Church attacked in Kogi, Nigeria. 16 dead

Gunmen numbering about 10 last night stormed the Deeper Life Bible Church at Otite in Adavi Local Government Council of Kogi State, killing about 16 worshippers in the process.

The attack is coming on the heels of a similar one in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital on Sunday night, where four people were feared killed in their homes by suspected members of the Boko Haram sect.

Also, some unidentified gunmen Monday attacked a police station in Shagari Local Government Area of Sokoto State.

However, an eyewitness account said members of the Deeper Life Bible Church were attending night service when the gunmen struck.

The eyewitness further stressed that students of the Federal College of Education and motorists travelling across the town either to the Northern or Southern parts of the country had to take cover to avoid the rampaging of the gunmen.

The gunmen were said to have arrived the church in a Toyota Hiace bus and immediately started shooting sporadically as they made their way into the church.

The worshipers, who were caught napping could not escape immediately as the gunmen allegedly blocked the entrance of the church and then opened fire on the worshipers.

Though some worshipers were lucky to have escaped during the attack, which lasted for about 20 minutes, others, however, could not.

When THISDAY called on the Police Public Relations (PRO) Unit, one of the spokesperson, Mr. Ajayi Okasomi, confirmed the attack but said they are still awaiting official report from the Divisional Police Officer in Okene.

Also confirming the attack, the Joint Task Force Commander in the state, Lt Col. Gabriel Olorunyomi, confirmed the attack.

Olorunyomi said 15 worshippers died on the spot while the attack lasted, stressing that another died on the way to the hospital.

The commander said many of the injured persons were rushed to hospitals in Lokoja, a distance of 40 minutes drive from Okene.

He said the casualty figure might rise considering that some of the worshippers sustained serious injuries.

It would be recalled that in the last few weeks there is hardly a day without two or more people being killed in their residences.

The killings, which include the low and mighty, seem to be a change of strategy by the Islamic fundamentalist group.

The new strategy is believed to have been evolved by the group to keep them in the consciousness of the public after they have been prevented from wreaking havoc on military and strategic installations including markets and places of worship by the presence of heavy security.

Meanwhile, the Joint Task Force (JTF) Monday alerted the public of plan by Boko Haram members to undertake massive snatching of vehicles in Maiduguri and its environs, which they would later use for their suicide mission.

The vehicles, according to the task force, would be laden with explosive and used to bomb strategic locations and cause beach of peace in the town and perhaps neighbouring towns.

The statement signed by the task force Field Operations Officer, Col. Victor Ebhaleme, read: "The JTF wishes to alert members of the public of the desperate moves by Boko Haram terrorists to steal and snatch vehicles for suicide bombings."

Ebhaleme in the statement further asked those whose vehicles have been stolen to immediately report such incidents to the nearest police station or to the JTF.

In Sokoto, THISDAY checks revealed that the gunmen arrived the police station on motorcycles when residents of the area were about to break their fasting and engaged the policemen in a gun duel.

It was also gathered that the exchange of gunfire lasted for about one hour after which the gunmen detonated the bomb at the station.

Unconfirmed reports from the area revealed that some policemen on duty were injured.

When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Sani Sanusi, declined to comment on the attacks.

He maintained that the state Commissioner of Police had mandated him not to comment on the issue until today.

"Please I am not in a position to confirm the incident to you because my boss has mandated me not to say anything till tomorrow," Sanusi said.

Meanwhile, President of the Senate, Senator David Mark, Monday lamented the killing of six soldiers and two police officers serving with JTF in Damaturu, Yobe State.

The eight security personnel lost their lives at the weekend when a suicide bomber riding on a Sports Utility Vehicles (SUV) rammed into them at a security post.

Mark described their death as shocking and commiserated with the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, and the Inspector General of Police (IG), Mr Mohammed Abubakar, on the loss.

He also expressed condolences to the Government and people of Yobe State as well as the families of the officers and men who died in the attack.

This Day

Nigerian footballer dies in Romania

A young Nigerian football, Henry Chinonso Ihelewere on Sunday slumped and died while playing for his club Delta Tulcea in Romania.

The 21-year-old striker suddenly collapsed with no one around him after 15 minutes of the game involving division two teams Delta and FC Balote?ti. Medics battled for an hour trying to resuscitate the player, he never regained consciousness and was pronounced dead at the hospital.

"What can I say? We're all shocked," Universitatea Cluj boss Cristian Dulca, who previously coached the player, was quoted as saying. "It's a tragic day for Romanian football.

