Lagos State Government, through the Lagos State Safety Commission (LSSC), in conjunction with Joe Nwiloh Heart Foundation, has organised health and safety training in Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) for National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members.
The Director General of the LSSC, Mr. Lanre Mojola, said the corps members were being trained to prevent them from becoming victims of CPR.
He said in tandem with the current administration’s policy, especially on safety and health issues, his agency had made it a matter of urgency to carry youths along, particularly on how to prioritise their health and safety, “especially now that we are in post-COVID-19 pandemic era.”
Mojola said cardiac arrest can be curbed through health and safety measures put in place by the agency, in conjunction with other health and safety agencies.
He said the 200 youth corps members selected for the training would become Lagos Safety Ambassadors, to ensure health and safety standards are improved in the state.
The federal government says it is turning around the entire passport application process by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) and shortening passport processing time to six weeks.
The statement from the ministry of interior promises that the process will now be seamless and transparent; and that it will accord human dignity to applicants and fulfil citizenship integrity, in line with the mandate of the ministry.
The passport application and processing system in Nigeria is often a tortuous, rigorous and bribe-induced one, with touts often milling at passport offices.
During a meeting with the Comptroller General of Immigration, Mohammad Babandede, as well as the attaches in Nigeria’s Missions abroad, Minister of Interior Rauf Aregbesola said, “We have had several challenges in the past, including shortage of booklets, touting, racketeering, inflating the cost, passports being issued to ineligible persons, among others.
“It has become imperative therefore to review our operations and rejig our system, in order to be able to offer excellent services to our clients.”
The minister added that efforts are underway to embed visible and invisible security operatives in all passport offices. “They will wear body cameras. They will detect and report any form of solicitations, inflation, improper communications, extortion, diversion, hoarding and other corrupt practices. Those caught will be dealt with according to the law,” he stressed.
Aregbesola
The minister disclosed that an ombudsman will also be created for members of the public to receive complaints and reports on officers trying to deviate from prescribed guidelines and subversion of the process.
“Therefore, I am declaring a zero-tolerance stance to all forms of touting. No applicant will be made to pay any illegitimate fees,” Aregbesola declared.
Minister of information, culture and tourism, Lai Mohammed says it is in the best interest of Nigerian elites for the country to remain united. Mohammed stated this on Wednesday when he featured on a NAN flagship interview programme, NAN Forum. He accused elites of fanning the embers of disintegration in the country, and warned that they will bear the greater consequences if Nigeria breaks up. According to him, some elites who have attained professorial status may be left with no option than to work in bakeries in neighbouring Togo just to survive. Our challenge is more with the elites, not with the common people. Go to the remotest part of Nigeria today, you will see Nigerians from different tribes, culture and religion living together peacefully. “Elites ought to take the lead in cementing the unity of the country. But when the elites start preaching tribal hatred, people believe them because they think they know better. “Nigeria accounts for 70 percent of West Africa’s population, and if Nigeria should disintegrate today, we are going to overrun Benin Republic, Togo, Niger and other neighbouring countries. “The elites will suffer more because some professors could be working in bakeries in Togo just to survive. We saw it happen when the Liberians came here during their civil war. It is in their own enlightened interest that they should work to fix Nigeria. Many of them have more than one passport — American, British, Irish — and at the first crack of trouble, they are gone,” he said.
Bandits who attacked Greenfield University along the Kaduna-Abuja Highway in Kaduna State on Tuesday night, killed a porter of the institution, identified as Paul Okafor.
The assailants also kidnapped a yet-to-be ascertained number of students, said to be mainly females, it was learnt.The bandits stormed the school located on kilometre 34 along Abuja-Kaduna Expressway in the Chikun local government area of Kaduna State around 8:30pm with sophisticated weapons.
They reportedly fired their guns indiscriminately, killing Okafor, the porter in charge of the male hostel, in the process. They went away with at least 17 students, it was learnt. The bandits stormed the school located on kilometre 34 along Abuja-Kaduna Expressway in the Chikun local government area of Kaduna State around 8:30pm with sophisticated weapons.
They reportedly fired their guns indiscriminately, killing Okafor, the porter in charge of the male hostel, in the process.
They went away with at least 17 students, it was learnt.“The porter was shot when he was trying to close the door against the bandits to protect us,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Registrar of the University, Bashir Muhammad, who was at the Operation Thunder Strike camp, where the rescued students were being kept before they would be released to their parents, refused to speak on the incident, saying he had been directed not to say anything.
He, however, assured that the management of the school would speak on the matter on or before Friday when more details might have come out.
The newspaper learnt that the bandits had called some of the parents of kidnapped students, demanding ransom in millions of naira, which the school registrar neither denied nor confirmed.
Some of the parents of the abducted students, who were also at the military camp, were too traumatised to speak but were seen in groups discussing possible ways out in hushed tones.
Earlier, confirming the attack, the Kaduna State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, in a statement said, “Last night, the Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs received distress calls of an attack by armed bandits on the Greenfield University, situated at Kasarami, off the Kaduna-Abuja Road in Chikun LGA.
“Troops of Operation Thunder Strike (OPTS) and other operatives swiftly moved to the location and the bandits retreated.
“After search-and-rescue operations, a staff member of the university, Paul Ude Okafor, was confirmed to have been killed by the bandits, while a number of students were kidnapped.
“The security operatives took custody of the remaining students who have been handed over to the institution, as at noon today, Wednesday 21st April 2021.
“The actual number of students kidnapped is still being sought from the institution’s records.”
Kaduna has been a target for kidnappers in recent times.
On March 11, some bandits attacked the Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation, Afaka in the Igabi Local Government Area of the state, kidnapping 39 students.
Ten of the students have been released while the fate of the others still hangs in the balance.
The state governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has vowed not to negotiate or pay ransom to kidnappers, and also threatened that anyone who negotiates with the bandits on behalf of the government will be arrested and prosecuted.
A man has put himself in trouble with the law after he bedded his 13-year-old girlfriend and infected her with a sexually transmitted infection.
Convivial Kundai Pachirera, 24, was dragged to court recently where he was charged with bedding a minor.
According to a local tabloid, the Mabvuku man was not asked to plead when he appeared before Harare magistrate Dennis Mangosi.
It is in the States case that Pachirera started dating the 13-year-old on August 9 last year and on August 15, the complainant invited Pachirera to their house as she knew that she was going to be home alone and wanted to have quality time with her boyfriend.
