Sahara Reporters Latest News Today Sunday 12th January 2020
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 12/01/20
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E2%80%99-story-exposes UPDATE: Officials Search Inmates, Beg To Be Covered Up After SaharaReporters’ Story Exposes Torture, Extortion Inside Maiduguri Correctional Centre
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Barely 24 hours after a report by SaharaReportersexposing how officials of the Maiduguri Maximum Security Custodial Centre torture inmates, who refuse to pay for bed spaces provided by government was published, warders have embarked on a search of various cell clusters in a bid to unravel persons leaking happenings at the facility to the respected online news medium.
A video sent to SaharaReporters by a reliable prison source had showed officials stripping inmates, who refused to rent beds for a fee down to their shorts and placing them in a wooden stock known as pillory before leaving them in the courtyard throughout the night for the Harmattan to batter them.
Findings by SaharaReporters showed that the inhumane practice is being perpetuated at the orders of Chief Warder of the correctional centre, Adamu Potiskum.
Potiskum is said to be the arrowhead of the extortion scheme against prisoners at the facility where impunity is now the order of the day. #PressPlay: Prison officials stripping inmates, who refused to rent the beds for a fee down to their shorts and placing them in a wooden stock known as pillory before leaving them in the courtyard throughout the night for the Harmattan to batter them. pic.twitter.com/dtaoPwLmdO— Sahara Reporters (@SaharaReporters) January 10, 2020
As a result of being exposed to the harsh Harmattan weather all through the night, some of the affected inmates are said to be showing signs of hypothermia – a serious medical condition caused by extreme cold, according to Longman Dictionary.
Following the release of the report on Friday, prison officials were said to have embarked on a massive search of Cluster 2 where the abuses of condemned convicts was caught in the video.
A reliable source at the facility told SaharaReporters that the search operation began as early as 5:00am on Saturday by the officials.
The search was said to have been led by the deputy to the officer in charge, supported by several senior officials including the Chief Warder, Potiskum.
The team, according to our source, tried to placate Nuhu Umaru, the inmate seen in the video with his two legs put inside a pillory, pleading with him to cover them up should the Controller-General of the Nigerian Correctional Services or Minister of Interior choose to investigate the cruel ordeal he was put through.
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EXCLUSIVE: Officials Torture Inmates In Maiduguri Correctional Centre Over Refusal To Pay For Bed Space
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Inmates at the facility are threatening to go on a hunger strike from February 1 if nothing is done to curb the excesses of the prison authorities.
Spokesperson for the Nigerian Correctional Services, Mr Francis Enobore, in a text message to our correspondent, denied that inmates were being subjected to dehumanising treatments at the Maiduguri prison by officials.
According to him, if the report was found to be true, appropriate action would be taken by the authorities.
He said, “The accusation is ridiculous because inmates do not pay for bed spaces.
“However, if you have proof of the allegation, share with me so that appropriate action can be taken.”
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EFCC Denies Arraigning Nigeria’s Ex-Vice President, Atiku, In Lagos Court
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has urged members of the public to disregard news making the rounds that it had arraigned a former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, in court.
In a statement by the Acting Head, Media and Publicity of the agency, Tony Orilade, such reports were described as fake and made to distabilise the polity.
The statement reads, “The attention of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has been drawn to an online report which claimed that the commission on Thursday, January 9, 2020, arraigned former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, before Justice Mojisola Dada of the Special Offences Court, Ikeja, Lagos for an alleged fraud of N75.3bn and wishes to state categorically that nothing of such took place.
“The commission also wishes to state that no statement or press release emanated from the spokesperson of the commission, Mr Wilson Uwujaren, to that effect as claimed in the report nor was there any involvement of any sort from the commission’s prosecutor, Joy Amahian, in the imaginary arraignment.
“The story remains the author’s imagination and fake news.
“The commission, therefore urges the general public to disregard the fake news as handiwork of mischief makers.”
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Outrage As President Buhari’s Daughter, Hanan, Uses Presidential Jet For Private Photography Trip Weeks After Ordering Unlawful Detention Of Innocent Citizen Over Abandoned SIM Card
Nigerians have expressed outrage over the decision by the Nigerian Government to authorise the use of a jet from the presidential fleet to fly President Muhammadu Buhari’s daughter, Hanan, on a private trip to Bauchi.
Recall that Hanan recently ordered the Department of State Services to unlawfully arrest and detain a Delta State-based businessman, Anthony Okolie, for 10 weeks after he legally purchased an MTN telephone line from a registered outlet in Asaba, the state capital.
