The Chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Taiwo Oyedele, has announced that the committee intends to propose legislation to the National Assembly to raise the value-added tax (VAT) from its current rate of 7.5% to 10%.
Oyelede disclosed this during an interview on Channels TV’s Politics Today.
He elaborated on the committee’s efforts to streamline various taxes in Nigeria to facilitate a reduction in the overall tax burden.
He further indicated that the tax legislation prepared by the committee is set to be presented to the National Assembly.
Oyedele said, “We have significant issues in our tax revenue. We have issues of revenue generally, which means tax and non-tax. You can describe the whole fiscal system in a state that is in crisis.
“When my committee was set up, we had three broad mandates. The first one was to look at governance: our finances as a country, borrowing, and coordination within the federal government and across sub-national.
“The second one was revenue transformation. The country’s revenue profile is abysmally low. If you dedicate our whole revenue to fixing roads it will be insufficient. The third is on government assets.
“The law we are proposing to the National Assembly has a rate of 7.5%, moving to 10% from 2025. We don’t know how soon they will be able to pass the law. Then subsequent increases are also indicated in terms of the year they will kick in.
“While we are doing that, we have a corresponding reduction in personal income tax. Anybody who is earning about ₦1.5 million a month or less will see their personal income tax come down. Companies will have income tax rates come down by 30% over the next two years to 25%. That is a significant reduction.
“Other taxes they pay are quite many: IT levy, education tax, etc. We are consolidating all these into a single one. They will pay 4% initially. That will go down to 2& in the next few years.”
President Bola Tinubu is set to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing today (Tuesday) as part of his ongoing diplomatic mission to China.
Tinubu, who departed Abuja last Thursday, is on a significant visit aimed at strengthening bilateral relations between Nigeria and China.
Sources within the Presidency who spoke with Punch revealed that the meeting is expected to be a high-profile event, marked by formalities such as a gun salute and an inspection of the guard of honor.
The event is expected to conclude with the signing of several bilateral agreements between the two nations.
Governor of Kaduna State, Uba Sani, and Huawei Technologies Company signed a Memorandum of Understanding to advance the Smart City Project in Kaduna State.
The governor, on his verified X account, stated, “Today, I had the honour and privilege of signing a Memorandum of Understanding between the Kaduna State Government and Huawei Technologies Company, Nigeria Limited at the Huawei Technologies office in Beijing, China.
“Chris Lu, CEO, Huawei Technologies, Nigeria Limited, signed on behalf of the company. The ceremony was witnessed by our dear President, H.E. Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, my colleague governors, ministers and other senior government officials.
“The MOU is for the actualisation of the Smart City Project in Kaduna State. It is geared towards enhancing security, efficiency and transparency in public service, competitiveness, city management, and attracting talents and investments. The ultimate goal is the establishment of a safer and smarter Kaduna State.
“As the strategic partner of the Kaduna State Government, Huawei will provide comprehensive leading solutions and professional technical support for Kaduna State in the following areas: (i) State-Level Unified Command Centre (ii) Enhanced Security (iii) Intelligent Traffic System (iv) E-Government and Office Automation (v) Smart Education (vi) Smart Healthcare (vii) ICT Talent (viii) Renewable Energy, and (ix) Public Transportation.
“The Kaduna State Government and Huawei will establish a joint committee to flesh out details of the Implementation Plan, Funding Arrangement, and the Technology to be Deployed. We want to ensure that the project is deliverable, sustainable, and valuable.”
[NaijaNews]
Nigeria’s downstream petroleum industry may have gone into a frenzy, following clear indications that the Federal Government may no longer sustain the cost of under-recovery, otherwise known as subsidy, due to a the steady rise in petrol import bills.
Industry operators told Vanguard yesterday that it is now clear that pump price may be officially raised soon to enable the government, through the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, to generate enough funds to settle its outstanding bills on products received on credit supply by several international dealers.
Consequently, they speculated that a compromise pump price of N1,000 per litre or more may be underway, though some of them quoted the landing cost of the product at about N1,200 per litre, excluding the cost of delivery to petrol stations.
Presently, NNPCL, according to the dealers, is no longer getting adequate supply to meet the nation’s needs, a situation which has worsened the product scarcity in the past one week while imposing excruciating pains on the transportation sector and the entire citizenry.
The shortage in supply, they further explained, was because some of the suppliers are no longer willing to deliver the product on credit. They also said that more of the products are now being smuggled out of the country.
