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Tag: niger

  • Armed bandits invade Niger villages, kidnap 15, kill nine

    Armed bandits invade Niger villages, kidnap 15, kill nine

    Armed bandits have killed nine people and kidnapped 15 others in a recent attack in Banda, Malfa and Tunga villages in Kurebe and kwaki wards of Shiroro local government area of Niger state.

    It was learnt that 11 women and girls were raped and injured and are currently hospitalized in critical condition after the attack which occurred over the weekend.

    In a press statement by the Senator representing North East Senatorial District, Senator David Umaru, he revealed that last week, several attacks were carried out in some villages across the district.

    According to him, a woman, her daughter and a Royal Prince were abducted at Kwararamai, three persons were killed whilst three others were abducted in Malfa adding that villages like Kwararamai, Jankuta and Marraraban Bataro were also attacked as 17 persons were abducted in one night.

    “It is with a heavy heart and a very sad mood that I issue this statement today on a most callous and brutal armed attack on my good people of Badna, Malfa, Tunga villages and surrounding communities in Kurebe and Kwaki wards of shiroro area within Niger East Senatorial District.

    “I am particularly saddened and shocked at the cruel massacre of nine people of my constituents, the kidnap of 15 innocent people mostly women and girls in an attack in which several others were raped, injured and hospitalized with 11 in critical condition.

    “It is painful to note that this incident which occurred not more than 36 hours ago is just one amongst several other brazen attacks that have been carried out in the area in recent times.”

    The Senator who called for urgent security intervention and sufficient security personnel to be drafted to these villages stated that the areas are no longer safe for the people to live in.

    “These incidents which are still very fresh our memories are quick reminders of the present reality in this area that lives and properties of the inhabitants of these communities are no longer safe. There is, therefore, the need for urgent intervention by security agencies.

    He called on security agencies to give priority again to securing lives and properties of the villagers in order to build on the peace that have prevailed in the area before the gangsters resurfaced recently, “All the Security and relevant Government agencies should focus attention on the worst affected areas in Shiroro, Munya and Rafi Local Government areas.

    “I therefore humbly call on the Niger state Commissioner of Police and the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 1st Div. Kaduna to deploy sufficient personnel to the hot spots particularly in surrounding villages in kurebe/Kushaka, and kwaki/chukuba, wards of shiroro local government area of Niger state. Attention should, nonetheless, also be given to areas under serious threats in Munya and Rafi LGAs.”

  • U-20 AFCON: Nigeria beat Niger, qualify for World Cup

    U-20 AFCON: Nigeria beat Niger, qualify for World Cup

    Nigeria’s U-20 team have qualified for the World Cup in Poland, following a 1-0 win over Niger Republic, in the ongoing African Cup of Nations (AFCON).

    Kano Pillars midfielder, Alhassan Adamu, scored the only goal of the game from a free-kick in the 73rd minute.

    The victory also ensures a semi-final berth for the Flying Eagles.

    Nigeria has won the competition a record of seven times.

    Paul Aigbogun is aiming to clinch an eighth title in Niamey.

  • 28 die in three boat mishaps in Niger

    28 die in three boat mishaps in Niger

    The Niger State Commissioner of Transport, Engineer Ibrahim Panti has disclosed that 28 lives were lost in three boat mishaps in the state.

    Just as he said that 3000 life jackets have been purchased to be used by boat travelers in a bid to reduce casualties recorded during boat mishaps.

    The Commissioner said that from 2019, the state government would make it compulsory for the use of the life jackets by water travelers.

    “As part of efforts to reduce casualties during boat mishaps, 3,000 life jackets were purchased and launched for use by boat travelers. Wearing of such life saving gear would soon become compulsory for all water travelers.”

    Panti further said that 4000 coded reflective jackets has also been purchased for commercial motorcycle riders saying an ultimatum has been given to motorcycle riders in Minna metropolis regarding the use of the reflective jackets.

    “The Ministry procured 4000 coded reflective jackets for easy identification of commercial motorcycle riders and to improve safety of lives especially at night.

    “This is the only alternative to identify the genuine motorcycle riders in the state as majority of these riders are not from the state. We have issued an ultimatum that in 2019, if a motorcycle riders do not wear reflective jacket, they will not ride their bikes in the state capital.”

    Panti also disclosed that a 12 seater watercraft with 7.5 horse power engine have been purchased for surveillance, rescue and patrol on case of any eventuality in the waterways.

