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Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has again criticised the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, maintaining that the government has failed.

The former president said this on Monday when he received members of the New Nigeria group at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

“The first lesson I learnt in my military training is never reinforce failure; what we have now is failure. Never you reinforce failure, let failure be failure,” he said.

The truth is this; when you have an ineffective and incompetent government, we are all victims and don’t let anybody deceive you. Those of you who are in business, your business could have been better today if we have a competent and effective and performing government.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin won re-election with more
than 75 percent of the vote Sunday, according to exit poll
data.


The Russian strongman's election win keeps him as
Russia's leader for another six years and allows him to
claim the mantle of the vast country's longest-serving ruler
other than Joseph Stalin.


Speaking to a crowd who attended a pop concert near the
Kremlin marking his victory, Putin hailed those who voted
for him as a "big national team," adding that "we are bound
for success." He said that the nation needed unity to move
forward and urged the audience to "think about the future of
our great motherland." He then led the enthusiastic crowd to
chant "Russia!"

Results from more than half of precincts showed Putin
winning over 75 percent of the vote, with Communist
candidate Pavel Grudinin and ultranationalist Vladimir
Zhirinovsky trailing far behind with about 13 and 6 percent,
respectively.


The eight presidential candidates were barred from
campaigning Saturday, but the message to voters was clear
from billboards celebrating Russian greatness — a big
theme of Putin's leadership — and Kremlin- friendly media
coverage.

The last time Putin faced voters was in 2012, when he was
up against a serious opposition movement. But since then
he has boosted his popularity thanks to Russian actions in
Ukraine and Syria.


Yevgeny Roizman, the mayor of Yekaterinburg, Russia's
fourth-largest city, says local officials and state employees
have all received orders "from higher up" to make sure the
presidential vote turnout is more than 60 percent.


"They are using everything: schools, kindergartens, hospitals
— the battle for the turnout is unprecedented," said
Roizman, one of the rare opposition politicians to hold a
significant elected office.


A doctor at one of the city's hospitals told The Associated
Press how one kind of voting pressure works.


The doctor, who gave her name only as Yekaterina because
of fears about repercussions, said she and her co- workers
were told to fill out forms detailing not only where they
would cast their ballots, but also told to give the names and
details of two "allies" whom they promise to persuade to go
vote.


"It's not something you can argue about," she said at a cafe
Saturday. "People were indignant at first, said 'They're
violating our rights' ... but what can you do?"
Yekaterina said she isn't sure what she'll do with her ballot,
musing that "maybe I'll just write 'Putin is a moron.'" But
she clearly understands that not showing up at the polling
place Sunday will not only endanger her job, but will reflect
badly on her boss, whom she likes.
The Russian doctor said she wouldn't go to vote if she
wasn't forced to.


"What's the point? We already know the outcome. This is
just a circus show," she said.
More than 1,500 international observers joined thousands of
Russian observers to watch the vote. A Russian election
monitoring group said Saturday it registered an "alarming"
rise in recent days in complaints that employers were
forcing or pressuring workers to vote.


As U.S. authorities investigate alleged Russian interference
in President Trump's 2016 election, Moscow has warned of
possible meddling in the Russian vote.
Election observers and local media have reported threats
and coercion of voters to re-register at their place of work
and report later that they have voted.


Ella Pamfilova, chairwoman of the Central Election
Commission who was appointed to clean up Russia's
electoral system, vowed to respond to complaints about
being coerced to vote.


"No manager has the right to tell them where to vote," she
said recently.


Putin has pledged to raise wages, pour more funds into the
country's crumbling health care and education and
modernize dilapidated infrastructure.


Putin's main foe, opposition leader Alexei Navalny, was
barred from the race because of a criminal conviction widely
seen as politically motivated. Navalny has called for a
boycott of the vote.

(Dateline, Berlin, March 2018):

In a landmark ruling on March 8, 2018, the African
Commission on Human and Peoples Rights (ACHPR) issued
a ruling against President Buhari to cease and desist from
taking any "further actions" against Nnamdi Kanu, IPOB and
its members, pending when the Commission renders final
decision on a Complaint filed on behalf of Mazi Nnamdi
Kanu and IPOB.


The ruling, which the Commission called 'provisional
measures', emanated from a Complaint filed by Barrister
Aloy Ejimakor of Adulbert Legal Services on behalf of
Nnamdi Kanu and IPOB on December 14, 2017.

