The Department of State Services (DSS) has arrested Omoyele Sowore, presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) in the 2019 elections.
He was said to have been picked up in the early hours of Saturday and taken to the Lagos head office of the secret police on CMD Road, Magodo, Ikosi, Ketu.
At 1:25am, the activist tweeted: “DSS invades Sowore’s.”
SaharaReporters, Sowore’s online outfit, said his phone was forcefully seized before the arrest.
“An eyewitness confirming that his phone was forcefully taken from him,” SaharaReporters said in a report.
“He also tweeted ‘Ja p’, confirming his phone must have been seized while trying to raise the alarm about his arrest.”
The medium said the arrest and detention of Sowore are not unconnected to “#RevolutionNow, a series of planned protests against bad governance in Nigeria” scheduled for Monday.
Sowore has been actively involved in the plans for a nationwide protest.
Hours to his arrest, he had tweeted: “All that is needed for a #Revolution is for the oppressed to choose a date they desire for liberty, not subjected to the approval of the oppressor.”
The senator representing Sokoto-North in the National Assembly, Aliyu Wammako, who is under probe by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for alleged N15bn fraud, has been named the Vice-Chairman of the Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, The PUNCH understands.
With his new role, Wammako and other members of the committee will be expected to carry out oversight functions on the EFCC.
Wammako, who was the governor of Sokoto State from 2007 to 2015, was accused of embezzling public funds.
In an EFCC factsheet published last year by many media houses, the EFCC said at least N1.7bn had been traced to the personal account of the ex-governor.
The fact sheet read in part, “Several petitions were received against Wammako for alleged theft and laundering of state funds amounting to N15bn.
“One of the petitions came from the Movement for the Liberation and Emancipation of Sokoto State signed by the Chairman of the group, M. D. Sirajo Saidu and Secretary, Mudasiru Umar Alasan. The petition was dated August 10, 2015.
“The EFCC in the last three years took time to look into some of the petitions and verified a few facts. Investigation so far has traced N1.5bn to the personal account of Wammako which was deposited by individuals (suspected to be staff of the Government House, Sokoto) who have yet to be traced.”
Wammako, who led President Muhammadu Buhari’s campaign in Sokoto State, will be expected to inspect EFCC projects, scrutinise budgets and make recommendations to the Senate by virtue of his new position.
When contacted on the telephone on Wednesday for an update on Wammako’s probe, the spokesman for the EFCC, Mr Tony Orilade, said he would find out and asked for 24 hours to respond.
When contacted on Thursday, Orilade asked one of our correspondents to come to his office.
But the Executive Chairman, Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, Mr Debo Adeniran, said the war against corruption might have ended with the development.
He said although the Senate had the prerogative to appoint its leaders, CACOL would protest the nomination of Wammako and call attention to the case against him.
Adeniran noted that aside from Senate members with corruption cases, some of the ministerial nominees with corruption charges might also frustrate the war against corruption in the country.
He said, “The nomination of Wammako portends an annihilation of every effort to win the battle against corruption in Nigeria. It appears there is a kind of orchestrated attempt to emasculate the President’s determination to root out corruption in Nigeria.
“Even within the Senate, we have a preponderance of members who have long charges of corruption hanging on their head.
“The EFCC and ICPC will not have their independence because the National Assembly and the cabinet members will join hands to frustrate efforts to fight corruption to a standstill.”
The PUNCH reports that over 11 senators are either under EFCC probe or prosecution.
They include Orji Kalu, Theodore Orji, Rochas Okorocha, Stella Oduah, Ike Ekweremadu, Peter Nwaoboshi, Abba Moro, Akpan Albert, Ifeanyi Ubah, Gabriel Suswam and Ibrahim Shekarau.
Senator Danjuma Goje was also facing prosecution but the charges against him were mysteriously dropped by the Federal Government following a meeting he held with the President during the campaign for presiding officers of the National Assembly.
The Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Adedayo Adeyeye, told our correspondent in an interview on Thursday that the National Assembly had concluded its task by sending the outcome of the ministerial nominees’ screening to President Muhammadu Buhari.
