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  Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, is expected to be signed by a new judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday. The detained aides have reportedly met all their bail conditions.  It was reported on Tuesday that Justice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court in Abuja suddenly went “ missing ” after the 12 detained associates of Igboho met all their bail conditions. According to the source, when they took the detainees to the judge, " they were told that he did not come to work and had left instructions that another judge must not sign on his behalf.”  It was learnt that Justice Egwuatu was supposed to sign the release warrant of the detainees but the bail office of the court said he was not available to do so. However, Pelumi Olajengbesi, the detainees’ lawyer on Tuesday approached the bail office of the court to assign another judge to sign the release warrant of his clients who had been detained in the custody of the Depart...

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has raised the alarm that Africa’s increasing population is assuming a worsening trend. Obasanjo worried about how Nigeria and other African countries would be able to keep “ this keg of gunpowder of the large army of unemployed youth from exploding .” He queried how the unemployed youths could be stopped from enlisting in violent extremist groups and gangs of kidnappers. Obasanjo stated these during the public presentation of the maiden edition of the Africa Progress Group (APG) report, on Tuesday. Obasanjo, who is chairman of the APG, said if Africa’s growing population, which he said keeps him awake at night, is managed properly, it will yield huge dividends for national and regional development. He said, “ Three clusters of questions pop up in my mind any time the scary thoughts of the ever-increasing population kept me awake at night. The first cluster is: how are we going to feed this exploding population? “ Only a few days ago, the alarm was ra...

The armed men who kidnapped pupils from an Islamiyya school in Tegina, Niger State, and the Federal Government College, Birnin-Yauri, are holding on to their victims with varying demands . Gunmen kidnapped not less than 136 school pupils from Salihu Tanko Islamiyya School in Tegina on May 30 while about 80 students were taken from FGC Yauri in Kebbi State on June 17. Ali Kachalla, the bandit’s kingpin holding the Tegina pupils, despite receiving a N50million ransom has refused to release the children but rather made fresh demands which the distraught parents say they could not meet up with. Kachalla, it was also gathered, has refused entreaties from Fulani leaders engaged as mediators to secure the release of the pupils who have been in the kidnappers’ den for almost 90 days. “ A three-man delegation went to meet him but on learning of their arrival, he avoided going to his house for many days until the old men left in frustration ,” a source involved in the process  revealed. He a...

   A 15-year-old boy has been allegedly killed by an operative of the South-West security network codenamed Amotekun in the Mokola area of the Ibadan North Local Government Area in Oyo State. The ugly incident which took place on Wednesday has thrown members of the community into confusion. The victim was said to be preparing to sit for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination on Friday. It was also gathered that men of the Nigerian Police Force had tried to take the corpse away but they were stopped by the people. A source said, “ The 15 years old boy had been preparing for his exams on Friday and was shot at by an Amotekun man in the early hours of today (Wednesday) at Mokola, Ibadan North, Oyo State. The police tried to take the body away but the people refused with force. People are crying. A woman said she ate with him last night as he was preparing for the exams. It is not clear why the Amotekun guy shot him. Maybe it was an accidental discharge, we don't k...

The European Union (EU) has said it will only cooperate with the Taliban if fundamental human rights are being respected, including those of women.    This was made known by the bloc's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell who added that the Taliban must prevent the use of Afghanistan's territory by terrorists, Reuters reports. Borrell outlined the EU's stance in a statement after an emergency meeting of European Union foreign ministers to discuss the Taliban's quick seizure of the Afghan capital Kabul. "I haven't said that we are going to recognise the Taliban. I just said that we have to talk with them for everything, even to try to protect women and girls. Even for that, you have to get in touch with them,” Borrell told a news conference. Recall that the Taliban, in their first official news briefing since the seizure of Kabul, said they wanted peaceful relations with other countries and would respect the rights of women within the framework of Islamic law. Th...

Hundreds of boys and girls have been killed or injured over the past two years amid the deteriorating political and security situation in Afghanistan, says a UN report. The report on Children and Armed Conflict issued on Monday, a day after the Taliban consolidated control over the country found that 5,770 Afghan youngsters were killed or maimed between January 2019 and December 2020. Meanwhile, the study stated that child casualties hit their highest levels ever during the first half of 2021. Virginia Gamba, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, said Afghanistan continued to be one of the most dangerous places to be a child. Armed groups, particularly the Taliban, were responsible for most incidents, or 46 per cent, with government and pro-government forces accounting for 35 per cent, followed by landmines and explosive remnants of war. “It is urgent that all parties take the necessary actions to minimise harm to children and prioritise the...

T he Taliban has declared intention to enforce Islamic law across the world after overrunning civil authority in Afghanistan.   One of the commanders, Muhammed Afri Mustafa made the announcement in an interview with CNN. Mustafa spoke right inside a United States base abandoned by Afghan forces after they ran out of food, leaving weapons and ammunition. He recalled how the Taliban fought U.S. troops over the years despite more sophisticated assets and equipment. “Many times we attacked this base when the Americans were here. We did operations, we were using IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices). “The Americans had their helicopters, weapons and tanks on the ground. But we, Mujahideen, resisted very well. It is our belief that, one day, Mujahideen will have victory. Islamic law will come to not just Afghanistan, but all over the world. “We are not in a hurry; we believe it will come one day. Jihad will not end until the last day”, Mustafa vowed. Mawlavey Kamil, Taliban Governor, Andar...

