Gen. Aguiyi-Ironsi was part of the disaster called the Biafra Civil War Says Dr. Junaid Mohammed

The Second Republic politician and a Kano State delegate to the National Conference, Dr. Junaid Mohammed has blamed the 1966 coup as the reason why the North is today left with “scoundrels, crooks and despots” as leaders. He made the accusation during an interview with SaharaTV over the weekend.

“From the time the Igbo staged a coup and decapitated the entire military and civilian leadership of the North, the North has never had decent leadership,” Dr. Mohammed said. “That’s the tragedy of the 1966 Coup.”

The Russian-trained medical doctor acknowledged that it would be uncharitable to blame the federal government for the mess in the north. The North, he said, has been completely irresponsible in the way it chooses its leadership.

“Look at the governors we have in the North, for Christ’s sake,” he said to SaharaTV’s Rudolf Okonkwo. “Will these people lead anybody to the promised land? I don’t think so.”

Mohammed, a follower of Aminu Kano, urged the North to do more to challenge their own local despots.  “A lot of crooks and rouges and scoundrels are stealing them (the North) dry,” he said.

He, however, reserved his worst venom for the former Army chief, General Azubike Ihejirika. He called Ihejirika the “lousiest, the least competent, and the most irresponsible army chief of staff in Nigeria.” He accused Ihejirika of dividing the army along regional and tribal line. He said that a lot of the money given to the army to fight insurgence was stolen.

Dr. Mohammed alleged that the first Igbo Chief of Army staff, Gen. Aguiyi-Ironsi was part of the disaster called the Nigerian Civil War. Then he stated that Ihejirika, the second Igbo army chief of staff, ran an army of mercenaries who called themselves Nigerians. He said that those who were agitating for Ihejirika’s replacement with another Igbo man were essentially asking for “the end of the Nigerian army and Nigeria itself.”

Ihejirika, he said, used the Nigerian army as an army of occupation. “If Sarduana had been alive,” Mohammed lamented, “Ihejirika would have been taken to the International Criminal Court in the Hague.”

In what may be a subtle reference to the altercation between the Defense Minister Aliyu Gusau and the Service Chiefs, Mohammed said, “It is impossible for an army officer today to respect another officer from another tribe. “That’s the legacy of Ihejirika as chief of army staff.”

Jonathan approves appointment of 5 new Group Executive Directors for NNPC

Abuja -  President Goodluck Jonathan has approved the appointment of five new Group Executive Directors for the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to fill vacancies in the Corporation.

This information is contained in a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday by the President’s Senior Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati.

The appointees are: Mr Ian Udoh, Group Executive Director, Refining and Petrochemicals; Dr Dan Efebo, Group Executive Director, Corporate Services; and Ms Aisha Abdurrahman, Group Executive Director, Business Development.

The others are: Mr Adebayo Ibirogba, Group Executive Director, Engineering and Technical; while Dr Joseph Dawha would serve as Acting Group Executive Director, Exploration and Production.

It stated Udoh from Akwa Ibom had been the Managing Director of Port Harcourt Refining and Petrochemicals Company Ltd since November 2012.

“He has considerable experience of managing the nation’s refineries having previously held the position of Executive Director, Operations at both the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemicals Company ltd., and the Port Harcourt Refining and Petrochemicals Company Ltd.’’

It stated that Udoh had served as a General Manager in the Refining and Petrochemicals Directorate of NNPC.

The statement said Efebo from Bayelsa was the Group General Manager in charge of the NNPC’s Human Resources Division before his new appointment. He hails.

It further stated that Abdurrahman from Kogi was the Managing Director of Nikorma, NNPC’s shipping subsidiary, since March 2011.

According to the statement, Abdurrahman has also served as Managing Director of Hyson, an NNPC trading subsidiary, and as Executive Director (Services) of the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company .

It said that Ibirogba, a Chemical Engineer from Ogun was the Group General Manager, Engineering in the NNPC’s Engineering and Technology Directorate.

