The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has accused President Muhammadu Buahri and his party, the All Progressives Congress, of deceiving Nigerians with phony promises they do not intend to fulfil.

The National Publicity Secretary of the group, Uche Achi-Okpaga, said this on Friday in an interview with SUNDAY PUNCH.

The Ohanaeze’s spokesperson therefore predicted electoral defeat for Buhari in the February 16 presidential poll, saying Nigerians, especially the Igbo, had seen the deception of the ruling party.

He accused the Buhari-led administration of making attempts to decimate Igbo people in the military, saying indigenes of the South-East in the military had suffered the heaviest casualties in the war against the Boko Haram in the North-East.

He said, “The present administration has not done well for the Igbo people. There is calamitous violence in the North and Nigerians soldiers are being killed in hundreds. We found out that south easterners in the military had continued to be killed in a large number and they are followed by those from the Middle Belt. This is a deliberate effort to decimate the number of Igbo people in the Nigerian Army.”

Achi-Okpaga accused the government of neglecting the South-East in terms of developmental projects while staging a series of military operations there despite that the region was peaceful.

The Ohanaeze spokesman added, “In the South-East, the government has brought Operation Python Dance; this is the third one. Presently in Nigeria, the South-East is the most peaceful region. Armed robbery, kidnapping have been reduced to the barest minimum. There is no violence anywhere in the South-East; still, they are sending soldiers to attack the whole place. But where there is violence in the North-East, they have no solution.”

Achi-Okpaga also criticised the President for reportedly sidelining the Igbo people from what he called juicy appointments.

He stressed that the exclusion of the people of the South-East from the Board of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission showed Buhari’s alleged disdain for those from the region.

The publicity secretary stated, “In what way has he been fair to the South-East? Is it in the building of roads or what? Does it mean fairness has different meanings in the dictionary of the President? He has not done well and you can see how they are trying to deceive Nigerians.

“They promised the South-East the presidency in 2023; they also promised the South-West presidency in 2023. How can you be speaking from both sides of your mouth at this time? This government has come to be known for deception.

“Last year, Chris Ngige said by October 2018, civil servants would be enjoying a new minimum wage. Now, they are setting up a committee. What is the need? Pass it to the National Assembly. Setting up of a committee is a deceptive means to buy time.”

-Punch

he Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it believes elections will be conducted in all 36 states of the country with the help of the military.

Rotimi Oyekanmi, the chief press secretary to the INEC Chairman, said this in an interview with Punch newspaper.

The commission said the Nigerian Air Force helped during the continuous voter registration by flying some of its personnel to areas riddled with landmines in Borno State.

It also said that elections in the North-East, which in recent times have come under heavy attacks by Boko Haram, would not be postponed.

How words: “Postponement is not being considered. The commission maintains robust synergy with the security agencies under the aegis of the Inter Consultative Committee on Election Security, which is why we have been having peaceful elections in most of the constituencies where elections were conducted in the last three years.

“In fact, but for the Nigerian Air Force which graciously agreed to airlift the commission’s staff to difficult terrains containing landmines in Borno State during the continuous voter registration, it would have been impossible for INEC to register qualified voters in those areas at that time.

“We all agree that our armed forces are currently under pressure due to several security challenges across the country, especially in the North-East. But the commission believes that the military is equal to the task. Therefore, with their help, elections will be conducted in all states across the country.”

-Saharareporters

Tunde Omolehin, Sokoto

Troops of Operation Sharan Daji have killed 21 bandits, captured 17 and rescued 89 persons taken hostage by the hoodlums in Zamfara and Katsina states.

Giving an update on the operation in a statement, Major Clement Abiade, the acting Force Information Officer, Operation Sharan Daji, said the incident happened between January 22 and January 28, 2019.

He explained that no fewer than 55 of the freed captives were held captives in Bukkuyum Local Government Area of Zamfara State.

Abiade said they had been debriefed and reunited with their families, adding that most of them were from communities in Zamfara State.

He also disclosed that two bandits’ informants, Musa Amadu and Auwalu Mutairu, were arrested at Danfumi village in Birnin Magaji and were currently assisting troops with intelligence.

“It is significant to inform the general public that 11 civilians and one vigilante were killed by the bandits during the period in focus.

“It is also important to state that six persons were kidnapped at Asoula village in Tsafe Local Government Area and not in Birnin Magaji as reported by some media houses,” he said.

-Sun

A prominent group, Media For Morals, has expressed what it described as its full support for the Nigerian Army, particularly the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Tukur Buratai, for vowing to ensure the armed forces remain apolitical and professional in the discharge of their duties.

In a  statement signed by its National Coordinator, Dr. Mairo Mudi, the group also berated the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP),  Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, for allegedly encouraging lawlessness in the armed forces, by asking soldiers to disobey orders made by their superiors.

“It is really deeply saddening, just as the army leadership has observed, that someone who wants to lead Nigeria and be the commander-in-chief of its armed forces is the very person inciting officers and men of the armed forces to disobey lawful orders made by constituted authorities,” Mudi said in the statement.

