TODAY NEWS:Police recover 2,753 illegal firearms from 13 states

 

THE Force Headquarters’ Joint Task Team, led by the Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Joshak Habilla, has recovered 2,753 illegal firearms from 13 states.
Following what was described as an impressive turnout of the exercise, Inspector General (IG) Ibrahim Idris has extended the ultimatum for recover of illegal arms to April 30.
The IG initially gave a 21-day ultimatum, which began on February 22 and will elapse on March 14, for members of the public to surrender illegal firearms in their possession.
Force spokesman ACP Jimoh Moshood, while parading the firearms at the Force Headquarters in Abuja, said the Joint Task Team was still collating the firearms from the states.
He said 425 illegal firearms arms were recovered by the team in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) during raids, stop and search operations carried out by the team’s personnel.
Items recovered, according to him, are: two General Purpose Machine Guns (GPMG), 114 AK47 rifles, eight SMG rifles and 301 other assorted guns.
He added that Abia recorded 1,380 recovered firearms so far followed by Lagos with 200 and Katsina with 198.
Moshood said: “So far, 1,380 firearms have been recovered from Abia State and that happens to be the highest recovery made. We recovered 200 from Lagos, 198 from Katsina State.
“Forty-six firearms were recovered from Benue, 32 from Borno, 70 from Kaduna, 35 from Nasarawa, 78 recovered by the FCT Command, 56 from Taraba, 140 assorted firearms from Rivers and 67 from Kogi.”
Moshood added that 14 firearms were recovered from Adamawa and 12 from Delta.
He also said the arms recovered would be investigated by the Force Armament Unit to ensure that the arms were not used for criminal purposes in the past.
Moshood said: “The Police Joint Task Enforcement Team, in compliance with IGP’s directives and working on actionable intelligence, swung into actions and embarked on mop-up, seizure and recovery of all illegal and prohibited firearms and ammunition from wrong hands, suspected militias, militants, criminal/unlawful gangs through search, raid and seizure from identified premises, hideouts, dwelling houses, buildings and sites where these illegal/prohibited firearms were kept based on reasonable suspicion and intelligence…
“This operation, which is still ongoing among other purposes, is aimed at the full enforcement of the Firearms Act, mopping-up and recovery of all prohibited firearms and illegally acquired weapons, will enable the Nigeria Police Force deal decisively with herders and farmers clashes, kidnappings, armed robbery, cattle rustling, militancy and terrorism.”
The Force spokesman, while noting that the operation would continue, urged the public to report to the police anyone suspicious of bearing the prohibited firearms across the country through the following lines; DIG, Department of Operations: 08037025670, O/C IGP Monitoring Unit: 08032451594, O/C IGP Special Tactical Squad: 08036783383 and O/C IGP Intelligence Response Team: 09098049333.
Moshood added: “They can also report such violations directly to the Commissioners of Police in various commands across the country through their phone contacts, attached hereunder.”
On the extension of the ultimatum, he said: “The IGP has graciously extended the ultimatum for another 21 days with effect from Monday, April 9, 2018 -April 30, 2018.
“This is as a result of impressive compliance by Nigerians across commands in the country and also to grant public request for an extension as recorded in some states of the federation.” He allayed fears that the police would arrest anybody who willingly surrenders the weapons during the extended grace period.

BIAFRA:Buhari Has A Record Of Increasing Poverty, I Can Do Better, Says Moghalu

 

A presidential aspirant and former deputy governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Kingsley Moghalu says he can do better than the administration President Muhammadu Buhari, which according to him, has only succeeded in increasing poverty and insecurity in the country, if elected to the number one position in the country in the 2019 general election.  

Moghalu, who said this in reaction to the president’s official announcement of his intention to seek the second term in office in a statement on Tuesday affirmed that in contrast to Buhari, he will offer Nigerians a competent and effective leadership.
The former CBN deputy governor said he had a vision of something new bold and different for the country.
He said, “President Muhammadu Buhari has every right to seek a second term in office if his political party nominates him. It will be up to Nigerians to judge his performance track record so far.
“My government will establish a productive innovation-led economy that reduces dependence on oil revenues, establish a public-private venture capital fund with a minimum capital of N500 billion (with private sector co-investment to fund could attain a size of N1 trillion) to create jobs by investing in new businesses by unemployed youth, reform the Nigerian police force by recruiting, training and equipping a minimum of 1.5 million persons with improved remuneration to create safe and secure communities.
“My government will empower women with a 50:50 gender parity policy in political appointments, and initiate a constitutional restructuring of Nigeria to restore true federalism for stability and prosperity.” 
“In contrast with that record of increasing poverty and insecurity in our country, I offer my vision of something new, bold and different.
“I offer a new kind of competent, inclusive and effective leadership that will truly usher Nigeria into the 21st century and build a better future for our children and youth.”
He promised Nigerians a stable and secure nation if elected president of Nigeria in 2019.
Moghalu said he will lead a government that will unite Nigeria and build a “stable and secure nation, reverse extreme poverty and high unemployment with effective economic management, and restores Nigeria’s standing in the world.