The mobile number was previously owned and used by Hanan but later recycled for sale by the network provider after being dormant for a while.
After noticing that the number was in use elsewhere, the young lady, who is a graduate of Photography from Ravensbourne University, London, reported the matter to the DSS and ordered the arrest and detention of Okolie.
Failing several times to appear at the DSS office to give any statement to support her claims, the secret police eventually released the young businessman after 10 weeks in unlawful detention.
In the latest of the controversy to trail her, Hanan on Thursday attended an event to photograph a Durbar by Rilwanu Adamu, Emir of Bauchi, in one of the jets in the presidential fleet.
As a result of the act, Nigerians especially social media users have continued to rain hard knocks on Hanan and the Presidency for allowing her use a presidential jet for a private trip.
Under standard practice, only the President, First Lady, Vice-President, Senate President, Speaker, Chief Justice of Nigeria, former Presidents and a Presidential delegation are allowed to use the presidential jet.
Before wrestling power from the Peoples Democratic Party in 2015, the All Progressives Congress – dangling a mantra of change and a ‘blast from the past’ before Nigerians – promised to dispose some of the jets in the Presidential fleet due to the expensive nature of maintenance.
But despite those lofty promises, only two helicopters out of 10 were given to the Nigerian Air Force while two presidential aircrafts previously put up for sale had yet to be discarded as of 2018.
Under the 2020 national budget, around N8.5bn has been earmarked for maintenance of jets in the Presidential fleet.
Expressing displeasure at the use of one of the jets for a private trip by President Buhari’s daughter, a Twitter user, Young Otutu, said, “Lest we forget: The daughter of the president who promised not to allow unwarranted spending in governance, Hanan Buhari is busy flying Airforce 1 to go greet dignitaries and their wives with DSS securities, all on tax payers funds. Lest we forget.”
Another Twitter user identified as Dr Dbanj, said, “In what capacity is she being received at the airport? What kind of waste is this? If Npower could render so many generals jobless in these streets, yet this one flight could have kept them going for one month.
“Guess this was why we refused to sell any part of the fleet.”
Also enraged by the incident, @Kabir_kb1 said, “So, Hanan Buhari is now cruising with our Presidential jet.
“Though we were told in 2016 that there was a plan to sell them in order to reduce cost, but now his daughter, despite the fact that he’s regarded as the “Man of Integrity” is using one of them.”
However, defending Hanan’s usage of the aircraft, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, said that there was no big deal in the act.
According to him, President Buhari informed the National Security Adviser of the move before his daughter embarked on the trip to Bauchi.
He said, “It’s true that a member of the First Family was flown to Bauchi on a mission duly authorised. It wasn’t an impromptu or improper trip because it followed normal procedure.
“The Presidency informed the National Security Adviser of the mission who in turn informed the Commander of the Presidential Air Fleet.
“The normal practice in existence for a long time is that the Presidential Air fleet is available to the President and the first family and four others. These four are the Vice President, the Senate President the Speaker and any other person(s) authorised by the President.”
But condemning the act, rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, said the use of the Presidential jet by Buhari’s daughter amounts to an abuse of office and a waste of resources.
He stated, “Buhari is only fooling himself and his supporters with this fake integrity.”
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Bandits Demand N5m Ransom To Free Kidnapped Toddler, Mother In Kaduna
Armed bandits suspected to be Fulani herdsmen, who raided Kasso community in Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna state and kidnapped several persons including a mother and her baby, have demanded N5m to release them.
Kasso was raided on January 6, 2020 and three people were killed while many others were left with gunshot wounds.
The kidnap victims are Ladi Yusuf, a six-month-old baby, Rebbeca Sule and Bulus Sule.
The bandits, who reached out to father of the kidnapped child, Yusuf Sule, on Saturday, demanded the sum if he wished to see his wife and child again.
Yusuf and the community said they had no means of raising that money after the bandits looted the little they had gathered including two motorcycles owned by him.
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We Are Under Constant Attack, Southern Kaduna Residents Cry Out
The Southern Kaduna Peoples Union has called on the Nigerian Government to intervene and save them from constantly attacks by armed Fulani herdsmen.
The group said the killings, which now occur on a daily basis, have gone on unchecked and intensified because of a lack of intervention from appropriate authorities.
In a statement on Saturday by its Public Relations Officer, Luka Binniyat, SOKAPU said that the attacks have forced law-abiding citizens of the area to flee their homes to neighbouring states.
