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Swear with Quran you’ve no hand in banditry, as I did, Matawalle dares Lawal

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Bello Matawalle, Minister of State for Defence, has clapped back at Dauda Lawal, his successor in office, who accused him last week, of being in bed with the bandits terrorising Zamfara State and beyond, saying instead, it is the governor and his supporters that should swear that they have no link with the hoodlums or hand in their activities.

Lawal, a guest of TVC Television network, had accused the former governor of being so involved with banditry in the state that apart from habouring the criminals at the government house, but his office actually served as a conduit pipe for channelling ransom money from victims of kidnapping activities to their abductors.

But in his riposte on Tuesday, Matawalle, who appeared on Sunrise Daily, a breakfast programme on Channels Television dismissed the allegations of aiding banditry, daring the governor and others similarly accusing him of being complicit in the criminal activities to provide evidence to prove what they were saying.

Against the backdrop of the call for him to resign from his job and defend himself not only over his alleged connivance with bandits, but engaging in massive corruption and misappropriating of government resources, running into more than N250billion the Minister defended his decision to engage in dialogue with bandits, saying it was the best he could do to redeem the situation at that time and that the idea, which was actually supported by several governors, led to the recovery of abducted persons and ammunition in Zamfara.

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Daring his accusers to provide proof of being in bed with the outlaws, he said: “Because I dialogue? It was not only I. Remember all the governors dialogued. The governor of Niger state dialogued with bandits, the governor of Sokoto did the same. Why only me? Because it is Zamfara? Zamfara is a very complex state with terrible human beings with devilish ideas”

Brushing aside the allegation, the Minister said those accusing him were actually the people hobnobbing with the bandits and involved in the criminal activities, daring them to swear with the Holy Quran to prove their innocence.

His words: “Let me remind you, I was the only governor that swore to the Holy Quran that I have no hand or connection with banditry or I am not happy with what is happening. That if I am happy or if I am part of it or if I know those doing it or if I am collaborating with them God should not give me one-second grace.

“I challenged all the politicians, including General Ali Gusau and Dauda Lawal, to do the same. None of them could take the oath, and if they don’t take the oath that means they are part of it.

“I have always acted in good faith, as have other governors who engaged in dialogue with bandits, including the Governor of Niger State, Abubakar Sani Bello, and the Governor of Sokoto State. Yet, I seem to be singled out, perhaps because Zamfara is a complex state with terrible human beings with devilish ideas.”

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Matawalle, also denied allegations of massive fraud, claiming that what were being said about him were fabrications Lawal, saying the kind of money being mentioned by his successor was never received in the state in the four years he was in office.

Hear him: “In my four years, I did not ever receive that money. The records are there, the indices are with the Ministry of Finance. It is on record, and let me tell you, I don’t understand; I pity Dauda (Zamfara Gov). I thought for now he should concentrate on giving good governance to the people of Zamfara State.

“I thought, for now, he should concentrate on the issue of insecurity. I thought, for now, he should realise that governance is a continuous process because if he is in that seat today, tomorrow he will not be. But how can someone come and be telling lies, a whole governor coming to deceive the public?”

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Akpabio: Diary of a legislative czar in the Red Chamber