She added: “All the hullabaloo about president Buhari’s order to the military and the police, to deal ruthlessly with ballot box snatchers, is only indicative that some politicians, obviously of the opposition stock, were reliant on that method to get to power through rigging.”

She added that General Buratai’s directives are well in order, when viewed with a dispassionate mind, and within the context of the law, “as the military, not just the army, cannot turn down a directive made by the president, who, constitutionally, is their Commander-in-Chief; and, more so, when that order is aimed at ensuring the credible election that Nigerians have been yearning for is entrenched.”

While asking, rhetorically, whether  Buhari’s shoot-at-sight order was not similar to the one issued by former president Obasanjo, on OPC, Mudi said: ‘’It is a call to caution, to scare away mischief makers who want to truncate our democracy, through election rigging.”

‘’What this means is that once individuals or political parties do not plan to rig, they have no reason to bother about the call.

The army is a disciplined institution that knows what is right.  It has been protecting us for years now, and will not just turn its guns against innocent civilians. 

The President ought to be celebrated for this patriotic call.

-Sun

The Nigerian army has accused the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike of making attempt to bribe a military chief to compromise the ongoing polls.

The state government has denied the accusation, saying the military was rather trying to divert attention from the “atrocities they are committing in Rivers because of the elections”.

The army in a statement issued Saturday by its acting Spokesperson, Sagir Musa alleged, “It is indeed no secret to the military authorities that Governor Wike has on various occasions made attempts to compromise the integrity of the GOC 6 Division, Maj Gen Jamil Sarham.

“Having failed, despite series of overtures and monetary pledges of millions of dollars, both in person and from cronies, it is no surprise that the frustrated Governor has resorted to this appalling campaign of calumny.”

Musa’s statement was in response to an allegation by Governor Thursday that the army attempted to assassinate him.

“The Nigerian Army does not train assassins, as such the institution or her personnel cannot be involved in sending assassins to murder a state governor as alleged by Gov Nyesom Wike,” the statement added.

The army which insisted that it was neutral in the nation’s elections, challenged the Governor to prove his allegations against it within seven days or “he could as well, save face and keep his peace”.

In his reaction, the State Commissioner for Information, Emma Okah, said on Sunday that the army’s allegation was “mere blackmail to cover the evil perpetrated by soldiers in the state.”

“Different groups in the PDP have been crying about what the army is planning to do in Rivers, particularly a week before now’’ Okah alleged.

The Commissioner also alleged that soldiers were holding INEC official and others hostage in Isiokpo, in Ikwerre Local Government Area, since Saturday night.

Okah who claimed that the military was plotting with the Minister of Transport to manipulate the outcome of the results also claimed that the “PDP won at all the units in Ikwerre.

The Rivers State Police Command has confirmed the killing of a soldier at Abonema in Akuku Toru Local Government Area of the South South State.

The LGA was turned into a theatre of war Saturday between hoodlums and soldiers as they engaged in gun battle.

The Command’s Spokesperson, Nnamdi Omoni, has confirmed the incident. He equally confirmed that several people sustained gunshot wounds.

Omoni noted that the police had no record of civilian casualties, some party members alleged that several people were killed in the encounter.

The State’s Commissioner for Information, Emma Okah, have reacted to the violence, saying that party members could have been killed in the melee.

In the same vein, the army has confirmed the shootings in Abonema but gave no casualty figures.

The Assistant Director of Public Affairs, 6 Division, Nigerian Army Colonel Aminu Illiasu, confirmed that there was a shootout between suspected hoodlums, who allegedly were trying to disrupt the electoral process.

Meanwhile, the INEC has reportedly cancelled election in Bonny LGA of the State.

Molly Kilete

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has said that its Air Task Force (ATF), engaged in the fight against banditry in Zamfara  State has bombarded more hideouts of armed bandits at Doumborou, Sububu, West Malamawa, Baturia Pond and Rugu Forest.

The bombardment was said to have resulted in the killings of several bandits who hitherto used the area as their operational base.

NAF director who made this known in a statement said: “The Air Task Force (ATF) for Operation DIRAN MIKIYA has continued to record successes in its renewed air offensive against armed bandits in Zamfara State and its environs.

“The air strikes, which were intensified on April 8, 2019, with the deployment of additional aircraft, are aimed at flushing out the bandits from their hideouts in Sububu, Rugu and Kagara Forests, amongst others, whilst ensuring the protection of the lives and properties of citizens in the northwest of the country.

“On the first day of the intensive operation, the ATF conducted coordinated air raids against multiple identified armed bandits’ hideouts at Doumborou, Sububu, West Malamawa, Baturia Pond and Rugu Forest, where several bandits were neutralized and their camps destroyed.

