Buratai: Africa’s Encyclopedia On Counter-Terrorism 

By Steve Jackson 
Basically, it’s not in the character of most Africans to appreciate merit and excellence, but warmly hug mediocrity. In Nigeria, this tendency is almost a national plaque. 
The best hands in public service are undermined and unfairly criticized, so very sensationally. And it is sparkled for laughable and sentimental reasons in such region, ethnicity or even religion. So, performance becomes an ass in the eye of the critic, insofar as the target is outside his favoured lenses.       
But very many clear-headed Nigerians appreciate and applaud the few best performers one can find in the country. Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff (COAS) and leader of counter-insurgency operations, Lt. Gen. TY Buratai is a rare breed, performer per excellence and military juggernaut.    
He speaks and acts with an uncommon splendor. It’s doubtful whether President Muhammadu Buhari had any inkling about the exact quantum of the professional treasures implanted in Gen. Buratai when he appointed him in 2015 to preside over the total dismantling of terrorism and allied insurrections in Nigeria.  
It’s possible that the President himself must have been pleasantly shocked or marveled at the extent of Gen. Buratai’s dexterity in executing the national assignment assigned him.  And surely, and in contrast too, most Nigerians are oblivious of the complexity and intricacies of battling and degrading insurgency. 
When you read some withering commentaries from critics about Nigerian Army’s warfare with terrorists in Nigeria, it strikes you instantly of a pathetic gulf in knowledge. It informs instantly, these critics are unknowing on what it really entails to quench terrorism.  
To some of these critics, quelling terrorism in Nigeria or anywhere in the world is akin to a distress call; a call inviting the Police to crush armed robbers in the neighbourhood. It’s far from such token of assumptions.
In fact, striking a superiority edge on insurgency, like Gen. Buratai and his troops have done in Nigeria in less than three years is a hefty task. It’s not all about the military’s intelligence of organizing, training and equipping troops to descend on terrorists. It’s beyond the sound of boots and guns or the worth of armoury or even competence of the field Commanders.
It demands much more! Those in doubt should ask America how tough it has been to rout out terrorists in the Middle East in the past 16 years, with thousands of American troops.  
They should research into the history of terrorism elsewhere, like in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Britain, Kenya, and hordes of other countries around the world. It is not an easy task; it is a tedious adventure to battle terrorists.      
Pre-war strategies and tactics are very essential. The intelligence of appropriately decoding the shrewd strategies and tactics of terrorists, which is ever dynamic as well as harvesting it to victorious advantage are the real recipes for victory in the battle against insurgents.
It was the revered Chinese war veteran Sun Tsu who echoed that a battle is won and lost at the preparation stage of troops. It means careless lacunas at the stage of preparation could make the best of armies lose the battle to enemy forces so easily.
But Gen. Buratai is an embodiment of this art of war. He is not just a fighter of terrorists, but a military scholar and expert in terrorism strategies and tactics. He exudes it; he acts it in the trenches; reels it out to his Special Teams on Terrorism, at training grounds and dazzles the academia in breathtaking lectures on terrorism.      
Days back, at a lecture, Gen. Buratai delivered at the Centre for Contemporary Security Affairs,  Igbinedion University, Okada, in Edo state, he reaffirmed his worth. 
The lecture titled: “Military and Democratic consolidation in Nigeria, Appraisal of the Nigerian Army Counter-Terrorism And Counter-Insurgency Operations,” the Army Chief for the umpteenth time, proved to Nigerians that President Buhari made no mistake in appointing him leader of counter-insurgency operations in Nigeria.        
The Army boss gave rare insights into the complex security challenges, unknown to many Nigerians. He was insightfully blunt that insurgency is not tackled with boots and guns alone. 
It also inherently requires the infusion of political and security solutions, if Nigeria plans to secure its democracy and good governance. Only this can make the country emerge stronger after the multiple crises. It was a prophetic vision into the future.   
Gen. Buratai shocked security dons in the academia by releasing what is known in Nigerian parlance as “expo,” when he gave a link to the success of Nigerian troops over terrorists. He bellowed, “One of the silent but radical changes in the operations was changing the orientation and mind-set of troops from a defensive to an offensive posture.”
 To illustrate he is a leader, in touch with the tinges of his assignment, the Army Chief exposed the leakages prolonging the final defeat of terrorism in Nigeria. He does not consider himself a sit-com Army General, but a field defender of his people and so, quite conversant with where the problem lingers in the ongoing clearance operations by Nigerian troops. 
That security is a collective responsibility is an overbeaten cliché. And  Gen. Buratai pricked the conscience of Nigerians and stakeholders to wake up to some concealed  realities. 
The Army boss was articulate that porous borders, cross-border insurgency, and insufficient international support in terms of equipment and large space of operational environment for troops are the hindrances for a quick extinction of Boko Haram insurgency.   
Buratai, the Generalissimo of the counter-insurgency operations again assured Nigerians of triumph over terrorism. He allayed the fears of skeptics that with him as direct overseer on counter-insurgency, insurgents neither have might nor energy to hold Nigerians hostage again.
He assured, “Success recorded so far is an indication that for Nigeria’s democracy to be consolidated, the military must not only play its part but must also fulfill the constitutional roles assigned to them.”
And those thinking Gen. Buratai has forgotten about the rescue of the remaining Chibok schoolgirls and other Nigerians still in the captivity of Boko Haram were reminded of it as the Army’s topmost priority. It means Boko Haram factional leader Abubakar Shekau who has been forced underground into the Cameroonian mountains will also not escape the swords of Nigerian Army, with President Buhari’s latest refunding of the MNJTF with $100 million.   
It is pertinent to recount the history of Boko Haram terrorism in the country. Nigerians familiar with it since the 2009 resurgence and progression would attest to its ever expanding tentacles. Nigeria also experienced its manifest embryonic plots to make incursions to the Southern part of the country before the Buhari Presidency and the emergence of Gen.  Buratai.
But that Gen. Buratai has defiantly led troops to confine Boko Haram atrocities to the Northeast and specifically to the Lake Chad Basin axis and the large Sambisa forest is significant. The heart of Sambisa forest-Camp Zero has already been conquered by the Nigerian Army and deserving of eulogies. 
And it happened in less than three years. So, when President Buhari extended Gen. Buratai’s tenure of office, some Nigerians who cannot discern beyond the periphery staged out in dishonest and unpatriotic remonstrations. The remonstrators jealously overlooked Gen. Buratai’s splendous performance qualifying him for retention.  
But the President, a military tactician himself, knew exactly the treasures in the “wonder boy,” Gen. Buratai  in the trenches. And that’s why President Buhari feted him with tenure extension.   
By Gen. Buratai’s depiction, routing out insurgency in Nigeria means both the security and political leaderships utmost agreement, which must snowball into the endorsement of a common agenda. President Buhari and Gen. Buratai share same concerns. And it explains why life has been animated in the Northeast currently. 
At the moment in the Northeast, particularly Maiduguri, the hub of Boko Haram terrorism, local and foreign journalists, UN officials, philanthropic organisations, the Red Cross and special delegations of countries across the globe now freely visit and unmolested by insurgents to ascertain the extent of the defeat of terrorism in Nigeria.   
Interestingly, in spite of the enormous pressure and stress on Gen. Buratai, he is not fatigued. He knows he covenanted with Nigerians upon his appointment as COAS and leader of counter-insurgency operations to end terrorism anywhere in Nigeria. 
He renews this covenant in his heart, every day he wakes up, thinking about Nigeria. Gen. Buratai knows, Boko Haram terrorists will not have peace in this country, until Nigerians first  reclaim their nation to savour the same peace.
Jonathan is a security expert based in the USA.

