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Zulum Opens 6 New Schools in Borno

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Zulum Opens 6 New Schools in Borno

By: Michael Mike

Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum on Tuesday inaugurated six new secondary schools constructed by his administration.

The governor also unveiled a “build back better strategy” aimed at increasing enrollment of new students.

The new schools were equipped with modern teaching facilities and sporting complexes.

They are Government Day Secondary School, Maiduguri; Government Day Secondary School, 777 Housing Estate;
Government Day Secondary School, 1000 Housing Estate; Government Junior Day Secondary School, Wulari; Government Day Secondary School, Bulanulin Diyabe and Government Day Secondary School, Gonifamgari.

Borno State Government as part of its “build back better strategy,” has also launched the distribution of school items for 100,000 students who will be enrolled in public schools across the state for the 2024/2025 academic session.

The Governor has revealed that all the projects executed by his administration are owned and funded by the Borno State Government.

He said at the inauguration of the new project on Tuesday that: “Before I go on, I want to clarify certain things that are not well understood by many in Borno State; all those projects you are seeing, some with the inscription of World Bank project, the African Development Bank project, and so on, are not their projects.

“The projects are funded by the Borno State Government. When I came in, I asked the Adolescent Girl-Child Education, AGILE, why do you completely take ownership of the projects, writing (AGILE) in all the spaces. I don’t have any problem with that, But I think our people need to understand that all these projects belong to the Government of Borno State.

“We borrowed the money, and we are going to pay it back; even federal government-funded projects are those that the federal government borrowed from the World Bank. But repayment is made from the federation account, of which Borno state is part.

“This AGILE project, for example, is a 60 million dollar project, am I right? The Borno state government borrowed it, which will be paid back within 25 years with a moratorium of five years.

“The World Bank provides some guidance, especially in procurement and safeguarding, both environmental and social safeguards. And most especially, monitoring and evaluation, among others. This is to ensure that projects are implemented according to the component designed and agreed by the sub-national governments and duly signed under a subsidiary loan agreement by the government of Borno State.

“As a borrower and horizontal coordinator, the federal government provides oversight for implementing the project at the national level. I think some people do not understand when they see projects with the World Bank inscription on them. But the projects completely belong to the government of Borno State.

“When we took over the mantle of leadership as Government of Borno state, a continuation of the previous administration. We decided to provide access to ensure children’s enrollment in schools. Boko Haram insurgency has created a severe gap in that direction. So, AGILE was meant to breach the education gap, especially in girl-child education.

“I believe after I complete my four-year tenure, the next Governor who is coming, if he wants to work, I think he will divert most of his attention to service delivery because I will almost complete the construction of all schools in Borno State.”

Zulum Opens 6 New Schools in Borno

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DSS-led joint operation crushes ESN strongholds, kills top kingpins in Imo

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DSS-led joint operation crushes ESN strongholds, kills top kingpins in Imo

By: Zagazola Makama

A wave of coordinated security offensives in Imo State has barbecued the Eastern Security Network (ESN), the militant wing of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), with the killing of key kingpins and the dislodgement of notorious terrorist camps in forested parts of Njaba and Isu Local Government Areas.

Zagazola Makama understand that The offensive, which began on June 29, was spearheaded by the Department of State Services (DSS) in close collaboration with the Nigeria Police Force, special forces, and local tactical units.

It was launched after the arrest and detailed confessions of two ESN commanders Uchenna Opara, popularly known as Ntanta Miri, and Ozioma Ihedoro, a.k.a OZ, both natives of Umuaka community in Njaba LGA.

Acting on actionable intelligence, the joint team raided and obliterated several terrorist enclaves, including Umuele Umuaka, Ezioha, and Ugbele Umuaka, known safe havens of the separatist group.

A fierce gun battle ensued as operatives stormed the camps. Three ESN fighters were neutralised during the confrontation, while others reportedly escaped with bullet wounds. Their bodies were later recovered along the Ugbele Umuaka axis.

What followed was a methodical clearance operation targeting the B44 camp cluster, long considered one of ESN’s strategic base networks. The camps, codenamed B44 Tangle 2, 4, 5, 7, and 9, were all successfully dislodged by the joint force.

