CBN to sanction banks for illegal forex transactions

Banks were yesterday hit with allegations of round tripping.

Acting Director, Trade & Exchange, W.D. Gotring, in a circular to authorized dealers titled: Re: Transactions in ‘Free Funds’ by Authorized Dealers’,  accused banks of buying and selling Forex without following stipulated guidelines.

“The CBN has noticed that some Authorized Dealers have continued to buy and sell foreign exchange referred to as ‘free funds’ despite the provision of the circular of March 4, 2004 on the subject,” he said.

He cautioned the lenders that their action is a breach of extant regulations. “Against the background, authorized dealers are to note that dealing in foreign exchange without appropriate documentation, which includes relevant entries, blotters, physical documents and non-disclosure to the Regulatory Authorities is a breach of extant regulations”.

He reiterated that as provided in the laws and regulations governing dealings in foreign exchange, authorized dealers shall not sell foreign exchange without appropriate documentation and disclosure to the regulatory authorities, irrespective of the source of the funds.

“Accordingly, authorized dealers shall deal in eligible transactions only, and not engage in any foreign exchange transactions on terms inconsistent with the extant laws and or regulations,” he said.

The banks, further findings showed, are engaging in round-tripping, taking advantage of the huge forex gaps between the official and the parallel markets.

The naira yesterday closed at N305.50 to dollar in the inter-bank market, but was exchanging at N398 to dollar in the parallel market/ black market, hence creating huge temptations for greedy lenders to exploit. This structural defect is exploited by authorized dealers (banks) to make huge trading profits, but it weakens the naira.

The naira yesterday closed firmer on the inter-bank market after the CBN sold dollars to some commercial lenders towards the end of a session that featured no trades in the first four hours, traders said.

The naira was 0.81 percent firmer than its Friday close. The CBN has been selling dollars almost daily to boost liquidity and support the naira

About 20 to 25 per cent of the volume of forex traded in the country is from autonomous sources, usually diverted into the parallel market through round-tripping.

Also, the CBN directed authorized dealers to sell 60 per cent of all sourced forex to manufacturers.

Gotring said: “Following the review of returns on the disbursement of foreign exchange to end users, it has been observed that negligible proportion of foreign exchange sales are being channeled towards the importation of raw materials for the manufacturing sector”.

“Against this background and in order to address the observed imbalance, authorized dealers are hereby directed to henceforth dedicate 60 per cent of their total foreign exchange purchases from all sources, interbank inclusive, to end users strictly for the purposes of importation of raw materials, plant and machinery. The balance of 40 per cent should be used to meet other trade obligations, visible and invisible transactions,” Gotring said in a statement.

Woman was allegedly detained by NPF for "stealing Day-old-Baby"

The Imo State Police command yesterday in Owerri, the state capi­tal paraded before newsmen one Mrs Ngozi Anyanwu and her son, Goodluck Any­anwu for allegedly stealing a-day-old baby from Chuk­wunonso Maternity in Isiala Mbano Local Government Area of the state.

The state Commissioner of police, Mr Taiwo Lakanu while briefing newsmen said that he received the disturb­ing news of the sudden dis­appearance of a newly born baby and he immediately swung into action.

Mr Lakanu said: “On Au­gust 19, I received a distress call about the stealing of a day old baby in Isiala Mbano LGA, we quickly swung into action, where we recovered the baby unhurt and I am happy to announce to you that we have handed over the innocent child to the par­ents.”

According to him, the male baby who was delivered on Friday, August 19 was sto­len the next day from Chuk­wunonso Maternity in Isiala Mbano local government but added that the baby was rescued 48 hours later from the kidnappers den in Um­uelemai also in Isiala Mbano Local Government Area of the state.

The CP disclosed that the suspects have made useful statements and would be charged to court, accord­ingly.

The prime suspect, Mrs Ngozi Anyanwu who con­fessed stealing the child, however said that she stole the baby so as to punish the matron of the maternity whom she alleged has been wicked to her and has been owing her sums of money.

According to her, “l never intended to sell the baby or do any evil to him but l just wanted the Matron to pay for all the wrongs she did against me, especially for owing me”.

The elated young mother of the recovered baby, Mrs Uchechi Ekwedike was overjoyed and full of praises to God and the police com­missioner for recovery of her baby.

According to her, the inci­dent was the second attempt by the woman to steal her baby.

Gleam of hope for Chibok Girls’ rescue

From the current video released by Boko Haram on Sunday, August 14, 2016, about 40 young girls, suspected to be among the 276 female students abducted from Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok in Borno State 855 days ago, were shown. This is the latest evidence that some of the school girls are alive.
In the last one year, the military has recorded successes against Boko Haram, reclaiming a large territory, and rescuing thousands of persons previously held captive by the insurgents. However, until the latest video, there was neither a ray of hope that the abducted Chibok girls’ will be rescue by the military nor a reliable political arrangement, in form of a genuine negotiation with the insurgents, on their release.

