Tuesday, July 01, 2014

Nigeria's Second Republic Minister of Transport, Alhaji Umaru Dikko has died this morning in the United Kingdom.




His family in London and Zaria in Kaduna state confirmed news of his passing to SaharaReporters.





Dikko has been ill for several months; however, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) forced him
to chair the party's disciplinary committee set up by ousted chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur last year.





One of his close associate told this medium last year that Dikko accepted the job at the risk of
his life.




Mr. Dikko was popularly known as one of the most powerful ministers under the Shehu Shagari regime in the early 1980s. When the military ousted the regime via a coup d'etat in 1983, Mr. Dikko escaped to the UK on exile. The military regime led by then head of state, Muhammadu Buhari, accused Dikko of massive corruption and official graft and thus secretly organized his kidnapping from the streets of
London.





In 1984, Mr. Dikko was kidnapped, drugged and packaged as a diplomatic baggage in a cargo ready to be shipped to Lagos Nigeria unconscious. His abductors were later arrested by the UK police as they tried to ship him through Stansed airport in London.





Dikko later returned to Nigeria where he has since participated in politics. He was aged 78.

Tuesday, July 01, 2014

A bomb exploded at a busy market in Maiduguri, Borno state, this morning July1st. Eye-witnesses said the bomb went off around 8am this morning at the busy market near a Power Holding building.





The number of casualty is expected to be high because of how crowded the area is.




A Borno state govt official confirmed the blast to Sahara Reporters, saying the causality number is very high but stated that
security agencies are working to secure the area and rescue victims.
Today's bombing would be the first major bombing by Boko Haram since the beginning of Ramadan.

Tuesday, July 01, 2014

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Senator Bala Mohammed has directed all hotels in the Federal Capital Territory to forward lists of their guests to the FCT Directorate of State Security Services (DSS) and the FCT Police Command everyday.


A statement by the Minister's Special Adviser on Media, Nosike Ogbuenyi said "hotels are equally required to install their individual
security cameras within their vicinity and ensure thorough check of all vehicles entering the hotel and within their surroundings.

The Minister has also directed all residents and resident associations in various parts of the territory to embark on "Operation Know Your Neighbour" campaign.


"The measure is to ensure that all
criminally-minded elements are detected easily within the FCT. The
security department of FCTA is to
liaise with the various security agencies in the FCT on the modalities for implementing the ministerial directive", he said.

Also all traditional rulers in the FCT to start conducting periodic meetings with various communities within their domains to take stock
of strange faces living with them, as well as report all new comers within 48 hours to the local DPO and SSS office".

Mohammed urged all FCT residents to be vigilant and cautious of strange objects or movements of persons, moving and stationery vehicles around them, urging them to report such to the nearest security agencies.

The Minister further directed that all trailer/lorry operators bringing goods to the city shall no longer be allowed to offload their contents
at night.

"All offloading shall henceforth be done in the day time under supervision in designated places", he added, insisting that "owners of
uncompleted and abandoned buildings and structures without security guards will be sanctioned by the FCT Administration.


"Similarly, owners plots of land left
fallow for a long period of time and not used for any economic or gainful
purpose but taken over by criminals
would now face appropriate sanctions", he said.

The Minister reminded residents that the ban on smoking of Indian hemp and other narcotic substances was still in force in the territory,
adding that the Administration has resolved to clamp down on defaulters.

Tuesday, July 01, 2014

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has asked former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode to produce the alleged statement issued by the party, condemning the Federal Government for proscribing the outlawed sect, Boko Haram or be ready to face a legal action.

The opposition party in a statement issued in Lagos on Monday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, denied ever issuing any statement condemning the
proscription of the terror group.


The statement quoted Alhaji Lai Mohammed as saying; "I have caused my attorneys to formally
write both Fani-Kayode and Channel television, where he made his allegation, to retract the statement and apologize, failing which I will
sue for defamation of character.


"Our position on Boko Haram has been well articulated for anyone who cares to know, but at no time did we condemn the government for
proscribing it.

When the state of emergency was declared on three northern states, we criticized it and we stand by that. But we did not condemn the
proscription of Boko Haram. We are not Boko Haram sympathizers and we cannot be under any circumstance," APC said.

APC strongly blasted Fani-Kayode for describing Boko Haram as the armed wing of the APC, saying the statement is most irresponsible, uncharitable and without basis.


"Equally irresponsible and condemnable is Mr. Fani-Kayode's deliberate distortion of statements made in the past by Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to mean that he or his party is a sympathizer of Boko Haram," the party said.


"It is common knowledge that Mr. Fani-Kayode has been charged by the Federal Government with money laundering. The trial is almost ending, and he knows he faces a certain jail term if convicted.

"It is therefore not impossible that Mr. Fani-Kayode may be seeking to ingratiate himself to the FG by using various media platforms to destroy the APC through accusing its leaders of being Boko Haram sponsors or that the party is bent on fielding a Muslim-Muslim ticket in next year's presidential elections.


"Unfortunately, in his eagerness to please the FG and cut a deal to avoid going to jail, he has resorted to pathological lies aimed at calling
the dog a bad name in order to hang it.

Whatever evidence he has to prove that our party is a sponsor of Boko Haram, he should be prepared to tender such in court," APC said.

Tuesday, July 01, 2014

Tragedy struck at the Onikolobo area of Abeokuta, Ogun State on Saturday when a 33-year-old man, Oluwatosin Otaiku, stabbed himself to death after his fiancee, Olaogun Oluwatoyin, discontinued the
relationship.

It was gathered that Otaiku killed himself after his woman told him she was no longer interested in the relationship.

After the girlfriend made a U-turn, the deceased was said to have become worried, and this made neighbours, who were aware of the development, to intervene. Efforts
were made to reconcile them.

On one of such occasions, an eyewitness said the duo was invited to discuss in privacy inside a shop at Safari junction in Onikolobo.


Otaiku was said to have hid a knife in his pocket, prepared to end it all if there was no truce.

It was further gathered that Olaogun stood her ground and maintained that she could not continue with the relationship.

On hearing this unfavourable verdict, the deceased reportedly brought out the knife from his pocket which made Olaogun to run
out of the shop, thinking she was the target.

Olaogun was said to have immediately alerted neighbours who rushed into the shop and met the deceased stabbing himself.

He was said to have been rushed to the Mercy Hospital in the Panseke area of Abeokuta.


From there, he was referred to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, also in Abeokuta, but he died on the way to the hospital.


The case was said to have been reported at the Adigbe Police Division and policemen were sent to the scene for investigation.

While they took the remains of Otaiku to the Ijaye General Hospital mortuary, three other people were whisked away in a Hilux
Van marked, NPF 7092 C.


The State Police Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, confirmed the incident, adding that the police were still holding on to Otaiku's remains until a postmortem examination would be carried out.


Adejobi explained that the command was still examining the statements by the suspects and eyewitnesses.

He said, "The lady is still with us, she is still our suspect for now until we carry out a proper investigation on the corpse.


"We need some time to study the
statements, but the expert's opinion is to carry out a postmortem on the body which we are going to do. I can assure you that the command will do the needful in order to get to the root of the incident."

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