The Federal Executive Council, FEC, has approved the sum of N459million for the procurement of seventeen thousand smart card readers for the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, ahead of the 2015 elections.

The smart card readers which are to be used for the verification of voters card by prospective voters during election are to be delivered within the next six months.

Addressing journalists after the FEC meeting on Wednesday, the minister of Information, Labaran Maku, said the contract for thesmart Card reader was the first batch of contracts to be awarded by INEC.

“In its desire to ensure free, fair and credible elections, the INEC is to procure, customise and configure 17,000 smart card readers that will be deployed during elections for voters authentication,” he said.

According to him, the approval was part of efforts to show the commitment of the administration to free, fair, and credible elections in the country.

The contract was awarded to Zinox Technologies Ltd and is to be delivered to the commission at the rate of N27,000 each.

About 25,000 metric tons assorted food have been ordered released by President Goodluck Jonathan from the national strategic grains reserves to Borno, Yobe and Adamawa which are under emergency rule.

The President also approval of the sum of N250 million for the purchase of rice, cooking oil and other accessories to be distributed to the people of the three states.

The minister of state for finance,Yerima Ngama who disclosed this to journalists in Damaturu last weekend said that presidential order was given because of incessant reports of food shortages in the affected states.

Ngama stated that he and his agriculture ministry counterpart,Tijani Bukar,  took a report to the President on the food situation in the three states which immediately elicited Jonathan;s reaction.

The minister said that the step was taken particularly to assist people of the three states get adequate food supplies as Ramadan approached, adding that the federal government was aware that the people of the affected states had been suffering untold hardship because of the restriction of movements imposed by emergency rule.

Ngama said the grains that would be released include maize, millet and guinea corn and that in all there would be a total of 930 trailers(over half a million bags)of food stuff.

He explained that because of the large quantity of grains to be moved, for logistic reasons, it will be distributed in batches.

In the first batch, 399 bags or 665 trailer loads will be released to the affected states. Of this consignment, Borno state, the largest and worse hit by terrorist attacks would get 324 trailer loads, Yobegets 195 trailer loads while Adamawa takes the least of 170 trailer loads.

In Yobe state for instance, Ngama said that all the 178 wards will be given a trailer load of food while the remaining will be shared to civil servants, police, army and other organizations on the state.

While breaking the good news, the minister admonished those who would be involved in the distribution of the items not to politiciisethe process.

“We are giving this food not because we are PDP but because of God. I am calling on all the people of my state to come and collect the food. It does not matter whether you are PDP or any other political party. Nobody will discriminate in the sharing of the food”, he said.

The minister said that the distribution process would also be aided by security men in order to maintain order and ensure equitable sharing of all the items.

He noted that all security agencies with Aid groups will be involved to ensure a hitch free distribution of the food.

More than 20,000 Nigerians have fled into neighbouring Cameroon from Borno State, in the last two weeks, following a clampdown onBoko Haram insurgents by the Joint Task Force, JTF.

Over 20,000 people are said to have fled several communities inGwoza local government area in Borno State when JTF soldiers stormed their communities in search of suspected members of theBoko Haram terrorist group.

The soldiers, who went round the communities with a prepared list of names of Boko Haram suspects, ransacked some houses while reeling out names from their list and allegedly killed 13 persons accused of being members of the sect.
They alleged that the people on their list were sect members who had escaped the military raids of Boko Haram hideouts and camps in the surrounding Gwoza hills.

These facts came to light when the deputy governor of BornoState, Zannah Umar Mustapha, visited the affected communities inGwoza local government as well as the refugee camps established to cater for the fleeing Nigerians in Cameroon.

A member of the Borno State House of Assembly representing the area, Ahmed Jaha, who took the deputy governor round said that the more than 20,000 refugees who fled the military onslaught two weeks ago are being camped at Ashigashiya, Jibrili and Barrawa.

Jaha said that several efforts to persuade the refugees to return to their homes with assurances of their safety had been ignored as they swore never to return to Nigeria.

The refugees condemned the action of the soldiers, saying that instead of coming to protect them and make their lives more secure, they had unleashed more pain and anguish on an already suffering people.
One of the refugees, Sadiqui Ali told the deputy governor that soldiers came into Ngoshe on June 15 with a list of people and arrested three in the community.

