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A soldier, Lance Corporal Nwobodo Chinoso, on Sunday killed himself after shooting three persons dead at the accommodation centre of the Forward Operating Base in Rabah, Sokoto State.

It was gathered that the victims include the Commander of the Forward Operating Base, Rabah Command, Lt. Sam Oladapo, the FOB, Rabah Command, Sergeant Major Iliyasu Inusa, and another private soldier, Attahiru Mohammed.

A military source said the events that led to the death of the soldiers started with an argument involving only the Oladapo.
The source said during the argument, Inusa and Mohammed intervened and Chinoso allegedly shot the three soldiers dead and thereafter killed himself.

Noting that an investigation had been ordered into the matter to ascertain the cause of the incident, the source, however, linked the incident to post-traumatic stress disorder, adding that the corpses had been deposited at the Usman Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital’s morgue.

The source said, “There was a shooting incident on Sunday evening at the Forward Operating Base, FOB, Rabah, in Sokoto State.

One LCPL Nwobodo Chinoso of 223 Battalion, Zuru ATT to 26 and Depl at FOB Rabah, opened fire and killed the FOB Commander, Sam Oladapo, the CSM SSGT, Iliyasu Inusa, and PTE Attahiru Mohammed, inside the command accommodation before killing himself.

“The Commander, 8 Division Garrison, and Commanding Officer 26 Battalion are presently at the location. Efforts are ongoing to move the corpses to the Usman Dan Fodio Teaching Hospital.

An investigation into the cause of the incident has started immediately but the cause of the incident is not yet known.

Legal icon Wole Olanipekun and 49 other lawyers have offered to defend the victory of President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the Presidential Election Tribunal.

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and one-time President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) is leading the team of legal giants.

According to the report, the lawyers are waiting to be served with the petitions of the candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, and the Labour Party (LP), Mr. Peter Obi.

Both opposition candidates have registered their displeasure with the declaration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate as the winner of the February 25 poll.

Tinubu got 8, 794,726 votes to beat Atiku and Obi to the second and third positions with 6,984,520 and 6,101,533 scores respectively.

But the first and second runners-up have sought leave of the tribunal to inspect some election materials used for the poll.

Members of the Tinubu legal team are to hold their preliminary meeting today in Lagos.

They are to discuss some of the issues in the public domain which may be included in the petitions of the PDP and the LP.

There were indications that some PDP governors may join in the case before the tribunal to testify that the poll was free and fair in their states.

Investigations showed that some of the 50 SANs were said to have opted for free service to actualize Tinubu’s mandate.

It was learned that a few of them joined the team based on the conviction that the presidential election was the “freest and fairest” in the country’s history with large-scale upsets.

Some of the senior lawyers in the vanguard of defending Tinubu’s mandate are a former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Akin Olujimi,  Yusuf Ali, Lateef Fagbemi, A.U. Mustapha, Ahmed Raji, Abiodun Owonikoko, Kemi Pinheiro, Niyi Akintola and H.M. Liman.

Others are: Taiwo Osipitan, Babatunde Ogala, Roland Otaru, James Onoja, Muiz Banire, Olusola Oke and a former Bauchi State Governor Mohammed Abubakar.

A source, who spoke in confidence, said: “Buoyed by patriotism and the need to protect the sanctity of the ballot, about 50 SANs have signed up to defend the mandate of Asiwaju Tinubu. The figure may be more in the next few days.

“Some of these legal giants have either not met with Tinubu or seeking any favour from him. They believe that the February 25  poll was credible and the best in the history of Nigeria.”

The source added: “In spite of the noise in the media, both Atiku and Obi have not served Tinubu and APC a copy of any petition before the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal.

“But the defense team of Tinubu will meet on Tuesday (today) in Lagos ahead of allowing Atiku and Obi to get their acts together.”

Section 130 (1, 2and 3) of the Electoral Act 2022 says: “ “No election and return at any election under this Act shall be questioned in any manner other than by a petition complaining of an undue election or undue return presented to the competent tribunal or court in accordance with the provisions of the constitution or of this Act and in which the person elected or returned is joined as a party.

“In this part, ‘tribunal’ means-(a) in the case of the presidential election, the Court of Appeal; and (b) in the case of any other elections under this Act, the election tribunal established under the Constitution or by this Act.

“The election tribunals shall-(a) be constituted not later than 30 days before the election; and (b) when constituted, open their registries for business seven days before the election.”

