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Police Kill Suspected Kidnapper of UBEC Chairman
A man who allegedly masterminded the kidnap last month of the Chairman of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) and his daughter along the Abuja- Kaduna road has been shot dead during a shoot-out with the police.
Police spokesperson, Frank Mba, said this on Sunday.
The suspect, Sumaila Sule, alias Shaho, estimated to be in his mid-thirties, was a native of Rijana village in Kachia LGA of Kaduna State.
The police described him as “one of the most vicious and most wanted kidnappers that has been terrorising citizens in Kaduna and its environs.”
Mr Mba said the suspect died in the early hours of Saturday, following multiple bullet wounds he sustained during the shootout with police operatives attached to Operation Puff Adder.
PREMIUM TIMES reported how the UBEC Chairman, Mahmood Abubakar, regained freedom in April alongside his daughter.
Both were kidnapped along the Abuja-Kaduna Highway.
Mr Abubakar’s driver was shot dead during the encounter, which left their black Toyota SUV riddled with bullets.
The shootout took place in the evening of May 17 at the outskirts of Rijana village.
“The police operatives, in line with the mandate of Operation Puff Adder, were carrying out routine surveillance and raid of suspected criminal hide-outs,” Mr Mba said on Sunday.
“They suddenly came under gunfire attack from a heavily armed criminal gang. The police team fought back gallantly, repelling the attack and eventually bringing SHAHO down, whilst his gang members fled.
“Shaho was rushed to a hospital where he eventually died the next day.
“Meanwhile, acting on information elicited from the suspect before his death, police operatives, between the 18th and 19th of May 2019, carried out sweeping follow-up operations at different target locations.
“These coordinated operations led to the arrest of four other members of SHAHO’s gang and the recovery of three (3) AK 47 rifles.”
The police named the arrested suspects as Musa Hassan, 26; Yau Umar, 25; Umar MUSA, 22; and Muhammad Sani, 28; “all males and natives of Rijiana Village Kachia LGA Kaduna State.
“Shaho and his gang members have been on the radar of the intelligence community for a while.
“They have been implicated in several high-level kidnappings and other heinous crimes along Kaduna-Abuja road and beyond.
“In a similar vein, a combined team of Operation Puff Adder operatives, comprising of the IGP Response Team, the Technical Intelligence Unit, the Police Mobile Force and the Special Anti Robbery Squad have arrested another set of kidnappers.
“They have been terrorising citizens at Mubi axis of Adamawa State. One AK 47 rifle and twenty-six (26) rounds of live ammunition were recovered from the gang.”
The police named the suspects as Umaru Ibrahim, a native of Buni Yadi, Yobe State; Abdul Maina, a native of Maiha Adamawa State; and Mohammed Abubakar, also a native of Buni Yadi, Yobe State.
The police said the suspects have confessed to participating in numerous kidnapping and armed robbery operations within Adamawa State, including the kidnap and collection of a ransom of N7 million from one Abdullahi Umoru of Hong LGA.
“Investigations into these cases are on-going, while efforts aimed at arresting other members of the gangs still at large are being intensified.
“While commending police operatives for their gallantry, as well as selfless service to the nation and humanity, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Adamu has reassured Nigerians that the war against crimes and criminality will soon be won.”
The IGP called for continuous support for the police and other law enforcement agencies, promising that the security agencies will not rest on their oars till normalcy is restored in every part of Nigeria.
Premium Times
President Donald Trump claimed on Monday that Americans want him to run for another term, a step banned by the US constitution but which he continues describing as possible.
“People are asking me to run,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked about the possibility of a third term.
“I don’t know. I never looked into it. They do say there’s a way you can do it, but I don’t know about that, but I have not looked into it,” Trump said.
Trump was asked about the prospect of a race pitting him against former president Barack Obama, who served two terms.
“That would be a good one, I’d like that,” Trump said.
“I’m not joking” about the idea of seeking a third term, Trump said Sunday in an interview with NBC News.
The 78-year-old Republican served from 2017 to 2021 and began his second term in the White House on January 20.
The first US president, George Washington, established a tradition by not seeking a third term after completing his second one in 1797.
But this tradition was not formally added to the US constitution until after World War II, with the ratification of the 22nd amendment in 1951.
It says no one can be elected president more than two times.
Publisher of The Boss Newspaper and a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Dele Momodu, has appealed to President Bola Tinubu not to “kill democracy in Nigeria.”
The appeal, which was made while Momodu was fielding questions during a live television show on Channel TV’s Morning Brief on Monday, was an aftermath of President Tinubu’s suspension of Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and the state House of Assembly for six months due to a political crisis in the state.
The journalist expressed his concern over Tinubu’s decision, which he described the move as “worse than dictatorship.”
He added that he was disappointed by the president’s actions, especially given Tinubu’s past fight for democracy.
Momodu stated, “I think it is very unfortunate. I know President Tinubu very, very, very well. Though I’ve not been in the same party [with him] and all that, we were together in exile, and he fought gallantly for this democracy,” he said.
“So a lot of us, co-comrades at that time, are actually very embarrassed that we have a pro-democracy leader in government, and yet what we are witnessing is worse than dictatorship.
“I’m pleading with President Bola Tinubu, ‘Please don’t kill democracy in Nigeria.’ Everybody who loves him will tell him this. I don’t; I’ve not asked him for anything or anything, but we love him for his contributions to the motivation in the back, which is what is going down the drain.”
He also warned that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) was trying to intimidate the opposition, urging Tinubu not to be misled by those around him, adding that he does not need to intimidate anybody.
“I’m saying it now openly to millions of Nigerians that people are deceiving President Tinubu, and he should not allow people to deceive you,” he said.
“He should just do his job. The only thing that can guarantee a second time is to do your job well. You do not need to intimidate anybody.”
President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima, on Sunday, joined others for prayers at the National Eid ground in Abuja, as Nigerian Muslims mark the Eid-El-Fitr celebrations together with millions of others around the world.
Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin, the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu and some ministers also observed the prayer at the same venue.
Eid-El-Fitr, meaning the festival of breaking the fast, is a time of gratitude, charity and communal harmony.
It began with special prayers known as Eid prayers held in Mosques and open spaces. Following the prayers, families share festive meals, exchange gifts and extend warm greetings.
Eid is a time to remember those less fortunate and to strengthen the bond of brotherhood and sisterhood. A key component of Eid is Zakat al Fitr, a mandatory charitable donation intended to ensure everyone irrespective of their financial situation can participate in the joy of the celebration.
This act of giving embodies the spirit of compassion and solidarity that Ramdan emphasizes. From the elaborate feast of South Asia to the festive clothing of Nigeria and the African continent and the warm gatherings of the Middle East, Eid celebrations vary across cultures, showcasing the rich diversity of the Muslim world.
However, the underlining message of unity, gratitude and compassion remains universal.
Saudi Arabia and some other Gulf Arab states are celebrating the Eid al-Fitr holiday from today, but other Middle Eastern countries will not do so until Monday.
“The Supreme Court has decided that tomorrow, Sunday, March 30, 2025, is the first day of Eid al-Fitr,” the Saudi Royal Court said in a statement carried by official media.
The timing of the holiday, which marks the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, is determined by the sighting of the crescent moon, in accordance with the Muslim lunar calendar.
The United Arab Emirates and Qatar also announced Sunday would be the first day of the holiday.
But neighbouring Oman and Jordan, as well as Shiite-majority Iran, said that Eid al-Fitr would not begin until Monday because the crescent moon had yet to be sighted. Egypt and other North African countries followed suit.
