The Enugu State government has commended the three multi-national companies operating in the state, the Nigerian Bottling Company, 7up Bottling Company and the Nigerian Breweries for their invaluable contributions to the socio-economic development of the State.
The State Commissioner for Environment and Mineral Resources Mr. John Egbo made the commendation when he took delivery of a Hilux Van donated to the State government by the three companies.
Mr. Egbo, noted that the company had continued to show concern in the affairs of the state and restated the determination of government to provide the enabling environment for companies and individuals doing business in the state thrive.
The commissioner explained that by the donation of the van the companies have demonstrated their full support to governments efforts to fight crime especially water pipe vandalization along the Ajalli Owa axis and control of sand excavation within the 9thMile corner effluent channel.
He stated that the Ajalli Owa water channel was essential to the state being the main source of water supply to the people.
Mr. Egbo used the occasion to call on other business organizations operating in the state to emulate the kind gesture of the three companies to meet up with their corporate social responsibilities.
Earlier in a comment, the Public Affairs Manager of the Seven-Up Bottling Company, Mr. Yinka Adesina expressed the delight of his company to corroborate with other sister companies to make the donation as part of their corporate social responsibilities to their host state and the people.
Mr. Adesina expressed worry over the menace of erosion and pipeline vandalisation along the 9th Mile Water Channelisation, by hoodlums and appealed to the state government to step-up efforts to check such act.
He noted that pipe water vandalisation often orchestrated water pollution, which according to him hampered economic activities of the related companies and the people, adding that the decision to make the donation was to assist the Enugu State to put a stop to the menace.
Also in their separate speeches, the representative of the Nigerian Breweries (NBL) Plc, Mr. Patrick Ejidoh and his counterpart, Mr. Emeka Eze of the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC), collaborated with the views expressed by the representative of the 7-Up Company, stating that protection of the environment is essential.
They noted that it was to put a stop to the channel vandalisation that made them join hands to make the donation of the van and asked the state government to make good use of the hilux to check the pipe water vandalisation.
It is now about a month since the news report by PUNCH NEWSPAPER that our Dear Governor, His Excellency Owelle Rochas Okorocha physically assaulted an aide of a fellow Governor. The dust raised by this report is yet to die down before the recent report of assaults and abductions of elected local council officials in Orlu, Owerri Municipal and Owerri North Local Governments, by some high ranking members of Governor Okorocha’s cabinet.
On Monday, November 12, 2012, the taskforce constituted by the Imo government to forcibly evict the elected local government councilors and chairmen from the local government council offices invaded Orlu, Owerri Municipal and Owerri North local Government headquarters with thugs.
A local Newspaper reported that two (2) Commissioners, Iche Uche Best Mbanaso and Kenneth Emelu, in company of fierce looking youths stormed the council premises of Owerri Municipal in a commando style raid and allegedly whisked away the secretary to the Owerri Municipal Government, Mr. Felix Nnodim to an unknown destination. And in Orlu local government council, the Commissioner for Chieftaincy and local Government, Hon. Jerry Okoli led the operation where they unleashed mayhem on victims. One of the councilors was beaten to a state of coma and his condition cannot be ascertained at as of press time, by the newspaper.
The special advicer to the Governor on Security Owerri Zone, Hon, Onyeukwu led the operation to Owerri North local Government headquarters, where the chairman, Dr. Ogwo was also abducted and taken to an unknown destination.
I believe it was Herodotus that said, “Circumstances rule men”. But true leaders emerge amongst men in times of adversity. True leadership is actually defined by how adversity is handled.
Opportunistic criminal behaviour is most times a product of adversity. A hungry child who steals akara from an unattentive akara seller may have committed a criminal act of Larceny, but the child may also have succumbed to this crime due to the adversity unleashed by hunger pains. He or she is therefore only an opportunistic criminal.
In the above situation, hunger was the adversity that created an opportunistic criminal in a child. But the situation is different with regards to the alleged slapping of ANOTHER Governor’s aide and the current invasion and abduction of elected officials. In both of these situations, the adversity that precipitated these criminal actions were created by the government.
