Chioma

Former Aviation Minsiter, Femi Fani-Kayode has slammed Prof Usman Yusuf over his comment that southern governors should consult Fulani leaders before placing a ban on open grazing in their states. Fani-Kayode described on Twitter, Thursday, the statement as ‘arrogance and effrontery of the uncircumcised Philistine,’ as he warned Yusuf to stop playing with fire. Yusuf, a former Director-General of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) on AIT News, Wednesday, challenged the governors from Southern Nigeria who met in Asaba for coming out with their resolutions without meeting with Fulani. He said: "They are there making laws for a people and the people are not being consulted, ask the governors, where any of the Fulani consulted? How come 13 governors of the South met in a hotel to sit and talk without consulting any Fulani leaders? "You must sit down and talk to the people you are making laws for. None of the southern governors has sat down to discuss with the Fulani leaders and tell them what they are trying to do." While the comment had met with outrageous remarks from the southern part of the country, Fani-Kayode, in his reaction, blew hot, saying any attempt to threaten the South will be met with a ruthless resolve. “The arrogance and effrontery of this uncircumcised Philistine appauls me. Why should southern governors consult with Fulani leaders about the laws they are passing in their respective states? Are Southerners slave? And what the hell does he mean when he says southern governors should ‘be careful’? “This man should stop playing with fire. We want peace and are ready to build bridges but any attempt to threaten, denigrate, enslave or intimidate us will be met with contempt, disdain, defiance and a ruthless resolve to resist those that seek to oppress us,” Fani-Kayode tweeted. By SaharaReporters, New York Source:https://saharareporters.com/2021/05/13/stop-playing-fire-fani-kayode-warns-ex-nhis-boss-yusuf-saying-southern-governors-should

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has reacted to the claims by the Nigerian Army that it arrested the second-in-command of the late Ikonso Don in Aba, Abia State on Wednesday. Ikonso was said to be a top commander of IPOB's security arm, Eastern Security Network (ESN). According to the IPOB, the man the security agents claimed to have arrested is too fragile to be an operative of the Eastern Security Network, not alone being the second-in-command to Ikonso. The Biafra separatist group stated that it would not deny if truly the security agencies captured or killed any ESN member just as it confirmed the death of the late Ikonso. However, it added that the Nigerian Army and its sister agents are fond of deceiving Nigerians to attract shameful compliments. The group stated this in a statement by its media and publicity secretary, Emma Powerful on Thursday. SaharaReporters reported on Wednesday that Nigerian army during a raid, arrested 48-year-old Awurum Eze, a native of Umoneke Nta in the Isiala-Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State. The Director, Army Public Relations, Brig. Gen Mohammed Yerima in a release said, “The Second-in-Command to the neutralised IPOB/ESN terrorist leader Ikonso, Awurum Eze, has been arrested by security operatives in Aba, Abia State. “The 48-year-old Awurum Eze, a native of Umoneke Nta, Isiala-Mbano LGA, Imo State, had on the 4th of May, 2021 escaped when operatives of Intelligence Response Team (IRT) stormed his village house in Isiala Mbano where he was hiding. “Intensive manhunt was thereafter launched towards tracing and arresting him. He was eventually apprehended on Wednesday, May 12, 2021, in Aba after weeks of unrelenting follow-ups by operatives. In its reaction on Thursday, the IPOB said, “The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), ably led by our great leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, read with utter amusement, media reports of claims by the Nigeria Army that it arrested Ikonso's Second-in-Command in Aba. This is a blatant lie and a cheap propaganda to lay false claims to imaginary military prowess. “The said man is not an operative of ESN. Such a man is too old to be recruited into ESN let alone being Ikonso's Second-in-Command. “The Nigeria Army that is too weak to confront bandits and terrorists overrunning Northern communities can fabricate any propaganda in quest to deceive the gullible minds. The Nigeria security agents should stop making mockery of themselves. Arrest of innocent Biafrans and labelling them ESN operatives cannot make you overpower our gallant ESN operatives,” the statement read partly. Furthermore, the pro-Biafra group said the man, Eze, arrested was betrayed by his traditional