SENATE PASSES NIGERIAN PEACE CORPS BILL

 The  Senate on Tuesday passed the bill seeking to establish the Nigerian Peace Corps in concurrence with the House of Representatives.

The Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, in its report, which was considered at the plenary on Tuesday, strongly criticised the establishment of the corps.

But the lawmakers adopted the report of the Senate and the House of Representatives’ Conference Committee, which was presented by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Interior, Bayero Nafada.



The NPC bill was passed in the House of Representatives in June 2016, while it was passed in the Senate in November of the same year.

In the report represented by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, David Umaru, at the plenary on Wednesday, the panel picked holes in the creation of the NPC but said there was the need to reciprocate House’s passage of the bill.

The report stated in part, “The powers, functions, e.t.c., of the Peace Corps call for concern and this committee would wish that they are subjected to further examination.

“The creation of jobs through this platform is laudable but this can be achieved by strengthening existing agencies and not necessarily creating a new one so as not to overburden the Federal Government; and that the Committee noted that the House of Representatives has adopted the Conference Report and the need for reciprocity.”

The report read in part, “After the presentation of the report (by Nafada-led committee), sundry issues were raised, which elicited debate for and against the consideration of the Conference Report.

“After extensive deliberations, the Senate in its wisdom deferred consideration of the Conference Report and mandated the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters to look into the issues raised and report back.

“It is on record that the Senate is not considering the bill afresh but is addressing the uncertainties surrounding the Peace Corps that were raised at the plenary when the Conference Report was presented.

“The issues raised by distinguished senators at the plenary are fundamental and they go to the roots of the corps’ operations, which are subject of litigation.

“The operations of an organisation like the Peace Corps in other jurisdictions, particularly in the United States, the American Peace Corps which is used as a model does not operate as a permanent and pensionable employment as intended in Nigeria under this proposed legislation.

“Rather, its employment is for a limited period of five years only for regular employees and 24 months for volunteers.

“The operation of the Peace Corps is limited to social and economic development only in other jurisdictions as indicated in their mandate, pursuant to Section 591 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, 1990, in the case of Nigerian Peace Corps.”

The Senate President, Bukola Saraki, in his remarks, said, “The long journey has finally reached the Promised Land.”

5 ARRESTED OVER KIDNAPPING OF KOGI'S MOTHER

The police have arrested five suspects in connection with the kidnapping of the mother of the Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, in 2014.

Hajia Hawawu Bello, 80, was kidnapped in Uvete, Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi on May 29, 2014.

The suspects are a former councillor in Okene Local Government Council, Iliyasu Suleiman, 44; the gang leader, Danjuma Ibrahim, 26; Iliyasu Obadaki, 35; Alhaji Nasiru, 43; and Hafiz Yakubu.


The police spokesman, Jimoh Moshood, who paraded the suspects on Tuesday in Abuja, said items recovered from them included two AK47 rifles; 20 live cartridges; one army camouflage inner wear; two pairs of army camouflage trousers , two army camouflage caps , one black Beretta; two plastic guns; three knives and one axe.

Moshood said all the suspects had confessed to the kidnapping of the governor’s mother and some robbery operations in Abuja, Kogi and Niger.

He said efforts were being intensified to arrest the fleeing members of the gang while the suspects would be charged to court on completion of investigation.

The former LG councilor, Suleiman, said he was involved in the kidnapping, adding that he received a Peugeot 406 car from the gang leader, Ibrahim.

Another suspect, Obadaki, said he was given N.2m from the undisclosed ransom that was collected before their victim was released.
http://punchng.com/ex-councillor-others-paraded-for-kidnapping-kogi-govs-mother/

"FAYOSE IS AN IRRESPONSIBLE CLOWN"~~ SAGAY

The Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, PACAC, Prof. Itse Sagay, has described the Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose as an irresponsible clown.

He made the claim while reacting to Fayose’s recent threat to release damaging photographs of President Muhammadu Buhari to prove that he is critically ill in London.

Fayose, while addressing reporters had said, “If they go further and try to continue to deceive Nigerians, I will release about 11 damaging pictures anytime from now on the President’s health.”

But, Sagay in his reaction to the statement cautioned the Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Governors Forum against his comments,thus;  “Fayose is an irresponsible clown. Given his age and position, he is an embarrassment to this country. Each time he opens his mouth, he reduces his non-existent esteem”.

“He does have any esteem, so whenever he talks, he just reduces himself to nothingness. So, he is talking rubbish and should be ignored. I believe he has been ignored at the federal level. Let that continue.”

14-YEAR OLD WIFE KILLS HUSBAND IN NIGER STATE

The Niger State Police Command has arrested a 14-year-old wife from Lifari Village in the Mashegu Local Government Area of the state for allegedly killing her 40-year-old husband, Isiaka Usman.

The suspect, Aisha Isah, and the late Usman, to whom she got married five months ago, were said to be cousins.


According to report, the teenage wife had been complaining of starvation and maltreatment since she started living with Usman, who already had two wives.

Isah told newsmen on Tuesday that her late husband failed to provide for her for two days, hence her action.

“And when I confronted him, he slapped me and out of anger, I hit him on the forehead with a pestle and he collapsed and died,” she explained.


Isah added, “My husband had the habit of not giving us money for food and each time we (the wives) confront him, he would tell us to go to our parents’ home and eat. He never cared about us; he beat us every time we demanded money for food.”


Asked if the other wife was at home at the time of the incident, she stated that the other wife went to the hospital with her baby.

“My mate was not around; it was only me and my late husband that were in the house at the time of the incident. I picked a pestle and hit him, he fell on the ground and I ran to my mother’s house at Kahigu Village in Mashegu council,” Isah said.