In the Alex Ekwueme birthday situation, it is alleged that the reason our Governor assaulting the aide of another governor was because our governor was not reserved a seat at the occasion like other Governors from the South East because he refused to contribute the agreed sum for the birthday celebration. In essence by refusing to contribute, the Imo Government created the adversity that result in the fisticuff. The Imo State Rescue Mission Government created the adversity because gate-crashing a party as one of the hosts while refusing to contribute your quota to the hosting of the party is a reckless act and this recklessness is responsible for the incident of alleged assault reported by Punch Newspapers – a Nationwide publication.
Similarly, the lawless Brigandage exhibited in the abduction of elected local government officials by the so called eviction taskforce was as a result of the adversity created in the Imo State Local Council Government by the illegal and unconstitutional dissolution of councils by the Governor. In essence, the Rescue Government of Imo State, deliberately created the adversity in the local government administration, and yet the same Government tried to cure this deliberately created adversity through Brigandage and lawlessness.
On June 6th 2011, Governor Okorocha after only about a week in office made a broadcast upon which he dissolved elected local government councils of the state. Everybody in Nigeria knows that a governor does not have the constitutional authority to dissolve elected local government councils.
PDP at this juncture could have advised the elected chairman and councilors not to vacate their offices. But for the sake of peace, PDP did advice the chairman and councilors to vacate their offices and resort to the courts, which they did. This is the mark and essence of leadership. The Peoples Democratic Party chairman in the state, Chief Duru Iheoma(S.A.N) must be commended. He exhibited an uncanny leadership in the face of adversity. He did not advice nor encourage his members to choose lawlessness and Brigandage; instead he directed them towards the rule of law.
For over 14 months, the elected council chairman and councilors fought a litigation war in the courts for their mandate. On July 5th 2012, they eventually prevailed with the Court of Appeal Owerri ruling that they should be returned back to their offices.
Inspite of this ruling, when the elected chairman tried to return back to their offices, they were met with physical resistance from the Imo Rescue Mission government prompting the Attorney General of the federation to intercede. It took the inspector General of Police to escort them back to their offices. Just a few days after being escorted back to their offices by the police, the Rescue Mission Government announced that their tenure had expired and that they should vacate their offices. This began the second phase of the litigation in the Imo local government councils. The elected local council chairmen went to court claiming that their tenure ends in August 2013. Meanwhile the court entered an Order for the statuesquo to remain until the case is heard. It is in reaction to this Order that the taskforce for the eviction of elected chairmen and councilors from their offices was formed.
The above two examples show the modus of operation by the Imo Rescue Government. A Government that deliberately create artificial adversity in governance only to unleash Brigandage and lawlessness.
The rumour in the State since the recent abductions of elected council members is that the operation was carried out with graduates of the so called Imo College of Advance professional Studies (ICAPS). The rumour is that the first batch of graduates of the Institution in the area of advance security training are simply thugs being trained to be used for operations such as the one that took place last Monday.
This raises the following questions that should be answered by the Honourable Commissioner for Education and the Committee on Education in the Imo House of Assembly.
• Is there an enabling Law for Imo College of Advance Professional Studies?
• If there is such a law, why is the Institution not accredited by any accreditation body in the country?
• What type of degree or certificate is awarded by the institution and what are the duration of the courses offered by the institution?
• If there is not an enabling law for this institution where is the source of funding for the institution coming from?
NDI Imo, it is vital that these questions are answered by the administration and the House of Assembly. When the Commonwealth of Imo people is committed to any institution, we must be in the know of what exactly our Commonwealth is funding. I do not believe that any well meaning Imo person will endorse the use of the state’s treasury in funding the training of thugs. The abduction of elected local council officials may just be a blessing in disguise for the entire people of Imo State at least with respect to ICAPS. The Association of this shadowy institution without any accreditation by any National regulatory body or accreditation body may be why Imo people need to start asking appropriate questions.
