Cartel in Benue: We major in Child trafficking

About 11 suspects who specialize in stealing and selling children across the country, were paraded on Wednesday by the Benue State Command of the Department of State Services, DSS, in collaboration with the State Security Council.

The kidnappers and child traffickers included one Adejo Ogiri alias Okala, Affonne Nwokocha, from Umuahia South Local Government Area of Abia State, Ezekiel and his wife, Amarachi.

While Nwokocha confessed to facilitating the buying and selling of children, Okala confessed to newsmen he had kidnapped four children and handed them over to one Ezekiel, a bus driver from Imo State.

Adejo said, “Each time I kidnapped children from any part of the state, I usually took them to Ezekiel who in turn, would hand them over to his wife, Amarachi, who specialised in receiving stolen children for the purposes I don’t know.

“I was paid N1m naira for kidnapping little Miracle Jacob. But it led to the bursting of the syndicate,” he added.

While the DSS also paraded the victims – Emmanuel Abedi, Favor Oleka, James Adanu and Joseph Aboje who had been in the hold of the kidnappers and traffickers for a while, the state governor, Samuel Ortom said Okala was the kingpin.

According to Ortom, the final payment of N700, 000 made by one Augustine Basil for Jacob was deposited in Nwokocha’s Keystone Bank account No: 6006236465.

“The the suspect also confessed to have facilitated the adoption of a child for one Henry Ndukwe in 2013, for the sum of N500, 000,” Ortom said, adding that the State Security Council and the DSS were working with the Benue State office of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, to further investigate and prosecute the syndicate.

(Dailypost)

Minster of Finance: This our worst possible time

                    Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun

The full picture of Nigeria’s economic gloom was laid bare yesterday.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released its indices which showed that the economy had contracted for the second consecutive quarter.

Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun, speaking after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting in Abuja, described the country as being in its “worst possible time”, but stressed there is a silver lining.

In its second quarter report, the NBS put the inflation rate at 17.1 per cent, It said the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) had contracted by 2.06 per cent in the second quarter. The economy contracted by 0.36 per cent in the first quarter.

The crisis is largely due to over dependence on oil as the mainstay of the economy over the years. It constitutes 70 per cent of Nigeria’s GDP and over 90 per cent of the value of its exports.

Oli price has crashed to less than $50 per barrel. Besides, Nigeria’s production output has tumbled by over 400,000 barrels due to militancy in the Niger Delta.

The NBS report showed that oil production plummeted to 1.69 million barrels per day (bpd) in Q2, down from 2.11 million bpd in Q1, with oil-based GDP contracting by 17.5 per cent in Q2.

The naira also dropped in value because of inability to match up with the demand for the dollar. Dollar exchanges for over N300 in the inter-bank market.

The report said 4.58 million Nigerians have become jobless since last year, with the first and second quarters of 2016, adding 2.6 million to unemployment figures of 1.46 million recorded in the third quarter of 2015 and 518,102 in the fourth quarter of 2015.

“During the reference period, the number of unemployed in the labour force increased by 1,158,700 persons, resulting in an increase in the national unemployment rate to 13.3% in Q2 2016 from 12.1 in Q1 2016, 10.4% in Q4 2015 from 9.9% in Q3 2015 and from 8.2% in Q2 2015,” NBS said.

“In view of this, there were a total of 26.06 million persons in the Nigerian labour force in Q2 2016 that were either unemployed or underemployed compared to 24.5 million in Q1 2016 and 22.6 million in Q4 2015”.

“The total value of capital imported into Nigeria in the second quarter of 2016 was estimated to be $647.1 million, which represents a fall of 8.98% relative to the first quarter, and a fall of 75.73% relative to the second quarter of 2015.

“This provisional figure would be the lowest level of capital imported into the economy on record, and would also represent the largest year on year decrease. This would be the second consecutive quarter in which these records have been set.

“The continuing decline in the value of capital imported into the economy is symptomatic of the difficult period that the Nigerian economy is going through.”

It is the worst economic recession in 29 years.

Reacting to the NBS statistics, Mrs Adeosun said: “It’s the worst possible time for us. Are we confused? Absolutely not. How are we going to get ourselves out of this recession? One, we must make sure that we diversify our economy. There are too many of us to keep on relying on oil.

