Re: ‘’Abducted officer not yet rescued; search effort ongoing – Nigerian Army’’

Setting The Record Straight

Our attention has been brought to an erroneous and misleading press release on published on Guardian Newspaper, December 31, 2022 and on other media platforms by the Nigerian Army spokesman, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu claiming inter-alia, that ‘’Lieutenant PP Johnson, a female army officer, was abducted on Monday, December 26, 2022, while visiting her grandmother in Aku-Okigwe in Imo State, shortly after completion of her Cadet training and subsequent commissioning as a Lieutenant into the Nigerian Army’’.
Apparently, it was on the strength of this false notion that a horde of military personnel and other security agents invaded Aku community in Okigwe LGA on Friday, December 30, 2022, tenably in search of the abducted officer. Reports indicate that rampaging security agents not only shot indiscriminately but plundered, burnt several houses in the hitherto serene Aku community, located in Okigwe LGA of Imo state.

Figure 1: Mr. Sunday Ejishim shot dead; properties destroyed by GSF who invaded Aku community, Okigwe LGA.

We clarify and explicitly state inter-alia that:

1. For the avoidance of doubt, we DO NOT condone nor hold a brief for non-state actors in whatever guise. We wholeheartedly condemn the pervasive, sporadic criminality within Okigwe environ, including the intermittent kidnappings attributed to so-called ‘herdsmen’, and more specifically the abduction and dehumanizing treatment meted out to Lieutenant PP Johnson.

2. Army officer, Lieutenant PP Johnson is NOT from Aku community neither is her mother, father, grandmother from Aku-Okigwe as incorrectly claimed in aforesaid press release. It follows that the claim of her purportedly visiting her grandmother at Aku-Okigwe is blatant FALSEHOOD as she has no paternal or maternal affiliation to Aku community.

3. Lieutenant PP Johnson was not abducted in Aku community. Without pointing fingers, the video of her abduction and dastardly treatment which was widely circulated online suggests she was abducted along the Ihube-Enugu expressway. According to Vanguard Newspaper report, January 1, 2023, Lt. Johnson was abducted at ‘’Mbaraukwa’’, her maternal home. There is no village, kindred or place known as Mbaraukwa in Aku-Okigwe. It therefore beggars belief why Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu tagged in his press release that she was kidnapped while visiting her grandmother at Aku-Okigwe?

4. Aku people are generally agrarian, peaceful, and law-abiding. Aku people are cognizant of their rich tradition and cultural heritage which amongst other things, forbids the mere thought of hurting a 'nwa nwa' (grandchild) let alone dehumanizing or killing a grandchild. It is a distasteful, an abomination. Children born and bred in Aku community are aware that hurting/killing a nwa nwa (grandchild) is an abomination in our clime.

5. The dust is yet to settle, and people are yet to return home, but we understand that a few people may have been killed during the latest military bombardment of Aku community. One of them is a young man named ‘’Sunday Ejishim’’ who was gruesomely shot dead by the rampaging government security forces (GSF). This is the umpteenth time that Government Security Forces (GSF) will be launching unrestrained, indiscriminate attack, and burning of houses on Aku community. Recall that a secondary school student, Miss Favour Okoronkwo was gunned down in her family house on November 13, 2022 while Mr. Ifeanyichukwu Orji, a father of seven children whose wife gave birth to twins not long ago, was shot dead on November 20, 2022, also in front of his house.

6. The ongoing indiscriminate military operation, extrajudicial killings, and barbaric human rights abuses on Aku community negates the Nigerian Armed Forces Rules of Engagement (RoE), Code of Conduct, the principle of minimum force and proportionality which amongst other things stipulates that, "fire must be aimed and controlled and that indiscriminate firing is not permitted". No doubt the security agencies can go about their operation, but their action must be intelligence-driven, they must use very minimal force, ensure there is no collateral damage, no indiscriminate burning of houses, nay, plundering.

Figure 2: Ifeanyichukwu Orji shot dead in Aku community, Okigwe LGA, by government security forces_20th November 2022

Our prayers:

1. We call upon the military hierarchy to cease further indiscriminate rampage, killing of innocent people in Aku-Okigwe community. We call upon the governor of Imo state to rein in the Imo state-backed security militia from sweeping attacks on innocent people and burning of houses.

2. We call for an independent judicial inquiry and investigation into the vicious attack on Aku community. The brutal action by security forces on Aku Community in Okigwe LGA must not be swept under the carpet. This must not be like the case of ‘’unknown soldier’’. It must be investigated, and action taken against the masterminds.

3. We ask for compensation as a result of the loss of lives and unimaginable financial losses incurred as a result of the military action on Aku-Okigwe community.

E-signed:

Deacon Mahakwe Ukaegbu
President General, Aku Community Development Union (ACDU)
January 02, 2023

Hon. Obinna Okoye
Secretary General, Aku Community Development Union (ACDU)
January 02, 2022

Don Ifeanyichukwu Okereke
Administrator, Umu Aku Forum
January 02, 2023

CC:

President Muhammadu Buhari
Governor Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodinma
Senator representing Okigwe North, Senator Frank Ibezim
Member Representing Okigwe North, Hon. Princess Miriam Onuoha
Member Representing Okigwe, Imo House of Assembly, Hon. Chidi Ogbunikpa
Chief of Army Staff
Chief of Civil Military Affairs
Nigerian Army Human Rights Desk. Email: na.hrd@army.mil.ng.
Access to justice
Advocates San Frontiers
African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights
Amnesty International
Brekete Family
CLEEN Foundation
Federation of International Female Lawyers
Femi Falana Chambers
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA)
Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law
International Federation for Human Rights
National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)
Nigerian Bar Association (NBA)
NOPRIN Foundation
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Socio Economic Rights Accountability Project (SERAP)
Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
United Nations Human Rights Council
West African Bar Association (WABA)

Security Risk Analysis: Kidnapping Hotbeds in South West Nigeria

Introduction:

The first tranche of this series titled ‘’Security Risk Analysis: Kidnapping Hotbeds in Nigeria (1)’’, summed up data on reported kidnapping incidents and hotspots across Nigeria. Granted there are one-off incidents, but research indicates that many kidnapping incidents reoccur within some geographical swathes, along major highways in Nigeria. The kidnapping almost always entails an ambush usually at bad portions of the road and usually take place early in the morning or evenings.

We can deduce inter-alia that: there is dearth of security in such areas. It is also safe to extrapolate that the masterminds, foot soldiers of kidnappings in those climes are not behind bars; they lurk around and it is a matter of time before they stage their next kidnap and extort ransom. In his May 28, 2019 piece published on BBC Africa, Nasidi Adamu Yahaya’s piece titled, ‘’How Nigeria and its president are being held to ransom’’, chronicles the ‘booming business of kidnapping for ransom and extortion (KRE) in Nigeria’. Former US ambassador to Nigeria, John Campbell argues in his piece titled, ‘’The Intelligence Response Team: Nigeria’s Solution To Expanding Wave of Kidnappings’’ that, ‘’Nigerians believe they are in the midst of a kidnapping wave and that the government is largely powerless to stop it. Fear of kidnapping appears to be a factor in middle-class emigration from Nigeria and the wealthy sending their families abroad’’.

Regrettably Nigerian citizens have been fingered in kidnapping incidents in neighbouring African countries. On June 4, 2019, two Canadian women, both volunteers with Youth Challenge International, a Toronto-based international development organization, were kidnapped by unidentified gunmen in the country's second largest city, Kumasi. Four Nigerians were reportedly arrested in the Canadian girls kidnap. Similarly, three Nigerians were declared wanted over the kidnapping of Mr. Nabil Makram Basbous, the Consular-General and Head of Mission of Estonia to Ghana in April 2019.

Southwest Nigeria is one of the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria comprising six states – Ekiti, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, and Lagos. A 2013 National Crime Victimization and Safety Survey conducted by CLEEN Foundation with support from the United States based Macarthur Foundation shows that the South West had the highest incidents of kidnapping with 5 per cent of the respondent from the region saying they have either been kidnapped or attempts have been made to kidnap them. The kidnapping situation in the southwest bottomed out thereafter but it appears to be relapsing. From Ekiti to Osun, Lagos to Ondo, Abeokuta to Ekiti, Ibadan to Osun state, kidnap for ransom and extortion is currently ravaging parts of southwest Nigeria especially along inter-town or inter-state roads. Yoruba socio-cultural groups such as the Yoruba Council of Elders, YCE; the pan-Yoruba socio-political organization, Afenifere; and prominent citizens - the Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams and elder statesman, Pa Ayo Adebanjo decried the wanton, pervasive kidnappings and killings in southwest Nigeria. The Yoruba Koya Movement declared June 12, 2019, as a national day of protest against the ongoing killings and kidnapping across Yoruba-speaking states.

The following inter-state roads have been identified as kidnapping flashpoints in southwest Nigeria: the Iwo-Osogbo Road, the Akure-Ilesa Road via Ondo State, Ijebu-Jesa/Esa Oke/Erio/Aramoko Road from Ekiti State and a number of other deserted roads within Osun State including Osogbo-Ibokun-Ada Road. Also, cases of kidnap have been reported recently in Ikirun, Inisa and Okuku communities along the highway leading to Kwara State. Interestingly, many if not all the aforesaid states ravaged by kidnapping in the southwest, nay, Nigeria have stringent anti-kidnapping laws, death sentence for kidnapping, yet kidnapping persists.

Unmasking existent kidnap hotspots will enhance security awareness, aid travel security, journey management and planning and ultimately enhance prevention of kidnapping. It is hoped that if tweaked, this collation of evidenced kidnap for ransom and extortion (KRE) hotspots would help contrive a Nigeria crime or kidnapping heat map, which will ultimately aid crime fighting, and law enforcement. Without much ado, we present kidnapping hotbeds in southwest Nigeria…

Below is the link to the full article - state by state analysis of kidnapping hotspots in southwest Nigeria:

Security Risk Analysis: Kidnapping Hotbeds in South West Nigeria
https://donokereke..com/2019/07/security-risk-analysis-kidnapping.html


Written By:

©Don Okereke, a security analyst, consultant, writer, researcher, subject matter expert and security thought leader in Nigeria.

July, 2019

matify83:
This dissertation is too academic for Nairaland.

I know what you mean...It's not about snake, celebrities etc hence not likely to make FP.

But we can change the narrative...and make Nairaland a repository of knowledge for the benefit of humanity. I feel this is my humble way of adding value and contributing to safety and security in Nigeria. It behooves on Seun, Lalasticlala et al to do the needful.

Best,

Security Risk Analysis: Kidnapping Hotbeds in Nigeria (1)

Written By: Don Okereke

Preamble: Anyone up-to-date with the security situation and dynamics in Nigeria will attest that the country is grappling with multifaceted, unrelenting threats to national security. One of such pervasive security threat is an embarrassing kidnap for ransom and extortion (KRE) pandemic. Toddlers, elderly citizens, pregnant women and religious leaders are not off-limits to daredevil kidnappers in Nigeria. John Campbell, a former United States ambassador to Nigeria who is quite familiar with events in Nigeria agrees in his recent article that ‘Nigeria's national kidnapping crisis is expanding’. In his article titled – ‘’Time to Declare National Emergency on Kidnapping’’, the editor-in-chief of Leadership Newspaper, Mr. Jonathan Nda-Isaiah says, ‘’Traveling by road now to any part of the country is like going on a suicide mission. The Abuja – Kaduna road which connects the federal capital to the North-west states has been taken over by kidnappers. Birnin Gwari area in Kaduna State has now become synonymous with violent deaths. Taraba, Zamfara, Sokoto and Gombe roads are impassable at the moment. Virtually all the major roads in the country have been taken over by kidnappers’’.

