At least 10 crew members of Nigerian singer, Ayodeji Balodun, more commonly Wizkid, who are expected to perform with him during his ‘Made in Lagos’ tour in the United States are currently stranded in Lagos.
SaharaReporters learnt that the crew members including his personal stylist and bodyguard are held down in Lagos over their inability to secure a date for an interview at the US Embassy.
Wizkid
The tour which was announced in July, would see Wizkid performing in US cities from September 10 till October 16.
A source told SaharaReporters that Nigerians aspiring to travel out of the country to the US now buy visa interview dates at the rate of N500,000 to N1million.
“Look at how US Embassy is messing Nigerians up, To get appointment is now up to you able to settle guys up to N500,000 per person, Some N1million depends on how desperate you are,” he said.
He continued, “It is rather unfortunate having gone all the way with so many expenditures involved just to appeal for a reasonable closer date for visa appointments in the US Consulate but all to no avail, for a certain number of well-respected citizens of Nigeria who happen to be the most integral crew to the star musician, Ayodeji Balogun, known as Wizkid.
“Even after being fully aware of the commencement of his Made in Lagos tour, slated for 10th September to 17th of October 2021; his tour which commenced on the 10th of September 2021 has depicted a rather low performance so far as he is unable to fully function without his full team managing stage production.
“The tour currently is ongoing at the northern part of the United State of America. It is not news to the U.S government; the large volume of revenue to be generated even after taxes have been remitted; the exposure that will be given to all cities that Wizkid is likely to touch down at.
“After so much back and forth appeals to settle for the nearest date to close the already existing loopholes, the fairest date issued is September 21. This is rather a scenario of serving medicine after death. One will wonder why it costs an arm, a leg and even a foot just for Nigerians to obtain reasonable visa appointments dates, while the reverse is the case for foreigners as the majority get to have their visas upon arrival and the case is closed.
“His personal stylist is still here in Nigeria, Close bodyguard is here, Saxophonist is here and others. So far, his performance has dropped. It’s so sad.”
Another source told SaharaReporters that the star musician could be in the US without his crew members till the end of the tour going by the “inefficiency of the US Embassy.”
The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) has revealed that the rate of kidnapping across Nigeria has increased by 169 per cent in two years.
In a report posted on its website titled: “Six Alternative Ways to Measure Peace in Nigeria”, which is part of its ongoing research to understand how Nigeria measures peace, USIP stated that when measured by death toll, Nigeria seems beset by violence.
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USIP’s team went in search of how people in Bauchi, Kaduna, Nasarawa and Plateau states define peace and found out that respondents understand peace as being more than the absence of violence and insecurity.
The research discovered that there is substantial evidence that violence in Nigeria is highly gendered and women value the absence of violence and insecurity as an indicator of peace more than men.
The Institute attributed the increasing rate of insecurity to poor performance of security agencies which it says has caused Nigerians to resort to self-help by setting up vigilante groups without minding the disadvantages.
“When measured by the death toll, Nigeria seems beset by violence. By some accounts, the COVID-19 pandemic has made experiences of violence even more common — notably, Nigeria recorded a 169 per cent increase in abductions between 2019 and 2020.
“We went in search of how people in the states of Bauchi, Kaduna, Nasarawa and Plateau define peace and we found out that respondents understand peace as being more than the absence of violence and insecurity. While many respondents equate peace with the absence of direct violence and insecurity — adopting a classical definition of “negative peace” — this is by no means their only understanding of peace. For example, more than 70 per cent of survey respondents in Kaduna State felt that peace meant having “good relations with my neighbors and/or in the community.”
“Our research finds a correlation between those who have had difficulty in getting police assistance and perceptions of police presence being associated with insecurity, even if their interaction with the police was unrelated to insecurity. Of respondents indicating that they had requested assistance from the police in the past 12 months, 64 per cent of those who rated their experience of getting police assistance as “difficult” or “very difficult” felt that the visible presence of the police meant that there was insecurity, versus only 21 per cent of such respondents who felt security was good when the police were visible. This echoes earlier survey research that showed that victims of insecurity were less trusting of state institutions.
“There is strong support for vigilante groups. While many observers have concerns about the accountability and discipline of these vigilantes, and there is limited oversight over their activities, Nigerians who participated in this research express strong support for vigilante groups. More than eight in 10 respondents in all the surveyed states agreed that “vigilantes make a positive contribution to security in Nigeria.”
