Hot News Naija: 2016

Saturday, 31 December 2016

PRESIDENT BUHARI CONGRATULATES ENYI OF ABA, EZE IKONNE ON 88th BIRTHDAY

President Muhammadu Buhari felicitates with His Royal Highness, Dr. Isaac A. Ikonne, Enyi 1 of Aba, as he turns 88 years on January 1, 2017.

The President joins the government and people of Abia State, the Abia State Traditional Council and Ohaneze Ndigbo in celebrating the octogenarian, whose 42 years reign has witnessed tremendous improvement in community relations, peace and prosperity of his domain, Aba.

As one of the oldest traditional rulers in the South East and the first to receive staff of office in the old Imo State, President Buhari extols the sterling leadership qualities of the royal father, which had over the years earned him the position of the Chairman of Ohaneze Ndigbo Traditional Rulers, and other numerous recognitions and awards.

The Kwara State Governor, Dr. Abdulfatah Ahmed wishes all citizens of the State a joyous and prosperous new year.

The Governor prays for fulfilled hopes and expectations with greater accomplishments in the new year.

Dr Ahmed also solicits prayers for continued peace in the State and the country as a whole. He urges the people to join him in rededicating themselves to achieving collective aspirations for a better Kwara State and restates his commitment to elevating the state and it's people.

The President of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki, has said that things would get better for Nigerians in 2017.

A statement by Mr Yusufh Olaniyonu, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Senate President in Abuja on Saturday, urged Nigerians to remain hopeful in spite of the current hardship.

Saraki commended Nigerians for their resilience in the face of difficulties, stressing that the nation’s challenges were surmountable.

He called for collective efforts to end recession and work towards growing the economy in the New Year, adding that there was need for unity of purpose and focus among Nigerians.

In the discharge of his mandate as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) mediator for The Gambia, President Muhammadu Buhari has activated the process for the execution of his task .

One of the outcomes of the just-concluded ECOWAS Summit held on December 17, 2016 in Abuja was the decision to designate President Muhammadu Buhari as the Mediator for The Gambia with Mr. John Mahama, the out- going President of Ghana as Co-Mediator.

The Summit also gave the terms of reference to include ensuring the safety of the President-Elect, Adama Barrow, the political leaders and the entire population; upholding the result of the Presidential election held on December 1, 2016 and ensuring that the President-elect is sworn into office on January 19, 2017, in conformity with the constitution of the country.

My dear Compatriots,

I am happy to welcome you to the beginning of a New Year in our beloved country Nigeria.

I felicitate with you today at a time when our nation is witnessing a new and impressive turnaround in our security and socio-economic situation.

I know you will join me to, once again, congratulate the heroic and gallant efforts of our military and other security agencies on their remarkable successes to rid the nation of terrorism.

Following the successful capture of Sambisa Forest, spearheaded by troops of Operation Lafiya Dole, we have entered a new phase in our battle against our common enemy, Boko Haram.

Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) says the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation is withholding from the federal government, a sum of $15.8 billion belonging to the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas.

In an audit report for 2014, NEITI said NLNG paid $1.42 billion to NNPC as dividends, loan and interest repayments for 2014 but the amount could not be traced to the federation account.

According to the report, Nigeria earned $55.5 billion from the oil and gas sector and N55.82 billion from the solid minerals sector in 2014.

READ Statement below..

NEITI: Nigeria Earned $55.5 billion from Oil and Gas Sector in 2014

The acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ibrahim Magu has told persons displaced by the insurgency in the North East not to be demoralized by their present predicament but to remain strong, adding that there will soon be an end to their travail.

He gave the assurance Saturday, December 31, 2016 during a visit to two internally displaced persons’ camps in Abuja. “I am aware that most of you never expected that you will find yourselves in this predicament.

There are things we as human beings cannot change. But whatever situation we find ourselves, we can make the most of it. That is the reason I am here today to tell you that I feel your pains and to celebrate this special season with you”, Magu said.

Criminality which has been the order of the day in the Niger Delta has reached the point of no return. A reliable source tells me recently that the underdevelopment we see in Niger Delta today is self inflicted. I was told that major oil companies had in the past mapped out projects to be executed by themselves in the region that worth billions but the leaders preferred to be given just a part of it which they shared among themselves.

