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Those Not Comfortable with My Peace Deals with Bandits Behind Schoolgirls’ Abduction – Matawalle

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The Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle, on Sunday said he had many revelations to make about the attack on Government Girls’ Secondary School, Jangebe on Friday, where over 300 students were abducted.

The governor, who stated this when 17 Emirs in the state paid him a sympathy visit over the abduction of the schoolgirls, said Nigerians would be shocked to know people behind the abduction of the girls.

Also during the visit, the Emir of Anka and  Chairman of Zamfara state Council of Chiefs, Alhaji Attahiru Anka, berated President Muhammadu Buhari over the upsurge in killings and kidnappings by bandits in the country.

Recall that gunmen on Friday attacked GGSS Jangede, and abducted over 300 girls, while seven of the girls escaped while they were being taken into the bush.

The attack occurred almost two weeks after bandits abducted 27 students and 15 workers of Government Science College, Kagara, Niger State.

Before the attack in Kagara, bandits had struck in Kundu village, also in Niger State and abducted passengers of the state transport service bus.

Commenting on the rising insecurity in the country, the Emir of Anka blamed the Federal  Government.

He said, “The Federal Government is in total control of the security operatives in the country and not the state governors, as such the President is the one who has failed to address the issue of insecurity.”

In his response, Matawalle thanked the Emirs for the solidarity visit and assured  them that he would not abandon his peace accord with the bandits no matter what the people would say.

He said “As we await the arrival of the released kidnapped students of GSSS Jangebe at the Government House today, I want to inform you that there are many revelations in relation to the abduction of these students.”

“Many people will be surprised to hear those people behind the abduction of these innocent children.”

“They are not comfortable with the progress I am getting as a result of my peace initiative and they want to do all they can to sabotage my efforts”.

“I will insha Allah succeed at the end of the day and they will bury their faces in shame,” said the governor.

Meanwhile, there was confusion over the release of the schoolgirls on Sunday. While top government officials and the state governor said they had been released, an online newspaper, The Cable reported the state Commissioner for Information and Culture,  Suleiman  Anka, said they had not been released.

But earlier on Sunday, the governor while receiving Emirs, who visited him, said government was awaiting the arrival of “the released kidnapped students of GSSS Jangebe at the Government House today (Sunday).”

As the confusion over the release of the girls worsened on Sunday, the governor and other top government officials left the Government House where they had been awaiting the arrival of the students.

None of them told journalists, who were at the Government House, where they were going, but a top source told one of our correspondents that they went to Anka, a distance of 79 kilometres to the state capital.

Also on Sunday, a high powered Federal Government’s delegation led by the Minister of Aviation Alhaji Hadi Sirika, condoled with state government over the abduction of schoolgirls at GSSS Jangebe.

Delivering his speech on behalf of the President, Sirika said the Federal Government was deeply concerned with the abduction at the GSSS Jangebe.

He stated, “The President is deeply concerned and worried about the abduction of students in Zamfara State and other states where such incidents occurred”.

“The President is assuring all Nigerians that the issue of banditry and other forms of insecurity challenges will soon come to an end”.

The minister further explained that the abduction of the schoolgirls in Jangebe would be the last abduction in schools in the country, adding that “strict measures would be taken to avert the recurrence of such event.”

He expressed disgust over the banditry activities, assuring Nigerians that the menace would soon come to an end.

“The Federal Government has the capability to get rid of banditry and will do so without further delay”.

Matawalle thanked the Federal Government for the concern and assured the delegation that, the Jangebe students would be brought back before the delegation reached Abuja.

Matawalle however, called on the security agents to cooperate with each other in order to achieve success in the fight against banditry.

According to the governor, the problem of lack of cooperation among the security agents was responsible for their inability to get rid of banditry.

Amid the confusion over the release of the schoolgirls, the News Agency of Nigeria reported that Matawalle told the Federal Government’s delegation that the students would be released soon.

He said the state government was working with repentant bandits to facilitate the safe rescue of the schoolgirls.

“We are using the leaders of the repentant bandits to rescue the schoolgirls from the kidnappers. Very soon, we are going to witness the release of the abductees,” NAN quoted him to have said.

Matawalle added that his administration “is going to continue with peace process with bandits, considering its impact in addressing security challenges facing the state”.

He commended Buhari for sending the delegation to symphathise with the state over what he described as an “ugly act”.

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We’ve Not Reduced Petrol Pump Price – NNPC

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The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Limited has declared that there is no plan to reduce the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) aka petrol and Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) aka diesel.

The national oil company disclosed this through a statement on Wednesday by its Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Mr. Olufemi Soneye.

He said: “The NNPC Limited wishes to clarify rumours suggesting a price adjustment for Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and Automotive Gas Oil (Diesel) at its retail stations nationwide.

“The company asserts that these reports are false and urges Nigerians to disregard them entirely.

“NNPC Ltd. reaffirms its commitment to sustaining the current sufficiency in petroleum products supply across all its retail stations in the country,” the statement added.