Adeyeye said, “I believe the communication has been sent to the President. We concluded the process of screening and confirmation on Tuesday and yesterday (Wednesday) was a day after.
“The National Assembly worked on the communication on Wednesday and as the media reported the meeting between President Muhammadu Buhari and the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, also on Wednesday, I think that has been settled.”
When contacted, The Presidency confirmed that it had received communication from the Senate formally informing President Muhammadu Buhari that the 43 individuals he nominated for ministerial positions had been confirmed.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Ita Enang, confirmed this in an interview with our correspondent.
“Yes, communication has been transmitted. We have received the communication from the Senate,” Enang said.
When further asked when the ministers designate would be inaugurated, the presidential aide paused for a while and simply said “thank you, thank you.”
No fewer than 14 former ministers who worked in the first term of President Buhari made the list. They are Babatunde Fashola (Lagos); Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers); Hadi Sirika (Katsina), Zainab Ahmed (Kaduna); Lai Mohammed (Kwara); Chris Ngige (Anambra); Adamu Adamu (Bauchi); Abubakar Malami (Kebbi); Godfrey Onyeama (Enugu); Ogbonnaya Onu (Ebonyi); Osagie Enahire (Edo); Suleiman Adamu (Jigawa); Mohameed Bello (Adamawa); and Mustapha Baba Shehuri (Borno).
A former Senate Minority Leader, Goodwill Akpabio; Senator Gbemisola Saraki; and Buhari’s campaign spokesperson, Festus Keyamo, are also in the list.
The list also has Senator Olorunnimbe Marmora; Senator Tayo Alasoadura; former governor Rauf Aregbsola; former governor Niyi Adebayo; and former governor Timipre Sylva, among others.
Nigeria’s Defence Headquarters, DHQ, on Thursday, rubbished a report by the Wall Street Journal which claimed that 1, 000 soldiers in the North-East were secretly buried under the cover of darkness after being killed by Boko Haram and ISWAP insurgents.
The Director of Defence Information, Onyema Nwachukwu, insisted that the Nigerian Armed Forces does not engage in the secret burial of soldiers but accords fallen soldiers a befitting military funeral of international standard.
The Wall Street Journal report had alleged that about 1,000 soldiers killed by Boko Haram were secretly buried in the North-East.
However, Nwachukwu maintained that the report was a figment of the writer’s imagination.
A statement signed by Nwachukwu and forwarded to DAILY POST reads: “The Defence Headquarters has noted with dismay an Online Article by “Wall Street Journal” purporting that the Nigerian Military maintains secret graveyards in the North East theatre of operation. This insinuation can only emanate from an uninformed position of the author of the said publication.
“It, therefore, becomes necessary to inform the public that the Armed Forces of Nigeria has a rich and solemn tradition for the interment of our fallen heroes.
“Therefore, it must be unambiguously clarified that the Armed Forces of Nigeria does not indulge in secret burials, as it is sacrilegious and profanity to extant ethos and traditions of the Nigerian military.
“In tandem with the traditions of the Armed Forces, Fallen heroes are duly honoured and paid the last respect in befitting military funeral of international standard, featuring funeral parade, gravesite oration, solemn prayers for the repose of departed souls by Islamic and Christian clerics, as well as gun salutes, aside other military funeral rites.
“The cemetery described in the publication, which is situated in Maimalari military Cantonment is an officially designated military cemetery for the Armed Forces of Nigeria in the North East theatre, with a Cenotaph erected in honour of our fallen heroes. The official cemetery has played host to several national and international dignitaries, where wreaths were laid in honour of the fallen heroes. It is, therefore, a far cry from the sacrilegious impression being painted by “Wall Street Journal”.
The Defence Headquarters, therefore, urged members of the Armed Forces and the general public to disregard the misinformed publication and see it as “a figment of the imagination of the writer, whose knowledge of military valued ethos and traditions is grossly misplaced”.
247NNU had earlier reported that Atiku Abubakar, 2019 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, had challenged President Muhammadu Buhari to probe the reported secret burial of 1,000 Nigerian soldiers killed by Boko Haram and ISWAP.
A statement the former vice president signed on Thursday said the Wall Street Journal report on the matter was saddening and that the attempt to hide the true state of the war on terror was heartbreaking and shocking.
