Shell shuts in 25,000 bpd of oil due to sabotage and theft

Anglo-Dutch oil group Shell said Monday it has shut in 25,000 barrels per day of crude in a southern Nigerian oil field due to spills caused by sabotage and theft.

"The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd (SPDC) has shut in production from Imo River Field due to a recent upsurge of illegal bunkering and refining activities which have impacted the environment," the company said in a statement.

"Some 25,000 barrels of oil per day is affected," Shell said, adding it took the action on August 28 "to starve the illegal bunkerers of crude oil in order to prevent further environmental pollution."

Theft of crude is commonly referred to as "bunkering" in Nigeria.

Shell said the field which straddles oil-producing Abia and Rivers states, has five flow stations, a gas compressor station and several kilometres of pipelines among other faculties.

The thefts were first noticed in the field two years ago, prompting government security forces to move in to dislodge the perpetrators and destroyed their barges and canoes.

The military deployed in the oil delta has in recent months reported busting hundreds of illegal refineries.

"But the criminal act has now resumed, with crude thieves inflicting hacksaw cuts on pipelines to siphon crude to waiting barges and canoes, some of which can hold as much as 40,000 barrels," it added.

Pipeline vandalism and associated spills are common in the Niger Delta, Nigeria's oil and gas producing region, to feed a lucrative black market.

Shell, one of Nigeria's major oil operators, has seen frequent shut-ins in recent years.

Last month, it was forced to shut down its Utorogu gas plant following a leak on its trunkline in western Niger Delta.

Activists say oil firms such as Shell have not done enough to prevent such incidents.

A UN report in August said decades of oil pollution in the Ogoniland area of the Niger Delta, located in Rivers state, may require the world's largest ever cleanup.

Nigeria is Africa's largest oil producer, accounting for 2.3 million barrels of crude per day according to the latest report of the International Energy Agency.

AFP

Related stories: WikiLeaks cables: Shell's grip on Nigerian state revealed

Shell suspends operations in Nigeria

Chinese in £3bn battle to buy Shell assets in Nigeria

Foreign Minister says no no Gaddafi men in Nigeria

There is no confirmation that some Muammar Gaddafi loyalists have entered Nigeria from neighbouring countries such as Niger,  Foreign Minister Olugbenga Ashiru has said.

Ashiru told Nigeria reporters covering the 66th UN General Assembly in New York that speculations that Gaddafi’s men had entered some states in Nigeria were untrue.

“Our security agencies are on the alert and I can assure you that anybody who enters Nigeria will be promptly deported from wherever he or she came from,’’ the minister assured.

The minister also said he did not believe Gaddafi or any of his associates would seek asylum in Nigeria.

“I don’t believe that will happen, maybe they will prefer not to come to Nigeria for obvious reasons and I don’t think anyone should express that kind of anxiety,’’  the minister said

Niger, which borders Nigeria in the north, confirmed the presence of some senior Gaddafi officials and at least one member of his family in the country.

Nigerien authorities also confirmed that they were keeping one of Gaddafi’s sons,Saadi, under surveillance along with several others who fled to the country, including Gen. Ali Kana, who commanded Gaddafi’s southern troops.

Interpol has issued arrest warrants for Gaddafi, his son Saif al-Islam, and intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senussi, all wanted by the International Criminal Court for suspected crimes against humanity.

About  200 Nigerians still in Libya

Ashiru also told reporters in New York on Saturday that in spite of   the “massive evacuations’’ authorised by the Federal  Government in February and March, some Nigerians still chose  to remain in Libya.

The minister quoted said that  “the last plane that left Libya was virtually empty.”

In March, the National Emergency Management Agency revealed that 4,000 Nigerians were evacuated from Libya.

The minister, however, said he was in touch with some Nigerians still in Libya and had received information that none of them had been killed .

He said the government had contacted Libya’s Transitional National Council (TNC) authorities on the need to ensure the safety of her nationals that were still in the country.

The minister said the TNC had assured him of their safety, adding that his interaction with them confirmed that “they are fine.’’

“There was particular guy (Nigerian) in Libya who sent an SMS to Nigeria which was also forwarded to me.

“I have been in touch with him several times and each time I call him I will ask him how Nigerians there (in Libya) are doing and he will assure me that they are fine.

“I have also asked to know the problem of some those who were arrested and later released, but no one was killed.

He said the Nigerian government was still assessing the security situation in the North African country.

“We will continue to assess the situation and we want to make sure that everything is stable and secure.

“At the appropriate time when we think the situation has stabilised we will take a decision,’’ he added. (NAN)

Vanguard

Related stories: Pro Gaddafi fighters flee to Nigeria

Video - Nigerians mistaken by Libyan rebels to be mercenaries for Pro-Ghadafi forces

Massive amounts of explosives smuggled from China seized

Nigerian officials seized a sizable amount of explosives hidden inside a shipping container from China at one of the West African nation's major ports, an official said Saturday, amid continued unrest and bombings across the oil-rich country.

The container arrived at Nigeria's Tin Can Port on June 14 on the MV Seng-Shi, with its bill of lading claiming the shipment from Huangpu, China contained industrial sockets and valves, said Wale Adeniyi, a spokesman for the Nigeria Customs Service. However, discrepancies on the shipping paperwork raised suspicions of the customs service, which kept watch over the container to see if someone came to pick it up, Adeniyi said.

Officials opened the container Friday to check its contents, he said, adding that they worried whatever could be inside of the containers could grow unstable during Nigeria's continuing rainy season, he said. Officials remain unsure whether the explosives were of a military or commercial grade.

"We saw them in different dimensions with cables, wires (and) some bolts," Adeniyi said.

The customs service handed the explosives over to Nigeria's federal police force. Authorities have launched an investigation into the shipment, Adeniyi said, though no arrests have been made.

Nigeria's chaotic ports in its megacity of Lagos see tons of cargo move through them daily, providing cars, imported food, refined gasoline and other products needed for the nation of 150 million people. Drugs and other illegal goods also flow through the ports, often aided by officials receiving bribes in a country considered by analysts to have one of the world's most corrupt governments.

It isn't the first time a shipment that could be used as weapons have been found in the country. In October 2010, authorities at Lagos' Apapa Port found a hidden shipment of 107 mm artillery rockets, rifle rounds and other weapons from Iran. The shipment was supposedly bound for Gambia. A Nigerian and an Iranian face criminal charges over the shipment.

The explosives shipment also comes as Nigeria faces an increasingly bloody sectarian challenge from a radical Muslim sect known locally as Boko Haram. The sect, which wants strict implementation of Shariah law across the nation split between Christian and Muslims, claimed responsibility for the Aug. 26 suicide car bombing of the United Nations headquarters in Nigeria that killed 23 people and wounded 116 others.

AP

Related stories: Truck Load of Explosives Seized in Jos 

NDLEA intercepts N4b cocaine in Lagos 

Interview with British Nigerian Hollywood actor Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje

Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje may just be the most badass actor in Hollywood. To "Oz" fans, he's gang leader Simon Adebisi. To "Lost" fans, he's former war lord turned man of god, Mr. Eko. And if you sat through rapper 50 Cent's acting debut, "Get Rich or Die Tryin'," he's the twisted drug lord Majestic.

In his latest television stint on Cinemax's explosive new show "Strike Back," Akinnuoye-Agbaje plays a brutal militia leader named Tahir, who holds an innocent aid worker hostage in the Sudan.

