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Nigeria Is Sick, Dilapidated, Bauchi CAN Chair Laments

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The chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria, Bauchi State branch, Rev. Abraham Damina, has lamented that the country is sick and in a dilapidated condition and needing urgent prayers for God’s intervention.

Damina, who stated this in a speech at the second prayer rally organised by CAN in the state at its secretariat in Rafin Zurfi, described the theme: “In Times Like These” as very timely because “the present situation calls for fervent prayers for the moral life of our country, which is in a dilapidated condition. We are here to pray unto God to change the narrative.”

He called for unity among the body of Christ in Bauchi State in view of the precarious situation they are faced with in the country at the moment. He also called on Christian youths to refuse being used by politicians as political thugs, urging them to be agents of peace and not of crises, especially using the social media.

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He said: “You will all agree with me that Nigeria is very, very sick at this moment. The challenges are enormous, but with God we shall overcome them all. The challenge of insecurity has given birth to so many other challenges.

“Therefore, we should keep praying for peace to reign in our land.

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“Poverty is a menace; the land is in serious abject poverty. Strikes left right and centre; religious bigotry, kidnapping, banditry, fulani herdsmen. There are so many syndromes that have bedevilled the church and the society at large. The way out is to call on God.

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“I wish to plead with churches in Bauchi to unite. We are one and we shall continue to be one because there is strength in unity of the church. The unity of the Church at this perilous time should not be underestimated. Those who are not ready to cooperate now will seek the help of others and will not find it; now is the time to be united.”

The CAN chairman challenged Christians to ensure that they get their Permanent Voter’s Card because it is their power to decide who governs them even as he called on Christian politicians to play the game of politics with decency, because they are the light of the world.

Damina appealed to Christians in the state to be more security conscious and ensure that their churches and houses are secured, stressing that: “While praying for God’s intervention in the affairs of the unfortunate security situation in Nigeria, we hope that one day we shall enjoy absolute peace in our God-given land of Nigeria.

“Permit me to use this golden opportunity to call on all Christians in Bauchi State to imbibe the culture of peaceful coexistence. Our Governor is a peacemaker, our emir is a peacemaker, and a host of them. Please, Christians love your neighbours as yourself; do good to those who hate you, for what we desire in this land is peace and nothing else,” he appealed.

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In his message, the guest speaker, Evangelist Ezekiel Dachumo, the Coordinator of COCIN Prayer and Revival Unit, Jos, called on Christians in the state to deal with fear in their hearts in view of the present situation in the country.

He said: “I have come to beg you Christians in Bauchi, please, destroy fear in your hearts because it is a great weapon in the hands of Satan. When Satan succeeds in planting fear in your life, you are finished. When the enemy knows that fear has disappeared from Christians all over the country, they will bow.

“The enemy is having a field day in Nigeria because Christians are full of fear but the day we realise that and stop being afraid, I assure you, there will be peace in the country. The enemy has laid a siege on Christians in Nigeria, especially in the north. What are we supposed to do as Christians? We are expected, in a time like this, to be bold and rise up and stand for Christ.

“Let us pray for those who killed Deborah (Yakubu in Sokoto). Let’s pray for those who are suppressing the truth. Any Christian that will not defend Jesus Christ is a fake Christian. The God we serve will protect us and he will even protect those who hate us because he is alive and he knows everything. In a time like this, let us forgive, in a time like this, let us stand with one another and speak against the evil in the land of Nigeria.”

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READ ALSO: Deborah Samuel: Catholic Bishop Spits Fire, Says Nigeria Has Crumbled Under Buhari

Speaking on behalf of Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, his Senior Special Assistant on Christian Matters, Rev. Zakka Magaji, thanked Christians in the state for their continuous prayers for him and his administration, saying that all the successes, achievements, developments and peace recorded are all as a result of their prayers.

He said: “Thank God we have great men of God in Bauchi who have been praying for the land, that is why all the evils happening in other states are not being experienced here. It is not as if there have not been attempts, but, the Bible in Isaiah 8:10 says that they will take counsel together but it shall fail, they will speak the words of their wicked plans but they will not stand, because God is with us.

“We, in this government, are very much aware that it is prayers that have been sustaining Bauchi State. Because the children of God have been praying, that is why peace has been prevailing in Bauchi. He said I should tell you that you are partners of his government.

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“We should be mindful of things around us, anything that will cause chaos and disunity among us, please try to avoid them. Keep preaching peace so that people will see the light and be attracted to the God you serve.”

PUNCH.

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Thugs Allegedly Drug, Sexually Assault 37-year-old Australian MP In Her Constituency

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The 37-year-old Queensland Member of Parliament, Brittany Lauga, has told the Australian Police that she was allegedly drugged and sexually assaulted by some unidentified thugs.

According to Lauga, the incident happened during a night out in her constituency of Yeppoon, BBC reports.

The incident that happened to Lauga, who is also the Assistant Minister for Health has sparked protests that occurred in response to recent violence against women in Australia.

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“This could have happened to anyone and tragically, it does happen to many of us,” she said after she reported at a police station and then to hospital on 28 April.

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“Tests at the hospital confirmed the presence of drugs in my body which I did not take,” she said in a statement posted on social media, adding the substance had impacted her “significantly”.

Queensland Police Service (QPS) confirmed officers were investigating a sexual assault complaint regarding an incident in Yeppoon on Sunday.

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Ms Lauga was reportedly contacted by other women who said they were drugged on the same evening.

It’s not OK. We should be able to enjoy socialising in our town without the risk of being drugged or assaulted,” she said, adding that she needed time to “physically and emotionally heal”.

