SENATOR TINUBU FACES SENATE PANEL OVER COMMENTS

Vice Chairman of the Committee on Employment, Labour and Productivity, Senator Oluremi Tinubu is to face the senate committee on ethics and privileges to explain statements credited to her about the activities of the senate.

On Thursday June 26, Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN), faulted a comment made by Senator Tinubu, over her criticisms of the upper chamber and its leadership in the media.

Ndoma-Egba drew the attention of his colleagues to some newspaper publications on the interview granted by Tinubu where she reportedly condemned “the rot” in the Senate.

The senator, who represents Lagos Central Senatorial District, had alleged that the actions of the Senate leadership were always sympathetic to the People’s Democratic Party-led executive arm of government.

Ndoma-Egba said, “I would have brought this matter on the first day of our resumption but for respect for the memory of our departed colleague, Senator Dahiru Awaisu Kuta.

“Today, therefore, is my earliest opportunity to raise it.

Tinubu, at a media parley, to mark her third anniversary in the Senate said activities in the upper legislative chamber were depressing because its leadership had failed to address a lot of pressing national issues for partisan reasons.

She accused the Senate leadership of pandering to the wishes of the executive arm of government which is led by the PDP.

“Mr. President, Distinguished Colleagues, as I said before, I’m a Senator first and foremost and by the grace of my colleagues, a member of the leadership of the Senate and to the best of my knowledge, Senator Tinubu has never raised any concern with me or with the leadership on the activities of the Senate.

“I think it is most unkind, it is most uncharitable for a distinguished Senator who has the opportunity of raising concerns with her colleagues, not doing so and going straight to the media to play to the gallery.

“So, I object very, very seriously to the comments made by Senator Tinubu and I want to submit that my privilege, as a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has been breached by the said Senator.”

New Telegraph Managing Editor Suleiman Bisalla Dies In Abuja Bomb Blast

The Managing Editor (Northern Operations) of the New Telegraph Malam Suleiman Bisalla died in the blast that hit a shopping mall in Abuja yesterday.

Malam Suleiman joined the New Telegraph from Daily Trust Newspaper where he rose to the position of Deputy Editor.

The management of New Telegraph newspapers announced Suleiman’s death in a statement in Abuja yesterday.

The statement reads in part: “Malam Suleiman Bisalla, aged 46, died in the bomb blast that occurred at the Emab Plaza, Wuse 2, Abuja on Wednesday June 25, 2014.

“Until December 2013 when he joined New Telegraph, Bisalla was a Deputy Editor and Political Editor  with the Daily Trust Newspapers, Abuja.”

A statement issued by his elder brother, Mohammed Bisalla, said he will be laid to rest today June 26, according to Islamic rites.

Managing Director of New Telegraph, Mr Gabriel Akinadewo, described Bisalla as a thorough bred and hard working journalist who will be greatly missed by the company.

http://dailytrust.com.ng/top-stories/27753-new-telegraph-managing-editor-bisalla-dies-in-abuja-blast

HERE'S A LOOK AT SEVEN TERRIBLE COUNTRIES FOR CHRISTIANS - CNN

North Korea

For the 12th year in a row, North Korea tops the list of places where Christian persecution is most extreme, according to Open Doors, a group that ranks countries in order of persecution.

The organization estimates as many as 70,000 Christians are imprisoned in labor camps.

"The God-like worship of the leader, Kim Jong-Un, and his predecessors leaves no room for any other religion, and Christians face unimaginable pressure in every sphere of life," the group says on its website.

"Forced to meet only in secret, they dare not share their faith even with their families, for fear of imprisonment in a labor camp. Anyone discovered engaging in secret religious activity may be subject to arrest, disappearance, torture, even public execution."

Among those imprisoned is Kenneth Bae, a Korean-American.

Pyongyang sentenced him last year to 15 years of hard labor, accusing him of planning to bring down the government through religious activities.

He is widely reported to have been conducting Christian missionary work in North Korea.