“Yesterday, April 9, 2019, the ATF conducted waves of attacks against several targets. The first wave struck 3 armed-bandits locations within Sububu Forest as well as another camp in Kagara Forest. Targets attacked in the second wave were notable armed bandits’ hideouts at Kamarawa, Kunduma, and Tsamare hill, while the third wave focused on armed bandits hideouts in Doumborou. The ATF also provided close-air support to surface forces of Sector 2 to enable them to move into the attacked areas to mop-up the fleeing survivors and recover their weapons. In all, the ATF degraded eight camps and neutralized scores of armed bandits.

“Reports indicate that, as a result of the air strikes, some of the bandits are fleeing towards the border between Nigeria and the Niger Republic. Accordingly, the ATF is liaising with relevant authorities to ensure that the bandits are prevented from escaping through the southern part of Niger Republic.

“The NAF, in consonance with surface forces and other relevant authorities, will sustain its efforts to end the scourge of banditry and other related threats to life and safety in the northwest of our dear nation.”

-Sun

Philip Nwosu, Lagos

Over 50 widows of soldiers killed in battle in North East Nigeria have been provided with items to help them sustain their families and ensure the well being of their children, by the Lagos Chapter of the Nigerian Army Officers’ Wives Association (NAOWA)

The care packages were provided by the Lagos Chapter of the Nigerian Army Officers’ Wives Association (NAOWA).

The items, which include bags of rice, was handed over to widows of the slain soldiers residing at Ikeja Military Cantonment and 174 Battalion Ikorodu, by the chapter president of the NAOWA and wife of the General Officer Commanding 81 Division, Hajia Amina Yusuf.

Mrs Yusuf sympathized with the widows over the demise of the bread winners and urged them to remain courageous and sustain their homes.

The widows called on the Nigerian Army not to abandon them, and to assist them to meet the needs of their children.

Mrs Yusuf urged the wives of the slain soldiers to be strong and courageous, adding that “the presentation was to reach out to some of the widows of the great men of honor that laid down their lives for the peace and progress of our great nation.

“I want to urge you wives to be strong and engage in positive ventures that would create better life for you and your children in the future.”

She urged the widows to endeavour to send their children to school, adding that education is sure key to success.

Earlier, the NAOWA chapter president donated writing materials to pupils of NAOWA primary school inside the barracks.

-Sun

Olaleye Aluko, Abuja

The Boko Haram insurgents have attacked a military location at Kareto village in the Mobbar Local Government Area of Borno State, killing the Commanding Officer of 158 Battalion, and an undisclosed number of soldiers.

The acting Director, Public Relations, Nigerian Army, Col Sagir Musa, had yet to reply a text message sent to his phone on the incident as of press time on Friday.

There are fears that the terrorists are still within the local government area planning more attacks on troops and civilians.

The attack on the 158 Battalion and the killing of its commanding officer came about one month after the terrorists planted an Improvised Explosive Device which killed the Commanding Officer of 154 Task Force Battalion, Lt Col Yusuf Aminu.

The officer and two soldiers were on May 13 killed along the Borgozo-Mauli Road in Borno State, an incident which was confirmed by the army days later, after the Chief of the Army Staff, Lt Gen Tukur Buratai, attended the burial of the soldiers at the Maimalari Military Cantonment Cemetery, Maiduguri.

Our correspondent learnt on Friday that in the latest spate of attacks, the terrorists attacked the 158 Battalion’s location on Democracy Day, carted away military weapons and later relocated to neighbouring Fuchimiram village.

The commanding officer, whose name had yet to be confirmed, and some soldiers, were reported to have been killed by the terrorists.

“The troops in the entire local government and beyond are still vulnerable. We need more reinforcements to be able to curtail the terrorists’ attacks. Some of the terrorists are presently in Fuchimiram village,” a military source said.

A day before the June 12 attack, the military authorities confirmed that terrorists had invaded Darak in northern Cameroon, killing 10 soldiers of the Multi-National Joint Task Force, while 64 of the insurgents were also neutralised during the fire fight.

The MNJTF Chief of Military Public Information, Col Timothy Antigha, in a release later said that about “300 heavily armed Boko Haram terrorists invaded Darak,” but claimed that they were repelled by troops.

-Punch

Afeez Hanafi

Two officers of the Nigerian Air Force have been dismissed for their alleged involvement in the murder of a police sergeant securing a farmhouse owned by the acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu.

The officers, Awua Theophanous and Sunday Paul, were disengaged from the service and handed over to the police after facing disciplinary actions.

The duo and three others, Francis Ochife, Inalegwu Omikpa and Vincent Michael, who is also a dismissed Air Force officer, had invaded Magu’s farmhouse in Abuja to find a huge sum of money reportedly buried in a septic tank within the facility.

During the invasion, the gang allegedly killed a police sergeant, Haruna Sarki, who was guarding the farmhouse.

Speaking to City Round during the week, one of the dismissed Air Force officers, Theophanous, said he did not know the farmhouse belonged to Magu before they carried out the raid.

The 27-year-old father of two said sometime in November 2017, Omikpa met with him at a bar and told him that some stolen money was kept in the farmhouse.

