Minister of Petroleum, Kachikwu’s Abuja House Catches Fire

The private residence of Ibe Kachikwu, minster of state for petroleum resources, caught fire on Sunday evening, The Cable understands.

The house is located in Asokoro, Abuja.
The fire started in his bedroom as a result of a suspected electrical fault to the air conditioners, sources in the know said.

“Kachikwu was not at home when it happened, but thankfully the fire service reacted quickly and put out the fire before things could go out of hand,”

The minister has been in the news recently over his letter to President Muhammadu Buhari in which he complained about insubordination and humiliation by Maikanti Baru, the group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)

PRESS STATEMENT: IPOB Reacts to Statement by Defence Minister Over Kanu’s Whereabout

IPOB press release!!!
Today: 16/10/2017

We the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and it’s leadership worldwide under the command of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu wish to draw the attention of Nigerians and the entire world to the statement made by the Nigerian Defence Minister General Mansur Dan Ali Rtd on a TV program called Question Time which aired repeatedly on Channels Television over the weekend.

During the course of the interview, Mansur Dan Ali confirmed on video tape that Nigerian Army went in search of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in his home, having previously denied the involvement of the army in his abduction and disappearance since the invasion of the 14th September 2017.

The bare faced lies of the Nigerian Defence Minister General Mansur Dan Ali and that of the Buhari regime against our leader and organisation is beginning to unravel before the eyes of the world.

By admitting publicly that soldiers were sent to Isiama Afaraukwu IBEKU to look for our leader without any order or warrant from a court of law confirms the contempt in which Nigerian government holds the rule of law and their judicial process.

It is therefore incumbent upon civilised nations of the world and organisations alike to ask the APC led Nigerian government why they decided to send armed soldiers to invade Kanu’s residence.

Another question that must be asked is why would the government deny this obvious fact when there are incontrovertible proof based on available CCTV evidence that Nigerian soldiers undertook this outrageously murderous raid in a peaceful village that resulted in the disappearance and presumed death of our leader.

In the immortal words of Mansur Dan Ali the army “went to look for him but he wasn’t there”.
This means that the army deliberately “went” and stormed his home.

The words to note here is that the army went to look for Kanu, contrary to the lies emanating from the government that Operation Python Dance II was not targeted against IPOB.

Since by the admission of the Defence Minister our leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu was not there during the invasion of his residence, why deny that no invasion took place.

This culture of denial, lies and subsequent admission makes it impossible for any neutral observer to believe any word coming out of the mouth of any official of the Buhari regime regarding the issue of IPOB.
It is also on record that the Nigerian government, Army and Defence Headquarters Abuja initially denied ever coming near or invading Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s house in Afaraukwu Ibeku Umuahia Abia State that resulted in the cold blooded murder of 28 people including that of his two cousins.

With these lies upon lies coming from the government over this military invasion, it is therefore reasonably expected to conclude that the army is also lying about not having our leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in their custody.

Is the world waiting for Biafrans to pick up arms to demand for the release of the body of their leader before they know IPOB is serious about ascertaining what the Nigerian government did with him.
We are aware that Nigerian government and her security operatives especially the army and police cannot continue reducing or making a fool of themselves in the face of the whole world concerning the issue of IPOB and quest for Biafra freedom.

The struggle for Biafra independence has gone far beyond violent containment and way beyond the capacity of Nigeria to deal with.

What dimension our struggle will take going forward depends on what fate Nigeria visited or intend to visit on our leader.

One outcome is guaranteed in all this, should Nigeria not produce our leader in court on the 17th of October 2017, there will be inevitable confrontation on a scale the human mind cannot imagine, at a time and place of our choosing.

By nature we are peace loving people, Nigeria should stop provoking us into armed conflict.
They should bring our leader to court.

COMRADE EMMA POWERFUL MEDIA AND PUBLICITY SECRETARY FOR IPOB.

Those calling Buhari president of the North should ‘go to hell’ – Junaid Mohammed

​
Chairman of the Northern Elders Forum, NEF, Dr. Paul Unongo, and a Second Republic lawmaker, Junaid Mohammed have dismissed the impression that President Muhammadu Buhari was ‘favouring the North’.
They said such statements were capable of breeding disunity.

Unongo, a Second Republic minister of steel, said the Buhari administration has been fair to all the six geo-political zones of the country.

He noted that the zones still crying marginalisation are those agitating for disintegration, particularly the South-East.

The NEF chairman told ThisDay, “It is not possible to say that Buhari is favouring the North to the detriment of other regions.