Aim: This security risk analysis of kidnapping hotbeds in Nigeria is aimed at harvesting nuggets of data on reported kidnapping incidents across the nook and cranny of Nigeria. While there are one-offs, it is evident that many kidnapping incidents in Nigeria seem to recur within some geographical swathes, environments where such incidents happened in the past. We can make a couple of deductions from this: it is most likely that there is poor security in such areas. Secondly, it is probable that the masterminds or foot soldiers of kidnappings in those areas are by acts of omission or commission, not behind bars. They are emboldened and bask on impunity. Since they still lurk around, it is a matter of time before they kidnap their next victim(s) and extort ransom. Unmasking potential kidnap hotspots will enhance security awareness and ultimately aid prevention. It is hoped that this research will help us tack together - a kidnapping heat map in Nigeria, and also help crime fighting, and law enforcement. It is very important to stay ahead of security threats and risks in Nigeria otherwise you may be inadvertently setting yourself up to become another crime or kidnapping statistic.

This research is driven by public and social good and most of the data here are in the public domain. There is no intent to stereotype kidnapping neck of the woods cited. It is possible that some of the cited hotbeds of kidnapping in Nigeria could become safe and serene in the near future but for now this is what it is; better to err on the side of caution. As a passionate security analyst and a subject matter expert (SME) on security and kidnappings in Nigeria, this is my humble way of adding altruistic value to humanity.

Research Methodology: A lion's share of the data harvested and collated in this research stem from Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), Social Media Intelligence (SOMINT), Human Intelligence (HUMINT) and from my years of painstaking observation, analysis and chronicling kidnap for ransom and extortion (KRE) incidents, dynamics in Nigeria as a Subject Matter Expert (SME). This security risk analysis encompasses the 36 states of Nigeria but because of its extensive nature and swathes of territory involved, we shall analyze KRE in the various states but compartmentalize them into Nigeria’s six (6) geopolitical zones.

Kidnapping Hotbeds in Nigeria
In north-central Nigeria, no fewer than 40 kidnapping incidents were reported in Jos, Plateau state between January and March, 2019. About 90% of the victims are said to be children aged two to nine and the depressing aspect is that these kidnappings happen despite the plethora of security agencies – the Police, Army, Air Force, Navy, DSS, NSCDC, within Jos metropolis. Also, the Kaduna – Birnin Gwari road, Kaduna-Abuja road, and Abuja – Lokoja roads which link Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory, Abuja with most cities in the northwestern and north-central parts of Nigeria are unarguably the most dangerous roads in Nigeria due to the activities of kamikaze gunmen and bandits who abduct travelers for ransom. On the Kaduna – Abuja expressway, many victims are reportedly ambushed around Rijana and Katari villages. This stretch of road is interspersed with three forests - Rijana or Birnin Gwari and Akilbu forests where these bandits ensconce their victims. "Prominent Nigerians, including senators, serving senior military officers and politicians have been forced to take trains to Kaduna for fear of being abducted by the notorious kidnappers operating along the Kaduna-Abuja Expressway."

Kogi state, especially the Obajana – Kabba road, Okene-Kabba road, Okene -Lokoja road and Itakpe-Adogo road in Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi state are arguably the most notorious kidnapping hotbeds in Nigeria. An American missionary, Phyllis Sortor was kidnapped from Hope Alive Nursery/Primary School in Emiworo, Ajaokuta Local government Area of Kogi State on February 23, 2015. Hajia Hawawu Bello, mother of the incumbent Governor of the State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello was kidnapped from her Nagazi residence in Adavi Local Government Area. On April 15, 2019, The Cable reports that, ''Henshaw Ativie was kidnapped alongside his wife and children in Itakpe-Adogo road in Adavi local government area of Kogi state''. The family apparently ran into gunmen on their way to Edo state. The abductors forced the vehicle to a stop by shooting at the tyres before ordering the occupants to come down and later led the man and his wife into the nearby bush and left the three children stranded by the roadside.

Nigeria’s former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh was ambushed and shot in the evening of December 18, 2018 by gunmen while returning from his farm between Koso and Kugwaru communities, along Abuja-Keffi highway. Another retired senior military officer, Major General Idris Alkali was also killed in Jos, Plateau while driving from Abuja to Bauchi. General Alkali’s body was later found in an abandoned well in Gushet, Shen, Jos Local Government Area of Plateau state.

In southwest Nigeria, in Ondo state, the Owo-Oba Akoko road and Akure-Owo Expressway, specifically at Amurin Village in Owo Local Government Area are ill-famed for kidnapping. Kidnappers donning police uniforms are said to operate unhindered even with the presence of security operatives along that road. Apart from the sporadic kidnappings along Akure-Owo-Akoko roads, there have been reports of robberies and killings on same route, with no respite and solution in sight.

The Ikorodu (Ishawo) part of Lagos state is notorious for kidnapping, cult rivalry, ritual killings (Badoo) and other security challenges. Epe axis of Lagos state is also another kidnapping hotbed. Both are riverine communities with a plethora of creeks; it appears the kidnappers sail from neighbouring Ondo communities. Six male students of Igbonla Government College, Epe, Lagos, were abducted from their school premises on May 25, 2017 and were finally released at Aboto Creek at Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State. As recently as April 6, 2019, the Director of Lagos State Fire Service, Mr. Rasaki Musibau, and six others were kidnapped at Iwoye Bridge, Itoikin-Epe road, in Ikorodu. Sequel to this, the Nigerian Army established a Forward Operating Base (FOB) in Epe with a view to taming the wanton security challenges prevalent in this area. Similarly, the FESTAC axis in Lagos used to be notorious for kidnapping during the reign of billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudi Onwuamadike, a.k.a Evans.

In south-south Nigeria, the hotspot of highway kidnapping is the dreaded East–West Road connecting Warri/Sapele through Patani and Port Harcourt. "Elele to Umudioga, Egbeda, Ubima, and Omuku roads are no go areas in the evenings (from 6pm) due to heightened kidnappings. Travelers are advised to be very cautious or possibly avoid commuting through Elele-Ndele Rumuji-Emuoha-Choba -Port Harcourt’’.
In south-east Nigeria, the Owerri-Port Harcourt road is a notorious kidnapping hotbed. Kidnappers lay ambush at a particular failed portion of the road around Nkaraha in Ohaji-Egbema Council Area of Imo State. About 40 travelers were reportedly kidnapped along this stretch of road within three months, including five members of the National Youths Service Corps (NYSC) who were travelling to Rivers from Ondo State for their orientation. The high rate of kidnapping along this road is attributed to unremorseful militants that have found a safe haven in the forest around the Port Harcourt-Owerri Road.

In the northwest, just recently, the governor of Katsina state, Aminu Masari publicly lamented that, ‘’bandits and kidnappers have taken over Katsina state’’. According to governor Masari, “These bandits strike at will, maim at will, destroy lives and property at will’’. He went further to opine, “In other parts of the state, we also have kidnappers who not only take people on the road but in the comfort of their homes’’. The Acting Executive Secretary of the Zamfara Emergency Management Agency (ZEMA), Alhaji Aminu Umar, recently stated in Gusau that 227 residents were kidnapped, 408 people killed, 126 injured and 248 houses destroyed by bandits in Zamfara from December 2018 to date (April 2019). Mr. Umar says ‘’the figures could be higher because many cases had gone unreported’’. “Routes such as Gusau-Magami-Dansadau, Kuceri-Danjibga-Keta-Wanke, Kaura- Namoda -Moriki-Shinkafi and Zurmi-Jibia – Katsina are very risky, especially at nights. This is not to say that one cannot be kidnapped even at day time,” a resident Aliyu Ashiru said.

In northeast Nigeria, at the peak of the Boko Haram blistering attacks, the Maiduguri – Dikwa – Gomboru road, Maiduguri – Damboa road and Maiduguri – Baga road, Konduga – Bama, and Bama – Bankiand Bama – Gwoza roads in Borno state and the 120-kilometre Damaturu-Biu Road in Yobe state were respectively closed for several months, years due to persistent Boko Haram ambush and mass abductions along those roads. On April 12, 2019, Premium Times reported that a prominent businessman based in Jimeta-Yola, Adamawa State, Abubakar Bashar, was kidnapped while returning from a farm along Yola-Numan road.

Conclusion:
It is evident that kidnapping for ransom and extortion is unrelenting in Nigeria. More worrisome is the fact that the security agencies seem to lack the capacity and have no clear-cut strategy to rein in this pervasive security threat. Security is a collective responsibility and security awareness is fundamental. It is also a given that prevention is better than cure. Individuals must make conscious effort to be in the know about goings-on around them and to do the needful. Also, given that kidnapping in Nigeria has morphed into a dangerous trend, high time it was treated as a national security problem. A proactive, holistic and collective approach and response is exigent if we must rein in kidnapping in Nigeria. The Nigerian government should go beyond treating the symptoms of kidnapping but go the whole hog of fixing the root, remote and immediate causes. As they say, you don’t keep doing the same thing the same way and expect a different result.

Written by:

(C) Don Okereke, a security analyst, consultant, writer, researcher, and a subject matter expert on security trends in Nigeria.

Here's the full article here: https://donokereke..com/2019/04/security-risk-analysis-kidnapping.html


Twitter: @DonOkereke

April 19, 2019

The current recession, economic downturn in Nigeria seem to be having a multiplier-effect in criminal activities – upsurge in kidnap for ransom and extortion, armed robbery, cybercrime and general insecurity. Many people have lost their jobs and businesses have collapsed while prices of goods, food stuffs in the market have doubled if not tripled. Aside the economic downturn, the ‘’ember’’ months (September to December) arguably witnesses an increase in road traffic accidents, random ritual killings, gruesome killings, amongst others as desperate folks try to ‘meet up’ with expectations and responsibilities.

Kidnapping for ransom and extortion in Nigeria is now a daily phenomenon and is said to be under-reported. To give us an idea of the trend in kidnappings in Nigeria, in addition to other high profile and random kidnappings in Nigeria, just a few days ago, the wife of the Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Mrs. Emefiele was reportedly kidnapped and later rescued. Granted that the Nigeria Police and other security agencies are mandated to protect Nigerians and residents, we all know that the high rate of insecurity across the country means the security agencies cannot be everywhere at the same time. In other words, the security agencies are somewhat stretched right now hence private citizens are encouraged to play their own role by been security, safety conscious and alert! Schools must conduct risk assessment of the domain and also teach students on basic security awareness.

