Crime

Nigeria Claims that 70% of its Armed Forces are Engaged in Domestic Policing due to Insecurity

Published

3 years ago

March 2, 2022

By Derrick Bangura

According to the federal government of Nigeria, approximately 70% of officers in the Nigerian Armed Forces are currently engaged in domestic policing operations in the country.

This was revealed on Tuesday in Lagos by Mr. Boss Mustapha, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), during his keynote speech at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) 2022 Security Meet Business Dialogue Series.
Mustapha, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary for Political Economic Affairs, Office of the SGF, Mr. Andrew Adejoh, also stated that the federal government’s 2022 budget for all the security agencies, excluding its statutory contribution to the Police Trust Fund, was N2.41 trillion.

He said: “Close to 70 per cent of Nigerian armed forces personnel are engaged in policing duties across the 36 states of the federation. That is not what the army is supposed to do. But we have to do that to solve our security problems.

“The security vote for this year is actually N2.41 trillion. This does not include the statutory allocation to the Police Trust Fund.

“But money alone will not solve the problem. We need to look at the process and procedures to make sure that the money is put to useful purposes.”

He also said the federal government was highly disturbed by the escalating security challenges in the country, adding that, “it seemed a number of Nigerians have turned these security challenges into business. But the government is trying as much as it could not to let them have a breathing space.”

Also, the Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor, who was represented by Major General Adeyemi Yekini, said over 23,000 repentant Boko Haram combatants have so far surrendered their arms to the Nigerian military along with their families, and are now undergoing programme meant to reintegrate them to the society under the government’s Operation Safe Corridor.

Irabor said: “The popular one, which people do not want to hear about, is the rehabilitation of repentant Boko Haram that have surrendered their weapons. And over 23,000 of them have surrendered to the Nigerian armed forces, thereby helping to mop up small arms in circulation.

“Operation Safe Corridor is about disarmament and reintegration. The aim is to give them (repentant Boko Haram members) skills so that they can go back to their local communities and engage themselves in useful purposes.”

He added that the military believed that some of the Boko Haram fighters were attracted to terrorism out of frustration caused by economic hardship.

He also maintained that the military was not interested in politics. “Let me tell you point blank: the military is not interested in politics. We are out to do our job as professional soldiers that defend the territorial integrity of Nigeria and while remaining obedient to civil authorities.”

The President of the LCCI, Dr. Michael Olawale-Cole, said in his opening remarks that Nigeria was ranked 146 among 163 countries in the 2021 Global Peace Index (GPI) of the Institute of Economics and Peace, which stated that improvements in peace could lead to considerable economic improvement in GDP growth, inflation, and employment.

He said: “For the government to achieve better results in confronting insecurity, a key factor is to tackle the root causes and stem degeneration into social disorder and instability. The high level of unemployment and poverty among Nigerians, especially the youths, has consistently attracted them to crimes. Failure to address challenges of poverty, unemployment, and business failures is one of the major factors fueling insecurity in the country.

“As we approach an election year, we recommend that the government separate politics from security and that the security agencies stay off politics. And there is a need to step up enlightenment campaigns against political violence as this could lay an extra burden on our security agencies as they contend with bandits, terrorists, and kidnappers across the country.

“There have been calls for open and frank dialogue as a critical factor in addressing the security challenges of the nation, using the media and stakeholders’ forums as a catalyst for cooperation among citizens to end the crises.”

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Crime

2 ladies docked for allegedly obtaining money by fraud

Published

2 weeks ago

December 16, 2024

Saadatu Sahabo

The police in Lagos have dragged two women, Mmesuma Ofunna, and Blessing Adimekwe, before an Ojo Magistrates’ Court in Lagos, over alleged obtaining money by false pretence.

Ofunna, 22, and Adimekwe, 25, were arraigned before the Magistrate, Mr L K J Layeni, on a four-count charge bordering on conspiracy, obtaining by false pretence, stealing and conduct likely to breach peace.

They each, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The prosecutor, ASP Simon Uche, told the court that the defendants conspired with others now at large, to commit the offence on Oct. 26 at the Okokomaiko area of Ojo.

He alleged that they had obtained the sum of N70, 000 from one Faith Ahamefule, with a promise not to post her nude photo on social media.

The prosecutor alleged that the defendants later posted the nude photo of the nominal complainant on social media, knowing that their promise was false.

He alleged that they stole the N70, 0000, thereby conducting themselves in a manner likely to breach public peace.

The offence contravenes the provisions of sections 168(d), 287, 314, and 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.

