Day: May 8, 2024

The Commandant, Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), Accra, Ghana, Maj.-Gen. Richard Gyane, says violent extremism and terrorism (VET) is the biggest threat to the ECOWAS subregion, Africa and humanity.

Gyane stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) during a mobile training course on women, youth, and VET, organised by KAIPTC on Wednesday in Abuja.

The Commandant said that the security challenges in West Africa had informed KAIPTC’s decision to organise the capacity building for women and youth to build their resilience to tackle terrorism.

He said that the training, organized in collaboration with the Norwegian Government, would empower women and youth with the requisite knowledge about terrorists’ operations and build their resilience against VET threats.

‘If you look at our subregion now, violent extremism is a big threat to us; If you look at the Sahel nations, most of these countries are virtually taken over by violent groups.

‘If you look at Niger
ia and the Boko Haram group, and the movement of these groups southwards, it is worrisome.

‘Why are we particular about women and youth? They become vulnerable. These are the most vulnerable groups in our society, who are subject to radicalization by VETs.

‘The aim is to engage these women and youth especially and let them understand the issues, the recruitment and all that about these groups who want to destroy our humanity within the subregion,’ he said.

According to Gyane, KAIPTC engages and empowers women and youth through its training programs because when people are empowered, it becomes difficult for VET groups, whose aim is to radicalise the people and take over their countries, to do so.

He noted that no country could tackle VET alone, and stressed the need for collaboration among all stakeholders beyond the security space in order to curb VET’s surging scourge in West Africa and Africa at large.

Gyane said that, given the porous borders of ECOWAS countries, and the need for them to cooperate an
d share intelligence, ECOWAS member states should do everything possible to bring on board Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, who are threatening to quit the bloc.

‘It is not good for the subregion to have a divided front, and I think whatever we need to do to bring on board these countries, who want to separate themselves from the subregion, is very necessary.

‘ECOWAS has done well in certain areas, especially the free movement of persons protocol and I think within the continent of Africa, ECOWAS has done so well.

‘But I think we need to collaborate more beyond even the security space. I would want to see us one day using the same currency and all that.

‘We should work more as one homogeneous subregion to ensure that people should be free to live and work wherever they are and do business.

‘When we do that, it can help us to control violent extremism and terrorism,’ Gyane added.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Lekki residents and stakeholders have paid tributes to the late Chairman, Victoria Garden City Property Owners Residents Association (VGCPORA), Mr Gihan Mbelu.

They described him as a community developer, an environmental sustainability enthusiast, a visionary leader with deep passion and commitment of youth development and community advancement.

They spoke during a night of tributes organised for him on Tuesday in Lagos, following his shocking demise on April 26.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mbelu, until his passing, was not only the Chairman, VGCPORA, but was vice president, Lekki Estate Residents and Stakeholders Association (LERSA).

Mbelu, aged 42, was reportedly found dead in his car within the community after purchasing water and soft drinks.

His corpse has since been deposited at the mortuary for autopsy.

Noheem Adams, Majority Leader representing Eti-Osa Constituency 1, described the late Mbelu as the driving force that brought government down to the people of VGC and the people
to government.

He said the late VGC chair expended every efforts to addressing obstructions at the canals and stood for the truth in all things.

‘The shoes he is leaving behind are too big to be filled and today would be recorded as the saddest day in 2024 for me.

‘The kind of person he was, I had envisioned that he would one day be one of those to lead the country due to his immense leadership capabilities,’ he said.

Alhaji Sulyman Bello, President, LERSA, said his contributions to the discourse surrounding the development of the Lekki region was always very compelling.

Bello said relating with Mbelu would leave one in awe and wonder as he dished out facts, data and incontrovertible point of view without being combative, all for the development of VGC and the entire Lekki-Epe region.

‘As long as it was for humanity, Gihan would give it a try as he was a very oriented problem solving individual.

‘His type is not very available in every generation or even a lifetime and he would be sorely missed by us a
ll,’ he said.

Mrs Idunu Oyebelu, Chairperson, Board of Trustees, VGCPORA, said his passing left profound gap in the hearts of everyone.

She said throughout his tenure as chairman, his visionary leadership and tireless efforts was very instrumental in shaping the VGC community.

According to Oyebelu, under Mbelu’s stewardship, VGC witnessed tremendous transformation, infrastructural development and made giant strides in environmental sustainability.

‘Mbelu’s leadership was marked by a deep sense of purpose and compassion.

‘May his memory serves as a source of comfort and make us uphold the values that he embodied particularly his spirit of service.

‘We will continue to build on the foundation he laid,’ she said.

Mrs Morufat Yusuff, General Manager, VGCPORA, stated that the late VGC chair did everything to ensure a drug free environment within the VGC community.

She listed some of the achievements during his tenure to include fostering a safer and healthier environment, the installation of efficient ener
gy feature lighting, the VGC recycling hub to drive environmental sustainability.

