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Devil on the Cross by Dele Momodu

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By Dele Momodu

Dele Momodu

Fellow Nigerians, I’m sure you are already wondering what this title is all about. I will explain in a minute, and you will understand in a jiffy. If you are a lover of Literature like me, you must be familiar with the name, NgugiwaThiong’O, the famous Kenyan writer and author of the stupendously popular ‘Weep Not, Child’. This article has nothing to do with any of his books, and I’ve read so many of them, but about certain IRONIC developments close to its theme. I have therefore decided to borrow the title of one of his novels, ‘Devil on the Cross’ to encapsulate this piece.
In Biblical history, it was the Devils that used to be crucified and nailed to the Cross until wicked people decided to give Jesus Christ the nail treatment, ostensibly, to fulfil the prophesies in the books of Psalms, Isaiah and Zechariah. Since then mankind has never been able to distinguish between good and bad. The characters and the scenario I’m about to depictmay not totally fill our notions and views of the Biblical demons and Saints but their stories do have some resemblance. Perhaps, what is happening to one of the dramatis personae in this melodrama is to fulfil a particular prophecy in the chequered life of Nigeria. When the end is near crazy things begin to happen. The manner the PDP top shots are tearing at each other’s’ throats is emblematic of the end times.
What makes this saga very notorious, but divine, is the fact that the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which clearly separates the devolution of power between the States and the Federal Government is being openly desecrated and carelessly debased. We are being shown that the Federalism that we claim to practice has been nothing but a sham in our archetypical fashion of capsizing logic, willy-nilly, at the altar of convenience and expediency.
The war of dangerous attrition going on within the PDP is what has led to my sermon on this page today. It is not that it is new. The People’s Democratic Party has a long history and a robust tradition of ‘fighting to finish’ under the flimsiest excuses. I will refresh your memory by elucidating this assertion with a few glaring examples.
Step forward, President Matthew Olusegun Okikiolakan Aremu Obasanjo, and take a bow as the World Heavyweight Champion. Baba Iyabo, as we all love to call him, is universally advertised as a power house with a very short fuse. It does not take much time for him to blow up. And this could be triggered by the slimmest of needles and a casual pinch. The balloon would instantly burst.
President Obasanjo makes no bones of being the one that laid the foundation of the vindictiveness that is currently ravaging the People’s Democratic Party to its marrow. It all started with the obsession to stop his then Vice President, AlhajiAtikuAbubakar from becoming President after his tenure. Baba had boasted openly that even if he did not know those who would succeed him he knew those who wouldn’t. That was the beginning of a deliberate and determined annihilation of anyone perceived to be AtikuAbubakar’s friend or associate.
Enter Chief Diepreye Solomon Peter Alamieyeseigha, as the Casualty Number One. He was the Governor of Bayelsa State and the anointed Governor-General of the Ijaw nation. He and President Obasanjo were bosom friends and their families were extremely close. But that did not stop the President from going after his jugular when it was rumoured he was going to support Atiku’smission and ambition. All it took was a mere rumour and Alams, as he is called, would live to regret the day his name was tied to Atiku’s like an umbilical-cord. He never had the chance to cut off the placenta before he was hit by thunderbolt.
Alams had travelled to Germany to undergo a cosmetic surgery. The wound on his flesh was still as fresh as that of a sliced cow in an abattoir when he was pounced upon at a London airport. If he thought he was in a bad dream, his nightmare soon becamestark reality. The British agents led him to his home, somewhere off Edgware Road in West London, ripped the whole house apart and carted off whatever cash they found in the apartment. One thing led to the other and Alams vamoosed into rarefied air and eventually found his way back to Yenagoa. He momentarily returned to power before the rampagingforces of Obasanjocame like bullets and ‘impeached’ him Israeli-fashion and pushed his visibly shaken Deputy, Dr GoodluckEbeleJonathan to the front burner.The rest is history.
Those were the giddy old days when the EFFC under Ribadu wielded superlative powers. Corrupt politicians were hounded down with total grit even if many believed they pursued only perceived enemies of President Obasanjo.  It was under that climate that Governor Peter Ayo Fayose was ‘impeached’ in Ekiti State. It is noteworthy that the same Fayose is likely to become the next PDP gubernatorial candidate in the next election, after hobnobbing with the opposition. Nothing is too difficult to try by PDP.
Chief Joshua Chibi Dariye former Governor of Plateau State was another victim of the ‘impeachment’ formula prescribed by Obasanjo and perfected in the EFCC laboratory in Abuja. It did not matter that the Constitution was being crudely assaulted to accomplish these monumental feats; the end simply justified the means for President Obasanjo and those who supported extra-judicial prosecution for corrupt leaders.
It is remarkable that these same ‘devils’ are now back in action.  If Fayose is an aspiring Governor, how about the case of Dariye and Alhaji Ibrahim SaminuTuraki who are now both distinguished Senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria? To confound us further, Alamswas recently pardoned thus paving the way for his bid to be elevated to the sanctified Chambers of our ‘Distinguished’ Senate.  What therefore was the entire hullabaloo about?
Some other Governors listed for extermination are still strutting around.  They includeAlhajiBoniHaruna of Adamawa State, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu of Lagos and Chief Orji UzorKalu of Abia. Lagos suffered immense degradation as its statutory allocation was hijacked by the Federal Government while Kalu’s mother was endlessly harassed. Let’s give one more example that I consider very bizarre.