A caterpillar operator working with the team was tragically killed in the line of duty when the group came under sudden fire while approaching the B44 main camp. He was rushed to the Federal University Teaching Hospital (FUTH), Owerri, but later confirmed dead by a medical officer on duty.

Items recovered from the operation included:
One AK-47 rifle, 15 rounds of live ammunition, pump-action shotgun, two locally made IEDs, one human skull and a Biafran flag

In addition, two suspected ESN members were arrested during the combing of nearby bush paths. The duo Emeka Ogene Sabinus of Ezi Isu in Isu LGA and Nnabuike Emmanuel of Ohofia Oduma in Aninri LGA, Enugu State were said to bear tribal incisions associated with the proscribed militia.

The collapse of the B44 cluster was significant in the counterinsurgency drive in the South-East, where pockets of armed resistance have posed growing threats to residents, security personnel, and national assets.

“The terrain is difficult, but our operatives are relentless,” a senior official close to the operation said. “We are targeting leadership figures, supply chains, and safe havens.”

Meanwhile, efforts are ongoing to apprehend fleeing fighters, with mop-up operations continuing in adjoining forest belts across Orlu, Njaba, and Isu corridors.

The Imo offensive adds to a growing list of successes by joint intelligence-led operations aimed at stabilising regions grappling with armed separatist violence, kidnappings, and the weaponisation of local grievances.

DSS-led joint operation crushes ESN strongholds, kills top kingpins in Imo

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FCT police arrest three wanted kidnappers linked to killings, mass abductions

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FCT police arrest three wanted kidnappers linked to killings, mass abductions

By: Zagazola Makama

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has arrested three most-wanted bandits and kidnappers operating across Abuja and neighbouring parts of Kaduna State.

According to a police sources, the arrests were carried out on June 29 between 5:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., by operatives of the Scorpion Squad led by ACP Victor O. Godfrey, following actionable and digital reconstructive intelligence.

The sources told Zagazola Makama that the suspects were identified as: Abdulkadir Abubakar, a native of Mpape, FCT, Mohammed Tasiu Sani, of Rigina, Kaduna State, Suleiman Jibrin, 27, of Sabon-Gayan, Kaduna State.

The three suspects, all Fulani by tribe, have been on the command’s most-wanted list for
their roles in multiple kidnapping and banditry operations, particularly in Jere, Kajuru, the FCT and its environs.

During interrogation, the suspects confessed to abducting victims and moving them to detention camps in Kachia and Rigina forests in Kaduna State. Some victims, they admitted, were held for months, while others were killed at will.

The sources revealed that one of the suspects, Abdulkadir Abubakar, provided disturbing details of internal executions within the gang, in which some members were killed by their own leaders over mistrust and betrayal.

An operational motorcycle, popularly referred to by locals as the “Boko Haram Motorcycle,” was recovered during the raid. The suspects are currently assisting operatives in ongoing efforts to recover arms and ammunition, and to track down other gang members still at large.

FCT police arrest three wanted kidnappers linked to killings, mass abductions

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Young farm labourer shot dead while fleeing Amotekun in Osun

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Young farm labourer shot dead while fleeing Amotekun in Osun

By: Zagazola Makama

A 20-year-old farm labourer identified as Solomon (surname yet unknown) has been found dead with gunshot wounds after he was allegedly shot by a member of the Western Nigeria Security Network, also known as Amotekun, along the Ilesa/Iperindo Road in Osun State.

The incident, which occurred on June 29, followed the reported confrontation between a local security operative and a group of five farm labourers on their way to a farmland.

According to Temidayo Olowookere, the employer of the deceased, the labourers were accosted around 11:00 a.m. by an Amotekun operative, one Ajayi Ibukun, who accused them of extorting money from passersby. Two members of the group were apprehended, while the remaining three fled into the bush.

Olowookere said the detained workers were later released to him in the afternoon. However, later in the evening, when two of the three fleeing labourers returned, Solomon remained missing.

A search party was immediately organised. His body was discovered in the bush with gunshot wounds on his back, raising suspicions that he may have been shot during the initial confrontation.

His remains were evacuated to Wesley Guild Hospital, Ilesa, where he was confirmed dead and deposited at the morgue for autopsy.

Police say efforts are currently underway to trace and apprehend the security operative allegedly involved in the shooting, while the community continues to call for justice.

Young farm labourer shot dead while fleeing Amotekun in Osun

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