He alleged that the three suspects were summarily executed without being allowed to answer any questions or defend themselves, leading scores of people to flee the community in order not to meet with a similar fate.
Sadiqui said that before then, one Col. Hassan had come to the community to talk to residents and assured them than no one would be killed unlawfully by any soldier.

He regretted, however, that “five days later, precisely on 20th June 2013, we woke up with the sound of gun shots everywhere, which resulted in the killings of 8 persons including a principal, head master and an Imam of the Friday mosque.”
Another refugee, Suleiman Dalhatu, said he fled his home because he found out that his name was on the list that was being announced by soldiers as a member of the Boko Haram sect,

Dalhatu who introduced himself as an agricultural extension worker denied being a member of the sect and wondered who had added his name on the list and why, adding that there was no way he would return to Nigeria.
“We would not return as Nigerians to our country unless and until government brings to book those who because of sentiment of religion and politics gave our names as members of the sect group,” he vowed.
Another refugee, Abdu, explained to Mustapha that he fled to Cameroon for fear of being killed by Nigerian soldiers because he saw people who were not members of Boko Haram being killed.

Many of the refugees expressed surprise at the names on the list which the soldiers claimed were members of Boko Haram and alleged that there must be ulterior motives for drawing up the list.

Some of them allege that some persons with bad intentions might have drawn up the list using religious or political considerations.
The deputy governor appealed to the refugees to return to their homes assuring them of their safety while promising that security men would work with the local people in dealing with Boko Haramelements in their midst.

He advised youths in different parts of the state to take a cue from the experience in Maiduguri where young men had formed vigilante groups and were arresting members of the dreaded sect and handing them over to the JTF.
He promised that the state government was ready to equip and pay vigilante groups formed by youths to help deal with the problem of insecurity in the state.

President Goodluck Jonathan has condemned the Imo State House of Assembly election held in Oguta over the weekend for irregularities, saying that the conduct of some persons and groups totally contrasts the one man, one vote model established by his administration.

The President said this while addressing a 13-man delegation from the Nigerian Senators’ Forum on Tuesday.

He urged the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as well as security agencies to take immediate steps to bring all those who played any role in the violence and electoral irregularities that marred the election to justice.

His words: “Those who made it impossible for the rerun election inOguta to be conclusive must be brought to book. We must make it clear that impunity in the perpetration of violence and irregularities during elections will no longer be tolerated. Sanctions, promptly imposed on guilty persons, will deter others from engaging in such acts in future.”

Jonathan stressed that in order to successfully achieve the objectives of the administration in election matters, a culture of consistently free, fair and credible elections in the country must be entrenched.

To achieve this, the president said that any unlawful conduct during elections must be punished in accordance with the law.

He however, expressed joy that his advocacy for one man, one vote was winning more adherents across the country.

The President promised to work with other like-minded Nigerians and the forum, to strengthen Nigeria’s democratic institutions and deliver more dividends of democracy to ordinary Nigerians.

Earlier, the Senators’ Forum pledged of support for the administration’s efforts to sanitize Nigeria’s electoral system, stressing the need for greater accord between the executive and legislative arms of government.

The leader of the delegation, Khairat Abdulrazaq Gwadabe, said both arms must work together to ensure that more Nigerians feel the positive impact of political activities in the country.

She praised the President’s commitment to maintaining cordial and harmonious relations with the National Assembly as well as his respect for the rule of law.

Other members of the delegation include: Senators Abubakar Girei,Iyabo Anisulowo, Alex Kadiri, John Danboyi, Victor Oyofo, EmmanuelIbok Essien, Haruna Abdulazeez and Sunday Fajimi, Sylvanus Ngele,Bala Adamu, Zeog H. Aziz and Omololu Meroyi.

The Senators’ Forum was established in 2003 and has a membership of over 500 serving and former senators.

The Kwara State government on Tuesday closed down six patent medicine stores for dispensing fake and counterfeit drugs in Offaand Ijagbo areas of Oyun local government area of the state.

The order came from the chairman, Kwara State Assembly committee on fake and counterfeit drugs,  Risikat Lawal, after the committee visited some patent medicine stores in the state.

Those affected are: Havila Pharmaceutical Services, Ijagbo;Alayande Medicine Stores, Ijagbo;  Ola-Iya Stores, Offa; FemtoMedicine Stores, Offa; OloBola Medicine Stores, Offa; and JossyPatent Medicine Stores also in Offa.

