The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Mohammed Mustapha

  • Customs confiscates N572m goods, arrests 11

    The Federal Operations Unit, Zone B of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Kaduna, confiscated goods with Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N572 million in the past three months.

    The Controller of the unit, Comptroller Mohammed Mustapha, made this known on Wednesday in Kaduna while taking journalists round the confiscated goods.

    He said that 11 suspects were arrested in connection with the seized goods, adding that they would be charged to court at the conclusion of investigations.

    Read Also: Customs seizes Tramadol worth N7.3b

    Mustapha said that confiscated items included trucks and smuggled rice, spaghetti and vegetable oil loaded on them.

    He said that the NCS also impounded 12 other vehicles including J5, Sharon, Passat and golf which were conveying smuggled 3,200 cartoons of spaghetti and secondhand clothes.

    The official said that one of the seized trucks carried 350 bags of 50kg foreign rice concealed in bags of maize.

     

    (NAN)

  • Customs apprehend three trailers with smuggled goods

    The Federal Operation Unit Zone ‘B’, of the Nigeria Customs Service has seized three trucks loaded with contraband foreign pasta and rice with Duty Paid Value of N74million.

    The trucks which were loaded with 1,800 cartons of smuggled pasta were said to have been apprehended along Jibiya katsina axis last Monday.

    Parading the the seized contraband goods at the FOU headquarters in Kaduna on Wednesday, the Area Controller of the zone, Mohammed Mustapha, vowed that the Nigeria Customs Service will not relent in its efforts to track down smugglers and bring them to book.

    According to him, “the command seized three trucks including Dangote truck along zaria Kaduna road with 120 bags of 50kg per boiled rice and another Boa truck along same axis with 55 bags of 50kg of Smuggled rice.”

    He said that, as soon as documentation is finalised the seized items would be transferred to the service headquarters in Abuja for necessary action.

    Read Also:Review age limit on FRSC recruitment, Applicants urge FG

    According to him, that suspected smugglers were arrested in the course of the seizure and are in detention for proper prosecution.

    He however advised smugglers to embrace other legitimate business than the illegal means

    ”We are going to continue with the seizure and they are going to lose ,they should embraced good business. Rice is being produce in all states of the country and Federal Government is trying to diversify and make our economy better and to avoid foreign exchange wasted on imported rice.

    “While on health ground it has been establish that most of the rice brought in through the land boarders have already expired which they usually rebag them in neighbouring countries.” He said.

  • Borno: Blind man granted teaching appointment by Governor yet to receive salary

    Borno: Blind man granted teaching appointment by Governor yet to receive salary

    Mr Mohammed Mustapha, a 32 year-old blind university graduate in Borno offered automatic teaching appointment by Gov. Kashim Shettima on compassionate ground, says his salary has not been paid for the past five months.

    Mustapha told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Maiduguri on Tuesday that the development had place him under severe hardship,

    NAN recalls that Mustapha, a graduate of History from Gombe State University,was employed into the state civil service in February 2017 sequel to the directives of Gov. Shettima, and  posted  to each at  College of Management Studies (CMS), Konduga.

    The governor’s gesture followed an appeal to him by Mustapha through the Hausa Service of the BBC, requesting for job.

    Shettima had then invited Mustapha to the Government House, Maiduguri, after hearing the appeal through the radio station, and granted him an Executive approval for him to be employed by Borno Ministry of Higher Education.

    However, Mustapha told NAN that he was yet to receive his salary for five months since his posting to the college.

    According to him, from the time he reported to work, he had been transporting himself to and from Konduga, a distance of about 60km from Maiduguri, where he resided.

    “Honestly, life has become more difficult and very unbearable, since I was employed.

    “They said I must undergo the Biometric Verification before I get paid, which I already did in March.

    “On several occasions, I had gone to the verification committee to inquire why I was yet to be paid but no tangible explanation was given to me.

    “The last time I went, they said I must get a note from the Head of Service (HOS) before they treat my case; I went to him (HOS) and he promised to do something and I am still waiting.

    “Now I am left confused and I do not know what to do; I am not a beggar and I do not want to ever beg anyone.

    “I want an opportunity where I can work to earn a legitimate livelihood and impact on the lives of my people,’’ said Mustapha.

    In his response, Malam Bulama Abiso, Chairman of  Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) in Borno, said that Mustapha was not the only teacher who was affected.

    “Many of our teachers’ salaries have been pending despite been verified by the Biometric Committee.

    “Some are owed five months, some seven and some even ten months salaries.

    “As union, what we did was to approach members of the committee and ask them to identify our teachers having issues with their verification.

    “We were able to identify those with problems and solved same for them.

    “So far, about 4,000 teachers were successfully verified, while some were not,’’ Abiso said.

    Meanwhile, Mr Titus Abana, Borno Chairman, Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), said the verification exercise had brought untold hardship to legitimate workers in the state.

    Abana lamented that non-payment of salaries of workers that had been verified, was lamentable.

    “We told them (committee) to continue paying salaries of workers while verifications continues, but they refused.

    “They told us that the exercise will only last for two months, but now as I am talking to you, there are workers that are yet to be paid their ten months salaries,’’ he lamented.

    Reacting, Alhaji Yakubu Bukar, Borno Head of Service, told NAN that he was aware of the case of Mustapha.

    “The case of Mustapha is a special case; his case is with Bako, the Chairman of the Verification Committee.

    “I am not the one handling his issue but I have asked Bako to bring it forward to be treated,’’ Bukar said.

  • Four arraigned over plot to bomb Kirikiri

    The Federal Government on Tuesday arraigned four persons at the Federal High Court, Lagos for allegedly belonging to the proscribed Boko Haram sect.

    It said the first and second defendants allegedly plotted to attack the Kirikiri Maximum Prison to free their members held in custody.

    The accused persons are – Adamu Mohammed, Mohammed Mustapha, Bura Hassaini and Mohammed Ibrahim.

    Security was tight at the court as armed State Security Services (SSS) personnel mounted guard around the premises.

    Officers manned the court’s two gates, screening people as they went in.

    Those carrying bags were asked to open them for examination.

    They suspects were brought in hooded.

    The charge, numbered FHC/L/316c/13 was signed by E. K. Ugwu, on behalf of the Attorney-General of the Federation.

    In the first count, the government said the four, sometime in June and July at Wasein, a hideout at Orile-Iganmu area, Apapa, Lagos, and at 3 Denton Street, Yaba, within the court’s jurisdiction, were arrested by a team of security agents “for belonging to a proscribed organisation to wit: Boko Haram sect.”

    The prosecution said the accused persons thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 2 of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2011 and punishable under Section 2 (3) (i), read in conjunction with Section 33 (1) (b) of the Act as amended by the Terrorism (Prevention) (Proscription Order) 2013.

    In the second count, the government alleged that Mohammed and Mustapha, with others at large, on or about June 26 this year at Wasein, conspired among themselves “to commit a felony to wit: act of terrorism by organising a planned attack of the Kirikiri Prison in Lagos State to free detained members in prison custody.”

    The alleged offence, the government said, is contrary to Section 8 (1) of the Terrorism (Prevention) (Amendment) Act 2013 and punishable under Section 8 (1) of the same Act.

    Following Ugwu’s oral application, the charge was read in English and explained to the accused persons in Hausa language.

    The court, presided over by Justice Saliu Saidu, asked each of them: “Do you understand the charge read to you?”

    The accused persons all responded in the affirmative and pleaded not guilty.