Tension has enveloped Eke community of Enugu State over alleged killings by soldiers.

The troops reportedly killed a volunteer member of the neighbourhood vigilante group and a housewife.

There were also claims that the soldiers shot several of the villagers, who are recuperating in a hospital visited by journalists.

But the authorities of the Nigerian Army refuted the allegations and said the female victim was hit by a bullet from armed robbers who engaged their soldiers in a gun duel.

Journalists who visited the community and hospital (name withheld) where the victims are currently receiving medical attention, were told that the ugly development has instilled fear into the residents and has made then to stop going to their farms.

The soldiers, were said to have equally shot three other members of the local security outfit at close range, leaving them with various degrees of bullet injuries, including one whose penis was completely shattered.

The director-general of Voice of Nigeria (VON), Mr Osita Okechukwu, immediate past minister of foreign affairs, Mr Geoffery Onyeama, and a chieftain of the ruling All progressives Congress (APC) Barrister Godwin Onwusi, who ran for the Udi North state constituency in the just concluded 2023 general election hail from the community.

Mr Ebuka Oke, the deceased shot dead during the alleged attack by the soldiers, was said to have lost his father exactly one month on the same day he was killed.

The assistant chief security officer of Eke Security Neighbourhood Vigilante Watch, Mr Emeka Anigbo, who had several gunshots all over his body and was in terrible pains told journalists who visited him in his hospital bed that they were at 9th mile Conner on Thursday night where they had gone to felicitate with their colleagues who were being inaugurated as neighbourhood watch members, when they got a distress call that armed robbers blocked the major road leading to the popular Catholic Church Prayer Centre (Ugwudinso) and Eke, from Ama breweries.

He said on receiving the call, they abandoned the food and drinks they were about consuming, and swiftly drove out with a view to confronting the criminal elements, but due to heavy traffic gridlock occasioned by the blockage of the road, they could not get to the scene with their vehicle.

He said they decided to park their vehicle along the road, and started moving towards the place, and that while approaching the scene, they saw three armed soldiers who ordered them to stop.

He stated that they obeyed the soldiers and identified themselves, saying that they were neighbourhood vigilante watch guard, adding that they were then asked by the soldiers to keep coming.

He continued that when they got closer, the soldiers started firing at them, killing one of them.

He claimed the soldiers shot dead the wife of one of those who were inaugurated at 9th Mile, who was on a motorcycle with her husband going back to Eke.

Efforts to speak with Chinedu Okolo, whose manhood was shattered by the soldiers’ bullets failed, as he could not utter a word to journalists due to severe pains, just as the third victim, Obinna Offor was also seen passing through excruciating pains, while under oxygen support at the intensive care unit (ICU).

Some natives of Eke Community, who spoke on condition of anonymity condemned the unprofessional conducts of the soldiers in strong terms, describing it as barbaric and callous and called for independent investigation.

When contacted, the deputy director, Army Public Relations, 82 Division Nigerian Army, Lieutenant Colonel Jonah Unuakhalu, described as untrue the narrative of the victims, saying from the available information in the Division’s disposal, the deceased woman was killed by a stray bullet from armed hoodlums who engaged the soldiers in a shootout.

He stated that the troops received a distress call that some criminal elements were operating along the Eke road, and they immediately rushed to the scene, adding that on sighting the soldiers the hoodlums opened fire on them, but the security operatives overpowered them, leading to the arrest of one of them, and recovering of two pump action guns and some live bullets, after some ran into a nearby bush.

The 82 Division spokesman, who said he has no information regarding the second deceased, added that it was in the course of the exchange of fire between the troop and the hoodlums that a stray bullet got the deceased housewife who was rushed to the hospital, but unfortunately, later died.

“So, there is no iota of truth in the information being peddled around that it was soldiers that killed the deceased. Our men only rushed to the scene to salvage the situation, after receiving a distress call,” he insisted.

“It’s unfortunate that the woman died, if not, she would have been in the best position to narrate exactly what happened,” he added.

He assured that the Division is going to carry out proper investigation on the incident, so as to unravel what actually transpired.

But, a native of the community, who do not want his name in print has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to constitute a panel of inquiry to carry out thorough investigation on the unfortunate incident.

Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan has won the women’s 100m hurdles at the Stockholm Diamond League.

In Sunday’s race, Amusan ran 12.52s to emerge winner.

She defeated Sarah Lavin who clocked a personal best of 12.73s to place second while Pia Skrzyszowska finished third in 12.78s.

Amusan is the current world record holder in the 100m hurdles.