The protracted and escalating nature of the crisis in Ukraine, which has been going on for a year, has prompted China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang to call for the immediate resumption of peace negotiations.

According to Qin, the process of peace negotiations should start as soon as possible, and all sides’ legitimate security concerns should be taken into consideration.

He called the Ukrainian crisis, which started on February 24, 2022, with a Russian invasion, “an eruption of the difficulties built up in the security governance of Europe.”

The foreign minister claimed that attempts to hold peace negotiations had consistently been thwarted.

“There seems to be an invisible hand, pushing for the protraction and escalation of the conflict and using the Ukraine crisis to serve a certain geopolitical agenda.

“The crisis in Ukraine has come to a critical juncture. Either hostilities stop and peace is restored, and the process of political settlement begins, or more fuel is added to the flames and the crisis further expands and spirals out of control,” he said.

China recently made an attempt to explain its perspective on the conflict in a so-called position paper, but the paper was widely regarded with dismay and skepticism.

According to experts, the report did not provide any fresh initiatives for a peace agreement.

According to Qin, China did not give Russia any weaponry during the conflict and neither did Beijing start it or participate in it.

“Why on earth blame sanctions and threats against China?

“This is absolutely unacceptable,” he said responding to information cited by Washington last month suggesting that Beijing could provide “lethal support” to Moscow – a claim Beijing had already rejected – and warnings from the U.S. and Europe to China not to send weapons to Russia.

At around 5:30 am yesterday, gunmen raided the Abakpa neighborhood of the Enugu city, setting one individual on fire inside his Sienna vehicle.

The hoodlums suspected of enforcing the sit-at-home order that was gradually being disregarded by people in the South-East also set fire to about two automobiles and five tricycles.

Many withdrew from coming outside in the morning because of the occurrences’ early-morning fear, but they overcome it later that day.

The incident happened at the Liberty Bus stop, Abakpa, in the state capital’s Enugu East Local Government Area, where the hoodlums attacked the passenger cars heading to Nsukka.

Similar to how they allegedly burned the driver inside the car, the shooters were at a well-known T-junction in the Abakpa neighborhood.

An eyewitness  stated: “They (the insurgents) stopped the man and commanded him to step out of the car, the man resisted, and that made the gunmen to open the fuel cover and shot into the tank making the car go up in flames with the man inside.”

Prof. Benard Odoh, an APGA candidate for governor in Ebonyi State’s general elections in 2023, criticized the police announcement that listed him and nine other people as wanted as being unusual and prejudicial.

He claimed that the police put him on their wanted list in order to thwart and ruin his prospects of winning the state’s governorship race on Saturday.

On Monday, the Ebonyi State Police Command issued a warrant for the arrest of Odoh and nine of his supporters on suspicion of murder.

Recall that thugs allegedly murdered HRH (Eze) Igboke Ewa, the traditional leader of Umuezeokaoha community in the state’s Ezza North Local Government Area, last week because he supported “a specific” political party. Odoh is a native of the same neighborhood.

The APGA candidate for governor was implicated in the monarch’s demise by the Ebonyi State Government. He has categorically refuted the accusation, affirming that the late traditional ruler was his father and a supporter, and asserting that it is absurd to connect him to the heinous occurrence.

In a statement he personally signed and provided to media members on Monday in Abakaliki, he stated, “My attention has been drawn to a publication by the Nigeria Police Force, Ebonyi State Command, in a letter; AZ: 5200/EBS/DFA/PPRO/VOL.8/249 dated 06/03/2023 and I wish to state and react as follows:

“That’s while I again sympathise with the family over this very painful, unfortunate and tragic loss, I reiterate my earlier positions in the media that I know nothing, absolutely NOTHING about the assassination of my traditional ruler, HRH Ezeogo Igboke Ewa of Umuezeokaoha in Ezza North LGA of Ebonyi State and the Chairman of Ezza Traditional Rulers.

“That the allegations against me in the said publication are all false in every material fact; malicious, baseless, spurious and should be totally discountenanced by the general public. The Nigerian law still presumes an accused person innocent until proven guilty by a court of competent jurisdiction.

“That the persons listed in the said letter as being declared wanted are APGA supporters/members from my Umuezeokaoha community just as APGA has supporters in all villages and polling units across the 13 LGAs of Ebonyi state.