‘He also facilitated efficient access control, identified opportunities to optimise expenses and was deeply committed to the safety and wellbeing of all VGC residents.

‘He increased security surveillance and we had commenced installation of CCTV cameras with 150 installed and 64 ongoing to be commissioned in August.

‘He forged partnership with government entities to resolve issues, mitigated flood risks and this is such a sad occurrence that our hearts cant fathom. He would be sorely missed,’ she said.

Mrs Jane Phillip-Odey, Secretary, VGC, said the late VGC chair though gone, left impacts, developmental activities and legacies that would never be forgotten.

‘Let us honour his memory, cherish the time we had with him as we pay tribute to him who would forever be in our hearts and memories,’ she said.

Mr Adejo Adehi, Head, VGC Basketball community, said the late Mbelu ensured that the youth were engaged in sporting activiti
es to take their minds off drugs and any other vices detrimental to mental health and general wellness.

He said his passing would leave a great void but his legacy, dedication and vision would continue to inspire the youth to build a thriving community of lasting impact.

‘You would be deeply missed but your memory would live on and we pray you find comfort that your legacy would continue to flourish,’ he said.

Mr Ishan Mbelu, brother of the deceased, lauded the entire VGC community for giving a youth the opportunity to lead and serve.

‘On behalf of the family, I would like to thank you all again and I want to say we are proud of the community and love you all,’ he said.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Public and Private Development Centre (PPDC) has reiterated its commitment to decongest correctional centers across the country in order to reduce pretrial detention.

Mr Jubril Shittu, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the center, said this during the ‘Access to Justice Pro Bono Conference 2024’ held on Wednesday in Abuja, this goal.

Shittu highlighted that the purpose of the pro bono conference was to discuss strategies for alleviating congestion in correctional centers.

‘So many issues that have to do with inmates languishing in detention has been raised, justice delayed is justice denied.

‘When you have over 76,000 people in the custodial facilities across the country, and of which 70 per cent of these inmates are awaiting trial, it shows how effective the justice system needs to be.

‘So what we are here to do really is to contribute in our own way, working together with the various law clinics, with the probono lawyers, with the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), with the legal aid council to see
how we can reduce these numbers.

‘And we are supported by our donors to ensure that we are able to effectively deliver justice in a timely manner,’ he said.

Shittu said that the organisation was also addressing issues beyond pretrial detention such as alternative measures to justice challenges.

He alleged that cases like the Nigerian cross-dresser Bobrisky, who was sentenced to six months in prison and many others needed to be revisited.

Shittu, however, commended the efforts of the various justice sector stakeholders at the state levels, adding that the concurrent list was now also addressing the issues of congestion.

‘The idea behind this is to ensure that on a regular basis, we are visiting these facilities to look at the state of these facilities.

‘This is because, according to the Nigeria Correctional Service Act 2019, there is the section 38, which specifically looks at some of these issues.

‘And this is where we hope that through the work of the criminal justice monitoring committee, we are able
to effectively ensure that people do not spend more time than they ought to in this facility, ‘he said.

Speaking, the Director General, Legal Aid Council of Nigeria, Aliyu Abubakar, said that every stakeholder in the justice system was concerned about the issues around criminal justice administration.

Abubakar urged stakeholders to continue to work to ensure that the poor and indigent within the society could easily access justice when needed.

‘In the Legal Aid Council, we were essentially established by the government to assist the poor and indigent persons to access justice.

‘The issue of congestion in the correctional centres are probably factors of two fold; insufficient prisons and inefficiency of the remand system.

‘That is why the correctional centres are overcrowded with inmates and we are working as a government institution to reduce the population, ‘he said.

Abubakar, however, noted that unfortunately, the more the centres were reduced in population, the more people got into the correctional c
entres nationwide.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the PPDC has over 195 pro bono lawyers and over 150 law clinicians drawn from at least six states, from universities and also from various groups .

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

OSHAKATI: The Namibian Police Force in the Omusati Region is requesting its residents to be vigilant about theft of solar pump cylinders and to report any suspicious activity.

NamPol’s Omusati Crime Investigations Coordinator, Deputy Commissioner Moses Simaho, made the call during an interview with Nampa on Wednesday.

According to Simaho, this calls comes after the police confiscated a borehole pump cylinder worth N.dollars 40 000 at Tsandi last month.

The borehole pump cylinder was confiscated on 22 April 2024 and was booked in for further investigation, Simaho said.

He indicated that on Wednesday, they opened a case against a 35-year-old man on suspicion of being found in possession of the stolen property.

‘It is alleged that the suspect was found in possession of a borehole pump cylinder and failed to give satisfactory account to possess such item,’ he said.

Simaho stressed that thieves are targeting farmers and villagers and people should be extra cautious and report any suspicious activity.

He the
n stated that the suspect is expected to appear before the Okahao Magistrate’s Court this week.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency