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Update: Najib ex-Malaysia PM charged with theft
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najib is the first former prime minister ever to be charged in court in the history of malaysia said tian chua vice president of parti keadilan rakyat a key political party in the current ruling coalition1 former malaysian prime minister najib razak was formally charged wednesday with corruption linked to a multi-billion dollar financial scandal that contributed to his shock election defeat less than two months ago1 each charge could see him jailed for up to 20 years1 the unprecedented court appearance came the day after the 64-year-old was arrested at his luxury home by officers probing how billions of dollars of state funds disappeared on his watch1 in court the former leader appeared tired and hung his head often during proceedings1 allegations of massive corruption were a major factor behind the electoral earthquake in may that toppled najibs long-ruling coalition and ushered in a reformist alliance headed by his 92-year-old former mentor mahathir mohamad1 wednesdays court hearing was the latest step in a quick-moving investigation into alleged wrongdoing by najib his family and many of his close political and business allies1 the first ex-premier in malaysia to appear before a judge najib pleaded not guilty to three counts of criminal breach of trust and a separate charge that he abused his position to pocket 42 million ringgit 10.4 million1 it signals a new era where no one in public office will be immune from punitive action if they abuse power he added1 najib is expected to be freed on bail later wednesday after the court decided on at one million ringgit bond1 the former premier was also ordered to surrender his two malaysian passports. attorney general tommy thomas who leads a 12-member prosecution team had requested bail of four million ringgit in cash but najibs lawyer muhammad shafee insisted his client was not a flight risk.1 the court set a tentative date for the trial beginning in february 20191 according to an investigation by the wall street journal 10.6 million originating from src international sdn bhd an energy company that was originally a subsidiary of 1mdb was transferred to najibs personal bank accounts a fraction of hundreds of millions of dollars from 1mdb that was allegedly funnelled to him1 najib and the fund deny any wrongdoing. afp1 -
Embattled Plateau relaxes curfew
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the plateau state government has relaxed the curfew it imposed on three local government areas in the state in the wake of the attacks that left at least 100 dead1 the secretary to the state government mr. rufus bature announced the decision in a statement on monday1 bature said that the relaxation of the curfew was due to the relative peace and calm that is gradually returning to jos south barkin ladi and riyom local government areas1 the executive governor of plateau state simon lalong has approved the relaxation of the earlier dusk-to-dawn curfew imposed on the areas from 1000 p.m. to 600 a.m. with effect from today monday july 2 2018 he said in a statement1 this comes nine days after suspected herdsmen raided villages in barkin local government killing scores burning over 50 houses and causing panic and tension in the state1 a day after the killings on june 24 the state government imposed a curfew on barkin ladi and two neighbouring lgas jos-north and riyom to forestall reprisals and the breakdown of law and order1 the attacks had attracted widespread criticism and led to the deployment of special forces to the state1 president muhammadu buhari vice president yemi osinbajo the nigerian governors forum as well as former president olusegun obasanjo all paid condolence visits to the state1 although the state government believes that relative peace and calm have returned to the affected areas it urged residents to show restraint1 citizens are advised to exercise restraint as they go about their legitimate activities without fear of any form of molestation and to remain calm and report any suspicious movement to the law enforcement agents the ssg said1 -
Governor, others face trial over graft
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the project in busia involved a solid waste management system1 governor sospeter ojaamong of busia county in kenya and nine of his officials are to face trial over corruption abuse of office and conspiracy to steal public funds1 noordin haji said evidence presented by the national anti-corruption agency was enough to prosecute ojaamong the governor of busia county and nine other officials accused of helping him to steal millions of kenyan shillings in public funds1 the prosecutor said in a statement he had instructed the ethics and anti-corruption commission eacc to arrest all of the suspects and have them brought before court1 ojaamong was not immediately reachable for comment1 as with some other scandals involving alleged corruption by government officials the case is based on evidence of suspicious procurement practices for a public works project that was never completed1 kenyas top prosecutor on tuesday ordered that the governor face charges in the countrys anti-graft campaign1 the prosecutor said in june that several recent investigations by the eacc had gaps and lacked strong evidence forcing him to return the cases to the agency for further work1 in tuesdays statement haji said the investigation into the governor had been resubmitted to his office in june1 it had gaps that in my opinion if not covered would not have sustained a credible prosecution haji wrote in a text message1 the government led by president uhuru kenyatta who was re-elected in 2017 has said it is undertaking a renewed push to tackle graft1 the charging of dozens of civil servants and business people over the past two months suggested an attempt to fight corruption through prosecution but the countrys track record on that front is poor1 kenyan media have reported on more than a dozen corruption scandals involving state agencies and officials since kenyatta took power but there have been no convictions of high profile figures according to a reuters review of the cases. reutersnan1 -
