TheNewsGuru

Tag: Facebook

  • Police nab 3 suspected facebook scammers, kidnappers, rapists in Delta

    Police nab 3 suspected facebook scammers, kidnappers, rapists in Delta

    The Police Command in Delta says it has apprehended three suspected Facebook scammers, kidnappers, and rapists in the state.

    The spokesman of the command, DSP Bright Edafe disclosed this to newsmen on Wednesday in Warri.

    Edafe said that the suspects were nabbed on Monday by police operatives attached to Ufuoma Police Division in Ughelli North Local Government Area of the state.

    He said that the arrest followed a complaint from a lady (name withheld) that she saw one of the hoodlums that kidnapped her on Dec. 11, 2022.

    According to Edafe, the victim complained that the suspects held her hostage at a hotel in Iwherekpokpor community, Ughelli North, video and also took her nude pictures.

    Edafe said the victim reported that the suspects used the video and nude pictures to blackmail and demand for ransom from her parents.

    “On receipt of this complaint, the DPO Ufuoma Police Division immediately detailed a combined team of Police detectives and Ekiugbo Community vigilante members and arrested one Cornelius Emene.

    “During preliminary investigation, the suspect made useful statement that led to the arrest of two others, Nelson Aghogho and Ufuoma Tunde.

    “The suspects also gave account of how they kidnapped another student of the School of Health and Technology, Ofuoma in Ughelli North,” he said.

    Edafe said that the modus operandi of the syndicate was to lure unsuspecting young girls on facebook, took them to a hotel, drug and gang raped them.

    He added that the suspects thereafter held them hostage and demanded ransom from their parents to secure their release.

    According to the spokesman, the suspect’s phones contained numerous nude photos and video recordings of their previous victims which they used to blackmail the victims and their parents.

    Edafe said the investigation into the matter was ongoing.

  • We won’t allow Twitter, Google, others to spark crisis in Nigeria – Lai Mohammed

    We won’t allow Twitter, Google, others to spark crisis in Nigeria – Lai Mohammed

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has said Twitter, Facebook, Google and the like would not be allowed to throw the country into a crisis situation.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Mohammed made this disclosure at the 3rd edition of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration scorecard 2015-2023 series in Abuja on Thursday.

    The Information Minister disclosed that the government was especially monitoring the situation at Twitter following the takeover by Elon Musk.

    Mohammed said his office had been inundated with a lot of inquiries in recent times on what will become of the FG agreement with Twitter in view of the change in its ownership.

    “Many have asked for our reaction following reports that there has been a spike in fake news, disinformation and hate speech since the micro-blogging site changed ownership. Many have even asked us if another ban is in the offing?

    “Let me say this: We are closely monitoring the evolving developments at Twitter. It has never been our intention to ban any social media platform or stifle free speech. Not at all.

    “What happened in the case of Twitter is well known to all. Twitter became a platform of choice for those who want to destabilize Nigeria, using fake news, disinformation and hate speech. No nation will allow any social media platform to plunge it into anarchy. Definitely not Nigeria.

    “But we have continued to engage positively with the different social media platforms, including Facebook, Google (owners of YouTube) and Twitter.

    “We have no intention of banning any social media platform again. But we will also not sit by and allow any platform whatsoever to throw our nation into crisis,” the Minister said.

  • BREAKING: WhatsApp is down

    BREAKING: WhatsApp is down

    WhatsApp, the messaging platform owned by Facebook’s parent company, Meta on Tuesday morning suffered a global outage with users struggling to send messages.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that the WhatsApp outage was observed in Nigeria at about 7:48 am WAT after messages sent by our reporter failed to deliver.

    The mobile app for iPhone, Android, Windows Mobile and Blackberry, as well as WhatsApp web were affected by the outage. Updating the app didn’t help, even.

    Findings minutes later revealed that it is actually a worldwide outage as users across the globe experience similar outages. Users took to Twitter to report difficulties in sending messages and WhatsApp entered trend table as a result.

