LEADERS of the yet to be registered opposition alliance party, All Progressives Congress (APC) have expressed anger at the statements credited to former Head of State, General Muhammadu Buhari, which indicated that the declaration of a state of emergency in three states of the North was anti-North.

Buhari had been quoted as saying in a programme on a Kaduna-based FM station that the declaration of a state of emergency in the three states of the North was anti-North and that he does not support President Goodluck Jonathan’s tactics on dealing with insurgency.

He also claimed that the government was being high-handed on the insurgents operating in parts of Northern Nigeria, adding that when militancy happened in the South South, the Federal Government invited the perpetrators and granted them amnesty.

But leaders of the mega party, who have dissected Buhari’s statements were said to have expressed surprise at the claims by the former Head of state.

One of the leaders said that such a statement would only further alienate members of the emerging mega party, the APC from Buhari.

“Already, many people are saying that Buhari should not be used as the candidate of the party in the 2015 election, such a statement is capable of portraying him (Buhari) as someone who does not believe in the unity of Nigeria and it could negatively impact on the party.

“What we expect from Buhari are statements that would portray him as a statesman, not as a sectional leader. He as a former Head of State should be talking for Nigeria and not for a part thereof. Anything to the contrary will open him to undue scrutiny,” the source said.

Leaders of the APC were said to have criticized Buhari’s comments as off the mark.

A source said that the development has reinforced the resolve of the APC to field a younger presidential candidate in 2015 adding that when the time comes, Buhari would be told to hands off the presidential race.

An Abia State High Court has sentenced a banker, Mr. Theophilus Ajakaiye, to death by hanging for killing his wife, Theodora.

The convict allegedly murdered his wife on October 12, 2009 at Azumini Ndoki in the Ukwa Judicial Division of Abia.

The charge read, “The accused person is charged with one-count of murder contrary to Section 319 (1) of the Criminal Code Vol. 11, Cap. 30 Laws of Eastern Nigeria, 1963, applicable in Abia State.”

Until her death, Theodora was an employee of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc.

The legal battle between the deceased’s family and the accused began soon after the alleged killing until the judgment recently.

The Presiding Judge, Justice T.U. Uzokwe, said in his judgment that having heard from the accused person, learned counsel for the accused and the prosecuting counsel, the offence carried a mandatory sentence which is death.

He said the court had no power to reduce the sentence and that being the case, he had no option but to sentence the accused.

The judge said, “Though the accused was not seen killing the deceased, I find that the accumulated circumstantial facts found proved that the accused indeed murdered his wife, Theodora Ajakaiye.

“Suffice it to say that I find the accused guilty as charged and I convict him accordingly.”

The sentence read, “Theophilus Ajakaiye – The sentence of this court upon you is that you be hanged by the neck until you be dead and may the merciful Lord have mercy on your soul.”

In the allocutus, counsel for the accused pleaded for mercy on behalf of his client.

He said, “I thank the court for this well considered judgment. The accused has no criminal record. We plead for mercy. There are two children to the marriage and they have already lost their mother.”

It was learnt that the convict had yet to appeal against the judgment.

THE Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Administration has approved the request of a consortium of Brazilian investors to build a model satellite city in Abuja.

FCT Minister, Bala Mohammed, disclosed this during a dinner and interactive session he hosted in honour of 50 visiting Brazilian businessmen at his official residence in Abuja at the weekend.

He pointed out that the Brazilians would undertake the multi-billion naira investments under the land swap programme recently introduced by the administration to fast-track infrastructure and housing development in the nation’s capital.

According to the Minister, the Brazilian investors are ready to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the FCT administration to define the legal and physical framework for the collaboration.

He said the two parties have resolved that the MoU would be signed before the Brazilians depart for home at the end of their visit.

In addition to their participation in the land swap initiative, Mohammed announced that the Brazilians have also indicated interest in developing an industrial park, a monorail transport system, a world-class hospital and a standard university in the FCT.

The Minister had earlier, in a Power Point presentation, reeled out FCT’s numerous investment attractions such as centrality of location, excellent infrastructure, abundance of rich natural resources, relative security, neutral character and cosmopolitan ambience.