It is time to claim your title, Otunba Johnson Oyewole Fashawe, as the most intimidated First Friend in the history of Nigeria. Chief Fashawe’s case was a total misnomer. He was the de facto Vice President, and actually lived in the highly fortified Flagstaff House. Everything was going swimmingly well between the President and his look-alike friend before the tale-bearers regaledObasanjo with the story of how Fashawe was secretly fraternising with Atiku. Like a jealous betrayed lover, Obasanjo fumed, reacted irately and kicked against Fashawe. Pronto, the friend who was untouchable was publicly humiliated and hauled into jail by security agents who accused him of shady deals in form of some loans gone bad.  In all, Obasanjo succeeded in stopping Atiku, and his other enemies, who nursed presidential ambition. He did not stop there he also blocked any of his own Princes from being King.
But how time flies! The year 2007 flew in too quickly, the Third Term misadventure had collapsed like a house built with spittle, and Obasanjo was desperate to package his own brand of successor for an already punch-drunk Nigeria. Two unlikely candidates emerged out of the concoction and utter conundrum that only an Obasanjo could have brewed. They were the Governors of Katsina and Bayelsa, Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and Dr Goodluck Jonathan. It will forever remain a mystery by what permutation Obasanjo arrived at his queer decision.
Since then, Nigeria has witnessed one crisis after the other. While we can say most of the problems were already there ahead of Jonathan, we must still hold him responsible for not being able to solve most of them if any at all. Profligacy has become the order of the day while corruption has gone totally viral. And instead of settling down to find lasting solutions to the myriad of conflicts plaguing Nigeria, the leadership of the ruling party has abdicated governance and is busy playing god instead of seeking how to alleviate widespread poverty. Jonathan who seems to have graduated from the Obasanjo School of Politics has continued the tradition of elbowing opponents in a merciless manner.
Particularly worrisome is the sheer energy and resources being wasted on trying to kill the rumoured ambition of Governor Rotimi Amaechi. It is ironic that a President whose only equity was acquired from a gentle and humble disposition has suddenly become an aspiring dictator who must fight dirty to remain in power. We have suddenly returned to those gory days preceding 2007.
The President must know Nigerians are very familiar with these tactics of seeking to whip recalcitrant Governors into line. No one buys the allegations levelled against Amaechi even if they were true. We all know that in our ‘Animal Farm’, a few pigs are always bigger than all others. If Amaechi was still friends with Jonathan, the aviation people would have turned a blind eye even if his plane was able to fly on one engine instead of two.
But I have some useful tips for Mr President again, totally free of charge. One, please leave Amaechi to run Rivers State as he deems fit. I don’t think he’s your enemy even it appears so to your galaxy of garrison commanders. If you don’t want Amaechi to return as Chairman of the Governors’ Forum, what to do is simple, mobilise his colleagues against him through persuasion and not coercion.
Sir, please call that rambunctious Chairman of PDP in Rivers to order. He may ignite fire and cause an unprecedented conflagration the way he’s been spewing out threats against your so-called foes who were constitutionally elected like you. His brazen disrespect of the Constitution and the place of duly elected representatives of the people are alarming. He has unilaterally suspended members of the State Assembly from your party. He wants to suspend and dreamily hopes to impeach the Governor.
Allowing your acolytes to carry on so recklessly is also a big slight on the National Chairman of your party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, as well as your BOT Chairman, Chief Anthony Anenih, who had both worked assiduously to achieve peace in Port Harcourt and keep the Governor in the fold. The rascality displayed by the warmongers is likely to abort those efforts by your own leaders.
Your aides have been acquiring enemies on your behalf in places you can hardly afford. The number four citizen of Nigeria, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Waziri Aminu Tambuwal, suffered collateral damage when he was left stranded at Akure Airport because of Amaechi. I always say there is no wisdom in setting fire to a whole villagebecause we want to catch a rat. That’s what the overzealous officials at the Aviation Ministry did no matter the justification for their action. The plane brouhaha was not a matter of life and death that could not be resolved at a later date. It was going to land eventually in Abuja or Port Harcourt where it could still have been impounded if necessary at all. Attempting to detain the Speaker and Governor simultaneously in Akure was nothing but unnecessary braggadocio.
I’ve just read an interview granted by Dr Doyin Okupe where he actually mentioned the Speaker of the House of Representatives by name as a potential candidate of the opposition and I sensed that the Presidency has become jittery. Despite the Tambuwal speculation, partly started by me on this page, there’s no concrete evidence yet that WaziriAminuTambuwal,Governor SuleLamido, Governor BabangidaAliyuand Governor RotimiAmaechi have firmly decided to jump ship. Why is their current political party making strenuous efforts to push them into the sea?
I sincerely plead with you; these gentlemen are not your enemies. They are amongst the finest materials PDP can at least be proud of. Your biggest enemies are your aides who think they can take on anyone and everyone and win all battles to keep you and themselves in power whether you perform or not. Your best ammunition against losing the next election is to truly transform Nigeria. Unfortunately, the time has become too short to do a lot. Three years have already sped by since you came to power as President and Commander-in-Chief. You need every second of blistering and frenetic hard work to manage anything tangible before the campaigns start at the end of next year, if you manage to obtain your party ticket.
My suspicion is that you’re not likely to heed this wise counsel because the prophecy of the end time must be fulfilled.
May God’s will be done.

