Dr. Bello Haliru Mohammed
By SaharaReporters, New York
Sunday, 24 June 2012
Jonathan Sacks Minister Of Defence Bello Haliru
Andrew Owoye Azazi Axed As National Security Adviser
Owoeye Azazi
By SaharaReporters, New York
Mr. Azazi, a retired military officer, has been criticized as an inept adviser on national security. His tenure has witnessed an escalation in deadly bomb attacks by the extremist Islamist sect, Boko Haram.
A source told SaharaReporters that Mr. Jonathan’s decision to fire the NSA was a gesture to many Northern politicians who have accused Mr. Azaziof openly politicizing his office by making statements that disparage the Northern parts of Nigeria.
“Many big-time Northerners, including members of the PDP, complained to President Jonathan when General Aziza blamed in-fighting within the party for the increasing violence in the country,” said the source.
Another source close to President Jonathan refused to confirm the removal of General Aziza, but told SaharaReporters that he was aware that Mr. Jonathan “intends to explore various means of arresting the disturbing state of insecurity in the country.”
One source in the security sector revealed that Sambo Dasuki was the top contender to replace Mr. Azazi.
SaharaReporters rang Mr. Aziza’s telephone number, but was unable to obtain his reaction since his phone was busy.
Jonathan Appoints Retired Col. Sambo Dasuki As New NSA, Sacks Defense Minister
By SaharaReporters, New York
Sources within the Presidency in Abuja told SaharaReporters that the moves come as part of the president’s move to revamp his administration’s response to the growing threat of violence from the extreme Islamist sect, Boko Haram.
Mr. Dasuki had previously overseen the Nigerian mint. A source said he was also one of those who opposed the late Nigerian dictator, Sani Abacha.
Mr. Bello, the fired Defense Minister, has had a controversial profile. A source disclosed that he was involved in the Halliburton bribe scandal.
Our source said Mr. Jonathan would soon forward the name of Mr. Bello’s replacement to the National Assembly.
Bomb Blast Hits Popular Abuja Nightclub
Bright flames from the scene of the blast
By SaharaReporters, New York
Boko Haram Denies Involvement in Kano Mosque Bombing Plot, Says Habibu Bama Died A Martyr
Boko Haram's Shekau and lieutenants
By SaharaReporters, New York
In a statement obtained by SaharaReporters, Boko Haram spokesperson Abul Qaqa described the story as a ruse and mischief by the State Security Service (SSS) which they accused of being behind the plan.
The sect also expressed its delight with the death of one of its commanders, Habibu Bama, whom they described as a martyr who died in the course of fighting for Allah. It repeated its warning to media houses which misrepresent their positions, and re-stated in the statement, which was written in Hausa, that those misleading their positions would have themselves to blame in event of an attack.
Below is the full statement:
“Blessed and thanks be to Almighty Allah and merciful. And to also his Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.). After this we wish to react to what we heard in the media yesterday Friday that some people attempted to plant bomb in one of the Friday mosques in Kano City. This jihad being advance by Jama’atu Ahlissunnah Lidda’awati Wal-Jihad wish to distance itself from this atrocity, and we are aware that it is such mischief being orchestrated and in line with the operations of SSS like their counterparts in other parts of the world; all in the bid of blackmailingMujahedeens. And they will not succeed by the power of Almighty Allah, because everybody knows that we are doing only Jihad towards ensuring adhering to Muslim system. It is because of this that we were being said to be “Islamic Extremists”, and so how can we bomb where Allah is being worshipped? Because of this, it is just mischief of those kicking against the realization of Islamic state, and they will not achieve their sinister plot with the power of Allah on our side.
“We are happy to express our happiness and joy because of the gallantry Almighty Allah granted our brother Habibu Bama, we are hoping Allah accepts this act of martyrdom and his sacrifice to Jihad, dying in the field of war is a pride and most cherished last pride of a real Muslim.