Mohammed told the Brazilians about Abuja’s strategic location as a territory that can be accessed from any part of the country by flight in less than one hour and from any part of the African continent in less than seven hours. Abuja’s unique position as the foremost regional, continental and global conference centre in Africa was also highlighted by the Minister during the presentation.

Earlier, the leader of the delegation and Secretary of Agriculture in the Brazilian state of Grande Do Sul, Mr. Rio Fernando Malwardi, had said that they were in Abuja to explore greater bilateral collaboration with Brasilia the capital of Brazil and Grande Do Sul on one hand and Abuja on the other.

He hailed the FCT Administration for various measures put in place to accelerate development of the capital city, in line with best global standards, adding that he has no doubt that within the next couple of years, Abuja would rank among the best cities in the world.

He said they were delighted to learn that the Abuja master plan envisages the development of the city in a similar manner as Brasilia, the capital city of Brazil. He described Nigeria as an important trading partner of Brazil.

In his remark, the Nigerian Ambassador to Brazil, Ambassador Vincent Okoedion, said Nigeria would benefit immensely from closer bilateral relations with Brazil.

He said that Brazil recently displaced Great Britain as the sixth strongest economy in the world.

The dinner witnessed interactive sessions, cultural dances, songs, entertainments and exchange of gifts.

BY CALEB AYANSINA
ABUJA – The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Tuesday, called for the arrest of the former Head of State and Presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change, (CPC), General (rtd) Muhammadu Buhari, following his frequent provocative statements.
The President of CAN, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, in a statement signed by his Media Assistant, Kenny Ashaka, and made available to Vanguard in Abuja, said that Buhari, having in various occasions justified the action of the sect…, therefore, he stands a big security threat to the country’s corporate existence.
Oritsejafor maintained that it was so unfortunate that when every Nigerian was praying for successful military onslaught on the insurgence, Buhari rather than sharing the same feeling with well-meaning Nigerians was busy indulging in careless statements, without regards for victims of the sect’s violence who were mostly Christians.
The statement read, “The retired General was widely reported by several national newspaper Correspondents, whomonitored the Liberty Radio programme “Guest of the week”,to have questioned the “special treatment” given to the Niger-Delta militants by the Federal Government while the Boko Haram members were being killed and their houses destroyed by government.
“They (the Niger-Delta militants) were trained in some skills and were given employment, but the ones in the north were being killed and their houses were being demolished. They are different issues. What brought this? It is injustice”, the former Head of State was quoted to have said.
“I cannot wish away the outburst of harshly critical statements, especially as some of them are directly related tothe defense of the Boko Haram sect whose members have continued to kill, maim Christians and burn Churches. I feel the pain inflicted on Christians living in the north is too deep for us in CAN to ignore any unsavoury statement that tend to portray innocent Christians who have been killed by the sect members as the aggressors.
“It is shocking that at a time well-meaning Nigerians are praying for the success of our soldiers, Buhari, rather than reflect the mood of the nation in his statements and conducts is indulging in careless statements without regards for victimsof the sect’s violence who are mostly Christians.

Customers of First Bank Limited may find it difficult to carry out some banking transactions from Thursday to Monday due to the decision to shut down the bank's branches nationwide during the period.

The shutdown, according to the bank, is to enable it upgrade its core banking application from Finacle 7 to Finacle 10, which will ensure easier and faster customer services and experience.

Our correspondent gathered that the decision to shut down operations in order to facilitate the migration to Finacle 10 would affect the bank's over 700 branches nationwide.

Apart from all the branches being shut, Point of Sale transactions and transaction alerts by Short Message Service will not be possible during the period. In addition, all card services, except Visa prepaid card, will not be available via Quick Teller and the Web.

First Bank said in an explanatory note, "All transactions that will impact on the banking platform e.g. settlements, inter bank (RTGS, NEFT, FIP) inflows, will not be available."

However, the bank said skeletal services would be available on its ATMs throughout the migration period until 5pm on Sunday, and would be restored at 6am on Monday.

