Nigerian Pastor Jailed For 30year's Over Drug Case.

A Tanzanian high court on Friday, November 13, sentenced a Nigerian pastor, Chukwudi Okechukwu to 30 years in prison after being convicted of smuggling cocaine.

In his ruling, Judge Amir Mruma ordered that the accused be jailed along his compatriots, South African Stan Hycent and Pakistani Shoaib Mohammed Ayazi, adding that the
accused pay SH9 Billion (overN800Million) in fines, TheCitizenng.com reports.

According to the Anti-Narcotics police,
Okechukwu is one of the top members of a srug syndicate operating in Tanzania, Nigeria and South Africa.

He was captured along with compatriots after the Anti-narcotics police had received information about the trio planning to smuggle into the country (Tanzania) a huge quantity of
cocaine and store it in a house in Kunduchi Mtongani.

Nigerian preacher Chukwudi Okechukwu (far right, partly hidden) and fellow accused (from left) Shoaib Mohammad Ayaz, Stan Hycent and
Paul Ikechukwu Obi appear before the High Court in Dar es Salaam last month.

They have been jailed for 30 years each for trafficking in cocaine with an estimated street value of Sh3.1
billion. The Nigerian pastor and his accomplices were believed to be hiding in a rented mansion in Dares Salaam’s Kuduchi Mtongani suburbs when
the police surrounded the house and arrested them.

After a surveillance team was deployed to keep an eye on the mansion that Okechukwu and his accomplices stayed, the police decided to give
their suspects a chase.

Led by head of Anti-Drugs Unit (ADU) Godfrey Nzowa, the police knocked on the front gate in their bid to arrest the suspected drug dealers.

Soon after the police had introduced
themselves, the suspects who were reportedly four in number, attempted to scamper away in apparent fear and panic.

There was a chase inside the compound as the police could only get hold of three suspects who were arrested inside the house (Okechukwu inclusive).

The anti-drugs police also seized 81 packets of drugs which were later confirmed by the chief government chemist to be cocaine hydrochloride.

Addressing newsmen, Nzowa described their jailing of the three alleged drug dealers as “another great achievement in Tanzania’s efforts to fight drug trafficking.”

He added: “Unlike a gun or pistol which kills people instantly, drugs are killing the young generation slowly.

"If we are not aggressive in fighting the illicit trade we may find ourselves
losing the young generation.

“The drug business was a threat to national security especially when foreigners are left to operate in the country."

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Customs Boss Denies Sacking Officers, Meet Stakeholders

The Comptroller-General of Customs, retired Col Hameed Ali, has denied sacking 400 officers in the ongoing restructuring of the service.

He told newsmen that he was rather holding meetings with stakeholders to strategise on how to achieve better service delivery in the country.

” I am not aware of any sacking; you are just telling me; I don’t know,” he said.

Ali said that the essence of his visit to some stakeholders was to create a common platform that would drive the mandate and enable the service to achieve its set goals by the federal
government.

He said that there is need for Nigeria to focus more on export than import, adding that Nigeria could not grow if the nation continue to import goods and services.

Ali said there was need to review policies so as to focus on how to regenerate exportation.

The customs boss noted that 99 percent of NCS business was clearing of imports and only little was being exported.

“Anytime we import, we are spending money out to somebody. We are growing somebody else industry; we should look at the policy in order to
grow our economy.

“Therefore, if we want to grow our economy, we have to put more emphasis on exportation than importation.

“We are doing restructuring; I have mandate. Given to me by Mr President to reform, structure and to raise revenues.

And in the course of restructuring, a lot of things will have to happen and the visit is one of them,” Ali said.

Ali visited the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) where he called for assistance from the institution to enable customs build its capacity and train officers to handle procurement based on the Established Act.

“We are here because procurement is one area that needs no mistake; I can afford to make mistake in some areas but there are two areas that I dare not make mistake, accounting and
procurement.

“I realise that we in customs have some deficiency when it comes to capacity to be able to handle procurement.

We want to get it right this time and the only way we can get it right is to come and learn from BPP.

“We are here to discuss with you to know how best we can further strengthen the synergy and also to have your support; so we can together drive the set objectives of this administration,” he added.

