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‘Declare Total War Against Boko Haram’; Reps Summon Service Chiefs …Women Protest In Abuja Over Abducted Girls …200 Abducted Girls Taken ‘Abroad’?
The Senate President, David Mark, yesterday in Abuja, urged the Federal Government to declare full scale military operation against insurgents in the North East.
Mark made the call in an address to welcome senators back from Easter recess.
He said the heightened spate of terrorist attacks and killings carried out by insurgents in the North East amounted to a declaration of war against the country.
He noted that in view of the fact that the insurgents had rejected calls for dialogue, the government should embark on comprehensive military onslaught to stamp out the menace.
“There is no doubt that our nation is at war. The enemy has clearly and unequivocally served the nation notice of its vile intentions.
“It is obvious that we are dealing with insurgents and well-funded nihilists who are determined to violently trample upon the secularity of the Nigerian state and destroy the country.
Mark also urged the Federal Government to deploy all available resources to not only combat the forces of destruction, but also unmask and punish the sponsors of terrorist groups plundering the country.
He said the campaign would be realised when local communities and other sections of Nigerians gave adequate support to the armed forces in their quest to contain the insurgency.
Mark pledged the determination of the National Assembly to sustain its partnership with all arms of government and Nigerians to bring insurgency to an end.
He warned politicians to desist from making statements capable of undermining the efforts of the members of the armed forces.
He, however, noted that the door should be left open to any effort to employ dialogue as means of finding a lasting solution to terrorism and insurgency in the country.
The House of Representatives have summoned service chiefs to brief members on actions taken so far to free the 230 school girls abducted in Borno State by Boko Haram members.
They included the Chief of Defence State; Chief of Army Staff; Chief of Naval Staff; and the Chief of Air Staff.
The lawmakers, who resumed sitting in Abuja after a three-week Easter break, condemned the abduction of the girls, and berated the armed forces for their slow efforts to secure their release.
But, it was also a dramatic session, where one member from Kano State, Mr. Shehu Galandachi, came out clearly to say that so long as political power at the centre was not returned to the North, there would be no solution to insurgency.
A member representing Chibok/Damboa/Gosa Federal Constituency of Borno State, Mr. Peter Biye-Gumta, who moved a motion on the abduction, recalled that “over two weeks” after the girls were abducted, their whereabouts remained unknown.
Biye-Gumta told theý House that the parents of the children were traumatized, and appealed to the military to “expedite action” in securing freedom for the girls.
He also solicited the intervention of the National Emergency Management ýAgency, to send relief materials to the communities affected by the invasion of the insurgents on the day the girls were abducted.
“Some of the parents of these abducted girls are right now lying on the road to the National Assembly, demanding urgent intervention by the government”, he added.
Chairman, House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Ms. Nnena Ukeje, called for foreign assistance to support the Federal Government in the anti-terrorism war.
In his contribution to the debate, a former chairman, Committee on Education, Mr. Farouk Lawan, said the girls went to write examinations when the abduction took place.
Lawan, who became emotional as he spoke, asked members to imagine for 30 seconds that their daughters were among the girlsý.
“We are all parents here. Just imagine for 30 seconds that your daughter is one of them.
“Very little, if anything at all, is being done to secure the release of these girls”, Lawan stated.
Several lawmakers blamed the inability of the military to free the girls on failure of government.
This view was spearheaded by the House Minority Whip, Mr. Sampson Osagie ý,who argued that “never before” had the security and welfare of the citizenry been compromised in Nigeria like in the last five to six years.
However, Galandachi brought a different dimension to the debate when he blamed insurgency on political domination at the centre by the South since ý1999.
The Kano lawmaker was emphatic in his argument, gesticulating angrily as he spoke.
He told the session, which was presided over by the Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal, that Nigeria had been avoiding the real cause of the insurgency.
According to him, so long as “one zone of the country” continues to control power at the centre, insurgency will not end.
The unperturbed Galadanchi still insisted that the solution to insurgency was the point he just raised.
Although the debate continued, his point did not seem to have been lost on members.
The House later adopted the motion, in addition to calling for a national day of prayers ýfor the release of the girls.