The Complaint placed three main issues for the
consideration of the Commission, to wit: Nnamdi Kanu's
trial, Operation Python Dance and its aftermaths in the
Southeast of Nigeria including the military invasion of
Nnamdi Kanu's family home in Umuahia, and declaration of
IPOB as a terrorist organization.


The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights,
which reports to the African Union (AU) is a quasi-judicial
body tasked with promoting and protecting human rights
and collective (peoples') rights throughout the African
continent as well as interpreting the African Charter on
Human and Peoples' Rights and adjudication of individual
complaints brought before the Commission against member
States.
Nigeria is a member State and has also ratified the African
Charter, which all together makes it subject to the
jurisdiction of ACHPR.

In the ruling, the Commission also states that it has
assumed jurisdiction to adjudicate the IPOB Complaint, and
gave President Buhari 15 days to respond with actions he
has taken to implement the provisional measures ordered by
the Commission.

On a rather ominous note, the Commission wrote that if the
allegations in the Complaint prove to be correct, they would
amount to gross violations of the African Charter "as well as
other regional and international human rights laws and
standards".


With this ruling and the expectation that Buhari is duty-
bound to implement it, Nnamdi Kanu, IPOB and it's
members have been vindicated, at least as far as the
declaration that IPOB is a terrorist organization now
appears to be on hold, until such a time the Commission has
rendered its final decision.

The ruling which spanned three pages was addressed to
President Buhari; and it is accompanied by another five
pages of document containing analysis of the Complaint.


Going forward, we remain committed in our pursuit of
justice both within and outside Nigeria. We will not relent
until those responsible for the murder of hundreds of
peaceful agitators and the disappearance of our leader is
held to account before the comity of civilised nations.


Signed:
Mazi Chika Edoziem
Head of Directorate of State of the Indigenous People of
Biafra

By Rev. Fr. John Damian Adizie, OCD
Our world is gradually becoming so aggressive. It is a
world where people believe that the only way to demon-
strate their power is through wickedness and vengeance.


A world where people are beginning to practice the
doctrine of eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth. Here in
Nigeria, it has gotten to a stage where men of God can
now attack themselves not just on the  pulpit but also in a
law court.

 A world where religious leaders are beginning
to take laws into their hands – all in the name of
vengeance. It is in a world like this that I want to remind
Christians, especially my fellow men of God, the essence
of our faith.

Our Lord Jesus Christ told his followers, “You have heard
that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate
your enemy. But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray
for those who per-secute you. So that you may be sons
of your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:43).
Forgive-ness is the only way we can prove to the world
that we are sons and daughters of the Most High God. To
sin is, in-deed, human but to for-give is divine.

While the world sees for-giveness as an act of weakness
our Lord Jesus Christ proved to the world that it is indeed
the most power-ful force. He did not overcome the world
with insults (as most men of God are doing nowadays).

He did not use military force. The only weapon He used
was the weapon of forgiveness. On the Cross of Calvary
He did what men could not do. He was the first man in
the history of humanity to forgive and even pray for his
executioners. Instead of cursing his execution-ers, he
prayed for them, saying, “Father, forgive them; for they
know not what they do” (Luke 23:34).


Certainly, this was not what his enemies were expecting
to hear. They were highly disappointed!
No wonder Mahatma Gandhi declares, “The weak can
never forgive. Forgiveness is the attri-bute of the strong.”
God demonstrates his might through forgive-ness. He
revealed his true identity to Moses in the following words:

“The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to
anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness…
forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin” (Exodus
34:6-7). Our God is so powerful that noth-ing and nobody
can easily provoke him. He is fully in control of His
feelings. He is indeed, slow to anger!


The spirit of unforgiveness has rendered so many people
stagnant. The truth, according to Steve Maraboli, is
“Unless you let go, unless you forgive yourself and the
situation, and unless you realize that the situation is over,
you cannot move forward.”


The more you hold someone on the ground the more you
remain on the ground. If you really want to move forward
and if you want to free yourself from bondage, then you
must be ready to forgive and let go.
Nothing is as poisonous as the spirit of unforgiveness.


That is why Nelson Mandela declared: “Resentment (and
Unforgiveness) is like drinking poison and then hoping it
will kill your enemies.” This is foolishness of the highest
order. Whenever you keep malice, the person may not
know that you are dying because of him or her. While he
enjoys his sleep you may end up having sleepless nights
because of him. Malice, resentment and unforgiveness
has destroyed so many people’s lives. They are the worst
form of poison in the world.


The Holy Father, Pope Francis, defines forgiveness as the
essence of Christianity. According to him, “To be a
Christian means being forgiving, kind, humble, gentle,
generous and merciful with one another.”
Forgiveness is peculiar to Christians.

