A Nigerian newspaper and Online version of the Vanguard, a daily publication in Nigeria covering Niger delta, general national news, politics, business, energy, sports, entertainment, fashion,lifestyle human interest stories, etc
By Levinus Nwabughiogu ABUJA- Rather than fight for the control oil resources in the Niger Delta, the government would persuade the agitators to dialogue and agree on measures to manage them, President Muhammadu Buhari has said.
The president also expressed gratitude to God for making the farm harvest in 2016 bountiful, saying that it was the only out of economic recession amidst the crash of oil prices.
The president spoke on Sunday when some residents of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja led by the Minister of FCT, Mallam Mohammed Bello paid him Christmas homage at his official residence within the precinct of the Presidential Villa.President Muhammadu Buhari flanked by FCT Senator Philip Aduda as Minister of FCT, Mallam Muhammad Musa Bello presents a giant Christmas Card during Christmas homage at his Residence in Abuja.
President who remarked that the security of the country was paramount to its development regretted that most of his campaign promises were yet to be met.
He appealed to Nigerians for patience, stressing that he has not forgotten them.
He said: “I think it is good to select objectives and be honest about it and work towards it. It is now almost 18 months since we resumed here. We are very lucky. I believe some of you followed us during our campaigns and what we identified are still fundamentals problems.
“The first is security, and we kept on saying whether it is an organization or a country, we have to first secure it before we can manage it properly. Without security, nothing can work.
“Secondly, the economy and the unemployment of able bodied persons. We look at left and right, from 1999 to 2014, the crude production was over 2.2m barrels per day. The average cost per barrel was $100.
“When we came, it was $37. I think it is now between $40 and $50. I asked for savings, there was no saving. I asked what they used the money to buy. They said they bought food and oil. I do not know how long it took me to recover from the shock.
“Some of you will recall either by history or discussion that it was cocoa, palm kernel, cotton, agro-allied industry that we used to build infrastructures; be it rail or school.
“We also used the produce to develop oil. When we got the oil, we threw everything away. We thank God this year, the harvest was quite good, otherwise, I do not know what we would have done. No money saved, no infrastructure built, power is still our main problem. Old roads have dilapidated and they needed to be repaired from Lagos to Kano, Port Harcourt up to Maiduguri. There are rail lines, we want to develop from Lagos to Calabar, from Lagos to Kaduna and the Abuja one.
“If we can get the infrastructure done, we cannot even know the number of Nigerians that will get job. So we have to get infrastructure. It will take tankers and other articulated vehicles off the road. We will save vehicles and we will save lives and we will get jobs for a lot of Nigerians.
“I want you to talk to people to be patient with the government. We are always thinking about our country and we are thinking about our people.
“God has given Nigerians. A lot of preachers and resources both human and materials, we better do the same thing for our children and grandchildren.
“I assure you that the country and the people of the country are always uppermost in our minds. Our performance in the North East, Nigerians know that this government is serious.
“For our friends in the Niger Delta area, we will persuade them that they should please sit down with us and agree to manage our resources rather than think of fighting it out.”
Earlier in his opening remarks, the FCT Minister, Muhammed Bello commended Buhari on the success achieved by the Nigerian military in the Sambisa Forest last week.
“We are very proud of this milestone and we prayed that Boko Haram never rear its head in any part of the country again,” he said.
Also, the Chairman of the Christians Association of Nigeria, FCT branch, Rev. Jonah Samson remarked that the president’s anti-corruption had paid off, expressing optimism that the impact would outlive the present administration.
“Corruption is a cankerworm. It is a terrible thing that we must kill. We urge you to ensure that the war continues. It should not end during this administration.
“We thank God for the victory over Boko Haram. It is a thing of joy worthy of celebration’, he said.
Highlights of the courtesy call were the presentation of a giant xmas card to Buhari by the FCT Minister and his aides and also the presentation of a Xmas greeting card and a locally-made artworks by the representatives of the Aso Villa Chapel.
Other members of the delegation were the Archbishop of Catholic Diocese, John Onayikan, Bishop of Anglican Diocese, Abuja, Nicholas Okoh, some Muslim leaders, National Assembly members, traditional rulers, top government officials and security chiefs.
President on Sunday received some Christmas greeting cards from some residents of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja led by the Minister of FCT, Mallam Mohammed Bello who paid him Christmas homage at his official residence within the precinct of the Presidential Villa.
