Members of the National Working Committee of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, on Thursday, hit the street in Abuja, on a peaceful protest over the abduction of more than 300 students of the Government Science Secondary School, GSSS, Kankara, Katsina state.
Led by the National Party Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, the members urged President Muhammadu Buhari and his APC- led Government to urgently rescue the students, and save their parents and the nation from untold anxiety and pains.
Over six hundred of the students, all boys, were abducted by, according to the State Governor, Aminu Masari, local bandits. About 17 of them escaped, and returned home.
But it turns out that the claim by the Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau, that his group abducted the boys, is true.
Masari had, in a television interview, on Wednesday, dismissed Shekau’s claim.
But Thursday afternoon, Shekau released the photographs of the boys as proof he has them in his custody.
The abduction of the boys from President Buhari’s Katsina triggered a combination of outrage and national shame.
They were abducted hours after Buhari arrived Katsina on a week-long private visit.
More outrage greeted Buhari’s inability to visit the school to condole with the parents, the people and the school authorities.
Instead, his aides released a photograph of the President, visiting his cattle at his ranch.
Inexplicably, an official delegation flew in from Abuja on a condolence visit to the Government and people of Katsina. The delegation did not visit the President at his residence.
Mr President has yet to address the Nation on the abduction of the students.
He gave the usual marching orders for their rescue. Nothing has been heard since then about the boys, except Masari’s assurance that none of them has been killed.
As countries are guarding against the second phase of Covid 19 lockdown, Ondo State Inter-ministerial Committee on Coronavirus insists that Churches can hold Vigils during Christmas and New Year Eve under strict adherence to Covid 19 guidelines.
The Committee appealed for an improved level of compliance with the preventive measures against the pandemic as Christmas and New Year approach.
The Committee has also declared that vigils could take place in Worship centers on the night of 31st December 2020, provided that the mandated precautionary measures against COVID-19 are fully complied with.
The Chairman of the Committee, and Vice Chancellor, University of Medical Sciences, Ondo, Prof. Adesegun Fatusi, made the declaration in Akure, after the inter-ministerial Committee’s meeting.
He noted that as several countries are currently experiencing the second wave of the COVID-19, there is an urgent need to prevent any further increase in the number of cases in Nigeria through collective responsibility.
“It is necessary we continue to do our best to prevent the spread of the novel Coronavirus. It is a collective responsibility, particularly as we celebrate in this period.
“The second wave of COVID-19 pandemic is being experienced globally and a new round of lockdown is happening in several countries.
“The only way to avoid another lockdown in Nigeria is for every individual to strictly adhere to the preventive measures against the spread of the virus.”
The Chairman mandated Churches, Mosques and other Worship centres to strictly ensure hand washing, social distancing, and proper use of face masks at all their services and set up internal enforcement teams that would help monitor and enforce adherence to the preventive measures stipulated by the Committee.
The Ondo state Governorship Election Petition Tribunal has concluded the pre-trial hearing of petitions before it, and fixed January 12, 2020 to begin proper hearing.
During the pre-trial session, two petitions filed against the victory of Governor Rotimi Akeredolu by the Action Alliance (AA) and All People’s Party,(APP) were thrown out for non- compliance with Electoral Act.
The Tribunal will now proceed with the petition of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and its candidate, Eyitayo Jegede,SAN.
The PDP candidate, Eyitayo Jegede had dragged Governor Akeredolu to the tribunal to challenge his victory in the October 10 Governorship Election.
Chairman of the Tribunal, Justice Umar Abubakar, fixed the date while reading the report of the pre-trial hearing on Thursday at the Ondo state High Court, venue of the sitting.
According to him, sitting will hold on Mondays to Saturdays 9:30am to 5pm. Exceptions are on public holidays, and Sundays.
Counsels appearing before the tribunal agreed with the contents of the Pre-Trial report but pleaded that the number of representation pegged at five to reduce crowd in the Court, be increased to 10.
This is to forestall rowdy session during the first sitting which led to sporadic gun shots within the tribunal premises during which some people sustained injuries.
Since after the experience, security situation around the tribunal sitting has been improved with men of the Nigeria Police , DSS, and the NSCDC mounting surveillance.
Governor Aminu Masari of Katsina State has revealed that the Students of Government Science Secondary School Kankara, Katsina State were abducted by local bandits.