    Meanwhile, Downdetector, a website that monitors service outages for messaging and social media platforms has confirmed the development.

    However, there is no official response or acknowledgement from WhatsApp as of now. As per reports, users are not being able to send or receive messages on the messaging platform.

  • Still on biblical interrogation, et al – By Francis Ewherido

    Still on biblical interrogation, et al – By Francis Ewherido

    For me, the critical issue is: “is it against the bible?” Once it is not against the bible, I run with it? For some other people, “is it in the bible” or where is it in the bible?” Once I hear that, I close the discussion with you because we can never have a meaningful discussion. Are cars, aeroplanes, phones and many other advancements in the bible? No, but are they against the bible? No, so we use them.

    As you grow older, you want to conserve your energy for useful purposes. It is the same reason I ignored one fellow on Facebook recently. I do not have time and strength for meaningless talk that will end in a cul-de-sac. We should face substance and leave peripherals alone. For instance, when the bible condemned adultery, it simply meant do not engage in sexual intercourse with another person except your spouse. This is what we now refer to it as an affair. Here the bible said sexual intercourse with someone other than your spouse. Using a euphemism of “affair” is just to reduce the enormity of what you did in your heart and make you feel less guilty; so because “having an affair” is not in the bible in those words, does it stop the act from being adultery? No!

    Young people in relationships and having pre-marital sex claim to be dating or courting. It is not dating, it is fornication, according to the bible. Courting, according to the Institute in Basic Life Principles, is “a relationship between a man and a woman in which they seek to determine if it is God’s will for them to marry each other, while dating can be described as a form of courtship and may include social activities undertaken by two persons (male and female) with the aim of assessing the other’s suitability as a life partner.”  None of the definitions includes sex, although young people argue that “assessing the other’s suitability as a life partner”   and “social activity” can be interpreted to include sex.

    How can God, who said fornication is a sin that leads to death, encourage premarital sex? The truth is young people’s blood is hot and they do engage in sex due to lust and lack of self-control. I was also involved in premarital sex before marriage, but I never deceived myself that I was doing the right thing. I am not judging anybody. How can a bloody sinner judge anybody? Let us just call a spade a spade and stop using euphemisms to reduce our guilt and sometimes mislead others.

    A well respected Christian leader once confessed to me privately that she had sex with her husband too be before they got married. She said she needed to be sure he could perform and he passed the test before she agreed to their marriage. As at the last time I met her, there was no child yet and the man was afflicted by one of the debilitating ailments that affects men. So what is the ultimate result of all the testing before marriage?

    It is your responsibility to live your life the way you want. But for young girls under 30 years, live responsibly if you intend to settle down with a man. The shelf life of a girl is short. It is like European seasons: winter, spring, autumn and summer. The summer clothes that were on display start disappearing from the front of the shop and showroom once winter begins to set in. These days, girls under 20 years look so mature. Use your time well while on the shelf and display at the front of the shop before you are moved to the back of the shop. I have seen this happen so often in the last 35 years. Be careful who you listen to in this era of influencers. People who are unhappy with their lives are busy spilling out falsehood and leading younger people astray.  A social media influencer whose marriage crashed under three years calls herself marriage counsellor! Can you give what you do not have?

    Bobrisky, Portable, Davido, Daddy GO Enoch Adeboye, Pastor Kumuyi and Pastor Tunde Bakare and many others are all influencers, but in a world of relativism, I dare not qualify anyone with adjective of good or bad influencer. For instance, if I call Pastor Adeboye a good influencer, someone can come and challenge me, because for him Adeboye is a bad influencer. Adeboye helped to spread Christianity and destroyed our African religion. That is the world of relativism that we currently live in. So I hold on to my beliefs firmly, but try to mind my business.