President Muhammadu Buhari flanked by FCT Senator Philip Aduda as Minister of FCT, Mallam Muhammad Musa Bello presents a giant Christmas Card during Christmas homage at his Residence in Abuja.President Muhammadu Buhari receives a giant Christmas Card from the Minister of FCT, Mallam Muhammad Musa Bello as President receives Christmas homage at his Residence in Abuja.President Muhammadu Buhari receives a giant Christmas Card from the Minister of FCT, Mallam Muhammad Musa Bello as President receives Christmas homage at his Residence in Abuja.President Muhammadu Buhari receives Minister of FCT, Mallam Muhammad Musa Bello and three others as President receives Christmas homage visit at his Residence in Abuja.President Muhammadu Buhari receives Cardinal John Onaiyekan during Christmas homage at his Residence in AbujaPresident Muhammadu Buhari receives Esu of Bwari, HRH Ibrahim Yaro, Chief of Abaji, HRHEmmanuel Yepwi and Ona of Abaji/FCT Chairman Council OF Chief, HRM Adamu Baba Yunusa during Christmas homage at his Residence in Abuja.R-L; President Muhammadu Buhari, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, Former FCT CAN Chairman, Rev Dr Isreal Akanji and The Most Rev’d Nicholas Okoh. Archbishop of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) during Christmas homage at his Residence in Abuja.PRESIDENT BUHARI RECEIVES CHRISTMAS HOMAGE 2B. R-L; President Muhammadu Buhari, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, Former FCT CAN Chairman, Rev Dr Isreal Akanji and The Most Rev’d Nicholas Okoh. Archbishop of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) during Christmas homage at his Residence in Abuja.
[caption id="attachment_730756" align="alignnone" width="412"] President Muhammadu Buhari flanked SA Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina and other Press Corp as President receives Christmas homage visit at his Residence in Abuja. PHOTO; SUNDAY AGHAEZE. DEC 25 2016
President Muhammadu Buhari and SA Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina as President receives Christmas homage visit at his Residence in Abuja.President Muhammadu Buhari flanked SA Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, SSAP Mallam Garba Shehu, Permanent Secretary State, Jalal Arabi and other Personal staffer as President receives Christmas homage at his Residence in Abuja.President Muhammadu Buhari flanked SA Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, SSAP Mallam Garba Shehu, Permanent Secretary State, Jalal Arabi and other Personal staffer as President receives Christmas homage at his Residence in Abuja.
Lagos – A police sergeant and another person lost their lives when a building collapsed at Highway police Barracks in Ikeja, Lagos State, on Christmas Day.
The General Manager, Lagos State Emergency Maganement Agency (LASEMA), Mr Adeshina Tiamiyu confirmed the death.
Tiamiyu said that the agency had earlier received a distress call on the collapsed building at High Way Police Barracks opposite Area F, Ikeja.
He said that the toilets and stairways of wing `D' of the building collapsed at about 4.00a.m.
Tiamiyu said the agency's officials in collaboration with men of Lagos State Fire Services, the police and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) recovered the two bodies of the dead men.
He said one of the corpses was simply identified as Danjuma while the name of the other one was yet to be known.
"Their bodies had been deposited at the Mainland Hospital Mortuary, Yaba," Tiamiyu said.
Tiamiyu also said that the state Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Owoseni, had visited the barracks and ordered the evacuation of residents living in the affected building as well as those in other dilapidated buildings.
He added that Owoseni also ordered the immediate demolition of the affected block.
Tiamiyu said LASEMA with other stakeholders had commenced the demolition of the affected building following the directives of the Commissioner of Police.
Ado Ekiti – Gov. Ayo Fayose of Ekiti has given approval for the immediate promotion of 15,772 public servants in the spirit of Christmas.
A statement issued in Ado Ekiti on Sunday and signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr Idowu Adelusi, said the promotion cuts across workers in the local governments, teaching service and the core civil servants.
The statement said that the beneficiaries consisted mainly of those whose promotions were due since 2012, 2013 and 2014.
It said the governor had consequently ordered that letters of promotion be given the affected workers without further delay.Fayose
The statement, however, clarified that the promotion status still remained nominal, as the cash backing for the exercise would be effective only from March 2017.
It announced that all categories of workers in the state had been paid two months salaries in December, while Christmas bonus would be paid immediately after the Christmas holiday.
The statement quoted the governor as saying that, though, the state was currently grappling with economic challenges, it did not mean that deserving workers should not be recognised for hard work.
"We won't deny our workers their dues and entitlements, economic recession or no economic recession, as leaders of the state, we must be fair to all and that is what we are doing
"Our administration is resolute in giving the best to all Ekiti people, including those in the public service.
"This month alone, we have paid two salaries, we are also paying Christmas bonus after the holiday
"We deliberately spaced the payment of the bonus so that after the Christmas holiday, workers will still have something to fall back on," it said.
Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State on Sunday described the fall of Sambisa Forest which served as the headquarters of 'Boko Haram' insurgents as a "Christmas and New Year gift" to the people of the State from President Muhammadu Buhari.
Shettima made the description at the official re-opening of Major roads leading to Northern part of the state in Maiduguri.
The roads include Maiduguri to Gubio to Kareto to Damasak road and Maiduguri to Monguno to Baga.
"I would want to start by declaring that since I became the Governor of Borno State in over five years, this is the best Christmas season I have witnessed.
"This is the best December I have witnessed and the year, 2016, is my best year so far, as Governor of Borno State.
