The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Nigerians

  • ‘Gambia’s ex-President ordered killings of 50 Nigerians, Ghanaians’

    HUMAN Rights Watch (HRW) and TRIAL International have accused a paramilitary unit controlled by former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh of summarily executing more than 50 Ghanaian, Nigerian and other West African migrants in July 2005.

    Interviews with 30 former Gambian officials, including 11 officers directly involved in the incident, revealed that the migrants, who were bound for Europe but were suspected of being mercenaries intent on overthrowing Jammeh, were murdered after having been detained by Jammeh’s closest deputies in the army, navy, and police forces.

    The witnesses identified the “Junglers”, a notorious unit that took its orders directly from Jammeh, as those who carried out the killings.

    “The West African migrants weren’t murdered by rogue elements, but by a paramilitary death squad taking orders from President Jammeh.

    “Jammeh’s subordinates then destroyed key evidence to prevent international investigators from learning the truth,” counsel at HRW Reed Brody said yesterday.

    Martin Kyere, the sole known Ghanaian survivor; the families of the disappeared; the family of Saul N’dow, another Ghanaian killed under Jammeh; and Ghanaian human rights organisations on May 16, called on the Ghanaian government to investigate the new evidence and potentially seek Jammeh’s extradition and prosecution in Ghana.

    Jammeh’s 22-year rule was marked by widespread abuses, including forced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and arbitrary detention. He sought exile in Equatorial Guinea in January 2017 after losing the December 2016 presidential election to Adama Barrow.

    The insiders interviewed by TRIAL International and HRW include some of the highest-ranking security commanders in the Gambian government at the time, as well as several officials present at the arrest, detention, and transfer of the migrants, a Jungler, who witnessed the killings, and two who participated in a subsequent cover-up. Another Jungler, who witnessed the killings, was interviewed on the radio.

    They said that the migrants – including some 44 Ghanaians and several Nigerians – were arrested in July 2005 at a beach where they had landed, then transferred to the Gambian Naval Headquarters in Banjul, the capital.

    They were detained there in the presence of the inspector general of police, the director general of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), the chief of the defence staff, and the commander of the National Guards. At least two of them were in telephone contact with Jammeh during the operation. The head and several members of the paramilitary Junglers were also there.

    The West African migrants, it was gathered, weren’t murdered by rogue elements, but by a paramilitary death squad taking orders from Jammeh.

  • We’ll make Nigerians’ lives better, says Buhari

    PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has promised that his administration will not disappoint Nigerians.

    According to the President, everything possible was being done to ameliorate their hardship.

    Buhari spoke during an All Progressives Congress (APC) rally in Dutse as part of activities of his two-day working visit to Jigawa State.

    He said he was aware of hardship faced by people as a result of the economic crunch and hike in prices of essential commodities.

    The President said the Federal Government has stopped the importation of rice to encourage local production and empower farmers.

    He thanked the government and people of Jigawa for their warm reception and support to his administration.

    Also at a dinner held in his honour, Buhari said the nation’s economy was steadily improving, as he urged Nigerians to remain optimistic as the future of the country is bright.

    In a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, the President called on Nigerians to continue to support his administration’s well thought-out economic policies.

    He said: “The future is bright for Nigeria, as the economy has taken a turn for the better, our foreign reserves are almost twice the level we met, boosting investor confidence and stabilising the Naira, and inflation has declined consecutively for more than a year.

    “The Federal government released over N1 trillion for capital projects in 2016 and N1.5 trillion in 2017 – figures that are unprecedented in Nigeria’s history,” the President said.

    The President listed the Shuwarin overpass and Dutse-Shuwarin-Kiyawa portion of the Kano-Maiduguri expressway as well as the Dutse-Laraba highway extension as part of areas in which Jigawa State has benefited from the Federal Government’s commitment to infrastructural rejuvenation.

    He hailed the governor for emulating his administration’s commitment to infrastructure growth despite severely limited resources available to the state.