“The North occupies over 80 per cent of the total landmass of Nigeria and it has the population as well. If everything was given to the North proportionate to its size and population, it wouldn’t be so backward the way it is today.”

On his part, Mohammed, said those saying that Buhari is president of the North and not the president of Nigeria, should go to hell.

He said, “I believe in assessing a man, particularly a politician like Buhari, you assess him not only on what he says, but on what he does.

“If you look at the cabinet, it is clear that most of the important assignments (portfolios) went to the South, particularly the South-West. They have Finance, Health, Power/Works/Housing and Communication.
“So, for anybody who is rational, that statement made about Buhari asking World Bank to concentrate its activities in the North was false.

“In fact, if you move ahead and you assess his words and deeds, you will find out that Buhari hasn’t done anything to advance the interest of the North in any way whatsoever.

“The infrastructure projects that have been carried out in the last two and half years are the Lagos/Ibadan Expressway; the Second Niger Bridge at Asaba; the ongoing East/West Road; the rail project from Lagos to Calabar. Go and check them out.

“These are the key projects of this administration and none of them is in the North.

Jacob Zuma’s Statue In Imo Versus Jacob Zuma’s Statue In S’Africa (Photos)

While Nigerians are still trying to understanding the motive behind the huge statue of South Africa’s president erected and unveiled by governor Rochas Okorocha in Owerri, Imo state, a photo of an old statue of Jacob Zuma erected in South Africa has surfaced online.


The controversial statue of Jacob Zuma erected in South Africa was designed by artist Ayanda Mabulu, who was sharply criticized for the artwork which left the president’s g3nitals exposed.

Read What DailyMail UK is Reporting on Nnamdi Kanu’s Whereabout as Court Sits Tomorrow

The leader of a pro-Biafran separatist group in Nigeria has apparently gone missing, prompting speculation as to his whereabouts on the eve of his trial on treason charges.
Nnamdi Kanu, who heads the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) movement, has not been seen in public since troops were deployed to the southeastern city of Umuahia last month.
Kanu, who wants a separate state for the Igbo people who dominated the country’s southeast, has been on bail since April.

He is scheduled to appear in court in Abuja on Tuesday.
His lawyer, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, told AFP: “Only the army can tell us where he is. Either they arrested him or they killed him.”If he is alive, they should bring him to the court on Tuesday.”Justice ministry spokesman Salihu Othman Isah said whether the trial goes ahead depends on Kanu’s appearance and the judge.”I can’t tell you specifically what will happen,” he added.- Bullet holes -Kanu’s disappearance has prompted renewed fears of violence in the restive southeast, which remains tense 50 years after a declaration of independence sparked a brutal civil war.

He was first arrested in October 2015 and held in custody until April this year, despite repeated court rulings that he should be released.

In Umuahia, which was once the capital of the self-styled republic of Biafra and where Kanu spent his childhood, the windows of the family home have been blown out.
The ochre walls and the cars parked in front of the building are pitted with bullet holes, according to an AFP correspondent in the city.

Kanu’s younger brother, Prince Emmanuel Kanu, maintains he was at the compound when soldiers attacked it on September 14.He said 28 people were killed but the army has denied the claim. Neither claim has been verified independently.”They were so numerous. They started to shoot from 200 metres (650 feet) away,” Prince Emmanuel told AFP by telephone. “People were running for their lives. We had no guns with us.”Prince Emmanuel said the military was holding his brother in secret. The government has dismissed the claim and said he was “hiding” somewhere.

Nigeria officially declared IPOB a “terrorist organisation” in mid-September after violent clashes between the security forces and IPOB supporters.

Members of the group were accused of attacking military checkpoints in Umuahia, which is the capital of Abia state, and the state’s commercial hub, Aba.
There was also violence in Port Harcourt, which is the capital of the neighbouring state of Rivers and Nigeria’s main oil hub.

Officially, the military said the troop deployment was part of its Operation Python Dance against crime in the region. IPOB said it was designed to curb its activities.

Human rights organisations and analysts believe the authorities’ response has exacerbated tensions in a region where separatist sentiment has never really disappeared.

Many in the southeast say the region’s lack of basic infrastructure and extreme poverty is a “punishment” for what happened in 1967.The charismatic Kanu, who is in his 50s, knew how to exploit those frustrations. He revived Radio Biafra and used to broadcast calls for independence from his home in London.
Those calls increased after his arrest and sparked repeated demonstrations. Even after his release on bail, herarely passed up a chance to whip up his crowds of supporters.