Upsurge in Kidnappings, Ritual Killings

There are reports of rise in kidnappings, ritual killings, disappearances or missing persons in parts of Nigeria. To guard against falling victim,

1. Please desist from night travel or travelling very early in the morning.
2. Do not accept food or drink from strangers when on a journey together.
3. Be careful before boarding a vehicle. Ensure you board a vehicle from designated motor parks. We know things are rough but by all means, avoid lifts or hitchhiking with strangers.
4. If you enter a vehicle and feel uncomfortable or uneasy, trust your gut instinct and alight immediately.
5. Be wary of taxis, especially the unmarked ones. If must take a taxi, preferably take the one driven by a relatively elderly fellow. Restraint and responsibility comes with age.
6. Apart from immediate family members, don’t discuss the itinerary of your journey with strangers or outsiders, even house-helps. This has led to kidnap incidents.
7. Bike (Okada), Keke NAPEP, otherwise known as ‘’Marwa’ have sent some people to their early graves. If you must take any of these, tell the rider/driver to ride/drive safely.
8. Beware of traffic robberies which tend to be prevalent in some hotspots. When in a traffic, wind up your glasses and avoid patronizing traffic hawkers, some of them don’t mean well.
9. Desist from keeping personal effects, gadgets, phones or jewelries where they can be exposed in your vehicle.
10. Be very vigilant when you approach so-called ‘roadblocks’ mounted by security agents Policemen, Road Safety (FRSC), LASTMA officers’ et al. Some of them may be criminals masquerading as security agents. Don’t allow them jump into your vehicle.
11. Please ensure you have your driver license and that your vehicle papers are complete (perhaps photocopies) and give to security, road traffic agents with your glass slightly wound down.
12. While driving, be observant and sensitive to other drivers around you as some criminals, potential kidnappers are known to intentionally hit your vehicle from behind to make you come down.
13. Be careful where you sit in a public bus. Be wary when someone (possibly suspicious) already seated before you wants to adjust so you can go inside and have you sandwiched in-between them.
14. Don’t open doors for strangers into your house and don’t stay late in parties or clubs.
15. If your generator goes off unexpectedly at night, please don’t rush out to see what happened. It may be bait by criminals.
16. Sensitize your neighbours about security issues.
17. To know more about kidnapping hotspots and dynamics in Nigeria, read - Nigeria’s Thriving ‘Kidnapping Enterprise’; How To Arrest The Scourge. And for security and safety tips to forestall kidnapping, read - 27 Security, Safety Tips To Prevent, Survive A Kidnapping Incident http://donokereke..com.ng/2016/05/27-security-safety-tips-to-prevent.html.
18. Companies and individuals will do well to conduct background checks, pre-employment vetting of the prospective staff. Cases abound where insiders – senior and junior staff, drivers, domestic assistant etc. had criminal or questionable background and were unwittingly recruited.

Financial Security and Intelligence:

1. Avoid making phone calls discussing money issues openly as you don’t know who is listening. Seldom flaunt your expensive gadgets – phones, toys etc. Possibly put your phones are on silence and use a hands free device or earphone to answer your calls when you are in an unsecure environment.
2. Thank goodness for cashless economy, you don’t really carry so much cash around. Similar to this, don’t also carry all your ATM cards with you. You can have a basic bank account for immediate upkeep and keep the other ATM cards in a safe place at home.
3. Please, keep your debit card pin codes and tokens safe and don’t let strangers be too close when you punching your pin codes in ATMs. You can politely ask them to give you some space.
4. Be wary of using ATMs at nights or in secluded/lonely environments. Be careful helping people to withdraw money from ATMs, some may have stolen the debit card and if you assist them, the CCTV camera will pick your face as one of the culprits.
5. Don’t leave all your money in a single bank account, spread it and set a daily withdrawal limit on your account.
6. It is possible, doable to clone ATM or debit cards. Personally, I have never used my debit card to shop online in Nigeria and I am not in a hurry to do so. If you must shop online, don’t enter your card details on websites, point of sale, POS, platforms that is not secured. A secured website must have https. The last ‘s’ denotes ‘secure’ or security. There are also POS terminals where if you swipe your card, your card details are automatically extricated. Be careful who you give your ATM card 2to make withdrawals for you. They may return your card but your details are gone.
7. In this age of ubiquitous sports betting and online/offline gambling platforms, please be careful not to get addicted to it if you can’t avoid it completely.
8. Finally, the Bible implores us to, ‘’Watch’’ and ‘’Pray’’. It follows that places of worship (churches and mosques) also have to improve their security measures. An essay to this effect: 21 Security, Safety Best Practices For Places of Worship will be helpful http://donokereke..com/2015/12/21-security-safety-best-practices-for.html.

Please promptly report any strange, suspicious movement, activity or security breach in your area to the Police.

Here are the contact details of ALL Police PROs in Nigeria http://donokereke..com.ng/2016/09/contact-information-names-email.html. You can also report incidents of police extortion, harassment, malfeasance, corruption to the Nigeria Police Complaint Unit, CRU http://donokereke..com.ng/2015/11/holding-public-officers-accountable-and.html?m=1.

For Lagos State, the emergency police numbers are: 08063299264, 08127155071, 08079279349, 08065154338, 08127155150, 07035068242 and 08060357795. You can also call 767 and 112; both are Lagos State emergency phone numbers.

Culled from: http://donokereke..com.ng/2016/10/recession-upsurge-in-crimes-in-nigeria_4.html

Written by:

Don Okereke, a security consultant/adviser, writer, is CEO, Holistic Security Background Checks Limited
www.donokereke..com
Follow me on Twitter: @donokereke

Comparable to the cold war, cybersecurity has been dubbed the ‘’the arms race of the current and future generations’’. The term cybersecurity is coined by prefixing ‘’cyber’ before security. As we know, ‘’cyber’’ generally relates to information technology, computers and the internet. Hence we define cybersecurity as measures taken to protect computers, computer systems and devices against unauthorized or malicious attacks, intrusion. It is valid to say that no country, establishment or individual is absolutely invulnerable to cyber risk hence cybersecurity is a collective obligation which calls for awareness and for citizens to be internet, social media, technology savvy.

The biggest challenge with the cyberspace is that there are no international boundaries, visas are not needed to travel; intercontinental ballistic missiles or AK47’s are not needed to wipe out a facility or commit a heist. A hacker can stay in the comfort of his house or office in say, China and wreak havoc on critical infrastructures, computers or internet enabled device(s) in far-off United States. For instance, a malware or Trojan Horse known as ‘’BlackEnergy’’ allegedly written by a Russian hacker was used to infiltrate critical government infrastructures in the United States and Ukraine while ‘’Carbanak’’, an ‘’Advanced Persistent Threat’’ (APT) attack allegedly deployed via phishing emails was used to electronically steal about $1 billion from financial institutions around the world.

My previous essay – “Understanding The Global Proliferation In Cyberattacks, Cybercrime And Data Breaches’’, chronicled the dexterity of motley trends, specializations such as cyber-attacks, attacks-as-a-service, cyber-warfare, cyber-espionage, cyber-crime, Fraud-as-a-service (FaaS), cyber-extortion via ransomware, massive data breaches and hacking by state and non-state actors which validates the assertion that the aforementioned incidents are heightening. To appreciate how bad these threats are, United States government agencies struggled to rein in cyber-attacks in the US prompting President Obama’s administration to brainstorm new cybersecurity initiatives aimed at protecting consumers. This explains why some analysts dubbed 2015 as the year of cyber-attacks, data breaches. The proliferation of innovations, events such: Internet of Things (IoT), Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), insider threats (Edward Snowden), penetration and lowering cost of internet enabled mobile devices, are very strong indications that cybersecurity risks will not ebb but certainly ramp up in 2016, going forward.

Granted we may not be able to absolutely avert or rule out the risk of cyber-attacks, unintentional or deliberate data breaches but the good news is that we can reduce such risks to the barest minimum. As they say, it is better to be safe than to be sorry and prevention is better than cure. You don’t necessarily have to be a computer geek to appreciate these techie jargons or to counter aforesaid spin-off emanating from our increasingly interconnected global village - cyberspace. Without much ado, here are some cybersecurity, online best practices, and tips. In no particular order:

1. Abstain from clicking on links (especially shortened urls) in emails, on social media platforms unless you know, trust the sender and you can confirm that s/he deliberately sent the link.

2. ALWAYS download Application or software ONLY from trusted websites, sources such as from: Google Play Store, Apple App Store, and Amazon App Store.

3. As they say, there’s no free lunch eve in Freetown and if it looks too good to be true, it is most probably is. Be very mindful of online offers that seem too good to be true.

4. Only make online purchases from websites with SSL certificates (usually indicated by a small icon of a lock in the lower right-hand side of the window). Confirm order history and shipping information directly from the online retailer’s website, not through (shortened) email links.
5. Don’t use the same password for more than one website, especially for banking and email platforms.

6. Install firewalls on your systems and ensure your Operating System, Applications, anti-spyware and anti-malware software are up to date.
7. Regularly back up your important documents, application preferably on the ‘’Cloud” or an external storage device. Reformat and reinstall software on your System if you were exposed to a cyber-attack or had virus on your device.

8. ONLY give your computer, electronic device to well-trusted vendors, engineers/technicians for repairs to forestall them stealing sensitive and private information which may be used for extortion or blackmail.

9. Avoid using public computers in libraries, airports, cyber cafes, Wi-Fi for internet banking as some public computers, Wi-Fi's are vulnerable. If for any reason you patronize a public computer for online financial transaction, ensure you scan it for a keylogger, clear the cache, browsing history and delete all temporary files from the computer after usage. Very importantly, never allow the browser to remember your log-in ID and password.

10. Change your password regularly and use strong but memorable passwords: The first time you login to your internet banking account, you will need to use the password provided by the bank but you need to change this password in order to keep your account safe.

11. Check your bank accounts regularly: After making an online transaction. Ascertain that the right amount was deducted from your account. Inform your bank right away if you notice any discrepancies in the amount.

12. ALWAYS type your bank’s address into your web browser – NEVER click on a link in an email to access you online banking account. Check for a locked padlock or unbroken key symbol in your browser window when banking online. The ‘http’ at the beginning of the website address will automatically change to ‘https’ when a secure connection is established.

Written by: Don Okereke

Follow Don on Twitter: @DonOkereke


This piece was culled from: www.donokereke..com

Read full article here: http://donokereke..com.ng/2016/02/25-cybersecurity-online-safety-tips.html

Charcoal briquette is a cost-effective, environmental-friendly, alternative energy source derived from briquetting mostly agro-wastes and forest residues such as saw dust, rice husks, maize cobs amongst others. Charcoal briquette technology is analogous to turning wastes in wealth since the end-product is derived from everyday waste products which abound around us. The Barbecue Industry Association in the United States reckons that Americans bought a staggering 883,748 tons of Charcoal Briquettes in 1997.

Basically, Charcoal Briquette is produced through partial pyrolysis and by compacting charred biomass waste feedstock into finished clean charcoal which can be used for cooking, grilling, making barbecues and other energy needs such as residential or industrial heating.

Charcoal briquette is a solution to indiscriminate cutting down of trees in the name of fire wood. This explains why the World Bank encourages the use of Biomass Charcoal Briquettes through its ACREST Programme as an alternative energy source and to curb deforestation.