This has been the way of the Niger Delta indigenes since the 80s. No wonder the region has remained a war zone and the haven for bandits, gangs, kidnappers, cultists, vandals, assassins, hired killers etc. Criminality has become a culture and tradition in the Niger Delta.

New Year message from Malam Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, Governor of Kaduna State

'We must uphold hope and a common humanity'

I felicitate with the people of Kaduna State as we welcome a new year. We invoke the blessings of the Almighty on all our people, that harmony will prevail in our land and that the apostles of violence and division will be shamed. We have high hopes for 2017; that it will be a year of peace and growth for our state, and our country, Nigeria.

Malam Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, Governor of Kaduna State

For us in Kaduna State, 2016 was a year of attainments and challenges. We made tangible progress in implementing our governance agenda. Much has been done, but much more remains to accomplish. Through it all, we have confronted our difficulties with the same decisiveness that has produced results across sectors. We have imposed discipline on the finances of our state, increased IGR and ensured that we pass our budget well before a new calendar year.

We demonstrated our credentials as a state that is open for business. The quality of attendance and participation at the Kaduna Economic and Investment Summit (KADInvest), held in April 2016, testified that the private sector recognises our commitment to promoting investments and job-creation. The Olam and Vicampro investments in the agricultural sector are some of the concrete outcomes of this investment drive.

PHOTO NEWS: President Muhammadu Buhari receiving the flag of the defeated Boko Haram sect from the chief of army staff, Lt-Gen Tukur Yusuf Buratai

President Muhammadu Buhari receiving Captured Boko Haram terrorist flag from Camp Zairo in Sambisa Forest by the Nigerian Army from Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai while attending Guards Brigade Regimental Dinner Night at the Guards Brigade Scorpion Mess Abuja on 30th Dec 2016

Payment of N-Power Volunteer Corps stipends has commenced

All successfully verified beneficiaries who have provided bank accounts are being processed for payment.

Some beneficiaries have received their first stipends today. The process will continue and some will receive their stipends after the public holiday, starting from Tuesday, 3rd of January, 2017.

N-Power Volunteer Corps members are encouraged to take their virtual training on the NPVN platform seriously over this period. States who are yet to conclude the physical verification process are encouraged to do so

Abia House of Assembly Complex

Umuahia - The ninth Speaker of Abia House of Assembly, Chief Kennedy Njoku, has resigned his appointment, less than 24 hours after he was elected.

Njoku was elected at about 4.10 p.m. on Thursday following the impeachment of Chief Martins Azubuike over alleged gross financial misconduct and autocratic leadership style.

Njoku, who announced his resignation at the resumption of plenary at about 2.50 pm on Friday, thanked members for the confidence they reposed in him by electing him as Speaker.

After brokering a ceasefire agreement between the Syrian government and opposition rebel groups, Russia bolstered Turkish military operations in the fight against Daesh, with three airstrikes around al-Bab.

Euphrates Shield, a Turkish operation to defend its border from terrorists, received a notable boost from Moscow. Turkish military officials announced that Russian fighter jets eliminated 12 Daesh militants in airstrikes.

The Turkish army and the Free Syrian Army (FSA) are tightening their grip on the Daesh-held city, FSA division commander Taha Atraç told Sputnik Turkey of the progress in the region. The Syrian commander expects al-Bab to be liberated "within the next few days."

Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin

The ceasefire in Syria that entered in force on Friday has been kept according to initial reports, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin told reporters.

On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that the Syrian government and armed opposition groups reached an agreement on a ceasefire on Syrian territory, taking effect at 00:00 on Friday. Russia and Turkey took the role of the ceasefire guarantors, but other countries may also be invited, according to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

"The initial indications ceasefire is holding adequately," Churkin said on Friday.

German government has officially admitted that it has no solid evidence that Russia is planning to interfere into the Germany’s upcoming federal parliamentary elections in 2017 as it answered a request from an MP amid ongoing anti-Russian hysteria.

All accusations against Russia concerning its potential meddling with the German parliamentary elections, which are due to be held in September 2017, are just “assumptions” based on the claims of the US politicians that Russian hackers interfered into the US elections via DNC email hacks.

president-elect Donald Trump

Adding more embarrassment to President Barack Obama's final weeks in office, president-elect Donald Trump is now praising Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision to hold off on retaliation over the new sanctions.