ruler who allegedly had a row with him. The IPOB, however, reiterated that the arrest of Eze is part of the ploy of the Nigerian army to keep harassing, arresting and killing the people of the South-East to frustrate Biafra agitation. “That you ambushed Ikonso with the help of some traitors did not mean you have crushed ESN. Stop claiming what you have not done in your bid to win public accolades. If you arrest or kill Ikonso's Second-in-Command, we will not hesitate to admit it just the same way we did not deny the murder of Ikonso. “We are not like Nigeria that lives in propaganda; we tell the truth always. So, stop harassing innocent Biafrans in the name of a manhunt for ESN personnel. “Our background check revealed that the said man had issues with his traditional ruler who gave his contact to the security agents alleging that he belongs to ESN. He is not our own. “We are assuring them that whatever they do they cannot win ESN in this fight for freedom. The secret killing and abduction can never make IPOB change our resolve towards restoring Biafra as an independent nation. “Again, we wish to remind Biafrans and the world, of a grand plot by the Nigeria security agencies to reduce Biafra population through the ongoing secret abductions and killings of innocent Biafrans after tagging them IPOB and ESN members. “This wicked plot which started in Imo State is now gaining momentum across the entire Biafra land through the collaboration of some traitors in the mould of Supreme Court administrator of Imo State Hope Uzodinma and his likes. “Biafrans of all age brackets are now at the mercy of the double-faced Nigeria security agents as all they need to arrest and kill them off is to brand them ESN operative or sponsor,” the group said in the statement. By SaharaReporters, New York Source:https://saharareporters.com/2021/05/13/ipob-speaks-nigerian-armys-arrest-late-esn-commander-ikonsos-second-command

The Ooni of Ife, Yoruba’s foremost traditional ruler, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, is presently embroiled in a real estate mega fraud after some of his companies allocated apartments and land that existed only on paper to hundreds of investors. Apart from the revelation that hundreds of investors were never refunded after several years, the housing scheme, Gran Imperio Group’s multi-million-naira Essential Homes, has been described by many as the biggest fraud seen yet in Nigeria’s real estate history. According to a report by the Foundation for Investigative Journalism, Oba Ogunwusi and his companies have swindled a lot of housing investors and buyers to the tune of hundreds of millions of naira, as the king appeared to be above the law. In October 2014, Mrs Offiong (not real name) received some documents from Metropole Interproject Limited introducing the sale of a “one unit of three-bedroom corner piece bungalow apartment at South Pointe II Estate” at Ajah, Lagos, for N17,967,000 million. She was instructed to pay 50 percent of the cost if she accepted the offer. Retiring at the top cadre in the civil service after 30 years, she did not hesitate to invest her gratuity because the supposed estate was in a prime location: the building’s specifications and the estate’s facilities as stated in the contract looked top notch; the delivery date was less than a year away in August 2015. Shortly after paying the initial deposit of N8,983,500 million to Metropole Interproject Limited, a receipt bearing the name of its parent company, Gran Imperio Group, was issued to Mrs Offiong. On a scheduled visit to the site, Gran Imperio Group took subscribers to South Pointe I, instead of South Pointe II. “They told us that South Point II was not ready yet, so they took us to South Pointe I to show us what two would look like when it was ready,” said Mrs Offiong’s son, James (not real name), who went with his mother to the site. “There was a bit of confusion that day. We suspected that something was not right but we calmed down when they told us about another estate that would be completed before South Pointe II.” In a letter to subscribers in February 2015, Adiukwu Kechi, an official of the company, notified subscribers of the need to pay their next instalment. To get them to commit to completing their payments, although no land was shown to subscribers during the site visit, Kechi added: “We have been magnanimous to move you to a site that is beside South Pointe II and will be completed earlier than South Pointe II too, which is Golden Leaf Estate, and a final allocation will be issued too.”'ll But on the delivery date of August 2015, Mrs Offiong and hundreds of other subscribers found out that what they had were buildings and land on paper; they had been defrauded by companies