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Benue Youth Protest Killings, Block Highways in Makurdi

Benue Youth Protest Killings, Block Highways in Makurdi

Hundreds of youths in Benue State on Sunday took to the streets to protest the continuous attacks, killings and displacement of people in the state.

The protest followed the killing of scores at Yelwata community in Guma Local Government Area Friday night.

The protesters, who converged on the Wurukum Roundabout in Makurdi, called on the Federal Government to live up to its responsibility, which is to protect all the citizens within its sovereignty.

They also urged security agencies to redouble their efforts to ensure that all displaced people return to their ancestral homes and continue with their normal lives.

Speaking to newsmen, one of the protesters, Mr Brahms Ikuan, said the state was under siege for a long time and there were not sufficient efforts for the government to address the menace.

Ikuan regretted that even when they had useful information about the movement of the attackers and reports to authorities, nothing was still done to avert the attacks.

He further accused the authorities of maintaining a conspiratorial silence on the ongoing genocide, adding that Benue may cease to exist if urgent steps are not taken to end the killings.

“We cried, sent messages and opened letters, but nobody listened to us. Nobody came to our aid. At this moment, we are not sure if there will be any place called Benue tomorrow.

“Despite the attacks and killings in Yelwata yesterday, up till now, no word from the government or any prominent person. They have abandoned us.

“We want the world to know that Benue is being wiped out on the face of the earth and nobody cares about what is happening,” he said.

Also, another protester, Mr Gideon Inyom, accused the government of giving the herders unfettered access into the Benue communities by relaxing the state anti-open grazing law.

Inyom said all they wanted was security of lives and property, adding that such was the primary responsibility of every government worldwide.

However, the state Commissioner of Police, Mr Emenari Ifeanyi, told newsmen at the scene that the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr Kayode Egbetokun, has taken over the security of the state.

Ifeanyi said that the IGP has already deployed special forces in the state to end the attacks and killings.

The CP added that security agencies were on top of the situation and urged the youths and Benue people to give the new forces a chance.

“What you saw happening in Yelewata yesterday is because we have taken over Apa, Gwer West, and are moving seriously in Agatu. They just want to do something to show that they are in control while they are not and will never be.

“We are feeling more pain than you. We are here to protect lives and property. We have security everywhere now; even in Yelwata there are tactical teams in the bush even before the attack.

“Give the special forces and tactical teams a room to work. If you prolong your stay here, you are giving the enemies more time to plan.

“We have intelligence reports of their movement, and we are blocking them, and you will see the end result,” he said.

Ifeanyi further disclosed that Governor Hyacinth Alia has given them all the logistics support needed to restore peace in Benue.

A military helicopter was spotted in the sky at Wurukum Roundabout as the protest against herdsmen killings intensified.

The protesters turned down the Deputy Governor, Dr Sam Ode’s request to address them. (NAN)

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Hundreds of youths in Benue State on Sunday took to the streets to protest the continuous attacks, killings and displacement of people in the state. The protest followed the killing

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Lagos Enforces E-call-up for Truck Traffic 

Lagos Enforces E-call-up for Truck Traffic 

The Lagos State Government has said rising traffic from articulated trucks on the Lekki-Epe corridor has prompted enforcement of a technology-based electronic call-up (e-call-up) system.

The Commissioner for Transportation, Mr Oluwaseun Osiyemi, disclosed this on Sunday in a statement by Mrs Bolanle Ogunlola, the Deputy Director of Public Affairs, Ministry of Transportation.

Osiyemi revealed that enforcement of the e-call-up system will begin from Monday, June 16, to manage truck movement in the affected corridor.

The Lekki-Epe axis hosts major investments including the Dangote Refinery, Lekki Deep Sea Port, and key oil and gas infrastructure.

Due to the presence of only one major exit route, Osiyemi noted that industrial growth has intensified congestion in the area.

He said urgent and proactive traffic management measures are required to address the worsening situation on the corridor.