Sadly, the video had a clip which indicated that some of the girls may have been killed or became casualties of the military campaign at areas previously controlled by Boko Haram. Though the sect wanted to use the video as a weapon against the bombardment of their hideouts, it actually shows the depravity of the sect who may have used the young girls as human shield against the military’s offensive. It is wicked, cowardly and inhuman of Boko Haram to have exposed women, children,  the aged and feeble, who are non-combatants in the war, to the firepower of the military. We strongly condemn this war strategy of Boko Haram.
In the video, Boko Haram, for the umpteenth time, called for the swap of their fighters with Chibok girls. This condition being given for the release of our girls is not new, as it even predates 2014 when the girls were abducted.  Most of the sect’s fighters are still being held in prisons and military detention centres because of the slow pace of justice in Nigeria. What this points to is the fact that though the National Assembly passed the Anti-Terrorism Act in 2011, and even amended it in 2013, this law has not been applied as it should be in the trial of suspected terrorists since its enactment.  It is for this reason that the sect can still ask for their fighters’ swap with those they hold captive.
On its part, the military has been releasing suspects in its custody.  For instance, in July, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Tukur Buratai, set free some 249 youths from its detention centres after they were cleared by the Joint Interrogation team in Maiduguri. This is the right way to go.  We, therefore, call on government to speed up the trial of suspects in various prisons so that judges could sentence those who are found guilty to the terms of punishment prescribed in the statute books, and release those not found guilty. 
We encourage government to explore the opportunities for mediation, dialogue and negotiation which the release of the latest video has offered. A peaceful negotiation that will lead to freedom for, not only Chibok girls, but also thousands of persons still being held captive by the sect, will be highly desirable. History has taught the world that most wars and violent conflicts are resolved through the jaw-jaw approach, as wars always lead to more wars. 
However, we caution government against fraudulent deals with Boko Haram. Some of such deceptive negotiations had led to frustration on the part of government and disappointment on the side of parents of the abducted Chibok girls. A major element in any form of negotiation should be a clear signal that it will lead to the eventual release of the girls. While we call on government to do everything possible to bring about a quick end to the insurgency, we ask that the overall interest of the nation should not be compromised. Any deal with Boko Haram which will endanger the people and create room for further killings, destruction of property, kidnapping and general insecurity will be counter-productive.  

Placing it right with airport privatisation

THE Federal Government laid forecast to concession the operations of its four international airports has continued to attract mixed reactions from stakeholders. While the government says it is forging ahead with the decades-long privatisation proposal, aviation sector workers and a sceptical public are worried that it could go all wrong and worsen a decidedly bad situation. The challenge, therefore, is to organise a creative, intelligent privatisation that will deliver value and raise the standard of the aviation business in Nigeria.

It will not be an easy task and if precedence is a guide, it could, if wrongly handled, leave the country’s airports in a worse shape than they are today. To their credit, the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, and the Minister of State, Aviation, Sirika Hadi, have, since taking office, committed themselves to seeking private capital for the state-owned airports.  This is the only intelligent option to instilling sanity, given government’s dwindling revenues, the incompetence and inefficiency of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, the endemic corruption that has seen prodigious sums of money appropriated for airports vanish, the dilapidated state of the airports and the political interference in operational details.

Hadi said recently that efforts were on to retain a transaction adviser to facilitate the grant of concessions for Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos; Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja; Port Harcourt International Airport and Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano. He explained that the government could no longer shoulder the financial burden of upgrading infrastructure and the four would be the first batch in the plan to open all FAAN’s 22 airports to private sector investment.  

However, opposition has come from some stakeholders, the first being the usual suspects – public sector workers in FAAN and other state agencies – who instinctively resist privatisation to protect their jobs. As usual, they clothe their opposition in patriotic robes, arguing, though with some merit, that past concession arrangements by the Nigerian government had been mired in opacity and fraud and delivered little value to the public.

We stand resolutely for the privatisation programme through concessions. There is no record of any Nigerian federal public commercial enterprise that is efficiently run today. On the contrary, their inefficiency is compounded by allegations of horrendous corruption. When the government obtained a $500 million Chinese loan to “re-model” airports for instance, multi-billion naira contracts followed and the then Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah, boasted repeatedly of her feat, only for stakeholders and her successors to wail thereafter over the broken airport facilities, the same infrastructure she claimed to have transformed. Samuel Ortom, who briefly oversaw the ministry, complained that he had to contend with N174 billion debts despite the dilapidation of the airports. Port Harcourt, one of the airports supposedly “remodelled,” was voted the world’s worst in 2015 in a survey by Guide to Sleeping in Airports, a travel website.

According to the International Air Travel Association, airports are business complexes that include hangars, fuel depots, petrol stations, shopping malls, office complexes, hotels, restaurants, banks and warehouses, while some also link major road and railway hubs. Airports are an integral part of the aviation industry that provides 58 million jobs down the value chain worldwide, contributes $2.4 trillion to global Gross Domestic Product, while the value of international trade shipped by air reached $6.8 trillion in 2015.

Nigeria has great potential to harvest from upgrading its aviation sector, which suffers from under-investment, lack of expertise and poor governance. A master plan rolled out by the government envisages a massive investment in terminals, runways, aprons, hospitality and navigational aids. There is no hangar of world class standard in the country yet that can handle anything beyond the simplest maintenance needs of civilian aircraft. Rafael Echevarne, a director of Airports Council International, says that “airports are asset-intensive businesses that require large minimum investments.” An ACI report adds that airport assets “are geographically fixed, need long-term viability to pay back investment and have no real alternative use.”

There can be no stronger arguments for the urgent privatisation of the four of which only two – MMIA and NAIA – are currently turning in modest revenues amid glaring inefficiency. Others are serial loss-makers. To maximise value in passenger growth, job creation and efficient services, the government should proceed quickly and wisely with the concessions. Our airports are a national disgrace.