    It is this relativism that makes it difficult for me to contribute to discussions on other people’s Facebook pages. For me, your Facebook page is your sitting room. I will not come and argue with you. You arrange it the way you want. You put the content that reflect who you are. I also arrange my sitting room the way I want. I fill my Facebook page mainly with contents on family, people, marriage and insurance, which is my profession. Even if I get zero like or comment, it means nothing. I do not want to stir up unnecessary controversy to attract traffic. I stick to my values and what makes me happy. With political campaigns coming, I will soon add politics because I feel it is sacrilegious to sit on the fence at this critical time. I have travelled to all continents except South America and Australia. I have come to the conclusion that we must make Nigeria to function well. I have no intention of living elsewhere. You can call me a slave of the Nigerian nation. That is where my absolute loyalty lies. In the meantime, we should learn civility in the social media space. The social media space is a public space. We do not have to agree, but show restraint and respect in public.

  • Whistleblower, critic drag Benue LG chairman, Facebook to court

    Whistleblower, critic drag Benue LG chairman, Facebook to court

    Mr. Unazi Gideon, a social critic, and Eza Patrick, an anti-corruption crusader have dragged Mr. James Oche, Chairman, Ado Local Government Area of Benue and Facebook International Services Nigeria Limited for alleged defamation of character.

    Gideon and Patrick, in a suit marked: FCT/HC/CV/2812/2022 and filed at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, demanded N500 million in damages.

    Oche and Facebook were sued as 1st and 2nd defendants respectively.

    In the application dated and filed Aug. 25 by their lawyer, F.S. Jimba, the claimants are praying the court for “a declaration that the publication originated by the 1st defendant and published by the 2nd defendant on the 23rd August 2022 titled ‘PATRICK EZA and GIDEON UNAZI WANTED OVER CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION IN ADO’ is defamatory of the claimants.”

    They, therefore, prayed the court for an order of injunction perpetually restraining the defendants whether by themselves or through their agents or privies howsoever described, from further publishing any defamatory information concerning them

    In the statement of claims,  the claimants told the court that “on Aug. 23, the 1st defendant used the platform of the 2nd defendant known as Facebook and published a highly defamatory material about them.”

    Oche was alleged to have, through the Facebook, said: “The Benue State Command of the Nigerian Police Force today paraded 18 suspected kidnappers arrested in Ado Local Government.

    “In connection with this, the attention of the public is drawn to the fact that PATRICK EZA and GIDEON UNAZI are hereby declared wanted by Ado Local Government to volunteer useful information to aid police investigation in this matter.

    “Anybody in contact with them should advise them to immediately turn themselves Into the Ado Divisional Police Station Igumalo.

    “Similarly, those with useful information on their whereabouts should kindly inform the DPO Ado LG.”

    But the claimants, in the affidavit in support of the writ of summon, said that they were both in Abuja on Aug. 23 going about their legitimate business when they became aware of the defamatory publication.

    They also averred that as at the time the publication was made, neither of them was invited by the police in connection with the allegation of kidnapping.

    They said that the act had portrayed them as kidnappers or persons involved in kidnapping or persons who are members of a kidnapping gang.

    The claimants, who described themselves as law-abiding citizens who earn their Income from their legitimate work, said they had never involved in any case of kidnapping or any other crime before.

    The matter was yet to be assigned to a judge as at the time of the report.

    NAN

  • Fed Govt issues Facebook, Twitter, Instagram operating guidelines

    The Nigerian government has given
    operating code to microblogging agencies operating in the country.

     

    Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and others were handed the code by the Nigeria National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

     

    The code was formulated as part of the agreement after the face-off between Twitter and the Federal Government.

     

    The code also contains terms to operations for their operations as Interactive Computer Service Platforms and Internet Intermediaries.

     

    The conditions include registration with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), the appointment of a country representative and compliance with all tax obligations.

     

    The code and conditions were released by the Nigeria National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

     

    The code was necessitated by the Federal Government/Twitter faceoff over a year ago.

    Code

     

    The row began when Twitter deleted President Muhammadu Buhari’s comment on the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in the Southeast. Buhari had in the tweet, said that separatist agitators would be treated in the language they understand.

     

    The government took offence at Twitter’s actions and accused Twitter of double standards. It said that the same platform was being used by IPOB to cause disaffection amongst the people and abuse its officials.