The session coincided with protests by women at the gates to the legislative building, who were demanding urgent actions to secure the release of the girls.
In another development, scores of bewildered parents of female students of the Federal Government Girls College, Chibok in Borno State, who were abducted by the dreaded Boko Haram insurgents two weeks ago from their hostels, yesterday, staged a protest at the National Assembly in Abuja.
Dressed in black, the women armed with placards containing emotional-laden inscriptions, lamented the continued hostage of their innocent precious damsels by the insurgents even as they expressed fears that they might have been subjected to one form of molestation or the other.
The leader of the obviously traumatised parents, Mrs. Duomi Mukhtar, said the essence of their visit to the National Assembly was to further draw global attention to their predicament.
She called on the leadership of both chambers of NASS to show sympathy for their plights by asking the Federal Government and the military authorities to ensure the immediate release of their daughters.
Four senators, Hellen Esuene; Zainab Kure; Barnabas Gemade and Ali Ndume, addressed the protesters on behalf of Senate President, David Mark.
The senators assured the women of their support and determination to throw their full weight behind efforts by the Federal Government to ensure the safe release of the girls.
Ndume, who is also from Borno State said, “Our thoughts and prayers go to all of you because we are one of you. We stand united in grief with you in your hour of pain, agony and anxiety. We will do everything possible to make sure that the kidnappers release our daughters immediately, unconditionally.”
Also, the Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs. Zainab Maina, who also addressed the women, urged them to remain prayerful as the Federal Government and the military authorities would ensure that the innocent girls are reconciled with their parents.
Meanwhile, the Senate yesterday urged the Federal Government to seek the assistance of the United Nations and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to urgently rescue 234 girls abducted by the Boko Haram insurgents in Chibok, Borno State.
The Senate also unanimously resolved to confer with President Goodluck Jonathan to seek ways of curtailing the spread of insurgency in the country.
These resolutions followed a motion entitled: “Abduction of School girls in Chibok, Borno State,” sponsored by Senate Leader Victor Ndoma-Egba and 107 other Senators.
Some Senators in their contribution blamed the degenerating insurgency on sabotage and collaboration by insiders in the military.
Others wondered why the President has not deemed it fit to visit Borno State to commiserate with the people and boost the morale of the troops on ground.
A Senator from the area gave a graphic account of how the terrorists have been moving the girls from camp to camp in the forest since the day they were abducted.
He named the specific locations where the girls are being camped at the moment.
He lamented that the military did not act on the intelligence he placed at their disposal that could have facilitated early rescue of the girls.
In his lead debate, Ndoma-Egba urged the Senate to note with grief the inhuman abduction of Secondary School girls in Chibok, Borno State by alleged Boko Haram terrorists.
He informed the upper chamber just resumed from its two-week Easter recess that the incident occurred just when the country was nursing its grief caused by the rush hour bombing of a bus park in the nation’s capital, Abuja.
He said when the nation was trying to come to grips with the bombing that claimed over 75 people and wounded dozens more, the country was struck yet with another devastating blow: the abduction of about 234 girls from their school in Chibok on April 15.
He observed that the Government Secondary School in Chibok, Borno State was attacked when militants broke into the school, shot the guards and abducted a large number of students into trucks before carrying them to Sambisa forest, a known hideout for the Boko Haram sect.
There are reports that 200 of the school girls abducted by Boko Haram insurgents have been sighted in southern Borno in seven buses awaiting movement to an unknown destination.
Residents of Borno revealed that the girls were sighted in the Gwoza-Bama axis.
Confirming this development to journalists in Maiduguri, a civil rights activist, Dr. Peregrino Brimah said residents of the border town between Nigeria and Cameroon involved in the search for the girls confirmed seeing the school girls huddled together inside seven buses awaiting movement to an unknown destination.
The activist called on the security agencies to go in pursuit of the insurgents before the girls were taken out of the country.
He also called on President Goodluck Jonathan to immediately approve the formal request of thousands of youths in the area to carry arms to confront the insurgents.
Our correspondent also gathered that some of the school girls abducted from Government Girls’ Secondary School (GGSS), Chibok, Borno State, have been ferried around Lake Chad basin by their abductors.
