UNILORIN
PROF’S EX-DRIVER, TWO OTHERS TO DIE BY HANGING
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High Court in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital,
presided over by Justice H. Saleeman on Thursday sentenced three persons to
death by hanging for armed robbery and attempting to commit culpable homicide
against a professor with the University of Ilorin, Prof. Abdullahi Onimisi.
The
convicts, who are Onimisi’s former driver, Mr. Opeyemi Esan; one Mr. Benjamin
Musa and Mr. Oluwasegun Ajiboye, were convicted of robbery, punishable under
Section 1 (2) Robbery and Firearms Act, Cap R 11, LFN 2004.
The
Kwara State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Kamalden
Ajibade, who led the prosecution, had told the court that the professor
disengaged the service of Esan due to his unruly behaviour.
Ajiade
added that Esan was aggrieved with his dismissal and organised a robbery attack
to retaliate the sack.
Esan,
in his confession to the police, was said to have owned up that he recruited
Musa and Ajiboye from Lagos State to deal with his former boss.
Ajibade
said, “On September 10, 2016, at the Senior Staff Quarters, University of
Ilorin, the accused, while armed with weapons, including guns and machetes,
robbed Onimisi and his family of their property, including a car, handsets, jewellery,
and other valuables.”
IFE CRISIS: POLICE UNFAIR TO YORUBA, SAYS AFENIFERE
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he pan-Yoruba
socio-cultural organization, Afenifere has criticised the Police over the
manner they handled the recent Hausa/Fulani crisis in Ile-Ife, Osun state.
It emphasised
that the Police are not fair to the Yorubas.
At its meeting
held Tuesday at the residence of its leader, Chief Reuben Fasoranti in Akure,
the Ondo State, Afenifere condemned the action of the Police, especially the
arrest of 20 Yoruba people.
The group
accused police of bias and sectional in the way they handled the matter.
The Publicity
Secretary of the organization, Yinka Odumakin, who read the communiqué issued
at the end of the meeting said “Afenifere becomes worried with the way the
Police handled the Ife crisis, especially considering the fact that the
leadership of the presidency and that of the Police are from one of the
sections involved in the crisis.”
Afenifere
therefore urged the Police to investigate the crisis with utmost fairness and
in line with the ethics of the profession.
It insisted
that the suspects arrested in connection with the crisis must be returned to
Osun State where the offence was allegedly committed, rather than being tried
in Abuja.
Afenifere
advised the Police to stop further dehumanizing of the suspects, warning them
against further sectional judgment.
The group noted
that the office of the state Attorney General should be given roles to play in
the constitution, stressing that on Ife crisis, the office of the Attorney
General of Osun State and the Ministry of Justice as a whole should be the one
to advise the Police on the matter.
On Fulani
herdsmen, Afenifere said a seven-member panel has been set up to move round all
the communities in the South West to ascertain the level of damage done by the
Fulani herdsmen.
Besides,it
charged the Governors the northern states to build ranches within their states
to avoid invasion of farm land by cattle.
WE PAID N62.5M FOR CONTROVERSIAL RANGE ROVER NOT N298M – SENATE
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he
Senate Tuesday said that the controversial Sport Utility Range Rover was not
purchased at the rate of N298 million.
Chairman,
Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, in
a statement in Abuja said that although the SUV was imported in 2015 at the
rate of $298,000, the Senate paid only N62.5 million when it bought the
vehicle.
Abdullahi
said that the clarification became necessary following misinformation that the
Senate paid N298 million for the vehicle.
He
said, “Our attention has been drawn to the various false and mischievous
reports in the media about the price of the vehicle which the Senate was said
to have bought as part of its convoy but was later abandoned when it got
impounded by the Customs over controversy surrounding import duty payment.
“The
correct price of the vehicle when it was imported in 2015 is $298,000 which at
the prevailing rate of N165 to a dollar is about N49, 170.
“The Senate paid N62.5m for the vehicle in
November 2015. This is contrary to the mischief by those who decided to turn
the $298,000 to N298m as the price of the vehicle. For the avoidance of
doubt, the price of that vehicle is N62.5m and not N298m.
“The
Senate will appreciate it if all reports relating to the legislative
institution, particularly on this vehicle matter, are reported with accuracy
and all facts put in proper perspective. We urge journalists to avoid
sensationalism.
“The
Senate is a responsible institution and those who believe that when they have
issues to explain before it, the next thing to do is to resort to
falsehood, blackmail, muck-raking and mud-slinging, should know that they are just
overheating the polity and undermining our democratic institution.
“Finally,
the Senate wishes to reiterate our total commitment to upholding the rule of
law and to work for Nigerians, in accordance with our constitution.”
BOKO HARAM WILL NEVER SEIZE
ANY PART OF NIGERIA AGAIN, BUHARI VOWS
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resident
Muhammadu Buhari has vowed in Sambisa Forest on Monday that terrorists will never
again take over and occupy any part of Nigeria’s territory.
The
President made the vow when he declared the 2017 Nigerian Army Small Arms
Championship (NASAC), opened.
Represented by the Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan-Ali, Buhari noted that holding the championship in the forest was an affirmation that government was “resolved to stamp out all activities and operations of the Boko Haram insurgents from our territory.”
Buhari said: “This
championship is a showcase of the clear effect and degradation of the Boko
Haram terrorist group with the destruction of Camp Zairo in the heart of the
famous Sambisa forest.
“I
can say categorically that never again will Boko Haram occupy any of our land.
“I want use this opportunity to congratulate the Nigerian Army for this
achievement and reiterate at this point by noting that it is a case of
professional training that brought the Nigerian Army to this length.”
Buhari
restated that through the Presidential Committee on North-East Initiative
(PCNI), government would reconstruct facilities and structures destroyed by the
terrorists so that the people of the region could enjoy the dividends of
democracy.
Earlier,
the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, said the championship was held
at the forest to consolidate on the gains achieved by troops in the North East
so far.
“This
championship is therefore held here at the heart of the Sambisa forest as part
of Nigerian Army’s plans to effectively dominate all hostile territories in the
North East”, Buratai said. NASAC was held seven years ago at Armed Forces
Command and Staff College, Jaji, in Kaduna state.
According
to Buratai, the championship could not be held since then due to numerous
operational engagements by the army.
Meanwhile,
the Federal Government has named the newly established Nigerian Army shooting
range at the Sambisa forest after the late Lt.-Col. Abu Ali. Ali, who was the
commander of an army formation at Mallam Fatori in Borno east, died in a battle
on Nov. 4, 2016 when Boko Haram terrorists attempted to invade and take the
town.
Newsmen,
recalls that the army routed the terrorists and took over Sambisa on Dec. 23,
2016 at about 1.35pm after it overran Camp Zairo, their last strong hold in the
forest.
POLITICIANS CAN BE STUPID
SOMETIMES, SAYS GERMAN DIPLOMAT
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ermany’s
foreign minister, says politicians can be stupid sometimes, in response to
comments by a senior EU politician quipping that southern European countries
squandered their money on ‘booze and women’.
Jeroen
Dijsselbloem, chair of the Eurogroup of finance ministers, rekindled lingering
anger over the euro zone debt crisis by telling a newspaper “I cannot spend all
my money on booze and women and plead for your support afterwards.