    He said that plans are at an advanced stage to establish Motor Vehicle Administration Agency as a one stop center for motorcycle administration, traffic regulation and traffic rented revenue generation.

     

  • Police arrest man in possession of human eyeball in Niger

    Police arrest man in possession of human eyeball in Niger

    The Niger State Police Command has arrested Shuaibu Ibrahim,35, of Safiu village in Toto Local Government Area of Nasarawa State with a human eyeball.

    According to the police report, operatives attached to the Gawu Babangida Division in Gurara Local Government Area arrested Ibrahim.

    It was learnt that the police operatives apprehended the suspect in the early hours of Thursday following a tip-off from a member of the public.

    The eyeball was said to have been removed from a victim of a communal clash between the Igbira and Bassa people in Nasarawa State.

    According to a report by The Punch, one Ojo, now at large, reportedly gave the eyeball to the suspect to sell in Niger State for N250,000.

    Further checks revealed that the suspect had been involved in the illegal trafficking of human parts across the northern states for over five years.

    The suspect explained that he was the intermediary between Ojo and his customers, who were buyers of human parts.

    Ibrahim said, “My duty is to deliver human parts given to me by Ojo to his clients across the northern states. We make quick money in this business but I cannot tell what the buyers are using the parts for.

    “A lot of people are interested in buying human parts but I don’t know what they use them for. My duty is to deliver as and when due to our clients and collect the money.

    “I don’t even ask clients what they are using the human eyeballs for, but I guess it must be something serious.”

    The Niger State Police Public Relations Officer, Muhammad Abubakar, who confirmed the arrest of the Nasarawa State indigene, said police operatives arrested the suspect after receiving credible information from a member of the public.

    He said the suspect would be charged to court after the completion of police investigation.

     

  • 2019: Senate spokesman, one other serving APC senator lose primaries in Niger

    2019: Senate spokesman, one other serving APC senator lose primaries in Niger

    …as David Umaru Cries Foul
    Two of the serving Senators of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Niger state, Barrister David Umaru and Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi have lost in the senatorial primaries held across the state on Tuesday.
    Two time serving Senator David Umaru who is the Chairman, Senate committee on Judiciary and Human Rights lost the Niger East senatorial district to new entrant, Alhaji Sani Musa.
    While in Niger north senatorial district, the Senate Spokesman, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi lost to the state serving Commissioner for Local Government, Community Development and Chieftaincy Affair, Alhaji Zakari Jikantoro.
    However, Senator David Umaru who assessed newsmen on Wednesday claimed that the APC Senatorial Primaries was a sham as it was bedeviled with intimidation from thugs and votes buying.
    He accused the State Working Committee of the party of skewing the election and rigging it in favour of a particular candidate expressing concern over the electoral fraud committed in the state.
    “Thugs were used to beat up and chased away my supporters and disrupted voting. In many cases elections were not done but results were manufactured and announced. This is shame to APC and I condemned it in total”.
    He called on the national chairman of the party to quickly intervene before strangers destroy the party which was formed on the principle of justice and fairness.
    “I called on the National Chairman and those who mean well for the party to intervene and cancel the results of senatorial primaries in the state in order to save the party in the state”.
    Also, in the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Senatorial Primaries, former Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Alhaji Abdulrahaman Gimba and former PDP Chairman in the state, Alhaji Abdulrahaman Enagi lost the primaries in their respective senatorial districts.
    In Niger east senatorial district, legal luminary and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Ibrahim Isyaku emerged the party’s candidate after defeating three other candidates, in Niger south, former House of Representatives member, Alhaji Baba Shehu Agaie emerged the party’s flag bearer after defeating former Minister of Youth and Sport Development, Alhaji Abdulrahaman Gimba and former PDP Chairman in the state, Alhaji Abdulrahaman Enagi, while in Niger North senatorial district, Mohammadu Sani Duba emerged the party candidate unopposed.

  • Benin Republic, Niger pay $10m power debt after Nigeria’s disconnection threat

    Benin Republic, Niger pay $10m power debt after Nigeria’s disconnection threat

    Sequel to Nigeria’s earlier warning to disconnect them, the Republics of Benin and Niger have cleared their $10.1m electricity debt to avert the impending disconnection.