Kenneth Bae worried about his health in North Korean camp

Sudan

Since 1999, the U.S. State Department has tracked the world's worst abusers of religious rights. Sudan has been on the list since its inception.

The country has arrested and deported Western Christians suspected of spreading their faith, according to a State Department report.

Recently, Sudan also arrested and sentenced a woman to die for refusing to renounce her Christian faith. The 27-year old woman was released after weeks of international controversy over her conviction.

She was later detained with her husband and two children, accused of traveling with falsified documents and giving false information.

Eritrea

Just four religious groups are officially allowed to openly practice their faith in this African nation; the rest are subject to detention or worse.

So if you're not an Eritrean Orthodox Christian, a Sunni Muslim, a Roman Catholic or an Evangelical Lutheran, life could be tough for you here. Harsh detentions for religious dissenters are the norm, according to the State Department report.

Members of various religious groups, including Jehovah's Witnesses, face retaliation for refusing to participate in military portions of mandatory national service, the report reads. The government is said to penalize Jehovah's Witnesses by denying them government services and entitlements.

As of November, 52 Jehovah's Witnesses were imprisoned in Eritrea, according to the Jehovah's Witnesses website. It says none has been formally charged or tried.

Saudi Arabia

The oil-rich monarchy doesn't even pretend to respect religious rights for any faith other than Islam.

Sunni Islam is the official religion, and the country's constitution is based on the Quran and the teachings of the Prophet Mohammed.

The public practice of any other religion is prohibited, according to the State Department.

Open Doors says most Christians in Saudi Arabia are expatriates from Asia or Africa. Last year, Christian migrant fellowships were raided, and worshipers were detained and deported, the group says.

Nigeria

Nigeria is split between a majority Muslim north and a mostly Christian south.

Boko Haram, an Islamic extremist group, vowed in 2009 to rid the nation's north of all non-Muslim influence, including Christians, according to The Voice of the Martyrs, another group that tracks the persecution of Christians.

More than 3,000 people have been killed since then, the organization reports.

Boko Haram translates as "Western education is a sin" in the Hausa language. The militant group says its aim is to impose a stricter enforcement of Sharia law across Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation. Boko Haram's attacks have intensified in recent years and have included the kidnapping of more than 200 schoolgirls.

Somalia

Pressure is increasing on Christians in this country, according to Open Doors.

"Islamic leaders and government officials publicly reinforce that there is no room for Christians, and there is a strong drive to purge Christianity from Somalia. The militant Islamist group, al-Shabaab, targets Christians and local communities," the group says on its site.

The terror group is notorious for prohibiting recreational activities and has banned films, dancing and watching soccer in the past. It had also barred foreign aid organizations from southern Somalia, describing them as Western spies and Christian crusaders.

Iraq

Religious minorities, such as Christians and Yazidis, make up less than 5% of Iraq's population.

Since 2003, attacks against these minorities by insurgents and religious extremists have driven more than half of the minorities out of the country, according to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.

According to Open Doors, attacks and threats against Christians rose last year as Islamic terrorist groups gained more influence.

Militants from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, are in the midst of an offensive in Iraq.

In the northern city of Mosul, the site of one of the first major ISIS victories, witnesses told CNN the group used vehicle-mounted loudspeakers to announce that it had decided to form Islamic Sharia courts in the city.

4 KILLED AS CAR BOMB GOES OFF NEAR LAGOS TANK FARM

A car laden with bombs yesterday exploded at the ever busy Folawiyo junction on Creek Road, Apapa, killing four persons, while several others were injured.

Eyewitnesses told Vanguard that the car, a Mercedes-Benz 190, exploded around 8:30pm, after it was parked beside a fuel tanker heading into Folawiyo tank farm.

Wreckage of the car

The explosion was said to have shocked residents of Apapa and its environs, which was also said to have affected two banks operating in the area, while many other buildings were also destroyed .

Many residents were scared that the explosion could have been the handiwork of the dreaded Boko Haram sect, who may have targeted the area being a depot of petroleum products.