News report by local papers stated that some of the suspects arrested by the police had fake police uniforms. These suspects allegedly accompanied Okorocha’s aides to the aforementioned three local government headquarters to unleash mayhem on the elected council officials. Most, if not all these suspects are graduate of Imo College of Advance Studies.
NDI Imo, we all agree that Imo must be better. Can Imo really be better under Executive lawlessness and criminal brigandage? Without peace in the polity, Imo cannot be better. In God, there will always be peace and tranquility. So let us all join hands and return Imo back into the hands of God.
DR. KELECHI OKPALAEKE writes from Owerri in Imo state
A general view of the burnt down office of Al Jazeera satellite television channel is seen in Cairo (AFP, Ahmed Mahmud)
CAIRO — An office of Arab satellite broadcaster Al-Jazeera in the Egyptian capital was firebombed on Wednesday, a security official said, as protesters clashed near the downtown Tahrir Square.
“Unknown assailants” lobbed Molotov cocktails at the office which overlooks Tahrir, causing a big fire, the official said.
The arson attack gutted the office, with a window overlooking the iconic square smashed in and cameras and lighting charred.
Security officials said that no one had been injured, but the Qatari-owned television network said later in a statement that one of its staff members suffered injuries.
The attack, the channel said, had come after a campaign of “incitment targeting Al-Jazeera network in Egypt over the past days”.
The statement said that the campaign had been “surprising, mainly as Al-Jazeera in Egypt and abroad has never taken sides in any political conflict”.
It said there were calls on Egyptian television channels to shut down the offices of Al-Jazeera.
The attack came after the arrest of 118 people since clashes broke out on Monday during a protest to mark the first anniversary of deadly street battles that piled pressure on Egypt’s then ruling military to quit power.
Medics said that at least 60 people had been injured in the three days of confrontations. One protester, a member of the April 6 movement, was in critical condition, the group said on Tuesday.
On Monday, clashes erupted as protesters tried to destroy a concrete barrier which security forces put up to end last year’s fighting with activists.
At least 45 protesters died in the five days of street battles that began on November 19 last year to put pressure on the military, which took power after a popular uprising overthrew president Hosni Mubarak in February 2011.
The military, which responded by vowing to hand over power by June 2012, transferred control to Islamist President Mohamed Morsi after his election that month.
A suspected major cannabis dealer in Lagos has been apprehended by officers of the Lagos State command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA). The arrest was made during raids on selected volatile areas used as hideouts by drug trafficking gangs in the State. Dried weeds suspected to be cannabis weighing 584kg was seized from the drug gangs at Olosha, Mushin where the suspect, Dada Etop Ejalonibu, 38 years old was apprehended. The suspect is currently being interrogated by narcotic investigators attached to the Lagos command.
Lagos State Commander of the anti-drug Agency, Mr Aliyu Sule stated that the drug suspect has been on the command’s list of wanted drug dealers. “The command has arrested one Dada Etop Ejalonibu who is believed to be a major distributor of cannabis in Mushin area of the State. We carried out two separate raid operations on their hideouts where the suspect who has been on our wanted list was arrested. In the first operation, 475.6kg of dried weeds of cannabis was seized while another 108.4kg was recovered in another operation bringing the total quantity of cannabis to 584kg” Aliyu explained. The commander appealed to Lagos residents to report activities to the Agency for prompt action.
The suspect accepted ownership of the drugs adding that joblessness forced him into drug sales. In his words, “I have been dealing in drugs for the past three years. At the time of my arrest my partner had gone out. I dropped out of the University in 200 levels due to lack of sponsorship. The cannabis trade enables me to take care of my wife and three children. I had wanted to quit but the profit is high and there is no alternative job opportunity”. Dada Etop hails from Osun State.
President Goodluck Jonathan has told an Abuja Federal High Court that he is eligible to contest the presidential election in 2015, even if it would mean staying in office for a total of more than eight years from the date he was initially inaugurated as President on May 6, 2010, following the death of President Umaru Yar’Adua.
