PRESS RELEASE

1: Hello brothers and sisters in Christ, men and women of goodwill everywhere, I send you hearty greetings and felicitations as we celebrate the risen Christ. Easter is here again. For all Christians, Easter is a metaphor for our lives as individuals, families, communities or nations. Easter is a metaphor for how shame, scandal, powerlessness, weakness, and opprobrium suddenly transform into glory, honour, pre-eminence, laudation and applause. It is a fulfilment of what the Master himself had foretold when He said, ‘Unless a grain of wheat falls on the ground and dies, it remains only a single grain, but if it dies, it bears much fruit’ (Jn. 12: 24). And the Psalmist had said, ‘Those who sow in tears will sing when they reap.’ (Ps. 126:5).

2: The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus are central to the Christian faith and yet, as St Paul said, ‘We preach Christ crucified, a scandal to the Jews and nonsense to the Gentiles’ (1 Cor. 1: 23). St Paul continues: ‘What seems to be God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength’ (1 Cor. 1:25). Without the claims of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, millions of people wouldn’t be Christian today. As with the times of Jesus, the very idea is preposterous and incomprehensible yet St. Paul still insists that ‘If Christ has not been raised, then our faith is a delusion and we are still in our sins’ (1 Cor. 15:17). It is faith in the resurrection of Christ that inspires us Christians to hold firmly to the fact that, like the people of Israel, our dry bones shall rise again (Ez. 37: 11).

3: Our dear country, Nigeria, still totters and wobbles as we screech towards a dangerous and avoidable canyon of dry bones. Nonetheless, we still cling to hope, a hope in the resurrected Christ, knowing as St. Paul; said, ‘this hope does not disappoint us’ (Rm.5:5). Nigerians can no longer recognise their country which has been battered and buffeted by men and women from the dark womb of time. It is no longer necessary to ask how we got here. The real challenge is how to find the slippery rungs on the ladder of ascent so we can climb out. Yet, we ask, ascend to where? For us as Christians, ascent is to the loving embrace of the resurrected Christ who is Lord of history.

4: One would be tempted to ask, what is there to say about our tragic situation today that has not been said? Who is there to speak that has not spoken? Like the friends of Job, we stare at an imponderable tragedy as the nation unravels from all sides. The government has slid into hibernation mode. It is hard to know whether the problem is that those in power do not hear, see, feel, know, or just don’t care. Either way, from this crossroad, we must make a choice, to go forward, turn left or right or return home. None of these choices are easy, yet, guided by the light of the risen Christ, we can reclaim our country from its impending slide to anarchy.

5: The greatest challenge now is how to begin a process of reconstructing our nation hoping that we can hang on and survive the 2023 elections. The real challenge before us now is to look beyond politics and face the challenge of forming character and faith in our country. Here, leaders of religion, Christianity and Islam, need to truthfully face the role of religion in the survival of our country. The Nigerian Constitution has very clearly delineated the fine boundaries between religion and politics. Yet many politicians continue to behave as if they are presiding over both the political and the spiritual realms in their states rather than governing in a Democracy.

6: This conflict between Caesar and God is inbuilt in faith and is part of world history. Many religious leaders often measure their power by how close they are to Caesar, yet Caesar’s embrace is often full of thorns. The challenge is for the religious leader to know that both Caesar and those he represents are answerable to God who created them. The welfare of citizens constitutes the cornerstone for measuring the legitimacy of any political leader. As such, religious leaders must focus more on the issues of welfare, safety and security of ordinary citizens. They must raise their voice when these rights are being trampled upon. A leader must know when to call Caesar a fox and not a horse (Lk. 13:32).

7: The greatest challenge for Nigeria is not even the 2023 elections. It is the prospects for the reconciliation of our people. Here, the Buhari administration sadly has divided our people on the basis of ethnicity, religion, and region, in a way that we have never witnessed in our history. This carefully choreographed agenda has made Nigerians vulnerable and ignited the most divisive form of identity consciousness among our people. Years of friendships, cultural exchange, and collaboration built over time have now come under serious pressure from stereotyping. Notwithstanding these challenges, religious leaders must recover and deploy their moral authority and avoid falling victim to the schemes of politicians and their material enticements.

8: Today, the values of Interfaith dialogue have come under severe strain and pressure with extremists from both sides of our faiths denigrating the idea of dialogue with their counterparts of other faiths. Ignorance and miseducation have combined with prejudice to create the falsehood that somehow, one religion is superior to the others. With so many ill equipped fraudsters posing as religious leaders, there is an obsession with defaming the others and widening our differences.

