TheNewsGuru

Tag: Invasion

  • Senate Invasion: Labour condemns attack; says democracy at risk

    Senate Invasion: Labour condemns attack; says democracy at risk

    A NEC Member of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Issa Aremu has condemned the invasion of the Upper Chamber of the National Assembly and disruption of the Senate plenary by unknown persons on Wednesday, April 18, 2018.

    Comrade Aremu said “an injury to the National Assembly is an injury to the nation’s democracy” adding that the “Federal government probe of the invasion should be prompt and conclusive with the objective of prevention of future acts”.

    The labour leader said the unfortunate senate event was a rude awakening to all for good governance with respect to security of lives and property as contained in 1999 constitution. Comrade Aremu said what the Senate just witnessed had been “the routine lots of many defenseless Nigerians” who are daily physically assaulted by criminals in homes, on the roads and in their communities.

    Comrade Aremu said while nothing could justify thuggery at the Senate, the leadership of the National Assembly must also stop criminalizing dissenting views of democratically elected members. “The serial suspension of any members of the hallowed Chambers who hold contrary views amounts to legislative dictatorship which is also unacceptable in a democracy” he observed. Democracy is about cooperation as much as contestation and the National Assembly is the true symbol of both, he said.

    Thugs suspected to be loyal to the suspended Senator representing Delta Central Senatorial district, Ovie Omo-Agege have invaded the red chambers and forcefully taken away the mace. They broke into the chambers when plenary was going on, thereby creating serious confusion and tension.

    The Senate plenary was disrupted after suspected thugs invaded the chamber and made away with the mace. Aremu said the mass condemnation of the Senate invasion shows “there is a national consensus that democracy despite some of its shortcomings remains the best form of good governance and development for Nigeria.”

  • Senate Invasion: Presidency may be next – Shehu Sani

    The Senator representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani, has described that the invasion and the snatching of the mace from the upper legislative chambers as an attempted coup d’etat and an assault to democracy.

    Thugs suspected to be loyal to the suspended Senator representing Delta Central Senatorial district, Ovie Omo-Agege on Wednesday, invaded the red chambers and forcefully taken away the mace.

    They stormed the chambers when plenary was going on, thereby creating serious confusion and tension.

    Sani had immediate after the incident on Wednesday revealed how he stopped the plenary from being adjourned.

    In series of tweets, the Senator said what happened to the upper legislative chamber yesterday could also happen to the Presidency if not checked.

    He tweeted, “The armed invasion of the senate stands condemned. Its treasonable, an attempted coup d etat .Its an assault on democracy and a desecration of an institution of democracy.

    “Those who sanctioned, organized and supported this will someday do that to the Presidency or the judiciary.

    “I salute the courage of those senators who heed to our call to stand firm and defend the parliament and democracy.

    “We appreciate the solidarity of members of House of Representatives. We salute the courage of supporting staff of the senate chambers who fell victims of the armed invaders.”

  • Thugs invasion: Senate continues plenary with ‘improvised’ mace

    The Senate refused to stop plenary on Wednesday afternoon after some thugs suspected to be working for a suspended member, Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege invaded the Senate and hijacked the mace leading to commotion.

    An improvised mace was provided pending the recovery of the stolen one.

    However, the Senate leadership has alerted security agencies to fish out the culprits and also recover the mace within 24 hours.

    It also said the invasion and subsequent hijacking of the mace in an act of treason and all those behind it will be treated as such.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki was not in Nigeria when the incident took place.

    The Senate, reacting in a statement said the invasion was a treat to the nation’s democracy.

    Read full statement below:

    Today, some armed hoodlums led by suspended Senator, Ovie Omo-Agege, walked into the Senate plenary and seized the symbol of authority of the Upper Legislative Chamber, the mace.

    This action is an act of treason, as it is an attempt to overthrow a branch of the Federal Government of Nigeria by force, and it must be treated as such. All security agencies must stand on the side of due process and immediately mobilise their personnel to retrieve the mace and apprehend the mastermind and the perpetrators of this act.

    This action is also an affront on the legislature, and the leadership of the House has come to express their support against this action.

    The Senate is now in an Executive session.

    An updated statement will be released immediately after the closed door session.

     

  • BREAKING: Invasion, hijack of mace by Omo-Agege’s thugs an act of treason – Senate

    The leadership of the Nigerian Senate has said the invasion of the hallowed chamber by suspected thugs on Wednesday during plenary is an act of treason and will be treated as such.

    The Senate leadership also accused a suspended member, Sen. Omo-Agege as the mastermind of the invasion.

    This was revealed on Wednesday in a statement by Senate spokesperson, Sabi Abdullahi after the incident.

    Read the full statement below:

    *RESPONSE TO TODAY’S INCIDENT IN THE SENATE CHAMBER*

    Today, some armed hoodlums led by suspended Senator, Ovie Omo-Agege, walked into the Senate plenary and seized the symbol of authority of the Upper Legislative Chamber, the mace.