Dawha from Borno, who replaces Mr Abiye Membere as Group Executive Director, Exploration and Production, has been the Managing Director of Integrated Data Services ltd., since 2005.

‘‘He has served the corporation diligently, over the years, in various capacities, in the upstream and downstream sectors of the industry,’’ the statement stated.

It further stated that all the appointments were with immediate effect. (NAN)

Ronaldo is ‘a beast’ but Real should fear Messi – Alba

MADRID (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo is “a beast” but Real Madrid should fear four-time World Player of the Year Lionel Messi, Barcelona full-back Jordi Alba warned on Wednesday ahead of Sunday’s crucial Clasico.

“I think they are two of the best players in the world but out of the two of them I’ll go with Leo,” Alba said when asked which of the two players should be feared more during Sunday’s game at the Santiago Bernabeu.

“I don’t just say that now because I am in the same team, I thought that when I was at Valencia,” added Alba, who moved to Barcelona from the Mestalla in 2012.

“I think Cristiano, you have to be honest, he’s a beast, he’s a very important player for Real Madrid. When Madrid are not at their best he always pulls through,” the 24-year-old said.

Cristiano Ronaldo

“But we have Leo and other players and I think we are more of a team than a bunch of individuals.”

Ronaldo, a two-time World Player of the Year, has scored 41 times in 37 appearances for Madrid this season, including a double in Tuesday’s 3-1 win against Schalke 04 which secured Real Madrid’s place in the Champions League quarter-finals.

Messi overtook Paulino Alcantara to become Barcelona’s all-time leading scorer by netting a hat-trick during the Catalan giants’ 7-0 rout of Osasuna in La Liga on Sunday.

The three goals brought Messi’s career tally for Barcelona to 371 in all games, breaking the club record of 369 held by Alcantara since 1927.

Leaders Real host Barcelona on Sunday night, when a win would stretch their lead over the defending champions to seven points and deal a severe blow to Barcelona’s chances of a fifth title in six years.

Barca are third with 66 points, a point behind second-placed Atletico Madrid.

“Madrid are a really good team. This year they are playing at a great level. It is going to be a very difficult match, very complicated, at their ground,” said Alba.

China launches organ donation Website

Guangzhou (China) -  China launched its first official organ donation registration Website on Wednesday, according to the National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC).

NHFPC said that citizens could register as organ donors via www.savelife.org.cn and their information would only be accessible to authorised organisations and coordinators.

According to the commission, donors can modify or withdraw their registration via the Website. Donations will have to be approved by close relatives after the donor’s death.

An official with the NHFPC, Zhou Jun said the Website had been set up to promote public awareness on organ donation.

“China has the world’s second-largest demand for organ transplants.

“Over 300,000 patients suffer from organ failure each year but only around 10,000 transplants are performed due to a lack of donors.

“Traditional Chinese customs call for people to be buried or cremated with their organs intact, making it difficult to get people to become donors,’’ the commission emphasised.

Report says China introduced an organ donation system in 2010 with the Red Cross Society serving as an independent third party for supervising and facilitating donation procedures.

The NHFPC issued a new rule to prevent human intervention and ensure fairness and transparency in human organ distribution in August, stipulating that donated organs must be distributed automatically through a national system.

In March, China set up a special committee in charge of coordinating and guiding different systems, including donation, obtaining and distribution, clinical transplant service, postoperative registration and transplant supervision. (Xinhua/NAN)

FG may remove fuel and kerosene subsidies

The Minister of Petroleum Resources, Dieziani Alison-Madueke yesterday gave a hint of plans by the Federal Government to remove subsidies being paid on Petrol and Kerosene products. The Minister gave the hint while speaking at the Nigerian Oil & Gas Conference which took place in Abuja

 

While addressing the delegates, Alison-Madueke said subsidy being paid to marketers for petrol and kerosene was no longer sustainable and was only beneficial to the rich in the society.