Nigerian workers are short-sighted: it is actually in their own long-term interests as professionals for government to let go and allow private investment. The money required to upgrade infrastructure to global standards is no longer there; our government lacks the discipline, policy consistency culture and incorruptibility to provide first rate infrastructure and operate a complex international business concern like the running of airports. Instead of opposing the plan, the air transport unions should negotiate generous payoffs for their members, upgrade their technical skills and pursue the option suggested by Olayinka Abioye, Assistant General Secretary of NUATE, that workers could consider buying airport assets. This is the way to think in the 21st century.

However, we share labour’s and other stakeholders’ concerns that the privatisation should not go the way of previous concessions and asset sales such as the power sector sell-offs that were marred by cronyism. We agree with the unions that the government concession agreements are deliberately written to favour the concessionaires at the expense of the country’s interests.

We call, therefore, for a critical look at the concession law by the ministers, the National Assembly and the Economic Management Team before committing the airports into private hands. When Britain privatised its airports, it later compelled the buyer to sell some of the airports, including London Gatwick, to others to avoid a monopoly. Saudi Arabia has commenced a plan to sell all its 27 state-owned airports by 2020 and six are expected to be privatised by year end, but under a regulatory and liberalised framework that favours both operators and Saudi citizens.

The government should buy into the IATA standard for privatisation that emphasises service delivery, cost-effectiveness and “a framework that benefits both the industry and the customers.”   

DSS Nabs Alleged Mastermind of Yobe Secondary School Killings

The spiritual leader of Boko Haram and alleged mastermind of the 2013 terror attack on Government Secondary School, Mamudo in Yobe State has been captured, the Department of State Service (DSS) announced monday.

A statement signed by its spokesman, Tony Opuiyo, said Mudaisiru Jibrin, the spiritual leader of the Islamist sect, was arrested in Kano on August 17, three years after he allegedly coordinated the killing of 42 people, mostly students and teachers, of the secondary school.

The operation was in furtherance of ongoing tactical and counter-terrorism operations to degrade the capabilities of criminal gangs and syndicates in their hideouts across the federation, the DSS said.

The DSS said Jibrin was arrested in the Yankaba neighbourhood in Kano, where he was operating as a spiritual leader for a new Boko Haram sleeper cell.

“Similarly, on 8th July, 2016, at Kinkinau area in Unguwar Mu’azu of Kaduna metropolis, the Service arrested one Mukhtar Tijani, a notorious Boko Haram fighter and three of his accomplices namely, Isiaku Salihu, Abdullahi Isah and Hindu Isah,” the DSS said.

The four suspects were apprehended while perfecting arrangements for major coordinated attacks on selected targets and locations in Kaduna State, the security agency added.

It also disclosed that on 12th August 2016, at Auchi in Edo State, three members of the Ansaru terrorist group hibernating in Kogi State were apprehende.

“Usman Abdullahi, Abdulmumuni Sadio and Ahmad Salihu were arrested while making arrangements to launch attacks on some selected targets in Edo and Kogi States, before escaping to join ISIS in Libya,” it said.

The DSS also announced the apprehension of one Aikhoje Moses, a suspected criminal who allegedly threatened violence against some foreign diplomats and missions in the country.

DSS said: “Following threat messages against some members of the diplomatic corps in Abuja and Lagos, the DSS responded and subsequently apprehended one Aikhoje Moses on August 19, 2016, at Azagha by-pass off the Benin–Asaba expressway in Edo State.”

It revealed that before his arrest, Moses had threatened the diplomatic community in Nigeria, particularly the consular-generals of Switzerland and Denmark and their embassies in Nigeria, warning them to leave the country.

In addition, DSS said it apprehended cattle rustlers in Zamfara State, stating: “Following recurring attacks by cattle rustlers in Zamfara State, the Service conducted a series of operations in collaboration with the military to degrade the criminal network of one ‘Buhari General’ in the state.

“Sequel to these operations, the DSS arrested one Abdullahi Haruna, aka Douglas, a bread seller, on August 13, 2016, at Hayin Buba area in Gusau Local Council Area of Zamfara State.

“Haruna was intercepted while using the cover of his petty business to monitor security bases and the movement of security agents in the state in a bid to facilitate counter-attacks on security personnel deployed to the state.

“Also, on August 12, 2016, at Aliero town in Aliero Local Government Area of Kebbi State, one Hussaini Alhaji Sule, aka Yellow, was apprehended by the DSS.

“His arrest was facilitated by an earlier operation of July 29, 2016, when one Hafizu Sani, a spy and criminal associate of ‘Buhari General’, was apprehended by the DSS.

“Prior to his arrest, Sani was also spying on the movements of security agents in Zamfara State. Sani, in concert with other elements, had been terrorising local communities in Kaduna, Katsina and Zamfara States respectively, engaging in cattle rustling and kidnap activities.”

Also, following the spate of gruesome murders and kidnappings in Benue State, DSS said that on August 8, 2016, it arrested one Terfa Jirgba and two of his accomplices, namely Terzungee Kwaghaondo and Mathias Aende, at Badagry Street, off Esther Aka road in Makurdi, Benue State.

“Jirgba is an active ally and gang member of Terwase Agwaza, aka Ghana, a notorious kidnapper who runs a kidnapping and criminal network in the state.

“In a follow-up operation, one Terungwa Abur was trailed to Port Harcourt in Rivers State. He was eventually arrested on August 16, 2016. Abur is the second-in-command to Agwaza and a key member of the kidnapping gang of Agwaza which operates from Benue State.

“He acts as a courier for the gang and was the negotiator of the N4 million ransom paid to the gang for the release of an Indian staff of Dangote Cement Company, Yander-Gboko, who were kidnapped on July 29, 2016, in Markudi.