"The year 2016 is for me, Nigeria's year of victory and Borno's year of Hope and Resurrection," he said.
Enumerating the historic events of the year in the fight against insurgents, Shettima said 2016 "is the year that we began to have access to major towns like Gwoza, Bama, Dikwa, Monguno and Damasak following their liberation by our gallant armed forces".
"It is in the year 2016 that major highways began to be re-opened; it is in the year 2016 that we accelerated our major reconstruction of liberated communities; it is in the year 2016 that IDPS began to return to communities.
"It is in the year 2016 that we recovered some of our daughters abducted at Government Secondary School, Chibok in 2014; and fellow Nigerians, it is in the year 2016, that the Federal Republic of Nigeria established it's supremacy over the Sambisa headquarters of the Boko Haram," he added.
The Governor also said that two of the roads re-opened were of significant economic benefits to the people of his State as it was through them that trailers conveyed agricultural produce from farming communities.
He paid glowing tributes to President Muhammadu Buhari, Service Chiefs as well as officers and men of the Nigerian Armed Forces for their different roles in the fight against insurgency.
"Many persons made sacrifices, including giving up their lives for us to have peace and for these roads we are about re-opening, to be freed from the control of insurgents," he said.
Speaking at the occasion, The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. – Gen.Tukur Buratai, warned against extortion of motorists who would ply the road.
Burutai also warned against inducement of soldiers, maintaining that troops were well taken care of by the Army command.
NAN recall that the the two roads were closed by the military in 2014 following the activities of insurgents.
The insurgents had taken over major towns of most local government areas along the two major roads, including Damasak, Malam-fatori, Baga, Mobbar, Marte and other communities, all of which have now been liberated by the military.
The last town to be liberated is Malam-fatori, where Lt-Col Muhammad Abu Ali lost his life in a surprise attack by the insurgents.(NAN)
A cleric, Rev.Fr. Leonard Ojorgu, has admonished Christian faithful against drinking alcohol and other intoxicants as they celebrated Christmas.
Ojorgu, who is the Assistant Parish Priest of St. Peter's Catholic Church, Ediba, Calabar, gave the advice during the Christmas church service in Calabar.
He also cautioned followers on the dangers of borrowing huge sums of money that would later become financial burden on them just in the name of celebrating the occasion.
According to him, the month of January is usually a very difficult period for many families because of the Christmas and New Year expenditures, hence the need for all parents and adults to spend wisely.
"Today is the celebration of the birth of Christ. It is not a day to drink to stupor because you want to celebrate.
"Christians should use this period to re-unite themselves with Christ who is the infant Jesus of today; Christmas should be celebrated in a peaceful way and not the other way round.
"During this period, I also urge Christians to stay away from fornication, adultery and other forms of sins that may be against the teachings of Christ,'' he said.
The cleric called on well-meaning Nigerians to use this period to assist the sick and needy (NAN)
Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State on Sunday called on Christians in the state to renew their hope in God as they celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.
Fayose
The governor made the call in his Christmas message to the people which was made available in Ado-Ekiti.
He said the birth of Christ gave man the hope of having reliance in God restored.
Fayose, therefore, urged Christians to be thankful and appreciate God's goodness for giving them another opportunity to celebrate Christmas.
He added that "the only one and true hope is in God; this festive period symbolises God's unfailing love and grace toward mankind and we must renew our hope in Him.
"While we mark the Christmas period soberly and with deep reflection on the state of our country, we must bear in mind that with God, hope is not lost."
The governor also urged the people of the state to be security conscious. (NAN)
Nigerian Breweries said the early morning fire at its Lagos Plant in Iganmu, Lagos has been contained.
The firm, Nigeria's leading brewers said in a tweet at about noon that the fire only affected bottles and crates." and that there was ‘no injuries or casualties’.
Also the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, Mr Fatai Owoseni, has redeployed about 100 policemen to the premises of the Nigerian Breweries Plc, Iganmu, Lagos where an early morning fire razed a part of the company's premises on Sunday.
Owoseni said that the deployment was meant to give adequate security cover to the company.
The Police Commissioner explained that the policemen were deployed to hold back some miscreants who wanted to take advantage of the situation to enter into the company's premises.
"There is a fire incidence at the Nigerian Breweries but the fire did not affect the operational areas of the company.
"It affected only the isolated areas where the company keeps empty bottles and cartons, as well as expired drinks,'' Owoseni said.
A staff of the Breweries, who pleaded anonymity, said that he rushed to the company's premises upon learning of the incident.
He said that no one could state the actual cause of the fire, adding that "presently, it is still burning and you can see that the fire service personnel are still battling to put off the inferno".
He recalled that the fire was `very heavy' in the morning hours, but that it had subsided significantly, following onslaughts by firefighters from the Lagos State Fire Service.
Mr Razak Fadipe, Director, Lagos State Fire Service, said that the fire started at about 5.30 a.m.
