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Edo police confirm attack on train station, many abducted 

Bankole ABE
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Edo police confirm attack on train station, many abducted 

THE Edo State police command said suspected gunmen have attacked the Igueben station in Igueben Local Government Area of the state and abducted scores of passengers waiting to board a train to Warri, Delta State.

Many of the travellers were also reportedly injured. The incident happened on Saturday evening.

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The Command’s Public Relations Officer, Chidi Nwabuzor, confirmed the incident to The ICIR in a telephone chat on Sunday.

“Yes, it is true; it is confirmed. It happened yesterday evening. Please, more information will come out soon. We don’t want speculations,” Nwabuzor said.

The PRO had narrated in a statement he released earlier that the abductors, armed with AK 47, invaded the train station and shot sporadically into the air before abducting scores of intending travellers into the bush.

He added that many of the passengers sustained bullet wounds.

Operatives were on the trail of the abductors to rescue those herded into the bush.

The statement partly read, “The Area Commander, Irrua; DPO Igueben Division, and men have visited the scene of the crime with members of the Edo State Security Network, local vigilantes, and hunters with a view to protecting the lives and property of the remaining passengers.

“Bush combing operations have commenced in order to rescue the victims and arrest the fleeing kidnappers. Further developments will be communicated.”

This is coming months after an Abuja-Kaduna train was attacked on March 28, 2022, resulting in the death of about 14 passengers, while 63 others were officially declared abducted and later released after several months.

UK police arrest African man targeting underage girl for sex

Oghenekevwe UCHECHUKWU
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UK police arrest African man targeting underage girl for sex

A VIDEO showing the arrest of a man of African descent accused of grooming a minor and travelling from Edinburgh to Leeds to visit her has trended on social media.

The video was published on October 24, 2022 by the pedophile hunting group ‘Predator Exposure’, which set up ‘decoy’ social media profiles pretending to be of a child and then engaging in online conversations.

In the video, the yet-to-be-identified man was alleged to have engaged in online chats with one of the decoy profiles, and thinking that he was chatting with a 13-year-old girl, asked her to do a number of sexually explicit things.

The man, believed to be in his late 30s, also claimed to be 19 years old during the online conversation, and told his 13-year-old chat partner to keep their relationship a secret, promising to take her with him to Scotland and keep her until Christmas.

The man, however, claimed he was only in Leeds to surprise his chat partner ahead of her 14th birthday and that he had no untoward intentions.

Last December, Predator Exposure also released the video of a Homeland security officer Eddie Murillo, 43, who was arrested and charged after traveling to meet and engage in sexual acts with an underage girl.

Murillo thought he was communicating online with a girl under the age of 15 but was actually conversing with undercover detectives.

Lake County Sheriff John D. Idleburg said, “Our detectives will continue placing an emphasis on proactively investigating those who prey on our children.

“Parents and guardians, I cannot stress it enough, know what apps your children are using and know who they are talking to on their devices.”

NSCDC resolved more than 500 farmers/herders disputes through ADR – spokesperson

Bankole ABE
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NSCDC resolved more than 500 farmers/herders disputes through ADR – spokesperson

THE Kaduna State command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) said it had resolved more than 500 farmers/herders disputes in the state through alternative dispute resolution.

The corps said its operatives also recovered 1,100 railway slippers from vandals in 2022 in the state.

The Command’s Public Relations Officer, Habeeb Badamasi, said this during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Kaduna.

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Badamasi said, “We mediated between farmers and herders through our Agro Rangers unit, which could have resulted in the loss of lives and properties.

“More than 500 cases were resolved through alternative dispute resolution by the PCR unit.”

He disclosed that four suspects were apprehended in connection with the railway slippers, while five others were arrested for vandalising armoured electricity cables.

He added that the command had opened more area and divisional offices across the 23 local governments to enhance its activities in the state.

The spokesperson said that the state Commandant, Yahaya Adah, had placed a female squad in schools as part of the Safe Schools Initiative, and promised that the team would tackle vices such as cultism among students.

In another development, the NSCDC debunked a viral message via social media platforms regarding an aptitude test on January 8.

This was contained in a statement signed by the spokesperson for the Corps, Olusola Odumosu.

The corps described the message as “fake, misleading and a calculated attempt by fraudsters and cyber criminals to take advantage of the recruitment process.”

The NSCDC warned the public not to fall victim to job scammers, and urged them to remain calm and patient for authentic updates and information on the recruitment process.

2023: Things to watch out for in South-West

Vincent Ufuoma
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2023: Things to watch out for in South-West

SEVERAL issues ranging from insecurity and post-election crises are some of the things to watch out for in the South-West in 2023.

The region witnessed its first-ever mass shootings at a church in Owo last year. It also recorded various other forms of killings, including kidnappings and rituals.

Although state governments within the region have taken decisive steps to equip the regional security outfit, Amotekun, and other sister security agencies towards curtailing insecurity within the region, happenings in the few days of this year have shown that insecurity might be a cause of concerns within the subnational this year.

