The President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government has explained why it arrested and brought back the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, from Kenya.
The Federal Government disclosed this in its amended notice of appeal before the Supreme Court marked: SC/CR/1361/2022.
It explained that Kanu was subjected to extraordinary rendition from Kenya so he could continue his ongoing trial in Nigeria.
The appeal was against the October 13, 2022 judgment of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, where it held that Kanu’s extraordinary rendition from Kenya to Nigeria robs the trial court of its jurisdiction to try him on the seven-count charge on which he was being tried before the IPOB leader absconded.
Beef up security around Tinubu, Shettima, opposition parties plotting to kill them – MURIC
In the 13-ground amended notice of appeal filed by David Kaswe of the Federal Ministry of Justice, the Federal Government argued that the Appeal Court erred when they “held that the extraordinary rendition of the Kanu robbed the trial court of the jurisdiction to hear the pending charges before the court even before the respondent illegally jumped bail and absconded.
“Kanu was standing trial on a 5-count charge preferred against him by the federal government. In the course of proceedings, he illegally jumped bail and absconded from Nigeria.
“The respondent was only returned to Nigeria to continue his trial before the court,” it said.
The Federal Government accused the Appeal Court of failing to consider the illegality of Kanu jumping bail and his refusal to make himself available for trial, which necessitated his return to Nigeria.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court okayed the Federal Government to file nine grounds of appeal.
A five-man panel of the apex court led by Justice John Okoro granted the Federal Government permission for the appeal.
According to a report by Daily Trust, hundreds of pilgrims who performed lesser Hajj in Saudi Arabia are still stranded in the holy land.
They are stranded following the ongoing Sudan crisis which has taken its toll on commercial aviation.
It was learnt that the most affected are pilgrims who travelled through Badr Airline, a Sudanese Airline, which has recently shut down operations as a result of the war.
Recall that two of its aircraft were destroyed a week ago in Khartoum in the wake of the Sudan War.
However, most pilgrims who used other international airlines like Qatar Airways and Egypt Air, among others, have been returning to the country on schedule though most of the airlines bypass the Sudan airspace.
Daily Trust reports that this has caused a delay in returning pilgrims.
This impact was initially felt when President Muhammadu Buhari who was in Saudi for one week to perform lesser Hajj spent over seven hours from Saudi to Abuja on a journey of about four and half hours.
Daily Trust reports that Jeddah is about four and half hours from Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja and five hours via the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.
As soon as the Saudi-bound aircraft from Lagos gets to Maiduguri, it crosses over to Chad, then Sudan to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia which has been the established flight path.
While other airlines bypassed the Sudan airspace for safety purposes, Badr Air has suspended operations leaving the passengers who travelled with it stranded in Saudi Arabia after completing the Umrah rites.
A stranded passenger who spoke with our correspondent yesterday said those who travelled via the Sudanese carrier were asked to look for alternative flights to return home.
The passenger said, “As I speak with you, I am in Saudi Arabia and the agent is saying we should find an option. The option we got was to pay N550,000 to FlyNas to come back home and after the war, Badr Air would now refund us N350,000.
“Many agents are now trying to find alternative arrangements. Already our hotel accommodation has expired and we are under pressure to leave. For like two days, the Hotel put off water and electricity but only restored it after we protested.”
It was also learnt that others who travelled through other airlines bypassing the airspace had to pay more to return home.
“But if you have a contractual agreement of a return ticket, the cost remains the same and the extra cost would be borne by the affected airline,” said an airline operator who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Former President of the Association of Hajj and Umrah Operators of Nigeria (AHUON), Alhaji Abdulfatah Abdulmojeed, said the pilgrims affected were those who travelled with the Sudanese Airline via Kano.
Another member of AHUON also confirmed that many travel agents are in Saudi with their pilgrims looking for alternative arrangements to bring back their passengers.
About 5,500 Nigerian students in Sudan will be evacuated due to the violence in the North African country, an official has said.
The chairperson of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, said this Thursday at the weekly ministerial briefing organised by the Presidential Communications Team.
She said there are over three million Nigerians residing in Sudan and efforts are being made to evacuate as many of them as possible, if the war persists. Priority will, however, be given to children, students and women, she said.
Mrs Dabiri-Erewa said already, 13 buses carrying Nigerians have departed Sudan for the Egyptian border Aswan, from where the returnees would be airlifted back to Nigeria. The first batch are expected in Nigeria today, Friday, her spokesperson quoted her as saying at the breifing.
PREMIUM TIMES reported that the Nigerian government earlier announced that it had loaned 40 buses for the evacuation. The buses cost $1.2 million, an official announced Wednesday.
“We have some buses that have departed from the African International University in Khartoum, Sudan and as I speak, I think they are just about two hours away from Aswan in Cairo,” Mrs Dabiri-Erewa said Thursday. “Others departed from the Elrazi University also in Khartoum. All in all, 13 buses have departed for Aswan border in Egypt where they will be received by the Nigerian Ambassador there and the Director General of the National emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Habib Ahmed, who is already there with some officials.”
