Boris Johnson has insisted US democracy remains “strong”, despite the “kerfuffle” over former President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial.
The Senate acquitted Mr Trump of incitement to insurrection following the storming of Congress on 6 January.
Mr Johnson told US broadcaster CBS his relationship with new President Joe Biden was “excellent”.
And he promised the American and UK governments would work well together on issues like climate change and defence.
Mr Biden, who was inaugurated on 20 January, has never met the prime minister in person, but this is set to change later this year, with the UK hosting the G7 summit in the summer and the COP26 climate change gathering in the autumn.
During his interview for CBS’s Face the Nation show, Mr Johnson was keen to stress that their two countries were “coming together” on the environment, ways of dealing with Iran and the future of Nato.
These were all issues on which Mr Trump took a different line to the UK government, but the prime minister called recent statements by Mr Biden “incredibly encouraging”.
Having previously condemned the violence inside Washington’s Capitol building last month, he was asked about the impeachment trial of Mr Trump, in which prosecutors failed to get the two-thirds majority in the Senate needed to convict the ex-president.
“I think the clear message that we get from the proceedings in America is that, after all the toings and froings and all the kerfuffle, American democracy is strong,” he said.
“And the American constitution is strong and robust. And we’re delighted now, I’m very delighted, to have a good relationship with the White House, which is an important part of any UK prime minister’s mission.
“I’ve had some good conversations already with President Biden, fantastic conversations about the way he sees things.”
image captionJoe Biden said the substance of the charge against Donald Trump was not in dispute
Five people died in the violence in Washington on 6 January.
Earlier on Sunday, Mr Biden described democracy – in contrast to Mr Johnson – as “fragile” in the face of “violence and extremism”.
He said of Mr Trump’s trial: “While the final vote did not lead to a conviction, the substance of the charge is not in dispute.”
But Mr Trump welcomed his acquittal, calling his impeachment a “witch hunt”.
In his first telephone call to the prime minister last month, Mr Biden said he wanted to “strengthen the special relationship” between the US and UK.
Lagos Police Command says those responsible for the molestation of the protesters will be punished for their unprofessional conduct.
Lagos Police Command has condemned the beating and human acts Lekki tollgate protesters were subjected to after their arrest on Saturday, February 13, 2021.
The police arrested 40 protesters, who were out to express their dissatisfaction against the reopening of Lekki tollgate three months after soldiers allegedly killed #EndSARS protesters at the tollgate in October 2020.
The protesters argued that the tollgate should not be reopened for commercial operations because justice has not been served to the victims of the shooting that happened at the site.
Shortly after their arrest on Saturday, the protesters packed in a vehicle were seen in a viral video being humiliated by some individuals.
Reacting to this, Commissioner of Police in Lagos, Hakeem Odumosu in a statement on Sunday, February 14, 2021, said he has ordered Deputy Commissioner of Police, State CID, Panti, DCP Adegoke Fayoade to analyse the video and ‘bring to book whoever that must have been responsible for the act’.
The statement reads, “The attention of the Lagos State Police Command has been drawn to a viral video where some arrested “Endsars protesters” were being molested in a bus by some individuals after their arrest.
“The Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, CP Hakeem Odumosu, who was piqued by this unprofessional and inhuman act, has ordered the Deputy Commissioner of Police, State CID, Panti, DCP Adegoke Fayoade, to analyse the video and bring to book whoever that must have been responsible for the act.
“CP Hakeem Odumosu reiterates that, in as much the command is resolute in enforcing all laws in the state, it will not deviate from the Standard Operating Procedure of the Nigeria Police Force and provisions of the law in discharging its duties; nothing that the command will fish out those responsible for the molestation and ensure they are punished for their unprofessional conduct.
“He further urges Lagosians to be law-abiding and maintain peace at all times as the police and other security agencies will not allow any violence and break down of law and order in any part of the state”.
Following his release from the police custody after joining the #occupylekkitollgate protest, MC Macaroni has released a video. Listen to what he said!
Former President Donald Trump has received enough not guilty votes to be acquitted in his Senate impeachment trial, which requires a two-thirds vote for conviction. Now, he has been acquitted.