On January 1 this year, while many families were celebrating the festive seasons with their loved ones in fanfare, the families of Kehinde Fatinloye and his wife were in mourning in Abeokuta, Ogun State, following the brutal murder of the couple and their son by gunmen suspected to be assassins in Ogun State.

Other cases of security challenges have been reported in several parts of the region since the year began. Earlier this week, communal clashes in Ondo State left more than two people dead and many others injured.

Therefore, to combat security this year, various state governments need to step up their support for all the security outfits within the region. Leadership must be provided to security agencies for enhanced intelligence gathering and prompt responses to emergencies.

2023 General Election, Governorship Tribunals

The 2023 general elections and post-election litigations are other developments expected to happen in the South-West this year. Compared to other regions, elections in the South-West are relatively peaceful. Apart from the presidential election dominating the airwaves across the region, other key elections to watch out for are the governorship elections in Lagos, Ogun, and Oyo states.

Although all the governors seeking re-election for a second term in office in the region have the power of incumbency in their favour, the recent election in Osun state, where an opposition party defeated a sitting governor, has shown some of them might be in for electoral surprises in March.

In Lagos, the incumbent governor’s party, Banajide Sanwo-Olu, has held power since Nigeria’s return to democracy in 1999. It will take a formidable and united opposition to unseat the governor. Observers have noted the present opposition parties in the state have not shown any resolve they want to unseat the All Progressives Congress (APC).

In Ogun state, the in-house fighting of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) might hand a second-term victory to the incumbent governor, Dapo Abiodun of the APC.

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One of the dangers to the re-election of Oyo state governor, Seyi Makinde, is his alignment with Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike, and his opposition to the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

The PDP stakeholders in the state have threatened to work against his re-election should he continue to work against Atiku.

Other election-related matters to look out for in the South-West this year is the outcome of various election tribunals. There are ongoing electoral litigations from the outcome of last year’s gubernatorial elections in both Ekiti and Osun states.

2023: El-Zakzaky denies endorsing Peter Obi

Vincent Ufuoma
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2023: El-Zakzaky denies endorsing Peter Obi

SHIITE Muslim leader, Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, has denied reports alleging that he endorsed the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, or any other candidate contesting the 2023 presidential election.

This comes after a viral report speculated that the cleric had endorsed Obi following the endorsement of the LP flagbearer by former president Olusegun Obasanjo and Edwin Clark, a Niger Delta leader.

The post also allegedly urged eight million Shiite Muslims to get their personal voter card to vote for Peter Obi at the February poll.

Speaking on the development, one of the cleric’s lawyers, Marshall Abubakar of the Falana & Falana Chambers, told newsmen that the purported endorsement of Obi was fake.

Abubakar confirmed that “some presidential candidates” had actually approached the cleric for endorsement, but he refused to endorse them.

He noted that his client believed that the ongoing presidential campaign lacks ideology that would move the nation forward.

“That is fake news. I can confirm to you that there is nothing of such.

“Though some presidential candidates have reached out to him, he has refrained from endorsing any of them because he believes the 2023 presidential contest is bereft of ideological leaning.”

2023: Crowds at political rallies are hired – Adeboye

Marcus FATUNMOLE
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2023: Crowds at political rallies are hired – Adeboye

THE General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Enoch Adeboye, has said that most people joining politicians at campaigns across Nigeria to seek votes for the elections coming up later in the year are hired.

Adeboye stated this on Friday night during the church’s monthly Holy Ghost Service held at the Redemption Camp along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway.

Speaking on the theme, ‘Wonderful,” Adeboye said he watched “hundreds of thousands of youths” at the rallies with amazement.

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According to him, only jobless youths appear at such rallies.

“If you look at the crowd, the majority of them are young. When I see the hundreds of thousands of youths, you have to be jobless to be attending these rallies. What is going to happen when the campaigns are over, and there is nobody to rent anymore?” he wondered.

The ICIR reports that 18 political parties are fielding presidential candidates in the general elections, scheduled by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to hold on February 25 and March 11 this year.

The Presidential and National Assembly elections will hold first, and governorship and Houses of Assembly elections will follow.

Four leading presidential candidates have lit the campaigns across the country, with their loyalists hoping their preferred candidate succeed the incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari, whose two terms of four years apiece in office end on May 29.

Buhari took over from Goodluck Jonathan, whom he defeated in a historic poll in 2015. 

Adeboye also mentioned during his sermon on Friday that he became sad after Nigerians criticised and petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) that he had bought a private jet.

Adeboye, who had his first private aircraft as far back as a decade ago and is among the richest pentecostal pastors in Nigeria, justified the aircraft purchase, saying, “The work has expanded that there is no way I can do it by commercial travel. If you want to travel by commercial, you have to wait for their timetable. If I have to wait for their timetable, I won’t be able to do what God wants me to do.

