AFROBEATS sensation and Grammy awards winner Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu, also known as Burna Boy, has been listed to perform at the 66th Grammy Awards.
The Record Academy, via an X post on Monday, January 22, announced that the Nigerian star and American stars Luke Combs and Travis Scott had been added to the lineup of performers at the ceremony.
Aside from being a Grammy winner with several other nominations, this marks another feat as this is the second time he will perform at a Grammy event. He had previously performed his songs, ‘Level Up’, ‘Onyeka’ and ‘Ye’ at the premiere of the awards ceremony in 2020.
The premiere is usually a prelude to the main awards ceremony.
He bagged four nominations for the Awards in different categories, including Best African Music Performance, Best Global Music Performance, Best Global Album, and Best Melodic Rap.
The 66th edition of the annual awards is scheduled for February 5, 2024, in Los Angeles.
The ICIRreported that the Recording Academy introduced three new award categories, which will debut at the ceremony this year.
Other Nigerians on the awards nominations’ list include Davido, Ayra Starr, Asake, Olamide, Fireboy, Ckay and Seun Kuti.
THE Federal High Court in Abuja, on Monday, January 2024, nullified the presentation and passage of the Rivers State 2024 budget.
The ICIRreported that the state governor, Siminalayi Fubara, presented the 2024 budget to only five state House of Assembly members on Wednesday, December 13, 2023.
This happened after 27 of the 32-member Assembly defectedfrom the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The governor signed the budget into law a few days after the five members passed it.
In a judgment on Monday, January 22, delivered by James Omotoso, the court mandated Fubara to represent the budget to the lawfully constituted House of Assembly under the Speaker, Martin Amaewhule.
Omotosho held that everything the pro-Fubara lawmakers did was null and void.
The court also recognised Amaewhule as the Speaker of the state assembly.
Omotoso invalidated withholding the House of Assembly budget and declared that the governor lacked the constitutional power to do so.
The court ruled that Fubara could not prevent the House of Assembly, led by Amaewhule, from meeting and should not meddle with its affairs.
The governor’s decision to redeploy the Clerk and Deputy Clerk of the House was deemed invalid and revoked.
The court directed the Inspector-General of Police to provide the Speaker and lawmakers with sufficient security.
The judge also ordered the Clerk and Deputy Clerk to return to work immediately.
Besides, it prevented the National Assembly from accepting or handling Fubara’s requests or take control of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
Fubara was directed to give Amaewhule access to all funds held in the House of Assembly’s coffers.
The ICIR reports that in addition to the lawmakers’ defection, a wave of resignations rocked the Rivers State’s executive council on December 16, 2023, due to the political impasse between Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, now a minister of the Federal Capital Territory.
On Monday, December 18, President Bola Tinubu waded into the crisis for the second time and brokered a truce before the crisis simmered.
He agreed with parties in the fued on eight issues, including immediate withdrawal all legal proceedings Fubara and his group initiated in courts over the crisis, return of defected Assembly and cabinet members.
The resolution was signed by Fubura and Wike, Amaewhule among others.
On Wednesday, January 17, the House cleared all the nine commissioners who resigned from their positions in the cabinet of Fubara.
EGYPTIAN International Mohamed Salah will not feature for his country in the third round group stage matches against Cape Verde, billed to be held on Monday, January 22, 2024, at the ongoing African Cup of Nations (AFCON).
Salah was injured in Egypt’s 2-2 draw with Ghana on Thursday in Group B.
Confirming his absence at the AFCON, the Egyptian Football Association had projected Salah’s return to the tournament would only be possible if his nation progressed to the quarter-final.
Also giving an update on the player’s injury on Sunday, January 21, Liverpool’s coach, Jurgen Klopp, confirmed that the Egyptian star would return to the club for medical attention.
“It makes sense that he’s doing rehab with us.
“I would say if Egypt qualifies for the final, if he’s fit before the final, then probably yes,” he said.
After Salah sustained the injury, Klopp hinted on Friday that the player’s hamstring problem was likely to be severe, owing to the forward’s injury history, which has led to missing just ten league games for the Reds in more than six seasons.
“He was shocked and couldn’t see why he was hit by something so intense.”