IPOB:Buhari’s declaration: Inefficiency will continue if President is re-elected – Senior Advocate

 
 BIAFRA NATION
Speaking on phone conversation with BIAFRA NEWS MEN on Tuesday, Ukweni lamented the poor performance of the present administration saying that if President Buhari remains in office beyond May 2019, inefficiency will continue.  Ntufam Mba Ukweni, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) has stated that President Muhammadu Buhari’s declaration of interest in seeking re-election in 2019 did not come as a surprise to him despite the performance of the present federal government. 
“If President Buhari wins the 2019 election, the inefficiency will continue, I don’t see any magic to be done if he wins the 2019 election, there is not going to be any change than what we have now. It is the nature of our people, it is a nature of a black man to perpetuate himself in power.
“I don’t think there will be any new ideas; it is left for Nigerians to decide. They did it in 2015 thinking that President Buhari will change things but we have not seen anything different, we have seen how far he has gone in the correction process.
“If he has done well, it is for Nigerians to decides, then return him, if he has not done well, it is still the choice of Nigerians to vote him out.”
Speaking on the administration’s efforts in revamping the economy, the SAN said, “If the economy improves, everybody would have seen the improvement, improvement in economy is not a hidden thing, as far as I am concern, I have not seen any improvement in the economy. 
“Now, the leaving standard is very poor, we have increase unemployment, income is very poor, and these are the indices in measuring the improvement in the economy. There is no improvement in the economy.”
Mba Ukweni however stated that it within the rights of Buhari to seek re-election, stressing that, “nobody can deprive him of that. Nigerians have right to choose the person they wants.
“I don’t see President Buhari creating anything new, I don’t see President Buhari changing anything,” he added.

NEWS UPDATE:Civil War: How US, other world powers planned to help Biafra – Mbu

 

 BIAFRA NATION

The former Minister said United States of America and other world powers were planning to change the history of the war by eventually backing Biafra. A former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mathew Mbu, has made a new exposition into the Nigeria Civil War.

Mbu said had the civil war lasted longer, America would have intervened and come on Biafra’s aide.
According to him, the World Powers had great sympathy for Biafra but preferred the option of exploring a more flexible federation for Nigeria.
He said this in an autobiography the he left behind to be published by his family.
The book entitled “Dignity in Service,” is due for public presentation on Tuesday next week at the Yar’Adua International Conference Centre, Abuja.
He wrote, “The regions should have a little bit of autonomy; that was the issue throughout those 30 terrible months of the civil war.
“The first Biafran cabinet meeting was held and articulated in Enugu by our head of government, Col. Ojukwu, and after subsequent meetings in Umuahia and Owerri, he summoned leaders of thought and took a resolution.
“The United States and other major powers had great sympathy for Biafra.
“One fear that haunted other African nations was that if Biafra breaks they would also break up.
“Their enormous sympathy for Biafra notwithstanding, they preferred the option of exploring a more flexible federation for Nigeria.
“Had the war lasted longer, there would have been a major intervention that would have changed the history of the civil war by the major powers. It was good it ended when it did.
“The suffering as being portrayed outside, the suffering of children on humanitarian ground was too compelling to ignore.”

BIAFRA NEWS:40 members missing after Police, Army attacked us in Anambra – IPOB

                                                                                          The group’s spokesman, Emma Powerful, in statemen on Friday, said a combined team of police and Army personnel attacked its members who were returning from the burial of one of their members, Odika Esieme Chukwuma from Igbo Ukwu, Anambra State.   The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has declared 40 of its members missing after an alleged clash with the police and Nigerian Army personnel in Anambra State on Thursday evening.
The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has declared 40 of its members missing after an alleged clash with the police and Nigerian Army personnel in Anambra State on Thursday evening.
The group’s spokesman, Emma Powerful, in statemen on Friday, said a combined team of police and Army personnel attacked its members who were returning from the burial of one of their members, Odika Esieme Chukwuma from Igbo Ukwu, Anambra State.

Powerful said the group was at Nnewi, at about 5.30pm Thursday evening when it was attacked by the security personnel who shot at them, leaving scores of its members with injuries.
It said it had taken stock and discovered 40 of its members missing as a result of the attack.
It called for the immediate release of such members, warning that the group would not tolerate the unprovoked molestation of its members by security operatives.
Part of the statement read, “IPOB and its leadership worldwide once again wish to draw the attention of the general public and the world at large to the dangerous attacks and arrest of IPOB members in Anambra State last night (Thursday), who went for burial of an IPOB member who was among those killed last year during the operation python dance ll in Umuahia, Abia State.
“It is so wicked and barbaric that Nigerian Government through her security operatives killed most of IPOB members during Operation Python Dance II in Umuahia last year and refused to allow IPOB to bury the bodies of those they killed.
“This barbaric attack by a combined team of Fulani dominated Nigerian Army and Nigerian Police happened at Nnewi when IPOB family members who went for a burial for one of our IPOB family members by name Odika Esieme Chukwuma, from Igbo Ukwu in Anambra State.
“He belonged to IPOB Obosi Zone. After the burial, as our people were returning from the village of the deceased around 5:30pm and on reaching St Mary’s Catholic Church, where they were supposed to disperse to their various homes, they were accosted by a team of Nigeria security agents and without any provocation they began shooting at our people.
“In the ensuing chaos some people fell down and the buses they were traveling in climbed over some of them. Many were injured resulting from gunshots from the army and police. Many more were taken away by the army and police to unknown destinations. Some people had their cars seized, others with motorcycles had it taken away from them too.”