It is alleged that Pachirera went to the house and they had lunch and afterwards, he asked for sexual intercourse which the minor reportedly consented to on condition that they used protection.
The court heard that they never communicated after the incident.
The matter only came to light in April this year after the complainant fell sick of a sexually transmitted infection and she told her teacher of her sexual experience with Pachirera.
A police report was made leading to Pachirera’s arrest.
President Joe Biden has said the conviction of a former police officer in the killing of George Floyd “can be a giant step forward in the march toward justice in America”.
But he warned: “We can’t stop here”.
White officer Derek Chauvin was filmed kneeling on African-American Mr Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes, sparking mass protests against racism.
He was found guilty on Tuesday of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter.
Sentencing is likely to happen in two months, and Chauvin could spend decades in jail. He is expected to appeal against the verdict.
In a phone call with Mr Floyd’s family after the verdict was announced, the president was heard saying: “At least now there is some justice.”
In televised remarks shortly afterwards, Mr Biden said that such a verdict was “much too rare”.
“We can’t leave this moment or look away thinking our work is done. We have to look at it as we did for those nine minutes and 29 seconds,” he said.
Vice-President Kamala Harris urged lawmakers to pass the George Floyd bill aimed at reforming policing in the US.
“This bill is part of George Floyd’s legacy. This work is long overdue,” she said.
What other reaction has there been?
People gathered outside the courtroom and on the intersection in Minneapolis where Mr Floyd was killed to celebrate the verdict.
Cheers broke out, drivers honked their car horns and people blocked traffic chanting: “George Floyd” and “All three counts”, referring to the three charges of which Chauvin was convicted.
“It’s a good day in Minneapolis,” said 21-year-old Kenneth Nwachi.
One local resident told the Associated Press news agency she felt grateful and relieved, while another said: “There’s some form of justice that’s coming.”
Crowds also gathered in other cities to celebrate the verdict.
image captionPeople gathered in Minneapolis to celebrate the verdict and pay tribute to George Floyd
But they also said that more needed to be done.
Police officers have rarely been convicted – if they are charged at all – for deaths that occur in custody, and the verdict in the trial has been widely seen as an indication of how the US legal system will treat such cases in future.
At a family news conference, Mr Floyd’s brother Philonise said: “Today, we are able to breathe again.”
The Floyd family’s lawyer, Ben Crump, said the conviction marked a “turning point in history” for the US.
According to the Washington Post newspaper, 274 people have been killed by US police in 2021.
It took the 12-member jury less than a day to reach their verdict.
Chauvin, whose face was obscured with a coronavirus mask, showed little reaction as the verdict was read, remaining quiet and looking around the room. His bail was revoked and he was led away with his hands cuffed behind his back.https://emp.bbc.com/emp/SMPj/2.40.2/iframe.htmlmedia captionWatch the moment Derek Chauvin learnt his fate
The verdict followed a highly charged, three-week trial in which 45 witnesses took the stand and several hours of video footage were shown.
Several witnesses broke down in tears as they watched graphic footage of Mr Floyd’s death and described feeling “helpless” as events unfolded.
Expert witnesses on behalf of the state testified that Mr Floyd died from a lack of oxygen due to the manner of restraint employed by Chauvin and his colleagues.
Chauvin himself chose not to testify, invoking his right to not incriminate himself with his responses.
Former Minneapolis Officer Derek Chauvin was convicted Tuesday of murder and manslaughter for pinning George Floyd to the pavement with his knee on the Black man’s neck in a case that touched off worldwide protests, violence and a furious reexamination of racism and policing in the U.S.
Chauvin, 45, could be sent to prison for decades. People elated by the verdict flooded the surrounding streets downtown upon hearing the news. Cars blared their horns, and people ran through traffic, waving banners.
Floyd family members gathered at a Minneapolis conference room could be heard cheering from the next room as each verdict was read.
The jury of six white people and six Black or multiracial ones came back with its verdict after about 10 hours of deliberations over two days. Chauvin was found guilty on all charges: second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
His face was obscured by a COVID-19 mask, and little reaction could be seen beyond his eyes darting around the courtroom.
His bail was immediately revoked and he was led away with his hands cuffed behind his back. Sentencing will be in two months. As the judge asked jurors if they reached a verdict, a hush fell on the crowd 300 strong in a park adjacent to the courthouse, with people listening to the proceedings on their cellphones. When the final guilty verdict was announced, the crowd roared, many people hugging, some shedding tears.
At the intersection where Floyd was pinned down, a crowd chanted, “One down, three to go!” – a reference to the three other fired Minneapolis police officers facing trial in August on charges of aiding and abetting murder in Floyd’s death.
Janay Henry, who lives nearby, said she felt grateful and relieved.
“I feel grounded. I can feel my feet on the concrete,” she said, adding that she was looking forward to the “next case with joy and optimism and strength.”
An ecstatic Whitney Lewis leaned halfway out a car window in a growing traffic jam of revelers waving a Black Lives Matter flag. “Justice was served,” the 32-year-old from Minneapolis said. “It means George Floyd can now rest.” The verdict was read in a courthouse ringed with concrete barriers and razor wire and patrolled by National Guard troops, in a city on edge against another round of unrest – not just because of the Chauvin case but because of the deadly police shooting of a young Black man, Daunte Wright, in a Minneapolis suburb April 11.
The jurors identities were kept secret and will not be released until the judge decides it is safe to do so.
Floyd, 46, died May 25 after being arrested on suspicion of passing a counterfeit $20 bill for a pack of cigarettes at a corner market. He panicked, pleaded that he was claustrophobic and struggled with police when they tried to put him in a squad car. They put him on the ground instead.
The centerpiece of the case was the excruciating bystander video of Floyd gasping repeatedly, “I can’t breathe” and onlookers yelling at Chauvin to stop as the officer pressed his knee on or close to Floyd’s neck for what authorities say was 9 1/2 minutes. Floyd slowly went silent and limp. Prosecutors played the footage at the earliest opportunity, during opening statements, with Jerry Blackwell telling the jury: “Believe your eyes.” And it was shown over and over, analyzed one frame at a time by witnesses on both sides.
In the wake of Floyd’s death, demonstrations and scattered violence broke out in Minneapolis, around the country and beyond. The furor also led to the removal of Confederate statues and other offensive symbols such as Aunt Jemima.
In the months that followed, numerous states and cities restricted the use of force by police, revamped disciplinary systems or subjected police departments to closer oversight.
