his time.

    The widow, who was angry at the way PDP treated her husband, said the All Progressives Congress (APC) had no hands in the death of the man, popularly called the Governor-General of the Niger Delta.

    The widow reportedly spoke in an interview at the memorial of Alamieyeseigha’s death, which took place recently at Amassoma, Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, of the state.

    The sudden death of Alamieyeseigha also known as Alamco on October 10, 2015 sparked controversies between the PDP and the APC with the parties blaming each other.

    The former governor reportedly died of complications arising from high blood pressure and diabetes which affected his kidney at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH), Rivers State.

    The PDP claimed that the late governor abandoned his medical trip midway in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates out of fears that the APC-led Federal Government was making an effort to reopen his corruption case in Britain.

    But Mrs Alamieyeseigha said PDP’s betrayal, conspiracy and Ijaw’s sellout mentality led to the travails and death of her husband.

    She said the party that ruled Nigeria for 16 years masterminded the arrest of her husband while the Ijaw whom the husband fought for graciously handed him over to his killers.

    She said: “Today, I will say categorically, that PDP killed my husband. APC didn’t kill my husband; APC didn’t arrest my husband. It was PDP that arrested my husband; it was PDP that locked up my husband, killed him and seized everything that belongs to him.

    “PDP humiliated him to death; tormented him to death. As far as I am concern, I was been humiliated by PDP; my husband died because of the humiliation he passed through in the hands of PDP”.

    She advised the Ijaw people to stop betraying their leaders insisting that the Ijaw nation would only make progress in unity.

    He said despite the betrayal of her husband, the late Alamieyeseigha still stood solidly behind the party and ensured it won the last governorship election in the state.

    The widow, who said she and her family were still members of the PDP, advised the party to help its members.

    “So, I will say the people of Bayelsans, the Ijaw’s they should wake up, they should not betray their leaders and they should always work in unity because in unity we stand. That is my advice to them.

    “I don’t know how to describe my husband, he doesn’t betray people, even if you betrayed him he would come back and always played the role of a father. He felt you don’t know what you are doing, that is why you did what you did.

    “He will still turn back and stand by you. My husband fought for PDP to make sure PDP succeeded and that is why PDP succeeded today in Bayelsa because he had a lot of supporters.

    “He reached out to every one of them and told them ‘look, I was being betrayed but we should not continue, stand by your people and work in unity’. That was how he succeeded. That was why PDP still won in Bayelsa state. I have not gone to any other party PDP is still our party all what I am saying is that we should help our self.

    Speaking during the memorial of her husband’s death and the crowd that trooped out to honour the occasion, she described her late husband as a man loved by his people.

    She said the late Alamieyeseigha fought for resource control and urged the Ijaw people to continue with the agitation despite the feelings of the government.

    She said though her husband was dead, his legacies lived on adding that the best way to immortalise him was to realise his dreams.

    She said: “I thank God for making today a reality, you can see how his Excellency (Alamieyeseigha) has been loved by his people.

    “He died for his people and he is being loved by his people that is what you are seeing today. What I will tell Bayelsans, I want them to know that they had a leader that left them.

    “Excellency Chief Alamieyeseigha, fought for resource control for his people, and you know we are the people that produced 40% of the wealth of this country, and his Excellency was an educated man and he saw how his people were suffering and he fought for his people.

    “The only thing I will tell them today, he is no more. The legacy should not die and they should carry on the fight, even if they (government) doesn’t like it. When they (government) are tired they will listen to them.

    “The resources belong to us; belong to our children and we can not just leave it to them. They want to take it by force from us and is our duty to fight for it. His Excellency is dead today but his spirit is not dead.

    “The people he left behind will continue to fight and at the end of the day they will call the people to sit at the roundtable and will discuss it and what belong to us will be given to us. My advice to them is that they should not betray their leaders. A man that fought for them was betrayed”.

  • Family to bury teenager killed by police

    The families of 17-year-old Innocent Kokorifa, allegedly killed by the police in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, on Wednesday said they had concluded plans to bury the remains of the deceased.