Giving a timeline of attack, Binniyat said, “On January 6, a peaceful Gbagyi community in Chikun LGA on its eastern boundary with Kajuru LGA was again raided by the invading terrorists.
“In that attack, Mr Yusuf Sule (39) and his family were hard hit. The bandits killed his younger brother, Eli Sule (35) a father of five children, Danjuma Bulus (30) a father of four children, his cousin, Istifanus Auta (31) a father of three children.
“Also, his wife Ladi Yusuf, a nursing mother, was abducted with her six month’s old baby. His younger brother, Bulus Sule, and wife, Rebecca Sule, were also kidnapped.
“Meanwhile, Irmiya Yusuf, son of Yusuf Sule, who survived gunshot wounds, is receiving treatment at a local clinic.
“On Wednesday, January 8, armed gunmen again attacked the defenceless Good Shepherd Major Catholic Seminary, Buwaya, Kaduna. The school authority in an official statement said the attackers barraged the school for over 30 minutes unchallenged. After they left, four seminarians were missing, having been taken away by the vicious attackers.
“In Badna, Guruku Ward, still in Chikun LGA, another Gbagyi community, 40 people were kidnapped in one fell swoop around the same time. Rev, Samaila Yusuf of the local Baptist church was among the victims. Till date, the fate of the victims is yet unknown.”
The group called on well-meaning Nigerians and the international community to aid in establishing a neighbourhood watch similar to the Civilian Joint Task Force in Borno State in order to stem the tide of unrelenting attacks.
It also called on the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government to live up to its responsibilities of securing lives and properties of all Nigerians.
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Detained Ex-lawmaker, Shehu Sani, Reveals How He Met His Accuser, Link Between Them
A former lawmaker representing Kaduna Central Senatorial District at the National Assembly, Shehu Sani, has given more insight into how he met owner of ASD Motors, Alhaji Sani Dauda, and the link between them.
Dauda had petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, alleging that Sani extorted $20,000 from him with a promise to settle Acting Chairman of the anti-graft agency, Ibrahim Magu, and Chief Justice of Nigeria, Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad, so that he will not be investigated for corruption.
Subsequently, the EFCC arrested Sani after he showed up for questioning and has since kept him in detention after obtaining an ex-parte order to hold him for 14 days.
However, on Saturday facts emerged that the former lawmaker may not have been guilty of the offence as claimed.
According to report on the website of Enough is Enough Nigeria and ratified by the former lawmaker himself, Sani met Dauda after the latter approached him to patronise his company by purchasing a Peugeot car.
The report said, “Senator Shehu Sani at a time went to empathise with Alhaji Sani Dauda, who is now his accuser, over ASD’s arrest regarding a marital issue involving his in-law.
“ASD approached him to change his old Peugeot car to a newer model and also insisted that he could make the payment in instalments. They agreed on the 508 model which cost N17.5m.
“Senator Shehu Sani made the initial deposit of $25,000 in two tranches of $12,000 and $13,000 respectively.
“At a point, ASD went to Saudi Arabia for Lesser Hajj and gave the senator an invoice with an account number into which he could pay when he had the balance. The senator did not take possession of the car as he wanted to complete his payments.
“ASD was said to have met Ibrahim Magu, Acting EFCC Chairman, on board a plane and in their discussion, he claimed to have sent a message to him through Shehu Sani and also talked about the favours he had done Sani.
“Magu, who felt embarrassed, asked ASD to be invited to give a statement on his claims when they spoke.
“Since ASD could not write, his son was invited to write for him. ASD contacted Shehu Sani, warning him not to honour any invitation from the EFCC.
“Shehu Sani was said to have been implicated in the statement and was invited by the EFCC, whose invitation he honoured two days ahead of time.
“Later, the event that took place was said to have gained the attention of some persons in government, thus Shehu Sani was reinvited by the EFCC. They asked him to come on Thursday, January 2, 2020 but he decided to go there on Tuesday December 31, 2019 to state his own side of story.
“Shehu Sani was interrogated and granted a bail at 11:30pm on December 31, 2019. He could not meet the bail conditions, so he was detained. The following day was a public holiday.
“It is important to note that as a former senator, he could have been granted bail on self-recognisance.
“Shehu Sani stated that all his relationship with ASD is about the purchase of a car which he is yet to balance and nothing more. He has since been detained till today.
“The allegation of obtaining $10, 000 by false pretence to bribe Magu was later changed to $20,000, then to $24,000 and then a diversion of story to N4m to bribe the Chief Justice of Nigeria.”