Online banking services, according to the bank, will also be available until 5pm on Sunday and be restored at 6am on Monday, while its mobile money services will be available throughout the migration period.

The bank had notified its customers through SMS and email of the development and apologised for inconveniences that they might suffer as a result of the platform upgrade.

The Group Managing Director, First Bank, Mr. Bisi Onasanya, said in an open letter to the customers, "I write to thank you for your continuous patronage and inform you of our plan to upgrade our core banking application as part of the ongoing transformation of the bank.

"I am particularly excited at the prospect of this milestone as it represents the opportunity to significantly transform our service delivery to you in many respects, while also supporting our plans for the introduction of new and innovative products as we anticipate your every banking need.

"This is a major project and on account of the technical requirements, we regret that there will be some disruptions to our services for about three days, while the upgrade is ongoing."

Onasanya said only intra-bank transactions would be available on the alternative channels while the upgrade was going on, adding that the clearing of customers' might also be slightly delayed but that all investments due on any transaction within the period would only be terminated when all services were restored without affecting the value dates or the value of accrued interests on such investments.

However, the decision is causing anxiety among the customers of the bank, who complained that the planned shutdown would further compound the problems they had been coping with lately in accessing the institution's services.

For instance, customers have been complaining of not being able to draw cash from the bank's Automated Teller Machines for sometime now, while money transfers to other banks from First Bank branches have been difficult in the last two weeks.

When contacted, the spokesman of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Ugo Okoroafor, said he was not aware of the plans by the bank to close its branches and urged our correspondent to call back to enable him make enquiries.

However, subsequent calls and SMS sent to his mobile telephone line were unanswered as of 9.30pm when this report was put together

he construction and subsequent tolling of the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge in Lagos has ignited a division between the supposed rich and poor residents of the state.

Those residing in sub-urban settlements in the state such as Ajegunle, Iyana Ipaja and Mushin warned the state government against the construction of such a bridge that would be subjected to tolling in their areas.

On nairaland.com, a commenter with the name Nosegbe says, “This bridge was obviously built for the high-class neighbourhoods of Lekki Phase I and environs. People who can afford to pay the toll. I would have had issues if the bridge was built and tolled at Ayobo, Iyana-Ipaja, Agege, Ajegunle or Ikorodu.

“It’s a win-win as far as I see. The Lekki folks get the satisfaction of bypassing Ozumba traffic leaving it less congested for others and the government makes more money which can be used for other purposes.”

They argue further that since it is the delight of residents of the affected areas to enjoy the luxury of a cable-stayed bridge, government should go ahead and build more of such bridges that will be tolled in highbrow areas to free up funds for less developed areas.

A reader on punchng.com, Wale Balogun, says the majority of people rejoicing about the toll being levied on people using the newly constructed 1.53km-long bridge were the ‘haves’ and not the “haves not.”

He explains that the reason why those residing in the suburbs will always resist such initiative is because what they need in their communities are basic amenities such as good schools for their children, affordable housing and not luxury of a “cable bridge.”

He says, “That cable bridge is not on the priority of the people in these areas (suburbs) for now, what they need in the immediate are: good and affordable housing; good and portable water; good schools for their children; motor-able roads not the luxury of a bridge and so on.

“So, let the users of that bridge pay a little from their ‘haves’ so that government will be able to provide for the ‘haves-not’ in Ajegunle, Ayobo, Ipaja, Mushin and others.

“If those in Lekki-Ajah can enjoy the luxury of a ‘cable bridge’ as you may wish to call it to the detriment of others in the state, then it will not be too much to ask them to pay as little as N250 to ply a 1.53km road to ease their travel time.”

But those residing in the rich neighbourhoods of Lekki, Ikoyi and its environs say the tolling of the bridge is a good development as many of them appeared to be polishing their ego with the payment of the toll.

“I strongly commend the state government for this giant stride. Not minding the critics, the toll gate system will at least help to separate the men from the boys,” a commenter on nairaland.com notes.