Without forgiveness
there will be no Christianity and without Christianity there
will be no forgiveness. True Christians are known by their
humility and forgiveness. In fact, a Christian is
condemned to forgive. That why Jesus told Peter to
forgive seventy times seven times.

That is, uncountable times!

By Rose Moses

At the Senate the other week, another controversial
subject was thrown into the political space as Senator
Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi (APC, Niger) proposed a Bill seeking
for establishment of an Independent National
Commission for Hate Speeches.
The Bill also prescribes death sentence for any person
found guilty of any form of hate speech that results in the
death of another person upon conviction.





Hate Speech
Similarly in August last year, Vice President Yemi
Osinbajo, then acting President, had at a function,
described hate speech as a specie of terrorism.

According to him, hate speech employs violence and
intimidation to achieve certain political objectives and as
such, said offenders would be punished under the Terror
Act.


The Bill by Senator Abdulahi, who by the way, is
spokesperson of the upper legislative chamber, among
other things, reads that :“A person who uses, publishes,
presents, produces, plays, provides, distributes and/or
directs the performance of any material, written and/or
visual, which is threatening, abusive or insulting or
involves the use of threatening, abusive or insulting words
or behaviour, commits an offence, if such person intends
thereby to stir up ethnic hatred, or having regard to all the
circumstances, ethnic hatred is likely to be stirred up
against any person or person from such an ethnic group
in Nigeria.”





Expectedly, the bill has stimulated discourse in many
quarters, with some Nigeria’s, ever suspicious of the
Nigerian legislators, wondering whose interest Abdulahi
was actually trying to protect with the Bill.
And for this category of Nigerians, they would like Sen.
Abdulahi to look inward and at the policies of the APC led
Federal Government, which most have alleged rode on
the back of hate speech to power, and which they term as
founder and inventor of hate speeches in present day
Nigeria.




Hate speech, they further claim, was also boosted by
President Muhammadu Buhari’s statement at an
international forum where he said it will not be possible to
treat those who gave him “97 per cent vote” same way as
those that gave him “five per cent.”

And as if to confirm the above statement made at the
United States Institute of Peace (USIP) in Washington DC
couple of months after he was sworn in as president,
appointments into key positions and handling of other
national issues in the Buhari government, have been
glaringly lopsided.





That apart, the way and manner the Federal Government
treated agitations by the Indigenous People of Biafra
(IPOB) when compared to what obtains in the ongoing
deadly attacks by Fulani herdsmen in the country easily
defines bias.


When it comes to the war against corruption, a senator
and actually a member of the president’s All Progressives
Congress (APC) party, Shehu Sani, satirically describes
the president’s apparent predisposition, saying when
members of the president’s circle are involved, the case
is treated with some nice smelling perfume but when
opposition members are involved, government deploys
the use of insecticide.
Little wonder therefore that any criticism of this
administration’ inadequacies, or actions and inactions are
usually labeled as hate speech, which largely goes to
explain why the proposed Bill has been hugely condemned
and said to be in bad faith, even when that may not be so.





A legislative lobbyist/consultant, Akinloye Oyeniyi MLS, in
a chat, however, said the proposed Bill is one of those
that will not go far on the floor of the red chamber
because the hate speech, which it seeks to address, is
already taken care of under slander, libel, treasonable
felony and other crimes.


In the same token, the commission it seeks to establish is
duplication of the statutory functions of the National
Human Rights Commission.
Obviously in law making process, there are preliminary
considerations drafters and sponsors of Bills must adhere
to, among which are conformity with the constitution in
the area of supremacy, legislative competence,
fundamental objectives and directive of principles of state
policy, fundamental rights, and auster clauses, said
Oyeniyi.


In other words, a proposed Bill must not be in conflict
with any existing law, policy or case law, just as customs
and religious factors, as well as implementation are put
into consideration.

Thus, going by the the contents of the proposed Bill by
Senator Abdulahi, it would seem it is already dead on
arrival for the simple reason that it is in conflict with the
Constitution, existing laws like Criminal Act and Penal
Codes and the National Human Rights Commission
(NHRC) Act.





What Nigeria desperately needs right now are laws that
will entrench peace, justice and good governance; laws
that will holistically address the three monsters of
insecurity, corruption and impunity, currently holding the
nation down.

When that is done, things like hate speeches will certainly
no longer be an issue, since hate speeches hardly thrive
in peaceful and just environment, where everyone feels a
sense of belonging.

