SARAKI WRITES RESIGNATION LETTER

Sources from the National Assembly have revealed that Senate President, Bukola Saraki, is considering tendering his resignation letter as Majority of the senators have resolved to toe the line of party supremacy, the Nation confirmed.

This came few days after the Federal High Court Abuja, refused to stop his on-going trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal, CCT, over a 13-count charge of false declaration of assets.

Reliable National Assembly sources allegedly told The journalists that at the wake of the judgment delivered by Justice Abdul Kafarati, on Friday, some front line supporters of the embattled Senate President have resolved to withdraw their support for Saraki in his bid to remain in office as Senate President, while his trial at the CCT lasts.

In the meantime, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, John Oyegun, has ruled out the possibility of the party losing the senate presidency to the opposition.

In a recent interview with Premium Times, Oyegun insisted that the party is not likely to lose the position to the opposition, but noted that should this happen, it will have to be the price for the desired ‘change’.

It was also, learnt that some members of the Senate President’s camp in the National Assembly are now of the view that the incessant face-off between the legislature and the presidency allegedly being generated by Saraki’s trial at the CCT, is needless and avoidable.

“Hence, some of them are ready to support a change in the leadership of the senate to save the ruling party from further crisis and at the same time represent the yearnings of their ‎constituents for good governance by ensuring strict adherence to the provisions of the laws of the country.”

Another source, a Senator from Lagos State, said, “Mr. Senate President is currently facing charges that borders on false declaration of assets.…

“The issue has gone beyond mere accusations as he has already gone down in history as the first serving Senate President in the country to be docked in a competent court.

“Sadly, one recalls that there is a way these things have been handled in the past to save the National Assembly, and by extension, the government, from unnecessary embarrassment.

All former presiding officers of the National Assembly, who were faced with similar charges, first resigned their positions in order to protect the integrity and sanctity of the country’s hallowed chambers.”

The senator regrets that what has been happening in the last few months, “were blatant display of disregard for the sanctity of the senate by some misled and confused senators whose loyalty is not to the country, but to an individual or group.”

The senator added, “But one is happy today, to tell you that things are changing for better. For one, I can tell you the APC caucus in the senate is working towards uniting all. We are healing the divide imposed on us by self serving individuals. We are all returning our loyalty to the party and the government.”

It was gathered that attendance at the regular and emergency meetings of the ‘Like Minds Senators’, the group of senators loyal to the President of Senate, have plummeted in recent times, giving credence to talks about‎ serious cracks in the ranks of Saraki loyalists.

According to reliable sources, the committee that has core Saraki allies in the likes of Senators Aliyu Wammako, Danjuma Goje, Kabiru Gaya, Ahmed Yerima and Adam Aliero, as members, is championing a united APC caucus that is loyal to the party and government, as against the current arrangement of a divided caucus.‎

The Nation also gathered that the dwindling fortunes of the Saraki camp is responsible for its inability to push through the suspension plot allegedly instituted against the Senator representing Zamfara Central, Kabir Marafa, an unrepentant critic of the Senate President.

Weeks after the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, submitted its report on its investigation on Marafa, the Senate has failed to deliberate on the panel’s recommendations.

Following the Supreme Court’s verdict on the appeal of Saraki on his CCT trial, Marafa had demanded for the resignation of Saraki.

He had said, “What is happening in the CCT is personal to Saraki and has nothing to do with his position as the Senate President. It has now reached the time when Saraki should take a bow to enable him concentrate on his case at the CCT. I don’t have anything against him as a person.”

Oyegun has declared that a political solution may not be in sight for the ongoing Senate President’s trial at the CCT.

2015 POLLS: EFCC ARRESTS INEC's REC, (Gesila Khan), 4 OTHERS OVER N650m SCAM

•Anti-graft agency probes large scale bribery

Alleged corruption in the 2015 general elections is back in the news following the  arrest   of the   Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of the Independent National Electoral Commission( INEC) in Cross River State, Gesila Khan and four others  by the  Economic and Financial Crimes Commission( EFCC).

The suspects are being held for a N650.9million 2015 poll bribery scandal, EFCC sources said last night.

Sensitive election materials for the 2015 presidential and senatorial polls were also retrieved from the residences of some of the suspects as were many documents on financial and landed properties.