She allayed the fears that the buses conveying the Nigerians would be attacked by either of the two factions fighting in Sudan, saying the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, already secured the understanding of the leaders of the factions before the transportation of Nigerians by road.
PREMIUM TIMES reported how fighting started on 15 April between the Sudanese army and paramilitary RSF, both headed by army generals. Over 400 people have been killed in the violence and many counties including the US and Saudi Arabia have commenced the evacuation of their citizens.
Diaspora voting
Mrs Dabiri-Erewa also said it is time for Nigeria to focus more on Nigerians in Sudan and other parts of Africa because there are many of them residing there.
“When we were talking about Diaspora voting, some people were saying when we do that, it may not augur well. But we said no, we need to go to places like Sudan where we have millions of Nigerians who migrated there years ago and they have relationships and businesses there.
“The data is being worked on but I want to tell you categorically that by the time we finish the research we are doing, perhaps Sudan would be one of the largest areas where we have the largest concentration of Nigerians in Diaspora. Everytime we focus on Europe, America and all that, it is time to focus on Africa and Africans in the Diaspora,” she said.
Nigerian laws currently do not allow citizens in the Diaspora to vote. However, there has been clamour that the laws should be amended. The electoral commission chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, is one of those who have asked that Nigerians in the Diaspora be allowed to vote.
Stipends for Returnees
Mrs Dabiri-Erewa said as the evacuees return to Nigeria, they will be given stipends to help them settle down before joining their families.
“NEMA will decide what would be given to the returnees because the funding is with the Ministry of Humanitarian affairs and Disaster Management. Usually is just a little amount. The last one, we gave them we evacuated people, we gave them $100. So, it depends on the budget they have.
“But we in NIDCOM, we give them recharge cards, SIM cards and sometimes phones. Usually they get $100 just to hold and these are students coming back to their families. They are not refugees, they have homes,” she stressed.
She also said challenges associated with the evacuation process are already being addressed. She urged NEMA to establish rapid response squads in all parts of the country and in the diaspora, to help address unforeseen circumstances.
“I think that moving on, it is very important for NEMA to have Rapid Response Squads with military formations in all parts of Nigeria and then in the diaspora with military attaches. There really has to be those teams set in place. It shouldn’t be when the crisis happens we start running around,” the NIDCOM chairperson said.
[Premium Times]
After a day or two, most visitors to Nigeria wish they had planned to stay longer in the country.
Once they start seeing the sights, and meeting the people, they realize that there is way more to do than they had believed possible. Don’t make the same mistake – give yourself a long leash. For administrative ease, the country’s 36 states are grouped into six geopolitical zones. If you intend to stay in more than one state, plan your travels along the same lines; pick an anchor city, and take things one state or zone at a time.
In the South-South, for example, the scenic and slow-paced city of Uyo can be your base to explore the Niger Delta states. In the North East, Bauchi is a perfect base to explore the rocky landscapes of Plateau, Adamawa, Borno and Taraba states.
Narrow down your list with these top places to visit in Nigeria.
1. Abuja
Best city for an intro to Nigeria
Whether you’re traveling solo or as a group, Abuja is your best introduction to Nigeria. By design, it is a city for holidaymaking: hills, public gardens and leisure parks dot the cityscape, right through its residential districts, so you’re guaranteed ample green spaces. Millenium Park’s landscaped grounds attract hundreds of picnickers; rent a mat inside the park and just chill. Aso Rock, where Nigeria’s presidential palace gets its name, looms nicely in the background.
Abuja’s wide walkways and boulevards make walking a pleasure any time of the day. If you’re traveling with kids, Central Park, Magicland Amusement Park, Jabi Lake Park and Arttech District are go-to family spots. Together, they offer dining, outdoor activities and games – from horseback riding and roller-skating to bicycle trails and go-karts.
Abuja is also a city for hiking, and there’s a trek up any of the city’s hills every weekend. Organized by hiking groups and clubs like Naija Adventurers, Tha Outdoor Tribe and Mantrek Hikers Club, there is little or no formality to join. Periodically, the hiking extends to landmarks in neighboring Niger, Nasarawa and Kaduna states.
Planning tip: Factor in a visit to Abuja's newly opened Nike Art Gallery as you travel to or from the airport.
2. Calabar
Best city for heritage and celebrations
Tourists come to Calabar to connect a number of nature and heritage sites: the Slave History Museum, Cross River National Park, Obudu Mountain Resort and the Afi Mountain Drill Sanctuary.
The Bakor (or Ikom) monoliths, a group of 300+ stones that are 1–1.5m-tall (3–5ft), are also one of the region’s main attractions. These centuries-old stones are believed by clans in the host communities to be their forebears. Some of the stones are within easy reach of Calabar, others are in more remote forested areas, with a permanent exhibition in an open-air museum at Alok, 156km (97 miles) north of Calabar.
Another reason to visit Calabar is for its thrilling events, culminating with the Christmas festival, a December-long fiesta of concerts and street parties. Another crowd-puller here is the carnival, a pan-Nigeria cultural parade with participation from at least half a dozen countries. Leboku New Yam Festival, one of the best known in Nigeria, held in August or September, also draws people in. On the eve, host communities perform ritual ceremonies to their "stone ancestors", re-painting them in colored chalk and in readiness for the festival proper.
