News & Announcements

Sunday saw the suspension of popular MP Diane Abbott by the main opposition Labour Party in the UK, pending an investigation into remarks she made suggesting that Jews were not subject to bigotry “all their lives.”

In a letter to the Observer newspaper, Abbott, the first black woman elected as an MP in the UK, claimed that redheads, Jews, and Travellers all “face discrimination” akin to that experienced by “white persons with points of distinction, such as redheads.” But racism does not affect them constantly.

“At the height of slavery, there were no white-seeming people manacled on the slave ships,” she added.

Labour Party immediately announced that Abbott, who was shadow interior minister under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn, had been suspended from its parliamentary party.

“The Labour Party completely condemns these comments, which are deeply offensive and wrong,” said a spokesman.

“The chief whip has suspended the Labour whip from Diane Abbott pending an investigation.”

In a later tweet, Abbott stated that an original draft of the letter had been transmitted incorrectly and that she wished to “wholly and totally remove my words.”

“Racism takes many forms and it is completely undeniable that Jewish have suffered its monstrous effects,” she said.

In 2020, the Equality and Human Rights Commission concluded that Corbyn’s Labour was “responsible for unlawful acts of harassment and discrimination” due to antisemitism.

Keir Starmer, who succeeded Corbyn, apologized for the situation and said his predecessor would not be permitted to run as a Labour candidate in the upcoming election.

A wildlife reserve that is home to 25 lions and other animals has been threatened by the intense fighting that has rocked Sudan, destroyed the country, and killed hundreds of people.

According to the facility, it lacks electricity to run safety gates around enclosures and is running low on food for the cats, who each need five to ten kilograms (11 to 22 pounds) of meat daily.

On April 15, fighting broke out in Sudan between Abdel Fattah al-army-aligned Burhan’s forces and those of Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, the former deputy and current competitor who is in charge of the potent paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

In the already one of the poorest countries in the world, the clashes have resulted in more than 400 fatalities, thousands of injuries, and the possibility of further unrest.

The Sudan Animal Rescue Centre issued a statement beginning, “First, may Allah protect Sudan and the people of Sudan,” and warning that the situation at the sanctuary had also become “serious.”

The sanctuary, which is about an hour’s drive southeast of Khartoum and close to a military post that had experienced “deadly clashes on a daily basis,” was no longer staffed permanently, according to the statement.

In addition to 25 lions and other creatures like gazelles, camels, monkeys, hyenas, and birds, the sanctuary also shelters 25 lions.

“We are under tremendous pressure due to the current power outage, and our stocks of food and drink are beginning to run out,” it said, adding that one of its vehicles had been stolen.

The power outage had become “a real threat” because the facility relies on electricity to power equipment for the animal enclosures.

“We therefore appeal to all officials and those with the ability to help with the need to intervene … as soon as possible,” it added in the statement.

Bishop Oluwafeyiropo Daniel of I Reign Christian Ministry, Lekki, a Lagos-based preacher accused of raping his followers, has not yet complied with the terms of his release on bail.

He was remanded by Judge Ramon Oshodi of the Lagos State Special Offenses Court, Ikeja, and by Sunday (today), he would have been in custody for one week.

When the matter was called for arraignment on Monday, April 3, the pastor was scheduled to appear before the court, but he failed to do so.

The investigating police officer, ASP Yemi Temenu, reportedly told the police prosecutor, Mrs. Inumidun Solarin, that Daniel was not located at the address he left at the Force Criminal Investigation Department, Yaba, prior to being granted administrative release.

Solarin assured the court that Daniel would appear in court, therefore the court postponed the arraignment until April 17.

Daniel was formally charged with two counts of rape last Monday when the court resumed.

He was given a bail bond in the amount of N20 million with two sureties, each of whom had to have real estate under the court’s jurisdiction.

Daniel was also had to turn in his passport, and Justice Oshodi postponed the case’s trial date to May 9.

Following that, the cleric was detained in the Kirikiri Custodial Center until the fulfillment of his bail requirements.