“This principle
applies on the personal, local, national and also the European level,” he told
the Frankfurter Allgemeine.
German Foreign
Minister Sigmar Gabriel, speaking in Athens, one of the countries worst hit by
debt and austerity, called the comment unbelievable.
“The fact that
politicians sometimes talk nonsense is not proof that the European idea doesn’t
work. This is my response,” he added.
Portuguese
Prime Minister Antonio Costa said Dijsselbloem should resign, while other
nations, including Greece, have chided the remarks as sexist.
The Dutchman,
whose five-year term ends in January, has refused to quit but said he regretted
the comments.
MELAYE DECIDES TO DIE AFTER REVEALING THE TRUTH, REPLIES AGF
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enator Dino
Melaye has said he will continue to speak the truth even if it costs him his
life.
“You speak the
truth, you die; you lie, you die. Melaye Daniel Dino has decided to speak the
truth and die,” the Senator representing Kogi West said on Wednesday in
reaction to a letter that the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister
of Justice, Abubakar Malami, wrote to the Senate.
The
Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar
Malami, had written the President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki, saying it
would be sub-judicial for the upper chamber to insist that the
Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Col. Hammed Ali (retd.)
should wear the NCS uniform.
“I ask again,
where did the Attorney-General of the Federation who we screened on this floor
derive his powers from to authorise, direct the Senate or suggest to the Senate
how to carry out our constitutional mandate?
“The
Attorney-General has no such powers to suggest to us, to direct us, to motivate
us, or even imply by inference how we should carry out our (duty).”
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CAN’T JOIN APC- FAYOSE
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kiti
State governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose, has said he cannot join the All Progressives
Congress (APC), even if he has to leave his current party, the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP).
Fayose,
who spoke at a gathering in Ado-Ekiti, said the practice of use and dump
adopted by the leadership of the APC would not allow him to contemplate
defecting to the party.
A
press statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Idowu Adelusi in Ado-Ekiti
on Wednesday, the governor cited the case of a national leader of the APC,
Senator Bola Tinubu, who worked tooth and nail for the victory of the party in the 2015 general elections in
the country and who was subsequently abandoned by those he helped to put in
power.
“Some people have
been making overtures to me to join the APC, but I cannot join them. With what
have they repaid somebody like Asiwaju Tinubu? He worked and helped the party
to secure victory but has been dumped. That is not a party I would be
interested in joining.
“One thing I would not allow is for
anybody to rubbish our leaders in the South-West. Our leaders, including
Asiwaju Tinubu, must be accorded their due respect, as any attempt to rubbish
them will be taken as a slap on the entire Yoruba race,” he added.
The clarification by the governor came
on the heel of crisis rocking the PDP at the national level in which Senators
Ahmed Makarfi and Ali Modu Sheriff are locked in
a battle over the national chairmanship seat of the party.
This is just as the governor said his
administration would complete the rehabilitation of the federal Ado-Itawure
Road before the burial of the late military governor of the old Western Region,
Major-General Adeyinka Adebayo.
He also promised to rehabilitate the
Ifaki-Omuo Road, another Federal Government road, to make access to the state
more pleasurable.
On the need to ensure coordinated
development for the state, Fayose said a master plan for Ado-Ekiti, the state
capital, would be worked out.
He noted that the government would need
the support of landlords and property owners, as the government would not want
a situation whereby indiscriminate physical development would later turn the
town into an eyesore.
He promised that a Landlords’ Summit
would be conveyed to aggregate the opinions and input of landlords to the
evolution of the master plan.
4 DIE IN KWARA FARMERS, HERDSMEN CLASH
OUR
persons have been feared killed in a clash between the residents of Yakira
community in the Baruten Local Government Area of Kwara State and herdsmen.
It was alleged
that the community killed three herdsmen in retaliation to the killing of an
indigene.
The man, whose
corpse was found in his farm, had earlier reportedly complained of incessant
grazing of cattle on his farm.
Contacted,
Alhaji Musa Buge, the Chairman of the Transitional Implementation Committee for
the council, yesterday, confirmed the killings.
He, however,
noted that normalcy had been restored to the area. Buge said arrangement was
ongoing to have a security meeting of the council to work out a way to
forestall future re-occurrence.
Spokesman of
Kwara State Police Command, Ajayi Okasanmi, confirmed the killings, but said he
was not sure of the number.
He also said
the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Olusola Amore, had ordered an investigation
with a view to bringing the culprits to book.
I WAS
NOT EMPLOYED TO WEAR UNIFORM – CUSTOMS CHIEF
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n an apparent
response to senate’s directive, the Comptroller General of Customs, Col. Hameed
Ali (retd), declared on Friday that he was not employed to wear uniform.
Ali told newsmen
that rather he was appointed to work effectively.
The Senate had
ordered him to appear before it on March 15 in his official uniform as a
customs officer.
He was summoned
by the senators over the Customs’ new order, asking all old vehicles to pay
customs duty.
Customs offered
a 60 per cent rebate for vehicles from 2015 below.
He said: “No! I
was not appointed Comptroller General of Customs to wear uniform.
“Does uniform
work or the person behind the uniform?”
On the
criticism of the Customs for the recent invasion of the Sango Ota motor park in
Ogun State where thousands of bags of rice were carted away on the allegation
that they were smuggled, Ali said: “If we suspect that smuggled items are taken
into your house, we have the right to cordon that house and go in to search.
“Am I doing my
job or not? I think that should be what should worry the National Assembly.”
BUHARI RETURNS, LANDS IN KADUNA, CHOPPERED TO
PRESIDENTIAL VILLA
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Owing
to the closure of the Abuja airport, presidency sources informed THISDAY that
his plane was scheduled to land at the Kaduna airport in the wee hours of
Friday, following which he was to be flown by helicopter to the President
Villa, Abuja.
The
sources also revealed that the president might address the nation Friday after
his long absence, in order to quell any concerns over his capacity to govern.
The news of his return Friday was broken last night in a statement by his media aide, Mr. Femi Adesina.
Adesina
recalled that the president left the shores of the country on January 19 for a
vacation, during which he was scheduled to undergo routine medical check-ups.
He said the scheduled vacation was however extended due to the advice by his doctors that he undergoes further medical tests.
According
to him, the president expressed gratitude to the generality of Nigerians in all
parts of the country and beyond who supported him in their prayers and good
wishes while he was away.
“President Muhammadu Buhari is expected to return to the country tomorrow, Friday March 10, 2017. The President left the country on January 19, 2017 for a vacation, during which he had routine medical check-ups.
FG TO PROSECUTE ILLEGAL IMPORTERS OF FROZEN FISH
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he
Federal Government says it will henceforth arrest, prosecute and fine illegal
importers of frozen foods into the country through the land borders and seal
cold rooms where it is sold.
Sen.
Heineken Lokpobiri, the Minister of state for Agriculture and Rural
Development, announced this while speaking with newsmen in Abuja on Thursday.
Lokpobiri
said the government would also set up a taskforce to seal and prosecute
operators of cold room, who deal on those illegally imported produce.
The
minister said the ministry was working in collaboration with the Nigeria
Customs Service, Nigerian Navy and the Nigerian Marine Police to actualise the
plan.
He said the
offenders would pay a fine of $250,000 or attract five years imprisonment or
both in addition to the forfeiture and destruction of the produce as stipulated
by the law.