The Publisher of the online news platform, Sahara
Reporters , Omoyele Sowore, has declared his interest to
run for president in 2019.

In this interview published on his site, Sowore explains
why he is joining politics, how he will defeat President
Muhammadu Buhari, how he will run Nigeria if elected,
and what he will do with Sahara Reporters once he
becomes president.

Read excepts of the interview below

PT: You have indicated you might run for president in the
2019 election. Why are you crossing into partisan
politics?

SOWORE: I’ve always been in the forefront of the agitation
and struggle to move Nigeria forward – first as a student
and youth activist during military regimes. Since 1999, my
focus has been on improving and sanitizing the
democratic space. This is a natural progression of my
commitment to moving Nigeria forward.

This will not be
politics as usual. I have always been a part of the
movement to move Nigeria forward. I have always played
a leading role in that movement.
This is a movement. It will be the largest mobilization of
Nigeria’s ignored and dispossessed people. It will be the
most direct engagement of a people in their own political
future. I’ve always offered Nigerians a platform for
amplifying their concerns and dreams for Nigeria. I am
continuing that struggle. Yes – we will be part of a
coalition of parties. These will all be progressive parties –
committed to nothing other than the advancement of the
Nigerian nation. It is Nigeria’s moment to see
revolutionary politics in action!

PT: Are you not abandoning activism that way?


SOWORE: Activism is simply advancing a pro-people
agenda. For too long we have focused on using borrowed
voices in the political realm while we’ve focused on
creating awareness. That has failed. Since 1999 – the
progressive movement has been disappointed by the
actions and inactions of those we have left to handle the
affairs of Nigeria while we reduced ourselves to election
monitors, NGO leaders, and street protesters.

In the course of doing these, we have inadvertently
supported some of the cruelest and mediocre to occupy
political power. Sometimes the most revolutionary thing to
do is to get into the ring. Obama was an activist who
became president. Mandela was an activist who became
president. Everyone will agree that their principled
commitment to struggle continued even when they were in
office. So it is possible to stay committed to an activist
agenda even when in office.

PT: Are you saying Buhari has failed and not worthy of
being re-elected?


SOWORE: Just a little over a week ago – over 100 young
girls were taken by Boko Haram in Dapchi. Buhari’s
appeal was supposed to be a tough stance against
corruption and an ability to address the security crises
posed by Boko Haram. No single major victory has been
notched in the anti-corruption fight. Boko Haram is still
alive and kicking. And the president’s inaction and lack of
leadership are causing the herdsmen-farmers conflicts to
take on an even more dangerous dimension. The Nigerian
state is in shambles.

PT: Election is less than a year away. Are you still holed
up in your base in New York? When are you going to find a
party and then mobilize support for your candidacy?


SOWORE: I think it is incontrovertible that in and out of
Nigeria, I have been an effective contributor to the
struggle for the advancement of good governance in
Nigeria. The efforts to mobilize progressives and to form
a coalition of progressive parties and organizations is
underway. I am using my time in the U.S. to mobilize
diaspora Nigerians. This weekend, for instance, I will be
holding a town hall in Maryland with Nigerians. I am also
spending a great deal of my time meeting with my
strategy and policy teams – members of whom include
some really accomplished Nigerians. Unknown to many I
have been on the ground Nigeria in the last two
months.The work goes on. I will certainly be spending
more time on the ground in Nigeria.


PT: Prosecuting election in Nigeria is known to cost
several billions of naira. Where will you find the resources
for this project?

SOWORE: Elections are always expensive – that’s true.
However what is also true is that monies spent in
Nigerian politics are not mainly focused on political
mobilization or electioneering campaigns and
organization. As a political movement for true change, we
will not be spending money on buying votes or distributing
rice to the electorate. Our monetary needs will be greatly
reduced. We will be sourcing funds directly from the
Nigerian people. Nigerians have demonstrated a capacity
to devote their resources to projects that they believe in.
The recent team that represented Nigeria in bobsledding
at the Winter Olympics raised almost $200,000 – a lot of it
from Nigerians. We are already seeing and receiving
commitments for support. Our approach will revolutionize
the way politics is funded in Nigeria. There is also a lot of
support that is coming in the form of goodwill donations.
For instance – I’ll be in Maryland this weekend at a town
hall. A group of concerned Nigerians are funding that
event. We also have something that counts for a lot – an
army of technology savvy supporters and media platforms
that will amplify our voice to the Nigerian people.
Barack Obama raised millions of dollars from Nigerians in
the US alone in 2008/2009 and subsequently after.
100,000 Nigerian contributing $200 per person can help
fund a clean election devoid of dirty money. With that, we
can win the presidency and bring them back a lot of
change!