The current transactional analysis obtained by Vanguard, yesterday, put the landing cost, including product cost, finance cost, freight, port charges, insurance, storage and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA at N1,205.52 per litre.
However, when the transportation cost, marketers’ margins and dues were added, the estimated official pump cost of the product rose to N1,405 per litre.
This indicates that at the proposed N1,000/ltr, under-recovery (subsidy) would still be significantly high, a situation which they said has put the government in a dilemma of choosing between full cost recovery (total elimination of subsidy) or a compromise position of splitting the cost between government and final consumers in a N1,000/ltr pump price.
NNPCL overwhelmed by subsidy
The NNPC Ltd has already indicated that it cannot continue to sustain fuel importation at rising cost while passing the cost to final consumers is proving a difficult decision.
The nation’s oil company was permitted by President Bola Tinubu to utilise the 2023 final dividends due the federation, amounting to N2.1 trillion, to pay for the petrol subsidy.
The president also approved the suspension of the payment of 2024 interim dividends to the federation to augment NNPC’s cash flow, according to a presidency source.
In addition, the national oil company told the president it will be unable to remit taxes and royalties to the federation account for now because of subsidy payments, which it termed “subsidy shortfall/FX differential”.
NNPC’s cumulative petrol subsidy bill from August 2023 has been estimated at N6.884 trillion by December 2024, making it impossible for the company to remit N3.987 trillion in taxes and royalties to the federation account.
In June 2024, NNPC cried out to Tinubu that the subsidy payments were negatively impacting its cash flow and it was struggling to remain a “going concern”, adding that it might not be able to sustain petrol imports because of the ballooning subsidy bill, which it blamed on “forex pressure”.
Also, Mele Kyari, Group CEO of NNPC, informed the president that when the subsidy was removed in June 2023, it led to monthly savings of N400 billion to the federation, which enabled the company to remit its taxes and royalties totalling N2.032 trillion into a sequestered account at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as at January 2024.
However, in August 2023, the fuel importation costs began to rise, incurring a subsidy bill of N52.73 billion that further rose to N57.59 billion in September and N212.28 billion in October before rising further to N665.60 billion in November, following depreciation of the Naira.
New pump price expected this month
Considering the situation petroleum marketers expect the government to emerge with a new fuel pump price to give direction to the market this month.
A source who opted to remain anonymous said: “We expect that the market would be driven by the forces of demand and supply in the domestic market.
“However, the government would still be guiding the market, mainly through the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA that has the responsibility to regulate as well as enforce compliance”.
NMDPRA’s Chief Executive, Engr. Farouk Ahmed did not take calls nor respond to text message, yesterday.
Marketers give conditions for importation
Oil marketers said they are not considering importation immediately because of issues and challenges, including foreign exchange, high cost of funds and uncertainty in the sector
Managing Director, 11 Plc, Adetunji Oyebanji, said: “Well, marketers were unable to import earlier when the subsidy was called off due to FOREX instability and that of the naira that was floated as at the time. These developments have hindered marketers from importing petrol.
“However, the situation with Forex is now steady (away from the jumps) and yes, marketers will import if they are given the chance to. There is no challenge if they are called upon to serve.
“As long as everyone is selling in a competitive price range, we will import. “If prices are set at an economic level, other suppliers might enter the market, improving supply and reducing financial strain.”
We can import if given support — IPMAN
In an interview with Vanguard, yesterday, the former national president of the Independent Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, and currently the Board of Trustees Treasurer of IPMAN, Elder Chinedu Okoronko, said that marketers are willing to import provided they are given similar opportunities as NNPCL.
He said: “Government should create a benchmark for marketers importing petroleum products to recover their investment on petroleum products, there should be a threshold for government to get marketers involved in the procedure.
“Dangote should be encouraged to come on stream. This will help reduce our exposure to excessive costs and problems. Whatever it will take for our crude to be refined here will help get us out of this mess. Also, the CNG degradation will reduce our exposure and boost our economy.”
Scarcity hindering our operations — Transporters
The Managing Director of a leading transport company with several offices across the country who wouldn’t like his name on print told Vanguard that fuel scarcity has been one of the major problems of transporters in the country.
He wondered: “Has there been any time that fuel is available in the country? We have resolved that whatever price we buy, we shall review the fares to break even. We won’t be working without making a profit,”
He lamented that the local governments, too, are not helping matters with all manners of levies on Transport Company.
He said: “In Enugu, Abia, Rivers, Cross River, and many others collect not less N5,000 each from every boss daily which they tag daily ticket. Also, security agencies extort drivers on the highways, making the business very difficult for transporters.