He
listed some of the fishes usually being imported to include tilapia, red pacus,
river bream, pangassius, horse mackerel, sardine and croaker, among others.
Lokpobiri
said the illegal venture had resulted to huge loss of revenue, decrease in
local production and loss of jobs, as well as discouragement by farmers.
The
minister, who said that the move was to encourage local production and exports,
disclosed that the country’s annual demand on fish was currently at 3.2 million
tonnes and deficit at 1.9 million tonnes.
According
to him, the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture in the ministry is the only
competent authority empowered by the Nigeria Sea Fisheries Act to issue distant
water fishing licence for the importation of frozen fish into Nigeria.
“The
department does not issue licence for the importation of frozen farmed fish
into Nigeria through the land borders.
“The
smuggling of unhealthy frozen fish into the country is detrimental to the
progress being made toward guaranteeing the good health and nutrition of
Nigerians.
“We will continue to partner with the
Nigeria Customs Service, the Navy, marine policy to see how we can clamp down
on the offenders.
“Even
those that have brought the produce into the country, we are setting up a
taskforce that will go round different cold rooms, like what Customs is doing
to rice.
“Any
cold room that we find these fishes, we will seal them up, ensure you pay the
$250,000 fine because laws are meant to be obeyed,’’ he said.
The
minister said that consumption of those imported frozen foods were major cause
of some health challenges being experienced in the country.
Lokpobiri,
who frowned at the rising cases of kidney disease among children between the
ages of five and seven, assured that the government would fight the menace to a
halt.
In
an interview, Mr. Lamina Rasheed, the National Chairman, Association of
Indigenous Seafood Stakeholders, appealed to the Federal Government to release
foreign exchange (FOREX) for the importation of fish.
He
said that getting FOREX at a cheaper rate would ensure reduction in the price
of the produce and make it affordable.
The
chairman said the illegal importation of fishes was detrimental to their
business.
Rasheed
said that members of the association paid import duty of 14 per cent, which
amounted to millions of naira to the Federal Government while the illegal
importers pay next to nothing through the land borders.
According
to him, it is difficult to compete with them in the market because they slash
their prices.
He
attributed the high cost of fish to the current exchange rate, adding that the
frozen fish did not enjoy FOREX from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
“Before,
we were getting FOREX from the government but now, we are buying from the open
market.
“When
you pay 14 per cent and somebody is paying zero per cent, how do you sell your
commodity?
“Therefore,
all the fishes we brought legally into the country are currently stocked in the
cold room because we cannot afford to lose our money or bank’s money.
“We
have a lot of stocks in the cold room, which are unsold,’’ Rasheed said.
ELDERSTATEMEN RE-ECHO CALLS FOR TRUE FEDERALISM
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igeria’s pressing
challenges require urgent solutions.
And the panacea could come a little sooner
if the current federal system is readjusted to fit the prescription of the late
elder statesman and founder of the defunct Action Group (AG), Chief Obafemi
Awolowo.
This was the consensus of prominent leaders at the 2017 Obafemi
Awolowo Memorial Lecture and his 108th posthumous birthday event in Lagos
yesterday.
The eminent Nigerians
included former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd); Ooni of Ife, Oba
Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi Ojaja II; Obi of Onitsha, HRM Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred
Ugochukwu Achebe; former Commonwealth Secretary-General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku;
Governors, Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun); Rauf Aregbesola (Osun), Akinwunmi Ambode
(Lagos) as well as Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan and Chief Olusegun Osoba, both
erstwhile governors of Delta and Ogun states.
Also present were The
Guardian’s Publisher, Lady Maiden Alex-Ibru; former Minister of Defence, Gen.
Alani Akinrinade (rtd); Chief J.K. Randle, Chief Ayo Adebanjo and National
Coordinator, Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC), Otunba Gani Adams.
To them, the nation’s foundation
needs urgent tinkering with to enable it to deliver the expectations of the
founding fathers for the citizenry.
The speakers noted: “If Nigeria had embraced the political advice of Awolowo on how a multi-ethnic country like ours should be run, we would have been walking side by side with some of the Western nations like Japan, United Kingdom, America and others today.”
Anyaoku particularly expressed sadness at what he described as the prevalent poverty rate and disrespect for the judiciary by the Federal Government over the years.
His words: “The founding fathers would be disappointed to
find out that instead of having viable federating units, we have weaker and
non-viable ones with an all-powerful government at the centre which stifles
competition and growth.
“They would also be disappointed in the way that the Federal Government disrespects the judiciary and disobeys court orders. Our fathers would be disappointed in the direction the country is heading to.”
Anyaoku, who is also the chairman, Selection Committee, Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership, therefore called on those in government to review their stance on the restructuring of the country.
Gowon lauded Awolowo’s sagacity, saying he was a great Nigerian who gave all to keep the nation united, especially during the civil war.The Ooni of Ife, who also condemned the current federal structure, however, challenged all on stewardship. He stressed that it was good for one to be remembered for service.
“They would also be disappointed in the way that the Federal Government disrespects the judiciary and disobeys court orders. Our fathers would be disappointed in the direction the country is heading to.”
Anyaoku, who is also the chairman, Selection Committee, Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership, therefore called on those in government to review their stance on the restructuring of the country.
Gowon lauded Awolowo’s sagacity, saying he was a great Nigerian who gave all to keep the nation united, especially during the civil war.The Ooni of Ife, who also condemned the current federal structure, however, challenged all on stewardship. He stressed that it was good for one to be remembered for service.
Aregbesola however, differed, saying the critical
deficiency of the country was the concept of money.He noted: “A nation that
does not care about how its income is distributed to the class of workers
cannot be said to be serious. This is responsible for the great poverty in our
country and until income is predicated on production of good and services, we
are going nowhere.”
But the guest lecturer, Prof. Banji Akintoye, faulted the governor, noting that the abandonment of the late sage’s prescription had done the nation a lot of evil. He stressed that true federalism remains the only way to go.
To Osoba, Awolowo left a great legacy that the country could not afford to overlook.Later yesterday, political associates and family members held a thanksgiving service at Our Saviour’s Anglican Church, Ikenne-Remo Ogun State to commemorate the day.
But the guest lecturer, Prof. Banji Akintoye, faulted the governor, noting that the abandonment of the late sage’s prescription had done the nation a lot of evil. He stressed that true federalism remains the only way to go.
To Osoba, Awolowo left a great legacy that the country could not afford to overlook.Later yesterday, political associates and family members held a thanksgiving service at Our Saviour’s Anglican Church, Ikenne-Remo Ogun State to commemorate the day.
The Vicar Venerable Samuel Enike, who spoke on the theme,
“Living for Christ”, noted that the free education policy initiated by the late
Awolowo afforded countless Nigerians the opportunity to be educated.
Also yesterday, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar said he
was championing the restructuring of the country because the current system
gives room for suspicion and makes the nation weak.
Atiku, who spoke at the annual public lecture of Prof.
Ademola Popoola of the Faculty of Law, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) Ile
Ife, Osun State under the theme, “Constitutional and political framework for
reconstructing Nigeria for true federalism and national integration,” termed
the current structure a “unitary federalism.”