“He also participated in the killing of one Ortin in Gboko Township on August 1, 2016.”

DSS stressed that the arrests of criminal masterminds in Benue and other adjourning states will continue until these criminal gangs are routed and made to face justice.

The security agency also stated that the DSS, in its move to address the activities of various criminal syndicates that have in recent months terrorised residents of Calabar and some parts of Akwa Ibom State, had on August 15, 2016, in Oron council area, apprehended one Benjamin Emomotemi and his accomplices, namely, Gabriel Ambrose, Godbless Taliboth Mattias, Blessing Sunday, Simeon Blessing Sunday, Edet Effiong Asanagasi and Rose Williams.

It said the suspects were part of a kidnap ring which masterminded the abduction of one Mr. Rufus AKV on May 31, 2016, and Senator Patrick Ani on July 6, 2016, in Cross River State.

DSS urged the public to remain vigilant to developments in their immediate environment, and support the security and law enforcement agencies with critical information on suspicious persons and groups for the sustenance of relative peace across the country.

But as the DSS rolled out its list of accomplishments in recent months, it did not stop Boko Haram from killing yet another 10 persons and abduction 13 others from a village near Chibok in Borno State, locals told APF yesterday.

Armed jihadists on motorcycles invaded Kubrrivu at dawn last Saturday, firing on the residents as they were sleeping and looted and burnt homes before fleeing into the bush with 13 women and children seized from the village.

“The Boko Haram attackers rode on four motorcycles, three on each, and opened fire on the village as residents slept,” said Luka Damina, a resident of nearby Kautikeri village where Kubrrivu residents fled to for safety following the attack.

“They burnt down the whole village after looting food supplies and livestock and taking away women and children,” Damina said.

Ayuba Alamson, a community elder in Chibok, some 20 kilometres away, confirmed the attack, saying 13 people were abducted in the raid.

“After killing 10 people and burning the entire village, the gunmen made away with 13 people, including seven women, five boys and a girl,” Alamson said.

In 2014, Kubrrivu was burnt down in a deadly Boko Haram raid which forced residents to flee.

A year later, they returned and rebuilt their homes after Nigerian troops recaptured swathes of territory from the Islamists in a series of military successes against them.

Boko Haram, which seeks to impose strict Islamic law in northern Nigeria, has been blamed for some 20,000 deaths and displacing more than 2.6 million people since 2009.

The audacious mass kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls from Chibok in April 2014 provoked global outrage and brought unprecedented attention to Boko Haram’s brutal tactics.

A total of 218 girls are still missing.

Avengers are been Trash over ceasefire, by a different Militant Group

Another militant group, Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate (NDGJM) has rubbished the ceasefire declared by the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) at the weekend and vowed to continue to carry out more deadly attacks in the oil rich region.

NDGJM declared that Chief Edwin Clark does not have the mandate to lead the negotiation for peace in the Niger Delta region, saying that the Ijaw national leader was not only compromised but is actually one of the founders of the NDA.

The group in a release by its spokesman, Aldo Agbalaja maintained that the peace initiative of Chief Clark was being driven by a gang of breast pocket politicians who in the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan looted the nation and raped the region.

The NDGJM said it will rather embrace the negotiation team “led by the Amanyanabo of Twon Brass, Alfred Diete-Spiff, which has the involvement of some international agencies,” urging the Federal Government to build on the successes so far made by that team.

“Build on this group and reach out to our people, not on an Edwin Clark group, which had connived with Jonathan in the past to subject this region, including the majority of our Ijaw brothers, to one of the most untold humiliations by leaving the region they claimed to be representing worse than it was under previous administrations. 

“Enough of these buccaneers in the name of leaders of the region, our people from both the upland and the creeks deserve a better deal, not the Avengers kind of deal. We will continue to carry out more deadly attacks until the right thing is done,” the statement read.

The group insisted that they were not part of the peace moves by the Clark team, adding that those who are calling for truce “were the same set of people who put the Avengers together in the first place, therefore the hypocrisy of these people is becoming glaring to the world by the day. 

“We also know that the charade called ceasefire is in the bid to collect more money from both the federal government and oil companies, to be shared between the founders and the boys of the Avengers. 

“We hereby serve a notice that the so called truce called by E.K Clark and co is not recognised by the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate as we do not see Clark as the leader of all Niger Delta, but of only the Ijaw nation.

“We are serving a notice that the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate is still carrying on with this campaign against Nigeria’s oil and gas interest until the federal government does right by our people. 

“Like we said in our previous message, only a credibly convened conference of Niger Delta stakeholders, made up of real, grass-rooted representative from the six core Niger Delta state, not breast-pocket rogues, who are merely looking for more avenues to sleaze and looting, can dialogue on behalf of the region and get a real deal out for our people, and those are the kind of representatives that the Niger Delta people can trust with their mandate. 

“Therefore, President Buhari should take note, stop wasting your time with these people, they are not serving the interest of the Niger Delta and they cannot stop the current campaign. They can only withdraw their boys, the Avengers, from action but not the genuine campaigners for a better Niger Delta.”

VICE PRESIDENT- Osinbajo on foreign cooperation says, "Africa First"

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, ‎has said African economies must help Africa first before looking outward.

 

According to him, African nations must work together in developing their economies for the benefit of their people ahead of other international cooperation.

He said this when he met with the visiting Vice President of Liberia, Joseph Nyumah Boakai in his office at the Presidential Villa.