Some of the documents are receipts of payments made into their accounts.

The suspects allegedly committed the poll bribery fraud in Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states.

There were indications that many INEC staff and Ad hoc workers benefitted from the bribe-for-poll results scandal.

Khan, who was the REC in Rivers State during the last general election, allegedly pocked N185, 842,000 out of the bribe sum under probe by the EFCC.

The other suspects  and the bribe cash against their names are Fidelia Omoile (Electoral Officer in Isoko-South Local Government Area of Delta State)–N112,480,000; Uluochi Obi Brown ( INEC’s Administrative Secretary in Delta State)–N111,500,000; a former Deputy Director  of INEC in Cross River state, Edem Okon Effanga—N241,127,000 and the Head of Voter Education in INEC in Akwa Ibom, Immaculata Asuquo–N214,127,000.

According to investigation by our correspondent, all the suspects and their accomplices have made useful statements to EFCC.

A top source said: ” During the preliminary grilling of Khan, she admitted that she went to a bank to identify one Peter Popnen (who is on the run) to collect N185, 842,000.

“We have launched a manhunt for Popnen to ascertain how the deal was struck. As far Fideli Omoile, we discovered that her signature and driver’s license were allegedly used for some of the N112.48m transactions.

“Regarding Uluochi, investigation confirmed that she had $75, 857 in her account with the Bank of America as at February. This indicated that she laundered some of the N111.5m poll bribery cash abroad.

“In any case, EFCC is quizzing her on why she is operating a foreign account in violation of the Code of Conduct Act.”

Another source in the commission said those who benefitted from the scandal appeared to be many.

The source gave more details on the confessions of some of the suspects.

“On his part, Effanga told interrogators that although he cashed the N241,127,000 at a branch of Fidelity Bank in Calabar, he only got $290,000 as his share.

“But from his testimony, many INEC staff and Ad hoc workers benefitted from the loot. We are probing the sources of these slush funds which were deployed in some of these states to bribe INEC staff. Certainly, we are looking into many accounts which were used by some INEC staff.”

Asked about Immaculata Asuquo, the source added: “She said she was directed by the REC in Akwa Ibom to go and identify Effanga in order to cash the N241,127,000.”

As at press time, it was gathered that all the suspects had been granted bail but they could not fulfil the conditions.

“EFCC may have no choice than to approach a court for a warrant to detain them.

However, I “I think we may go to court on Monday accordingly” said the source.

NIGERIAN MILITARY KILLED FIVE OF CHIBOK GIRLS DURING AIR RAID

A woman who escaped from boko haram terrorists (Hawwa) has revealed how the Nigerian military   mistakenly killed 5 chibok schoolgirls. 

Speaking with newsmen, Hawwa, claimed that she had met the Chibok girls in Gwoza, the former center of Boko Haram’s self-declared caliphate.

The woman stated that she was forced to work as a cook for the Boko Haram sect, and was kept in a complex with a lot of other women and children, where conditions were poor. According to her, the Chibok girls were kept alone and treated much better than the other women, “like VIPs.”

Hawwa claimed that while Gwoza was under Boko Haram’s control, five of the Chibok girls were killed by the Nigerian military jets that flew overhead and opened fire on a crowd of women as they sat together in a camp. 

“The military… didn’t know they were the Chibok girls,” she said.

   “They would have seen a group of women in a compound and just fired… When it started we ran” she added. 

Hawwa also said she thought the military “would have thought they were the family of the insurgents.”

ABDUCTED PASTOR IN KADUNA FOUND DEAD

Reverend lliya Anto one of the three United Church of Christ in Nigeria pastors kidnapped along Kaduna- Abuja expressway, has been reported dead.

Anto who is HEKAN Vice President, was killed while the two other pastors regained their freedom after 10 days in the hands of their abductors.

The survivors are Rev. Dr. Emmanuel Dziggau and Rev. Yakubu Dzarma, the spokesman in charge of the Kaduna State Police Command confirmed Thursday.

The Police Public Relations Officer told Independent in a telephone interview that the police anti-kidnapping squad has been on the trail of the kidnappers who have been terrorizing people  on the Abuja-Kaduna road for a long time now.