He explained that the Lagos State Fire Service immediately mobilised five fire engines to the company premises, with support from Julius Berger, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), the United Bank for Africa and Union Bank.
"As we speak, we are still battling the fire to contain its spread. We have been able to do that though. I can confirm that nobody is injured in the incident and that there is no loss of life.
Meanwhile, a section of the company's fence bordering the Iganmu Interchange collapsed during the incident.
Hundreds of miscreants invaded the area but police personnel from the Area 'C' Command, Surulere and nearby formations were able to contain the situation.
The actual cause of the fire could not be immediately ascertained as at the time of this report.
Zaria (Kaduna State) – The Anglican Bishop of Wusasa Diocese, Rt. Rev. Ali Buba-Lamido on Sunday advised Nigerian leaders and followers to strive hard toward ensuring national cohesion.
The Bishop gave the advice in his Christmas and New Year message.
He said: "The unity of Nigeria is paramount, this is because national unity is over and above any individual, hence the need for leaders at all levels to strive hard to unite Nigerians.
"My sincere appeal to political leaders from the President, Governors, Legislators, Local Government Chairmen to councillors is, they should be merciful to the led.
"We must try to live together, leaders must carry all manner of people together, our political leaders should try to unite us and this will move Nigeria forward.
"We have a duty to God and we have a duty to Nigeria."
On Christmas, Buba-Lamido said it was a day of peace with God and humanity.
He therefore urged all Nigerians to be peaceful, and imbibe peace in their minds, homes, families, places of worship and peace in the entire country.
"By so doing, we are going to glorify God, we are going to worship God through our efforts of bringing peace in this country.
"Christmas is a day of sober reflection, Christians should go back to prayer to God, go back to the true message of Christmas, that is to truly recognise the one we are celebrating, Jesus Christ.
"We have to worship him in truth and in spirit and follow Jesus day-by-day, when we do this, we will be victorious both here on earth and in the heaven," the cleric said.
He frowned at `divide and rule" attitude of some leaders, stressing that a leader must serve all irrespective of any affliation.
"Once you are elected, you belong to all, you belong to those who elected you and those who did not elect you.
"There is no need of dividing the people for selfish reasons. Remember, the country belongs to all of us," he stressed. (
Queen Elizabeth II missed the Christmas Day church service attended by the British royal family on Sunday because she was still suffering with a heavy cold.
The 90-year-old, who is the supreme governor of the Church of England, stayed indoors but was well enough to join in the family festivities at home afterwards, a spokesman said.
The royal family traditionally spends Christmas together at her Sandringham private estate in Norfolk, eastern England.
By custom they walk together to and from church, a rare occasion for the public to meet several members of the royal family.
Queen Elizabeth II
“Her Majesty The Queen will not attend church at Sandringham this morning,” a palace spokesman said.
“The Queen continues to recover from a heavy cold and will stay indoors to assist with her recovery.
“Her Majesty will participate in the royal family Christmas celebrations during the day.”
The monarch and her 95-year-old husband Prince Philip delayed their departure from London to Sandringham from Wednesday to Thursday as they were both suffering from heavy colds.
Prince Philip was well enough to attend the church service and was seen alongside their eldest son Prince Charles, the heir to the throne, and his wife Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall.
Charles’s younger son Prince Harry attended, though as per royal protocol his girlfriend, the US actress Meghan Markle, was not at the family gathering.
Charles’s elder son Prince William was spending Christmas 2016 with his wife Kate’s family in Berkshire, southern England, for the first time since their two children were born.
They were seen taking Prince George, aged three, and one-year-old Princess Charlotte, to their first Christmas Day church service.
Also absent from the public stroll in Sandringham was the monarch’s eldest granddaughter, the equestrian champion Zara Tindall and her husband Mike, the former England rugby captain.
Zara was pregnant with their second child but it was announced Saturday that they had lost the baby.
Zara’s mother Princess Anne, the queen’s second son Prince Andrew and his daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, plus the monarch’s youngest son Prince Edward, were seen leaving the Sandringham church service.
Thousands had gathered outside and Harry chatted with well-wishers in the crowd.
In her pre-recorded Christmas Day broadcast to the Commonwealth, the queen paid tribute to inspirational unsung heroes, focusing on “ordinary people doing extraordinary things”.
The royals exchange simple, practical gifts, though on Christmas Eve as per German tradition, and the queen leaves the room when her message comes on the television, preferring to watch it alone
A suicide bomber apparently targeting a religious site on Christmas day killed two civilians in northern Cameroon, a region often hit by Boko Haram jihadists from Nigeria, the local governor said Sunday.
“The suicide bomber was certainly targeting a religious site, but we cannot say exactly which one. It’s Christmas day and there are prayers” being said everywhere, Midjiyawa Bakari, governor of the Far North region of Cameroon, told AFP.
“”We have two deaths reported at the site, the suicide bomber and a member of a security committee, and a third person died at hospital,” he said, referring to a 19-year-old student.