9: Religious leaders must face the reality that here in Nigeria and elsewhere around the world, millions of people are leaving Christianity and Islam. While we are busy building walls of division with the blocks of prejudice, our members are becoming atheists but we prefer to pretend that we do not see this. We cannot pretend not to hear the footsteps of our faithful who are marching away into atheism and secularism. No threats can stop this, but dialogue can open our hearts.

10: Thank God, in the last few years, we have had some good news from outside the shores of Nigeria. The most noteworthy is the initiative undertaken by both Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Mosque, Egypt, Shaikh Mohammed Al-Tayeb in 2019, when both of them met and signed the Document on Human Fraternity. Pope Francis followed up with the publication of an Encyclical titled, Fratelli Tutti, We are all Brothers, in 2020. The following year, the United Nation’s General Assembly declared February 4, World Day of Fraternity. Both leaders agreed that: ‘We need to develop the awareness that nowadays, we are either all saved together or no one is saved. Poverty, decadence, and suffering in one part of the earth are a silent breeding ground for problems that will end up affecting our entire planet.’

11: We need to start thinking of a Nigeria beyond banditry and kidnapping and the endless circles of violence that have engulfed our communities and nation. We cannot continue to pretend that there are no religious undertones to the violence in the name of God that has given our religions a bad name. The way out is for the state to enforce the secular status of the Nigerian state so as to give citizens the necessary freedoms from the shackles of semi-feudal confusion over the status of religion and the state in a plural Democracy. We must be ready to embrace modernity and work out how to preserve our religions and cultures without turning religion into a tool for tyranny, exclusion, and oppression.

12: In finding our way forward, the President must concede that it is within his powers to decide how we are going to end the war that has engulfed and is tearing down our nation. It seems that the federal government has shown far greater commitment to integrating so called repentant terrorists than getting our children back from kidnappers or keeping our universities open. Earlier last month, Operation Safe Corridor announced that it had graduated 599 members of various terrorist groups who have acquired new skills and are now ready to be integrated into society. The total comes to over a thousand now. It is plausible to note that the programme involves pyscho-social support, rehabilitation, vocational training, skill acquisition and start-ups.

Despite all this, the larger issue is that their various communities have expressed their reluctance to receive their erring sons back. Nigerians have no access to the transcripts of the texts of the confessions of these terrorists not to talk of evidence of their commitment to not sin again. We have only the words of the terrorists and the same military that they have been fighting a war with. It speaks volumes when the President and his military hierarchy choose to believe these young men who took up arms and for years waged war against their country, killed, maimed and wasted thousands of lives, destroyed entire communities and now, they are being housed, fed, clothed with public funds. All this while their victims have been forced to make the various IDP camps their new homes! Where is the justice for the victims and the rest of the country they have destroyed?

13: As a priest, I cannot be against a repentant sinner or criminals changing their ways. After all, the doors of forgiveness must always remain open. However, in this case, Nigerians have very little information as to the entire rehabilitation processes. Have these terrorists felt the heat or have they seen the light or, is their repentance a mere strategic and tactical repositioning? So far, we have no evidence that these terrorists have been able to confront their victims not to talk of seeking forgiveness from them. Something is wrong. We see these terrorists adorned in our national colours in their green and white kaftans, trousers, and looking like heroes of the state! Are we to assume that they have become acknowledged models for Nigerian youth? Perhaps the next graduating set might be treated to Presidential handshakes, receptions at the villa with full national colours!

14: Only last week, as if in delayed solidarity, the Jama’atu Nasril Islam, JNI, in a Statement stated that: ‘It appears that the continuous callous acts of mayhem, killings and arson happening almost on daily or weekly bases around us; either within communities or on the roads we ply, has automatically reset our human psyche that we now have accepted such dastardly acts as part of our lives, to the extent that we no longer feel it….Any government that is incapable of protecting the lives of its citizens has lost the moral justification of being there in the first place….our humanity is being eroded and that erosion is become a new normal.’ Similarly, the Northern Elders Forum, NEF, and the House of Representatives have finally called on the President to resign since, in their view it is now clear that he cannot protect his citizens. This has come three years after the Catholic Bishops’ Statement issued on April 26th, 2018 made the same call that was greeted with cynicism.