Another commenter on nairaland.com with the name Batman, described the toll as token adding that he has got no reason to complain about paying for it.

He says, “Its better to pay a token toll – bottled Coke and Gala money- to use a bridge that’s convenient than not pay a toll and get stuck.

“At least the people paying are not complaining because they are not broke and if you can’t afford it, there’s a cheaper and a free route.

“If you are not careful, they’ll charge you to look at the bridge. Looks good, don’t it? Some people seem bitter about the bridge, are they truly that concerned?”

Another comment on the forum reads,”This Bridge really pains some people ooo. They’re complaining more than the people that are to pay the toll. And I’m sure they aren’t going to use it. Why? Is it their money?

Meanwhile,some Nigerians say the new policy of building roads and introducing tolling on them amounts to double taxation.

According to them, if more of such bridges and roads are to be constructed in the state, the government should relax its current rate of tax so as not to serve as a burden on the citizenry.

A respondent argues on nairaland.com, “What makes other people living in Lekki different? Why will they be paying tolls when government have deducted tax in every forms ranging from corporate tax, Land Use Charge, Certificate of Occupancy, Tenement Rate to Value Added Tax.

“What other purposes do they have for collecting tolls when taxes are always been paid everyday. Government should not hide under the guise that some high profile people can afford to pay tolls to begin to scam Nigerians.’

NNEWI — No fewer than 11 members of the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, were yesterday at Nnobi and Awka-Etiti communities, Idemili South Local Government Areas of Anambra State, allegedly shot and injured by the police in a bid to disrupt their June 8 sit-at-home rally. Five others were arrested.

According to sources, the MASSOB members were in a rally at the said communities to create awareness on the need to observe June 8 sit-at-home in commemoration of six Igbo killed by the Police at Apo village, Abuja, EzuRiver, Amansea, AnambraState and others killed by Boko Haram.

Reacting to the development in a telephone chat, MASSOB’s Deputy Director of Information, Mazi Chris Mocha, accused the security operatives, especially the police, of killing MASSOB members fighting for the actualization of a sovereign state of Biafra.

According to Mocha, “the police also took away MASSOB laptop system, N8,000 and arrested Jude Ochi, Nnamdi Ezeaka, Nelson Ugboh, Ifeanyi Eboh and others”.

Also reacting, Prince Ohaegbulem Jude of the Lagos state branch of MASSOB regretted that Igbos have been marginalized, intimidated and made to be second class citizens in a country where they are part and parcel of.

According to him, “this sit-at-home billed for June 8, 2013 is unstoppable despite the intimidations, arrests, shootings and harassments from the security operatives, Yoruba and the Hausa.”

The State Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Mr. Emeka Chukwuemeka confirmed the incident and hinted that two DPOs led the operation but denied the allegation that some members were shot by the police.

The Lagos State chapter of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, has reacted to a comment by the Minister for Information, Labaran Maku, in which he said the only achievement of Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, is “environmental sanitation”.

Maku made the statement at the 2013 ministerial briefing on the transformation of the road sector in Nigeria, being part of activities marking the mid-term achievements of the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan.

He went on to say that the good road networks in Edo and Lagos states were roads rehabilitated and funded by the Federal Government, citing Benin Ore road and Benin- Auchi expressway as practical examples.

But reacting, ACN said that Governor Fashola’s refusal to honour Maku’s tour of folly remains the reason why Maku made the nonsensical statement that Fashola is doing nothing when every other opinion thinks otherwise.

In a release in Lagos, signed by the State Publicity Secretary, Joe Igbokwe, the party said that it is ridiculous and senile for a so-called information minister to demonstrate this low level of opinion about a globally lauded government just because Lagos refused to entertain the kind of banality Maku and his ilk have employed to extort states in the name of good governance jamboree.

According to him, “Ordinarily, we would not be drawn to join issues with Maku because he does not know what good governance is and will never recognise one, if he comes in contact with it. We know that Maku is a professional jobber and for a man who said he employed student unionism to live like a king, says of the moral depravity of the character who is no more than a jester and praise singer in a government that has failed in every facet of governance.