The move to the trial’s finishing stages was a final twist after the House managers’ surprise request for witnesses had appeared to extend the trial indefinitely.
The Senate voted 55 to 45 to consider witnesses — with five Republican joining Democrats — after the managers said they wanted to hear from Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, a Washington Republican who had told CNN new details about House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s phone call with Trump.
After several hours of intense negotiations between Senate leaders, the managers and Trump’s legal team, the managers agreed to enter Herrera Beutler’s statement into the trial record as evidence and move forward without hearing from witnesses.
Ahmad Gumi, a prominent Islamic cleric, says bandits are very shy people. Gumi had said bandits are victims of cattle rustling and extortion, adding that they deserve to be forgiven and compensated.
Speaking in an interview with The PUNCH, the cleric described bandits as very shy people who are only interested in their cows. He said should the federal government choose to grant them amnesty, they would surrender their arms. “These people (bandits) know how to organise themselves and protect themselves and they have started attacking villages all around. Once you touch one of them, the whole of them will come together to attack a village. They mobilise themselves through the bush. So, it is not good to attack them, honestly speaking,” Gumi said.
“The Hausa are suffering and they have therefore stopped attacking the Fulani herdsmen. So, we should not attack them. We should just pacify them and they are a very shy people. If you meet them, they are very shy.
“When you offer them amnesty, they drop their weapons. Then you go in, build schools for them, build hospitals for them, get them censored; get them registered; then you can control (them). “You can’t have access to them through the gun. Honestly, they know the terrain in the bush more than our military. So, it is better to negotiate with them.” Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna state, had said he does not agree with Gumi on how to deal with bandits. The governor said bandits will not be willing to give up kidnapping, considering the huge amount of money they make from ransom.
Protesters picked up by the police at the ongoing demonstration at the Lekki Toll Plaza are being denied access to their lawyers, sources are reporting. Scores of marchers turned up Saturday morning at the Lekki Toll Plaza in defiance to government’s threats of dire consequences if they went ahead with civil disobedience against reopening of the thoroughfare that has become a subject of investigation since the fatal shooting of #EndSARS protesters on October 20, 2020. Peoples Gazette had earlier reported that some human rights were moving to secure release of the arrested protesters.
No fewer that 23 persons, including passersby, have been arrested by operatives of the Lagos police, Newswire reported. The outlet cited a lawyer, Tola Onayemi, as saying the police were denying lawyers access to the arrested protesters. A rights activist, Rinu Oduala also claimed that arrested #OccupyLekkTollGate protesters have been denied legal representation by the police authority.
“They are not letting lawyers see the arrested protesters. The Police said they have direct orders from the Lagos State Governor to arrest protesters & known frontliners of the #EndSARS protests & will soon move them to Ikeja. Jide SanwoOlu, are these forces beyond your control?” She tweeted via her handle, @SaavyRinu. The member of the Lagos #EndSARS judicial panel who days ago resigned to protest reopening of the tollgate further tweeted that protesters in police custody were being transferred to another police station within the command.
“They have started transferring protesters from Adeniji Police Station to Ikeja State Command without letting their lawyers see them. Is this a military regime? #EndPoliceBrutality”. Meanwhile, some celebrities have also condemned the government for forcefully arresting peaceful protesters Mr Charles Oputa, alias Charlie’s Boy reacting on his Twitter feed said, “I know these animals have turned Nigeria into a Jungle. But peaceful protest is still our human right. Say no to#lekkitollgate reopening.” Popular singer and lawyer, @falzthebadhdguy also tweeted, “What is this shameful behaviour?! Are these people insane?!? Citizens are peacefully protesting and you are arresting. How is this supposed to solve the problems that they have already caused ?!”
A special police unit, Rapid Response Squad (RRS), funded by Lagos taxpayers have mounted the toll plaza since Friday and has been coordinating arrests of anyone in sight at the area. RRS Commandant Yinka Egbeyemi declined comments when contacted. He asked our reporter to call the police spokesman for information. Efforts to reach the Lagos police spokesman, Muyiwa Adejobi, were unsuccessful as he refused to pick his calls or reply text messages.