The President made the statement through his lawyer, Mr. Ade Okeaya-Inneh, SAN, in response to a suit in which a Port Harcourt-based lawyer, Mr. Henry Amadi, asked the court to declare that Jonathan no longer qualified to run for office in 2015.
Amadi had argued that in doing so, Jonathan would be spending more than the constitutionally stipulated maximum period of eight years in office.
The plaintiff said he was a card-carrying member of the Peoples Democratic Party.
The suit is similar to another one filed by another self-declared member of the PDP, Chief Cyriacus Njoku, before an Abuja High Court.
Njoku’s suit, which asked the court to stop Jonathan from running for office in 2015 on the grounds that he was currently serving his second term in office, having taken the oath of office as President twice already, has been adjourned for judgment.
In the new suit, which came up before an Abuja FHC presided by Justice Adamu Bello, on Wednesday, Jonathan and the Independent National Electoral Commission were listed as the defendants.
The court was also asked to stop Jonathan from once again running for office when his current term expires in 2015.
However, in his counter affidavit to the plaintiff’s originating summons, Jonathan averred that he took the first oath of office on May 6, 2010, following Yar’Adua’s death.
Jonathan asked the court to dismiss the suit on the grounds that the plaintiff had no locus standi to ask the court to stop him from running for office in 2015.
He described the plaintiff’s claims as “hypothetical and academic”, noting that he failed to disclose reasonable cause of action.
The matter was adjourned to January 23, 2013.
Okeaya-Inneh said, “The question that arises for determination is whether, having regard to the facts of this case, he (Jonathan) is in his first or second term.
“In other words, given that the Constitution prescribes a maximum of two terms of four years each totaling a maximum of eight years as President, is he eligible to run for re-election in 2015? “In resolving this issue, the court is invited to make a determination whether the period of May 6, 2010 to May 28, 2011 wherein Jonathan occupied the office of the President, can in law be regarded as one term of office and relevance of the oath of office Jonathan took on May 6, 2010 in computing the tenure of office of Jonathan in line with sections 135 (1) and (2), 137 (1)(b), 140 (1) and (2) and 146(1) of the 1999 Constitution.
Esteemed Presidents, Prime Ministers and Heads of Delegation ofEgypt,Malaysia,Indonesia,Bangladesh,TurkeyandIran
Honourable Ministers
Honourable Commissioners
The Secretary-General of D-8 Organisation
Distinguished Members of Delegation
Distinguished Guests
Members of the Press
Ladies and Gentlemen,
As this is my very last assignment as Chair of the D-8, I must say how pleased I am for the opportunity to serve this young and dynamic Organisation for the past two years. Let me also seize this opportunity to express my deepest appreciation to the Government and People of Pakistan for their warm hospitality and the excellent arrangements made for our meeting.
Shortly, I will be asking His Excellency, President Asif Zardari of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to step in and take over the stewardship of the D-8 for the next two years. Before I perform this important duty, I will briefly comment on some of the activities and programmes we were able to accomplish over the course of the past two years.
ThroughoutNigeria’s stewardship, we were guided by the vision to nurture our Organisation in a way that will empower the private sector in our countries to be the driving force propelling our various programmes and activities. I believe this is the right road to take, because it reflects our shared vision to limit the role of governments in the day-to-day activities of the D-8 to merely that of catalysts and enablers of economic and trade cooperation among our various countries.
Some of our notable achievements in the past two years include the entry into force of the D-8 Preferential Trade Agreement in August 2011; the Multi-lateral Agreement among D-8 Countries on Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters, which came into force in October 2011. The Agreement of Simplification of Visa Procedures for Businessmen of the D-8 Member States, which had been ratified much earlier, completes the three main Agreements pivotal to trade promotion and cooperation among D-8 countries.