Leave politics to politicians, former Senate President Ameh Ebute tells CAN, ethnic-warlords

Third Republic Senate President, Sen. Ameh Ebute, has cautioned the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) to forthwith depart the political arena for the main gladiators. 

The country’s Christian leaders  recently delved into partisan politics, abandoning their primary assignment of soul-winning. 
After pressure from all and sundry, the religious group sluggishly congratulated President Muhammadu Buhari, having previously taking side with the opposition.
Senator Ebute, however, advised CAN to de-robe itself from the garments of partisanship or political parties.
He gave this charge at the opening forum of a two-day international conference  on politics, religion and ethnicity in Nigeria  organized  by the National Inter-Faith and Religious Organizations for Peace (NIFROP). 
Senator Ebute was also very critical of Chairman of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) Prof. Ango Abdullahi, urging him to desist from reducing Nigeria or the geographical North to an ethnic or religious fiefdom. 
“ Why do we draw the swords against ourselves for political, ethnic or religious reasons? Where and when did we abandon our cherished traditional norms of hospitality and brotherhood? Why the so much hate and animosities between brothers/sisters and among communities, over such molten factors, which ought to unite, rather than divide us?,” he queried.      
“ I regret to say, we have deviated so extraneously from the solid foundations our founding fathers and world-recognized nationalists laid for the future of this great nation, Nigeria.
“ These great Nigerians did great things for Nigeria. Nobody actually heard about their religion, ethnicity or region in the country to the level of interfering with the delicate cords, which bind Nigerian together as one strong and indivisible entity in the resoluteness of unity.
“ In post- independence Nigeria, the Zik of Africa as he was popularly called told us that ‘Each of our three regions is vastly different in many respects, but each has this in common: that, despite variety of languages and custom or difference in climate, all forms part of one country which has existed as a political and social entity for fifty years. That is why we believe that the political union of Nigeria is destined to be perpetual and indestructible.’
“ We must also ponder on the wisdom of Sir Ahmadu Bello on unity and peace of Nigeria. He canvassed a proper understanding of ourselves for the unity of Nigeria in his reply to Zik of Africa thus; ‘… let us understand our differences. I am a Muslim and a Northerner. You are a Christian, an Easterner. By understanding our differences, we can build unity in our country.’
“ And the legendary Chief Obafemi Awolowo reminded us that;  ‘Violence never settles anything right: apart from injuring your own soul, it injures the best cause. It lingers on long after the object of hate has disappeared from the scene to plague the lives of those who have employed it against their foes.’
“ This generation of Nigerians today are obliged to listen and reflect on these great wisdom the founding fathers as constant reminders to us about the desirability of peace. I shall indulge in futile deception,  if I tell you these men never had disagreements or bruised one another in the course of their sojourn for Nigeria. They had aplenty!
“ But they considered the interest of Nigeria and Nigerians greater and paramount than personal feuds and never spilled blood over disputes. It’s a lesson for us to go back to our homes and reflect. It is the reason I am glad to be part of this momentous ceremony, which is time and essences is very useful to Nigeria.   
“If you permit me,  I will appeal to  this congregation to take the message out loudly  and indeed, to all Nigerians to follow your footsteps.  I am excited at the fact that you have found in President Buhari a reincarnation of the souls and spirits of our founding fathers.
“ Whatever Nigeria’s forbearers’ wished for our nation, Nigeria, is embodied by President Buhari. He is now the trusted anchorman because we have seen in him the traits of a genuine leader, who does not only regret our shameful departure from the standpoint of this nation, but is also prepared to lead the path for our glorious recovery.
“ President Buhari is a rare leader, gifted to us at this of our political or existence history. And we are elected to rally around him to reclaim Nigeria from all the destructive forces of darkness.  
“ May  l also seize,  this opportunity to appeal to some Northern leaders like Chairman of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) Prof. Ango Abdullahi to desist from reducing Nigeria or the geographical North to an ethnic or religious fiefdom in the larger equation of Nigeria.
“ Our dear country is home to all Nigerians. It’s pointless talking tough always on our ethnic or religious fault lines, instead of striving to reunify ourselves and a traumatized nation.
“ Similarly, I caution all religious leaders in Nigeria, especially those of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), my primary constituency, as a Christian, to de-robe themselves from the garments of partisanship or political parties. There is no need to heat the polity with inflammable comments at his delicate period of our history.
“ Religious leaders must necessarily leave politics for politicians, if we want this nation to progress in peace and unity. All of you must agree with me that our people have been wrongly indoctrinated to believe religion is something so sensitive enough to spark violence and killings.”