He said Omikpa sought his help on how to recover the funds through the ‘whistle-blowing’ policy so that they would have a share from it.

Theophanous stated that he involved Paul, who contacted an EFCC official, to seek advice on how to recover the money.

READ ALSO: Court jails two cyber fraudsters in Ogun

He said the EFCC official advised them to be sure of their claim, and ascertain if the money was actually there.

He stated, “I joined Nigerian Air Force in 2012. I was serving at the Logistics Department, Defence Headquarters, Abuja. Omikpa met me at the Mammy market where I was drinking and he told me there was a farmhouse where stolen money was buried.

“In December 2017, I was called to rectify an electrical fault in an office at the Defence Headquarters. While I was there, a senior officer came in and asked Paul to accompany him to the EFCC office to dispatch a letter. I quickly told Paul about the farmhouse and asked him to enquire at the EFCC office how the ‘whistle-blowing’ policy works.

“When he returned, he told me that he spoke with an EFCC official about it and that the man advised him to verify the allegation that money was kept in the farmhouse before the commission would act so that it did not cause it an embarrassment.

“I gave Omikpa feedback. He said the person who gave him the information worked in the farmhouse and that the person was ready to take us to the spot where the money was kept.”

Theophanous, who said he did not know how the policeman was killed, explained that he left the scene when he realised that the police had been alerted to the invasion.

Omikpa, 35, said a friend of his known as Cacidi, who is still at large, also participated in the operation, adding that he was informed about the alleged hidden money by Ochife.

He said, “Ochife told me that there was a container filled with foreign currencies in Magu’s farmhouse. I initially thought it was a lie, but he kept on disturbing me, saying that his informant who lived around Magu’s farmhouse was so sure the money was in the septic tank.

“I then contacted my friend, Theophanous, who was an Air Force officer. I also told another friend, Cacidi, who advised that if we informed the EFCC, the matter would die completely. Cacidi told Michael who was also an Air Force officer.

“On December 12, 2017, we went to the farmhouse in two vehicles. I was outside while Theophanous and his colleagues went into the premises. After a while, I entered and saw a policeman tied to the ground. They also arrested one other security guard.

“Michael was breaking the septic tank when I received a call from Ochife, who was outside, that another policeman outside was calling for reinforcement. We quickly left the place. Cacidi and Michael took two police rifles they found on the premises. They promised to sell the rifles and give us our own share.”

The native of Benue State added that he was on his way from church on January 25, 2018, when he was arrested by the police.

In his account, Ochife, 38, said a motorcycle rider, who resides close to the farmhouse and has access to the facility, divulged the information on the alleged hidden funds to him. He, however, did not mention the name of the motorcyclist.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Police rescue five children from traffickers in Imo

He said, “The man told me that the owner of the farmhouse had instructed those working in the farmhouse not to use any of the toilets there. He convinced me that there was money hidden inside the compound.  I thought I would get some share in reward which would be a very huge amount of money.

“I contacted my friend, Omikpa, and informed him about it. He advised me not to tell anybody else and promised to involve his military friends. He introduced one Cacidi and three military men to me and we went to the farmhouse in two vehicles.”

-Punch

By Ismaila Chafe

The Federal Government has reiterated its determination to continue to procure sophisticated weapons to keep the nation’s military in good fighting shape, saying the country will take delivery of Super Tucano fighter jets in 2020.

A statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, in Abuja on Tuesday night, said the fighter jets, expected from the United States, would be deployed in checking terrorist activities in the country.

He said: “While the military arsenal is not something you pay for and get, requiring mostly long-time orders, weapons will come in accordance with the terms of contracts.

“This country is expecting the commencement of the delivery of Super Tucano fighter jets, very effective in this kind of warfare, beginning next year from the United States.’’

Shehu, who lauded the efforts of the armed forces in suppressing the activities of Boko Haram and other terrorist groups in the country, described as `fantastic’ the recently launched “Super Camps’’ by the military.

According to him, the essence of this is to act proactively and respond quickly to the changing nature of terrorism.

The presidential aide noted with delight that the Buhari administration had made the country safer than it met it in 2015.

“The position of the Nigerian government is that the Boko Haram terrorism has been degraded and defeated. The real Boko Haram we know is defeated.

“At the moment, the Nigerian government under President Muhammadu Buhari has made the country safer than it met it.

“In 2015 when he took power, Boko Haram terrorism was active in nearly half the number of states in the country.

“They controlled a territory the size of Belgium, with a flag and systems of administration and taxation of their own.

“Emirs and Chiefs had fled their domains along with hundreds of thousands of ordinary citizens. Such is no more; they have been taken from them,’’ he further observed.

Shehu added that, at present, terrorist activities had been confined to the remote, rural agrarian areas of Borno  and pockets of outrages in Adamawa and Yobe states.

He disclosed that the administration had embarked on an ambitious electronic/digital border monitoring scheme to curtail the porosity of the borders.