“You have these hamstring injuries in a different way. He felt it, and we know how rarely Mo goes off or needs to go off, so it is definitely something,” he said.
Among all the titles Salah had won, he is yet to win AFCON since he made his international debut in 2011- a year after his country won their seventh AFCON title.
Since then, he has finished with his country as runners-up in the 2017 and 2021 editions.
Despite this, Salah, who scored a late penalty to help Egypt draw 2-2 with Mozambique at the opening match of the ongoing tournament, is optimistic about winning the AFCON “sooner or later.”
“I would love to win it, absolutely,” he said. “It will happen somehow – that is what I believe. Whatever I believe, I achieve – so sooner or later, it will happen.
“I have won everything possible, but this one, not yet. Everybody knows what it means to any player to win an Africa Cup.
“The players are very motivated to win the tournament. I believe that, with hard work, everything is possible, so we just need to win one game to qualify, and we go from there,” he said.
IT is midday on a day in late October 2023, Blessing Obinigwe sits inside her kiosk where she sells beverages and snacks along the Amoka end of the 9th Mile-Orokam Road. Her head bent down, her hands firmly holding her little son.
Obinigwe has yet to make any sales all day. She hardly does these days. Sometimes, she goes a whole week without selling a pack of drinks. She is the only one who still runs a business along her stretch of the road.
A year ago, it was a different story. The road was not entirely in good condition, but it was a beehive of activities. Obinigwe sold between five and ten packs of drinks daily. Owners of all kinds of businesses, from beverages to fast food and other food categories, had shops on both sides of the road.
“Businesses were booming daily, said Obinigwe. “Sometimes, we stayed up till midnight, making money from commuters who often lined up their vehicles after ending their journey,”.
The single-lane road, constructed as the major highway linking the Southeast to the North of Nigeria, stretches across seven communities, from the Ama Breweries at 9th Mile to Ebe, Egede, Amoka, Affa, Umuoka, Ogbede and Opi in Nsukka.
“I plan to move to another location for my business or change it completely since no one comes to buy, “said Obinigwe. “But I want to wait for some time and see if things will change”.
With no cars passing through the road, checkpoints are deserted.
Demanding for a change
The dilapidation started gradually. On March 14, 2017, a former senator representing Enugu North senatorial zone, Chukwuka Utazi, drew attention to the state of the road, noting that it requires immediate reconstruction and dualisation to reduce the unacceptable level of accidents and robbery on the road.
Utazi said that the importance of the road lies not only in the fact that it is the gateway from the North to the Eastern part of Nigeria but also in the fact that commercial and other economic activities, especially the transportation of agricultural and industrial produce, are seriously threatened.
He noted that while Nigeria makes efforts to attract the much-needed investments to stimulate the weak economy and create jobs, the state of the infrastructure is a prime consideration for investors, and therefore, the state of this road directly discourages investors from the area.
Shops locked along the road.
“For instance, Ama Breweries is the largest and most modern Brewery in Nigeria, and its location should not only bring associated investments but also attract other investments into the cluster. Unfortunately, the major road for the evacuation of the products of the Brewery is in total disrepair, thereby causing economic lockjaw in the area,” he said.
The project and payments
In May 2017, the Federal Executive Council approved the construction of the 9th Mile – Orokam road. The 72km road contract was awarded to Reynolds Construction Company (RCC) at N38,034,539,413.79 with a completion period of 36 months. Yet more than five years later, the construction has not been done. The condition of the road has worsened.
The intention was that the road project would improve transportation infrastructure and restore the nation’s road network as part of the implementation of the Federal Government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, like other road projects.
Jude Anibueze, a youth leader in Amoka, one of the communities along the road, said that they have made several efforts to get the government to complete the road rehabilitation.
“When we heard about the approval, we could not contain our joy; it was hoped that it will be completed in due time”.
Data on the govspend platform, which tracks and analyses federal government spending over time, shows that between 2018 and June 2022, RCC had received a total of twelve different payments amounting to over N3.5 billion (3,567,487,903) for the rehabilitation of the road.