The “Blue Wall of Silence” that often protects police accused of wrongdoing crumbled after Floyd’s death: The Minneapolis police chief quickly called it “murder” and fired all four officers, and the city reached a staggering $27 million settlement with Floyd’s family as jury selection was underway.
Police-procedure experts and law enforcement veterans inside and outside the Minneapolis department, including the chief, testified for the prosecution that Chauvin used excessive force and went against his training.
Medical experts for the prosecution said Floyd died of asphyxia, or lack of oxygen, because his breathing was constricted by the way he was held down on his stomach, his hands cuffed behind him, a knee on his neck and his face jammed against the ground.
Chauvin attorney Eric Nelson called a police use-of-force expert and a forensic pathologist to help make the case that Chauvin acted reasonably against a struggling suspect and that Floyd died because of an underlying heart condition and his illegal drug use.
Floyd had high blood pressure, an enlarged heart and narrowed arteries, and fentanyl and methamphetamine were found in his system.
Under the law, police have certain leeway to use force and are judged according to whether their actions were “reasonable” under the circumstances.
The defense also tried to make the case that Chauvin and the other officers were hindered in their duties by what they perceived as a growing, hostile crowd.
Chauvin did not testify, and all that the jury or the public ever heard by way of an explanation from him came from a police body-camera video after an ambulance had taken the 6-foot-4, 223-pound Floyd away. Chauvin told a bystander: “We gotta control this guy ’cause he’s a sizable guy … and it looks like he’s probably on something.”
The prosecution’s case also included tearful testimony from onlookers who said the police kept them back when they protested what was happening. Eighteen-year-old Darnella Frazier, who shot the crucial video, said Chauvin just gave the bystanders a “cold” and “heartless” stare.
She and others said they felt a sense of helplessness and lingering guilt from witnessing Floyd’s slow-motion death.
“It’s been nights I stayed up, apologizing and apologizing to George Floyd for not doing more, and not physically interacting and not saving his life,” Frazier testified, while the 19-year-old cashier at the neighborhood market, Christopher Martin, lamented that “this could have been avoided” if only he had rejected the suspect $20 bill.
To make Floyd more than a crime statistic in the eyes of the jury, the prosecution called to the stand his girlfriend, who told the story of how they met and how they struggled with addiction to opioids, and his younger brother Philonise. He recalled how Floyd helped teach him to catch a football and made “the best banana mayonnaise sandwiches.”
Youths numbering over 200 in the Isoko North Local Government Area of Delta state on Tuesday stopped the screening of supervisory councillors over allegations of imposition.
The protesting youths, drawn from the 13 wards of the local government area, were with leaves and placards that had different inscriptions accusing the commissioner representing Isoko North in the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC), Paul Oweh; local government Peoples Democratic Party chairman, Godwin Ogorugba, council chairman, Christian Iteire and a few other leaders of imposing candidates on the people.
SaharaReporters gathered that the protesting youths had last week got wind of the screening and swearing-in of the supervisory councillors billed for Tuesday at the legislative chamber and stormed the council secretariat.
They drove away the councillors, council chairman, and some PDP leaders, disrupting activities there.
Our correspondent gathered that the protesting youths almost lynched the council chairman for allegedly conniving with the DESOPADEC commissioner, Oweh, and Ogorugba to carry out the imposition.
Speaking with our correspondent, one of the leaders of the protesters who identified himself as Joseph Owhologbo, from Ellu ward, said they decided to embark on the protest following the imposition of supervisory councillors by the council chairman, PDP chairman, and DESOPADEC commissioner without proper consultation with other leaders in the local government area.
“We are protesting against the wrong selection and imposition of supervisory councillors billed for screening today, Tuesday and their swearing-in by the council chairman, Christian Iteire in connivance with the Isoko North PDP chairman, Godwin Ogorugba, DESOPADEC commissioner, Paul Oweh and a few other leaders.
“They selected and imposed the supervisory councillors without consulting other leaders like Emmanuel Ogidi, Comrade Ovuozourie Macaulay, Jude Omena Ogbimi, Kome Okpobor, Philip Adheke, Nelson Ejakpovi, Emma Egbabor and other leaders from the 13 wards in the Isoko North Local Government Area.
“This is absolutely wrong, we cannot fold our arms and watch this insolence act being done by the council chairman, Christian Iteire, Godwin Ogorugba, Paul Oweh and few others. To avoid any crisis in Isoko North Local Government Area, the council chairman and his cohorts should consult all leaders in the local government area before carrying out any selection of supervisory councillors,” he said.
Also speaking, a protester who simply identified himself as Karo, described the council chairman, PDP chairman and the DESOPADEC commissioner as trouble makers who did not mean well for the party.
“Ask Paul Oweh, what has he done since he was appointed as a commissioner in DESOPADEC? What has been his impact apart from amassing wealth? In Emevor, the only street he managed to tar was not done properly. It was a shoddy job and he got his kickback as always. What about the PDP chairman, he has nothing to offer other than to extort money from electoral candidates. We are saying no to any form of imposition on us,” he said.
In the same vein, a protester who identified himself as Lucky Okeremu from Emevor ward, also condemned the alleged imposition of the supervisory councillors on the people.
“In Emevor ward, we have two leaders, Paul Oweh and Nelson Ejakpovi who stood in all elections to deliver the PDP in Emevor ward. Paul Oweh has produced two councillors from Emevor and he again connived with the PDP chairman, Godwin Ogorugba and the council chairman, Christian Iteire to impose a supervisory councillor on us.
“This is an injustice being done to us all in Emevor ward. We are calling on the state governor, Ifeanyi Okowa to intervene and put to an end all these acts of injustice being done by the Isoko North council chairman, Isoko North PDP chairman, DESOPADEC commissioner, Paul Oweh and few other leaders in our local government area,” he said.
Following the protest, the screening and swearing-in of the supervisory councillors had to be suspended.
Drivers of Nigeria’s biggest ride-hailing companies, Uber and Bolt have embarked on a strike action to push for the immediate increment of fares.
The e-cab operators, under the aegis of Professional E-hailing Drivers and Private Owners Association (PEDPA), had earlier warned that they would embark on strike if there demands were not met.
This was revealed by National President of PEDPA, Mr Idris Shonuga at a news conference in Lagos where he called for the immediate upward review of e-cab fares to reflect the current economic
He listed their five-point demands as follows: “Immediate and proper profiling of all riders patronising our services.