    The President also lauded the state government for subscribing to the Federal Government’s renewable energy master plan by having the largest solar power investment portfolio in the country – the 330 megawatts joint solar power development station situated in Gwiwa Local Government.

    Hailing the success of the Federal Government’s Social Intervention Programme in Jigawa State, the President urged states that are yet to access the over N500 billion budgeted for the scheme due to “its stringent eligibility guidelines” to fully take advantage of the programme.

    Jigawa State Governor Muhammad Badaru reminded the people that Buhari had been doing his best, adding that the country’s economy was in a mess when he (Buhari) took over.

    Badaru said as part of his contribution, the state government would continue to embark on projects that would impact positively on the lives of the people.

     

  • Political parties failing Nigerians yet again

    SIR: The lack of internal democracy, mobilising political support along tribal and regional lines, and using violence to intimidate rivals or force certain opinions are some features of some of the political parties in Nigeria today. They are also used as vehicles of transporting leaders from one election to another with very little activity between the elections.

    From 1999 on, the parties seems to have been articulating the communal and personal interests of their respective leaders. Personal interests were conflated with communal or ethnic interests. How parties mobilised political support along ethnic lines widened social and political schisms. The parties have also failed to promote a culture of internal democracy, accountability, and good governance. Although they are required to foster internal democracy through free and fair elections, the last eighteen years have witnessed increased internal conflicts within the parties. Where parties have attempted to conduct internal elections, the results have largely lacked credibility.

    This period has also witnessed conflict between the interests of party leaders and the interests and aspirations of voters. Party supporters clearly prefer to have the local leaders they can trust to articulate their interests. But the founder members or the national leadership of the party prefers individuals who are loyal to them.

    All this is happening because the mechanisms by which voters can hold their party leaders accountable are not in place. The various political parties are owned by the party leaders; party members have no voice in the running of party affairs. The alliances also represent the individual interests of the founder members of the parties comprising the alliance.

    Importantly, political parties in Nigeria, have no data base verifiable to the general public. My visit to the national secretariat of some of the political parties in Nigeria discouraged me from participating in the 2019 general elections. None of the national secretariats of the major political parties in Nigeria have an idea of their membership strength. This makes it easy for party leaders to change the party register at anytime to favour their preferred aspirant during political parties primary elections.

    The Independent Electoral National Electoral Commission (INEC) has also shown little or no interest in addressing the problems in the political parties. The Commission is so fearful of political parties and their leaders, that it cannot take action on any party or party leader who has committed an offence. It’s well known that INEC has not sued any political party leaders who have been accused of hijacking party process to their own favour, all these pose a lot of danger to our democracy.

    Lastly, it should be known that once the masses loose interest in democracy, doom and anarchy awaits our country. We must save our democracy now as  rebellion will continue to build up if we keep suppressing the wishes of the majority.

     

    • Comrade Ahmed Omeiza Lukman, Former Chairman, Nigeria Community In Ukraine.

  • Nigerians should be hopeful

    NIGERIANS have been enjoined to trust and wait on God amid the country’s socio-economic and security challenges.

    Bishop of the Diocese of Badagry, Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Rev. Babatunde Adeyemi spoke as the diocese began its annual Synod yesterday.

    At a thanksgiving service to start the Synod, Adeyemi urged the citizens to be hopeful of a better future despite their present travails.

    According to him, that belief birthed the theme for this year’s synod, titled: “Christ in me, the hope of glory”.

    He said: “We want to tell Nigerians to have faith and hope in God that things will improve regardless of our current economic, social and security challenges.

    “We are not unmindful of various happening in the country, which is giving us a bad name in the comity of nations. Nonetheless, we must believe in ourselves that Christ has the power to reverse our situation and take us out of this mess. We should hold forth to him because there is no better time.”

    The church, however, condemned the killings nationwide.

    It urged the Federal Government to act fast to stop the bloodshed.

    Dean of the Cathedral Ven. Dickson Ilegbusi noted that the Synod, which coincides with the Diocese’ 13th anniversary, will also be an avenue to appraise its activities over the years with a view to seeking ways forward.