“Again, we are warning the media up to now to brace up, because like they know we are working very hard to avoid face up with them. But up to now some of them did not understand us. Because like we put it as a condition to them, any media outlet that knows they will not report our messages as we put in correct form, it should not disseminate it completely, even from the government side concerning us and even if it is Goodluck Jonathan that talk about us. They shouldn’t make a mistake and report it. And if they make mistake and report it, then whatever that befall them, they should cry with themselves.”
Thursday, 21 June 2012
More suicide bombings coming, task force warns
By
20 hours 25 minutes ago
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Maiduguri residents were told yesterday to prepare for more suicide bombings.
The
Joint Task Force (JTF) - Operation Restore Order (ORO) - in a statement
by its spokesman Lt. Col. Sagir Musa, warned of plans by terrorists to
carry Impovised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in stolen vehicles. It warned
the public to report to the appropriate bodies immediately a vehicle is
stolen.
The
statement reads: “Information recently available to the JTF ORO in
Maiduguri indicated that there have been desperate moves by Boko Haram
terrorists to steal/snatch vehicles to be used for terrorists’
activities by implanting Improvised Explosive Devices in vehicles and or
through suicide bombing.
“The
Task Force wishes to alert members of the public, particularly those
whose vehicles have been stolen, to immediately report such incident to
the nearest police station or to the JTF as such vehicles if used for
terrorism acts would lead to owners of such vehicles being treated as
collaborators and accomplices.”
The
JTF spokesman said the task force’s troops and Department of State
Services personnel have arrested six suspected Boko Haram members
involved in the attack on EYN Church in Biu, Borno State, on June 17.
Some worshippers were killed.
Those arrested are in JTF custody and are being interrogated.
Also
yesterday, Prelate of Methodist Church Nigeria Dr. Sunday Ola Makinde
warned that “if something serious, strategic and meaningful is not done,
we may just be working our way towards another avoidable civil war.
” Speaking in Lagos against the backdrop of the recent coordinated bombings in Kaduna and Zaria, the Prelate said:
“For
how long are we going to remain silent? Here we are begging the issue
while innocent people are dying and their loved ones are yet to get
justice. Is it a crime to be a Christian in any part of Nigeria? Every
time we raise the alarm and call for action, they will say it has no
religious colouration which saddens my heart the more whenever I hear
that.
“Before
Sunday’s bombings, no fewer than 200 people have been killed in 12
separate attacks on churches or places of Christian worship in the North
so far this year and al-Qaeda-linked Islamist terror group Boko Haram
has explicitly claimed that it carried out at least 10 of them. Yet we
are scratching the matter on the surface rather than intensify efforts
and expose those behind these attacks. No fewer than 40 persons were
feared killed on Sunday in Kaduna and Zaria as suicide bombers attacked
three churches.
“And
in all of these bombings and attacks on Christians and Churches, no
person has been arrested or brought to book. Where are we going? Where
is justice? This is what is encouraging this culture of impunity, which
makes it difficult for one to ascertain if the Government has the
political will needed in tackling this menace headlong.
“Considering
all of these, one then begins to worry, if we ever learnt anything from
the first civil war which, for me, was avoidable if the principles of
justice and fairness were upheld.
“I
appeal to all Christians all over the North and other parts of Nigeria
to refrain from reprisal attacks as the battle belongs to GOD. God will
definitely fight for us as he did during the introduction of the
political Sharia in Nigeria.”
Rev.
Makinde added: “ reports monitored today (Wednesday) confirms that this
group, widely known as Boko Haram, has plans to launch further
devastating attacks on Churches and Government buildings in the coming
days and weeks. The sect said it planned to make this month the
bloodiest month yet in its violent and bloody campaigns against those it
tagged infidels.
