NIGERIAN SECRET POLICE ARRESTED CITIZEN WHO TWEETED PICTURES OF THE BOKO HARAM JAIL BREAK

The Nigerian Citizen,Onimisi Ciaxon, who tweeted six photos of the Boko Haram jailbreak after security agents regained control of the situation at the headquarters of the State Security Services (SSS) in Abuja. He was arrested shortly after his photos brought attention to the events that took place outside the Nigerian secret police, which is also known as the “Department of State Security,” on March 30, 2014. He has been in detention for 10 days now.

In one of the photos, Mr. Onimisi offered a bottle of water to one of the soldiers. He also took a photo of a soldier and tweeted it to give an accurate sequence of events that transpired during that day.

The SSS was reportedly miffed by one of the photos, which showed how its officers recaptured one of the escaped detainees, who were later summarily executed by officers. The SSS stated that 21 detainees died after a firefight, in the efforts to bring the jail breakers under control.

Several sources said Mr. Onimisi is an employee of the defunct power company, Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) at the Presidential Villa substation.

Culled from saharareporters

PHOTO STORY:JOBLESS GRADUATE ATTEMPTS SUICIDE IN AKWA-IBOM

The term frustration was yesterday put in proper context when an unemployed graduate of mechanical engineering from the Ekiti State University, Mr. Sunday Omotayo, was prevented by police and Nigeria Prisons officials from committing suicide.


Omotayo, who created a minor scene along Wellington Bassey Way, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital, when he deliberately jumped out of a speeding Toyota Hiace bus, with the hope that he would be hit by oncoming vehicles or run over, said he was fed up with life after searching for a job for the past 10 years after graduation.

According to PUNCH Metro report, Omotayo had gone to the state prison Wednesday morning asking the officials to either kill him or make way for him to rot in the prison.

A prison officer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said they saw Omotayo, well dressed and wearing a tie, running towards them. He added that the unemployed graduate’s action forced the guards on duty to be alert as they readied their guns.

He said, “The next thing he said was ‘shoot me, shoot me, I want to die, I am tired of this world’. He added that otherwise, we should allow him to enter and die inside the prison”.

The official stated that Omotayo was later overpowered by the police, who counselled him and forced him into a bus heading towards the Ibom Plaza roundabout.

However, Omotayo was not done yet in his suicide attempt as he leapt out from the moving bus into the major road for other vehicles to run over him.

Lying on the main road leading to Akwa Ibom Government House, It took a while for policemen to convince him to get him out of the road. He insisted that he must put an end to his misery by committing suicide.

Speaking with PUNCH Metro, Omotayo said: “There is no state that I have not gone to in search of a job in the past 10 years. I came to Akwa Ibom because this is my last hope because of the stories of Governor Godswill Akpabio and his uncommon transformation.

“I came with the hope that with what is going on in the state, getting a job would be easy so that I can begin to be a man. But since I came, I discovered that many people from Akwa Ibom are also crying because of poverty and joblessness”.

FEMI-FANI KAYODE RETURNS TO PDP

There were speculations that Femi Fani-Kayode, a former Minister of Aviation and , a member of the All Progressives Congress, APC may  decide to return to the ruling Peoples Democratic Party following his close door meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday. Well, it has been confirmed that Femi Fani-Kayode(FFK) has returned to PDP,he was congratulated on tweeter by Reno Omokri and Doyin Okupe. Read Tweets below:

JAMB BLAMES BOKO HARAM ON UTME APPLICATIONS DROP

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), has blamed the 35 percent drop in the number of students who registered for the 2014 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, on the activities of Boko Haram insurgency in some parts of the country.

The Registrar and Chief Executive of JAMB, Professor Dibu Ojerinde, said this in Abuja, yesteray, while briefing journalists on the board’s preparation for 2014 UTME, stating that registration for 2014 UTME is 129,139 less than the 1,735,892 recorded in 2013.

According to him, the board had started investigation on reasons Nigerian universities admitted fewer applicants to their carrying capacities.

“We will not reveal our strategies to the public but we know there are security challenges in some parts of the country but of course we have made adequate arrangement to conduct examinations in such States and in everywhere in Nigeria.

“There are some areas full of insecurities and we have made adequate security arrangement and if the worse come to the worse we will result to CBT to such candidates.