PT: You are from the south of Nigeria. There are those
saying you should wait until 2023 when Buhari or any
other northerner would have completed the North’s turn of
leadership rotation? What do you say to that?


SOWORE: Where has our “Turn – by – Turn” politics
gotten us? I’m a firm believer that when it comes to the
life of a nation – all sentiments must be set aside and
only the most capable hands should be employed to
manage the affairs of Nigerians. If I believed in Buhari’s
ability to lead NIGERIA, I would have supported him. When
Jonathan – a Southerner like me was in office, I had a
principled opposition to the way he was running Nigeria. It
was Albert Einstein that said, “it is madness to keep doing
the same thing and expecting a different outcome.”
Nigeria has a unique opportunity in 2019 to elevate
competence over tribalism, elevate character over
dishonesty, principle over indecisiveness. I’m sure when
the dust clears there will be candidates from across
Nigeria expressing an interest in the presidency. Let
Nigerians decide who should lead them.
Our patriots from across Nigeria won’t bother about
zoning when they realize the person running the country is
completely detribalized and doesn’t treat anyone different
because of their tribe, religion, creed, and class.

 We have
had it all. Mediocrity hiding behind zoning and a wicked,
selfish sense of entitlement. The only thing zoning does is
empower political actors to enrich themselves and plug
their friends and cronies in the position of authority to
steal, kill and destroy. For the rest of us north or south, we
are zoned to misery.


PT: Recently Garba Shehu, a spokesperson to the
president, said Buhari’s followership in Kano and across
Nigeria is so huge and phenomenal that it has to be
studied by political scientists. How can you defeat such a
man in 2019?


SOWORE: Buhari’s followership is large – but remember
that it took four tries and an alliance with the South-West
and with progressive democratic forces before he was
able to become president. We are all witnesses to the
unprecedented set of circumstances that saw an
incumbent president defeated at the polls. If there is
anything we have learned in the last few years, it is the
fact that the Nigerian electorate has become impatient
with purposeless leadership. My candidacy is generating
significant interest across Nigeria, especially amongst the
youth. The youth demographic is the largest single voting
block. The coalition of progressives, youths and previously
disenfranchised Nigerians that we are building will be a
force to reckon with. I have been in the business of
building movements since my time as a student activist in
the late 80s and early 90s. I am confident that we will be
able to build a broad coalition of Nigerians committed to
taking their country back and setting it firmly on a path to
prosperity and unprecedented progress.

PT: What will you do differently if elected president of
Nigeria?

SOWORE: Nigeria struggles because past presidents have
had three major issues. Firstly, there is an abject absence
of a clear vision as to where the country should be
headed. Where should Nigeria be in the next five, 10 or
even 50 years? Where are the national plans that map out
the country’s vision and the paths to their actualization
aside from the propaganda we see on NTA?

Today, we
are impressed by China’s sustained growth, but since
1953 China has produced a series of 5-year plans that has
guided their growth. Now they are on their 13th five-year
plan (2016-2020).


With that China became the most
powerful and prosperous nation on earth using its
populace as its best resource. China solved its housing
crisis and even now boast of unoccupied apartments in
“ghost cities” built in the last 10 years. China built one of
the fastest rail services with an amount of money
equivalent to the sums stolen during the oil imports scam.


Same goes for the UAE. Dubai was built into the
architectural marvel that is now a magnet to Nigeria’s
thieving elites. I will be instituting a series of four-year
plans to overlap with Nigeria’s political tenure system that
will chart our path to growth and progress. Secondly, even
where a clear vision might exist, nepotism, tribalism, and
favoritism has robbed us of the service of our best people.


I am a completely detribalized Nigerian. My antecedents
are that of an activist that has worked to build alliances
and networks across this nation over the last 30 years.
I understand first hand the value of having competent and
capable people in the right positions. I’ve created a world-
class media company in the last 12 years and taught in a
private college for eight years helping to mold some of
America’s greatest minds.
Thirdly, corruption has crippled us as a nation. Where
past presidents have been slow in tackling this issue and
sometimes even complicit through their actions or
inactions in promoting corruption, I will be decisive in
dealing with this cancer that has ravaged the Nigerian
nation.


PT: You are a long-term activist and indeed a very popular
figure across Nigeria. But Gani Fawehinmi was an activist
who served Nigerians all his life. He made to be president
in 2003 but the same people he served for almost his
entire life abandoned him at the polls. Are you not worried
you might get a similar treatment?