According to him, between 360 to 400 trucks currently operate daily, but this figure could increase significantly with full operations at the Dangote Refinery.

The refinery alone could dispatch between 3,000 and 4,000 trucks daily, Osiyemi said, highlighting the need for regulation.

He said the e-call-up system will help regulate truck movement through structured scheduling and reducing chaos on the roads.

“Truck operators will be required to register online and upload their Authority to Load (ATL) documents for verification.

“Only validated and cleared trucks will access designated parks, awaiting an electronic call-up notification before proceeding to their loading points,” he said.

This system, Osiyemi said, is designed to reduce illegal parking, improve traffic flow, and protect road infrastructure along the corridor.

The commissioner described the initiative as a bold step towards transforming logistics and transport management across Lagos, especially in fast-developing areas like Lekki-Epe.

He called for voluntary compliance from all stakeholders to ensure the system’s success and reduce traffic challenges in the region. (NAN)

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The Lagos State Government has said rising traffic from articulated trucks on the Lekki-Epe corridor has prompted enforcement of a technology-based electronic call-up (e-call-up) system. The Commissioner for Transportation, Mr

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Agric Ministry Denies Planning Prayer Session for Food Security, Cites Sudden Deaths of Management Staff

Agric Ministry Denies Planning Prayer Session for Food Security, Cites Sudden Deaths of Management Staff

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has clarified that the proposed prayer sessions to be held within the ministry were organised to address staff concerns over a series of sudden deaths of management staff, not as a strategy to tackle food security.

In a press statement issued yesterday by the Assistant Information Officer for the Director of Information, Ezeaja Ikemefuna,  the ministry said the ongoing prayer sessions were merely an internal initiative by the Human Resource Department to address staff well-being and were not a policy directive.

“The ministry’s attention is drawn to the internal circular of the Human Resource Management Department being circulated by online media; in this regard, the ministry wishes to inform that the prayer session is an initiative of the Human Resource Department to address the well-being of the staff just as the already existing monthly aerobic exercise and establishment of the gymnasium in the ministry are for physical fitness as the regular medical check-up of staff is for their health,” the statement explained.

According to the ministry, the prayer sessions were introduced in response to anxiety among staff following the “recent untimely and successive death of management staff of the Ministry.”

“The staff also deem it not out of place to pray for the country, hence the theme of the prayer sessions ‘Divine Intervention for Protection and National Development,’” it added.

Emphasising that the prayer initiative should not be misconstrued, the ministry clarified: “It must be emphasised that this is not an official policy by the ministry to address agriculture and food security issues in the country. But in response to the yearnings of staff who are apprehensive following the death of some of their colleagues in recent times.”

The statement also outlined several efforts currently being undertaken by the Honourable Minister.

“The Honourable Minister has been working assiduously to ensure food and nutrition security for the country in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Administration.

“The ministry has taken delivery of over a thousand tractors to support farmers and has signed the commercialisation phase under the supervision of President Tinubu.

 “Another of his initiatives is the Strategic Grain Reserve and Market Stabilisation of prices, where about 42,000 metric tonnes of grains and an additional 58,200 metric tonnes of milled rice grains were distributed,” the statement added.

The statement added that there was also the donation of 2,150,000 bags of fertilisers by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to curb food inflation.

It added that the government has also approved the recapitalisation of the Bank of Agriculture to the tune of N1.5 trillion, launched the National Electronic Extension Platform, and initiated reforms in the cooperative sector through training and workshops.

Additionally, the ministry has partnered with the World Bank on the $600 million Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project, rehabilitating 200,000 kilometres of rural roads, and distributing free agricultural inputs nationwide under various schemes, including the National Agricultural Growth Scheme Agro-Pocket.

In collaboration with the National Identity Management Commission, the Ministry is also working on a data management initiative to ensure accurate identity verification for farmers.