Tahir shows little mercy to those who disobey his leadership. For as uncompromising and brutal as Tahir seems, Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who also learned Arabic for the project, was drawn to the project because of the character's many dimensions.

"It's such a rich character," Akinnuoye-Agbaje told The Huffington Post. "This character has many layers. He's a man of absolutely uncompromising principles, and what was intriguing to me was what would drive a person to such extremes?

I was interested in exploring what his motivation was, and why he was committing such seemingly heinous crimes. And then finding out that there was a real, substantive purpose behind it was really intriguing to me.

Nobody is good or bad. Everybody has shades of both, and he is a character who's got both, and he's just extreme in both. He's fighting for a cause. He seems to be an old vestige of a warrior."

Judging from his credits, Akinnuoye-Agbaje walks the line between good and evil quite often, giving seemingly twisted characters emotional depth and understanding.

"Multifaceted and textured characters are always more intriguing to me," said the actor. "You never really just want to play one note. It becomes a bit monotone and boring. I think the most appealing characters for the audience are the ones that you never know whether to root for them or whether to hate them.

That's what keeps people drawn to their television sets. As with Eko, as with Majestic, as with Adebisi, these are characters that you want to hate, but there's a part of them that you secretly want to root for, and that part is called humanity."

Akinnuoye-Agbaje has the ability to give a voice to certain tormented and twisted characters that other actors would shy away from -- such as Tahir and Adebisi -- which is what makes his portrayal of such characters so endearing and authentic.

Yet, he's proven that he can play tortured and twisted quite well, but what about playing someone, well, more normal? In the star-studded "Killer Elite," coming out this fall and starring Robert De Niro, Clive Owen and Jason Statham, Akinnuoye-Agbaje plays Agent, someone who's not a drug lord, criminal or militia leader in the Sudan.

"For the first time really, I played a British character in a shirt and tie," laughed the British-born actor. "He's more behind-the-scenes and pulling the strings, so that was really interesting for me. I also have another film coming out this fall, called 'Best Laid Plans,' and it's a British modern adaptation of 'Of Mice and Men.'

I play the character Lenny, and he's a 37-year-old man with a 7-year-old mentality. And it was a challenge for me, and it was a very tricky task, but that's the rewarding part of what I do -- the exploration of different personalities, traits and characters. Ultimately, you have to just take the plunge and follow your instincts on these characters."

By taking the plunge, Akinnuoye-Agbaje plays bad like no one else -- with vulnerability and depth -- and sometimes, these tormented and twisted characters tend to go against his Buddhist faith. The actor admitted that he had to chant more than usual while playing the brutal Majestic in "Get Rich or Die Tryin'."

"Sometimes I do question it because if you do your job well, the public will associate you with that person," said Akinnuoye-Agbaje, "But then I have to take a step back from it and say, this is my job, this is what I do.

I'm here to play certain characters and give them a voice that they might not have had. That's my job, and like it or not, that's what I'm here to do."

This Day

Related story: Video interview with Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje

Sex worker burns her baby alive

The Oyo State Police Command confirmed on Sunday that a newborn baby (name not given) was set ablaze by unknown persons in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

The parents of the baby and the accomplices were yet to be traced at the time of filing this report.

The Police Public Relations Officer in Oyo State, Mr. Femi Okanlawon, who confirmed the incident, said two hoteliers had already been arrested in connection with the crime.

According to Okanlawon, information about the incident was received by the police around 11:00 am on Saturday. He explained that the baby was burnt at Lemomu Street, Ekotedo Iyaolobe area of the city.

The Police spokesman said the two male suspects, who were arrested worked with a hotel in the area thereby fuelling suspicion that the baby might have been born by a commercial sex worker.  It is suspected that the mother of the baby who is a hooker set the baby on fire for unknown reasons, then fled the scene.

Ekotedo, a community near the Dugbe Central Business District, is home to many sex workers.

Okanlawon said the command had launched an investigation into the incident and promised that those behind the cruel action would soon be unmasked and be made to face the law.

He said, “A case of suspected murder is in our hands. Our men in Mokola were informed around 11:00am that a newborn baby was set ablaze by unknown persons at Lemomu Street in Ekotedo Iya Olobe area.

“We have arrested two men in connection with the incident. An investigation has also been launched into the criminal act and we believe the people behind the act would soon be tracked down.”

Nigeria Trends

Related stories: Woman delivers headless baby

23-yr-old girl dumps baby in toilet

Video - FOX News covers Nigeria as new home of Terrorism

FOX News covers Nigeria as new home of terrorism.

Related stories: Britain to help Nigeria fight Boko Haram

Bomb explosion at UN office in Abuja leaves several dead

Britain to help Nigeria fight Boko Haram

Britain has pledged to help Nigeria fight terrorism after Nigeria solicited her support in addressing the security challenges facing it.

Dr Bello Mohammed, the Minister of Defence, made the request in Abuja yesterday when he received the British High Commissioner, Mr Andrew Lloyd, who paid him a courtesy visit in his office.

He said the support could be in the areas of intelligence sharing and supply of surveillance equipment necessary for curbing the menace of terrorism.

"I will also like to urge you to appeal to your government to strengthen our cooperation in the fight against terrorism.

"We have some security problems in Nigeria as you are aware and we believe that the Americans, the British as well as the EU are putting a lot of attention in the bid to curb terrorism in all parts of the world.

"If our security agencies work together with your agencies in the exchange of information, may be in the deployment of equipment for detection, it will help not only in ensuring security in Nigerian but world security", he said.

The minister also appealed to the British government to assist Nigeria in resuscitating its defence industries to enable it meets some of its military needs.

"Our defence industries have been moribund for a long time; part of our reform programme is to reactivate them, so that our defence needs that can be produced locally instead of importing them", he said.

Mohammed also appealed to the British government to support Nigeria's quest for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council.

Responding, Mr Andrew Lyold said his visit to the Ministry was prompted by his country's desire to strengthen military relations with Nigeria.

Lloyd said among other areas of interest, Britain would remain a strategic partner of Nigeria in the area of defence.

He said Britain recognised Nigeria's importance in the quest for global peace, and pledged his country's support for its bid for permanent seat in the UN Security Council.

Lloyd said Nigeria's role in the Security Council had been a benefiting one for global peace, adding that this had been evident in its role in restoring peace in war torn Liberia, Sierra Leone and other African countries.

He advised Nigeria to protect its nascent democracy against security challenges, saying that no modern democracy in the world was immune to such challenges.

The High Commissioner promised that Britain would partner with Nigeria to sustain its democracy and curb emerging security challenges.

Lloyd, who was on a working visit to the Ministry, was accompanied on the visit by some British military officials.

Meanwhile, Nigeria has reaffirmed its support for Libya's Transitional Council, in spite of being absent at a United Nations (UN) General Assembly that allowed the former rebels to represent the people of Libya at the world body.

A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the attention of the Minister, Amb. Olugbenga Ashiru had been drawn to the "inadvertent absence of Nigeria" at last Friday's UN voting session.

"Government welcomes the decision of the General Assembly to accept the credentials of the Transitional National Council of Libya (TNC) to the UN as the legitimate authority now in Libya" Mr. Damian Agwu, spokesman for the ministry said in the statement.

The overwhelming support given to the TNC by members of the General Assembly, the highest legislative body, vindicates the wisdom of the decision taken by Nigeria earlier on this delicate matter," the statement added.