  • ‘We can’t match the Nigerians’

    Argentina yesterday admitted that beating Nigeria would be the most challenging task for them at the ongoing ITTF World Team Championships holding in Halmstad, Sweden.

    Speaking on behalf of the South American side, Cifuentes Horacio told NationSport yesterday when they won the first match against Segun Toriola, they thought they could beat the West African team, but with the current form of Aruna Quadri, the victory was beyond their reach.

    “I have watched Aruna Quadri’s videos, and I realised that his greatest strength was his powerful forehand. So I tried to control it, it was a bit difficult for me. I also wanted to play a rally with him; it was tough because he is excellent in rallying. So I need to play more than 15 rallies if I hope to win a point against Aruna Quadri. Apart from that, he is an experienced player among the top 30 in the world. The Nigerian side is solid. We gave our best, but it was too hard for us to defeat them,” the Spain-based star said.

    “We have lost against Nigeria, but we are not going to give up on our dream of fighting for promotion. We will take the next matches more seriously and remain focused until we make the top three teams in the group that will advance to the knockout stage.” Cifuentes Horacio added.

    Argentina occupies the third spot on the group table, and their next group match today is against Turkey.

  • CAC president urges Nigerians to pray for Buhari

    The President of Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), Pastor Abraham Akinosun, has urged Nigerians to pray for and support the present administration to succeed.

    He spoke at the weekend at the grand finale of a seven-day fasting and prayer for forgiveness for Nigerians, organised by Signs and Wonders Prayer Ministries, in collaboration with CAC.

    It was held at Ikoyi Mountain, Ero-Omo Village, Osun State.

    The programme tagged: ‘Nigeria must be redeemed’, brought together Christians from denominations.

    It featured prayers, song renditions and prophetic declarations on Nigeria.

    Pastor Akinosun said the need for Nigerians to pray and support the government to succeed is apt, as the nation grapples with unemployment, insecurity, kidnapping and killing by herdsmen.

    He said successive administrations, before assuming office, had good programmes for people, “but it seems as if when they get to power, forces greater than them often frustrate their efforts.”

    The cleric quoted from the scriptures, saying except God builds the house, they labour in vain that build them.

    He enjoined President Muhammadu Buhari to stop herdsmen killings across the country, adding that restructuring the security apparatus would allow

    for fresh idea and strategy to combat insecurity.

    The Oke Osun DCC Superintendent and Chairman/Presiding Pastor, CAC Ori-Oke IIkoyi (Ikoyi Mountain), Pastor Elisha Alalade, said the country’s problems were not political and had nothing to do with leadership, adding that they were spiritual.

    “We have a spiritual battle to rescue the nation.”

  • Health workers to Nigerians: shun govt hospitals for now

    THE striking health workers have warned Nigerians against using government hospitals during the ongoing Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) strike.

    They noted that government hospitals have become death traps due to the JOHESU strike

    Speaking under the umbrella body of Professional Associations in JOHESU (AHPA), the group warned the public not to put their lives at risk by seeking healthcare services in the health institutions.

    They alleged that chief executives of health institutions have hired unqualified hands to attend to patients in the hospitals.

    The workers also blamed the Ministry of Health for the continued unrest in the sector.

    The group stated that they would not be cowed by the draconian directives of “no work-no pay rule” by the ministry.

    Dr. Godswill Okara, who read the group’s prepared statement, said AHPA was worried with the way the ministry in collaboration with the medical doctors were trying to run the hospitals since the beginning of the strike action.

    He said: “We are further worried and therefore we want to warn members of the public to be wary of seeking healthcare services in all the tertiary health institutions in the country while the strike lasts. This is because, in compliance with the obnoxious circular, chief executives of these health institutions have now gone ahead to recruit charlatans and quacks, who are mainly their cronies and relatives to hold out as healthcare professionals attending to patients in these hospitals.

