Eid-ul-Maulud: Nigerian govt declares Tuesday as public holiday

The Federal Government has declared Tuesday, October 19,  as Public Holiday to mark this year’s Eid-ul-Maulud Celebration in commemoration of the birth of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him).

Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, who made this declaration on behalf of the Federal Government, congratulated all Muslim faithful both at home and in the Diaspora for witnessing this year’s occasion.

He admonished all Nigerians to imbibe the spirit of love, patience and perseverance which are the virtues of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), adding that doing so would guarantee peace and security in the country.

Mr Aregbesola enjoined Nigerians, particularly Muslims, to refrain from violence, lawlessness and other acts of criminality. As the indisputable leader of our race, we must show responsible leadership in Africa.

“While calling for a stop to all divisive tendencies across the country, the Minister urges all Nigerians and the youth in particular, to embrace the virtues of hard work and peaceful disposition to fellow humans, irrespective of faith, ideology, social class and ethnicity and cooperate with President Muhammadu Buhari’s led-Administration in its effort to build a progressive and enviable nation that all citizens would be proud of,” Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Dr. Shuaib Belgore, disclosed in a statement on Friday.

Police to deploy over 34,000 officers for Anambra election

THE Nigerian Police Force said it would deploy more than 34,000 of its officers to provide security during the November 6 Anambra governorship election.

This was stated by the Inspector-General of Police Usman Baba during a meeting with officers on Thursday.

The IGP said the deployment would consist of conventional Police officers, Police Mobile Force, the Counter-Terrorism Unit, Special Forces, Explosive Ordnance Unit, Force Intelligence Bureau, Interpol, Special Protection Unit, and a medical team.

He said three helicopters would be deployed for aerial surveillance while detachments of marine Police operatives would also be handy to ensure a safe, secure, and credible electoral process.

“Based on the outcome of the analysis, we have developed a strategic election security operation plan which will involve the mobilisation of 34,587 police personnel,” he said.

He assured all citizens and stakeholders, including the international community, of the Police’s determination to work with other security agencies to stabilise the prevailing situation in Anambra.

He said the idea was to create a conducive and enabling environment that would guarantee the peaceful conduct of the election.

Baba said the Police were committed to partnering with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) within the dictates of the Electoral Act to deliver a credible election in Anambra.

He warned disruptors and political actors who would want to adopt undemocratic and illegal means to achieve their aspirations to do away with such plans.

Baba also called on the commissioners of Police to strengthen security architecture in their commands.

INEC had expressed concern over what it described as escalating security threats in Anambra ahead of the election.

INEC Chairman Mahmood Yakubu, who expressed the concern at an emergency meeting of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) last week Tuesday in Abuja, had said that during the last ICCES quarterly meeting on September 9, a major concern was raised by the committee on the security situation in the state and the adjoining states.

He said the concern was raised on how the situation might affect preparations and possibly the conduct of the election.

He said that the situation had deteriorated since the last meeting, as many innocent lives had been lost and properties destroyed in the state.

Yakubu said that INEC was particularly concerned about the safety of voters and election duty staff, including security officials who had also become targets of the attacks.

He said that INEC was also concerned about the safety of thousands of young Nigerians from the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and university students who were to be engaged in the conduct of the election.

Yakubu, while assuring that the process of the election would proceed as scheduled, said that INEC would continue to work with security agencies and respected opinion leaders in the state to ensure the success of the election.

16-Year-Old Sentenced To Nine Years Imprisonment For Murder

A 16-year-old boy has been sentenced to nine years in prison after being convicted of stabbing a female college student.

The assailant, Luchiano Lewis, alongside two other teenagers of 16 and 13 murdered the victim Tessa Majors in 2019.

As at the time of the murder, Lewis was 14 years old and the Manhattan District Attorney’s office decided to charge him as an adult

Earlier last month, Lewis pleaded guilty to murder and robbery and was consequently sentenced on Thursday, Oct 14.

The family of the deceased described the immeasurable pain they were going through.

The statement was read by Assistant District Attorney on behalf of Inman Majors, Tessa’s father.

The statement read: ‘Nearly two years later, we still find words inadequate to describe the immeasurable pain, trauma, and suffering that our family has endured since her senseless murder.

‘Tess was a brilliant student, a voracious reader, a poet and a fledgling journalist. She had big dreams.’

Tessa Majors who was 18 when she was murdered was from Charlottesville, Virginia and was finishing her first semester at Barnard College, Manhattan.

At about 8 pm in the evening of her murder, Lewis and 16-year-old Rashan Weaver and an unnamed 13-year-old attacked Tessa and tried to take her phone ABC 7 reported.

The Teenagers stabbed her multiple times. A video was played in court showing her in her final moments before her death. A security camera caught her struggling up a flight of stairs dripping blood. When she got to the street she collapsed and died.

Father Mbaka Releases Fresh Prophecies, Warns Buhari Against Buying Jets

Spiritual Director of Adoration Ministry, Enugu, Nigeria, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka, has warned President Muhammadu Buhari to stop buying jets.

He gave the warning in fresh prophecies released while delivering a sermon at Adoration Ministries on Sunday.

In a video post on the ministries social media pages, Father Mbaka stated that such jets would be used to collapse the country. 

According to the controversial cleric, President Buhari should instead build industries that will offer jobs to young people.

Father Mbaka urged Buhari to listen to the agitations of individual to bring lasting peace to the country.

Mbaka said: “The president should take this message, the jets you are buying are going to be used to be used to collapse Nigeria. Please the first person to meet President Buhari after this message should tell him that all these jets they are buying are going to be used, God told me to tell him that all these jets are going to be used to destroy Nigeria, let him stop buying more jets and begin to build more industries.

“We don’t want to hear that our children are being killed, those that are being bombed are Nigerians. Nobody is going to give an award to a father or a mother for killing his or her children,

“The solution is simple, put the round peg in a round hole and banditry will die – people are not agitating for nothing, listen to the reason for the agitation because even in the military there is agitation, in the police there is agitation, in the church there is agitation, in the families people are agitating, drivers are agitating, businessmen are agitating, use the money to solve the problem, otherwise you are buying jets that aggrieved people take up and scatter you people, if it doesn’t happen soon it will happen later.

“Do you know how many billions that are used to buy these jets? If they put some of these billions in job creations the youths will be busy, parents will be happy that their children are going to work and coming back, stop dashing money, we don’t need the money dashing syndrome.

“We have young men who can do any type of work in abroad. It’s (buying of jets) an avenue to create opportunity to swindle money without explanation. Who is fooling who actually? The spirit of God is not happy with our leaders no matter how they want to paint it, if the whole men of God will be silent the spirit of God cannot be silent.

“When the poor masses are crying we men of God should be crying with them because they are our children, they call me father and if I am a father I cannot be calm and my children are being killed.”