     

    The government consequently suspended Twitter operations in Nigeria. Following leading public outcry, the government opened negotiations with the microblogging platform and promised to come up with a code to guide the operations of such sites in the country.

     

    NITDA, in a statement by its Head of Corporate Communications and External Relations, Hadiza Umar, explained that rule was issued in line with Section 6 of the NITDA Act 2007.

     

    The section empowers the agency to standardise, coordinate and develop regulatory frameworks for all Information Technology (IT) practices in the country.

     

    The agency explained that the draft code is available on https://nitda.gov.ng/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Code-of-Practice.pdf for review and comments from the public.

     

    The code aims at:

    *protecting fundamental human rights of Nigerians and non-Nigerians living in the country as well as defining guidelines for interacting in the digital ecosystem.

     

    *Recalibrating the relationship of online platforms with Nigerians in order to maximise mutual benefits for the country while promoting a sustainable digital economy.

     

    *Safeguarding the security and welfare of Nigerians while interacting on these Platforms. It aims to demand accountability from online platforms regarding unlawful and harmful contents on their platforms.

     

    * Protecting Nigerians against online harms such as hate speech, cyber-bullying as well as disinformation and/or misinformation.

     

    * Making the platforms delete any information that violates Nigerian laws within an agreed time.

     

    The code also requires micro-blogging platforms operating in Nigeria to provide information to the government on harmful accounts, suspected botnets, troll groups, and other coordinated disinformation networks.

     

    Besides, the code outlines the legal basis for the operations of the platforms operating in the country and methods for determining their revenues/ accruals in order to enable the government to know the exact taxes to be paid by them.

     

    The statement by the NITDA boss reads in part:” The Code of Practice is aimed at protecting fundamental human rights of Nigerians and non-Nigerians living in the country as well as define guidelines for interacting on the digital ecosystem.

     

    “This is in line with international best practices as obtainable in democratic nations such as the United States, United Kingdom, European Union and United Nations.

     

    ”The Code of Practice was developed in collaboration with the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), as well as with inputs from Interactive Computer Service Platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Google, and Tik Tok, amongst others.

     

    ”The new global reality is that the activities conducted on these online platforms wield enormous influence over our society, social interaction, and economic choices.

     

    ”The Code is an intervention to recalibrate the relationship of online platforms with Nigerians in order to maximise mutual benefits for our nation while promoting a sustainable digital economy.

     

    ”Additionally, the Code sets out procedures to safeguard the security and welfare of Nigerians while interacting on these platforms. It aims to demand accountability from Online Platforms regarding unlawful and harmful contents on their sites.

     

    ”Furthermore, it establishes a robust framework for collaborative efforts to protect Nigerians against online harms, such as hate speech, cyber-bullying, as well as disinformation and/or misinformation.

     

    ”Similarly, to ensure compliance with the Code of Practice, NITDA also wishes to notify all Interactive Computer Service Platforms/Internet Intermediaries operating in Nigeria that the Federal Government of Nigeria has set out conditions for operating in the country.

     

    ”These conditions address issues around legal registration of operations, taxation, and managing prohibited publication in line with Nigerian laws. The conditions are as follows:

     

    ”Establish a legal entity i.e., register with Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), appoint a designated country representative to interface with Nigerian authorities; and abide by all regulatory demands after establishing a legal presence;

     

    “Comply with all applicable tax obligations on its operations under Nigerian law; provide a comprehensive compliance mechanism to avoid publication of prohibited contents and unethical behaviour on their platform; and provide information to authorities on harmful accounts, suspected botnets, troll groups, and other coordinated disinformation networks and delete any information that violates Nigerian law within an agreed time.

     

    “The Federal Government wishes to reiterate its commitment towards ensuring Nigeria fully harnesses the potential of the Digital Economy and safeguards the security and interest of its citizens in the digital ecosystem.”

  • Warri man bites off his wife’s nose

    AWarri based man and father-of-three, King Felix Nero, who celebrated his wife, Queen Nero, on Facebook less than a week ago, has been accused of biting off her nose in her father’s house.