The governor added that there were also five others wounded and hospitalised but their condition was not life-threatening.
Police have surrounded a Christian church in the town of Mora which has been locked down by soldiers, a Christian teacher there who requested anonymity told AFP. The region is home to Christians, Muslims and animists.
Northern Cameroon, bordering Nigeria and Chad, has been frequently targeted by Boko Haram Islamists who have waged an insurgency in northern Nigeria since 2009.
The Cameroonian army has joined a regional offensive to end Boko Haram’s brutal insurgency that has left at least 20,000 people dead and some 2.6 million displaced.
Augsburg (Germany) – Some 54,000 residents of the southern German city of Augsburg had to leave their homes on Sunday, in what has been described as the country's biggest evacuation since World War II, as authorities defuse a 1.8-ton aircraft bomb.
Police had said that everyone must be out of the marked clearance area, which comprises large parts of the city centre, by 10 am (0900 GMT).
Next, 900 police officers and hundreds of firefighters were checking a 1.5-kilometre radius around the bomb site to ensure that no one remained. This was expected to take about four hours.
"Everything is going according to plan so far," a police spokesman said.
In addition to private residences, a hospital and more than a dozen facilities for the elderly were also evacuated, with more than 200 ambulances involved.
The British bomb was discovered on Tuesday during construction work. A protective barrier about a metre high has been built around the bomb in case it explodes.
The actual task of defusing the bomb could only begin between 2-3 pm, police spokesman Manfred Gottschalk said.
The city of 287,000 was quiet early Sunday as apparently many residents had already left their apartments on Christmas Eve.
"Christmas 2016 in Augsburg looks different than we all had expected," Mayor Kurt Gribl said in an earlier video message on Twitter.
Authorities decided to hold the evacuation to defuse the aircraft bomb on Christmas Day, arguing that it would be easier to carry out on a public holiday than a normal work day.
The city set up emergency lodgings in six areas accommodating 3,100 people. The authorities had assumed that most of the evacuees would stay with family or friends.
In addition, many people around Augsburg offered affected residents temporary lodgings via Facebook, and Augsburg's animal shelter offered emergency spaces for pets.
Unexploded bombs dating back to the aerial bombardments of Germany during World War II are still frequently found. Many local authorities have teams working full-time to detect and defuse them.
Before this, the biggest evacuation in Germany since the end of the war took place in 2011, when 45,000 people were forced to temporarily leave parts of Koblenz for the disposal of an unexploded Allied bomb.
In 2009, a Russian bomb from World War II was discovered just outside the Berlin apartment of Chancellor Angela Merkel, triggering a city-centre lockdown as well as the evacuation of local residents, including Merkel.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has commended the Nigerian Armed Forces and President Muhammadu Buhari on the great success of Operation Lafiya Dole which resulted in the capture of Boko Haram's last stronghold, Sambisa Forest on Friday, December 23.
The Party in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi on Sunday hailed the victory as well-deserved and a welcome development. The Party also commended the Nigerian people for the prayers and support offered to the military in the fight against insurgency.
The APC National Publicity Secretary said: "Friday's capture Of Sambisa Forest, Boko Haram’s last stronghold is well-deserved and a welcome development following the vigorous and focused leadership the President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC administration has provided in the fight against insurgency in the North East. The victory is in fulfilment of one of the key promises made by the Party to protect the citizenry and effectively secure all Nigerian territory.
"Going forward, the priority of government is to intensify ongoing efforts at reconstructing and rehabilitating the North East so that displaced persons can return to their peaceful and productive lives."
As the Kaduna State government intensifies efforts to end the violence in Kaduna South, Mr Godfrey Gaiya, a former law maker, has advised Gov. Nasir El-Rufai to "talk less, and consult more".
Gov. Nasir-El-Rufai
"The violence in Kaduna South Senatorial District is unfortunate; in his search for solutions, the governor should widen his consultations and talk less; all stakeholders should be involved in the search for peace," Gaiya told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Jos on Sunday.
NAN reports that the Kaduna State Government has imposed a 24-hour curfew on three Local Governments – Jema'a, Kaura and Zango-Kataf , in its efforts to restore law and order.
On Dec. 19, youths, who claimed to be protesting against government's alleged non-challance to the killings, attacked the governor after a security meeting in Kafanchan, pelting vehicles in his convoy with stones, bottles and sticks.
Governor El-Rufai has traced the attacks to the post-election violence of 2011, and has also accused politicians of being behind the latest spate of violence, particularly the protests by youths in Kafanchan.
The governor, during a media chat in Kaduna, on Dec. 21, also disclosed that government had already discovered plans to recruit militants to attack the area.
But Gaiya, who represented Zango-Kataf/Jaba federal constituenccy in the House of Representaive from 2007 to 2015, told NAN that the governor must avoid "flat assumptions" and reach out more, so as to widen the process toward restoring peace to the crises-ridden area.