Here in Nigeria, a notable producer of quality Charcoal Briquettes is Imo state-based Okey Biomass Enterprises. Due to popular demand and to increase its market penetration, we are currently seeking buyers and distributors of our high quality charcoal briquettes. There will be a discount for bulk buyers. Contact Mr. Okey Egwuonwu on this phone number: +234 818 310 2712 for further details.

http://donokereke..com/2015/12/biomass-charcoal-briquette-sales.html

Aim:
This project is aimed at mapping or collating salient risks, threats, safety concerns, crime, terrorism or violence extremism hotspots representative of Nigeria’s cities and 36 states of the country. This research became exigent given the paucity of up-to-date official crime survey and statistics in Nigeria. This project is not exhaustive but a work-in-progress that will hopefully dovetail into employing crime mapping technologies such as GIS (Geographic Information System) amongst others to map violent crime, extremism in Nigeria. Ultimately this research will aid designation and proactive prevention of criminal activities or conflicts, crime analysis and criminal profiling, risk assessment, early warning disaster reduction system (EWS), emergency planning, peacebuilding, criminal justice and law enforcement, election security planning and monitoring, travel security planning and destination intelligence for individuals, local and foreign organizations.

Below is a guide to crime incidents, violent extremism, flashpoints or threat hotspots representative of Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones and 36 states of the federation:
1. South-West Nigeria consists of six states: Ekiti, Ogun, Ondo, Oyo, Lagos and Ondo. Crime and Security threats representative of South West Nigeria include: high rate of ritual killing, cultism, frequent area boys fracas, kidnapping, carjacking, rape incidents, political/election violence, advance fee fraud or 419, proliferation of illegal drugs, traffic gridlock/robberies especially in Lagos.

Details:

http://donokereke..com.ng/2015/12/security-mapping-guide-to-threats-crime.html

^ Exactly! One figured out a whole lot of religious organizations don't take security, safety seriously. That's why I put this forward. Recall the xmas day bombing of a St Theresa catholic church, Madalla, near Abuja.

Stay safe, shine your eyes.

Cheers. All the very best. Stay safe, be security conscious during and after the yuletide!

21 Security, Safety Tip For Churches, Mosques and other places of worship

A trite wise saying suffices that prevention is better than cure. Proactiveness should be the watchword of every place of worship, nay organizations. A professional, visible, courteous, responsive security team will certainly make worshippers, visitors feel safe and welcome. Listed below are recommendations that will help strengthen the security, safety of lives, properties in places of worship.

1. Establishing a full-fledged Security ‘Ministry’ or Department/Committee must be a priority for all places of worship. The Security ‘Ministry or whatever name it is called, must be peopled with members of the congregation that have extensive security background (ideally, serving and retired military or law enforcement personnel coupled with carefully selected laymen/laywomen, ushers, volunteers who must be trained to recognize, report and respond to security/safety incidents). Basic first responder training and knowledge of basic first aid will help. A security consultant can be retained and private security operatives hired if need be.

2. A detailed security policy is important. A security policy is a continuously updated template that figures out, outlines how the organization plans to protect its people and properties. A typical security policy should include specifics such as: procedures for evaluating the effectiveness of the security policy to ensure that necessary corrections will be effected; stipulates who is authorized to talk to the Press/Police in the event of an incident, that under-aged children will be released ONLY to their parents or an authorized adult after service and so on and so forth.

3. Places of worship should formulate a comprehensive emergency (fire, terrorism/active shooter, health-related natural disasters) and evacuation plans, lockdown procedures and scrutinize the aforementioned procedures routinely in response to plausible natural or man-made misadventure.

4. The security department must strive to organize periodic security awareness programmes: seminar, symposium or briefings for members of the congregation.

5. Carry out a routine comprehensive risk assessment and vulnerability surveys of the place of worship vis-à-vis location of the place of worship and crime demographic, identifying potential hazards, how secured the access or entry points are, fencing, untrimmed shrubs/trees, inventory of equipment amongst others. Recommendations must be put in place to mitigate such risks. Recent events demands that places of worship must re-think leaving their premises unlocked to such an extent that anybody can walk in and out.

6. A rigorous background check or screening must be done on staff of the security department, volunteers, those taking care of children and those responsible for money/finances. Don’t be carried away by how sanctimonious folks appear when they are in the public or a religious centre. A popular parlance holds that in every twelve, there’s a Judas. Again, not every member of the choir or congregation sings with the same passion. There are paedophiles, sexual predators everywhere; churches, mosques are no exceptions.

7. Ensure the place of worship is thoroughly scanned or searched prior to a religious activity. In addition to this, it is in the best interest of worshippers and visitors to have their bags, vehicles professionally frisked prior to coming into the worship centre. This is where metal and bomb detectors come into play. Recall that a while ago, about six Boko Haram militants were purportedly apprehended inside a Winners Chapel branch in Owerri, Imo state while attempting to implant improvised explosive devices within the church premises.

8. An efficient access and traffic control mechanism must be activate to detect, prevent a would-be suicide bomber from gate-crashing with IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices) or VIEDs (Vehicle Borne Explosive Devices), commonly called car bombs and also to avoid inconveniencing other road users or passers-by.

9. Thanks to the proliferation and affordability of security gadgets, financially established places of worship are encouraged to invest in some of these devices. Please ensure whatever security gadgets you want to buy are tested prior to purchasing them to ascertain they work according to specification. For instance, an efficient CCTV Camera, an intrusion (burglar) detector and fire alarm/extinguisher system, metal or bomb detector will respectively help monitor the premises in real time, protect against intrusions, fire incidents and concealed weapons, IEDs or VBIEDs.

10. In buying a metal or bomb detector, ensure it is easy and safe to use, boasts greatest SENSITIVITY and SELECTIVITY, very minimal false alarms or noise. For CCTV Cameras, go for high-end security cameras with night vision capability, motion detection capability, consider storage capacity and ability to save videos/pictures externally, not hackable (especially for wireless cameras), weather resistant, high definition (HD) capability (though consumes more storage space), can discriminate objects at farther distances (say 75-100 feet), wide angle of coverage, amongst others. Note that wireless cameras slow down internet connections. For more details, please Google, read – Guide To Buying A Home Security Camera: 16 Features To Consider.

Read the rest here: http://donokereke..com/2015/12/21-security-safety-best-practices-for.html
Written by:

© Don Okereke
(Security Adviser/Consultant, Entrepreneur, Researcher, Writer and Change agent)

Follow Don on Twitter: @DonOkereke

More reason why folks need to mind what they spew on Social Media

WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration is reviewing procedures for vetting would-be immigrants, with an eye toward examining applicants' online presence, to close security gaps in the U.S. visa system, the White House said Monday.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the Homeland Security and State departments have been asked to review the process for screening people who apply for visas and to return with specific recommendations.
The Homeland Security Department said it is specifically reviewing policies on when authorities at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services can look at social media posts as part of the vetting process for would-be immigrants applying for certain visas.

See full post here: http://donokereke..com.ng/2015/12/us-set-to-begin-reviewing-social-media.html

Wondering if moderators will be magnanimous to do the needful here. We need to stimulate ideas on how to curb the menace of pervasive kidnapping in Nigeria.

CC: Seun, lalasticlala, ogugua88, Afam4eva

You have a point, I doubt we have the technology to monitor calls in REAL-TIME in this clime. I guess the best that is done here is to extrapolate the closest phone mast where the call originated from after the call must have ended. I stand to be corrected.

I sincerely pray and hope that our security agencies will up their game.

Cheers

This essay is a blow-by-blow account of prevailing kidnapping in Nigeria. It also touches on human trafficking and explores Nigeria’s ranking in the global kidnapping index, how kidnapping metamorphosed in Nigeria, the epicenter(s) and litany of kidnapping incidents in Nigeria, payment of ransoms to secure release of kidnapped victims, capital punishment for kidnappers, pull-factors encouraging kidnapping in Nigeria, kidnapping dynamics in Nigeria and recommendations on how to tackle or rein in the menace of pervasive kidnapping in Nigeria.

That kidnapping continues to be rife in Nigeria despite the very drastic death penalty imposed on perpetrators of this vicious crime is evidence that once an individual makes up his mind to commit a crime, even a death penalty does not dissuade him from that act. A multi-faceted, holistic approach (immediate, short and long term measures) will go a long way in drastically reducing if not stamping out kidnappings in Nigeria. The following steps will help stave off and curtail kidnappings in Nigeria:

1. Common Sense, VIGILANCE and Resilience! It is established that security is the primary responsibility of every government but every responsible individual have a role to play in his personal security and safety and must not throw caution to the wind, especially in our clime where the government is bedeviled by challenges in all fronts. There is no better time than now for all Nigerians to be security conscious and ensure they do their part towards ensuring their personal safety and security. Kidnappings don’t just happen pronto. The bad guys do their own research and usually trail their victims for a while before striking. If you are driving and you notice a car trailing you consistently, NEVER drive straight to your home, better to enter a public place. Seldom have a predictable or regular routine or route. Don’t disclose your travel itineraries to strangers or third parties. If you feel unsafe, go out in groups. Carry out a due diligence on domestic aides: house helps, drivers, private security officers as the disgruntled and unscrupulous amongst them can engineer the kidnapping of their paymasters or his wards. In this age of social media and internet, folks MUST desist from unwittingly leaving a trail of their travel plans, material acquirements, schools their wards attend amongst others. This applies mostly to nouveau-riches, so-called celebrities who bask on flaunting their material possessions on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Etc.). Bear in mind that even without obviously saying where a picture was taken, recent cameras, Smartphones and gadgets have a way of embedding GPS locations on pictures which will enable an interested party to extrapolate where the picture was shot. The good news is that the GPS feature on these techies can be turned off and on. Feel free to turn it off if need be. There are times when things just go wrong no matter how careful one is. If this happens and one falls prey to kidnappers, it is advisable to comply with their instructions. Don’t go arguing or trying to play James Bond to avoid been killed by the abductors. If a victim, be mindful not to menacingly stare at your abductor(s) as this may give an impression that you can identify him/her. That is on the personal security, safety side of things.

2. To the Nigerian government, it is trite that Nigeria is grossly under-policed. Whereas the United Nations recommends a Police to people ratio of 1:400, Nigeria can only boast of about 371,000 policemen, grossly inadequate for a country of 170 million people. The reasonable thing to do is not only to recruit more policemen but also ensure they are well motivated and kitted.

3. Tackle unprecedented unemployment. It is foolhardy to expect tranquility to prevail in a country rich in human and natural resources where official unemployment guesstimate hovers around 8.2 percent in the second quarter of 2015. Former President Obasanjo once averred that unemployment is a ticking time bomb in Nigeria.

4. Ramp up quick prosecution of culprits: Quick dispensation of justice will go a long way in stemming the tide of kidnappings in Nigeria. As they say, ‘’justice delayed is justice denied’’. It portends danger when culprits waltz or wriggle out of prosecution and penalty. Sometime in October 2010, a traditional ruler and a college provost were kidnapped in Ekiti state by a band of kidnappers. While taking the victims to a hideout in Delta State a fatal accident occurred at Kabba in Kogi State during which both victims were killed while the kidnappers were seriously injured. The kidnappers were arrested by the police and charged to court. The trial court ordered that the kidnap suspects be remanded in prison custody but they subsequently escaped from prison in 2014 during a violent attack on the Lokoja prison by unknown gunmen. In September 2013, Nigerians were told that a combined security team drawn from the Nigerian Army and Department of State Security Service (DSS) arrested a notorious kidnapper, one Kevin Prosper Oniarah, also known as Kevin Ibruvwe who allegedly masterminded the kidnapping of Human Rights Lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome but two years down the line, no progress is made in the prosecution of this alleged kidnapping kingpin. The foregoing characterizes the shoddy prosecution of criminals in Nigeria.