Apart from searching Sani’s home for evidence to nail him, the anti-graft agency has also urged Dauda to come forward to prove his allegations against the former lawmaker.
So far, the EFCC is yet to announce if Dauda had come forward to shed more light into the matter or not.
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E2%80%99s-central-bank-court-over-failure-provide-information-exchange-rate HEDA To Drag Nigeria’s Central Bank To Court Over Failure To Provide Information On Exchange Rate Difference
The Human and Environmental Development Agenda has threatened to take legal action against the Central Bank of Nigeria for refusing to provide details on the exchange rate differential schemes in the country and the beneficiaries.
HEDA had in October 2019 written a letter to the CBN using the Freedom of Information Act to ask the apex bank in the country to furnish it with a detailed breakdown of the schemes created to sell the dollar at a subsidised rate.
HEDA also asked the CBN to provide “the value of the amount that has been given out so far for each scheme; the breakdown of the value per sector; and the detailed information on the beneficiaries of the various schemes inclusive of the forex intervention scheme.”
In its response, the CBN said it was not in possession of the information requested by HEDA.
“We refer to your letter dated October 28, 2019 on the above subject and regret to inform you that the management of the bank is unable to accede to your request for the fact that the bank was neither involved in the pilgrims’ subsidised exchange rate nor operated a subsidised exchange rate scheme,” CBN replied.
Not satisfied with the response, HEDA said it would be instituting a legal case against the CBN compelling the bank to make public the exchange rate differential scheme and beneficiaries.
HEDA Chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, in a chat with SaharaReporters, said the CBN indicted itself by saying it lacks information of how funds are being disbursed in the country.
He stated that there are evidences that the funds were being mismanaged by certain people.
He said, “HEDA is in the process of filing a legal action against the bank to obtain the information requested.
“The bank stands indicted with that response. How can a central bank claim lack of access to information on funds disbursed.
“We have intelligence report to the effect that these funds were mismanaged and doled out to secure favourable consideration for request of the CBN governor at the parliament and even presidency.
“These are public funds and we deserve information on the usage and beneficiaries.”
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E2%80%99s Lulu-Briggs: Widow, Stepson Trade Blame Over Release Of Autopsy Report, Delay In Oil Magnate’s Burial
Widow and son of Founder of Moni Pulo Limited, High Chief Olu Benson Lulu-Briggs, has again traded blames over the delay in the release of an autopsy report carried out on his body and also the inability of the family to so far bury him.
In a statement through her spokesperson on Friday, Oraye St. Franklyn, Seinye, widow of the late philanthropist, who died on December 27, 2018, accused her stepson, Dumo, a former governorship candidate in Rivers State, of blocking the release of the autopsy result to ensure that the truth surrounding the oil magnate’s death is not made public.
The woman said that Dumo plans to falsely hold her for the death of her husband by conducting a manipulated and sinister autopsy on his body.
According to Seinye, Dumo chose the day of his father’s first death anniversary to block the release of the autopsy result he had always called for.
The statement reads, “On December 27, 2019, exactly a year after his father died, rather than hold a memorial in his honour as would have been ordinarily expected, Dumo Lulu-Briggs chose that day to file an appeal in Ghana to block the release of the report of an autopsy that he had called for in July 2019.
“In a petition written in April 2019 to the Nigeria Police Force and later to the Ghanaian Police, Dumo had maintained that an autopsy was necessary to establish the cause of death of his father, High Chief (Dr.) O. B. Lulu-Briggs.
“It was therefore surprising that rather than be glad that the autopsy he called for had been done in order to effectively put to rest the issue of the cause of death of his father, he chose that very day of his father’s first memorial to block the release of the autopsy result.
“His plan to falsely hold Seinye for murder was built around his bid to have a manipulated and sinister autopsy done in Accra, Ghana, where his father died.
“Consequently, to protect herself from being a victim of Dumo’s sinister plot aimed at her and also guarantee the integrity of the planned autopsy; she went to court and got it to determine the proper procedure for the autopsy among other demands.
“The court did not only clearly ensure that the autopsy would be done by the Ghanaian Military, a neutral body, but also provided for two representative pathologists each for Dumo and herself to ensure their equitable and fair representation and involvement.
“The court also ensured the autopsy was done under the close supervision of the Nigerian and Ghanaian Police, as well as the Interpol.
“On July 16, 2019, four days after Dumo’s attempt at conducting a manipulated autopsy, the proper one was done according to standard.
“The Ghanaian Police confirmed in writing to Dumo thereafter that the autopsy was done according to international standard at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra, one of the few facilities in Africa with an ISO certification.