A few hours ago, a former INEC chairman, Attahiru Jega has made a comment about what patriotism means and his comment caused a stir on social media.
It may interest you to know that Professor Attahiru Muhammadu Jega was born on January 11, 1957. He is a Nigerian academic and former Vice-Chancellor of Bayero University, Kano. However, on June 8, 2010, he was nominated by then President Goodluck Jonathan as the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
As a matter of fact, his nomination was subject to Senate confirmation, as a replacement for Professor Maurice Iwu, who left the post on April 28, 2010.
Also, official report has it thatJega is the only INEC chairman to oversee two Nigerian General Elections (2011 and 2015). He retired on June 30, 2015, handing over his position to Amina Zakari according to a directive by President Muhammadu Buhari.
Meanwhile, in his earlier tweet today, he made efforts to explained what it means to be patriot and what patriotism is. He pointed out that it’s not necessarily mean to stand by the president, Muhammadu Buhari GCFR and a foremost APC chieftains.
He was quoted saying, “Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does not mean to stand by the President.”
China refused to hand over key data to the World Health Organization (WHO) team investigating the origins of Covid-19, one of its members has said.
Microbiologist Dominic Dwyer told Reuters, the Wall St Journal and the New York Times the team requested raw patient data from early cases, what he called “standard practice”,
He said they only received a summary.
China has not responded to the allegation but has previously insisted it was transparent with the WHO.
The US has urged China to make available data from the earliest stages of the outbreak, saying it has “deep concerns” about the WHO report.
Wuhan was the first place in the world where the virus was detected, in late 2019. Since then, more than 106 million cases and 2.3 million deaths have been reported worldwide.
Only half of the early cases had been exposed to the seafood market where the virus was initially detected.
“That’s why we’ve persisted to ask for that,” Prof Dwyer said. “Why that doesn’t happen, I couldn’t comment. Whether it’s political or time or it’s difficult… But whether there are any other reasons why the data isn’t available, I don’t know. One would only speculate.”
“Everybody knows how much pressure there is on China to be open to an investigation and also how much blame there might be associated with this,” she said.
Prof Dwyer said the restrictions on data would be mentioned in the WHO team’s final report, which could be released as early as next week.
The team arrived in early January and spent four weeks in China – the first two in hotel quarantine.
What has been the response from the Chinese?
Beijing has insisted it was transparent with the WHO investigators, whose visit began only after months of negotiations. The experts were closely monitored by the Chinese authorities.
The US accused China of hiding the extent of the initial outbreak and criticised the terms of the visit, which restricted the freedom of the WHO team to travel and interview witnesses, including community members, on health grounds.
The investigators told the New York Times that disagreements, including over access to patient records, were so tense that they sometimes erupted into shouting matches.
Last month, an interim report from the WHO criticised China’s initial response, saying that “public health measures could have been applied more forcefully”.
The WHO team has also called for further investigation into the possibility of “cold chain” transmission, referring to the theory the virus could have spread through the transport and trade of frozen food.
Dr Peter Daszak, a member of the WHO team, said the focus on where the origins that led to Covid-19 might be, could be shifted to South East Asia.
The ex-head of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi, has been sworn-in as Italy’s next prime minister.
Mr Draghi put together a unity government of the main political parties, following the collapse of the previous administration last month.
It was thrown into chaos amid a row over how to spend EU coronavirus recovery funds.
Italy is still grappling with the pandemic and is also facing its worst economic crisis in decades.
The country has recorded more than 93,000 deaths, the sixth-highest death toll in the world.
After receiving the support of the largest group in parliament, the Five Star Movement, Mr Draghi now has backing across the broad political spectrum.
It means he will have a large enough majority to push through his agenda.
He has already named a cabinet: a senior figure in the Five Star Movement, Luigi Di Maio, will stay on as foreign minister.
Giancarlo Giorgetti, a senior figure in the populist far-right League party, will be industry minister. Andrea Orlando, from the centre-left Democratic Party, will be labour minister.
The government faces a confidence vote next week – a formality given its cross-party backing.