3. Lagos
Best place to hang out on the beach
Lagos is a delight on many levels. The city’s coastline is already a busy corridor for resorts and beach houses. On weekends, Lagosians pour into a long stretch of private beaches to party and enjoy a suite of water-based sports. For the best beach experiences, take a short boat ride to Tarkwa Bay or hop in a car to Landmark Beach.
As the birthplace of Nollywood (Nigeria’s movie industry) and the now-global Afrobeats movement, the city has been at the heart of Nigeria’s entertainment boom for decades. In the last half of the year, Lagos' creative side is in full swing as it hosts a long list of festivals, like the Lagos International Poetry Festival, Lagos Fringe Festival and Art X Lagos.
Its bustling metropolis aside, the “city of aquatic splendor” combines urban appeal with well-kept traditions. Downtown Lagos, home to the Eyo masquerade, is a network of Igas (palaces), shrines and markets. On its most westerly end, Badagry, once a town of enslaved people, is a place where tourists and pilgrims alike come to visit historical landmarks: Badagry Heritage Museum, Mobee Slave Relics Museum, Vlekete Slave Market Museum and Brazilian Baracoon, among others.
Planning tip: Lagos is at its partying best in December when it hosts multiple concerts, musicals and entertainment shows. The city is also less crowded during the period, meaning you can get where you want to be much faster.
4. Mambilla Plateau
Best for adventure travelers
A trip to the Mambilla Plateau is the ultimate Nigerian adventure. On this multi-day journey you’ll travel through vast savannah lands and long winding roads, driving up and down multiple hilly terrains, past dairy farms, streams, and rivers. At the Mayoselbe–Tunga stretch of the highway, you’ll come within a few feet of a tribe of monkeys.
Multiple waterfalls await you at Maisamari, Lemetela and Mbanga towns. But the goal of every visitor to Mambilla is to hike up Chappal Waddi (7936ft), the highest point in Nigeria. At Gembu, a major transit town near Cameroon, explore the Donga River on local paddle boats or visit any of the tea farms, the Highland Tea being the most prominent, where you'll see harvesters fling the leaves over their shoulders into elongated, hand-made baskets strapped to their backs. Make time to explore Gashaka-Gumti National Park, the largest of Nigeria’s 17 national parks, all managed by the Nigeria Parks Service.
Planning tip: You can reach Gembu by road from Abuja, Jalingo and Yola. Visits here involve long overland travels by bus and motorbike, so it's best to allow a week at least. Nature Connects, based on the Plateau, provides guiding and advisory services. Mambilla is suitable for hiking year-round, but best between December and March, when the grounds are less slippery. This is also the best time for wildlife spotting. The plateau is at its greenest between April and September; to visit some of its waterfalls, head there between September and December.
5. Ilorin
Best city for culture and history
Ilorin, in Nigeria’s North-Central region, is usually not on the itinerary of tourists but deserves to be. The emir’s palace is at the heart of Ilorin’s cultural and spiritual life. Palace officials will show you around, the tour typically starting from the four pillars memorializing the emirate’s past wartime exploits. The multiple buildings within and adjoining the palace (Ilorin Central Mosque, for one), are markers of various periods as Ilorin transitioned in the early 19th century from an outpost of the Old Oyo Empire to a stronghold of the Sokoto Caliphate.
Its historical appeal aside, Ilorin has preserved many of its old cottage industries, including aso oke (handwoven fabric), mat- and basket-weaving. Visit the unmissable Dada pottery, to learn about the skills passed down among womenfolk for generations.
Planning tip: Ilorin, like other northern Nigerian cities, sparkles at Eid-al-Adha when the city hosts the annual durbar festival, a colorful equestrian parade in northern Nigeria. In August, there’s a traditional mass wedding ceremony, which takes place in Shao town (14km/9 miles away).
6. Northern Nigeria
Best region for architecture
Northern Nigeria is an outdoor gallery of eye-catching indigenous architecture – designed, built and decorated by master masons from the 19th century. From Sokoto and Kano (North-West) to Gombe and Maiduguri (North-East), your gaze is constantly met by brightly painted mosques.
The palaces and some public buildings are more elaborately decorated, with Hausa motifs and, in some cases, complemented by Arabic inscriptions. Palaces of the Emirs of Dutse, Bauchi, Gombe and Zaria, and the Shehu of Borno are star examples. Inside the Gidan Makama Museum (Kano) and Kanta Museum (Kebbi), formerly palaces, you’ll learn more about the history and culture of Hausaland.
There’s more Nigerian vernacular architecture in Jos, at the open-air Museum of Traditional Nigerian Architecture (MOTNA), which shares space with the Jos National Museum. Here, you’ll find lifesize replicas of huts and homesteads unique to different ethnic groups in the country. Among them: Tiv, Idoma and Afizere compounds. The Bight of Benin, modeled after the palace of the Oba of Benin, doubles as a restaurant.