Atiku gets 21-day ultimatum to return to Cameroon, apologise to Nigerians

The Coalition of Minority Tribes in Nigeria has called on the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the last election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, to apologise to Nigerians and return to Cameroon or seek naturalization.

The group made this demand following the recent revelation by the All Progressives Congress that Atiku is a nationality of Cameroon and not a Nigerian.
 The group said what Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has done by concealing his identity is tantamount to crimes against humanity and must tender an unreserved apology to Nigerians. 
Addressing a news conference on Monday, Abdulmuminu Hassan, Secretary-General of the group said former head of state, General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida must have realized the true nationality of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, hence, the reason why he refused to appoint him as the Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service. 
It further gave him a 21-day ultimatum to return to Cameroon to reunite with his family members. 
Full text of his speech below.
This same scenario could also be the reason why former President Olusegun Obasanjo refused to allow him to succeed him as President of Nigeria in 2007. This much was stated by former president Olusegun Obasanjo in his autobiography “My Watch” where he stated in unequivocal terms that the paternity of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar was “shadowy.” 
We are therefore constrained to state that it is such a shame that the Nigerian authorities have allowed such a sham fester for decades without detecting, and thereby causing Nigeria and Nigerians the opportunity to develop her country the way Nigerians would do. 
The Conference of Minority Tribes in Nigeria is indeed alarmed that the paternity of Alhaji Atiku was unlet undetected and he aspired and held the number two position of Vice President in Nigeria.
His consequent actions while he was Vice President of Nigeria tells of a man who was hell-bent on destroying the country. 
His relationship with Simon Ateba, a Nigerian based Cameroonian journalist that was arrested in Cameroon for being a spy is also suspect and leaves more to be imagined. 
Consequently, the Conference of Minority Tribes in Nigeria wishes to use this medium to issue a 21-day ultimatum to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar return to Cameroon to reunite with his family members. This is important to save Nigerians the trauma of having to deal with his nationality. 
The Conference of Minority also wishes to advise Alhaji Atiku Abubakar to in an alternative solution seek naturalization as a Nigerian by applying to the Federal Ministry of Interior in Nigeria. This way Nigerians would forgive him for his sins and show him understanding since he has lived the better part of his life in Nigeria. Though at great disservice to Nigeria. 
The Conference of Minority Tribes in Nigeria shall not hesitate to mobilize its members across the nook and crannies in Nigeria to a street protest should Alhaji Atiku Abubakar fail to tender unreserved apologies to Nigerians, and also return to Cameroon or seek naturalisation in Nigeria.

The Shameful End Of Nnamdi Kanu!

By Prince Ugo 
He sauntered on the pulpit with an over bloated ego and image of an emancipator or messiah. He wrapped himself in the toga of the revered Ikemba of Nnewi, Chief Odemegwu Ojukwu  (of blessed memory) and solicited for red carpet treatments at traditional ceremonies of his kinsmen  on the plank of championing the cause of an independent  Republic  of Biafra from Nigeria.  But only outlaws were his companions and adherents.
 
Controversial leader of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) Mazi Nnamdi Kanu cleverly drugged this clan of minions with the infectious pill of marginalization of his people. They accepted it hook and sinker, unknowingly clapping at the face of a new “liberator” of Igbo nation.  It was all fake and artificial!
 
Kanu had ulterior motives and later on, it manifested in his stealthy antics of extorting his people through a canny gimmicks he coated, as donations to the Biafran cause.  The IPOB leader dispossessed both the poor and rich in Igboland, at home and in the diaspora.
 
