The Senate on Wednesday, July 3, blamed the recent suicide bombings in Gwoza town in Borno state on failure of intelligence on the part of security forces.

Senate president, Godswill Akpabio disclosed this in his contribution to the debate on a motion on the incident sponsored by the chief whip of the Senate, Mohammed Ali Ndume, during plenary.

Ndume in his lead debate identified Mandara Mountains, Sambisa Forest and the Lake Chad region as the remaining terrorists’ havens

READ ALSO: Two Female Suicide Bombers Arrested After Deadly Borno Blast

The Senate in its resolutions urged the Federal Government to direct the military to re-think its conventional strategies in fighting insurgency and other crimes by deploying modern technology and scientific tactics.

The lawmakers observed that relying on conventional methods alone, like deployment of troops appeared not to be succeeding as terrorists continued to use non-conventional approaches in killing Nigerians and destroying their means of livelihood.

President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Uzoma Nwagba as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation, CREDICORP.

Other key appointments the President made on Wednesday include Otunba Aderemi Abdul, who is to serve as Board Chairman (independent non-executive director); Mrs. Aisha Abdullahi, Executive Director, Credit, Risk and Portfolio; and Ms. Olanike Kolawole, Executive Director, Operations.

The appointees also include Dr Armstrong Ume Takang (MOFI nominee); Dr Peter Iwegbu (NIMC nominee); Mohammed Nasiru Abbas (FMITI nominee); Mr Marvin Nadah (FCCPC nominee); and FMF representative, all of whom are non-executive directors.

READ ALSO: Tinubu Approves New Withholding Tax Policy

A terse statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, noted that the President expects the new members of the board of this pivotal institutional vehicle to bring their vast experience, competence, and dedication to bear in their functions to achieve CREDICORP’s mandate of accelerating access to consumer credit for millions of Nigerians.

Ajuri added that the appointments were geared towards expediting the process of expanding consumer credit access to Nigerians.

The criminal charges preferred against the Secretary of the Benin Traditional Council (BTC), Frank Irabor, and six other palace officials by the Edo State Government have been withdrawn.

The move, it was gathered, was to douse the tension between Governor Godwin Obaseki and Oba of Benin, Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Ewuare II.

Suing Irabor and others followed the August 2022 demolition of illegal property at Ulegun village in Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area of Edo.

Obaseki’s administration, in August 2022, slammed a 29-count charge against Irabor and the other officials of the palace of the first-class monarch over the demolition of the disputed property.

READ ALSO: Over 100 Priests, Palace Chiefs Storm Court For Oba Of Benin In Solidarity 

The defendants were subsequently remanded in the custody of the correctional centre in Benin by Justice Mary Itsueli of Edo High Court in the state capital.

Edo Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Orobosa Okunbor, at the resumed hearing of the suit, applied to withdraw the case.

Okunbor told the presiding judge that discontinuing the suit was to ensure peace and reconciliation, an initiative of Edo Government, which he said had paid adequate compensation to the persons, whose livelihoods were impacted by the demolition.

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Discontinuing the suit was after Irabor and other defendants in the suit, who were led in evidence by their counsel, Olayiwola Afolabi, SAN, and Okuns Aihie, had pleaded not guilty to the 29-count charge that were read to them in the court.

Irabor, in his reaction on behalf of the defendants, thanked Edo Government and Obaseki for deeming it fit to withdraw the case.

The secretary of BTC described Edo Governor’s intervention as a step in the right direction towards ensuring peace and reconciliation in Benin Kingdom’s Edo South Senatorial District, and other parts of the state.