“From the Northeast which is one of the troubled areas, the number of candidates coming from there is relatively lower than last year and therefore we had a shortfall and that is the reason why there were lesser candidates this year compared to last year. And you know why it is not only education that is being troubled even the economy of that areas are affected. So therefore not many people are coming out to do the exams.”

On the capacity of Nigerian universities to absorb applicants, Ojerinde said: “Recently, I setup a committee to find out why Nigerian universities admit less figures to their carrying capacities. Spaces are there, the federal government has created a huge access but no admission. Most of Nigerian institutions are not responsive to their carrying capacities”.

Speaking further on the 2014 UTME, he said: “This year’s examination will be in three modes: Computer based test, CBT, Dual Based Test, DBT, and Paper Pencil Test, PPT. This desire to go full-blown CBT has been the resolve of the of the Board, owing to the need to curb examination hitches of result ‘black-outs’ and other forms of malpractice that have been norm in the PPT.

A 36 year old Woman Hides 685g Of Cocaine In Her Vagina

The Nigerian National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 36-year-old food vendor for concealing wraps of cocaine in her vagina.

Chinelo Okorom Lynnette was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos during the inward screening of passengers who arrived via an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia The NDLEA said Chinelo has already “excreted” 685g of cocaine and remains under observation.

“The suspect tested positive for drug ingestion and vaginal insertion”, Commander of NDLEA at the airport, Hamza Umar said.

“She, however, expelled a total of 685 grammes of substance that tested positive for cocaine while under observation at the airport”.

The suspect confessed to the crime, but claimed that she was lured into drug trafficking on the pretext that she would be importing female bags.

“I am a food vendor at Ajangbadi, Lagos and have never been involved in crime. I am a victim of man’s cruelty to man”, she lamented in her statement.

“My husband abandoned me with four children two years ago. I work hard to pay their fees and ensure their proper upkeep. The last straw that devastated me was when the landlord forcefully ejected me. I had nowhere to turn to for solace”.

Chinelo said she was “crying like a baby” when a man appeared out of the blue to offer a shoulder to cry on, asking her to wipe away her tears and promising to introduce her to importation business.

“I felt he was God-sent until he sponsored my trip to Addis Ababa”, she said. “When I got to Ethiopia, he told me to take cocaine to Nigeria. Initially I disagreed, but he threatened to recover his investment at all cost”.

Also speaking, Chairman of the NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade observed that drug traffickers are fond of always changing their routes and tactics, but they could not possibly outsmart the NDLEA.

“Going to Addis Ababa to smuggle cocaine into Nigeria is one of the tricks employed by drug trafficking syndicates” Giade said.

“Cocaine is not known to come from Addis but, we were able to detect it because of our vigilance. We are prepared to counter the activities of drug kingpins and bring them to justice. We look forward to fruitful progress in our investigation”.

While confirming that the suspect will soon be charged to court, he implored the public to be wary of the manipulative tendencies of drug traffickers.

ANOTHER AVIATION DISASTER AVERTED AS AIRCRAFT MAKES EMERGENCY LANDING

Another aviation disaster was averted yesterday as an Overland Airways plane originally bound for Abuja had to make an emergency landing in Lagos.The aircraft, which had 48 passengers on it, had to divert its course and head for Lagos when the pilot noticed a crack in the windshield while in flight.
The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency has confirmed the incident through its General Manager for Public Affairs, Supo Atobatele.

Daily Independent reports:

He explained that the pilot while airborne noticed some cracks on the windshield and subsequently requested to divert the aircraft to Lagos being the base of the airline to allow for change of plane for the passengers.Atobatele added that the plane was airborne at about 8.42 a.m, diverted at 8.57 a.m and that it landed in Lagos at 9.43 a.m.

He said there were 42 passengers and six crewmembers onboard the aircraft as at the time of the incident, adding that what the pilot did was safety precautionary measure.

“There is no cause for alarm as the diversion was precautionary and this conforms to the basic safety norms of the industry,” Atobatele said.

Attempts to get Overland officials to speak on the issue failed, as they could not be reached as at the time of compiling this report.