He also noted that drivers are forced to cough out huge amounts for failure to provide the already suspended proof of ownership receipt by the government.
All these, he said have contributed to the fare hike across the country. A journey from Lagos to the Eastern part of the country costs as much as N30,000 as against N15,000 a few years ago.
Motorists lament as the situation worsens
Checks by Vanguard indicated that the fuel situation within Lagos metropolis and environs has worsened, due to limited supply.
The checks indicated that many filling stations on Ikorodu Road, Agege, Iyana-Ipaja, Ikeja, Somolu, Bariga, Ogba and Surulere were closed.
Meanwhile, some motorists who spoke with Vanguard, yesterday, expressed frustration at the persistent scarcity of petrol.
They also decried the long queues at filling stations as well as increased black market sale of the product at various locations, including Ikorodu, Epe, Badagry, and Ibeju-Lekki, where a litre of petrol sold for N940 and above.
Dangote Refinery Concludes Fuel Refining Plans
Meanwhile, Dangote Group said it has commenced petrol refining, raising hope for increased domestic fuel supply.
Chief Branding and Communications officer of Dangote Group, Anthony Chiejina said the refinery on the outskirts of Lagos, built by Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote, can meet demand.
With a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, Africa’s largest refinery promises to ease oil producer Nigeria’s costly reliance on imported oil products.
Dangote Petroleum Refinery said it was undergoing test runs for petrol production by mid-September 2024.
Experts harp on cooperation
Meanwhile, some experts in the oil and gas business have urged the Federal Government to collaborate with local refineries to process the daily allocation of 445,000 barrels of crude oil for domestic use, based on a tolling arrangement.
Senior Independent Non-Executive Director at Seplat Energy Plc., Mr Rabiu Bello, said that collaborating with local refineries would help the government to secure petroleum products needed for domestic consumption and allow the export of excess products.
Bello said that such collaboration would enable the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and other local refineries to operate profitably and achieve over 65 per cent capacity utilisation without requiring substantial additional investments in crude oil supplies.
He said that the Federal Government should conduct a forensic audit of NNPC/NNPCL’s financial records to assess the actual cost of importing and delivering petroleum products to Nigeria from 2012 to 2024.
Similarly, Mr Henry Adigun, an oil and gas consultant, also called for full implementation of the PIA to streamline operations in Nigeria’s downstream sector of Nigeria’s petroleum industry.
Adigun said that the current fuel scarcity could be mitigated if the government could pay outstanding debts to importers and allow fuel prices to return to market levels.
UEFA has revealed that there will be a reduction in the maximum amount clubs can charge for away tickets in Europe’s three men’s club competitions this season.
The new price caps for away tickets are as follows: Champions League games will be capped at 60 euros, the Europa League at 40 euros, and the Conference League at 20 euros. It’s important to note that these caps apply only to visiting fans and not to home supporters.
From next season, the maximum price for Champions League away tickets will be further reduced to 50 euros, and the Europa League to 35 euros. These changes come as part of UEFA’s efforts to enhance the matchday experience for all fans and to keep football an inclusive sport, valuing and recognizing the contributions of travelling supporters who follow their teams across Europe.
Note that this is not the first time price caps have been introduced. In the 2019-2020 season, the maximum prices were set at 70 euros for the Champions League and 45 euros for the Europa League. These adjustments are a response to incidents in previous seasons where fans protested against high away ticket prices.
UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin emphasized that these changes mark another important step in enhancing the fan experience, reaffirming UEFA’s commitment to making football more fan-friendly.
He said: “This marks another key step in reaffirming Uefa’s commitment to enhancing the matchday experience for all fans.
“By introducing more fan-friendly policies, we continue our mission to keep football as an inclusive sport, where supporters who travel across Europe to follow their teams are valued and recognised.”
[NaijaNews]
The Federal Government of Nigeria, through the Debt Management Office (DMO), has opened offers for subscription to Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) savings bonds for September 2024.
According to a statement by the DMO, the subscription period will last for five days, starting from September 2nd.
The statement indicates that the two-year savings bonds, maturing on September 11, 2026, are offered at an interest rate of 17.202%, while the three-year savings bonds are available at 18.202%.
Each unit of the bond is priced at N1,000, with a minimum subscription requirement of N5,000 and subsequent multiples of N1,000. The maximum allowable subscription is N50,000,000. Interest payments on FGN bonds are made quarterly (four times a year).
The subscription period for these bonds commenced on September 2, 2024, and will remain open until September 6, 2024, according to an announcement by the DMO.