An economist with experience at the highest levels of the European Union and as governor of the Bank of Italy, Mr Draghi is being seen as a safe pair of hands.
The previous prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, resigned in January after his party lost support for its coalition government over plans for spending EU recovery money
The Senator representing Ekiti Central Senatorial District, Opeyemi Bamidele, said on Friday the ongoing membership revalidation and registration exercise in the All Progressives Congress (APC) would boost the party’s chances in 2023.
Bamidele, who stated this after he revalidated his membership of the APC at Iyin Ekiti Ward B, Irepodun/Ifelodun local government area of Ekiti State, added that the initiative of the party’s national caretaker committee would also give ordinary Nigerians an opportunity to join the party.
He said: “The issue of registration or revalidation does not call for controversy.
“Some leaders who spoke against it based on certain criteria that bordered on the credibility of the process and cost still participated in the exercise.
I believe that the ultimate reason for the exercise is to allow new members to come into the APC.
“Some Nigerians just clocked 18. If we are still running a participatory democracy, then they have to be given the right of belonging to a party.
“This is necessary, because not all party members joined us at inception in 2013.
“For me, I believe the exercise is in order.”
He, however, noted that the main problem confronting the nation was more than revalidation or registration of party membership.
The senators urged Nigerian leaders to address the problems of poverty, youth unemployment, and insecurity in the country.
“To be able to address this menace, we must be able to warm ourselves into the hearts of Nigeria as leaders of APC.
“I believe that we have a better tomorrow if we are all patriotic and do the right thing,” Bamidele added.
There was tension Friday in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital following the death of three people in the aftermath of a clash between some Hausa and Yoruba traders at the Sasa area of Akinyele Local Government.
The Biden administration says it will start gradually allowing into the US tens of thousands of asylum seekers currently forced to wait in Mexico.
It says it will begin next week processing about 25,000 people with active cases.
Asylum seekers will first be required to register and pass a Covid-19 test, before being allowed in via one of three border crossings.
The move reverses the much-criticised policies of ex-President Donald Trump.
The Migrant Protection Protocols programme was enacted in 2019, deterring would-be asylum seekers from coming to the US.
It required migrants entering through the southern border to wait in Mexico while their cases were being heard by US immigration courts.
But on his first day in office since winning last year’s election, President Joe Biden suspended the policy.
“As President Biden has made clear, the US government is committed to rebuilding a safe, orderly, and humane immigration system,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said.
“This latest action is another step in our commitment to reform immigration policies that do not align with our nation’s values.”
The authorities say asylum seekers will be released with notices to appear in court in cities close to or in their final destinations, typically with family.
At the same time, Mr Mayorkas stressed that “individuals who are not eligible under this initial phase should wait for further instructions and not travel to the border”, amid concerns that many people would try to cross the border illegally.
Friday’s announcement was welcomed in a sprawling migrant camp in the Mexican city of Matamoros, just across the border from Texas.
“Honestly, I have no words for how I’m feeling right now!” Salvadoran asylum seeker Sandra Andrade, who has been waiting in Mexico for over a year, told Reuters news agency.
The border cities where migrants wait for months are suffering from growing crime rates.
Last year, charity Human Rights First said “returned families, children and adults are being sent to highly dangerous situations where many suffered kidnappings, attacks, sexual assaults, threats and other incredible cruelty”.
Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano state has said that the presidency in 2023 should be zoned to the South. Speaking in an interview with Channels Television’s Politics Today which aired on Friday February 12, Ganduje said that though zoning is not enshrined in the constitution, it is however a strategy for winning elections. He said;
“The Southern part of the country but there should be a consensus of the members. “Zoning system even though it is not in the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, it is a strategy for winning elections.”
When asked if the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has done well for Nigerians since coming into power in 2015, the Kano state Governor said the ruling party under President Muhammadu Buhari’s leadership improved on Nigeria’s security situation as well as fixing the nation’s economy. Ganduje also expressed confidence in the ruling party winning the 2023 general election and maintaining its winning streak by holding to power at the federal level. He added;
“I think in 2023, APC will win the election because more people are coming into the party. Though we lost some governors because of intraparty problems, at the same time some are coming into the party. “Also there is a very strong movement now to reconcile the major actors and I think that is also making the party stronger.”
