The Harbingerngr News

By Rotimi Fasan IT would be interesting to know what finally happened to convince Godwin Emefiele, the Central Bank governor, that it was time to reconsider his single-minded pursuit of the January 31 deadline for the withdrawal of old naira bills from circulation. Shortly after the change in decision was announced, cheeky Nigerians circulated a photograph of Emefiele and a woman holding a microphone, probably his wife, with her hand across the neck of an apparently happy Emefiele seated at a table during a ceremony. An accompanying message to this image requested appreciation for this lady, who is probably the real power behind the CBN Governor’s throne. The truth behind the entire message may be no more than to establish the influence of women (be they spouses, daughters, etc.) behind powerful men. We all see this point at play in the recent history of the American presidency, where Ivanka Trump, one of Donald Trump’s adult children, is acknowledged for her influence on her father. T...

 AN Ebute Meta Magistrates’ Court in Lagos, yesterday, ordered the remand of Ikechukwu Ogbonna over the death of his wife, late Abimbola Martins-Ogbonna. Ogbonna was remanded following advice by the Director of Public Prosecutions, DPP, Lagos State, which said Ogbonna should be charged for involuntary manslaughter. Reading out the DPP advice, Magistrate Adebayo Tella, said the defendant would be arraigned before the Lagos High Court, and should be remanded in custody pending his arraignment and filing of information against him. Defence lawyer, Mr. Abubakar Yesufu, however, prayed the court to allow the defendant to be released based on earlier bail conditions granted him. But, Magistrate Tella held that she lacks jurisdiction to entertain a case of involuntary manslaughter, hence all bail applications should be presented before the high court. The matter has been adjourned till March 7, 2023. Ogbonna, a 37-year-old Lagos car dealer, was arrested by the Lagos State Police Command o...

Mrs. Uchenna Onwukwe, widow of Mr. Chidi Onwukwe, who was murdered in Port Harcourt, 2021, has told a Rivers State High Court hearing the murder case that her late husband was stabbed several times and shot. Uchenna, who spoke Friday when the court resumed hearing in the murder trail, told the court that she saw her husband’s corps with wounds left on him by the killers. Samuel Onwukwe, Promise George and Blessed Onyekachi Nathan are standing trial over the murder of Chidi in Port Harcourt, where he lived. It will be recalled that the court had adjourned to hear the bail application of the three suspects on December 15 and 16, 2022 to January 27, 2023, after they were remanded in prison custody. But when the court resumed hearing on January 17,  the bail application could not be taken because one of the counsel was yet to respond to the bail application. However, the court took witness statement of the complainant in the matter, Uchenna, following the prosecution counsel’s, Essien ...

Armed men suspected to be members of Islamic State of the West African Province, ISWAP, have invaded Gur Lawal village in Biu Local Government Area  of Borno State. A source told Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency expert and security analyst in the Lake Chad, that during the invasion, which occurred on January 29, the insurgents also razed down a primary health care centre and carted away medical supplies. The terrorists targeted the medical facilities for the treatment of their fighters wounded during an encounter with troops in Damboa. The sources said the terrorists stormed the town on motorbikes and began shooting sporadically, forcing the residents in the area to run for safety.   He said the terrorists took to their heels after sighting reinforcement troops of 231 Battalion of Operation Hadin Kai. He said no casualty was recorded in the attack. Meanwhile, about four soldiers were wounded after a roadside improvised explosive device (IED) struck a convoy of troops...

The Divisional Police Officer, DPO, in charge of Gwer West Local Government Area of Benue State, Mr. Mamud Abubakar, two police personnel, two children and three women have been reportedly killed in separate attacks on Benue State communities by suspected armed herdsmen.  A source in Naka, the Gwer West headquarters, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the murdered DPO and two other police personnel were ambushed and killed yesterday afternoon on Makurdi-Naka Road shortly after alerting the military personnel on a checkpoint of the presence of large number of armed herdsmen in the axis and their intention to attack the communities in Gwer West.  The source said: “After alerting the military personnel of the presence of the large number of armed herdsmen on that stretch of road, the military personnel were mobilising to move into the area while the DPO, who was accompanied by two other police men moved ahead slowly.  “But unknown to them, the armed herders had alread...

Jorginho in action. Arsenal have agreed terms with Chelsea over a deal for Jorginho after focusing all of their attention on the Italian international after accepting Brighton’s resistance to selling Moises Caicedo.  Arsenal were eager to sign Caicedo, but saw their £70million bid rejected - having previously tabled an offer of £60million on Friday and then £65m plus a further £5m in add-ons on Sunday.  Therefore, Arsenal decided to turn their attention to Jorginho and the Gunners have agreed to sign the 31-year-old on an 18 month-deal worth £12million.  Bayern Munich sign Cancelo It is a transfer no-one saw coming 48 hours ago - Manchester City full-back Joao Cancelo has joined Bayern Munich on loan for the rest of the season. The 28-year-old has played an integral part in the Premier League titles Pep Guardiola’s side have won in the past two seasons, but has fallen out of favour and will move to Germany with an option to join permanently for 70m euro (£61.5m) in the su...

