A reliable source at the commission, who preferred anonymity, confirmed the development on Monday according to Channels television’s report. The source disclosed that the withdrawals violated the provisions of the Money Laundering (Prevention & Prohibition) Act, 2022.

As of the time of filing this report, the exact timeframe during which the transactions occurred remains undisclosed.

Tambuwal reportedly arrived at the EFCC’s Abuja headquarters around 11:30 a.m. to submit himself for interrogation over the alleged financial misconduct.

The EFCC’s spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, declined to comment on the matter.

Tambuwal, who served as Speaker of the House of Representatives from 2011 to 2015, was Governor of Sokoto State from 2015 until 2023.

The post EFCC Detains Ex-Sokoto Governor Tambuwal Over ₦189bn Fraud Allegation first appeared on MegaIcon Magazine.

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Tragedy has struck in the Sabon Birni Local Government Area of Sokoto State as the kidnapped District Head of Gatawa, Isa Muhammad Bawa, has reportedly died in captivity.

The devastating news was confirmed by Almustapha Boza, the lawmaker representing Sabon Birni North in the Sokoto State House of Assembly.

Boza disclosed that the team sent to deliver the ransom demanded by the bandits made a harrowing discovery when they arrived.

“The team sent to deliver the ransom found the monarch’s lifeless body,” Boza said. “His son, however, was returned to the team, while the district head had already been buried before they got there.”

The tragic incident has cast a pall of grief and anxiety over the community, as efforts to secure the release of the district head ended in heartbreak.

Attempts to reach the spokesman for the Nigeria Police Force in Sokoto State, ASP Ahmed Rufai, for comments on the situation, according to Channels TV were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.

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Also, the lawmakers , during the plenary asked President Buhari to declare all the known leaders of the bandits wanted and track them wherever they are for arrest and prosecution.

The resolutions followed a motion moved by Sen. Ibrahim Abdullahi Gobir representing Sokoto East and eight others.

Gobir lamented that his senatorial district has become a safe haven for bandits fleeing from the current onslaught against them in Zamfara State.

Presenting his case, he recalled the killing of 21 security personnel on Saturday in Dama and Gangara, during attacks that left a yet to be ascertained number of civilians either dead or kidnapped.

Sen. Gobir, who  noted that the latest incident highlights the magnitude of the problem, also emphasized that the matter requires the declaration of total war on banditry.

The lawmaker insisted that it is sad the nation keeps losing such a number of trained officers at the hands of bandits, a trend which he notes will jeopardise the security architecture of the country if not properly handled.

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Army spokesman, Brigadier General Mohammed Yerima, while confirming the incident on Wednesday, in a statement said the suspects, who  operated around the Sabo Birni area of the state were neutralised on Tuesday.

The operation, according to Yerima, followed credible information of gunrunners moving weapons on foot from the Niger Republic into Nigeria around 11 pm.

The statement partly read, “the highly vigilant troops mounted a successful ambush along the suspected route close to Garin Naimaimai Village and neutralised the three gunrunners”.

Items recovered included RPG bombs and RPG chargers, machine gun, AK-47 assault rifles and other accessories as well as the different caliber of assorted ammunition.

The Chief of Army Staff, Major General Faruk Yahaya lauded  the efforts of the troops.

He, also asked them to “sustain operational in dominating all the illegal routes around the border areas with the Niger Republic to frustrate any movement of weapons and ammunition into the country.”

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The post Surging violence in Nigeria drives displacement to Niger first appeared on MegaIcon Magazine.

The post Surging violence in Nigeria drives displacement to Niger appeared first on MegaIcon Magazine.

Since April 2019, people have fled relentless attacks by armed groups in the Sokoto, Zamfara and Katsina states of Nigeria. Most found refuge in Niger’s Maradi region

Fearing and fleeing the same insecurity in the border areas, an additional 19,000 Niger nationals have become displaced inside their own country.

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is concerned about deteriorating security inside Nigeria and the risk of armed incursions spilling over into Niger.

The latest influx of refugees, mainly desperate women and children, follows attacks in Nigeria’s Katsina, Sokoto and Zamfara states during the month of April. Several villages in several Local Government Areas were attacked by gunmen. The deadliest attack claimed 47 lives in Kankara, Danmusa and Dusi-ma Local Government Areas in Katsina State and prompted airstrikes by the Nigerian Armed Forces.

Those fleeing speak of extreme violence unleashed against civilians, murders, kidnappings for ransom and pillaging and looting of villages.

Refugees from Nigeria are being allowed to seek protection in Niger despite border closures due to COVID-19. New arrivals are in urgent need of water, food and access to health services, as well as shelter and clothing. Many were barely able to carry anything in the rush to save lives.

Many have also been caught up in the clashes reported being blamed on farmers and herders of different ethnic groups as well as vigilantism. Some 95 per cent of the refugees have come from Nigeria’s Sokoto state, rest from Kano, Zamfara and Katsina states.

We are working closely with authorities in Niger to relocate at least 7,000 refugees to safety, in villages 20 kilometres away from the border, where water, food, shelter, access to health and other essential assistance can be provided. This will also enable to ease the pressure on host communities in border areas, where basic infrastructure and services are lacking.

UNHCR has been present at the onset, and the emergency response focused on protection and life-saving activities, including registration, protection and border monitoring, education, health, shelter as well as water and sanitation.

UNHCR needs to continue biometric registration of refugees to better assess their needs and lead the humanitarian response. Discussions are also ongoing with the authorities to recognize on a prima facie basis the refugees fleeing Nigeria and arriving in the region.