While on a working visit to the road rehabilitation site in 2018, the Minister of State for Power, Works and Housing at the time, Mustapha Baba Shehuri, directed the Project Manager of RCC, Harel Vaknin, to ensure that further palliative measures were provided immediately and that the rough portions of the road were completely rehabilitated to ease the sufferings of road users.
Worsening state of the road
Despite the payments made to the contractor, findings show that the state of the road has worsened. Now, it is common to see some commercial truck drivers stuck and trying to pull their cars out of potholes.
Sources who spoke to The ICIR said that formerly, during festive periods, the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) would scrape and re-surface some portions of the road. Sadly, that option cannot work as large segments of the road have collapsed, making it impassable.
Good section of the road
Now, you can drive for over 30 minutes without seeing any vehicle, not even a bird.
Out of the 72km awarded for rehabilitation, only about 5.8 kilometres have been completed, with side drainages covering Ebe and Egede communities. The entire section from Amoka to Affa, Umuoka, Ogbede to Opi has not been attended to.
Some parts of the road have left their original level because drivers always try to navigate through. Others have transformed into dangerous craters. Some sections of the road have also been turned into waste dumping sites.
The state of the road has completely grounded the transportation of cattle, yams, beans, onions, and tomatoes from the North to the South; and the haulage of petroleum products, palm oil, motor spare parts and other products from the large markets in Onitsha and Aba in the Southeast to the North.
Haven for criminals
Armed robbers have taken advantage of the deplorable state of the road, becoming a law unto themselves, ambushing, robbing and dispossessing commuters and sometimes, causing harm to them.
Six years ago, a gang of armed robbers attacked a fully loaded luxurious bus said to be travelling from Abia State to Yola, the Adamawa State Capital, along the 9th Mile-Orokam Road. While the female travellers among them were raped, others were robbed of their money and other valuables.
In his presentation to the senate, Utazi had urged the Police and other security agencies to increase their surveillance on the road to protect innocent commuters from the marauding activities of armed robbers and other criminal elements.
However, during a field visit, the reporter noticed that security operatives- including the police and the army- were absent in most sections of the road. Checkpoints that used to be mounted along the road by the police and the army have been deserted.
Truck drivers who get stuck on the road are often extorted by boys from surrounding communities who threaten to beat them up or destroy their vehicles if they refuse to pay.
A truck driver, Abdullahi Idris, told this reporter that some group of boys on a bike collected N3,000 from him and his colleagues just before they finished translating some product they had transported from Abia state after their truck got stuck on the road.
Abdullahi explains the amount of suffering on the road.
“This is not the first time it is happening,” he said. “Sometimes, they even beat drivers up because the road is lonely, and nobody can help you if you are caught up in any kind of trouble”.
For drivers such as Abdullahi, who often ply the road on their way to the North of Nigeria, the road has become a source of nightmare. He spoke of how some trucks even fall while trying to navigate the road, sometimes spilling all their content on the road.
Abdullahi, who has been plying the road for over 15 years, recalled the times when it was still in good condition. He said it was always busy and a beehive of activities.
“Now, we experience a lot of delays for us because we travel to as far as Kaduna, Kano and other northern states with the product, “he said. “Whenever our truck gets stuck, we spend three days and sometimes more trying to pull it out. ”
Increased cost of transportation
The dilapidated state of the road is impacting the cost of transportation. Onyeka Eze is a motorcyclist who often plies the road. He said that he now charges N3,000 and more to carry passengers from 9th Mile to Amoka, which is less than a 20-minute drive.
Onyeka Eze
“When the road was in good condition, the price was less than N1000,” he said. “Apart from the bad road, there is the increasing price of fuel, and it gets worse whenever it rains,”.
He said that the state of the road constitutes a severe threat to the lives of motorcyclists as some of them have had their motorcycles stolen from them.
“I have had to fix my motorcycle a lot, and I pay a lot of money and motorcycle riders are the only people who can ply through the road without getting stuck”.
Anibueze said that the situation gets worse every day. “Now, some parts of the road are so deep that they can almost swallow up vehicles; our hopes have been dashed,“he said.
Ugwu Onyebuchi, a resident of Ebe, one of the communities, said that the situation has affected business for women who used to travel to Ogbede, another community along the road.