 What he could not extort from them through donations for a phony secessionists struggle, he raised a gang of armed criminals who lay siege on the Southeast, as armed robbers, killers, assassins, kidnappers for ransom and looters of raided shops/homes of their own people.  Thus, he is nothing admirable beyond a conman of the finest breed, gatherer of armed criminals and an alarmist. But his palace jesters hailed him; those whose knowledge of freedom and liberation is only defined by a Republic of Biafra, ignored his antics and donated money to him.          
 
Worthlessly, Kanu, within a short time displayed his true colours to Nigerians and his kinsmen.  From a presumed separatist fighter,  to a political activist to  a conman and now a sex maniac and activist. No man worth his esteem, prides in violating the privacy and romantic fortress of his own wife- Uchechi Okwu Kanu in an embarrassing video that has gone viral.
 
But who has bewitched Kanu or his blind followers? To get a glimpse that Kanu has nothing upstairs, he stood up defending this disgraceful public immorality. 
 
And perhaps, to cover his shame, Kanu tweeted that;   “When I repeatedly announced on radio that you are intoxicatingly beautiful, most didn’t quite understand.  Now millions can bear me witness. Even after childbirth, as adorably divine as ever. In the end we always win. #Biafra rocks!” It smacks more like yahoo boys hangout chats.
 
Nothing can demean a people and ridicule a cause like this latest outing of Kanu. It beats the imagination that some of his cultic followers have seen no wrong with it and in fact, are defending this sacrilege. They have narrowed it down to a personalized Kanu and his lifestyle, instead of looking at the broader picture of the damage to the cause he symbolizes.    
 
IPOB chieftain, Uche Okafor-Mefor so brainlessly argued that “The video making rounds about the leader of IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is not new, it has been in circulation since 2013/2014 and as such nothing to be surprised about.” 
 
But Kanu himself has not claimed it’s an old sex video. This was after Okafor-Mefor fruitlessly attempted to blame the current occupants of Aso Rock for sponsoring hackers to invade Kanu and Wife’s romantic session. If this account has any substance, was President Muhammadu Buhari in Aso Rock by 2013/2014 when Okafor-Mefor claimed the video was in circulation?
 
And anyone who stands logic on its head spews jaundiced thoughts like;  “We note that employing of this cowardly conduct remains in the circumstances the only response-and-panic-control strategy from the already destabilized, panicky Aso Rock cabals and their e-rats to try to regain their battered and tattered image.”
 
Another IPOB fanatic also defended it by insisting there is nothing wrong with Kanu having sex with wife, which is very agreeable. However, to blind himself to the consciousness of personally or consenting to recording of oral sex session of  Kanu with his wife is the height of hypocrisy and downright carelessness by the IPOB leader. Cellphones could be misplaced, stolen or get into wrong hands for whatever reason and the videos could leak.
 
And insulting the sensibilities of Nigerians, this  IPOB enthusiast  attempted to liken Kanu to great warlords  and averred so ghoulishly  that “And one of the trademarks of this class of people from Hannibal, Caesar, Che, Ojukwu, Musaveni et al, is beautiful women. So, it even falls in on a good ground to depict Kanu as a woman’s man, except that in this case, the said tape involves him and his wife.”
 
There is scant evidence that that Nnamdi Kanu’s personality is anywhere near any famed warlord, anywhere in the world. He came on stage when he formed IPOB and flaunted himself pretentiously as leader of a separatist movement. Initially, some gullible and unsuspecting Southeasterners believed his sermons. They thought a support to the cause was necessary and they did.
 
Shockingly, Kanu squandered this goodwill in a short time. What sold him out as a merchant of violence and extortion was the quality of those he assembled as foot soldiers. They were crooks, killers, assassins, criminals and the likes. That’s why it was easy for IPOB to callously execute extra-judicially those who opposed his brand of secession agitations.
Kanu’s close adherents were on a familiar terrain and an imposed sit-home order by IPOB  on the Southeast was enough excuse for his armies to invade, kill and loot the people of their properties. No secession agitation anywhere in the world is anchored on such template or convention.
 
Armed robberies and kidnappings in the region exacerbated because of the armed miscreants in IPOB’s   Biafra Secret Service (BSS) and the Biafra National Guard (BNG)  who stepped up such criminal activities. It was the intervention of the Presidency through the Nigerian Army with the launch of “Operation Python Dance I, which flushed out the armed gangs  that saved the entrapped people  in the Southeast.      
 
 
Sensing the realization of his dubiousness, Kanu and IPOB dabbled into political affairs by issuing reckless orders for Ndi’gbo to boycott governorship elections in Anambra and threatened to visit violence on those who would violate the order.  IPOB initially adopted same posture on the 2019 general elections, but was only forced to backpedal when it became apparent,  the federal government was not ready to tolerate any act that would lead to disruption of elections or prevent people from exercising their civic franchise.  
 
The “Operation Python Dance II episode  in 2017 at Kanu’s country home,   Afaraukwu, Umuahia Abia state demonstrated the extent enemies of Nigeria hired and backed  Kanu to destabilized  Nigeria. His armed criminals went on the offensive against patrolling soldiers, in unprovoked attacks with dangerous weapons and some soldiers were wounded.
 
The alarmist Kanu disappeared and went underground, possibly outside the country.  His supporters who sought to twist the narrative claimed he was murdered by state forces. Sensational tales were contrived about his alleged assassination by Nigerian troops to attract sympathy.
 