Settlement is planned for September 11, 2024, with quarterly coupon payments scheduled for December 11, March 11, June 11, and September 11.
Increased interest rate
The interest rate of 18.202% on FGN savings bonds stands as one of the highest in recent times and reflects the prevalent high-interest rate environment in the country. In the same month of last year, the interest rate on FGN savings bonds for September 2023 was offered at an interest rate of 12.031% representing an increase of 6.17 percentage points in one year.
The increase in interest rate for FGN bonds is due to the actions of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) since February when it began its rising interest rate to stem inflation and stabilize the forex market by attracting Foreign Capital Investments (FPIs).
The apex bank over four Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meetings has raised interest rates by 800 basis points to control inflation. This has resulted in significant interest in the FGN savings bonds offer.
Result of FGN bond auction for August
- In August, the Federal Government of Nigeria raised N374.751 billion through its FGN bond auction, demonstrating continued strong investor interest in longer-term securities.
- The auction featured three distinct bonds with tenors of 5 years, 7 years, and 9 years, marking a crucial step in Nigeria’s efforts to secure funding for ongoing national projects.
- The 9-year bond stood out as the favourite among investors, with an impressive subscription of N375.083 billion, far exceeding the offered amount of N50 billion. The bond was allotted N314.213 billion at a marginal rate of 21.50%, indicating a substantial oversubscription of 650.17%.
[Nairametrics]
Several demonstrators hit the streets of Abuja to demand the immediate dismissal of the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Limited, Mele Kyari, over the lingering fuel scarcity.
The protest came out on the heels of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited’s confession that its substantial debt to suppliers was endangering the sustainable fuel supply.
Among other things, the corporation highlighted the financial strain was placing significant pressure on its operations and threatening the stability of fuel supplies.
Chanting solidarity songs, they displayed several banners such as: ‘We are tired of fuel scarcity and stories on why refineries are not working, ‘No direction under Kyari’ and ‘We want accountability in the affairs of NNPCL’.
Addressing reporters on Monday at Unity Fountain after the rally in Abuja, Convener of the Coalition of Concerned Civil Society Organizations, Aminu Abbas wondered why a nation blessed with oil like Nigeria should continue to suffer acute petrol scarcity.
He said: “To President Ahmed Bola Tinubu and all those in positions of power, we say the time to act is now. Show us that you stand with the people, not those who profit from our misery. Mr Kyari must be shown the way out, and the NNPCL must be reformed to serve the interests of all Nigerians. We will not be silenced.
“The fuel scarcity we endure today is not just a mere inconvenience; it is a calculated perpetuation of suffering. Under Mr Kyari’s leadership, the situation has gone from bad to worse, with no end in sight. What has he done to alleviate this crisis? It is clear he seems intent on maintaining a status quo that benefits only a select few while the masses suffer.
“Why do we, the people, have to endure endless queues, inflated prices, and the daily uncertainty of whether we can fuel our vehicles or power our homes? The answer lies in the gross incompetence and mismanagement that have become the hallmarks of Mr. Kyari’s leadership.”
[TheNation]
A British national wanted by the police, Andrew Wynne, also known as Drew Povey, has said the government was unsettled by the EndBadgovernance protest held across the country.
Wynne expressed regret that the government has been suppressing the protesters instead of responding to the citizens’ demands.
This is as he called on the Nigeria Labour Congress to protect the general public as it did to its President, Joe Ajaero when the police invited him.
Wynne stated this in a statement on Monday titled “Protests, not treason.”
It read, “The mass protests over #EndBadGovernance and #EndHunger frightened the government. However, the government turned to repression rather than addressing the people’s demands. Perhaps 40 people were murdered by the police and other security forces, thousands were arrested, and many remain in captivity.
“In Abuja, the authorities have attacked the so-called leaders and organisers of the protests. Ten people face ridiculous charges including treason, mutiny and levying war against the state.”
Wynne noted that the first person arrested by the police, Eleojo Opaluwa, was a former colleague of the Nigeria Labour Congress President, Joe Ajaero and the Vice Chairman of the Union in Kogi State.
He said, “The first person to be arrested in this case was Eleojo Opaluwa. He is a former colleague of Joe Ajaero, who works for NUEE, the electricians’ union, as an organiser in Abuja.
“He is also the Vice Chair of the NLC in Kogi State. He has now been detained for over four weeks with no tangible evidence. His family was told that he had received a WhatsApp message from one of the other alleged leaders. This was after Eleojo had been detained.”