“Now, they have to follow alternative routes, which cost more money,” he said. They spend over N2,000 for distances that used to be covered with N500. They have to get to 9th Mile before they can get a vehicle going to the market, and that affects their income. ”
Findings from a Bureau of Public Procurement Document showing certificates of no objection to different contractors show that the project was awarded to both RCC and China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) back in 2017.
While CHEC will handle the total reconstruction of the road from Lafia to Makurdi, through Otupko and 9th Mile, for the sum of Nine Hundred and Ninety-Five Million, Four Thousand, Twenty-One United States Dollar Ninety-Five Cent (USD$995,004,021.95), RCC was supposed to handle the Rehabilitation from 9th Mile to Orokam in Benue state.
With no cars passing through the road, checkpoints are deserted.
During an inspection of the Lafia-Makurdi end of the project, the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Works, Abubakar Kabir Abubakar, said that it was a joint funding arrangement between Nigeria and China through a Preferential Buyer’s Credit loan from Export-Import Bank of China (CEXIM).
“While about Eighty-five per cent of the contract, the sum is from China, Nigeria is providing the other fifteen per cent counterpart fund of the contract sum,” he said.
An engineer at the Federal Ministry of Works who prefers not to be mentioned said that CHEC has written to the ministry, asking for the right of way and for compensation to be paid to all those whose property will be affected along the road.
The engineer said that the inability of the government to clear outstanding payments owed to RCC has slowed the rehabilitation and abandonment of the 9th Mile-Orokam project being handled by RCC.
“RCC has been off for a very long time after it completed 5.8km on the project without receiving some payment,” said the engineer.
Vaknin had been quoted in March 2020 as saying that the lack of adequate funding was slowing the execution of the project. Vaknin said that although the company could do more, it needed to be motivated.
Vaknin said that the company had only received N1.2 billion and was being owed about N6 billion. He spoke when the chairman of the Senate Committee on Works at the time, Adamu Aliero, inspected some ongoing projects in the state.
The engineer said that the government hardly drags contractors who fail to complete projects because they are guilty of non-payment. He also accused the government of breaching contract agreements with companies in most instances.
“For instance, a contractor should get paid after 30 days of submitting an invoice, but that is rarely done, “he said. “A certain contractor got his complete 15% mobilization in 2017 for a project he had started in 2014”.
He, however, recommended that more roads should be put under the federal road infrastructure Tax Credit Scheme-funded by NNPC Ltd to ensure the sustainability of funding critical infrastructure in Nigeria.
When this reporter called the RCC to get their side of the story regarding the abandonment of the road, the company’s PRO, Ken confirmed that the company was being owed some money by the government and that the project had since been re-awarded to CHEC.
“We are being owed some money we put into the project; hence we could not continue, “he said. “The management of the company must have sorted things out before the contract was re-awarded,”.
When contacted, an engineer at CHEC told this reporter that they were on the project. He, however, did not give specific details such as the timeline for completion and where they are exactly.
On Monday, November 13, 2023, the ICIR sent a freedom of information request (FOI), to the Federal Ministry of Works, requesting detailed information about the project, including the contract description, date the project was advertised, the approved threshold, procurement method, date of bid opening and name of the contractor.
Other details requested include the date of contract award, the contract execution period, the contract value, the approved budgetary provision, the amount paid and the level of project completion.
However, while the letter was acknowledged the same day, no response was received seven days after, as required by the law. Till this report was published, no response was received.
OVER 380 persons were kidnapped between December 1, 2023, and January 3, 2024, across Nigeria under President Bola Tinubu.
According to Data obtained by The ICIR from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), a data bureau collecting data on the locations, dates, actors, fatalities, and types of all reported political violence and protest events worldwide, those abducted include men, women, farmers, children, and students.
The victims were taken hostage at various events that happened during the last month of 2023 and the first week of the new year, illustrating the escalating number of kidnapping cases in the country.
Affected states include Anambra, Benue, Cross River, Delta, Enugu, FCT, Kaduna, Kastina, Kogi, Lagos, Nassarawa, Ogun, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba and Zamfara.