He revealed that the government was also working with the UN agencies, the World Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, donor agencies and friendly countries towards addressing the problems created as a result of the activities of the terrorist groups in the affected areas.

“A few weeks ago, the administration inaugurated the Northeast Development Commission, to fast track development and poverty eradication in the affected areas.

“The Buhari administration is strongly encouraged by successes recorded so far by our armed forces and the MNJTF, and is optimistic that in the same way as our military defeated the Boko Haram, so would the ISWA terrorism be defeated,’’ he added.

-NAN

-Tide newspaper

The presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has challenged President Muhammadu Buhari to probe the reported secret burial of 1,000 Nigerian soldiers killed by Boko Haram and ISWAP.
In a statement he signed yesterday, Atiku said that the Wall Street Journal’s report on the matter was saddening, adding that the attempt to hide the true state of the war on terror was heartbreaking and shocking.
Atiku said: “Heartbreak for the families and friends of those soldiers who, if the report is true, have lost their loved ones, without being allowed to bury them or even to have any sense of closure as regards their fate.
“Shocking that such a thing could happen under a democracy, such as Nigeria is supposed to be. I shudder to think that the cover-up of such an event of epic proportions can be true.
“The men and women of our armed forces are our first, second and last defence against our domestic and foreign enemies and should be treated with love, respect, dignity and appreciation for the invaluable service they render to Nigeria.
“I cannot fathom that in the space of a year, 1,000 of these great patriots were killed and buried secretly without their families being told. I hesitate to believe that deceit on such a grand scale is even possible.
“To ensure that we get to the bottom of this matter, I urge that a Judicial Commission of Inquiry headed by a non-partisan and reputable jurist, be inaugurated to investigate the findings of the Wall Street Journal.
“While this is occurring, I also strongly urge that a panel of inquiry comprising distinguished former military officers be set up to investigate and report to Nigerians the true state of the war on terror and what must be done to ensure Nigeria brings a speedy end to the ongoing insurgency.
“Nigeria must ensure prudent use of finances, so we can redistribute national resources in such a way that ensures that our military and security forces are well armed and well remunerated.
“Even the death of one soldier affects me. But the alleged cover-up of the deaths of one thousand soldiers is a national emergency that should shock all statesmen and leaders of thoughts into action to save Nigeria.”
But in a reaction to the report, the Military High Command, yesterday, decried what it described as a misinformed publication and a figment of the imagination of Wall Street Journal alleging that secret burial sites where troops killed by Boko Haram are buried silently exist, noting that the writer of the publication lacks knowledge of military valued ethos, and traditions on treatment of fallen heroes.
This was contained in a statement titled ‘There Are No Secret Graveyards in the North East Theatre’, signed by the Acting Director, Defence Information, Col Onyema Nwachukwu.
It reads, “The Defence Headquarters has noted with dismay an Online Article by “Wall Street Journal” purporting that the Nigerian Military maintains secret graveyards in the North East theatre of operation.
“This insinuation can only emanate from an uninformed position of the author of the said publication.
“It, therefore, becomes necessary to inform the public that the Armed Forces of Nigeria have a rich and solemn tradition for the interment of our fallen heroes.
“Therefore, it must be unambiguously clarified that the Armed Forces of Nigeria does not indulge in secret burials, as it is sacrilegious and a profanity to extant ethos and traditions of the Nigerian military.
“In tandem with the traditions of the Armed Forces, fallen heroes are duly honoured and paid the last respect in befitting military funeral of international standard, featuring funeral parade, grave site oration, solemn prayers for the repose of departed souls by Islamic and Christian clerics, as well as gun salutes, aside other military funeral rites.
“The cemetery described in the publication, which is situated in Maimalari Military Cantonment is an officially designated military cemetery for the Armed Forces of Nigeria in the North East theatre, with a Cenotaph erected in honour of our fallen heroes.
“The official cemetery has played host to several national and international dignitaries, where wreaths were laid in honour of the fallen heroes.
“It is therefore a far cry from the sacrilegious impression being painted by “Wall Street Journal”.
“The Defence Headquarters, therefore, urges members of the Armed Forces and the general public to disregard such a misinformed publication and see it as a figment of the imagination of the writer, whose knowledge of military valued ethos and traditions is grossly misplaced.”
The Wall Street Journal had reported that at the northern edge of this city’s sprawling military base, a vast field of churned soil conceals the hidden toll of a deadly offensive by the allies of Islamic State.
After dark, the bodies of soldiers are covertly transported from a mortuary that at times gets so crowded the corpses are delivered by truck, according to Nigerian soldiers, diplomats and a senior government official.
The bodies are laid by flashlight into trenches dug by infantrymen or local villagers paid a few dollars per shift.
“Several of my comrades were buried in unmarked graves at night,” said a soldier from the Maimalari barracks, where more than 1,000 soldiers are based.
“They are dying and being deleted from history.”
The secret graveyard at Maimalari isn’t the only one in Nigeria’s troubled North-East, the senior government official said.