Wynne stated that the ten individuals arraigned for organising the protests hardly knew one another.
He said, “The ten detainees have been accused of conspiracy to commit a range of serious crimes. However, they barely know each other. Five of them may have been members of a WhatsApp group set up to organise the protests in Abuja.
“But the other five are unknown to these comrades. They may be a few of the flag-waving protesters from Kano who were added to extend the range of the organizers to cover the main protests from Sokoto to Maiduguri. “
Wynne said the police investigating the suspects and the government are not on the same page on the matter.
He said, “There appears to be a conflict between the government and the police investigating this case. The head of the Intelligence Response Team told the detainees’ lawyers that he would have released them but that he had orders from above not to set them free. So the police have developed what appears to be a ridiculous case involving the owner of Iva Valley Books.”
Wynne noted that the claim that he had left the country was not true.
“They are claiming that I travelled under the name of Andrew Povich, a Russian-sounding name and that I have now left Nigeria for Russia. Neither of these claims are true. Yomi, who works for Iva Valley Books, has, like the other detainees, been treated in a terribly
inhumane manner.
“He was arrested in front of his wife and three-year-old daughter. The police confiscated all their phones. This was despite appeals from his wife that they needed a phone to get money for food. He was then imprisoned illegally and held in chains, beaten and
tortured for three days. His only involvement was to design flyers for the protests.”
He, however, called on the NLC to protect the general public as it has done to its president.
Wynne said, “The NLC has shown that it has the power to protect its President. It now needs to extend this action to protect its other officers, its members and the general public.”
The NLC had promised a general strike to protect Ajaero from arrest and detention in relation to similar charges.
Despite the flimsy nature of the evidence against the detainees, they face long years in prison unless the trade union movement is prepared to protect them.
On August 7, the NLC said it “condemns in the strongest terms the human rights violations perpetrated by security forces against peaceful protesters.”
[Punch]
A Caribbean, Freda Paulino Sideroff, who was conferred with the chieftaincy title of Nneora Abagana (Mother of All) in Anambra State has described her visit to Nigeria as homecoming, saying that her DNA shows that she is a true Igbo person.
Her visit to Nigeria was facilitated by the traditional prime minister of Abagana, Dr. Nwachukwu Anakwenze who is an American- based surgeon and former President of Anambra State Association in USA ( ASA-USA).
Freda, who is a descendant of the survivors from the genocide that was the largest in the Caribbean, was born in the country of Belize, the only English – speaking country in Latin America.
Speaking after the colourful ceremony performed by the traditional ruler of Abagana, Igwe Patrick Mbamalu Okeke, Freda said the culture of the people of Belize, her country, is the same as that of the Igbo.
“In my place, we eat cassava, yam, okro. Don’t I look like you? I will like to come and build a house here because this is my root”, she said.
She said her tribe, Garifuna, is a marriage of cultures of West Africans who intermarried with Amerindians, specifically the Arawak and Carib Indians of the Amazon basin in South America. She added that they are also known in history books as the Black Caribs.
The Royal Father, who spoke through the Secretary of Abagana Royal Cabinet, Clems Ofoedu said: “Historically, culturally, and traditionally, Abagana has by this chieftaincy title, cemented cordial relationship with Nneora Queen Mother Freda Paulino Sideroff.
“The Abagana Royal Council is grateful to Onowu Abagana, Chief Dr Nwachukwu Anakwenze, the Traditional Prime Minister, for his dogged efforts in championing the course of Igbo nation globally.
“Nneora is now a bona fide citizen of Abagana. Abagana will continue to tap from your wealth of experience in cultures and traditions of Igbos scattered around the globe. More cooperation will be explored between Abagana and Garifuna in future.
“It is important to note that Freda’s Paulin ancestors did not experience slavery due to their resistance. Freda’s ancestors about 5000 people were banished/exiled to the desolate Island of Baliceaux abandoned and were left to die.
“Approximately 2500 resilient ancestors survived and were once again exiled, this perilous journey being abandoned on the coast of Roatan in Honduras.
“The mother of Freda’s grandfather, Henrietta Enriquez is Igbo, the father of her mother Rosenda Castillo is Felipa Castillo, while the mother of Freda’s mother Rosenda is Tikar. Freda’s father, Guadalupe Paulino is Akan.”
“Historically, culturally, and traditionally Abagana has cemented cordial relationship with Nneora Queen Mother Freda Paulino Sideroff. The Abagana Royal Council is grateful to Onowu Abagana, Chief Dr Nwachukwu Anakwenze, the Traditional Prime Minister, for his dogged efforts in championing the course of Igbo nation globally.