“Immediate joint upward review of the fares to meet the current economy reality. There must be uniform price across board. 100 /km, 15/mins 500 base fare and N1, 000 minimum fare.
“Immediate review of all accounts blocked unjustifiably.
“Adequate welfare packages for drivers and compensation to the families of those that lost their lives or permanently disabled!
“No more individual engagement, all policies must be reviewed by drivers’ union before being enacted.”
Meanwhile, there have been complaints of drivers losing their lives through kidnapping or outright targeted killing by ritualists while on the job with no compensation from the company.
“There have been instances where drivers have been slammed wrongfully with sexual assault charges by female riders who feel slighted by their drivers. And there is no insurance policy to cover the job risks,” a driver said.
Shonuga said the association was considering taking legal action to seek remedies against the e-hailing companies if their demands were not met.
The Kano State Police Command says it has rescued one Aisha Jibrin, 15, locked for 10 years in a solitary confinement.The police said Aisha was locked in a room by her parents without proper feeding and health care.
The police spokesperson in the state, Abdullahi Kiyawa, in a statement issued on Tuesday, said her mother, Rabi Muhammad, has been taken into custody but the father has fled.
The statement read, “The Kano State Police Command wishes to inform members of the general public that on the 19/04/2021 at about 1100hrs, information received revealed that one Aisha Jibrin, ‘f’, 15 years old of Darerawa Quarters, Fagge LGA, Kano State was solitarily confined for ten (10) years in a room by her biological parents, one Mohd Jibrin, ‘m’, and Rabi Mohd, ‘f’, of the same address inside their house without proper feeding and health care.
“On receipt of the report, the Commissioner of Police, Kano State Command, CP Sama’ila Shu’aibu Dikko, fsi, raised and instructed a medical team and a team of detectives to proceed to the scene, rescue the victim and arrest the culprits.
“The teams immediately swung in to action. The victim was rescued and rushed to Murtala Mohammed Specialist Hospital, Kano and admitted.”
When SARS officers arrested Ugochukwu Oraefo, the 34-year-old sought to know what his crime was. Instead, what he got as a response from the vicious officers was a traumatic experience that took four days of hospitalization to recover from. In the early hours of April 30, 2018, three heavy-looking men in a Toyota Camry 2.2 stormed my ALUCOBEST Aluminum Store in the southeastern Nigerian town of Ogidi. The men wielded AK-47 rifles.
My name is Ugochukwu Oraefo. I am 34, and a father of five children. I sell aluminium roofing sheets, metra roofing sheets, stone-coated roofing tiles and other kinds of roofing materials.
That fateful day three years ago, I was in my store with my wife. The men wielding the guns told me they were police officers. They asked me to act as if I knew them and follow them. I was confused, so I refused. I asked to know if anyone had written a petition against me. They said they would tell me everything I needed to know only if I would enter their car.
It all sounded fishy, so I refused – again.
Later, the three men identified themselves as officers of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in Awkuzu, a town in Anambra. When I continued to insist on not following them, they began to assault me with their guns.
Soon, concerned people gathered. They asked what the problem was, but the SARS officers did not say what offence I had committed. Instead, they said anybody who wanted to know what my offence was would have to follow them to their office. I told the crowd that I had refused to follow the men because for all I knew, they could be kidnappers.
I asked for an arrest warrant, but the SARS officers sarcastically asked whether I thought I was the governor of Anambra State, Willie Obiano, for me to think they needed to obtain a warrant from me.
“We will kill you if you fuck up,” they threatened.
I told them that it was better for them to kill me there, in the presence of onlookers, than to take me away and kill me anyhow they wanted, in the presence of no one. By that, I seemed to have angered them the more, because they started beating me again.
One of the SARS officers told me he was a soldier, claiming that what they were doing was ‘teamwork’. I asked what this supposed ‘teamwork’ was, but they only continued to beat me.
Later, the SARS officers gave me their phone and asked that I speak with their Officer in Charge (OC).
I had taken a sound beating by then and was not exactly in the mood to speak, but I pulled myself together and asked the OC what my offence was. The OC told me to stop asking “stupid” questions and just follow his men. I stood my ground and refused to comply, insisting that the OC let everyone know the offence they were claiming I had committed. The OC told me to return the phone to his men. I did as I was told. Unfortunately, the men resumed beating me.
After some time, I began to cave in. I asked my wife to call my lawyer, Justus Ijeoma. Ijeoma asked her to give the phone to the SARS officers, but they refused to speak to him. When the officers noticed I was not willing to follow them unless they spoke to Ijeoma, they asked my wife to call him again. She did. This time, the officers told Ijeoma who they were, and he agreed for me to follow them.
When we reached the SARS office, the officers threatened me. They said they would ‘treat’ my stubbornness.
They later took me to the backyard of their office. There, they tied my hands and legs behind my back, then they brought out a metal rod, which they put between my bound hands and legs. They placed two heavy concrete blocks on my back, before hanging me up.
They said they would ‘deal’ with me because I was ‘spoiling’ their ‘show’; whatever that meant. They later asked me how much I was willing to pay for my freedom. It was this request for a bribe that got me convinced I had indeed been kidnapped.
Burdened by the discomfort, I asked them how much they wanted. I don’t remember much of what happened afterward, because I passed out from being hanged for a long time. They eventually brought me down and untied me, taking me to a cell.
In the evening of that same day, they brought me out and asked if I was ready to tell them how much I wanted to pay.
I asked them again to tell me what crime I had committed at least.
“You still want to know what your offence is?!” they responded rudely. “Okay! No problem.”
I broke into tears at that point. I was tired of it all. I pleaded with them to let me know how much they wanted so everything would come to an end.
The SARS officers said they wanted 20 million naira. I offered to give them two million. They weren’t pleased. They mocked my offer, asking me if I thought I had come to their station to sell crayfish.
As the negotiations continued, and with some of their colleague officers there calling me a criminal, the SARS officers took me back to the backyard and threatened to tie me up again. I pleaded and promised to increase the money to three million naira.
Mind you, during the entire period, the SARS officers did not allow anybody to visit me. My wife continued to run my shop while waiting for my lawyer to return from his travels from his travels
The officers, at a point, threatened to kill me, believing that I was not willing to pay the money they were demanding.
They asked for my account number and I provided it. They then took me back to my cell.
The next day, they brought me out. They asked me if I wanted to ‘die’ in their station. I kept pleading. The officers remained unmoved.