  Nigerian Inspector-General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba,  on Tuesday  signed a Cooperation Agreement with his Sierra Leonean counterpart, Dr. Ambrose Michael Sovula, at the Force Headquarters, Abuja. Force Public Relations Officer, Force Headquarters, Abuja,CP Frank Mba, in a statement explained that the Agreement was signed in a bilateral policing engagement, targeted at deepening, and consolidating relationship between the NPF and the Sierra Leone Police (SLP) in core areas of policing such as manpower development, intelligence sharing, tackling regional and transnational threats and crimes, amongst others.   He added that the Inspector General of Sierra Leone Police is on a five-day working visit to the Force Headquarters, Abuja, led by the Minister of Internal Affairs, Republic of Sierra Leone, Mr. David Maurice Panda-Noah. IGP Alkali, during the meeting, noted that “crime is dynamic especially in planning, perfection and execution, and increasingly resonat...

  J ustice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court in Abuja has suddenly gone 'missing' after the 12 detained associates of Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, met all their bail conditions.   According to a source, when they took the detainees to the judge, "they were told that he did not come to work and had left instructions that another judge must not sign on his behalf".  SaharaReporters learnt that Justice Egwuatu was supposed to sign the release warrant of the detainees but the bail office of the court said he was not available to do so.  The court had asked each of the 12 detainees to get two sureties each, making it a total of 24 sureties. The detainees had secured the sureties last week but the bail office of the court said it needed to write letters to the offices of the 24 sureties to get more confirmation.  The Department of State Services (DSS) had arrested the 12 persons on July 1, 2021, during a raid on Igbo...

  President Muhammadu Buhari will on Thursday meet with security chiefs at the State House, Abuja, who will brief him about developments over the security challenges facing the nation. The president returned to Abuja last Friday after spending 18 days in London, during which he attended an education summit and attended to his health. According to a release issued on Tuesday by the President’s Media Adviser, Femi Adesina, President Buhari will be updated on developments during the Thursday meeting, while plans to bring a decisive end to the challenges will be formulated. The security forces have in the past few weeks taken the battle more robustly to insurgents, bandits and all other criminals troubling the country.  

The  Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue state has advocated an increase of federation allocation to states from the present 26.7 percent to 42 percent. The Governor made the call on Tuesday in Makurdi when he received in audience the Federal Commissioner representing the state at Revenue Mobilization, Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RMAFC, Mr. Adaa Maagbe during a sensitization tour of the state. He also suggested that 23 percent of the allocation should go to local government areas from the present 20.6 percent while the federal government should go home with 35 percent as against the present 52.68 percent. The Governor pointed out that the exigencies of the time had made it necessary for a quick review of the sharing formula stressing that since the state governments had more responsibilities they should take the lion share of the Federal Allocation. He also stated that in view of the security challenges facing the states, Governors believed it was important to establish State Poli...

The  Special Investigation Panel set up by the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, to probe the former Head, Intelligence Response Team, Abba Kyari, a suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police, has submitted its report. The four-man panel headed by the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Force Criminal Investigations Department, Joseph Egbunike, submitted its findings to the IG on Monday. Information from a reliable source states that the panel submitted ‘damning findings’ in its report, although the DCP continued to prove innocence in the face of the accusations.  The source had yet to reveal further details of the report. The United States Attorney’s Office, Central District of California, had issued an arrest warrant against Kyari for his alleged links to the suspected fraudster, Ramon Olorunwa Abbas, alias Hushpuppi, who is standing trial for various offences that include internet fraud and money laundering. Hushpuppi has since pleaded guilty to the char...

Many   tweeps, including foreigners have likened the insecurity and situation in the Northern part of Nigeria to that of Afghanistan.   Taliban fighters had on Sunday invaded Kabul, Afghan capital, after being ousted from power in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the US.   The insurgent movement besieged the outskirts of Kabul, firing shots sporadically while citizens and foreigners were seen escaping the city. In 2001, US-led forces removed the Talibans from power, but the group has returned, taking over the central government. Given the insurgents’ treatment of women historically, there have been fears for their safety under the Taliban’s new regime.  Under the Taliban, women and girls were denied a whole range of human rights, including the rights to education, health, free movement, and political and social participation, Amnesty International said in a November 2020 report.  It added that since the Taliban regime ended in 2003, i...

    A Chief Superintendent of Police, CSP Celestine Umeh, the Nigeria Police Force and the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner of Police have been ordered by the Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting in Uyo to pay the sum of N4 million as compensation to a businessman, Clement Asuquo Etim.  It had been reported how Etim, was arrested, detained and tortured for three days after he caught Umeh in the night in his matrimonial home at Aba Ukpo Estate in Uyo. In a 46-page court document filed in May 2020, Etim stated that Umeh, who is now the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in charge of Itu Division in Akwa Ibom State, violated his fundamental right to private and family life guaranteed by Section 37 of the Nigerian Constitution when he intruded into his matrimonial home in his absence at Aba Ukpo Estate in Uyo to be with his wife, Mrs Laurentia Asuquo Etim. A Lagos-based human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, who represented Mr Etim filed the lawsuit with Suit No: HU/FHR.72/2020 at the ...