-Tide Newspaper

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has demanded the setting up of a Judicial Commission of Inquiry to investigate the reported burial of 1000 fallen Nigerian soldiers in a secret mass grave.
He also wanted another panel of inquiry to determine the true state of the war against terror in the country.
In a statement personally issued by the presidential candidate of the main opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the February 2019 election, he maintained that Nigerians were entitled to know the truth.
His statement followed the report published by the United States-based Wall Street Journal (WSJ), which exposed the alleged practice of secretly burying fallen soldiers without the consent of their family members.
Atiku expressed shock that such cover-up could occur in the country, saying that men and women of the nation’s armed forces deserved more respect.
The statement read: “I read the report by the Wall Street Journal that over a thousand Nigerian soldiers have been secretly buried at night by the General Muhammadu Buhari led administration, in order to hide the true state of the war on terror, with a sense of heartbreak and shock.
“Heartbreak for the families and friends of those soldiers who, if the report is true, have lost their loved ones, without being allowed to bury them or even to have any sense of closure as regards their fate.
Meanwhile, the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) has denied a report from a US publication, the Wall Street Journal, that the Nigerian military is running secret grave sites where soldiers killed by Islamist terrorists in the North East are buried.
Director of Defence Information, Colonel Onyema Nwachuku, who made this known in a statement, said that the rumour of secret graves came from the “uninformed author” of a Wall Street Journal article, and those who did not wish the Nigerian military well.

-Tide Newspaper

By Emma Nnadozie, Crime Editor, Evelyn Usman & Ifeanyi Okolie

BUJA-The Nigerian Army Captain who allegedly ordered soldiers on security check-point along the Ibi-Jalingo Expressway in Taraba State, to attack and kill police operatives attached to the Inspector General of Police Special Intelligence Response Team, IRT, has been identified.

Vanguard gathered, yesterday, that police investigation carried out so far has revealed that telephone conversations between the kidnap kingpin, Wadume and the Captain , were about 191 within the space of one month between July 9, 2019 and August 6, 2019. The source explained that the police authorities believed that the army captain might have been providing cover for the kidnapper, who is said to have received hundreds of millions as ransom from his victims.

Vanguard gathered that the Army Captain , who is currently undergoing interrogation at the Defence Headquarters Abuja, was arrested alongside five other Army personnel, who were alleged to have taken part in the horrific killing of the three policemen and their two civilian agents in an operation to arrest a notorious kidnapper, Alhaji Hamisu Balla, alias Wudume, in Ibi area of Taraba State.

Vanguard learned yesterday that the arrested solders confessed that they received orders to attack the policemen from the captain, whom they said informed them that Wadume had been kidnapped and was being transported in a silver-coloured Toyota Hiace Bus.

A source at the Defence Headquarters, Abuja, told Vanguard that the soldiers claimed that they acted squarely on the orders of the captain, being their superior officer, but Police sources at Force Headquarters Abuja, disclosed that the police authorities have established strong links between the army captain and the notorious kidnapper, alleging that the army captain was on the kidnapper’s payroll.

The source added further that its investigations have also revealed that the army captain, who was not present in Ibi Town at the time the IRT operatives arrested Wadume, might have ordered his men to attack and kill the IRT operatives as well as rescue his friend, the kidnapper.

Petition against Wadume received

Meanwhile, Vanguard also gathered, yesterday, that the IRT’s manhunt to arrest and bring down Wadume’s kidnapping empire began in March 2019, when it received a petition from one Sheriff Umar of Kirikinua South Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

It was gathered further that the petitioner reported that his cousin, Usman Mayo was kidnapped on the 15th of February, 2019 at Takum Local Government Area of Taraba State and his kidnapper demanded the sum of N200 million as ransom for his release.

The source explained that the family of the kidnapped victim negotiated and paid the sum of N85 million first, on March 11, 2019, but the abductee was not released. He said they paid an additional N15 million, on March 16, 2019, making a total sum paid to the kidnappers N100 million and the kidnappers refused to release their victim insisting that that the family must pay the N200million they demanded.

The source explained that the family reported to the police and the IRT was drafted to investigate and track down the suspects behind the kidnapping and rescue the victim. It was learned that while investigations into the matter commenced, members of the kidnapped victim’s family paid an additional N20m to the kidnappers and the victim was released, but the police discovered during investigations that Wadume had strong links to the kidnappers, who got N120 million as ransom from their victim.

I sold 6 AK-47 rifles to Wadume – Ajomo

The police source, further disclosed that it investigations also revealed that Wadume, had bought several AK-47 rifles from a notorious trans-border arms dealer, Ojomo Adebowale Gbenga, who was arrested in May 2019, by operatives of the IRT for supplying heavy arms and ammunition to kidnappers and armed robbers.

45-year-old Ojomo, said to be a major arms dealer in the South-Western part of the country, made startling revelations about the fleeing Wadume during an interview.