THE Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, CBCN, have expressed frustration at the continued killing of Nigerians, despite entreaties on the Federal Government to secure the lives of the people The Bishops at a briefing by the Directorate of Social Communications, Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria in Abuja, however, noted the 2023 general elections would usher in a new era of growth and transformation in the country. The Secretary-General of CSN, Very Rev. Fr. Zacharia Samjumi, who spoke on behalf of the Bishops, said in spite of several interventions and advice to those in power from them, both as a body (the CBCN) and as individuals, the country seemed to continue to plunge deeper into the abyss. He said:  “Every day, we keep witnessing pervasive killings of innocent citizens in their homes, churches, mosques, streets, trains, roads, and events. Kidnappings, invasion of villages and towns, wanton looting and corruption, ransom taking, raping and territorial conquest are sadly the ...

*We’re mobilizing about 100,000 vehicles, 4,000 boats for deployment of personnel and materials to 176,846 polling units spread across 8,809 registration areas (or electoral Wards) in 774 local government areas nationwide — Yakubu; *NNPC assures electoral body of adequate supply; *Things‘ll change before polls —Tinubu’s spokesperson; *INEC should double-check transport unions — LP; *We hope it’ll be brought under control — PDP Campaign FOLLOWING the continued scarcity of fuel across the country, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, yesterday, raised alarm that the development could hamper election day logistics. While the Nigerian National Petroleum Company, NNPC, Limited assured the electoral commission of adequate supply of fuel during the election, the three major presidential candidates also expressed hope that the scarcity would be resolved before the polls. Speaking at a consultative meeting with officials of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW, IN...

•Gridlock as another truck fell at Ojota; •Kerosene-laden tanker explodes on Ore-Benin expressway, claims driver’s life; •42 escape death as tipper crashes into bus BARELY 48 hours after a truck accident killed nine people at Ojuelegba area of Lagos State, another truck accident, involving a truck and four tricycles in Ikotun area of the state, has claimed two lives. This came as another 20-foot container-laden truck, in a lone accident, fell at Odo Iya Alaro, between Ojota New Garage and Maryland area of the state. In another development, fear gripped residents of Ore, in Ondo State, yesterday, as a kerosene-laden tanker exploded on the Ore-Benin expressway, in Odigbo Local Government Area of the state. Meanwhile, no fewer than 42 passengers, in a commuter bus, narrowly escaped death, yesterday, in Onitsha, Anambra State, when a tipper rammed into their vehicle. The accident at the Ikotun area of Lagos State, which occurred at about 12.30pm, yesterday, involved a fully loaded containe...

THE Director-General of the Atiku/Okowa Presidential Campaign Council, PCC, in Anambra State, Professor Obiora Okonkwo, has expressed optimism that presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, will grant detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, unconditional release when he emerges president on May 29. Kanu has been in the detention facility of the Department of State Services, DSS, since June 2021, when he was intercepted and renditioned to Nigeria from Kenya by the Federal Government to terrorism charges. However, the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja, on Thursday, October 13, 2022, quashed the terrorism charge the Federal Government had preferred against the detained IPOB leader. It acquitted him of the seven-count charge pending against him before the Federal High Court in Abuja. In a landmark judgement, the appellate court led by Justice Jummai Hanatu, stated that the “Federal Government flagrantly violated t...

A non-governmental organisation, Lets Talk Babajide Sanwo-Olu Listens (Let’s Talk, BOS Listens), weekend mobilised support for Governor SanwoOlu, urging him to focus more on education, health care and youth empowerment if re-elected.  In furtherance of its  support for the  governor, the BOS Listens  group held interactive sessions with youths in the Ikeja  and Osborne, Ikoyi areas, in  recognition of  youths unique part in community development and that their voices must be heard in the forthcoming election. The group also visited some schools, namely Omole Senior Grammar School,Ojodu, Keke High School, etc  where they interacted with students and teachers and distributed learning packs and gifts, urging the students  to take the Sanwo-Olu’s re-election message to their parents and guardians. Also, during the interactive session,the youths stressed their support for Sanwo-Olu’s re-election moves, saying that they were  satisfied  w...

Candidates in the forthcoming presidential election yesterday protested against the decision of the flag-bearer of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Tinubu, to send a representative at a state of the nation dialogue that was convened by the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA. Tinubu, who was absent at the event, briefed a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Mr. Hassan Liman, to speak on his behalf. Liman, SAN, who is a member of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, had after all the other presidential candidates took their seats to speak on how they intend to tackle the current security, economic and political challenges facing the nation, mounted the stage to stand in place of the APC candidate. His action however drew the irk of the other candidates, especially that of the Zenith Labour Party, ZLP, Mr. Daniel Nwanyanwu, who maintained that it was wrong to allow a non presidential candidate to speak at the forum. "I thank the NBA for this invitation, but I believe that th...