"The governor has said that the violence has its roots in the post-election violence of 2011; he also says that politicians are organising the violence for unspecified political gains, and has further alleged that militants are being recruited.
"As the governor, El-Rufai has lots of information at his dispossal, but hurling accusations and voicing pre-conceived conclusions could discourage people with ideas, from contributing to the peace efforts.
"What is required is practical actions that will entail engaging everyone so as to end the violence once and for all."
"Government should involve members of the National and State House of Assemblies, especially the senator, traditional rulers and religious leaders, in the negotiations.
"The governor should table his findings and concerns with these groups and seek a way forward; all hands must be on deck because it is such collaboration that could give effect to the efforts," Gaiya said.
He also cautioned some of the the governor's aides against worsening the violence " through careless words and reckless utterances that could alienate a large segment of the population and breed distrust, hatred and mutual suspicion".
Gaiya regretted that farmers in the area had not been able to harvest their crops because of fear of attacks on their farms, while many had not been able to travel for Christmas because of the 24-hour curfew .
" The entire area appears to be under siege; government must be able to intervene, restore normalcy and secure lives because that is the first responsibility of the state to the citizens," he counseled.
He also observed that the violence had affected the economy, friendship and general enterprise, and urged the presidency to step in so as to halt the persistent midnight attacks.
Gaiya, however, lauded government's plans to cite two army barracks in the area to provide a ready force that could always intervene in an event of any attack.
" In 2010, some elders met with then President Goodluck Jonathan and secured an approval for the citing of an army barrack in the area which has not been actualised, but I am happy that the idea is being rescusitated," he said.
The former law maker expressed surprise that no one had been apprehended over the attacks.
"The attacks have continued unabated because no one has ever been arrested and prosectuted to deter others from committing similar crimes. I am sure that the trend will reduce if one or two attackers are apprehended and dealt with," he said. (NAN)
Delta State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa has disclosed that his overarching vision for the state is to bridge critical infrastructure and create a conducive environment that encourages investments and the meaningful engagement of Deltans, especially the youths upon whom the future lies.
Okowa explained that such lofty vision which is lucidly encapsulated in the SMART Agenda is being vigorously pursued by his administration which, he said, has initiated an economic development approach aimed at integrating the entire land mass of the state through good network of roads that link communities and cities across the three senatorial districts of the state.
The Governor stated this yesterday during the fourth biennial public lecture of the Enuani Democratic League (EDL) held at Ejeme-Aniogor in Aniocha South Local Government Area of the State.
Represented by the State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Patrick Ukah, Okowa said his administration is conscious of the challenges facing Nigeria, of which the State is not an exception, noting that his government is working assiduously to tackle the difficulties and deliver prosperity to all citizens.
His words: “Our vision is to achieve sustainable development by building necessary infrastructure and creating the conducive atmosphere that would encourage investments and the meaningful engagement of our people, especially the youths to whom the future really belongs.
Delta State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Patrick Ukah (2nd Left), his Agriculture and Natural Resources counterpart, Hon. Austin Chikezie (Middle), law maker representing the Aniocha South constituency in the State House of Assembly, Hon. Angela Nwaka (2nd Right) and others during the 4th biennial public lecture of the Enuani Democratic League organized in honour of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa at Ejeme-Aniogor, Aniocha South Local Government Area of the State. PIX: JOSHUA ERUBAMI
“Our economic development approach aims at integrating the State through good network of roads that link communities and cities across the State. This will also include the building of a befitting State Capital.
It is our goal to see that the completion of on-going projects across the length and breadth of the State is to give nerve and impetus to commerce”.
He called on all Deltans to encourage investors and also contribute their quota in the task of developing the state, assuring that State Government will continue to encourage and assist genuine investors who are out to serve as agents of positive social and economic change in all communities of the State.
On the yuletide, Okowa called on Deltans to imbibe the spirit of good neighbourlines, love, understanding and peaceful coexistence, noting that there is no gain in violent exchanges.
The Governor also commended the EDL for holding tenaciously to the spirit and mission of the group which is geared towards deepening the root of democracy in the Anioma clime.
In his welcome address, the President/Founder of the EDL, Hon. Collins Iwebunor observed that the festering woes of Nigeria is consequent upon a geometric growth in the number of graduates without a commensurate increase in the number of thinkers and a surge in the number of politians without a similar increase in numeric strength of actual leaders.
Iwebunor said “when the harvest was plenty, the labourers were few” adding that at present, “the wealth gave way to poverty and penury, debt and slavery”.
He said the sterling qualities of Okowa as typified in his commitment to leaving indelible marks in the annals of the state justify the biennial event which was held in his honour.
In a lecture entitled “The Anioma Nation and Democratic Consolidation in Delta State”, a professor of History and Strategic Studies at the University of Lagos, Nkem Onyekpe urged political leaders to rise above the obnoxious divide and rule system of governance, noting that the principles of egalitarianism must be adhered to the distribution of resources and democratic dividends.