Trump also asserted on Twitter that he "always knew" that the Russian president is "very smart." The tweet was then pinned to the top of his Twitter timeline, and retweeted by the US Russian embassy. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 30, 2016

The lack of conflict between the two leaders has already shocked many in the US, as both parties seem eager to work towards a better relationship.

On Thursday, the US sanctioned six Russian individuals, including the head of Russia's Main Intelligence Directorate, as well as five entities.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has responded to the outgoing US administration’s efforts to provoke conflict through new sanctions in what some are calling the “most embarrassing” way possible for US President Barack Obama.

On Friday, the Kremlin responded to US sanctions imposed on Thursday by declaring that they “will not resort to irresponsible ‘kitchen diplomacy,’” and reiterated their hopes to work toward a better relationship with the US when President-elect Donald Trump takes office.

“While we reserve the right to take reciprocal measures, we’re not going to downgrade ourselves to the level of irresponsible ‘kitchen’ diplomacy,” Putin announced. “In our future steps on the way toward the restoration of Russia-United States relations, we will proceed from the policy pursued by the administration of D. Trump.”

We are now in the Laodicean age, Laodicean age means blind generations. In this age, Jesus is outside the CHURCH, leaving the CHURCH to be doing whatever they like.

Nigerian Christian leaders made 3.6trillions of naira yearly through Jesus Christ name, yet, Christian are still suffering everywhere with a false hope that, It will be well one day while Nigerian Christian Leaders are enjoying and Gbaladun........

Nigerian Christian leaders are collectors, the only languages and teaching they understood is..... bring money, bring money, sow seeds, do not rob God. Malachi! Malachi!! Malachi!!!

General Saul Badjie

Outgoing Gambian dictator Yahya Jammeh is fuming with anger! His trusted aides in the army have started deserting him before the scheduled date for President elect Adama Barrow’s inauguration.

The desertion is being communicated to him in the form of a briefing. The army will not defend him in the event of an attack. They are not ready to put up any fight if Jammeh comes under attack. Last week, a source contacted us and unveiled an interesting intelligence about General Musa Savage, the Kanilai garrison camp commander.

Musa Savage was quoted as saying that he will not pledge his allegiance and loyalty to Yahya Jammeh after his five years mandate expires on January, 19th.

He said he will shift his allegiance to President elect Barrow and his incoming administration.

PRESS RELEASE: NNPC Wins Nigeria’s Best Parastatal Website, Social Media Awards

…Victory Sign of NNPC’s Investment in ITC, Commitment to Openness, Accountability – Baru

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has emerged winner of the 2016 Phillips Consulting/WebJurists award for best website and overall social media use among federal parastatals in Nigeria.

The honour was jointly awarded by Web Jurists, a website rating outfit in conjunction with Phillips Consulting, a renowned business and management consulting company.

Reacting to the honour, NNPC Group Managing Director, Dr. Maikanti Baru, said it was a testimony to the Corporation’s investment in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) over the years, adding that it also testifies to NNPC’s commitment to openness, transparency and accountability in its business dealings in recent times.

PHOTONEWS: President Buhari Signs the last bill for 2016

President Muhammadu Buhari Signs the last bill for 2016 making it the 17th Bill Signed Into law in the year. DECEMBER 30,2016.

For easy access to your FreeTV Digital signals, follow these short steps:

1. Connect your Set-Top-Box to your Television

2. Connect your local antenna TV cable to the back of your Set-Top-Box

3. Connect your Set-Top-Box to power supply and turn it on

4. Press the Ok button “START” to confirm that your Set-Top-Box is an official GoINGdigital product

Osun State police command on Friday arrested seventy-two-year old Idris Ajao for being in possession of human skull. He was nabbed at Iwo, but blamed his action on the devil claiming that his action was a big mistake.
The suspect claimed to be a bricklayer, but said Tajudeen Jawesola a herbalist had assigned him to exhume skulls from graves in the cemetery in return for N10,000. Nemesis however caught up with him when policemen deployed around the cemetery acting on tipoff caught him red handed with a skull.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Fimihan Adeoye said police detectives got the hint about the atrocities of Ajao and trailed him until he was caught with the skull.