Some soldiers have allegedly raped a female student (name withheld) of the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko.
The incident allegedly happened on Wednesday evening at the military checkpoint at Ikare Akoko in Akoko North-East Local Government Area of Ondo State.
According to a source, the soldiers, who were attached to the Ikare Akoko checkpoint, allegedly raped the lady, a 300-level student at AAUA, while she was returning from the campus.
The source, who identified one of the soldiers, alleged that the soldiers took turns to sexually assault the victim.
He said one of the soldiers at the checkpoint allegedly ordered the victim to get down from a vehicle she and others were travelling in, and took her into a cubicle at the back of the checkpoint where the soldiers allegedly forcefully had sex with her.
A student of the institution who witnessed the incident but who did not want her name in print for fear of intimidation and harassment confirmed the incident.
She said, “We went to Ikare Police Station to report the incident and then rushed her to Ondo State Specialist Hospital, Ikare-Akoko, for examination and treatment.
“As I’m talking to you, she is at the hospital and doctors confirmed that she was raped.”
The eyewitness said it was not the first time such a thing would be happening at the military checkpoint in the town.
A Police source at the Ikare Police Station, who confirmed that the incident was reported at the station around 7:15 p.m. on Wednesday, said the Police had stepped into the matter.
The source confirmed that the name of a Lance Corporal was mentioned in the statement written by the complainant.
“The matter was reported here, but I won’t say more on it. When we complete our investigation, it would be sent to the headquarters in Akure,” he stated.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer of the Ondo State Command, Mr. Femi Joseph, however, said he was not aware of the incident.
The management of the AAUA said it had commenced investigation into the matter and had constituted a panel of inquiry to examine the allegation.
The Head of Media and Protocol Unit of the university, Mr. Victor Akinpelumi, confirmed that the management of the institution was aware of the incident and had initiated an investigation into it.
Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has challenged President Muhammadu Buhari to probe the reported secret burial of 1,000 Nigerian soldiers killed by Boko Haram and ISWAP.
A statement he signed Thursday said the Wall Street Journal report on the matter was saddening and that the attempt to hide the true state of the war on terror was heartbreaking and shocking.
He said: “Heartbreak for the families and friends of those soldiers who, if the report is true, have lost their loved ones, without being allowed to bury them or even to have any sense of closure as regards their fate.
“Shock, that such a thing could happen under a democracy, such as Nigeria is supposed to be. I shudder to think that the cover-up of such an event of epic proportions can be true.
“The men and women of our armed forces are our first, second and last defence against our domestic and foreign enemies and should be treated with love, respect, dignity and appreciation for the invaluable service they render to Nigeria.
“I cannot fathom that in the space of a year, 1000 of these great patriots were killed and buried secretly without their families being told. I hesitate to believe that deceit on such a grand scale is even possible.
“To ensure that we get to the bottom of this matter, I urge that a Judicial Commission of Inquiry headed by a non-partisan and reputable jurist, be inaugurated to investigate the findings of the Wall Street Journal.
“While this is occurring, I also strongly urge that a panel of inquiry comprising distinguished former military officers be set up to investigate and report to Nigerians the true state of the war on terror and what must be done to ensure Nigeria brings a speedy end to the ongoing insurgency.
“Nigeria must ensure prudent use of finances, so we can redistribute national resources in such a way that ensures that our military and security forces are well armed and well remunerated.
“Even the death of one soldier affects me. But the alleged cover-up of the deaths of one thousand soldiers is a national emergency that should shock all statesmen and leaders of thoughts into action to save Nigeria.”
Catholic’s Cardinal John Onaiyekan says President Muhammadu Buhari’s proscribing the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) is a step taken too far and forbodes a bad omen for Catholics living in Nigeria too.
Speaking to Vatican Radio, Cardinal Onaiyekan said the government crackdown was unjust and a move that sets a worrying precedent for religious freedom in the country.
“Nobody is safe: today it’s the Shiites, tomorrow it could be us Catholics too,” he said.
Cardinal Onaiyekan explained that recently, for the government in Nigeria, the question of Shiite Muslims has become an issue.