It said: "Appropriate diplomatic steps" had been taken to register Nigeria's voting preference supporting the NTC to speak for Libya at the debate of the UN General Assembly taking place in New York.

"This will form part of the UN record on the subject," the statement added.

The former rebels recently forced Dictator Muammar Gaddafi to abandon his headquarters in Tripoli, following five months of violent conflict sparked by Gaddafi's brutal crackdown on his citizens.

The NTC declared itself the legitimate representative of the Libyan people on March 5 and mandated Mahmoud Jibril, its leader, on March 23, to form an interim government.

Daily Champion

Related stories: Video - Four Boko Haram members to face death penalty for UN attack

Newly appointed commander of the Special Task Force promises to bring peace to Jos

Swiss court orders retrial of son of Sani Abacha N54.88bn money laundering case

 

The highest court in Switzerland has ordered retrial of Abba Abacha, the son of ex- military ruler, Gen. Sani Abacha, who died in 1998, against the order of a lower court to return the sum of $350 million (about N54. 88 billion) illegally acquired by his family.

Following the inability of the son of the ex-military ruler to obtain a Swiss visa to attend the trial, Abba Abacha appealed against the earlier ruling ordering him to return the money and the highest court obliged him.

The Swiss Federal Tribunal annulled the sentence and ordered the retrial on the grounds that Mr. Abacha's rights had been violated and because of procedural irregularities.

A source said that the appeal started at a court in Geneva’s on Monday.

According to a Swiss  newspaper, LeTemps, Abba Abacha, who is currently in Nigeria, would not be attending the hearing.

He was said to have been refused a visa to go to Switzerland because he did not apply for it in time, the newspaper said. 

Jersey’s Royal Court had earlier sentenced an Indian, Raj Arjandas Bhojwani, believed to be in money laundering business deal with late Sani Abacha, to repay N26.5 million.

The convict laundered £28million through the Jersey branch of the Bank of India. He was jailed in 2010 for eight years, but in February, it was cut to six years for Bhojwani's good character.

The money was laundered in a business deal with the late Nigerian military dictator, who died in 1998.

The Royal Court ordered the confiscation of £26.5m and for  Bhojwani to contribute to the prosecution costs.

A statement released by the Royal Court said it represented the end of a long investigation into serious money laundering in Jersey.

HM Attorney General Timothy Le Cocq, QC, said: ‘This is not the first time the attorney general has brought a successful prosecution for money laundering and we hope that it will send out a clear message that Jersey will deal very seriously with such offences.’

The case began following an investigation into the activities of General Abacha.

The Moment

Related stories: Abacha's sons sue government over trial abroad

Sani Abacha's son convicted in Geneva, Swiss authorities’ confiscate $350m

 

Former Delta Governor James Ibori to stay in Prison Till 2012

Former Delta State Governor, Chief James Onanefe Ibori, standing trial in London on a 14 count charge of fraud and money laundering, will remain in prison custody till February 13, 2012, when his case opens.

The alleged crimes were reportedly committed between 1999 and 2007 when Ibori served as Delta State governor.

The decision to remand him in prison followed the successful pleas of his defence lawyers that they need more time to go through 65,000 pages of evidence and also to travel to Nigeria to speak to witnesses.

The former Delta State governor appeared in court, clean shaven and wearing a grey linen jacket and shirt without a tie. He had freshly shaved, getting rid of the small moustache he at one time spotted.

He waved to supporters, and managed to smile at the police officers who led him to court, and also at one point flashed a smile at the police officers who have worked to amass tens of thousand pages of evidence against him.

In legal hearings before the trial, Ibori's defence team told the court that they intend to argue that he cannot be tried in the United Kingdom, since a court in Nigeria has already decided there is no evidence he has committed any crime in Nigeria.

One of Ibori's defence lawyers, Mr. Benjamin Aina (QC), told Southwark Crown Court that they could not begin the trial as planned in November because they need more time to go through the approximately 65,000 pages of evidence and travel to Nigeria to speak to witnesses.

'Mr. Ibori has the right to be competently defended,' Judge Anthony Pitts said, setting the new date. Ibori's defence team did not object to the prosecution's request to extend the time Mr. Ibori could be held in custody.

Without such agreement prisoners in custody on remand for non violent offences can be released on bail after six months.

Ibori was extradited to the UK from Dubai in April 2011, and prosecutors decided he would be tried alongside a co-defendant, Emmanuel Preko, who was already slated to be tried in November.

His lawyer, Nicholas Purnell, referred to in court by other members of the defence team and the Judge as 'one of the finest legal minds of this generation,' told the court he had been forced to withdraw his services from Ibori because of the schedule.

'This has caused some considerable distress to the defendant,' he said. 'The delay to the start date allowed Mr. Purnell to represent Ibori as originally planned,' he said.

The prosecution said the defence team had already had adequate time to prepare, as many of the legal representatives had also worked on the trials involving associates of Ibori.

His wife, mistress and lawyer, were all convicted in London last year. Much of the complex evidence has been agreed over the course of the previous trials, the prosecution said.

Before the trial the court will convene to hear legal arguments, where Ibori will apply to have the case thrown out.

The Moment

Related stories: Ibori's sister convicted in london for money laundering

Ibori's bail revoked, re-arrested in Dubai

Newly appointed commander of the Special Task Force promises to bring peace to Jos

Maj.-Gen. Oluwaseun Oshinowo, the new Commander of the military Special Task Force, STF, maintaining security in Plateau, on Monday in Jos vowed to ensure the return of peace to the troubled state.

Oshinowo made the promise when he paid a courtesy call on Gov. Jonah Jang, saying that he understood the terrain of Plateau having lived in the state since 1981.

“I’m here to work for Plateau State because I’ve settled here with my family and my two kids were born here. I’m not living in the barracks but in my own house in Bassa.

“I’m here at the bidding of the Commander-in-Chief and I am ready to work with you. I seek your cooperation so that we can bring peace back to Plateau.”

Oshinowo described Plateau as his home and said he would like his children and family to grow in a peaceful atmosphere that used to pervade the entire state in the past.

“We need to bring peace back to Plateau; we can do it and we will do it. I do tell my friends that crisis met me in Jos and crisis will leave me in Jos by God’s grace.

“Plateau used to be the envy of everybody in this country. Many of us come from other states but Jos is the best place you can stay in this country whether you believe it or not and the peace must return.”

The STF commander, however, said that he would not be able to do anything without the cooperation of Jang, his senior colleague in the military.

Responding, Jang expressed dismay at accusations that he, as an experienced military officer, had not been able to end the crisis because of the many intricacies involved.

“When a similar crisis erupted in Numan in the then old Gongola State, it didn’t take me one week to put it under. I didn’t need anybody’s permission to order the brigade commander and the head of state congratulated me for a job well done.

“But as an elected governor, the constitution has changed the position of the chief security officer of a state to that of a general without troops because all the security forces are under the president.”

Jang said that the president’s directive to the Chief of Defence Staff did not presuppose that he (Jang) had failed but that the defence chief was only being reminded by the president to come and do his work properly.

The governor, however, said that the president had not relieved him as the chief security officer of the state since it was a constitutional issue.

He said that all the security heads met regularly at the Security Council but noted that security issues agreed on at the council were not carried out by the appropriate authorities.

Nigeria loses Trade Union hosting rights

Meanwhile, following the spate of bombing in the country by Boko Haram sect, Nigeria has lost the hosting rights of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC-Africa) Congress which was scheduled for Abuja from October 24 – 26, 2011.