Responding, the Director-General, BPP, Emake Eze, said that 350 officers from various agencies of the federation would undergo two weeks certification conversion course starting from
Tuesday.

Eze said that the essence of the course was to train the procurement officers to be well established as professionals.

He advised the service to always recruit applicants with some qualification on procurement so that they can grow on the line.

Eze added that this would help the service to build a better department to handle its procurement activities.

“We have about 350 officers across the
federation that applied for conversion and the officers were screened and only 168 was approved to undertake the course.

“I will like to appeal that in line with government circular, customs should get a separate department to be fully responsible for procurement.

“I am happy about your commitment to do the right thing because that is what drives any nation.” he said.

The BPP boss presented a legal framework guiding the operations of public expenditure in Nigeria to the comptroller general of customs as
a tool to enhance the service in the area of procurement.

The customs boss also visited the Nigeria Export Promotion Council, Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority, National Automotive Council
and others.

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Official: Mama Taraba Emerges Nigeria's First Female Governor

Reports credited to Vanguard have it that Aisha Alhassan has been declared winner of the April 11 governorship election in Taraba state, thus making her Nigeria’s first female governor.

This was after a Taraba state governorship election petition tribunal sitting in Abuja nullified the election of Governor Darius Ishaku of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Aisha Jummai Alhassan has emerged as Nigeria’s first female governor
According to Vanguard, the tribunal headed by Justice Musa Danladi Abubakar declared Alhassan, popularly referred to as Mama Taraba as the bonafide winner of the election.

The candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is also among the ministerial nominees who were screened and confirmed by the
Nigerian senate.

Reliable sources in Taraba have also confirmed the report to Naij.com. This means President Muhammadu Buhari will have to shop for a replacement for the minister-designate in the coming days.

This further quells reports which made rounds that Alhassan’s nomination by the president may have been a way of compensating her from losing out at the polls earlier this year.

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EFCC To Prosecute Ex Gov Gabriel Suswam For Alleged N3.1 Billion Money Laundering

Barring any last minute change of plan, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission will formally arraign a former governor of Benue State, Gabriel Suswam before an Abuja Court tomorrow, November 4.

The anti-graft agency had on Monday October 2, filed a nine-count charge bordering on money laundering to the tune of N3.1billion at a Federal High Court, Abuja.

Mr. Suswam and his former Finance Commissioner, Omodachi Okolobia, are alleged to have diverted proceeds of the sale of shares owned by the Benue State government and Benue Investment and Property Company Limited.

The offence, the EFCC says, is punishable under section 15(3) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011, as amended in 2012.

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FG Set To Pay Civil Servants' October Salaries After Initial Delay

The federal government of Nigeria has stated that it will commence the payment of civil servants’ October salaries soon.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the office of the Accountant General of the Federation (oAGF) revealed that the salaries are
already being processed.

Mrs Kenechukwu, the head of the oAGF’s press and public relations, informed NAN that the technical issues associated to the payment of the civil servants’ salaries for October are now
been sorted out.

She said: “I have spoken to the Director of Funds and the Director, IPPIS and I can authoritatively tell you that all technical issues have been sorted out and there is money to effect the payment.

“So everything is on course and I can assure you that salaries are already being processed and people will start getting alert from today.”

The Presidency had on Monday, issued a statement, signed by the Garba Shehu, the senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity, explaining that there were technical issues causing the delay of the payment.

This is already been sorted out as revealed by the accountant general, and the civil servants will have to start smiling to the bank in the coming weeks.

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REVEALED: NIGERIA DOES NOT HAVE A MINISTRY FOR ALL MINISTERS-PMBB

After receiving the list of screened minister from the senate president , Dr Bukola Saraki on Tuesday, November 3, 2015, President Muhammadu Buhari reiterated his earlier statement that some ministers will be without portfolios.

According to Vanguard, the president made this disclosure after receiving the list earlier today at the presidential villa in Abuja.

President Muhammadu Buhari exchanged a warm handshake with senate president, Bukola Saraki after receiving the list of screened ministers from the latter on Tuesday, November
3, 2015.

The president had spoken about the possibility of some ministers who had been screened, to be without portfolios because Nigeria cannot afford to pay all of them.

In a rather contradictory statement, the senior special adviser to the president on media, Garba Shehu, stated in a recent interview, that the ministers would not all have full control.