    Innocent, first child of Mr. Daniel Kokorifa, an employee of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), was shot dead in a mysterious circumstance by a team of the police along Airforce Road in Yenagoa, on August 18, 2016.

    The deceased was reportedly running an errand for his mother, Pere Kokorifa, when he was allegedly gunned down  by the police at about 11:00am.

    But the police in a statement said that the victim died in a gun battle between a notorious armed robbery gang and the police team.

    Father of the victim, Kokorifa, confirmed that Innocent’s remains would be buried in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital, on Saturday adding that the autopsy had been conducted on the deceased.

    Kokorifa said: “The country we are in has procedures and we cannot take laws into our hands. We are going to meet at the court and justice will prevail.

    “I believe in the judiciary. They will do their job. There are cases they have handled and people have been sentenced to death and given penalties, so this one will not be an exception.”

    It was gathered that the autopsy carried out at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC),  Yenagoa, revealed that the deceased died from the bullets fired by the police.

    The autopsy was reportedly conducted by a pathologist at the FMC, Dr. E. P. Odoye, last Saturday.

    An activist and lawyer, Ebikebuna Aluzu, said he was satisfied by the decision of the police to conduct the autopsy.

    Aluzu, the founder of the #JusticeForInnocent Movement, said the autopsy was part of the due process required to aid the investigative process.

    He, however, frowned on the manner the police were treating other aspects of the investigation.The activist said: “Justice delayed is justice denied. But I believe that justice will prevail in this case.

    The activist said: “Justice delayed is justice denied. But I believe that justice will prevail in this case.”As an activist, who has been involved or passionate about human rights, I am not too comfortable with the way the police are going about their investigation. This is a case that involves more than one party.

    “As an activist, who has been involved or passionate about human rights, I am not too comfortable with the way the police are going about their investigation. This is a case that involves more than one party.”The police team that carried out the operation are all locked up in Zone 5 Division, Edo State. Following up the case, I have been to that Zone 5, and there’s something I noticed that the men of the Anti-Vice are put in one place. These people are parties to an offence and as a forensic expert, I am not too comfortable with that situation.

    “The police team that carried out the operation are all locked up in Zone 5 Division, Edo State. Following up the case, I have been to that Zone 5, and there’s something I noticed that the men of the Anti-Vice are put in one place. These people are parties to an offence and as a forensic expert, I am not too comfortable with that situation.”You don’t put people who are parties to an offence together. They will have the opportunity to collaborate and corroborate their stories. There is

    “You don’t put people who are parties to an offence together. They will have the opportunity to collaborate and corroborate their stories. There is need to separate them, even in prison.”Also, a human rights activist,  Ebiserikumo

    Also, a human rights activist,  Ebiserikumo Gbassa, alleged that the excesses of the police in the state were getting out of hand.He also frowned on the

    He also frowned on the nonchallance of Kokorifa’s Southern Ijaw Local Government Area and the Bayelsa State Government on the matter, alleging that their lack of interest was because the matter involved the poor.Gbassa mentioned how Governor Seriake Dickson went to Abuja to commiserate with the family of the state Chief Judge,

    Gbassa mentioned how Governor Seriake Dickson went to Abuja to commiserate with the family of the state Chief Judge, Mrs. Kate Abiri, when her son was allegedly murdered, because the Abiris were rich.He added that he would ensure that he implicated all the tiers of Bayelsa government in the case for not showing concerns when they needed to do so.

    He added that he would ensure that he implicated all the tiers of Bayelsa government in the case for not showing concerns when they needed to do so.

  • Footballer shot dead in Niger Delta

    Footballer shot dead in Niger Delta

    • It has nothing to do with JTF
    A footballer identified as Izu Joseph has been shot dead in an unexplained circumstance involving soldiers  at Okakhi community, a town bordering Bayelsa and Rivers states.
    The Nation gathered that the dead footballer plays his football with the Shooting Stars Football Club of Ibadan, Oyo State before his untimely death. 
    While some said that Joseph was gunned down by troops of Joint Task Force (JTF), Operation Delta Safe (ODS), others said the incident occurred during a shootout between other soldiers and hoodlums in the area.
    The deceased was said to be on a break following the end of 2015/2016 season of the Nigerian Professional Football League (NPFL) when the incident occurred.
    Three billets reportedly punctured different parts of his body.
    Joseph, an indigene of Okhaki was said to have joined the Shooting Stars in 2014 from Bayelsa United Football Club. 
    Some sources from the community said the killing, which happened on Saturday evening, sparked anger in the community, leaving everyone in confusion.
    A friend to the footballer, identified as Nyieye, confirmed that Okhaki is notorious for harbouring bad  boys who are not militants.
    “They smoke and drink in the area. As an established footballer from the community, many of the youths usually swam around him and he reciprocated by buying them drinks.
    “We gathered that some youths had the previous days angered some soldiers but they came when Izu Joseph was hanging out with his people. He was shot three times. Others died but we only heard about Izu,” he said.
    Contacted on the development, Acting Coordinator of ODS’ Joint Media Campaign Centre (JMCC) Lt. Cmdr. Thomas Osuji, said the incident had nothing to do with ODS.
  • Navy’s medical mission excites Niger Delta communities

    Navy’s medical mission excites Niger Delta communities

    The Nigerian Navy has changed the perception of most communities in the Niger Delta region about the military.

    Hitherto, most communities viewed the military as an agent of death with insatiable murderous appetite. In dread, they would flee to different directions for safety on sighting the men in uniform.

    But gradually things are changing. The military now wears a human face. It has embraced professionalism. With carrot-and-stick approach encased in different social intervention programmes, the military is now able to warm itself into the hearts of many communities in the Niger Delta region.

    The Central Naval Command (CNC) of the Nigerian Navy has a robust social welfare scheme for communities in its Areas of Responsibility (AoR). With headquarters situated in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital, the CNC visits different communities with its medical outreach programme.

    The Flag Officer Commanding (FOC), Central Naval Command,  Rear Admiral Mohammed Garba, is passionate about the medical rhapsody. He is at the forefront driving the process and within a short period of time, since he assumed the CNC’s command, Garba has reached five communities with healthcare scheme.

    Recently, the Ede-Epie community in Yenagoa, trooped out en masse to partake in its turn of the Navy’s medical mission. Children were dewormed. The aged, women and youths were treated for various health conditions. In fact, Dr. Jennifer Odjegba and other medical experts in the naval team handled the cases of the beneficiaries professionally.

    About 2000 persons benefitted from the gesture. The Navy offered free malaria tests and treatment, blood pressure checks, eye screening and treatment. They also gave free diabetes screening, treatment of urinary dysfunction, among others.Consequently, the community poured encomiums on the navy. Many of them said with the kind of gesture extended to them by the navy, their perception about the military changed from negative to positive.

    Consequently, the community poured encomiums on the navy. Many of them said with the kind of gesture extended to them by the navy, their perception about the military changed from negative to positive.

    The Paramount Ruler of Ede-Epie community, His Royal Highness, Edwin Iti, wore smiles permanently on his face. He said the navy made him proud before his subjects. According to him, the people heaved a sigh of relief.

    He said the military has revealed its humanitarian face by showing that it does not only exist to apprehend criminals. He vowed to partner with the military to rid the community of crimes.

    The monarch said: “We appreciate the Navy for deeming it fit to extend this medical rhapsody to our people. Before now, when my people see military personnel, they get scared. But now, we are glad that the perception has changed.

    “We are overjoyed. The wisdom of coming to put smiles on the faces of our people is welcome. This programme has revealed that the military is not only to apprehend people but to offer humanitarian services. We are fully ready to partner with the military to rid our communities of criminals.”

    Garba, who personally declared the event open, said the free medical rhapsody was to promote and strengthen civil-military relations and also to boost healthcare service delivery in targeted communities.