VARSITY STUDENTS DECLARE THREE-DAY PRAYER FOR BUHARI
NANS President,
Chinonso Obasi, who disclosed this in a statement yesterday, said Nigerian
students would within the three days starting from Wednesday, February 8, 2017
join other patriotic citizens to intercede on behalf of the President who is on
medical vacation in the United Kingdom.
According to him: “As
leaders of tomorrow and champions of a better Nigeria, we should not be left
out in the national call for prayers for the President.”
Also, a political platform, Sunshine
Integrity Forum (SIF) has urged Nigerians to pray for good health for the
President so that “his task of cleansing the country of corruption to engender
socio-economic development” can be successfully completed.
The platform is a group within the All Progressives Congress
(APC) in the state, which is under the leadership of Senator Robert Ajayi
Boroffice who represents Ondo North in the upper legislative chamber, stated
this during a prayer session it organised for the president in Akure, Ondo
State capital yesterday.
Leading the prayers, Pastor Kehinde Zacheaus of Complete
Bible Church expressed optimism that “President Buhari will live to fulfill the
good purpose of God for Nigerians.”
Personalities who attended the event at Boroffice’s former
campaign office were the ex-Speaker of Ondo State House of Assembly, Kenneth
Olawale, Chief Bailey Arohunmolase, Mrs. Julie Ajegunmo, Mrs. Nireti Akinyele,
Messrs Dayo Bello and Olusola Aturu among other APC politicians.
Boroffice, in a speech delivered by Elder Ebenezer
Ogunrinde, urged Nigerians to support President Buhari in the task of
rebuilding the country.And in Gombe, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO),
Community for Peace and Corrupt-free Society, Nigeria yesterday held special
prayers for President Buhari and the nation.
Speaking at the prayer session, the National Chairman of the
society, Zakari Ahmed, said it is part of their responsibility as Nigerians to
pray for the speedy recovery of the President and the country’s development.
The Emir of Gombe, Alhaji Abubakar Shehu-Abubakar, who was
represented by Alhaji Lamido Abubakar thanked the organisers, the clerics and
the participants for their cooperation.
OSINBAJO’S PERFORMANCE: DELE
MOMODU, PRESIDENTIAL AIDES IN MEDIA WAR
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hat seems like a media war has erupted between the media
aide of President Muhammadu Buhari, Mrs. Lauretta Onochie on one hand and both
the Publisher Ovation Magazine, Otunba Dele Momodu and the former aide of
Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Reno Omokri on the other hand over the Ovation
publisher’s comment that “Osinbajo is doing what Buhari failed to do.”
Mr. Momodu had on his twitter handle and in a write-up said
that President Buhari’s medical leave abroad has turned out to be a blessing
owing that the Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo whom President Buhari had handed
over before leaving the country is redirecting the All Progressives Congress,
APC-led federal government back on course from it’s derailed path of fighting
many war fronts while the economy suffered. According to him, “What has
happened in Nigeria in the past few weeks, even days, can only be a testimony
to that miracle I prophesised.
When President Buhari left Nigeria he formally wrote to the
Senate putting his Vice-President in charge as Acting President until he
returns.” “That singular act which is merely a repetition of what was done
during previous extended personal visits abroad by the President is salutary as
it is stellar and itself heralded the transformation in this government that we
are witnessing.”
“When I flew out of Lagos to Johannesburg last Monday,
February 20, 2017, a US dollar was selling for about 520 naira in the
omnipotent black market. As at Thursday, it was selling at around 475 Naira. By
yesterday, Friday 24 February 2017the Naira was exchanging at about 460 Naira to
the Dollar.”
“What a difference a week makes. This remarkable resurgence
of the Naira is coming on the heels of new policies and directives that the CBN
has been mandated to put in place by the rejuvenated economic team that the
Acting President is the driving force.” “Not just that, I received a report
from Senator Tokunbo Afikuyomi that the Acting President, Professor Yemi
Osinbajo, paid an unscheduled visit to the Murtala Muhammed International
Airport on Thursday, February 23, 2016, and caught the airport officials
napping. My joy knew no bounds.
Only last Saturday, I had complained bitterly about that
unfortunate airport on this very page.”
“Anyway. The good news is that the Acting President has
started doing some of the things we expected and advised President Buhari to
do. I do not want to over-excite anyone yet but this is smelling good, like the
Americans would put it. We must enter special prayers and intercede with
serious fasting so that President Buhari can continue along this path of
progress when he returns to office, hopefully very shortly, by the grace of
God.”
However, that analysis did not go down well with President
Buhari’s aide on electronic media, Mrs. Lauretta Onochie as she swiftly replied
Momodu saying the publisher needed to be schooled on common sense to know what
team work means. In a write-up she themed, “Educating Dele Momodu,” Lauretta
also accused Momodu of being used to leadership where deputies dared not make a
decision without the permission of their principals.
She wrote thus: “With a mindset like
this, it’s not hard to work out that Dele Momodu is too clever by half. If he
does not understand “Team”, how can he understand “Team Spirit”? The President
and the Acting President have a great understanding of what it means to be a
team. They respect, consult and collaborate with each other. Sync.”
“Dele Momodu is used to the “Leaders
behaving badly” ways of leadership where deputies do not dare breathe without
the permission of the Principal. I have no doubt that Dele Momodu runs his
Corruption-friendly business empire that way. He decides alone and imposes on
his staff.”
“The difference between Buhari/Osinbajo
and Jonathan/What’s his name, administrations is not only the anti and pro
corruption. One is a team, the other wasn’t. While Nigerians are applauding the
cohesive team spirit that exits between our President and our VP, Dele Momodu
is using it to earn his keep from his corrupt friends. It’s common knowledge
that under this administration, all businesses whose foundation was built on
corruption, will collapse.
Did I hear a loud OVATION?” “As an
image maker and a friend of the corrupt especially of those who raped our
nation, has Dele Momodu stopped to ask where his fees are coming from? Stolen
funds? Dele Momodu must borrow some common sense from some of our youth who are
educated and who know the meaning of “Team”.
Here’s one from Japheth J Omojuwa.
It’s not lost on Nigerians that Dele Momodu helped to encourage corruption by
providing a platform for our corrupt nouveau rich to massage their corrupt
ego.”
Dele Momodu has taken a stand for
corruption. He must now understand that the respect that exists between our two
leaders, is stronger than his love for the corrupt.
Nigerians are learning again, that a
President can delegate to the Vice so the benefit will go to Nigerians, not
just to them. Dele Momodu can no longer hide his disdain for the war on corruption.
But joining accidental Social Media practitioners in this way is to say the
least, sickening!” “One thing is certain. Nigerians are learning from a
credible team that great respect, friendship, collaboration and consultations
are possible between workmates. Say “No’ To Dele Momodu’s divisive stance. It’s
selfish, self-centred and egocentric. He alone, stands to gain. END. Thanks for
retweeting.”
“God bless Nigeria. God bless us, everyone.” Nevertheless, in somewhat a team-up with Dele Momodu, former aide to Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan on electronic media, Reno Omokri joined the fray, advising the Ovation’s publisher to ignore the Buhari’s aide just like he(Omokri) ignored his (Momodu) attacks at his principal during the time ex-President Jonathan was in power. Omokri tweeted thus: “Egbon @DeleMomodu, you shouldn’t have responded to that woman. She’s insulted me but I never respond to her.