In 2022, she broke the women’s 100m world record in the semi-finals clocking 12.12 seconds, and two hours later in the final won the gold medal in an even faster time of 12.06.

Athletes are awarded points instead of medals for competing in each leg of the Diamond League series.

The top eight athletes in each event at the end of all the legs will qualify for the Diamond League Final, where they will compete for the trophy.

The competition in Stockholm was the seventh event of the Diamond League 2023 season.

The Diamond League 2023 series will wrap up with the two-day final in Eugene, the USA on September 16 and 17.

Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa, a former governor of Sokoto State and a trustee for the Peoples Democratic Party, expressed worry on Sunday about the banditry in the North-West and North-East, claiming it has posed a severe danger to food security in Nigeria.

According to him, President Bola Tinubu’s administration should prioritise food security rather than discussing cabinet ministerial selections, subsidies, and the economy.

The wise man also forewarned that the North will experience serious educational backwardness over the next 50 years if tough steps were not implemented to reduce insecurity.

Bafarawa, who stated these in an interview with The PUNCH, said that many primary and secondary schools in Northern Nigeria have been shut down because of the activities of bandits, saying, “This is a serious disaster.”

Our correspondent reported that while the announcement by the government of the removal of subsidy on petrol culminated in a hike in the price of food and consumables, discussions about the ministerial appointment by the President have dominated discussion in recent times.

But Bafarawa advised that the government should set its priorities correctly.

He said, “Instead of talking about cabinet, subsidy, and the economy, the government should consider food security because with the rate we are going, in the next three months, we are definitely going to have problems in Nigeria, especially in the North-West.

“The bandits have refused to allow farmers to cultivate their crops. This is a very dangerous situation, not only because the bandits are killing people but also because the food scarcity is going to be too serious in the next few months, especially in the North West and North East. So, we want the government to wake up and do something about it.

“Also, with the way education is going, in the next 50 years, we are going to be very backward in education because most of the primary schools in the North have been closed because of banditry. There are no primary schools, no secondary schools and this is a serious disaster. So, we cannot sit down and watch; something must be done right before it gets worse.

“The government should fight security, especially food insecurity, in the country because it’s a serious matter. Whatever the government is going to do, let the issue of food security be top priority.”

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Major General Taoreed Lagbaja has enjoined troops of the Nigerian Army (NA) to compliment their military effort with prayers for the success of the Nigerian Army (NA) in its operational engagements.

The Army Chief made the clarion call at the Interdenominational Church Service marking the Nigerian Army Day Celebration (NADCEL) 2023 on Sunday at the Mogadishu Military Cantonment, Abuja.

Recall that the NA on Wednesday commenced the commemoration of its 160th year of existence since 1867, when 18 men known as the Glover Hausas of the Royal Navy were organized into a formidable force that it is now.

Gen Lagbaja stated that the NA remains the pride of the nation and a force to reckon with in Africa and globally.

He noted that the Interdenominational Church Service is among the series of activities earmarked for all NA formations and units to commemorate the birth of the NA, as a symbol of national unity and integration.

“It also provides the opportunity for prayers and supplications to be made to God Almighty on behalf of the Nigerian Army, the Armed Forces of Nigeria and the nation in general”.

“As we mark our 160th year, I must confess that our journey has not been a bed of roses, as the Nigerian Army, in the course of holding our nation together, has fought a civil war, participated in peacekeeping cum peace enforcement missions and is currently involved in combating terrorism, insurgency and other criminalities across the country”, the Army Chief averred”, he said.

Gen Lagbaja reiterated that the various engagements of the NA within and outside the shores of Nigeria have resulted in the loss of loved ones and breadwinners.

“We have bled, we have piled up the wounded in action, and the population of our widows and widowers as well as orphans has swelled. Our sacrifices are for the love of God, humanity and country,” he stated.

He urged all NA personnel to reflect on the security challenges and include them in their prayers, believing that God Almighty will crown the efforts of the NA and the Armed Forces of Nigeria with success.

The COAS charged all personnel to continue to do their best to reciprocate government’s gesture by remaining loyal, disciplined, patriotic and undaunting, as they combat security challenges in the various theatres of operations.

He pledged more commitment to troops’ welfare and wellbeing under his command.

More than 100 protesters have taken to the streets of Lausanne as protests sparked by the killing of 17-year-old French-Algerian Nahel M. by police in France spread to Switzerland.

Although nowhere near the scale of the protests in France, protesters attacked shops and police forces, throwing stones and Molotov cocktails on Saturday evening.

“Echoing the events and riots raging in France, more than a hundred youths gathered in central Lausanne and damaged businesses,” local police said in a statement.