    He said the Chief of Naval Staff was very proud of the programme as it was meant to explore partnership of all stakeholders as part of the measures to tackle criminality in the CNC’s area of responsibility.

    He urged the people of the community to continue to support the programmes and policies of the Federal Government and that of the military to achieve sustainable peace and security in the Niger Delta.

    He appealed to the community to distance itself from criminal activities, maintaining that the Navy zero tolerance for criminalities was not negotiable.Garba said: “I want to urge the community members to distance themselves from criminals that want to take the advantage of agitations and struggle to unleash mayhem on people.

    Garba said:  “I want to urge the community members to distance themselves from criminals that want to take the advantage of agitations and struggle to unleash mayhem on people.

    “Do not allow the magnanimity of the Federal Government to dialogue to be a missing opportunity.

    “This medical rhapsody is a programme meant to show appreciation to the host communities.  They have been cooperative and supportive of the programmes and policies of not just the Federal Government but also the Nigerian Navy.

    “We feel we have to give them something as a token of our appreciation. That is why we organise this free medical rhapsody to the communities in the region and we are doing it every month.”In Yenagoa alone, five communities have already benefitted. We are encouraged by the turnout of community members to this

    “In Yenagoa alone, five communities have already benefitted. We are encouraged by the turnout of community members to this programme. Before now, people see the military as a threat but now a lot of people have changed that perception and are beginning to embrace the exercise.”

    He advised the communities to key into the Navy’s zero tolerance for criminalities by appealing to their people to shun criminal acts such as piracy, cultism, kidnapping, oil theft, vandalism and other vices.

  • APC, PDP trade words as WAEC withholds Bayelsa’s results

    APC, PDP trade words as WAEC withholds Bayelsa’s results

    The Bayelsa State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), on Tuesday, lamented that the West African Examination Council (WAEC) has withheld the results of the state’s indigenous candidates.

    The party said the examination body took the action following the inability of the state government led by Mr. Seriake Dickson, to pay the required fees of the candidates.

    But the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) fired back describing the position of the APC as a mischievous and total display of ignorance.

    APC in a statement signed by its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Panebi Fortune, regretted that under Dickson a generation of youths was on the verge of being wasted with the seizure of the results.

    “WAEC had refused to release the results over unpaid debts owed it by the Bayelsa state government. By implication, pupils who made respective cut-off marks in the last Unified Tertiary and Matriculation Examination (UTME) might forfeit their admissions”, the party said.

    The party berated Dickson, accusing him of deliberately scuttling the destinies of bright children who are leaders of tomorrow.

    APC said: ”While the situation of the non-payment of teachers’ salaries in Bayelsa continues to be an embarrassment to all and sundry even as the governor’s deliberate impoverishment of public servants has now become an ego issue on his part, a far more dangerous twist is looming in the education sector in Bayelsa state.

    “This is the seizure of the results of secondary school pupils by WAEC over the state government’s refusal to pay statutory dues.

    “This is a brazen act, the height of irresponsibility on the part of a government. To say the least, Governor Dickson is deliberately wasting away a generation of tomorrow’s leaders due to his inaction in this regard.

    “While we call on well meaning individuals to prevail on the governor, we sympathize with the parents of the pupils for this pain, an ordeal not worth it for whatever reason.

    “To the affected pupils, while we pray for a divine intervention in this regards, we share in your distress, despair, and disappointment”.

    ‎The party also noted that public primary and secondary schools in Bayelsa had yet to resume for the 2016/2017 session because of the failure of the state government to settle the seven-month salary arrears it owed teachers.

    But the PDP in a statement signed by its state Chairman, Mr. Moses Cleopas, said the allegation was a deliberate deceit to score cheap political points.

    Cleopas said the APC lacked moral justification to criticise the Dickson’s administration, because “what Bayelsa State is going through is as a result of the misrule by the APC-led government at the centre.”

    He said the misrule of APC “has completely ruined the nation’s economy, through its inability to initiate policies to reinvigorate the economy.”