    This action is an act of treason, as it is an attempt to overthrow a branch of the Federal Government of Nigeria by force, and it must be treated as such. All security agencies must stand on the side of due process and immediately mobilise their personnel to retrieve the mace and apprehend the mastermind and the perpetrators of this act.

    This action is also an affront on the legislature, and the leadership of the House has come to express their support against this action.

    The Senate is now in an Executive session.

    An updated statement will be released immediately after the closed door session.

    *Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi*

    *Senate Spokesperson*

  • Cow invasion: FAAN sanctions Manager, Head of Security of Akure Airport

    The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) says it has suspended the head of security at the Akure Airport, Ondo State after cows strayed onto the airport runway, disrupting flight operations.

    The airport authority said it also queried the airport manager over the incident.

    Recall that the airport runway was last week overrun by cows which disrupted the landing of an Air Peace flight.

    The cows strayed onto the runway at the time the flight coming from Lagos was about landing, and the plane was delayed from landing for several minutes before the runway was finally cleared.

    Henrietta Yakubu, FAAN’s spokesperson, had immediately after the incident apologised to Air Peace and the passengers.

    On Monday, Mrs.Yakubu confirmed that the airport manager and head of airport security had been queried and suspended.

    She added that measures have been put in place to forestall the recurrence of such an unpleasant incident.

    She assured members of the public that the authorities has beefed up security at the various airports around the country.

  • IPOB: Military deployment in Southeast not invasion – Presidency

    The Presidency has stated that the recent deployment of operatives of the Nigerian Army in the troubled Southeast region is not be seen as invasion but a step in the right direction to averting what could have been a major crisis.

    This was revealed in a statement by the Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Prosecution, Okoi Obono-Obla on Sunday.

    Obono-Obla argued that the President, by authorising such a deployment, acted within his powers as provided in the Constitution and was bound to do so in the face of the threat to national security constituted by the activities of members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

    Obobo-Obla cited Section 8 (1 – 3) of the Armed Forces Act to justify the deployment. He added that the decision of the Federal Government was also supported by the provision of Section 217 of the Constitution, which allows the use of the armed forces in the face of insurrection and in aid of civil authorities to restore order.

    He said: “It is axiomatic that Abia State constitutes part and parcel of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the President, Commander–in-Chief; President Muhammadu Buhari, has the power to deploy the Armed Forces to any part of the territory that constitutes the Federal Republic of Nigeria, to maintaining and securing public safety and public order.

    “It follows that by Section 8 (3) of the Armed Forces Act, the President, in exercise of his powers to determine the operational use of the Armed Forces, direct that the deployment of any branch of the Armed Forces for the purpose of maintaining and securing public safety and public order.

    “This is precisely what the President did when he deployed the Armed Forces to the Abia State of Nigeria to maintain and secure public safety and public order. Put differently, the President can, in certain circumstances, deployed the Armed Forces of Nigeria to perform police duties.

    “Examples of the use of the Armed Forces to maintain law and order sometimes in this country abound; so why are detractors of the Federal Government suggesting that the deployment of the Armed Forces to Abia State or the South East region amounts to invasion?”

    Citing the provisions of Section 217 subsections 2 (a) (b) (c) of the Constitution, Obono-Obla argued that “grammatically or literarily or contextually the description or branding of the deployment of the Armed Forces of Nigeria to Abia State to maintain public safety and public order as invasion, in the face of threat by IPOB, is absolutely wrong.

    “The pertinent question is, what is an invasion? An invasion is a military offensive in which large parts of combatants of one geo-political entity aggressively enter territory controlled by another such entity, generally with the objective of either conquering, liberating or re-establishing control or authority over a territory, forcing the partition of a country,” Obono-Obla said.

  • Video: Nnamdi Kanu speaks on alleged invasion of his home, says ‘Nigeria is pushing us to war’

    The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu on Monday claimed that the Nigerian government is provoking the group to war with the alleged invasion of his country home in Umuahia on Sunday by operatives of the Nigerian Army.

    The IPOB leader spoke while addressing the press on Monday.

    Recalling the event, Kanu claimed the Nigerian Army drove toward his house while shooting indiscriminately at people protesting and asking what they were coming to do.

    He explained that three people were shot and have since been taken to a secure location where they are receiving treatment.

    When asked about his reaction to the police and army’s denial of the attack, Nnamdi Kanu said it was characteristic of the Nigerian Government to lie, and they should not be believed.

    “They want us to become armed, so that the world can say Nnamdi Kanu is leading a violent armed group. Which is not the case.”

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Army had since denied the invasion insisting its personnel fired warning shots to disperse members of IPOB who lobbed stones and broken bottles against them during a procession in Umuahia, the Abia State capital.