Kanu wants a referendum on self-determination and has called for a boycott all forthcoming elections.- High-risk strategy -Security consultant Don Okereke believes the army overstepped the mark by conducting law enforcement operations in the southeast that were normally the remit of the police.”(The) Python Dance exercise is an aberration. There’s a high sentiment of distrust,” he said.

The federal government in Abuja has meanwhile opened itself up to the charge of “double standards” with the Biafraquestion, he added.On the one hand it is prepared to negotiate with Boko Haram insurgents in the northeast and militants in the Niger delta in the south but not IPOB, Okereke added.That was a high-risk strategy, he said, adding: “If anything happens to him (Kanu), the reactions are likely to be very violent in the southeast.”In 2009, a military crackdown on Boko Haram led to the death in custody of its leader, Muhammad Yusuf.For now, rumours abound about Kanu’s whereabouts.

The British mission in Abuja has denied one claim from a former Abia state governor that Kanu was back in London.

Enugu LG polls: APC dares PDP to rig elections, issue serious warning

Leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Enugu State have dared the major opponent, the People’s Democratic Party, to rig the local government election scheduled to hold in the state on November 4.

The APC stalwarts gave the warning at the flag-off of the party’s campaigns at Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area, Ogrute and Agbani in Nkanu West Local Government at weekend.
Speaking at the events, the state Chairman of the party, Dr Ben Nwoye said that the APC has shown good intent to provide good leadership.

He noted that the large crowd of people at the APC campaign flag-off at Igboeze North LGA, and Udenu, which is Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi’s home council, showed that the people are tired of the PDP and their failed promises in the state.

Nwoye, therefore, declared that the APC “would not accept anything short of a free, fair, credible and transparent election, devoid of any form of manipulation or rigging by PDP or ENSIEC.”
He also noted that it would be the first time since 1999 that the PDP chairmanship or councillorship candidate would be returned unopposed as APC has fielded candidates for the 17 chairmanships and 260 councillorship seats available in the state.

The Enugu APC boss said that the PDP lacks strategy and only relies on propaganda by telling the people not to come out on

November 4 to vote on grounds that the results have already been written in favour of the PDP candidates.
Nwoye said that the APC would be holding Governor Ugwuanyi to his words as he had promised that he would not interfere in the election in favour of any PDP candidate.

“I am happy that Governor Ugwuanyi told his PDP candidates to go and campaign. We believe every word from his mouth. If he has written results, he will not be campaigning. I believe he is a democrat, I believe he will not interfere,” Nwoye said.

Similarly, a former governorship candidate of the APC in the state, Chief Okey Eze, in his speech at Igbo-eze North, maintained that the elections must follow the rules according to the Electoral Act, beginning “from distribution of electoral materials at ENSIEC to the polling stations, collations of results to the point where the results would be declared.

“If they do not want to hold the election, let them not hold it. But if they want to hold it, it must comply with the Electoral Act.”

Also the Chairman of the APC in Rivers State, Dr Davies Ibiamu, who represented the National Chairman of the party, Chief John Oyegun at the Nkanu West rally advised the people of Enugu State to reject the PDP and vote for the APC.

He urged them to vote for everybody on the ticket of APC, saying this would ensure that when they come back, they would say their journey was not in vain.

Other notable party chieftains who attended the rallies include, the former Speaker of House of Assembly, Eugene Odo, the Zonal Chairman for Enugu East senatorial zone, Chief Anike Nwoga and his Enugu West counterpart, Iyke Omenkukwu, among others.

Agbakoba drags Buhari to court, reason will shock you

Former President, Nigerian Bar Association, Olisa Agbakoba has dragged President Muhammadu Buhari before the Federal High Court over his powers to hold the executive office as Minister of Petroleum Resources as a President.

The suit was filed in Abuja against the Federal Government of Nigeria via the Attorney General of the Federation which is to determine the constitutional qualification of Buhari as Minister of Petroleum.

Agbakoba, according to a statement released by his Chambers, argues that on the basis of section 138 of the Constitution disqualifying the President of Nigeria from taking any paid employment or holding executive office of Minister of Petroleum Resources, the President cannot hold office as Minister of Petroleum Resources.

His other argument is that in any event, the President’s appointment as Minister of Petroleum Resources was not confirmed by the Senate of the National Assembly, as stipulated by section 147(2)of the constitution.
The affidavit supporting Agbakoba’s claim states that the determination of the questions in the claim are of vital national importance, in view of the governance chaos at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

He has requested the court to return answers that the President is not validly qualified to be Minister of Petroleum Resources and in any event the President is also disqualified to be Minister of Petroleum Resources, not having been confirmed by Senate.
No date has been fixed for the hearing.