President Buhari has however, insisted that there would be no jobs for some screened ministerial nominees, because although the constitution
stipulates 36 ministers, the available ministries were not up to that number.

He said: “I thank you the President of the Senate for the work of the Senate leadership in our strive to follow the constitutional provision that states that the President should submit the
names of those he wants to form the cabinet.

“If I can remember, there must be a member from each of the 36 states. That was why I limited the number of my nominees to that number, 36.

“The Senate worked extremely hard and they have passed all the nominees.

I think there is some enthusiasm in some parts of the Presidency today that portfolios are to be given to the 36.

“The constitution certainly said there must be one member of the cabinet from all the states but the constitution did not say I must have 36
ministries.

“I will explain the details. Because of the economic imperative, to have a lot of ministers, substantive ministers, let me put it that way, whatever somebody speculated in some of today’s new papers, I think that the economy as I have seen it now since my sitting here for the last four months, that we are so much battered.

Although some people are saying I am giving bad publicity and scaring away investors.

“Any investor who is interested in investing in Nigeria will seem to know more about the economy more than ourselves. So when I come and tell the truth about the position of the economy of the country, I am going out looking for investors.

“But I am confirming to them that we are truthful, that we need them to come and help us help ourselves by getting in industries, manufacturing and services.

They know our needs.

The economy of human resources, I believe will make them eventually come and help us.

“Mr. Senate President, I thank you very much for leading the Senate to do this hard work technically within record time.

I assure you that we will follow the constitution and all the 36 will be sitting in the cabinet as the constitution
stipulates.”

Meanwhile, the presidency has denied reports that the list of screened ministers and their portfolios, which has been making rounds in the social media, were from the presidency.

Presidential aide, Femi Adesina, said that the list has not been formally assigned, adding that the president would allocate the portfolios when he
is ready to swear-in the ministers.

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Manchester United 1-0 CSKA Moscow: Rooney ends Red Devils' goal drought.

The England striker headed home when it appeared Louis van Gaal was facing another frustrating night at Old Trafford, with the hosts kept at bay until the 79th minute Wayne Rooney's late header ended Manchester United's goal drought and earned the Red Devils a narrow 1-0 victory over CSKA Moscow.

The England captain scored his 237th goal for United, moving level with Denis Law in the club-record books, when he nodded home Jesse Lingard's cross in the 79th minute.

Rooney's strike, which sealed a first home win for the Red Devils over Russian opposition, moves Louis van Gaal's side top of Group B on seven points.

It also spares Van Gaal from becoming the first United manager since 1992 to endure a run of four games without a goal. Four hundred and four minutes had passed since they last hit the net when Rooney struck.

United started brightly in their bid to end that barren spell stretching back to Anthony Martial's effort in the 1-1 draw in Moscow two weeks ago.

The French forward returned to a centre-forward position having been deployed from the left in recent weeks and partnered Rooney up front.

Rooney steered an early attempt wide with his left foot before Martial failed to get enough on a beautiful long pass from Daley Blind to divert the ball beyond Igor Akinfeev.

Lingard, who was picked ahead of Ander Herrera and started on the left wing, lifted a shot over the bar on the half-hour mark as United struggled to change their fortunes in front of goal.

Their best chance of the opening 45 minutes fell to Marcos Rojo, who volleyed Ashley Young's cross from the right wide of the target after CSKA had failed to spot him creeping into space at the far post.

Rojo then failed to hit the target when he should have scored with a header in the opening minutes of the second half as the hosts' frustration grew.

Van Gaal turned to Marouane Fellaini shortly after the hour mark and his decision to withdraw Martial, rather than Rooney, for the Belgian was greeted with boos from a disgruntled home crowd.

Rooney and Young had hopeful penalty claims waved away before the former stumbled when it looked as if he would convert Juan Mata's pass across goal, drawing yet more derision from the stands.

The gloom in the ground might have broken out into mutiny had David de Gea and Chris Smalling not desperately denied CSKA substitute Seydou Doumbia, with the defender brilliantly blocking a goal-bound second attempt.

That set the stage for Rooney to answer his critics and transform United and Van Gaal's night. Michael Carrick clipped a superb pass behind the defence which Lingard volleyed across goal for the 30-year-old to head home.

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