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By Jackson Udom
Yesterday, Friday, 13th June, 2025, Senator Godswill Akpabio clocked two years in office as the President of the 10th Senate and Chairman, National Assembly of Nigeria, having contested, won and was sworn-in on the 13th of June, 2023.
As the President of the 10th Senate, the Ukana-born lawyer cum politician has in the last 730 days demonstrated exceptional leadership, navigating complex legislative processes with finesse which has no doubt been marked by significant achievements, showcasing his ability to balance competing interests and drive national development.
Akpabio’s journey as Senate President began with a clear vision for Nigeria’s future. He faced numerous challenges, including resistance from within his party and opposition from other stakeholders. However, his strategic approach and ability to build consensus helped him overcome these obstacles with the stout support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the leadership of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Having gotten the overwhelming support of his colleagues to emerge the President of the Senate and the number three citizen of the country, Akpabio swung into action by ensuring that all contending interests and tendencies before his emergence were brought into one united fold.
The issue of committee chairmanship which had in the past caused early crisis between senators and the leadership was clinically and meticulously handled by Akpabio with an all-inclusive allocation of committee heads and their deputies. At the end of the rigorous exercise, both the ruling and oppostion lawmakers, had no reason to want to reinvent the banana peels which hallmarked past Senates.
With the unity among the Senators as encouraged by Akpabio through his all-inclusive running of the Senate, lawmakers have no reasons not to give their best in the areas of lawmaking and oversights functions.
Under the Akpabio leadership, in the period under review, the Senate has passed several landmark bills, including the 2025 national budget. He successfully navigated the contentious issue of fuel subsidy removal, securing legislative backing and explaining the economic rationale behind the policy.
Economic Reforms
The Akpabio leadership of the Senate has been instrumental in driving economic reforms, prioritizing critical sectors like infrastructure, education, healthcare, and defense. His emphasis on fiscal responsibility and transparency has improved budget implementation and accountability.
National Security
The Senate, under Akpabio’s leadership, has approved significant funding increases for the military, police, and intelligence agencies. This demonstrates his commitment to addressing emerging security threats and promoting national stability.
Public Engagement and Transparency
In his last two years on the saddle, Akpabio has prioritized transparency and engagement with the Nigerian people. He has used media relations to address national concerns and clarify the Senate’s position on key issues, building public trust in the legislative process.
Akpabio’s leadership style can be characterized as inclusive, strategic, and results-driven. He has demonstrated an ability to balance competing interests, build consensus, and drive national development. The Akpabio model offers valuable lessons for future legislative leaders, emphasizing the importance of strategic planning and vision, Inclusive decision-making and consensus-building, transparency and accountability, as well as effective communication and public engagement.
As Akpabio’s tenure continues, his legacy as a transformative leader will be cemented in the overall interst and benefit of Nigerians. The Akpabio model provides a framework for future leaders to build upon, promoting good governance and national development in Nigeria.
 * Udom is Special Assistant on Media to The President of The Senate.

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Pardon of Ogoni nine: Tinubu has murdered my father a second time – Bade

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For not only pardoning Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others on Thursday, but decorating them with national honours, Suage Bade, son of Albert Bade, one of the four prominent Ogoni leaders killed by a mob in 1994 has a word for President Bola Tinubu – you have killed my father a second time.

“Since yesterday (Thursday) night, I started mourning my father again,” the scion of Bade, a retired permanent secretary in Rivers State Government, who later took on the role of a traditional ruler in his native Ogoni community, said on Friday.

A guest on Prime Time, a public affairs programme on ARISE NEWS, television network, Bade saw the move as propelled by the quest for money, accusing Tinubu of being too eager to see to the commencement of resumption of oil drilling in Ogoni land that he did not care about the consequences of his action.

The pushback came just a day after Tinubu, at the celebration of the 32nd anniversary of June 12, 1993 presidential election, now being marked as Nigeria’s Democracy Day, pardoned the Ogoni-9, led by Saro-Wiwa, leader of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP), the family of the slain leaders also known as the Ogoni-4, hold culpable for the murder of their parents.

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Though the President, who made the declaration in a speech he delivered at the joint-sitting of the National Assembly, did not absolve them of guilt in the crime, which led to their arrest, trial and eventual hanging by the military government of Sani Abacha, after their conviction by a military tribunal, he went ahead to confer on them national honours.

Palpably anguished by the gesture, Bade told his host on Friday: “It is a complete disregard for the memory of our fathers, who actually served this country diligently without blemish over the years and were killed, murdered in cold-blood in broad daylight by the same men that are being honoured today – yesterday – and they made no mention of the four. It’s a very sad development.”

Acknowledging that Saro-Wiwa and the rest might not have participated in physically killing the Ogoni-4, he said they remained blameworthy by vicarious responsibility, because they were the ones who instigated the mob as leaders of MOSOP, the group agitating over the activities of oil companies in the community.

He added: “It is actually a vicarious responsibility on the part of those who were at the leadership of MOSOP at that time. So, if they were leading MOSOP and people were defamed and at the end of the day, they conspired, hacked them down, butchered them and today we have not seen their bodies, how else do you – you know that if somebody assigns somebody to go and kill and you’re not there, you have also killed that person.

