Cloned Nigerian Anchor

Category: News

  • Protest:Senator advices looters and vandals …assures constituents of responsive representation

    Protest:Senator advices looters and vandals …assures constituents of responsive representation

    By Caroline Ameh

    Senator Babangida Hussaini (APC Jigawa North West) on Monday in Abuja, has expressed worry over looting and vandalism being inflicted on public and private properties by violent protesters in some parts of the country.

    In a personally signed statement, Senator Hussaini specifically berated those who turned national protest against perceived bad governance into looting and vandalism of public and private properties in Jigawa State.

    He said though he was affected by the violent protest but not deterred from giving the people of Jigawa North West, quality and responsive representation in the Senate through development-driven legislation.

    The statement reads in part: “I feel deeply touched by the unfortunate incidences across the nation resulting from the national protests by some Nigerians ostensibly in the exercise of their legitimate concerns on the state of the nation, on 1st August, 2024.

    “My thoughts and sympathies go to the people of my senatorial district, Jigawa State and Nigerians whose lives were lost and property vandalized and looted by miscreants under the guise of a national protest against perceived bad governance.

    “As one of the victims of the wanton destruction of property and looting in Jigawa State, I consider what happened as a manifestation of the unfortunate circumstances in which we found ourselves as a nation at this historic moment.

    “It is clear to all that the predictable negative consequences of the demonstrations do not in any way define the issues being canvassed by the organizers, instead they reveal the orchestrated intentions of mischief makers and the enemies of State to destabilize the polity for their selfish interests.

    “I wish to assure my constituents that I am not angry at what has happened to me personally and I cannot be DETERRED or DISTRACTED from my legislative service compact with the people of Jigawa North West Senatorial District.

    “In fact, I remain RESOLUTE and COMMITTED in serving my people more than ever before in the pursuit of effective legislation that will positively impact the people of my Senatorial District and Nigeria in general, under the legislative agenda of the 10′ National Assembly, headed by Senator Godswill Akpabio, and the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu “.

  • Bangladesh PM flees as protesters storm palace

    Bangladesh PM flees as protesters storm palace

    Cheering protesters stormed Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s palace on Monday after she fled, the culmination of more than a month of deadly anti-government protests.
    Jubilant-looking crowds waved flags, some dancing on top of a tank in the streets of Dhaka on Monday morning before hundreds broke through the gates of Hasina’s official residence.
    Bangladesh’s Channel 24 broadcast images of crowds running into the compound, waving to the camera as they celebrated.
    A source close to Hasina, 76, had earlier told AFP she had left her palace for a “safer place.”
    Bangladesh’s army chief Waker-Uz-Zaman would address the nation on Monday afternoon, a military spokesman told AFP without giving further details.
    Before the protesters had stormed the compound, Hasina’s son urged the country’s security forces to block any takeover from her 15-year rule.
    “Your duty is to keep our people and our country safe and uphold the constitution.
    “It means don’t allow any unelected government to come in power for one minute, it is your duty,” her son, United States-based Sajeeb Joy, said in a Facebook post.
    Security forces had supported Hasina’s government throughout the unrest, which began last month against civil service job quotas and then escalated into wider calls for her to stand down.
    But the protesters defied curfews and deadly force.
    No fewer than 94 people were killed on Sunday, including 14 police officers, in the deadliest day of the unrest.
    Protesters and government supporters countrywide battled each other with sticks and knives, and security forces opened fire.
    The day’s violence took the total number of people killed since protests began in early July to at least 300, according to an AFP tally based on police, government officials and doctors at hospitals.
    Waker told officers on Saturday that the military “always stood by the people,” according to an official statement.
    The military declared an emergency in January 2007 after widespread political unrest and installed a military-backed caretaker government for two years.
    Hasina has ruled Bangladesh since 2009 and won her fourth consecutive election in January after a vote without genuine opposition.
    Rights groups accuse her government of misusing state institutions to entrench its hold on power and stamp out dissent, including through the extrajudicial killing of opposition activists.
    Demonstrations began over the reintroduction of a quota scheme that reserved more than half of all government jobs for certain groups.
    The protests escalated despite the scheme having been scaled back by Bangladesh’s top court.
                                                                                                                          Mass Protest, Dhaka, Bangladesh
    Soldier and police with armoured vehicles in Dhaka had barricaded routes to Hasina’s office with barbed wire on Monday morning, but vast crowds flooded the streets, tearing down barriers.
    The Business Standard newspaper estimated as many as 400,000 protesters were on the streets but it was impossible to verify the figure.
    The time has come for the final protest,” said one of the key leaders in the nationwide civil disobedience campaign, Asif Mahmud.
    In several cases, soldiers and police did not intervene to stem Sunday’s protests, unlike during the past month of rallies that repeatedly ended in deadly crackdowns.
    “Let’s be clear: The walls are closing in on Hasina. She’s rapidly losing support and legitimacy.
    “The protests have taken on immense momentum, fuelled by raw anger but also by the confidence that comes with knowing that so much of the nation is behind them,” said, the director of the South Asia Institute at the Washington-based Wilson Centre, Michael Kugelman.
    In a hugely symbolic rebuke of Hasina, a respected former army chief demanded the government “immediately” withdraw troops and allow protests.
    “Those who are responsible for pushing people of this country to a state of such extreme misery will have to be brought to justice,” ex-army chief Gen. Ikbal Bhuiyan told reporters Sunday.
    The anti-government movement attracted people from across society in the South Asian nation of about 170 million people, including film stars, musicians and singers.
  • Edo, Ondo Guber: INEC unveils number of new voters