Months later, the IPOB leader ‘reincarnated” and was first spotted in public praying at City of David in Jerusalem, Israel. Thereafter, Kanu went into prolonged hiding, only for him to now appear in a scandalous oral sex video with his wife.
 
Leaders of liberation movements do not play the game  by tricks; they do not abandon supporters and the cause in the heat of tribulations.  So, Nnamdi Kanu is undeserving of the veneration of warlord by every gage. He is just a gold digger, exploiting the wealth and passion of his people for a Biafran state in the guise of separatism struggles.     
 
At least, the FGN has established that IPOB’s leader  Nnamdi Kanu is funded   from home,  by diasporaens and some foreign countries through donations in an account domiciled in France. He’s being feeding fat on it.
But those who are paying Kanu and funding the aberrational activities of IPOB  to discredit the Buhari Presidency have been shamed.   The IPOB leader has fallen from grace to grass and Buhari, the leader Kanu was paid to hate so much is having the last laugh.
 
First, Nigeria has remained one indivisible and united entity in the comity of nations. And the IPOB leader has ended up publicizing himself as a debauch, conman and spineless porn star, who has no value even for the nakedness of his own wife.
Ugo is a development expert  and wrote this piece from London, United Kingdom.

Parents of Chibok schoolgirls beg Boko Haram

Some of the Chibok schoolgirls freed in October 2016

At the fifth anniversary of the abduction of Chibok Schoolgirls by Boko Haram, parents have fervently appealed to insurgents to release the remaining girls.

Some of the parents told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Maiduguri narrated the ordeals of their daughters who were abducted in their Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok in Borno state April 14, 2014.

A rally to mark the anniversary was organized by a non-governmental Organisation, ‘Al’amin Foundation for Peace and Development’ .

At least 270 of the schoolgirls were abducted.

Some of the girls escaped, including, Amina Ali.

Another set of 21 girls were freed in October 2016, while one girl was also rescued in November same year by the military.

Similarly, 82 girls were freed following negotiations with government in May 2017, while one more girl was rescued in January 2018.

Recheal Daniel, a mother of one of the abducted girls, Rose Daniel, appealed to the Boko Haram factional leader, Abubakar Shekau, to release her daughter.

Daniel lamented that the incident had subjected her to pain and agony, adding that her husband was also killed by the insurgents.

She said that since then, she had been shouldering the up-bringing of six children left behind by her husband.

Ayuba Alamson, a guardian to some of the abducted girls, said six of his niece and sisters were abducted at the school on the fateful day.

Alamson said that three of the girls had been freed while the remaining were still with the insurgents.
He lamented that about 18 affected parents had died due to health complications associated with trauma they experienced as a result of the abduction of their daughters.

Alamson urged the Federal Government, United Nations (UN) and development organisations not to relent in their effort at ensuring the release of the girls from captivity.

“I also pray for the freedom Leah Sharibu, the only girl held back by Boko Haram insurgents after they released over 112 girls abducted at Government Girls Secondary School in Dapchi, Yobe.

Musa Maina, another resident of Chibok, appealed for the release of his wife, Zahra Musa, and daughter, Hadiza Musa, from captivity.

Maina recounted that he fled Chibok to Konduga after the April 14 school abduction incident, only to ended up in another abduction trap set by the insurgents..

“Two people came to my house with guns in an attempt to kill me. I and my second wife managed to escape but they took away my first wife and her daughter,” he said.

On her part, Mrs Hamsatu Allamin, the Director of Al’amin Foundation for Peace and Development, said thousands of women and children were being held hostage by the insurgents..

Allamin disclosed that the organization had embarked on comprehensive campaign to create awareness on abduction of women by the insurgents in the northeast.

She called for concrete measures to secure the release of the Chibok School girls and other persons being held by the insurgents throughout the country. 

Source: (NAN)

Instagram, WhatsApp and Facebook down worldwide

Facebook, Instagram down in many parts of the world

Many Users around the world can no longer access WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram, the second time that the popular social media platforms would suffer an outage in one month.

In Nigeria, the Facebook glitch happened after noon, with efforts to open the page unsuccessful. It was the same experience with Instagram.

WhatsApp also has connection issues at 13.26 Nigerian time. The platform could open, but messages were not streaming in as usual.

Facebook Inc, which owns all the three platforms, has yet to comment on the issue.

Instagram also down

Down Detector, a website that tracks when online services suffering from outages, reported that Facebook began having issues at approximately 6:36 a.m(EDT).

Instagram was reported having issues at nearly the same time. Text messaging service WhatsApp was also reportedly having issues. WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook are all owned and operated by Facebook.

Facebook, which has over 2 billion users, recently suffered its longest outage ever on March 13, when some users around the world were unable to access the companies platforms for about 24 hours.

ANACOWA Chairman applauds Dapo Abiodun’s Economic Transition Committee, says "there is hope for Ogun state economy to rise and shine again"

The Chairman, Ogun state Chapter of ANACOWA Motorcycle Owners And Riders Association of Nigeria, Comrade Prince Azeez Rasheed has applauded the economic transition committee of the governor-elect, Prince Dapo Abiodun, MFR.