 A member of the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, Uduak Odudoh, to the court of law to compel the lawmaker to pay him N100 million as compensation over his illegal detention. Etete, who is also seeking an apology from the lawmaker, accused Odudoh of giving the police the order to arrest him sometime in 2020. The police had reportedly arrested and detained the young man, and consequently charged him with threat to life and defamation of character after he posted a comment against the lawmaker on Facebook. In the post, Odudoh who is representing Ikot Abasi and Easter Obolo State Constituency, was accused of representing a faction of his constituents and not his entire constituency.  It was reports that Etete said Ikot Abasi, with “ scam leaders ”, has continued to remain “underdeveloped”. According to Inibehe Effiong, Etete's counsel, Etete had deactivated his Facebook account but that was after the police had had access to the article and printed copies of it. Mr Effiong furt...

  Hisbah's order shops owners to  only use headless mannequins to advertise clothing. This, it said, is because Islamic doctrines are against idolatry.  " Islam frowns on idolatry ," Haruna Ibn-Sina, the commander of the Sharia police said. BBC also quoted him as saying, " With the head on, it looks like a human being." Ibn-Sina also wants the headless mannequins covered at all times because to show " the shape of the breast, the shape of the bottom, is contrary to the teachings of Sharia [Islamic law]". Also, some traders at Sabon Gari, a Christian-dominated part of Kano state, expressed their displeasure with the Hisbah's order. A shop owner, Chinedu Anya said displaying clothes on headless mannequins would reduce their attractiveness to passers-by and affect his business. However, while some Muslims in Kano back the order, a handful of younger Muslims have noted that Hisbah's interpretation of some of the teachings of Islam, such as on manne...

  An Interior decorator, Dapo Oguntimehin has narrated how officers from the Orile Iganmu Police Station arrested him and others while relaxing outside their house.  According to the young man, he was arrested alongside four other men and they were all charged with ‘Dangerous hangout. He, however, said two of the men were allowed to go back into the house following the physical disability of one and the job status of the other.  Dapo added that while at the police station, he took photos of the deplorable condition of the cell and shared them on social media which attracted public outrage.  He said this earned him a transfer to another cell albeit at the Lagos Taskforce office, Oshodi after which he was released on bail. He also alleged that officers questioned him for sharing the photos on social media and not channelling the same energy to condemn the embezzlement by senior officers of funds meant for the welfare of members of the Nigeria Police Force. He also stat...

  The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), has signed the Petroleum Industry Bill 2021 into law. Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, made this known in a statement on Monday, titled, ‘ President Buhari Signs Petroleum Industry Bill Into Law ’. The presidential spokesman said his principal signed the controversial bill into law while working from quarantine. Adesina said, “ Working from home in five days quarantine as required by the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19 after returning from London on Friday, August 13, the President assented to the Bill Monday, August 16, in his determination to fulfil his constitutional duty. The ceremonial part of the new legislation will be done on Wednesday, after the days of mandatory isolation would have been fulfilled. The Petroleum Industry Act provides legal, governance, regulatory and fiscal framework for the Nigerian petroleum industry, the development of host communities, and relate...

(CNN)The American flag at the US embassy in Kabul has been taken down, marking a final step in the evacuation of the embassy, days earlier than US officials initially projected, according to a source familiar with the situation. The US scrambled to evacuate embassy staff and top officials from its diplomatic compound in Afghanistan Sunday as Taliban fighters entered the city, Afghan government officials fled the country and gunfire was heard at Kabul airport, multiple sources told CNN. Early Sunday, two sources familiar with the situation told CNN that the plan was to pull all US personnel from the embassy in Kabul over the next 72 hours. Hours later, most US embassy staff had been moved to Kabul airport for flights out of the country. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told House lawmakers Sunday that the evacuation was a "highly dynamic and very risky operation," even as he and other senior US officials worked to project a sense of control. "This is not Saigon," Secre...

The  Plateau State Police Command has arrested 20 suspects in connection with a recent deadly attack on travellers in Jos, the state capital.  On Saturday, several travellers were attacked and killed by gunmen in the Jos North Local Government Area of the state. The travellers were reportedly passing through Jos when they ran into gunmen who opened fire on them. In a statement issued on Sunday by the force spokesperson, Frank Mba, the police have arrested 20 suspects while about 33 victims have been rescued.  Mba also stated that the Inspector General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba, has ordered the deployment of Police Intervention Team to Plateau State to carry out on-the-spot assessment.  This, he said, is to ensure an enhanced, coordinated response to protect the community and boost public confidence in the affected area of the state.  The statement read partly, “The Police Intervention Team is led by DIG Sanusi N. Lemu, mni, the Deputy Inspector General of...