Court convicts Archbishop for sexual cover up
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wilson has since stepped aside from his duties but has so far refused to resign1 the senior catholic official in the world australian archbishop philip wilson was on tuesday sentenced to 12 months of detention for covering up the crimes of a paedophile priest in the 1970s1 newcastle local court magistrate robert stone sentenced wilson to 12 months of detention with a non-parole period of six months1 there is no remorse or contrition showed by the offender. i am of the opinion the sentence should not be suspended1 it does not support the terms of general deterrence stone told the packed court1 on that basis the only available remaining option is full-time imprisonment or home detention1 stone also ordered that wilson be assessed for home detention suitability which means he may be spared jail1 the matter has been adjourned until aug. 141 wilson the archbishop of adelaide south australia has been diagnosed with the early stages of alzheimers1 outside the court abuse survivor peter gogarty said the fact wilson has been convicted was significant but the sentencing being not necessarily custodial was disappointing1 my personal view is that is probably letting him off a little bit too lightly he told newsmen1 in may he was found guilty of failing to report to police and concealing the abuse of two altar boys by a paedophile priest in the 1970s when he was an assistant parish priest in east maitland in regional new south wales1 the 67-year-old priest is also convicted for concealing child sexual abuse1 his legal team had argued during the sentencing hearing that he would not be able to survive prison given his frail health condition including suffering from diabetes hypertension and depression and it may even threaten his survival1 they also argued being jailed will put him at risk of violence from fellow inmates and should instead be given a good behaviour bond1 but the prosecution argued there was no evidence to suggest wilson would be attacked in jail and ill health cannot be a licence to commit a crime.1 the magistrate-only trial found in may that wilson had known that paedophile priest james fletcher was sexually abusing altar boys but dismissed their credible allegations because of his desire to protect the church and its reputation.1 during the trial wilson claimed to have no memory of a 1976 conversation he had with peter creigh one of the alleged victims and another altar boy who can not be named due to legal reasons.1 fletcher was found guilty in december 2004 on nine counts of child sexual abuse. he died in jail of a stroke in 2006.1 when fletcher was charged with child sex offences and before his death wilson had obtained the level of belief needed to report what he knew to authorities the magistrate said in may.1 the adelaide archdiocese and the catholic church in australia did not responded immediately to request for comments on wilsons sentencing.1 the whole of the community is devastated in so many ways by the decades of abuse and its concealment. we are all the poorer for what has occurred magistrate stone said tuesday during the sentencing.1 a five-year-long royal commission inquiry into child sexual abuse found last year that tens of thousands of children were sexually abused between 1960 and 2015 in australian institutions including schools and churches.1 it also found that 7 per cent of all priests between 1960 and 2015 had allegedly abused children and 62 per cent of victims who reported abuse in a religious institution were from catholic-managed institutions. dpanan1 -
Chinese firm develops laser gun for police use
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he said it would need to be upgraded to a laser cannon with increased power to become lethal and confirmed his firm was working on such a weapon1 a chinese firm said it has developed a laser gun designed for police use that can set fire to protesters hair or banners from a range of almost one kilometre1 the weapon is designed to do things such as setting fire to illegal banners at a protest or setting fire to the hair or clothing of a protester he told afp1 it is not designed explicitly for killing like a gun that uses bullets and cannot cause the instant carbonisation of human skin and tissues he added1 the 15-mm calibre weapon weighs three kilogrammes 6.6 pounds has a range of 800 metres 2600 feet and can pass through glass and other transparent obstacles1 it can be mounted on cars boats and planes the firm said adding that it was seeking a partner that has a weapons production licence or a partner in the security or defence industry to start large-scale production1 it is mainly expected to be for chinese police use the manager told afp1 the general manager of the zkzm fibre laser company who asked to remain anonymous said the weapon would immediately produce a strong pain response in the target but stressed it was designed to be non-lethal1 but he noted there was an international agreement not to develop killer lasers and said any such weapons would be inhumane the pain would be unimaginable1 some experts were sceptical of the unveiling saying laser weaponry was still a matter of science fiction1 specialist website techcrunch noted that laser weaponry capable of real harm has eluded the eager boffins of the worlds militaries for several reasons1 the power required to set a person aflame instantly from half a mile away is truly huge the website stressed1 the idea of one that weighs a handful of pounds and fires hundreds of instantly skin-searing shots is just infeasible today1 development of such laser weapons is not limited to china with all the big defence players in the us working on prototypes for the pentagon1 last year lockheed martin announced a 60-kilowatt laser weapon that is invisible to the naked eye and will be deployed against mortars and small drones1 -