The governor-elect had through his spokesperson, Hon. Remmy Hazzan on Friday released a 23-man economic transition committee headed by former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mr. Tunde Lemo. The secretary of the committee is “Mr. Dapo Okubadejo, a technocrat from private sector.
The members of the committee includes, “Senator Gbenga Kaka, former Deputy Governor and  former Ogun East Senator;  Alhaja Salimot Badru, former Deputy Governor; Prince Gboyega Nosiru Isiaka, gubernatorial candidate of African Democratic Congress (ADC) in 2019 Election and PDP gubernatorial candidate in 2015, as well as PPN gubernatorial candidate in 2011 election;  Mr. Foluso Phillips, is also a technocrat and a boardroom person.
Also among them are, Prof. Konyin Ajayi, SAN; Mr. Kunle Elebute, a technocrat with professional experience advising clients in the private/public sectors in Nigeria, West and Sub-Sahara Africa; Mr. Rotimi Paseda, gubernatorial candidate of UPN in 2015 election and that of SDP in 2019 election; Mr. Reuben Abati, a renowned journalist, former Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to President GEJ. He is the PDP’s Deputy governorship candidate in Ogun State for the 2019 guber election.
Other committee members are, “Mr. Mutiu Sunmonu; CON; Mr. Olajide Odewale; Chief Kayode Sofola SAN; Prof. Sidi Osho; Prof. Semiu Musa Olomu; Engr Bayo Adeola, FNSE; Mr. Tola Mobolurin; Mr. Lekan Asuni; Dr. Tunji Oredipe; Otunba Bimbo Ashiru; Arc. Dunni Opayemi; Mr. Bola Ogunsola; and Chief Bode Mustapha.
In a press statement made available to the press by the Director of Media and Publicity of the union, Comrade Akeem Temitope Akilo, the state Chairman, Comrade Prince Azeez Rasheed says “there is hope for Ogun state economy to rise and shine again.
“I extolled the efficacy, uprightness, strength and capacity of these inventive, learned and cultured stuffs of the economic transition committee of our governor-elect, Prince Dapo Abiodun, MFR. In the last 8 years, Ogun state has been having hard time because of the worsens state of the economy.
This starting step by the governor-elect is commendable and applauded. We believe in the capacity of these intellectuals to team up with the governor-elect to revive our economy from the state of colossal mess up, languor, depression, misplacement of priorities, and to reawaken the giant stride of the state”.
The State Chairman, Comrade Prince Azeez Rasheed thereby urge the committee members to prepare a sound and healthy detailed road map for the kick off of the new regime because they are now the architect of modern Ogun state, he said.

Buhari not behind your failure, stop fooling Benue indigenes with mushroom groups, Ortom warned

Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has been warned against shifting attention from his failed government by casting aspersions on the person President Muhammdu Buhari.