“God bless Nigeria. God bless us, everyone.” Nevertheless, in somewhat a team-up with Dele Momodu, former aide to Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan on electronic media, Reno Omokri joined the fray, advising the Ovation’s publisher to ignore the Buhari’s aide just like he(Omokri) ignored his (Momodu) attacks at his principal during the time ex-President Jonathan was in power. Omokri tweeted thus: “Egbon @DeleMomodu, you shouldn’t have responded to that woman. She’s insulted me but I never respond to her.
Responding is what she wants! Be
guided by Proverbs 26:4 ‘Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you
yourself will be just like him.'” “What she wanted was to be associated with
you in a fight. It brings you down and raises her up. Lose-lose for you, win
for her. You egbon @DeleMomodu, have met @Mbuhari personally and one on one. I
assure you she has not even enjoyed that privilege.” “The more you @DeleMomodu
respond to her and others of her ilk, the more they attack you to gain
relevance. Just leave trash for LAWMA!” Omokri concluded with the tweet:
BUHARI NOT CRITICALLY ILL, NOT IN HOSPITAL, SAYS LAI
MOHAMMED
T
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he Minister of
Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, says President Muhammadu Buhari
is neither critically ill nor in life threatening situation and there is no
cause for alarm.
The minister
reiterated this position on Monday in Umuahia at the second town hall meeting
for the South East and the launch of national reorientation campaign, “Change
Begins With Me’’ in Abia.
The minister, who was
asked to tell the country about the health condition of the president and
whether there was need for a regular briefing on his health stressed that there
was no reason for such briefings.
Mohammed
disclosed that the president spoke with him on Saturday in the afternoon and
there was no reason for Nigerians to be worried. “ I can say here very boldly
and confidently that there is absolutely no cause for alarm. “`Mr president
called me at 2.43 p.m. on Saturday and we spoke.
“If Mr president is in the hospital or is critically ill, as
minister of information, I will give daily bulletin on his health. “Mr
president is neither critically ill nor in the hospital and there is nothing
life threatening about the checks he is going through,’’ he said.
Speaking on the state of the economy, the minister said that
it was corruption that made the prices of commodities to go up. He noted that
no economy in the world could survive the blind and reckless looting
perpetrated by the previous administration.
“If one person was found with almost 10 million dollar in an
uncompleted house and another with 136 million dollar in fake account and other
with N7 billion how can the economy survives the kind of looting. “Naturally
the price of commodities will go up.
“These are funds meant for development of infrastructure and
for provision of services. “That is why you cannot do anything with the economy
without first facing corruption squarely.
“But the good news is that the government is doing both
together, as we are fighting corruption, we are also making sure that we are ensuring
we are out of recession by investing heavily on infrastructure. Mohammed also
pacified the audience who lamented the spate of attacks on farmers by the
herdsmen.
SARAKI
PLEADS NOT GUILTY TO FRESHCORRUPTION CHARGE
he Federal Government, on Thursday,
re-arraigned the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, before the Code of
Conduct Tribunal, CCT, in Abuja, on an amended 18-count corruption charge.
|
Saraki pleaded not guilty to the fresh charge, even as the
tribunal headed by Justice Danladi Umar, gave the third prosecution witness,
PW-3, Mr. Samuel Madujemu the nod to narrate how FG uncovered discrepancies in
assets he declared to the Code of Conduct Bureau, CCB.
The witness is the Chief Admin Officer at the CCB. He was
the head of investigation Division under the Department of Intelligence,
Investigation and Monitoring, that joined the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission, EFCC, to probe Saraki’s assets.
It will be recalled that the Senate President was initially
docked before the tribunal on September 22, 2015, on a 13-count charge. He was
latter re-arraigned on April 28, 2016 after FG increased allegations against
him to 16 counts.
FG had alleged that the defendant made false/anticipatory
declaration of assets, operated foreign accounts while in office as Kwara State
governor between 2003 and 2011, as well as collected governorship salary four
years after his tenure had elapsed.
In the amended charge that was read to the defendant on
Thursday, FG, alleged that he had while in office as governor of Kwara state in
2007, failed to declare his interest in No. 15 Mc Donald, Ikoyi, Lagos, a
property he acquired in 2006 through a company, Tiny Tee Limited for the sum of
N165million.
It said the defendant, on or about the September 16, 2003,
while in office as a governor, made false declaration by claiming ownership of
No 15A & 15B Mc Donald, Ikoyi, Lagos through Carlisle Properties Ltd in the
year 2000, when the said properties was in actual fact sold by the Federal
Government to G & C Real Estate Properties and Investment Company Limited
in 1997 for the sum of N12million.
In count four and five of the fresh charge, FG, alleged that
Saraki, whilst being a public officer, on or about June 3 2011, falsely
declared his assets at the end of his tenure as a governor and on his
assumption of office as Senator in the same year, when he declared that he acquired
No 17A and 17B Mc Donald, Ikoyi, Lagos on September 6, 2006, from the proceeds
of sale of Rice and Sugar commodities, whereas he acquired the said properties
with aggregate sum of N497.2million, through a loan he obtained from Guaranty
Trust Bank Plc.
FG alleged that contrary to section 15(1) & (2) of the
CCB and Tribunal Act, Cap C15, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, Saraki,
at the end of his tenure as governor in 2007, failed to declare his outstanding
loan liability of N315, 054, 355. 92 out of N380million loan he obtained from
GTB on February 5, 2007.
The defendant was also accused of failing to declare his
ownership of Plot 2A Glover Road, Ikoyi Lagos, which he acquired between 2007
and 2008 through Carlisle Properties Ltd from the Central Bank of Nigeria for
the sum of N325million, as well as not declaring that No 1 and 3 Tagus Street
Maitama, Abuja belongs to him.
The prosecution told the tribunal that as a governor,
Saraki, in 2008, transferred the sum of $73, 223. 28 to a bank account he operated
outside Nigeria.
Saraki allegedly failed in his second tenure as Kwara State
governor to declare his interest in an American Express Bank, New York card No.
374588216836009 through which he transferred $3.4million between August 2009
and October 2012 from his GTB domiciliary account No 441441953210 to the
American Express Services Europe Ltd No. 730580 for onward credit to the said
card account.
Led in evidence by the prosecution counsel, Mr. Rotimi
Jacobs, SAN, the witness told the tribunal that Saraki had in his capacity as a
governor, made several cash lodgements running into billions of Naira into his
personal accounts.
He said the cash lodgements were in excess of Saraki’s
salary as a governor. Asked if public officers are permitted by the law to
operate private business ventures, the witness said:
“My lord, public officers are only entitled to engage in
farming. Governors are not permitted to engage in sales of Rice and Sugar”.
MAN, 55, SEEKS DIVORCE OVER WIFE’S SEIZURE OF CAR KEY
A
55-year-old businessman, Shola Akande, approached an Igando Customary Court in
Lagos State on Wednesday seeking to end his 13-year-old marriage to his wife,
Omolade, because she seized his car key. “My wife seized my car key; she was
claiming I bought a car for a girlfriend.
“I begged her to give me my car key; she refused, her family
intervened by pleading with her to release the car key to me but their plea fell
on deaf ears,” he said. He said that his wife, Omolade, used to fight him a
lot, adding that she had turned his clothes to rags as she used to tear them
whenever she was fighting him.
