We’ve recaptured 11 towns, killed 300 insurgents

We’ve recaptured 11 towns, killed 300 insurgents


The Director of Defence Information, Maj. Gen. Chris Olukolade, has said that troops of the Nigerian Army and personnel of the Air Force have killed over 300 fighters of the Boko Haram sect.

Olukolade said in a statement on Wednesday that the insurgents were killed during a combined operation of the Air Force and ground forces put in place to liberate 11 communities captured by the Boko Haram sect.

According to him, the communities liberated by the troops are Monguno, Gabchari, Abba Jabari, Gajigana, Gajiram, Damakar, Kumaliwa, Bosso Wanti, Jeram and Kabrisungul.

He said that troops had commenced a cordon and search operation in the areas involved in the latest operation.

He stated further that some of the terrorists and their weapons were captured by the troops.

Olukolade also said that the military captured “five different types of armoured fighting vehicles, an anti-aircraft gun, about 50 cases of packed bombs and eight different types of machine guns, five rocket-propelled grenade, 49 boxes of various types and calibres of ammunition, as well as 300 motorcycles destroyed in the fighting.

He added that “a total of six Hilux vehicles including those mounted with anti-aircraft guns were also destroyed.’

Meanwhile, about 30 civilians were killed when an unidentified airplane dropped a bomb on a Nigerian border village, military sources based nearby in Niger said on Wednesday.

“We don’t know whose plane it was. We understand that the victims are residents who were gathered for a ceremony but who were mistaken for terrorists,” said a military source based in the town of Bosso in Niger.

Jega Appears Before Senate, Admits 1m PVCs Yet To Be Collected From China

Jega Appears Before Senate, Admits 1m PVCs Yet To Be Collected From China


Appearing before the Senate, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Attairu Jega, on Wednesday revealed that up to one million Permanent Voter Cards are yet to be collected from China where they are being produced.

This is an admission that the electoral umpire was not ready for elections at the time the elections were postponed.

The INEC boss, however, said the the problem is not with the production of the PVCs but the collection.

Jega said over 66 million PVCs have so far been produced.

According to him, the 66 million already produced have been distributed to the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja for collection by their owners.

He said the postponement of the elections by six weeks was a blessing in disguise as it will enable the commission to distribute the PVCs before the commencement of the general election on March 28.

Jega is currently speaking on the floor of the Senate at the time of this report on usage of the PVCs and Card Reader Machines.

Corpse of rape victim dumped in Imo community

Corpse of rape victim dumped in Imo community




Confusion and apprehension have gripped the people of Umunneato autonomous community in Aboh Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo State, following the discovery of the nude corpse of a lady in their community.

Investigation revealed that the discovery was made a day after the world celebrated the famous Saint Valentine’s Day, at Okwu village.

An eyewitness, who spoke on grounds of anonymity, said that a close look at the lady’s corpse revealed bruises, especially around the breasts and private parts.

Although the witness did not completely rule out what he called a brutal gang-rape of the girl, he could not, however, identify the victim or give her actual age.

The witness said: “I am not too sure that it was a case of ritual killing because no part of the girl, on the face value, was missing.

“It is, to me, a case of brutal gang-raping to death of the unfortunate girl.”

The source said nobody knew how the lifeless body was dumped along the road at Okwu or did it.

Speaking also on the issue, the traditional ruler of the community, Eze Leo Nwokocha, said the identity of the dead lady was still unknown.

According to the royal father, police stormed the scene soon after getting wind of the incident and removed the corpse.

The traditional ruler said he had no doubts that the police and other security agencies were on top of the situation, with a view to ascertaining who the perpetrators were and making them to face the full weight of the law.

The body of the girl had been moved to the morgue of Aboh Mbaise General Hospital.

Buhari masquerading as progressive—group

Buhari masquerading as progressive—group




Yoruba leaders under the aegis of Yoruba Progressives, have accused the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, General Muhammadu Buhari of ‘masquerading’ as a progressive within the APC.

The leaders in a statement by the Secretary General of the Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, Senator Femi Okurounmu, recalled how the former Head of State reportedly attacked   progressive movement during his regime.

According to the group, Buhari insulted Chief Obafemi Awolowo, surrounded his house with troops and seized his international passport and shortened his life by denying him a medical trip overseas.

“The APC presidential candidate incarcerated governors of Unity Party of Nigeria, UPN and also cancelled the Lagos Metroline Projects.   President Goodluck Jonathan deserves a second term considering his achievements in the areas of economy, democracy, human rights and rule of law in the face of politically promoted insurgency,” he said.

- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/02/buhari-masquerading-as-progressive-group/#sthash.5ucin3c1.dpuf

No place for interim government -Mark






No place for interim government -Mark







Senate President, David Mark, has added his voice to the list of oppositions to an Interim National Government in the country.

This was also as he assured that the May 29, 2015, deadline for the hand-over to a new democratically elected president must be respected.

Mark in a brief welcome address to the senators after resumption from a one month election break yesterday, expressed concern that the issue of interim government has been given undeserved prominence in the nation’s national discourse.