“Fewer than one in 10 respondents agreed that “vigilantes make a negative contribution to security in Nigeria.” The poor performance of the state’s security actors has sent Nigerians, across all states and genders, to look for alternatives such as vigilantes, despite the drawbacks,” the report stated.
InsecurityNewsAddThis : Original Author : SaharaReporters, New York Disable advertisements :
There were strong indications on Monday that bandits fleeing the military onslaught in Zamfara State were moving to states in the South.
Top security sources, who spoke to Punch, said security agents in other states had been alerted to be on the lookout for the fleeing bandits.
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It was also gathered that the South-West states had put the regional security outfit, Amotekun, on the alert following intelligence reports that bandits being dislodged from Zamfara State were fleeing southwards.
The Amotekun Corps commanders in Ekiti, Ondo, Osun and Oyo states, in separate interviews, stated that residents of the states had been told to be vigilant and guard against infiltration by the fleeing hoodlums.
They said this as gunmen invaded the Kabba Correctional Centre in Kogi State, where they freed 240 inmates and killed two soldiers.
No fewer than four travellers were also abducted in Ekiti State on Monday.
The Federal Government had last week ordered telecommunications companies to shut down their base stations in Zamfara State as part of the onslaught against bandits, who were engaged in ceaseless kidnapping and killings in the state and other parts of the North-West.
The bandits had also been hit by hunger following the decision of the state government and neighbouring states to close regular markets, where they were getting foodstuffs.
There were reports that many bandits had been killed during military raids, while others were said to be fleeing Zamfara State.
A senior police officer said, “A few days ago, some of the bandits fled to Niger State and they were dealt with by the military. Some of them are moving southwards and security agents have been alerted.”
The Corps Commander, Amotekun Corps, Ekiti State, Brig Gen Joe Komolafe (retd.), said the agency had always envisaged that the dislodged bandits would want to take refuge in other states and was proactive about guarding against their incursion into Ekiti.
Komolafe said, “We have always envisaged that when dislodged, they will want to move to other states; that is why each time we come out, we talk to the citizens to report strange faces to us.
“We try as much as possible to monitor the routes and entry points; we know that the criminals may not come by road or through the main routes to enter the state; it is in view of that that we always tell our people to report strange faces to us.
“We patrol the forests; we have people on the farms, who will tell us when they see strange faces on the farms or bushes. We try to plead with the people to give us necessary information about strange faces and unusual movements.
“Also, we have perfect working relationships with Amotekun in the neighbouring states as well all security agencies in the state.”
On his part, the Ondo State Amotekun Corps Commander, Chief Adetunji Adeleye, stated that the security outfit had received a security report on the fleeing bandits.
He said Governor Rotimi Akeredolu had given an order for the corps to put in place necessary security measures in the 18 local government areas of the state to prevent the bandits from striking in the state.
Adeleye stated, “We have got information from a reliable intelligence report that the fleeing bandits are coming, that they intend to stay in the forest to cause mayhem and that they are closing in seriously. The source told us that the bandits want to start with Ondo State as a frontline state.
“So, with that, we have put serious intelligence on the ground across the state and our primary aim is to prevent any infiltration and attack. We don’t even want them to strike before we get them. So, we are at every local government area, every major town and inside the forest.
“On the other side too, we are deploying all means to ensure that if they come to this state, they will meet their waterloo. Right now, our intelligence is on the ground at every nook and cranny of the state. And we are monitoring keenly. That is what Mr Governor has directed me to do and I will do it diligently.”
InsecurityNewsAddThis : Original Author : SaharaReporters, New York Disable advertisements :
Believe it or not, Edo State is currently under the yoke of dictatorship, for many months running. Prior to his election for his second term in office, His Excellency, Governor Godwin Obaseki had dissolved his cabinet, comprising Commissioners and Advisers. He became more of a lone ranger, trudging along with his Deputy, Comrade Philip Shuaibu, in the run up to the elections. This was after he had successfully emasculated the House of Assembly of the State, through the Courts. We all thought then that it was going to be a temporary malady, but we now know better. We have a governor who is running riot with democracy and good governance, such that over one year after his re-election, Governor Obaseki has no single Commissioner and no Advisers. He is running Edo State upon his whims and caprices, based on his body language or indeed his mood. It is unthinkable that a State blessed with abundant mineral and human resources is being held by its jugular by a single individual, who prides himself as a product of global best practices but is deeply immersed in the ugly cocoon of self rule. How did this happen and who will rescue our dear Edo State?
Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa
According to the Britannica, Edo State was created in 1991 from the northern portion of Bendel State, the southern portion becoming Delta State. Prior to this in 1963, the citizens of the territory had voted to separate from what was then the Western region, and the Mid-West region was created. Going by the 2006 National population census, Edo State has about 3, 233, 366 people. Its capital, Benin City, is the 4th largest city in Nigeria. The State has a total land area of about 17, 802 square miles, with an average GDP of about $11.89B and per capita of $3,623. The State is one of the oil-producing States in Nigeria and it is very rich in agriculture, both in subsistence and cash crops. It is equally very rich in timber, rubber and palm oil, with abundant mineral resources like limestone and lignite. It has significant federal presence and it is a transit State within the Southern States of Nigeria. In 1959, a citizen of Edo State, Pa Anthony Enahoro, moved the motion for the independence of Nigeria from colonial rule. This is the same State being ruled by a single individual, elected on the platform of the blood and sweat of the people, ably prodded by a “Comrade” as his Deputy, who should know better.
Let me first share with you the provisions of section 192 (1) of the 1999 Constitution.
“192.(1) There shall be such offices of Commissioner of the Government of a State as may be established by the Governor of the State.”
193. (1) The Governor of a State shall hold regular meetings with the Deputy Governor and all Commissioners of the Government of the State for the purposes of:
(a) determining the general direction of the policies of the Government of the State;
(b) coordinating the activities of the Governor, the Deputy Governor and the Commissioners of the Government of the State in the discharge of their executive responsibilities; and
196. (1) The Governor of a State may appoint any person as a Special Adviser to assist him in the performance of his functions.”
In the exercise of these appointments, the Governor is to observe the principle of federal character in such a way as to ensure that all sections of the State are fairly represented in his cabinet. To all intents and purposes, the Constitution did not envisage a one-man government for any State in Nigeria. Thus, what is going on presently in Edo State is a constitutional anathema that must not be allowed to fester beyond tolerance. The situation in Edo State is made worse by the absence of a functioning legislature. Even before his election for the second term, Governor Obaseki had successfully crippled the Edo State House of Assembly, by refusing to swear in those of its members whom he considered to be disloyal to or pose a threat to his administration. At a particular point in time, cases were filed in court to declare their seats vacant. I recall vividly the very embarrassing report of the situation when sand and gravel were deposited by thugs loyal to the Governor, in front of the House of Assembly in order to prevent members from gaining access to the building to perform their constitutional duties. At another time, the roofing sheets of the building were removed in commando style.
Under normal democratic practice, the legislature is supposed to perform certain oversight functions, to conduct hearings and to review the performance of the annual budget approved for the executive. It is to take practical steps to avoid waste and to expose corruption in all spheres of government. The House of Assembly of Edo State cannot do any of these as that vital institution has been rendered comatose by Governor Obaseki. Without any doubt, Edo State does not deserve a dictator in office, one who would alone decide the fate of over three million people, one who would alone award contracts, pass his own laws in his own bedroom, make his own appointments in his parlour and execute his own projects according his mood and feelings. In the 21st century Nigeria, there is no place for such crude dictatorship and stone-age rulership.
It is amazing how the Peoples Democratic Party has been dancing openly in public without shame, claiming to play opposition politics and daily regaling us with the supposed failings of the Buhari administration when it is harbouring a dictator in its fold. Is it not proper to first remove the log in your own eyes in order to enable you to see the speck in another person’s eyes? Is the PDP content to perpetuate a one-man rule in Edo State and is in turn expecting Nigerians to take it seriously and entrust the government of Nigeria to a group of power mongering leaders who cannot even manage a single State effectively? Or has Governor Obaseki stopped attending meetings of the PDP?
The expectation of the drafters of our Constitution is that every State will have a full blown cabinet, comprising Commissioners and Special Advisers, who would develop policies around their specific ministries based on their expertise and present the same before the cabinet for debate and final approval. In this regard, intellectual debates will flourish and ideas will contend, leading to very robust engagements, for the good of the State. How can a single individual be the Commissioner for Works, Commissioner for Land, Housing, Chieftaincy Affairs, Local Government, Finance, Agriculture, etc? What is the experience of Governor Obaseki beyond the touted boardroom politics, to hold Edo State to ransom as if possessed and intoxicated by power? Why is it so difficult for His Excellency to work with people? If he was so powerful, why didn’t he undertake his campaign alone during the last election? Why did he appoint campaign coordinators and agents all over the State? Having governed the State for four years, I expected that even at the time of his campaign for his second term, Governor Obaseki should have assembled a team of technocrats to move Edo State forward.
