Police kill two bandits in Zamfara ambush

By: Zagazola Makama

The Zamfara State Police Command has confirmed the killing of two armed bandits during an exchange of fire with security operatives in Mada District, Gusau Local Government Area.

According to sources, the operation followed credible intelligence about an imminent bandit attack on villages within the Mada area.

The sources stated that at about 3:10 a.m. on Oct. 7, a joint team of police tactical operatives, community protection guards (CPG), and local hunters were deployed to Fegin Mahe village, where they laid an ambush along the suspected route of the bandits.

Three bandits were said to have approached the location and were immediately engaged in a gun battle by the security team.

Two of the bandits were killed during the encounter, while the third escaped with possible gunshot injuries.

The police said efforts were ongoing to track down and arrest the fleeing suspect.

Police kill two bandits in Zamfara ambush

Zulum Rewards Dedicated Igbo Health Worker with House, Automatic Employment for her Son

By: Our Reporter

Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum, has presented a fully-furnished two-bedroom house to an Igbo health worker, Mrs Marbel Ijeoma Duaka, in recognition of her dedication and service to the people of the state.

Mrs Duaka, who is from Anambra State, was among the 72 teachers and health workers who receive housing units at a ceremony inaugurated by Governor Zulum on Tuesday in the Mafa Local Government Area.

In a similar gesture in October 2022, the Governor rewarded another Igbo teacher, Mrs Obiageli Mazi from Abia State, with a housing unit at the teachers’ quarters in Maiduguri for her hard work and punctuality after 31 years of service in Borno State.

While presenting the keys, Governor Zulum also announced automatic employment for her son, Anthony, a Banking and Finance graduate, at the state-owned Kashim Ibrahim University.

Governor Zulum stated that Mrs Duaka has been working at the Primary Healthcare Centre in Mafa for more than two decades and never left the town, even during the peak of the Boko Haram insurgency.

“She has been working here for over 24 years and has never left Mafa for a single month. During the Boko Haram crisis, most people fled the town, but she stayed throughout the conflict despite being a non-indigene. She has treated most of my family members, including my mother,” the Governor said.

He further directed that the allocation of the house be changed from an institutional to a personal allocation. “The allocation letter should be issued in your name. Do not leave Mafa, even after you retire,” he remarked.

Addressing her son, he added: “Your son, Anthony, will be given automatic employment at the Kashim Ibrahim University, Maiduguri. His employment starts with immediate effect.”

Responding on behalf of her family, Mrs Marbel Ijeoma Duaka thanked Governor Zulum for appreciating her little contribution to the people of Mafa.

“Today is the happiest day for me because His Excellency has honoured me and appreciated what I have been doing in Mafa. He has been so good to me,” Mrs Duaka said.

“He provided me with a scholarship to study BSc in Health Education, today he has given my son a job and given me a house. I am truly grateful.”

Zulum Rewards Dedicated Igbo Health Worker with House, Automatic Employment for her Son

CAN dismisses Christian genocide claims, says terrorist attacks have no religious pattern

By: Zagazola Makama

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has dismissed recent claims by some foreign commentators alleging an ongoing “Christian genocide” in Nigeria, describing the assertions as misleading and not supported by facts on the ground.

The association’s reaction follows remarks by U.S. comedian and talk show host Bill Maher, who alleged that Christians were being systematically exterminated in Nigeria by Islamist extremists.

Maher claimed that over 100,000 Christians had been killed since 2009 and that more than 18,000 churches had been burnt in what he described as “a genocide attempt greater than what is going on in Gaza.”

Similarly, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz accused Nigerian officials of “ignoring and even facilitating” the mass killing of Christians by jihadist groups. Cruz said he had introduced a bill, the Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act, to the U.S. Senate to sanction Nigerian officials allegedly complicit in such acts.

Also, Riley Moore, a U.S. Congressman from West Virginia, reportedly urged the U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, to designate Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” and suspend arms sales to the country over alleged persecution of Christians.

Reacting to the allegations, the Director of National Issues and Social Welfare of CAN, Abimbola Ayuba, said the pattern of killings across Nigeria does not suggest a religious motive, as both Christians and Muslims have been victims of terrorism and banditry.

Ayuba said, “Empirical facts exist all over showing the spate of killings in Nigeria, but the pattern has not been religious. In some areas like Benue, it may appear as if Christians are being targeted, but the same insurgency has claimed several Muslims some even during early morning prayers.”

He described the situation as a national tragedy rather than a religious conflict, stressing that bullets from terrorists do not “look for a Christian or spare a Muslim.”

According to him, “Sometimes, our situation is being exploited by groups with foreign interests. They benefit from spreading misinformation abroad. Those foreign interests may have a right to express concern, but we must also report things as they truly are.”

Ayuba urged Nigerians to adopt an all-of-society approach to end insurgency rather than seeking external sympathy.

“Instead of running to America, why not use our own institutions like the Senate to seek redress? When they place Nigeria on a blacklist, all of us will suffer. But those who go abroad to look for sympathy know why they do that,” he said.

The Presidency had earlier dismissed similar claims of a religious genocide, reiterating that the ongoing insecurity in parts of the country is driven by terrorism, banditry, and criminality rather than faith-based conflict.

CAN dismisses Christian genocide claims, says terrorist attacks have no religious pattern