Nigeria was granted the hosting rights in October 2010. President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Comrade AbdulWaheed Omar, who disclosed this in a press conference yesterday said , “this congress would have brought trade unionists from across Africa to Nigeria as well as their comrades from all continents.

Unfortunately, due to the spate of bombings especially that of the United Nations House in Abuja, the hosting right has been withdrawn and is to be taken to either Cotonou, Johannesburg, Nairobi or Dakar. What this tells us is that rather than government creating more problems in the country, it should engage in problem- solving schemes”.

Vanguard

Related stories: Video - Secterian killing in Jos

President Goodluck Jonathan Declares War On Terrorism

Video - Four Boko Haram members to face death penalty for UN attack

And now on to Nigeria, where four members of a radical Islamist sect face trial for bombing the U.N. headquarters in the Nigerian capital. If found guilty, the men face the death penalty for their role in the attack, which killed 23 people.

Four suspected members of a radical Islamist sect have been charged with orchestrating a suicide bombing on United Nations headquarters in the Nigerian capital last month.

The attack killed at least 23 people and wounded more than 100.

They face the death penalty if found guilty.

The men are accused of being members of Boko Haram, whose name in the Haussa language means "Western education is forbidden."

They were among 19 men brought to a magistrates court in Abuja on Friday accused of carrying out separate attacks as members of the sect.

The sect is also blamed for almost daily killings around its home base in the remote northeast.

The U.N. attack was the first known suicide bombing in Nigeria.

It marked an escalation in the group's tactics and revealed a step-up in the sophistication of explosives it uses.

Intelligence officials have said evidence suggests some Boko Haram members have trained in Niger and have connections with al Qaeda's North African wing.

The United States has become increasingly concerned about the threat posed by Boko Haram and its cooperation with al Qaeda.

Nigeria's population of more than 140 million is split roughly equally between a largely Muslim north and a mostly Christian south.

Boko Haram, which wants Islamic sharia law more widely applied, does not have the support of the majority of Nigerian Muslims.

ntdtv

Related stories: President Goodluck Jonathan Declares War On Terrorism

Video - Secterian killing in Jos

Video - Suicide blast kills 18 at UN in Nigeria

Britain's most wanted fire arms and drug dealer arrested by the NDLEA

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Friday said that it had arrested Britain's most wanted fire arms and drug suspect.

A statement issued by the Chairman of the agency, Alhaji Ahmed Giade, said the suspect was arrested on Sept. 13, in Lagos.

The statement said the suspected fugitive, was apprehended by officers of the Joint Task Force (JTF) of the NDLEA during an intensive manhunt for him around the country.

"The NDLEA has a statutory mandate to partner with other countries and International organisations in the global fight against illicit drugs.

"We shall continue to partner with all stakeholders in the drive to halt the trade in narcotics as the country is not a safe haven for drug barons," it said.

The statement also quoted the commander of the JTF, Mr Sunday Zirangey, who coordinated the operations, as saying that preliminary investigation had commenced into the incident and that additional information was being gathered and processed on the suspect.

"The suspect, an indigene of the Lancaster area, in the UK, is wanted by the Operation Greengage Team for his alleged involvement in the importation of cocaine, cannabis, firearms and ammunition into the U.K. from Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

"A European arrest warrant was issued in May 2008 because it was believed that he had links with the Netherlands," it said.

The statement quoted the Lancashire Constabulary Police, as saying after the arrest, that the suspect would be extradited to face criminal charges in the U.K.

Vanguard

Related stories: NDLEA Arrests 103 Drug Traffickers 

NDLEA intercepts N4b cocaine in Lagos 

President Goodluck Jonathan Declares War On Terrorism

President Goodluck Jonathan has once again reaffirmed the Federal Government's commitment to ensure that those behind terrorist acts in the country will be brought to justice.

The President, who was represented by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru, while performing the traditional laying of wreaths at a memorial for victims of the United Nations (UN) House bomb blast, stated that 'now is the time to strengthen our cooperation and faith in the United Nations' despite the attack by 'evil minded persons.

Laying the wreaths at exactly 11:30 a.m., he said,'We shall continue to march on until global peace and security is achieved.'

He vowed that government would ensure that all those responsible for the terrorist attack were brought to justice.

Jonathan also reaffirmed government's commitment to continue to work with the UN as partners for peace, development and progress, he also assured the immediate rehabilitation of the UN building.

He told the bereaved families to take solace in the fact that there was no wound that Heaven could not heal, and promised to support them in their future endeavours.

He said: 'It is our solemn prayer that this sad incidence will never happen again. Evil will never triumph over good nor darkness over light.'

However, Secretary General of the UN, Mr. Ban Ki-Moon, confirmed the re-assessment of security in the country by the UN in his tribute and stated that such attacks on UN premises around the world have increased in recent years.

He said the exercise personified the deep commitment that characterises the work of the UN in Nigeria and globally.

'At this time of sorrow and loss, let us pledge to honour their sacrifice by continuing to make the United Nations' presence in Nigeria a beacon of peace and hope,' Ki-Moon said.

The UN scribe noted that the terrorist attack showed utter disregard for human life and it was an assault not just on the UN premises but also on her values and work.

'There can be no justification for such wanton killing and destruction. The victims were concerned only with helping Nigeria's poor and vulnerable, and supporting the country in addressing its varied challenges.

Colleagues working on crime prevention, health services and many other urgent issues had their lives cut short.

'I am told of one young man who died on his last day at work before departing to further his education, a path he chose because he had been so inspired by his association with the UN. There are many more of such stories,' he said.

The country coordinator of the UN, Mr. Daouda Toure, reassured the bereaved that their loved ones did not die for nothing but rather they died because they believed in a world of peace, tolerance and social justice.

He said their deaths should 'spur all of us as one family to continue to live the ideals for which they died for.'

Toure described the bombing as an attack against the principles and values of the body, and it was a demonstration of ignorance about the work and mission of the UN as a global moral voice.

It is a non political and non sectarian organization, committed to working with different partners to alleviate human suffering, promote peace, human rights and solidarity, as well as improve the structures and capacity of governance to deliver human and economic development for countries of the world.

'In all we do, we stand with the people, no matter their colour, race, standing, religious or political persuasion.

The very victims of this heinous act of August 26, 2011 themselves represent the diversity of the UN in terms of reach, content and partnership,' Toure said.

'On the August 26, 2011, lives were not only cut short, dreams were shattered.

Though we mourn, we also celebrate the virtues, values and valour which our departed colleagues, friends and partners brought to their work,' he added.

Tributes also came from 12 year old Edward Dede, who spoke on behalf of the bereaved families.

The president, UN Staff Association, Uzoma Abudu, who described the victims as martyrs of development, said the names will be engraved on the wall of the UN House when it rises again.

Eulogies also came from the UNDP administrator, Helen Clark; UNICEF Executive Director, Anthony Lake; DG, UNESCO, Irina Bokova; Executive Director, UN Women, Michelle Bachelet; and Executive Director, UNFPA, and Prof. Tunde Osotimehin, among others.

The 11 dead UN staff and their designations included Ms Rahmat Abdullahi (Registry Clerk, UNDP); Mr. Musa Ali (Zonal Logistics Assistant for the North West, WHO); Mr. Johnson Awotunde (Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist, UNICEF); Dr. Edward Dede (National Professional Officer, WHO) and Mr. Elisha Enaburekhan (Driver, UNAIDS).