5. Deploying State-of-the-art technological gadgets. When we say novel gadgets, it doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. Some simple security gadgets like pepper spray if well and timely deployed, can immobilize prospective kidnappers. A pen recorder can record evidence. While it is truism that the process of telephoning the family members of the victim of kidnapping presents a weak spot, there are cases where kidnappers try to circumvent this by constantly changing their location or been inside a fast-moving car while making ransom demands. The simple logic here is that the principle of tracking calls exploits extrapolating the nearest GSM masts transmitting the call at a particular point in time. This becomes a problem in a clime where tracking a call in REAL-TIME is difficult. To rein in kidnappings in Nigeria, Nigerian Security agencies MUST be several steps ahead of kidnappers in terms of deploying state-of-the-art equipment that can track GSM calls in REAL-TIME as is the case in most Western societies.

6. Set up a well-equipped anti-kidnapping squad in in all Divisional Police offices across Nigeria and encourage information/intelligence sharing amongst the security agencies.

7. Purge the Security agencies of bad eggs even from the point of enlistment: Very stringent background checks MUST be carried out on prospective enlistees into the security agencies (the Army, Navy, Air force, the Police, Department of State Security (DSS), National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), other sister organizations, not forgetting the Private Security Industry in Nigeria. Merit and passion for the profession must be the yardstick for recruitment into the security services as against the current norm where the aforementioned benchmarks are sacrificed in the altar of cronyism, godfatherism and the almighty ‘’quota or federal character’’ system. The allegation by the HURIWA of a direct or indirect involvement of security agents/agencies in incidents of kidnappings in Nigeria must not be swept under the carpet. We call for a proper investigation and punishment of culprits where culpability is established.

8. Public awareness and enlightenment campaigns: The National Orientation Agency, similar agencies, including electronic and print media platforms must embark on anti-kidnapping awareness campaigns.

9. Rein in Fulani Herdsmen, Cattle rustlers: An emerging threat dynamic to kidnapping in Nigeria is the alleged connection of Fulani herdsmen in this ignoble trade. These folks supposedly engineered the kidnapping of Chief Olu Falae and that of the traditional ruler of Apaa-Bunu community in Kogi state, one Oba Adebisi Obademi. Aftermath of the kidnapping of Chief Olu Falae, Fulani herdsmen have reportedly embarked on self-registration in South West. This sounds like a good idea worth replicating across Nigeria. On the other hand, we urge folks to desist from cattle rustling since some of the alleged kidnappings masterminded by Fulani herdsmen are in response to the frequent rustling of their cattle by their host communities. Fulani herdsmen must play by the rules, not graze on farmlands. Some people have also advocated for microchips to be implanted on livestock to stem the tide of cattle rustling, poaching.

Conclusion:

Security is a collective responsibility. All hands must be on deck to rein insecurity, kidnapping in Nigeria.


This essay is an extract from my piece titled: ''Nigeria’s Thriving ‘Kidnapping Enterprise’; How To Arrest The Scourge''. Feel free to read the full article here: http://donokereke..com.ng/2015/10/investigation-nigerias-thriving.html


Written By:

© Don Okereke
(Security Analyst/Consultant, Writer, Ex-Serviceman, Change Agent)

Follow me on twitter: @DonOkereke or visit my blog: http://www.donokereke..com for cutting edge Security/Safety news/developments, bespoke due diligence investigation, research, background screening, security and cultural awareness training, threat/risk assessment/alerts and travel advisory of specific locations across Nigeria.

Who said our voices cannot be heard and that we cannot make a real difference, no matter how small it is on our clime or the world. I don’t know if it was a coincidence? While I am not basking on it, I am somewhat elated that barely 24 hours after I published my article: [url] http://donokereke..com/2015/07/boko-haram-advocating-better-deal-for.html [/url], and equally tweeted the article to President Buhari (@NGRPresident), Vice President Osinbajo (@ProfOsinbajo) and very notable individuals within and outside Nigeria and disseminated the article on Social Media, President Buhari ordered the immediate release of N5 billion to victims of insurgency and terrorism in Nigeria.

The Chairman of the Committee on Victim Support Fund (CVSF), Lt. Gen. T.Y Danjuma (Rtd) also clarified that ‘’out of the N55.92 billion pledged at the fund-raising dinner for the Victim Support Fund (VSF) in August 2014, N33.54 billion was still outstanding, including N5 Billion from the Federal Government and that the Victim Support Fund (VSF) currently has N23.33 billion in four bank accounts’’. ‘’Mr. Danjuma went further to aver that former president Goodluck Jonathan gave approval for the funds to be incorporated into a Trust Fund, to “insulate it from political interference”.

Many thanks to the inventors of the internet and Social Media; yes, from our little corner and meager resources, we all can advocate for any Cause we are PASSIONATE about; that affects us, people around us or the world at large. Let’s contribute our little quota and together we can make the world a better place. Our lives must transcend what we acquire or take in but what we CONTRIBUTE. Posterity will remember, be fair to us as individuals and our generation by virtue of our positive CONTRIBUTIONS in the service of humanity not for what we appropriated to ourselves.

Sequel to this I humbly put forward a clarion call, advocating we put aside our tribal and religious proclivities and be guided by the TRUTH (which they say is constant), JUSTICE and FAIRNESS in our dealings. It is also very important that we respectfully and constructively engage our governments, ‘ogas-at-the-top’ and speak truth to power without minding whose ox is gored or whether the person involved is from our tribe or religious denomination.

The import of this: Don’t sit down whining and waiting for CHANGE to happen. Change your attitude. Be a good example. Do something good. Be the change you want!!!


Yours in the Service of Humanity and Country,

Don Okereke
(Security Analyst/Consultant, Writer/Blogger, Ex-Serviceman, Patriot, Change Agent)
www.donokereke..com
Email: donnuait (a) yahoo.com
Twitter: @DonOkereke

Let's also Say No To Election Violence. Election is not WAR!

Vote according to your convictions, don't be swayed by sentiments.

@ OzoIgbondu, many thanks for heeding this clarion call. Best regards

Terrorism is our common enemy. Terrorism knows no Race, Tribe, Religion, Age or Sex. Let's come together irrespective of our ethnic, religious, political leanings and UNITE against this shared enemy.

Advocacy courtesy of:

www.donokereke..com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
NIGERIANS UNITE AGAINST INSECURITY AND TERRORISM (NUAIT)
ABUJA, NIGERIA. 04/12/2013

The Boko Haram Blitzkrieg at Air force Base Maiduguri, Nigeria.

In a well-coordinated pre-dawn kamikaze assault, Boko Haram took the battle to the doorstep of 79 Composite Group, Nigerian Air force Base and the 7th Battalion of the Nigerian Army both in Maiduguri on Monday December 2, 2013 despite a prevailing ‘State of Emergency’. Defence spokesman, Brig. Gen. Chris Olukolade opines 3 ‘’decommissioned’’ military aircrafts and 2 helicopters were ‘’incapacitated’’ by the rampaging Sect members.

For a battalion (400 or more members) of Boko Haram fighters to have successfully launched such a daring maneuver on a supposedly fortified setting prove their effrontery and depict a serious intelligence failure on the part of the security agencies. We urge the Air force and Army authorities to constitute Boards of Inquiry (BOI) to unravel lapses that occasioned this national embarrassment so as to forestall a repeat at Yola Airport/Air force Base and other porous military formations. Military formations, airports etc across Nigeria must have good perimeter fencing, monitored round the clock with Internet Protocol CCTV Cameras in real time. Military and Para-military establishments across Nigeria must purge all illegal squatters, dismissed Personnel’s out of their respective barracks since some of these folks are prone to divulging sensitive information to terrorists.

Nigeria must adopt a multifaceted approach if it must overcome terrorism/insurgency. As is always the case, prevention is better than cure. Let us do away with a penchant for kneejerk approach, setting up wishy-washy committees each time incidents occur. Concerted effort must be geared towards exterminating the remote and immediate causes of terrorism by whittling abject poverty, nepotism, wanton corruption, culture of impunity/arrogance of power, soaring unemployment rate and radicalization by run-of-the-mill clerics. Nigeria must articulate a definite template, ‘’a comprehensive counter terrorism strategy/policy’’. We reiterate the urgency for sporadic vulnerability, resilient assessment of critical national infrastructures across Nigeria. The efficacy of the current military strategy, ‘State of Emergency’ must be immediately reappraised.

We appreciate the unconventional nature of the Internal Security task the security agencies are encumbered with and the sacrifices they make; we implore them to be proactive rather than reactive. They must assemble reliable intelligence gathering network and deploy cutting-edge Intelligence/Surveillance gadgets so as to nip insecurity, terrorism/insurgency in the bud. National Security must not be sacrificed in the altar of nepotism (‘namu ne’ in Hausa parlance). Square pegs must be put in square holes! We look forward to seeing Nigeria’s Military/Intelligence agencies at par with the CIA’s, Mossad’s of this world.

We empathize with families that lost their loved ones in these senseless, barbaric killings. We urge the government to compensate them adequately.

Please let us give peace a chance. Peace is a sine qua non for personal and national advancement. No country, individual will actualize its/his potentials in a miasma of unpredictability, insecurity, and terrorism/insurgency. We passionately appeal to all Nigerians to SAY NO TO INSECURTY AND TERRORISM!!!

Signed
Don Okereke
Email: donnuait@yahoo.com
Telephone: +2347080008285

There is a global surge in financial, electronic (ATM) fraud and this ugly phenomenon is increasingly becoming very sophisticated. In their bid to swindle unsuspecting victims, Criminals are upping their ante, in many occasions, deploying a mix of social engineering and reverse-engineering to circumvent security/safety measures deployed by financial institutions. Interestingly, insiders- bank staffers (Management, Cashiers, IT guys, Security Officers) are sometimes complicit in growing financial/electronic frauds. As will be gleaned from the ensuing part of this treatise, despite a global notoriety for 419 and fraud buoyed by bad Press, the Nigerian elements of this ignoble trade are pretty much dilettantes. This essay is an attempt to x-ray the escalating trend in financial, electronic (ATM) fraud and to proffer solutions to forestall such incidents.

Please read the full article here: http://voices.yahoo.com/hints-avert-escalating-financial-electronic-atm-12358930.html

Cheers

www.donokereke..com

A new United Nation’s backed study ranks Sweden as the best place in the world to grow old. This is followed by Norway, Germany, Netherlands and Canada. The United States is placed in the 8th position while the United Kingdom did not even make the top 10.

In contrast, just as Nigeria celebrates her 53rd Independence anniversary, the UN study ranked Nigeria as the sixth worst country to grow old. The Global AgeWatch Index ranked a total of 91 countries, with Nigeria ranked 85th, the sixth worst! Afghanistan is ranked the worst country to grow old in.

