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The Federal Government has inaugurated the National Committee Against Torture (NCAT), whose terms of reference include ensuring that education and information regarding the prohibition against torture are fully included in the training of law enforcement and public officers.
The Attorney General of the Federation (HAGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami (SAN), inaugurated the Committee in Abuja in recognition of the increasing cases of torture across the country, according to a statement on Saturday made available to THE WHISTLER by NHRC Deputy Director Public Affairs, Fatimah Agwai Mohmmed.
The AGF was quoted to have said that the Committee whose secretariat will be domiciled at the NHRC, is expected to play a crucial role to stamp out torture and other related vices, and to ensure justice to survivors and victims.
On his part, the NHRC Executive Secretary, Tony Ojukwu SAN ) who also doubles as the alternate Chair of the Committee said the idea of NHRC hosting the Committee (Secretariat) aligns with international best practices, given that it brings credibility to the work of the Committee.
The statement further reads:
“In her remarks, the Solicitor General of the Federation and Chairperson of the NCAT, on behalf of other members commended the HAG for reconstituting the committee. She assured the AGF of the committee’s commitment to satisfactorily implement the terms of reference, particularly with respect to providing timely statutory reports as required under UNCAT and working with renewed vigour towards fighting against the scourge.
“The Chief Custodian of Human Rights in Nigeria, (Ojukwu) recalled that visits to Correctional Service facilities and other detention centres was one of the major challenges of the previous Committee, saying that leveraging on the powers of the Commission to visit such facilities will be highly beneficial to the Committee.
“The NHRC Boss emphasized the need for the Committee to collaborate with relevant MDAs, Nigerian Bar Associations and Civil Society Organizations to identify and escalate complaints of torture so as to facilitate timely redress of these cases by the Committee.
“The Committee’s Terms of Reference are “To engage and liaise with Committee Against Torture (CAT) and regional human rights mechanisms in the context of country reporting, interactive dialogue or facilitation of visits by special procedure mandate holders or the Subcommittees on the Prevention of Torture.
“To organize and facilitate the preparation of reports to CAT and regional human rights mechanisms, and of responses to communication, follow up questions and recommendations or decisions received from such mechanisms.
“To coordinate data collection and information gathering from government agencies, National Assembly and the Judiciary for the reporting and follow up.
“To foster and lead consultations for reporting and follow up with the National Human Rights Commission and Civil Society Organizations.
“To receive and consider communications on torture from individuals, CSOs and government institutions.
“To prepare quarterly briefings to the HAGF on cases of torture and propose appropriate administrative/Judicial intervention.
“Propose a review of Anti-Torture Legislation and further develop a National Anti-Torture Policy.”
The Nigerian Army has killed Musti, a notorious bandit behind last year’s deadly attack on the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), Kaduna.
The attack on the military school claimed the lives of two officers of the institution – Lt. Commander Wulah and Flight Lieutenant Okoronkwo, while a captain, Major Christopher Datong was abducted
The Kaduna State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, who disclosed this on Saturday, said troops also killed scores of bandits around the tollgate general area in Chikun Local Government Area of the state.
According to the commissioner, another notorious bandit, known as Boderi Isiya, narrowly escaped being killed, adding that corpses and weapons were recovered at the scene, while some of the terrorists eventually died from bullet wounds.
The Commissioner said, “Notorious bandit Boderi Isiya has narrowly escaped being neutralized, while his deadly second in command and several other fighters were gunned down by Nigerian Army troops.
“Security agencies informed the Kaduna State Government of this development in an operational feedback.
“A painstaking check with credible human intelligence sources further confirmed that Boderi and his terror group had a bad day at the hands of the combat-ready troops.
“According to the reports, the troops engaged the bandits around the Tollgate general area of Chikun LGA. The bandits scrambled in retreat, only to run into another ambush laid by the troops in Sabon Gida general area.
“The troops engaged the bandits ferociously, and ultimately subdued them.