    “The attention of 14 Brigade Nigerian Army has been drawn to fictitious news going round especially on the social media that troops have invaded the home of Nnamdi Kanu and killed three persons.

    “This is far from the truth. Rather, it was a group of suspected IPOB militants that blocked the road against troops of 145 Battalion while on show of force along FMC-Word Bank Road in Umuahia town, Abia State at about 6.00-6.30pm, today. They insisted that the military vehicles would not pass and started pelting the soldiers with stones and broken bottles to the point of injuring an innocent female passerby and a soldier, Corporal Kolawole Mathew.

    “The troops fired warning shots in the air and the hoodlums dispersed. No life was lost,” the Army said in a statement signed by Oyegoke Gbadamosi, a major and assistant deputy spokesperson of the 14 Brigade.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Kanu had on Sunday in an interview with newsmen accused the soldiers of storming his home in an armoured tank and about three Hilux vans loaded with heavily armed soldiers.

    He added that the soldiers shot sporadically as they approached his father’s compound, causing panic and among residents of the area.

    Kanu said the soldiers wanted to gain entry into his father’s compound but that IPOB members quickly formed a human shield around the compound and stoutly resisted them.

    Kanu wondered why the army wound wants to invade his home when he had yet to receive any invitation from any security agency.

    He, however, insisted that no amount of intimidation would make him abandon the struggle for Biafra independence.

    In his words: “I was sleeping this evening (Sunday) when suddenly I was woken up by the blaring of sirens. Initially, I thought it was the Commissioner of Police who lives in the neighborhood that was returning home. But the blaring persisted and was followed up by sporadic gun shots.

    “The soldiers wanted to bulldoze their way into the palace but IPOB members formed a human shield and resisted them. They wanted to break the shield and fired at three persons and wounded others before leaving. Everybody including children was running away in confusion.”

    However, in a swift reaction, the Commissioner of Police in the state, Leye Oyebade denied any form of attack on Kanu home. “There was no attack on the home of Nnamdi Kanu,” Oyebade said.

    “What happened was that the military was parading a new armoured carrier and passed through Nnamdi Kanu’s residence.

    “It was while they were passing that some people threw stones and other things at them,” Oyebade explained.

  • Army deny invading Nnamdi Kanu’s home, say ‘We fired warning shots to disperse hoodlums throwing stones at us’

    The Nigerian Army on Sunday denied invading the country home of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu insisting its personnel fired warning shots to disperse members of IPOB who lobbed stones and broken bottles against them during a procession in Umuahia, the Abia State capital.


    TheNewsGuru.com reports that the Army was countering the account of Kanu, which had said soldiers stormed his residence in the Abia State capital, killing and injuring occupants in a bid to attack and arrest him (Nnamdi Kanu).

    “The attention of 14 Brigade Nigerian Army has been drawn to fictitious news going round especially on the social media that troops have invaded the home of Nnamdi Kanu and killed three persons.

    “This is far from the truth. Rather, it was a group of suspected IPOB militants that blocked the road against troops of 145 Battalion while on show of force along FMC-Word Bank Road in Umuahia town, Abia State at about 6.00-6.30pm, today. They insisted that the military vehicles would not pass and started pelting the soldiers with stones and broken bottles to the point of injuring an innocent female passerby and a soldier, Corporal Kolawole Mathew.

    “The troops fired warning shots in the air and the hoodlums dispersed. No life was lost,” the Army said in a statement signed by Oyegoke Gbadamosi, a major and assistant deputy spokesperson of the 14 Brigade.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Kanu had on Sunday in an interview with newsmen accused the soldiers of storming his home in an armoured tank and about three Hilux vans loaded with heavily armed soldiers.

    He added that the soldiers shot sporadically as they approached his father’s compound, causing panic and among residents of the area.

    Kanu said the soldiers wanted to gain entry into his father’s compound but that IPOB members quickly formed a human shield around the compound and stoutly resisted them.

    Kanu wondered why the army wound wants to invade his home when he had yet to receive any invitation from any security agency.

    He, however, insisted that no amount of intimidation would make him abandon the struggle for Biafra independence.

    In his words: “I was sleeping this evening (Sunday) when suddenly I was woken up by the blaring of sirens. Initially, I thought it was the Commissioner of Police who lives in the neighborhood that was returning home. But the blaring persisted and was followed up by sporadic gun shots.

    “The soldiers wanted to bulldoze their way into the palace but IPOB members formed a human shield and resisted them. They wanted to break the shield and fired at three persons and wounded others before leaving. Everybody including children was running away in confusion.”

    However, in a swift reaction, the Commissioner of Police in the state, Leye Oyebade denied any form of attack on Kanu home. “There was no attack on the home of Nnamdi Kanu,” Oyebade said.


    “What happened was that the military was parading a new armoured carrier and passed through Nnamdi Kanu’s residence.

    “It was while they were passing that some people threw stones and other things at them,” Oyebade explained.