    According to him, the situation in Bayelsa State was made worse by the financial recklessness and huge debt burden left behind by the immediate past administration in the state, which was under the leadership of Chief Timipre Sylva.

    He said that the PDP administration had spent N100bn to service the bond liability it inherited from that administration.

    Cleopas said that despite the huge debt burden it inherited from Sylva’s administration, the PDP government under Dickson had through careful application of the scarce resources at its disposal, kept the machinery of the government running.

    He said the people of the state including the parents of the affected candidates understood the level of wastage in the Chief Sylva years.

    He called on the APC leadership at the state and federal levels to apologise to Bayelsans and Nigerians for subjecting the people to untold hardship.

    According to him, the “Dickson-led administration will not allow itself to be distracted by charlatans, who have proved time and again, that they do not have anything positive to offer the people of the state”.

  • Bayelsa APC lauds Buhari over federal appointments

    The ‎Bayelsa State chapter of the All Progressives Congress ( APC), on Monday, poured encomiums on President Muhammadu Buhari for appointing two indigenes of the state into key federal offices.

    The President appointed a retired permanent secretary in the Bayelsa State civil service, Mrs. Gloria Izonfuo as a member of the National Population Commission (NPC).

    He also appointed an oil and gas expert, Mr. Simbi Wabote, as the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Monitoring and Development Board (NCMDB).

    In a statement signed by its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Fortune Panebi, the state’s APC described Buhari’s gesture as a sign of comfort and positive development for the state.

    The party said the President has effectively replied persons taunting its leaders in the state and cynically asking them to use their connections to attract federal appointments.

    The party said: ”The appointment of both Mrs Izonfuo and Mr Wabote is a welcome development to us, a very positive sign of comfort and the best to come at this time.

    “While we are confident that both appointees are credible and experienced in their chosen career lines, this gesture from the president shows that he has every part of the nation at heart.

    ”Truly, these appointments, coming at a time cynics were already taunting our revered leaders ‎to attract more appointments to the state are a collective manifestation of the cohesion, understanding and unity of purpose in our party.

    ”Nothing can be more commendable than having two illustrious sons of ours, the first being the minister of state for agriculture and rural development, Dr. Heineken Lokpobiri and the newly appointed Wabote among government officials who will play key roles in the economic turnaround of the nation.

    ”May we use this opportunity to, therefore, thank our leader, Chief Timipre Sylva, Dr. Lokpobiri as well as other notable leaders of the party for providing the needed leadership and direction to this point in spite of some unavoidable drawbacks.

    ”Finally, we appeal to our Niger Delta brothers who are up in arms against our oil and gas assets to eschew violence and embrace the path to peace. This is desirable not only for the government but for our ecosystem that is the immediate victim of your actions”.

  • Ijaw youths accuse EFCC of humiliating Jonathan’s family

    Ijaw youths accuse EFCC of humiliating Jonathan’s family

    • Ask EFCC to return Bayelsa’s seized funds

    Ijaw youths on Thursday accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of deliberately executing a planned witch-hunt against former President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, Dame Patience.

    The youths said it was “unacceptable, immoral and illegal” to place the former first family on media trial without following due process.

    The angry youths under the aegis of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide, said it was unfortunate that the EFCC could not learn from the fallout of the way it handled the case of former ex-militant leader, Government Ekpuompolo, alias Tomoplo.

    Speaking in Yenagoa, the President of IYC, Mr. Udens Eradiri, said the EFCC’s indiscreet media trial of Tompolo led to the crisis in the Niger Delta that plunged the country into the current economic mess.

    Eradiri explained that Jonathan’s wife like most former First Ladies made her money from gifts and gratifications insisting that there was no law against such gestures.

    He said: “First Ladies in Nigeria do not do any work. A woman naturally attracts a lot of gifts from men let alone a First Lady who has the power to recommend you for something.

    “They receive a lot of thank you and gratifications because most cases they recommend people who come back to thank them. Even when they do not recommend, people go and say good morning with a million dollar. It did not start with Patience Jonathan.