    Edo, Ondo Guber: INEC unveils number of new voters

    The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has announced a break in the number of new voters ahead of the forthcoming gubernatorial elections in Edo and Ondo States.
    INEC announced that the total number of new voters for Edo and Ondo states are 119,206 and 58,708, respectively.
    The Commission said the figures did not include applications for transfer within the two states because they were already captured on the voter register.
    This was made known in a statement by Sam Olumekun, National Commissioner & Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, on Monday.
    Olumekun said the commission will release the comprehensive and final register of voters to be used for the 2024 governorship elections for each of the two states in the next few days.
    “The number of new voters for Edo State is 119,206 and 58,708 for Ondo State. These figures do not include the 8,847 applications for transfer into Edo State and the 3,132 into Ondo State from other states of the Federation. Similarly, they do not include applications for transfer within the two states because they are already captured on the voter register.
    The figures of the new voters and inter-state transfers integrated into the existing register. In the next few days, the Commission will release the comprehensive and final register of voters to be used for the 2024 governorship elections for each of the two states.
    “Meanwhile, the analysis of new voters for Edo and Ondo States, indicating their distribution by local government areas, gender, age, occupation and disability, has been uploaded to our website and social media platforms for public information.”
  • #EndBadGovernance Protest: Tinubu Presides Over Crucial FEC Meeting

    #EndBadGovernance Protest: Tinubu Presides Over Crucial FEC Meeting

    President Bola Tinubu is scheduled to preside over a critical Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Monday afternoon at the Presidential Villa’s Council Chambers in Abuja.
    The meeting comes on the heels of the President’s national broadcast on Sunday, where he urged Nigerians to end the ongoing #EndBadGovernance protests and engage in dialogue.
    The Council is expected to assess the current situation and explore strategies to address the economic challenges fueling the protests.
    In his Sunday broadcast, President Tinubu called for public order and reiterated his commitment to protecting the lives and property of all citizens.
    He said, “As President of this country, I must ensure public order. In line with my constitutional oath to protect the lives and property of every citizen, our government will not stand idly by and allow a few with a clear political agenda to tear this nation apart.
    “Under the circumstances, I hereby enjoin protesters and the organisers to suspend any further protest and create room for dialogue, which I have always acceded to at the slightest opportunity. Nigeria requires all hands on deck and needs us all – regardless of age, party, tribe, religion or other divides, to work together in reshaping our destiny as a nation. To those who have taken undue advantage of this situation to threaten any section of this country, be warned: The law will catch up with you. There is no place for ethnic bigotry or such threats in the Nigeria we seek to build.”
  • BREAKING: Harris emerges Democratic candidate 

    BREAKING: Harris emerges Democratic candidate 

    I am honored to be the Democratic nominee for President of the United States. I will officially accept the nomination next week.
    Vice President of the United States of America (USA), Kamala Harris has officially emerged as the candidate of the Democratic Party for the U.S. 2024 presidential election.
    Harris emerged presidential candidate of the Democratic Party on Friday after securing the majority of delegates’ votes in a virtual roll call.
    “I am honored to be the Democratic nominee for President of the United States. I will officially accept the nomination next week.
    .
    “This campaign is about people coming together, fueled by love of country, to fight for the best of who we are,” Harris stated shortly after.
    Though the online voting process ends on Monday, Harris has crossed the threshold to become the candidate of the party for the U.S. 2024 presidential election.
    Recall that President Joe Biden, presumptive Democratic nominee, had on July 21, 2024, pulled out of the election race and endorsed Harris.
    Jamie Harrison, chair of the Democratic national committee, announced the emergence of Harris as the party’s flag bearer for the U.S. election during a call with supporters.
  • Hunger Protest: Don’t bother to continue

    Hunger Protest: Don’t bother to continue

    The Inspector General of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Mr. Kayode Egbetokun has warned protesters to discontinue the ongoing national protest against hunger and bad governance or have the police and other armed forces to contend with.

     

    Briefing the press in Abuja this evening, Mr. Egbetokun said the NPF shall not hesitate to call in other members of the Nigerian armed forces to help quell the uprising should they be overwhelmed.

     

    Giving his view about the way the protest panned out on the first day, he insisted that what happened today was, “Mass uprising and looting, not protest”. He regretted that even “those who claimed to be the protest leaders were nowhere to be found when things got out of hand”.