The court granted the defendants bails in the sum of N500, 000 each, with two sureties each in like sum.

He adjourned the case until Jan. 8, 2025 for mention.

Crime

Mechanic jailed 15 months for pickpocketing passengers

Published

2 weeks ago

December 16, 2024

Saadatu Sahabo

A Jos Magistrates’ Court on Monday, sentenced a 26-year-old Mechanic, Sadiq Umar to 15 months imprisonment for pickpocketing from passengers.

The Magistrate, Shawomi Bokkos, summarily tried and sentenced the convict after he pleaded guilty to the charge.

Bokkos in his judgment, ordered the convict to pay an option of N100, 000 fine or spend one year in prison.

He also asked him to pay a compensation of N15, 000 or an additional three months in prison in default.

Earlier, the Prosecutor, Insp Ijuptil Thiawur, told the court that the case was reported on Nov.16, at the “A” Division Police station by Moses Pam, Alexander Bakshak and Simon Justice the complaints.

Thiawur said that the convict attempted to steal from them before he was caught in the act and when the driver stopped the vehicle to search him he fled but was caught.

The Police said that the offence contravened the Plateau Penal Code Law.

Crime

Police detain 2 suspected fraudsters, reject N66m bribe in Lagos

Published

2 weeks ago

December 16, 2024

Saadatu Sahabo

Police rescue 14 passengers from bandits in Jibia

The Zone-2 Police Command in Lagos says it has detained two suspected international fraudsters that allegedly specialised in forging foreign certificates in Lagos and Ghana.

The AIG in charge of the zone, Adegoke Fayaode, confirmed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday.

Fayoade said that the suspects allegedly offered N66m to the operatives with a view to free them but the offer was turned down.

NAN reports that the same zone operatives rejected a N174m bribe offered by a suspect in November to set him free.

Fayoade said that the suspects simply identified as Elvis, 23 and Kelly, 24, allegedly specialised in forging certificates of different nations and African Universities and defrauding their unsuspecting victims on the internet.

He said that the suspects have succeeded in acquiring exotic cars and erecting mansions in different parts of the country with the proceeds of their loot.

The AIG pointed out that luck ran out of the suspects after detectives at the Anti-Corruption Unit of the Zone received credible information from Nigerians in diaspora concerning some group of boys that specialised in forging foreign certificates.

According to him, on getting the information, he detailed the anti-corruption unit to investigate it and arrest the suspects without delay.

Fayoade said that based on his directives, the detectives stormed Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos waiting for the arrival of the suspects, whom they trailed to a five star hotel at Osapa-London in Lekki Area.

He said that the operatives arrested the suspects at a bus stop while they were about to escape secretly from the hotel, after monitoring their activities.

“Searching their luggage, one certificate of Blue Crest College, Ghana, belonging to Elvis and a student identity card of Academic City College belonging to Kelly were recovered.

“Further search revealed a transcript of an academic record from Blue Crest University belonging to Elvis.

“A letter of English proficiency from the said college and a letter of recommendation from the same Blue Crest College were recovered,” he said.

The AIG said that the suspects made useful statements to the police and confessed that they never got any admission into the school, stressing that they only procured the degree certificates through the help of a female Nigerian resident in Ghana.

“The suspects further confessed that the major aim of doing that is to enable them to get Ghana resident permit, which they got.

“The resident permit is showing them also as a student of Academic City University and that none of them has ever been admitted in the school.

“They claimed they paid a total of 26,000 Ghana Cedis for all the documents procured.

“They confessed that they procured all the documents to evade arrest in Ghana since they don’t have any means of livelihood.

Whenever police intercepted them, they showed their passports that they were students in Ghana.”

Fayoade said that the suspects were also allegedly involved in online romance scam, provision of foreign bank accounts for fraudulent transactions on the internet through what they call ‘Facebook bombing’.

He said the suspects presented themselves as an American soldier by name Captain Donald Rowe, serving in Syria, whom they impersonated on Instagram, using his name to defraud innocent persons.

The AIG said that while detectives were making frantic efforts to get more credible information from the suspects, they started negotiating to bribe the operatives for them to be set free.

“I directed my men to play along and recover the money as an exhibit. Subsequently, the detectives played along and the suspects paid them a sum of N66m, which they collected and kept as an exhibit.

“The Nigeria Police authorities have written to the Ghana embassy to get more information about the result and their suspected partners in Ghana said to be spearheading the fraud.

Fayoade said that they had also spread their dragnets through the International Police, Interpol, to round up their foreign accomplices.