He said the freed pastors are now receiving treatment in a hospital in Kaduna.

He called on the general public to give any useful information that could lead  to the arrest of those perpetrating the crimes.

The three pastors were kidnapped by yet to be identified gunmen at the proposed HEKAN Theological Seminary Permanent Site, along Kaduna-Abuja road on Monday, March 21, 2016.

NO MATTER HOW YOU TAKE IT, COFFEE DRINKING CAN DECREASE THE RISK OF COLORECTAL CANCER SAYS NEW STUDY

No matter how you take it, coffee drinking can decrease the risk of colorectal cancer says new studyMore

A new US study has found more evidence for the health-giving properties of coffee, finding that more than 2.5 cups of coffee a day can significantly decrease your risk of colorectal cancer. 

To carry out their study, researchers at the University of Southern California (USC) looked at a group of 5,145 participants with colorectal cancer, and a further 4,097 participants without colorectal cancer as a control group.

Those that had colorectal cancer had all been diagnosed within the last 6 months. 

Data on coffee consumption was collected by interview and food frequency questionnaires, which participants completed to report on how much coffee they drank, whether it was boiled (espresso), instant, decaffeinated or filtered.

After they took into consideration other cancer risk factors, the team found that even just one to two cups of coffee a day reduced the risk of developing colorectal cancer by 26 percent. And when coffee consumption was increased to more than 2.5 cups of coffee a day, the risk decreased by up to 50 percent.

And although the levels of coffee's beneficial compounds vary depending on the bean, roast and how it is brewed, the results showed that it also didn't matter how the coffee was taken, with espresso, filter, and even instant coffee all having a beneficial effect.

And although caffeine can act as an antioxidant in the body, preventing the growth of potential colon cancer cells, the results were also seen whether coffee was taken decaf or fully caffeinated.

"We were somewhat surprised to see that caffeine did not seem to matter," commented senior author of the study Stephen Gruber, "This indicates that caffeine alone is not responsible for coffee's protective properties."

And although Gruber commented that "We need additional research before advocating for coffee consumption as a preventive measure," he also added, "That being said, there are few health risks to coffee consumption, I would encourage coffee lovers to revel in the strong possibility that their daily mug may lower their risk of colorectal cancer."

The study is available online in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.

MOTHER CHARGED AFTER MAKING CHILDREN TO WALK TO SCHOOL

JASPER, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee mother faces child neglect charges after deputies say she made her daughters walk to school.

The Chattanooga Times Free-Press (http://bit.ly/1UHXZH6 ) reports that 32-year-old Lisa Marie Palmer was charged after authorities found her driving ahead of her daughters as she made them walk to school.

Marion County sheriff's Deputy Chris Ladd, who spotted the two girls, says it appeared Palmer was driving ahead of her children and allowing them to catch up to her car until the kids reached the school.

Sheriff Ronnie "Bo" Burnett says Palmer told deputies that her daughters were being punished for missing the bus.

Ladd said the girls had walked more than a mile and had about two more miles to go.

"Temperatures were cold, and traffic was beginning to become heavy with citizens heading to work," Ladd states. "Mrs. Palmer was in no position to reach her children safely in the event of an emergency."

Palmer is scheduled for an initial court appearance on April 18. Court officials say she doesn't have an attorney yet.

Marion County is located just west of Chattanooga.

___

Information from: Chattanooga Times Free Press, http://www.timesfreepress.com

BOKO HARAM RELEASES NEW VIDEO: SAYS "NO NEGOTIATION, NO SURRENDER"

