Sultan Of Sokoto Calls For Violence-Free Elections

The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, has said that God has already destined who will become the winner of the upcoming presidential elections in the country.

Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III

According to This Day, the monarch expressed his opinion on Friday, March 20, 2015, while receiving the director general of the National Youth Service Scheme, Johnson Olawumi, in his palace in Sokoto.

In the statement the Sultan called on security agents in the country to take necessary measures in order to secure the lives of corps members during the elections.

“God gives power to whoever He wishes and had already ordained who will become president of Nigeria but as mortals we don’t know.

“So, we don’t want to see our corps members fall victims of electoral violence because of desperation by politicians to win at all cost”, he said.

READ ALSO: Why Emirs Supported The Use Of Card Readers

The monarch voiced the support of the Sultanate Council to security agents and expressed optimism that the election would be peaceful. He disclosed that district heads in the state had been warned to protect any corps members serving in their domain, stressing that this initiative should be replicated all over the country.

The Sultan took the opportunity to urge the corps members serving in the state to be neutral and nonpartisan during the elections.

Olawumi in his turn told the monarch that he was in Sokoto on an advocacy visit aiming to sensitise corps members on the need to maintain neutrality and avoid financial inducement from politicians ahead of the general elections.

A week ago the Northern Traditional Rulers Council expressed confidence in the ability of Prof Attahiru Jega, the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, to lead the electoral body by conducting free, fair and transparent elections.

The northern rulers council said it would endorse neither Goodluck Jonathan, the PDP presidential candidate, nor his the All Progressives Congress opponent, Muhammadu Buhari, for president.

READ MORE: http://www.naij.com/406613-sultan-of-sokoto-calls-for-violence-free-elections.html

Help Us Organise Nigeria Again - Igbo Groups Tell GMB

Igbo groups in northern Nigeria have endorsed the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd).

The group under the umbrella name, “Igbo Delegates Assembly In Northern Nigeria”  spoke through its president general, Sam Demian Enyama. He described Buhari as a man of impeccable character and urged south easterners to eschew religious and ethnic sentiments and vote for Buhari in the forthcoming  presidential election.

READ ALSO: ELECTIONS 2015: Why These People Will Sell Their Votes

Also speaking, Eze’udo Igbo of the 19 northern states, Uche Egenti, said that, as Igbos who have lived in the north for many years, they know Buhari’s leadership style and that is why they endorsed him.

“We are here to support your aspiration to become the president of this country. We know that it is easier to work with you because what you stand for,” he said.

He added that “we are not ready to be plunged into another civil and we are pleading with you to help us organize Nigeria again. We want discipline to reign again.”

“A lot of people have complain that the issues about you is religion but we know you are not a religious bigot. You are a very firm articulated officer of the Nigerian army. In 1983 when Nigeria was at a verge of collapse, you came in and rescue it,”Egenti said.

Responding,  Buhari praised the Igbos  for their contribution to the development of the country by their enterprising endeavours.

“Let the government respect Nigerians and individuals and let them to choose and elect those they want to lead them. If that is done, Nigerians will be surprised about how peaceful this country will be,” he said.

He added, “most of you are business (people) and you import and know the exchange rate. Where were we 16 years ago when PDP took over this country and where are we now. How much was the naira to the dollar (then) and how much is it now.”

“Does it mean that you will not sell the things that you have in your shop now because people cannot afford them because the naira is now about N230 to the dollar. I think that as a community, you are more affected in Nigeria than anyone else,” he concluded.

READ ALSO: This Is How Jonathan Will Defeat Buhari

Some political analysts are of the view that the move by the groups might be as a result of fear of reprisal attacks if Buhari loses the presidential polls.

Igbos in northern Nigeria have always suffered heavy losses in the crises that erupt regularly in the region. Given their valuable contributions to the economy of the north, perhaps this is a last minute effort to protect their interests.

Patricia Etteh Graduates From Buckingham University

Rt Hon Patricia Etteh, Nigeria’s first female Speaker of the House of Representatives, was one time accused of attempting to steal, tagged an ‘illiterate hair dresser,’ but today, she is a proud Law graduate from Buckingham University. Pictured above is she cutting a cake at her graduation party yesterday.

Mrs. Etteh was evicted from her leadership position in the House of Representatives amidst a blistering scandal in October, 2007. Barely four months after she was ‘unanimously’ voted into leadership of the House, her colleagues turned on her and demanded that she step down from her exalted position following accusations of corruption.

According to a report by the legislators, the speaker signed off on a contract that would see the spending of N628m for the renovation of her official home and that of her deputy as well as the purchase of 12 official vehicles. The legislators insisted that the award of the contract did not follow due process.

Mrs. Etteh’s removal continues to stir controversies today as some people say the former speaker’s removal was “driven by anti-gender sentiments”. She is aged 61. Big congrats to her.

http://www.lailasblog.com/2015/03/photos-former-speaker-patricia-etteh.html

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Vote PDP, You'll Never Regret It - Patience Jonathan

The First Lady of Nigeria, Patience Jonathan, has said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is not a propaganda party.

Patience, who was addressing the crowd at the Lagos Women’s Rally in support of President Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election bid and also to support the PDP gubernatorial candidate in Lagos, Jimi Agbaje and all other Lagos PDP candidates, said the PDP delivers on its promises.

