Connect with us

News

FG Goes After #EndSARS Leaders, Freezes Bank Accounts

Published

on

Federal Government Clampdown on #EndSARS Leaders

#EndSARS front runners have noticed their bank accounts are being frozen by various banks on the order of the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The #EndSARS promoters, who had spoken with the Punch, said their financial institutions informed them that the apex bank had instructed them to freeze their accounts.

Nigerian youths had raised a huge amount of money through various bank accounts in an effort to sustain a nationwide protest against the disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) in October.

However, their efforts were truncated by security operatives who shot at peaceful protesters at Lekki Toll Gate on October 20, 2020. Several reports have said youths were killed while Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos had claimed on two people died.

It now appears like a planned strategy to go after each everyone involved in the peaceful protest after successfully surprising a genuine call for help by the largest youth population in Africa and one of the largest in the world.

Bassey Israel, a pharmacist who was in charge of the #EndSARS medical team in Port Harcourt, said his bank account with Access Bank has been frozen since October 15.

He said, “I am in charge of End SARS medical team in Port Harcourt and we had people donating for medical supplies, food, water, ambulance services and these donations were made directly into my account and of course these donations had End SARS descriptions so I think that was how they were able to flag my account. I noticed that on October 15, I was trying to make a debit transaction on my account and noticed that there was a restriction.

“So, I called the bank and I was told that there was indeed a restriction but I should go to any branch near me and when I did so, the branch manager sent a mail to the branch where I opened the account. The response to the mail was that there was a directive from the CBN to restrict the account.

“The lady was surprised and even asked me if I had any issue with the CBN and I responded that if I had any issue with the CBN, I wouldn’t be in the bank in the first place, I would be on the run. I asked what could be done and she gave me no answer. She had to show me the mail on her computer which I read. It was directly from the CBN and it read, ‘Place this account on PND.”

When Israel was asked if others had a similar issue, he said “I know many persons that have this same challenge.”

Others like Modupe Odele had their passport seized by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS). While the NIS officers did not disclose the reason for their actions, people familiar with the operating tactics have linked it to her role in the #EndSARS protest.

Odele said, “For my birthday, I had planned a trip to the Maldives. It was really for a break as the events of the last three weeks have exhausted my mind and body in a way I have never been exhausted in my life.

“I went to the airport, passed through immigration, and while I was putting my bags through the body and baggage scanner, the immigration officer who had previously cleared me, called me back. He told me he had orders from above to detain me.

“Okay, at this point I’m like excuse me, my flight is in an hour. On what grounds are you detaining me?” He didn’t respond. Instead, he goes to his computer where he typed in my name, and something that looked like a ‘wanted poster’ popped up on the portal.

“He blocked my view so I couldn’t see most of it but I saw some of it. And it read something like – ‘This person is under investigation by XYZ Intelligence Agency. If seen, they should be apprehended on sight.’”

Is the CEO and Founder of Investors King Limited. He is a seasoned foreign exchange research analyst and a published author on Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur.com, Investorplace, and other prominent platforms. With over two decades of experience in global financial markets, Olukoya is well-recognized in the industry.

Continue Reading
Comments

Education

FG Abolishes 18-Year Age Benchmark For Admission Into Tertiary Institutions

Published

on

University - Investors King

The new Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, has abolished the controversial 18-year admission benchmark for tertiary institutions in the country.

This is coming as the minister indicated interest in reviewing the nation’s education policy.

However, Alausa stated that there would be no reversal of the Federal Government’s decision to void over 22,700-degree certificates obtained by Nigerians from some “fake” universities in neighbouring Togo and the Benin Republic.

Alausa spoke on Tuesday at his inaugural ministerial press conference in Abuja.

He stated that practical education will help to address the unemployment situation in Nigeria, as tertiary institutions will not continue to churn out graduates every year without providing jobs for them.

He disclosed that the Federal Government will collaborate with private sector operators to train students in order to discover and unleash their potential.

Alausa added that universities of agriculture will be empowered to adopt commercial farming practices to combat food insecurity.

Continue Reading

News

Outrage in Equatorial Guinea: Government Restricts WhatsApp Multimedia Sharing Amid Scandal

Published

on

whatsapp

There is outrage in Equatorial Guinea as the government restricted its citizens from downloading and sharing multimedia files using mobile data on WhatsApp.

This decision followed the guidelines that the country’s government gave to telecommunications operators when it urged them to implement measures to restrict access to inappropriate content.

The country’s Director General, National Financial Investigation Agency, Baltasar Engonga, has been involved in a sex scandal involving the wives of notable people in the nation.

The scandal emerged in the course of a fraud investigation against the 54-year-old economist which resulted in the search of his house and office on impromptu notice by ANIF officials who came across several CDs that later revealed his sexcapades with different married women.

It was reported that the over 400 videos include encounters with high-profile individuals, such as his brother’s wife, his cousin, the sister of the President of Equatorial Guinea, the Director General of Police’s wife, and about 20 of the country’s ministers’ wives, among others.

The footage, discovered in his office, was said to have been recorded with consent and has since been leaked online, causing a media uproar.

But, in a new development on Tuesday, it was reported that the citizens have been lamenting their inability to share photos, videos, and audio when using a mobile data connection, leading users to rely exclusively on WiFi networks to share such content.

Sources revealed that the restrictions have been affecting business and academic activities in the country.

Citizens wonder why the actions of a few individuals would result into holding thousands of other innocent ones hostage.

Earlier, the Vice President of Equatorial Guinea, Teddy Nguema, announced plans to install surveillance cameras in all state body offices.

This sweeping measure is part of an ongoing effort to ensure strict adherence to public service laws and combat misconduct among officials.

Continue Reading

Education

NCC Confiscates ₦23 Million Worth of Pirated Books During Bookstores Raid In Uyo

Published

on

The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) on Saturday, November 2, confiscated ₦23.1 million in pirated books from local shops, including Academic Needs and Zion Bookshop during a raid in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

The raid was by the Deputy Director of Operations, Mr Macfoy Akachukwu, representing the NCC Director General, Dr. John Asein.

Akachukwu, who stated that the raid was a significant operation to combat the rampant sale of pirated books, listed the books seized during the raid to include: Basic Civic Education by Dr Merry Ukaegbu, Spectrum New Further Mathematics by T.R. Moses and Essential Christian Religious Study for Senior Secondary Schools by Orovwuje B.O and Okolie E.U.

Other books included Macmillan Brilliant English for Junior Secondary Schools by Wale Ossianwo, New General Basic Science for Junior Secondary Schools by S. Ajayi, New Oxford Secondary English Course for Secondary Schools by Ayo Banjo and New Concept Mathematics for Senior Secondary Schools by H.N. Odogwu among others.

Major publishers affected by the raid included Evans, UPL, Lantern, Longman, TONAD, and Pearson among others.

According to Asein, the operation is important as it was part of a nationwide initiative to protect authors’ rights.

“What we have done is part of the commissions mandate to protect and promote the rights of authors and other genuine investors in the copyright book industry,” he stated.

He reaffirmed that the NCC is committed to “eliminating the sale of pirated works and to establish a robust copyright framework in Nigeria”.

Asein emphasized that authors deserve to benefit from their creative work and not run into financial losses because of piracy.

“It is our duty to ensure that authors get rewards for their creative work. I have under my watch, zero tolerance for piracy and infringement of Copyright Laws,” Asein said.

Continue Reading

Trending