“Boderi’s deadly second in command, one Musti, was among those identified to have been eliminated, alongside one Yellow Mai-Madrid and one Dan-Katsinawa, with others yet to be identified. Some of the terrorists are battling with life-threatening wounds.
“Musti and Boderi were responsible for the security breach at the Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna, and kidnappings of students of the Federal College of Forestry Mechanization, the Emir of Bungudu and several other citizens last year.”
There was confusion at the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, in Anambra State on Saturday after three undergraduate students were found dead in their hostel.
The institution, Naija News learnt, had closed its last session on Wednesday, August 24, 2022, after the completion of its second-semester examination.
The school management, however, said it was shocking to learn about the untimely death of the undergraduate students.
Reports said the female students, all in their 200-level, were found dead inside their hostel rooms at the Igbariam campus of the varsity.
A source at the institution confirmed the identity of the students as Obidiaso Chidera (200-level Political Science student), Mercy (200-level Pharmacy student), and Emmanuella (200-level Business Administration).
It is yet unclear what led to their death but security operatives and the school authorities are on their toes to unravel the mystery behind the sad incident.
There are suspicions, however, that the deceased might have mistakenly locked themselves up in their room from outside.
“The students were locked up in the apartment. When we got access to the apartment, we found them lifeless with two of them on their beds in the room, while the third lifeless body was found in the kitchen,” an unnamed source told The PUNCH on Saturday.
While confirming the incident, the management of the institution said the death of the students came as a shock to it.
The Public Relations Officer of the institution, Dr. Harrison Madubueze, said the institution received the report of the incident with rude shock.
Madubueze said, “The university management received with rude shock the news of the death of three of its students. At the moment, the date, time and manner of their death are still uncertain.
“However, the security operatives are investigating the matter and at the appropriate time, they will make the findings public.”
The varsity mouthpiece stressed that the management was unaware that any of her students in the second-year class and above were still within the University environment.
According to him, the second-semester session had ended and students are expected to resume for the new session on October 1st, 2022.
No fewer than 20 passengers perished at Lanlate in Ibarapa East Local Government Area on Friday when two commercial vehicles collided.
It was gathered that the two vehicles which were loaded were travelling on the opposite direction when they collided and burst into flames.
The vehicles and the occupants were reportedly burnt to death while two lucky ones were rescued with injuried from the wreckage.
Eye witnesses blamed the accident on over speeding, telling our correspondent that there were weeping and wailing at the scene as sympathisers thronged the scene.
The Chairman, Ibarapa East Local Government Area, Mr Gbenga Obalowo, was said to have led rescue operation at the scene.
Obalowo said, “It was a very terrible accident. It was a gory sight. We counted over 20 bodies that were burnt completely.
“I learnt the vehicles had a head on collision and the two vehicles, a commercial bus and a Sienna which was also conveying passengers caught fire and got burnt beyond repair.
“Our drivers need to avoid speeding. They should consider other road users and avoid reckless driving.”
Former Southampton and Liverpool striker, Peter Crouch, has criticized the postponement of Premier League matches over Queen Elizabeth II’s death.
Naija News reported earlier that premier league matches scheduled for play this weekend were cancelled as clubs deemed it fit to honour the Queen.
Premier League executive, Richard Masters declared on Friday that organizers and clubs would like to pay tribute to Her Majesty’s long and unwavering service to England.
He said it was important to join others in mourning the passing of the nonagenarian who according had an extraordinary life and contributed immensely to the nation.
Reacting, however, Crouch said on Friday that there are better ways to honour the Queen than postponing matches that have been scheduled for this weekend.
The former player who expressed his thought on Twitter said: “I know it’s only a game and some things are much bigger but imagine all our games went ahead this weekend.”
“Black armbands, silence observed, national anthem, Royal band playing etc to the millions around the world watching?
“Isn’t that a better send-off?” Crouch asked.
Naija News reports that Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and the nation’s figurehead for seven decades died on Thursday at age 96.
Bank Of England Reveals What Will Happen To Existing Pound Notes With Queen’s Image
The Bank of England disclosed on Friday that banknotes bearing the late Queen Elizabeth’s image will still remain legal tender until further communication on the matter is made.