7. Idanre
Best place for ancient traditions and high-up views
Idanre is the site of an old hilltop settlement in Nigeria’s Western region. Tucked among the hills is the old palace that was home to 25 successive kings. The path to the palace, its low roofing propped up by carved wooden posts, is dotted by relics of a past civilisation, including potsherd pavements, a native court, a prison and a shrine.
The hills are Idanre’s main attraction. And looking out from 915m (3000ft) into the distance to the sprawling settlements at the foot of the hills, first occupied in the 1930s, is one of the most heartwarming views in this corner of the world.
Planning tip: Idanre hosts a number of festivals throughout the year. In February, young men march off to two caves on the hills for the annual bat-hunting festival. Orosun festival, in honor of the goddess of fertility, is held in May. The town celebrates Ogun (god of Iron) in October; the Ide festival, perhaps the grandest of all, is in December. That’s when the paramount ruler, the Owa, leads a procession up the hills to wear a crown seen only once in a year.
8. Enugu and the South-East
Best region for national history and nature walks
Enugu is the heartland of Nigeria’s South-East region, a status it earned in the early 1900s when huge reserves of coal were discovered in its hills. Today, more than a century later, its tranquil neighborhoods, pine forests and public parks makes it one of Nigeria’s touristy cities.
Begin your tour at the National Museum of Unity to understand the Igbo belief system. Part of the exhibition includes the Ijele masquerade, an important component of ceremonial gatherings in Igboland. Dig deeper into Igbo worldview at the Center for Memories. For more on Nigeria’s pre- and post-colonial history, head to the Nnamdi Azikiwe Centre, a museum and library that opened in December 2022, housed in what was the Premier’s Lodge of the old Eastern Region in the 1950s.
After touring the museums, travel up the Milken Hills to the pine forest of the suburban Ngwo town and onwards to the caves and waterfalls further down the trail. Alternately, from Enugu drive to Awhum town, famed also for its caves and waterfalls – and a monastery. The Ezeagu Tourist complex is within the vicinity; here, you can take a dip in the gentle rush of the stream.
Planning tip: If you are keen for more cave-themed adventures, then cross the inter-state border into Anambra State. The Ogbunike Caves, 77km (48 miles) southwest of Enugu, are a maze of tunnels and streams with lots of bats. Less well known, but no less spectacular, are the caves-waterfalls-rock complex at Ogba-Ukwu, 60km (38 miles) from the port city of Onitsha.
[lonelyplanet]
The Executive Director/Chief Executive, Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Dr. Ezra Yakusak, yesterday said the council has set a target to generate over $5 billion from non-oil export in 2023.
The NEPC boss also disclosed that the country’s non-oil products export amounted to $1.34 billion in the first quarter of the year (Q1 2023), representing an increase of 8.50 per cent over the $1.24 billion recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2022.
The sector recorded $4.82 billion in non-oil export earnings last year, which represented an increase of 39.91 per cent compared to 2021, and the highest value of export recorded since the council was established 47 years ago.
Speaking at the presentation of the report on the non-oil export performance and activities of the council for the first quarter of 2023, Yakusak said, “I am optimistic that with the several export intervention programmes and projects that we have started and ongoing, the expected performance of the sector in 2023 will likely surpass that of 2022.”
He also disclosed that the disbursement of N308.45billion worth of promissory notes to 199 exporting companies under the Export Expansion Grant (EEG) Scheme had commenced.
He explained that out of the total sum, N193.45 billion was approved for 133 beneficiaries of the scheme in respect of EEG outstanding claims for the period of 2017 to 2020 while N108.31 billion was approved for 35 beneficiaries in respect of EEG backlogs of claims for the period of 2007 to 2016 respectively.
The NEPC chief executive also stated that the sum of N68, 389, 000.00 was approved for 13 beneficiaries in respect of stocks of outstanding Negotiable Duty Credit Certificates (NDCC), while N6.61 billion was approved for 69 beneficiaries in respect of the shortfall in the approved claims by the 8th National Assembly.
He, however, pointed out that the council was still awaiting the approval and release of the sum of N60.63 billion being the EEG claims for 34 beneficiary companies from the National Assembly.
Nevertheless, he said the year 2022 result lends credence to the fact that several export intervention programmes initiated and executed by the council did not only meet the expectations of NEPC but also that of stakeholders in the sector as well.
He said these export intervention programmes had significantly contributed to the exponential growth in not just the volume but the value of exportable products from Nigeria, despite the harsh operating business environment which was partly precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the global economic recession between the year 2020 and 2021.
Specifically, he noted that the Export4Survival initiative which he launched on assumption of office had “gradually awakened the consciousness of most Nigerians on the need to imbibe an export culture as the credible alternative for our survival as a people given the high potential of the sector to create employment, alleviate poverty, enhance economic growth and industrial development as well as boost the country’s foreign exchange earnings.”
Providing a breakdown, of the non-oil export performance for Q1, he said 167 products were exported ranging from manufactured, semi-processed, solid minerals and raw agricultural commodities.
He added that similar to 2022, the first quarter also showed that Nigerian products are gradually shifting from the traditional export of raw agricultural commodities to the export of semi-processed and manufactured goods.