    “We know how influential the former First Lady of this country and other First Ladies were. We know how powerful, rich and wealthy they are and the property they acquired as a result of gratification.

    “If you say Patience should show how she made her money, you must start with all the First Ladies, otherwise, it is a witch-hunt. Patience Jonathan got her wealth from thank you and there is nowhere in the law that says we should not receive thank you.

    “So, EFCC should stop this nonsense. If you have issues, go and follow the due process and don’t begin to use the media to tarnish the image of the former first family”.

    He said the youths would not tolerate further attacks and insults on Jonathan’s family adding that the former President deserved respect.

    According to him despite the humiliation Jonathan suffered from the wife of late former President Musa Yar’Adua, he never harassed the late President’s family.

    “Jonathan should be respected in Nigeria. You heard what happened during the time of late President Yar’Adua, Jonathan did not witch-hunt that family irrespective of the humiliation he suffered despite the position of the law.

    “This is a witch-hunt and the EFCC must stop this attitude because very soon, people will begin to resist them. Nigerians will get to the point where they will no longer accept it.

    “We support the fight against corruption. All of us know that corruption has eaten deep into our fabric, but this selective fight especially geared towards the region must not be allowed”, Eradir said.

    He lamented that despite the corruption traced to the former late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha and his family, the government still approved a university for his wife.

    “It is in this country that they talked about Abacha’s loot, yet a university had been approved for Abacha’s wife. In this same country where they said Abacha was corrupt. So, why are you treating one former first family differently and then everybody wants to humiliate Jonathan’s family in the best of their ability.

    “The former First Lady, Patience, has no question to answer.. The EFCC is destroying Buhari’s anti-graft policy because when your anti-graft is beginning to show it is one-sided, it will lose credibility,” he said.

    The IYC boss further asked the EFCC to to return about N23bn, $100million and other assets it seized from the former Governor of the state, late Diepreye Alamieyeseigha.

    He wondered what the EFCC was still doing with the money when Bayelsa and other states were facing financial difficulties.

    “Bayelsa State funds are in their hands, they have not returned it. Why are they keeping the funds? Are they meant to keep funds that they recovered. Why is the money not being paid into TSA of they believe they are proceeds of corruption. They should return our money. Those are the issues they should focus on”, he said.

    He added: “I thought that the EFCC by now will begin to face squarely its job of ensuring that criminals are brought to book and not the media charade that is usually its modus operandi.

    “They have not learnt from the Tompolo incident. Instead of focusing on facts and doing their jobs via due process, they quickly went to the media and that incident led this country to where we are today.”

  • Cultists shoot Bayelsa varsity student

    Gunmen suspected to be cultists have shot a 300level student of the Niger Delta University (NDU) identified as Ugorji Ikechukwu.

    Ikechukwu, a student in Teacher Education Department, was reportedly shot at his off-campus residence in Amassoma, the university’s host community early on Wednesday.

    The victim was said to have returned to the community on Sunday to prepare for academic activities and examination following the suspension of four-month industrial action by the staff of the university.

    He was quoted as saying that the gunmen shot him and fled when he came out to know the person knocking on his door.

    He was reported to have said: “My gate was locked and when I stepped outside my door, the strange persons numbering two asked me to open the door which I refused knowing that I don’t know them.

    “So I wanted to run inside immediately to grab my phone when they shot at me. Luckily, it hit my left arm and I cried out for help. My neighbors came out meeting me in the pool of my blood and rushed me to the hospital.”

    It was gathered that the parents of the victim relocated him to Port Harcourt, Rivers State for proper medical examination and treatment.

    When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Butswat Asinim, said the matter had not been reported to the police.

    But a friend of the victim who spoke in confidence said Ikechukwu called him and said some gunmen shot him.

  • Kidnappers free Bayelsa lawmaker’s octogenarian father

    Kidnappers free Bayelsa lawmaker’s octogenarian father

    Abductors of Chief W.G. Watson, the 81-year-old father of a member of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly, Chief Alfred Watson, have freed him.