Speaking with newsmen, Ajao said: “It was Jawesola that asked me to get the human skull for him.

BREAKING: A Syrian cease-fire backed by Russia and Turkey took effect at midnight Thursday

The promise for peace in Syria has been revived, after a nationwide ceasefire officially took effect on Friday at midnight, local time.

A major agreement between the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad and armed opposition groups was reached on Thursday and supported by Russia, Iran and Turkey as guarantors of the peace process. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the news after emerging as a key peace broker.

President Barack Obama said his administration will provide lawmakers a detailed analysis regarding allegations of Russian "efforts to interfere in our election" in addition to accusations of "malicious cyberactivity."
Congress is not currently in session and lawmakers will not return to Washington DC until after January 1, but it is expected that legislators will receive the report in a matter of days.

Obama previously ordered White House teams to prepare a report on allegations of Russian interference with US elections before his term concludes on January 20.

Russia says it will respond to any "hostile steps" that the US may take, amid allegations of 2016 election hacking

Spokesman Peskov says President Putin intends to formulate Russia’s response

Russian President Vladimir Putin

MOSCOW—The Kremlin slammed new U.S. sanctions against Russia as “a display of the unpredictability and…aggressive foreign policy” of the Obama administration and promised to respond by causing “considerable discomfort in the same areas,” Interfax news agency reported.

Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the White House had two aims: “To ruin once and for all Russian-American relations, which were already at rock bottom and, apparently, to strike a blow against the foreign-policy plans of the future administration and the new U.S. president.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a ceasefire between Syrian opposition groups and the Syrian government starting at midnight on Thursday.

The parties were also prepared to start peace talks, Putin said, after Moscow, Iran and Turkey expressed readiness to broker a deal to settle the nearly six-year-old Syrian war.

The Syrian army announced a nationwide halt to fighting but said Islamic State and ex-Nusra Front militants and all groups linked to them would be excluded from the deal. It did not say which unnamed groups would be excluded.

The tennis superstar Serena Williams is engaged to Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian.

Fittingly, Ohanian announced the couple's engagement on Reddit

In her post on Reddit, Williams described the situation that led up to Ohanian's proposal:

President Muhammadu Buhari was scheduled to pay a visit to Bauchi State today. Part of the activities lined up was the opening of the Nigerian Air Force Base, the commissioning of the 60 bed standard Air Force hospital, and other projects.

The President however postponed the visit this morning on the inability for aircrafts to take off from Abuja airport. It is reported that as at this morning, visibility was below 300m due to the harmattan haze.

Speaking to the press, Gov. Abubakar said the visit will be rescheduled. He told Bauchi indigenes that the weather condition have restricted air transportation in the country’s capital. He thanked the great people of Bauchi for turning out en masse to welcome Mr. President stating that the visit will become a reality soonest.

The United States expelled 35 Russian diplomats and closed two Russian compounds in New York and Maryland in response to a campaign of harassment against American diplomats in Moscow, a senior U.S. official said on Thursday.
The move against the diplomats from the Russian embassy in Washington and consulate in San Francisco is part of a series of actions announced on Thursday to punish Russia for a campaign of intimidation of American diplomats in Moscow and interference in the U.S. election.

Southern Kaduna Genocide: Catholic Church Speaks Up

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF KAFANCHAN, KADUNA STATE, NORTH WEST, NIGERIA.

PREAMBLE

We, the Clergy, Religious and Laity of the Catholic Diocese of Kafanchan, welcome you to the Cathedral of St Peter Clavers. We are here to present to the world, the pains, agony and sorrows that have befallen us in this part of the State, the Southern Senatorial Zone of Kaduna State. Unfortunately, this crisis of tremendous proportion is happening at the time when, our Chief Shepherd, Most Rev Joseph Bagobiri is far away, outside the shores of this country attending to his health. This is the time when Southern Kaduna looks up to him for leadership. But he is not here. God knows why. The entire Presbyterium, Religious, the Laity and indeed the entire Southern Kaduna indigenes are united in prayers for him. May God heal him speedily and bring him back to the Diocese soonest.