     

    King Felix Nero and his wife have been married for five years and have three kids together but it is alleged that Felix Nero has been abusive and also unfaithful.

    Warri
    Part of the bitten nose

     

    Last year, it was alleged that the Warri-based man had an affair with his wife’s cousin, Ejiro Praise. At that time, the news went viral on many Warri blogs.

     

    Due to the alleged domestic violence and infidelity, Queen moved with her kids back to her parent’s house in Asaba, Delta State.

    Nero reportedly pleaded with many people, including social media influencers, to beg her to return to their home.

     

    He also posted her on her birthday on June 3 and lavished her with sweet words.

     

    She reportedly promised friends who pleaded with her that she will return to her matrimonial home on Saturday, June 4, but her husband Felix Nero visited her on the same day, allegedly caused trouble in her father’s house and bit off her nose.

     

    A graphic video shows Queen Nero crying after the attack.

     

    “See wetin Felix do me o,” she said in the video while showing her disfigured nose.

     

    Her kids can also be heard crying in the background and calling for their “mummy”.

     

    The video caused outrage and led people to call Felix out.

     

    Felix has now taken to Facebook to write a suicide note.

     

    He asked the public to forgive him for everything and told his three kids that “even in death” he will still love them.

     

    He told the public not to judge him as he alone knows the pain and depression he has been suffering for years.

     

    Social media followers are now calling on his wife to put their differences aside and seek out her husband to prevent him from committing suicide.

  • Mark Zuckerburg takes 10th wedding anniversary with wife to Facebook

    Mark Zuckerburg takes 10th wedding anniversary with wife to Facebook

    The Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerburg, and his wife, Priscillia Chan, have celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary, as he shared amazing photos on Facebook.

     

    On his Facebook handle, the American media magnate wrote: “10 years married and half our lives together. Here’s to more adventures.”

     

    Among pictures the internet entrepreneur shared, the couple is seen seated and lovingly staring into each other.

    Mark

     

    Zuckerburg also shared the throwback photo of them 10 years ago.

     

    Chan and Zuckerberg met at Harvard University and started dating in 2003, before tying the knot in a surprise ceremony in May 2012.

     

    Together, they launched the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative in 2015, in which they pledged 99 percent of their wealth to causes including improving education and curing disease.

     

    Zuckerburg is known for co-founding the social media website Facebook and its parent company Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook, Inc.), of which he is the chairman, chief executive officer, and controlling shareholder.

     

    He attended Harvard University, where he launched Facebook in February 2004 with his roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz, and Chris Hughes. Originally launched to select college campuses, the site expanded rapidly and eventually beyond colleges, reaching one billion users by 2012.

    Mark
    Mark Zuckerburg, and his wife, Priscillia Chan

     

    The American media magnate took the company public in May 2012 with majority shares. In 2007, at age 23, he became the world’s youngest self-made billionaire.

     

    As of March 2022, Zuckerberg’s net worth was $74.5 billion according to the Forbes’ Real Time Billionaires.

     

    Since 2008, Time magazine has named Zuckerberg among the 100 most influential people in the world as a part of its Person of the Year award, which he was recognized within 2010.

     

    In December 2016, Zuckerberg was ranked tenth on Forbes list of The World’s Most Powerful People.

     

    The internet entrepreneur was born in White Plains, New York, on May 14, 1984, the son of psychiatrist Karen (née Kempner) and dentist Edward Zuckerberg.

     

    He and his three sisters (Arielle, businesswoman Randi, and writer Donna) were raised in a Reform Jewish household in Dobbs Ferry, New York.

     

    His great-grandparents were Jewish emigrants from Austria, Germany, and Poland.

     

    Zuckerberg attended high school at Ardsley High School before transferring to Phillips Exeter Academy. He was captain of the fencing team.

  • FG addresses rumoured plan to shutdown Facebook in Nigeria

    FG addresses rumoured plan to shutdown Facebook in Nigeria

    The Federal Government has addressed concerns on rumours making the rounds that it was planning to ban Facebook over the alleged inciting statements by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the Minister of information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed addressed the concerns while fielding questions from State House correspondents at the end of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Wednesday.