Rising cases of Kidnapping in FCT
According to media reports, residents of Abuja experienced an upsurge in kidnapping activities towards the end of 2023, and it continued into the new year.
Residents of the Bwari area council in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) were most affected as three separate housing estates were attacked by kidnappers, and about 30 occupants were abducted within the period.
Around the same time, about seven people from the nearby Arab Road residential area in Kubwa town were kidnapped.
Since the start of 2024, many residents have reportedly been abducted in the FCT.
Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike
Seven people, all from the same family, were kidnapped by gunmen in the Zuma 1 area in the Bwari area council barely six days into the new year.
Six-month-old baby, three others kidnapped in Abuja
On Sunday, December 10, an attack occurred at the Zone 5 section of the Kubwa Extension 2 Relocation Estate, along Arab Road in the FCT, resulting in the abduction of a six-month-old infant, the mother, and two others.
The incident occurred between 8 and 9 p.m., causing panic in the neighbourhood close to the National Youth Service Corps orientation camp.
Kidnappers request N5 million from victim’s family
After kidnapping Ibrahim Oricha and 22 others at their home in Dei Dei town, Bwari area council of the FCT, in early December 2023, kidnappers called the victim’s family and demanded N5 million ransom.
The victim’s sister, Rashidat Oricha, expressed sadness over the state of the nation’s security, claiming they were orphans without a support system to help them raise the ransom.
Abuja-based musician kidnapped with his band members
On Sunday, December 17, 2023, while on their way back from an event, the band members of a Nigerian musician known as Omoba De Jumbo Beats were abducted.
Another musician, Adeyinka Adeboye, also known as Boyebest, revealed the incident on Instagram.
Boyebest said the abductors wanted N10 million ransom to free their victims.
They reportedly regained freedom after four days in captivity.
FCT Police refute report on number of people kidnapped
The FCT Police command acknowledged that gunmen abducted Abuja residents but disputed the reported number of victims.
A statement released on Wednesday, January 10 and signed by the FCT Police public relations officer, Josephine Adeh, said, “The FCT Police command is aware of the news circulating about the alleged kidnap of over two hundred persons between December 23, 2023, and January 4 2024 in Bwari and Kuje Area Councils.
“Consequently, the command wishes to categorically state that there are pockets of abductions in the mentioned communities, but the figure is being exaggerated to create fear and apprehension in the populace.”
Other abduction cases around the country within the period
Lawmaker laments killing of 2 and kidnapping of 6 persons in Kogi
Within three weeks, two people were killed, and about six persons were abducted in Yagba East local government area of Kogi state.
The lawmaker representing the Yagba East constituency in the Kogi state House of Assembly, Emmanuel Obaro, said this on Tuesday, January 9, when submitting a motion of urgent public interest on the incident before the Assembly.
According to Obaro, the problem of kidnapping and armed robbery is increasing in his constituency.
He said the situation might have adverse consequences, including fear and uncertainty in the surrounding communities.
Security operatives rescue 24 abducted victims in Kogi
Twenty-four people who were kidnapped within the Adogo axis of Kogi state on Friday, December 29, 2023, regained their freedom onSaturday, December 30.
Kogi state police command spokesperson William Ovye Aya
This was made known in a statement issued by the spokesperson of the state Police command, William Aya, on behalf of the Commissioner of Police in the state, Bethrand Onuoha.
Ex-convict, 72-year-old informant, arrested for kidnapping nine persons in Ondo
The Ondo state security outfit, Amotekun, detained 60 people, including an ex-convict named Usman Garuba and a 72-year-old informant named Suleman Abubakar, on suspicion of abduction and other offences in the state.
Adetunji Adeleye, the state commander of Amotekun, announced in Akure that the 72-year-old security guard Suleman Abubakar was taken into custody for giving information to the kidnappers who whisked away his boss. Garuba was arrested after kidnapping nine people and demanding a ransom in the Akure North council area of the state.
Judge, driver kidnapped in Akwa Ibom
A judge at Oron High Court in Akwa Ibom state, Joy Unwana, and her driver were kidnapped by unknown gunmen on Monday, December 18.