Press Release: Full Laboratory Report on Quality of Suspected Plastic Rice Consignment

JOINT PRESS BRIEFING BY THE AG.DIRECTOR GENERAL, NATIONAL AGENCY FOR FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION AND CONTROL (NAFDAC) MRS. YETUNDE ONI AND THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL, NIGERIA CUSTOMS SERVICE, COL. HAMEED ALI (RTD) ON THE QUALITY OF THE SUSPECTED FAKE RICE CONSIGNMENT SEIZED BY NIGERIA CUSTOMS SERVICE AT NAFDAC CORPORATE HEADQUATERS ABUJA ON 29TH DECEMBER, 2016

PROTOCOL

It gives me great pleasure to address you today, 29th December, 2016 on the quality of the suspected fake rice seized by the men of Nigeria Customs Service. The rumour was that plastic rice was in circulation and a consignment had been seized by Customs.

Following the report of the seizure of the "suspected fake rice", by men of Nigeria Customs Service, the Agency swung into action by sending team of inspectors to the office of the Customs Area Comptroller, Federal Operations Ikeja, Lagos to draw samples from the seized consignment for Laboratory analysis.

Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State
presenting 2017 budget to the OSHA

Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State on Thursday presented a total budget of N207.671 billion for the 2017 fiscal year to the State House of Assembly, which represents an increase of 19.13 per cent compared to the 2016 budget.

The governor, while presenting the budget titled “Budget of Self Reliance”, explained that the recurrent expenditure will cost N126.87 billion which is 61.09 per cent of the budget while the capital expenditure will take N80.80 billion or 38.91%.

Governor Ajimobi stated that Personnel Cost, made up of Salaries, Allowances and Promotion Arrears stands at N56.04 Billion or 26.99 per cent while overhead cost accounts for N20.04Billion which is 9.75%, adding that N50.79bn or 24.45 is meant for the Consolidate Revenue Fund Charges to sum up the total Recurrent Expenditure of N126.87 billion.

The attention of the Nigerian Army is drawn to a video clip released by Boko Haram Terrorist group from an undisclosed location a while ago, showing its purported leader, making spurious claims.

While effort is on going to subject the video for further forensic analysis, the Nigerian Army wishes to reiterate that it has captured and occupied the last known stronghold of the terrorists group in the Sambisa forest.

We would like to reassure the public that this video is nothing but mere terrorists propaganda aimed at creating fear in the mind of people and to remain relevant.

BUDGET OF RENEWED COMMITMENT: 2017 BUDGET SPEECH OF GOVERNOR OF OYO STATE, SENATOR ABIOLA AJIMOBI

2017 BUDGET SPEECH OF HIS EXCELLENCY, THE EXECUTIVE GOVERNOR OF OYO STATE, SENATOR ABIOLA AJIMOBI, DELIVERED AT THE OYO STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY ON THURSDAY 29TH DECEMBER, 2016.

Abiola Ajimobi

It is with a deep sense of appreciation to the Almighty that I stand again before the Honourable members of the Oyo State House of Assembly, this 29th day of December 2016, to present the Oyo State 2017 budget proposals for consideration and passage.
Similarly, I heartily express my profound appreciation to the leadership and members of the Legislature for their unflinching support and cordial relationship with the Executive arm of government towards the realization of the repositioning agenda of our administration. My expectation and hope is that this will not only continue but wax stronger in our collective responsibility to propel Oyo State into an enviable position among the comity of states in Nigeria.

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said the Federal Government is working with the private sector to make major festivals in the country attractive to domestic and foreign tourists and to leapfrog the events to the top cadre of global festivals.

He made the disclosure in Offa, Kwara State, on Thursday at the 2016 edition of the ''Íjakadi Festival'', a traditional wrestling event that dates back to the 14th century.

The Minister, who was represented by Mr. Raphael Arulogun, General Manager of NTA Ilorin, said the starting point is to train the managers of the festivals, which include the Ijakadi Festival

The Police in Taraba state have confirmed the death of one person in an attack on the convoy of Alhaji Adamu Mohammed, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ibi Local Government Area of the state.

The command’s Public Relations Officer, David Misal said in an interview with newsmen in Jalingo on Thursday that the incident occurred at about 6 p.m. on Wednesday at Mala village. He added that three persons, critically injured in the attack, were on admission at the Federal Medical Centre, Jalingo.