200,000 PVCs await collection in Enugu state-REC
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the traditional rulers gave the commendation in a two-page communiqu they issued after stakeholders forum in enugu and signed by the chairman of the traditional rulers council igwe lawrence agubuzu1 there are more than 200 000 permanent voter cards pvcs awaiting collection in enugu state according to the resident electoral commissioner rec in the state mr emeka ononamadu1 uncollected pvc cards in the state is still on the high side and we have above 200000 cards uncollected he said1 ononamadu however noted that the state had recorded huge progress in the ongoing continue voter registration cvr1 he attributed the success of the exercise to less voters apathy due to joint sensitisation embarked upon by the commission traditional institution in their various communities and other stakeholders1 meanwhile traditional rulers in the state have commended inec chairman prof. yakubu mahmood and ononamadu for the progress made so far in the ongoing cvr in the state1 ononamadu disclosed in his address of welcome during the stakeholders forum between state traditional rulers council and independent national electoral commission inec in enugu1 the forum which also involved the state inec officials noted that the hard work and ingenuity of mahmood and ononamadu had translated into to the success of crv in the state1 they also expressed confidence in the capability of the mahmood-led iinec to conduct free fair and credible election in forthcoming 2019 general elections in nigeria1 they also lauded gov. ifeanyi ugwuanyi for providing and promoting peace in the state under which inec had been able to make tremendous impact in the ongoing cvr1 the communiqu said that inec and rulers agreed that names of owners of pvcs not yet collected would be displayed in their various wards for their respective traditional rulers to note1 it also noted that the traditional rulers would further sensitise their subjects on the imperative of collecting their pvcs1 -
Miyetti Allah demands apology from Ortom
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read more at6 the secretary-general miyetti kautal hore mrsaleh alhassan said the arrest of suspects made over the killings at a benue catholic church has vindicated the association and its herdsmen1 alhassan made the demand on channels televisions breakfast show1 according to alhassan the recent arrest of the commander of the benue state livestock guards aliyu teshaku has vindicated the association1 today they have arrested aliyu teshaku who is alleged to be the head of the livestock guard in benue who is behind those killings. he is arrested now he said1 people that killed the two clergymen and 17 others in the church are being tried in makurdi and they are all tiv people. and they are all members of the livestock guard working for governor ortom1 he therefore1 apart from linking tiv people to the attack on the catholic church in benue state that left two priests and 17 other worshippers dead alhassan accused the state government of propaganda against the association1 i have always insisted that governor samuel ortom is on a voyage of propaganda against our association he said1 and today if you look at the arrest made in benue with respect to the perpetrators of the conflict there you look at their ethnicity and background and you look at who is employing them we have been vindicated1 alhassans comments come in the wake of attacks that have gripped the north-central state in which many people have been killed and many others displaced1 so we expect by now there should be an apology from the benue state government to our association because we have never promoted violence. we have always advocated for a peaceful resolution of the crisis1 -
INEC, stakeholders meet on 2019 election
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logistics is basically public service. some citizens may understand if we dont open polling units at 8.00a.m. others will see it as incompetence of the electoral commission1 the inec chairman prof. mahmood yakubu on thursday met with heads of security agencies logistics experts transport unions and other stakeholders to ensure seamless deployment of elections materials and personnel in 20191 the event was equally supported by the international foundation for electoral systems ifes1 it was aimed at enhancing timely delivery of materials and personnel to polling units during the 2019 general elections1 declaring the conference open yakubu said that nigerians would expect polling units to be opened at 8.00a.m. on election days feb. 16 2019 and march 2 20191 if we dont open the polling units at 8.00a.m. it means we have not started well but how do we open polling units at 8.00a.m1 it requires biggest and big time logistics operations1 we have been required to deliver personnel and electoral materials at 119 973 locations nationwide and they must all open simultaneously1 electoral logistics is key to the successful opening of polling units at the time we have promised nigerians we are going to do so1 if we open all the polling units or a substantial majority by 8.00a.m. we have achieved a considerable part of our responsibility in election management other things will fall in place he said1 according to him if there are hiccups people from different sections will complain1 yakubu said that some polling units were hard to reach and would require