"I trained him for a year and a half and I can tell you he was a real example in training. He could've become a very good player."

Ihelewere had been playing in Romania since 2007, when he was transferred to FC Farul. He was part of a group of Nigerian players brought to play in Romania's second division. Abdul Razak Mansur is the other Nigerian player at the club.

Just few months back, Fabrice Muamba a midfielder for Bolton Wanderers in UK collapsed on the football pitch in a match against Tottenham. Muamba stopped breathing and many thought he death his heart 're-started' again after 78 minutes at the London Chest Hospital.

Vanguard

Nigerian pirates storm oil barge, kill 2 Nigerians and kidnap 4 foreigners

Pirates suspected to be Nigerians yesterday attacked a Dutch oil vessel, killing two Nigerian naval guards and kidnapping four foreigners, a report by Agence France Presse (AFP) said.

The pirates stormed the vessel in the Gulf of Guinea, an area that has seen a sharp spike in the number of reported marine attacks over the last six months.

A spokeswoman for Sea Trucks Group, which provides support vessels to oil companies operating in Nigeria, told AFP that one of the company's ships came under fire and that the firm's employees were taken in the raid.

"At this time Sea Trucks Group is making every effort to ascertain the whereabouts of its personnel," the spokeswoman, Corrie van Kessel, told AFP.

Nigeria's navy spokesman Commodore Kabir Aliyu said during the attack "four expatriates are reported to have been kidnapped from the vessel; two sailors were killed."

He said those kidnapped were from Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia and Thailand.

The attack, which also left two other seamen injured, took place at roughly 0100 on Saturday, 35 nautical miles off Nigeria's oil-rich Niger Delta coastal area, the navy and company said.

Aliyu told AFP that the motive of the attack had not yet been established and that so far there has not been any communication with the gunmen.

Leadership

Police diffuse bomb in Abuja Church

There was pandemonium at Dunamis Gospel Centre, Nyanya/Mararaba branch, on Wednesday night, after a security man discovered a bomb in the church and raised the alarm.

Over 1, 000 worshippers ran helter-skelter and are still counting their blessings after they survived what would have been a massive bomb attack. The bomb was said to have been placed in the church during their evening service but failed to detonate.

The anti-bomb squad of the police, which defused the bomb yesterday morning, described the bomb as foreign-made and capable of bringing down not only the church but surrounding buildings as well.

When LEADERSHIP visited the church yesterday, a church security man, who gave his name as Moses Uzoka said he discovered the bomb during a routine security sweep of the church. After the evening church service, he said, at about 9:30pm, he noticed a suspicious object in a bag under a seat at the children's section of the church.

He said: "I have never seen a bomb in my life but when I saw the object, it resembled the type of bombs I have seen in movies and I quickly shouted and everybody fled the church. We called one SSS man who lives near the church and he told us it was a bomb."



Uzoka narrated how he and others ran to the security post nearest to the church at "checking point", on the boundary between the FCT and Nasarawa State. He said the security agents insisted that they would not come on the grounds that the area was not within their jurisdiction and referred them to the Abacha police station. He said when they ran to the Abacha Road police station, the personnel there in turn referred them to the Mararaba police division.

"It was between midnight and 1am when the police from Mararaba came. When they saw the bomb they ran back and called their DPO. He too came to see it and went back. Later they brought an anti-bomb squad from Abuja to come and handle the bomb," Uzoka said.

LEADERSHIP learnt that it was later in the morning, about 11am, that an FCT anti-bomb squad arrived at the church to defuse the bomb and take it away.

Uzoka told our correspondent that a member of the anti-bomb squad said it was a foreign-made bomb and bigger than any he had seen since he started working on bombs.

He said: "The leader of the anti-bomb squad was shocked at the size of the bomb. He said that, if the bomb had gone off, not only would it have flattened the church and everything inside it, but that it would have destroyed the surrounding buildings as well.

When they were bringing out the bomb, I saw the inscription engraved on it: it was 'Mountain Fire' or something like that."

A LEADERSHIP reporter, who saw the police bomb squad taking the explosive away at about 11am yesterday, said he could not get very close because the police had cordoned off the church's frontage while they went about defusing the bomb.

A cleric at the church, simply called Evangelist Sunny, praised God for saving the lives of the worshippers.

He said:"When we discovered it, we quickly called Abacha Road police station. They refused to respond at that time. We went further to call Mararaba police station and they now came to the church to help with the situation. They later informed the anti-bomb squad of the FCT command which came later to defuse the said bomb."