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Binance Executive Detained in Nigeria Escapes from Custody

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One of the two Binance executives detained in Nigeria for alleged tax evasion and other offences, Nadeem Anjarwalla, has escaped from lawful custody, according to PREMIUM TIMES report.

Our sources said Mr Anjarwalla, 38, escaped on Friday, 22 March, from the Abuja guest house where he and his colleague were detained after guards on duty led him to a nearby mosque for prayers in the spirit of the ongoing Ramadan fast.

The Briton, who also has Kenyan citizenship, is believed to have flown out of Abuja using a Middle East airliner.

It remains unclear how Mr Anjarwalla got on an international flight despite his British passport, with which he entered Nigeria, remaining in the custody of the Nigerian authorities.

Authorities are also said to be working to unravel his intended destination in a bid to get him back into custody.

An Immigration official said the Binance executive fled Nigeria on a Kenyan passport. He, however, said authorities were trying to determine how he obtained the passport, given that he had no other travel document (apart from the British passport) on him when he was taken into custody.

Another source said the two officials were held at a “comfortable guest house” and allowed many rights, including the use of telephones, a privilege Mr Anjarwalla is believed to have exploited to plot an escape.

When contacted Sunday night on the escape of the Binance executive from detention, the Head of Strategic Communication at the Office of the National Security Adviser, Zakari Mijinyawa, said he would enquire and revert. He has yet to do so as of the time of filing this report.

Mr Anjarwalla, Binance’s Africa regional manager, and Tigran Gambaryan, a US citizen overseeing financial crime compliance at the crypto exchange platform, were detained upon their arrival in Nigeria on 26 February 2024.

A criminal charge was filed against the two executives before a Magistrate Court in Abuja. On 28 February 2024, the court granted the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) an order to remand the duo for 14 days. The court also ordered Binance to provide the Nigerian government with the data/information of Nigerians trading on its platform.

Following Binance’s refusal to comply with the order, the court extended the remand of the officials for an additional 14 days to prevent them from tampering with evidence. The court then adjourned the case till 4 April 2024.

Also on 22 March, the Nigerian government approached the Federal High Court in Abuja and slammed another four-count charge on Binance Holdings Limited, Mr Anjarwalla and Mr Gambaryan, accusing them of offering services to subscribers on their platform while failing to register with the Federal Inland Revenue Service to pay all relevant taxes administered by the Service and in so doing, committed an offence, contrary to and punishable under Section 8 of the Value Added Tax Act of 1993 (as Amended).

The defendants were also accused of offering taxable services to subscribers on their trading platform while failing to issue invoices to those subscribers to determine and pay their value-added taxes and, in so doing, committed an offence contrary to and punishable under S.29 of the Value Added Tax Act of 1993 (as amended).

Count Three of the charges accused the three defendants of offering services to subscribers on their Binance trading platform for the buying and selling of cryptocurrencies and the remittance and transfer of those assets while failing to deduct the necessary Value Added Taxes arising from their operations and thereby committing an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 40 of the Federal Inland Revenue Service Establishment Act 2007 (as amended).

The last count of the charges wants the defendants punished for allegedly aiding and abetting subscribers on their Binance trading platform to unlawfully refuse to pay taxes or neglect to pay those taxes and, in so doing, committing an offence contrary to and punishable under the provisions of S.94 of the Companies Income Tax Act (as amended).

The Nigerian government had, in the past three months, been cracking down on suspected money launderers and terrorism financiers, some of whom it alleged are using the Binance platform for criminal activities

The Nigerian government said over $21.6 billion was traded by Nigerians whose identities were concealed by Binance.

Source: Premium Times

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Kidnapped Kaduna School Children Released Three Days to Expiration of Bandits’ Ultimatum

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The Kaduna State government has confirmed the unconditional release of the 287 school children and teachers who were abducted by bandits on March 7 from the LGEA Primary and Secondary Schools in Kuriga, Chikun Local Government Area.

The release of the hostages was announced through a statement on Sunday morning signed by Governor Uba Sani, which reads:

“I wish to announce that our Kuriga school children have been released.

“Our special appreciation goes to our dear President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for prioritising the safety and security of Nigerians and particularly ensuring that the abducted Kuriga school children are released unharmed.

“While the school children were in captivity, I spoke with Mr. President several times. He shared our pains, comforted us, and worked round the clock with us to ensure the safe return of the children.”

Sani who also expressed appreciation to the Nigerian Army and other security agencies for their professionalism in the successful rescue of the pupils, said they played a pivotal role in the whole episode.

“The Nigerian Army also deserves special commendation for showing that with courage, determination and commitment, criminal elements can be degraded and security restored in our communities.

“We also thank all Nigerians who prayed fervently for the safe return of the school children. This is indeed a day of joy. We give Almighty Allah all the glory.”

The rescue of the schoolchildren is coming three days to March 27 ultimatum the bandits had given the government for a N1 billion ransom to be paid for the captives to be freed, failing which they would all be killed.

There was also no mention of any ransom paid for the release of the victims by the government in the statement by Governor Sani.

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