Others were Mr. Ahmed Abiodun Adewale-Kareem (Shipping Assistant, UNICEF); Mr. Iliya David Musa (Receptionist, UN Common Services, UNDP); Mr. Ingrid Midtgaard (Associate Expert, UNODC); Mrs. Felicia Nkwuokwu (Receptionist, UN Com- mon Services, UNDP); Mr. Stephen Obamoh (ERT Radio Operator, UNDP); and Mr. Abraham Osunsanya (Administrative Assistant, WHO).

Some of the 10 non UN staff included Mr. Sunday James Ebere (Shipping Agent, Balast Agency); Mr. Ndubisi Bright (Hospitality Industry Consults); Mr. Paul Waziri (Nigerian Cleaning Services); and Ms Kate Demehin (Federal Ministry of Health).

The Moment

Related stories: President Goodluck Jonathan orders military to take over Jos security

Video - Secterian killing in Jos

Goodluck Jonathan urges Nigerians to unite for greatness

 

50 Cent loses legal battle to Chinua Achebe

Seems like 50 Cent had the perfect title for his new movie. Already dealing with one lawsuit over $200,000 in unpaid services for the film, Fif also recently lost a legal battle against an iconic Nigerian author over the movie's title.

Via Broadway Ghana, 50 Cent was recently forced to change the title of the film, Things Fall Apart, which took its name from a classic 1958 novel by author Chinua Achebe. Upon learning of the film's title, Achebe threatened to sue 50 and the film's producers for copyright violations. Fif and friends tried to settle out of court, offering the Chinua Achebe Foundation $1 million to use the title, but the Chinua Achebe Foundation turned down the offer.

"The novel with the said title was initially produced in 1958 (that is 17 years before rapper 50 Cent was born), [is] listed as the mostly read book in modern African literature, and won’t be sold for even $1 billion,” Achebe's legal reps said.

As a result of the setback, the film's backers have convinced 50 to rename the film All Things Fall Apart to head off any more legal battles.

The Mario Van Peebles–directed movie, set for a 2012 release, tells the story of a college football player whose sports career is cut short by cancer. All Things Fall Apart stars Peebles, Ray Liotta and 50 Cent in the lead role.

Nigerian Films

Related story: Nigerian Writers Dominate Commonwealth Prizes

Chimamanda Adichie at 2009 TED Conference

Video - Secterian killing in Jos

14 members of one family were killed in Plateau state, Nigeria, in what appears to be a religiously-motivated attack.

Locals say they were a Christian family, shot or hacked to death, by Muslim herdsmen. To these villagers, this is part of a cycle of revenge killings that have left dozens of people dead in the last two weeks.

While killings motivated by religion, or battle for land, have dogged the area for many years, there now appears to be a new, more determined pattern; pitting communities who have lived together for decades against each other.

The murders are another headache for President Goodluck Jonathan, who is also dealing with more bombings, after last month's attack on the UN compound in Abuja.

Aljazeera

Related stories: President Goodluck Jonathan orders military to take over Jos security

Secret Killings - Jos Residents Devise Survival Strategies

Baby factory discovered in Anambra

Proprietress of Divine Mercy Motherless Babies Home Obosi , Lady Ifeoma Okolo allegedly escaped arrest yesterday as police raided the home in connection with alleged child trafficking.

Found at the home were 8 babies , and about 20 pregnant young girls .

The Anambra state Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development after the raid took charge of three babies. The ministry's Director of Child Development, Mr Emeka Ejide led his team alongside the police for the raid.

The home located at Enic Foam road has a very big warehouse . The building has several rooms . in the decrepit rooms were 20 young pregnant girls waiting to deliver their babies for sale.

Investigation had it that one Miracle -a three year old boy was already sold at N400,000 to a woman who was desperately looking for a baby boy. Ifeoma however defaulted in delivering the boy to her client even after she had paid the amount both parties agreed. That was to mark the genesis of the problem of the home.

When contacted on phone , Lady Ifeoma Okolo said she went to the hospital with the 5 babies (initially at Nkpor but later Onitsha) but did not say anything about the pregnant girls harboured there. His workers had said Awada hospital.

But on investigation, Daily Champion discovered that clothes , make up, and bags of young girls were in the various rooms in the warehouse which had secret key locks and confusing entrance.

A source at the scene confided to Daily Champion that the home takes care of pregnant young girls and about 12 of them were there as at last week she visited and a good number of babies present. She informed claimed that the home specializes in selling babies to baby seekers.

But a Home care in the home, Mrs Elizabeth Okoroji and Cleaner, Mrs Mercy Amadi denied knowledge of such deals of selling babies and keeping pregnant young girls in the home but later claimed they were new and may not give accurate account of happenings at the home.

A woman ( names withheld ) who hails from Enugu state confessed to buying a baby from the home at the cost of over N400, 000 , praying that she be forgiven as she was not the only one that engaged in that even as she blamed her predicament on a protracted quest for a baby boy . She argued that in Igbo land a family without a baby boy was not regarded, explaining that she had given birth to a baby girl. She denied ever thinking of using the child for ritual.

The two tender babies were taken to Tenderlove Motherless babies home Awka while the other one was taken to Model motherless babies home Awka . police said they are on the trail of the home owner.

Speaking to journalists later, Commissioner for women Affairs and Social Development, Dr Mrs Ego Uzoezie reaffirmed the commitment of the ministry to clean up the mess by those running illegal homes in the state.

Daily Champion

Related stories: 32 Teenagers on trial for planning to sell babies

84 year old woman arrested for selling babies

Video - Documentary on human trafficking between Nigeria and Italy

Video - Part 2 of documentary on human trafficking between Nigeria and Italy

Ritualist beheads six year old boy

A six-year-old boy simply identified as Dan-Haru was on Saturday afternoon beheaded by a suspected ritualist in Chanchaga, a suburb of Minna, the Niger capital.

The headless corpse was dumped in a well.

It was gathered that the victim was left at home with his four-year-old brother by their parents who were petty traders at Kasuwa dari, a popular night market.

The younger brother was said to have escaped from the assailant during the attack and reported the incident to their father who was selling kolanuts at the market.

Eyewitnesses, however, said the late response by the father led to the escape of the assailant after killing the victim.

The mother of the deceased discovered his clothes inside the well and raised an alarm which attracted the father and sympathisers.

The Police Public Relation Officer of Niger Command, Mr Richard Oguche, confirmed the incident, pointing out that the Force had commenced investigation into the incident.

He said the assailant might have used a block moulding engine found with blood stain at the house to smash the head of the deceased.

Oguche said the police had not made any arrest in connection with the incident while the corpse had been released for burial.

Vanguard

Related stories: 50 Year Old Man Beheads His Wife

Man beheads judge over court ruling

Drunk police officers kills 3 at funeral

Authorities say four drunk officers with Nigeria's federal police force opened fire on a funeral service they were assigned to guard, killing at least three mourners.

The shooting took place this weekend in the village of Akoko in Nigeria's Delta state. Delta state police spokesman Charles Muka said Monday that the officers opened fire for no reason after drinking heavily.

Muka said the four officers were being held pending the filing of criminal charges over the shooting.

Nigeria's federal police remain incapable of stopping ethnic and religious violence sweeping the oil-rich nation. Critics say its officers instead shake down motorists for bribes and make sham arrests to demand bail money from families. Many officers serve as personal orderlies to the country's elite.