     

    Advising the protesters to be law abiding he said, “groups who claim to exercise right to protest must also know they are duty bound to obey laws of the land.

     

    Know your rights but do not neglect your responsibilities or duties,” he cautioned the protesting youth.

     

    He warned that the police was on the red alert and determined to ensure that law and order was maintained in the country.

     

    Concluding, the Police chief said, “I advise that they should not bother to continue with this.”

  • BREAKING: August 1 Protest: Protesters march to Presidential Villa

    BREAKING: August 1 Protest: Protesters march to Presidential Villa

    “We are marching to the Villa, bad governance must end”, one of the protesters angrily told DAILY POST.
    Thousands of protesters demanding a change in the economic situation in the country are marching towards the Central Business District and Presidential Villa, Abuja.
    DAILY POST reports that many of the protesters, mostly northern youths are currently marching through Berger Junction, Wuse Market towards CBD.
    “We are marching to the Villa, bad governance must end”, one of the protesters angrily told DAILY POST.
    Many government facilities around the central business District have been shut down, including Wuse market and business plazas around the district.
    Some commercial banks have also shut down their doors over fear of attacks.
  • Court bars economic hardship protest in Ghana 

    Court bars economic hardship protest in Ghana 

    Apparently scared by what appears like an emerging trend, a high court in Ghana has barred groups from holding so-called hunger protests in the capital Accra, as youth-led demonstrations in other African countries become commonplace.
    The 7-day protest dubbed ‘The Gen-Z demo’ is billed for July 31 to August 6 at the Black Star Square.
    Protest organisers said two million people would march to demand more action from President Nana Akufo-Addo on corruption and living conditions. They will also rail against delays in signing an anti-LGBTQ bill into law.
    Court documents seen by ModernGhana News said the police have warned that the planned demonstration could compromise public order.
    In a ruling on Tuesday, Abena Serwaa, high court judge, approved police request to ban a handful of organisations from carrying out protests.
    The planned protests come amid election campaigns in Ghana.
    They also arrive on the heels of a wave of demonstrations across Africa in recent weeks.
  • We’ll Be Eating While You Are Out There, Akpabio Mocks Protesters

    We’ll Be Eating While You Are Out There, Akpabio Mocks Protesters

    Reputed for series of unguarded utterances, the Senate President Godswill Akpabio has taunted those calling for demonstration over the economic hardship in the country.
    According to him, those interested in the protest can go ahead “but let us be there eating”.
    Akpabio spoke at an event organised by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) on Tuesday in Rivers state.
    His comment is coming on the heels of a planned nationwide protest by some Nigerians to demand economic and political reforms.
    Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, met with some of the organisers on Tuesday in Abuja, appealing to them for virtual protest but they insisted on going to the streets.
    However, during the NDDC event, Akpabio said he was not interested in any “regime change”.
    “All of us feel the impact of what is happening now. But we are aware it will be for a short while. MD, I want to thank you for what you said. You said we are not interested in regime change, let us own this government.
    “Those who want to protest can protest, but let us be there eating — I must thank the Niger Delta”, he added.
    He said “we acknowledge the fact that the impact of oil and gas activities in our region has done immeasurable damage to our people.”
    The national assembly, he assured, is ready to help with legislation to curb oil spillage and environmental pollution in the region.
    “The specific issues faced by the Niger Delta must be contained in that communique because we are going to make it available to Mr President,” he said.
    “The ones that need legislation will come to us, the ones that need intervention will go to NDDC, the ones that need more money will go to the president and commander-in-chief and I assure that those issues will be addressed”, he submitted.
    The National Assembly under Akpabio’s leadership has fixed an emergency session for the eve of the protest.
  • Journalist, Songster, Onyeka Onweka Dies, Aged 72

    Journalist, Songster, Onyeka Onweka Dies, Aged 72

    Foremost journalist, Songster, actor and administrator, Ms Onyeka Onwenu has reportedly died. She passed, Tuesday evening at the Reddington Hospital, Lekki, Lagos.

    It was reported that Ms. Onwenu slumped after playing at the birthday party of Mrs. Stella Okoli, the Chief Executive (CEO) of Emzor Pharmaceuticals.

    Nigerian Anchor gathered from numerous sources that “Onyeka Onwenu just performed at the birthday of Mrs. Stella Okoli today (Tuesday, July 30, 2024), and after performing, she slumped.

    “She was taken to Reddington Hospital and she couldn’t make it,” the unnamed eyewitness told the newspaper.

    Born 31st January 1952, the late journalist turned singer, politician,rights activist, actor and administrator, and dubbed “The Elegant Stallion” by the Nigerian press, was at a time the chairperson of the Imo State Council for Arts and Culture.

    In 2013, she was appointed the Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer of the National Centre for Women Development.

    She will be remembered for her numerous songs, among them, “Wait for me” which she sang with Juju meastro, King Sunny Ade.

    There has not been official confirmation from her family as at the time of filing this report.