Reiterating its commitment to tangible results, the Ministry stressed that “the prayer session is an internal initiative of staff to address the concern over sudden deaths in the Ministry and not intended to replace or downplay the remarkable effort and achievement of the Ministry and other stakeholders in achieving food security in the Nation.”

Many news agencies had reported that the ministry sent out an internal circular dated June 11 directing all staff of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security to participate in prayer and fasting sessions on June 16, 23, and 30.

The spiritual exercise, themed “Divine Intervention for Protection and National Development,” was aimed at seeking divine guidance to support Nigeria’s food security efforts.

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Chuks Okocha in Abuja The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has clarified that the proposed prayer sessions to be held within the ministry were organised to address staff

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I Didn’t Visit Tinubu for Personal Gains, Says Tunde Bakare

I Didn’t Visit Tinubu for Personal Gains, Says Tunde Bakare

The serving overseer of the Citadel Global Community Church, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has dismissed suggestions that his recent meeting with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was motivated by personal interests.

Bakare, who contested the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary in 2023, visited the president last week at the State House. His visit sparked speculations about possible political alignment or appointments.

But during a sermon at his church, Bakare addressed the rumours, insisting his engagement with the president was solely driven by national interest.

“Some people still think he has gone there to settle himself. In what way have I settled myself before? What they gave me, I returned. What am I looking for?” he said,

Speaking to journalists after the meeting, Bakare said his discussion with Tinubu focused on national development and how to move the country forward.

“It’s not about just reservations. It’s about how the country will go well. My vision is to see a nation that works in my lifetime,” he said.

He added that he had made suggestions to the president but left the decision on whether to act on them entirely up to him.

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The serving overseer of the Citadel Global Community Church, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has dismissed suggestions that his recent meeting with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was motivated by personal interests. Bakare,

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June 12: Activists Want Tinubu to Give National Honours to Walter Carrington, Others

June 12: Activists Want Tinubu to Give National Honours to Walter Carrington, Others

Sunday Aborisade in Abuja 

Some activists under the aegis of Quintessential Professionals yesterday urged President Bola Tinubu to include a former United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Walter Carrington, in the list of pro-democracy crusaders honoured for their roles in the June 12, struggle. 

Carrington, who served as the US Ambassador to Nigeria from 1993 to 1997, was actively involved in the pro-democracy activism that eventually birthed democracy in Nigeria in 1999.

The group in a statement by its coordinator, Stanley Dunia, and made available to journalists in Abuja, recalled how Carrington actively collaborated with Nigerian pro-democracy activists for the revalidation of the June 12 presidential election, despite being on a diplomatic mission.  

While in Nigeria, the US diplomat, the statement explained, got married to a Nigerian woman, Arese, a medical doctor from Edo State.  

The activists argued that Carrington, who died in August 2020, deserved a posthumous award. 

Similarly, the group made separate cases for other Nigerians who were part of the struggle but whose names were omitted on the list unveiled by President Tinubu on Thursday. 

Prominent among those omitted were some of Tinubu’s allies in the Afenifere and the NADECO movement who were also in the trenches during the struggle.  

They were Chief Ayo Opadokun, Pa Olanihun Ajayi, Chief Cornelius Adebayo, Chief Olabiyi Durojaiye, Senator Adedayo Adeyeye and Senator Jonathan Zwingina. 

Others similarly omitted are Kofo Akerele-Bucknor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, Reverend Adebiyi, Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, Chief Olisa Agbakoba, Innocent Chukwuma, Mike Ozekhome, Yinka Odumakin, Joe Okei-Odumakin among many others. 

The statement read: “The Presidency should review this list and many others deserving of honour, with a view to addressing the oversight and picking out the dead among them for posthumous honour.”

The group noted that the omissions have led to insinuations in certain quarters that the President might have deliberately omitted names of certain individuals who were part of the struggle, but who are now critics of his administration. 

But a Presidency source, who craved anonymity, attributed the omissions to human error, saying that even some of the President’s close associates who are still in his team, were inadvertently omitted. 

“It has been brought to our attention that even the man who coordinated the President’s support group, SWAGA ’23, and who was actively involved in the June 12 struggle, was also omitted. It’s human error and another list is being compiled to address it,” the source said yesterday.

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Sunday Aborisade in Abuja  Some activists under the aegis of Quintessential Professionals yesterday urged President Bola Tinubu to include a former United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Walter Carrington, in

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Youth Advocate Warns Tinubu Against Deceptive Political Defections, Says ‘Nigerians Are Wiser Now’

Youth Advocate Warns Tinubu Against Deceptive Political Defections, Says ‘Nigerians Are Wiser Now’

“Defections Won’t Guarantee 2027 Win, Solve Hunger and Insecurity – Youth Advocate Tells Tinubu”

Wale Igbintade

A youth advocate, Engr. Nwabueze Onwuneme, has issued a strong warning to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, urging him not to be misled by the deceptive narratives surrounding the recent defections of governors and lawmakers to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Onwuneme described the wave of defections as a superficial attempt to create an illusion of growing popularity ahead of the 2027 general elections.

According to him, Nigerians, particularly the youth are more politically aware and will demand transparency and fairness at the polls.

“These defections are not about ideology or service. They are orchestrated moves by corrupt leaders attempting to rebrand themselves as grassroots champions”, he said.

He alleged that some governors, lawmakers, and business elites may be aligning with key figures in Tinubu’s inner circle to influence the distribution of national resources, while engaging in political activities that obscure their actual objectives.

He warned that the Nigerian people especially the youth are no longer easily deceived.

“The angry, hungry Nigerians have seen through these lies. We’ve heard false promises before, and we won’t be fooled again in 2027.”

Onwuneme emphasised that any attempt to rig the 2027 elections or manipulate results through false declarations will be met with resistance.

“The current hardships rising hunger, insecurity, and the government’s indifference—have awakened the masses. Nigerians will insist on credible, free, and fair elections”, he added

Addressing the political overtures in the Southeast, Onwuneme criticized what he called a transactional approach to gaining support in the region.

“The Southeast has been historically marginalized. Any last-minute outreach that ignores the region’s real needs is insincere. Tinubu cannot buy genuine support from political merchants. If he wants to win the Southeast, he must adopt a people-focused strategy.”

He also condemned what he described as the APC’s agenda to turn Nigeria into a one-party state, warning that such authoritarian tactics are undemocratic.

“It is disgraceful for a former democrat like Tinubu to flirt with autocratic measures. Nigerians will vote for individuals based on competence and integrity not just party loyalty.”

Onwuneme therefore advised the president to focus on real issues affecting citizens, rather than political scheming.

Addressing Tinubu, he said “If you truly seek the people’s mandate in 2027,  solve the pressing issues, such as hunger, insecurity, and economic hardship. Nigerians are watching. They are wiser now, and they will demand accountability and fairness.”

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“Defections Won’t Guarantee 2027 Win, Solve Hunger and Insecurity – Youth Advocate Tells Tinubu” Wale Igbintade A youth advocate, Engr. Nwabueze Onwuneme, has issued a strong warning to President Bola

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FG, Babangida Hail Amuka-Pemu, Say He’s Guardian of National Consciousness, Sentinel of Nigeria’s Democracy

FG, Babangida Hail Amuka-Pemu, Say He’s Guardian of National Consciousness, Sentinel of Nigeria’s Democracy

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja 

The federal government has described the publisher of Vanguard Newspapers, Chief Sam Amuka-Pemu, as a guardian of the national conscience, a sentinel of Nigeria’s democracy, and one of the last standing titans of press freedom in Africa.

This is as a former military President, General Ibrahim Babangida (rtd.), also congratulated Amuka-Pemu, for the milestone.

Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, made the adulation on Friday night in Lagos at the 90th birthday celebration held in honour of Amuka-Pemu.