IPOB indicted Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State and the Dr Nnia Nwodo led Ohaneze Ndigbo of being responsible for the action if the security personnel.
It particularly indicted Obiano for issuing the orders being carried out by the security agencies against its members.
“Once again the Nigerian Government, through Gov. Willie Obiano has instructed their combined security forces of Army, Police, SARS and DSS to commence their shoot to kill policy on unarmed peaceful IPOB and to arrest anybody suspected to be an IPOB member anywhere in Biafraland.
“These are the same Nigerian security agencies that are collaborating with killer Fulani herdsmen, granting amnesty to Boko Haram terrorists but in Biafraland they are busy killing and massacring innocent men, women and children at random in every community in Southern and Middle Belt Region of Nigeria.”

BIAFRA:Boko Haram, says no ‘ceasefire’ talks with FG, Here is Why we released Dapchi Girls

Boko Haram, says no ‘ceasefire’ talks with FG, Here is Why we released Dapchi Girls.
The group, in an audio recording said the girls were freed because of its allegiance to the leadership of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). In the recording, the faction’s head of Shura (highest decision body), Abu Bashir, urged its members to remain loyal to ISIL.
Boko Haram faction, Islamic State West Africa Provence (ISWAP), has given the reason it released the girls kidnapped from the Government Girls’ Technical College, Dapchi in Yobe State.                     
The Federal Government, on 25 March, announced a five-day ceasefire for the return of the girls. Information Minister, Mr. Lai Mohammed, in a statement, said: “The week-long ceasefire is besides ongoing broader negotiations for a permanent ceasefire with the insurgents.”
The minister said the insurgents were compelled to release the students and others because their capture was against government’s negotiations with the group.
The claim was, however, refuted by the Director- General of the Department of State Security Service (DSS), Mr. Lawan Daura. According to him, the Federal Government has never been in any ceasefire talks with Boko Haram.
Bashir said the group abducted the Dapchi school girls to force the release of some of its members in detention and get paid ransom.
However, added Bashir, as soon as it consulted ISIL leaders, it responded that the abduction, especially of Muslim girls “cast the group in bad light”, especially at a time it is struggling to win over Muslims in West Africa, including in Niger Republic, after it drifted from the Abubakar Shekau faction, which still holds some of the Chibok girls after four years of abduction.
Bashir said there are two categories of apostates. According to him, one category is made up of those not fighting ISIL, but assisting those fighting it. The kidnap of the Dapchi schoolgirls, according to ISIL, was carried out by the first category. ISWAP explained that those who fight against it like the Civilian Joint Task Force, will be killed.

BIAFRA NATION : Dissolve Nigeria now – IPOB

 
 BIAFRA NATION
Emma Powerful said those clamouring for the restructuring of Nigeria should have a rethink because the nation has totally collapsed, stressing that repackaging an already crumbled country would cause more harm than good.  The Media and Publicity Secretary of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Comrade Emma Powerful, has called for dissolution of Nigeria. 
The IPOB spokesman also flayed the apex socio cultural group, Ohanaeze Ndigbo for compounding the suffering of their people by not speaking against injustice.
Powerful, in a chat with Punch, said: “Referendum is the will of the people. No right-thinking, intelligent being would subscribe to the ludicrous notion of one Nigeria unless that person is a thief, suffering from identity crisis or lacking in self-confidence that can only hide by belonging to a wider Nigeria. If Ohanaeze Ndigbo is in doubt as to what our people truly desire, they should conduct a plebiscite.
“Restructuring is not a panacea for the ills bedeviling Nigeria. The only solution is outright dissolution. Restructuring is a product of a flawed intellectual argument devoid of common sense and rational thinking. You cannot fuse together divergent, competing and often irreconcilable value systems into one monolithic geopolitical space.
“Ohanaeze Ndigbo has outlived its usefulness. An organisation that claims to represent the interest of the people but is actively engaged in undermining the collective aspiration of the same people it claims to be working for should not exist. Ohanaeze Ndigbo is an organisation that has soiled its hands in the blood of the innocent. Nnia Nwodo (Ohanaeze President-General), Gov. Dave Umahi (Ebonyi State) and Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia State) are the brains behind Operation Python Dance II”.