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The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, has directed police officers across the country to shoot on sight anyone found carrying illegal firearms, as part of intensified efforts to curb insecurity.

Disu issued the directive on Friday during a stakeholders’ meeting at the Government House in Makurdi, the Benue State capital, saying the move followed President Bola Tinubu’s instruction that the lingering security crisis in the state must be brought to an end.

The police chief maintained that only authorised security personnel are legally permitted to carry firearms, warning that law enforcement agencies would no longer tolerate the unlawful possession of weapons.

“You cannot move around freely carrying arms as if there is no law and order in this country. It will not be tolerated,” he said.

Disu explained that the directive was backed by Force Order 237, which empowers police officers to respond immediately to armed threats without waiting for approval from superior officers.

“We have given them instructions. We have a Force Order 237. Police officers have been instructed that they don’t need to wait for any superior order. They know where to deploy their firearms,” he said.

He said the decision was informed by the increasing number of casualties among security personnel in the line of duty.

“We are tired of losing our men. We are tired of police officers, soldiers, and other members of the security agencies dying anyhow,” the IGP said.

Reaffirming the directive, Disu added: “They have been instructed to shoot at sight. They have been trained to do what is necessary. But we will not succeed without the cooperation of all of you.”

The Inspector-General urged residents to support security agencies by providing timely and credible intelligence, noting that community cooperation remains vital to efforts to combat armed criminality.

Benue State has witnessed repeated attacks by armed groups in recent months, leaving scores dead, displacing thousands of residents and destroying property.

The Federal Government has continued to strengthen security operations in the state by deploying additional personnel and adopting tougher measures aimed at restoring peace and preventing further attacks.

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Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has strongly pushed back against allegations by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, focusing on what he described as the unfair invocation of the late Ghali Umar Na’Abba in the controversy.

In a statement issued by his aide, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku described the claim that he bribed the former Speaker to impeach Obasanjo as reckless and unjust, stressing that the late lawmaker is no longer alive to respond.

He said, “As Africans, we understand the solemn duty of speaking truthfully about the dead. It is therefore deeply troubling that former President Obasanjo has chosen this moment to allege that I gave the late Rt. Hon. Ghali Umar Na’Abba a bribe to impeach him.

“If this allegation were true, why did he never make it while Rt. Hon. Na’Abba was alive? Why wait until the only man who could confirm or refute the claim has departed this world? By invoking a deceased man as the principal witness to such a grave allegation, former President Obasanjo has denied Nigerians the opportunity to hear the other side of the story.

“The late Rt. Hon. Ghali Na’Abba cannot now defend his own integrity or respond to the allegation that he accepted a bribe. It is unfair to his memory and contrary to our cultural values to conscript the dead into contemporary political battles when they no longer have a voice.”

Atiku further noted that the allegation lacks any judicial backing or official determination.

“If there was indeed evidence of any criminal conduct as alleged, Nigerians are entitled to ask why no action was taken at the time by a government that wielded the full powers of the Nigerian state.”

He also questioned the timing of the claims, linking them to political developments ahead of the 2027 general election.

“Coming at a time when the political landscape ahead of the 2027 general election is taking shape, the obvious objective is to besmirch my person and reputation and confer an undeserved political advantage on the former President’s kinsman. Nigerians, however, know better. They are too discerning to be distracted by stale allegations resurrected for political convenience.”

Reiterating the roots of his long-standing differences with Obasanjo, Atiku said his opposition to the former president’s third-term agenda remains a defining issue.

“My offence was that I stood firmly against the unconstitutional third-term agenda. As a democrat, I chose the path of constitutionalism and the rule of law. Rather than surrender democratic principles on the altar of personal ambition, I defended the Constitution and successfully asserted my rights through the courts in a series of landmark legal victories against a sitting President. Those battles are now part of Nigeria’s democratic history. It is evident that the bitterness arising from that defining period has failed to leave former President Obasanjo.”

Atiku added that he would not be drawn into prolonged disputes over past political events while the country faces pressing challenges.

“The task before leaders today is not to rewrite history but to rescue the future. Nigerians are more interested in knowing why food prices continue to soar, why public debt continues to rise despite increased revenues, and why scandal after scandal continues to trail the current administration than in revisiting political disagreements from over two decades ago.”

He concluded by stating that while Obasanjo is free to support any candidate, such support should be declared openly.

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The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) welcomes President Bola Tinubu’s creation of four new Army divisions across the country, a statement says.

The statement says the simultaneous creation of four new divisions is the largest single expansion of the Nigerian Army in modern history, adding that the bold step shows the President’s renewed commitment to security of lives and property.

“We wholeheartedly welcome this development, including the president’s approval for the Army to hire 28,000 new personnel and acquire more critical military assets. We are confident that this initiative will enhance the government’s counterterrorism and anti-banditry efforts,” according to the statement.

The Forum pledges its continued support for and collaboration with the President on national security and all other issues of national development.

“The Forum again urges citizens to continue to support government and security forces to strengthen security in every part of the country, including giving timely information to the security agencies,” the statement says.