The Nation Newspaper

Tag: personnel

  • Lawyers condemn DSS personnel’s action

    Lawyers condemn DSS personnel’s action

    Lawyers have warned against heating up the polity ahead of the governorship election.

    Over 4,000 Department of State Security Service (DSS) personnel were reportedly deployed for the poll.

    They have continued to engage in a show of force since arriving in  the state.

    The operatives, said to have been hooded, shot sporadically into the air, with apprehensive residents running for fear of being hit by stray bullets.

    A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Dr. Joseph Nwobike, said Osun is not known to be so prone to violence to warrant the deployment of such number of armed men.

    The Federal Government’s deployment of the DSS personnel, he said, is meant to create tension in Osun.

    “There are no security challenges in Osun State as to warrant the deployment of massive security operatives into the state few days before the scheduled election,” he said.

    Another SAN, Chief Emeka Ngige, said the security personnel should rather have been deployed to the Sambisa Forest, known as the notorious den of insurgents in the Northeast.

    Ngige said: “The militarisation of our democracy will do nobody, including the Presidency, any good. People should be allowed to express their political wishes without fear of intimidation.

    “The deployment of high number of military personnel in an election is suggestive that we’re in a civilian

    A law teacher at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Mr. Wahab Shittu, said the massive deployment of armed security personnel could send a wrong signal that Nigeria is incapable of conducting a peaceful election.

    “While there is a necessity to guarantee peaceful, fair and credible election, we should be careful not to militarise the polity. That could constitute a danger to the democratic process,” Shittu said.

    Malam Yusuf Ali (SAN), however, said it is possible there is good reason for the deployment.

    “I’m not there and wouldn’t know what goes on in the place. When it comes to the issue of security, except you’re on ground, one wouldn’t know what informed that (deployment). I don’t want to make comments based on ignorance,” Ali said.

  • Six held for ‘impersonating’ Naval personnel

    It was the end of the road yesterday for six impersonators of naval personnels who were nabbed by men of the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Wey in Lagos.

    The suspects, including the son of a policeman; dismissed naval rating and an employee of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) were paraded at the Navy Town, Ojo by NNS WEY’s Commander, Commodore Ignatus Iliya.

    Aliu Jubril; Usman Shehu; Imily Victor; Mohammed Yahaya; and Anyanwu Chimezie, Iliya explained were caught with military uniforms (including navy’s), identity cards, caps during the ongoing raid to flush out fake naval personnels who extort money from unsuspecting members of the public.

    Iliya said: “Shehu who, is supposed to be a member of staff of NPA had two identity cards; one for NPA and another for Navy. I do not know what he is doing with them. Nemesis caught up with him as he was driving through our gate and identified himself as a Lieutenant and even showed his identify card.

    “But the eagled eye operatives spotted him with another identity card bearing NPA and when he was subjected to questioning, he could not give reasonable reply. He was subsequently arrested and when his apartment was searched, incriminating documents were recovered.

    “Imily was arrested in complete Navy uniform at Okokomaiko. During investigation, he mentioned some of his friends that were involved. One of them is Amaechi, who is currently at large. When we got to his house, we found both Naval and Army uniform including other items. “Among the recovered items were pictures of him in complete Navy uniform and where he posed with serving Military personnel, apparently to deceive people.

    “What he does is to catch in on any occasion organised by serving military personnel and would end up taking shots of himself and them.

    “Yahaya has been parading himself as Peter, Paul, John and Nasiru. He said he was a Christian but converted to Islam. He was arrested in a Navy pull over and combat trouser, in Navy quarters, inside Navy town.

    “He came to visit a rating who we are currently on the look out for. When his phone contact was scrolled, we contacted one Jubril to come and identify him and when he came, he was arrested. During investigation, he was discovered to be a dismissed rating who was teaching Jubril the norms in the Navy.

    “Chimezie, otherwise known as simplicity, was also arrested in complete Navy uniform. What gave him away was when he paid homage to a subordinate inside our barracks, which is never the case.”

    The suspects, according to Commodore Iliya, would be handed over to the police for prosecution.

    But some of the suspects denied being impersonators. They insisted that they are members of the Merchant Navy.

    Yahaya, whose father is a retired policeman, claimed that he bought navy regalia at Cotonou, Benin Republic for N3, 500.

    “I admit I am wrong because I am not naval personnel. I only use the uniform whenever I am ridding my motorcycle to avoid being stopped by policemen. I started using it this year and did not consider using police uniform because even policemen who ride motorcycle use military uniforms.

    Usman, the NPA staff said he also works as a Merchant Navy personnel, adding that he made the navy identity card after listening to a friend’s advice.

    “I am a staff of NPA and also a Merchant Navy. I was on board a ship when somebody came and suggested that there was need for us to do Navy identity card, that the Navy and NPA work hand-in-hand. That was how I got the Navy identity card. But I did not know he was lying,” he said.

    For the dismissed rating, Jubril, he was a victim of circumstance because he was not directly involved.

    “I got a call from one Biu that my friend, Nasiru was admitted at the Nigerian Navy reference hospital, Navy town. I rushed there only to discover that he was arrested for impersonating a naval rating.

  • Army trains personnel on conflict control

    The Army is training its personnel on conflict management to enhance their skills during operations.

    The three-day workshop at the headquarters of the Nigerian Army College of Logistics (NACOL), was organised in conjunction with the Impact for Change and Development as well as the Konrad Adenauer Foundation of Germany.

    Declaring the workshop open, the Commandant, NACOL, Gen. A.B.M. Gana  said the workshop was part of the security agencies’ resolve to address national issues in order to enthrone peace and development.

    The Deputy Commandant of NACOL, Gen. J.O. Oni, highlighted the need to train and improve skills for all cadres of the security apparatus since military and paramilitary personnel are increasingly involved in conflict management.

  • 8,000 personnel for Edo council polls

    The Edo State Independent Electoral Commission (EDSIEC) is to recruit 8,000 ad-hoc workers for the April 20 council polls.

    EDSIEC Chairman Solomon Ogoh, who spoke at a stakeholders’ meeting, said members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) would be recruited.

    The chairman said problems during elections are caused by parties.

    He recalled an incident during the April 2011 general elections when a member of a party used snakes to chase electoral officers away and removed away ballot boxes.

    Solomon said the contributions of parties would assist in the conduct of a peaceful and credible local government election.

    He said: “We have no doubt that we will conduct an election that will be a reference point in this country.

    “We would like to assure you that as an unbiased umpire, the Commission will provide a level-playing field for all candidates.

    “This is our state and we have vowed to carry out our assignment satisfactorily as our contribution to the development of our people.

    “Parties should ensure peaceful conduct at the polling units.”

    The chairman urged parties to adhere to the provisions of sections 22 and 23 of the State Electoral Law (2012).

    He said the body was liaising with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to get the current voter’s register.

    The guidelines showed that party campaigns would start today. Primaries are expected to hold from January 25 to April 18.

    Campaigns are expected to end on April 18.

    The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was not present at the meeting.

    Its Publicity Secretary, Matthew Urhoghide, told The Nation that the party would review the legality of the constitution of the electoral body to avoid an illegality.

    Urhoghide said the party would provide the platform for any of its members who wants to contest in the election, if it agrees to participate in the election.