News
Why we’re still silently watching Asari Dokubo-DHQ
The Defence Headquarters stated on Thursday that it chose not to go after former Niger Delta militant warlord, Mujahid Asari-Dokubo, to avoid being accused of acting “undemocratically.”
The Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. Edward Buba, made this remark in Abuja while responding to a recent report about Asari-Dokubo’s alleged threat to shoot down a military helicopter that had reportedly hovered around his residence.
Addressing journalists, the DHQ spokesman described Asari-Dokubo’s threat as laughable, challenging him to confront soldiers on the battlefield if he was bold enough.
Buba said, “Now, the comment by an individual that he can shoot down military helicopters is laughable. And I am about to laugh at that. We are in a democracy, and we are professionals. Of course, we cannot just, based on somebody’s comments, begin to take certain actions. They would accuse the military of being undemocratic.
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“The military is not the only security force or department in the country. There are other security agencies that have a constitutional role to play in handling such issues.
“I tell you that he doesn’t have that capability, but I will allow the security forces responsible for such matters to take it up. As for us, come to the battlefield, and we’ll take you out. He should come to the battlefield and see whether we can react or not.”
Buba explained that the military’s focus remained on combating terrorists across various theatres of operations.
He said, “For us, the enemy we fight are the terrorists. Some may choose to call them different names in the different theatres of operations where they exist. In the North-West and North-East, some will say terrorists; some may prefer to call them bandits.
“I tell you, they are all terrorists, and that is what we see. Troops are making significant progress. As I mentioned earlier, we prioritise eliminating terrorist leadership, and we have been doing just that. In the last three quarters, we have taken out over 300 terrorist commanders, not to mention their foot soldiers.
“Our aim is to diminish their fighting capabilities and damage their military capabilities, which we have been successfully doing. As indicated in the brief you received, you can see how many weapons and ammunition we have recovered.”
Buba said a terrorist kingpin in Jigawa State, known as Mai Hijabi, was killed in an operation conducted during the week.
He noted that a total of 165 terrorists were killed, and 238 suspects were arrested.
Buba said, “Our operations have destroyed a substantial part of the combat capacity of these terror groups and their leadership. For instance, one of the notorious terrorist commanders in Jigawa State, known as Mai Hijabi, was eliminated from the battlefield during the week. Troops are, therefore, increasingly making significant strides across all theatres of operations.
“During the week under review, troops neutralised 165 terrorists, arrested 238 persons, and rescued 188 kidnapped victims.”
Buba added that troops also arrested 35 suspected oil thieves in the South-South region and prevented the theft of an estimated sum of N688,125,150.00.
He said, “Troops in the Niger Delta area discovered and destroyed two dugout pits, 58 boats, and 39 storage tanks. Other items recovered include 13 cooking ovens, 35 drums, one motorcycle, one tricycle, four speed boats, 13 vehicles, and 65 illegal refining sites. Troops recovered 789,200 litres of stolen crude oil and 64,950 litres of illegally refined AGO.”
Buba also noted that troops recovered 153 assorted weapons and 2,182 rounds of assorted ammunition.
The breakdown, according to him, includes 81 AK-47 rifles, 23 fabricated rifles, 27 Dane guns, 13 pump-action guns, five locally-made pistols, three revolver pistols, 30 AK-47 magazines, and one bayonet.
Other items recovered are, “1,561 rounds of 7.62mm special ammunition, 278 rounds of 7.62mm NATO ammunition, 70 rounds of 50mm ammunition, 72 rounds of 9mm ammunition, 87 live cartridges, one Baofeng radio, 19 vehicles, 21 motorcycles, 45 mobile phones, and the sum of N64,100.00, among other items.”
By Francesca Hangeior
The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Anambra State Chapter, has debunked reports identifying the suspect accused of killing an Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) officer in Awka as a medical doctor.
In a statement released by Dr. Obiaeli Ifeanyi, the State Secretary of the NMA, via X (formerly Twitter), on Monday, the association clarified that the suspect, Joshua Ikechukwu, is neither a licensed medical practitioner nor a member of the NMA.
Ikechukwu allegedly killed an EFCC officer, Aminu Salisu, during an operation in the early hours of Friday, January 17, 2025, at Dr J.O. Ukwutinife Close, Ifite, Awka.
The EFCC said Ikechukwu was allegedly involved in “online medical supplies of doubtful legitimacy.”
An online publication was said to have reported that the suspect was a staff member of Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital.
Addressing these claims, the NMA expressed concern over the misuse of the title “medical doctor” by impostors.
“The attention of the leadership of NMA Anambra State has been drawn to online and newspaper publications alleging that a medical doctor shot an EFCC officer in Awka,” the statement said.
“In one of the publications, the suspect was described as a staff member of NAUTH. However, following our investigation, we wish to clarify that: Joshua Chukwubueze Ikechukwu is not a staff member of NAUTH, as confirmed by the hospital’s management.
“He is not a member of the NMA Awka Zone, nor has any member identified him as a colleague. He is not a medical doctor (not even an academic doctor), though he deals in medical supplies and has been erroneously addressed as one.
“The NMA Anambra State hereby notifies the media and EFCC that the said suspect is not a medical doctor. We demand an immediate retraction of all defamatory publications where he was referred to as such. We urge the media to conduct due diligence before publishing claims.”
By Francesca Hangeior
An Iranian court has sentenced popular singer Amir Hossein Maghsoudloo, known as Tataloo, to death on appeal after he was convicted of blasphemy, local media reported on Sunday.
“The Supreme Court accepted the prosecutor’s objection” to a previous five-year jail term on offences including blasphemy, reformist newspaper Etemad reported online.
It said “the case was reopened, and this time the defendant was sentenced to death for insulting the prophet”, referring to Islam’s Prophet Mohammed.
The report added that the verdict was not final and can still be appealed.
The 37-year-old underground musician had been living in Istanbul since 2018 before Turkish police handed him over to Iran in December 2023.
He has been in detention in Iran since then.
Tataloo had also been sentenced to 10 years for promoting “prostitution” and in other cases was charged with disseminating “propaganda” against the Islamic republic and publishing “obscene content”.
The heavily tattooed singer, known for combining rap, pop and R&B, was previously courted by conservative politicians as a way of reaching out to young, liberal-minded Iranians.
Tataloo even held an awkward televised meeting in 2017 with ultra-conservative Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi, who later died in a helicopter crash.
In 2015, Tataloo published a song in support of Iran’s nuclear programme that later unravelled in 2018 during the first US presidency of Donald Trump.
By Francesca Hangeior
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has announced the e-auction of some forfeited vehicles to the public.
The commission noted that the exercise is slated to take place on Monday, January 27, 2025, from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm, as it’ll be conducted online.
Also, the exercise is spread across 16 lots with auctioneers in Abuja, Edo, Kwara, Sokoto, Kaduna, Lagos and Kano states. Interested persons can go through the official web addresses provided for each lot.
Reports have it that some vehicles are still open to bids while some others have closed, as the vehicles have varying bidding amounts.
According to a tweet via its X handle on Monday, the commission said the e-auction will be done according to the EFCC (Establishment) Act, 2004, Public Procurement Act, 2007 and the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery & Management) Act.
“The General Public is hereby notified that the @officialEFCC through its appointed Auctioneers will conduct e-Auction of the under-listed vehicles that are subject to final Forfeiture orders in accordance with the EFCC (Establishment) Act, 2004, Public Procurement Act, 2007 and the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery & Management) Act, 2022,” the tweet partly read.
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