According to him, of the top 10 products exported, Urea, Cocoa Beans, Sesame Seed, Soya Beans/meal and Cashew nuts/kernels were the top five, adding that a total of 618, 184.06 metric tonnes of products worth $75.829 million were exported to 12 ECOWAS countries in the period under review, representing a 15.6 per cent increase over Q1 2022. Yakusak among other things said in a bid to harness and optimize the potential in the non-oil export sector, plans are underway to launch the “Export 774’’ programme whose objective is to identify exportable products in the 774 local government areas in Nigeria, with a view to harnessing them for exports.
He also said apart from the One State One Product (OSOP) programme, Export 774 was inspired by the huge success recorded in the export of Nigerian products to foreign countries in 2022.
He added, “The overall target of this programme is to further identify the products in all the 774 local governments in Nigeria, create awareness of their potential and showcase the specific places where they can be sourced.”
He also spoke on the planned introduction of “Export Promotion” as a course of study in Nigerian universities’ curriculum.
He said, “I am delighted to inform you that the NEPC in collaboration with the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC) has commenced consultations towards the introduction of Export Promotion as a course of study in our nation’s Universities as part of her Export for Survival Campaign.
“This intervention is propelled by the need to inculcate basic exporting knowledge and skills to Nigerians in various tertiary institutions. The course when introduced to identified universities, has the potential of making the young graduands become employers of labour and therefore self-reliant.
“This initiative will be better appreciated years later when these universities begin to graduate a pool of skilled exporters that would occupy the non-oil export space, ensure the diversification of our products and generate the desired foreign exchange.”
[ThisDay]
Former Nigerian President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has arrived in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for the meeting of the DRC/Nigeria Business Council scheduled to start tomorrow, in the country’s state capital.
The former President left Abeokuta, Ogun State capital enroute Lagos at the early hours of Wednesday, for the two-hour chartered flight to Kinshasa with the Executive Secretary, National Action Committee on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), and the former executive director/chief executive officer of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) between 2013 and 2022, Olusegun Awolowo.
According to his Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Akinyemi in a release, the Anambra State governor, Prof. Charles Soludo and Wale Adeosun, a business mogul/renowned industrialist in DRC Congo joined the former President on the trip.
On ground ahead of the summit were the President of the Council and former Director General of the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Dr. Nteranya Sanginga, Mr. Jimi Lawal and representative of Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde, Dr. Debo Akande.
Others expected to join at the meeting are the Kaduna State Governor and Deputy President of the DRC/Nigeria Business Council, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, Aliko Dangote of the Dangote Group, Mrs Stella Okoli of Emzor Paracetamol among others.
At the last meeting held in Lagos in December, the country’s outgoing President, President Muhammadu Buhari expressed satisfaction with the establishment of the Council, which he stressed would further boost the trade relations between the two countries.
The Deputy Secretary, DRC-NIGERIA Business Council, Amb. Leke Adebiyi hinted that no fewer than 30 propective investors drawn from Health, Education, Agriculture, Communications, Power and Finance sectors are to meet with their DRC counterparts.
[Channels TV]
The federal government says Nigerian students stranded in Sudan will likely receive at least $100 upon evacuation and return to Nigeria. The stipend would be given the stipend to help them settle down before joining their families.
“NEMA will decide what would be given to the returnees because the funding is with the ministry of humanitarian affairs and disaster management. Usually it is just a little amount,” said Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the chairwoman of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) in Abuja on Thursday during the weekly ministerial briefing organised by the presidential communications team.
The federal government official added, “The last one we gave them, we evacuated people, we gave them $100. So, it depends on the budget they have. But we in NIDCOM give them recharge cards, SIM cards and sometimes phones. Usually, they get $100 just to hold, and these are students coming back to their families. They are not refugees. They have homes.”
Ms Dabiri-Erewa revealed that 13 buses had departed Sudan for the Egyptian border Aswan, where the returnees would be airlifted to Nigeria. The government official said over 5,500 Nigerian students in Sudan would be among the first Nigerian nationals to be evacuated.
“We have some buses that have departed from the African International University in Khartoum, Sudan, and as I speak, I think they are just about two hours away from Aswan in Cairo,” stated Ms Dabiri-Erewa. “Others departed from the Elrazi University also in Khartoum. All in all, 13 buses have departed for the Aswan border in Egypt, where they will be received by the Nigerian Ambassador there and the Director General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Habib Ahmed, who is already there with some officials.”
According to the NIDCOM chairwoman, it is now time for Nigeria to focus more on Nigerians in Sudan and other parts of Africa because many reside in African countries.
“When we were talking about diaspora voting, some people were saying when we do that, it may not augur well. But we said no, we need to go to places like Sudan where we have millions of Nigerians who migrated there years ago, and they have relationships and businesses there,” stated Ms Dabiri-Erewa.
According to her, the federal government is working on data on Nigerians living in the beleaguered northern African nation.
“But I want to tell you categorically that by the time we finish the research we are doing, perhaps Sudan would be one of the largest areas where we have the largest concentration of Nigerians in the diaspora,” Ms Dabiri-Erewa explained. “Every time we focus on Europe, America and all that, it is time to focus on Africa and Africans in the diaspora.”