A number of Nigerians had assumed that the over 330 students were abducted by Boko Haram terrorists. Two days ago, the group’s leader, Abubarkar Shekau, had in an audio, claimed that Boko Haram Insurgents were responsible for the abduction.
The Governor speaking on a Channels Television programme noting that information at his disposal shows that local bandits attacked the school and not Boko Haram fighters.
But Masari, speaking on a.Channel’s Television interview, on.Wednesday, denied such claims, insisting that local bandits were responsible for the abduction.
It will be recalled that gunmen on Friday, December 11, invaded the school in Kankara, Katsina State and escaped with over 300 students into the forest.
Claiming responsibility, Shekau in the less than 5 minutes audio boasted that; “What happened in Katsina was done to promote Islam and discourage un-Islamic practices as Western education is not the type of education permitted by Allah and his Holy Prophet.”
“They are also not teaching what Allah and his Holy Prophet commanded. They are rather destroying Islam. It may be subtle, but Allah the Lord of the skies and earths knows whatever is hidden. May Allah promote Islam. May we die as Muslims.”
“In a nutshell, we are behind what happened in Katsina.”
But countering the claim, Governor Masari insisted that: “The report we have and from the information available to us, this abduction was conducted and executed by local bandits that are known to all of us,” he said.
“These bandits that are roaming the forest of Zamfara and parts of Katsina state, so far, this is the information we have.”
When asked further if he believes the local bandits might have had help from outside, the governor said there are “signs” that bandits enjoyed external help.
“I’m not absolutely discounting any foreign help, either ISWAP or Boko Haram, indirectly working with the bandits,” Masari said.
“You know over one year, there were signs that some of the elements of the bandits are making contact with some of the elements of Boko Haram or ISWAP.”
Masari added that no direct involvement of Boko Haram or ISWAP has been noticed based on intelligence report as his disposal.
“With regards to this abduction, we have not seen yet any direct involvement of Boko Haram or ISWAP. However, we are watching the development.”
“We are seeing through the evidence that we have; we are going through the tracking system that we have in place to find out if there is any linkage,” the Governor said.
In a related development, Governor Masari also on, Wednesday, asked journalists to ask President Buhari why he was yet to visit the Government Science Secondary School in Kankara area of the State, putting into consideration the number of victims.
Ousted former Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, and Human Rights Lawyer, Activist and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, have renewed agitation for the restructuring of the Nation.
The two men commentators opined that restructuring should be seen as a bid for equitable distribution of wealth and resources between the federal and state governments and building of strong systems through strong moral values.
The duo bared their minds on the issue at the Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti, during the 24th Convocation Lecture of the institution, where they asked Nigerians to resist anyone deploying the restructuring agitation to divide Nigeria.
Femi Falana
Falana, delivering a lecture, titled, ‘Restructuring and the liberation of Nigeria,’ said, “The apparent defects in the federal system form the legitimate demand for urgent restructuring in order to liberate the country.
“It is indisputable that the prolonged years of military dictatorship aided the usurpation of residual powers of state governments by the Federal Government.
“The National Assembly has continued to consolidate and expand the powers of the Federal Government to the detriment of federalism, while the courts have interpreted the constitution to justify the control of the judiciary by the Federal Government through the National Judicial Council.
“The way forward is that the struggle for restructuring and liberation of the poor people of Nigeria from the bondage of poverty and inequality requires the adoption of vertical and horizontal measures to build a peaceful and united Nigeria rooted in social justice, equity and genuine freedom.”
Sanusi, the University Chancellor, in his remark, said, “There is a difference between restructuring and secession. There is a difference between restructuring and division. There is a difference between restructuring and civil war. Some are using ethnic profiling to divide us. Ethnicity and religion are mere identities; they don’t really represent our values and who we truly are.”
The EKSU Vice Chancellor, Prof. Edward Olanipekun, said, “The Nigerian nation, perhaps because of the colonial mode of evolution still remains contentious, leading to continuous agitations for restructuring even in the extreme the dissolution of the union 60 years after independence”.
Southern Nigeria is not immune to Boko Haram attack. The region could be the next target. So says Aisha Yesufu.
Yesufu, is the co-convener of the Bring Back Our Girls campaign and a vocal voice during the #EndSARS protest against Police brutality.