    According to a report by The Punch, the affected countries made the payment through their respective power firms, with NIGELEC of the Republic of Niger paying $3.79m, while the Community Electric du Benin of the Republic of Benin remitted $6.32m to Nigeria’s electricity market.

    Recall that President Muhammadu Buhari joined operators in the power sector in calling on international customers receiving electricity from Nigeria to either pay their bills or be disconnected.

    Nigeria sells power to the Republics of Togo, Niger and Benin, and classifies the West African countries as international customers.

    Officials at the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing confirmed in Abuja on Thursday that the international customers, paying for the power received from Nigeria in dollars, owed the country, a development that had increased the financial indebtedness to Nigeria’s power generation companies.

    To avert being disconnected, it was gathered on Thursday that Benin and Niger made some payments and that the payment by both countries was disclosed to operators in Nigeria’s electricity industry at the August 2018 power sector stakeholders’ meeting by the Market Operator, an arm of the Transmission Company of Nigeria.

    This was also confirmed in a report that was presented to stakeholders at the meeting by the MO.

    On its dashboard on the summary of energy delivery in the month of June 2018, the MO stated that energy delivered to international customers and Ajaokuta Steel was 229,487.29 megawatts/hour.

    Under bilateral trading, it stated that the quantum of energy sent out by power generation companies was 104,861.92MWh, while energy delivered to bilateral customers was 95,939.31MWh.

    Figures on the dashboard showed that indigenous power distribution companies, as always, got the highest quantum of energy, 2,355,623.4MWh, from the Gencos in the month under review.

    The MO further stated that part of the foreign exchange inflows from international customers had been disbursed to service providers in Nigeria’s power sector.

    The indebtedness of international customers was also confirmed by the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, in July, who, however, revealed that Buhari was working hard to ensure that the electricity debts by the country’s neighbours were cleared.

    Fashola had also directed the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company to go ahead and collect its money from the international customers.

    He said, “We issued disconnection notices and that is why I’m asking the NBET to go and collect your money because we have duties, obligations and international agreements with them as brother and sister nations.

    “But that does not mean they will not pay us if they are defaulting. So, we have issued letters to them to pay their bills, and from time to time, they pay.

    “There was a time one head of state came to visit President Buhari and little did I know that the real reason he came was to come and tell him that the (power) sector had issued a notice of disconnection to his country. And you may be interested to know that President Buhari simply told him to go and pay, otherwise we will disconnect you because we are also paying at home.”

     

  • Accident kills 11, injures 16 in Niger

    No fewer than 11 people were feared dead in an auto crash involving a bus, Toyota Corolla and a Hilux van on Ibeto/Kontagora Road in Kontagora Local Government Area of Niger on Tuesday.

    Malam Abdullahi Ibrahim, Federal Road Safety Corps Unit Commander in Charge of Kontagora, made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kontagora on Tuesday.

    Ibrahim said that 27 people were involved in the accident, 11 died on the spot while 16 others sustained various degrees of injuries.

    He said that the bus was heading toward Kebbi, while the Toyota Corolla and Hilux were going to Kontagora.

    He added that the accident was caused by wrong overtaking and speeding.

    He said that bodies of the deceased were deposited at the morgue in Kontagora General Hospital, while the injured were receiving treatment in the same hospital.

    The unit commander cautioned motorists against reckless driving, especially during the sallah celebration.

    NAN

  • Niger govt confirms owing WAEC, NECO N664m

    Niger State government State said on Monday it is owning two major examination bodies in the country – the West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) and the National Examination Council (NECO) – N664 million.

    The state Commissioner of Education, Hajiya Fatima Magudu, said the debt was inherited by the government from previous administrations in the state.

    Investigations revealed that students in the state public schools have not been able to access their WEAC results due to debts owed to the examination body.

    Students and parents have besieged the WAEC office in Minna, demanding reasons why the results were not accessed and they were directed to the state Ministry of Education for explanations.

    However, the commissioner said N5million had been given to WAEC to offset this year’s bill to enable the students access their results.

  • Nigeria, Niger sign MOU on $2bn Hydrocarbon Pipeline, Refinery projects

    Nigeria and the Republic of Niger on Tuesday in Abuja signed Memorandum of Understanding (Mou) on the construction of two billion dollars Hydrocarbon Pipeline and Refinery in Nigeria.

    The signing of the MoU was witnessed by President Muhammadu Buhari and his Nigerien counterpart Mahammadou Issoufou at the new Banquet Hall, Aso Rock, Abuja.