Among those on the plane were Oyo State Information Commissioner, Gbade Lana, National Population Commissioner, Abdul-Lateef Gbadamosi, former President of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Lanre Ogundipe, and an officer in the Oyo State Accountant General’s Office, Demola Akinlabi.

It was gathered that the plane took off at the Alakia, Ibadan local airport.

A passenger on the plane told our reporter on phone: “We were midway in the Niger State airspace when the aircraft windshield got broken and the pilot made a detour to Lagos”.

Three hours after their landing in Lagos, it was later gathered that the passengers were moved into another Overland aircraft arriving from Enugu, which subsequently took them to Abuja.

PHOTONEWS: DELEGATE PLAYS SCRABBLE ON HIS LAPTOP AS THE CONFAB MEETING HOLDS

This Delegate was seen playing scrabble game on his laptop while the confab session was going on. He must be having a great time. Please if you know this delegate... Name him 

AFRICA'S LARGEST ECONOMY: JONATHAN SPEAKS, I CAN'T CELEBRATE WHEN MY PEOPLE STILL LIVE IN POVERTY.

Just like many Nigerians who reacted to the news of Nigeria becoming Africa’s largest economy, President Goodluck Jonathan has said he will not celebrate the recent feat of the country, now 26th in the world.

He said, although, the feat calls for celebration but he will not roll out the drums because “too many of our citizens (are) living in poverty”. Jonathan made this disclosure in a post on his verified facebook account, Goodluck Jonathan.

Special Assistant to the President on New Media, Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) also tweet excerpts from the message shared by Goodluck Jonathan on facebook.

It will be recalled that Nigeria’s nominal Gross Domestic Product, GDP, now stands at $509.9 billion, making the nation’s economy the largest in Africa and the 26th in the world.

The Full text of the message reads:

Yesterday, our Gross Domestic Product was rebased to give an accurate picture of where we are as a nation.

I am glad to report to you that Nigeria is officially the largest economy in Africa with a Gross Domestic Product of $510 billion which also places us as the 26th largest economy in the world.

This feat is a collective achievement of all Nigerians particularly when you take into account the fact that our Per Capita Income had increased by over 60% from $1091 in 2009 to $1700 in 2013, prior to the rebasing.

While this calls for celebration, I personally cannot celebrate until all Nigerians can feel the positive impact of our growth. There are still too many of our citizens living in poverty.

Three years ago, I was asked to define Transformation and I said “Transformation in my view simply means taking what you have and making the best of it and in so doing produce results that can bring about a paradigm shift”.

That positive paradigm shift, as occurred yesterday, is still a work in progress.

Regardless of our present challenges, our place as a nation at the table of greatness is assured. GEJ.

A STUDENT OF THE NIGERIAN LAW SCHOOL, ABUJA, COMMITS SUCIDE IN TAKUM

A 30-year-old student of the Nigerian Law School, Abuja, Auwal Haruna, allegedly committed suicide on Monday by hanging himself on the ceiling fan in his hotel room in Takum.

The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Joseph Kwaji, confirmed the incident to newsmen in Jalingo on Monday, saying the matter was under investigation.

According to him, the body of the deceased was found dangling from a ceiling fan at Mairiga Guest Inn, Takum.

He said the deceased, until his death, was a suspect in a case of murder involving his younger brother, Ahmed, who allegedly connived with their mother, Aisha, to murder their father, Haruna Mohammed.

He said that the deceased’s brother (Ahmed), 27, was being detained for abducting and hanging his father to death in the suburb of Gembu over his father’s alleged marriage of a second wife against the wishes of his wife.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that there is an upsurge in suicide cases in Taraba.

Kwaji attributed the increase in cases of suicide to drug abuse and frustration.
“Most of these young men commit suicide as a result of drug abuse and frustration in life. Suicide is not the solution to our problems. Killing oneself is not only contrary to the laws of the land, but also against our religions,’’ Kwaji said.

NAN recalls that two incidents of suicide were recorded in Jalingo in February.

One involved a 400 Level student of the Taraba University, Friday Samson, 32, who poisoned himself to death over lack of funds to pay his school fees.

The other incident involved a watchman, Saidu Babura, 45, who hung himself on a tree at Hassan Primary School, Jalingo, after an alleged battle against drug abuse.