She now warns that Boko Haram insurgents will start attacking the Southern part of Nigeria as soon as they are done with their mission and onslaught in the Northern region.
Yesufu warned Southern region Governors and leaders to be wary, and be proactive in putting security architecture and structures in place to counter any attack from the Boko Haram.
The Activist stressed that the Boko Haram Insurgent issues is not only the concern of the North but the nation as a whole.
She urged all regions to chart a way to fight the Boko Haram insurgency before it moves to the South.
Yesufu made this statement on her Social Media Platform, and asked the South to rise to the occasion.
“When Boko haram are done with the North they will face the South. If you think this is none of your business, some thought it wasn’t their business when it was happening in North East now it is.
“Terrorist attack to anyone anywhere is terrorist attack to everyone everywhere, so we need to brace and fight the insurgency”, she wrote.
The news of the death of Sam Nda-Isaiah, Publisher of the Abuja- based Leadership Group of Newspapers, on Saturday, December 12, 2020, hit me like claps of thunder. And left me frozen and speechless for minutes.
I choose to call the dinner we had together, five days before his death, my last supper with Sam.
It was at the Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos. I was not alone at that dinner with him that Monday of December 7, 2020. At the dinner, not quite planned, were Uncle Sam, the backbone of the Newspapers Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria, NPAN, and Publisher of the Vanguard Group of Newspapers, Ray Ekpu, an invaluable Veteran of the Pen profession, the new NPAN President, Founder and Chairman of the Daily Trust Group of Newspapers, Malam Kabiru Yusuf and, Gbenga Adefaye, the boss at Uncle Sam’s Vanguard Newspapers who Uncle Sam, fondly calls “My Oga”. It was a meeting-turned dinner.
The Annual General Meeting, AGM, of the NPAN was scheduled for the next day, Tuesday, December 8. But Uncle Sam, our boss, who protects NPAN like mother-hen, had summoned a few of us to what we jokingly, like politicians, termed “a caucus meeting.” He fixed that meeting just to make sure that the AGM, which would usher in a new NPAN Executive would be smooth. He always does that.
Ten years ago when I was elected the General Secretary by acclamation, a position I held until this December 8, Uncle Sam had sent Ekpu to my office to talk me into accepting the position. But this time, Uncle Sam wanted an expanded consultation, perhaps, because of the times we are in.
The fortunes of the Media Industry, have gone from bad, to worse, to worst. The Industry is depressed. Practitioners are just there, barely surviving. Many are losing interest. Some are dancing to the tune of the big pipers who hide somewhere to dictate the tune. A couple of Media Associations have lost their voices. The vibrancy of yesteryears is fast receding. It is like the Media has been conquered.
So, Uncle Sam wanted to make sure that at the AGM, we’ll speak with one voice. No rancor. No political pollution. Acclamation is better, he emphasised. The NPAN must lead, and give the Media a strong voice, and fight its battles.
Ekpu was in Uyo when Uncle Sam summoned him. This was Sunday, December 6. His flight back to Lagos was for 4.00pm, Monday. I was in Owerri. My flight was for 5.00pm, Monday. All earlier flights were booked full, no thanks to our disgraceful dangerous roads, particularly in the South-east. The problem is not just the bad roads. You have to contend with kidnappers and armed robbers and a number of wayward herdsmen.
Sam Nda-Isaiah
Aviation operators know, and exploit our misfortune to the limit. So, flights to, and from the South-east are usually fully booked. The cost out of this world.
Ekpu told me the meeting was for 5.00pm. We had to act fast. When Uncle Sam summons you, you have to pull all stops. We did.
By 5.00am, Monday, I hit the road from Owerri to Lagos. I was nervous because I had assured my family and a very close friend of mine that I was not going to dare the road. The last time I did from Lagos, because I had an emergency in Owerri, I arrived Owerri by 11.00pm, atimes veering into bushes, to the shock and anger of my family and friends.
This day then, none of them knew I was on the road. When my friend called at about 9.00am, and heard my driver warning another motorist who almost hit us, the question was: “Where are you? Did you disobey me?” I lied. “How could I? Am I crazy? I’m going to the market to buy vegetables to take back to Lagos.” Truth is: by that time, I had just gone past Benin by-pass!