"The continued regulation of the downstream sector has its positive and negative impacts on the economy. But the negative effect is more than the positive. The subsidy policy cannot be sustained any longer.This is because the subsidy payment is not benefiting the poor it is targeting; rather, it is benefiting the rich. The industry needs to move to next level by increasing revenue and curbing oil theft and pipeline vandalism.Without belabouring the point, we are all aware that the government has to deregulate the downstream sector. Continuing regulation, we all are aware, has negative effects. It is basically unsustainable, it discourages investment, and principally, it benefits the rich, not the masses in the society that we intend to reach in the first place" The minister said.

Analyst however say if petrol subsidy is removed, Nigerians would have to pay more for both products. Petrol for instance would rise to N144.66 for a litre, which is the landing cost of a refined litre as against the N97 its been sold for now at filling stations while Kerosene would go as high as N154.36 per litre, N138.87 as landing cost and N15.49 for distrubution margin, suming up to N154.36 it would be sold for

How Nigerian undergraduate was killed in Ghana over money

On February 19th, the body of a Nigerian student studying in Ghana was found. (Read here). Godwin Awogbo (pictured above), a 300level student of Social Sciences at the University of Cape Coast in Ghana was killed by unknown person/s and his body dumped by the roadside. Now the full story is out. According to a report by Tribune, Godwin was killed over money. Read the full story below

Gay man kills wife and burns her body after marrying her to hide his sexuality

A bank worker who married to conceal his homosexuality strangled his wife a few months later with a metal vacuum pipe, a court heard yesterday.

Jasvir Ram Ginday throttled Varkha Rani and tried to destroy her remains in an incinerator after going through with the arranged marriage to please his parents.

The couple tied the knot in a lavish ceremony in India last March – even though Ginday, 30, had confided in a friend years earlier that he was attracted to men, the jury were told. Continue...

 The defendant had travelled to  the subcontinent with his mother to find a bride and met several women before a match-maker known to both families introduced him to Miss Rani.

Prosecutor Debbie Gould told a jury the couple became engaged ‘at the end of a meeting which lasted several hours’, with Miss Rani’s family believing Ginday to be ‘a perfect match for their intelligent, well-educated, and attractive young daughter’. 

The bride, who had completed a degree and a master’s degree in science and information technology in India, moved to the UK to live with Ginday in August after being granted a visa. 

But just a month later, police discovered the unrecognisable remains of the 24-year-old bride in the back garden of the home they shared with other members of Ginday’s family.

Miss Gould said that after killing his wife, Ginday had forced her body into a 22-inch deep metal incinerator in an alley beside their home. 

He called police that night to report her missing – claiming she had walked out after assaulting him and had only married him for a visa to get into the UK.

Miss Gould said: ‘His ultimate intention was to play the role of victim, safe in the knowledge that he could rely on his married status as a permanent excuse for never having another relationship with a woman...his respectability and that of his family’s would be secured.’ 

She said Miss Rani was ‘in all senses a stranger in a strange land’ following her arrival in the UK last August, and appeared to be isolated, friendless and alone.

The financially secure defendant, meanwhile, was ‘staring reality in the face’ and would have had to explain any attempt to divorce his new bride.
‘His marriage was motivated by a desire to please his parents and conceal his homosexuality from them,’ Miss Gould said.

‘Over the years the defendant made contact with gay chat lines to discuss his sexuality, he developed a network of gay male friends and he attended gay clubs in the Birmingham area.’

The court head Ginday and his wife had been alone in the  house at Walsall, West Midlands, on September 12, the day of the murder.
That afternoon, neighbours saw smoke and likened the smell to that which comes from a crematorium.
When one concerned resident knocked on Ginday’s door, he claimed he was simply burning rubbish

Police searched the property that night after Ginday made the missing persons report, but they did not look in the garden.
They returned the next night after neighbours reported seeing black smoke for the second day running.
Although Ginday had attempted to destroy his wife’s body, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard that a woman police constable ‘lifted the lid (of the incinerator) and found herself looking down on a human skull which was severely burnt’.

Miss Gould said the skull was not complete and had only a few teeth, while the body was described as being ‘folded up and foetal-like’.