Ojomo, who was earlier in the year paraded by police authorities over his criminal activities and later detained in Lagos, told Vanguard that he met Alhaji Wadume four years ago in Benue State and had been selling arms to him under the guise of using them to fight terrorist Fulanis.

Speaking with Vanguard, Ojomo said that he got to know Wadume through his business partner, Moses in Benue State, and he told him that he needed rifles to fight herdsmen who were killing farmers in his community. The gun runner explained that he got all the rifles, which he sold to Wadume and his friends from Burkina Faso, Mali and Libya and he said he sold the arms to them because they told him that they were having community clashes.

He further disclosed: “I started selling fire arms since 1993 after my secondary school. I worked with a company that deals on licensed arms in 1993 and I left in 1996 and went to school but, I linked up with arms dealers in Ibadan, which is the headquarters of arms dealing in the south western part of the country. I started selling automatic firearms which is prohibited, then one of my friends who is now late, Moses led me to the north.

He took me to Benue State and I sold arms to several people, including Alhaji Hamisu (Wadume). He came to me through Moses’ contacts and they identified him as a don.You know arms dealing is a cartel business. I knew very little about him and I sold eight rifles to him in 2015 and in January 2019, he called again and told me that he needed 10 rifles, but I had only six and because he was in hurry, I sold them to him at N800,000 each, and the bullets for N350,000 per can. But after my arrest, I gave information about him to the police. It was while in detention I heard he has been arrested.

Police inspector arrested, recants

Also, a Police Inspector who was accused of informing the Army that operatives of the Inspector-General of Police Intelligence Response Team that visited Ibi community in Taraba state, last week to effect the arrest of the suspected kidnap kingpin did not report to Police authorities, has been arrested.

Preliminary investigation, as reliably gathered, revealed that the policeman was cajoled to say so in order to cement evidences by troops of the 93 Battalion that the operatives were not only kidnappers but were there on an illegal duty.

It was also learned that one of the villagers who allegedly collected the firearms from the dead policemen revealed during interrogation that the weapons belonging to the slain police officers were collected from him by some soldiers.

Vanguard learned that the Police inspector attached to Ibi Police Station confirmed that the operatives visited the station to inform the senior officer there that they had concluded their operations and were leaving with the arrested suspect.

Unconfirmed reports said the policeman was given an undisclosed amount of money to maintain his stand that he told the troops that the policemen did not report at the station.

However, sources said the Inspector denied during interrogation at Force Headquarters, Abuja, that he did not collect any money from the Army.

It was further learned that about three villagers collected the firearms that were flung in different places into the bush after the police team was shot, when their vehicle somersaulted. One of them was said to have taken the arms to his home from where it was collected by the soldiers.

A villager who spoke on the condition of anonymity revealed that the suspected kidnap kingpin who is still on the run, is a popular person in Ibi community.

He was said to have contested for the House of Assembly, Ibi constituency in the last election, under the Young Democratic Party, but lost.

The 35-year-old man, said to be a petty trader, was revered in the community, due to his philanthropic nature.

He was said to have bought motorcycles for some youths, some of who thronged the scene where the operatives were killed, jubilating that their benefactor’s enemies had been overpowered.

At the moment, villagers in Ibi community are said to be keeping sealed lips on what transpired during the arrest of the suspected kidnapper, last week, for fear of being attacked by loyalists to the suspect.

Some of those close to the kidnap suspects have taken to their heels, apparently to avoid being arrested over his whereabouts.

Widow to address press today

Meanwhile, widow of the slain Inspector Mark Ediale, who is yet to come to terms with the rude shock of her husband’s demise, has left Lagos for the Force headquarters, Abuja, where she was received by senior police officers who condoled her and other widows over the tragic incident.

But her late husband’s family, it was reliably gathered, will be briefing journalists in Abuja today, where some salient questions would be posed to killers of their son.

The family, Vanguard learned, is requesting an explanation on how Inspector Ediale died, when he was seen alive in a video clip that went viral.

VANGUARD

Adelani Adepegba, Olaleye Aluko and Justin Tyopuusu

The police have re-arrested a kidnap kingpin, Hamisu Bala, popularly known as Wadume, two weeks after he escaped from the custody of the Intelligence Response Team while being taken to the state police headquarters in Jalingo, Taraba State.

The fugitive was apprehended at his hideout at Layin Mai Allo Hotoro area of Kano State on Monday night following a massive manhunt launched by the police Special Forces and IRT members in Taraba and the surrounding states.

Wadume was assisted to escape by soldiers after the police team came under attack from troops attached to 93 Battalion, Takum, on August 6.

Three policemen and two civilians were killed during the incident while five other police officers were injured.

In a viral video released on Tuesday, the suspect admitted that he was released from police custody by soldiers who cut off his handcuffs.

Speaking in Hausa, he said, “My name is Hamisu Bala Wadume. Police came to arrest me, When they arrested me, army chased after them and opened fire.