“To give you an example, I finished our European convention in Spain – one night. Thirty-three nations gathered together. As soon as I finished the programme around 12 midnight, I headed straight to the airport to travel to Hong Kong. I arrived in Hong Kong the following day, did what I needed to do, and then moved on to Singapore. I arrived in Singapore, did what I needed to do and then headed for Australia. I got to Australia, did what I needed to do, I headed to Papua New Guinea.”

He said he needed to visit those places and accomplish his mission before returning to Nigeria for the next major programme in the church in Nigeria.

Adeboye explained there was no way he could achieve the goals with commercial aircraft. 

NDDC: Wike tells new board to focus on regional development projects

Bankole ABE
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NDDC: Wike tells new board to focus on regional development projects

THE governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, has advised the new board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to focus on regional development projects that will impact more states.

Wike urged the board to embrace the execution of projects like constructing highways with bridges to link states.

The governor spoke while receiving the new chairman of the NDDC board, Lauretta Onochie, and other members of the board, who paid a courtesy visit on him at Government House, Port Harcourt, on Friday.

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He said such projects would serve as economic corridors to ease interstate movements and promote socioeconomic integration within the region.

He said, “There is what we call regional development projects that can link up two states. Those are the kinds of things NDDC should go for and give to competent contractors. Leave all these portfolio contractors. Leave them alone. You have come to my state, and you have seen what I have done.

“If I didn’t use Julius Berger and had used these political contractors, you won’t have seen anything here. Of course, you know how expensive Julius Berger is,” the governor said.

He also advised the new board to change its strategy to achieve efficiency.

Wike maintained that such an approach should be the adoption by a regional development that would strictly commit to the holistic development of Niger Delta State.

The Rivers State governor said when projects are awarded, they should not be given to portfolio or political contractors, but to competent ones who will stick to delivering quality and enduring projects.

Onochie responded that they were visiting to formally introduce themselves to the governor as a stakeholder in the region.

She praised the “excellent” infrastructure delivered by the Wike administration, which she asserted has transformed the entire terrain of the state.

Naira Redesign: Why new notes stain white surfaces – NSPM

Sinafi OMANGA
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Naira Redesign: Why new notes stain white surfaces – NSPM

THE Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Plc (NSPM) has addressed concerns raised by the public about the quality of the redesigned naira  notes.

In a statement on Friday January 6, NSPM’s managing director, Ahmed Halilu, said the company’s attention had been drawn to various concerns and comments on diverse platforms regarding the quality of the redesigned notes.

Halilu clarified that the new naira notes passed through the same printing processes and finishing procedures as the old ones.

Shedding light, he said, “It is, therefore, basically the same as the other notes in circulation. It also leaves traces of intaglio inks when rubbed on plain white surfaces.”

He explained that new banknotes are generally light when issued, then become heavier in circulation on getting in contact with dirt and moisture.

Ahmed Halilu

“In addition, the second stage of currency printing (intaglio) requires a heavy deposit of special inks with fairly large particles to give a tactile feeling of the portraits, as well as other raised prints by way of design,” he said.

The NSPM, also referred to as the Mint, was contracted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2014 to print the Naira in order to end years of importation of the notes.

Since then, Halilu said, “Nigeria has achieved zero importation of currency, developed local capacity and, to an extent, conserved foreign exchange within this period.”

The Governor of the CBN, Godwin Emefiele, had on October 26, 2022 announced the institution’s plan to redesign the N200, N500 and N1,000 notes.

It directed that the old notes would cease to be legal tender by January 31, paving way for the redesigned notes.

In a recent Twitter post, the CBN advised Nigerians to ensure they deposit all the N200, N500 and N1,000 banknotes in their possession before the January 31, deadline.

CBN Twitter post

 

 

 

 

 

INEC assures corps members maximum security during 2023 elections

Mustapha USMAN
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INEC assures corps members maximum security during 2023 elections

THE Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, has assured corps members on election duty of premium security, noting that the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) plays a critical role in the election process.

Yakubu disclosed this on Friday in Abuja during a courtesy visit on the acting Director-General of the NYSC, Christy Uba.

The commission, he said, would continue to place a premium on the security of corps members on election duty.

The INEC chairman stated that the corps members operate at the polling units where citizens vote, which he described as the most important level of election.

“So, for that reason, we will also extend insurance cover in case of injury or other emergencies to all corps members involved in election duty.

“Working with the security agencies, we will also extend protection and security to the youth corps members’ lodges when they are deployed to the field on election days.

“This is because we have had some unhappy experiences before when some hoodlums raided the corps members’ lodges in some places, while they were on election duty.

“So, we will continue to take whatever step that is necessary to protect and guarantee the security and welfare of the corps members,’’ the chairman said.

Yakubu assured that the commission would continually operate within the framework of the existing Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the commission and the NYSC.

According to him there would be training and retraining of the ad hoc staff on how to handle technology during the 2023 elections.

“They will be responsible for the management of the polling units, management of election resources, including sensitive materials, accreditation of voters and using the Bimodal Voter Registration System (BVRS) on election days,” he said.

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