15: The challenge of fixing this broken nation is enormous and, as I have said, requires joint efforts. With everything literally broken down, our country has become one big emergency national hospital with full occupancy. Our individual hearts are broken. Our family dreams are broken. Homes are broken. Churches, Mosques, infrastructure are broken. Our educational system is broken. Our children’s lives and future are broken. Our politics is broken. Our economy is broken. Our energy system is broken. Our security system is broken. Our Roads and Rails are broken. Only corruption is alive and well. So, we ask with the Psalmist, We look up to the hills, from where shall come our help? Our help shall come from the name of the Lord (Ps. 121:2).

16: 2023 beckons and the stage is set. The challenge is whether we have learnt any lessons from the tragedy that has afflicted us in the last few years. The Presidency of Nigeria is not a human right based on ethnic, religious or regional sentiments. The next President of Nigeria must be a man or woman with a heart, a sense of empathy and a soul on fire that can set limits to what human indignities visited on citizens that he or she can tolerate. We have no need for any further empty messianic rhetoric laced with deceitful and grandiose religiosity. We need someone who can fix our broken nation, rid our people of the looming dangers of hunger and destitution. Our Presidential aspirants must show evidence from their legacies and antecedents that they know the country well enough and its severe wounds. Whoever wants to govern us must illustrate that he or she understands what has turned our nation into a national hospital and show us plans for our discharge from this horror. Support for INEC and its infrastructure is fundamental to a free and fair election and we condemn in very strong terms all those criminals who continue to threaten the society with violence. They should meet the full force of the law.

17: I thank the President for accepting the report of the Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy and granting pardon to over 150 Nigerians serving various terms of imprisonment. The more serious challenge is to immediately free all innocent Nigerians who are held captive and whose only crime is that they are living in Nigerians. With the news of the purchase of new sophisticated weapons, we hope that the President and the military will quickly roll out a strategy for routing this cancer that has afflicted our country. The general feeling is that the military has the capacity to end this tragedy. In reality, the military cannot fire beyond the radar set by their commander-in-chief. If the President can end this tragedy, he will immediately get the support of all citizens and hopefully leave office witih his head held high.

18: We cannot end this Message without sparing a thought for the untold sufferings being experienced by the people of Ukraine as a result of the invasion of their country by Russia. We turn in prayer to the Lord to touch the hearts and minds of those in power and in position to reverse this avoidable loss of human lives. May the spirit of the resurrected Christ and the appeals of all men and women of good will help to bring an end to this human tragedy.

19: Finally, in the last few years, my Messages have been borne out of a sense of moral revulsion over how life has been destroyed in my country. No country anywhere in the world is undergoing these self-inflicted wounds, citizens randomly murdering innocent citizens and getting away with it. For me as a Christian, there is a minimum threshold of human indignity that I can live with because the reason why Jesus came is so that all of us will have life and have it to the full (Jn. 10:10). We must shout at what diminishes any and every life in our society. Once human dignity is respected and restored, we will change our tone, but for now, our voice must have a sense of urgency. We Christians believe that to redeem the world, Christ allowed His body to be broken. We know He can heal out broken nation. May the light of His resurrection scatter the clouds and rout the men of evil, inspire a new birth in our dear nation and restore us to wholeness. A happy Easter to you all.

(Easter Message by Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah, Diocese of Sokoto, April 17th, 2022)

Nigerian banks have been hit by an exodus of tech talent, chief executives of the nation’s lenders say.

“So many of our very experienced talents especially in the area of software engineering are either leaving the industry or leaving the country,” Abubakar Suleiman, chief executive officer of Sterling Bank Plc, told reporters at the end of a meeting of bank CEOs on Thursday, according to a voice recording shared by the central bank. He referred to it as a “great resignation.”

The meeting came as traditional lenders in Africa’s largest economy face stiff competition for talent from technology startups attracting increased funding from international investors and offering better working conditions, in and outside the country. Africa-focused startups raised a record $5 billion last year, with those specializing in digital and mobile payments and lending soaking up most of the funding. 

Two economic contractions in the last five years have also forced some Nigerians with globally marketable skills to leave the country, with the U.S., Canada and U.K. being preferred destinations. 

The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, the umbrella professional body for lenders in the country, will “drive the process of training more skills in the area where we see deficits,” Suleiman said. The executives discussed plans to fund training for new tech-focused staffers to replace those who have left in what he called “the great resignation.” 