Daniel still needed to fulfill his bail conditions, a source at the Lagos State Command of the Nigerian Prisons Service told Newsmen.

“He is still in custody,” the source said.

One of the two females Daniel is accused of raping has claimed that some of the evidence she gave the police was missing from the case file.

The victim claimed that the case file did not contain voice recordings, photographs, witness statements from some of them, and the petition her attorney had written to the police.

She said, “We had a meeting with the prosecutors (after the arraignment) and they wanted to confirm the evidence we had. I told them some of the evidence I had and they asked why I did not give them to the police at the FCID. I said I did and asked if the voice recordings were not in the file and they said no.

“We gave the police a burnt disc and flash drive; the FCID said they were sufficient evidence. We paid for search warrants twice, both at the hospital and at his house, but there was no report of their search.

“The police also went to the hospital he (Daniel) took me to. They travelled down to investigate the doctor, but the report was not there. They came back and said the doctor confirmed I was in the hospital and they recorded some things and got some things from the doctor. The report of what happened was not in the file. What they have in the file are just chats and witnesses’ statements.”

The case may have been corrupted, the former assistant pastor claimed.

Niyi Ogundeyi, the FCID’s spokesperson, refuted the accusations and claimed that proper investigation had been conducted.

He said, “Nothing can be removed. She is just saying what she does not know. Presently, the case file is with the DPP, and they will analyse the case and call the IPO for further investigations and clarifications. A retired AIG (at the FCID) personally called the police prosecutor on the strength of available evidence. The police have been diligent in building a strong case. With the evidence on ground, the man cannot go scot-free.”

Remember that in 2022, while Daniel’s case was being handled by the FCID in Alagbon, Ikoyi, where two of the victims had recounted their experiences, our correspondent had been keeping an eye on it.

One of them worked as an assistant pastor for the church’s Ondo division.

The case file was transferred to the Lagos State Directorate of Public Prosecutions, where legal advice was issued on December 16, 2022.

The advice, which was exclusively obtained by our correspondent, stated in part, “Facts from the duplicate case file reveal that the suspect, Oluwafeyiropo Daniel, is a pastor and the founder of I Reign Christian Ministry; that he had a church branch in Akungba Akoko (Ondo) where he had young people as pastors and assistant pastors. It is also revealed that Oluwafeyiropo Daniel invites the branch pastors and assistants to his house from time for one reason or the other.

“It is revealed that Oluwafeyiropo Daniel having presented himself as his victims’ spiritual father whom they must be loyal to and must never hide anything from, including their bodies, lures the complainant and his other victim into having sexual intercourse with him.”

The Lagos judiciary assigned the matter to Judge Ramon in April 2023 after this paper published the legal opinion on March 18, 2023, which resulted in Daniel’s prosecution.

Daniel has persisted in denying the charges.

Aliyu Garba, the Emir of Birnin Yandoto in Zamfara State, who had been expelled for bestowing a traditional title upon one of the most feared bandit lords, Ado Aliero, has been reinstated.

The suspended Emir was reinstated, according to a statement from the state’s secretary of administration, Kabiru Balarabe, since he was cleared of the crime he was thought to have committed when he promoted Aliero to the position of Fulani leader.

The statement reads as follows, “This is to inform the public that, His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Zamfara State, Hon. Bello Mohammed Matawalle has approved the reinstatement of Alhaji Aliyu Garba Marafa as the Emir of Birnin Yandoto.”

“His reinstatement is based on the recommendations of the committee constituted to investigate all issues pertaining to the conferment of a traditional title to a repentant bandit, Ado Aleiru”.

“The committee found no evidence of any ill motive or collaboration between the Emir and the bandit.”

“Based on the findings of the committee, the traditional title was conferred on the repentant bandit as part of peace-building efforts between the repentant bandits and banditry-affected communities in Tsafe and Gusau Local Government Areas, which include Yandoto town”. 

 “The reinstatement takes immediate effect.”