use of boats1 he noted that the 2019 elections remained 232 days saying that the exercise would be a huge undertaking with several obstacles some preventable and others unexpected1 the chairman said that the exercise would require careful planning adding that deployment and retrieval of personnel and materials for elections would call for huge logistics1 according to him any flop in logistics will be termed as an attempt to disenfranchise the citizens hence the need to plan adequately with logistics operators and security agencies1 the news agency of nigerian nan reports that inec organised the conference on logistics for the 2019 general elections in collaboration with the european centre for electoral support eces1 the work is sensitive so we are determined as the election management body to ensure that polling units open at 8.00a.m. as promised1 to be able to do so we need contributions support suggestions and inputs of those who have been handling these as a matter of their respective constitutional duties yakubu said1 he said that the conference was marking the last stage of planning for the elections before moving to the implementation1 the inec boss said the management of the electoral process is not left for the commission it is a nigerian project it is not an inec project1 we thought we should mobilise all our national assets from the security agencies officials of the commission private sector transport unions to put our heads together so that we can better deliver this service to the nation in 20191 in his keynote address mr david le notre project director eces said election is a time-bound event which requires precision and exactitude in the deployment of sensitive and non-sensitive materials1 for a vast geographical country like nigeria with pockets of difficult terrains the importance of putting in place efficient and effective logistics for deployment of personnel and election materials to service about 1558 constituencies cannot be over- emphasised1 le notre said that the conference sought to examine challenges related to the deployment of electoral personnel and materials countrywide1 mr seeray jay the representative of ifes said that the body was committed to advancing good governance and democratic rights by providing technical assistance to ensure electoral integrity1 jay said a national election is one of the countrys biggest logistics events. personnel and materials must get to the polling units at the right time quantity and in good shape for elections to take place as scheduled.1 to do this inec has to rely on capable and professional transport providers public or private ones that know think and act like inec1 he called on all stakeholders to support inec in ensuring that deployment and retrieval of materials and personnel would be timely during the elections1 nan reports that key players in the logistics industry such as the military police private logistics companies and bulk transporters among others were at the conference1 the inspector-general of police mr ibrahim idris attended the event while the army air force navy federal road safety and department of state security were represented. nan1 -
Conflict : 10,000 Children Killed In 2017 UN
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among the most significant violations registered in 2017 were killing and maiming recruitment and use and attacks on schools and hospitals all of which registered a rise in comparison to the previous year she told journalists at un headquarters1 no fewer than 10000 children were killed or maimed in conflict last year while more than 8000 youngsters were recruited or used as combatants the united nations reveals1 un chief antnio guterres has expressed outrage over the numbers according to a statement issued by his spokesperson1 boys and girls have once again been overly impacted by protracted and new violent crisis. despite some progress the level of violations remains unacceptable the statement said1 the secretary-general reiterates that the best way to address this horrific situation is to promote peaceful solutions to conflicts. he calls on all parties to exert maximum efforts in this regard1 the report covers 20 countries including hotspots such as syria yemen and afghanistan but also situations in countries such as india the philippines and nigeria1 virginia gamba the uns expert on children and armed conflict said 66 parties to conflict are listed this year three more than in the 2016 report with nine government forces and 57 armed groups named1 these violations contributed to the overall rise in the number of children globally affected by fighting in 2017 as documented in the annual report of the secretary-general on children and armed conflict caac1 overall the un verified more than 21000 grave violations of childrens rights between january and december 2017 compared with 15500 the previous year1 government forces committed at least 6000 of these crimes while the majority involved various non-state armed groups1 ms. gamba said crises in the central african republic car the democratic republic of the congo drc myanmar south sudan syria and yemen were the main reason for the serious increases reported1 she provided examples including what she described as the despicable trend of turning children in nigeria into human bombs where nearly half of the 881 verified child casualties resulted from suicide attacks1 also worrying is the number of children detained for their alleged association with armed groups. for example more than 1000 children in iraq were held due their suspected affiliation with the terrorist group isil also known as daesh1 ms. gamba also reported positive developments such as the formal release of more than 10000 child soldiers from armed groups and forces while four armed groups in myanmar have agreed to work with her office1 -
ASUP issues 14-day ultimatum to Nasarawa Govt.