“We can see what happened at the output data of the oil and gas sector. What’s happening in the Niger Delta has dragged down the GDP of the entire economy. We’re too dependent on oil whereas 87 per cent of our GDP is oil. So let us drive those other areas.”

In her view, “we have to invest in capital projects”.

She went on: “No, we are not confused, the time are confusing but we are not confused. We are extremely focused. We know that if we can just bear and get through this difficult period, Nigeria is going to be better for it.

“If we rely on oil and the price of oil remains low and the quantity of oil remains low, we can’t grow. We have to grow our non-oil economy. I think we have a long way to go.

“We’re not confused and we’re not deceiving ourselves that everything is rosy. It’s not. It’s a difficult time for Nigeria but I think Nigeria is in the right hands and if we can stick with our strategy. We still have some adjustments to make. I think we need to make some adjustments in monetary policy. It’s quite clear we do and we will do that. We’re working on that. We need to try and find a way to support the manufacturing sector better and we will do that.”

According to Mrs Adeosun, the high inflation rate in the country is cost-pushed.

“And when you have cost-push inflation, it is structural inflation. It is not going to respond to monetary policy tools such as increasing the rate of interest. We have to address the structural causes of the inflation.”

But, she however said that the high rate of inflation has slowed down, which is a good sign for the economy.

The Presidency insisted that the outlook is indicative of a hopeful expectation.

A statement by the office of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, quoting Dr. Adeyemi Dipeolu, the Special Adviser on Economic Matters to President Muhammadu Buhari, said: ”Apart from the growth recorded in the agriculture and solid mineral sectors, the Nigerian economy in response to the policies of the Buhari Presidency is also doing better than what the IMF had estimated, with clear indications that the second half of the year would be even much better.

The Buhari Presidency will continue to work diligently on the economy and engage with all stakeholders  to ensure that beneficial policy initiatives are actively pursued and the dividends delivered to the Nigerian people.”

He added: “The just recently released data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that Gross Domestic Product declined by -2.06% in the second quarter of 2016 on a year-on-year basis.

“A close look at the data shows that this outcome was mostly due to a sharp contraction in the oil sector due to huge losses of crude oil production as a result of vandalisation and sabotage.

“However, the rest of the Q2 data is beginning to tell a different story.  There was growth in the agricultural and solid minerals sectors which are the areas in which the Federal Government has placed particular priority.

“Agriculture grew by 4.53% in the second quarter of 2016 as compared with 3.09% in the first quarter.  The metal ores sector showed similar performance with coal mining, quarrying and other minerals also showing positive growth of over 2.5%.  Notably also, the share of investments in GDP increased to its highest levels since 2010, growing to about 17% of Gross Domestic Product.”

Despite the manufacturing sector not yet being out of the woods,  Dipeolu said, it is beginning to show signs of recovery.

“The IMF had forecast a growth of -1.8% for 2016, however the economy is performing better than the IMF estimates so far. For the half year it stands at -1.23% compared to an average of -1.80% expected on average by the IMF.

“What is more, it is likely the second half will be better than the first half of 2016. This is because many of the challenges faced in the first half either no longer exist or have eased,” the statement added.

The Nation

Oby Ezekwesili And Others Sit On Floor As Police Deny BBOG Access To Aso Rock

The Bring Back Our Girls, BBOG, group,today marched to the Aso Villa, lending a voice to the continuous clamor for the release of the abducted Chibok girls.

The group, led by Oby Ezekwesili, former Minister of Education and leader of the BBOG, were denied access ‘as usual’ by a battalion of policemen at the entrance.

Security operatives barricaded the entrance, stopping the group from gaining access into Aso Rock.

They consequently resorted to sitting on the floor under the scorching sun with their lips sealed.

Dailypost.

Buhari’s policies are anti-people, dictatorial – Damishi Sango

A former Minister of Youths and Sports during former President, Olusegun Obasanjo’s regime and now Plateau State Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chairman, Damishi Sango, has described President Muhammadu Buhari’s policies as “anti-people and dictatorial.”

The former minister noted that the level of hardship under the current administration has reduced many Nigerians to live in untold poverty.

The party’s chieftain was speaking on Tuesday at a press conference which held at the party’s secretariat in Jos, the state capital.

He recalled that Nigerians suffered more than now during Buhari’s military government in 1983.

He said, “Buhari is not a democrat, he jailed our parents during his rule as military head of state; I was a witness to that, our people suffered severe hunger, just as the hunger that is biting now.”