Officers also discovered Miss Rani’s wedding ring inside the 22-inch deep incinerator.
An examination of computer equipment showed that somebody at the property had searched for incinerators online around four weeks before Miss Rani’s death.

CCTV images also showed Ginday filling up a water bottle with petrol at a service station just hours before the body was discovered.

Pathologists later confirmed the human remains were that of Miss Rani and that she had  died from strangulation by a metal pole being placed across her throat.

Miss Rani’s father, Surjit Singh told the jury he had no idea his son-in-law was gay, and didn’t even know what the term meant. He said through an interpreter that he had been ‘shocked and distressed’ after British police had explained it to him.

He added: ‘Of course I wouldn’t have let her marry him if I had known. I have never heard of it before. No, Varkha didn’t know about gay either.’
Ginday denies a charge of murder but has admitted manslaughter and a further charge of perverting the course of justice by lying to police. The trial continues. 

Culled from UK Daily Mail

NIS test tragedy: FG offers victims families automatic employment

President Jonathan this morning ordered three employment slots be left open for the families of those who died during the Saturday recruitment exercise conducted by the Nigerian Immigration Service.

The president also directed that immediate employment be offered to injured victims who are still receiving treatment in various hospitals across the nation.

Disclosing this after the Federal Executive Council meeting that held this morning, Minister of Information Labaran Maku said President Jonathan directed that one of the three beneficiaries must be female. Today's FEC meeting was devoted to the poorly conducted NIS recruitment exercise. Continue...

The President also ordered that the last ill-fated exercise be cancelled and set up a new panel which would conduct a fresh screening test for applicants. The Panel is to be headed by the Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission, Deaconess Joan Ayo and would have as members, a rep from the Inspector General of Police as well as the Heads of Immigration, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corp, Nigerian Prison Service, State Security Service and the Federal Road Safety Commission.

The House of Reps has also summoned the Interior Minister and the DG of NIS to appear before it to explain the circumstances that led to the unfortunate incident at recruitment exercise on Saturday.

Is this the missing Malaysian plane? Satellite image shows a plane above Thai jungle

12 days after Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 went missing, the mystery has still not been solved. This incident is unprecedented in aviation history. The latest update now is that a Taiwanese student is claiming to have found a satellite image which appears to show the missing passenger plane in the skies above a jungle. The authenticity of the photo has not been verified, and the region depicted in the image is unknown. The image was taken from a map search website currently being used by thousands of people in an attempt to search for the plane. 

Malaysian authorities have yet to respond to this new claim. Some days ago, some fishermen and villagersclose to the southern border of Thailand said they saw 'bright light descending at high speed' and loud noise of a plane engine on the night the plane disappeared.

Graphic photo: 19 Redeemed Church members burnt in accident

An accident involving three vehicles, one carry 19 Redeemed church members, occurred on Monday along the Potiskum-Maiduguri highway leaving all the Redeemed church members burnt beyond recognition and 16 others dead.

Confirming the accident, the Federal Road Safety Commission spokesman in Yobe State, Mr Yusuf Sani, said the church members were said to be coming back from a church programme in Lagos when the accident happened

"All the 19 members of Redeemed Christian Church of God who were traveling in one bus were burnt beyond recognition as the bus caught fire on collision with the other two vehicles which also burst in flames shortly afterwards,” said Yusuf Sani

The two other vehicles involved in the accident were conveying people from a wedding. Mr Yusuf blamed the accident on high speed. Continue to see the very graphic pic of burnt bodies...

Pres. Jonathan nominates Zainab Bulkachuwa as Court of Appeal President

President Goodluck Jonathan this afternoon nominated Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa to become the President of the Second Highest Court in Nigeria, the Appeal Court. The President sent her name to the senate for ratification, after which she would be confirmed and sworn-in.

Justice Bulkachuwa prior to this nomination has been serving in acting capacity as the president of the court since November 2012 when Justice Dalhatu Adamu retired from Office.