In January, 21 year-old Mansur Tanko burnt himself to death in Jalingo because his father, Tanko Mijinyawa, allegedly refused to approve of his plan to marry.

Source - NAN

OSCAR WEEPS AS HE APOLOGISES TO REEVA'S PARENTS FOR KILLING HER

Oscar Pistorius took the witness stand today April 7th to tell is own version of what happened on the day he shot his girlfriend four times through a bathroom window, killing her. A sobbing Oscar then apologized to Reeva's parents, saying he was trying to protect and not to take her life...

"I want to take this opportunity to apologise to Mr and Mrs Steenkamp. There hasn't been a moment since this tragedy happened that I haven't thought about your family

"I wake up every morning and you're the first people I think of. The first people I pray for. I can’t imagine the pain and the sorrow and the emptiness that I’ve caused you and your family.

"I was simply trying to protect Reeva. I can promise you that when she went to bed that night she felt loved. I have tried to put my words on paper many times to write to you but no words would ever suffice.' Continue..

He also told the court his struggles since the incident, saying he wakes up every morning 'smelling blood..and terrified". He claimed he suffers from panic attacks and takes anti-depressant medicine.

'I'm scared to sleep. I can smell blood and wake up terrified. I climbed into a cupboard and I phoned my sister to come and sit by me, which she did for a while. I'm just in a complete state of terror. I fall asleep and wake up like that.' He said

SOLDIERS CLAIMS MILITARY COMMANDERS AIDING BOKO HARAM

According to a report by Punch, a Nigerian soldier who was a guest on the Voice of America Hausa Service has claimed that some military chiefs are aiding the men of the dreaded Islamic sect, Boko Haram.

The soldier who did not reveal his identity, told VON Hausa Service, that sometime ago, while serving in Bama Unit in Borno state, a commander from a nearby unit got in contact with his own commandant and asked for backup.

He said when he and the soldiers were to meet with the soldiers from the other commandant, they discovered they were given different uniforms and in the brink of launching the attack on the insurgent group, the soldiers from the other unit were withdrawn by their commandant leaving them to face the men of the Islamic sect alone with light arms. He also claimed that some of the insurgents they killed were officers that conducted training in military base in Kontagora near Abuja. Continue...

"We had only light arms and our men were being picked off one after the other. We realised that some of them were actually mercenaries from the Nigerian army… hired to fight us,” he said.

The unidentified soldier said that most of his colleagues are silently putting their arms down and leaving the army due to the frustrations they experienced and what he termed the politicizing of the war against the Islamic sect

"“I swear by Allah, there are soldiers who are coming out of the forest after they were abandoned; several of them dropped their weapons and just went home. There were more than 20 of them from this battalion in Kwanduga. Even me that is talking to you now, I am preparing to leave. I just want to tell the world so that they will know what is happening. These people are doing this secretly.” he said

His claim on some military personnel being recruited by the sect group seem to have been confirmed as some Military high command on Sunday launched an investigation into claims of a lance corporal who was said to be killed by the Special Forces during an encounter with  insurgents in Borno State. The Lance Corporal according to a source told Punch that he was a trusted  trainer of Special Forces at the Nigerian Army Training Centre, Kontagora.

"A soldier who trains Special Forces at the Nigerian Army Training Centre in Kontagora, Niger State, was among those who were killed. The man was not among the Special Forces; he was obviously leading the attack for the insurgents but he got killed. It was one of the soldiers that identified him as somebody from his unit in Kotangora. The soldier called attention to the man’s corpse and when the commander said he should be searched, they recovered a current pass authorizing him to leave Kotangora and his Army identity card from him".

Director of Defence Information, Maj. Gen Chris Olukolade in response to the soldiers claims said they were all not true and that the unidentified soldier could be a Boko Haram sect member who was disguising as a Soldier.

"The person that granted that interview on the VOA; we believe he is not a soldier, he could just be one of those simulated on the other side to give some false impression to support the insurgents.” He refused to comment on the story about the killed lance corporal who is alleged to have been working for the sect members.

NIGERIA BECOMES AFRICA'S LARGEST ECONOMY WITH $510 MILLION

Article written by Associated Press writer, Michelle Faul. It's Mind blowing. Read!