He said IMN followers had been holding protests to demand the release of their leader, Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, who has been detained in prison for the last four years.
Various tribunals and courts, he noted, had ordered that he be released, and the government has refused to obey the courts’ order.
Thus, Cardinal Onaiyekan said, the established Sunni majority in Nigeria “doesn’t want to recognize that the Shiites are also Muslims, and because of this the government treats them with serious violence”.
He said the Shiites had been holding almost daily protests in the streets of Abuja for over a month.
“From my own understanding, the protests were always peaceful and we never saw them armed,” he said.
And yet, he noted, the government soldiers and policemen had attacked them with arms, rubber bullets, and tear-gas canisters.
“As for us Catholics”, the cardinal said, “we are deeply concerned about this development: “if the government can influence a Court to declare a religious group proscribed, then nobody is safe – today it is the Shiites, tomorrow it might be us Catholics too.”
Noting there has not yet been an official response by the Catholic Church to the situation, he said he expects it is soon to come: “Personally my own position is that we cannot keep quiet and allow this kind of thing to keep going on”.
“If the Shiites break the law of the land they should be held accountable,” the Cardinal said, “but to simply proscribe them, it is going too far.”
Nigerians who wish to report cases of rape, kidnapping, murder or incidents such as road accidents through the newly inaugurated Police VGS Mobile App must pay N12,000 before they can do so, The PUNCH has learnt.
Recall that the Nigeria Police Force had, in a promotional video on its Twitter handle on June 2, 2019, said the app would go a long way in reducing the crime rate.
The Police had stated, “The Nigeria Police Force, through the dogged efforts of the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, in a bid to combat the high rate of criminality and criminal elements, kidnappers, domestic offenders, violence, cultism, rape, robbery, among so many, has launched the Police VGS Mobile App.
“The Police VGS Mobile App is a web-based dispatch system for quick emergency reporting of incidents by citizens for the prompt response by the Nigeria Police and other emergency and security agencies within five seconds of reporting.”
However, our Correspondent, who downloaded the application through Google Playstore, was first asked to choose between three subscription plans: family plan, individual plan and student plan.
Repeated attempts to select any other package apart from the ‘individual’ plan proved abortive, forcing everyone to subscribe for the individual plan.
A data page subsequently emerges, requesting for name, email, address and other vital information; while, at the bottom, it is stated that the subscription cost is N12,000 for 12 months.
Also, there is no option for monthly payment of subscription, as subscribers can only pay N12,000 per year.
Other options on the application such as FAQs and ‘contact us’ refused to open despite several clicks on the icons.
When contacted, Force Public Relations Officer, Mr. Frank Mba, said he would find out the information about the status of the app before responding to our Correspondent’s questions.
His response is still being awaited as of the time of filing this report.
The PUNCH learnt that the app was developed by Vigiscope Limited for the Police.
As stated on its website, Vigiscope Ltd was founded by a group of communication, information, technology, telecommunication, instrumental, electrical and automobile engineers who formerly worked for some major international companies.
“Vigiscope Ltd was incorporated in Germany and in Nigeria as Limited Liability Companies and commenced full communication, engineering, security, information technology, electrical and automobile business operations thereafter.”
Apart from the Police, it listed Kogi, Edo, Gombe, Bauchi and Sokoto states as clients.
When our Correspondent called the telephone number on the website of Vigiscope, a representative of the firm, who identified herself as Ms. Oloruntoba, confirmed that Nigerians would have to pay N12,000 before being allowed to use the emergency app.
She said, “Yes, we developed an app for the Police. The family plan and the student plan are still being worked on. It is only the individual plan that is active for now.
“The N12,000 is for a yearly subscription, not monthly. There is no monthly subscription.”
Meanwhile, speaking with our Correspondent on the telephone, a former director with the Department of State Services, Mike Ejiofor, said the Police was wrong to demand N12,000 from Nigerians to use a facility which is free in other countries.
Ejiofor said the good intention of the Police to create such an app has been undermined by the subscription fee.
He said with the high rate of poverty in the country, especially in rural areas, most Nigerians would not make use of the app.
Also speaking, human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), said the subscription fee was most unfortunate.