“We know that Maku is merely vending sour grapes because the Lagos State government saw through his folly of organising a programmed revelry in the name of good governance tour when he had done nothing to uplift his ministry in the years he had been the Minister of Information. One would have expected a parodist like Maku to come to Lagos to unveil the new Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, the new Lagos-Abeoukuta Expresway, the new Lagos-Badagty Expressway, the new Aiport Road, the new Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, the modern, state of the art schools, hospitals, modern railway, etc, which his government has fixed with the whopping 52 per cent monthly allocation it corners every month. But here we are, Maku jumped over the death traps which the so-called federal roads have become in Lagos to come and play pedestrian PDP politics in Lagos.

“If Maku in his voluntary blindness, saw only progress in the environmental sector in Lagos, can he tell us even one sector his PDP Federal Government has made a mark in fourteen sordid years of waste laying in Nigeria? Can he show us what he has done in the Federal Ministry of Information for the period he has been minister? Can Maku tell us any fruitful achievement, except the ones he conjured in the heat of his extortion drive, the PDP governments he has patronised in his tour of folly did better than the Lagos State government?



“We challenge Maku that rather than sounding so incredible to even himself, he should tell Lagosians and indeed Nigerians those so-called structures his government built in Lagos from which Lagos is collecting tolls. We feel it is a pity that someone that occupies such a position as Maku has reduced it to his low level by his infantile desire to take liberty with the truth because his extorting mission is the worst for the Lagos State government’s refusal of his tour of folly.”

Lagos ACN further stated: “One would have thought that once the Lagos State Government disallowed his frivolous jamboree of good governance tour, that Maku would have come to Lagos to show us what the government he serves as a chief propagandist has done in the health sector, the education sector, the security sector, the science and technology sector and indeed every other sector in Lagos, especially as they relate to Lagos. But he did neither of these because there is nothing Maku and his government can show for the trillions of naira it spends every year.

“But Maku, blinded by the fury of his unmet demand came to Lagos to expose the ignorance that has made him a misinformation minister who thrives in singing the praises of a bland and incompetent administration that has failed in all spheres of governance.

“Maku came to Lagos to play the blind PDP politics of denial of the great transformation going on in Lagos, even when his party’s governors loudly acclaim these achievements and have come to understudy some aspects of Lagos governance. We wish Maku some luck in this ludicrous mission but we wonder how Maku can recognise what good governance is when the government whose praises he blares has become a huge joke and a piece of ribaldry among Nigerians.

“Lagos ACN wants to tell Maku to concentrate on telling Nigerians what the government he is serving has done with the hefty 52 per cent of monthly allocations it corners and uses to feed indolent, incompetent bootlickers like Labaran Maku himself. We want Maku to stop fooling himself and extorting state governments on the pretext of conducting governance tours when the government he serves has not made any dent on the many gargantuan problems that continue to assail the nation.

“Labaran Maku is a poster boy of corruption. He revealed how he extorted and lived like a king during his days as a students leader so we believe his present sour grapes is borne out of the way and manner the Lagos State government shunned the revelry he is mounting all over the states at present.

“In the blind fury of such unrealized dream, Maku is acting deaf, blind and dumb in deference of the putrid politics with which his party has wrecked a well endowed nation but we want to put him on notice that Lagos is different from the looting paradise they have turned the country and the states under their control to. We want him to know that Lagosians know what good governance means because they are feeling and touching it. Lagosians do not need mercenary extortionists who do not know what good governance means.”
Source: Daily post online newspaper

BY Chioma Obinna

LAGOS—Respite is on the way for victims of molestation and all forms of intimate assault in Nigeria as a intimate Assault Referral Centre, SARC, will soon take off at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, LASUTH.

The centre, first of its kind in Nigeria, is being set up by the Partnership for Justice, PFJ, supported by Justice for All Programme, JAP; Department of International Development, DFID, in collaboration with the Lagos State Ministry of Health.

It is aimed at providing comprehensive and quality services to victims of intimate violence in a compassionate and caring manner, free of charge.