12 die while using local boat to cross to 6th Avenue Estate in Festac

Last week Tuesday March 11th, Twelve people unfortunately lost their lives while trying to cross a canal with a local boat to 6th Avenue Estate in Festac, which they say is the shortest (not the only) route to the estate. There was a 'Kpako' bridge there but when it got bad about 2 years ago, the local government didn't bother building another one, so commuters were forced to start using boats to cross the canal which usually takes less than four minutes and they pay N10 to cross.

Unfortunately that day the boat, with about 13 people on-board, capsized around 7pm and it took about two hours for rescuers to recover the bodies from the canal. 1 survived. The local government chairman came with an ambulance to convey the deceased to the morgue.

Today, some residents of the area took to the streets to protest the deaths as angry relatives and neighbours say the deceased have been abandoned in the morgue without care and that the govt has refused to allow relatives claim their loved ones. They are also asking for a new bridge to be built to avoid further deaths.

Mick Jagger's designer girlfriend L'Wren Scott commits suicide

Rock star Mick Jagger's longtime designer girlfriend L'Wren Scott was found dead in her Manhattan apartment today Monday March 17th. The 49year old designer, who recently cancelled her fashion show in London, was found by her assistant hanging by a scarf around 10am in her luxury apartment. 

The police do not think any foul play was involved though the Medical Examiner has not yet released the formal report. May her soul rest in peace...amen.

Oko poly crisis: Governing Council denies plans to relocate institution

OKO — The Governing Council of the Federal Polytechnic Oko, Anambra State, has dismissed claims of plans to relocate the polytechnic to a neighbouring community by the Rector, Prof. Godwin Onu.

The Council Chairman, Dr Christian Azubuike, after an emergency meeting in the institution, said the accusation against the rector of attempting to move the federal institution to his home town, Ezira, was untrue and misleading, describing it as a desperate attempt to smear the image of the school management.

The council also condemned recent demonstration by Oko People’s Union (OPU) and the women of the community, who demanded the immediate removal of the rector.
He noted that the reasons adduced for the protest were merely speculative and untrue and urged people dissatisfied with the activities in the institution to seek other legitimate channels to express their grievances.

“Placards suggesting that the Rector is responsible for the ASUP strike, absence of students in the school among others are avoidable if the persons involved in the demonstration sought better information from the school authorities,” the Council maintained.

Okorocha orders street traders to relocate to Relief Market, Owerri

OWERRI — Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State has ordered street traders along Douglas Road and other streets within Owerri municipality to relocate immediately to Relief Market, Owerri.

Okorocha, who gave the directive when he made an unscheduled visit to Relief Market, also said the open sheds in the market were ready and would be open for the petty traders to occupy.
“The sheds would be provided for the traders at no cost. Application forms would soon be made available to the street traders,” Okorocha said.

Obiano sworn-in as Anambra governor

AWKA- CHIEF Peter Obi, former governor of Anambra State for eight years bowed out gloriously Monday, while his successor, Dr. Willie Obiano mounted the saddle at an impressive ceremony witnessed by thousands of people from all parts of the country and Nigerians in Diaspora.Enthusiastic crowd started trouping into the famous Alex Ekwueme Square in Awka as early as 8 am and by the time the ceremony started at about 2 pm, the entire square and its environs were filled by spectators with the attendant traffic gridlock in the city.

Former governor, Obi, after inspecting a guard of honour mounted by the police, made a valedictory speech in which he expressed happiness that Anambra has returned to what it should be.Describing Governor Obiano as lucky, the former governor recalled that after his swearing in 2006, there was no office for him to move into and no official car for him, adding that his successor was lucky to have them in place.

He also said that Obiano assumed office at a time the state is financially stable and appealed to the people of Anambra State to give the new governor their full support.

Governor Of Anambra Sate, Dr. Willie Obiano with his family during his swearing in today in Awka.

Special adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan on inter party matters, Senator Ndii Obi who represented the president at the ceremony urged the new governor to continue the good works of the former governor.