According to him, “we have to help ourselves first before others come, we should look for ways we can benefit each other.” 

Osinbajo observed that there are Nigerian businessmen that can invest in Liberia, suggesting the creation of a bilateral economic council that can bring business interests from both countries together.

“We must engender stronger relationships between our countries, that is what Africans need, Nigeria and Liberia need to work together to develop our economies.”

He said strengthening the relationship between both countries was a sensible thing to do

In his remarks earlier, Boakai said, “Nigeria remains a very important big brother to Liberia. You have made a lot of sacrifices to our country, including through ECOMOG and the United Nations Mission in Liberia, UNMIL.”

Acknowledging that Nigeria does care for Liberia, Boakai said that Nigerian businesses were investing the West Africa country in sectors like aviation, banking, insurance and investments.

He also said they were Nigerian teachers and doctors  who are currently helping to set up schools and health infrastructure in Liberia.

According to him, “we are grateful to our brothers and sisters here. We want this relationship to go on, this is the way Africans should go.”

The Liberian Vice President is in the country to participate in a public lecture. ‎

ALLEGED BUDGET PADDING: RECONVENE PLENARY AND STEP ASIDE, JIBRIN TELLS DOGARA

Former Chairman of the House of Representative Committee on Appropriation, Abdulmumin Jibrin, has asked Speaker Yakubu Dogara to reconvene the House and step aside for investigation.

Jibrin had last month alleged that the leadership of the House padded the 2016 budget of the nation, insisting that the act was fraudulent.

In a statement on Sunday, Jibrin insisted that Dogara was corrupt.

According to him, “It was a month of startling revelations, 30 days of threats and intimidations and 720 hours of fervent struggle to exterminate corruption in the House.

“Although it is a trite that corruption has eaten deep into the nation’s fabric, but the systemic corruption in the House, especially under the corrupt leadership of Yakubu Dogara, is second to none.

“My resolve to champion this cause was borne out of patriotism and desire to complement the present administration’s anti-corruption war from the legislative front,” he said.

Jibrin further insisted that the principal officers must be investigated for what he called ‘monumental fraud’.

He said: “The truth remains that Speaker Dogara, Lasun, Doguwa, Ogor and others committed monumental fraud in the 2016 budget which can be prosecuted under our laws. We will explore all legal avenues to ensure that justice is served.

“I have stated severally that Speaker Dogara and the other accused Principal Officers have completely lost the moral ground to continue in their various offices.

“They should, therefore, reconvene the House immediately and step aside to allow for investigation without interference. Speaker Dogara cannot be a judge in his own case, as the legal maxim, nemo judex in parte sua, provides.

“It will be the 10th wonder of the world if Speaker Dogara and the 3 other Principal Officers are allowed to continue in office. It will amount to having a corrupt man and fraudster as Speaker, as no 4 citizen under this dispensation which has zero tolerance for corruption”.

The former Appropriation Committee Chairman insisted that corruption under the leadership of Mr Dogara had gone nuclear.

“Obviously Speaker Dogara lacks the integrity to superintend over such reforms. That is why I keep emphasizing that this whole issue is beyond Speaker Dogara.

“Under Speaker Dogara, corruption in the House has gone nuclear.

“It is a known fact that legislative investigation is used as avenue to extort money in an organised crime aided and abetted by Mr. Speaker.

“This situation has gone so bad that members named such investigations “commercial motions”.

“The fact is corruption has become the biggest business in the House under Speaker Dogara and his cohorts.

“I dare say corruption in the House of Representatives today is more than that of the Executive and Judiciary combined,” the statement read.

He further pledged to continue with the drive to expose corruption and corrupt persons in the House of Representatives, “even if I am alone”.

Police Rescue 13 Children, 15 Adults Chained in House in Lagos

The Lagos State Police Command at the weekend rescued 13 children and 15 adults chained and locked up by one Emmanuel Adeyemi at the Oke-ira area of Ojodu, Lagos.

The Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Police Command, CP Fatai Owoseni, acting on a tip-off, had deployed operatives from the Area G Command Headquarters to the scene.

Although the initial intelligence report was that a teenager was chained in the house at Oyinbo Unity Estate, Olamidun Close, Yakoyo, Oke-Ira, Ojodu, subsequent search of the residence by the police revealed 27 others apart from the 17-year-old Toba Adedoyin the Police had gone to rescue.

Confirming the incident, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent of Police, said, “The command received a report through Area ‘G’ Command Headquarters, Ogba, that a child was chained in a house at Oyinbo Unity Estate, Olamidun Close, Yakoyo, Oke-Ira, Ojodu.

“Consequently, a team of policemen was mobilized to the location where a teenager named Toba Adedoyin ‘m’, aged 17, was found in a room with a chain on his legs.

“The victim was allegedly chained by one Emmanuel Adeyemi ‘m’ who claimed to be his father, in order to restrain him from going out.

” Further search of the premises led to the discovery of other people chained by the suspect.

“A total number of 28 persons, comprising six adult males, nine adult females, seven female children and six male children were rescued and taken to protective custody.

“A suspect has been arrested and is currently undergoing interrogation as the command is working assiduously to get to the root of the occurrence.”