(NAN)
The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has called for increased security measures for the President and Vice President-elect, Bola Tinubu and Kashim Shettima.
MURIC’s Executive Director, Prof. Ishaq Akintola, made the call in a statement in Lagos on Friday.
Akintola said it was based on the purported rising security threats and treasonable utterances from the opposition camp, which bothered on desperation.
He said, “We find it necessary to alert the nation, particularly the security agencies, concerning ominous signs on the Nigerian political horizon.
“We call on the security agencies to double guards for the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, and his vice, Kashim Shettima. Nothing must happen to them.
“We remind those plotting to truncate the presidential inauguration, billed for May 29 of the dire consequences of their actions.”
[DailyPost]
A former Minister of Education, Obiageli Ezekwesili, says no single government is capable of solving all the problems of the country alone.
Ezekwesili, who is the convener, FixPolitics, and Founder, School of Politics, Policy and Governance, said citizens must be part of the process of solving problems in society.
She said this when her team at the Human Capital Africa, an accountability initiative, paid a visit to Not Forgotten Initiative School, a non-profit school set up for providing free access to education, in Abuja.
The HCA donated N2m and adopted the school for intervention programmes as part of activities to mark Ezekwesili’s 60th birthday.
While applauding the founder of the school, Tosin Adeniyi, for coming up with the initiative as part of efforts to reduce the number of out-of-school children in Nigeria, Ezekwesili lamented that the classic failure in governance suggests that citizens must also play their own role in developing society.
She said, “There is classic failure in governance that creates the kinds of problems and situations we have in the areas of delivery of basic services like education and health to our citizens.
“But then there is also the part where this initiative doesn’t necessarily have to be because of the failure of government. It is rather an initiative where citizens are showing that they can be contributors to solving society’s multiple needs. The kinds of needs that we have are humongous, that even the best government acting alone would not be able to solve all of them.
“So, all citizens must be part of the process of solving problems in society. But I think that what her initiative does is that, it will create an example, so that the government will see that if you did this kind of a programme in a certain kind of way, that the children in the school will actually not just come to school, but that they will learn literacy and numeracy, which is a major challenge.”
Speaking, Adeniyi urged the government to make education accessible to every child and provide adequate supervision so as not to give room for failure.
“Today, we have 85 kids in the school. We have 27 on our scholarship, 10 in the federal government college and about four in the university,” Adeniyi said.
The All Progressives Congress, APC, has denied that it has zoned the positions of the Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives to the Southsouth and Northcentral respectively.
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The spokesman of the party, Felix Morka, made the denial in an exclusive interview with THE WHISTLER on Thursday against the backdrop of a zoning arrangement purported to have been arrived at by the National Working Committee of the party during its Thursday meeting.
Morka said the party did not hold any NWC meeting today declaring as false the draft consensus arrangement in circulation.
He insisted that, “There was no NWC meeting today,” adding, “It’s fake news.”
If the draft released in circulation is anything to go by, former Akwa Ibom State Governor, Godswill Akpabio is highly favoured to emerge as the next President of the Senate.
This is as frontrunners from the Southeast geopolitical zone, which include incumbent governor of Ebonyi State, Dave Umahi, former governor of Abia State and current Chief Whip of the Senate, Orji Uzor Kalu, and Senator Osita Osinazu would have been excluded from the race.
The race which appears to be pitting the party against the camp of the president-elect, Bola Tinubu, following differences in the choice of principal officers, has seen a number of contestants staking their claims.
While sources said the party favours micro-zoning to the Southsouth, which would mean the highest ranking senator from the zone would likely emerge as the president, in this case Akpabio, the Tinubu camp has expressed their support for the position to go to the Southeast.
During the week, the Director of New Media of the Tinubu Presidential Campaign Council, Femi Fani-Kayode, tipped former Abia State Governor, Orji Uzor Kalu as his preferred choice, sending signals that the current Chief Whip of the 9th Senate may be the choice of the president-elect.
It was however gathered that even if Tinubu favours anyone in particular, he prefers an open regional zoning instead of micro-zoning, to give a sense of belonging to all the contestants.
Sources claimed the president-elect is also wary of the opposition political parties who have enough numbers to usurp the process and tilt the winner in their favour, hence his secret approach.
Tinubu and Abdullahi Adamu, the National Chairman of the APC, have not enjoyed cordial political relationship.
Their political differences came into the open in 2022 when Adamu announced the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan as president Muhammadu Buhari’s choice of presidential candidate for the party in the lead up to the June presidential primary in his bid to stop Tinubu’s presidential bid.
But the unalloyed support by majority of the governors of northern extraction on the platform of the party ensured Tinubu emerged the candidate.
The two politicians have also shared their political differences on the makeup of the presidential transition council with no party member or anyone suggested by Adamu making the list of 15 names sent to the council preparatory to his inauguration.
But against Tinubu’s position that both the Southsouth and Southeast should be allowed to slog it out in the race for the Senate Presidency, a draft zoning consensus arrangement purportedly in circulation and being shared across various APC WhatsApp groups as obtained by this medium proposed a micro-zoning formula.