The CEOs also agreed to help the central bank increase the adoption of the digital currency, the eNaira, Miriam Olusanya, managing director at Guaranty Trust Bank, said at the same briefing. The digital currency app has more than 756,000 downloads since its launch in October, she said, adding that the consumer wallet has 165,000 downloads and the merchant wallet 2,800.

A community leader and an aspirant of the People's Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Toyin amuzu has called on Christians to use this Easter period to reflect and pray for the unity of Nigeria as well as the removal of bad leadership in the Country. 

Chief Toyin Amuzu who is vying to represent Abeokuta South Federal Constituency as a member of the House of Representatives come 2023, said these prayers are necessary to bring in a new crop of leaders that would have the fear of God and sympathy for the masses.

He stressed that the action must be followed by registering and securing the voters card needed to elect credible candidates that would be ready to serve selfessly, saying "sacrifice was a major message of Easter as exemplified by Christ thus we must sacrifice to see a better Nation". 

Chief Amuzu who explained that happenings in the Country are so fearful, said "the level of insecurity, poverty and joblessness among others are creating hopelessness and calls for concern".

He said, "those at the helms of affairs at present are not showing any serious concern to stem the backward trend, but seems to be more interested in holding on to power, thus the need to be decisive and take our destinies in our hands".  

Chief Amuzu said, "if we must start afresh and be saved from the myriad of problems confronting us, we as a people must not only take the 2023 elections serious but must all participate and see it as a period to save Nigeria from further disintegration".

He explained that "God has bestowed on us necessary resources, it is now in our hands to use for our own good. We have failed woefully to use such resources for the good of all because of greed, incompetence, corruption, un-patriotism and i-dont-care-attitude all caused by bad leadership". 

Chief Amuzu, urged all faithfuls to use this Easter period as a time to have sober reflections, pray for the atonement of sins, the good of the Nation, the well-being of the people and the purging of bad leadership.

The World Bank says Nigeria’s increasing fuel subsidy could pose debt sustainability concerns for the country. 

The bank disclosed this in its latest ‘Africa’s Pulse’ report, a biannual analysis of the near-term regional macroeconomic outlook. 

On Thursday, the national assembly approved the request of President Muhammadu Buhari to earmark N4 trillion for petrol subsidy.

According to the World Bank, the rising cost of subsidies could also weaken the country’s public finance. 

“Risk remains high on increasing fuel subsidies, which could weigh heavily on public finance and pose debt sustainability concerns,” the report said.

“Nevertheless, public debt as a percentage of GDP is currently moderate.”

The Washington-based institution added that the country’s soaring military spending and debt servicing costs could prey on the country’s debt sustainability level. 

“Persistent fuel subsidies, increasing military spending for security purposes, and rising debt servicing costs weigh heavily on public finance to keep public debt at a sustainable level in Nigeria,” the report added.

“The fiscal balance deteriorated considerably in several Sub-Saharan African countries as governments scaled-up spending to mitigate the prolonged effects of the pandemic on firms and vulnerable households.” 

On sub-Saharan Africa’s recovery, the bank noted that it is multi-speed, with wide variation across countries. 

“The recovery of the three largest economies in the region — Nigeria, South Africa, and Angola — will continue to be sluggish,” it said.

“High oil prices will support growth in Nigeria and Angola. 

“Excluding Angola, Nigeria, and South Africa, growth is projected at 4.1 per cent in 2022—higher than the growth of the region as a whole. 

“Non-resource-rich countries are projected to be adversely affected by rising commodity prices, dragging down growth in the region.

“The opposite occurs with resource-rich countries whose growth would be propelled by favourable terms of trade.”

The bank further said the war in Ukraine would further improve the economic performance of resource-rich countries (especially their extractive sector) and decelerate the economic activity of non-resource-rich countries as their import bills soar. 

“Given limited trade exposure, the impacts of the Russia-Ukraine conflict are expected to be negligible,” the bank added. 

It projected a 2.7 per cent growth for Nigeria in 2022.

“Of the region’s three largest economies, South Africa’s growth is expected to decline by 2.8 percentage points in 2022, dragged by persistent structural constraints, while Angola and Nigeria are projected to continue with the momentum of 2021, up by 2.7 and 0.2 percentage points, respectively, thanks partly to elevated oil prices and good performance of the non-oil sector,” the bank said. 

According to World Bank, growth in Nigeria is forecast to increase to 3.8 per cent in 2022 and stabilise at 4 per cent from 2023 to 2024. 

“Real GDP growth was revised up by 1.2 percentage points for both periods compared with the previous forecast. Nigeria’s economy is still dependent on the oil sector,” it said. 