The violence began “following several calls on social media”, police said, and “several shop windows were smashed”.

Seven people, including six minors aged 15-17, were arrested during the riots in the French-speaking city.

No injuries were reported during the violent riots, for which around 50 police officers were deployed.

Racial tensions

France has seen a wave of violent protests since a police officer shot dead 17-year-old Nahel M. point blank after the teen allegedly failed to comply with police during a traffic stop on Tuesday in Nanterre, a suburb of Paris, France.

Angry protesters have torched cars, damaged infrastructure and clashed with police in an outpouring of rage over the killing of Nahel, who has Algerian origins.

His death was captured on video, which spread on social media and fueled anger over police violence against minorities, exposing severe racial tensions in France.

The protests also spread to Belgium on Thursday, where 63 people have been arrested so far.

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has said it will prosecute one Ejikeme Mmesoma for allegedly inflating her score from 249 to 362 in the 2023 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, thus parading herself as the 2023 UTME top scorer.

The examination body said it also uncovered one Atung Gerald from Kaduna State, who never sat the exam, but claimed to have scored 380.

In a statement on Sunday by its spokesman, Dr Fabian Benjamin, JAMB said it found the case of Mmesoma particularly pathetic as she had allegedly hoodwinked unspecting members of the public, including businessman, Chief Innocent Chukwuma, who offered her N3m in scholarship, while a state honour was being planned to celebrate her.

The JAMB spokesperson said, “The attention of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has been drawn to several publications in both print and online media celebrating certain candidates for being high scorers in the 2023 UTME.

“The board is constrained to set the records straight and wishes to state unequivocally that many of the results which many of these candidates are parading are fake. In many instances, some of these candidates had actually obtained far lower scores than they are claiming and had used some funny software packages to manipulate their results to deceive unsuspecting members of the public.

“The most pathetic of them all is the case of Miss Ejikeme Joy Mmesoma, who claimed to have scored 362 in the 2023 UTME and was awarded a N3m scholarship by Chief Innocent Chukwuma.

“She was even set to be honoured by the Anambra State Government when one of its top officials put a call through to JAMB to confirm her claim only for the board to reveal that Miss Ejikeme Joy Mmesoma had actually scored 249 and not 362 she claimed.

“She had manipulated her UTME result to deceive the public to fraudulently obtain scholarship and other recognitions.”

On the case of Gerald, who claimed to have scored 380, JAMB said, “His ethnic group had taken the issue up, requesting that he should be given special recognition only for the board to disappoint them with the incontestable fact that Atung never obtained the 2023 UTME application documents not to talk of sitting the examination.”

JAMB said, “With this her ignoble act, Miss Mmesoma would be prosecuted and her original result withdrawn. This is not all, as the board would, in due course, investigate all candidates laying claims to higher scores than they actually obtained.

“Once discovered, such candidates’ original results would be withdrawn forthwith and they would be handed over to relevant security agencies for prosecution.”

The Anambra State Commissioner for Education, Prof. Ngozi Chuma-Udeh, told The PUNCH that the state already discovered Nmesioma’s claim to be false and had gone ahead to honour another candidate, Nkechinyere Umeh, who scored 360.

The Special Adviser to the President on Special Duties, Communications, and Strategy, Dele Alake, has vehemently rejected the European Union’s final report on the 2023 general elections conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The EU’s report claimed that INEC “severely damaged” its reputation over it’s poor conduct of the presidential election won by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

But Alake, in the statement, recalled that Tinubu’s campaign organization had previously alerted Nigerians about the EU’s alleged plan to discredit the 2023 general elections.

The statement accused the EU of being biased and unrelenting in its assault on the credibility of Nigeria’s electoral process and sovereignty.

The government, led by President Tinubu, expressed its disapproval of any foreign organization’s attempt to impose its assessment as the only yardstick for determining the credibility and transparency of Nigerian elections.

Alake insisted that the 2023 general elections, especially the presidential election, were credible, peaceful, free, fair, and the best organized in the country since 1999.

The statement challenged the EU’s assessment, questioning the limited coverage of the elections by their observers.

Faulting the Head of EU’s Electoral Observation Mission, Barry Andrews, who read out the body’s findings during a recent press conference in Abuja, Alake claimed that the EU-EOM (European Union Election Observation Mission) monitored the elections with only 11 analysts based in Abuja and 40 election observers across 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, “which the government believed was insufficient for adequately observing over 176,000 polling units in Nigeria.”

He added, “We would like to know and even ask EU, how it reached the conclusions in the submitted final report with the very limited coverage of the elections by their observers who, without doubt, relied more on rumours, hearsay, cocktails of prejudiced and uninformed social media commentaries and opposition talking heads.