Nigeria's recalculated economy is worth $510 billion, by far the biggest in Africa, officials announced Sunday using long overdue revised data that gives the West African nation continental bragging rights but does little for the 70 percent of its citizens living in poverty.

The new value of Nigeria's GDP adds previously uncounted industries like telecommunications, information technology, music, airlines, burgeoning online retail outlets and Nollywood film production that didn't exist when the last GDP count was made in 1990. Then, there were 300,000 landlines. Today, Nigeria has 100 million cell phone users.

The new figures also will take account of growth in agriculture and tourism that have flourished since democracy was restored in 1999, ending decades of military dictatorship.

With one fell swoop, Nigeria knocked out of the ring South Africa, whose GDP of $353 billion was previously counted the biggest on the continent and which is the only African member of the G20.

"Nigeria's success is a reminder that Africa is moving ahead despite its current challenges," said investment manager Kevin Daly of UK-based Aberdeen Asset Management, which invests in Africa. He pointed out that it is a Nigerian, billionaire Aliko Dangote, who is building Africa's largest privately owned oil refinery.

Investors' attention will be drawn by the fact that while oil remains the biggest source of government revenue, about 80 percent, oil production is declining while Nigeria's agriculture, communications and service sectors are enjoying healthy growth.

Nigeria has been Africa's biggest drawer of direct foreign investment despite myriad woes, from massive corruption and oil thefts costing the country some $20 million a day to an Islamic uprising in the northeast that has killed more than 1,200 people so far this year, to a paralytic electricity supply that keeps businesses dependent on diesel-run generators.

Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala told a news conference Sunday that the new data makes Nigeria the 26th largest economy in the world and raises its per capita income to $2,688, making it No. 121 in the world, up from No. 135.

That is still feeble compared to South Africa's $7,336 for its population of 48 million. South Africa, bedeviled by mining strikes, violent protests over services and a lackluster performance that has kept annual growth at around 3.5 percent, still has infrastructure unrivaled on the continent, most notably a power sector that generates 10 times more electricity than Nigeria.

Nigeria's revised figures will lower its much-vaunted growth rate of 7 percent but also will decrease an already low debt to GDP ratio of 21 percent, which should lower interest rates should the government want to borrow more, economists said.

Okonjo-Iweala blamed decades of military rule for the delay in repositioning Nigeria's economy, but the country is not alone. Ghana's economy jumped by 60 percent when it recalculated its goods and services production in 2012, and Kenya and Zambia are considering the same.

Okonjo-Iweala has said that Nigeria's economy needs to grow at about 10 percent to address massive poverty and youth unemployment. Government statistics say unemployment increased from 12.7 percent in 2007 to 23.9 percent in 2011; the World Bank says unemployment among young Nigerians stands at 38 percent but analysts say it is as high as 80 percent in many parts of the country.

Financial analyst Bismarck Rewane called the revisions "a vanity. The Nigerian population is not better off tomorrow because of that announcement. It doesn't put more money in the bank, more food in their stomach. It changes nothing."

Question: How does this mitigate the threatening poverty rate in Nigeria?

NIGERIAN MEDICAL DOCTOR SHOT DEAD BY HER HUSBAND IN THE US

Dr Isioma and her Daughter

A 36 year old Nigerian Medical Doctor was shot dead by her 63 year old husband on Saturday March 22nd 2014 at their home in West Harris County, Houston, Texas.

Dr Isioma Awele Ebegbodi nee Unokanjo (pictured above), a mother of two and a medical resident physician at Marshfield Clinic in Texas, was shot dead around 3.am on that fateful day after getting into a fight with her husband and the father of her children, Martin Ebegbodi (also pictured above).

After killing his wife, Martin Ebegbodi went to a neighbors house and asked him to call the police. When deputies arrived, Martin Ebegbodi was arrested and charged with the murder of Isioma.

Martin Ebegbodi, her husband.
Isioma Ebegbodi attended Queens College Yaba and studied Medicine at the University of Lagos Medical School. May her soul rest in peace.

GUNMEN ATTACK YOBE MOSQUE, KILL 20

Gunmen suspected to be members of the dreaded Islamist sect, Boko Haram, yesterday struck in Yobe State killing no fewer than 20 worshippers in a mosque.
A civil servant, Musa Ibrahim, who spoke with the Associated Press, said the gunmen struck before dawn as residents of Buni Gari village were getting set for the first prayer of the day.