A Chibok youth leader, Dr Pogu Bitrus, who stated this during an interview with the Hausa Service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), yesterday, said there was a report that the girls were hustled to the neighbouring country.
Bitrus has accused the government of not doing anything possible to rescue the final-year students of GGSS, Chibok, adding that even if the government is doing anything possible to rescue the girls, it is not being revealed to anybody.
The search for the missing girls was then left in the hands of their hapless parents who rented 150 commercial motorcyclists, got some volunteers with cutlasses and bows and arrows and went into the forest determined to rescue their wards or die trying.
In the end, even they were forced to abandon the search when a warning came from the terrorists that if they didn’t stop, they and their children would be killed.
Earlier, Prophet T.B. Joshua of the Synagogue Church of All Nations, Ikotun, Lagos, has cautioned the military against an all out attack on the sect to free the abducted girls.
He said this was necessary to prevent the girls from being harmed.
The popular cleric on Sunday during his sermon, urged the security agents to take it easy and abstain from deploying full force in their attempt to rescue the girls.
Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi welcomes Ambassador Rick Barton, US Assistant Secretary on Bureau for Conflict and Stabilization and operation, Washington D.C. during a courtesy visit to Government House, Port Harcourt.
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DEPLOY YOUR CAPACITY, TECHNICAL KNOWHOW TO REVITALISE SONGHAI FARMS, FUBARA TELLS TASK FORCE
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has said that diversifying the economy of the State has become inevitable because of the need to solve the problem of food shortages while also providing jobs for the teeming unemployed youths.
These, he said, are the reasons why great care has been taken to critically look at the prospects of revitalising the Songhai Integrated Farms, which is located in Bunu Tai, in Tai Local Government Area of the State.
Governor Fubara insisted that if the problem associated with food shortages is tackled with good intent and purpose, about 40 to 50 percent of current problems of economic hardship plaguing the country and its people would have been solved.
Governor Fubara made the assertion while inaugurating the Chairman, Mr Biedima Oliver, and members of the task force saddled with the responsibility of supervising the revitalization of Songhai Integrated Farms by its partners: Vitalcrop Ventures Limited and Imagine Adama Limited, at Government House in Port Harcourt, yesterday.
Other members of the task force included, the Rivers State Commissioner for Agriculture, Engr Victor Kii; Commissioner for Finance, Barrister Emmanuel Frank-Fubara; Dr Ayebaesin Beredugo; and Mr Maurice Ogolo.
The Governor explained that it took him time to approve the constitution of the task force being inaugurated because of the ugly experience with the previous group that shown such interest.
Governor Fubara stated that a process was initiated and driven halfway into the handing over of Songhai Farms on concession to an interested partner who latter showed a total lack of the needed capacity to undertake such task.
He said, “As a matter of fact, if few of you could remember, we even conceded the place to an investor who came in after he had made his presentation, and we, believing that he has the capacity, we said okay to him, and we had already signed up.
“But something happened. He came back to tell us that he wanted us to give him a N5billion bank guarantee. We then asked him, why? If we have the N5billion, why do we need you to come and even revitalize Songhai Farms? We would have put that N5billion there ourselves. For that reason, we cancelled that arrangement.”
Governor Fubara said now that two separate companies have come together to indicate interest and given the assurance of having the needed capacity to drive the process, he is delighted to see them meeting that expectation.
Governor Fubara pointed to the expectation of the people who want to see the Songhai Farms back on stream on a sustainable basis.
That expectation, he insisted, is also what his administration wants to see actualised within its lifespan.
He noted, “We want to see food sufficiency, because we know when Songhai Farms comes on board, there will be food, which is one of the problems we are having in this country. If we are able to tackle the issue of food, 40 to 50 percent of our problem will be solved.”
Governor Fubara also stated that although he believes in the presentation made by the group and has taken their assurance to heart, but warned that he would not tolerate a repeat of what happened before.
The Governor said, “I hope your story will not be (end) halfway too. I hope you have the capacity and all the technical knowhow to handle it. It is not when we start now, after we had finished inaugurating the task force, you will come back to tell us that you need $2million. If we have $2million, we won’t need you. We will invest it by ourselves.”