According to the zoning arrangement, titled, “DRAFT: APC NWC RELEASES ZONING CONSENSUS ARRANGEMENT:,” the NORTH CENTRAL retains the National Chairmanship position while it has also been zoned the post of the Speakership.
The Northeast has the post of the Vice President while it has also been allocated the post of the House Majority Leader of the House of Representatives.
Also, the Northwest has been allowed the positions of the Secretary to the Federal Government and the Deputy Senate President.
Down south, the Southwest which has the Presidency will also have the
Senate Majority Chief Whip.
Meanwhile, the Southeast gets only the post of the Senate Majority Leader.
However, the Southsouth gets the number three position in the land, the
Senate Presidency and the House Minority Chief Whip.
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The crisis in Sudan is far from over, even though there currently is a cease fire.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday that the United States was working with Sudan’s warring generals to extend an expiring, shaky ceasefire that he helped broker.
Blinken said he expected to say more “in the coming hours” on the situation in Sudan, where the army has renewed air strikes on rival paramilitaries in the capital Khartoum even before the truce expires at midnight (2200 GMT).
This return to hostilities remains a very big concerns for foreign citizens and their nations, as there is no telling how far the warring generals will go to take control of the country.
The Nigerian authorities have been giving updates as regards the plight of Nigerians trapped within Sudan and here are nine things we currently know about the situation.
1. Around 5,000 Nigerians could be looking for evacuation
Authorities on Monday said there is a likelihood that a total of around 5,000 Nigerian nationals could be looking for evacuation.
2. FG has plans to evacuate at least 3500 students
A top government official says that at least 3500 students, will be evacuated from Sudan by convoy to Egypt.
3. Admissions already provided back in Nigeria
For students who will like to continue their studies back in Nigeria, universities have already reached out to the government and are waiting to admit them.
4. Air Peace Willing To Evacuate Stranded Nigerians
While the government continues to work round the clock to evacuate the students, Air Peace has affirmed it is willing to evacuate Nigerians stranded in Sudan free of charge as fierce fighting continues to rage in Khartoum.
The Chairman of Nigeria’s largest domestic airline, Allen Onyema, said he is compelled to help because Nigeria cannot afford to lose her citizens in that country, adding that it would be his own commitment to making sure that the stranded Nigerians in the war-torn country are safe.
He said that everything must not be left to the government alone, especially as the situation calls for urgency and immediate action.
5. Some transporters demanding to be paid before evacuating students
NIDCOM chairperson, Abike Dabiri-Erewa said on Friday that some transporters bringing the stranded Nigerians from Sudan, are demanding payment before evacuating more people.
6. No Nigerian killed
The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Zubairu Dada, on Wednesday, said no Nigerian life has been lost so far in the crisis engulfing Sudan and as of Friday, there was no record of any fatalities recorded.
7. 40 Buses were purchased at $1.2m for evacuation
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, on Wednesday, said 40 buses have been acquired for the evacuation of Nigerians trapped in war-torn country.
The buses are expected to cost the government $1.2 million.
8. Buses already headed to Egypt
Some of the buses have already left Sudan and are headed to Egypt from where they can now be airlifted. Authorities say 13 buses have departed from two universities in Khartoum, carrying Nigerian students to the Aswan border in Egypt.
9. Evacuees expected to arrive in Nigeria on Friday
According to the NIDCOM boss, barring any last minutes changes, the first set of Nigerian evacuees from Sudan are expected to arrive in Nigeria on Friday.
With deaths now well over 400 and hundreds injured, Sudan’s crisis is deepening and fears are heightened especially as regards the fate of many Nigerians trapped in the country.
The incarnate desires of two rival generals, army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, commander of the large and heavily armed paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), have set the nation on fire, in a conflict that threatens to engulf all who are involved.
Both the capital Khartoum and other cities across Sudan have experienced great violence with deafening explosions, air strikes, artillery fire, and intense gunfire, especially in densely packed neighbourhoods.
Their jostle for power seems to know no holds barred. Each general has accused the other of starting the fight, and both have made claims they control key sites, which could not be independently verified.
[ChannelsTV]
Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court Abuja has dismissed the bail application filed by detained alleged terrorist negotiator, Tukur Mamu.
In a ruling, Justice Ekwo held that the application was without merit and that the applicant failed to provide sufficient materials to move the court to exercise its description in his favour.
Justice Ekwo noted that the defendant failed to rebut the prosecution’s claim that there was a likelihood of him committing more offences.
The judge held that although the defendant claimed the State Security Service (SSS), where he was being kept, could not address his health challenges, the court would have to consider other issues before taking a decision.
The judge added that where the custodian lacked the medical facility to take care of the medical condition of the defendant, but is capable of ensuring that the defendant has access to medical facility suitable for his medical condition, the court would not grant the bail.
The court held that where the defendant willfully rejects the medical facility given to him by his custodian merely for the fact that such facility is not up to the standard that he expects, then, he has no good medical grounds for application for bail.
The Judge further held that the defendant must understand that his medical care is at the expense of the state and must be reasonable in his demands.
The judge noted that evidence before the court revealed that it was after the defendant declined the DSS medical services that he was taken to Arewa Specialist Hospital and Diagnostic Center, Jabi by the security outfit.