“Oil-related revenue contributes 40 to 60 per cent of fiscal revenue, while oil and gas account for 80 to 90 per cent of total exports. Weak oil production, below the OPEC quota, held back the recovery process.

“Although at a slower pace than the average 7 per cent during the boom period, growth prospects for the Nigerian economy are somewhat bright thanks to high oil prices coupled with reforms initiated by the passing of the Petroleum Industry Act and the completion of the Dangote refinery expected in 2023.”

'Quality representation through sponsorship of bills, project facilitation and welfare of the people would be a major focus, if given the opportunity to represent Abeokuta North State Constituency, at the Ogun State House of Assembly, in the 2023 elections'. 

Those were the words of an aspirant of the All Progressives Congress, APC Sulaiman Sanni while intimating the Local Government executives and members of the party of his intention to contest in the forthcoming election, at the Local Government Party Secretariat in Abeokuta.

Sanni who is the managing Director of Fotogallery and Moment Transport Ltd promised to give the best of services to the Constituents when put forward as a legislator.

He appealed to the executives, delegates and members to support his ambition to the House of Assembly and make it a reality.

The Chairperson of APC in Abeokuta North LG, Faidat Sarumi said Gbagura has competent hands like Sulaiman Sanni who can lead and deliver dividends of democracy to the people. 

She shared some of her experiences in governance and politics, noting that Mr Sanni has been doing well to his people and Abeokuta North  APC. 

Sarunmi described the aspirant as a young vibrant personality with a large heart, urging him to be firm and build his confidence as fortunes favour only those who dare. 

The local government Vice Chairman, Saba Olanrewaju also advised him to put his mind together and shun distractions, while the race lasted. 

A former legislator, Wale Bayewunmi acknowledged the distinct qualities of the aspirant which he said would come handy as the voice to represent the people. 

One of his coordinators, Bayo Arowona Sanni Sulaimon is fully prepared and ready to represent the people at the State Assembly saying he is trusted and reliable.

There are indications that negotiations between the Federal Government and terrorists, who attacked the Kaduna-Abuja train on March 28, have stalled following the refusal of the government to accede to their demands.

The terrorists are keeping about 100 passengers, who were abducted from the train, which derailed at Katari, Kaduna, after it was bombed.

Eight persons were killed and 26 others injured when gunmen attacked the train and kidnapped the victims.

Nigerian Railway Corporation said it was unable to establish contact with 163 of the passengers and seven crew members, who boarded the train.

It was gathered that the demand by the attackers for the release of 16 of their commanders and sponsors in custody in exchange for the abducted victims was not acceptable to the government.

Security sources said the authorities were still negotiating with the terrorists, while exploring other options to rescue the abductees, who were seen in a viral video sitting under a tree at an unknown location, believed to be the bandits’ camp.

Our correspondent gathered on Friday that the government was also not ready to pay ransom on the abductees.

A source said, “The Federal Government is looking into their demands because of the hostages, but the government is being cautious; it cannot meet the demands of the terrorists. The last time the government released some commanders, they went back and the insurgency became worse.

“So, nobody is considering releasing the commanders. The terrorists were also given money previously and the situation did not improve.”

Following the lack of progress in the negotiations, it was learnt that the terrorists might start asking the families of the hostages for ransom.

Some of the family members had protested the abduction of their loved ones and also complained that the terrorists had not contacted them since the victims were held captive over two weeks ago.

Meanwhile, Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, has ordered intensive security patrols of all public spaces and critical national assets ahead of Easter.

He directed all state Commissioners of Police and their supervising Assistant Inspectors-General of Police to ensure adequate deployment of personnel and operational assets in areas of security interest in their respective areas of responsibility.

The acting force spokesman, Muyiwa Adejobi, disclosed in a statement that the IG also instructed the supervising officers to ensure that “confidence-boosting, proactive and high visibility patrols” were carried out on the highways, motor parks, train stations, airports, worship centres, recreation centres, banks and other financial institutions, while taking adequate measures to provide a peaceful, crime-free, and enabling environment for religious, cultural and other socio-economic activities to thrive.

“In addition, the commissioners of police and their supervising AIGs have been directed to ensure proper supervision of the men assigned for these assignments. They must be professional and courteous to law-abiding citizens, but firm and ruthless with criminal elements, who might want to take advantage of the festive period to perpetrate their unholy acts,” the statement added.