The UK Supreme Court has ruled that oil-polluted Nigerian communities can sue Shell in English courts.
The decision is a victory for the communities after a five-year battle, and overturns a Court of Appeal ruling.
The Niger Delta communities of more than 40,000 people say decades of pollution have severely affected their lives, health and local environment.
The oil giant had argued it was only a holding company for a firm that should be judged under Nigerian law.
Shell described the legal ruling as disappointing.
The Supreme Court, the UK’s final appeal court for civil cases, ruled that the cases brought by the Bille community and the Ogale people of Ogoniland against Royal Dutch Shell were arguable and could proceed in the English courts.
Royal Dutch Shell did not dispute that pollution had been caused, but argued it could not be held legally responsible for its Nigerian subsidiary. Shell is responsible for about 50% of the delta’s oil production.
image captionPollution suffered by the Ogale people of Ogoniland in the Niger Delta
Last year the Court of Appeal agreed with the company, but the Supreme Court said on Friday that that decision was flawed.
The communities, represented by law firm Leigh Day, argued Shell owed a common law duty of care to individuals who had suffered serious harm as a result of the systemic health, safety and environmental failings of one of its overseas subsidiaries.
The Niger-Delta pollution has continued despite years of promises by successive governments in Nigeria to clean it up. In 2016 President Muhammadu Buhari launched an ambitious clean-up operation in Ogoniland. The work is ongoing but residents say little progress has been made.
Continued oil spills from the activities of multinationals have also cast doubt on the impact of the clean-up exercise. “Things are getting worse by the day,” Celestine Akpobari, an environmental activist and resident of Ogoniland, told the BBC.
The region provides most of Nigeria’s government revenues but the communities say successive governments have neglected them. Mr Akpobari says people can no longer fish or farm because of the devastation. “People are dying, there are strange diseases and women are having miscarriages” from the pollution, he says. But the communities and campaigners say the recent court victory gives them hope they will see justice.
In 2011 the UN concluded it would take 30 years to clear up the vast amounts of pollution in the Niger Delta.
The Ogale community of about 40,000 people are mostly fishermen or farmers who rely on Ogoniland’s waterways. But pollution has all but destroyed fishing, turning their lush home into a toxic wasteland.
The water is now too dirty for people to drink. Despite promises to provide clean water, people must often either shell out for bottled water or drink from contaminated sources.
Thick crusts of ash and tar cover the land where oil spills have caused fires. Planting new vegetation to replace burnt crops or plants is almost impossible.
image captionOgale King Emere Godwin Bebe Okpabi has led his community’s fight
Farmer Damiete Sanipe describes a wasteland where the trees and the mangrove have been destroyed.
“The habitat is gone, the river we used to swim in is gone. For a coastal community whose life revolved around the water, it’s all gone.
“I don’t think money can bring back what we have lost. Even if they want to revive the mangrove, it will take more than 30 years which is a long time.”
On Friday Leigh Day lawyer Daniel Leader said the ruling was a “watershed” for “impoverished communities seeking to hold powerful corporate actors to account”. The firm said the amount of compensation sought had yet to be determined.
In a statement Shell said: “The spills at issue happened in communities that are heavily impacted by oil theft, illegal oil refining, and the sabotage of pipelines.”
It said that, despite the causes of the pollution, its subsidiary had worked hard to both clean up and prevent spills.
It’s the latest in a run of international and domestic law suits over Shell’s oil extraction in Nigeria.
In 2006 a Nigerian court ordered the company and partners to pay $1.5bn to the Ijaw people of Bayelsa state for environmental degradation in the area.
In an ongoing civil case, the widows of four environmental activists executed by Nigeria’s military regime in 1995 are suing Shell for allegedly providing support to the military. Shell denies the claims.
The decision on Friday is the latest case to test whether multinational companies can be held accountable for the acts of overseas subsidiaries.