“One of Dumo’s representatives at the autopsy is the current President of the Nigerian Medical Association, Dr. Adedayo Faduyile, who was physically present while the autopsy was done.
“To this day, he has not countered the position of either the Ghanaian Police, which monitored the autopsy or the Ghanaian Military that conducted it, both of which maintain that the autopsy was properly done. This is not to mention the corroboration by all other pathologists who witnessed the autopsy that it was properly done.
“But in a rather strange twist, Dumo who called for the autopsy has blocked the release of the report to ensure that the truth that his father died of natural causes is not made public.
“Dumo’s appeal is set to be heard in February 2020. It is obvious he has no intention of burying his father on January 25, 2020.”
In his reaction on Saturday, Dumo, through his spokesperson, Uche Woke, denied blocking the release of the autopsy result, stating that the entire family was tired of the delay in burying the remains of the late business mogul.
He said, “Dumo Lulu-Briggs clearly stated that the supposed pre-conditions as ordered by the court has been met since December 24, 2019 and it was by far the easiest thing to meet as long as it allows them access to the mortal remains of their late father to enable the family sit and plan for his burial as required by customs.
“Chief Dumo also explained that the second pre-condition stated in the ruling is not beholden to him as he cannot in any way be the person who will appoint for Seinye her representatives that will accompany him and the family to convey the remains from Accra to Nigeria on the set date.
“Chief Dumo believes that he can only be held responsible if he or any member of the Oruwari Briggs family rejects the representatives appointed by his stepmother which he is sure will not happen as the family is tired of having to go back and forth on the matter and the increasing delay of the burial of their father is becoming wearisome to the family.
“Chief Dumo not only denies such reports but also went ahead to show proof that he had no objection whatsoever to the submission of any said report.
“Nobody has a right to deny Seinye her full representation in the burial planning process should she choose to be a part of it.
“All his family is interested in is that she releases the body of their father to the family so they can go ahead and plan for his burial and if there are other issues she has with him, that can be resolved later but in the interim, he is more interested and concerned with giving his father a befitting burial.”
According to findings by SaharaReporters, the family feud resulting to the delay in the burial of the late oil magnate has left many prominent sons and daughters of Kalabari Kingdom of Rivers State where Abonnema, the hometown of the Briggs falls under, deeply troubled.
Those, who have expressed concern view the situation as an unfair treatment and disrespect for the late O.B Lulu-Briggs, who touched lives through various acts of philanthropy during his lifetime.
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B’Haram: Borno Governor Donates 70 Surveillance Vehicles To Army, Police, Others
Borno State governor, Babagana Zulum, has released 70 new surveillance vehicles to support the Nigerian Army, police and volunteers in the civilian Joint Task Force and hunters involved in fighting Boko Haram terrorists in the region.
The vehicles were released on Friday at the launch of a rapid response squad.
Governor Zulum directed that parts of the vehicles should be used by hunters and civilian JTF to patrol the Maiduguri-Damboa Road.
The governor assured citizens of his administration’s commitment to security of lives and property.
He also warned citizens to stop harbouring and shielding insurgents and members of any criminal gang in the state.
He said, “I have said a number of times that this administration will not hesitate to take any measure or make any sacrifice in order to ensure peace and security returns to our state.
“As chief security officer of Borno State, it is my constitutional and moral responsibility to do whatever possibly in trying to secure the lives of citizens and doing that is the whole essence of government in the first place.
“We cannot succeed in bringing lasting peace if we do not give maximum support to our security operatives by giving them information about the identities of culprits and their hideouts.
“On no account should we protect or hide anybody with the evil intention of destroying our state.”
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JUST IN: JAMB Suspends NIN Requirement For Prospective Candidates Until 2021
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has suspended the National Identity Number requirement for candidates seeking admission into tertiary institutions in the country.
This follows public outcry and difficulty experienced by candidates trying to register for the 2020 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination.
In a new initiative, JAMB Registrar, Prof Ishaq Oloyede, said the National Identity Management Commission will create registration centres at every computer-based test centres across the country “for candidates, who do not have the NIN to avoid difficulties in writing the examination.”
The board had in October 2019 announced that NIN will be a prerequisite for all prospective admission seekers to register for the 2020 UTME.
SaharaReporters had reported that some prospective UTME candidates expressed displeasure at the cumbersome process of registration and enrolment for the NIN.
A large number of candidates flooded the registration centres in Lagos and Abuja as personnel of the NIMC were unable to answer them all.
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