READ ALSO:

• Rising Tempers Halt Debate On State Of The Nation Bill
• FEC Approves N459 Million For Election Smart Cards
• FG orders Release Of Food To Adamawa, Borno, Yobe States
• Military Operation Sends 20,000 Nigerians Fleeing To Cameroon
• Jonathan Condemns Irregularities In Imo Assembly Election

The committee chairman said some of the offences committed by the sealed stores range from non registration, selling of regulated drugs such as anti-biotics, anti-hypertensive and treatment of patients.

She said owners of any medicine store found stocking fake and counterfeit drugs would be liable to half a million naira fine or imprisonment for two years or both.

“Patent medicine shops should desist from selling ethical drugs likeAmpiclox capsules, procaine and penicillin injections with other controlled drugs,” Lawal said.

She also advised patent medicine stores in the state to register and renew their licences with the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria through the state ministry of health.

The Edo State government on Tuesday ordered the demolition of a house in Benin allegedly used by kidnappers as hideout.

Governor Adams Oshiomhole gave the order when State Security Service, SSS, officials informed him of the arrest of seven suspects in the building.

The governor said that the demolition would serve as deterrent to others who might want to be involved in the act.

“For the landlords, we have already made the decision that anyone that aids and abets kidnapping will have his structure demolished,”Oshiomhole reiterated.

Oshiomole also warned that “any hotelier who does not follow instructions to document those who stay in their hotel and such facilities are used for kidnapping or human trafficking, we will demolish it.”

He stressed that nobody had the right to make money out of the pains of Nigerians, adding that  “it is better to demolish one or two houses to make the community safe haven for all.”

He directed the SSS director in the state, Bello Bakori, to expedite action in the demolition of the said house located at Zomi Zomi area of Upper Sakpoba in Benin.

Earlier, Bakori said the suspects were allegedly responsible for the kidnap of the Supreme Court Judge, Rhodes Vivour’s wife, daughter and driver on May 10 on Benin-Ore Expressway.

He said that the suspects who were arrested on June 27 by the combined team of the army and SSS operatives, had confessed to the crime, while five members of the syndicate were still at large.

Three members of the kidnap gang were paraded before journalists by the security service.

The Nigeria Immigration Service, NIS, has arrested 110 illegal immigrants in Enugu State.

Speaking on behalf of the comptroller general of the NIS in the state, Ismaila Bashir, the deputy comptroller in the state, FelixOdika, told journalists on Tuesday in Enugu that the command would repatriate the illegal immigrants to their various countries in due course.

According to him, those to be repatriated include 94 Nigeriens, seven Togolese and two Beninoise.

Odika said that seven others found to be Nigerians were released immediately.

The exercise which he said would be carried out continuously is to rid the state of illegal immigrants as directed by the service headquarters.

He also cautioned residents of the state against harbouring illegal immigrants.

On March 25, 55 illegal aliens were handed over to Immigration for deportation while on 27 of the same month, 102 illegal aliens were handed over for deportation.
Similarly, on April 2, the police handed over 14 illegal aliens to Immigration for deportation.

The Lagos State Police Command on April 16 also handed over another 271 illegal foreigners to the authorities of the NIS for deportation while another 146 aliens are still being screened.

The illegal aliens, mainly from Niger Republic, Chad and Mali, were arrested from different parts of Lagos and had no particular abode, hence they were seen as security threats to the state.

On May 28, 103 illegal immigrants, who entered the country illegally from Niger Republic were repatriated.

Many of the illegal aliens were picked up at some of the Government Reserved Area. GRA, within Kaduna metropolis, where they were employed as security guards, according to the comptroller of the NIS Kaduna State Command, Hamman Yerima.

Concerns have often been raised about Nigeria’s porous borders and occasionally, triumphant announcements have been made by the NIS in its effort to curb the menace, but with each new round of arrests, there appears to be another influx of illegal immigrants.

The Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, has condemned the PresidentGoodluck Jonathan for seeking to assume the role of Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, by describing the rerun election to the Imo House of Assembly in Oguta as inconclusive.

The party in a statement issued in Ado-Ekiti on Wednesday by its national publicity secretary, Lai Mohammed, said that it is none of president’s duties to determine whether the election was ‘inconclusive’ or marred by ‘violence and irregularities’.

”To the best of our knowledge, it is either the candidates or the parties involved in an election that can take a legal recourse over any perceived irregularities. It therefore baffles us that the presidency has rushed to declare the election inconclusive and marred by rigging, and to call for the prosecution of those involved, simply because its preferred candidate lost.” It said.