The ratification of these Agreements by almost all Member States attests to the faith we all have in the D-8 as a viable platform for fostering economic and trade relations among our various countries. Fully implemented, these agreements have the potential of boosting D-8 intra-trade volume to much higher levels.
It is worth recalling that the Abuja Declaration of 2010 directed the Commission to finalise work on the draft D-8 Charter, the Statutory Documents and the Global Vision. The conclusion of work on these core documents remains one of the major accomplishments of our Organisation in the last two years. Undoubtedly, the adoption of these documents here inIslamabadwill be a fitting tribute to the vision and aspirations of the founders of our Organisation.
I am happy to report that in the past two years, D-8 Member Countries gave strong support to the Nigerian Chair. Indeed, without exception, Members of our Organisation were always ready to help remove obstacles and carry forward the D-8’s strategic vision. I thank you all for your faith in the D-8 and for the enthusiasm and solidarity in the past two years ofNigeria’s stewardship of this Organisation.
Excellencies, from what I have seen and observed, from the commitment of Member Countries, I can say with confidence that the future of the D-8 is bright and solid. Of course, this is not to say that the road ahead is all smooth and without bends, bumps and twists. Far from it. The advantage the D-8 has is that it is a voluntary Organisation of like-minded countries with a shared vision to work together for the benefit of all.
I must say that the modest progress our Organisation was able to achieve these past two years underNigeria’s stewardship could not have been possible without the commitment and strong support of all D-8 Member Countries. I will therefore like to seize the opportunity to, once again, convey my gratitude to all Member Countries for their support which greatly benefited the work of our Organisation.
I also must acknowledge the commendable work done by the outgoing Secretary-General of our Organisation, Dr Widi Agoes Pratikto, whose tenure coincided withNigeria’s stewardship of the D-8. Dr Pratikto worked closely withNigeriaduring the past two years, and always displayed great passion and professionalism in his work. I wish him well and success in his future endeavours.
Excellencies, asPakistanassumes the chair of the D-8 at thisSummit, I would like to urge D-8 Member Countries to continue to forge closer cooperation so as to make the D-8 the engine of growth and prosperity in our various countries. I believe working together to promote our shared vision and common objectives; we could build the D-8 into a model of successful south-south cooperation.
When I took over the leadership of our Organisation I had the intention of visiting all our Member Countries. However, because of the demands of governance, I was only able to visitTurkey. It is still my fervent desire to pay a visit to other member countries of our Organisation in that spirit. Let me seize this opportunity to appeal to Your Excellencies, especially our incoming Chairman, to try and encourage exchange of visits among Heads of State and Government. This, I believe, will bring our countries, peoples and their Governments closer, because such visits will open other vistas of cooperation among the D-8 countries.
In conclusion, my last words must be to pledgeNigeria’s support to President Zardari, and to assure Your Excellencies that my country values our partnership and will remain an active collaborator with other D-8 family members.
It is now my honour and privilege to hand over the baton of Chair of the D-8 to the safe and steady hands of the President of the Islamic Republic Pakistan, H.E. Asif Zardari.
Witnesses of Maj.-Gen Charles Airhiavbere (rtd), the appellant in the Edo Election Petitions tribunal gave contradictory statements at the resumed hearing of the tribunal in Benin City, yesterday.
Maj.-Gen Airhiavbere is challenging the election of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole as governor of Edo State in the July 14, 2012 election on two grounds: the academic qualification of the Governor and alleged malpractice in the election
The appellant called in five witnesses yesterday to buttress his claim of alleged electoral fraud.
The first witness, Omololu Ogbeni née Ojehomon who said she was a PDP agent in the said election could not however show any proof to back up her claim. She told the tribunal that she joined the PDP two years ago, her PDP membership card however showed she joined in September 2011. There was also no indication she is a financial member of the party.
She admitted that she cast her vote and saw other people voting.
Ogbeni who said she is an intelligence expert said she is not recognized as such by any security agency in the country even as her PDP card indicated that she is a business woman.
Another witness, Phillip Osawaru said he was 38 years old, same age that was indicated on his voter’s card which was issued two years ago.