Already, 30 doctors and nurses drawn from various government-owned health institutions in the state are undergoing a two-week training workshop facilitated by a forensic expert, Dr. Sarah Redvers, from St. Mary’s intimate Assault Referral Centre, Manchester, United Kingdom.

Managing Partner, FFJ, Mrs. Itoro Eze-Anaba, told Vanguard, that the centre would provide free medical, psycho-social and follow-up support services To Molest victims and intimate assault.

She said: “The centre is going to provide pregnancy tests, initial medical services like possible HIV tests, which will be done with the consent of the victim and all information will be kept confidential and private.”

Eze-Anaba lamented that generally, victims of intimate violence found it difficult to report due to inability to pay for cost of treatments and lack of awareness.

She said: “We are going to install a system that will provide disaggregated data so that we will be able to say how many molestation victims there are in Lagos State and how many came from Ikorodu, Yaba, and so on.”

etc and among all these areas, what age group of people are more prone as victims or even as perpetrators. What social class or religion. All those aggregation will be provided at the same time.”

She further listed some of the challenges faced by victims to include; lack of specialized attention, cost of treatment and undue delay in receiving medical attention discourages victims from going to government hospitals.

She said: “SARC will provide psychosocial and counseling support, assessment and information on options available, assistance in planning their next steps, follow up case management support as requested.”

Some of the free services to be offered by SARC include; medical examination and treatment for illness and injuries caused by assault, counseling to help cope with emotional and psychological effects of molestation, help reporting the incident to police, information on the legal system if a person wants to take case to court and referral to other agencies

On her part, UK- based Forensic expert, Dr. Sarah Redvers, who has managed victims for over seven years, explained that the training would help the doctors and nurses to work in the centre be able to offer quality medical support and counseling and forensic documentation of their examinations.

The Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) yesterday denied the posters of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari which adorned strategic places in some parts of the Federal capital territory.

The colour posters printed in A4 bold size is emblazoned with a huge picture of Gen. Buhari campaigning for president in 2015 as the All Progressive Congress candidate. The APC, which is a merger of main opposition parties is still in the process of getting registered.

But National Publicity Secretary of the CPC Mr Rotimi Fashakin, said the posters are the handiwork of the opposition and anti-democratic elements.

He said: “please do not reckon with them. Gen. Buhari is a democrat. He believes a transparent direct primaries should bring up the APC candidate.

“The APC is not like the behemoth called the PDP where anti-democratic ideals like automatic ticket hold sway. Gen. Buhari is not aware of these posters,” he added

According to the posters, General Buhari is the favoured candidate of the opposition come 2015.

The posters came a day to the general meeting of the merging parties’ joint committee meeting and a few days to the expected submission of the Application of the merging parties to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

The House of Representatives and the Consumer Protection Council, CPC, have launched an investigation into allegations of indiscriminate seizure of customers’ money by malfunctioning Automated Teller Machines, ATMs.

The probe came after the House Committee on Justice headed by Hon. Ali Ahmad (PDP-Kwara) adopted a petition from bank customers who thought the development could imperil the Central Bank of Nigeria’s cashless economy policy if not checked. The petition, according to Ahmad, states in detail how customers have been going through hard times in carrying out electronic transactions due to malfunctioning ATMs.

“The petitioner narrated how he went through due process by making formal complaint of reporting the non-dispensing of his money while his account was debited.

“He resorted to the petition and the House of Representatives’ intervention two months after the incident to curb further tactical manipulation of the banking system,” Ahmed said.

The lawmaker noted that withholding customers’ money for more than the stipulated period could not be condoned by parliament. The petition reads in part: “The banks would continue to indulge in this since there is no sanction to make banks responsible by ensuring that their ATMs are always in good condition.

“It may not be out of place that the trend might be deliberate, probably in a bid to use unsuspecting customer’s money to ease their (banks’) financial pressure. “This is because if all the incidences are recorded and the funds aggregated by all the banks, there is no doubt that we will be talking about millions of naira being deliberately denied customers while the banks are feeding fat on it.