“The
report says they are planning a focused and bloody attack for which 300
suicide bombers have been recruited, sent to Mauritania and Somalia for
training in handling weapons, bomb making and suicide bombing and they
promise to start with Southern Kaduna and Plateau, two States populated
with Christians, in a bid to avenge the death of Muslims who died in
the reprisal attacks.
“I
call on the Federal Government, to protect the lives of innocent
Nigerians, especially Christians who have been so patient and have
refrained from any form of violence. The constitution to which they
swore expects them to do so and they have a compelling duty to uphold
the Constitution to the letter. Furthermore, nobody is above the law.
Without bringing perpetrators and sponsors of these acts of terrorism to
book, justice cannot be seen to have been done, which is a big threat
to our collective interest as Nigerians in our quest for a united
nation.”
Boko Haram: Oil workers threaten to leave North •As PENGASSAN warns of Nigeria’s break-up •MASSOB calls for evacuation of Igbos from North •CAN spits fire
Written by Our Reporters
Thursday, 21 June 2012
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Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria
(PENGASSAN) warned, on Wednesday, that the attacks on Christian
worshippers by the Boko Haram sect in Kaduna and the reprisals on
innocent Muslims may mark the beginning of violent break-up of Nigeria
as it happened in Yugoslavia.
PENGASSAN declared in a statement entitled: “The road to Yugoslavia,” that the development represents a dangerous descent into anomie, reminiscent of the horrific inter-ethnic and religious war that marked the violent break-up of the former Yugoslavia.
PENGASSAN said it would not hesitate to call out its members, starting from its Kaduna zone, if government continues by its inaction to imperil the lives and limbs of Nigerians, particularly those residing in the northern part of the country.
In the statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade ‘Deji Kolawole, PENGASSAN said: “The attacks on Christian worshippers in Kaduna and Zaria last Sunday, claimed by the terrorist group, Boko Haram and the consequent reprisals on innocent Muslims, represent a dangerous descent into anomie, reminiscent of the horrific inter-ethnic and religious war that marked the violent break-up of the former Yugoslavia.”
But he added: “Nigeria cannot afford to take this road to self-destruction, for when the rich make war, it is the poor that suffer. We, therefore, appeal to Nigerians to exercise great restraint in the face of the constant provocation and violence perpetrated on other innocent Nigerians by terrorists under the hood of religionists whose aim is, obviously, to precipitate an ethnic cum religious war in the country. We must note that an eye for an eye would only make us all blind.”
The statement read: “The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) expresses grave concern on the deteriorating security situation in the country resulting in the loss of innocent lives and which has led, lately, to the declaration of a 24-hour curfew in two states — Kaduna and Yobe — with the attendant impact on the socio-economic lives of the citizens of those states and other neighbouring states.
“We further call on the Federal Government of Nigeria, which has all the coercive powers of state to wake up to its primary responsibility, i.e. the security and welfare of the people as enunciated in section 14 of the 1999 Constitution.
“We and indeed all Nigerians are tired of the president’s usual swan song of expressing heartfelt condolences, condemning the dastardly act and promising to bring perpetrators to book whenever attacks like these happen.”
Igbos must leave North —Uwazuruike
The leader of the Movement for the Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), Chief Ralph Uwazuruike and prominent Igbo leaders have insisted that Igbos should evacuate the troubled North.
Uwazuruike, who is also the new Ezeigbo, noted that the renewed call for the evacuation of Ndigbo from the zone was premised on the growing insecurity, with Igbo Christians taking the highest casualty.
Speaking with newsmen by telephone, the MASSOB leader noted that the recent bombing of churches by the Boko Haram sect had exposed the inability of the security forces to tackle the current security challenges and guarantee the security of lives and properties of Nigerians.
Uwazurike, who chided the Joint Task Force (JTF) for withdrawing security from churches in Kaduna when they had intelligence report about an imminent attack, called on Igbos to abandon their businesses in the North and come back home until normalcy returned.
