NORTHERN LEADERS BLAME JONATHAN’S ADMINISTRATION FOR REGION’S PROBLEMS

AREWA leaders have blamed the political and social predicament facing the region on the failure of the Federal Government to improve the welfare of the people and also guarantee freedom and rights of citizens, saying that this has accounted for the current state of siege in the North.

The buck-passing arising from the dwindling political fortune of the region and the insecurity pervading the geographical area was part of the outcome expressed in the communiqué issued by the northern elders after a two-day symposium held at Arewa House, Kaduna.

FAMILY SUSPECTS PLOT TO KILL KOGI GOVERNOR

The family of injured Governor Idris Wada of Kogi is suspicious that the auto crash that broke Mr. Wada’s leg, killed his security aide and injured two other state officials was masterminded by “unknown forces” to kill the governor.

“We have no doubt that the governor was the target of their machination,” a family source said. “They want to kill him. They want to eliminate him at all cost.”

The source, who preferred not to be named because he was not authorised to speak on the matter, repeatedly declined to name those the family believe were behind the accident.

He only kept saying the accident was not ordinary.

COVENANT UNIVERSITY EXPELS 200 STUDENTS FOR NOT ATTENDING CHURCH SERVICE

Frustrated and angered by the development, some of the affected students who gave account of what happened battled emotions while narrating their situations to Saturday Vanguard recently. They however pleaded with the school authorities to tamper justice with mercy in order to save their future.

Saturday Vanguard investigation revealed that out of the figure, about 126 were expelled for not attending the ‘departure service’, meant to sign off from the school after the end of the Semester and Matriculation of students on November 30.  Five other students were thrown out for smoking while unconfirmed source said additional 60 got the same fate for violating other rules bordering on the University’s core values. A few others were given four weeks suspension for failure to sign the head count that was conducted a couple of weeks earlier.

RANSOM ON OKONJO-IWEALA’S MUM TEARS KIDNAP GANG APART

THE 10-man kidnap gang, which abducted Prof Kamene Okonjo, mother of the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has been torn apart as a result of sharing the ransom collected for the release of the Queen of Ogwashi-Uku kingdom in Delta State.

The new leader of the gang reportedly bolted away with N1million share of another member of the gang.

The affected member, 32 –year-old Andrew, aka Olokpa, from Edo state, who was desperately in need of  money, decided to go on a reprisal mission by forming a new kidnap gang and was caught by the police.

He is presently on detention at the Delta State Police Command headquarters in Asaba.

CODEINE ABUSE SPREADING LIKE WILD FIRE

Cough syrup, with or without codeine, is used for the treatment of coughing and related ailments. But in Nigeria today, cough syrup, particularly the one containing codeine – which is to be derived from the opium poppy and is related to morphine and heroin – is being abused by youths, men and women.

According to medical experts, codeine has become a favourite for many drug abusers because it is very easy to obtain either over the counter or through prescription at big from small medicine stores. They also cite reasons for using codeine include experiencing the euphoric effects associated with opiates, just as they averred that it is common practice for young people wishing to obtain a high to drink an overdose of cough syrup straight.

N6BN ARMY BOAT CONTRACT PROBE: SSS RECOMMENDS EX-NSA, OTHERS’ TRIAL

The Department of State Security, popularly referred to as SSS, has finally concluded investigations into the controversial N6 billion contract for the procurement of six K38 patrol boats for the Nigeria Army and submitted a report of its findings to President Goodluck Jonathan. The President recently ordered investigations into allegations of fraud levelled by one of the contractors awarded the boat contracts.

The presidential directive came on the heels of a petition dated October 12, 2012, entitled: “Conspiracy, fraud, supervision & compromising of Nigeria’s National Security and Official Corruption in the award and execution of National Security and defence projects in Nigeria by a group of Jews operating under many guises with the active connivance and involvement of a few unpatriotic Nigerians government officials and businessmen.”