The village is about 100 kilometers (60 miles) south of Damaturu, the Yobe State capital, in an area that has been attacked numerous times.
Mosques have been targets of the insurgents, who threaten Muslim clerics they consider to be preaching against their extremist doctrine.

The insurgents also routinely attack churches and schools, killing Christians and students and setting buildings – both public and private – and other property ablaze.

More than 1,200 civilians have been killed this year amid more frequent and deadlier attacks by the Boko Haram terrorist network.

'I cut her neck with cutlass for sacking me' - houseboy who killed magistrate says

David Idah, the houseboy of  retired Chief Magistrate Funmilola Timeyin who killed her at her residence in Laderin Estate in Abeokuta on March 28th says he killed her because she sacked him. 

Idah, in an interview with Punch, said he and his boss had a good relationship when he started working with her but they fell out when she started to complain about his attitude. Idah says he wasn't paid his salary and so stole two mobile phones, a DVD player, speakers, perfume, wrist watches, three trousers and four shirts belonging to her son in order to sell them, get money and leave.

She discovered he had stolen these items and invited the police who came in and was about to begin prosecution of the 21 year old Benue indigine when she (Justice Timeyin) pleaded with them to let him off the hook and even wrote a letter of withdrawal to the police. She said she did not want Idah tried but she sacked him and told him not return to work for her again.

A few days after he was released from police custody and angered by his sack, Idah went to the retired judge's house, scaled the fence, got hold of the cutlass he used for gardening and waited for her to step out of her house and then attacked her with the cutlass, cutting her three times on the neck. She screamed for help which attracted her neighbors and vigilante in the area who caught Idah in the bush behind the house where he had gone to hide and was trying to escape...

Sadly Justice Timeyin died before she could get to the hospital.

Idah was employed by the 65year old retired chief Magistrate to help around her house since all her children had all grown up and left the house. Idah was yesterday arraigned before the magistrate, Anthony Araba, of the Magistrate Court 1 and pleaded guilty to one count charge of Murder. 

ANOTHER RITUALIST DEN IN OGUN STATE

The ritualist activities have continued to take preeminence in recent weeks as Another den was discovered yesterday, April 3rd in Akinremi Estate in the Adigbe area of Obafemi-Owode LGA of Ogun State, Vanguard reports

A pregnant young lady in a bid to set herself free from the ritualist ran out of a duplex in the estate on Wednesday night and informed the estate residents of what was happening in the building. The young lady said she was from Abia state and was sold to the ritualist by her elders sister for N100,000. 

 By Thursday morning, youths in the area, mostly students of the Moshood Abiola Polythecnic, invaded the building and engaged in a thorough search of the building and amongst the things they found in the building were charms, ivory plate containing fresh blood, coffin, and effigies. Continue

Also discovered in the building were passports and Identity cards of Senior and Junior Students of Sacred Heart Catholic College, Oke-Ilewo who are believed to have been killed by the ritualist. Other male and female clothings were found in the building. Three pregnant ladies and three kids were rescued from the building.

Angered by the act, the youths of the area took laws into their hands and burnt the building down with the cars in the building.

The Ogun State Police Deputy PRO officer, Abimbola Oyeyemi, while confirming the incident said the police has arrested two suspects, one Muibat Yusuf and her brother, who are indigenes of Kwara State.

A Federal Court In Lagos Awards Sanusi N50million Damages, Orders Release Of His international Passport

A Federal High Court in Lagos has restrained the Nigeria Police and the Department of State Services from arresting or harassing the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi Lamido.

The court also ordered the DSS to release Mr. Sanusi’s passport to him immediately while also awarding the embattled CBN boss N50 million in exemplary damages.

Mr. Sanusi’s passport was seized on February 20, as he arrived the Lagos international airport, hours after he was suspended as CBN Governor by President Goodluck Jonathan.

He was briefly detained as well.

Mr. Sanusi, in separate suits, challenged his suspension, and asked for an enforcement of his fundamental rights as enshrined in the Nigerian constitution.

The court had on February 21 granted an interim order, restraining the respondents from arresting, detaining, or harassing the applicant pending the determination of the substantive suit.