Debunking rumours of possible reprisals in the South-East, Uwazuruike maintained that MASSOB, as a non-violent organisa-tion, upheld the sanctity of life and would not engage in senseless killings and destructions that had become the hallmark of Boko Haram.
Also speaking, Chief Rommy Ezeonwuka, the Ogirishi Igbo, noted that the current crisis in the North was fast degenerating into a religious war that had defied military solution, stressing that security operatives could no longer guarantee the safety of Igbos in the North.
In a related development, Igbos living in Kano have expressed readiness to leave the troubled city, in compliance with the directive of the Igbo leaders, lamenting that they had been living in fear since the breakout of the Boko Haram insurgency.
Speaking with Nigerian Tribune, the president-general of Ndigbo living in Kano, Chief Leonard Nwosu, said despite the efforts of security operatives to restore peace and security, Igbos still lived in fear.
Boko Haram has declared war on Christians —CAN
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has reacted to Sunday’s attacks on three churches in Kaduna State, saying they were an indication that Boko Haram has declared war on Christians and Christianity in the country.
This is just as CAN in the North-Central declared that Boko Haram insurgence in the northern part had destroyed virtually all the good things the region was known for.
The CAN, in an advertisement placed on Wed-nesday and signed by Kenny Ashaka, special assistant, media and public affairs to its president, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, said the latest attacks in Kaduna and Yobe states suggested “a systematic religious cleansing which reminds Christians of the genesis of the jihad.”
While calling on President Goodluck Jonathan to act fast before the crisis got out of hand, CAN also called on the American government to quickly designate the Boko Haram sect as terrorist organisation.
Chairman, North-Central CAN, Reverend Yakubu Pam, while speaking with Nigerian Tribune, expressed disappointment over the level of destruction of both properties and human lives occasioned by the menace of the Boko Haram in recent times.
Pope wants end to terrorism in Nigeria
Pope Benedict SVI, in a statement released by the Vatican Information Service, has called for an end to the terror attacks against Christians in the country.
The pope appealed for an immediate end to the killing of many innocent people, while he also appealed to Nigerians to work together to end the violence.
JTF alerts to suicide bombing plan in Borno
The JTF in Borno State has alerted the people top the alleged plan by the Boko Haram to use stolen vehicles for suicide bomb attacks in the state.
Spokesman of the task force, Lieutenant-Colonel Sagir Musa, said members of the sect were on desperate moves to snatch vehicles to perpetrate bomb attacks.
He also said the JTF troops and personnel of the Department of State Services arrested six suspected Boko Haram men believed to be involved in the attack on EYN Church in Biu, on Sunday.
Bauchi suicide bomber died while receiving treatment —Police
The Bauchi State police command, on Wednesday, said a young man, suspected to be a suicide bomber, who was blown up on Tuesday when an improvised explosive device he was carrying exploded in Bauchi, had died while receiving treatment.
A release signed by the state PPRO, Idris Abuba-kar, said before his death, he confessed to being a member of the sect, adding that one revolver pistol and five rounds of ammunition were recovered from him.
We’ll bring perpetrators to book —Petinrin, Abubakar
The Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshal Oluseyi Petinrin and the acting Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, in Kaduna, on Wednesday, said those hiding under religion to forment trouble would be brought to book.
The duo, after a closed door meeting with Governor Patrick Yakowa, assured residents and the government that security agencies would collaborate to ensure that normalcy returned to the state immediately.
However, calm is gradually returning to Kaduna after three days of tension, just as major streets within the metropolis have been deserted by residents who have been forced to remain indoors because of the 24-hour curfew imposed on them by the state government.
Fresh crisis erupts at Kiyama
Fresh crisis erupted at Kiyama, near Kaduna, on Wednesday, where allegedly armed Christian youths killed some Muslims in the area.
The crisis began where the youth allegedly tore the hijab of a Muslim lady in the Christian-dominated area.
The state PPRO, Aminu Lawan, said the situation was, however, under control.
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