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Tag: Nigeria News

  • Update: 14 Osun kidnap victims rescued

    Fourteen kidnap victims at Ajeokun Junction, between Otan Ile and Imesi Ile in Obokun Local Government Area of Osun State have been rescued by the police and local vigilante.

    The Commissioner of Police, Mrs. Abiodun Ige, said all the victims abducted on Sunday evening by unknown gunmen were rescued unhurt.

    The victims were passengers of a commercial bus travelling from Osogbo to Abuja via Imesi/Otan-Ile road.

    The victims were allegedly ambushed at Ajeokun Junction between Otan Ile and Imesi Ile before 14 of the 18 passengers were whisked into the bush.

    Poor condition of the road made it difficult for the driver of the bus to escape from the bandits, according to an eye witness account.

    Read Also: Police bust ‘child-sale’ syndicate in Lagos

    Also, the Osun State Coordinator of Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), Chief Aladesawe Adedeji, confirmed that the 14 victims had been rescued.

    He disclosed that the joint team of OPC, vigilante group, the police, the Department of State Security made frantic effort to rescue the victims unhurt after gun duel with the bandits.

    However, the police spokesperson in the state, Folasade Odoro, disclosed that some of bandits escaped into the bush with bullet wounds while one vigilante sustained a minor injury from the gun battle between the security men and the bandits.

  • ‘I stole baby because I wanted male child’

    THE 39-year-old suspect blamed it on her hunger for a male child. Police in Ekiti State picked up Mercy Momoh accusing her of stealing a two-month-old baby in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital.

    Momoh, who hails from Edo State, was arrested on Saturday at her residence located at Odo-Aremu area, along old Governor’s Office in the state capital.

    The baby was stolen from his mother, Mrs Funmilayo Sunday on Friday around 1pm at the State Secretariat.

    It was gathered that the suspect tricked the baby’s mother into following her to the State Secretariat ostensibly to collect some relief materials being given by government to flood victims.

    The suspect, on getting there, sent the baby’s mother to buy phone airtime for her, and then ran away with the baby before his mother returned.

    Police command spokesperson, Caleb Ikechukwu confirmed the suspect was arrested on Saturday, adding that investigation was ongoing.

    Read Also: Obaseki reassures on kidnapping, other crimes

    He said, “It is confirmed that the woman who stole two-month-old baby has been arrested by the operatives of the Ekiti police command.

    “She was apprehended through intelligence made available to the police and would be prosecuted after conclusion of investigation.

    “Investigation is still on going. More details will come to reveal what really transpired.”

    “We call on members of the public to be careful when dealing with strangers. The suspect was apparently nice to the victim, that was why she got the baby easily. Citizens should not be carried away by kind strangers,” Ikechukwu said.

    A source said the police were informed of the incident by the baby’s mother on the same day, at about 4.30pm.

    Police detectives moved in,  tracing the suspect to her residence, where she was arrested around 11pm.

    According to her, the suspect confessed that she stole the baby because of her dire need of a male child.

    The suspect claimed that due to her inability to bear a male child, her husband got married to another woman and may likely throw her out of the house.

    The source added that the Commissioner of Police, Amba Asuquo, has directed that the matter to be thoroughly investigated.

  • Protests trail Adamawa PDP council primaries

    Complaints of imposition of candidates and other infractions on Monday marked the conduct of the chairmanship and councillorship primaries of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of local council elections scheduled for the 21 LGAs of the state in November this year.

    Violence was alleged in some areas, with one Mahmud Othman, an aspirant from Maiha LGA in the northern zone of the state, saying that in most of the local government areas in the zone, “the primaries to elect local government chairmanship and councillorship candidates were greeted with gun shots,” sending people to all directions.

    He reiterated that similar problems were recorded in the other four local government areas that make up the senatorial zone: Madagali, Michika, Mubi North and Mubi South, “because of imposition of government favoured candidates and the disqualification of the people’s preferred ones.”

    A party member in Ganye Local Government Area, Michael Gwangwaso, alleged a free for all in the area over imposition of aspirants.

    He said, “They wanted to cheat us. The party primary was not conducted in a transparent manner. They wanted to impose their unpopular candidates on us.”