Benue Peace and Development Crusade, a civil society group, which gave this warning on Saturday, said Ortom was still using mushroom agents to fool Benue in the aftermath of the anti-open grazing law.
Comrade Dan Ochobo, President of the group, at a press conference on Saturday, warned Ortom to stop using his groups to make disparaging  remarks about President Buhari.
His speech below;
  It is nice meeting you again on this interactive platform. May we seize this opportunity to welcome you and also, wish you happy Easter celebration just days ahead.
   The attention of BPDC  was attracted to some infantile, baseless, provocatively twisted and self-condemning comments on social and traditional media platforms attributed to a character by the identity, Mr. Timothy Hembaor.
   He parades the tag of President General,  Tiv Youth Organization (TYO) and had the effrontery to ridicule President Muhammedu Buhari’s recent  comments over the now partisan, lopsided and nectar of deceptive leadership in Benue state called “Anti-open grazing Law.”
     The TYO President General was quoted as faulting President Buhari’s assertion while interacting with the Nigerian community in Dubai  that Benue state Governor, Hon. Samuel Ortom left the APC for the PDP  “…owing to unresolved issues concerning open-grazing of cattle in Benue State.”
    From the outset, this insinuation by TYO is wrong and is in no way linked to what President Buhari uttered in Dubai. Rather, the President said Gov. Ortom dumped the APC for PDP because he accused him (Buhari) of doing nothing about the herders/farmers crisis in Benue and he disputed the Governor by confronting him with an unassailable truth.
  President Buhari was meticulous that Gov. Ortom could not stand it and left the APC. The President’s words “…. but I was accused of not doing anything about those operating locally, but I took the Governor on this and this is one of the reasons he left our party for another party.”
   TYO proceeded to mouth very dishonestly that the President’s comments amounted to “…. a confirmation of Buhari’s anti-Benue posturing and… Ortom’s lack of confidence in federal authorities to protect his people has been confirmed.”
  Hembaor and his co-travellers of political gatekeepers at Government House Makurdi, masquerading as leaders of Tiv youths must be more circumspect in public comments.
    We know Tiv youths as people of diverse beliefs and persuasions. Their genuine or committed leaders cannot lie against the President on his expositions in Dubai that those perpetrating the killings in Benue were not Fulani herdsmen in Nigeria, as claimed by TYO. 
    But the unalterable truth is that these band of favour seekers and unfocused leaders, perhaps for a morsel of food, twisted President Buhari’s actual comments which were accurately replayed by a dozen media publications all over the world.    
                    Nothing in the President’s speech made a direct or tacit allusion to the exoneration of “Fulani herdsmen in Nigeria,” as TYO recaptures it; or any other group from the killings in Benue or elsewhere in Nigeria. There is no definiteness in his conclusions and for TYO to ascribe it to him is unconscionable.
                     In factuality, what Buhari said in Dubai  as replicated in the media was thus; “But those of you who are neighbours to cattle rearers, Nigerian cattle rearers use to carry only sticks and their machetes to cut foliage for the cattles. But these are cattle rearers with weapons like AK47.” He has repeated this a thousand times elsewhere, a feeling of exasperation and awe.
                     The President explained further that; “But the problem is that you can hardly identify the difference between cattle rearers from Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon and other cattle herders. They look the same.”
     There is nowhere in the President’s comments where what TYO credited to him can be traced. It is poor mischief and an attempt to cast aspersions on the person and office of Mr. President to taint his hard earned reputation and integrity in the eyes of Nigerians.  
                   However, Nigerians are not fooled by the deliberate attempts by TYO to denigrate President Buhari. It is a futile attempt and no amount of propaganda can rubbish President Buhari as TYO has been contracted to do, probably sponsored by the same Gov. Ortom.
                    Gov. Ortom has severally in the past, glowingly commended the President for his interventions into the herdsmen/farmers skirmishes in Benue state.
                For instance, during a press conference in Makurdi in June 2018, Gov. Ortom   through his then Commissioner of Information, Mr. Lawrence Onoja (Jnr) commended President Muhammadu Buhari for responding to pleas for the upgrade of “Exercise Ayem A Kpatuma” to “Operation Whirl Stroke,”  noting that it has assisted tremendously to curtail the excesses  of herdsmen militia in the state.
      And recently,  Gov. Ortom again reminded Benue people and Nigerians about the integrity and goodness in President Buhari when he said, “I Thank Mr. President, Muhammadu Buhari for not interfering in Benue election. Mr. President is a peaceful  and good man.” It is untenable to decorate a man with such accolades and again, secretly sponsor your minions to belittle him.
  Therefore, Gov. Ortom has fooled TYO nd indeed, Benue people enough. If the Governor confessed after his election that Buhari is a good man, its direct implication is that the pre-election vitriol on Mr. President which was laced in the farmers/herders clashes and the anti-open grazing law were Ortom’s personal pursuit of reelection agenda.
  Sensible Tiv youths should be knowledgeable amply to discern now that Gov. Ortom went to such extremity at the expense of development of the state and refusal to even fulfill basic state obligations such as payment of salaries and pensions to Benue people.
  No one has stopped the so-called leaders of TYO of playing the yeomen in Ortom’s palace. But may they be reminded that the office of the President of Nigeria is too exalted for them to pollute with twisted and disgustful lies, in a manner portraying them as imbeciles clapping at their despoiled future.
On reliable information, Gov. Ortom allegedly relishes instigating crises in the state. He profits from it in two folds; first,  he  uses it as an excuse to siphon public funds for his personal businesses in the guise of battling insecurity. But what is the use of monthly state security votes? Has TYO leaders ever paused to ask themselves this fundamental question?
 And secondly, he purposely allows the crisis to escalate to a terrible dimension and cause large displacement of people, in the same manner he has abandoned the ongoing Jukun/Tiv  Crisis to proceed on annual leave to probably China.
Soit  attracts national attention to the level of sympathizing with victims by support-relief materials, a greater percentage of donations by governments, organizations and corporate bodies for upkeep of IDPs ends up diverted by him through his agents supervising the camps.
TYO must look beyond the veneer and think more about their future that is been wasted or its fortunes fretted away by Gov. Ortom and desist from this meaningless noise they are sponsored to make against the President for a pot of porridge.

Coalition lauds Buhari, security agencies over recent successes in Zamfara, Yobe States….berates House of Reps over calls for President’s appearance