He said he went to the poll with two of his daughters aged 20 and 18. When told that he contravened the electoral act because his daughters were underage when they registered to vote three years ago, he said he was unaware that he committed an offence.
He said his accreditation as PDP agent for the election was given to him at the polling centre on election day, but under further probe, he said it was taken to his party’s secretariat at Abudu, where he went to pick it on election day. When asked if he knew he again contravened the electoral act which restricts movement on election day, Osawaru said he was unaware of such restriction.
On her part, another witness, Deaconess Maria Osaghae who said she’s the Woman Leader of Ward 1 for the PDP said she has been an active participant in elections for over 15 years and is quite conversant with the nations electoral process.
She admitted to voting on Election Day for the candidate of her choice. She admitted that she was not the PDP agent at her unit and that she was not induced to vote. She also said that nobody shared money with her at her unit and that her testimony is based on what she was told.
Another witness, Madam Jennifer Ologbosere who claimed to know the members of all the parties in her ward could however not say who the Social Secretary for NCP in her ward was and also did not know not know the Youth Leader of the Labour Party in her ward.
She also admitted that she did not know the number of PDP-registered voters in her ward.
She said she saw some ACN agents sharing La Casera drink and Gala to woo voters, When asked if she saw them sharing rice, she said no which prompted the ACN Counsel, to read a portion of her deposition in which she stated that she saw some agents sharing rice at the polling centre.
Two would-be witnesses, one for the appellant and another for the respondent were however sent out of the tribunal for being in the tribunal room even after they had been warned to stay out of the court room and out of hearing.
The appellant, Maj.-Gen Charles Airhiavbere was at the tribunal yesterday, while Dr Pius Odubu, the state Deputy Governor was also at the tribunal. The 1st respondent, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole was however absent at yesterday’s sitting.
Sitting of the 3-man tribunal headed by Justice by Justice Muazu Pindiga continues today, Thursday.
Egyptian security officials say a fighter plane has crashed near the southern city of Aswan, killing the pilot.
Officials say the Russian-made MiG-21 jet crashed while on a training flight Wednesday in an agricultural area north of Aswan. Fire fighters rushed to put out the blaze caused by the crash and cordoned off the site.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief reporters. They did not give the cause of the crash.
The Russian-made MiG warplanes were once the backbone of Egypt’s air force. They began to be replaced in the 1980s and 1990s by U.S.-made fighter jets such as the F-16.
The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved contracts for the construction of the terminal building, control tower and power house at the Bayelsa Airport in Yenagoa, the state capital for the sum of N13.912 billion.
According to the Minister of Information, Mr Labaran Maku, “Bayelsa state as an oil producing state is a major hub in the country and needs an airport to serve the needs of the people.”
The airport, he further explained is expected to enhance the movement of people and goods in the region.
The oil producing Bayelsa State, is President Goodluck Jonathan’s state of origin.
NEMA’s N3.4billion air ambulance
The council also at Wednesday’s meeting approved the purchase of one air ambulance jet with medical evacuation configuration for the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) for immediate medical assistance and evacuation of people whenever disaster strikes in any part of the country.
The director general of the agency Mr Mohammed Sidi who briefed state house correspondents after the meeting said the aircraft will cost $23 million (N3, 450 000 000).
According to him, the approval follows a memo by the President to the effect that the recent increase in natural and human induced disasters across the country exacerbated the loss of lives due to poor immediate emergency services.
The council meeting was presided over by Vice-President Namadi Sambo in the absence of President Goodluck Jonathan who is attending the D-8 summit in Islamabad, Pakistan.
The council also passed the framework for an integrated infrastructure development plan for Nigeria and also approved the setting up of an advisory council for the Ministry of Niger Delta to co-ordinate the activities of all agencies that have anything to do in the Niger delta
The road sector got once again attracted plenty of attention with contracts awarded for the Okene-Benin, Abuja-Lokoja and the Kano-Maiduguri expressway.