ACN said that annulment of results in eight of the 232 polling booths for one reason or other is not enough to make an election ‘inconclusive’, as the presidency did.

The party accused the presidency of being selective in its quest for the prosecution of those who rig or engage in violence during elections.

“The presidency is wrong in trying to pre-empt INEC, simply because the PDP candidate lost the election to the Okorochafaction of APGA.”

It further queried: “Would the presidency have raised the alarm if the victor had come from the Obi faction of APGA? Why didn’t the presidency speak up over the Ondo State Governorship election that was marred by massive violence and rigging? Is it because itsfavoured candidate won?

The party warned that there must be fairness in dealing with perpetrators of election rigging or violence irrespective of parties they belong.

It said the presidency is jittery on the outcome of the election inOguta which may be a referendum on the leadership of President Jonathan and a sign of things to come.

”The presidency should be prepared for more of the drubbing they received in Oguta, because henceforth, that is what will happen to the PDP in subsequent elections. It is a sign of things to come; hence the presidency is right to be jittery. But what it has no right to do is to usurp the role of election umpire or assume the role of a political party,” the ACN said

The National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, on the final day of its three days warning strike, announced a temporary ceasefire.

The union had embarked on a three days strike action on Monday to protest unfair labour practices of some oil companies and had threatened to embark on an indefinite strike, if at the end of Wednesday the federal government failed to broker a deal with it.

It directed all its members at the depots to stop loading petroleum products for the period to protest the alleged inhuman treatment by the management of Chevron, Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC and Agip Oil Company.

The strike was also called to protest the refusal of Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners, NARTO, to implement the signed collective bargaining agreement with petroleum tanker drivers.

However, in a meeting held Wednesday with the group managing director  of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Andrew Yakubu,  he pleaded with the management of the three oil companies to rectify the employment status of casual tanker drivers in their organisations.

At the conclusion of the round-table discussion, the NUPENGPresident, Achese Igwe, said the decision to end the industrial action was for the interest of the public.

He highlighted the major issues which had led to the warning strike to include the high level of insecurity in Nigeria, bad state of the roads, rising oil theft in the Niger Delta, non-adherence to guidelines on contract staffing/casualisation in the sector and abuse of expatriate quota.

Igwe threatened that if the issues were not quickly resolved, the union will not give further notice to the government before embarking on an indefinite strike.

Men of the Joint Task Force, JTF in Borno State, known as Operation Restore Hope on Wednesday shot dead three Boko Haraminsurgents disguised as women who attempted to attack a police station in Maiduguri.

The JTF soldiers had apparently received intelligence of an impending attack on the Ibrahim Taiwo police station and were on alert and well prepared.

The insurgents had disguised as women wearing full hijab, the veil used by Muslim women to cover their body, underneath which they bore the deadly tools of their bloody trade – AK 47 rifles.

The gunmen are said to have tried to gain entry into the police station around 2.00 pm, posing as mere visitors but vigilant soldiers saw through their disguise and opened fire on them, killing all three in the ensuing gun battle.

The whole area was subsequently cordoned off by the soldiers for the rest of the day to forestall further attacks by the insurgents.

The use of hijab disguise by Boko Haram men has become fashionable for many reasons. For one thing, even at the height of the clampdown on Boko Haram members when stop and search was the order of the day in Maiduguri, women were not put through the indignity of proper body searches out of respect.

Also, because the JTF is made up of male soldiers, it would even have been ackward for them to have done full body searches on women.

It is this situation that the ever ingenious Boko Haram men have tried to exploit lately by dressing up as women in order to escape full scrutiny by security men.

Thus, women have been used as couriers of guns and ammunitions or, as happened last weekend at a market in Maiduguri, to plant bombs.

READ ALSO:

• Kwara Seals Six Medicine Stores Over Fake Drugs
• Oshiomhole Orders Demolition Of Kidnappers Base
• 110 Illegal Immigrants Arrested In Enugu
• ACN Condemns President’s reaction to Imo Assembly Election
• NUPENG Calls Off Warning Strike

A woman wrapped an explosive device on her back like a baby apparently with the mission of planting the bomb at the popular market, but before she could complete her deadly errand, something detonated the contraption, instantly killing her.

Also last week, in Gwange ward, youths popularly known as CivilianJTF arrested some Boko hAram men disguised as women and handed them over to soldiers.