Boko Haram released a new video Friday denying any suggestions it would surrender, just over a week after their shadowy leader Abubakar Shekau appeared in a rare message looking dejected and frail. Shekau, who was not seen on camera for more than a year, released an unverified video late last month and said his time in charge of the Nigerian jihadist group may be coming to an end. If the video indeed depicts Shekau, he appears thin and listless, delivering his message without his trademark fiery rhetoric. It prompted speculation from the army that the Islamist group was on the verge of collapse in the face of a sustained military counter-insurgency. However, in Friday’s message, Boko Haram maintained it was a potent fighting force, with fighters posing with AK-47s in front of Toyota Hilux pick-up trucks and a lorry mounted with a military cannon. “You should know that there is no truce, there is no negotiations, there is no surrender,” an unidentified masked man wearing camouflage said in a prepared script in Hausa, in the video posted on YouTube. “This war between us will not stop.” The video, which was of markedly better quality than Shekau’s and included Arabic subtitles, featured nine masked Boko Haram fighters standing on sandy ground in an undisclosed desert location. It is unclear if the masked people in the video include the Boko Haram leader. Shekau was still the head of the “West African wing”, said the masked man in the video, likening Boko Haram to the Islamist insurgencies in Iraq, Libya and Syria. In March 2015, Boko Haram pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group, another of the world’s most deadly terror organisations. But there were few signs Boko Haram — now styled as Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) — has so far benefited from the partnership. Nigeria’s army has since then won back swathes of territory from the militants, liberating thousands living under Boko Haram control. An estimated 20,000 people have been killed since Boko Haram began its campaign of violence in 2009 to carve out a hardline Islamic state in northeast Nigeria. More than 2.6 million people have fled their homes since then but some of the internally displaced have begun returning.

EFCC ARRESTS PPMC MD, MRS ESTHER OGBUE-NNAMDI OVER FUEL SCARCITY.

The dragnet of the Economics and Financial Crimes Commission yesterday picked up one of the culprits in the ongoing fuel scarcity scam, Mrs Esther Ogbue-Nnamdi.

Mrs Ogbue Nnamdi was until the recent reforms in the oil industry, the Managing Director of the Petroleum Products Pricing and Marketing Company (PPMC), a subsidiary of the NNPC where it was alleged that she enriched herself and amassed stupendous wealth from sales of IPOs to desperate oil cabal, collection of kick backs through proxies and other underhand dealings to have seen to the ongoing fuel scarcity being experienced by Nigerians.

According to our source who was privy to the ongoing drilling of Mrs Nnamdi, the commission has been trailing over the acquisition of choice properties in the nation’s capital particularly a house at Maitama valued at N1.2 billion built and furnished within 2months after her resumption of office.

Our source confirmed that the EFCC Chairman was said to have collapsed after seeing the property located at off no 4, Amazon Street Maitama that he had exclaimed that Diezani must be a student in this Professor’s school.

It has been identified that Nnamdi and other top oil cabal are desperately fighting hard to stop every reform at the NNPC especially this rare kind that exposes such a monumental fraud without any waste of time.

Every attempt to reach the former PPMC boss for a reaction as failed as the detectives handling her case have switched off her phone, while our source has confirmed that senior members of the cabal are making sure that she returns to her cozy apartment in Maitama to return home tomorrow for bail.

GARRICK BRAIDE

The Story of an Unsung Hero: History and Legacy of Garrick Sokari Braide (1882-1918)
Posted on January 15, 2012 by israelolofinjana
African Church history is rich with stories of renewals across the continent. Garrick Braide is one of the pioneers of revival in Africa. Braide was born ca. 1882 in Obonoma, a small Kalabari pagan village in the Niger Delta (now Bayelsa, Delta and River State in the South of Nigeria). This village was noted as one of the leading places of pagan worship and pilgrimage in Nigeria. His parents were servants of the Ogu cult which was a titular deity of Obonoma. His parents were very poor; therefore Braide did not have the opportunity of being educated.  He later became a Christian and was baptized on January 23rd 1910 at St Andrews Anglican Church in Bakana. Garrick Braide was an Ijaw man by tribe, but he had to learn the Church catechism in Igbo language, as this was the language of instruction in all the Niger-Delta Pastorate. Braide had to learn the Ten Commandments, The Lord’s Prayer and the Creeds in Igbo before he was baptised. After his baptism, he was confirmed by Rev. James Johnson. Around 1912 Braide was beginning to be noted for his enthusiasm and religious exercises. He later felt called by the Lord into ministry and was accepted as a lay preacher in the Anglican Church of the Niger-Delta pastorate.