It may be recalled that in July 2022, the Emir of Birnin Yandoto Aliyu Garba, who is the brother of Senator Kabiru Garba Marafa, nominated the notorious bandit kingpin Ado Aliero to the rank of Sarkin Fulani (head of the Fulani), which caused to a great deal of friction and controversy.

Governor Bello Matawalle promptly suspended the Emir following widespread public outcry both inside and outside the state.

Nigerian students who are trapped in the Republic of Sudan claim that the Federal Government has shattered their hopes of an early evacuation from the scene of a fierce military battle.

Almost 400 people have died and nearly 3,500 have been injured in the confrontation between the Sudanese security forces and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Force.

The violence, which began on April 8 and entered its 14th day on Saturday, has forced hundreds of citizens to flee the capital Khartoum.

The RSF paramilitary group and the Sudanese Armed Forces, both commanded by General Mohamed Dagalo, were previously partners.

They collaborated in the 2019 revolt that ousted Sudan’s cruel dictator Omar al-Bashir, who had governed the nation for thirty years.

The Federal Government had highlighted on Friday how it was challenging to evacuate stranded Nigerian people from the country due to the severe situation in Sudan.

Although the Nigerian Mission in Sudan and the National Emergency Management Agency had put plans in place to evacuate the citizens, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, said it was impossible for any flight during this time of war.

A statement signed by Gabriel Odu of the Media, Public Relations and Protocols Unit, NIDCOM, read, “The Chairman/CEO, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has said while the Nigerian Mission in Sudan and the National Emergency Management Agency have put in place arrangements to evacuate Nigerian students and other Nigerian citizens stranded in Sudan, the tensed situation makes it gravely risky and impossible for any flights at this point in time, noting that aircraft parked at the airport in the country were burnt yesterday (Thursday) morning.

“Dabiri-Erewa noted that humanitarian groups are seeking ways of getting food, water and medical supplies across to people.

“She, therefore, appealed to the fighting parties to consider the Juba Peace Agreement enunciated by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development as a fundamental mechanism for the restoration of peace and tranquillity in the country.”

The Federal Government declared all airports and land borders in Sudan closed on Saturday, citing the complex emergency situation there caused by continued conflict between opposing factions.

Nonetheless, it noted that a search and rescue team had been formed to devise the most secure means of evacuating Nigerians trapped in the unrest-stricken country.

The National Emergency Management Agency, which the government used to announce this, stressed that it was aware of the general public’s worry on the situation in Sudan.

Manzo Ezekiel, the head of NEMA’s press unit, said in a statement that the organization was coordinating with other federal departments and agencies to find a suitable window for the evacuation of Nigerians who were trapped in Sudan.

The statement partly read, “The attention of the National Emergency Management Agency is drawn to the widespread public concern on the situation in Sudan, especially in regards to the ongoing conflict and the safety as well as well-being of stranded Nigerian citizens, including hundreds of students in various universities of the country.

“It has become necessary to inform the public that NEMA is in constant communication with all relevant partners, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Nigerian Embassy in Khartoum, Sudan, the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission and security agencies, while seeking an appropriate window of opportunity to evacuate all stranded Nigerians back home in a safe and dignified manner.

“The current emergency situation in Sudan is very complex with fighting between warring factions going on and all airports and land borders closed. NEMA is working assiduously with all its partners and is constantly compiling updated information on the situation.”

The organization said that a committee made up of qualified emergency responders and search and rescue specialists had been formed to continuously assess the situation.

According to the statement, the team would also look for the safest route to take Nigerian residents out of Sudan, even if it meant going through a neighboring nation.

Mustapha Ahmed, the NEMA director general, stated that the organization was deeply worried about the situation in Sudan and the living conditions of Nigerians there.

He claimed that the emergency organization was in control of the situation and was exploring all available alternatives to return the trapped Nigerians to their loved ones in their country in a secure and respectable way.

Following the collapse of a seven-story structure nearby, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has ordered the demolition of three two-story buildings at Banana Island.