She urged Nigerians to come out en masse to vote during the March 28 presidential and National Assembly elections, saying, “If you vote for PDP, you will never regret it.”

“Jonathan will give us more female ministers. There is a lot of skill acquisition and free grants from N1million to N10 million for Nigerian women by the Jonathan administration,”  she added.

She advised the women to vote wisely and choose the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the elections.

Gunmen Kidnap Emir Of Bukukuyum In Zamfara

Latest reports are that the Emir of Bukukuyum in Zamfara state, northern Nigeria, Muahmmadu Usman, was on Friday night kidnapped from his palace by gunmen.

Though details of the incident are still unclear at present, Saturday morning, the whereabouts of the Emir remains unknown.

READ ALSO: Buhari Reveals What Is Worse Than Kidnapping, Terrorism

Meanwhile, the commissioner for information in Zamfara state, Ibrahim Magaji, has confirmed the development to Leadership newspaper.

Only two days ago the Department of State Security in Edo state apprehended six men said to be involved in the kidnapping of a former local government chairman in the state, Anselm Adima.

The suspects were also said to be the ones involved in the kidnapping of a woman and her daughter. The kidnappers later raped the woman but spared the daughter of the sad misfortune.

How Albinos Will Cast Their Votes During Upcoming Polls

Barely seven days before Nigerians go to the polls to elect who will lead the country for the next four years, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has explained how those who suffer from albinism will cast their votes.

According to the electoral body, Nigerians who suffer from albinism will have the opportunity to vote during the forthcoming polls with the aid of vision magnifiers,

This detail was disclosed on Friday in Abuja, by the founder of The Albino Foundation, Jake Epelle.

Epelle stated that the gesture was extended to albinos in the country by INEC as part of its preferential treatment for elections to the physically-challenged.

He said there is need for the usage of vision magnifier because every ‘thorough albino’ is naturally visually-impaired as a result of which voting during the elections would be cumbersome.

Mr Jake Epelle with Dr Yemi Kale

Epelle added that as a result of the move, the size of the ballot paper contents will be increased to make affected persons see them clearly without any stress.

He said the use of magnifier for the elections would fast-track the voting process at polls and called on all albinos in the country to ensure that they participate fully in the elections.

While commending INEC leadership for considering albinos in the electoral process, Epelle said other visually-impaired persons would also benefit from the usage of the vision magnifier.

Boko Haram Leaves Mass Of Throat-slit Corpses Near Nigerian Town - YAHOO NEWS

DAMASAK, Nigeria (Reuters) - Soldiers from Niger and Chad who liberated the Nigerian town of Damasak from Boko Haram militants have discovered the bodies of at least 70 people, many with their throats slit, scattered under a bridge, a Reuters witness said.

In what appeared to be an execution site for the Islamist group, the bodies were strewn beneath the concrete bridge on one of the main roads leading out of the town. At least one was decapitated.

The bodies were partially mummified by the dry desert air, while grass has began to grow around the corpses, suggesting that the killings had taken place some time ago.

Boko Haram has killed thousands of people in a six-year insurgency aimed at establishing an Islamic caliphate in northeast Nigeria. Damasak was seized by the Islamist group in November but recaptured by troops from Niger and Chad on Saturday as part of a multinational effort to wipe out the militants.

Chadian soldiers, who said the bodies were discovered on Thursday, spoke of at least 100 corpses in the area around the dry river bed. A Reuters witness was able to count at least 70.

A strong smell of decomposition in many parts of town suggested there could be more bodies concealed there, the Reuters witness said.

A trail of blackened blood was visible along the side of the bridge facing the bodies, suggesting they had been thrown off the side after being killed. Among the dead was the imam of the town.

All but around 50 of the town's residents had fled by the time Damasak was recaptured. Those who remained were mostly too old or too sick to leave.

"People were in town when they (Boko Haram) attacked, they fired at us, we ran away to the bushes but they continued to fire and chased some people to kill them," said Damasak resident Mbodou Moussa.

Chad's military spokesman Colonel Azem Bermandoa said the Chadians had asked Nigeria's military to occupy the town, which lies close to the border with Niger, and would remain there until Nigerian troops arrived.

The regional offensive was launched this year with Chad, Niger and Cameroon as Nigeria, Africa's most populous country and biggest economy, prepares for presidential elections on March 28.

At the start of this year, Boko Haram controlled around 20 local government areas, a territory the size of Belgium. With the help of its foreign allies, Nigeria's army said on Tuesday it had pushed the rebels out of all but three districts.

On Thursday, however, two security sources told Reuters that Boko Haram had killed at least 10 people in the town of Gamburu, on the border with Cameroon, demonstrating it can still attack civilians despite being forced into retreat.

President Goodluck Jonathan has been criticized for not doing enough to tackle the insurgency. His challenger Muhammadu Buhari has campaigned on a reputation for toughness gained when he was military ruler of Nigeria in the 1980s.

(Additional reporting by Abdoulaye Massalaki in Niamey; Writing by Daniel Flynn and Bate Felix; Editing by Mark Trevelyan and Grant McCool)