Is this also politically motivated? Is this good news? Was the report sponsored by detractors or the ‘’Opposition’’? Why must Nigeria always be associated with infamy?


http://www.helpage.org/global-agewatch/

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
NIGERIANS UNITE AGAINST INSECURITY AND TERRORISM (NUAIT)
ABUJA, NIGERIA. 23/09/2013


Apo, Abuja, (Nigeria) Indiscriminate Killing: Part 2, Scene 2?

Once again, it emerged about 8 people were on Friday 20/09/2013 indiscriminately killed in an uncompleted building supposedly belonging to an Army General at Bamanga Tukur Street, Apo Legislative Quarters, Abuja, by Nigeria’s Security Operatives. This déjà vu, finger-pointing is playing out 8 years after the infamous unprovoked extra-judicial killing of some Igbo traders by overzealous Policemen in what became popularly known as ‘’Apo 6 massacre’’.

Ms. Marilyn Ogar, Nigeria’s State Security Service spokesperson claims those killed were Boko Haram members while eyewitness account and confessions from survivors assert that the victims were a mish mash of destitute comprising of Tricycle Operators (popularly called Keke/Maruwa), truck pushers, scavengers, ‘pure’ water vendors amongst others.

While we hold no iota of brief for the activities of Boko Haram and their ilk’s, we strongly decry a penchant for Government Security Operatives to wantonly gun down supposed suspects without first ascertaining their culpability or extracting sensitive information from them. A while ago, alleged Ombatse Cult suspects were summarily hacked to death in Nasarawa state, now it is suspected Boko Haram members in Abuja. The issue of the 60 bodies that were reportedly sighted floating on Ezu River in Amensea, Anambra State is yet to be unraveled. Who knows whose turn it will be tomorrow? We profoundly believe in the sanctity and right to life of innocent Nigerians irrespective of their ethnicity, religious and political affiliations. Life expectancy in Nigeria will continue to shrink if such blanket killings are not checked.

Typical of events in Nigeria, this latest incident must not be swept under the carpet. We call for a meticulous investigation of this incident and prosecution of the remote and direct masterminds of this act if it is ascertained that they overstepped their bounds.

Some poser: are the inhabitants of this uncompleted building truly Boko Haram members? Have they earlier been warned by the owner of the building to vacate the premises or risk extermination? Who gave the SSS a tip-off that Boko Haram members occupy the said building? The public will also like to know how many of the Security personnel that carried the brutish Operation sustained injuries or died in the process since the occupants of the building were said to be armed.

How about Nigeria’s Security Agencies cordoning off the said uncompleted building; use a public address system to warn the occupants to come out, surrender or risk being shot? Is it only offices of breakaway factions of political parties that these geezers know how to cordon off? It beggars belief that the Security agencies will throw caution to the wind and storm a building where supposed terrorists are hiding without considering the inherent risk to their own life. It is this same unnecessary gung-ho, kamikaze approach that led to the Ombatse Cult killing 95 of their folks earlier this year. A while ago, a group that goes by the moniker ‘Egbesu Mightier Strike Force’ reportedly issued a 7 days ultimatum to the Muslim community in their domain to leave or risk massive attack. The Security Agencies must look in this direction if they are bored.

A penchant for extra-judicial killing of suspects and innocent people invariably creates mutual distrust, hate and dichotomy between the security agencies and the citizenry that are supposed to volunteer nuggets of sensitive information. Such a proclivity is definitely counter-productive to the fight against insecurity and terrorism. No wonder people failed to volunteer useful information aftermath of the killing of SSS and Police officers by the Ombatse.

We immensely appreciate and commend the sacrifices, unconventional and precarious nature of the onerous task that Nigeria’s Security Agencies are encumbered with in their fight against insurgents and terrorists. We respectfully implore them to stick to international best practices, be less pugnacious, very discerning and surgical, more proactive and invest more resources in intelligence gathering so as to nip insecurity and terrorism in the bud. Due diligence and utmost care must be factored in before embarking on such operations so as to forestall indiscriminately gunning down innocent people or operatives endangering their own lives in the guise of fighting terrorism. With all due respect, Nigeria’s Security Establishments must not metamorphose into terrorists in the guise of fighting terrorists.

Rather than chit-chat paper-tiger committees, we humbly reiterate that it is high time Nigeria articulated a ‘’Coherent and Comprehensive Terrorism, Counter-terrorism Policy/Strategy’’. Since it has become a fad for terrorists and insurgents to target schools, churches and other public institutions, security-conscious individuals, private and public establishments in Nigeria must proactively carry out sporadic ‘’Extensive Vulnerability/Resilience Analysis and Security Audit’’ of their domain and take appropriate steps to nip insecurity in the bud. The recent bombing of a popular shopping mall in Kenya must be an eye-opener.

Let us not wait until after the rainfall to start bringing out kegs to fetch rain water. Please let us give peace a chance. Peace is a sine qua non for development. No country or individual will actualize its/his potentials in a miasma of insecurity and unpredictability. Nigerians Unite Against Insecurity and Terrorism. See it, hear it, say it, stop it!!!

God bless Nigeria and Nigerians!

Signed
Don Okereke
NIGERIANS UNITE AGAINST INSECURITY AND TERRORISM (NUAIT)

www.donokereke..com

Email: donnuait@yahoo.com,
Telephone: +2347080008285,
Twitter: @donokereke

Is Nigeria Truly ‘One Nigeria’

By

Don Okereke

One of the ludicrous clichés bandied about in Nigeria is ‘One Nigeria’. In reality, this impression is akin to a farce. It is apt for those that have stupendously benefited and continue to benefit from this apparent entrapment to ram this ‘One Nigeria’ hullabaloo into the throat of Nigerians. Keep an eye on debates and vituperations on the public space emanating from our supposed intelligentsia and political leaders: the Femi Fani Kayode’s, the Edwin Clarke’s, the Ango Abdullahi’s and the ubiquitous laypersons who hide under anonymous moniker’s on social media/networking platforms and you will see the overt ethnic colourations: it’s about ‘we’, ‘them’, ‘our turn’ ‘their turn’ bla bla bla. Haba! Please let’s eschew sentiments as we mull over and brainstorm viable solutions to the Nigeria mire, sticking point.

Salient issues that led to the first military coup, the counter coup and subsequently the 1967-1970 Civil war in Nigeria remain up in the air. Instead of using the rare opportunity presented by the forthcoming date for the centennial amalgamation of Southern and Northern protectorates of Nigeria for serious sober introspection, economic revival and no-holds-barred re-negotiation and political restructuring, our politicians gad-about with arrangement for a grandiose carnival.

Can we say in all honesty that Nigeria is truly ‘One Nigeria’? Can we say the Nigerian Nation is more cohesive after nearly one hundred years of a forceful amalgamation for the aggrandizement of our colonial masters? Is Nigeria ‘One Nigeria’ where a while ago, about 10 Ibadan (Yoruba) traders that went to Bornu state to transact business were wantonly hacked to death? Are we truly ‘One Nigeria’ where at least 6 out every 10 Igbo’s I know, born and bred or resided in some Northern states for decades have relocated to the South sequel to the Boko Haram onslaught. This déjà vu is recurring more than 30 years after the dreaded infamous Maitatsine group launched a reign of terror in parts of the north. Many non-natives were forced to abandon properties worth millions of naira. A schoolmate of mine was lucky to have sold a real estate investment in Katsina worth about a million naira for 300 thousand naira prior to his relocating to the South East with his family. Don’t forget in a jiffy the ‘’abandoned property’’ hangover in Port Harcourt (River state) aftermath of the 1967-1970 Civil war. Are we ‘One Nigeria’ where the first question a prospective tenant is asked when he/she goes to rent an apartment in some parts of Nigeria is, where are you from? His response determines whether or not the apartment/office space will be rented to him. Are we ‘One Nigeria’ where a prospective undergraduate from Southern Nigeria who sits for UTME (Universities and Tertiary Matriculation Examination), scores say 250 is not admitted into a university but his counterpart from the North who scores 120 is admitted to study medicine? The same principle (a bastardized quota system that exalts mediocrity) applies to admission to our so-called ‘Unity Secondary Schools’ and employment to the Civil Service. Are we ‘One Nigeria’ where a Nigerian (Yoruba from Oyo state) is not allowed to work in Abia state Civil Service and vice versa? Are we truly ‘One Nigeria’ where Niger Republic, Lebanese, Senegalese nationals residing in northern states of Nigeria are more integrated, enjoy the same privileges as locals because they share common bonds of culture and religion whereas a typical Christian Tiv, Idoma, Yoruba, Igbo or Ijaw born and bred in the same environment remain a stranger? Is the rest of Nigeria on the same page with a former governor, a serving senator who unblushingly opines that any girl that protrudes breasts and a pubic hair is matured and can be married off even if the girl is just 9 years old?

With the persistent cries of marginalization, do we all have a sense of belonging as Nigerians? Is every Nigerian especially the minorities as Nigerian as other Nigerians? Are we truly ‘One Nigeria’ where some Hausa/Fulani whose third generations were born and bred in Jos (Plateau state) are still seen as settlers, non-indigenes? Forget about one or two political appointments born out of political-correctitude extended to non-indigenes to give a semblance of egalitarianism/detribalization, can a Hausa man, whose parents and himself were born and bred in Lagos state aspire to be the governor of Lagos state in the next coming elections in 2015? Are we ‘One Nigeria’ where the Lagos state government forcefully, shoddily repatriated (deported) some south easterners to Onitsha recently? Why dump all of them at Onitsha by 2A.M? What happened to human dignity? Are they all from Onitsha? If the Lagos state government claims these folks are destitute, is dumping them at Onitsha the solution to the problem? Given that there are also Yoruba destitute in other parts of Nigeria, how will Yoruba’s feel if their folks residing in other parts of Nigeria are hounded home for no justifiable reason? It appears the Rivers State government has joined the fray for mass repatriation of destitute. We are told the FCT Abuja blazed the trail and got away with it. Very soon other states will join the bandwagon. Such bigoted, irredentist, clannish, jingoistic body language depicts gross insensitivity and invariably fans the embers of disunity. By the way, who is a Lagosian and who is not? If one is born and bred in Lagos to parents of Hausa extraction and have lived in Lagos all his life, is that person a Lagosian or not? If that person finds himself on the wrong side of the law or happens to be unemployed, a destitute, do you send him back to where his parents, grandparents migrated from?

The brouhaha generated by this feckless stunt is avoidable. Hitherto Nigerians do not yet require Visas to travel from one part of the country to the other. This move is also preposterous because devoid of a State Immigration department, the States cannot enforce the deportations, as the deportees can swiftly return the next day if they so wish. How about implanting RFID Chips on the deportees so they can be tracked and prevented from returning? That will be ingenious.

There are destitute, beggars everywhere- New York, London, France etc. If a UK citizen, a destitute from say Birmingham (England) is found in the streets of Aberdeen (Scotland), the authorities will rather rehabilitate that citizen than gaudily repatriate him to Birmingham.