“Nneora is now a bona fide citizen of Abagana. Abagana will continue to tap from your wealth of experience in cultures and traditions of Igbos scattered around the globe. More cooperation will be explored between Abagana and Garifuna in future.
[Vanguard]
Tems, the Nigerian singer, has revealed she is open to the idea of marriage.
In a recent chat on the ‘Shopping The Sneakers’ show, the host asked if marriage was in her future.
After a brief pause, the music star responded, “Yeah. We will see”.
Tems, born Temilade Openiyi, is not known to be in any public romantic relationship.
Previously, rumours circulated that she was pregnant with a child for Future, the American rapper, which she quickly debunked.
Recently, the 29-year-old said many men enter relationships with no other agenda than sex.
“A lot of guys, they are very obvious. There is no agenda but to penetrate,” she said.
She also spoke about the qualities she looks out for in a man, listing intelligence and humor as her favorite attributes.
Tems gained popularity in 2020, courtesy of her collaboration with Wizkid, the Afrobeats singer, on the song ‘Essence’.
In the same year, she released her debut extended play (EP) titled ‘For Broken Ears’.
She released ‘Born In The Wild’, her debut album, on June 7.
She has received several awards and recognitions for her talent.
Last year, the songstress won her first-ever Grammy award for her role in ‘Wait for U’, the 2022 hit song by Future featuring Drake.
Her song ‘Love Me Jeje’ recently made the summer playlist of Barack Obama, the former US president.
[TheCable]
A Kaduna-based Islamic cleric, Ahmad Gumi, has accused the Nigerian authorities of turning bandits operating in North-west and North-central Nigeria into religious fighters like Boko Haram insurgents operating in the country’s North-east.
Mr said a recent video of a jubilant terrorism kingpin, Bello Turji, and his armed bandits celebrating “victory” over the Nigerian military and claiming they are fighting for God was an indication that the group has adopted the ideology of Boko Haram.
PREMIUM TIMES reported how the bandits on Thursday burnt down two Nigerian military Mines Resistant Armour Personnel (MRAP) vehicles stuck in the mud in the country’s northwest Zamfara State.
Mr Gumi, in a Facebook post, said the video uploaded by Mr Turji’s group had identified the bandits as Boko Haram members rather than people fighting against ethnic marginalisation.
Mr Gumi said he had advised Nigerian authorities to be careful in fighting the bandits so as not to push them to become guerrilla fighters and terrorists.
He said in the video showed that the groups had abandoned their initial fight against marginalisation and adopted the Boko Haram doctrine of fighting and killing in the name of God.
He wrote: “Radicalisation of Bandits: I warned against the danger”.
“Initially Bandits were fighting an ethnic war that could easily be resolved. I warned if the kinetic approach is intensified, they will turn into ideologically motivated guerilla warfare. Nobody listened.
“The difference between the former and the latter is that ideological war is mostly intractable, BH (Boko Haram) as an example. They commit the same crime, but this time, they think they are serving God. The picture is gloomy,” the cleric said.
This newspaper reported seeing a video of a jubilant terrorism kingpin, Mr Turji, and his armed bandits celebrating “victory” over the Nigerian military after burning down two Mines Resistant Armour Personnel (MRAP) vehicles stuck in the mud.
Soldiers abandoned the vehicles during an operation in the troubled Zamfara State in the country’s northwest region.
In the video, Mr Turji and his lieutenants are celebrating with victory slogans.
“Bello Turji has seized two trucks. Nigerian Army Bello Turji is coming for you, Insha Allah, if you don’t allow peace to reign. We are telling you and your clerics that we are with Allah”, Mr Turji says as he moves towards the stuck vehicles.
The hundreds of mostly youth bandits are dressed in combat regalia Bello Turji and are chanting “Allahu Akbar” and proclaiming “victory” over the army.
On Thursday, soldiers from the Nigerian Army 1 Brigade in Gusau, stationed at Zurmi, carried out an offensive against terrorists in a forest in the Kwashabawa area of the Zurmi Local Government Area of Zamfara.
The soldiers abandoned the vehicles and retreated from the scene because they could not move ahead in the dangerous areas with their plan to attack terrorist leaders in a meeting.
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A former Director-General of the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Organisation during the 2023 elections, Doyin Okupe, has revealed reasons why he and the Labour Party candidate in the election, Peter Obi, defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
According to Okupe, he and Obi left the PDP because they both agreed and believed that the next President of Nigeria must be a Southerner, preferably an Igbo man from the South-East, but the party was not working in that direction.