“The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement.
“The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow.”
A documentary by Business Insider in 2020 on the order of events after Elizebeth II’s death revealed the funeral will most likely take place 10 days after the Queen’s death.
On the day of the funeral, the London Stock Exchange will close, as will most UK banks. But there are arguments about replacing currencies bearing the Queen’s image.
The Bank of England said in a statement, “As the first monarch to feature on Bank of England banknotes, the Queen’s iconic portraits are synonymous with some of the most important work we do.
“Current banknotes featuring the image of Her Majesty The Queen will continue to be legal tender. A further announcement regarding existing Bank of England banknotes will be made once the period of mourning has been observed.”
The banknotes could take at least two years while coins could take longer, according to reports Asides from the currency, stamps featuring the image of the Queen will be replaced with King Charles III, according to reports.
The Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye SAN, has disclosed that the commission is Investigating Military spending, including alleged diversion of N4 billion by an ex- military chief.
He said there are also cases of job racketeering in the security sector.
He made the revelation in a speech at the national policy dialogue on corruption and insecurity in Nigeria, held on Friday at the ICPC Auditorium, Abuja.
He said: “A clinical diagnosis of the insecurity menace in the country reveals that to effectively combat insecurity, we require the collaborative efforts of Security Agencies (the military, intelligence, Police, Customs, Prisons, others), as well as Law Enforcement and Anti-Corruption Agencies.”
He explained that ICPC’s findings on the subject matter show that Public sector corruption, directly and indirectly, enables insecurity, and can sometimes complement it.
According to him, “Cases of job racketeering abound in the security sector, many of which are under investigation by the ICPC. There are also ongoing investigations into military contracts spending. Recently, ICPC arrested a military contractor that received over a period of less than ten years cumulative sum of about N6 billion from the Nigerian Army in suspicious circumstances and in violation of extant legislation. The Commission’s recovery of huge cash sums in local and foreign currencies, luxury cars, customized mobile phones, designer watches including three Rolexes as well as property documents from the premises of the contractor underscore the corruption that often attend military procurement.”
He said some former military and security personnel are being investigated by ICPC and a sister agency for embezzlement of funds allocated to security.
“For example, a former head of one of the arms of the military in the twilight of his tenure deposited the sum of N4 billion from the military budget into the accounts of two companies where he is the beneficial owner and sole signatory. The proceeds were used to purchase properties in Abuja in the names of cronies and proxies. Some of the properties paid for by his service were also fraudulently converted to his use. ICPC’s prosecution of this high ranking officer to recover all the implicated assets was strangely and perversely frustrated by a recently retired High Court judge who decided to forfeit some of the assets to FGN and the rest left to the suspect. While the Commission has filed notice of appeal, this strange development aggravates an already bad situation and escalates insecurity and impunity.
“Another case under investigation is theft of part of special intervention fund approved for security operations by some civil servants in the line ministry who transferred about N1 billion to 4 shell companies. A special investigative team under the leadership of NSA and ICPC recovered some of the diverted assets including state of the art buildings located in Abuja and over N220 million cash. Investigation in this matter is still ongoing.”
He said funds to retool and reposition the police to a world class institution is also threatened by corruption.
He added that the newly established police special intervention framework designed to eliminate underfunding of the police, the Police Trust Fund, is already under ICPC investigation.
He said it is being investigated for abuse, fund diversion, questionable welfare packaging that is not for the police who are the beneficiaries of the fund and sundry corrupt practices.
“One may safely conclude that other security agencies are dogged by similar practices albeit to varying degrees.
“In the past 7 years the government of President Muhammadu Buhari and the 9th National Assembly have ensured significantly increased funding for the security sector. Part of our interrogation today is why has this proactive effort not translated into commensurate effectiveness in the war against insurgency and insecurity and despite the gallant and sacrificial effort of our soldiers, policemen and other security operatives working daily to secure Nigerians. Experts have attributed the aggravation of insecurity partially to misapplication and misappropriation of funds in the defence sector procurement practices. Investigations by anti corruption agencies will seem to bear this out. What is worse is that soldiers are often reported in social media complaining of being poorly-equipped and poorly motivated.