The Minister of Works, Mr Mike Onolememen, explained that the federal government will take advantage of the dry season to execute the road projects.
The council also commiserated with President Jonathan on the death of his younger brother and prayed to God to give the First Family the fortitude to bear the loss.
Two workers of the Omala local government area [LGA], according to information received by 247ureports.com through sources at the LGA, were shot dead following protests for the LGA to pay six [6] months salary.
As gathered, the workers of the LGA – which is also home to the former governor of Kogi State, Malam Idris – had gone without salaries for 6 months – from June 2012 when the liason officer of the LGA, Aminu Atabor took to the realm of administrating the affairs of the LGA. As the workers of the LGA organized and presented their concerns to the liason officer for the LGA, Aminu Atabor, the meeting failed to yeild fruitful result. Rather, Aminu Atabor told the workers that the governor has yet to release monies for the payment of their salaries. But a meeting with the Governor proved otherwise.
The Governor, Captain Idris Wada, told the workers that the monies for their salaries had been released to the respective LGA liason officers – and that all salaries should have been paid. This revelation caused the aggrieved workers to return to the LGA headquarters located at Abejula – where they met the liason officer [Aminu Atabor] arriving to his office.
As he exited his vehicle with his security aide, the workers were said to pounce on him – and proceeded with beating up Aminu Atabor. The security aide was said to have taken on his heels. The beating occurred on Tuesday November 13, 2012.
Following the beating incident at the LGA headquaters, the liason officer [Aminu Atabor] took precautionary actions to employ armed security men to gaurd the office and his movement.
Yesterday, as the LGA workers organized to do a protest walk to the LGA headquaters, the security men which Aminu Atabor employed were already staged at the headquaters in-wait for the protesting workers. When the protesting workers arrived the venue, the security men – which comprised of a mix of police officers and local vigilante men – opened fire. They began shooting initially to ward-off the protesting workers – but as the workers showed no signs of turning back – the security men changed tactics.
The LGA office immediately turned dangerously violent as the security men began shooting directly at the workers – in full view of the LGA liason officer. Two workers were immediately shot down while 19 others suffered injuries. Four workers were arrested. But Aminu Atabor denied to 247ureports.com that any of his security men shot and killed any LGA worker.
Meanwhile cursory investigation conducted by our correspondent in Kogi State revealed that there is more than meets the eye over the violent developments in Kogi.
It was understood that the reason for the lack of salary payment to LGA workers has to do with a more criminal intent. Available information reveals that the liason officers of each LGA – who act as transitional chairmen of the various LGA – make monthky deductions of the LGA joint account. The deductions are said to be the principal reason for the lack of salary paynent.
A source who is attached to the governor of Kogi State reveal that the former governor, Malam Idris in tandum with the current governor, Captain Wada have been engaged in “criminal” deductions from the LGA accounts of the 21 LGA. There are three persons used for the deductions – Mohammed Ali of Betina LGA, Aminu Atabor of Omala LGA and Faruk Adejo. Alhaji Jibril of Kogi State Primary School Education Board is also used for the extortion.
The trio of Ali, Adejo and Atabor collect deductions from the each LGA at N2million per month – which is remitted every quarterly to the former governor of the State through his step-son, Hon Mohammed Idris – in the amount of N1billion.
Alhaji Jibril is reported to be the first cousin of Governor Idris Wada – he is said to receive deductions from the various LGA accounts for the Kogi State Primary School Education Board in the amount of N1.33billion for the payment of salaries for primary teachers. But the actual primary school salary load is reported to be considerably lower than the collected sum. A large percentage of the collected sum is transfered to the Governor, Captain Wada – this is according to our source who explained that the primary school teachers are paid below minimum wages.
247ureports.com also gathered that Aminu Atabor recently completed the erection of a luxurious hotel at the heart of Lokoja – by the name Miami Hotel. The hotel took seven [7] months to complete the construction. It is located between federal inland waterway and Zenith Bank building.