The 32nd edition of the biggest football festival on the continent in Egypt has come and gone but it will surely linger in the memory for long.
Djamel Belmadi led Algeria to a second AFCON title after a 29-year lull, beating Senegal, also another coached by fellow African Aliou Cisse 1-0 in the final.
This made a case for the continent’s coaches, and the duo might keep their jobs, but not all the coaches have been that lucky, even before the competition came to a climax.
Below are the coaches who were relieved of their jobs after a rather forgetful tournament in Egypt.
1. Cameroon coach: Clarence Seedorf
The Cameroon Football Federation sacked coach Clarence Seedorf and assistant Patrick Kluivert after the team’s exit at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.
Cameroon crashed out 3-2 to Nigeria, an exit the federation described as “premature” in its statement.
2. Egypt Coach: Javier Aguirre
46-year-old Javier Aguirre became the third coach casualty of the 2019 African Cup of Nations to be sacked. Aguirre was sacked just hours after the hosts were bundled out of the tournament by South Africa in the round of 16 in Cairo.
The Egypt Football Association president Hany Abo Rida announced the firing of the Mexican coach and also announced his own resignation.
3. Tanzania coach: Emmanuel Amunike
The Tanzania Football Federation has parted company with the Nigerian coach Emmanuel Amunike 11 months after he was appointed by the TFF, Sports Extra reports.
He becomes the third coach to be relieved of his job after his side’s elimination from the AFCON 2019.
4. Guinea Coach: Paul Put
Guinea Football Association also sacked Paul Put after crashing out of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations championship staging in Egypt.
The Sily Nationale crashed out of the tournament at the Round of 16 following their 3-0 defeat to Algeria. Having kicked off their campaign with a 2-2 draw against Madagascar, they lost their second group game to Nigeria.
5. Uganda coach: Thomas Desabre
The Ugandan Federation and the French man mutually agreed to part ways after the team’s exit from the 2019 African Cup of Nations hosted in Egypt, but Desabre had courted admirations elsewhere.
Just two days after terminating his contract with Uganda, he was employed as coach of Egyptian side, Pyramids.
The Afrobeats movement is rapidly gaining momentum across the globe. The African birthed pop sub-genre is sweeping across the world like a tidal wave and now Australia is about to feel the wave.
This October, Wizkid alongside Yemi Alade and Tanzanian songwriter/dancer Harmonize would headline the 1Dance Africa concert series in Australia. The concert series will also be MC’d by the hilarious world-renowned comedian Eddie Kadi.
The 1Dance Africa concert series is an Afrobeats and African culture event hosted by Taliberry Entertainment, an Australian based entertainment firm whose aim is to foster community cohesion through the musical exposure of local and international afrobeat, dancehall and reggae artists and DJs.
Wizkid is considered by many to be the world’s biggest name in Afrobeats. From his collaboration with Drake on his number one hit “One Dance” in 2016 and again in 2017 on his own track “Come Closer” to featuring on Beyonce’s latest release ‘The Lion King: The Gift’ on the track “Brown Skin Girl”. Wizkid was the first-ever Nigerian artist to top the Billboard 100 chart. He has won and been nominated for an extensive array of awards, including two BET awards for Best International Act Africa.
Yemi Alade is widely regarded as the leading lady of Afrobeats music, making her mark on an international scale. Yemi is a powerhouse to be reckoned with as she grows a list of awards and the commercial success for her music. She recently featured on the Beyonce produced album ‘The Lion King: The Gift’.
Tanzanian songwriter and dancer Harmonize is best known for his hit song “Kwanwyaru” featuring Diamond Platnumz, and his feature on Rich Mavoko’s hit “Show Me”. His huge commercial success has seen him win awards from WatsUp TV, AFRIMMA and AEA in the US, as well as being named one of MTV Base’s “Ones to Watch for 2017”.
Eddie Kadi is a British-Congolese comedian who incorporates his African culture and upbringing into his material. He recently hosted a travel show My African Passport for VoxAfrica UK. Early on in his career, he won the BECA award for Best Comedy Newcomer in 2006 and has since sold out an array of solo concerts at venues including indig02 and London’s O2 Arena.