headed at the time by Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, a man later crowned the Ooni of Ife in December of the same year. Many investors, citing fear of backlash from the monarch, declined to go on record, but they accused the company of defrauding them. FIJ managed to track five people who agreed to provide documents and correspondences with the companies’ officials on the condition that their identities were not revealed. Visits to the locations of the supposed estates, revealed that the estate schemes never materialised. Gran Imperio Group’s subsidiary companies, including Howard Roark Limited and Metropole Interproject Limited, were involved in ‘Essential Homes’, an ambitious scheme to build and deliver 1,000 affordable bungalow houses to middle and low income earners by the end of 2015. Launched in 2014, six estates — Lakeview Park I and II; Mid-Land Court; South Pointe I, II; Golden Leaf Estate; Y’hello Estate — were reportedly created by the company. FIJ’s check on the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) portal of real estate companies with links to Ooni Ogunwusi revealed that Gran Imperior Group of Companies was registered in November 14, 2013, while Howard Roark Limited was registered in 2008. They have inactive status on the portal, which possibly means that they had not filed tax documents in a long time. Metropole Interproject Limited did not appear on the CAC portal. Investigations by FIJ confirmed that Ogunwusi and 13 others are directors of Gran Imperio Group of Companies. The Ooni of Ife also sits as director on the board of Howard Roark Limited. In 2015, Ogunwusi had stated that Golden Leaf Estate, a 380-unit apartment developed in collaboration with the British American Tobacco Company (BATC), was undergoing construction and would be delivered in a year. Subscribers were required to make an initial deposit of 30 percent of the offer price, 40 percent at roofing stage and 30 percent upon completion. Six years later, hundreds of subscribers neither got apartments nor refunds. Mr Jonathan Abu (not real name) was one of them. He initially subscribed to South Pointe Two but agreed to be moved to Golden Leaf Estate because of the ‘boys quarters’ attached to the bungalow and its proximity to his work place on the Island. After he made the first deposit of N6,139,800 in March 2015, nothing happened on the land and he never heard from Metropole Interproject Limited until August 2016, nearly a year and a half after. In a letter signed by two directors of the company, Taiwo Akintayo and Isaac Etim, the company stated that it did not meet delivery schedule because of “unresolved land acquisition issue”. It said a relocation of the project to another site was in consideration. Having seen Ooni Ogunwusi rub shoulders with politically powerful people, including President Muhammadu Buhari, who many times said that no acts of corruption would go unpunished in his administration, some investors, at the time, got discouraged and simply “handed the matter over to God”. Others who frantically headed to court soon found that it was an exercise in futility. With multiple law suits, Ogunwusi’s company selected court hearings to attend and failed to honour out-of-court agreements and judgments, FIJ was told. While some were refunded a fraction of the money they invested, others got nothing. “So when we went to court and they never showed up, I just knew nothing would come out of this. They probably would just kill the case,” said Oluwashina (not real name) who lost N5,010,000 to the South Pointe II scheme and was not refunded. It was the first major project he started with his wife. In addition to suspicions by subscribers that Ooni Ogunwusi was using his influence to frustrate the court cases against his companies is the question: is the company financially capable of paying hundreds of investors it owes millions of naira? Ooni Ogunwusi knew about the problems investors had with his company, as a letter to all subscribers shortly after he became the Ooni showed. The letter, signed by the Ooni, stated his position as Chairman and was co-signed by Taiwo Akintayo. It was written on January 2016. It began with an apology for “slow pace of work” and continued by listing some challenges. He further urged investors, many of whom neither saw their land nor building on the supposed estate, to “support with your payment (if you still have any due) to enable us deliver as soon as possible”. “I want to assure you that Gran Imperio Group remains a going concern and I am still committed to drive [sic] the vision of the company to even greater heights more than ever before,” Ogunwusi wrote. Efforts to get comments from Gran Imperio were unsuccessful. A lady who answered the call to one of the phone numbers on the firm’s letterhead, claimed it was a wrong number. A call to the second number was answered by one Humphrey Obadjere, who claimed to be an accountant that had left the company. By SaharaReporters, New York Source:https://saharareporters.com/2021/05/11/royal-fraud-companies-linked-ooni-ife-oba-ogunwusi-defraud-nigerians-massive-real-estate