    Speaking at the event, President Buhari described the cooperation on crude oil export from the Republic of Niger to Nigeria and construction of refinery facilities in Katsina State as a “win-win” for both nations.

    He noted that the initiative would not only provide a reliable market for the stranded crude from the Niger Republic but would also provide petroleum products for Nigeria.

    “Nigeria sees this cooperation on crude oil export from the Republic of Niger and construction of refinery facilities in Katsina State as a “win-win” for both nations.

    “The initiative will not only provide a reliable market for the stranded crude from the Niger Republic but will also provide petroleum products for Nigeria, as it aggressively pursues its aspiration on petroleum product self-sufficiency.

    “In addition, it is my hope that the current frontier exploration efforts in the Northern part of the country (Chad Basin, Gongola Basin, Sokoto Basin, Bida Basin and Benue trough) will also result in the provision of additional hydrocarbon inflow to the corridors of the proposed pipeline and a potential refinery around Kaduna axis.

    “I am happy that several productive engagements held between the Nigerian and Nigerien authorities have resulted in the positive agreements to progress with activities on this important project.”

    According to him, the project will be private sector driven with the full support of the governments of both countries.

    President Buhari expressed delight that already several expressions of interest from prospective investors were being received.

    President Buhari who inaugurated Steering and Technical Committee on the construction of the Hydrocarbon Pipeline and Refinery projects, said the committee would provide strategic leadership, direction and governance oversight for the project.

    “In this regard, a Steering Committee has been set up to be chaired by the Nigerian Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and the alternate chairman is the Nigerien Minister of Petroleum, to provide strategic leadership, direction and governance oversight for the project.

    “Further to this, a Senior level Joint Technical Team is carefully selected based on competence to develop the implementation roadmap and strategy on both the refinery and pipeline projects.

    “This team will be led by Nigeria’s Engineer Rabiu Suleiman supported by the DG Hydrocarbons of Niger Republic.’’

    The President, therefore, challenged members of the committee to come up with a detailed roadmap and guideline leading to actual execution of the projects by December.

    He stated that the detailed roadmap should cover the following: Bankable feasibility studies for both the Refinery and pipeline projects; Optimal project site, pipeline routes and details as well as security plan.

    The President also enjoined the committee to come up with selected consortia of investors for both the refinery and pipeline projects.

    President Buhari assured that Nigeria was committed to pursuing the partnership with vigour and determination, adding that Nigeria and Niger had “excellent relations for several decades, as neighbours sharing a long border with common cultural and historical ties.’’

    In his remarks, President Mahammadou Issoufou of Republic of Niger, who spoke in French, noted the signing of the MoU had constituted the basis for the mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries.

    “We share common problems and should also share solutions.

    “Africa will only to develop if we work together and know what to do.

    “We only need to move into taking meaningful actions we are trying to develop the value chain for our mineral resources and product.

    “We will be happy to see barrels of crude oil refined in Niger and exported to Nigeria,’’ he said.

    One of the co-investors of the project and founder of Blak Oil Energy Refinery, Alhaji Ibrahim Zakari, disclosed that the refinery project would be sited at Mashi in Katsina state was worth two billion dollars.

    Zakari revealed that the project was projected to provide 2,500 direct and another 10,000 indirect employment opportunities to Nigerians.

  • Eight bodies recovered after Niger flood

    Eight bodies recovered after Niger flood

    The Niger State Emergency Management Agency says eight corpses have so far been recovered following a downpour in Rafi-Gora village and Gangare Saji in Kontagora Local Government Area of the state.

    The Director-General of the agency, Alhaji Ibrahim Inga, disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Minna on Tuesday.

    Inga said that seven teenage girls were washed away by flood in Rafin-Gora market, while three children died in Anguwan Gangare Saji in Kontagora as a result of the flood.

    He said that the teenage girls were inside a shop in Rafi-Gora market when the flood struck, while the three children fell inside sewage while attempting to remove a shoe from the facility.

    He said that the dead bodies were recovered by local divers in collaboration with desk officers of NSEMA.

    He said one boy was rescued alive by a truck driver plying the road in Rafi-Gora village.

    “The boy that survived was holding tight to a tree when the truck driver saw him and rescued him,” the director-general said.

    He said efforts were being made to recover the remaining missing bodies.

    NAN