HOW KIDNAPPERS BOUGHT VICTIM’S CAR WITH RANSOM MONEY

The leader of a four-man suspected kidnapping gang arrested by the Anambra State Police Command, Chinedu Okafor, has said his gang had kidnapped one Aguiyi of Abatete and released him without collecting any money from him but used money collected from other victims as ransom to buy Aguiyi’s car at N1.2 million.

Okafor who was arrested along with three other members of his gang also admitted that his gang has kidnapped so many people at different times that include the Managing Director of NIPCO Filling station, Mr. Aniekwe and collected ransom of N2.5 million before he was released. He said his gang also kidnapped the Director of High life bread Agulu and extorted N2 million ransom from him before he was also released.

“Our group also kidnapped one Reverend Father and a policeman and later released them. We did not collect any money from those ones, but when we kidnapped the INEC chairman of Imo State, we collected N2.5 million before we released him. There was a businessman we caught that gave us N4 million before we released him,” he said.

AZAZI’S FUNERAL: GOVERNORS, MINISTERS, OTHER VIPS SHUN HELICOPTERS AT AIRPORT

Scores of very important personalities (VIPs) attending the funeral ceremonies for the immediate past National Security Adviser (NSA),General Andrew Azazi (rtd), in Yenagoa  this weekend have been  avoiding travelling to the venue  by helicopter.

Azazi, the then Governor Patrick Yakowa  of Kaduna State and four others died on Saturday, December 15 when the Nigerian Navy Augusta helicopter conveying them from Okoroba,Bayelsa State to Port Harcourt crashed minutes after take-off.

They had attended the burial of  Pa Tamunoobebara Douglas, father of the Presidential Special Adviser on Research and Documentation, Mr.Oronto Douglas, in the largely riverine state.

ROBBERY SUSPECT NARROWLY ESCAPES LYNCHING

In an attempt to escape arrest by a team of policemen on patrol on the LASU-Isheri Expressway on Wednesday, a robbery suspect, Godwin Ibe, narrowly escaped death in the hands of a mob in Lagos.

Ibe, 29, was apprehended by some members of the Odua People’s Congress keeping the watch in the neighbourhood, in a manner that was reminiscent of the Aluu killings, at about 6 am with a shotgun and four live cartridges allegedly found on him.

Some moments before he was caught with the weapon, policemen patrolling the expressway had demanded to know the contents of the polythene bag in his possession. But scared that he might be discovered, he beat a hasty retreat and took to his heels.

CRIME DIGEST  learnt that in order to prevent him from escaping, the patrolmen raised the alarm and followed him in a hot chase.

IMPUNITY REIGNS IN NIGERIA - EX-US ENVOY •7,198 NIGERIANS KILLED IN 4 YEARS, 600 KILLED IN OCTOBER 2012

OVER 1,000 Nigerians have been killed in various violence-related incidents in the country since 2011 while in October alone, more than 600 people were killed in what was described as the deadliest month in the country.

Also, it has been revealed that more than 7,198 Nigerians were killed in the country in the last four years through various extra-judicial killings.

These revelations were made by the former United States’ Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. John Campbell, in a report that catalogued the various political violence, including attacks by the dreaded Boko Haram sect.

2015: PLOT TO SACK ACN IN SOUTH WEST THICKENS

A group of ambitious politicians across several parties in the South West have commenced move to wrestle power from the ruling Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN).

The party presently controls Lagos, Ogun, Osun, Oyo and Ekiti states in the zone. Ondo, with a Labour Party (LP) governor, is the only non-ACN state in the region.

Saturday Independent gathered that they are strategising to compete against the ACN on different platforms and are already reaching out to different interest groups in the region for support.

Those behind the political move comprised members of LP, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Democratic People’s Alliance (DPA), aggrieved ACN member and chieftains of some of the parties recently de-registered by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

AZAZI’S BURIAL IN YENAGOA WILL SPELL DOOM—FAMILY, COMMUNITY WARN

The final resting place for former National Security Adviser (NSA), General Andrew Azazi, who died in a helicopter crash, is now shrouded in controversy, with elders, chiefs and youths of his oil rich Peretorugbene community, in Bayelsa State, have cautioned against his burial in Yenagoa.