Balkanizing Nigeria may not necessarily be the panacea because even members of a nuclear family disagree and have issues. There is no doubt Nigeria has got potentials. Undoubtedly our sheer size puts us at an advantage on the bargaining table especially among the committee of nations but we really need to appreciate the home truth and take drastic measures to fix the mess in our sphere. Let’s stop postponing the evil day. Inter alia, it is high time this ‘State of Origin Syndrome’ in Nigeria was revisited and sorted out by the National Assembly once and for all.

According to Nigeria’s Constitution, the right to live in any part of Nigeria is INALIENABLE whether one can thrive in that area or not. A Nigerian born in any part of Nigeria must be allowed to automatically assume indigeneship/citizenship of that state and must be entitled to all the privileges that the so-called locals are entitled to. The unprecedented concentration of political power at the centre, the consequent quest for it and the unparalleled financial reward accruable to political office holders in Nigeria, contributes in no small measure to the unending bickering and instability in Nigeria. It is my considered opinion that a political system skewed towards regionalism, true federalism or confederalism (a weak centre) will be ideal for this country. Again, aspirants to State houses of assembly, the national assembly and other political offices in Nigeria should be made to work on part-time basis.

Perhaps we can take a cue from the United Kingdom’s Principle/System of ‘DEVOLUTION’ which ascribes some level of autonomy to the constituent units giving rise to a Welsh Assembly, Welsh Police, Scottish Parliament, Scottish Police, Scottish Health Service etc. It appears the European Union bloc made up of about 27 sovereign countries is more cohesive than Nigeria. At least the EU shares common ideals and culture-democracy, religion, currency amongst others. Destitute or not, citizens of member states of the EU can opt to live and work in any of the member states without fear of deportation unless that person commits a serious criminal offence.

What is your take, from the deepest recesses of your mind, do you think Nigeria is truly ‘One Nigeria’ yet or are we still evolving? Is Nigeria truly one country or a mishmash of countries, individuals at dissimilar strata, pyramid of consciousness and civilization coerced to exist as one? With more than 400 ethnic groups with varied cultural and religious affiliations, are we ever going to be truly ‘One Nigeria’? Are we living a lie? What do you think is the solution to this quagmire? It seems it is only football that unites us?

Please enough of the hate, mudslinging and irredentism. One Nigeria or not, Christian or Moslem, Igbo or Yoruba, Hausa or Ijaw, I humbly implore us all to love one another. God bless you all.

Don Okereke, an Enterprise Security Risk Management Consultant is the CEO of Forenovate Technologies Ltd and a Passionate advocate of ‘Nigerians Unite Against Insecurity and Terrorism’. Email: donnuait@yahoo.com, Phone: +2347080008285, Twitter: @ donokereke

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
NIGERIANS UNITE AGAINST INSECURITY AND TERRORISM (NUAIT)
ABUJA, NIGERIA. 15/07/2013

Purported Ceasefire With Boko Haram Crumbles Once Again.

Shortly before the commencement of the Ramadan fasting, the Minister of Special Duties and the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Peaceful Resolution of Security Challenges in the North, one Mr. Kabiru Turaki swaggered around with pageantry and enjoined Nigerians that his Committee has reached an ‘understanding’ for a ceasefire with the Boko Haram Sect. He opined that the ceasefire agreement will soon be signed publicly with the Sect. This is not the first time Nigerian authorities will be claiming that BH has accepted to negotiate or enter into a ceasefire with them.

We have consistently expressed doubts over this ceasefire, negotiation and so-called amnesty deals. Contrary to Mr. Turaki’s assertion, information reaching us from Premium Times indicates the YouTube trendy leader of Boko Haram-Abubarka Shekau issued a Video Release denying a ceasefire deal with the Nigerian government. The Sect leader reportedly said in Hausa language, ‘’we will not enter into any agreement with non-believers or the Nigerian government’’. The Sect threatens to burn more schools. Must the Nigerian authorities force-feed BH with negotiation, ceasefire and amnesty? If indeed the Committee reached an ‘understanding’ with BH, it would have been savvy, wise of the Committee to ask BH to announce the ceasefire themselves. Now Mr. Turaki has embarrassed himself and his Committee. It is interesting to note that the Nigerian government has since proscribed BH. It beggars believe that this same government is still bent on negotiating, attaining ceasefire deals with a group it outlawed. Does this depict inconsistency, policy summersault or is this Nigeria’s adaptation of a carrot and stick approach?

Love him or hate him, Mr. Abubarka Shekau has been consistent. So who is lying, Mr. Turaki or the Sect leader? Since Abubarka Shekau is the bona fide leader of the virulent faction of Boko Haram, who did Mr. Turaki and his group reach this ‘understanding’ for a ceasefire with? The BH miasma has attracted international dimension and attention. The UK government recently proscribed the group. With a bounty on his head by the United States government, it will take a lot of brainwashing by Nigerian authorities for Shekau to abandon his vocation.

Recall that President Jonathan named a 26-member ‘’Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Peaceful Resolution of Security Challenges in the North’’ on April 17, 2013. The Committee was given a 60-day time frame to submit its report. There is no gainsaying the fact that this Committee is not fit for purpose and has overstayed its welcome. We implore President Jonathan not to heed any call for an extension of time for the Committee to finish its work. This Boko Haram miasma is fast becoming a money-spinner for some people. If public fund is appropriated to the Committee, then it’s high time it was reined in before it metamorphoses into another gala affair.

Nigeria has become synonymous with leadership by jumbled unnecessary Committees. We must do away with this penchant for setting up paper-tiger Committees/Panels each time an incident happens in Nigeria. The Committee goes to work, submits it report and it is business as usual again. Sooner than later, the report of the Panel/Committee join their ancestors in ‘’Nigeria’s burgeoning National Archive of Committee Reports’’ and it is business as usual again.
Rather than chit-chat committees, let us have a template in place that stipulates how incidents should be handled. We reiterate that it is high time Nigeria articulated a ‘’Coherent and Comprehensive Terrorism, Counter-terrorism Policy/Strategy’’. We deduce it has become a fad for terrorists and insurgents to target schools, churches and other public institutions. In its latest Video, the de facto leader of Boko Haram threatened to sustain its attacks on schools. It goes without saying that security-conscious establishments, schools etc in Nigeria must be proactive, carry out sporadic ‘’Extensive Vulnerability/Resilience Analysis and Security Audit’’ of their domain and take appropriate steps to nip this recurring decimal in the bud. We also advocate that more efforts and resources be geared towards intelligence gathering. Let us do away with our fire-brigade approach and mentality. Every thoughtful and security-minded country or individual, hopes for the best but prepares for the worst. A wise saying goes, after a battle, sharpen your sword.

Please let us give peace a chance. Peace is a sine qua non for development. No country or individual will actualize its/his potentials in a haze of insecurity and unpredictability. Nigerians Unite Against Insecurity and Terrorism. See it, hear it, say it, stop it!!!

God bless Nigeria and Nigerians!

[b]Signed
Don Okereke

www.donokereke..com
Email: donnuait(at)yahoo.com
Twitter: @donokereke



Attention:
1. President Goodluck Jonathan
2. Alhaji Sambo Dasuki (National Security Adviser)
3. Chief of Defence Staff
4. Chief of Army Staff
5. Mr. Mohammed Abubarka (Inspector General of Police)
6. Ekpeyong E. Ita (DG, State Security Service (SSS)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
NIGERIANS UNITE AGAINST INSECURITY AND TERRORISM (NUAIT)
ABUJA, NIGERIA. 07/07/2013

The Slaughtering of School Children in Potiskum (Yobe State) and the Langtang (Plateau State) Killings.


Once again Nigeria’s public space is inundated with news of the sporadic massacre of school children and their teacher(s) at Government Secondary School, Mamudo, Potiskum, Yobe State by gunmen suspected to be members of the dreaded Boko Haram Sect. Latest report indicates the death toll may have risen to 42. In June, a similar attack was masterminded on a school in Damaturu ensuing in the death of about 7 Pupils and 2 teachers.
A while ago skirmishes in Magama, Bolgan and Karkashi villages of Langtang South Local Government Area of Plateau State by suspected Fulani militias resulted in the death of dozens of people. Sun Newspapers indicates the death toll sequel to the invasion of these villages may have risen to 70 with the Divisional Crime Officer (DCO) attached to the area adjudged missing.

At the time of penning this Piece, news emerged that 34 people were feared dead somewhere in Benue state aftermath of a clash with suspected Fulani herdsmen. It follows that more than 100 people have been hacked to death in the last one week in Nigeria.

We whined, wallowed in self-denial and blame-game when a recent study of 80 countries by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) ranked Nigeria as the worst country for a child to be born in. The aforementioned events seem to validate this report.

These witless and atrocious killings are unbecoming and unacceptable. There is no justification whatsoever for these barbaric killing of innocent Nigerians. We strongly condemn these killings and we implore the masterminds to sheathe their swords. We also entreat our security agencies to do everything within their powers to bring the masterminds of these heinous crimes to book. For starters, forensic analysis of expended bullets or pellets found in a crime scene will give some pointers as to where those bullets came from. The fingerprints on the weapons or the crime scene will ascertain who committed the crime. An antecedent of culprits’ getting away with such crimes is a subtle invitation to anarchism.

Nigeria is becoming synonymous with indiscriminate butchery of innocent people. If it is not Niger Delta militants today, it is Boko Haram; if it is not Fulani herdsmen, it is Ombatse. Such unwholesome proclivities and incidents are obtainable only in war-torn environments such as Iraq, Somalia, and Afghanistan etc. Our politicians detest this home truth but these upshots strongly and overtly attest that Nigeria is adrift. There is no gainsaying the fact that the value of life and life expectancy in Nigeria is increasingly dropping at an alarming proportion. There is no outrage anymore when these things happen. Chit-chat, paper-tiger Committees and sub-committees are consequently set up; staggering amounts of money is appropriated to them. Sooner than later, the reports of the various panels and Committees join their ancestors in ‘’Nigeria’s burgeoning National Archive of Committee Reports’’ and it is business as usual again.

On April 17, 2013, President Jonathan named a 26-member ‘’Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Peaceful Resolution of Security Challenges in the North’’. The Committee was given a 60-day time frame to submit its report. It appears this Committee has overstayed its welcome. If public fund is appropriated to the Committee, then it’s high time it was reined in before it metamorphoses into another jamboree.

We also have some posers: will the declaration of a state of emergency in the hotbeds of insurgency and terrorism in Nigeria be ongoing? Given that declaration of state of emergency is a kneejerk and temporary measure, what happens when it comes to an end? Since these guys still manage to launch intermittent attacks even with the state of emergency, is that not a pointer that they mean business and are not ready to lay down their arms in a jiffy or to even hibernate? What happens if and when BH decides to export their stock-in-trade to other less hostile states in the north or other parts of the country, you also declare a state of emergency in those areas? Boko Haram is waging unconventional (guerrilla-style) warfare with the Nigerian state hence deploying a detachment of gung-ho soldiers and police officers in the name of JTF is a welcomed development but not a lasting solution. We commend the efforts and sacrifices of our Security agencies especially the JTF. However we suggest a reappraisal of the JTF Operation and strategy. Our security agencies must not wallow in the euphoria of their effervescent quasi accomplishments.