Amnesty International welcomed the ruling. Mark Dummett, director of Amnesty International’s Global Issues Programme, said the fight had not yet been won, but added: “This landmark ruling could spell the end of a long chapter of impunity for Shell and for other multinationals who commit human rights abuses overseas.”
The reported killing of 20 soldiers of the Nigerian Army by Boko Haram/Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorists in the North-East Theatre of Operation Lafiya Dole has been dismissed as false.
The denial was contained in a statement by the Director, Army Public Relations, Brig.-Gen. Mohammad Yerima on Thursday.
According to Yerima, an online report titled: “Nigerian Army keeps mum as Boko Haram terrorists kill 20 Soldiers In Borno” is false, fake and baseless.
The Army spokesman also said the report was aimed at discouraging the public and demoralising troops on the untiring efforts in the overall fight against insurgency, insisting that there was no attack where 20 soldiers were killed in the entire Theatre.
He also disclosed that the recent attacks on troops providing security for road construction workers along Goniri–Kafa on Feb. 5 and in Geidam on Feb. 9 were decisively dealt with.
He further stated that the attack on the troops along the road construction site and the attempt to infiltrate Geidam town by the terrorists were swiftly and professionally cleared by the Mobile Strike Teams (MSTs) and elements of 159 Task Force Battalion.
According to Yerima, soldiers paid the supreme sacrifice while two others who sustained injuries were currently receiving treatment at a military medical facility.
He also disclosed that Boko Haram and ISWAP are on the run and desperate for foods, drugs and logistics from soft targets for survival as their camps, routes and enclaves have been destroyed, blocked and manned by troops of Operation “TURA TAKAIBANGO.”
He said that troops also overpowered terrorists mounted on eight gun trucks, motor bikes and foot soldiers who attempted attack on troops of 3 Battalion at Rann in Kala Balge Local Government Area of Borno on Feb. 9, adding that the troops held their ground and instantly destroyed one terrorists’ gun truck.
“With swift air support during the attack, the terrorists lost initiative and had to scamper for safety due to heavy aerial bombardments, while additional four terrorists’ gun trucks were completely destroyed as several of their members were killed while others fled with gunshot wounds.
The situation within the Rann general area is under control by our troops and members of the community are going about their normal activities.
“Members of the general public are therefore requested to continue to cooperate with the Nigerian Military to fight both the terrorists and peddlers of fake and unsubstantiated stories.
“We shall continue to remain focus and determined to perform our constitutional roles and responsibilities professionally in the protection of the sovereignty of our nation, ensure the safety of lives and property, while we clear the terrorists and their cohorts within the region,” Yerima said.
The Joint Action Committee of SSANU and NASU had earlier embarked on a nationwide strike as regards issues emanating from the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS) which was introduced by the FG.
The groups also clamor that issues surrounding the nonpayment of retirement benefits to retirees and nonpayment of miminum wage arrears should be addressed by the FG.
However, the Minister of Labour, Chris Ngige has come out to declare the ongoing strike as illegal. He stated that they asked for an adjournment and that it is wrong for the union to embark on strike while the FG is still in dialogue with them. He further stated that a “No Work No Pay” police may be imposed on the striking unions.
It was learnt that the wheelbarrow pusher hit the cobbler with a charm on Thursday evening but the former died the following morning (Friday), leading to the clash.
The killing of a Yoruba man by a Hausa man in the Sasa area of Ibadan, Oyo State has led to a clash between members of the two ethnic groups.
According to the state chapter of the Western Nigeria Security Network, also known as Amotekun, the crisis has led to the death of three people. It started when a Yoruba cobbler was reportedly killed by a Hausa wheelbarrow pusher in Sasa, Ojoo area.
It was learnt that the wheelbarrow pusher hit the cobbler with a charm on Thursday evening but the former died the following morning (Friday), leading to the clash.
An eyewitness told SaharaReporters in Ibadan that trouble started when the Hausa wheelbarrow pusher hit a pregnant woman with his wheelbarrow, which angered the cobbler.
SaharaReporters gathered that when the cobbler approached the wheelbarrow pusher to find out the reason behind his action, he hit the cobbler with a charm.