The police spokesman gave the names of those injured as Abubakar Zaidu, 26, Ibrahim Abdulkadir 26, and Sahabi Manaja, 34. He explained that Adamu, a former local council chairman, was earlier assaulted by some youths when he visited Dampar ward to fraternise with APC supporters over Christmas.

Syria: Russian Defense Ministry Unveils List of Militant Groups Joining Ceasefire

The Russian Defense Ministry unveiled a list of armed opposition groups that includes Ahrar al-Sham, Jaish al-Islam, Jaish al-Mujahideen, Faylak al-Sham, Suvar al-Sham, Jaish Idlib and Jabhat al-Shamiya that had agreed to join a nationwide ceasefire in Syria.

Syria

The Russian Defense Ministry disclosed on Thursday a list of armed opposition groups that had agreed to join a nationwide ceasefire in Syria.

Earlier on Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that the Syrian government and armed opposition groups had reached an agreement on a nationwide ceasefire in Syria and on readiness to start peace talks.

According to the ministry, seven groups that will join the Syrian ceasefire on December 30 comprise Ahrar al-Sham, Jaish al-Islam, Jaish al-Mujahideen, Faylak al-Sham, Suvar al-Sham, Jaish Idlib, and Jabhat al-Shamiya armed opposition groups.

President Muhammadu Buhari’s visit to Bauchi scheduled to take place December 29 has been postponed arising from the prevailing weather conditions in the country.

Uncooperative weather which has been the bane of air travel in the current harmattan season, leading to the delay and cancellation of flights, reared its head in Abuja Airport this morning, preventing the take-off of the President’s plane for the trip to Bauchi.

Technical information received from the weather station showed that visibility as at this morning was 600 meters, 200 metres short of the 800 metres minimally required for a safe aircraft take-off.

According to the information available, the visibility was expected to drop to 300 metres before improving to permissible limit later in the day.

Nigeria Must Think!

In organized crime, most of what you see on the surface are "blinds" or facade. The drummer for the pondskater is down in the deep of the lake.

Our mental laziness has prevented us from being introspective and questioning. When people are killed, some bureaucrats and political jobbers will be appointed into committees where they drink tea, eat heavy lunch, broach the subject, recommend platitudes and a white paper is issued. Of course no one will read it and it was never meant to be implemented because the no go" areas has been specified before hand.

President Muhammadu Buhari
and
Prime Minister of Guinea Bissau,
Umar El-Mukhtar Sissoco-Embola

President Muhammadu Buhari Wednesday assured that as the Chairman of ECOWAS Contact Group on Guinea Bissau, he will do his best to ensure that the country did not relapse into crisis.

Receiving the Prime Minister of Guinea Bissau, Umar El-Mukhtar Sissoco-Embola, at the State House, the President expressed satisfaction on the gradual return of normalcy to the West African country.

Assuring the visiting Prime Minister of Nigeria’s continued support to political stability in Guinea Bissau, President Buhari urged the leaders to work hard to reach a lasting solution to the political crisis in the country.

Boko Haram’s elusive leader Abubakar Shekau appeared in a new video on Thursday disputing a claim by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari that the Terrorist group had been routed from its Sambisa Forest stronghold.

“We are safe. We have not been flushed out of anywhere. And tactics and strategies cannot reveal our location except if Allah wills by his decree,” Shekau said in the 25-minute video, flanked by armed fighters.

Wednesday, 28 December 2016

Aregbesola grants amnesty to 4 death-row inmates

Gov. Rauf Aregbesola of Osun on Wednesday granted amnesty to four death-row prison inmates in three South West prisons.

The Director of Public Prosecutions and Secretary to the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy, Mr Pomade Adeniji, announced the amnesty in a statement in Osogbo.

The statement said the governor’s gesture was in commemoration of the New Year celebrations.

“Pursuant to the advice and recommendations of the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy, Gov. Rauf Aregbesola, in exercise of his powers, has granted amnesty to the prison inmates,’’ the statement said.

Hello highly beloved new media citizens, fellow Kwarans and Darling Nigerian Compatriots. We hope your preparation towards New Year season has reached an advanced stage. Inspite of the shortage of money, occasioned by the man made recession, brain child by our Leaders, we still have reasons to be thankful to God, the giver of life and strength.