    In Numan LGA, members of Concerned Citizens of Numan Town, a PDP sub-group, protested against ‘wrongful disqualification’ of some aspirants by the party’s screening committee.

    Read Also; I will stay in PDP to seek justice, says Alaibe

    The group members who took their protest to the state capital, Yola, addressed a press conference, accusing the party’s screening committee of showing favouratism. Their spokesman, Mr Vidiyabo Pagiel, who read the text of the briefing, said, “Why are some councillorship candidates cleared by the committee despite the allegations raised against them that they are still civil servants on government payroll.”

    Attempts to get comments from PDP officials largely failed as they would not respond to phone calls nor were they available in their offices.

    The Secretary of the party, Abdullahi Prambe, however later said on phone that he was in Abuja. He offered that stakeholders of the party who had issues over the primaries could table such issues with the appeal committee constituted for that purpose.

    The situation in the PDP is a marked contrast from what applied in the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), which was on Monday afternoon celebrating peaceful primaries as it released names of 18 candidates for the November chairmanship election, leaving out three LGAs from where results had not arrived Yola when the party held a press briefing.

  • Ronaldo, Messi, Van Dijk battle for FIFA Best player award today

    FIFA is set to host ’ Best Football Awards for 2019.

    The award will take Monday evening at Teatro alla Scala, Milan.

    The event will feature prominently the FIFA Men’s award which has Portugal forward, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi of Barcelona and Liverpool center defender, Virgil van Dijk

    The 2019 UEFA Women’s Player of the Year, Lucy Bronze, US players Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe battle for Women’s best player of the year.

    Manchester City coach, Pep Guardiola, Liverpool coach Jürgen Klopp and Tottenham Hotspur gaffer, Mauricio Pochettino engage in a tough fight against each other for the 2019 best coach award.

    England National team coach, Phil Neville will have a rough fight against US national coach Jill Ellis and Sarina Wiegman of Dutch national team

    Liverpool goal stopper, Alisson Becker will face his national teammate Ederson of Manchester city and Barcelona keeper, Marc-Adre ter Stegen.

    READ ALSO: FIFA Best Player award: Ronaldo, Messi lead 23-man shortlist

    Five-time Ballon d’Or awardee, Lionel Messi will hope to win this year Pukas award over Colombia attacking midfielder, Juan Fernando Quintero and Dániel Zsóri of Fehérvár FC.

    A Brazilian mother, Silvia Grecco who describes Palmeiras matches to her blind son has high hope in winning fan player of the year award as she battles with Justo Sánchez, Uruguayan father who does not miss a single game of his team’s rival in loving memory of his deceased son and Netherlands fans which support the Dutch National team at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France.

    Chile goal stopper Christiane Endler has been nominated for Best FIFA Women’s Goalkeeper, the nomination also includes Hedvig Lindahl of Sweden and Sari van Veenendaal of Netherlands.

  • Kogi NPC Chairman resigns

    Alhaji Muhammed Aliyu, the Kogi Chairman of the Nigeria People’s Congress (NPC) has resigned from the party and withdraws from the Nov. 16 governorship election in the state.

    Aliyu announced this in a statement he made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja, saying that his action was “with immediate effect”.

    Aliyu, who is also the governorship candidate of the party in the forthcoming gubernatorial election, said that he had sent his letter of resignation to the National Chairman of the party.

    READ ALSO: Nigeria to get database of deaths, births soon — NPC

    “Among several reasons for my decision, is my desire to continue to maintain the integrity with which I left the public service after 35 years of meritorious service as executive director.

    “I discovered that the political arena is not a place where I can continue to maintain that integrity with unblemished records of service.”

    He thanked NPC for affording him the opportunity to serve.

    (NAN)

  • Netanyahu wins majority of votes to head new Israeli gov’t

    Fifty-five members of the Knesset parliament on Monday called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the head of Likud party, to form the next government, compared to fifty-four votes for the opposition Blue and White political alliance, according to media reports.

    On Sunday, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin began two-day consultations with elected parties to pick a politician with the best chance of forming a coalition government.

    According to the Israeli Channel 13, the round of consultations at the president’s headquarters ended with Benjamin Netanyahu’s mandate to form the government.

    Netanyahu’s party Likud and allies have secured 55 seats, while Gantz’s Blue and White-led alliance won 54, the channel reported.