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Posted in Nigeria News. A DisNaija.Com network.

Source: Citizens Platform

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Nigeria News

Kano Transfers Over 1,000 Almajiris To Different States Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic

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The Kano State Government on Saturday said it has transferred 1,098 ‘almajiris’ to different states of the country.

The commissioner for local government, Murtala Garo, disclosed this while presenting a report before the state’s task force on COVID-19 at the government house, Kano.

Almajiris are children who are supposed to be learning Islamic studies while living with their Islamic teachers. Majority of them, however, end up begging on the streets of Northern Nigeria. They constitute a large number of Nigeria’s over 10 million out-of-school children.

Mr Garo said the Kano government transported 419 almajiris to Katsina, 524 to Jigawa and 155 to Kaduna. He said all of them tested negative for coronavirus before leaving the Kano State.

Despite the coronavirus test done in Kano for the almajiris, the Jigawa government earlier said it would quarantine for two weeks all the almajiris that recently arrived from Kano.

Mr Garo said another 100 almajiris scheduled to be taken to Bauchi State also tested negative to COVID-19.

In a remark, Governor Abdullahi Ganduje said the COVID-19 situation in Kano was getting worse. He appealed for a collaborative effort to curtail the spread of the virus in the state.

Mr Ganduje, who commended residents for complying with the lockdown imposed in the state, said the decision was taken to halt the spread of the virus.

Kano State, as of Saturday night, has 77 coronavirus cases, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control.

The decision to transfer the Kano almajiris is part of the agreement reached between Northern governors that almajiris in each state be transferred to their states of origin.

However, even before the latest agreement by the governors, the Kano government had been transferring almajiris to other states and neighbouring countries after it banned street begging in the state, most populous in Northern Nigeria.

Despite the transfers, however, no concrete step has been taken to ensure such children do not return to Kano streets as there is freedom of movement across Nigeria although interstate travel was recently banned to check the spread of the coronavirus.