Governor Fubara, however, praised the capacity of the Chairman of the task force, Biedima Oliver, saying that incidentally, he was one of the personnel that convinced the then administration to develop the Songhai Farms, and had worked with the Rivers State Sustainable Development Agency (RSSDA) to manage the project.
He said, “He knows and understands the workings of Songhai, and now that we are making you the chairman of the task force, we want to believe that you will make that place come back to life.
“I don’t have any doubt in your capacity. A few things you’ve touched, you turned them to gold. Please, bring it back to what we used to see in Songhai. Bring it back with the help of your committee.”
Governor Fubara assured that his administration will remain committed to providing all the necessary support that they may require to make their assignment a success.
He added, “So, I hereby inaugurate you. Your task is very simple: Do everything within your powers and with our support to make sure that Songhai becomes operational to the benefit, not just the people of Tai, but to the entire Rivers State and Nigeria as a whole”.
In his acceptance speech, the Chairman of the Task Force to Supervise the Revitalization of Songhai Farms with Vitalcrop Ventures Limited and Imagine Adama Limited, Mr. Biedima Oliver, expressed appreciation to Governor Fubara for the opportunity and confidence reposed in them to revive Songhai Farms.
Mr. Oliver assured that they will deliver the expected goal on Songhai Farms, and doing so on time and on target so that the good people of Rivers State can eventually be happy and also benefit from the huge investment.
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has declared that all the policies and programmes of his administration are tailored towards the protection of interest of Rivers people, especially the youths.
This, he said, is borne out of the importance his administration attaches to youths’ development and empowerment as leaders of tomorrow.
Fubara, according to a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Nelson Chukwudi, disclosed this when he received the youths of Emohua Local Government Area under the auspices of “Emohua Youths For SIM” on solidarity visit to Government House, Port Harcourt, last Friday.
He said that his administration has put in place modalities that will boost the livelihoods and well-being of Rivers citizens, which youths of Emohua will also benefit when they materialise.
The governor, who spoke through the Rivers State Head of Service, Dr. George Nwaeke, pointed out that the recently awarded Elele-Omudiaga-Egbeda-Ubimini-Ikiri-Omoku Road, the ongoing Emohua-Kalabari Road, reinstatement of illegally sacked workers of Emohua Local Government Area and the approval for electrification of the area, are part of deliberate measures to open up the area to make life conducive and more meaningful for the people.
According to him, “Everything about the governor is putting the interest of Rivers State first. He is looking at and taking action on those things that we need to do to restart the wheels of progress in Rivers State.
“There are many things the governor has planned and is already doing that will boost the life and welfare of every citizen of Rivers State, but most importantly the youths.
“Growing up, I learnt that Egbeda is one of the biggest communities in the whole of Ikwerre, and it’s predominantly an agrarian community. They have food in Egbeda, they have food in Ubimini, they have food in Omudiaga and other natural resources. The whole world is tilting to agriculture, and this is the way to go.
“The Elele-Umudioga-Egbeda-Ubimini-Omoku road, when completed, will open up the area for real development. Your food and everything you produce there will now have value, they will no longer be thrown away. In all these, you the youths are going to be the utmost beneficiaries.”
He added, “Same will be applicable to the Emohua-Kalabari Road which will also, trigger development in the area, and you will be the greatest beneficiaries. When the LGA is also electrified, you will be having 24 or 20 hours of electricity, and those things the youths can do with electricity, you can stay at home and create wealth for yourself and children.
“All the totality of what the governor is doing, when they are completed, or even as some are completed now, the youths are going to be utmost beneficiaries.”
While acknowledging that youths are the true leaders of tomorrow and any government that fails to carry them along in the scheme of things is doomed to fail, the governor assured them of his administration’s commitment to always address issues concerning youths and ensure that they are part of his government.
He commended the youths for toeing the path of truth by identifying with his administration, urging them to sustain the tempo and shun evil, as his government will ensure that the trend whereby politicians turn youths to beggars are over.