    The broadcaster added that Netanyahu got the mandate after the National Democratic Alliance (Balad party), an ally of the Arab Joint List, said it did not support the List’s position to vote for Benny Gantz.

    READ ALSO: Netanyahu, Gantz compete over Israel’s leadership

    “The only government which can be formed is a broad unity government.

    “The only way to reach such a government is to sit down and talk with an open mind,” Netanyahu said on Twitter.

    On its turn, the Yisrael Beitenu political party led by former defense chief Avigdor Lieberman refused to support any of the elected candidates.

    The final results of the election will be presented to Rivlin on Sept. 25.

    The president will meet with the leaders of the parties elected to parliament to discuss the nominee for the office of prime minister.

    After the nominee is chosen, he will have 42 days to form a viable coalition.

    (NAN)

  • Defections loom as Bayelsa PDP plots to retain running mate

    Mass defection looms in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bayelsa State, following a plot by the party to retain Senator Lawrence Erwujakpor as the running mate to its governorship candidate, Senator Douye Diri.

    The nomination of Eweujakpor, who hails from Dickson’s Sagbama Local Government Area, has kept the PDP on edge ahead of the November 16 governorship election with many party members kicking against it.

    Governor Seriake Dickson lived up to his promise to convene stakeholders meeting to review the controversies surrounding the running mate and explore possibility of substituting Ewrujakpor’s name before the September 23 deadline of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for candidate substitution.

    Party members were, however, in dilemma that despite holding the meeting, the stakeholders made no public statement on the running mate crisis.

    Besides, it was observed that many key PDP stakeholders failed to attend the meeting, which appointed Dr. Nimibofa Ayawei as Director-General of the Senator Douye Diri Governorship Campaign Organization.

    Dr. Ayawei, who is Chairman of the Bayelsa State Internal Revenue Board, was a frontline aspirant of the PDP in the last gubernatorial primaries which produced Senator DIri as the party’s candidate for the November 16 election in the state.

    A statement by the State Secretary of the PDP, Chief Godspower Keku, said that Dr. Ayawei’s appointment was part of the key resolutions of a meeting of the Gubernatorial Campaign Advisory Council of the State Chapter of the PDP.

    Though the stakeholders maintained sealed lips on Diri’s running mate, it was gathered that the governorship candidate briefed the stakeholders on the issue.

    Read Also:  Shekarau, others in fresh trouble over N950m PDP fund

    A party stakeholder said Diri was under intense pressure of some powerful forces to insist on Ewrujakpor adding that while addressing the stakeholders, the candidate said there was no need to substitute his running mate.

    The source, who spoke in confidence said: “Most of the party members are waiting for the decision to be made public. If the party leadership fails to make it public and the name remains till the expiration of September 23 deadline, there will be mass exodus in the PDP.

    “The only way to save the party is to move the running mate to Bayelsa East. We need their votes in the election. People are not happy at the development and they have communicated their grievances. We are asking the governor and other party leaders to save the PDP”.

    Following the emergence of Diri as the candidate, some party leaders abandoned the PDP with their supporters and aligned with the APC.

    A member of the House of Assembly representing Southern Ijaw Constituency 2, Target Sekiibo recently moved to the APC with his supporters.

    Also, Gabriel Jonah, the younger brother to the state’s Deputy Governor, Rear Admiral John Jonah (retd), led thousands of his supporters in Nembe Local Government under a political movement, the Otita Force, to the APC.

    Similarly, a grassroots mobiliser and Dickson’s Special Adviser on Urban Crime Management, Abednego Don-Evarada dumped the party in Ogbia with his supporters to the APC.

    Following the running mate crisis, Dickson sacked his aide, Hellen Bob, who had reportedly pitched tent with the APC.

    The source added: “Many people are warming up to leave the party but they are waiting for last decision of the party leadership on this running mate palaver. Some PDP lawmakers have traveled to Abuja to meet with the leadership of the APC and negotiate their ways out of the PDP. We are still begging the party leadership to listen to the voices of its members and resolve this issue”.

  • Man with two wives arrested for allegedly sleeping with daughter

    The Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Borno Command, says it has arrested a 46 year-old man, Mohammed Pantami, for alleged defilement of his 15 year-old daughter.