They said that the repercussion of such action might be grievous for their community. Speaking with Saturday Sun, Chief A. Ebikake, a senior chief in the community and Tubereoke Azazi, a member of the Azazi family, said lessons learnt from the burial of the grand father of the late Gen. Azazi, Pa Azazi, in a neighbouring community of Egbemo-Angalabiri, is enough to caution those planning to bury the late general outside his community. They said that the late General Azazi personally supervised the exhuming of his grand father’s corpse for proper burial when it became obvious that the wrongful burial site caused untold hardship to the community.

WAR OVER IMO GOV’S CONVOY ACCIDENT

The controversy trailing Thursday’s clash between the security aides of Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State and those of Senator Chris Anyanwu along the Owerri-Umuahia highway continued yesterday with exchange of harsh words between the warring parties. While the governor in a statement insisted that Anyanwu’s convoy broke into his with a view to kill him, the Senator who incidentally is representing the state in the National Assembly and elected on the same political platform,

All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA as the governor accused Okorocha of telling lies by feeding the public with a false account of what happened. She narrated how the governor sat in his car watching his security aides drag out her drivers and security aides from her three car convoy to beat them and break their heads in a naked show of state power.

FAMILY WIPED OUT

•We watched as our kids roast to death like goats — Couple

Despite the fact that some weeks have passed since the fire disaster that wiped out five children of Mr. & Mrs. Augustine Ikwuagwu on Comfort Oboh Street, Kirikiri Town, Lagos, its bitter memory still lingers. Indeed, the tragedy has been a nightmare to the couple. When Saturday Sun met with the couple recently, pain and agony have overwhelmed them, as they recounted their loss.

Speaking amid tears, Mrs Margaret Ikwuagwu, said her fine kids, Chukwuemeka (13), Ifeanyichukwu (10), Bright (8), Joy (6) and Victoria (4) were sleeping in the house when the incident started at 10pm. She said that all efforts to rescue the children failed. “I asked my children to go and sleep in the room while I was preparing to close shop for the day.

HOW WADA’S SUV CRASHED, ADC DIES ON IMPACT

But for providence, Nigeria would have recorded the death of another State Governor in a space of two weeks, as Governor Idris Wada of Kogi State, yesterday, narrowly escaped a ghastly motor accident.

The accident, however claimed the life of his aide-de-camp (ADC), Assistant Suprintent of Police (ASP) Idris Mohammed, who died on the spot due to impact.

The accident occurred at about 2.30 pm yesterday at Elete Emi Woro between Prime Polytechnic and Salem University on the Ajaokuta-Lokoja Road.

The governor was returning from the annual Igala Education Conference at Anyigba in Dekina Local Government Area of the state. Wada was reportedly on his way to Lokoja to attend a Juma’at prayer when the accident occurred.

POLICE DETAIN WOMAN FOR TEARING MAID’S PRIVATE PART WITH RAZOR

A middle aged woman, simply identified as Uchenna is cooling her feet at the Onitsha Police Area Command for breaking her maid’s hand and tearing her private part with razor blade. Saturday Sun gathered that the woman allegedlly used a pestle to break her maid’ left hand and inflicted very deep cuts in her private part with a razor blade in the commercial city of Onitsha

The incident took place at Osuma Street where the victim,  Chisom Nwafor is living with her mistress before she was attacked by the suspect. Narrating her ordeal, Chisom, a 10 year old girl from Enugu-Abo in Enugu State said her mistress returned to the house last Sunday morning and started beating her and used razor blade on her private parts. “I was changing her daughter’s dress because she urinated on it.

U.S. POPULATION TO REACH 315M IN JANUARY, GOVERNMENT SAYS

The U.S. Census Bureau says as of Jan. 1, 2013, the total U.S. population will be 315,091,138.

The figure represents an increase of 6.3 million or 2.05 per cent, since April 1, 2010, the last census day in the U.S.

The bureau conducts a population and housing census every 10 years. Earlier in December, the bureau released the first set of population projections based on the 2010 census.

The projections showed that minority groups together, would make up a majority of the U.S. population for the first time in 2043.