And if the House of Assembly has been gagged and rendered useless, what is the judiciary in Edo State doing? Where are the activists and the civil society organisations? Or are they also in connivance with the Governor to rubbish the Constitution? Are they part of this sinister plot to rule Edo State from the bedroom of one man? Where are the Comrades from Edo State? What has become of the NGOs? And if all our Comrades are complicit, what about lawyers and the Nigerian Bar Association? Or is the NBA no longer promoting the rule of law in Edo State, the birth place of its dynamic President? Pray, what is the palace saying about this? Edo State parades one of the most revered traditional institutions in our land. Is the palace comfortable with this self-imposed dictatorship? What about the religious institutions? Are there no pastors and imams in Edo State again, where Archbishop Idahosa once held sway? Can they not speak from their exalted pulpits? And if all these are silent, what of the Students’ Unions?
The Edo infamy has now been exported to Osun and Imo States, where the Governors are running riot in governance without regard to democratic principles. The Constitution in its section 1 has placed itself above any individual or group, when it states that: “this Constitution is supreme and its provisions shall have binding force on all authorities and persons throughout the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Federal Republic of Nigeria shall not be governed nor shall any person or group of persons take control of the Government of Nigeria or any part thereof except in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.” This is so clear and unambiguous, that Governor Obaseki cannot seek to govern Edo State in any manner that is inconsistent with the provisions of the Constitution. It should not happen to a State that has produced great and noble minds and patriots.
The way in which we can move Nigeria forward is to use our individual platforms to promote reforms that we desire for the good of our people. In this regard, Governor Obaseki should retrace his steps and immediately set out to constitute a cabinet for the good people of Edo State and stop his one-man rule forthwith. No tenable excuse can be rendered by His Excellency, to explain that one year after his election, he has not found people worthy to be constituted as the State Executive Council, to hold regular meetings with them, to deliberate on policies and programmes that will move the State forward. In a State led by a trumpeted technocrat, assisted by a ‘Comrade’ as his Deputy, we do not expect anything less than transparency, accountability and team work. Democracy can never thrive in the house of one man, in the mind of one man and in the office of one man, no matter the depth of his knowledge and experience. Let us have a cabinet in Edo State now!
OpinionAddThis : Original Author : Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa Disable advertisements :
The Indigenous People of Biafra has promised to deal with some miscreants in the South-East region, who are enforcing the already cancelled Monday sit-at-home order.
The secessionist group had on July 30 ordered a sit-at-home in the region.
It threatened to shut down economic activities in the region, adding that violators of the order would be visited with violence.
On August 9, IPOB started the enforcement of the lockdown.
The sit-at-home order is to protest against the arrest and detention of IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu.
However, on August 13, IPOB stated that the Ghost Monday would no longer hold every Monday based on the directive from its leader, Kanu who said it should be observed only on the day he appears in court.
Despite the suspension, the majority of South-East residents still observe the order, shunning business and commercial activities.
The development had since crippled the economy in the region as banks, shops and other organisations remained shut on Mondays over fear of attack.
The Chairman of South-East Governors Forum and Governor of Ebonyi State, David Umahi recently claimed that the South-East geopolitical zone of the country loses over N10billion each time it observed the sit-at-home order directed by IPOB.
Also, despite the suspension, some criminal elements in the South-East wreaked havoc on innocent citizens by forcefully enforcing the sit-at-home order.
On Monday, some students participating in the ongoing 2021 West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination, WASSCE, were attacked in Imo State on Monday for violating the sit-at-home order to sit for their English Language examination.
But in reaction, IPOB’s spokesman, Emma Powerful on Tuesday, said anyone caught enforcing the order henceforth, would be dealt with.
According to him, anyone moving contrary to the cancellation of the sit-at-home would face their wrath, saying that IPOB is not a clan meeting but a revolutionary movement.
He said, “I am happy you said it yourself that we cancelled the Monday sit-at-home.
“We said it in the beginning, but we stopped it, we have told people to stop sitting at home on Mondays.
“Anyone doing anything to the contrary, forcing people to sit-at-home on Mondays, or doing anything to them because they are not sitting at home on Mondays, if IPOB gets such people, no matter who the person is, we will cut off his ears, IPOB is not clan meeting, it is a revolutionary movement fighting for the Republic of Biafra.”
PoliticsNewsAddThis : Original Author : SaharaReporters, New York Disable advertisements :
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