He said the DSS, however, averred that the hospital was sufficiently capable of handling the medical condition of the defendant and that it was able and willing to take responsibility for the treatment of Mamu.
He said the agency also undertook to ensure that Mamu had access to his daily medication for the management of his pre-existing health condition as well as ensuring access to adequate tests and treatments when necessary, during the trial.
The judge held that in exercising his discretion on the application for bail on allegations contained in a charge sheet punishable with imprisonment for a term exceeding three years, “the discretion of the court to grant bail will not be exercised in favour of the defendant where any of the conditions in Section 162 of the ACJA 2015 is established.”
The judge noted that considering the nature of the offence on the charge sheet and the fact that Mamu did not rebut an allegation of breach of terms of bail, he was persuaded by the grounds given by the DSS for the court not to exercise discretion to grant bail as prayed by Mamu.
He said this application is consequently refused and is hereby struck out.
Tukur Mamu was arraigned on March 21 by the Federal Government on a 10-count charge bordering on terrorism financing, among others.
He was arrested on September 7, 2022 by Egyptian security officials at the Cairo International Airport, on reasonable suspicion of financing Boko Haram terrorism activities.
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the first batch of stranded Nigerians in crisis-ravaged Sudan evacuated by the federal government will arrive in Abuja today.
Chairman/CEO of Nigerians in the Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, disclosed this during a briefing at the State House in Abuja on Thursday.
She said a total of 13 out of the 40 buses hired to transport Nigerians from the troubled Sudan already left since Wednesday and moved by road to Border town of Aswan in Egypt where both the Embassy staff in Egypt and the Director General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) will receive the evacuees.
Plight Of Nigerians In Sudan
A statement issued yesterday by Head of Media, Public Relations and Protocols Unit of NIDCOM, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, quoted Dabiri-Erewa as saying 10 of those buses transported Nigerians from Universities in Khartoum while the remaining three buses were dispatched to El- Razi University to convey them to the border town in Egypt.
On allegations of segregation and discrimination in the evacuation process, she explained that children and women were given priority as they were profiled for administrative purposes.
The NIDCOM boss said a Boeing 777 from Airpeace will depart Lagos by evening of Thursday and will transport the first batch home on Friday, the statement added.
She assured all Nigerians that all those who registered to be evacuated home will all be facilitated irrespective of status, gender and state.
Dabiri-Erewa clarified that apart from the huge population of Nigerian students in Sudan, there were millions of other Nigerians in the country doing their legitimate business and residing there peacefully.
She allayed the fears of being attacked by the warlords, saying the Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr Geoffrey Onyeama already secured the understanding of the two warlords before the transportation of Nigerians by road.
The Federal Executive Council (FEC) had recently approved $1.2million for the immediate evacuation of the Nigerians stranded in Sudan.
According to the minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, the amount would be spent on the hiring of 40 luxury buses that will transport the stranded Nigerians from Khartoum, Sudan, to Egypt, from where they will be airlifted to Nigeria.
The federal government on Thursday disclosed why it shelved the planned removal of fuel subsidy by june this year.
Recall that the National Economic Council meeting chaired by Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, had on Thursday said the federal government had backtracked on subsidy removal.
Speaking further on the topical issue, Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zaniab Ahmed, the decision to shelve the planned removal of subsidy was necessitated by the widespread hardship and suffering in the country.
She said the Federal Government does not want to plunge the country into another round of suffering.
She however admitted that ultimately the subsidy on fuel will have to go at the due time.
She spoke shortly after the National Economic Council NEC meeting, chaired by the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo on Thursday.
She also noted that the existing committee that has been discussing the fuel subsidy issue needed to be expanded to enable more input from concerned Nigerians.
Her words,” I was at the National Economic Council, where we discussed the issue of post-subsidy removal Council agreed that the timing for the removal of subsidy should not be now but that we should continue with all of the preparation works that needs to be done and that this preparation work has to be done in consultation with the states and other key stakeholders, including representatives of the incoming administration.
“Council agreed that the first subsidy must be removed earlier rather than later because it is not sustainable. We cannot afford it anymore. We have to do it in such a way that the impact of the subsidy is as much as possible, mitigated on the lives of ordinary Nigerians.
“So this will require looking at alternatives to the post subsidy that needs to be planned for and subsequently put in place but also what needs to be done to support the people that are most affected as a result of the removal. So we will be working together with representatives of the state who will have a plan that will start working, working on putting the building blocks towards the eventual removal of the first subsidy.
“Find in your mind that the budget for 2023 has provision for subsidy only up to June 2023 and the Petroleum Industry Act has a provision that requires that all petroleum products must be deregulated 18 months after the effective date of the PMS removal.
“We agreed to form an expanded committee looking at the process for the removal including determining the exact time and the measures that need to be taken to provide support to the poor and the vulnerable and then also the alternatives that will be put in place, including ensuring that there is sufficient supply of petroleum products in the country.
” So this is a decision that has been taken to expand the committee that is currently working with representatives of the states and it will have to be engaging with Labour and with petroleum marketers. The immediate committee is just comprising the initial Finance, the NNPC, the regulator, the downstream upstream regulator”