A Nigerian rapper, Olanrewaju Fasasi, popularly known as Sound Sultan is currently battling with throat cancer in the United States of America. SaharaReporters gathered that the artist has commenced chemotherapy in one of the hospitals in the country. Chemotherapy is an aggressive form of chemical drug therapy meant to destroy rapidly growing cells in the body. It’s usually used to treat cancer, as cancer cells grow and divide faster than other cells. Sound Sultan's career in show business started in the 1990s, when he hosted shows to raise money for studio sessions. By 1999, he had won numerous local talent-hunt shows. He released his first single "Jagbajantis" in 2000, which was a hit in Nigeria. After independently releasing other singles and featuring in hit songs of other artists, he was signed by Kennis Music. Sound Sultan began a working relationship with Wyclef Jean when featured alongside 2face Idibia and Faze on "Proud to be African" from Wyclef's Welcome to Haiti: Creole 101 album. In 2012, it was announced that Sound Sultan was made a UN Ambassador for Peace for his exemplary lifestyle and career. In 2015, Sound Sultan released the rap single "Remember" after a long absence from the music scene. After the fallout of the African Basketball League, he joined forces with the organisers of the Continental Basketball League to become a team owner of Lagos City Stars (the 2017 champions) and a facilitator of the league entertainment. By SaharaReporters,New York Source:https://saharareporters.com/2021/05/12/breaking-popular-nigerian-rapper-sound-sultan-diagnosed-throat-cancer

President Muhammadu Buhari’s worsening dementia and other undisclosed health challenges are taking their toll on his ability to effectively coordinate meetings. For instance, the President faltered during a meeting with the security chiefs on Tuesday. Top sources in the Presidency told SaharaReporters that Buhari was not only incoherent but spoke for only a short time. It was learnt that he spoke in the same manner when he recently had a meeting with the Head of the European Union delegation to Nigeria and to the Economic Community of West African States, Mr Ketil Karlsen, along with his team. “The President’s health condition is worsening by the day and affecting his handling of national matters, especially on insecurity. At the EU delegation virtual meeting, he was responding off-key. “At the meeting with the security chiefs, he was also off-key and spoke little. He was supposed to be at the graduation ceremony at the Nigeria Police College in Kano but the event had to be postponed because the President was not ready,” the source revealed. SaharaReporters in December 2020 had reported how the inability of President Buhari to make critical decisions on insecurity and the depressed economy had become worrisome to many Nigerians – a situation which his dementia and other undisclosed illnesses he is treating could have contributed to. It had been reported that his medical conditions had forced him to jet out of the country at least six documented times for treatment, spending about 180 days since 2015 when he assumed office in his first term, SaharaReporters. The fallout is that apart from being unable to attend to urgent national issues and take significant decisions for the country, the President is perceived also not to be in charge of his government. This has been evident with several conflicting actions and rancour within his same government. Also in same December, contrary to claims by his spokesman, Garba Shehu, Buhari’s demenia prevented him from visiting the scene of the abduction of over 300 school boys from Kankara town in Katsina State, his home state. A source had stated that the President’s dementia affected him once again, and made him to visit his livestock farm on Saturday morning instead of visiting the school. Dementia is a general term for loss of memory, language and thinking abilities – a condition which may be caused by the President’s old age or an undisclosed medical condition. “The moment it happened on Friday night, President Buhari was told. But due to dementia, he had forgotten,” the source had said about why Buhari did not visit the school. When the video of the President visiting his farm surfaced the following Monday, the President’s spokesperson, Shehu, had argued vehemently that the President was not aware as of Saturday morning when he went to his farm. By SaharaReporters, New York Source:https://saharareporters.com/2021/05/12/buhari%E2%80%99s-dementia-worsens-president-fumbles-words-goes-key-during-security-chiefs-eu