Speaking on Monday in a chat with journalists in Lagos, Okupe said his political agreement with Obi, however, ended after President Bola Tinubu won the election and was further affirmed by the courts up to the Supreme Court.
The former presidential media aide said these in reaction to online attacks from supporters of Obi, popularly known as Obidients, who were criticising him on X for dumping their principal and backing the policies of the present administration.
“Obi and I left the PDP because we both agreed and believed that the next President must be a Southerner, preferably an Igbo man from the South-East. Unfortunately, we lost that election. Another Southerner, Bola Tinubu, won the election. This is God’s will. He gives power to whom He wishes. My political commitment and agreement with Obi ended and expired there. I am too experienced in this game of politics for my subsequent political disposition and destiny to be tied to Obi’s ambition. Impossible.
“For me, that cooperation ended with the Supreme Court judgment, right or wrong. There must be order in a society.” Okupe said.
Speaking further on why he opted to support Obi for the 2023 presidential election, Okupe said it was time for the presidency to go to the South and that he aligned with the Igbo candidacy since they had not had the opportunity to produce the country’s president before.
The former presidential aide said he didn’t support Obi because he believed the LP candidate was politically superior to him or because of friendship but purely out of principle.
“I was convinced in my heart that if the presidency was going to the South, then it must be an Igbo man from the South-East because I believe in equity and justice. You can also verify this with Papa Adebanjo. He is still alive. I did not support Obi because he was politically superior to me or because he was a friend or an associate.
“My unalloyed support and commitment to Obi was based on principle. Throughout my period as a DG campaign, I used my own car and never received one naira from Obi as a salary. It was a mutual friend who funded me personally throughout. This can be verified. In difficult times, I borrowed a substantial amount of money to ensure our zonal campaign in the South-West was a grand success. I was refunded by Peter Obi months later.
“You (Obidients) all hailed, praised, and honoured me because, in your understanding, you believed I was just a foolish politician who left his comfort zone to come and help you fulfil your own agenda. You were all wrong,” he added.
A French pensioner went on trial Monday for allowing scores of strangers to rape his wife after he drugged her, in a case that has horrified the country.
Fifty men, recruited online, are also being tried in the southern city of Avignon alongside the main suspect, a 71-year-old former employee at France’s state-owned power utility company EDF.
Police counted a total of 92 rapes committed by 72 men, 51 of whom were identified.
The men, aged between 26 and 74, are accused of raping the 72-year-old woman who, her lawyers say, was so heavily sedated she was not aware of the abuse that went on for a decade.
Presiding judge Roger Arata announced that all hearings would be public, granting the woman her wish for “complete publicity until the end” of the court case, according to one of her lawyers, Stephane Babonneau.
The trial will nonetheless be “a horrible ordeal” for her, said another of her lawyers, Antoine Camus.
“For the first time, she will have to live through the rapes that she endured over 10 years,” he told AFP, adding that his client had “no recollection” of the abuse that she discovered only in 2020.
The woman, who arrived at the court supported by her three children, did not want a trial behind closed doors because “that’s what her attackers would have wanted”, Camus said.
– Some came back six times –
Police began to investigate the defendant, Dominique P., in September 2020 when he was caught by a security guard secretly filming under the skirts of three women in a shopping center.
Police said they found hundreds of pictures and videos of his wife on his computer, visibly unconscious and mostly in the foetal position.
The images are alleged to show dozens of rapes in the couple’s home in Mazan, a village of 6,000 people around 33 kilometers (21 miles) from Avignon in Provence.
Investigators also found chats on a site called coco.fr, since shut down by police, in which he recruited strangers to come to their home and have intercourse with his wife.
Dominique P. admitted to investigators that he gave his wife powerful tranquilizers, especially Temesta, an anxiety-reducing drug.
The abuse started in 2011, when the couple was living near Paris, and continued after they moved to Mazan two years later.
The husband took part in the rapes, filmed them and encouraged the other men using degrading language, according to prosecutors.
No money changed hands.
The accused rapists include a forklift driver, a fire brigade officer, a company boss and a journalist.
Some were single, others married or divorced, and some were family men. Most participated just once, but some took part up to six times.
– Murder probe –
Many have said they thought they were simply helping a libertine couple live out its fantasies, but Dominique P. told investigators that all were aware that his wife had been drugged without her knowledge.
An expert said her state “was closer to a coma than to sleep”.
