NEWS

*Army Rescues 'More Than 1,000' Boko Haram Captives*

The Nigerian Army says it has rescued over 1,000 Nigerians captured by Boko Haram in Malamkari, Amchaka, Walasa and Gora villages of Bama Local Government Area of Borno State. The Army made this announcement on Monday in a statement by Texas Chukwu, a Brigadier-General and Director of Army Public Relations.

It said that the rescue was made by members of the 22 Brigade from the Operation Lafiya Doyle. The Nigerian Army also pointed out that most of the rescued individuals are women and children, as the men have been forced to join the ranks of the Islamic sect’s fighters.

It said: "The operation, which was conducted in conjunction with allies of Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), rescued the hostages from Malamkari, Amchaka, Walasa and Gora villages of Bama Local Government Area of Borno State. The hostages consisted mainly of women, children as well as some young men who were forced to become Boko Haram fighters. Speaking with one of the rescued victims, Alhaji Gambo Gulumba from Amchaka village, thanked the Nigerian military for showing them love and care.”

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*President Buhari To Embark On Medical Trip To UK Tuesday*

President Muhammadu Buhari will on Tuesday embark on a four-day trip to the United Kingdom to see his doctor. Senior Special Assistant to President on Media and Publicity, Mr Garba Shehu, announced this in a statement on Monday in Abuja. The presidential aide disclosed that in the course of the technical stop-over for aircraft maintenance in London on his way back from Washington last week, President Buhari had a meeting with his doctor.

According to him, the doctor requested the President to return for a meeting which he agreed to do. The President is expected to return to the country on Saturday, May 12. President Buhari also confirmed the planned visit on his Twitter handle.

Shehu also revealed that upon his return, President Buhari’s two-day State Visit to Jigawa would take place on Monday and Tuesday next week. He said the visit was postponed earlier because of the ward congresses of the All Progressives Congress (APC) which held over the weekend.

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*'What Have I Done To You people?' Evans Breaks Down In Tears In Court*

Chukwudumem Onwuamadike, an alleged kidnapper better known as Evans, has accused officials of the Nigeria Prisons Service of treating him inhumanely. Evans, who was at the Lagos State High court, where he was arraigned on two fresh charges of kidnapping, on Monday, had earlier refused to come down from the prison van.

He was, however, prevailed upon by warders acting on the orders of Justice Adedayo Akintoye to bring him out of the van. As he appeared before the judge, Evans, dressed in a pair of shorts and a green T-shirt, signaled to him that he wanted to say something. “I have an explanation to make," he said in handcuffs "Since I have been in the maximum prison, they have been maltreating me; no visit, they don’t feed me well, I have eye problem and I cannot see afar.”

Refuting his claim, one of the prison officials said: “We have been treating him very well; he is well-fed and people have been visiting him.

“A doctor has been checking him; the doctor came to check him yesterday (Sunday) and even this morning before coming to court... because he was saying he can’t be in court, that he is not feeling fine. “But when the doctor checked him yesterday (Sunday) and this morning, the doctor said he was healthy and that he saw no reason why he shouldn’t be in court." According to Evans, the prison official’s claim that a doctor saw him was not true but rather he was seen by a nurse.

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*SERAP Asks Fashola To Disclose Details Of Spending In Power Sector*

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has asked the Minister of Power, Works, and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN) to urgently provide details of spending on the privatisation of the electricity sector and to explain if “such spending came from budgetary allocations or other sources.”

In a statement on Monday by the SERAP Executive Director, Adetokunbo Mumuni, the organisation also asked for “information on the status of implementation of the 25-year national energy development plan and whether the Code of Ethics of the privatization process which bars staff of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) and members of the National Council on Privatization (NCP) from buying shares in companies being privatized were deliberately flouted.”

The organisation also said since the privatisation of the power sector, the government has continued to use public resources to subsidize private entities. 
It noted that the Goodluck Jonathan government reportedly spent over N400 billion on the power sector while the present government spent over N500 billion despite privatisation. SERAP, therefore, said it is unclear if the spending is drawn from budgetary allocations and if these are loans to generation companies (GENCOS), Distribution companies (DISCOS) and Transmission Company of Nigeria.

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*'No ELectricity, No Election' — Ilaje Youth Protest 10 Years Of Blackout*

Scores of youth from Ilaje, the riverine, southern part of Ondo state, trooped to the streets on Sunday in protest of lack of electricity supply in their area for the past 10 years. The youth, under the umbrella of the Ilaje Advancement Forum (IAF), also lamented "the general absence of development" in the riverine, oil-producing communities.

The aggrieved youths who were armed with colourful placards with inscriptions to indicate their grievance shutdown streets as well as businesses and economic activities in the area during the protest. Some the inscriptions on the placards read, "no electricity no election", "what offense has Ilaje Committed", "FG has failed in service delivery", "NDDC is fraud", "Ondo govt has failed us."

The youths lamented that communities in the Ilaje area of Ondo state have been in darkness for the past 10 years without government intervention. According to them, the blackout has led to the high rate of crime and insecurity; a situation which they said has further deepened underdevelopment of the area. The youths threatened that they will not allow politicians to campaign in the area if the situation remains the same.

To read full article - http://v.duta.us/9EfwOwAA