When contacted, a senior police officer at the Nyanya police post, who does not want his name in print, confirmed that policemen went to the church but that they only found "some bags with perfumes and other materials".that can collapse the building at once," he said.

The head of the technical unit of the church, Godstime Asuquo, who spoke when newsmen visited the church on Thursday morning, said the FCT anti-bomb squad was contacted immediately to detonate the bomb.

He said it was only the grace of God upon the Church that did not allow the perpetrators of the dastardly act to succeed, adding that the church was planning to engage more security personnel to ensure adequate security in and around the church premises.

The commotion expectedly drew a large crowd to the frontage of the church. A GSM recharge cards seller, who has a kiosk just opposite the church, Linus Agi, said he was afraid to go into the church, though he saw the bomb when the anti-bomb squad brought it out and was taking it away.

"I was still around when it happened. We all ran away at first. Later in the morning, I saw when the police people brought out the bomb and took it away ," Agi said.

LEADERSHIP learnt that the church had been having a week-long revival programme to mark the beginning of a new month and that it was filled to the brim because the members had turned out en masse for the anointing and commune service.

One security man said over 1,000 worshippers attended the service and that it was the biggest church attendance he could remember.

Sometime last year, there was a rumour that the church had been bombed but it turned out to be a false alarm.

When contacted, a senior police officer at the Nyanya police post, who does not want his name in print, confirmed that policemen went to the church but that they only found "some bags with perfumes and other materials".

Leadership

World Bank gives Nigeria $200 million loan for infrastructure

To help address the huge infrastructure deficit in Nigeria, the World Bank is poised to provide $200 million as a seed fund to set up a Financial Intermediary Loan (FIL) scheme under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) initiative.

Head, Legal and Governance, Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Mr. Joe Ohiani, disclosed this at the inaugural ESQ Project Finance Summit, held in Lagos, and stated that some other development finance organisations have also agreed to contribute to the scheme.

He added that eligible participating financial intermediaries, particularly commercial banks with Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) as the lead, will lend to qualifying private sector partners in a Public Private Partnership (PPP) project at the financial intermediaries' risk.

He however emphasised that the objective of the scheme is to provide long term funding for infrastructure development in the country.

He stressed that in selecting eligible projects, priority would be given to public investment programmes which are in accordance with the national policy on PPP and captured in the federal government Medium Term Sector Strategies and the National Infrastructure Plan of the Vision 20:2020.

Presenting a paper titled, 'Governmental Promotion of Infrastructure Development,' Ohiani bemoaned the deplorable state of infrastructure in the continent as revealed by a recent report of the World Economic Forum.

The report showed that though annual investment in infrastructure in Africa doubled from $17 billion to $35 billion between 2001 and 2009, the overall infrastructure spending needs for sub-Saharan Africa is estimated at $93 billion annually over the next decade.

He noted that the annual infrastructure investment gap of $31 billion offers huge opportunities for private sector finance in infrastructure developments in Africa. "Governments in Africa are taking active steps towards addressing the state of infrastructure in the region," he added.

On the state of infrastructure in the country, Ohiani expressed regret that the federal government has been the sole financier of infrastructure projects and has often taken responsibility for construction, operations and maintenance, stating that the national fiscal budget was the principal source of financing infrastructure development.

He disclosed that between 1999 and 2007, government spent about N2 billion through direct budgetary allocations on basic infrastructure in agriculture and water resources, transportation, education, health, power generation and distribution. He also warned that declining financial resources was making this option less feasible, thereby accelerating infrastructural deterioration.

Ohiani further stated that despite challenges such as getting the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and private sector partners to abide by the PPP guidelines, ICRC would bring 20 projects to the market before the end of the year.

"We have developed a robust database of concessions already entered into by the Federal Government. Also we are promoting the development of funding sources and instruments with long tenor for financing infrastructural projects and we are also working with National Planning authorities to integrate infrastructure in its framework," he added

Speaking earlier, CEO, ESQ Seminars, organisers of the summit, Mr. Lere Fashola, said the aim of summit was to take a critical review of different near-term or completed projects across Africa, recent legal and legislative developments in different countries as well as the challenges of the bidding process in the electrical and power sectors, and governmental promotion of infrastructure development projects.

Other speakers including Resident Representative, African Development Bank (ADB), Mr. Ousmane Dore, and Senior Vice President, Power, Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), Baldeh Baatchi, pledged support of their organisations to the development of infrastructure on the continent.

This Day