    “As we speak to you now we have discovered such cases in some FMCs including in the FCT and Owerri, where these quacks are now holding sway and maiming patients in the process.

    “In one instance, an HIV negative patient has been issued with a positive result. And we have also been reliably informed that one medical director, in violation of extant rules on Public Private Partnership (PPP), brought into the hospital premises his relations to help him divert patients to his private hospital and equally stationed some other quacks to help him take patients’ specimens to questionable places for analyses.

    “Some patients are now being issued with very doubtful Liver and Renal Function test results. No thanks to the promotion of quackery by the FMoH in these institutions to the detriment of the members of the public.”

    The group urged the security agencies to investigate the allegations so as to end the trend and save lives.

    “We urge the DSS to beam its investigative searchlights on all the tertiary hospitals where JOHESU members are currently on strike with a view to unraveling more of these corrupt practices, criminal acts and atrocities.”

  • Experts lament lack of saving culture among Nigerians

    Financial experts have expressed worries over the lack of saving culture among Nigerians, saying such attitude contributes to the decline of small and medium scale enterprises in the country.

    At a seminar organised by UT Financial Services held in Lagos, with the topic ‘Investing to secure the future’, a financial expert with a new generation bank, Mr Segun Akintunde, said Nigerians ranked among countries with the least saving culture, which in effect is affecting the growth of SMEs.

    “Nigerians have been ranked among people that have the lowest saving culture. It is the amount of saving that you have that will form the amount of investment you will have. This is the reason the SMEs are suffering, because Nigerians are not saving enough for them to have an investment,” he lamented.

    He continued: “There is need to improve saving culture among Nigerians. We need to save for security purpose, to enhance our standard of living, to acquire assets, raise more capital and invest.”

    According to him, some of the challenges preventing people from saving are procrastination, lack of budget, impatience, discipline and goals.

    The Chief Executive Officer, UT Financial Services, Mr Ade Adebajo, said the public should be enlightened on the importance of saving, promising that the company is ready to help individual to invest their money in profitable businesses such as property, transportation e.t.c.

    “We must take charge of money and investment decisions. People should save more, spend less and learn to live less. They can make extra income with minimal investment,” Adebajo said.

    The president of the company, Prince Kofi Amoabeng, said when people save, “it will reduce the stress of going to bank for loan,” adding that the SMEs are the livewire of any economy as it improves the economy of any country.

  • Nigerians in Diaspora urged to invest in agric

    A firm, Adbond, Harvests & Homes, has launched a campaign to encourage Nigerians  in the diaspora to invest in agriculture.

    Its Managing Director, Adekoya Oluwasegun Gbenga urged members of the Diaspora to take advantage of the many investment opportunities which exist in agriculture.

    He said his organisation has been pivotal to unleashing the potential of farming and agribusiness with investment in land infrastructure.

    Gbenga said he was receiving enquiries from Nigerians, who are passionate about agriculture.

    According to him, discussions on investment in agriculture focused on potential land options, how businesses could access land in Nigeria for large-scale agricultural operations; incentives and procedures for the agricultural sector, and the technical requirements when undertaking specific agricultural activities.

    He said his organisation was providing affordable lands around Ogun and Lagos states for would-be investors  and to generate funding to kick-start various projects .

    He said the organisation was determined to provide farm managers service to assist absentee farmers.

    He noted that they were making farming a serious business, and this included employing professional managers.

    He said his organisation is ready  to  manage third party farm land for absentee landowners, agricultural land investors, developers as well as other producers.

    He said his organisation was also looking at farming as a business and intends to create jobs and make a profit out of ventures engaged in.

    He assured Nigerians from the Diaspora that their money would be more secure if invested in agriculture.

    According to him, his  organisation is ready to publicise the accessible opportunities in agriculture  diaspora to help Nigeria  abroad to know where to invest.

    He said the company’s core value lies in developing agriculture and its ancillary services, adding that the company believed in a partnership approach and were looking at partnering with local farmers in many agricultural projects, focused on partnerships, individual projects, and empowering local communities.