 

Sourced From: Premium Times Nigeria

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COVID-19: ‘Bakassi Boys’ Foil Attempt To Smuggle 24 Women Into Abia In Container

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By Ugochukwu Alaribe

Operatives of the Abia State Vigilante Service, AVS, popularly known as ‘Bakassi Boys’ have arrested 24 market women hidden in a container truck, at Ekwereazu Ngwa, the boundary community between Abia and Akwa Ibom states.

The market women, said to be  from Akwa Ibom State, were on their way to Aba, when they were arrested with the truck driver and two of his conductors for violating the lockdown order by the state government.

Driver of the truck, Moses Asuquo, claimed he was going to Aba to purchase stock fish, but decided to assist the market women, because they were stranded.

A vigilante source told Sunday Vanguard that the vehicle was impounded while the market women were sent back to Akwa Ibom State.

Commissioner for Home Land Security, Prince Dan Okoli, who confirmed the incident, said that  smuggling of people into the state poses great threat to the state government’s efforts to contain the spread of COVID- 19.

 

Sourced From: Vanguard News

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Woman Kills Her Maid Over Salary Request

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Operatives of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID), Yaba of the Lagos State police command have arrested one Mrs Nene Steve for allegedly killing her maid, Joy Adole

The maid was allegedly beaten to death by Nene for requesting for her salary at their residence located at 18, Ogundola Street, Bariga area in Lagos.

Narrating the incident, Philips Ejeh, an elder brother to the deceased said that he was sad when they informed him that his sister was beaten to death.

He explained that the deceased was an indigene of Benue State brought to Lagos through an agent and started working with her as a maid  in January 2020.

‘’She reported that her boss refused to pay her and anytime she asked for her salary she will start beating her.

She was making an attempt to leave the place but due to the total lockdown she remained there until Sunday when her boss said she caught her stealing noodles and this led to her serious beating and death,’’ Ejeh said.

He called on Lagos State Government and well- meaning people in the country to help them in getting justice for the victim.

The police spokesman, Bala Elkana, stated that the woman and her husband came to Bariga Police  Station to a report that their house girl had committed suicide.

Detectives were said to have visited the house and suspected foul play with the position of the rope and bruises all over the body which confirmed that the girl had been tortured to death and the boss decided to hang up the girl to make it look like suicide.

He said: “The police moved on with their investigation and found a lot of sign of violence on her body that she has been tortured before a rope was put on her neck.’’

He added that the police removed the corpse and deposited it in the mortuary for autopsy to further ascertain the cause of the death.

Elkana said the matter has been transferred from Bariga police station to Panti for further investigation while the couple have been arrested and will be charged to court.

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Boko Haram Attacks: Buhari Summons Urgent Meeting Of Service Chiefs

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President Buhari and the Service Chiefs in a meeting. (File photo)

Ostensibly alarmed by the latest killings of dozens of soldiers by Boko Haram insurgents, President Muhammadu Buhari has summoned an urgent meeting of Service Chiefs to find ways to stop the trend. 

He has also dispatched the Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan Ali, to the neighbouring Republic of Chad for an urgent meeting with President Idris Deby and his defence counterpart. 

Knowledgeable sources said in Abuja on Friday that the president is worried by on the deterioration of security situation on the Nigeria – Chad Border that has led to the recently increased Boko Haram terrorism in the area.

The sources which did not want to be named in Abuja said: “Nigeria has a Chad  problem in the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) put together to secure the Lake Chad basin areas and repeal the Boko Haram terrorist attacks against all the countries neighbouring the Lake.”

The sources noted that Chad is believed to be having their own internal security challenges and this has reportedly led to their pulling away their own troops manning their own border around Lake Chad,  saying: “That lacuna is being exploited by the Boko Haram terrorists, who go in and out of Nigeria, Niger and Cameroon to launch terrorist acts.  This is a clear illustration of the fact that terrorism is beyond national borders.”

When contacted, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, confirmed that the Defence Minister is going to Chad but said he is unaware of the purpose. 

Meanwhile, the military authorities are said to be in the process of identifying the families of the latest victims with a view to making contact with them. 

Credible sources revealed that it is the reason the president is yet to make any pronouncement on the matter. 

“The President has called an urgent meeting with the Service Chiefs, as well as the fact that families of the latest victims of the Boko Haram are being identified and contacts made before a government pronouncement on the tragic attacks. This, it is understood, is the reason for the silence of the government over the incident,” the source said. 

 

Sourced From: Tribune

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