    The lawmaker confirmed in a terse statement in Yenagoa that his father was released in good condition at about 3:00pm, on Thursday.

    However, he did not disclose whether ransom was paid to the hoodlums to secure the freedom of his father.

    Two people linked to the abduction of the octogenarian were arrested and handed over to the police following personal investigations conducted by the lawmaker and some youths.

    The suspects were taken to and detained at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) of the police where they were said to have made useful statements.

    The octogenarian chief of Okpoama Kingdom, was kidnapped on August 5 at about 9.25am by gunmen who operated on a speedboat.

    The octogenarian was said to be conveying the remains of his wife from Okpoama mortuary to Egweama, the deceased maternal home for burial as customs demand, when the gunmen struck.

    The hoodlums fired four gunshots, attacked the boat driver with machetes and stole valuables of persons occupying the casket-bearing speedboat before whisking the old man away to an unknown location.

    The profiles of the two arrested suspects and the evidence against them indicated that the dastardly act was masterminded by persons close to the family.

    The kidnappers earlier demanded N70million ransom but later reduced it to N5.5million with a request that the money should be supported by two gallons of fuel and three bottles of Chelsea gin.

  • Police killing: Youths, activists, others to lock down Bayelsa 

    Police killing: Youths, activists, others to lock down Bayelsa 

    Youths, activists, clerics and civil organisations are proposing to stage a mother of all protest against the alleged extra-judicial killing of a 17-year-old teenager, Master Innocent Kokorifa by the police.

    The victim was gunned down by the Anti-Vice/Anti-Kidnapping squad of the police on August 18 along the Airforce Road, at about 11am.

    Kokorifa was said to be running an errand for his mother, Pere, when he was killed in mysterious circumstances by the police.

    The father of the deceased, Mr. Daniel Kokorifa, an officer of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) said his first child out of five children, was murdered in cold blood.
    He said the victim who was to turn 18 on September 9 was a peacemaker, a non-smoker who had no records of criminality.

    But the police in a statement signed by the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Mr. Butswat Asinim, said the victim died in a gun battle between a three-man notorious armed robbery gang and the police squad.

    It, was however gathered yesterday that all arrangements by different groups of people to protest the killing under the auspices of House of Justice had been concluded.

    A Niger Delta activist and former Spokesman of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide, Mr. Jeremiah Owoupele, was said to be spearheading the protest.

    Speaking in Yenagoa, Owoupele said the protest to demand justice from the police would be massive and peaceful.

    He said women, youths from various parts of the state, members of IYC, human rights activists, lawyers and Civil Liberty Organisation (CLO) had indicated an interest to join the protest.

    He described the killing of Kokorifa as unwarranted, avoidable saying it had plunged the deceased family into mourning.

    He said: “We can’t even comprehend the position of the Nigerian Police Force, an agency of government whose primary responsibility is to provide security, protect lives  and ensure peace in our society. But the police have suddenly  become an instrument of death.

    “It is even more tragic and more painful, the pace at which the Bayelsa Police Public Relations Officer issued a statement in respect of the late juvenile Mr. Kokorifa Innocent as being a criminal whose death was as a result of gun fire exchange with men of the Nigerian police.

    “Perhaps most intriguing is the fact that when respected citizenry including legal minds, youth leaders and activists raised eyebrows over this particular death, the police in a meeting with the deceased family pleaded with them to excercise restraint and allow the police command to investigate the matter.

    “This statement shows a deliberate attempt to cover up the culprits of this dastardly act. Is it not standard police practice for the police to conclude investigations before issuing a statement to the public”.

    Owoupele said the demonstration was designed to ask the police to investigate the untimely death of Kokorifa and bring the perpetrators to justice describing the act and conduct of the police as unprofessional and unethical .

    He said the eyewitness account of the incident was at variance with the statement issued by the command’s PPRO.

    According to him the protest would further persuade the police to enforce internal professional discipline within their ranks and reappraise the kind of characters they recruit into their fold.