On the third day of my detention, which was May 2nd, the three SARS officers that arrested me told me they were going to take me to an undisclosed location where they would ‘kill’ me for being difficult about giving in to their demand. I was blindfolded, handcuffed and driven away.
The drive took almost an hour. When the car stopped, the SARS officers brought me down and, still able to see slightly through the blindfold, I realized the place was in neighbouring Delta State, given the inscriptions on the signboards I was slightly able to see.
I also saw a pit filled with water, which one of the three officers asked me to move close to. The other officers were pointing their guns at me. The commanding officer asked why I did not want to give them money. “I’ve given my account number,” I responded desperately. “I don’t have up to 20 million naira.”
I asked them why they wanted to kill me, but they still wouldn’t tell me what I’d done. They only said they were ready to ‘finish’ me.
The commanding officer instructed the other officers to shoot me on the count of three. I was broken at this point. I wept. I begged. I asked them to take all the money in my account and spare my life. All I had then was five million naira.
The officers, though, insisted they would still kill me – but that they would take the money as well.
On the commanding officer’s count of three, I shut my eyes and heard the sound of gunshots.
I regained consciousness to find out it had been a mock execution.
They took me back to their station, where one of the officers asked if I knew where I was. “Yes, Sir,” I remember responding.
Another popped up and said he wanted to ‘finish’ me, but their commanding officer, Sunday Okpe, asked them to bring me to him. Okpe asked the officers to leave after they brought me to him.
After I took a seat, Okpe asked how much money I was going to give him so he could save me from the grips of his men. I told him that apart from promising his men that I was willing to give them all the money in my account, I did not know what to do again.
Okpe wasn’t moved. He insisted I give him “something tangible” so he could persuade his men to leave me alone. When I said I could only provide 200,000 naira to that effect, he took offence and ordered me out of his office.
Worried that I had blown a good opportunity to secure my freedom, I began to negotiate.
I told him I would make it 500,000 naira. He refused. I upped it to one million, telling him I would find out if my workers had cash in the office so I could access it.
He seemed okay with it and ordered me to make sure the money was brought to his office physically, as against a transfer.
He then freed me so I could go and arrange the money.
On Saturday, May 5, 2018, I went to see the SARS officers. I went in the company of the father of an apprentice at my shop, who also brought one Andrew Modili, a local politician who wields some influence in our area. The officers told us to transfer five million naira into the account of Modili.
I honestly do not know how Modili later settled the SARS officers after we sent the money to his account. The officers did not allow anyone else to see them apart from Modili.
Meanwhile, the officers took me to see Okpe, who asked to know how he would receive his agreed fee of one million naira. I promised him I would bring the money to his office on Monday, given the fact that his workers were closing for the day and the next day was set to be a Sunday.
Okpe told me that he would let me pay on Monday, May 7, because of Modili’s intervention. He then warned: “No ear must hear what has happened. Otherwise I will finish your family, your entire generation and everything you have.”
I promised to do as agreed.
At home, I did not confide in my wife concerning my ordeal at the hands of the SARS operatives. I also kept away from her the amount of money I had invested in my freedom. I was afraid that if I did, she would tell others out of concern, which would have led to the news spreading.
I also did not confide in Ijeoma, my lawyer, who at that time was outside Nigeria. I believe that if I had told him everything, he would have called the SARS officers to demand a refund – which would have put me at risk, as the officers could make a move to hurt me before Ijeoma returned from his trip.
I planned to tell Ijeoma everything when he returned, as I wanted the SARS officers to pay me back in damages.
On the morning of May 7, 2018, I went to the SARS office and gave one million naira to Sunday Okpe, as agreed.
Pleased that I had fulfilled my promise, Okpe gave me his phone number, claiming that we were now friends, and that I should call him anytime. He said he wondered how I had been in Anambra for years and not heard of him. He promised to offer me ‘protection’ from trouble. I told him that I was not a criminal; that I was engaged in a genuine, legitimate business, and so I did not expect to run into any trouble.
Okpe later told me I was ‘lucky’, and that I ought to thank my God, because he had planned to pursue my family at my house and take everything I own.
He told me he had heard I was a cultist, but I told him it was a lie, and that I know only God. He then revealed that SARS had looked for me in several locations to arrest me, but had not succeeded. He said they had monitored me at my store so many times. He also said he was the one who had guaranteed his men that my store was the best place to capture me.
After two months, my lawyer Ijeoma returned. I told him everything that had happened.
When he asked why I hadn’t told him all that had happened, I told him I feared nothing but talk would have come out of it. I was aware of many people SARS had killed, whose families were yet to receive compensation.
My lawyer and I wrote a petition to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) in Abuja. The SARS officers were summoned to the headquarters of the police for questioning, where they accepted they had collected six million naira from me. They refunded the money after a month, thankfully.
I later sued them for damages. But they never showed up.
I believe the government does not hold SARS accountable because they work for the government.
My experience with SARS messed me up. I spent four days in the hospital in order to recover from the physical and psychological trauma I underwent in their custody. My legs and hands felt alien to me from all that beating.
Life afterwards was tough. Some of my store customers stopped patronizing my business after they had heard about my arrest and detention, never bothering to find out what my supposed crime was. Some concluded I was a thief, while others believed I was a kidnapper. My reputation was torn to shreds.
You know, people who are arrested by SARS officers are often painted as kidnappers and armed robbers by the public, but I believe the real kidnappers and armed robbers are the SARS officers themselves, who have poisoned Ogidi and Anambra State with their intimidation of innocent people. They are heartless criminals who are worse than the criminals they claim to pursue.
I am an honest businessman. I don’t steal.
Imagine what would have become of my five children if anything unfortunate had happened to me in SARS custody. They wanted to kill me, or at worst, make me poor.
President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday resumed office after spending 16 days in the United Kingdom on medical vacation.
Upon his resumption on Monday, Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo briefed the President on the state of the nation.
President Buhari left Nigeria on Tuesday, March 30, briefly after a security meeting with defense and intelligence chiefs, as well as other security sector managers.
He arrived in the country on April 15 via the Nnamdi Azikiwe international airport from the United Kingdom where he went on medical vacation for two weeks.
Before his departure, the Presidency had explained that Buhari’s travel to the UK was not on an emergency case and that the Nigerian leader was not sick, dousing insinuations from critics who raised the alarm that the 78-year-old was not feeling well.
“It is a routine medical check-up; the President has undertaken this with a set of doctors that he has retained over many years,” said Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity.
He also explained that Buhari did not transmit power to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, noting that the President will not be away for so long to contravene the law.