President Muhammadu Buhari has sent "his best wishes" to Nigerians and Muslims all over the world on the occasion of Eid-el-Fitr, and asked for prayers against kidnapping and banditry in the country. Buhari in his Eid-el-Fitr message on Wednesday through a statement released by his Senior Special Assistant, Media & Publicity, Garba Shehu, also wishes "the Eid festival brings with it peace, safety, security, brotherhood and love amongst all". Urging Nigerians to pray against the insecurity his government has failed to effectively tackle, Buhari said, “We should jointly pray against the tragic incidents of kidnapping and banditry and the desperate quest for political power expressed through blackmail against the existence of our country as a united entity. “We must resist the temptation to retreat into our communities. I urge our political and religious leaders as well as traditional rulers to encourage our citizens to turn towards one another in love and compassion.” According to the President, it is noteworthy and delightful to see Christians breaking fast and in some instances, extending goodwill and gifts to Muslim faithfuls during the Ramadan. “This model also shone through with Muslim groups joining Christian festivities. These are practices that promote brotherhood and forgiveness,” he added. “Unity and solidarity among all citizens, Muslims and Christians are imperative especially at a time when our country is faced with multiple challenges which are surmountable only when we come together as one. “It is important that we remember how we share, through our faiths, common bonds that should serve to unite us and not allow ourselves to succumb to those who seek to divide us, using our two great religions, for their own selfish advantages," he said. President Buhari also urged Nigerians to continue to observe all COVID-19 prevention measures and celebrate responsibly during the holidays. By SaharaReporters, New York Source:https://saharareporters.com/2021/05/12/pray-against-kidnapping-banditry-buhari-tells-nigerians-eid-el-fitr-message

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will represent Nigeria at the sixth inauguration of President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda. Osinbajo's spokesman, Laolu Akande, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday in Abuja. The vice-president will be joining several other heads of state and government at the swearing-in ceremony scheduled for May 12 at Kololo Independence Grounds in Kampala, Uganda. Uganda Election Commission declared Yoweri Museveni the winner of the presidential election held in January. Chairman of the commission, Justice Simon Mugenyi Byabakama, said Museveni won 5.85 million votes, or 58.64 percent while leading opposition candidate Bobi Wine got 3.48 million votes or 34.83 per cent. Museveni will commence a fresh tenure of his stranglehold on the eastern African nation. A rebel leader who seized power via a deadly coup in 1986, Museveni won a widely flawed election in January to earn a sixth term after 34 years in power. His 38-year-old challenger, musician turned politician, Bobi Wine, alongside his supporters, has faced brutal state repression before, during and even after the election. Nigeria and Uganda share historical antecedents and enjoy good diplomatic relationships, including working together as member-states of the Commonwealth, the African Union, and the United Nations. Both countries have signed Bilateral Agreements on Technical Aid Corps, Trade, and on Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation. United Nations Watch had accused Museveni of silencing his opponents for re-election into office. Museveni was announced the winner of the election by the electoral commission with 58.6 per cent of the vote in an election disputed by his main rival, Bobi Wine, who trailed with 34.8 per cent. The UN Watch took to its Twitter account to allege that Museveni committed "widespread voter fraud" to win the just-concluded presidential election. The group tackled the 76-year-old for shutting down the country's Internet ahead of the election. Osinbajo will depart Lagos for Kampala on Tuesday evening and be accompanied by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Amb. Zubairu Dada, and the Special Adviser on Economic Matters to the President, Ambassador Adeyemi Dipeolu. By SaharaReporters, New York Source:https://saharareporters.com/2021/05/12/despite-records-election-fraud-human-rights-abuse-osinbajo-attend-ugandas-sit-tight