He claimed most Nigerians who voted Buhari in 2015 were already disappointed.

He added, “Not many thought the first year of Muhammadu Buhari would look like this. The pump price of petrol at 145, per litre, the Naira at 380 to a dollar, not a single road tarred, the 2016 budget in baby step, no minister has received a tranche for work, salary backlog now a routine, herdsmen as killer squads, Biafra on the rampage, Niger Delta brigands reborn, the change mantra muted jobs.”

He lamented that Plateau State governor, Simon Lalong, was still owing civil servants in the state even after receiving N97billion from the federal government since he assumed office.

Teenager kills sugar mummy over infidelity, hangs self

A 17-year-old Zimbabwean boy, Chinhengo Timothy has reportedly killed himself after he found out that his 37-year-old sugar mummy was cheating on him.

Chinhengo committed suicide in police cell after he was arrested for stabbing his older lover, Patricia Chiweshe, to death, H-metro reports.

According to the report, Timothy, from Landa’s business centre in Chihota trailed his lover and saw her coming from a toilet in the company of a man, at the weekend, when he approached them and stabbed his lover several times.

The Police spokesperson, Siphiwe Makonese, who confirmed the report, was quoted to have said Timothy was arrested afterwards and hung himself at Mahusekwa police station in a cell using a strap from the blanket cell.

Timothy’s aunt, Sarah Mhondiw, speaking on the incident, recounted how she tried to stop him from dating the cougar but he was said to have been adamant.

Mhondiw said, “I really don’t know how to explain the story as I’m in shock. Timothy met Patricia at some bar, Patricia was said to be a prostitute at the time.
They started co-habiting despite our protests.

“The matter was reported to the chief and both were lashed. We even approached the police who said they could not intervene.

“I visited him while he was in police custody. He told me that he attacked Patricia because she was cheating on him with a guard who works at a bar somewhere at Landas shopping center. He said he had heard rumors and he finally saw it for himself. Patricia told him to mind his own business. He did not manage to tell me the rest of the story because we were told that visiting time was over.

“Later that day when we wanted to give him food the police told us that he had committed suicide.

“Timothy would confide in me all the time, he used to say that his wife drives him to drink often and that he cannot even pray anymore. He believed that Patricia had used juju on him,” Mhondiw sobbed.

Photos: New ISIS video shows children executing prisoners, British kids reportedly among them

Islamic State just released a horrible video showing three gruesome execution scenes in Raqqa, Syria. The video shows five ISIS children executing 5 Kurdish prisoners. The children are reportedly from Egypt, Britain, Tunis, Uzbekistan, and a Kurd. One of the prisoner is even a child himself. 



Photo credit: Jenan Moussa

Enugu Assembly summons FCMB, Interswitch over alleged diversion of funds

The Enugu State House of Assembly has summoned the chief executive officer of the First City Monument Bank (FCMB) and Inter-Switch Ltd over the diversion of the state’s funds.
The Chairman of its ad hoc committee on diversion of internally generated revenue, Mr Sunday Ude-Okoye, gave the directive in Enugu on Friday during a fact-finding meeting.

He requested the bank to furnish the committee with the details of the state’s internally generated revenue account domiciled with it from 2008 to June 2016.

Ude-Okoye also asked the bank to make available statements of transactions made with the state board of internal revenue, including cheque books released to the board within the same period.

He said that the directive became imperative following petitions against the immediate past chairman of the state board of internal revenue, Chief Felix Chime, and other principal officers of the board.

The lawmaker said that FCMB was the central revenue collector for the state, adding that Inter-Switch is a company that helps it transmit all collected revenue from other banks.

Ude-Okoye said that the directive would enable the committee to get to the root of the allegations without bias.

He directed Chime and other principal officers of the board to ensure strict compliance with the directives given to the companies.

He appealed to officers of the revenue board to be meticulous in issues that related to revenue collection, adding that the committee would do its best to ensure that truth prevailed.

The legislator warned that all diverted funds must be returned to the state coffers, if established.

Ude- Okoye ruled out the involvement of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) at this preliminary stage, adding that the commission would only come in if the allegation of diversion was established.

In his submission, Chime said that all actions taken by his board had the approval of the then state executive council, adding that the past administration was aware of their transactions with Inter-Switch Ltd and FCMB. (NAN)