“These challenges can be partly traced to the revelation by the Centre for Democracy and Development, (CDD) that about $15billion has been squandered through fraudulent arms procurement deals in the last 20 years in the country,” he said.
He further highlighted that Nigeria’s worsening insecurity challenges and the resulting impact on the Nigerian state, her economy and her image, continue to be cause of grave concern to Nigerians.
“Nigeria’s insecurity crisis is real and consolidating. A recent Business Day publication of May 20, 2022, showed that Nigeria’s Military spending grew by 56% in one year – from USD2.4Bn in 2020 to USD4.5Bn in 2021. If those figures are correct, it indicates that strengthening the security services, especially the military, to beef up security against internal threats has been a matter of very high national priority under this government,” he said.
It was learnt that the deceased (unknown identity) was reportedly seen by neighbours four years ago during one of his occasional trip to Ibadan from Port Harcourt in Rivers State where he resides at the time.
As at the time of filing this report, the cause of death is yet to be ascertained.
Residents told newsmen that non of the residents in the area knew about the incident until this week when the community decided to enter into the compound to cut the overgrown grass inside his compound which has become a haven for snakes and rodents.
It was gathered that the Abokis who were contracted for the job of cutting the grass in the deceased compound were told to jump into the compound since the gate of the house were locked from behind only for them to found out that the car of the house owner is in the premises and has been covered with grass.
According to eyewitness , after managing to cut down the bush , they peeped at the window of the building and saw the skeleton of the decomposed corpse on his bed with a phone in his hand.
Officers of the Oyo state police command are currently carrying out a comprehensive investigation into the incident.
– As Rivers, Oyo, Abia Governors, Others Boycott NEC Meeting
The resignation of Walid Jibrin as the Board of Trustees (BoT) chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has not deterred Governor Nyesom Wike from continuing with his attack on the party.
This comes as the Rivers Governor has vowed to continue to “fight” until the party serves justice by asking its chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, to step down from his position.
Ever since Atiku Abubakar, a northerner, emerged as PDP’s presidential candidate, the party has not enjoyed a moment of peace as Governor Wike has insisted that it would be unfair for the party’s national chairman and presidential candidate to come from the same region.
On this ground, the Rivers governor demanded Ayu’s resignation as a condition to support the party’s presidential candidate in 2023.
But in an apparent move to shut Wike up, the party’s BoT Chairman who also hails from the north volunteered to step down from his position for peace to reign.
Unsatisfied by the move, Governor Wike during the commissioning of the Rivers State University’s Ahoada Campus in the Ahoada East Local Government Area said “This fight we will fight it to the end.”
Meanwhile, some southern governors among whom have shown loyalty to Wike in the matter did not attend PDP NEC meeting.
They include governors Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State, Seyi Makinde of Oyo, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu, and Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom.
The residence of Tukur Mamu, a negotiator with the Kaduna Train terrorists has been invaded by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS).
The operatives reportedly invaded his residence in the early hours of Thursday and left with documents, phones and laptops.
Daily Trust reports that the members of his family within the apartment were asked to sign documents they did not read before carting them away.
Mamu, who was arrested in Cario, Egypt was indicted over ransom racketeering and relationship with terrorists in the northeastern extremity of Egypt.
But Mamu upon his arrest on Wednesday and immediate deportation accused the Federal Government of orchestrating his arrest with claims he was only on his way to Saudi Arabia for lesser Hajj with his wives, eldest son and brother-in-law.
Recall that Mamu, came to the limelight after he made public his involvement with the terrorists that abducted the inbound Kaduna train passengers, negotiating their release.
Although there were speculations of outrageous ransoms paid by families of victims, Mamu had constantly debunked such reports, with claims that all releases by terrorists were achieved through dialogue.
Mamu had collected huge sums running into billions for terrorists with some of the payments made in foreign currencies by families and negotiated the release of their loved ones.