“We are convinced that what EU-EOM called final report on our recent elections is a product of a poorly done desk job that relied heavily on few instances of skirmishes in less than 1000 polling units out of over 176,000 where Nigerians voted on election day.

“We have many reasons to believe the jaundiced report, based on the views of fewer than 50 observers, was to merely sustain the same premature denunciatory stance contained in EU’s preliminary report released in March.

“We strongly reject, in its entirety, any notion and idea from any organisation, group and individual remotely suggesting that the 2023 election was fraudulent.”

Alake concluded that President Tinubu’s leadership has been positively received by Nigerians, and that the government remains committed to implementing reforms that will further strengthen the country’s electoral process in the future.

Some of the candidates in the election, including Peter Obi of the Labour Party and Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party, are in court to challenge Tinubu’s victory.

Following the removal of fuel subsidy in Nigeria, the World Bank has projected that inflation may hit 25 per cent in 2023 against the country’s already existing 22.41 percent inflation rate.

This shows that Nigeria is 2.59 per cent points away from the World Bank projection according to the recent May Consumer Price Index (CPI) report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Recall that the World Bank had in January 2022 predicted that Nigeria might have one of the highest inflation rates in the world and the seventh highest in Sub-Saharan Africa.

According to the June 2023 edition of the Nigeria Development Update, the Washington-based bank said that there will be a significant increase in 2023 to 25 per cent as a result of the removal of fuel subsidy.

President Bola Tinubu in May announced the removal of fuel subsidy effective June, this led to an increase in petrol prices across states in the country.

The World Bank said: “The removal of the petrol subsidy is anticipated to cause a temporary increase in inflation in the upcoming months before contributing to disinflation in the medium term.

“The price increases resulting from the subsidy removal will have a one-time impact on prices, primarily affecting petrol purchases for transportation, power generation, and certain services.

“Also, headline inflation is expected to rise from 18.8 percent in 2022 to 25 percent in 2023. However, by Q1 of 2024, the subsidy removal will start to have a disinflationary effect, meaning that it will alleviate inflationary pressures despite higher petrol prices.”

According to the World Bank, the country’s consumer price inflation has surged and is currently one of the highest globally, despite the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) various measures to control rising inflation, including raising the monetary policy rate by 700 basis points.

The bank said, “The loss of purchasing power from high inflation has increased poverty in the short-term, pushing an estimated 4 million Nigerians into poverty between January and May 2023.”

However, the Bank noted that the removal of the fuel subsidy would reduce the government’s dependence on funding from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the long run.

Professor Jibrin Ibrahim, member, governing board of the Center for Democracy and Development (CDD), has said the planned palliative by the federal government could fail to serve its intended purpose just like that of COVID-19.

After the removal of subsidy, President Bola Tinubu had set up a committee to strategies on palliative to cushion the effect of the policy which led to pump price of fuel being jacked up times three.

Speaking on an ARISE TV programme, Prof Ibrahim said, “The palliative can easily become another fuel subsidy and we saw that very clearly during COVID-19, where the ministry of disaster management claimed they were paying billions of naira every month for school feeding.

“And we knew that schools were closed, children were at home, and when that question was posed, the response was they had traced the people and students, and the question then became ‘how?’

“We do know that for the fuel subsidy, there have been a significant attempt to identify and map the poor in this country. This has been going over the last decade; they do have a list of very poor families. There is a history of conditional grant supports to families.

“I believe that when the audit is done on some of the palliatives paid during COVID-19, it will be discovered that it’s one of the greatest robberies in the history of this country. So, that’s the problem with with subsidy palliative.”

Earlier in April, the federal government under former President Muhammadu Buhari had said it had secured the sum of $800 million from the World Bank, as part of its post-subsidy palliative plans.

It had promised to pay N5,000 to 10 million poor households for six months as palliative for removing petrol subsidy after June.

Bishop of Sokoto Catholic Diocese, Mathew Kukah, has called on Federal Government to enforce the provision for the freedom of religion and worship as enshrined in the nation’s constitution and other laws of land.

According to Bishop Kukah, this can be done by providing adherents of different faiths in the country with places of worship in the various Federal Government establishments across the nation.

The Bishop who spoke to journalists shortly after the inaugural Mass at the catholic chaplaincy of the 119 Composite Group of the Nigeria Air force Sokoto, emphasized the importance of these places of worships that enable personnel to freely practice their religion.

He said most federal government universities, medical centres and other federal government establishments have no provisions for places of worship for Christians especially in many parts of Northern Nigeria, which is in breach of the constitutional provision.