“The requirement of the law is that the President is going to be absent in the country for 21 days and more, then that transmission is warranted. In this particular instance, it is not warranted,” the presidential aide said when he featured as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today.
Buhari’s departure was also widely criticised by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which described the move as an indictment of his government.
“It is indeed worrisome that under President Buhari, even the hitherto highly rated State House Clinic, has become so moribund that it cannot provide a simple medical checkup service for Mr. President,” the PDP said in a statement in which it also accused the Buhari government of wasting taxpayers’ money.
A student of the College of Business and Management Studies in Konduga, Juliana Christopher, who was kidnapped by Boko Haram, has said she saw many Chibok girls in the insurgents’ camp. He added that many small girls were either pregnant or nursing children belonging to the insurgents. Christopher, in an interview with The PUNCH, said she spent three weeks in Boko Haram camp after the insurgents, who were dressed in military uniforms, stormed her school in Borno State and abducted her. She explained that after she and her colleagues were kidnapped by the insurgents, they took them into the forest, where she saw other victims who were pregnant and nursing babies of the Boko Haram insurgents. She said, “On reaching their camp, we met many young girls there and the whole place was in disarray. It was in 2014 and I was in the Boko Haram camp for three weeks. We met Chibok girls in the camp. While in the camp, I saw so many small girls, who were kidnapped. Some were being molested. “Some were carrying children, while others were pregnant for the Boko Haram insurgents. It was a disgusting thing. Fortunately for me and some other girls, we escaped from the forest and found our way back to Chibok.” She explained that her father took ill shortly after she was kidnapped, adding that efforts to rescue him proved abortive. She said, “On getting to Chibok, I found the whole community in a state of confusion; so, I asked after my parents and was told that my father took ill when he heard about my abduction and my mother took him to the hospital in Maiduguri. I set out to go and look for them in Maiduguri, but I could not go far because the road was blocked and no movement was allowed, except for military vehicles; in that process, my father died. “When I heard about my father’s condition, I became worried and tried to locate my parents in the hospital, not knowing that he was already dead. When I eventually got to the hospital in Maiduguri, my mother had conveyed my father’s corpse to Chibok for burial, so my mother said I should stay back to avoid another kidnap. “That was how I got to this camp. I couldn’t continue with my education, because my mother alone could not take care of my schooling and that of my other siblings.”
Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State has inaugurated 25 power bikes procured by the Kano Road Traffic Agency (KAROTA) to control traffic.
Inaugurating the power bikes on Sunday in Kano, Ganduje said the bikes would be used to ensure that road users comply with traffic regulations.
He said the bikes would enable KAROTA personnel to move quickly to monitor traffic, trace violators and go around the city to fish out those smuggling illicit and substandard goods into the state.
The governor urged KAROTA officials to redouble their efforts in controlling traffic and apprehending those who break traffic rulesHe further urged them to ensure that those suspected to be carrying illegal items were traced and arrested.
Ganduje commended KAROTA Managing Director, Baffa Dan’agundi, for the initiative.
Dan’agundi had earlier stated that the agency bought the power bikes with the fund it saved from removing ghost workers from the pay list.
“Sometimes, we see a lot of things happening on the road, we see criminals carrying items in their vehicles but there are no vehicles to quickly trace them to their destinations.“However, with these modern power bikes, we will be able to arrest more criminals,” Dan’agundi assured the governor.
Some masked men have descended on the Fulanis in Oke Ogun area of Oyo State, as they abducted two in the last four days, and demanded N10 million and N3 million from each of their victims.
DAILY INDEPENDENT gathered that 40-year-old Amadu Shehu Imoru was kidnapped on Friday, April 16, 2021, at Oba Ayete Village, while Alhaji Kusore Shadani was abducted two days earlier, on Wednesday, April 14, at Iganna town, both in Oke Ogun.
The first victim’s father, Imoru Gafar, was said to have reported at Ayete Police Station, on April 17, that the armed men invaded their village at about 7 pm on Friday, shooting sporadically, after which they whisked off his son. He further said that the abductors called the line of one Musa Imoru, who is the victim’s brother, on Saturday, April 17, at about 8:20 am, and demanded N10 million as ransom.The caller’s voice and accent were said belong to a Bororo Fulani. On Thursday, April 15, a Fulani man, Shaibu Bello, and one other had reported at Iwere Ile Police Station that on April 14, at about 11 am, he was with four cows to sell at Ibudo Musa with Alhaji Kusore Shadani, owner of the cows, along Ilaji Ile Farm Settlement footpath, when he was blocked by four masked armed men.
He said that the gunmen kidnapped Kusore and took him to an unknown destination.
The kidnappers were said to have called Alhaji Kusore’s brother, one Lati Kusore, who told Bello that the captors demanded N3 million as ransom.
The state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Adewale Osifeso, confirmed the stories when contacted, saying that police operatives were on the trail of the abductors, in a bid to rescue the victims and arrest the crime perpetrators.
The expectations of Nigerians that the improvement in prices of oil in the international market will have a positive impact in the foreign exchange market appear dashed as nothing has really changed in the market.
Analysts are of the opinion that because the foreign exchange market operates with different exchange rates, the possibility of an improvement is very slim and also coupled with the fact that the oil market operates as a futures market. They said oil high prices seen now may not materialise immediately.
According to a Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) report, the foreign exchange market in Nigeria received $5.62 billion in the fourth quarter of 2020 from the CBN in a bid to increase availability of forex to meet the demand for business operation.
The capital disbursed in Q4 last year surpassed the $4.37 billion offered in the preceding quarter. However, the capital fell by 46.1 percent when compared to the corresponding period of 2019 when $9.98 billion was received by the foreign exchange market.
During the period under review, the report stated that Bureau De Change (BDC), as well as investors and exporters’ window sales of forex, rose significantly.
However, Brent prices which averaged above $40/b by June 2020, increased to $50/b by the end of 2020. Prices increased to $65/b in March 2021 due to rising oil demands as COVID-19 vaccination rates increased and economic activity picked up.
Over the past four years, the CBN’s foreign exchange reforms have assisted with improved liquidity.
Significantly, in light of the COVID-19 outbreak, there has been additional vulnerability to swings in oil prices as well as increased exit of foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) which have adversely affected exchange rate stability. Analysts at FBNQuest in a note to Daily Independent, titled, ‘Dynamics within the forex market’, said the demand for forex remains high and the supply is inadequate for regular uses. The CBN’s Investors and Exporters (I&E) window rate is currently N409/$. This compares with N482/$ at the parallel market.