The incident occurred around 8:00 p.m. along the Okobo-Esuk Inwang-Ndon Ebom road, resulting in the death of her Police orderly.
She was later released with her driver days after.
Gunmen kidnap Catholic priest, one other in Imo
On December 1, 2023, gunmen abducted Kingsley Eze, also known as Father Ichie, the priest in charge of St. Michael’s Catholic Church Parish in Umuekebi, Osuoweerre autonomous community in the Isiala Mbano local government area of Imo state.
Hope Uzodinma, Imo State Governor
According to reports, the priest was abducted at Orieama Junction at approximately 8 p.m., along with a second man identified as Uchenna Newman, who drove the priest’s Volvo vehicle.
Notorious bandit Kachalla Kawaje, who kidnapped Zamfara female students killed in Niger
One of the notorious bandits terrorising northern parts of Nigeria, Ali Alheri, also known as Kachalla Kawaje, was killed by the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) air strike on December 11, 2023.
The bandits’ warlord, who masterminded the kidnapping of female students of Federal University Gusau (FUGUS), Zamfara state, and some construction workers earlier this year, was killed alongside his kingpins by the NAF’s troops.
The ICIRreported how over 25 students, mostly female, were abducted from the Federal University, Gusau, on September 22.
A few days later, the abductors returned and whisked away two more students of the institution in October.
Cost of getting kidnapped in Nigeria
In recent years, Nigeria has seen a sharp leap in kidnappings. This has resulted in Nigerians paying billions of naira in ransom to secure the release of their loved ones at the hands of kidnappers.
A report published by The ICIR examined cases of kidnapping, ransom payment and the cost of being kidnapped in Nigeria.
Police promised to tackle menace, rescue victims unhurt
In the wake of the abduction of six young girls in the Bwari area council of the FCT, the Police, through its spokesperson, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, released a statement on Saturday, January 13, stating that the Force has initiated a “comprehensive plan” of action to tackle kidnapping.
The Force Headquarters said it was coordinating efforts to address the menace and prevent any further occurrence.
Police PRO, Olumuyiwa Adejobi
“The NPF is actively engaging and contacting individuals crucial to the rescue operations and investigation. The objective is not only to bring perpetrators to justice but also to intensify efforts in rescue operations for victims still in captivity,” the statement added.
Solution to rampant kidnapping cases in Nigeria
Managing director of Beacon Consulting Limited, Kabir Adamu, suggested three solutions to combat kidnapping in Nigeria.
*Improved protection for targeted victims
*Interventions that target the perpetrators to understand why they engage in kidnap for ransom
*Stopping perpetrators from benefiting from the proceeds of crime.
OPERATIVES of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested the owner of a tramadol consignment that had caused a scuffle at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos state, in a viral video.
This was made known in a statement on January 21 by the NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi.
“NDLEA operatives on Friday 19th January, arrested one Okosun Paul Punitt, the consignee of a consignment of tramadol concealed in a bottle of dietary supplements, which a staff of Pathfinder International Ltd, Ajuzieogu Mac-Elvis Ugochukwu attempted sending through an intending passenger on Ibom Air to Accra, Ghana, at the Lagos airport on Tuesday 16th January.
“A video of the face-off between the passenger and Ajuzieogu later went viral after the vigilant passenger suspected the consignment contained illicit substances. Both Ajuzieogu and the exhibit were later transferred to NDLEA on Thursday, 18th January, by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN for investigation,” part of the statement read.
The statement noted that findings by the agency showed the parcel contained 50 pills of tramadol 225mg concealed in a bottle of dietary supplements and a follow-up operation by the agency led to the arrest of Punitt, who has confirmed ownership of the drug, upon his return from Ghana on Friday.
The statement added that the illicit drugs were seized between Thursday and Friday alongside arms and ammunition by operatives of different special units of the agency.
They include cocaine and colorado, a strong strain of cannabis, concealed in containerised household items and vehicles imported from Durban, South Africa and Canada at the Tincan Seaport in Lagos.
“Following coordinated intelligence and months of tracking of the containers by three special units of NDLEA, the illicit drugs along with arms, ammunition and sundry military effects were seized during joint examination of the three containers by the agency’s officers and their counterparts from Customs Service and other security agencies between Thursday 18th and Friday 19th January 2024. Some of the agency’s sniffer dogs were also deployed to help identify locations and bags used in concealing the illicit items.