Unknown Gunmen on Tuesday attacked the Amaekpu Ohafia Local Government Area office of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), setting the building ablaze. The State Commandant, Akingbade Bamidele, who confirmed the attack to Daily Trust, said no casualty was recorded. This came some hours after the police formations and Independent National Electoral Commission office in the local government area were attacked and burnt down by unknown gunmen. There have been constant attacks on security operatives and public infrastructure in the South-East and South-South in the past weeks with many security personnel killed and many police stations destroyed. Five months ago, on December 13, its LGA office in Aba south was completely burnt down while that of Arochukwu LGA was vandalised in October 2020. By SaharaReporters, New York Source:https://saharareporters.com/2021/05/11/breaking-gunmen-burn-drug-enforcement-agency-office-abia

An Igbo group of intellectuals and professionals worldwide, Nzuko Umunna has written an open letter to the Nigeria's Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, that the shoot-on-sight order given to the Army troops in the South-East was an attempt to wipe out innocent citizens. The group stated that if such a command was true, it is the same as a declaration of war against the people in the area, adding that the Army Chief should have publicly announced if there is a war between the region and the military personnel so that innocent people could vacate the environment. This was contained in the letter signed by Dr. N Odumuko and Dr. P. Mbanefo, and made available to SaharaReporters by Barr. Austin Okeke on Tuesday. Nzuko Umunna wrote the letter in reaction to a warning given by a Nigerian soldier a few days ago that the troops had been commanded to shoot civilians in Orlu, Imo State as the military fights operatives of the Eastern Security Network. "We feel duty-bound to inform you that there is palpable fear over a shoot-on-sight directive reportedly given to Army troops in the South-East in recent days, a scheme for which new batches of men were moved over the weekend. "By some accounts, this directive seems to have been given unofficially in a hush-hush manner, making the situation all the more ominous. "A shoot-on-sight directive is tantamount to an order to extrajudicially exterminate innocent citizens as there is no telling who might be part of the collateral, unintended casualties. "Throughout history, such military strategies or policies have always run the risk of going contrary to all accepted conventions and protocols on the rules of engagement, particularly the Rome Statutes "In fact, it can be read as genocide where as in this case, there is clear and evident danger of such action resulting in high casualties. "If the speculation of a shoot-on-sight order were to bear any atom of truth, then it amounts to a declaration of war on the area. However, even if, for any reason, the Federal Government is minded to declare war on the South-East or a part of it, there are standard international conventions and protocols that must be observed. "One of such is the requirement to publicly and unambiguously declare that a war situation has arisen in such a place so that those who wish to, especially the civilians and innocent citizens, can withdraw from such a place. That has not been done," the letter stated partly. The group, further, urged Attahiru to put the public in the know about the shoot-on-sight order and reverse it if in any case it was issued, to restore peace in the region. "But it is our well considered contention that there do not exist in the South East of Nigeria any peculiar situation which does not exist in even worse forms in other parts of the country to warrant or justify such a Shoot-On-Sight order. And we put whoever thinks to the contrary to the strictest of proof. "Based on these, our position is that it is in the overall interest of the country that you use your good offices to not only clear the air on this very disturbing issue but also counter any such directive in case it has, by some fluke or stroke of overzealousness, been issued. "We most respectfully urge you to use your good offices to intervene, as a matter of urgency, in this very critical matter to douse the tension and apprehension in the region arising from rumours and the expectation that the killings and unnecessary waste of human lives will escalate. "We are by this letter bringing this properly to your notice with the hope you will take preemptory action," the letter added. By SaharaReporters, New York Source:https://saharareporters.com/2021/05/11/shoot-sight-order-south-east-declaration-genocide%E2%80%94igbo-group-tells-army-chief-open-letter