Braide’s method of teaching and ministry was very different from that of the Mission Churches. While they introduce Christianity through the teaching of the Creeds, The Lord’s Prayer and catechism, Braide adopted a more practical approach and contextualized the Gospel among the Delta people. He taught the people to renounce their gods, destroy their fetishes and to simply believe in the Lord Jesus. This approach is Biblical, as reflected in 1 Thessalonians 1: 9-10. Braide was convinced that the approach of the Mission Churches did not deal with the root problems of the Delta people; namely idol worshipping. He knew that until the Delta people lost faith in their witch doctors, idols and fetishes there could be no true conversion. To this end he organized a crusade against charms, idol worshipping and the use of fetish objects. The following are some of his teachings:

(1)  He emphasized absolute dependence on God and explained sin and suffering as cause and effect. He taught the people to depend on God for physical and spiritual healing. He encouraged his hearers not to seek traditional medicine nor seek the help of medical doctors.

(2)  He also preached that people should abstain from alcoholic beverages and refrain from dealing in magical practices.

(3) Braide demanded a strict observance of Sunday, because in the traditional religion the day of rest was every eighth day, Fenibene, ceremonially observed for the gods. Sunday was the Lord’s Day; therefore no normal activities should take place.

(4) He recommended a liturgy in which the indigenes should praise God in their local songs, prayers and worship. Braide taught Africans how to worship God in an African way. He castigated the missionaries for not taking the world-view of the Africans into consideration in presenting the Gospel. The Mission Churches made Christianity too remote and intellectual to meet the ritualistic needs of the Delta people’s traditional religion.

Braide’s methods of ministry redefined Christianity as a practical religion for the people of the Niger-Delta, and the result was a large number of conversions to the Anglican Church. Braide, using and encouraging the native language of the Ijaw people and not Igbo, made Christianity available to the average person. He reasoned from his own personal experience of learning the Church doctrines in Igbo that it took a long time, making it burdensome to become a Christian. Aided also by his ability to demonstrate the gift of healing through prayer, he was accepted by his people as a Prophet commissioned by God. The effect of Braide’s preaching was evident in the number of those coming to the enquirers’ class (a modern day equivalent of The Alpha Course). At the Anglican Church the number of people enquirering about Christianity ca. 1909 was 300, but by 1912 (when Braide was already involved in evangelistic activities) the number increased to 2,933.  Another influence Braide’s preaching had on the Ijaw people was to convict them to set on fire their fetishes and charms. Like the Biblical Gideon he stopped people from offering sacrifices to the great divinity of Kalabari.  Visitations to witch doctors also dramatically decreased as the people relied on God for healing. Another change that occurred was the fall in the sales of alcohol and beverages. As a result, the British administration faced a deficit of £576,000 in 1916, a loss which was ascribed to Garrick Braide’s movement. Braide moved from one village to another preaching the Gospel and telling the people to renounce their fetishes. His ministry spread from Bonny to Urhoboland, Benin and Yorubaland. Some Anglican ministers who supported Braide’s ministry noticed that the statistical figures of those becoming Christians had risen steeply. The cross of Christ was erected in the place of idols, revival meetings were held with thousands of people attending and people were healed faster at Braide’s meetings than in the care of the traditional or European doctors.

Garrick Braide achieved in three months what the Church Missionary Society (CMS) had not attained in half a century. Bishop James Johnson, the supervisor of the Niger-Delta, believed that Braide was gifted by God, but only as long as Braide acknowledged that he was endowed by God. Braide used his gift to win thousands of converts into the Anglican Church under James Johnson for a period of seven years.  Braide’s ministry was a success in that there was an awakening in Nigeria which had never occurred before. Initially, several Anglican clergy declared their approval of Braides’s evangelistic crusades because of the obvious increase in Church membership which resulted in mass baptisms, especially in the Anglican Churches.