Onyekpe who admitted that the Anioma has overcomed the shackles of perceived marginalization with the emergence of Okowa, advised the Governor’s kinsmen not expect the concentration of the State’s resources in their domain alone, noting that the pan-Deltan initiatives of the Governor must be sustained at all times and in all circumstances.
In an interview with newsmen, the law maker representing Aniocha South constituency in the State House of Assembly, Hon. Angela Nwaka urged Deltans to continuously support the current administration which, according to her, has achieved much despite palpable economic constraints.
The General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church, Pastor William Kumuyi, on Sunday said that in 2017, God would grant President Muhammad Buhari the solution to the numerous challenges facing the country.
Kumuyi
Kumuyi gave the assurance while speaking with newsmen when he played host to the Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, Mr Mudashiru Obasa, who led some members of the Assembly on courtesy visit to the church's December Convention.
The cleric said, "We talk of the hours of recession, difficulty, distress and all that, but God is granting us His promises. We are not going to carry over our problems. "We pray and believe that the Lord will answer.
"As you will see, as we get to the New Year, there is no carryover of our problems. God will give solutions to the problems of our lives, families, communities, the state and our nation."
The pastor said that with prayer and faith in God, the country would get out of all its challenges, including the economic recession.
The founder of the church said that God created ''us and wants everything to be sufficient for everybody.''
Meanwhile, addressing the congregation of thousands of worshippers, Obasa, urged all Christians to show love to their neighbours, adding that the state was committed to fight unemployment among the youth.
He said that the newly created Employment Trust Fund would help reduce joblessness by providing soft loan with little interest for enterprising people of Lagos state.
"We must go beyond religious demarcation and show ourselves that we are brothers and sisters. Let us love one another. We should extend hands of fellowship to our neighbours," the speaker said.
Obasa, who urged churches to pray for the state and nation, said that the state was passionate to give good governance and improve the economy of the state for the benefit of all.
He expressed delight over the warmth reception accorded his team by the leadership of the church.
NAN reports that the speaker the Deputy Majority Leader of the House, Mr Muyiwa Jimoh and the Chairman, House Committee on Environment, Mr Dayo Saka-Fafunmi were among the team.
Mrs Funmilayo Tejuosho, the Chairman, House Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights, Petitions and Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission among others government functionaries also made the list.
NAN reports that the four-day, nation-wide convention, which started on Dec. 23 and expected to end on Dec. 26, is tagged, "Power for the Present Hour".
It is taking place at the Deeper Life Conference Centre (DLCC) KM 42, Lagos/Ibadan Expressway.(NAN)
Putin declares Monday national mourning day after Russian military plane crashed.
The Russian military plane crashed on its way to Syria on Sunday, with no sign of survivors among the 92 onboard, who included dozens of Red Army Choir members heading to celebrate the New Year with troops.
The Tu-154 plane crashed in the Black Sea shortly after taking off from the southern city of Adler where it had been refuelling, defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov told Russian news agencies.Russian President Putin
It disappeared from radars just two minutes after it took off at 5:25 am (0225 GMT).
The ministry told agencies there was no sign of any survivors at the crash site and that four bodies had been recovered off the coast of the resort city of Sochi, after authorities launched a frantic search operation.
“Fragments of the Tu-154 plane of the Russian defence ministry were found 1.5 kilometres from the Black Sea coast of the city of Sochi at a depth of 50 to 70 metres,” the ministry said.
President Vladimir Putin has ordered Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev to head a government commission to investigate the crash.
The plane had been on a routine flight to Russia’s Hmeimim airbase in western Syria, which has been used to launch air strikes in Moscow’s military campaign supporting its ally President Bashar al-Assad in the country’s devastating civil war.
Among the plane’s 84 passengers were Russian servicemen as well as 64 members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, the army’s official musical group also known as the Red Army Choir, and its conductor Valery Khalilov. They were headed to Syria to participate in New Year celebrations at the airbase.
Nine journalists were among the passengers, with state-run channels Pervy Kanal, NTV and Zvezda saying they each had three staff onboard the flight.
There were also eight crew members onboard, the ministry said.
A list of passengers published by the defence ministry also included Elizaveta Glinka, a doctor and charity worker who serves on the Kremlin human rights council.
Mikhail Fedotov, who heads the council, said Glinka was travelling to Syria to bring medication to a university hospital in the coastal city of Latakia near the airbase, agencies reported.
– ‘Too early’ –
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told news agencies that Putin was being kept updated on the search operation and was in constant contact with defence minister Sergei Shoigu.
Konashenkov said that Deputy Defence Minister Pavel Popov had flown to Adler along with a team tasked with clarifying the circumstances surrounding the crash.
The ministry has not put forward any possible causes of the crash.
Konashenkov said that the aircraft had been in service since 1983 and had flown some 7,000 hours since. The plane last underwent repairs in December 2014 and was serviced in September, he said.