“My wife derived pleasure in tearing my clothes whenever she
was fighting me, there was a day she tore my clothes in the presence of her
father,” he said. The embittered husband also accused his wife of stealing his
money all the time. “My wife stole my money in the house and also burgled my
office where she stole all the money in my drawer,” he said.
Shola said that his wife always accused him of infidelity,
saying; “anytime my wife sees me with any woman, she will be fighting and
accusing me of dating them. “I am a businessman, I sell land, and both men and
women come or call to buy land or building from me.
“My wife once seized my phones after I received a call; when
she thought I was talking to a woman,” he said. Akande told the court that his
wife had no respect for him and even for her father.
“My wife does not respect me nor her father, anytime her
father invites her over to his place to settle our fight or advice her, she
will not listen. “Due of her stubbornness, her father once advised me to seek
dissolution of the marriage,” he said.
He, therefore, begged the court to dissolve his 13 year-old
marriage which had not produced any child, saying he did not love her anymore.
“Please terminate the marriage that had nothing to show for both now and the
future,” he begged the court.
However, Omolade, 45, said that she seized her husband’s car
key because he refused to pay her the money he borrowed from her. But he had
money to buy a car for a girl, she said. “I was not happy when I heard that my
husband bought a car for a girl while he still owes me N220, 000. “If he pays me
my money, I will release his key,” she said.
Omolade, a businesswoman, accused her husband of always
drinking to stupor, adding that whenever she scolded him, he would turn it to a
fight.
“My husband always comes home around 1:00 a.m., drunk and
whenever I cautioned him, he fights me,” she said. She, however, denied
stealing her husband’s money and lamented that he used to call her a barren
woman.
“My husband always calls me a barren woman but I had three
children during the 13 years of our marriage, but they all died,” she said.
The respondent begged the court not to grant her husband’s
wish that she still love him.
The court president, Mr Adegboyega Omilola, ordered the
respondent to release the petitioner’s car key within one hour. He later
adjourned the case to April 4 for further hearing.
NO CAUSE TO WORRY: PRESIDENT BUHARI TO NIGERIANS
President Muhammadu Buhari has allayed the anxiety of Nigerians about his health, assuring them that there is no cause for worry.
In a statement today, President Buhari, who is in London thanked millions of Nigerians who have been sending good wishes and praying for his health and well-being in mosques and churches throughout the country.
According to
Presidential media adviser, Femi Adesina, “the President is immensely grateful
for the prayers, show of love and concern.”
“President Buhari wishes to reassure Nigerians that there is
no cause for worry. “During his normal annual checkup, tests showed he needed a
longer period of rest, necessitating the President staying longer than
originally planned,” Adesina said.
President Buhari began his vacation on 19 January, choosing
London, where he also planned to conduct some routine medical checks. He was
billed to return to work on 6 February.
On 5 February, he notified the Nigerian
Senate that he needed more time based on the advice of his doctors that he
await the results of some tests.
In his absence, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo
has been acting for him.
FG’S CASH TRANSFER: THOUSANDS OF HOUSEHOLDS BENEFITING IN KWARA- YAHYA-
BAGUDU
H
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ead of Unit, Conditional Cash Transfer,
Kwara State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajia Aminah
Yahya-Bagudu has said that Ten thousand, seven hundred households are currently
benefitting from the first phase of the Federal Government's National Cash
Transfer programme in the State.
Hajia Yahya-Bagudu who disclosed this today in Ilorin said the
programme was part of the components designed by the Federal Government to
tackle poverty in the country.
“Under the scheme, twelve local
government areas are participating in phase one, while the remaining four local
government areas are being considered to benefit in the second phase”
She disclosed that the beneficiaries had
started receiving the payment of five thousand naira monthly from the Federal
Government.
Hajia Yahya-Bagudu explained that the
selection process was based on data collected for the World Bank supported
Youth Employment and Social Support Operation (YESSO), where each community
identified those considered as poor.
On current hitches in payment, Hajia
Aminah-Yahya said the selected bank had engaged the services of a Consulting
firm to decentralized its payment process to all beneficiaries across the
state.
APC COMMENDS FG OVER N5000 PAYMENT TO
VULNERABLE NIGERIANS
A
|
ll Progressives Congress (APC) has commended
President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration for fulfilling the promise the
Party made to Nigerians during the 2015 general election campaigns.
In a statement released by the party’s National
Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the Party notes that with the
commencement of payment of N5000 to one million poor Nigerians through the
Conditional Cash Transfer scheme of the Government, the Buhari’s administration has demonstrated its commitment
to the Party’s Change manifestoes which is couched on true transformation.
“We recalled that as part of its Social
Investment programme (SIP), the government has began implementing three other
major campaign promises of the Party designed to provide jobs and lift the most
vulnerable Nigerians out of poverty. These include: the N-Power Volunteer Corps
which will provide jobs to 500,000 young Nigerian graduates, the National
Homegrown Feeding Programme which has commenced in selected states, and the
Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP), which provides soft
loans ranging from N10,000 to 100,000 to artisans, traders, market women, among
others”
The Party acknowledges that the past
year was a tough one for Nigerians occasioned by the economic recession but
have confidence in the ability of President Buhari to design programmes and
policies that will provide succor to the masses.
“We urge Nigerians to continue to
support and pray for the President Buhari-led administration so that our dream
of a more prosperous, secure and stable nation will be achieved”
AHMED SEEKS PEOPLE’S SUPPORT TO UPLIFT KWARA
overnor Abdulfatah
Ahmed of Kwara State has urged the people of the state to support him in taking
the state to greater heights in the New Year.
|
The governor made the
plea on Sunday in his New Year message to the people of the state.
Ahmed, in a statement
signed by his Senior Special Assistant (Media and Communications), Dr Muideen
Akorede, wished all citizens of the state a joyous and prosperous New Year.
He prayed for fulfilled hopes and expectations with greater accomplishments in the New Year.
Ahmed also called on the people to pray for continued peace
in the state and the country as a whole.
He urged the people of the state to join him in rededicating
themselves to achieving collective aspirations for a better state.
Ahmed, therefore, restated his commitment to elevating the
state and the people by providing more dividends of democracy.
He commended residents of Kwara for their resilience and appreciated
their support for his administration, in spite of the challenges faced by
individuals and families in 2016.
Ahmed acknowledged the difficulties experienced in 2016 and
expressed optimism that the challenges facing the state would soon end.
He pledged prompt service delivery to the people of the
state and also gave an assurance that the ongoing infrastructure and other
peoples’ oriented projects would be completed.
According to him, this will develop the state and uplift
individuals, families and businesses in the state.
NEW YEAR NEW SYSTEM-
10-YEAR-OLD GIRL USED AS HUMAN BOMB IN MAIDUGURI
O
|
ne person was seriously
injured when a suicide bomber aged around 10 blew herself up in a New Year’s
Eve attack in the northeastern Nigerian city of Maiduguri, according to the
eyewitness.
The girl approached a
crowd buying noodles from a food vendor in the Customs area of the city around
9:30 pm on Saturday and detonated her explosives, they said.
Although no one has
claimed responsibility the attack bore the hallmark of Boko Haram Islamists who
are notorious for using suicide bombers, mostly women and young girls, in
attacking civilian targets.