He also confirmed that former Governor Obi will soon become a member of the Federal Executive Council.Governor Obiano, in his speech thanked the people of Anambra State for voting him and his deputy, Dr. Nkem Okeke in to serve them and promised that they would not disappoint.Part of his eight page speech read: “Beloved Anambrarians, with humility, I stand before you today, to accept this historic responsibility that you have given to me to serve. Our great leader, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, advised Ndigbo that only wise political choices would ensure their survival as a nation within a nation. I am proof that you heeded that advice.

Ndi Anambra, I wish to assure you that you made a wise choice when you voted me and Dr. Nkem Okeke as your governor and deputy governor. Not only that, in voting for our great party, the All Progressive Grand Alliance, you once again listened to the wise advice of the great American Civil Rights leader, Dr Martin Luther King Jnr, that; “We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.”

“Let me quickly say that the occasion we have today is not a celebration of the victory of one party over another but the triumph of the human will over the challenges that make democracy a reluctant seed to grow in Africa. Fellow citizens, barley 10 years ago, the situation in Anambra State was so appalling that Anambra’s famous son and writer, Chinua Achebe referred to it as a place where a small clique of renegades had turned into a “bankrupt and lawless fiefdom.”

“To the glory of God, the tables turned against enemies of Anambra when our great leader, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu built a new political ark for our people and gave us a fighting chance in the ever-threatening flood of Nigeria’s political climate. Today, our story is different.

“After eight years of a remarkable leadership under the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), our narrative has changed from the story of near-bankruptcy to that of the only state in the federation that hosts Nigeria’s first indigenous automobile manufacturing plant. Yes, it is a thing of pride to know that our brother, Dr Innocent Chukwuma has launched Nigeria into a new industrial orbit by fulfilling the country’s dream of indigenous automobile manufacturing with Innoson Vehicle Manufacturing Limited, Nnewi. The story of Innoson is the story of courage and vision. It is the narrative of the New Anambra!

Check out this job application letter...lol

The hustle is real...hehe

Man allegedly blinds married woman because she refused him sex

A 35-year old man, Arinze Kingsley, has left a married woman, Mrs Amaka Ohanwe, partially blind when she allegedly refused his sexual advances, PM News.

Amaka was seriously injured in her right eye when she was allegedly beaten up by Kingsley at a beauty salon. She said after undergoing several operations, the doctors at Apapa General Hospital confirmed that she cannot see with the eye again.

Following the assault, the police at Area ‘B’ Apapa arrested Kingsley and charged him with assault before Apapa Magistrate’s Court after which he was remanded in Kirikiri Prisons in Lagos State, southwest Nigeria.

Both Amaka and Kingsley, who is still single, admitted that they were friends but Amaka said they were just friends not lovers.

She said she stopped relating with Kingsley when she discovered that he was desperate to have sex with her despite the fact that he knew that she was married and had two kids.

She said after several attempts by him to sleep with her failed, he became aggressive and when she noticed that, she started avoiding him.

Amaka said Kingsley eventually traced her to a salon at Pen Crescent, Apapa, Lagos where she went to have her hair done and attacked her in front of the beauty shop.

“He waited for me outside the salon. When he saw me, he started abusing me after I refused his advances. I replied him and he hit my eye and threw me on the floor. He started  hitting his head on my eyes until I started bleeding,” she told the court.

Amaka said it was their neighbours who came to her rescue and took her to the hospital, while Kingsley immediately started his motorcycle and rode off after attacking her.
She alleged that after the attack, Kingsley boasted that nothing would happen to him because he has money to bail himself out of any difficult situation.

Amaka reported the case to the police but alleged that she was asked to collect N30,000 for her eye operation in order to settle the matter out of court.

Amaka said she had spent over N200,000 on the surgeries but they were not successful.
She called on the state government to come to her aid and ensure justice was done in the matter. Meanwhile, when Kingsley was contacted, he admitted attacking Amaka but said he wanted to settle the matter out of court but she refused.

When he was arraigned, he pleaded not guilty.

The presiding magistrate, Mrs O.A Adegbite, granted him bail in the sum of N50,000 with two sureties in like sum.

