Headlines
2023 Remains a Mirage Until Peace Returns to the Country – Ortom
Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom, has said it is still too early to talk about the 2023 general election, considering the country’s security challenges.
On Saturday, the convoy of Ortom was attacked by gunmen, while on a visit to his farm.
The incident was said to have occurred at Tyo Mu, along Makurdi-Gboko road, and has since drawn widespread condemnation from across the country.
President Muhammadu Buhari had also called for an investigation into the attack.
Speaking with journalists after meeting with Buhari at the state house in Abuja, on Tuesday, Ortom said Nigerians have to cut through political and ethnic lines in addressing insecurity.
“I want to appeal to Nigerians. 2023, yes to a politician, is not far but it is still a long way,” he said.
“If we secure our country and everything is going fine, then we can talk about 2023. But the way things are going, if we don’t secure the country, there is no way we can be talking about 2023.
“For me, I want us as leaders of this country — we have taken oaths of office – let us abide by those things we have said and work together as a team. Leave politics aside; leave ethnicity aside, and secure the country Nigeria. We have no other country than the Nigeria we live in.”
‘BUHARI HAS ACCEPTED MY RECOMMENDATIONS’
Ortom also disclosed that Buhari has accepted his recommendations on the measures to address the rising insecurity in the country.
“I have been able to recommend some measures and most of them agree that nobody should be a sacred cow,” he said.
“If people are found wanting, they should be prosecuted by the police and I think this is good.
“The other time, he also gave an order for all those carrying AK-47, irrespective of where you come from, you should be shot on sight, and that is welcoming and it is the best thing to do in a situation like this.
“The order for the immigration and other security agencies to protect our borders, all these are commended. So, it’s not just enough to criticise the policies of the federal government or the president. When he does what is good, it is our responsibility to team up with him to ensure that that is done, because it is when we are peaceful and have security that we can talk about tomorrow.”
The first hostages freed from Gaza under a long-awaited ceasefire agreement are back in Israel. The news sparked jubilant scenes in Tel Aviv where large crowds gathered ahead of their release.
The three freed Israeli hostages – the first of 33 to be released over the next six weeks – are Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damari. They are said to be in good health and are receiving treatment at a medical center in Tel Aviv.
In exchange, 90 Palestinian prisoners and detainees are set to be released by Israel from Ofer Prison in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli military withdrew from several locations in southern and northern Gaza after the truce began earlier on Sunday, an Israeli military official told CNN.
Displaced Gazans have started returning to their homes, while the aid trucks laden with much-needed supplies have crossed into Gaza. Here’s what we know about how the ceasefire deal will work.
Hamas, despite suffering devastating losses, is framing the Gaza ceasefire agreement as a victory for itself, and a failure for Israel.
One of Hamas’ main goals for taking some 250 people during its brazen October 7, 2023, attack on Israel was to secure the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. As Israel pounded Gaza in response, Hamas vowed not to return the hostages until Israel withdrew its forces from the enclave, permanently ended the war, and allowed for rebuilding.
Source: CNN
The leader of UK’s Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has said she doesn’t want Britain to be like Nigeria that is plagued by “terrible governments.”
Speaking on Thursday at an event organised by Onward, a British think tank producing research on economic and social issues, Badenoch expressed fears that Britain may become like Nigeria if the system is not reformed.
“And why does this matter so much to me? It’s because I know what it is like to have something and then to lose it,” Badenoch told the audience.
“I don’t want Britain to lose what it has.
“I grew up in a poor country and watched my relatively wealthy family become poorer and poorer, despite working harder and harder as their money disappeared with inflation.
“I came back to the UK aged 16 with my father’s last £100 in the hope of a better life.
“So I have lived with the consequences of terrible governments that destroy lives, and I never, ever want it to happen here.”
Badenoch has been in the news of late after she dissociated herself from Nigeria, saying she has nothing to do with the Islamic northern region.
She also accused the Nigeria Police of robbing citizens instead of protecting them.
She said: “My experience with the Nigeria Police was very negative. Coming to the UK, my experience with the British Police was very positive.
“The police in Nigeria will rob us (laughter). When people say I have this bad experience with the police because I’m black, I say well…I remember the police stole my brother’s shoe and his watch.”