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he however lamented the delay in the release of the white paper report of the committee for implementation1 the academic staff union of polytechnic asup nasarawa state polytechnic lafia chapter has given the state government 14 days notice of strike1 according to him the 14 days ultimatum followed the expiration of the 21 days ultimatum earlier given to the government in line with labour laws1 he said that the grievances of the union include lack of accreditation of all courses at the polytechnic implementation of four years promotion and annual increments1 he listed lack of payment of pension and gratuity to retired staff and lack of office accommodation to academic staff among others as other grievances of the union1 he said that all these issues were tabled before the investigative panel set up by the government for redress1 mr paul usaini asup chairman of the polytechnic stated this on thursday in an interview with newsmen in lafia1 the union believed that the reports will help in addressing issues of lack of accreditation outstanding promotion arrears and corruption in the system among others he added1 he said that the reports should be released urgently in order to save the institution from total collapse because things were currently in bad shape1 the union also condemned the appointment of unqualified persons outside the system into the management of the three institutions1 the union therefore advised the state government to follow due process in any subsequent appointments of management staff1 gov. umaru al-makura had on november 2 2017 set up three panels to investigate state owned tertiary institutions1 the panels submitted their reports to the government on jan. 191 -
Photos: Lai Mohammed inspects Second Niger Bridge
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i think one thing that this government has assured is that fundingwont be a problem because we have many sources of funding and i thinkthe latest is the presidential infrastructural development fund whichis actuallyaimed at ensuring that no project like this suffers for lack offunding the minister said1 the minister of information and culture alhaji lai mohammed has inspected the second niger bridge in continuation of hisongoing tour of federal government projects across the country1 i am very excited because the thing about this project is thatbecause of the alignment people travelling on the old bridge will saynothing is going on because they cannot see it but you have come hereand you can see the amount of work that is going on so im very veryexcited the minister told the journalists who accompanied him on thetour1 alhaji mohammed who inspected construction work at the asaba andonitsha ends of the bridge said when completed the bridge will easetraffic congestion on the road as well as change the socio-economiclandscape of the south-east and south-south geo-political zones in particular1 he commended the enthusiasm with which the contractor julius bergeris handling the project and gave the assurance that henceforthfunding will no longer be a challenge for the construction of suchprojects1 he expressed satisfaction at the pace of work on the bridge1 he said having achieved tremendous success with the sub-structuralwork the project will now witness rapid progress1 while briefing journalists on the level of work on the bridge thefederal controller of works for anambra state mr. innocent alumonasaid so far phases 1 2 and 3 which have to do with the foundationhave been completed and that the contractor is currently on phase 4 which will end in july this year.1 a lot of people are saying no work is going on on the second nigerbridge because they have not been opportune to visit the site. thefederal government actually is not sleeping. a lot of money has beenspent in the process of realising the second niger bridge and as wego further we will show you a lot that has been done to prove to someof us who are still doubting that nothing is happening at the secondniger bridge that a lot is ongoing he said1 mr. alumona said some 310 of the 615 piles designed for the bridgehave been sunk while massive sand-filling of the approach road hasbeen carried out to the height of five metres1 at least 400 nigerians are currently employed by the contractorhandling the project which is expected to be completed within thenext two years1 -
Monarch wants Aug. 20 declared traditional festival day
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a traditional ruler oba kamila isiba has urged the federal government to declare aug. 20 annually traditional festival day to give a sense of belonging to traditional worshippers1 isiba the olu of agege in lagos state told the news agency of nigeria nan on thursday in lagos that traditional worshippers deserved holiday in their honour since muslims and christians enjoyed same1 the monarch noted that osun had started observing the day but said that there was the need for nationwide recognition1 according to him the festival will showcase indigenous tradition and culture and preserve1 we will continue calling on the government to declare aug. 20 traditional day1 the idea behind the festival is for us to showcase our tradition and culture. if there is no traditional day how will our children know about our culture and preserve our heritage he asked1 isiba also expressed dissatisfaction at the alleged denial of some traditional rulers the opportunities to perform their statutory roles1 the royal father alleged that the denial was being made by some politicians1 if traditional rulers are allowed to play their roles well you wont see miscreants in our communities because we have a way of dealing with them but when a traditional ruler does such in nigeria of today they will say you have committed an offence1 that is why we are careful he told nan1