    The Commandant of the Corps, Abdullahi Ibrahim, made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Maiduguri.

    Ibrahim said that the suspect was arrested on Aug. 29 at Bulabulin-Allajeri area in the outskirt of Maiduguri.

    He said that an elderly woman assisted the victim and reported the matter to the command after the suspect severally had canal knowledge of her.

    READ ALSO: Man docked for sleeping with stepdaughters, impregnating one

    Ibrahim added that preliminary investigations indicated that the suspect had been sleeping with the girl for the past one year.

    “The suspect,who is married with two wives,often sneaks into the victim’s room while she is asleep and force himself on her.

    “The victim said that the suspect had first forced himself on her when she was 14-years, and continued to do so until his arrest.

    “The suspect threatened to harm the victim, if she told anyone about his sexual escapade,” Ibrahim said.

    He said that in spite of the victim`s horrible experience, she remained silent for the past one year.

    Ibrahim added that investigations into case was in progress while the suspect would soon be arraign in court. (NAN)

  • Buhari mourns Amb. Chiedu Osakwe

    President Muhammadu Buhari on behalf of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) and all Nigerians has condoled with the family of Nigeria’s Chief Trade Negotiator and Director General of the Nigerian Office for Trade Negotiations, Amb. Chiedu Osakwe.

    The President noted, with deep pain, that the passing of Amb. Osakwe has created a gulf in the Nigerian Office for Trade Negotiations, which he served as pioneer Director General, bringing invaluable experience, knowledge and skill in setting up and motivating the operations of the agency that was established in 2017.

    The President, in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, commiserated with all friends, relations and professional associates of the deceased, who served the country for many years as Foreign Service Officer, before joining the Word Trade Organisation, and later accepting to return to the country as a Trade Adviser to the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, and Director General of NOTN.

    READ ALSO: Buhari mourns Okonjo-Iweala’s father

    The President affirmed that the intellectual depth, fervour and sense of patriotism that Amb. Osakwe handled responsibilities will be sorely missed, especially the frontline and historical role of chairing the Negotiating Forum of the African Union (AU) from June 2017 to March 2018, during which time the negotiations were concluded on the Agreement Establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

    President prayed that the Almighty God will receive the soul of the cerebral diplomat, scholar and administrator, and comfort his family.

  • UPDATED: Shekarau, others in fresh trouble over N950m PDP fund

    The Federal High Court sitting in Kano on Monday, struck out the no-case submission filed by the former governor of Kano State, Ibrahim Shekarau, challenging his alleged N950 million money laundering trial.

    The EFCC, arraigned Shekarau on May 24, 2018, alongside former Foreign Affairs Minister, , Aminu Wali and one Mansur Ahmad on six counts bordering on conspiracy and money laundering to the tune of N950 million.

    Delivering his ruling, Justice Lewis Allagoa, held that the EFCC has made out a prima facie case against the defendants, warranting that they must defend themselves.

    “I have considered evidence by the prosecution against the defendants, it is sufficient that they have case to answer and defend themselves,” he said.

    Allagoa adjourned the case until Nov.18 and Nov. 19, for defence to open its case.

    Earlier, Counsel to Shekarau and two others, Mr Dauda Abdulrahman, and Mr Abdul Adamu, on July 9 filed a no-case submission.

    Adamu said EFCC failed to present a prima facie case to warrant the defendants entering defence and urged the court to discharge his clients.

    Read Also: Shekarau brings rare virtues to the Senate

    Counsel to the EFCC, Mr Johnson Ojogbane, had earlier told the court that the defendants, between March 26 and March 27, 2015, conspired among themselves and received the said amount without going through financial institutions.

    He said that the money was issued to the defendants by the Peoples Democratic Party and former petroleum minister, Diezani Allison-Madueke.

    The prosecutor said that the offences contravened Sections 18 (a) of the Money Laundering (prohibition) Act, 2011 as amended and punishable under Section 16 (2)(b) of the same Act and Section 15(1) of money laundering Act.

    The defendants had pleaded not guilty to the charges.

    NAN reports that the defendants were earlier granted bail in the sum of N100 million each with two reliable sureties in like sum and during the course of trial, the prosecution called four witnesses and closed its case on May 8.