The Nigeria Army has formally referred to Biafran Republic agitators, under the canopy of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) as criminal gang from it will no longer condone any form of false allegation.

According to the spokesman of the 6 Division of the Nigeria Army, Port Harcourt, Aminu Iliyasu, the allegations by one Emma Powerful, who claimed to be the media and publicity secretary of IPOB that soldiers shot dead eleven IPOB members on January 20 during a solidarity rally in Port Harcourt to celebrate the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States of America, is false.

Aminu Iliyasu confirmed that soldiers deployed to ensure peace on the street restrained themselves from firing a single shot despite provocations from the protesters.

“The allegation is false, malicious and existed in the figment of his imagination. We therefore wish to warn Mr. Emma Powerful and other likeminded mischief makers that the Nigerian Army will no longer tolerate such spurious and unfounded allegations that are injurious to the hard-earned image and reputation of the Nigerian Army, its selfless and dedicated officers and soldiers by any group of criminals regardless of their appellation.”

The army spokesperson said that on the day of the protest, members of the group were mobilized from Abia, Anambra, Enugu, Imo and Cross River States for an alleged rally with dubious intent of molesting innocent citizens, intimidating passers-by and wrecking havoc on commuters thereby disturbing public peace, safety and security.

“The choice of Port Harcourt (the Garden City) as the epicentre of the protest has left much to be desired. It is however worthy to restate that one of the constitutional responsibilities of the Nigerian Army is to come to the aid of the civil authority whenever the need arises. In line with this constitutional mandate, troops of 29 Battalion Nigerian Army, were deployed in conjunction with other sister security agencies to prevent any loss of life or property with strict adherence to the established Rules of Engagement.

“Despite all provocative attempts occasioned by the stoning of security agents and the smashing of commuters’ windscreens by the violent protesters, troops refused to be cajoled into the criminal gang’s trap to fire a single shot. This is indicative of the troops’ total compliance with their Rules of Engagement. The violent protest was subsequently subdued with the use of tear gas and arrests were made by a sister security agency with no casualty recorded on either side.

“It is however worrisome and disturbing for anyone to falsely accuse troops deployed in support of civil authority who conducted their duty professionally under the beaming lenses of cameras of allegedly killing 11 citizens of our great country. A well observed trend of this criminal gang is the malicious posting of old videos and pictures from their archives on social media platforms which has no bearing on their claims to attract public sympathy and whip sentiments among the citizenry.

“To this end, Headquarters 6 Division Nigerian Army, Port Harcourt, wishes to inform the public that the allegation is not true and should be dismissed as mere propaganda by the separatist group. We wish to restate our total commitment to the protection of lives and properties within the Division’s Area of Responsibility.

“We therefore solicit the cooperation and understanding of all peace loving citizens and further enjoin them to join hands to help eradicating all forms of criminality within Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom and Delta States. This will no doubt enhance mutual co-existence, peace and socio-economic development of the region.” [myad]

Acting President Yemi Osinbajo has made it clear that he is comfortable with the official residence he is presently occupying.
He insisted that he had no need for other official residence which incidentally, the previous government started work on.
In a statement by senior special assistant to Osinbajo on media and publicity, Laolu Akande, the acting President declared: “I have said publicly that I consider Aguda House, which I currently occupy, a befitting official residence for me and sufficient for my needs.”
The Presidency was reacting to media reports which linked the present administration of Muhammadu Buharo to building of a new official residence for the occupant of the Office of the Vice President, including the controversial gatehouse. Which the statement said “preceded this administration.
“The project which started in 2010, was initiated and funded by the immediate past administration, but had never featured in the two budget proposals of the Buhari administration: neither in the 2016 nor the 2017 spending plans.
“Any suggestion therefore that this project benefits our administration or that it reflects our spending style or preferences is not only misleading but blatantly false.”
The statement confirmed that the project is now about 85 percent completed, but that “the Federal Government, in the circumstances, will decide at the appropriate time on what is the best use for the 14 buildings already on the project site.” [myad]

Ex Nigeria’s Aviation Minister, Mr. Femi Fani-Koyde has called on members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to prepare to leave the party’s carcass for the treacherous mole called Sheriff and form a new party.

“It is time for us to quit the PDP, leave its carcass for the treacherous mole called Sheriff and form a new party.”

Fani Kayode, who reacted to the appeal court judgment that recognized the factional National Chairman of the Party, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff as the authentic leader of the party, in a series of tweets on his twitter handle wrote: “The Court of Appeal decision is absurd.”

A three-man panel of judges in a unanimous decision agreed that the former Borno State Governor, Ali Modu Sheriff, is the authentic National Chairman of the party. [myad]

The former President, Court of Appeal, Justice Umaru Abdullahi, has admitted that there are judges in Nigeria but not all of them are corrupt.

He declared: “we are not disputing the fact that there is no bad element in the judiciary, but not all in the system are bad. If you compare the number of the bad ones, the good ones out-number the bad ones.”

Justice Umaru Abdullahi spoke today, Saturday, during a public presentation of the journal on Private and Comparative Law, organized in his honour by the Faculty of Law of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria.

“The judiciary is a human and Nigerian institution. Therefore, it is not surprising that some few judicial officers are being picked up for going out of their parameters of judicial function.’’

The former appeal court judge insisted that the Nigerian judiciary has developed into a very solid institution, adding that it has been delivering services to the continuity of the country and is in the forefront in providing solutions to some of the problems facing the country.

Justice Umaru Abdullahi said that it is unfair to condemn the judiciary because of the few bad ones, as there is no sector in Nigeria that is insulated from corruption.

“There is the machinery the government can use effectively to flush out bad elements in the judiciary.”

He said that the government also has the machinery to ensure that only credible persons are appointed as judges.

The President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa, said that the judiciary has been trying its best in the fight against corruption, adding that the judiciary has a standard of measuring judges.

“We have our code of conduct the judicial officer is expected to abide with, If you see anything different from our code of conduct, that officer would have gone astray.

“If you go strictly by the code of conduct you can’t go wrong; So, we are committed to the fight against corruption.” [myad]