Associated Press

Related stories: Police gun down 70-year old man who refused to pay bribe

Police officer arrested for murders

Video - Dr. Richard Ajayi sets up Nigeria's first IVF clinic

After studying in the UK, Dr. Richard Ajayi returned to Nigeria in 1999 to set up the country's first IVF treatment clinic.

President Goodluck Jonathan orders military to take over Jos security

Following the unending bloodletting in Jos, President Goodluck Jonathan has directed the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Vice Marshall Oluseyi Petinrin, to take over full charge of security matters in Plateau State.

With this directive, the military will effectively take control of security in the state, but Presidency sources maintained Monday night that it was not a backdoor declaration of a state of emergency.

Over 100 persons including two families have been killed in the last two weeks following a dispute over the venue of Eid prayers by an Islamic sect after the Ramadan.
Thousands of lives have also been lost in the crises spanning over a decade.

At the last Council of State meeting, the National Security Adviser, General Owoye Andrew Azazi, had said Jonathan directed him to bring up the Jos issue at the next meeting, but apparently because of the spate of killings, the president is acting before then.

A statement from the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, said the president further directed the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, to bring up all pending reports of recent committees set up by the Federal Government on the issue for immediate review and implementation.

Jonathan, who is billed to meet with Governor Jonah Jang today, further directed the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to move in immediately to provide succour for internally displaced persons in the troubled state.

In a broadcast Monday to state citizens, Jang said the recent events “have again confirmed that terrorism is here with us and they are expanding their frontiers and posing a greater security challenge. And it must therefore be tackled with all the might at government’s command”.

He said “the bombing of the United Nations building in Abuja shows that these terrorists have no regards to not only life, but any course for humanity which the United Nations symbolises,” adding that the terrorism challenge which manifests across the nation “is real and should not be politicised but approached with all sense of decency”.

Meanwhile, speaking on the Presidential Media Chat on national TV and radio Monday night to mark his first 100 days in office, President Jonathan said the Jos crisis is essentially an economic problem but that religion is being used to fan the flames.

He expressed optimism that Nigeria would not disintegrate.

He said the issue of security problem in Jos was more of a problem with the people but pushed by religion and assured Nigerians that the government was on top of the situation and would soon bring the problem under strict control.

He comprehensively responded to American diplomatic cables published by the Wikileaks website and dismissed it as “beer parlour gossip” that is unreliable given the circumstances under which such information was either given or assumed.

Jonathan was particularly miffed that his wife, Dame Patience, was reportedly arrested with $13.5 million, pointing out that his wife never travelled within the period under reference and wondered how such amount would be raised by the wife of a Deputy Governor.

“It is like beer parlour gossip and associated to the former US Ambassador and some of them said that they discussed with people and what they claim was discussed cannot be verified. It is unreliable and unfortunately people tend to believe it.

“The recent one about me and one of my aides who was alleged to have said that I contributed to the poverty of the people and belongs to the old order is bad. I was just 12 months in office when they said the issue in reference or were they referring to when I was Deputy Governor. So how did I bring poverty to the Niger Delta and how was I part of the old order?

“Maybe people have different wikileaks now. How can my wife get $13.5 million? Do people know what $13.5million is? I think that is rubbish. Those gossips that are being published are what I cannot comment, they are gossips. My wife never travelled so where did they catch her? If your name is mentioned in such a thing you cannot keep quiet but you should not castigate someone about it,” he said.

On the single tenure, he said the people should have waited for him to bring out the details of the proposed amendment but wondered how even legal luminaries kept on commenting on what they had not seen and likened such comments to rumour.

He, however, said for a stable economy to be achievable, there has to be stability in the polity, pointing out that Nigeria started out with countries like Singapore which has now progressed beyond Nigeria due to the stability in their polity.

He noted that even in Africa, Nigeria has the shortest political gestation of four years which was too short and costly for the economy. Added to the social and political upheavals that attend such elections, he said, for an investor to have confidence to invest in the economy, he must see consistency in policy that would protect his investments.

He also said that due to the short period, just when people settle down to offices, they start thinking of second term and some even stay less when they win at tribunals a few months to the end of their tenure.

“The cost of conducting elections cannot be good for us every four years. We spent about N130 billion on INEC alone and we are talking about roads, water etc. Nigeria is the only country in Africa with four years. South Africa is five years and Liberia is seven years and both have two terms. In Africa, elections lead too civil strife.

“I have no regrets about proposing a single tenure of say seven years for Governors and president and six years for Assembly members who may want to spend the rest of their lives there because it will stabilise the polity. People are opposing it out of sentiments but one day, Nigerian will decide. Now it is like a rumour,” he said.

This Day

Related stories: Family of 8 butchered in Jos violence

More killed in Jos intercommunal violence

Pro Gaddafi fighters flee to Nigeria

Some members of former Libyan leader, Col. Muammar Gaddafi's regime have reportedly stormed parts of Northern Nigeria, just as the Interpol yesterday issued arrest warrants for Gaddafi and two others.

A report monitored on the Hausa Service of Hamada Radio International from Kaduna yesterday said while that some members of the Gaddafi regime have crossed over to parts of northern Nigeria, others were heading towards Burkina-Faso.

According to the report, the fugitives crossed over to Nigeria on Thursday night when convoy of trucks slipped and headed towards the north-west state of Katsina.

The report said: "There have been series of security co-coordinating conferences between Nigeria and Niger on how to fashion out containment strategy of the Libyan crisis. "Some members of the Libyan military have maintained close family ties with Northern Nigeria. "Gen. Youssef Dbiri, who headed Gaddafi's security service has his maternal root in Nguru, Yobe State from North-Eastern Nigeria.

"According to security service sources in Niger Republic, the fragile ceasefire between the Tuqreg rebels and Niamey will be tested in the coming weeks if attempts are made to give outright support to Special Forces from France, UK, USA and Jordan in the Gaddafi hunt.

"Another fear is the solidarity and sympathy which the fleeing Gaddafi supporters might get from Southern Niger, in the Maradi-Damagaran axis, and the outer fringes of Northern Nigeria where al-Qaeda affiliated to Boko Haram is lately seen as a potent forces".

"More than 200 Nigerians were arrested in Libya by the TNC, while about 20 were executed last week on allegations of supporting Gaddafi, as mercenaries."

Meanwhile, as Interpol issued arrest warrants for the former Libyan leader and two others yesterday, reports came from Niger of a new convoy of high-ranking Libyan officials arriving across the desert.

In Lyon, France, Interpol said in a statement that it had issued so-called red notices calling for the arrests of Gaddafi, his son, Seif al-Islam and Abdullah al-Senussi, the chief of the former leader's intelligence agency.

There was no suggestion that Col. Gaddafi or the two other wanted men were known to be among those who arrived in the latest convoy to Niger.

The country has been under intense international pressure to turn over any former officials of the Gaddafi government who arrive there.

Yesterday, an official in Niger said the government would respect the Interpol notices and hand over the fugitives should they cross the border, Reuters reported.

Despite an international manhunt, the whereabouts of Libya's top officials have been uncertain since rebels took the capital, Tripoli, last month.

Since then, Col. Gaddafi and his son have taunted the transitional rebel government in audio messages and urged their loyalists to continue fighting.

In the desert town of Bani Walid, among the last strongholds of support for Gaddafi, fighters lobbed mortar shells and fired rockets yesterday as a deadline for their peaceful surrender was set to expire today (Saturday).