‘Some of the items recovered from the containers include 1,274 parcels of cocaine and colorado with a total weight of 884.09 kilograms; four pistols; 197 rounds of 9mm ammunition, 49 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition, 275 rounds of 5.56mm ammunition, 14 rounds of 9mm ammunition and sundry military personnel effects as well as some chemicals in kegs,” the statement added.
According to the NDLEA, a suspect linked to one of the containers bearing the 32.5kg colorado, 41-year-old Akara Chibugo, has already been tracked and arrested by NDLEA operatives.
It further highlighted the various interceptions in different parts of the country while noting that its advocacy campaign, the ‘war against drug abuse’ (WADA), had been stepped up in schools, markets, worship places and others across the country.
THE Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command said it had rescued another kidnapped victim in the nation’s capital.
The command also said it captured one of the kidnappers.
The Police public relations officer, Josephine Adeh, a superintendent of Police, disclosed these in a statement it made available to The ICIR on Sunday, January 21.
She said the victim was rescued in Sauka, in the FCT.
The ICIR reports that Sauka is one of the sprawling villages in the nation’s capital.
The community faces the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) headquarters.
Many NSCDC, NIS, Air Force and Nigeria Correctional Service staff live in Sauka and constitute a chunk of the community’s population.
The latest development in Sauka further confirms kidnapping epidemic hitting the Nigerian capital.
In an earlier report on Sunday (today), TheICIR reported how the FCT Police command rescued the remaining five girls of the Al-Kadriyar family who were kidnapped earlier this month by bandits in the Bwari area of the FCT, in Kajuru forest, Kaduna state.
Also, in a related report on Sunday, TheICIRreported the FCT Police command dismissing claims of a kidnapping incident at River Park Estate in Abuja.
This organisation reports that the incidence of kidnapping and other forms of insecurity of lives and property have continued to plague Nigeria’s seat of power, with the term “kidnapping epidemic” gaining more traction among residents.
Insecurity has been a long-standing crisis in the FCT. In this report in 2022, The ICIR detailed numerous insecurity incidents the city had confronted when the former Police commissioner, Sadiq Abubakar, assumed office.
In her statement on Sunday, the FCT Police spokesperson said of the case in Sauka, “In a continued effort to rid FCT of criminality, Police operatives attached to Iddo Divisional Headquarters on Sunday 21st January 2024, at about 1130hrs rescued another kidnapped victim, one Suleiman Sabo, ‘m’, from Kidnappers in Sauka, along Airport Road, Abuja.
“In the rescue operation, one Muhammad Abel, ‘m’, aged 32 from Kogi state was equally apprehended and one LAR rifle with ten rounds of life ammunition recovered from him.”
Adeh revealed that the victim sustained some injuries from the kidnappers and was receiving medical attention at a health facility.
He would be reunited with his family once certified fit by the medical team, she said.
Adeh said the Commissioner of Police in the FCT, Haruna Garba, again pledged the command’s commitment to rid the FCT of criminality and maintain peace for all.
“He equally urges residents to keep up swift rendition of distress calls and promptly report suspicious activities through the following emergency lines: 08032003913, 08061581938, 07057337653, and 08028940883; PCB: 09022222352,” she added.
THE Lagos government has banned using and distributing single-use plastics across the state.
The ban takes immediate effect.
The state commissioner for environment and water resources, Tokunbo Wahab, disclosed this on his X handle on Sunday, January 21.
He said single-use plastics had become a menace to the state.
“Following the menace which single-use plastics, especially non-biodegradable styrofoam, are causing on the environment, the Lagos state government through the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources is hereby announcing a ban on the usage and distribution of styrofoam and other single-use plastics in the state with immediate effect,” tweeted.
Single-use plastic products are often used once or for a short period before being disposed of, which constitutes waste on the environment and negatively impacts the health of living things.
Accordingly, styrofoam is a trademarked brand of closed-cell extruded polystyrene foam for building insulation on walls, roofs, and foundations. It provides thermal insulation and is used as a water barrier.