It is popularly believed that "when there is life, there is hope". God in His divine mercies will give us hope and bright future in His Mighty Name. Amen. It became absolutely necessary that we once again write this piece. We scripted it not because we enjoy criticising our leaders, but because via exposing their foolishness, visionless and lack of foresight, they may take specific actions to address some of the issues we have raised!

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.9 hit eastern Japan on Wednesday, but no tsunami warning was issued, public broadcaster NHK said.

There were no immediate reports of damages or injuries.

The Japanese Meteorological Agency (JMA) earlier put the magnitude at 6.3 and reports the quake had a depth of 10km.

Reuters reports that no tsunami warning has been issued as a result of the quake.

NO TSUNAMI WARNING ISSUED AFTER #JAPAN EARTHQUAKE
— TR_Foundation News (@AlertNet) December 28, 2016

President Muhammadu Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari expresses heartfelt condolences to the government and people of Delta State on the death of Chief Francis Okpozo, a Second Republic senator and member of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The President also commiserates with the family and friends of the late distinguished senator, whose championing of social justice in the Niger Delta, during his long history of service to the people, endeared him to many.

As a stalwart of the APC in the South-South, President Buhari believes that the party greatly benefited from the octogenarian's charismatic leadership and wealth of experience as a politician.

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The Nigerian Troops overpowered the Boko Haram insurgents and destroyed their logistics in the dreaded sambisa forest in Borno state says the commander of the Opration Lafiya Dole Theatre Centre in Maiduguri!

It was a combined opreations of both the ground and air troops of Nigerian Soldiers and Airforce.

The Teathre Commander, Maj. Gen Iraebor authritatevely confirmed that theNigerian Troops have won the war against against the Boko Haram.

According to him: " We have won the war only that we need to win the peace to the region"

Many items and weapons of the Islamist Terrorists including the one Holy Quran was recovered from Camp Zairo which is regarded as the last stronghood of the Boko Baram in Borno state.

More than 40 foreigners have been arrested in the last one week, following the fall of the dreaded Sambisa Forest, The Nation reports.

The profiling of the foreigners has started to determine whether or not they were working in cahoot with Boko Haram insurgents, who are fleeing their former stronghold.

The military has blocked all known entry and exit points to Sambisa Forest to hem in the remnants of the insurgents.

According to a military source, the identities of the foreigners and their missions in Sambisa Forest will not be revealed untill after a thorough screening has been completed.

Intelligence officers are profiling the foreigners, who are suspected to be providing “back-up” for Boko Haram.

Russia-Turkey framework agreement on Syria proposes end of hostilities in the country starting at midnight local time on december 29.

Moreover the two countries agreed that the deal should be submitted for considiration by Damascus, Turkish news agency reports.

Turkey and Russia have agreed on the outlines of a nationwide ceasefire plan in Syria for Damascus to consider, Turkish media reported Wednesday.

The general ceasefire proposal is planned to be presented to the Syrian government for consideration, according to Turkey's Anadolu news service.

BREAKING: Divers have also recovered 15 bodies and 239 body parts from the crash site, says Ministry of Defence (Russia) #Tu154

Rescuers Find 311 More Pieces of Tu-154 Plane Wreckage, Total Exceeds 1,500

The Divers have recovered the main Tu-154 Flight Data Recorder Found, to Be Decoded in Moscow - Russian Defense Ministry.

"The Falcon small-class compact remote-operated vehicle found the main flight data recorder 1,600 meters [0.99 miles] from the shore at a depth of 17 meters [55.7 feet] at 5:42 a.m. [02:42 GMT]," the ministry said.

Commenting on the success of the Syrian army and complete liberation of Syria's second-largest city, Aleppo, Kurdish political official Rezan Hiddo explained to Sputnik why it came as a serious defeat to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey, while Professor Tim Anderson explained why it is the most serious setback for the US in 15 years.

"The liberation of Syria's major strategic center, Aleppo, from the armed opposition has changed the course of the Syrian war, propelled strengthening of the Syrian army and increased its morale," Kurdish political official, member of the Syrian Democratic Council Rezan Hiddo told Sputnik Turkiye. However it came as a serious defeat to those countries which have been supporting the rebel groups operating on the Syrian territory, he added.

"I mean Saudi Arabia, Qatar and particularly Turkey," he specified.

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