The government of Rwanda on Thursday confirmed that it had signed a “bold new partnership” with the UK under which some people seeking refugee protection in Britain will be transferred to the central African country while awaiting processing, the New York Press News has reported.

The announcement comes ahead of a speech in which Prime Minister Boris Johnson will pledge to tackle clandestine migration, particularly in small boats across the English Channel, which has been seen as a significant political problem for his government.

Ministers will also announce plans for a new multimillion-pound processing centre at RAF Linton, a base in North Yorkshire, in an acknowledgment that not all asylum seekers will be sent 4,000 miles away.

However, the Rwanda deal, which has echoes of Australia’s policy of holding clandestine migrants in offshore processing centres, will cause significant controversy because of the human rights implications of removing people seeking asylum.

Rwanda said it would receive an “upfront investment” of £120mn under the deal, which would “fund opportunities for Rwandans and migrants”, including secondary qualifications, vocational and skills training, language lessons, and higher education.

The deal represents the latest effort by the UK under home secretary Priti Patel to deter irregular migration by reducing the rights of those who breach immigration law to reach the UK. It is expected to lead to the transfer of thousands of would-be migrants to the east African country.

The UK detected 28,526 people arriving in the UK via small boats in 2021, a record for peace time. In November, 27 would-be refugees drowned when their boat foundered off the coast of France.

Powers to process migrants overseas are contained in the nationality and borders bill making its way through parliament.

Proposals to process asylum seekers overseas have caused controversy because they contradict longstanding interpretations of the UK’s obligations under the 1951 UN Refugee Convention. This has been seen as obliging countries not to penalise people who breach immigration law to reach their country to make an asylum application.

UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, said on Thursday that it could not comment on the deal but stressed that it “does not support the externalisation of asylum states’ obligations”.

“This includes measures taken by states to transfer asylum-seekers and refugees to other countries, with insufficient safeguards to protect their rights, or where this leads to the shifting rather than the sharing of responsibilities to protect refugees,” it added.

Kigali called the deal, signed between Patel and Rwandan foreign minister Vincent Biruta, the Rwanda-UK Migration and Economic Development Partnership. Rwanda said the agreement would address the “urgent humanitarian crisis” of widespread clandestine migration flows “by tackling its root”.

“By relocating migrants to Rwanda and investing in personal development and employment for migrants, our nations are taking bold steps to address the imbalance in global opportunities which drives illegal migration, while dismantling the incentive structures which empower criminal gangs and endanger innocent lives,” Rwanda said. “The partnership will disrupt the business model of organised crime gangs and deter migrants from putting their lives at risk.

“Migrants will be integrated into communities across the country” and be entitled to “full protection” under local law, equal access to employment, and enrolment in healthcare and social care services, it added.

Rwanda has a tradition of welcoming refugees, and currently hosts about 130,000, mainly from neighbouring Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Simon Hart, Welsh secretary, told Sky News that Rwanda was an “up and coming economy” that had “a very good record with migrants”.

“It’s an arrangement which I think suits both countries very well and provides the best opportunities for economic migrants, for those who have been in the forefront of this particular appalling problem for so long now,” he said. “I think that this arrangement has the potential to be a really good step forward and a really humane step forward.”

The deal was strongly criticised by the UK opposition and groups working with refugees.

Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, described the proposal as “a desperate and shameful . . . attempt to distract from his own law breaking”, referring to the “partygate” scandal.

“It is an unworkable, unethical and extortionate policy that would cost the UK taxpayer billions of pounds during a cost of living crisis and would make it harder not easier to get fast and fair asylum decisions,” she added.

Tim Naor Hilton, chief executive of Refugee Action, a charity, called the deal a “grubby cash-for-people plan”, which he said would be a “cowardly, barbaric and inhumane way” to treat people fleeing persecution and war.

“Our so-called ‘Global Britain’ is offshoring its responsibilities on to Europe’s former colonies instead of doing our fair share to help some of the most vulnerable people on the planet,” Naor Hilton said.

The plan will also come under scrutiny because it involves the UK sending asylum seekers to a country whose human rights record has been a subject of intense controversy. In July last year, Rita French, the UK’s international ambassador for human rights, criticised Rwanda’s record in a speech to the UN Human Rights Council.

Human rights activists also criticise Paul Kagame, the Rwandan president, for brooking little political dissent. He won the 2017 presidential election with 98.6 per cent of the vote.

Popular blogger, Linda Ikeji, has boasted of hiring 100 lawyers to fight against the N25 million awarded against her over an alleged libel content her blog published, the Punch has reported.