Isah said she inadvertently killed her husband out of anger and pleaded for forgiveness.

“I am sorry for what happened, it is the devil’s work and I pray my parents will forgive me; I never knew that he would die,I regretted all my actions,” she stated.

The police spokesman, Bala Elkana, explained that the victim died at Mashegu Hospital where he was taken for treatment.

He added that the suspect would nevertheless be prosecuted as a juvenile offender.

SHOPRITE SALES GIRL 'MAIAM MUFUTAU' ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY STOLE N5 MILLION WITHIN ONE MONTH

A sales girl with Shoprite stores, Eti-Osa, Lagos, Mariam Mufutau ,has been arrested and arraigned before a Lagos Magistrate Court for allegedly stealing the sum of N553,956,000 she realized from sales just one month after she was employed.

The management of Shoprite Stores had reported a case of theft to the Divisional Police Officer, DPO in charge of Ilasan Division, Lekki, Eti-Osa, SP Oyinye Onwuamaegbu and that they suspected their sales girl to have stolen their N535,956,000 she realized from sales just one month after she was employed.

Following the report, Onwuamaegbu ordered Inspector Orukotan Lonikola to arrest the accused. During investigation, the accused could not give account of the missing money. Mufutau was arraigned before an Igbosere Magistrate Court, Lagos on a two count charge of felony to wit. stealing.

Police prosecutor, Esther Adesulu informed the court in charge No: J/38/2017 that the accused committed the alleged offence between 1 April and 31 May, 2017 at Shoprite Stores, Eti-Osa during working hours.

Adesulu told the court that the accused betrayed the trust reposed in her as a sales girl by her employer and stole the sum of N535,956,000 she realized from sales instead of remitting the money into her employer’s account, she was using her own personal POS to syphon the money. She said the management at Shoprite Stores uncovered the fraud when they audited the account.

Adesulu said the offence the accused committed were punishable under section 411 and 287 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2015. The accused pleaded not guilty to the alleged crime and Magistrate O.O Owunmi granted her to bail in the sum of N300,000 with two sureties in like sum.



Owunmi adjourned the case till 28 July, 2017 for mention while the defendant was taken to Kirikiri Prison pending when she would be able to fulfill her bail condition.

5 NIGERIANS ARRESTED FOR DRUGS AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN INDIAN

The Times of India has reported, on Monday, July 24, 2017, the arrest of five Nigerians and an Indian lady by Indian police, the latest in the serial busting of Nigerian gangs either for drug related crimes or fraud.

According to the newspaper, the Nigerians and their Indian accomplice were found in possession of a wide variety of drugs, including cocaine, brown sugar and amphetamine. They were also accused of human trafficking by way of offering Nigerian girls into prostitution.

Arrested by the Rachakonda Police in Hyderabad were Palaparthi Sangeetha, 35, a resident of Sun City, her partner Cosmas Ojukwu, 30, their associates John Okorie, 26, a BA student of Nizam College, Okereke Cyril Anezi, 31, a BCom student of Nizam College and president of Nigerians in Hyderabad, John Paul Onyebuchi, 34, and Ogunka Henry Okechukwu, 31.

Sangeetha, the Indian partner of Cosmas and John Paul Onyebuchi were the first to be arrested. They were nabbed at a bus stop on Sunday night with three grams of cocaine and 200 grams of ganja in their possession.

Based on Sangeetha and John’s confessions, police raided Ojukwu Cosmas’ flat and arrested Cosmas having 10 grams of cocaine, 12 grams of brown sugar, 37 blue amphetamine tablets and 40 pink amphetamine tablets, a laptop, `1.54 lakh cash, three cell phones and an Activa vehicle in his possession.



Cosmas then told about his drug business in Hyderabad. “He had been procuring drugs from his friend Gabriel, who operates from Goa and Hyderabad. He supplied drugs through Sangeetha, John Paul and Henry,” Rachakonda commissioner Mahesh Bhagawat said.

After confessing about his drug network, Cosmas then gave away the address of his associates John Paul, Henry and Cyril. Police seized seven grams of cocaine, 300 grams of ganja, Rs 50,000 cash, laptop and cell phones from them, the TOI reported.

The hansindia.com gave the total drugs seized as 20 grams of cocaine, 12 grams of brown sugar, 39.8 grams amphetamine tablets and pieces, 1.675 kg of ganja and Rs 2 lakh cash.

John Paul and Henry confessed that in addition to peddling drugs, they also trafficked Nigerian women to customers in Kushaiguda and Neredmet areas.

“The Indian visas of Cosmas, John Paul and Henry had expired years ago . John Paul was arrested twice by Mapusa police of Goa in 2016 for illegal stay and drug peddling. Despite knowing about all this, Cyril knowingly provided him shelter at his rented flat in Yapral,” the commissioner of police said.

Cosmas, who came to India in 2012, was reported to have links with drug peddlers operating in Goa, Mumbai and Chennai. He sold each gram of cocaine and brown sugar for Rs 20,000 to customers

LECTURER SACKED FOR COLLECTING MONEY TO PASS CARRYOVER STUDENTS IN NASARAWA

Paul Madela , a lecture at the College of Education, Akwanga, Nasarawa State, has been sacked by for allegedly collecting money to clear carryover students.

The provost, Dr. Rebecca Umaru, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Akwanga that the lecturer, Paul Madela, who is the institution’s examination officer, extorted money from students that had failed some courses and were expected to carry them over.

Umaru added that the Governing Council of the college approved his sack when a committee set up to investigate the allegation found on him culpable.

The provost warned the students to desist from social vices such as cultism, examination malpractice as anyone caught will face sanctions.