SaharaReporters learnt that the death of the cobbler consequently led to a reprisal by Yoruba people on Hausa residents in the area, before the arrival of security agencies quelled the crisis.
A resident of Sasa who spoke with our correspondent, Alhazan Kabiru, on Friday said the police had been able to bring the situation under control.
Kabiru said; “I heard the cobbler beside our shop died this morning. I was around Ojoo when the incident happened. I heard It was as a result of an argument between one Hausa guy, who hit a pregnant woman with his wheelbarrow on Thursday. Though I don’t really know the Hausa guy, I know his group of friends. The police are here now and they have been able to control the situation but that yesterday night was hell.”
The National Identification Number (NIN) has been on the lips of a lot of Nigerians for several weeks now, following the declaration by the Federal Government that SIM Cards without an NIN will be blocked.
This led a lot of Nigerians to scramble to get their NIN, as they queued in front of National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) offices just to get their National Identification Numbers. Initially, the deadline for the linkage between the NIN and the SIM cards was in early February, but due to a lot of backlash from angry Nigerians, the deadline was moved.
However, Isa Pantami, the Minister Of Communications and Digital Economy, as reported by The Nation Newspapers at the end of an FEC (Federal Executive Council) meeting earlier today, has declared that Nigerians will soon have to link their National Identification Number (NIN) to their bank accounts. He also stated this is because, the Bank Verification Number is not recognised by the law, while the National Identification Number is backed by the law.
He also stated that the deadline for Nigerians to link their National Identification Number to their Bank Accounts will soon be communicated to the general public by the communications ministry. However unlike the case of the NIN and SIM card linkage, a consequence for those that refuse to link their bank accounts has not been announced. This is coming some days after it was announced that the National Identification Number would replace the Bank Verification Number because the BVN is meant for account holders with several banks while the NIN is meant for all Nigerians without minding their status.
At least two people have lost their lives on Thursday in a clash between the operatives of the Ondo State Security Network known Amotekun and armed herders.
The incident, PREMIUM TIMES learnt, occurred at Ago Sanusi along Ute Road in Owo, headquarters of Owo Local Government Area of the state.
Sources disclosed that the herdsmen had earlier clashed with farmers which led to a “call on Amotekun operatives for intervention”.
Amotekun operatives reportedly got to the scene and were attacked by herdsmen. These led to the death of a farmer and a vigilante.
“One farmer and a vigilante attached to the Amotekun during the clash were shot in the head(s) by herdsmen and both of them are dead now,” Supo Ojo, a resident told PREMIUM TIMES.
This newspaper also gathered from sources within the Amotekun operatives that an official known as Oluwasesan Adebayo got missing during the incident and his whereabouts is still unknown as of the time of filing this report.
When contacted, the state Commander of the Amotekun, Adetunji Adeleye, confirmed the incident.
“Amotekun was called yesterday by some farmers that herdsmen had invaded the forest and our men went there to douse tension. A vigilante and a farmer lost their lives in the process,” he said.
Asked about the missing Amotekun operative, he simply said “nobody is missing in Amotekun”. The state police spokesperson, Tee-Leo Ikoro, did not respond to PREMIUM TIMES calls and text messages as of press time.
This incident occurred days after Ondo Amotekun arrested two armed herdsmen and 200 cows in the state. Governor Rotimi Akeredolu and other South-west governors, two weeks ago banned under-aged grazing, night grazing and movement of cattle along the highways.
In its decision, China’s State Film, TV and Radio Administration said BBC World News reports about China were found to “seriously violate” broadcast guidelines, including “the requirement that news should be truthful and fair” and not “harm China’s national interests”.
It said that the BBC’s application to air for another year would not be accepted.
The BBC said in a statement: ‘We are disappointed that the Chinese authorities have decided to take this course of action. The BBC is the world’s most trusted international news broadcaster and reports on stories from around the world fairly, impartially and without fear or favour.”
The commercially-funded BBC World News TV channel broadcasts globally in English. In China it is largely restricted and appears only in international hotels and some diplomatic compounds, meaning most Chinese people cannot view it.
British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab called the move an “unacceptable curtailing of media freedom”.
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