“I don’t have other interpersonal relationships or dealings with them except that being an urbane and accomplished figure, some of them look up to me as their role model and mentor.

“That I have already obtained an Order from the High Court, Owerri in No: HOW/194/2023 dated 3rd day of March 2023 restraining the police and other security agencies from harassing or arresting me until the matter brought before the court is determined by the court.

“That the IGP and other security agencies have been served with the court order accordingly. The IG upon being served the said order stopped all actions in the matter in respect to the Court but the CP Ebonyi State who is under the IG continued to take further action in the matter contrary to the order of Court.

“Further the Family of Late Eze filed a suit in Suit Number HBA/47MC/2023 alleged that the CP Ebonyi State has compromised by failing to arrest me and Ebonyi High Court has not determined the matter yet CP Ebonyi State continued to take steps over the matter that is sub judice.

“That I am not on the run and cannot be said to be on the run for any reason whatsoever but pursuing and seeking the resolution of the false and misleading allegations brought against me through legal and peaceful means.

“That the allegations are politically motivated and intended to undermine my chances of winning this Saturday’s Governorship election in Ebonyi State which I am the leading frontliner.

“That, I, Professor Benard Ifeanyi Odoh, therefore, urge my supporters across Ebonyi State and beyond to remain calm, focused and resolute in our efforts to win this coming gubernatorial election and liberate our people from the prevailing constant harassment and intimidation.

“I finally pray that the Lord Almighty will continue to grant us the wisdom, grace and ability to manage this critical and crucial moment of our campaigns and stir us to a resounding victory!”

The People’s Democratic Party presidential campaign council reportedly spent more than N400 billion on their campaigns, according to Senator Dino Melaye, the Atiku-Okowa presidential campaign council’s spokeswoman.

The spokesperson revealed this in a video on Monday night.

Melaye claimed that the entire idea of revamping the naira was a ruse in the one minute, 45 second video.

This occurs just hours after the PDP leadership, led by Senator Iyorchia Ayu, stormed the INES offices in protest over the announcement that Bola Tinubu, the presidential nominee of the All Progressives Congress, would be the next president following the elections on February 25, 2023.

The PDP, Labour Party, and New Nigeria Peoples Party disputed the results, claiming that the poll was tainted by violence, rigging, and lack of integrity due, among other things, to the failure to upload the presidential election results to the IRev portal in real time on Election Day.

The PDP also bemoaned what it called the irregularities observed during the election’s administration.

Melaye continued, “We spent nearly N400bn simply for a caricature show to ensure that the mandate of the people given freely to Atiku Abubakar is retrieved. Nigerians were duped by INEC.

On the redesign of the naira, the spokesperson claimed that “Bola Tinubu received money, which allowed the APC to distribute new notes on Election Day across the nation while starving the PDP of funding. Nigerians were duped by INEC’s scheme to redesign the naira.

He also urged all PDP followers and supporters of democracy across the nation to prevent this from standing.

A man, identified as Ikechukwu Obiora, has allegedly strangled his pregnant wife for refusing to open the gate on time for him.

It was gathered that the deceased, Ebere Obiora, was a few months pregnant before the incident happened and the marriage was barely six months old.

The incident happened on Thursday at Ezi-Ogwugwu, Otolo Nnewi in Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State.

The suspect allegedly confessed to the crime after he was summoned by his in-law for his explanation of the development.

A source close to the family said on Monday, said the couple had been involved in domestic violence which had been unknown to the wife’s family members.

The source said, “Around 7pm on Thursday, March 2, 2023, the deceased family received a call from the husband’s mother, informing them that their daughter had just slumped and appeared to be dead.

“As soon as they made their way to their in-law’s residence at Ezi-Ogwugwu, they were informed that their daughter had been rushed to the Nnewi Diocesan Hospital at Akwudo.

“At the hospital, the doctor on duty informed them that their daughter was dead after medical check. The deceased family members had to take the body to another hospital, St. Felix Okolo Hospital, Nnewi, where the doctor also confirmed dead before it was eventually deposited at the morgue.”

According to the source, the husband of the deceased, Obiora, confessed to the killing of the wife during an interrogation by the deceased family members.

He said, “I returned home in the morning of March 2, 2023, and was knocking at the gate, but my wife did not open the gate immediately.

“In that anger, I started shouting at her. I first slapped and hit her from the gate to the house before angrily grabbing her by the neck and strangling her.