I was at Ore when Ekpu called to say he had managed to get a 1.00pm flight. The road was kind to me. I arrived Lagos by 2.00pm, beating Ekpu who got stuck between the Lagos Airport and Ikeja to it.
Uncle Sam was waiting, stretched out on Kabiru Yusuf’s bed in his (Yusuf’s)Sheraton room. But Ekpu and I were hungry, having not eaten all day. We all opted to go to the Restaurant for dinner.
We had barely sat down when Sam Nda-Isaiah joined us.Sam ate, very well, healthy. As we ate, he regaled us with exclusive, off-record, inside gists from Abuja. We were, at once, stunned, shocked and depressed at some of the exclusives. Things are indeed bad, perhaps, worse than we thought. Sam should know.
Aside from being a Publisher, he was also a Politician of the APC stock. In 2014, Sam took part in the APC Presidential Primary, challenging President Buhari with great zeal and seriousness. That did not affect their relationship when Buhari won, and eventually became the President. Sam had access to him, and to almost, all the Powers-that-be in Abuja. He was an insider.
After we had had a hearty laughter over some of Sam’s gists, Uncle Sam called the meeting to order. We began to put down names against offices. A Christian from Niger State, Sam was very passionate about the North.
If anybody was in doubt, he confirmed it that evening, as we now converted our Sheraton restaurant table to our meeting venue.
He began to canvass, strongly, to our bewilderment, that the NPAN Headquarters be moved from Lagos to Abuja. Why Lagos, he asked? Abuja is the FCT. And we have a number of newspapers Headquartered there? Why should I come to Lagos to meet with Lai Mohammed, when I have free access to him in Abuja? Why should we be coming to Lagos all the time?
Not entirely true.
NPAN had held meetings, a number of times, at the posh Headquarters of both the Daily Trust and Leadership.
Calm, cool and collected, Kabiru Yusuf, who we all knew was the in-coming President, listened with a mild smile playing around his lips. A deep man, Yusuf is always like that. And he is patient.
He ought to have been the President since six years ago. But each time, members insisted that the Nduka Obaigbena-led Executive should continue, and achieve the many set targets. Obaigbena has tremendous reach. That Executive served for an unprecedented ten years.
For the number of years Obaigbena was President, I was General Secretary. Sam was my Assistant, until 2014 when he fully embraced politics, and became a Presidential aspirant under the APC. The Publisher of Blueprint, Abuja based, Mohammed Idris Abuja based, took over from him, and became my assistant.
Sam used to tease me, “Comfort, I am your assistant now. When I become Nigeria’s President, the table will turn. I will appoint you as one of my Assistants.”
So that evening at Sheraton, Sam argued forcefully that Mohammed Idris, steps in as my successor. We tried to suggest somebody else, since the General Secretary runs the Secretariat and, with the Treasurer, signs the cheques. I was asked if I was interested in continuing. I said no, since it would be against the NPAN constitution. Other people, based in Lagos, were suggested, but Sam wouldn’t budge. He was like that. He always held to his conviction.
At the AGM on Tuesday, he quickly nominated Idris, ignoring a minor change on the list that emerged that morning for which he called me to oppose as soon as he heard. The cheques can be signed by the Deputy President and the Treasurer, he told me. I was convinced. So, another acclamation.
When it came to the post of the Publicity Secretary, Sam nominated somebody else, after the first nomination. Ekpu, who was our own INEC Chairman, decided to put it to vote. Sam’s candidate lost. We had a good laugh, but the candidate was compensated, by acclamation, with another position.
I have told this long story just to prove that Sam was not an unhealthy dying man at the time we were together either at the “caucus” meeting, or at the AGM. He was his usual lively, flamboyant, vociferous and, atimes, brash self. He argued, forcefully, as usual.
But let me quickly add that at Sheraton, I noticed his face was kind of puffy, especially, the cheek area. I noticed he was not as smart while walking, as usual. He had also put on more weight than usual. But I put these down to three things. We are all aging. The COVID-19 lockdown made many of us to put on weight. And, Sam always had a problem with gout. Nothing life threatening.
Sam knew how to enjoy himself. He did that to the fullest. He enjoyed travelling to the Caribbean. He was conscious of his health.
At the AGM, he sat by me. When I complained that I needed to take a look at my health, he quickly directed me to a hospital in Dubai, wrote the name down for me, and said “I patrionise them. They are very good.”