“Oil receipts (including oil-related taxes) contribute to external reserves. Oil prices have continued to firm over the last few months, averaging $61/b in Q1 ‘21. This compares with $45/b recorded in Q4 ‘20. The recovery can be attributed to production cuts by OPEC+ and ongoing mass vaccination across the globe which has fueled optimism on a global economic recovery”, the analysts said.
Despite the welcome recovery in oil prices, economic experts still believe that Nigeria’s foreign exchange market is still faced with uncertainty.
“The gross official reserves declined modestly in March by $279 million, this is subject to a caveat that the figure should be adjusted downwards to allow for the pipeline of delayed external payments, which the IMF estimated late last year at up to $3 billion.
“The modest decline is perhaps due to the CBN’s ‘Dollar for Naira’ initiative, its latest move to boost the flow of Diaspora remittances into the country and thus boost forex supply”, the analysts said.
There have been several calls for the CBN to harmonise the multiple exchange rates in operation, which encourages arbitrage and market fragmentation. This has remained a source of concern for multilaterals and, of course, FPIs. FPI inflows via I&E (or NAFEX) window reduced significantly to $309.2 million in Q1 ‘21, compared with $3.3 billion and $7.8 billion in the corresponding period in 2020 and 2019, respectively.
In Q1 ‘21, the CBN’s contribution to I&E forex inflows was just $83.4 million (4.5% of the total), compared with $1.8 billion (49.6%) in Q4 ‘20 and $5.4 billion (48.7%) in Q1 ‘20.
Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, President, Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), said the only way out of the hiccups in the forex market is that the CBN should unify all rates as this will calm the market.
“The CBN has tried to directly manage the forex market in the last four years but as it is, I think the CBN needs to take a bold step further and unify the exchange rates. This will greatly calm the market”, he noted.
Speaking of hope, analysts at FBNQuest said, “While market participants, including FPIs, are hopeful that the CBN will resume interventions in the I&E window, there has been no significant intervention from the CBN since the beginning of the year. The market has been largely dependent on local autonomous sources.
“As a result of the CBN’s minimal intervention in the I&E window, the NAFEX exchange rate has steadily crept upwards from N394/$ on 04 Jan ‘21 to N409/$ on 09 Apr ‘21. We assume this move by the CBN is an attempt towards possible unification of the various exchange rates”.
In the IMF Article IV on Nigeria released in February, the Fund’s estimates suggest that the naira was overvalued by 18.5 percent, and recommended a gradual and multi-step approach to establishing a unified and clear exchange rate regime, with the near-term focus on allowing for greater flexibility and removing the payments backlog.
Mr. Johnson Chukwu, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer at Cowry Asset Management Limited, said the economy is a very difficult one to navigate because of the happenings in the forex market and that uncertainty in the foreign exchange market came about because of major reasons.
He said, “The truth of the matter is that Nigeria’s crude is sold in the futures market. For instance, this is April, the crude you are selling now, you will not get the money now but sometimes in June or July. When prices of oil go up, you may not get the effect in the market now.
“The second reason is that we still have arrears of forex demand from FPIs and this is increasing. The CBN has arrears that it must pay and we are seeing that these arrears are piling up and are increasing. Naturally, the CBN will be more interested in paying the arrears than to face what is happening now. Instead of deploying the forex to meet immediate demand, they will channel it to settling arrears.
“Thirdly, we should also look at where the policy of the CBN wants the market to be. If they want to intervene, there must be very strong reserves”.
CBN data show that Nigeria’s gross official reserves declined by $280 million to $34.82 billion in March. Analysts believe that in the name of accuracy, this figure should be adjusted downward to allow for the pipeline of delayed external payments, which the IMF estimated late last year at up to $3 billion and which the CBN has since indicated as substantially lower.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two persons for allegedly trafficking 191 pellets of heroin and cocaine via the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
The agency’s Director, Media and Advocacy, Mr. Femi Babafemi, announced this in a statement issued on Sunday in Abuja.
Babafemi said it was coming barely two weeks after a Madrid, Spain-bound trafficker, Okonkwo Chimezie Henry, excreted 113 wraps of cocaine after his arrest at same airport. He said the two suspects excreted 191 pellets of heroin and cocaine while under observation.
He said on April 10 during the outward screening of passengers on Ethiopian airline to Italy, NDLEA operatives in the airport intercepted and referred one Chukwudi Destiny for scanning and the scan result proved positive to drug ingestion.“Consequently, he was placed under excretion observation and in the process; he excreted 92 pellets of Heroin with a total weight of 1.300kg.
“Also on April 12 during the inbound examination of consignments on Ethiopian airline cargo flight from South Africa, operatives at Skyway Aviation Handling Company import shed made a seizure of 11.550kg of heroin.
“This was cleverly packed and concealed in cornflakes cartons. Four clearing agents are in custody in connection to the seizure,” he said.
Babafemi quoted the NDLEA Commander in Lagos State, Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, Ahmadu Garba, as saying a sting operation was executed on the address provided by one of the suspects.
He said that in the process, a Congolese, Kayembe Kamba Mazepy, was arrested, adding that after his arrest, he mentioned another person who was to receive the parcel from him.
“On the strength of the information, another sting operation was conducted in the early hours of April 17, where the person that came to take delivery was arrested,” he said.
Babafemi said that on April 16, another trafficker, Ezekiel Chibuzo, who arrived in Lagos from Brazil on board Qatar airline, was also arrested for alleged drug ingestion.
He said that he had excreted 99 wraps of cocaine, just as he said that officers at export shed of the airport have seized 834.50kg of khat leaves heading to UK and U.S.
Popular Nigerian online comedian, Debo Adebayo, otherwise known as Mr Macaroni, has taken to his verified Twitter account to reveal the ordeal he faced when he was arrested by the police during one of the #EndSARS protests.
Following the October 20, 2020 shootings at the Lekki Tollgate, many people kicked against the recommendation for reopening the tollgate.
The comedian was among those who participated in the protest against the reopening of the tollgate. He was subsequently arrested along with 40 other protesters for defying the Lagos State directive against the protest.
The protesters were later granted N100,000 bail each and arraigned on charges bordering on flouting the COVID-19 protocols on public gatherings and ‘breaking an order not to protest’.
However, comedian stated that while he was in custody, policemen took turns to beat him because he is ‘Mr Macaroni’.