“I couldn’t believe what happened because I never expected that such actions would lead to her death.

“I eventually abandoned the corpse and left out of fear and confusion, after confiding in few persons who I sought advice on what to do.

“It was later in the evening that my mother reached out to my wife’s family members.”

Following the Supreme Court judgment, which extended the validity of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) currency redesign policy to December, some deposit money banks have started paying out the old notes.

According to the report, some commercial banks in the City of Kano and Abuja have commenced paying out the old N500 and N1000 notes.

While some branches of Guarantee Trust Bank (GTB) issued old notes, some others like Polaris bank in Abuja had not commenced as of the time this report was filed.

A member of staff confided in the publication that only the old N200 notes were still being issued, “as we do not have any new directive on what to do yet.”

“The problem is that taking the old notes from customers will require the CBN form as we don’t have any directive in that regard,” the source said.

As of the time of this report, newsmen was unable to confirm if the CBN had officially issued a bank-wide circular instructing the Deposit money bank to comply.

Economic experts have asked President Muhammadu Buhari to direct the Governor of the CBN, Godwin Emefiele, to obey the judgment on the validity of the old naira notes.

An economist, Paul Alake, had said there needs to be more clarity on how the old N500 and N1000 notes return into circulation.

He said the judgment would not be impactful if the CBN did not release the old notes back into the banking system.

“If the money is not released in the financial sector by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the judgment may not have any effect.”

In a unanimous judgement, a seven-member panel of justices presided by Justice Inyang Okoro, on Friday, held that the directive by President Muhammadu Buhari to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for the redesigning and withdrawal of old notes of N200, N500, and N1,000, without consultation with the states, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) and the National Council of State and other stakeholders, was unconstitutional.

The apex court observed that no reasonable notice was given before the implementation of the policy as provided under the CBN Act.

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, has led a protest at the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission in Abuja.

PDP leaders as well as supporters stormed the INEC headquarters wearing black clothes in protest against the just concluded presidential election that saw the All progressives Congress candidate, Bola Tinubu, declared winner of the presidential poll.

The protesters took off from the Legacy House Headquarters of the PDP with protesters wearing black.

Recall that the PDP protested at the INEC headquarters in 2019 against the re-election of President Muhammau Buhari.

The present protest according to the party leadership is against the outcome of the just concluded presidential and National Assembly elections on February 25.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has released the breakdown of results for the National Assembly elections held on Saturday, February 25.

The electoral body said winners have been declared for 423 national assembly seats while supplementary elections will be held in 46 constituencies.

INEC boss, Yakubu Mahmood, said 98 out of 109 senate seats have been declared while in the house of representatives, 325 out of 360 seats have been decided.

In the senate, the All Progressives Congress (APC) controls 57 seats while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) now has 28 and Labour Party (LP) has six.

The ruling party also dominates the House of Representatives with 162 seats, the major opposition party PDP has 102 and LP controls 34.

The INEC boss also addressed the logistics and technical issues that marred the presidential and national assembly elections.

He said, “Do doubt, last week’s national elections raised a number of issues that require immediate, medium, and long-term solutions. The planning for the election was painstakingly done. However, its implementation came with challenges, some of them unforeseen. The issues of logistics, election technology, behaviour of some election personnel at different levels, attitude of some party agents and supporters added to the extremely challenging environment in which elections are usually held in Nigeria.

“We appreciate the sacrifice and doggedness of Nigerians and the dignity and maturity displayed by political leaders even in the context of divergent views about the election. A lot of lessons have been learnt. Of immediate concern to the Commission is how the identified challenges can be addressed as we approach the concluding phase of the General Election involving the largest number of constituencies i.e. 28 State Governorship elections and 993 State Houses of Assembly seats.

“In last Saturday’s elections, winners have also been declared for 423 national legislative seats while supplementary elections will be held in 46 constituencies. In the Senate, 98 out of 109 seats have been declared. So far, seven political parties have won senatorial seats while in the House of Representatives, 325 out of 360 seats have been won by eight political parties.”

Mahmood described the 10th assembly as the most diverse national assembly since 1999.

He said certificates of return will be presented to senators-elect on Tuesday at the national collation centre, Abuja, while members of the house of representatives-elect will receive theirs on Wednesday.

The INEC chair said the comprehensive list of all members-elect will be uploaded to the commission’s website “shortly”.