There were no reports of casualties. Rebel negotiators have so far been unable to end the standoff, raising the prospect of a battle there over the weekend.

The Interpol notices, which were requested by the International Criminal Court at The Hague based on allegations of war crimes committed by the three men, require any of Interpol's 188 member nations to arrest the suspects and turn them over to the court.Among the member nations is Niger, which borders Libya on the south and has received a number of convoys of loyalist officials fleeing overland. So far, no high-ranking figures in the former government have been confirmed to be accompanying them.

Yesterday, 14 Gaddafi loyalist officials arrived in the northern Niger city of Agadez, including Gen. Ali Kana, who is said to be a Tuareg in charge of Colonel Qaddafi's southern troops, according to a Reuters report.

Tuareg tribesmen, who live on both sides of the Libya-Niger border in the Sahara, have been major supporters of the Gaddafi government.

The group also included another general, Ali Sharif al-Rifi, the commander of the Libyan air force, and two other top officials, who were said to be staying at the Etoile du Ténéré hotel in Agadez, according to the news agency. The hotel is said to be owned by Gaddafi.

Niger's justice minister, Marou Amadou, confirmed that the two generals were in Agadez and were "being well guarded" but were not "in a building belonging to the state."

Gaddafi "is a fugitive whose country of nationality and the International Criminal Court want arrested and held accountable for the serious criminal charges that have been brought against him," said Interpol's secretary general, Ronald K. Noble, in a written statement.

"Interpol will cooperate with and assist the ICC and Libyan authorities represented by the interim Transitional National Council of Libya" to apprehend him.

Arresting Colonel Qaddafi "is a matter of time," the Interpol statement said, quoting the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Luis Moreno-Ocampo. who had requested the Interpol action on Thursday.

Late last month, two of Gaddafi's sons and his second wife fled to Algeria, which granted them asylum on humanitarian grounds, leading to vigorous criticism from Libyan rebel leaders. Algeria is also one of Interpol's member countries, as are all of Libya's neighbours.

Residents of Tripoli planned to converge on Martyrs' Square yesterday night to protest against people who had supported Gaddafi until the very end and then switched sides.

Protesters who gathered in the late afternoon said they did not want such people to retain or gain positions in government.

"Where, where is he?" chanted hundreds of doctors and nurses in hospital scrubs and the colours of the Libyan flag, taunting Gaddafi as they marcheds toward the square.

The doctors carried signs with pictures of other doctors and medical workers killed during the rebellion. They also objected to the Transitional National Council's Minister of Health, Naji Barakat. They said he was a holdover from Gaddafi's time and that he was still acting as authoritarian as before.

Barakat could not be reached for comment, but transitional council officials have said many of Gaddafi's officials had been retained until a new government had been formed to keep essential services functioning.

 Daily Champion

Related stories: Video - Nigerians mistaken by Libyan rebels to be mercenaries for Pro-Ghadafi forces

Nigeria closes Embassy in Libya

Human traffickers are killing Nigerians in the desert

For many years now, there have increasing cases of Nigerians' illegal migration to Europe via the desert as victims of human trafficking and sex slavery.

Despite the fact that only a few of the thousands that embark on the journey come back to tell their stories, the misinformation and the desperation for economic empowerment which Europe may represent have continued to lure more Nigerian youths and their counterparts from other African countries to continuously fall into the trap of a cartel said to be involved in the dastardly act.

Over 2,000 Nigerian youths who embark on this journey every month, according to reports, face near death situations while some die after being stranded in the desert and the women among them forced into prostitution.

Many who make it to Europe work in exploitative conditions while others take on menial jobs under despicable conditions just to survive.

Recently, one of the victims, Mr. Osita Osemene, a graduate of industrial mathematics and a native of Ubulukwu, Aniocha South, Local Government area of Delta State, narrated his ordeal to Sunday Vanguard as part of the activities to mark one year anniversary of his return and that of his organisation, Patriotic Citizen Initiative, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) focusing on discouraging youths from desert traveling.

It all started when Osita could not secure employment three years after graduation from the University of Benin and the car business he was introduced to collapsed in the hands of debtors. As a young man desperately dreaming to have a better life, he decided to go to Europe for greener pastures through any available means without any inclination of what such journey holds in store for him.

The facilitators made him to believe that, through the desert, he and his seven other colleagues would make the trip to Europe in five days. But the journey lasted 91 days and, apart from Osita, no one seems to know the whereabouts of the seven others till date.

According to Osita, the emotional trauma he experienced when he lost his car business to debtors and visa racketeers were nothing to compare with the desert journey.

Before he met his desert migration link-man, Osita paid N250, 000 to a visa racketeer for two years London visa but the visa was discovered to be fake by security agents at the Lagos airport.

Osita was still in the heat of the crisis when a friend told him that his brother in Spain could help him get a job in Europe since he was determined to leave the country. He was able to recover some of the money he paid to the visa agent and, with the help of his family members, he got a little above N200,000 for the journey.

Osita said from the Kano connecting house, they travelled all through the deserts of Zindern, Agadez, Douruku in Niger Republic and Tegery to Gatron and finally to Tehrinmata in Libya.

Throughout the journey, he said, scores of people were dropping dead from the ramshackle truck in which they were travelling in.

When they eventually ran out of water, they were forced to beg for urine from women they met and that of camel for survival.Nigerians stranded

According to him, many Nigerians are stranded in the desert because "once you get to Kano, you are stripped off all your money. I am alive today, because I refused to give them all my money when we got to Kano. Once they collect your money, you may end up stranded in the desert of Niger Republic without food or water. It was there I got the clue that it was pure business. There is no job anywhere."

Osita, who explained that the cartel has a very strong network along the desert routes, said that at each connecting border, there is a connecting house and inside it not less than 2,000 Nigerians had been left stranded. Asked to hazard a guess on the number of Nigerians in all the connecting houses, he said they may not be less than 50,000 excluding the numbers that die on daily basis.

Osita, claiming to have become inquisitive at one of the connecting houses at Agadez, a transit route, said many stranded Nigerians whom he spoke to told him they were stranded as their link-men abandoned them.

"We spent seven days in Agadez and many Nigerians stranded there had lost hopes of returning home. Many were dying on daily basis due to attacks by rebels. I was supposed to go to Morocco but we were told that rebels were killing a lot of people along the route; so we diverted to Libya."

On how he was able to keep his money, he said: "It was an experience I can never forget. I inserted my money into my anus and passed it out through faeces anytime I needed it".

He said the worst happened when the truck conveying them from Douruku to Libya got spoilt in the desert. According to him, they trekked day and night for four days before they got to a place called Tegery where he said 250 Nigerians had died due to lack of water.

"While on our way from Tegery to Gatron, we were attacked. We finally made it to Tripoli but I could not muster the courage to travel through the Mediterranean sea in a ramshackle boat to Europe. At this point, I spoke to four other Nigerians that we should return home and they agreed. I was able to pay their way to Kano where they put a call to their families."

Asked about the lesson learnt, he said human trafficking has devastating effects on the victim. "We drank our urine and that of a camel for survival while in the desert on our way to a non-existing Europe. Many of us who survived it were forced to do all kinds of menial jobs for survival".

Osita called on the Federal Government to check desert migration by young Nigerians even as he urged government to urgently commence the rehabilitation of the 1,750 returnees from Libya.

He hinted that the UK government was in the process of bringing back about 16,000 illegal Nigerian immigrants back to the country.