IGP hails Air Peace chairman for building a police station

Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris has commended Air Peace Chairman, Chief Allen Onyema for building Uli Police Station in Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State.
Speaking during the commissioning of the project at the weekend, the IGP urged other well-to-do Nigerians to emulate Onyema’sgenerosity and effort to ensure security and peace in the country through his Foundation for Ethnic Harmony in Nigeria (FEHN).
Meanwhile, Onyema has said he embarked on construction of the police station outside his Mbosi community because he was convinced that all Nigerians must support the Federal Government to set up a motivated, efficient and effective police force.
Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr. Sam Okaula, who represented the IGP at the commissioning, said: “Security is everybody’s business. We need to collaborate and cooperate. We need to synergise so that we can create an enabling environment for peace to reign. Government cannot do it all alone. Those God has blessed should contribute towards the establishment of the enabling environment for providing security for the people. And that is exactly what Onyema has done. I am overwhelmed that this is happening.
“The IGP has directed me to appreciate the role that Chief Onyema is playing in our society. The peace we are having through the Amnesty Programme was what Onyema did. We want to urge the sons and daughters of this great land to borrow a leaf from this wonderful man.
“He has touched so many lives across the length and breadth of this country. When he was to set up Air Peace, I was one of those who discouraged him because of what it takes to run an airline in this country, but he told me he loves to empower people and that he was not in it to make profit but to empower people and touch lives.”
Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Uli Police Station, CSP OdionEkeindealso commended the Air Peace boss for heeding his call to build a befitting facility for the police to operate in the area. The DPO praised the donor’s father, Chief Michael Onyema for facilitating his access to the Air Peace boss and for visiting the site twice to inspect the project while under construction.
For his part, the Air Peace chairman said he was motivated to embark on the construction of the facility when he was told that security at the police station had become porous.Onyema said he was also responsible for the fencing of the police station about seven years ago.
He urged Nigerians to support the government in providing security in the country, insisting that police personnel were working under very difficult conditions.

#Impact365: Wana Udobang has raised over N3 million for cancer, and she is still on the march

1k4cancer initiative, founded by popular media personality and writer, Wana Udobang, has raised over 3 million naira to assist cancer stricken women from low income homes.

Udobang, a youth mentor and public speaker, is also producer of the documentary film Sensitive Skin which highlights the effects of the skin condition Psoriasis. She is also the host of Airtel Touching Lives, a programme that tells the story of people living through difficulties.

In this interview with YNaija, she talks about the 1k4cancer initiative as well as her other charitable activities.

1. Your initiative 1k4cancer has raised over N3 million in the last few years. Could you tell us more about the initiative?

It was a campaign to help raise money for women under the care of Sebeccly Cancer Care and Support Centre with their cancer treatment. Most of the women were from very low income households. I initially started it to raise funds for a particular lady called Veronica who needed funds for her treatment but couldn’t afford it. The idea was to get everyday Nigerians to help by donating at least a thousand Naira. We luckily exceeded our expectations that first year but I must admit as the years went by it got a little difficult. People also experience donor fatigue and there needed to be more sustainable ways to keep raising funds.

2. Have you achieved the goal for which you originally founded the initiative?

I think you always want to do more and that’s the truth. As long as more women are diagnosed with breast cancer and can’t afford their treatment then you never really reach your goal. But the project is sort of on a hiatus at the moment in terms of my active participation as it does take quite a lot of time and an emotional toll as well. Plus fundraising isn’t the easiest thing to do. But I am grateful for what it has achieved and the people it has been able to help and I hope we can continue to do more despite the fact that life gives us only 24hrs in a day.

3. Using the arts and media, you have worked to create awareness and tell alternative stories about victims and vulnerable persons in the society. How has the reception been? Are you fulfilled ?

I think telling underreported stories has given me a great sense of purpose. I don’t know that I ever feel fulfilled because I constantly feel like there is more to do. In terms of reception, certainly I think I have been very fortunate as people do pay attention whether it is with Airtel Touching Lives or with my journalism or when i worked on the radio. I think what does make me feel fulfilled is the fact that people care enough to ask what can we do? How can I help? And that is a really big deal because this is the real reason I create work or try to be part of the story telling process. Knowing that people can be pushed to be empathetic enough to want to get up and do something about certain situations going on around them.

4. You are an unapologetic plus sized woman, do you see yourself as a role model to young girls who are having a hard time coming to terms with their body?

I think role model is such a strong word and I am quite weary of pedestals because it’s like setting yourself up for scrutiny and unattainable expectations. I just see myself as a person discovering the best ways to live my life and be happy. If people see something to draw strength from in that, then it is certainly a good thing and I am thankful for the opportunity, which I don’t take for granted. I think we all need someone that looks like us and has experienced the things we have so we feel less alone.

This goes for everyone regardless of body size. But I would say that my ethos is about living the best life possible and being the best you can be regardless of societal constructions of what look, size, figure or skin tone is socially acceptable. For me the focus remains on striving for a healthy body, mind and spirit as well as discovering your greater worth and value. Hopefully we can all use those aspects of ourselves to impact the lives of those around us and our communities as well. But body issues are also a part of growing pains and how you scale through them and discover your own authenticity is a great character builder I find. You just don’t let those things define you.

5. If you could advice your younger self now, what would you say? 

Don’t worry too much. Everything will be alright so stay present and enjoy every phase you are in and most of all celebrate the little things.

6. You are involved in several social projects, what motivates and keeps you going?

I know it sounds so cliché but I am strongly motivated by the power of change and transformation. When I was at university my tutor sent me an email just before my graduation telling me that I had a voice and I must use it. That statement has always hovered above me with a certain sense of obligation however exhausted I get.

I am motivated by change in the most subtle of ways and the grandest ways as well. From its ability to start conversations, getting us to pay attention, reminding us about empathy, teaching us to see a different point of view to those life changing transformations like statutory changes or seeing justice served. I also enjoy the things I am a part of so I suppose that helps to keep me going.