On Saturday, Sanwo-Olu issued the directive while visiting the scene of the fallen seven-story building and surveying other island infrastructure.

He issued an order to demolish the two-story building at 310 Close because it was an unauthorized, unlawful structure.

The governor also commanded the demolition of two-storey buildings next to each other at 306 Close because they were built beneath a power line and water.

Speaking at the site of the fallen seven-story building, he attributed the regrettable tragedy to the developers’ negligence and some locals’ desire to earn quick cash.

Moreover, Sanwo-Olu accused the National Inland Waterways Authority and the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing of approving the extension of the Banana Island line.

He claims that the incident demonstrates that the Lagos State building officers are not aware of their duties and that any guilty personnel will face consequences.

“We are at the site of the last unfortunate building collapse in Banana Island Lagos. Like it has been reported before now, there has been a lot of investigation that is going on right now and you can see that they are still clearing the rubbles at the site.

“We have given an order to stop work, not only at this site but also in all of the construction sites in Banana Island.

“I think that the exercise we are doing today is not really just about this location. You have all seen the extent of what I will call unapproved extension into the water, at the back of each of the land that is abutting water.

“You can see that the original line for Banana Island is even not where we are. It’s way in front there and you can see that there are several extensions that have been granted by both the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing and NIWA.

“These are the two federal agencies that have been culpable for those extensions.

“From what I have been told all of the four buildings at the back have never even applied for approvals. The illegality is real and so that is why we are going round other properties in Banana Island.

“Excuses have been given that they don’t have access and this is not acceptable. This is a total recklessness of all of the developers and we will make a strong point out of this place and all-around Banana Island and in other developments that we have,” he said.

The governor announced the creation of a seven-member external commission with a two-week mandate to independently determine what went wrong.

He said that the committee’s recommendations would help the administration create a solid workplan that could be carried out moving ahead.

“We have had to change staff here and there so that we can bring forward a robust and very strong monitoring offices. But we believe that we are still far from, we are still short on it, I must say.

‘“We will continue to do what we need to do to ensure that we keep the lives of our residents safe at all times,” Sanwo-Olu said.

Federal Government has started paying government servants’ back pay raise arrears of 40%.

The employees began receiving bank notifications about the arrears on Saturday, April 22, 2023, according to some federal civil personnel.

The arrears arrived accompanying the April 2023 salary, according to a senior state servant who talked to our Ilorin-based journalist under condition of anonymity.

“I received my own arrears today. Some of our other colleagues have also confirmed receipt of their arrears. It came in alongside our April salary.”

Another civil servant who confirmed the development via a chat with our correspondent in Ibadan said, “Yes, it is true. Though I am a teacher with a Federal Government school, I can confirm to you that I received my April 2023 salary alongside my arrears.”

It was previously reported that the administration of President Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) had suggested a 40% salary increase for employees as a way to mitigate the effects of the anticipated elimination of gasoline subsidies.

Olajide Oshundun, a spokesman for the Ministry of Labor, Employment, and Productivity, told The PUNCH that all employees, from level 1 to level 17, will be affected by the increase.

Chris Ngige, the minister of labor and employment, revealed earlier in March that the Federal Government had authorized a salary increase for the nation’s federal servants.

He continued by saying that the wage increase had been planned for in the 2023 budget and that it would go into effect on January 1, 2023.

In light of the current economic climate, Ngige described the pay increase as a peculiar allowance for civil servants. It is intended to help government employees fend off the effects of rising inflation, the rising cost of living, and increases in transportation, housing, and electricity tariffs.

The police have arraigned 36-year-old lawyer Abasiesebanga Ikoiwak and five others over the alleged murder of her husband Godwin Ikoiwak.

Mr Ikoiwak, 41, was a counsel at the Akwa Ibom Ministry of Justice before he was allegedly killed in January 2022.

At the hearing of the matter before the Uyo High Court, a friend and classmate of the deceased in the Faculty of Law, University of Calabar, Sunny Anyanwu, said he told him in a phone conversation few days before his death that he and his wife were having issues over infidelity.