SOWORE: Gani was, as you said, a household name
across Nigeria. The reality was that in 2003, there was
still some hope and expectation by the Nigerian people
that the status quo political system would be able to lead
Niferia to progress and growth. It is now clear that those
largely naive aspirations were ill-founded. After numerous
failed governments, Nigerians have demonstrated that
they are ready to try new concepts and ideas and to go
beyond the status quo in seeking solutions.

That led them
to pick a south-south Ijaw man as president in 2011 and in
electing an opposition candidate who had failed to win the
presidency three times before, in 2015. Gani came before
his time. Also, there are other factors now present in our
current political reality. For example, the power of social
media helping young people to engage and interact, the
power of technology to help change election outcomes, an
accuracy of results, real-time reporting and capture of
results.


It is also important to state that elections in 2003 and
beyond under Obasanjo and the Peoples Democratic Party
were not worthy to be referred to as credible elections.
For instance, just imagine if Nigerians seized the
opportunity offered by Gani in 2003 and thus elected him
over an Olusegun Obasanjo, just imagine where will be
today. Imagine, an Obafemi Awolowo or Aminu Kano over
a Shehu Shagari. There is an appetite by the Nigerian
people for candidates with character, and a proven and
demonstrable track record of being able to drive for real
change. The APC has failed Nigerians in this area. The
movement we are building will be offering revolutionary
change.

PT: On the platform of which political party are you
planning to run?


SOWORE: That is something we are working on. We are
currently in discussions with progressive groups and
parties, the goal is to have a broad coalition of
progressive parties that could lend their structures and
ideologies to defeat the old order. When the time is right
we will be announcing what party platforms that will be
utilized.


PT: You have spent over 12 years of your life building
SaharaReporters into a formidable news and anti-
corruption platform? What becomes of the website now
that you are crossing into partisan politics?


SOWORE: Sahara Reporters will continue to speak truth to
power. The platform is more than just Sowore. When I win
the presidency, I will be turning over all of my assets to a
blind trust that will run it. Sahara Reporters will continue
to be run by independent-minded citizen activists. Even
now, the website is managed by several others who have
been groomed and schooled in the founding traditions of
the website. That is what Sahara Reporters is and that is
how it will remain. SaharaReporters is driven by its ever
loyal readers and users!

A Junior Secondary School pupil at Ohafia in Arochukwu
Local Government of Abia State has reportedly died after
consuming 10 tablets of Tramadol.
This statement was made by the Commandant of National
Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) Mr. Akindele
Akingbade.




Mr. Akindele Akingbade. who spoke in Umuahia, the Abia
State capital, while delivering a lecture at a seminar NDLEA
and Office of the Senior Special Assistant to Governor
Okezie Ikpeazu on Narcotics and Abia State Drug Abuse
Control Committee (ADCC) organised for patent medicine
dealers.


One on one reports that Akingbade mentioned in his lecture
that the pupil was alleged to have taken the Tramadol
tablets to enhance his performance during an inter-house
sports competition in his school.
He was said to have died shortly after taking the drugs.


The NDLEA boss, who said Abia was among the states with
a high level of drug/substance abuse, added that the
governor had been informed about the incident.

He said efforts were being made to apprehend the seller as
directed by the governor.
Akingbade advised patent medicine dealers to desist from
selling drugs without prescription by doctors or
pharmacists.


He attributed the high rate of crimes, including robbery,
r*pe, kidnapping and others to the effect of drugs.
Akingbade said besides the agency’s resolve to take the
awareness campaign against selling of harmful drugs to the
abusers, they (NDLEA) had begun encouraging schools to
establish Drug Free Clubs, to discourage pupils from taking
drugs.


The Director of Pharmaceutical Services, Ministry of Health
and Chairman, ADCC, Chief Chimezie Uzuegbu, as well as
the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Ikpeazu, David
Anyanwu, hailed NDLEA for its efforts in curbing drug
abuse.

The rate at which young people consume the banned drug is
quite alarming. Another man was reported to have lost his
sanity after consuming 7 tablets Tramdol in Lagos
yesterday.





His friends who noticed his unusual behaviour immediately
tied him up before administering first aid treatments on him

The outspoken senator believes the hate speech bill if
passed will be used to fight bloggers, political opponents
and critics of the government in power. He warned those
currently in power who are pushing for the bill to
remember that they will one day be out of power.