She said this on Twitter while reacting to the judgement of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja asking her to pay general and exemplary damages of N25 million to a claimant, Mrs Ajibola Ajayi, daughter of former Governor of Oyo State, Senator Abiola Ajimobi.

She also criticised a law firm that represented Ajayi, Olaniwun Ajayi LP, for bringing the case to public knowledge on Twitter.

Her blog was also asked to publish a written apology, according to the law firm.

Linda Ikeji had reported that Ajayi described some protesting students of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology as a “generation of mannerless children”.

But the former Oyo governor’s daughter after the publication issued a press statement noting that the Instagram page quoted by Linda Ikeji, ‘conceited_csj’, was not hers.

Subsequently, Ajayi secured the services of a law firm, Olaniwun Ajayi LP, on the matter.

It was learnt that in a judgement delivered on April 12, 2022, the court held that the publication by Linda Ikeji was “false and malicious”.

According to Linda, the law firm filed the same case in both Lagos and Abuja High Courts without her knowledge.

Apart from calling Olaniwun Ajayi LP’s lawyer, Ogunmuyiwa Balogun, ‘an idiot’, she also described the lawyer as “inexperienced 26 years old”.

She tweeted, “Lol. You’re such an idiot lawyer. I hear you’re an inexperienced 26 year old? How can you file in Lagos and Abuja on the same issue? And then you don’t even inform me? Hope you’re ready for appeal and supreme court? And a countersue? Tell your client to get ready!

“Also if you’re using my name to catch clout like this on social media, gloating and happy… does this mean I’m the biggest client your firm has ever sued and won against? Or is this how you announce all your victories? I should sue you for using my name like this.

“I’m supposed to be scared? I can pay 100 lawyers. So let’s go!

“They are such a big law firm and they are using Linda Ikeji to chase clout on Twitter? I’m the biggest thing to ever happen to them? Lol. I hope when I come after them, they will continue to tweet. I’m done talking. Thanks, everyone for the love and support. God bless.”

What the court said -Law firm

Earlier, the firm tweeted, “Olaniwun Ajayi LP is happy to have successfully represented Mrs. Ajibola Ajayi, the claimant in Suit No. FCT/CV/667/2018: Mrs Ajibola Ajayi v. Linda Ikeji in an action filed at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

“In the action, the claimant had sued Ms. Linda Ikeji in respect of the defamatory article published in the latter’s blog, https://t.co/96s6uH3OKc on 15.01.17 and 17.01.17 which cited Mrs. Ajibola Ajayi as having described protesting students of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, as a “generation of mannerless children” in an Instagram post with the username “conceited_csj”.

“In the judgment delivered on 12.04.2022, the Court held that the publication by Ms. Ikeji was false and malicious and that the evidence before the Court showed that the Defendant knew that the Instagram account with the username “conceited_csj” did not belong to the Claimant.

“In reiterating the trite principle of law that libel is actionable per se, the Court awarded general and exemplary damages in the sum of N25,000,000.00 (Twenty-Five Million Naira) against Ms. Linda Ikeji and directed Ms. Ikeji to publish a written apology to the Claimant in three National tabloids.

“The claimant was represented in the action by our Ogunmuyiwa Balogun; and it is our belief that with Judgments like this, media outfits and members of the public will verify sources of their information ahead of publication.”

The two foremost Nigerian anti-corruption agencies have not made any tangible progress in bringing high profile persons culpable in corrupt practices to justice, a United States report has indicated, according to Premium Times.

The report, titled, ‘2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices in Nigeria,’ said the two agencies, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC), only target low and middle level officials suspected of corruption.

Released by the U.S. Department of State on Tuesday, the report said despite the charges brought against some serving and former high-level officials by the EFCC and ICPC, the organisations focused more on low and middle-level corrupt officials in 2021.

“The bulk of the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission and Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s anticorruption efforts remained focused on low- and mid-level government officials, although both organisations brought indictments against various active and former high-level government officials,” the U.S. report said.

Giving an insight into why the agencies were unable to make tangible progress in the cases involving the high-profile personalities, the report said, “Many of the corruption cases, particularly the high-profile ones, remained pending before the courts due to administrative or procedural delays.”

In December 2021, Abdulrasheed Bawa, the new EFCC’s chair appointed in February last year, noted that the commission secured the conviction of 978 persons within one year.