“The girl walked towards the crowd
but she blew up before she could reach her target,” said witness Grema Usman
who lives in the area.
“She died instantly, while one person was seriously hurt
after after he was hit by shrapnel.”
“(Judging) from her corpse the girl was around 10 years
old,” Usman said.
An aid worker involved in the evacuation of the body gave a
similar estimate of the bomber’s age.
“The girl was clearly not more than 10 and this could have
made her too nervous, making her to detonate the explosives prematurely,” the
aid worker suggested.
Borno state police spokesman Victor Isuku, meanwhile, said a
second female suicide bomber was caught and lynched by an angry mob. Her bomb
was safely detonated by security forces, he said.
In December two girls aged between seven and eight detonated
explosives in suicide attacks on market in the city, injuring 19 people.
Authorities blamed the attack on Boko Haram, whose
seven-year insurgency has killed 20,000 people and displaced 2.6 million
others. The conflict has spilled into Nigeria’s northern neighbours.
Saturday’s attack came a week after Nigerian President
Muhammadu Buhari said the jihadist group had been routed from Sambisa forest,
its last stronghold in Borno state.
FLEEING BOKO HARAM LEADER
ARRESTED IN LAGOS
here seem to be no hiding
place for Boko Haram terrorists in Nigeria as one of their leaders who escaped
from Borno State and settled-in in Lagos has now been arrested.
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The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai, told journalists in
Maiduguri that the Nigerian Army has resolGeneral Buratai also asked soldiers
in the northeast to pursue the fleeing terrorists and intercept them.
He made the
disclosure on Sunday while opening two major roads in Borno State that were
closed sincGeneral Buratai also asked soldiers in the northeast to pursue the
fleeing terrorists and intercept them.
General Buratai also
asked soldiers in the northeast to pursue the fleeing terrorists and intercept
them.
He made the
disclosure on Sunday while opening two major roads in Borno State that were
closed since 2014, at the height of the activities of the insurgents.
The roads are Maiduguri-Gubio-Damasak road and
Maiduguri-Monguno-Baga.
The State Governor,
Kashim Shettima, who witnessed the event, said there was no Christmas and New
Year gift to the people of Borno State better than the fall of the Sambisa
forest.
He described year
2016 as one that witnessed a major breakthrough in the ongoing fight against
the terrorists, adding that the year was so far his best in the last five years
since he assumed office on May 29, 2011.
“Since I became the
Governor of Borno State in over five years, this is the best Christmas season I
have witnessed. This is the best December I have witnessed and the year 2016 is
my best year so far as Governor of Borno State,” he said.
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FAYOSE APPROVES
N140M SEVERANCE PACKAGE FOR FORMER PUBLIC OFFICE HOLDERS
Ekiti State
Government on Monday announced the approval for payment N140m severance package
due to former dead and living elected-public-office holders at the local
government level.
The Chief Press
Secretary to the state governor, Mr. Idowu Adelusi, in a statement, said the
beneficiaries of the severance include those elected into office in 1999, 2006
and 2008.
They included former
chairmen of local governments, council secretaries, councilors as well council advisers.
He said the state
governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, gave the order for the immediate payment of the
severance package to the affected officers during a meeting he held with them
on Monday.
Adelusi quoted the governor as directing that families of those already dead
must also be paid the entitlements of their deceased ones.
He also warned local
government officials who would effect the payment not to play politics with the
exercise, saying anyone caught would face the consequences.
He
said, “The governor felt that despite the economic challenges we are facing as
a state, we feel it is our duty to honour those who had served our state in the
past.
“They had contributed
their own quota to the development of our state; therefore, families of those
that are already dead should be paid too.
“The exercise has
nothing to do with politics and must be fairly shared.
“We already made some
payments some months ago and we are again doing this now.
“If this had been
done in the past, the backlog would not have been a burden on us now, if not
for the financial challenges we are facing, we would have paid everything at a
goal.”
The governor
admonished leaders of the state to let their actions be in the best interest of
the state.
The statement said Fayose
urged the people of the state to expect the best from his administration,
economic recession notwithstanding in the New Year.
THE FULL STORY OF MMM INITIATOR
Sergey
Panteleevich Mavrodi (Russian:born
August 11, 1955) is a Russian criminal and a former deputy
of the State Duma. He is the founder of the МММ
series of pyramid schemes. In
2007 Sergei Mavrodi was found guilty in a Russian court of defrauding 10,000
investors out of 110 million rubles ($4.3 million).
MMM activities
In 1989 he founded MMM. He was then
elected to the State Duma, thereby obtaining parliamentary immunity. Mavrodi
declared MMM bankrupt on December 22, 1997, then disappeared,
and was on the run until his arrest in 2003.
In 1998 Mavrodi created Stock Generation, allegedly a classic pyramid scheme presented as a "virtual stock
market game".
The website ran from 1998 to early 2000. The Massachusetts
district court initially found that U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission was unable to cite Stock
Generation's founders and owners for securities violations. However, the United States
Court of Appeals reversed this decision in 2001, concluding that the
SEC alleged sufficient facts to state a triable claim.
In 2003 the SEC obtained permanent injunctions against SG
Ltd. and relief defendants
SG Perfect and SG Trading, which profited from the disbursement of funds
fraudulently gained by SG Ltd. On April
28, 2007, a Moscow court sentenced him to four and a half years in a penal colony. The court also fined him 10,000 rubles
($390).
In January 2011, Mavrodi launched another pyramid scheme
called MMM-2011, asking investors to buy so-called Mavro currency units.
He frankly described it as a pyramid, adding "It is a
naked scheme, nothing more ... People interact with each other and give each
other money.
For no reason!" Mavrodi said that his goal with
MMM-2011 is to destroy the current financial system, which he considers unfair,
which would allow something new to take its place. MMM-2011 was able to
function openly as Ponzi schemes and financial pyramids are not illegal under Russian
law.
In May 2012 he froze the operation and announced that there
would be no more payouts.
In 2011 he launched a similar scheme in India, called MMM
India, again stating clearly that the vehicle is a pyramid.
He has also launched MMM in China. He was reported to be
trying to expand his operations into Western Europe, Canada, and Latin America.
As of September 2015 it had spread rapidly in South Africa
with a claimed 1% per day or 30% per month interest rate scheme and warnings
from both the South African
and Russian
Communist Parties for people not to participate in it.
In early 2016, he continued the same model in Zimbabwe (the accounts were frozen in September
2016), and later, in Nigeria (accounts frozen in
December, 2016).
BREAKING: MMM FREEZES ALL CONFIRMED ACCOUNTS-
PANIC, CONFUSION GRIP NIGERIANS
PANIC, CONFUSION GRIP NIGERIANS
Members
of a the famous money-doubling scheme, Mavrodi Mundial Moneybox, MMM have been
thrown into panic and great confusion, Tuesday, following the message from the
ponzi scheme freezing all confirmed Mavros, otherwise known as money due for
withdrawal for one month.
This
means, all the accounts of members who are due to be paid after having
‘provided help’ (PH) to another person since the last month have been frozen
and hence, have no access to request for payment, known as ‘Get Help’ (GH)
until after one month.