The interim order was sequel to an affidavit of urgency filed by the applicant on the same date.

On Monday, the court adjourned to April 4 ruling on the preliminary objection raised against the restraining order by the SSS and the police.

The court has now ruled, saying the government and its agencies have no basis to arrest or harass Mr. Sanusi. The court also frowned at the seizure of the CBN Governor’s travelling documents.

During the hearing of the rights’ suit, on Monday, the respondents – the Attorney General of the Federation, AGF; the Police; and the SSS – made different claims.

The agency SSS said it was investigating Mr. Sanusi for allegedly financing terrorism.

The SSS counsel, Moses Idakwo, said Mr. Sanusi’s interaction with SSS officials did not last for up to an hour and did not constitute a violation of his rights.

He said the provisions of Section 6 of the National Security Agencies’ Act empowered the Service to impound the international passport of suspects pending the conclusion of investigations.

It is not clear how this fresh allegation by the SSS is related to the dubious claims by Mr. Omokri.

PREMIUM TIMES and a few citizen journalists had exposed how Mr. Omokri, using a non-existent alias, Wendell Simlin, created a document linking Mr. Sanusi with financing the terrorist Boko Haram group.

The document was later shown to have been created by Mr. Omokri, with several Nigerians calling for his sack. The presidency has kept mum since the scandal was exposed.

On Monday, however, Mr. Sanusi’s counsel, Kola Awodehin, accused the SSS of falsehood in its new claim against the bank chief, saying the agency had no shred of evidence.

The counsel to the AGF, Fabian Ajogwu, had objected to the suit, urging the court to strike it out for want of jurisdiction.
Mr. Ajogwu argued that the provisions of Section 254 (c) 1 (d) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) ousted the court’s jurisdiction to entertain the suit.

He noted that the case before the court borders on the applicant’s employment, saying that labour -related cases are within the exclusive jurisdiction of the National Industrial Court, NIC.

“Section 254 (c) 1 (d) of the Constitution vests exclusive jurisdiction on the National Industrial Court, with respect to civil causes or matters touching on employment, labour or industrial relations.

“We respectfully urge the court to hold that it has no jurisdiction to entertain the reliefs sought by the applicant,” he said.

The counsel urged the court to strike out the suit.

Mr. Ajogwu also argued that the applicant should not, by the suit, seek to restrain the respondents from performing their constitutional duties.
He argued that Mr. Sanusi was being investigated based on the FRCN’s claims. He said the suspended bank chief was being investigated in accordance with the provisions of the law, which the respondents had a statutory duty to perform.

Citing the dictum of retired Justice Niki Tobi of the Supreme Court in the case of Adeniran vs Alao, Mr. Ajogwu submitted that a perpetual injunction would be everlasting and could not be granted by
a court of law.

“The applicant’s suit is basically an action to shield him from the machinery of administration of justice, which has been kick-started by the respondents,” Mr. Ajogwu submitted.

While the AGF said Mr. Sanusi was being investigated based on the FRCN investigations, the police said it was not investigating the CBN boss.

The counsel to the police, David Abuo, said nobody ever reported Mr. Sanusi to the police.

He, however aligned with Mr. Ajogwu, saying the case should be struck out as it seeks to bar government agencies from performing their duties.
However, responding to the respondents’ preliminary objection, counsel to Mr. Sanusi, Mr. Awodehin submitted that the court was vested with the jurisdiction to entertain the suit.

He argued that the suit had nothing to do with the terms of employment of the applicant or industrial relations, since it was not a case of the applicant against the Central Bank of Nigeria.

He argued that the applicant never sought an order of perpetual injunction, adding that the reliefs he sought were qualified.

“It cannot be suggested that the applicant is restraining the respondents from performing their duties, but they must be restrained from doing so without due process of the law.

“The seizure of the applicant’s international passport by the third respondent is a derogation of his freedom of movement,” he said.
Mr. Awodehin also argued that the different submissions by the three respondents showed that laws were being violated in Mr. Sanusi’s treatment.

“The first to third respondents give conflicting reasons as to the complaint made against the applicant.

“This conflict goes to show that they acted without due process of the law,” he said.

The counsel also argued that the SSS’ claim of financing terrorism was bogus.