He was, however, remanded in prison custody pending when he will fulfill his bail conditions
The matter was adjourned till 24 March.

Satellite data shows hijacked Malaysian plane was last seen flying towards Pakistan

Investigators say the missing Malaysia Airlines jet was hijacked, steered off-course and could have reached Pakistan. A Malaysian government official said people with significant flying experience could have turned off the flight's communication devices. 

The representative said that hijacking theory was now 'conclusive', and, as a result, police have raided the luxury homes of both the captain (right) and the co-pilot (left)

The search operation has now been focused on two 'corridors', one which extends from  north west from Thailand to the Kazakstan-Turkmenistan border and the other which opens out into the southern Indian Ocean. Continue...

207 suspected terrorists killed as Boko Haram battle military in Maiduguri

Acts of bravado exhibited by hundreds of Boko Haram terrorists who attempted to rescue some of their detained members inside the military barracks in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, yesterday led to the killing of scores of the terrorists during the ill- fated mission/ attack.

Reliable sources said that the suspected terrorists succeeded in freeing some of the detainees but the victory was short-lived as most of them were later killed or re-arrested by troops who were joined by fighter jets from the Air Force to overpower the invaders.

Multiple explosions and sporadic gunshots started rocking the troubled city and environs at about 7.30 am when the terrorists reportedly invaded the town in an attempt to destroy the Giwa Military Barracks (Air Defence Unit) where the suspected Boko Haram members were being detained since 2009 when the uprising started in a bid to rescue them.

NIGERIA, Maiduguri : This photo shows razed homes in Mainok, outside Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria, on March 6, 2014. At least 74 people were killed in attacks on March 1, 2014 in villages near Maiduguri, blamed on Boko Haram militants, taking the overall death toll this year beyond 300, with no apparent end in sight to the carnage. Gunmen dressed in military fatigues and armed with powerful assault rifles, rocket-propelled grenades and explosives laid siege to the village of Mainok, killing 39. AFP PHOTO

It was however, gathered that a swift  response from the military led to heavy fighting, during which  scores of the insurgents died along with some few security operatives and civilians who also were killed in the crossfire.

Military sources told Saturday Vanguard in Maiduguri that several members of the sect who tried to escape into the town from the barracks were captured at Polo, Sulimanti, and other surrounding wards in Maiduguri metropolis, with the assistance of villagers and members of the vigilante youths popularly known as civilian JTF.

According to sources, no fewer than 207 suspected terrorists were killed while at least 50 others including some Arabs, Malians and Chadians were captured by troops, who also collected their weapons.

One of the vehicle used by the insurgents on Friday

In the nearby Adamawa State, some suspected terrorists were also arrested by troops in three Toyota Sports cars (with three different colours of red, white and blue respectively). The occupants of the Toyota cars who were arrested at the Belel border in Konkol near Cameroun claimed to have come from either Mali, Burkina Faso and Cote d’ Voire.

Meanwhile, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has called for greater cooperation between Nigeria and neighbouring countries in the fight against terrorism.

Speaking at an audience with a Special Envoy of President Paul Biya of Cameroon, Mr. Emmanuel Sadi Rene who delivered a special message from the Cameroonian leader, President Jonathan said that Boko Haram and other criminal groups that operate in the countries’ border regions must be seen as a common threat to them all.

The President said that Nigeria and its neighbours must take urgent action to harmonise their strategies and efforts to roll-back the menace of Boko Haram and other violent criminal gangs that operate between their borders.

“The issue of Boko Haram remains worrisome. If it is not properly handled, it could affect the security of neighbouring countries. We therefore expect maximum cooperation from all countries within our region to route the sect,” President Jonathan told Mr. Rene who is Cameroon’s Minister of Interior.

Saturday Vanguard gathered at Polo Ward in Maiduguri, that about eight of the fleeing terrorists were captured by civilian JTF operatives who later handed them over to military operatives, just as six others were captured at the outskirts of Sulimanti by the NNPC Depot, and handed over to the security agencies.