He described Amuka-Pemu, as “a living monument to truth, justice, and the undying spirit of patriotism.”

He praised the media icon for his steadfast commitment to journalism, democracy, and nation-building over several decades.

“In Chief Sam Amuka-Pemu, we do not just honour a man. We honour an era and a movement. At 90, Chief Sam Amuka-Pemu is not just a nonagenarian; he is a living monument to truth, justice, and the undying spirit of patriotism,” Idris said.

The minister described the Vanguard publisher as “the quill through which Nigeria wrote its democratic rebirth, the watchful eye that never blinked through decades of darkness, and the gentle yet unyielding force that nurtured journalism into our collective noble institution.”

Idris also noted while tracing Amuka-Pemu’s contributions to Nigerian journalism, that “his fingerprints are imprinted on some of the most iconic mastheads in our media history: The Daily Times, Sunday Punch, The Punch, and Vanguard. These are not just newspapers. They are chronicles of our national life, mirrors that have reflected our hopes, struggles, and triumphs.”

He highlighted the publisher’s pioneering role in co-founding The Punch in 1971 and establishing Vanguard in 1983 during a period of political turbulence, emphasising that these ventures were borne “not in pursuit of power or glory, but out of duty to country, to truth, and the voiceless.”

“Yet, to describe Chief Sam Amuka-Pemu as a journalist is to say too little. He is a guardian of the national conscience, a sentinel of our democracy, and one of the last standing titans of press freedom in Africa.”

Idris commended Amuka-Pemu’s unwavering courage during Nigeria’s difficult journey from military dictatorship to democracy, saying it was no exaggeration that without voices like his, raised firmly and fearlessly against military rule, Nigeria’s journey to democratic governance might have taken an even darker path.

The minister further noted that Amuka-Pemu “remains arguably the oldest practicing journalist in Nigeria; still curious; still committed, and still standing.”

He used the occasion to call on all media professionals and institutions to honour Amuka-Pemu’s legacy “not merely with our words, but with our recommitment to a media that is truly free, fearless, fair, and responsible. To a Nigeria where truth still matters. To a democracy whose lifeblood remains the integrity of those who tell its story.”

The minister also thanked President Bola Tinubu for recognising Chief Amuka-Pemu’s lifetime contributions with a National Honours Award.

“May we, the inheritors of his vision, carry forward the torch of truth with the same grace, courage, and integrity that have defined these 90 remarkable years.

“And may the generations to come know that in our time, there lived a man named Uncle Sam, who walked in humility, stood for justice, wrote with purpose, and lived for a truly democratic Nigeria,” Idris said.

Meanwhile, former military President, General Babangida (rtd), also congratulated Amuka-Pemu, for the milestone.

The former Head of State in a statement in Minna yesterday, felicitated him in a congratulatory message he personally signed and made available to journalists.

He said, “Today marks a remarkable milestone in your extraordinary life, and I am honoured to celebrate this special day with you.

“Our friendship has blossomed through over half a century of mutual trust and respect, and your loyalty, dedication, and generosity of spirit are qualities that I have always cherished.

“As an erudite journalist, editor, and arguably our nation’s most successful newspaper proprietor, your contributions to our nation’s discourse and its very development, remained invaluable.”

Babangida described Amuka-Pemu as a man of the world, who was full of wisdom, wit, and insight, who would no doubt, continue to entertain and inspire countless individuals, including his humble self.

“On this day, as you accomplish the incredible feat of reaching the remarkable age of ninety and thriving,

“I wish to thank you for the time you gave me so much joy through your kindness and unalloyed support.

“As I wish you better health, happiness, and abundant years of fruitful living.

“May your birthday be filled with good memories, rekindling your great joy for life, and your boundless love for humanity,” Babangida prayed.

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Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja  The federal government has described the publisher of Vanguard Newspapers, Chief Sam Amuka-Pemu, as a guardian of the national conscience, a sentinel of Nigeria’s democracy, and