Sani
said this on his Facebook page this morning.
Most people in Power are intolerant to criticism
and allergic to dissent to be trusted with a capital
punishment for Hate speech.

The law against
Hate speech will be used against free
speech.Many critics and social media enthusiasts
will end up in the gallows.Our condemned cells in
the prisons will be filled with bloggers,critics and
perceived political opponents.We must fight Hate
speech,Hate speech is a real threat to
peace,unity and order of a nation but we must
protect free speech.

Free speech is the shield of
the oppressed.When you have state police and
you have capital punishment for Hate speech,you
will have tyranny and terror as a state
policy.

People in power should think twice about
what they do with power as someday they will be
out of power.A democratic state must balance its
security exigencies with its constitutional
obligations and moral duty to uphold the rule of
law and respect fundamental rights of its
citizens.

If you are in public office and you don’t
want to be criticized or challenged, please
dismount and go back to your family where you
can be an imperial emperor.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC,
Lagos Zonal office,yesterday arraigned one Olawunmi
Dilureni before Justice S.O. Solebo of the Lagos State
High Court sitting in Ikeja on an eight-count charge of
conspiracy, obtaining money by false pretence and
stealing to the tune of Twenty-three Million, Three
Hundred and Twenty Thousand Naira (N23, 320, 000.
00).





The defendant alongside Lola Aremu Anjorin, Tunde
Jamiu, Oluremi Osobu and Home Concepts Limited( all at
large) allegedly conspired to defraud a popular Lagos
pastor, someone else named Nellie St. Matthew-Daniel
and Eyitope St. Matthew-Daniel of the money.

One of the count reads:" That you, Olawumi Dilureni, on or
about the 16th day of April, 2013 at Lagos, within the
jurisdiction of this Honourable court, obtained the sum of
N10, 000, 000. 00 (Ten Million Naira only) from one Dr.


Anthony Rapu under the pretence that the money is for
investment in diesel supply business with a monthly
interest rate of 6.5%, which pretext you knew to be false
and committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1) and
1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related
Offences Act, No. 14 of 2016".
Another count reads: " That you, Olawunmi Dilureni, on or
about 17th April, 2013, within the jurisdiction of this
Honourable court, dishonestly converted for your own use
the sum of N10, 000, 000. 00 (Ten Million Naira) only
property of Tony Rapu and committed an offence contrary
to Sections 278 and 285(1) of the Criminal Law of Lagos
State No. 11, 2011".

The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charge when it
was read to her.
In view of her plea, the prosecution counsel, Fadeke Giwa,
asked the court for a trial date and also urged the court to
remand the defendant in prison custody.
Counsel to the defendant, Tunde Kolawole, however,
informed the court that he had filed an application for bail
on behalf of his client.





The prosecution counsel told the court that she was
served the bail application yesterday and that she needed
time to respond accordingly.
She, therefore, asked for a short date to enable her reply
in writing.

Justice Solebo adjourned the case to March 14, 2018 for
hearing of the application for bail and ordered the
defendant to be remanded in prison custody pending the
hearing of her bail application.

While speaking at the 61st Independence day celebration
in Ghana earlier today, President Buhari promised to help
the Ghanaian government fight corruption in their country.

President Buhari during his speech, noted that with the
right leadership and implementation of public policies,
Africa’s quest to eradicate poverty and entrench
democracy was on course.

He commended the Ghanaian president, Nana Akufo-
Addo, on his achievements in his first year in office with
particular reference to his committed efforts towards
stamping out corruption from Ghana.






Your Excellency can be assured that you have a
good partner in me as I look forward to any form
of collaboration between Nigeria and Ghana in
tackling the menace of endemic corruption. From
Nigeria, I have watched closely your
achievements, ranging from your ingenious
approach to creating jobs for the teeming youths
through various initiatives, including the
repositioning of agriculture for modern farming,
‘Farming for Jobs and Food’, Senior High School
(SHS) free education, One-District-One-Factory,
and One-Village-One-Dam as well as the
improvement being recorded in the Republic’s
macroeconomic indicators.






All these efforts, I am
aware, have made Ghana to become a good
destination for foreign direct investment just like
Nigeria.

Accept my congratulations! I
congratulate both the government and the
Parliament for the quick passage of the Office of
the Special Prosecutor Act and its signing into
law.






Given all these public policies, it becomes
reassuring that with the right leadership, Africa’s
drives to eradicate poverty and to entrench
democracy is on course,” he said.