Crimes of recession? Rising ritual killings, kidnapping, armed robbery

SUSPECTED CULTISTS—Suspected cult

 members paraded by the Second Brigade of 

Nigerian Army in Port Harcourt, Rivers State,

 yesterday. Photo: NAN.

 The situation appears worse with the current economic recession in the country. Nigeria’s  economy has slipped into recession and inflation is already at an eleven-year high of 16.5 per cent.  Nigerians are bearing the brunt. Hunger is ravaging the land Not long ago,  Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said that about 110 million Nigerians were still living below poverty line despite the policies of past governments to improve their welfare. The Vice President stated that the policies were wrongly formulated and, as a result, did not have direct impact on the people”, he said. “This is the main challenge. When you look at the economic and social policies, and you look at the level of illiteracy in parts of the country, some are extremely bad and some with cases of about 80% or 90% of children out of school, and other cases of unimaginable decayed infrastructure. “Governments have not been accountable to the people, otherwise policies should have roots in the real conditions of the people.”  Osinbajo pointed out that some past planning, policy formulation and budgets were not accountable to the people, stressing that, in the past, there have been “policies that don’t seem to have solutions that truly reflect the understanding of the question of poverty in Nigeria.” An estimated 60 million unemployed persons, representing nearly one-third of the country’s   population, are seriously endangered. This situation makes mockery of Nigeria’s so-called vision of becoming one of the 20 leading economies in the world by the year 2020, and also threatens national security . The nation seems to be sitting on a keg of gunpowder likely to explode at any time with devastating consequences. The unemployment situation is worsening  as thousands of graduates are  churned out from tertiary institutions yearly to besiege those already hopelessly waiting for employment and roaming our streets searching for means of earning a living. Graduates are piling upon graduates and this mortgages the nation’s future. The enormity of unemployment challenge which has become a colossal one – a socio-economic affliction of great proportions – can be illustrated most vividly when, a couple of years back, out of the 13,000 applications received by the Dangote Group of Companies for Graduate Executive Truck Drivers, there were six Ph.D, 704 masters and over 8,460 bachelor degree holders. Most astonishing was the fact that the company only needed 100 drivers but got 13,000 applications, most of them from reputable universities. The Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity said more than 41% of Nigerian graduates are without employment after the mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). The National Bureau of Statistics said over 50% of youths in Nigeria are jobless, while the World Bank put the figure at 56%. Considering the country’s estimated population of about 167 million and 60 million jobless, these are grim figures portending danger to economic growth and development of a nation with the largest concentration of black people on earth. Sylvia, a graduate of banking and finance, said she did her mandatory NYSC in 2006 and now, ten years after, she has not gotten a job. “This is distressing. I have done all kinds of odd jobs and, currently, I’m a housekeeper somewhere.It is painful because my parents trained me hoping that I will help out with family and that has not happened.” In its recent travel advisory, the American government cautioned its citizens not to travel to visit 20 states in Nigeria, citing armed robbery, kidnapping and terrorism, among others, as reasons for the advice. But Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, dismissed the US government’s claim when he received a delegation from the Association of Tourism Practitioners of Nigeria in Abuja, saying every state in the country was safe.. Only recently, popular Enugu Catholic priest, Rev. Father Ejike Mbaka, who runs the Adoration Ministries in the eastern capital, Enugu, sent a strong message to President Muhammadu Buhari through a sermon.  Mbaka criticized the Buhari administration for the economic hardship in Nigeria and warned the president that Nigerians may vote him out in the next presidential election. The fiery cleric, who became controversially famous after his prediction that former President Goodluck Jonathan would be swept away by the wind of change in the last presidential election, criticised  Buhari for the economic hardship sweeping the country resulting from what he defined as poor leadership under the APC-led government. The Catholic priest said that the president should know that Nigerians may vote him out in the next  election, adding that people are clearly getting tired, continuing that he campaigned against Jonathan because of the extensive corruption in the last administration in the hope that Buhari’s government would be better after his avowed declaration to fight corruption. “No nation could survive when the cankerworm of corruption eats deep into its social fabric as was witnessed in the past administration which informed his interest and desire to opt for a change”, he said. “The change which eventually came under the leadership of Buhari is not helping matters as poverty is ‘smelling’ in Nigeria.  There is hunger everywhere. Landlords are crying; tenants are lamenting, sellers are crying, buyers are lamenting – there is hunger on the streets. I can’t keep quiet when things are going wrong. “I am telling the president to look around him and know those who are advising him rightly and those who are telling him that there is no trouble. The president should know that there is trouble. If things continue like this, in the next election, nobody will vote for him.” The senator representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani, toed a similar line. Sani lamented that Nigerians are groaning under serious hunger and poverty and, therefore, unable to meet their basic needs. Speaking during the launch of his interactive forum in Nasarawa, a suburb of Kaduna metropolis, tagged, ‘Street Parliament’ he said: “We know that Nigerians are facing hunger, no money for school fees and no jobs”. Adding his voice, a former Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Prince Bola Ajibola (SAN), said   that the hardship the nation and its people are currently experiencing were both the consequences of past wrong actions and efforts of corrupt people who would do anything to make sure that the president did not succeed.   He said  Buhari’s anti-corruption was so hard on the corrupt people so much that it went after their ill-businesses  in Nigeria and abroad and that the hardship thrown upon Nigerians because of their control was to prove to the world that taming the corruption in where they had thrived for long to the detriment of the masses of the Nigerian people was a no-go area. He said, “For a long time, we had run our economy by only the oil.   