All
members woke up with the shock message displayed on the screen as soon as they
logged into their accounts. Giving reasons for freezing the Mavros, the scheme
said it is experiencing heavy workload and want to deal with the attacks coming
from the country’s mass media.
It
also said it wants to prevent hitches in the coming new year hence, the
freezing of the access to requesting for payments even when such person is due
for payment.
EATING CHEESE, BUTTER AND CREAM CAN HELP PROTECT YOU FROM HEART DISEASE, STUDY FINDS
Fatty foods such as
cheese, butter, and cream are often considered culprits of heart disease – but
according to a new study, a diet high in saturated fat could in fact bring
significant health benefits.
Eating more naturally
high-fat foods while limiting the amount of carbohydrates
consumed did not cause a significant increase in harmful cholesterol,
researchers at the University of Bergen in Norway found.
Simon Dankel, who led
the study, told said the research showed the human body “can do perfectly well
with fats as its main energy source.”
“People will say:
‘you can’t lose weight, you can’t go on any diets with saturated fats, no
matter what’,” said Dr Dankel.
“But in this context,
we see a very positive metabolic response. You can base your energy in your
diet on either on carbohydrates or fat. It doesn’t make a big difference.”
NHS guidelines advise
people to eat less saturated fat, because a diet high in
saturated fat can raise the level of cholesterol in the blood. Men are
recommend men eat no more than 30g of saturated fat a day, and women no more
than 20g.
Around 40 obese men took part in
the study, which Dr Dankel said was more strictly controlled and therefore more
reliable than previous research into low-carb diets.
Half
were given a strict low-fat, high-carb diet, while the others ate fewer
carbohydrates but doubled their intake of saturated fats, with 24 per cent of
their entire energy intake for one day coming from butter alone.
“We emphasized dairy fats especially. The people were eating
cream and butter, and some coconut oil,” said Dr Dankel, who stressed the diet
didn’t include processed fats found in junk food.
By the end of the
study, both groups had lost an average of 12kg, most of which was body fat,
lowering their risk of obesity-related diseases such as high blood pressure and
diabetes.
Dr Dankel said the
new research questioned “the alleged strong adverse effect of saturated fats on
health, which hadn’t been tested as directly before”.
“It’s not the fat per
se, or on its own, that’s driving a negative health response. You can have just
as good a health benefit on this high-fat diet as a low-fat diet in this
context,” he said.
PEOPLE BOMBING PIPELINES NOT ORDINARY NIGERIANS, SAYS BUHARI
P
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resident
Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday maintained that the people involved in the blowing
up of oil pipelines in the Niger Delta region are not ordinary Nigerians going
by the sophistication of equipment they are using.
By
going into the sea for almost 70 kilometers to blow pipelines with ease, he
said, has necessitated the need for some professional associations with high
competences to talk to their members to ensure they were not deploying their
skills in a negative way to the detriment of the country.
He
spoke at the Presidential Villa after his investiture as the Grand Patron of
the Nigerian Academy of Engineering (NAE), led by its President, Mrs. Joana Maduka.
He
said: “How can ordinary Nigerians go into the deep sea almost 70 kilometers to
blow installations, they are not ordinary Nigerians. So you have to talk to
your members.”
Disagreeing
with the delegation that Nigerian engineers are under utilized, he said
that 99 per cent of those that constructed the four refineries in the country
were Nigerian engineers.
Stressing that the government has always
taken engineers seriously in the task of nation building, he described Nigerian
engineers as those whose capacity to learn is unparalleled.
Regretting
that none of the four refineries in the country are currently working, he
blamed the country’s leadership for the situation and not the engineers.
“Nigerian
engineers are competent and cost effective. I respect you all, it takes a lot
to be a competent engineers” He stated.
Speaking
earlier, Maduka pointed out that Nigerian engineering companies have performed
laudably well in the last one year in the procurement and construction of a 600
megawatt power generating plant and a 330KV switching station, the biggest in
the national grid.
She
said that the role of an academy of engineering all over the world is to serve
as Think Tank for the technological and economic development of a nation.
“Countries
like China, USA, Japan, South Korea and Malaysia are examples of nations that
have harnessed the benefits of their engineering academies for economic
progress. Fellows of the Academy of Engineering are Engineers who have reached
the peak of their careers and are invited to join”.
She
noted that the anti-corruption efforts of the administration was a move in the
right direction as it will bring about economic transformation of the country.
The group also backed the move by the
Buhari’s administration to fix all the infrastructural deficit in the country.
She
said: “This effort is very germane to the development of our nation. For this
to be done effectively and efficiently, inputs are required from all cadres of
engineering disciplines.
“The
physical indices of development of any country are engineering based like
roads, railways, water supply, power, housing and other infrastructure.
However, Nigerian Engineers are underutilized for the tasks and challenges of
nation building.
“For
the country to attain sustainable growth status, the Nigerian engineers need to
be adequately engaged in planning, policy formulation, consultancy and
construction as well as industrial processes of production and manufacturing.
“Furthermore,
the fact is that Nigeria is grossly under-engineered as there are insufficient
engineering professionals taking the population per capita basis. For example,
in China, between 2000 and 2013, all the nine members of the Standing Committee
(Ministers) of the Politburo were trained engineers.
“Currently,
about half of the cabinet ministers in Singapore are engineers and in China,
70 per cent of the cabinet are engineers”. She stated
She
disclosed that the Nigerian Academic Engineering is currently made up of 140
fellows.
MINIMUM WAGE: NO REVIEW IN SIGHT, SAYS NLC
Mr Ayuba Wabba, the President,
Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has blamed the delay in securing an upward
review of the national minimum wage on the disunity in the organised labour.
Wabba spoke to newsmen in Lagos on Tuesday on the prospects of getting a review of the existing N18,000 minimum wage for workers.
Wabba spoke to newsmen in Lagos on Tuesday on the prospects of getting a review of the existing N18,000 minimum wage for workers.
The present N18,000 national minimum wage was signed into
law by former President Goodluck Jonathan in March 2011. “It is time to review
the N18,000 minimum wage. If we had been united, this issue would have been
resolved,’’ the NLC president said.
He said that since 2015, when the organised labour submitted
a formal demand for the review of the minimum wage, no technical committee had
been set up to look into the issue. According to Wabba, the committee is to
start the process of negotiations, where the concerned stakeholders will gather
at a round table to drive the process.
“For the minimum wage to be reviewed, it has to be
tripartite. The employers’ organisation will be present, government’s
representatives and the organised labour,’’ he said.
The NLC president stressed that the current minimum wage
could no longer sustain workers as the five-year cycle for review of workers
income was due and the value of money had also depreciated.
He assured that there was hope of getting an increment in
the minimum wage but added that workers must be ready to fight for their right.
“Everything that we have gotten as workers over the decades
is through collective struggle.
Government did not offer it on a platter of gold. “These are
the issues that have caused delay in resuming negotiation on review of new
minimum wage for workers,’’ he said.
Wabba said that the Federal Government and labour could look
at ways of implementing a new strategy for the new minimum wage with the
economic recession not hindering the discussions.
“Labour is committed to driving the process of an increment
in minimum wage for workers and we assure you that we will defend your
interest. “On the issue of recession, the NLC will soon arrive with an
alternative to enable the government solve its economic problem,’’ the NLC
president said.
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