    Recall that Mohammed had at a meeting with a team from Facebook in Abuja on Tuesday, asked the social media platform to prevent IPOB, from using its platform to incite violence.

    The Minister said people had been killed because of the group’s activities.

    “I had a very fruitful meeting with Facebook yesterday (Tuesday). At that meeting, we expressed our displeasure that Facebook was becoming a power of choice for those who stay outside Nigeria, in particular, to incite violence, killings, burning of government properties, and killing of soldiers and police officers.

    “And that they should do more than what they are doing now in looking at the contents, which are unwholesome, which are being used on their platforms.

    “Incidentally, the BBC did a documentary on this particular issue and found out that some of them who call themselves social media warriors in England, France and other places, have in recent times, been using the Facebook platform to incite violence in Nigeria.

    “And we’ve all seen the real life impact of those war mongering, the young couple who are going to marry, soldiers who were gruesomely murdered.

    “Over this weekend in Anambra state police men were killed, military barracks were attacked. And we did warn Facebook to please do more than what they are doing now.

    “And I must say that their response was quite encouraging. They said they are going to do much more,” Mohammed said.

    Asked whether there is any plan to ban Facebook if the inciting violence continues, he said, “I think I gave you an answer. We had a very robust discussion with Facebook.

    “Facebook saw our point and they said they’re going to do much more than what they are doing. So if they do that, why would we ban them?

    “We don’t ban for banning sake. We ban or we only suspend operations if for any reason, lives are threatened and they do not listen. But this is of engagement”.

  • FG accuses Facebook of allowing IPOB use its platform to incite violence in Nigeria

    FG accuses Facebook of allowing IPOB use its platform to incite violence in Nigeria

    The Federal Government has accused Facebook of allowing the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, to use its platform to allegedly incite violence and instigate ethnic hatred in Nigeria.

     

    The government said that since IPOB had been proscribed and classified as a terrorist organization, “Facebook has no justification for yielding its platform to the organization to further its campaign of hate and destabilization of the country.”

     

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, according to a statement by his Special Assistant (Media), Segun Adeyemi, made the demand in Abuja at a meeting with a team from Facebook.

     

    He said, “I have called this meeting to enable us to discuss the increasing use of Facebook by separatists and anarchists, especially those of them based outside the country, to instigate violence and ethnic hatred in Nigeria.

     

    “For whatever reason, they seem to have now chosen Facebook as their platform of choice. And their tools include disinformation, incendiary statements and hate speech. They use Facebook broadcasts to reach their followers, who are in the thousands.

     

    “They tag those opposed to their violent ways as ‘saboteurs’ who must be attacked, maimed and killed.
    They use both English and their local language as it suits them,” Mohammed said.

     

    He said the actions of the proscribed group have real-life implications, adding, “By purveying hate and inciting violence, people are getting killed while private and public property are being attacked and destroyed. Security agencies and other symbols of government are their choice targets.”

     

    The minister said despite the numerous complaints to Facebook on the activities of IPOB, nothing has been done by the company to curtail the group’s excesses on the social media platform.

     

    “Our social media people have been monitoring these separatists, anarchists and purveyors of hate, and have been reporting their atrocious actions to Facebook, but all they get are default responses that their complaints have been received and are being looked into.

     

    “Most often than not, nothing is done about such complaints. The truth is that whatever Facebook is doing to check these people is mere tokenism and is totally ineffective,” Mohammed said.

     

    The minister said the government would be “monitoring Facebook and other platforms closely in the days ahead to ensure compliance with the demand, as it steps up the campaign for the responsible use of social media.”

     

    “We have always advocated responsible use of social media, and consistently called on all stakeholders to join us in achieving this. Some have tagged our efforts as an attempt to stifle social media.

     

    “They are wrong, because we have no intention of preventing Nigerians from using social media responsibly. All we have been advocating is a responsible use of social media,” he said.