Mr Macaroni
In a series of tweets, he further noted that he would take the case to court.
He wrote, “That very day, I swore never to stop using my platform to call out the evil that the police do. If they can do that to someone people know, imagine what they do to hundreds of thousands of unknown Nigerians.
Former Bad Boy rapper, Robert Ross popularly known as Black Rob is dead. He died on Saturday at the age of 51. This is coming just a few days after the death of rap legend, DMX. The rapper was suffering a variety of ailments including kidney failure before his death. A viral video recently had him singing to DMX songs on his hospital bed. Popular New York City promoter, Van Silk confirmed his death in a statement.
The statement reads: “We have lost another member of our Hip Hop family. “Many may have been unaware that Black Rob was sick over the years until Mark Curry posted the video from the hospital. “My memory of Black Rob was when he would come by DJ Kay Slay’s studio to do the mix tapes. He was someone who you would just wanna hang around with. May my brother Rest In Heaven.” The death has left the Hip Hop community in pains considering that DMX died just eight days ago with Black Rob offering his condolences from a hospital bed. The Harlem rapper had four albums over the course of his career and got featured on a variety of records with artists on Bad Boy, remixes to Total’s single “What About Us,” Faith’s “Love Like Us,” Mase’s “24 Hrs and so many others.
The Federal Government, through the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, has grounded a private chopper belonging to Pastor Enoch Adeboye of the Redeemed Christian Church of God at the Lagos Airport.
It was learnt that the aircraft, AgustaWestland AW139 chopper, with registration number 5N-EAA, was suspended from flying over two weeks ago, following the expiration of some of its papers and spare parts. The suspension, officials said, would also allow the regulator to conduct vital safety checks on its safety-critical components, especially some spare parts due for replacement.
Adeboye had, last Saturday during a special meeting with all ordained ministers of the mission at the RCCG, Region 21, in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, called for drastic action against corrupt practices in all facets of Nigeria.
The RCCG leader, who flew a chopper to the venue, said he arrived late for the meeting because someone had requested a bribe from him to fly his helicopter.
He said he had decided to embark on the trip via his chopper to avoid a possible gridlock on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, SundayPUNCH, reports.
The 79-year-old mathematician-turned-preacher said, “I don’t give excuses because I have discovered long ago that only failures give excuses. But you must pray for Nigeria.
“Something must be done about corruption in this nation. All I can say is that I am this late because somebody wanted a bribe. And you know if you are expecting a bribe from me, you have to wait forever.
“But the devil has failed. And the devil will continue to fail. I decided to come by helicopter so that there won’t be a traffic jam that would tie me down on the expressway because I know what the devil could do.
“Then, I ran into something else. But by the grace of God, we are here.”
Although Sunday PUNCH could not ascertain who requested the alleged bribe from the revered servant of God, investigations by the paper revealed that the cleric’s chopper was suspended from flying by the regulatory authority over safety issues.
Multiple aviation sources confirmed that Adeboye could not fly his chopper with registration number 5N-EAA to the Ibadan programme but had to fly another aircraft reportedly belonging to Bishop David Oyedepo of the Living Faith Church (Winners Chapel).
A top official of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, who is close to the operations of the two choppers belonging to the servants of God, said, “The team relating directly with Daddy G.O. should have told the man of God on time that the NCAA had not cleared his chopper and, as such, it couldn’t go on the Ibadan trip.
Pastor Adeboye
“They shouldn’t have waited till the last minute. The NCAA (aviation regulatory agency) we have now is different from what it used to be. A new man in charge always insists that things must be done properly as far as the safety of lives is concerned. The church’s protocol team should have told him that the NCAA has not cleared the aircraft and it may not clear it within a short time because certain procedures must be followed. As such, an alternative arrangement should have been made.”
The NAMA official, who chose to speak on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to talk about the matter, further said, “On that last Saturday morning, when it later became obvious that the jet was not cleared to fly, they had to make an alternative arrangement with Bishop Oyedepo’s chopper. They had to quickly begin that process by filing the flight plan, etc. It was Bishop’s aircraft that Pastor Adeboye later flew to the event. He could not use his own.”
A top official of Omni-Blu Aviation, the airline operating the chopper for Adeboye, confirmed the development.
The official, who chose to speak on condition of anonymity, said a letter from Italy-based Leonardo, the manufacturer of Adeboye’s AW 139 helicopter, requesting the NCAA to grant a time extension on some spare parts that are due for replacement came late.
The spare parts due for replacement have been ordered from the manufacturer but they have yet to be shipped into Nigeria because they are usually produced on demand, according to Omni-Blu Aviation.
He said, “The NCAA that we have now is different from what it used to be. It always insists on a standard. We don’t want any disappointing situation for anybody, especially for a globally reputed servant of God like Daddy G.O.
“It appears the man of God was not properly briefed. But we thank God an alternative arrangement was made to rescue the situation. Safety is first and paramount. No life is worth toying with, how much more that of a servant of God like Daddy G.O. As an airline, we won’t compromise safety no matter the pressure.”
The Omni-Blu official denied knowledge of any bribe request, either by the airline or aviation officials.
He, however, said it was not impossible that some people might have cashed in on the situation to demand a bribe.
“You know some people don’t fear God no matter what. They can even go to the extent of asking a servant of God for a bribe. So, it is not impossible. But on our part, I am not aware of such.”
As it stands, it is uncertain when Adeboye’s chopper will be allowed to fly.
However, findings revealed that the NCAA had directed maintenance and safety checks to be conducted on the aircraft.
As such, the operator has secured a date for this at Aero’s maintenance hangar.
When contacted for comments, the Director-General, NCAA, Captain Musa Nuhu, confirmed that the regulatory agency had suspended flights on the aircraft for safety reasons.
According to him, the NCAA does not often deal directly with individuals or owners of aircraft but the operator.
In this case, he said the NCAA only had business with the operator of the aircraft, Omni-Blu Aviation.
Nuhu said, “There are safety-related issues that must be resolved before the aircraft will be approved for resumption of flights. Safety is the paramount consideration in all approvals given by the NCAA. No matter what, we must not sacrifice safety for flights; that is the whole idea.”
When contacted, the spokesperson for RCCG, Pastor Olaitan Olubiyi, said the matter was already resolved.
He said the church would not want to take issue with the aviation authorities on the bribery allegation.
Olubiyi said, “We will not want to take issue with the aviation authorities but I can assure you that an amicable solution is being found to the issue.”
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