The Coalition for Nigeria Movement has strongly frowned at the recent call by the House of Representatives on President Muhammadu Buhari to appear before it over the security situation in the country.
The coalition instead said the President and security agencies should be given a pat on the back over recent success recorded over bandits and extremists in Zamfara and Yobe States.
High Chief Peremobowei Success, BoT Chairman of the group while addressing newsmen on Thursday, saluted President Buhari and the Nigerian military for the renewed vigor and recent outings against the Boko Haram, bandits and kidnappers in the north western part of the country. 
Peremobowei said the group find the call by the House of Representatives for President Buhari to address the nation over the incidents in Zamfara and other parts of the country very distracting, evil and politically motivated by enemies of Nigeria to derail the ongoing efforts
Full text of hiss speech below.
There has been a lot of unapprised and malicious criticism of the president and our security agencies with regards to the handling of issues around security in the country. We said unapprised and malicious because you all know and can attest to the fact that the president has done tremendously well in handling insecurity in the country and has also boosted the fighting capacity and morale of the Nigerian security forces as exemplified in the various exploits of the military in routing out terrorists disturbing the peace of the Nation. 
We hereby salute and commend His Excellency,  Muhammadu Buhari, President and Commander in Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces for his effort in tackling and confronting security issues, especially in Zamfara State and other places nationwide.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is on record that this government inherited myriads of security challenges and this president has since been to the rescue. In the Northeast of Nigeria, internally displaced persons are now returning to their communities in droves and humanitarian agencies are now gaining more access to previously hard to reach communities to offer humanitarian supports, thanks to the effort of the Buhari administration in ensuring that Boko Haram no longer controls any territory in the Northeast. Full Life is now returning to communities once on the brink even as security and surveillance around these areas have continued to increase tremendously .
The renewed strategy the government is adopting to address all the issues including kidnapping, banditry and other allied issues confronting the nation is quite commendable as you can see from the reports coming in from the various theatre of operation. The president has constantly supported the military. This has resulted in the renewed vigor, gallantry and doggedness we are currently seeing in the fight against insurgency and terrorism in the theatre.   we urge the president to maintain the temple as he commands the nation’s security forces to nip the raging insecurity in the bud. 
We are aware that the president after cutting shot his trip to Dubai, held a meeting with all the security chiefs and in the end charging our security agencies to put their acts together and deal ruthlessly with bandits, kidnappers and other security challenges in the country. This alone has shown that these dark forces are in for a hell of a time.
We also commend the president for his recent response to the situation in Zamfara and Kaduna States .  The way and manner he has motivated and equipped the military to respond effectively to the challenges in Zamfara and other states in the Northwest has won our heart. Operation Sharan Daji, Operation Harbin Kurnama (III) and the newly-launched Operation Puff Adder are focused on Zamfara, Kaduna (including the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway), Katsina, Kogi, and Niger States. These are all multi-agency operations, bringing together the Military, Police, the DSS, and others. The results have been incredible, marvelous and fantastic as can be seen clearly by all Nigerians. 
Clearly, the frequent kidnapping on the Abuja-Kaduna road is being tackled and the route is now safe. Many kidnappers have been arrested with some fatally injured in confrontation with security agencies. Our on the spot assessment indicates that the combined security services that are patrolling the road are constantly there, 24 hours to forestall any breach of law and sundry criminal activities. This is also praiseworthy. Mr. President is clearly on track. 
 In the light of these, we find the call by the House of Representatives for President Buhari to address the nation over the incidents in Zamfara and other parts of the country very distracting, evil and politically motivated by enemies of Nigeria to derail the ongoing efforts.  This demand on President Buhari coming at a time there are glaring evidences that much is being done, with visible impact, is an unneeded distraction. Nigerians unequivocally see it as a distraction from the pit of hell and must be halted with immediate effect. 
President Buhari has demonstrated that he is fully determined to tackle these security problems fiercely until these callous killers are crushed and completely conquered. The president has seen to the deployment of security agents to all the areas currently under attack, and the way and manner in which this administration is always tweaking its security strategies to meet the demands of the time has not escaped our notice. We therefore wish to call on this segment of parliament to as a matter of national concern put the nation first and at all times. 
Gentlemen, we are all in this together, this is our country and we must support Mr. President to succeed irrespective of our political and sundry differences. Events of the last few days have shown that the President and Commander -In-Chief of our Armed Forces  is determined to rid this country of dangerous marauders and brigands who have constituted threat to our common humanity. Security is everybody’s business.  As critical stake holders in the process, we must adopt some kind of early warning mechanisms to provide the government/security agencies with all the relevant information regarding any suspicious personality or movement in our communities. 
We call on all Nigerians to take it as a solemn responsibility to complement the efforts of our president and security agencies in their respective ways. Security is key and as such the responsibility of all. Instead of politicizing security issues, we should form a coalition with the government of the day to deal with these evil and dark forces threatening our corporate existence. We strongly state that anything short of this on the part of citizens is a travesty. 
As the current effort put in place to address insecurity across the country is yielding positive results, we salute President Muhammadu Buhari and also extend our commendations to our security agencies for their services and sacrifices to the nation. We urge all our fellow states men to join forces lets fight the enemies of our Nation.

OGUN STATE CHAIRMAN, ANACOWA MOTORCYCLE OWNERS AND RIDERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA, COMRADE PRINCE AZEEZ  RASHEED CONGRATULATE OGUN GOVERNOR-ELECT, PRINCE DAPO ABIODUN, MFR

The  chairman of the Ogun state Chapter of ANACOWA Motorcycle Owners And Riders Association of Nigeria, Comrade Prince Azeez Rasheed has congratulated the governor-elect of Ogun state, Prince Dapo Abiodun, MFR. 

While congratulating the governor-elect in a press release and personally signed, the union chairman urged him to redeem the dented image of which the outgoing governor has plugged the state into. 
The statement read, “with great respect and pride, you have won the much desired position. We heartily congratulate you on winning the election. We all trust you and your sagacity, we are sure that you are going to be a great leader.
On behalf of the ANACOWA Ogun state Chapter, we would like to congratulate you on the impressive victory in the last governorship elections 2019. With the support of all, we are sure that you are going to exercise your duties diligently and have a peaceful reign in our dear state. Congratulations on winning the elections and all the best for your new responsibilities.
Your Excellency sir, Prince Dapo Abiodun, MFR,  your new job as the governor of Ogun state which will Insha Allahu will be inaugurated on 29th May, 2019, is your chance to redeem the crumpled, maladministration and inefficient Ogun state has been subjected to in the last 8 years by the malversation, misfit, excessively proud and self-important current tenant in the government house. It is also an opportunity to work hard and make a great impression that lasts.
ANACOWA Motorcycle Owners And Riders Association of Nigeria, is a registered organization in Nigeria, and affiliated to Trade Union Congress (TUC).
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