But going by EFCC’s public records of conviction, most of the persons convicted in the year were mostly cybercrime suspects.

The anti-graft campaign in Nigeria, particularly of the EFCC, has come under criticism for making the pursuit of cybercrime suspects (also known as Yahoo Yahoo boys) its major preoccupation, while it falters in its handling of high-profile cases.

In the latest 2021 Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index(CPI-TI) ranking, Nigeria scored 24 out of 100 points, ranking 154 out of 180 countries surveyed.

It fell back five places from the rank of 149 in 2020, placing as the second most corrupt country in West Africa.

Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), the national chapter of TI, said the failure of the anti-graft authorities to investigate high-profile corruption cases and prevent Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) was one of the numerous deficiencies that led to the country’s poor performance in the 2021CPI-TI ranking.

When contacted by our correspondent on Thursday, ICPC spokesperson, Azuka Ogugwa, noted that the report acknowledged the constraints anti-corruption agencies are confronted with in handling high-profile cases.

“The report acknowledged that the EFCC and ICPC handled high-profile corruption cases but are occasionally blocked by procedural concerns,” she said.

She added: “And I consider it understandable because high profile some takes time, they are not the usual cases. Also, we cannot be talking on the media about what we are doing considering most high-profile cases”.

On his part, EFCC spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren, did not respond to calls and text messages sent to his phone number.

The United States has approved the sale of military equipment worth $997 million to Nigeria.

According to a statement issued on Thursday by the US department of defence, the weapons include 12 attack helicopters, 2,000 advanced precision kill weapon system guidance sections, and night vision imaging system.

The approval comes after months of back and forth on the matter, with the US initially reported to have denied Nigeria’s request over human rights concerns.

But Lai Mohammed, minister of information, had claimed at the time that there was no such deal with the US.

According to the statement, the US said the sale of the weapons is part of efforts to boost security for Nigeria.

“The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Nigeria of AH-1Z Attack Helicopter Related FMS Acquisitions and related equipment for an estimated cost of $997 million,” the statement reads.

“The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale today.

“The Government of Nigeria has requested to buy twelve (12) AH-1Z Attack Helicopters; twenty-eight (28) T-700 GE 401C engines (24 installed, 4 spares); and two thousand (2,000) Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) guidance sections. Also included is Night Vision Cueing Display (NVCD); commercial variant GPS with Standard Positioning Service (SPS); communication equipment; electronic warfare systems; AN/AVS-9 Aviator’s Night Vision Imaging System; M197 20mm machine gun; Target Sight System (TSS); support equipment; spare engine containers; spare and repair parts; tools and test equipment; technical data and publications; personnel training and training equipment; Mission Planning system; U.S. Government and contractor engineering; technical, and logistics support services; U.S. Government and contractor assistance and oversight of facilities construction to include the provisioning of plans, drawings and specifications.

“$25M of case funds will be allocated for institutional and technical assistance to the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN) to continue Air Ground Integration (AGI) program, which includes developing targeting processes that are legally compliant with International Humanitarian Law and the Laws of Armed Conflict; and other related elements of logistics and program support. The total estimated program cost is $997 million.

“This proposed sale will support the foreign policy goals and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a strategic partner in Sub-Saharan Africa.

“The proposed sale will better equip Nigeria to contribute to shared security objectives, promote regional stability and build interoperability with the U.S. and other Western partners. This sale will be a major contribution to U.S. and Nigerian security goals. Nigeria will have no difficulty absorbing the equipment and services into its armed forces.

“The proposed sale of this equipment will not alter the basic military balance in the region. The principal contractors will be Bell Helicopter, Textron, Fort Worth, TX; and General Electric Company, Lynn, MA. There are no known offset agreements in connection with this potential sale.

“Implementation of this proposed sale will require the assignment of U.S. Government or contractor representatives to Nigeria for mobile training teams and contract logistics support. The case will include special training on the law of armed conflict and human rights, and air-to-ground integration to minimize civilian harm in air operations.

“This proposed sale will also require multiple trips by U.S. Government and contractor representatives to participate in program and technical reviews plus training and maintenance support in country, on a temporary basis, for a period of five (5) years. It will also require approximately three (3) contractor support representatives to reside in country for a period of two (2) years to support this program.

“There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale.

“This notice of a potential sale is required by law. The description and dollar value is for the highest estimated quantity and dollar value based on initial requirements. Actual dollar value will be lower depending on final requirements, budget authority, and signed sales agreement(s), if and when concluded.”