By Innocent Anaba and Onozure Dania


 LAGOS — Mamudu Hassan, one of the accused persons standing trial over unlawful importation of 661 sophisticated pump action rifles into the country last December, yesterday told a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, that he paid a sum of N1 million to officials of the Department of State Security, DSS, and other security agencies to smuggle the guns out of Apapa Ports.


 Director-General of Department of State Service, DSS, Mr Lawal Daura Mamudu, a retired Assistant Comptroller of Customs, stated this in a recorded video during his interrogation by men of the DSS.



The video, recorded on March 27, 2017, between the hours of 2p.m., and 2.45p.m., was tendered by an operative of DSS, Jaiye Emmanuel at the resumed trial- within-trial, as Mamudu gave a breakdown of how the N1 million was shared among DSS and other security agencies.


 He said: “I gave N1 million to facilitate the moving of the container out of port, but it is not because of the guns.” When Mamudu was asked how the N1 million was shared among security agencies, he said: “The examiners were given N200,000; C.I.O.



N100,000; Enforcement N200,000; Police, SSS — between N20, 000, N25, 000, and N30, 000; the two gates — N200,000; Exit gate, N20,000, and final gate N50,000.” Mamudu also told the investigators in the video that he first agreed with the importer of the guns for N3.8 million, when he was first told that the consignments were steel doors, but raised the cost of clearing the consignment to N4 million, when he was told that the consignment included 661 pump action guns.




 The video recording was admitted in evidence, while further hearing continues today. It will be recalled that the Nigeria Customs Service had on June 14, 2017, arraigned two Customs officers, Mamudu Hassan and Salisu Danjuma, alongside Oscar Orkafor, Donatus Achinulo and Matthew Okoye, before Justice Ayotunde Faji on charges of illegal importation of fire arms, conspiracy, forgery and altering of documents, offering of graft to government officials and importation of prohibited goods.



 They were arrested January 30, 2017. The offences, according to the prosecutor, Mr. Julius Ajakaiye, are contrary to and punishable under Sections 3(6),1(14)(a)(I) 1(2) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, Cap. M17, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, and Section 98(1) (b) of the Criminal Code Act. Attorney-General of the Federation, AGF in charge number FHC/L/190c/17, alleged that all the accused persons conspired with one another to illegally import into Nigeria 661 Pump Action Rifles.


 They were also alleged to have forged the documents which include: two Bills of Lading, one reads ‘Shanghai China,’ as Port of Loading, instead of ‘Istanbul.’ One of the counts reads: ‘Steel Doors’, as the contents of the container instead of Customs’ Form M, Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) used in smuggling the said 661 rifles into the country.


In particular, one of the Customs officials, Mamudu Hassan, was alleged to have corruptly offered the sum of N400,000 to one Aliu Musa, the Examination Officer of the Federal Operations Unit of the Customs Service with an intent to prevent one hundred percent search on a container marked PONU 825914/3, which was used in bringing the arms into the country.



 He was also alleged to have corruptly given the sum of N1 million to government officials at Apapa Ports through his colleague, Danjuma Abdulahi, in order to prevent the searching of the said container used in bringing in the 661 illegally imported Pump Action rifles.

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike has declared that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) lacks the capacity to conduct credible polls.
He called on the International Community to closely monitor the nation’s electoral process to stop INEC from manipulating the 2019 elections. He spoke on Tuesday during a courtesy visit by the German Ambassador to Nigeria, Dr Bernhard Shlagheck to the Government House Port Harcourt. “INEC does not have the capacity to hold free and fair elections. See what happened in Kano State. INEC says it wants to investigate the under-age voting that took place last week.
“Who gave the children the voters cards? We will not allow anyone to manipulate the electoral system of the country “, Governor Wike said. The governor said that due to the failure of the APC, the party plans to use INEC and security agencies to create crisis and manipulate the electoral system . He said that the cries over the order of elections by the ruling All Progressives Congress reveals their intention to manipulate the process.
Speaking further, the Rivers State Governor urged the German Ambassador to ensure that the Federal Government is committed to the development of the Niger Delta. He said that despite resources produced in the Niger Delta, the people have been denied access to infrastructural development. Earlier, the German Ambassador to Nigeria, Dr Bernhard Shlagheck lauded Governor Wike for his investments in infrastructural development. He said that he was in Rivers State as part of his familiarization tour of the Niger Delta. He said that he started with Rivers State because of the importance of the state in the structure of the region.
He called on all political stakeholders to work for the success of the 2019 General Elections . Simeon Nwakaudu, Special Assistant to the Rivers State Governor, Electronic Media.