Drone strike destroys insurgents, equipment near Sambisa.

An Air Force drone on Tuesday struck a gathering of Boko Haram insurgents in Sambisa forest killing many of them and destroying their equipment.

The Director of Public Relations and Information of the Nigerian Air Force, Group Captain Ayodele Famuyiwa, confirmed the strike in a statement.

“The Nigerian Air Force Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UAV) has destroyed a logistics base used by members of the Boko Haram Terrorists (BHT) group.

“The UAV was on intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) mission when it came across the gathering of BHTs at Garin Moloma, about one kilometre north of the Sambisa Forest.

“At the time of the UAV attack, the location, though under surveillance for quite a while, had a large gathering of BHTs and vehicles.

“The multiple explosions and huge fire ball from the location strongly suggests that it may be either an ammunition/fuel storage or weapons/technical workshop.

“This strike is thus a major setback for the Boko Haram sect, and a major plus for the fight against insurgency by own troops," he said.

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Rerun elections to hold February 13 - March 19 - INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC has announced dates for rerun elections into state and federal constituencies and senatorial zones across the country.

of about 80 elections in 16 states of the federation by the Court of Appeal.All the affected elections, according to the commission, are to hold between February 13 and March 19, 2016.

All the affected elections, according to the commission, are to hold between February 13 and March 19, 2016

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All past leaders are guilty of corruption - Saraki

All the public office holders in the country since the return of democracy in 1999 are guilty of the pervasive corruption that has brought Nigeria to the present political and economic mess, says Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki. 

He said this in Abuja in response to a question on allegation of corruption leveled against the National Assembly by former President, Olusegun Obasanjo.

He also said that it was wrong to hold any one person or institution responsible for the mess of the past.

“We have all been here since 1999 up to the recent past when things were not done right, we are all part of it. I was there, you were there, every other political office holder in different capacities was there as well.

“My own view from the 8th National Assembly is that the time for collective participation for the good of all Nigerians is here with us in line with the change mantra of the present administration. We are all on the same page for things to be done differently.

“I think what we need now from all stakeholders, is more of cooperation, encouragement and participation  as oppose to trying to hold one person responsible for the mistakes of the past that we are all part of .It is clearly not the right thing needed now.”

He called on all stakeholders to collectively participate in the rebuilding of the country for the good of all Nigerians.

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ONSA, Police in counter-terrorism exercise in Abuja

The Office of the National Security Adviser, ONSA, on Tuesday carried out a joint simulation exercise on counter terrorism with Nigeria Police Force in Abuja.

The exercise was designed to test the security forces' response to new strategies employed by insurgents to attack soft targets.

The Deputy Director, Presidential Communication, Command and Control Centre, ONSA, Mr. Shehu Saidu told a press briefing at the flag off of the exercise in Abuja that it is a simulation of a terrorist attack on soft targets using pyrotechnic Improvised Explosive Devices and blank ammunition to measure the response of all agencies involved in crisis management and counter-terrorism.

“You will recall that this is the new trend of terrorism worldwide. You saw it in France, Ouagadougou, Bamako and other places. This exercise is organized by the Office of the National Security Adviser to practice the synergy of effort between the security agencies and the cooperation therein expected of them during such crisis,” he said.

In a statement to Abuja residents, ONSA urged members of the public not to panic during the exercise.

The text message reads;
"Office of the NSA & Nigeria Police Force wish to notify Abuja residents of a training exercise on counter-terrorism crisis response at the International Conference Center at 9am on Tue 2 Feb 2016. Please exercise caution in the ICC area and do not panic."

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State House chief warns against leakage of official documents

The Chief of Staff to the president, Abba Kyari has warned staff of the Presidential Villa, Abuja against leaking official documents and sitting on files.

Kyari gave the warning during a gathering to mark the send forth, retirement and redeployment of some State House workers.

He warned that anybody who runs foul of the law would be sanctioned.

“But just one thing we cannot tolerate is letters and information going out of this office. I have seen one with my signature shown to me.

“So I do not know who that is; I do not know why anyone should do that. But please make sure that that does not happen.

“Anything that is written, it will come out anyway, it is not a secret. But the bad thing is for it to come out before it is made public by the relevant authorities.

“So please don’t fall into this trap of somebody asking you to bring a letter, because if by accident you are found or the letter traced to you clearly it would not be something that we would tolerate,” he said.
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Emir dethrones Kano governor's brother as village head

The Emir of Kano, Alhaji Mohammed Sanusi ll on Monday announced the dethronement of Alhaji Sani Umar Ganduje as village head of Ganduje, in Dawakin Tofa Local Government Area over allegations of financial misappropriation.

The dethroned village head is the younger brother of Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.

The sacking followed investigation into allegations of ripoff by some intending pilgrims from the Ganduje against the village head.

Emir Sanusi announced the dethronement during a council meeting in Kano.

“I wish to announced the dismissal of the village head of Ganduje in line with the outcome of investigation on breach of public trust and the decision became necessary in the light of his status as a traditional ruler who we expect to be a role model," he said.

The dismissed village head had earlier been suspended from office by the Kano Emirate Council to pave way for his investigation.

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Dasuki's trial stalled by DSS, to continue February 26

Justice Peter Affen of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja could not proceed with the trial of former National Security Adviser, NSA, Col Sambo Dasuki on Tuesday, owing to the failure of the Department of State Services, DSS to produce him in court in time.

The court also cited the need for Dasuki's co-accused persons to be allowed sufficient time to respond to his application to stop the trial.

The DSS only produced the accused just as the judge was pronouncing the adjournment of the matter to Feb 26.

Dasuki's co-accused persons in the 22 counts of N13bn fraud charges are; a former Director of Finance and Administration in the Office of the NSA, Shuaibu Salisu; a former Minister of State for Finance, Bashir Yuguda; a former Governor of Sokoto State, Attahiru Bafarawa and his son, Sagir Attahiru; and  Dalhatu Investment.

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