    He believes Nigeria is blessed with good soils upon which a variety of crops can be grown, favourable climatic conditions, and a well-developed labour force.

    For him, what is now required is to harness all these positive factors to spur the growth of the agricultural sector.

     

  • Nigerians in diaspora knock Senate over resolution on security chiefs

    Nigerians in the Diaspora under the auspices of Nigerians in Diasporas Monitoring Group, NDMG, have stated that the recent call by the Senate for President Muhammadu Buhari to sack the nation’s service chiefs is in furtherance of their ploy to separate the President from his appointees who are diligent.

    The Nigerians living abroad dismissed the state of insecurity on which the lawmakers predicated their call as a smokescreen, stressing that security breaches that would have been insignificant in the past are now being highlighted for public attention owing to the dearth of more devastating news.

    NDMG, which reacted in a statement issued on Thursday and signed by its Secretary-General, Uchenna D. Okereke, stated that the disposition of the senators can demoralise troops in the battle front and give Boko Haram terrorists an upper hand.

    The group maintained that the demand being made by the senators on Buhari is politically motivated and an integral part of  manoeuvring for the 2019 general elections, stressing that the senators do not have the capacity to assess the ongoing war against terrorism, and that hiring of experts is not enough to educate lawmakers on the enormity of what the military contend with in the theatre of war.

    The statement reads in full…

    The Nigerians in Diasporas Monitoring Group [NDMG] is dismayed by the demand from the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria asking that the military service chiefs be changed. The security situation in the country, which Senators cited as their reason, is nothing but a smokescreen given their history of continually trying to isolate President Muhammadu Buhari from the performing ones among his appointees.

    NDMG is saddened that the demand by the lawmakers is premised on anecdotal evidences and not the subject of statistical analyses that would have showed that there has been improvement in the responsiveness to security breaches on the part of the Armed Forces. The reality is that incidences that would have been insignificant in the past are now highlighted for public attention for lack of more devastating news; interpreting this as bad has the tendency to demoralize troops and hand the initiative to terrorists.

    Coming from lawmakers, who are statutorily expected to use their position to promote peace and stability in the country, we find the demand disconcerting and worrisome. This is especially so when information emanating from certain quarters confirm that the demand is politically motivated and an integral part of the 2019 General Elections manoeuvring.

    We invite the Senators to take cognisance of their place as politicians who may not have the requisite competences to assess the counter-insurgency war; this is also not a field where consultants can bring the lawmakers up to speed since it takes those in the war theatre to fully appreciate the enormity of what the military contend with on a minute by minute basis.

    The safety and security of Nigerians is more important than the political gains derivable from maligning the military. We therefore align with the individuals and organizations that had challenged the Senate to come up with legislative interventions aimed at bolstering the military’s capacity to combat the evolving threats facing the country instead of searching for scapegoats. In this, we recommend that the federal lawmakers understudy their contemporaries around the world to understand the kind of support the military requires to combat terrorism.

    We further challenge the lawmakers to be decisive in charting a course for the future of policing in Nigeria so that the military services can re-focus on their constitutional mandates without the distraction of cleaning up situations that do not require military deployments in other climes. This must concomitantly be backed with realistic budgeting, which a simple comparative analysis with other country will show is totally lacking when what they spend on their armies is considered.

     

     

    While we advise the Senate to walk back its poorly thought out position, we use this opportunity to appeal to the military chiefs and the troops under their commands not to be discouraged by the demand from the lawmakers. They should see the call as a minor skirmish in the psychological component of the ongoing counter-insurgency operation. Nigerians, the electorates who these lawmakers represent, greatly appreciate what the service chiefs have done so far.

     

     

    Nigeria shall prevail against every primordial interest or sentiment by its traducers and become great again for all her citizens in the nearest future. Let us continue to believe and support the performing ones like the current crop of Service Chiefs in our country.

    Uchenna D. Okereke

    Secretary- General