He restated that interim government was completely alien to the 1999 Constitution, noting that those who are pushing for ING are on a voyage of futility.

The Senate President said: “I am alarmed that the issue of Interim National Government, ING, has been given undeserved prominence in our national discourse. This is imprecise, sordid and strange. Interim National Government is alien to the 1999 Constitution (as Amended). Therefore, those calling for ING are pushing for an exercise in futility. This Senate is committed to the provisions of our constitution, which we swore to protect and we will not do anything to sabotage the democratic process.”

Mark who decried the current political tension in the country cautioned that as statesmen and women, the senate must rise to the occasion and help reduce tension in the polity.

Justifying the essence of the short address, Mark remarked that, “Ordinarily, we would have commenced our legislative activities this morning without a welcome address. But, these are not ordinary times in our nation. There is palpable tension in the land and the comments and even the body language of the political class further exacerbates the tension.”

Popular Pastor Caught With Hard Drugs Worth N609m in Lagos

Popular Pastor Caught With Hard Drugs Worth N609m in Lagos


The NDLEA, Murtala Muhammed International Airport command, has apprehended Prophet Michael Raji, a popular Lagos based pastor, for drug trafficking.

It was learnt that Raji, who is pastors a white garment church at Ikotun in Lagos, was arrested at about 12pm on Monday while he was trying to smuggle 174 kilogrammes of narcotic drugs to South Africa.

NDLEA said three international passports bearing different names were also recovered from him.

A team later led Pastor Raji to the church, where bags containing 91kg of Methamphetamine and 83kg of Ephedrine with an estimated value of N609m were recovered.

It was also learnt that a jeep was impounded during the operation.

It was gathered that a preliminary investigation indicated that the suspect was a member of a wanted drug syndicate operating in Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa.

The 60-year-old pastor told investigators that he was tempted to the act by the devil. He said, “I received the drugs from my friend and I kept them in the church since October 2014. This is a great temptation for me and I pray to God to overcome it.”

NDLEA Commander at the airport, Mr. Hamza Umar, described the Pastor as a “smooth operator.”

Umar said, “The drugs were brought to the airport for export to South Africa. Investigation eventually traced the movement of the drugs to his church premises where he was arrested. He had three international passports bearing his photographs with the names Michael Raji and Kadigun Ola.

“It was equally discovered that the church premises, where he ministers, also serves as a warehouse for narcotics. The seized drugs, concealed inside large bags of foodstuffs, were found to contain 91kg of Methamphetamine and 83kg of Ephedrine with an estimated street value of N609m.”

The Chairman of the agency, Ahmadu Giade, said the seizure was phenomenal and promised that the pastor and his fleeing accomplices would be brought to book.

Federal Executive Council Approves Postal Reform Bill

Federal Executive Council Approves Postal Reform Bill


Plans to reform the Nigerian postal sector and restructure the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) received a boost with the recent approval of the Nigeria Postal Commission Bill 2014 by the Federal Executive Council (FEC). The Bill will be forwarded to the Legislature to be passed into law. The Postal sector in Nigeria has grown over time with more than 1,200 post offices owned by government, close to 2,000 postal agency outfits managed by individuals, and over 290 registered private courier companies. However statistics from the National Bureau of Statistics show that whilst year-on-year growth is increasing, the contribution of the Post and Courier Services sector to GDP (at 0.03%) is still low. The Nigeria Postal Commission Bill 2014 is designed to reform and reposition the postal sector in line with global trends and international best practices.


It promotes a postal sector that is efficient, cost effective, better funded and capable of delivering service that meets universal obligations embedded in National policies and programmes such as the Transformation Agenda and Vision 20:2020. The postal sector is managed by NIPOST, therefore the growth of the sector is intrinsically tied to the reform of NIPOST. The process of reforming NIPOST began in the early 2000s, the National Council on Privatisation (NCP), through the Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE), started with objectives that included: Establishing a low cost universal postal service that provides a solid communication medium and link nation-wide, providing a safe and efficient postal service that is sustainable and keeps pace with development in the rest of the world, introducing private sector participation and the development of the postal service into a commercially viable enterprise and creating a convenient means of savings mobilisation and payment and/or funds transfer system for the entire country through the postal network.


However, whilst the conceptual framework for reform was developed, the process of its ownership and actualisation has suffered significant delays and action, and on some aspects has stalled. For example it may be recalled that a number of (private members) Bills to amend the Nigerian Postal Service Act, 1992 have been considered by the legislative arm of Government but none passed into law. Since 2011 and the start of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan administration, the focus of reform has been to promote NIPOST as a “necessary tool for the promotion of social, financial and digital inclusion”. The Administration has sought to restructure NIPOST along business lines through the establishment of a new management style that focuses on operational excellence, quality improvement, customer focus, result-oriented management, and cost control. In a bid to empower NIPOST to respond more effectively in a very competitive environment, the deployment of massive ICT infrastructural system with focus on carrying out ICTbased services, including on-line and automated services in post offices is being implemented (in stages). The anticipated result will be improvement in the quality of service and process efficiency, and through that the regaining of public confidence in service delivery.
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)