Later the Anglican Church authorities became suspicious and ultimately very critical of Braide’s activities because he did not apply the discipline of the Anglican Church. He was accused of tolerating polygyny and calling himself ‘the second Elijah’ (Elijah redivivus). Braide had inevitably become the object of adoration because he was popular among his people.  It was even reported that people wanted to drink his bathwater in order to be healed. Personality worship, something common in Pentecostal circles today, took the place of true worship as people regarded disobeying Garrick Braide as disobeying God. The final straw came in February 1916, when chiefs from all over the Delta assembled to meet with Bishop James Johnson. The purpose of the gathering was to persuade the Bishop to give Braide an officially recognized place in the Delta Church. The request was tantamount to asking Johnson to institute the office of the Prophet in the Anglican orders. His rejection of this request led to a great schism. From this time on Braide’s followers rejected the leadership of Bishop James Johnson and the Anglican Church. Later on, as the situation deteriorated, James Johnson appealed to the Colonial administration to intervene. This intervention was welcomed by the Colonial Authorities for obvious reasons. Firstly as mentioned earlier the reduction of the sales of alcohol as a result of Braide’s preaching caused a huge deficit for the Colonial government. The Government had largely depended on the sale of alcohol for its revenue, hence their willingness to intervene. A second reason for intervention, was the prophetic movement of William Wade Harris (1865-1929) which was contemporaneous with the Braide movement and which the Colonial administration in Ivory Coast (now Cote d Ivoire) had claimed was associated with political matters. In 1915 the French government in Ivory Coast had thought it expedient to arrest and expel Harris, so the British government thought it wise to follow suit. It must also be reasoned that the Colonial powers felt threatened by a strong local man with a large following.

In March 1916 Braide was finally arrested and accused of insurrection, blasphemy and schism. He was pronounced guilty by the Colonial Authorities and was sentenced to six months imprisonment with hard labour. Shortly before he was to be released in November, eight further charges were brought against Braide and his followers. He remained in prison until January 1918. His activities after release from prison are unknown, and he was said to have survived only eleven months. He died on 15 November 1918 following an illness.

After his death his followers founded the Christ Army Church and flourished under the leadership of Rev S.A. Coker. Braide himself had never intended to start a Church of his own; he had always insisted that his mission was that of a Prophet. The Christ Army Church constituted a rival Church to the Anglican Church in the Niger Delta Pastorate, with Christ Army Church in control of Delta Christianity. However, by 1939 Christ Army Church began to decline as a result of poor funding and weak organizational structures. There was also a split in the Church because of power struggles amongst the leaders. Later, S.A. Coker was able to bring together the various strands in the Church. The Braide Movement continues today with its prophetic distinction, although they are not very prominent. In conclusion, Briade was the first revivalist and Prophet Nigeria ever witnessed to pioneer mass gatherings, which have become typical of African Christianity today. He will be remembered for his contextual approach to ministry which resulted in the Niger-Delta revival.

IJAW IS BIARA - ASARI

Ignorance can be a terrible disease…but is curable if the sufferer is ready to humble himself to learn and accept the cure for his sickness….
Biafra is a Kalabari Ijaw phrase BIA FULO meaning not properly cooked…the Kalabari of Kula named the estuary of Santa Barbara BIA FULO because of the turbulence of the sea at the estuary…The Portuguese like they did to many other names,words and phrases which they could not pronounced properly named the area BIAFRA…Later the coastline from the estuary of River Nun to the coast of Gabon was named the Bight of Biafra.
The doyen of our struggle Isaac Adaka Boro clearly affirmed that Ijaw is BIAFRA in Chapter Six, page fifty-seven of his autobiography ‘Twelve Day Revolution’.
Col. Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu before the declaration of secession convoke an Eastern Nigerian consultative Assembly to decide on the direction and way forward for the Eastern Region after the 1966/1967 pogrom against Easterners in the north…The assembly debated on many names put forward by delegates and chose BIAFRA which was put forward by Frank Opigo an Ijaw…It was another Ijaw Cardinal Rex Jim Lawson who first played the glorious Biafran national anthem during the proclamation of independence on 30th May,1967 at Enugu.

The Igbos are the closest neighbors of the ijaws…with inter-marriages and trade going back several centuries….Some Ijaw City states had Igbo Kings and prominent Igbo Alapu,Military strategies and traders….Even today some Ijaw Kings bear Igbo names….e.g King Kien Ezeolisa Ambrose Allagoa and King Edmund Maduabebe Daukoru both kings of Nembe…King S.P.Uwakwe Ogan and King Alfred Seminitari Abam all of okrika….I am also Alabo EDI ABALI of Kalabari.
What other prove do we need to show strong ties and inseparable relationship with our Igbo brothers and sister….Most importantly is the fact that the name BIAFRA is Ijaw.