Her husband told prosecutors that only three men left the house quickly after arriving, while all others proceeded to have intercourse with his wife.
Dominique P., who said he was raped by a male nurse when he was nine, is ready to face “his family and his wife”, his lawyer Beatrice Zavarro told AFP.
This trial may not be his last.
He has also been charged with a 1991 murder and rape, which he denies, and an attempted rape in 1999, to which he admitted after DNA testing.
Experts said the man does not appear to be mentally ill, but in documents seen by AFP, they said he had a need to feel “all-powerful” over the female body.
The trial is to last until December 20.
The Briton accused of inciting insurrection against President Bola Tinubu’s government, Drew Povey has urged the Nigerian government not to treat protests as treason.
Mr Povey, whom the Nigerian government said also bears the name Andrew Wynne, said this in a statement in reaction to the government’s allegation of building “a network of sleeper cells to topple” the Bola Tinubu administration “and plunge the nation into chaos.”
Povey’s bookshop located at the Abuja headquarters of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) had earlier been raided and sealed.
Part of the charges against him was enabling some #EndBadGovernance protesters “with intent to destabilize Nigeria.”
The statement on the letterhead of his bookshop reads: “PROTEST IS NOT TREASON – release all the detainees! The mass protests over #EndBadGovernance and #EndHunger frightened the government. But rather than addressing the peoples’ demands, the government turned to repression.
“Perhaps 40 people were murdered by the police and other security forces, thousands were arrested and many still remain in captivity. In Abuja, the authorities have attacked the so-called leaders and organisers of the protests. Ten people face ridiculous charges including treason, mutiny and levying war against the state.
“The NLC promised a general strike to protect its President, Joe Ajaero, from arrest and detention in relation to similar charges. Despite the flimsy nature of the evidence against the detainees, they face long years in prison unless the trade union movement is prepared to protect them. On 7th August the NLC said it, “condemns in the strongest terms the human rights violations perpetrated by security forces against peaceful protesters.”
“The first person to be arrested in this case was Eleojo Opaluwa. He is a former colleague of Joe Ajaero, working for NUEE, the electricians union, as an organiser in Abuja. He is also the Vice Chair of the NLC in Kogi State. He has now been detained for over 4 weeks with no tangible evidence. His family was told that he had received a WhatsApp message from one of the other alleged leaders. This was after Eleojo had actually been detained.
“The ten detainees have been accused of conspiracy to commit a range of serious crimes. However, they barely know each other. Five of them may have been members of a WhatsApp group set up to organise the protests in Abuja. But the other five are unknown to these comrades. They may be a few of the flag waving protesters from Kano who were added to extend the range of the organizers to cover the main protests from Sokoto to Maiduguri
“There appears to be a conflict between the government and the police investigating this case. The head of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) told the detainees’ lawyers that he would have released them, but that he had orders from above not to set them free. So the police have developed what appears to be a ridiculous case involving the owner of Iva Valley Books. They are claiming that he goes under the name of Andrew Povich, a Russian-sounding name, and that he has now left Nigeria for Russia.
“Neither of these claims are true. Yomi, who works for Iva Valley Books, has, like the other detainees, been treated in a terribly inhumane manner. He was arrested in front of his wife and three-year old daughter. All their phones were confiscated by the police. This was despite appeals from his wife that they needed a phone to get money for food.
“He was then imprisoned illegally and held in chains, beaten and tortured for three days. His only involvement was to design flyers for the protests on the instructions of his boss. The NLC has shown that it has the power to protect its President. It now needs to extend this action to protect its other officers, its members and the general public.”
Turkish giants Galatasaray have reached an agreement with Napoli to sign Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen on loan.
The deal comes after Osimhen’s proposed transfers to Chelsea and Al-Ahli fell through during the summer transfer window.
The loan move to Galatasaray offers Osimhen an opportunity to continue his career in Europe, following a successful spell with Napoli, where he made a significant impact in Serie A. Despite interest from top clubs, negotiations with Chelsea and Al-Ahli did not materialize, leading to Galatasaray stepping in.
Details of the loan agreement, including the duration and potential option to buy, are yet to be fully disclosed. However, this move is seen as a strategic acquisition for Galatasaray, bolstering their attacking options as they aim for success in both domestic and European competitions.
Osimhen, known for his speed, strength, and goal-scoring ability, is expected to be a key player for the Turkish club, bringing his experience and talent to the Süper Lig. Fans of Galatasaray are eagerly awaiting his arrival, hoping he will replicate the form that made him a standout player in Italy.