“From there, they (soldiers) took me to their headquarters, and cut off my handcuffs and released me. I went back to my house and police came to re-arrest me.”

One of our correspondents gathered that Wadume was tracked to Layin Mai Allo Hotoro community by the police using sophisticated equipment which pinpointed his location through his phone calls to family members and friends while in hiding.

The PUNCH gathered that the suspect would in the coming days undergo intensive and marathon interrogation focused on eliciting credible information and evidence against his collaborators in the military and the police.

One of our correspondents had exclusively reported last Saturday how the investigators discovered that the Crime Officer and Station Officer in Ibi police station had connived with Wadume in his criminal enterprise.

The CO was discovered to have made over 200 phone calls to the millionaire kidnapper while the station officer was found to have torn off the entry made by the ill-fated IRT team to destroy the evidence indicating that the officers reported the operation to arrest Wadume at the station in line with the police standard operating procedure.

See the video:

The force spokesman, Frank Mba, in a statement, said Wadume’s arrest, “will no doubt, help in bringing answers to the numerous but hitherto unanswered questions touching on the incident and the larger criminal enterprise of the suspect.”

“The police had been on the massive manhunt for the suspect, Alhaji Hamisu Bala Wadume, since August 6, 2019, following the unfortunate incident in Ibi, Taraba State, which resulted in the brutal murder of three police officers and two civilians, and injury to five others.

“The suspect, who was appropriately restrained at the time of the incident, was subsequently released by his “rescuers” after they had destroyed the restraining handcuffs,” Mba stated.

Meanwhile, the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, has commended the operatives for the arrest just as he also expressed his gratitude to all Nigerians for “their unparalleled show of love and empathy to the Force and the families of the officers and patriotic civilians who paid the supreme price in the service of their fatherland.”

Findings showed that the Joint Investigation Panel, headed by Rear Admiral IT Olaiya, a former Director of Naval Intelligence, would still continue with its assignment.

The panel was constituted by the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Gabriel Olonisakin, to probe the incident, following a directive by President Muhammadu Buhari asking the military to investigate the killing of three policemen and two civilians in Taraba State by soldiers.

Wadume’s arrest won’t stop suspected soldiers’ probe -Military

Meanwhile, the Defence Headquarters on Tuesday in Abuja confirmed that Wadume’s re-arrest would not stop the probe and investigation of army officers and soldiers identified in the killing of the policemen.

An authoritative source at the DHQ, who asked not to be named, noted that the Joint Investigative Panel set up by the DHQ at the instance of President Buhari, would conclude its findings this week and turn them in to the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Abayomi Olonisakin.

The panel, which is headed by Olaiya, has officers drawn from the army, navy, air force, police, the Department of State Services and the Defence Intelligence Agency.

The source said on Tuesday that the probe of the army personnel was ongoing and the arrest of Wadume would “only throw light on the investigations.”

The panel, which was inaugurated on Friday, August 9, had initially been given a one-week deadline, but it could not meet the deadline because of the volume of arrests and interrogations.

The DHQ source said, “I can assure you that Wadume’s arrest is not the end of the probe. The DHQ panel is continuing with its work and will properly turn in its report to the CDS at the appropriate time. The panel is ongoing with the interrogation of army personnel and others identified in the incident.

“Justice will be served to all parties in the matter. It is now likely the panel will round off any time this week, since its one week elapsed already.”

The Nigerian Army, as of press time, did not react to the re-arrest of Wadume.

The acting Director, Army Public Relations, Col Sagir Musa, was not available for comments.

Relief, sadness in Ibi over Wadume’s arrest

Meanwhile, residents of Ibi the home town of Wadume on Tuesday expressed mixed feelings over the suspected kidnapper’s re-arrest.

While the former caretaker chairman of Ibi Local Government Area of the state, Johnson Adasho, said the arrest was a great relief because security operatives that had laid siege to the town would leave, other residents said they would miss Hamisu’s generosity.

Adasho said the traditional, religious and the community leaders had been living with fear following the indiscriminate arrest of the people of Ibi over Wadume’s escape.

“Now that the man in the eye of the storm has been arrested, we will have some relief. We will also wait in good faith to know the true state of the allegations against him,” he said.

But Alhaji Yahaya Maikifi said the suspected kidnapper’s arrest was not good news to the people of Angwan Motori in Serkin Kudu area of Ibi and other people who were beneficiaries of Hamisu’s generosity.

Yahaya said Hamisu was a benevolent philanthropist that did not discriminate based on ethnicity or religion.

“Wadume is constructing a mosque in our area. The project is almost completed and his arrest will stall the project,” he said.

Another resident, Mr Michael Adi, said the borehole Wadume just drilled at Serkin Kudu in the Ibi Local Government Area would be a memorable project by the people of the area.

“I wish you were here to see the mood of the people, nobody is happy over the development. Let’s be truthful to ourselves, Wadume has done well with the people of Ibi and beyond. For some of us here, he has done well by eliminating poverty out of some families,” he said.

PUNCH