Vanguard

Related stories: Video - Documentary on human trafficking between Nigeria and Italy

Video - Part 2 of documentary on human trafficking between Nigeria and Italy

Nigeria is the largest African source of  trafficked women to Europe and Asia

Samson Siasia proud of Eagles defeat

Argentine players celebrating their goal

Samson Siasia says he is proud of his players despite a 3-1 loss to Argentina in a friendly match on Tuesday.

"We don’t want to give excuses, but the fact is that the boys were tired.

"We played against Madagascar on Sunday on a very bad pitch, then flew 14 hours to get here and played two days later. It was very difficult for some of the players, especially the ones who played 90 minutes in Madagascar.

"But it was a good game, and we tried our best but we lost."

Lionel Messi was the major inspiration, setting up two of the goals as the South Americans won a difficult contest and Siasia had nothing but praise for the two-time World Player of the Year, reports kickoffnigeria.com.

"He made the difference today. But we shut him down in the second half."

Argentina midfielder, Javier Mascherano agreed with the Nigeria coach about how hard the game was.

"It was a difficult game against a very strong team.

"The names today were different from the team at the World Cup and they made it hard for us." 

This Day

Related stories: Video - Argentina avenge 4-1 defeat against Nigeria

Another Nigeria vs Argentina friendly confirmed for September

Argentina want rematch with Super Eagles

Video - Argentina avenge 4-1 defeat against Nigeria

Argentina 3 – Nigeria 1 (International Friendly, September 6, 2011) The Bangladeshi crowd nervously waited to see if Lionel Messi would recover from a hard collision in the 20th, but they didn’t need to wait long as the Flea dusted himself down and fed a through-ball to Gonzalo Higuain minutes later as the Argentinians took the lead. Two minutes later it was 2-nil to the South Americans as a spellbinding run from Messi ended with Aiyenugba parrying the Barca forward’s shot, and Angel Di Maria was on hand to tuck in the rebound. A call to prayers bellowed throughout the stadium in the 37th minute. Nigeria bounced back immediately after the restart as Ogbuke Chinedu halved the deficit converting a left-wing cut-back, but an own goal from Elderson restored Argentina’s 2-goal cushion.

101greatgoals

Related stories: Argentina coach not thinking about revenge

Video - Nigeria vs Argentina goals

Another Nigeria vs Argentina friendly confirmed for September

Argentina want rematch with Super Eagles

4 Nigerians escape death penalty in Malaysia

Like the biblical injunction which states that ‘the wages of sin is death’, in Malaysia, the punishment for trafficking in hard drugs is outright death by hanging; no appeal! Curiously, four Nigerians, Messrs Ugochukwu Emmanuel Innocent, Udeh Innocent Chukwuemeka, Olisa Kelvin Chukwuka and Mgbeajuo Alex Chigozie, perhaps, out of sheer greed or ignorance, would have increased the number of persons executed by hanging in the Asian country for allegedly trafficking in hard drugs. The suspects were rounded up at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos recently having been profiled to have ingested substances that tested positive for amphetamine weighing 5.715kgs.

Ugochukwu Emmanuel who travelled with a Nigerian passport bearing Gaye Jerry, 33, wanted to board an Ethiopian Airways flight when he was found to have concealed 600 grammes of Methamphetamine in the metal handle of his luggage while Udeh Innocent Chukwuemeka, 36, hid 2kgs of similar drug in a false compartment of his bag during the screening of Qatar Airways flight. Olisah Kelvin Chukwuka, 26, who was caught during the screening of passengers on an Egypt Air flight, ingested 1.300kg while Mgbeajuo Alex Chigozie, 31, who attempted to board an Emirate Airline, swallowed 1.815kg of Methamphetamine. All four suspects were destined for Malaysia.

Chairman of NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade while reacting to the degree of involvement of Nigerian youths in drug deals urged the youths to join the anti-drug campaigns and make the world a drug -free place. The drug czar said, “While we celebrate the prevention of these four suspects from premature death, members of the public, particularly the youths, must make frantic efforts individually to resist drug trafficking. Another worrisome dimension is the number of Nigerians like Gaye Jerry with foreign passports and hidden identities who are on death roll in other countries. Everybody must be actively involved in this campaign.”

Sources at NDLEA intimated Crime Alert that Gaye Jerry, a native of Imo State but resides in Lagos, concealed 600 grammes in the metal handle of his luggage. The bag contained foodstuff meant to distract attention, still the drug was discovered during routine search at the luggage check desk. Gaye, a trader who sells clothes, lived in Gambia between 2000 and 2004. Like Gaye, Udeh Innocent Chukwuemeka who is a student in Malaysia, concealed 2kgs of methamphetamine in his bag. Udeh is studying English at Edutran College at Kaula Lumpur, Malaysia.

During interrogation, he confessed that he took the risk to improve his financial status. “I got involved in drug trafficking because I need money. I am an English language student in Malaysia. After my primary school at Central School, Nnobi, I was admitted at Madonna Commercial School also in Nnobi but I stopped in class two due to lack of fund. I also worked as a commercial motorcyclist and taxi driver in Abia State before I travelled to Malaysia in search of greener pastures. I regret my involvement,” he lamented.

Other suspects included two street hawkers who claimed that they were recruited by drug barons to smuggle illicit drugs out of the country. Messrs Olisah Kelvin Chukwuka and Alex Mgbeajuo Chigozie who hawk ice cream and musical disc respectively in Lagos ingested 72 pieces of Methamphetamine. The suspects who hail from Ebonyi and Anambra states respectively said they got involved in the devilish business for financial gains.

Vanguard

Related stories: 400 Nigerian citizens languish in Chinese prisons

NDLEA Arrests 103 Drug Traffickers

Argentina coach not thinking about revenge

Argentina coach Alejandro Sabella has dismissed talk of revenge when his side takes on Nigeria in a friendly in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka today.

Argentina lost 4-1 to Nigeria in Abuja in June when their former coach Sergio Batista fielded a very inexperienced side.

"I don't think about any revenge, it's no good for human beings, it's no good for anyone, we will try to win but I don't think we will go for revenge," Sabella told a news conference on Monday.

"It's different game because we came here with a stronger team, but we will see tomorrow," he said.

"I don't know what they kind of team they field tomorrow. They play yesterday (Sunday) against Madagascar." Sabella said referring to Nigeria's 2-0 win in an African Nations Cup qualifying match.

Hundreds of fans cheered the Argentina squad when they arrived at Dhaka airport from the Indian city of Kolkata where they defeated Venezuela 1-0 in a friendly on Friday.

Twice World Player of the Year Lionel Messi was the centre of attention and the prospect of watching the Barcelona forward sparked huge excitement in Bangladesh, a country ranked only 139th in the world but still very passionate about football.

Sabella handed Messi the captain's armband after replacing Batista as coach.

"I think there is a time when Argentina have been very strong going forward, the first thing I have to sort out is to achieve some balance between attack and defence," said Sabella.

"We must let him (Messi) be happy. We must let him be completely free on the pitch.

"There are different kind of captains, one for personality and another because they are great players.

Argentina, knocked out of the Copa America on home soil in July at the quarterfinal stage, needed a goal from defender Nikolas Otamendi to beat Venezuela in Sabella's first game in charge.

Daily Trust

Related stories: Video - Nigeria vs Argentina goals

Another Nigeria vs Argentina friendly confirmed for September

Argentina want rematch with Super Eagles