While styrofoam is also used to manufacture disposable plates commonly found at eateries or used by caterers, single-use plastics and styrofoam products often clog drainage channels and canals.
In a tweet on November 6, 2023, the Lagos state Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu decried the menace of single-use plastics, stating that the cleanup of Lagos would involve eliminating waste and reducing pollution in the state.
In February 2022, the Lagos state Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA) also decried the increasing rate of single-use plastics and other pet bottles. It banned the use of the products among its staff.
According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), plastic waste is one of the biggest threats to the world’s oceans, revealing that more than eight million tons of plastic leak into the ocean yearly – the equivalent of dumping a garbage truck of plastic every minute.
“This damages marine ecosystems, harms wildlife and causes adverse impacts to human health,” UNEP had warned.
THE Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) have sued the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, for increasing the National Assembly’s 2024 budget by N147 billion.
The SERAP also joined 20 other Nigerians in the suit.
Akpabio and Abbas were accused of arbitrarily raising the budget for the federal lawmakers from N197 billion to N344 billion, the highest since 1999. The duo were sued for themselves and on behalf of all members of the National Assembly.
In a Kellu: The female activist who died fighting for justice statement released on Sunday, 21, 2024, SERAP stated that in December 2023, the lawmakers increased their allocation from N197 billion – the amount President Bola Tinubu had proposed – to N344 billion.
From the 2024 budget, the legislators would receive N514 billion in total. In 2023, the legislators arbitrarily raised their budget from N169 billion to N228 billion.
In the suit numbered FHC/ABJ/CS/68/2024 filed on Friday, January 19 2024, at the Federal High Court, Abuja, SERAP is seeking whether the lawmakers, in the exercise of their powers over appropriation/money bills, can unilaterally increase their budget without the re-presentation of the budget by the executive in line with section 81 of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 as amended.
The organisation argued that the National Assembly’s action was a breach of the democratic principles of separation of powers and checks and balances.
In the suit, the plaintiffs maintained that allowing the National Assembly to continue to unilaterally and arbitrarily increase its budget would fundamentally undermine the letter and spirit of the Nigerian Constitution, public trust, and the rule of law.
“Paragraph one of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers provides that ‘a public officer shall not put himself in a position where his personal interest conflicts with his duties and responsibilities.’
“Members of the National Assembly have put their interest above the public interest and well-being and prosperity of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, contrary to their oath of office.
“The Budget/Appropriation Act 2024 is yet to be gazetted as of the time of filing this suit, and public access to the gazetted 2024 Budget/Appropriation Act is restricted,” SERAP stated.
The suit was filed on behalf of SERAP by its lawyers, Kolawole Oluwadare and Andrew Nwankwo, but no date has been fixed for its hearing.
THE Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command had dismissed claims of a kidnapping incident at River Park Estate, Abuja.
According to a statement on the command’s X account, a resident of Games Village (another estate about 30 kilometres away from the River Park Estate) named Nnandi Agu staged his kidnapping to deceive his brother, who lives at the River Park Estate.
The Police said his attempt to defraud his brother failed.
‘The FCT Police Command is aware of the news making rounds about an alleged kidnapping incident at River Park Estate in the early hours of today (Saturday, January 20) and wishes to state that contrary to reports; nobody was kidnapped in River Park Estate.
“One Nnandi Agu ‘m’ of Games Village only faked his own kidnap in an attempt to defraud his brother who lives within the said estate,” the statement read in part.
The statement further noted that the Police were interrogating the suspect and would update the public as the investigation progressed.
Similarly, the River Park Estate management has debunked the alleged incident.
‘This is to bring to the attention of all residents that the information going around that there is a kidnapping incident within the estate is false.
‘We only have an incident of a man from Games Village who made an attempt to dupe his brother who lives within the estate under the guise that he was kidnapped. Currently, he is under investigation as he has been arrested.”
The statement noted that Agu’s brother, Henry Davidson, was the one who directed the ‘kidnappers’ to come to River Park Estate to collect the ransom with the aim that the estate security would apprehend them.
“And truly, they were apprehended once they got around the estate,” the statement added.