“The allegation against the applicant as to funding of terrorism is an afterthought by the respondents which is not backed by facts, as there is no reasonable suspicion that the applicant committed any crime,” he said.
He urged the court to dismiss the preliminary objection and uphold the case of the applicant.

PROSTESTERS ARRESTED AND DETAINED IN ABUJA

UCHE BRIGGS

JAPHETH OMOJUWA

Public speaker, blogger and activist Japheth Omojuwa were arrested yesterday afternoon in Abuja alongside Uche Briggs for leading a protest for victims of the Nigerian Immigration Service employment test that took place on March 10th. The two men and one other person were taken to NSCDC office and there are reports that they were beaten by NSCDC officers at their headquarters.

Twitts from Uche Briggs showed they were released yesterday night by 8pm and asked to return this morning.

POLICE OFFICER DISMISSED FOR RAPING A FOUR YEAR OLD GIRL

According to a Punch report, a policeman attached to the Plateau State Police Command was dismissed yesterday from the police force after being found guilty of luring and raping a 4-year-old girl identified as Helen .
Around 9pm on March 26th, corporal Damudu Bzibu (pictured above), allegedly lured the little girl and raped her in Kassa Barakin Ladi Local Government Area.

According to the Plateau State Police Commissioner, Chris Olakpe, who paraded Damudu alongside other criminals, the little girl's father found blood gushing from her vagina and upon serious enquiry, the girl told him it was uncle Damudu that raped her. The Commissioner said Damudu was immediately given an orderly room treatment, found guilty and is now dismissed from the force. He is to be charged to court soon.

Also amongst the criminals paraded yesterday was a man, Benjamin Tofa, who killed his wife for not accepting his sexual advances.

EBOLA VIRUS: NIGERIA ISSUES RED ALERT ON THE DEADLY VIRUS

The Ebola Virus.

Nigerian government has issued a red alert on Ebola virus, the causative agent of Ebola hemorrhagic fever. 

In the alert, Nigeria's federal ministry of health is urging individuals with high fever, headache, severe abdominal pain, diarrhea and bleeding to report to the health authorities, especially individuals who had traveled to Guinea, Sierra Leone and/or Liberia.

In a statement issued by the Special Assistant on Media and Communication to the Minister of Health, Mr. Dan Nwome, the health ministry said members of the public should take measures to avert the outbreak or spread of the disease. It added that Nigeria has the capacity to diagnose the disease if it appears here,

Nwome said: "The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) is currently studying the outbreak trends and has mobilised its rapid response teams and developed a detailed response plan that includes a comprehensive health education/health promotion to sensitise Nigerians, enhanced surveillance to detect and treat the disease, while mobilising its treatment/isolation centres. An alert has been issued to all State Commissioners of Health to mobilise against the disease."

He added that the Federal Ministry of Health is working closely with West African Health Organization (WAHO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) and is ready to deploy experts to Guinea on request by the affected country to strengthen its response capacity.

Below is a little information on what Everyone should know about the Ebola Virus:

One of the most virulent viral diseases known to humankind", reads the WHO's alarming first sentence on Ebola, the group of five viruses with a case fatality ranging from 25-90% in humans. Ebola infects humans through direct contact with a sick person's (or animal's) blood or bodily fluids, or through contact with contaminated objects (such as needles and bed sheets). A "viral hemorrhagic fever", symptoms at first resemble those of a normal fever, infections spread quickly among family and friends caring for sick people, and then among medical staff who haven't confirmed the cause of sickness.

Unfortunately, the disease shares early symptoms with any number of other other illnesses, ranging from a passing fever to malaria, cholera and meningitis. Between two and 21 days, infected people might have red eyes and a rash, or suddenly experience "onset of fever, intense weakness, muscle pain and sore throat", "followed by vomiting, diarrhea, rash, impaired kidney and liver function, and in some cases, both internal and external bleeding".

Contagion survives so long as the virus is in people's blood and secretions, and with no vaccine or specialized treatment, victims must simply try to beat the disease with "intensive supportive care" to fight off near constant dehydration. Ebola requires lab tests to confirm, and usually appears around tropical rain forests.

Please be cautious of your environment, report any of the above signs to the nearest hospital and stay healthy-R101