The violence is not directly linked to armed groups operating in the Lake Chad and in the Sahel. It, however, adds Maradi to other areas in Niger struggling with insecurity including in Diffa, Tillaberi and Tahoua, further straining humanitarian actors’ financial resources and their capacity to respond.

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The commendation was contained in a statement by a socio-cultural group, Oyo Progressive Front (OPF) on the heels of the disbursement of N43 billion to Oyo and 23 other states in the country.

According to the state coordinator of OPF, Tunde Oladeji, the disbursement was due to benefits that accrued to Oyo state from the Federal government performance-based grants from the World Bank due to the Ajimobi-led administration’s input in 2018.

“The grant has again confirmed to the people of Oyo state and the country that Senator Ajimobi led a focused and transparent administration during his eight year-tenure in Oyo state. Months after his tenure, the State is still reaping the benefits of his stewardship,’’ Oladeji said.

He explained further that  the Federal government disbursed N43,416,000,000 (USD120.6 million) as performance based grants to 24 States on the basis of results achieved in 2018 under the performance-based grant component of the World Bank-Assisted States Fiscal Transparency, Accountability and Sustainability (SFTAS) programme-for- results.

Apart from Oyo state, other beneficiary states are Abia, Adamawa, Bauchi, Delta, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, Ondo, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Sokoto, Taraba, and Yobe states.

The programme is wholly financed with a 750 USDmillion loan from the International Development Association (IDA) , a member of the World Bank Group.

Kaduna state achieved the highest number of result and got the highest share of N3.9billion while Katsina and Benue got the lowest amount of N540million each.

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Governor of Oyo State, Engineer Seyi Makinde, has, however declared that the travellers will not be released to the Sokoto State Government until they undergo Covid-19 tests.

A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, quoted the him as stating that the government has begun Covid-19 tests for the travellers.

The state’s Commissioner of Police, Sina Olukolu, who briefed Governor Makinde on his arrival at the Gbagi Police Station, where the culprits were detained overnight, said that the travellers were apprehended at the Asejire Dam axis of the Ibadan-Osun boundary, adding that they claimed that they were travelling from Sokoto enroute to Akure, Ondo State.

The statement noted that the travellers would remain isolated until the results of their Covid-19 tests were received from the state.

Governor Makinde, who spoke afterwards, said: “We are not able to explain how they got here in the first place because there is inter-state lockdown throughout the country.

“They claimed they came from Sokoto and they must have passed through so many states.”

The governor also explained that he has given directives to the effect that the travellers would be kept isolated in Ibadan until the results of their Covid-19 tests are received.

The governor also explained that he was in touch with the Sokoto State governor, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, and that the travellers would be sent back to Sokoto State.

He said that the state would intensify ongoing strategies for inter-state lockdown.

He said: “I am also in discussion with the governor of Sokoto State. We are more than likely going to return them to Sokoto.”

The governor maintained that governors in the country were still discussing on how to enforce the inter-state lockdown throughout the country so as to curtail the spread of the novel Coronavirus.

“It is a discussion going on with the rest governors in Nigeria, because inter-state lockdown was put in place for a particular reason and what we have agreed to do is, in each individual state where you have inter-state motor parks, they must be on lockdown. If they are locked down, at least 80 to 85 per cent of our problems would have been solved.

“It is an ongoing discussion and I believe that will be the ultimate way to go.”

In his response during the interrogation, the driver of the bus, who identified himself as Muhammad Idris, said they passed through old roads and bushes from Sokoto to Niger and Kwara and then got into Ogbomoso, from where they entered Ibadan.

He added that they were going to Akure “to reconcile with their family members.”

Members of the medical team of the COVID-19 Task Force were readily on hand to administer COVID-19 tests on the travellers to determine their status.

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The funds will allow UNICEF to provide undernourished children and their mothers with immediate nutrition treatment. Furthermore, mobile health teams will be sent out to strengthen the capacity of health facilities in delivering comprehensive basic health care services, including supportive medical supervision.

“The EU is stepping up its humanitarian assistance in Nigeria to help in addressing without delay the child undernutrition emergency that the northwest region is facing. Our funding will contribute to deliver the much-needed treatment for children and improve access to basic health care. Timely help from the international community is essential to save children’s lives,” said Christos Stylianides, Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management.

As many as 280,000 children under five years of age across the states of Sokota and Zamfara are estimated to be suffering from severe acute malnutrition, which is a life-threating condition. Children are particularly vulnerable given the low vaccination rates against common childhood illnesses. In addition, both states regularly face cholera, yellow fever and meningitis outbreaks, while malaria is endemic and measles is recurrent.

Northwest Nigeria has seen an increase in violence over the last months that has exacerbated the already existing dire nutrition situation. Recurrent clashes have driven people to flee their homes in search of safety. These people leave everything behind, including their fields and their main source of subsistence. With communities in the region already struggling with the seasonal depletion of food reserves in-between harvests, the current lack of access to their fields means that they are likely to miss the next harvest, thereby putting further pressure on already strained food resources.

Medical facilities in the area are already working at maximum capacity to deal with cases of severe acute malnutrition. Mortality rates in such facilities are very high, as medical care is sought late, while many facilities are no longer running and/or are no longer accessible due to increased insecurity.

The European Union is one of the leading contributors of humanitarian aid in Nigeria. Since 2014, the EU has allocated almost €245 million to help the people in need in the country, including €28 million in 2019. EU humanitarian aid funding provides immediate assistance to cover the basic needs of the most vulnerable internally displaced people and host communities in Nigeria, and of refugees in other countries affected by the Lake Chad Basin crisis, namely Chad (Lake region), Niger (Diffa region), and Cameroon (Far North region).

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