When Vanguard visited the scene, the wreckage of the Mercedes Benz, was seen at the scene, while the remains of an unidentified woman also littered the ground.

An eyewitness who identified himself as Musa Ali, told Vanguard that he narrowly escaped death when the explosion occurred.

His words: “I am a truck conductor and my truck was on the queue. I was walking towards the Folawiyo junction when I heard the explosion and I thought it was an earthquake. When I looked up I saw a large ball of fire at the spot where I was to buy food and a woman in front of me was badly injured. Fire fighters quickly raced to the scene and after some minutes the fire was put off. When I went close I saw a deep hole at the point where the explosion occurred.”

Another eye witness said: “A car wired with a bomb device rammed under a trailer parked outside the tank farm which exploded at about 8.30pm. We were all scared when we heard the explosion and saw smoke everywhere. There was pandemonium as everyone started running helter-skelter and it was in the midst of this confusion that a man wearing a hijab ran into the compound to detonate another bomb. Apparently, the first bomb was meant to be a distraction.”

However, spokesperson of the Lagos state police command, Ngozi Braide confirmed the incident but stated emphatically that it was not a bomb explosion.

She could however not give details of how the tanker exploded, saying the Divisional Police Officer in charge of Apapa would brief her later.

MYSTERIOUS SNAKES, BEES ATTACK BOKO HARAM IN SAMBISA FOREST

Some members of the Islamist sect, Boko Haram, arrested yesterday at Mairi ward behind University of Maiduguri by members of the Civilian JTF vigilante group, have confessed that most of them are fleeing the Sambisa Forest to areas across Borno State owing to what they believe is spiritual attacks from mysterious snakes and bees, which had killed many of their leaders.

 According to Kolo Mustapha, one of the arrested insurgents, “most of us are fleeing because there are too many snakes and bees now in the forest. Once they bite, they disappear and the victims do not last for 24 hours.

“We were told that the aggrieved people who had suffered from our deadly mission, including the ghosts of some of those we killed, are the ones turning into the snake and bees.”

‘Our leaders fled, too’

He said some of their leaders have escaped to Cameroon because they are known to the Nigerian authorities and could be easily identified. According to him, those of them who lived all their lives in Maiduguri have nowhere to run to. So they returned and tried to sneak into town.

He said they came in last night and were trying to hide in some uncompleted buildings, when some members of the Civilian JTF saw them.

He said: “We are pleading with them to spare our lives. We were forced into the sect. But we know that it is not the right way. I personally have never killed anyone, but I have my friend here who had killed many people.”

Umar Abor, the other arrested sect member said Kolo Mustapha was lying as they had participated in all heinous acts of the sect.

He said: “We have fought together since 2010. We have fought in Marte, Bama, Buni Yadima and Gwoza. We were not in Chibok. We have not seen the girls, but we heard about the issue.

“Our leaders have been talking about it and we have been following all news from the radio. We decided to flee when almost all our comrades are leaving the Sambisa because of constant attacks by snakes and bees, which we were told was as a result of Chibok abducted schoolgirls.

“They (our leaders) told us that it was our enemies and aggrieved people that are hunting us through diabolical means. We were in the forest in 2010 and 2011. We left and came back last year but we have never experienced such attacks.

“That is why they believe the Chibok people are using juju to pursue us because of their children said to have been taken by our leaders.”

‘We‘ll reveal our hiding place’

According to him, they have realised their mistakes and repented, promising that if they are spared they would help the community in fishing out some of their comrades and will lead security agents where their comrades had fled.

One of the leaders of the Civilian JTF said many of the sect members had been fleeing the Sambisa Forest in the past two weeks and that most of them are being arrested and taken to the authorities, except when they resist arrest, in which case they are left with no option but to kill them.

He said: “These ones have not attempted to run or do anything bad. They promise to take us to where they hide their weapons. We are taking them to the chairman of our sector command before they are handed to security operatives.”