You can then imagine my shock, at about 4.00am, Saturday, when I read, online, that Sam was gone. It was unbelievable, So, I sat up until 6.00am when I called Kabiru Yusuf, our new President.
“Presido, is this a joke about Sam?”, I asked, almost in a whisper. When he confirmed, and said he was getting ready to go and visit the family, I lost it.
Sam Nda-Isaiah was many things rolled into one. A family man. A Pharmacist. A Publisher. A Columnist. A Politician. A serial entrepreneur. A patriot. He was Chairman of a number of companies.
The suddenness of his death diminishes me as a human being. It’s frightening. And it confirms that we are just like fruits before God. He plucks anyone of us when He chooses to. I shall miss Sam’s robust arguments. May his soul rest in peace.
Using a tweet Wednesday evening, President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered the immediate reopening of Nigeria’s land borders.
The borders whose opening were ordered for immediate reopening are four land borders.
Buhari’s order was disclosed by the Minister for Finance at the end of the virtual Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting.
The Land borders to be opened are Seme in the Southwest, Illela in Sokoto State, Maigatari in the Northwest, and Mfun in the Southsouth.
Citing security concerns, Nigeria had ordered the closure of its land borders since August 2019.
Amidst criticisms from not a few people, drivers of the economy, and complaints from neighbouring countries, and fears of the damage its continous closure was having on the economy, the President had, on December 8, 2020, hinted that the borders would be reopened soon.
It is not known if the objectives for the closure of the borders which included the curbing of smuggling of weapons and drugs into Nigeria were achieved, as the borders remained porous.
Speculations are that the closure of the borders, coupled with the worldwide damage to the economy by COVID-19, helped drive Nigeria to a second round of recession within a space of four years.
At last, former Publicity Secretary of the People’s Democratic Party, Olisa Metuh, has been vindicated.
A three-man Panel of Judges of the Court of Appeal , unanimously set him free, nullified the proceedings of the lower court, quashed the seven year jail term he was serving, and ordered a fresh retrial of the case.
Metuh had been sentenced to jail by Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court. He was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, for alleged money laundering, alongside his company, Destra Investment Ltd.
But delivering judgement on Metuh’s appeal on Wednesday, Justice Stephen Adah, who delivered the lead judgement said that Justice Abang’s judgement was null and void, as the proceedings of the Federal High Court, was tainted, filled with bias, and would not be allowed to stand.
Justice Adah was of the view that the utterances of Justice Abang proved that he was clearly biased against the convicts.
Adah, therefore, ordered that the trial be conducted afresh.
Abang had, on February 25, 2020, sentenced Metuh to seven years imprisonment for, allegedly, fraudulently receiving the sum of N400m from the office of the former National Security Adviser, under President Goodluck Jonathan, Col. Sambo Dasuki.
At the launch of a book in his honour in Abuja on Monday, Jonathan had lamented that many of his associates, friends and cabinet members were being persecuted in order to give a false image of him.
The managing director of Ecobank Group, Ade Adeyemi, has described the closure of 114 branches as one of the best decisions taken by the conglomerate, noting that the bank still operate more branches than other commercial banks in the country.
Recall that the group’s chief executive recently announced that the bank will no longer invest in bricks and mortar, meaning that the DMB will invest more on digital platforms to provide banking service to customers.
Speaking to Nairametrics, the Ecobank CEO said the closed branches were no longer making profit, adding that they were merged with other branches in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s approval.
“Yes, we closed 114 branches. We still have about 250 something branches remaining. So, having 250 branches is massive when you consider the branch network that the rest of our competitors have. That is the first thing.
“The second is the idea of using agency network as a means of being able to distribute banking services to people. The third thing is the idea that digital platform is now going to continue to be the preferred method of delivering banking services to people as we go forward into the future.
“Those are the things that informed our decision and some of these branches were not profitable. Some of them were weak and that was the basis on which we made the decision to close those branches and merge their activities with some other branches that exists in agreement with our regulator, the Central Bank of Nigeria.”
The Ecobank chief said the Nigeria economy will recover from recession next year, blaming the COVID 19 headwinds for the contraction. He explained that more efforts are needed to get the economy back on tract, but that “Nothing should be taken for granted, the government and the people still need to act in a way that is supportive of those growth expectations. So, we think that Nigeria will go back to growth in 2021.”