Russia’s Investigative Committee said a criminal probe had been launched to determine whether violations of air transportation safety had led to the crash.
Investigators are currently questioning the technical personnel responsible for preparing the plane for take-off, the committee said.
Tu-154 aircraft have been involved in a number of accidents in the past.
In April 2010 many high-ranking Polish officials, including then president Lech Kaczynski, were killed when a Tu-154 airliner went down in thick fog while approaching Smolensk airport in western Russia.
Moscow has been conducting a bombing campaign in Syria in support of Assad since September 2015 and has taken steps to boost its presence in the country.
In October, Putin approved a law ratifying Moscow’s deal with Damascus to deploy its forces in the country indefinitely, firming up Russia’s long-term presence in Syria.
Russian warplanes have flown out of the Hmeimim base to conduct air strikes, and the base is also home to an S-400 air defence system.
A white man whose nationality is yet to be disclosed, was arrested inside Sambisa Forest as Nigerian troops cleared Boko Haram insurgents out of their last fortress on Thursday.
"The man is under custody and providing positive information", said a soldier, who just returned to Maiduguri from the liberated forest.
NAN quoting Daily Trust on Sunday said the soldier said while hundreds of Boko Haram fighters were killed during the offensive that began about a month ago, many others were captured alive while attempting to flee.
"Hundreds of Boko Haram captives, including men, women and children have been freed and taken to safety.
"All I can tell you is that no big Boko Haram commander is alive in the Sambisa; we are in control of the forest.
"It took months of planning and mapping because of the size, difficult weather and other factors in the Sambisa Forest."
The source said that one of the major factors that delayed the takeover of the insurgents' hideout was the thousands of people, including those living in villages around the vast forest that were being held as human shield by the Boko Haram leaders.
It was gathered that the 4,200 troops were deployed to the Sambisa Forest through various fronts, including Ngurosoye, Konduga/Aulari, Bama, Fulka and Damboa.
"The 151 Battalion of the Nigerian Army advanced into Sambisa through the Banki-Darul Jamal axis, the 27 Battalion advanced through Mafa, the 152 Battalion advanced through Pulka, while the 222 Battalion approached the dreaded forest through the Maiduguri axis," another soldier, who participated in the operation, said.
He said the operation was carried out day and night.
"When mine detectors cleared the way, troops moved in to confront the insurgents, who were equally well armed with sophisticated fighting equipment.
Outgoing U.S. President Barack Obama has told incoming President Donald Trump to accept the fact that there is only one U.S. President at a time.
Obama also told the president-elect that he remains the U.S. President till Jan. 20, 2017, when he would complete his two-term presidency of the U.S. and handover to Trump.
Obama's remarks followed what the White House termed as Trump's undue interference in U.S. policies since his election.
Also ther president-elect had on Thursday, directed the U.S. Ambassador to the UN, Ms Samantha Power, to veto the Security Council's Resolution on Israeli settlements in Palestinian territory.
However, the Obama's administration disregarded Trump's directive and had gone ahead to abstain from voting on the resolution when it finally came up on Friday, drawing criticisms from the president-elect and his team.
The White House, in a response by Obama's Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications, Mr Ben Rhodes, obtained by NAN, said the UN Security Council's Resolution was a policy issue that Trump should not meddle in.
"On the President-elect, the first thing I'd just say is that there's one President at a time.
"President Obama is the President of the United States until January 20th, and we are taking this action (abstention), of course, as U.S. policy," he said.
Rhodes explained that there was no any communication between the White House and the President-elect or his staff between when Obama made his decision and when the vote took place.
"So I'm not aware that President Obama and the President-elect spoke about this, but again, I'm not — President Obama definitely made no reference to that, so I can't confirm that this hasn't come up at all, but I'm not aware of any particular conversation they had about this.
"We did hear from the President-elect's team. Again, our position has been there's one President at a time.
"We're going to make our decision on this and, frankly, believe that it's important that there's a principle here that the world understands who is speaking on behalf of the United States until January 20th and who is speaking on behalf of the United States after January 20th.
"And look, the new team will have every opportunity after January 20th to pursue their own policies, to take different approaches.
"I'm certain that they will on any number of issues.
"We're just reflecting the simple principle that I think has guided the President-elect transitions historically.
"Which is that there is one President at a time and we're going to execute our duties until the new team is in place and the new President is inaugurated," the Obama's aide said. Recalled that following the pressure that Trump reportedly put on Egypt, the sponsor of the resolution, Egypt withdrew it on Thursday and the vote was consequently delayed till Friday.
However, the resolution was put forward on Friday by Malaysia, New Zealand, Senegal and Venezuela and the 15-member Council adopted the resolution by a vote of 14 in favour and with one abstention – the U.S., which abstained from voting rather than veto the resolution.
President Muhammadu Buhari flanked SA Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina and other Press Corp as President receives Christmas homage visit at his Residence in Abuja. PHOTO; SUNDAY AGHAEZE. DEC 25 2016