THE Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar, has outlined a number of initiatives he intends to put in place to set Nigeria’s economy on the path of growth if given the mandate to preside over the nation’s affairs.  Atiku stated this in a written response to the last week‘s decision by Moody’s Investors Service (The Moody’s) to downgrade the Nigerian Government’s Credit Rating from B3 to Caa1, which he described as “a very significant downgrade.” He said: “If given the opportunity to lead the country, I will act differently and change the economic direction of Nigeria for the better. I will undertake far-reaching fiscal restructuring to improve liquidity and the management of our fiscal resources. “Among others, I will undertake an immediate review of government spending with a view to eliminating all leakages arising from subsidy payments. “Second, I will stop all fiscal support to ailing and under-performing state enterprises. “Third, I will ta...

*DSS blames bank officials on selling currency notes *PoS operators charge 10%, *Money outside banks declines; *Banks reduce old notes OTC withdrawal to N10,000lCustomers’ frustration over new Naira notes continues   THE Department of State Services, DSS, has arrested some members of an organised syndicate selling the new naira notes in parts of the country. Although the DSS did not disclose names and locations of the suspects, the agency said in a statement yesterday that some commercial bank officials were aiding and abetting the act. This comes against the backdrop of the unleashing of the anti-corruption agencies, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, ICPC, on the banks by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, over alleged hoarding and diversion of new notes. A statement signed by the Public Relations Officer of the DSS, Dr. Peter Afunanya, warned that the secret police will go after those involved in the malfeasa...

  From left: Peoples Democratic Party, PDP Vice Presidential candidate, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State; Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar; National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu and host, Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal at the commissioning of Sokoto State Presidential Lodge named after General Yakubu Gowon, renovated by the Tambuwal administration in Sokoto. THE presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar, has promised to end banditry and improve security nationwide, especially in Zamfara State, if elected President. He made the promise while speaking to parry supporters in Gusau, the Zamfara State Capital, yesterday.“Atiku extended his sympathy to the people of the state who had been at the receiving end of bandit attacks which has led to hundreds of death over the last couple of years. The PDP candidate said:  “We have been looking forward to come to Zamfara because of what we are reading on social media, now we have seen that it is true....

*As Sanwo-Olu talks tough against violence THE Governorship Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Lagos State, Dr Olajide Adediran,  popularly called Jandor, has expressed concern over alleged attacks  on his team   by thugs during campaign tours in parts of the state, vowing not to be intimidated by the acts. The PDP governorship candidate, however, urged President Muhamnadu Buhari and Inspector General of Police, IGP, Usman Akali Baba to live up to ensure  a crisis-free campaign in the state. Addressing newsmen over the continued attacks on his campaign team, he vowed to continue with his ward to ward campaign ahead of the general elections without succumbing to any form of intimidation, threat and harassment. His words: “He (Sanwo-Olu) should allow residents decide who they want to rule them in the forthcoming governorship poll. “On my part, I will continue to do everything within the confine of law to do our campaign. “It is about time the sitti...

•NANS, NAPTAN decry situation •Institutions adopting flexible timetable STUDENTS of higher institutions across the country who are not living on campus are having a rough time commuting to school from home because of the scarcity of petroleum products that has led to high transport fares. The situation has also led to some of the students missing or skipping classes. For students who live on campus, moving from one point to the other, especially in institutions with more than one campus, has not been easy as well, as intra and inter campus vehicles are finding it difficult to get fuel to operate, leading to the students trekking long distances. In Lagos for instance, students of the University of Lagos, UNILAG, who live off campus, have to pay transport fares that have doubled to get to Yaba to connect buses to take them to the Akoka Main Campus. "I live in Ayobo area of Lagos and from Iyana ipaja, the yellow buses that used to collect N300 or N400 to Yaba, now collect between N70...

  •Insist on 6-month extension, describe Emefele extension as mere political gimmick,  say law must be duly followed THE President Muhammadu Buhari and the House of Representatives are on collision course over the deadline for the withdrawal of old naira notes. The CBN had before now, given January 31 deadline for the exchange of old naira notes of N200, N500 and N1000 with the new ones. But the President yesterday, on the request of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN approved  a 10-day extension of the deadline  for the withdrawal of old naira notes  to February 10, 2023. A seven-day grace period, beginning on February 10 to February 17,2023, was also approved to enable Nigerians deposit their old notes at the CBN after the February deadline when the old currency would cease to be recognised as legal tender. But the House of Representatives in a swift reaction rejected the extension, insisting that the CBN must complied with its resolution that the deadline be ex...