He said, “Youths are, indeed, the leaders of tomorrow. The time of youth is a very important time. It a time that your parents or whoever is your leader at that time have to make the greatest investment in you. And any Government that decides to only carry the elderly, chiefs aling and abandon the youths is bound to fail,” he asserted.
“But I am happy that Governor Fubara has concentrated his energy on everything that will benefit the society, especially the youths.
“And based on these, I want to thank you for recognising what is good and calling it good, for shunning what is evil, for saying the Governor is standing for you.
“Let me tell you, you are on the right direction. Let me tell you again, Rivers State is the bride of Nigeria. The whole Nigeria is looking at what will happen here. As they look here and see you standing on the path of truth, this is a very important step that you have taken to right all the wrongs of the past, to make Rivers State stand on the tripod of justice, peace and security. That is what we are going to gain through the governor, taking all the wise actions that he has already initiated.
“The projects the governor is embarking on are meant to prepare nets for the youths to fish and put food on their table, hence you should continue to follow him.
“The SIMplified Movement brought upon by the governor will ensure that Rivers youths stop the habit of going to bow down before politicians, pledging loyalty before they can eat.”
Earlier, spokesman for the Emohua Youths for SIM, Comrade Ovamale O. Ovamale, had said that the visit by youths from the 14 political wards in Emohua Local Government Area was to thank the governor for the award of the Elele-Omudiaga-Egbeda-Ubimini-Ikiri-Omoku road, the approval for electrification of the area and reinstatement of sacked workers of Emohua Local Government Council, of which the youths were mostly affected.
According to him, “Siminalayi Fubara of recent has given Emohua Local Government road that links Elele to Omoku, which comprises over four communities in the local government.”
“Emohua Local Government has also been in darkness for eight years. No community in the local government that has light. But, of recent, because of the passion and love the governor has for the people of Emohua, he has approved the electrification of the local government.
“Also, the illegal sack of Emohua Local Government workers, for which the youths were mostly affected and without the approval of the Local Government Service Commission, the governor, in his compassionate nature, has reinstated them, and that is why we said we must come and thank His Excellency”, he said.
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has assured that his administration will collaborate and continue to consult widely in delivering a liberated State experiencing enduring peace.
Fubara said, in doing so, he would not operate as a dictator but as a member of a team that has the best interest of the State at heart and determined to leave a lasting legacy that can be celebrated.
The governor spoke during the formal presentation of Certificate of Recognition and Staff of Office to the Amanyanabo of Okochiri Kingdom, King Ateke Michael Tom, as first class tradition ruler, at Government House in Port Harcourt, yesterday.
Fubara stated that, during the Sixth State Executive Council meeting, N80.8billion was approved with 50 percent contract value paid already as the Government awarded the construction of the Elele-Egbeda-Omoku Road.
He said the project will be funded from the savings from Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) to underscore his administration’s prudence without also borrowing to complete the project.
“We are at a crossroad in our State where we all need to stand for what is right. It happens once in a life time. So, for now, be one of those people that will be in the course to liberate and free our dear State.
“And I know strongly that having the support of a peace-loving Amanyanabo of Okochiri Kingdom, having the support of the wonderful Council of Chiefs, having the support of the great people of Rivers State, we will bring peace in our State. We will do those things that are right to develop our State.
“We will continue to consult. We will not act as dictators. We will act as people who know that one day, we will leave, and when we leave, the way we have acted will speak for us. We will not force people to talk good about us. Our legacy will be a signature for how we led”, the governor said.
Fubara explained that he acted within the ambit of the law to upgrade the traditional stool upon which King Ateke Tom sits in recognition of his efforts in promoting peace in Okrika, and indeed, the State, and urged him to continue to do justice to everyone.
In his speech, Commissioner for Chieftaincy and Community Affairs, Hon Charles Amadi, congratulated King Ateke Tom for being formally presented with the Certificate of Recognition and Staff of Office as first class traditional ruler.
Also speaking, former Transport Minister, Chief Abiye Sekibo, thanked the governor for fulfilling his promise of upgrading the traditional stool of Okochiri Kingdom, and pledged the support of Kirike Se people to his administration.