When the oil is in trouble internationally, automatically our economy would be in trouble at home in Nigeria.   The best way to go is diversification which the government is doing.   But will Nigerians give him the chance to do these things successfully? “Yes, things are hard.   Even a former Commonwealth Secretary-General told me that things are very hard and I know too that things are very hard.   But these are expected if we must get things in proper perspective.” Setting the stage for crime Indeed poverty in Nigeria, like in most developing nations of Africa, is widespread and seems to be on the increase. When poverty joins high levels of economic and social aspirations, the stage is set for criminal activities – particularly official corruption, ritual killings, robbery and dealing in illegal goods and services. People who are thwarted in attaining desired social and economic goals legally may seek to obtain them illegally. Psychologically , aggression is always a consequence of frustration while frustration  leads to some form of aggression. The poor are led to violence owing to their relative deprivation and needs. This scenario agrees significantly with the current security situation in Nigeria. Perhaps, the greatest challenge facing the  economy is unemployment which has maintained rising trend over the years. The total labour force in Nigeria is made up of all persons aged 15-64years excluding students, home keepers, retired persons or those who stay at home and work or are not interested. The unemployed are people who are willing and capable but are unable to find suitable paid employment. The classical school of thought that provided the earliest thinking on economic issues did not fail to give a central point of reflection on the undesirability of unemployment. The youths who are being churned out of the university yearly without any job are getting frustrated. Many of these young people are duped in the quest to get employed. John Mark, 28, said he was duped by a woman who promised to help him get a job with the Nigeria Customs Service. “I have been jobless for years after graduating from the university. I am the first son of my father and my mother died years ago. I am like a mother to my siblings and my dad is old and retired. For eight years now, I don’t have a job. I have attended several job interviews without luck. They require experience but how do I get get experience without job?”, Mark narrated. “So, when this girl I was dating introduced me to her aunt who seems highly connected and she promised to get me a job with the Customs, I was exhilarated. She said I needed to deposit N200,000 and I went to borrow the money which I gave her.  It’s been story-story ever since. I don’t know what to do, whether to call the police on her or not.” Everyday in Nigeria, police stations are inundated with reports of all manner of crimes involving fraudsters, missing persons many of whom end up in the hands of ritualists, etc. Less than 10 percent of such missing persons return home. A scary percentage of them are not found and the bodies of a negligible number that are eventually seen, are dumped either on the roadsides, bush paths or inside gutters, mutilated and their vital organs removed. Cictims of these evil doers often times board  the wrong commercial bus or taxi. Many family members have been reported to have hacked one of their own to death for rituals. Setting the  stage for ritual killings Almost on a daily basis, newspapers are awash with stories of ritual killings. In many cities across Nigeria, there exist evil forests where suspected ritualists dismember their victims, leaving behind  human parts . Usually,  victims are taken to the forests and butchered for money rituals. Victims A recent case is Saka forest in Ibadan.  On  February 20,   29-year-old  Sunday  Abudioke was pronounced dead at Ekiti State Teaching Hospital, Ado-Ekiti, following   an attack by suspected cultists along Ado-Ilawe road. On February 28, another victim, Sunday  Afolabi, was confirmed dead after an attack by men suspected to be cultists   at  Irona, Ado-Ekiti.  Afolabi was hacked to death in his room while his heavily pregnant wife was away to attend a ‘night vigil’ at a nearby church. Researchers’ view In 2013,  findings by the leadership of  International Society for Civil Liberties& the Rule of Law  showed that over 1000 citizens were murdered in Nigeria between January 1 and April 30, 2013. Their killings were traced to lawfully and unlawfully armed malicious elements within and outside the country’s security forces including the malicious personnel of the Nigeria Police, Joint Military Task Forces, Multi-national Joint Task Force; militant ethno-religious zealots such as Boko Haram armed Islamists/ malicious elements and other criminal elements such as deadly politicians and resurged armed Niger Delta militants. The  casualty figures will be grossly under-calculated if unreported cases arising from killings by armed robbers, kidnappers, ritual deaths and civil homicides are added. If attempts are made to capture all these, then it may most likely be correct to estimate figures today in the neighbourhood of over 4000 murdered deaths since January 2013. For instance, in the past one year in Lagos, it was reported by the state Police Command that a total of 270 civilians and 32 police personnel were murdered in the state. Buhari’s promise Meanwhile, Buhari has reiterated that his government  is poised to break all economic barriers and set Nigeria free from poverty. According to him, although some Nigerians had become disoriented and impatient,  the plan to diversify the economy is still very much on the cards. The president added that th diversification of the economy has become much more than just a slogan as it  has become  a necessity.  He said his government plans to  use agriculture to save foreign exchange and pull many out of poverty and that his administration will continue to make substantial investments in human capital development. He said economic growth cannot just be for the lucky few at the top, it has to be broad-based, for every Nigerian citizen, and a good place to start is with the agricultural sector. He said the country is facing the  challenges of  tackling insecurity, creating jobs, addressing the country’s balance of payments and stimulating and sustaining national economic recovery, the injustice of hunger and the need for long-term food security.

Cult activities, kidnapping and robbery are beginning to gain grounds in Nigeria. Killing and maiming of innocent people have continued unabatedly across the states. Research reveals that scores of young men and women lose their lives daily to ritualists, kidnappers and other criminals. The social media and newspapers are replete with scary stories of crime of various dimensions being committed across Nigeria.