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However, police said no extra reports in the same area have been made, but are asking anyone with information or who has experienced something similar to contact them.

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“The QPS takes all reports of drink spiking seriously and investigates reports of drink spiking on a case-by-case basis, and often in conjunction with other offences such as sexual assault,” they said.

Ms Lauga has been in parliament for nearly a decade and was first elected to the seat of Keppel in 2015.

Queensland Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon called the allegations “shocking” and “horrifying”, Australian media reported.

“Brittany is a colleague, she is a friend, she is a young woman in the Queensland parliament and these are really shocking things to read,” Ms Scanlon said.

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“It is unacceptable that women are disproportionately the victims of domestic, family and sexual violence. Our government is going to continue to do everything we can to protect women and stop violence from occurring.”

Australia has witnessed a spate of high-profile gender-based violence in recent weeks.

In April, an attacker stabbed six people to death in a Sydney shopping centre. Five of the victims were women, and the New South Wales police commissioner told Australia’s ABC News that it was “obvious” he focused on harming women.

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A wave of rallies took place in response to the killings, with demonstrators calling for gender-based violence to be declared a national emergency and stricter laws put in place to stop it.

A woman has been killed on average every four days in the country so far this year.

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Police Bar Lawyers From Reaching Journalist Allegedly Detained On IGP’s Orders

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Men of the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, Lagos, Lagos State have refused the lawyers of the detained journalist with Foundation for Investigative Journalism, Daniel Ojukwu, access to him.

A lawyer, Ridwan Oke, disclosed this on X.com, on Saturday.

According to The PUNCH, Ojukwu was said to have gone missing on Wednesday and was unreachable as his numbers were switched off and his whereabouts unknown to colleagues, family and friends.

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Twenty-four hours after he went missing, FIJ filed a missing persons’ report at police stations in the area where Ojukwu was headed.

Luckily, a private detective hired by FIJ eventually managed to trace the last active location of Ojukwu’s phones to an address in Isheri Olofin.

READ ALSO: Group Mulls Legal Option To Stop IOCs’ Divestment From N’Delta

Oke, who tweets as @Ridwanullahii disclosed that Ojukwu was still in the custody of the SCID and was not allowed access to his lawyers, family or friends.

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He revealed that police officers were given express instructions not to allow him access to anyone at all.

“Daniel was not allowed to call his lawyers, friends or relatives to notify them of his arrest.

“The officers gave express instructions not to allow him to reach out to anyone. He was kept incommunicado,” he said.

He disclosed that the police claimed to possess a remand and search warrant for Ojukwu, but have failed to show it to him, neither has the police briefed him on the details of his arrest.

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READ ALSO: Officer Who Shot Man Dead During Fuel Queue Tumult Identified — Lagos Police

“Police claim they have remand and search warrants but have never shown them to him. Daniel, up till this moment hasn’t been officially shown the petition against him nor has the police communicated who the complainant is to him.

“The unit involved is said to be the ‘NPF National Cybercrime Centre (NCC) from Abuja’ which means the offence being alleged is a bailable offence but he has not been offered bail and they haven’t presented him in court as enshrined in our laws. The officers here in Panti said they couldn’t help as it was not their case. No one is taking responsibility,” the lawyer said.

He added that efforts to reach the Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, proved abortive as he did not pick up calls made to his number, nor did he return the calls.

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“Now, I have tried to reach @Princemoye1 but he’s not picking nor returning. No one has so far offered any meaningful explanation and a citizen is being detained unnecessarily for a bailable offence.

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“You have to free Daniel now. He has certain health conditions which need medical attention. If anything happens to him, the Nigerian Police Force @PoliceNG should be held accountable”, Oke concluded.

Recall that gunmen later identified to be operatives of Defence Intelligence Agency abducted the editor of FirstNews newspaper, Segun Olatunji, from his home in Lagos State.

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Olatunji, a former Kaduna State correspondent of The PUNCH, was abducted on Friday, March 15, 2024, from his home in the Iyana Odo, Abule Egba area of the state.

The management of the online newspaper linked the action to a recent story published by FirstNews titled, “Revealed: “Defence Chief running an office like a family business – Public Interest Lawyers”, published by many other online platforms.

He was later released on March 28, 2024, to some media stakeholders, including Yomi Odunuga of The Nation newspaper and Iyobosa Uwugiaren of Thisday Newspaper in Abuja after sustained pressure from the media.

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Why I Refused To Return Govt Vehicles – Ex-Edo Gov, Shaibu

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Former Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu, has opened up about his impeachment, the state’s politics, godfatherism and the contentious issue of the campaign vehicles in his position.

Shaibu, who had previously accused Governor Godwin Obaseki of orchestrating his impeachment, revealed that he has forgiven the governor and is ready to reconcile with him.

Addressing the issue of campaign vehicles in his possession, Shaibu clarified that the vehicles in his possession were not new but refurbished ones that belonged to previous deputy governors. He emphasized his commitment to transparency and accountability during his tenure.

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He said, “The vehicles they are referring to are the two Prado SUVs used by Lucky Imasuen as the deputy governor. The other Hilux was the one (Dr Pius) Odubu’s wife used, and the Land Cruiser was the one Odubu used.

“I took all those vehicles to the mechanic who changed their engine and refurbished them. Those are the vehicles that they are telling me to return.

“So, you can see how heartless men can be. I got only one new vehicle in almost eight years that I served as the deputy governor of the state.

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He emphasized his commitment to activism and the need for political leaders to prioritize the welfare of the people.

On the issue of his impeachment, Shaibu criticized the process, stating that the oath of office had been breached by Governor Obaseki multiple times. He also highlighted the need for constitutional amendments to protect deputy governors from arbitrary impeachment.

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