“So, he was the mastermind of the killing. I’ve said that before, he was the mastermind for the murder of the four. However, for me, I don’t have anything with the pardon, what I feel that is wrong, which is an aberration is how do you honour a murderer that you have just pardoned. Then you said nothing about the four, our fathers that were butchered to death. They didn’t disappear.

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“Pardon is okay, as I said. It’s the President’s prerogative to grant pardon. But to now honour murderers, I think we are now introducing a new low in our Nigerian society, because a lot of Ogonis who escaped and went under the cover of United Nations Refugee Programme, are you telling me if they return, you’re also going to accord them an OON (Officer of the Order of the Niger)?

“We have a lot of respectable Nigerians like Wole Soyinka and other people who deserve such honour. But I can now see why Chinua Achebe turned down such an offe,r because it looks like values are not being considered anymore. You can now be a career murderer and be given an honour in Nigeria. That’s what it means. That’s the new low.

“So, I’m not happy about this because my father was a man who was straightforward. He served and at the end of the day, contributed in development, not only in the sphere of his service, but in Ogoni. But all he got from the people he served, through Saro-Wiwa’s evil rhetoric was for people to hack him down, cut him into pieces and take his body away and till today, there’s no remorse.

“Well, we can’t cry on for more than 30 years. If certain people in Ogoni don’t want to be remorseful for what they did and they want to stand by all the lies, and continue to promote themselves, because they want to enrich themselves – because they have protruding stomachs that cannot be filled and continue an activism that is not real to the people – I want to say for the Bade family and for others, we have reached a point, we hand it over to God.

“I think all of these is all about how to come to Ogoni and get oil and they are in a hurry about it. I’m not in a hurry to betray my father for any form of compensation. In fact, honouring him and putting him side by side with murderers, I don’t think I will accept that. I don’t need compensation.”

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Regarding to many who are calling for the total exculpation of the Ogoni-9 of blame over the incident, Bade, attributed it to disinformation, which he said usually led to misinformation adding that a lot of people, particularly the younger generation who did not know the true story, saying if they truly knew the correct story, the situation would be different.

“Just imagine that a man left his house and then he was hacked down. I was there. I saw blood splatter all around the wall in the palace. Today, they refer to that place in Gokana as “slaughter.” People leave their homes and say they’re going to “slaughter.” Then people like Ledum Mitie, Professor Ben Nanem and all those who are agitators for MOSOP, who have the responsibility to turn around for good, they have created a transgenerational catastrophe in Ogoni land.

“This is going to pass through generations and Ogoni is remain divided. I’m so sad. What the President did is wrong. I used to see him as one who listens to both sides and does the right thing. But unfortunately, I think he is misguided and I don’t know why he fell to that.”

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How traffic jam saved me from ill-fated Indian plane – woman narrates

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A woman who was scheduled to board the Air India flight that tragically crashed in Ahmedabad has spoken about her narrow escape, saying she missed the doomed plane by just 10 minutes, The PUNCH is reporting.

Quoting Mail Online news, the report said Bhoomi Chauhan was en route to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Gujarat to catch flight AI-171 to London when heavy traffic caused a critical delay, preventing her from boarding, and eventually spared her from a devastating crash that claimed 241 lives, leaving only one survivor.

Chauhan, a resident of Ahmedabad, who due to being stuck in heavy traffic, reached the airport 10 minutes later and ultimately ended up missing her flight, told local media that upon receiving information of the devastating crash just moments after she was turned away from the boarding gates, she shivered badly and her legs started shaking.

The Gatwick-bound plane carrying 242 passengers, including 53 British nationals, crashed just moments after take-off.

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The Boeing 787 Dreamliner careened back down to earth in the densely populated Meghani area of the city just minutes after leaving the runway around 1.40pm local time (8.10am BST).

Terrifying CCTV footage shows the plane appear to lose control before it starts rapidly descending with a high nose angle and landing gear deployed.

Chauhan said her ‘mind went numb’ after she learned of the incident before she returned home. She had been visiting India for a holiday while her husband remained home in London.

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