He said the deceased hinted that he reported the matter to his wife’s family who invited him to a meeting in their compound at Nung Udoe Itak, Ikono Local Government Area.

He said his friend honoured the meeting but did not return home alive.

Anyanwu, the seventh prosecution witness, also said the late Ikoiwak told him that his wife was having sexual relations with her former boss, a legal practitioner.

He said Ikoiwak told him that his wife lived with a Catholic priest, Fr. Maurice Mbeke, in her teenage years as a housemaid and the priest impregnated her, adding that they had a child who was now 19-year-old named after his maternal grandfather.

According to the prosecution witness, the late Ikoiwak did not know that the boy who has been living with him in his house for years was his wife’s son, because the wife said the child was her younger brother.

He said the deceased told him that each time his wife said she was pregnant, she would leave the house until after the delivery of the baby.

The prosecution team led by the state director of public prosecution, Joseph Umoren, tendered the audio recordings of the phone conversation between the witness and his late friend as an exhibit after they were played in court.

Mrs Ikoiwak is standing trial alongside her 66-year-old mother Margaret Umoh; her brother, Owoidoho Umoh; a Catholic priest, Fr. Gabriel Ekong, 51; and a medical doctor, Isaac Njoku over an alleged false report on the cause of death of Ikoiwak.

On Saturday, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will fly from Nigeria to the United States, where he will give a Special Lecture at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.

In a statement headlined “Osinbajo Welcomes Invited by US Ivy school, University of Pennsylvania, to deliver special lecture,” Laolu Akande, Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Publicity, made this revelation on Saturday.

Following his meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris in September 2022, the VP would be making his second trip to the US in the past seven months.

Akande explained, “The Vice President’s lecture on Monday will be themed around Climate Change and a Just Transition and is hosted by the University’s Center for Africana Studies.

“Besides the lecture, the VP will also participate in an interactive session with students and faculty coordinated by Prof. Wale Adebanwi, Presidential Penn Compact Professor of Africana Studies at the University of Pennsylvania.”

“Prof. Osinbajo, a leading voice and strong advocate for a Just Energy Transition for Africa and the developing world, is currently spearheading efforts aimed at creating the African Carbon Market as one of the pathways of a just and sustainable transition,” the statement also read.

UPenn, one of the eight private colleges in the United States known as the Ivy League, was first founded in 1740 as a charity school before Benjamin Franklin converted it into an academy in 1751.

The Afro-American Studies Program and the Center for the Study of Black Literature and Culture were merged to form the university’s Center for Africana Studies in 2015.

In collaboration with other University departments like PennCarey Law, Perry World House, Wharton Business School, Coalition for Equality and Opportunity, and Perelman School of Medicine, the Center is holding the Vice President’s Special Lecture.

After his activities at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Osinbajo is scheduled to return to Abuja.

Alvaro Farfan, commander of the firefighting division in the central Cundinamarca region, announced the new toll.

On Friday, four more bodies were found, bringing the total number of fatalities from the Colombian coal mine accident to seven.

The mine in Cucunuba municipality, about 90 kilometers (55 miles) north of the country’s capital Bogota, was destroyed by the bomb overnight on Wednesday into Thursday.

Officials claimed they believed pockets of trapped gas in the mine exploded.

At first, the rescue teams discovered three bodies and four workers missing. On Friday, the bodies were eventually found.

Social media users posted videos of a sinkhole spewing smoke in the middle of the night as persons carrying flashlights and wearing civilian clothing cautiously approached.

The largest producer of coal in South America is Colombia.

In Colombia, mining accidents are common, especially in the illicit mines in Cundinamarca and other regions in the center and northeast of the nation.

Between 2011 and May 2022, the mines and energy ministry recorded 1,262 such accidents, with an average of more than 100 fatalities every year.

One of the biggest such catastrophes in recent memory in Colombia occurred in mid-March in Sutatausa municipality, also in Cundinamarca, and resulted in the death of 21 individuals.