The N6billion naira yearly security vote accruable to the state governors must be judiciously utilized and accounted for. Government must also decipher and deal with the sponsors of these terrorists and insurgents; tackling the foot-soldiers offers little help. Our government must tackle the remote and immediate causes of insecurity and terrorism in Nigeria.

At the risk of over-egging the pudding, it is high time Nigeria articulated a ‘’Coherent and Comprehensive Terrorism, Counter-terrorism Policy/Strategy’’. We deduce it has become a fad for terrorists and insurgents to target schools, churches and other public institutions. We advocate that security-conscious establishments in Nigeria proactively carry out sporadic ‘’Extensive Vulnerability/Resilience Analysis and Security Audit’’ of their domain and take appropriate steps to nip this recurring decimal in the bud. We also advocate that more efforts and resources be geared towards intelligence gathering. Let us do away with our fire-brigade approach and mentality. Let us do away with our penchant for randomly setting up committees and sub-committees every time something happens. Every thoughtful and security-minded country or individual, hopes for the best but prepares for the worst. A wise saying goes, after a battle, sharpen your sword.

Please let us give peace a chance. No country or individual will make significant progress and positive impact in a miasma of insecurity and unpredictability. Nigerians Unite Against Insecurity and Terrorism. See it, hear it, say it, stop it!!!

God bless Nigeria and Nigerians!

Signed
Don Okereke
donnuait@yahoo.com
+2347080008285


Attention:
1. President Goodluck Jonathan
2. Alhaji Sambo Dasuki (National Security Adviser)
3. Senator David Mark (President of the Senate)
4. Hon. Aminu Tambuwal (Speaker House of Representatives)
5. Chief of Defence Staff
6. Chief of Army Staff
7. The Minister of Justice & Attorney General of Nigeria
8. Mr. Mohammed Abubarka (Inspector General of Police)
9. Ekpeyong E. Ita (DG, State Security Service (SSS))
10. All 36 State governors in Nigeria
11. All DIG’s, AIG’s, and Police Commissioners of Police
12. All radio, TV, Media houses and Internet bloggers
13. Civil Liberties Organization, Nigeria
14. Nigerian Bar Association (NBA)
15. Amnesty International
16. Human Rights Watch
17. National Human Rights Commission

Ban on Unregistered SIM Cards: Matters Arising

By

Don Okereke

Now that the National Communication Commission (NCC) has wielded the big stick by disconnecting millions of unregistered GSM SIM Cards after a couple of previous botched attempts, let us critically examine this policy and serious concerns that have been glided over by the ombudsman.

At the risk of over-egging the pudding, I dare say that one of our greatest undoing in this part of the world is our proclivity for not stimulating debates or accommodating dissenting opinions and well-intentioned criticisms on national issues.

Just recently we were told that Nigeria’s military authorities banned the use of Satellite phones in the hotbeds of terrorism and insurgency in Northern Nigeria. Granted that satellite calls do not traverse the normal GSM channels but they can be tracked too. Instead of banning the use of such phones, we expect our military authorities to acquire the technological competence to track the origin and end-point of such calls. Perhaps Nigeria’s military/Security establishment should have a word with Edward Snowden, the runaway American Intelligence Contractor and extract from him how the American government eavesdrops and surreptitiously monitors phone and internet communications.

Calls to my folks in some Northern parts of the country where State of emergency were declared cannot get through because it appears GSM operation has been shut down in those areas. So you deny millions of innocent citizens the opportunity to communicate just because you want to stop a handful of Boko Haram members from disseminating or exchanging information. By this disingenuous move, you have overtly and/or inadvertently told the bad guys that their activities can be monitored through their phone activities. Will the disruption of phone calls in these areas last forever? The answer is NO! The bad guys will simply hibernate, revert to the medieval modes of communication (human-to-human) or better still launch their nefarious activities in some other less hostile areas. Sometimes one wonders whose interest our so-called ogas-at-the-top are serving?

Given our penchant for doing things by fiat and the reactionary mindset of our so-called gaffers, it will be unsurprising if we wake up someday and hear that Nigerians have been banned from driving cars because there was a road mishap which claimed lives. Most advanced countries are rather proactive and when incidents, one-offs, occurs as they bound to, they dig into the remote and immediate causes and plug the loophole.

By acts of commission or omission, buck-passing and bootlicking have been exalted to a creed with many followers in Nigeria. Somebody robs with a motor bike in Nigeria; the solution is to ban the use of motor bikes. Somebody on a vehicle with a tinted glass commits an offence; the solution is to ban the use of vehicles with tinted glasses without necessary looking at the raison d'être of such incidents. It was in the news recently that importation of Generators to Nigeria will soon be banned. Nigeria is becoming synonymous with the word ‘ban’. Ban this, ban that, no viable solution or alternative. The last time I checked, textiles/used cloths are contraband in Nigeria yet our markets are awash with these products. The foregoing are classic examples of a tyranny of the few; a few gaffers ramming down their hogwash ideas into the throats of hapless Nigerians.

A while ago, there was so much frenzy and pageantry over SIM Card registration, one recalls with nostalgia long queues of people shoving one another and angling to register their SIM even under scorching sun. It was akin to an emergency. Enter NCC’s Reuben Muoka who opines that ‘’the SIM registration exercise is an avenue to reduce crime rate in our society and also give subscribers proper identification’’. As I write, kidnappers are still having a field day with impunity and getting their ransom money. We want the NCC to go beyond declarations and extenuate the genuine concerns and potential shortcomings of SIM Card registration that will be highlighted in this piece of writing.

Proponents of this ill-fated exercise bandied and juggled figures to justify their take that SIM Card registration is the panacea to the unprecedented insecurity and terrorism challenges bedeviling Nigeria. This white elephant project reportedly gulped N6billion naira. The National Assembly cried foul play, threatened fire and brimstone promising to investigate the SIM Card registration exercise. Several months later, Nigerians are yet to hear the outcome of their investigation.

From the ambit of a Security Analyst, my take is that the SIM Card registration thing may just be a time bomb waiting to happen if not well reined in. To be fair, there is an iota of benefit accruable from such an exercise but the haphazard deployment of the exercise seems to have made a mess of it all. It appears we are putting the cart before the horse. For a start, there is need for a well-defined Data Protection Act/Law which will inter alia stipulate how personal information of citizens should be stored and protected and also penalties meted out should citizens information be compromised. One is oblivious of such an Act/Law in Nigeria as is obtainable in most advanced countries. So far, the right to privacy stems from section 37 of the 1999 Constitution which stipulates that ‘’the Privacy of citizens, their homes, correspondence, telephone conversations and telegraphic communications are guaranteed’’. If this section of the Nigerian Constitution is anything to go by, it behoves the NCC and telecom operators to adhere strictly to the dictates of the spirit and letters of this section of the Constitution. On a related note, Aso Rock may have an uphill task convincing Nigerians and the National Assembly the need for an internet monitoring contract supposedly awarded by the present administration to Elbit Systems.

Sequel to the ban on unregistered SIM Cards, here are some salient questions begging for answers: What type of encryption will be used to protect the private information of citizens? Who manages this database, is it the telecom operators or the NCC? Are there penalties for unscrupulous defaulters? Should the database be accessed for any reason whatsoever, is there a sort of ‘’chain-of-custody’’ as to who accessed it, why it was accessed and on whose request? Do we have the capability to monitor (track the precise coordinates) of calls in Nigeria in Real Time? It appears what obtains right now is a situation where somebody ends a call before his/her geographical location can be extrapolated using the nearest phone mast. If this is the case, the caller must have left the scene. If one’s phone is stolen or lost and some other person uses it to perpetrate a crime before the owner blocks it or reports it as stolen, how will you ascertain the owner is innocent? Many of the pictures or photographs captured by the Data Capture Consultants cannot pass the rudimentary requirement for facial recognition. Devoid of a verifiable comprehensive database of Nigerians, which other database will be used to reconcile or interrogate that of the NCC?

Ensuant to widespread instances of multiple SIM Card registrations and sales of pre-registered SIM Cards by some unscrupulous individuals and vendors coupled with rampart cases of subscribers giving unverifiable information at the point of registration, the SIM Card registration exercise is anything but a success. Again involvement of Private companies as Data Capture Consultants hampered the SIM registration exercise with its resultant dire security and privacy implications. In this age of wiki leaks, whistle blowing, paparazzi, phone bugging, internet surveillance monitoring, cyber warfare and hacking; can we confidently say that our private information are in safe hands? Need we say that terrorists, criminals, foreign state actors etc can hack into or bribe their way into such a database if it is not well encrypted or secured? Recall that the United States and China are currently enmeshed in an unending finger-pointing over cyber attacks.

Don’t forget in a jiffy that sometime last year, the personal information (house address, bank account numbers etc) of serving and retired Personnel’s of Nigeria’s State Security Service (SSS) went viral online. Now imagine the far-reaching implications of concentrating all the personal information of Nigeria’s plus or minus 100 million mobile phone subscribers in one place. From the foregoing, it follows that centralizing the personal information-names, addresses, fingerprints, passport photographs, dates of births etc of all GSM users in a central database devoid of International best practices and protection is to say the least, a national disaster waiting to happen. I cringed when I stumbled on a Nigerian Company offering for sale, a database of the plus or minus 100 million GSM Subscribers in Nigeria.

Permit me to underscore a case I had to investigate and sort out a while ago in my line of Professional Calling to emphasize my qualms with this SIM Card registration fixation. My client remitted money into somebody’s bank account for a transaction and the bloke absconded. My client did not know where the geezer lives or how to get hold of him but he had the bank teller he used for the remittance. After brainstorming on viable solutions, I waltz into one of the bank branches that the runaway geezer had an account with. After deploying some ‘Social Engineering’ expertise, pronto I got the guys house address. When we finally tracked the guy, he thought we were ghosts. The above scenario enunciates the far-reaching implication of somebody volunteering his personal information unmindful of how it can be used or accessed. The same applies to hapless Nigerians giving out their personal information under the guise of a SIM Card registration that is deficient of proper checks and balances.

For the record, an individual’s fingerprint is strictly PERSONAL and unique to that person. No two human beings on mother earth have exactly the same fingerprint. Two people can share the same blood group, genotype etc but no two human beings (identical twins inclusive) have the same fingerprint. This explains why a fingerprint is crucial in forensically linking a culprit or suspect to a crime scene. Hence, if you want me to volunteer my fingerprint for any reason, there must be a law, guideline, guaranty if you like, that spells out how my fingerprint should be kept, stored or protected so it does not fall into wrong hands. According to International best practices, the only people that have waived the right to the privacy of their fingerprints are convicted felons.

The last time I checked, the United States of America and the rest of Europe did not have to waste equivalents of N6billion naira on a white elephant project in the name of SIM Card registration. If it were to be such a viable project, will these countries not have done it before us? Till date GSM subscribers still buy pay-as-you-go SIM Cards across North America and Europe.

Still reasoning from the compass of common sense, a smart criminal, say a kidnapper in Nigeria hell bent on perpetrating a crime can still easily obtain an unregistered SIM Card from any neighbouring or distant foreign country, roam it and use in Nigeria. So what is this entire hullabaloo? If the above scenario is far-fetched, what happens if say a kidnapper goes to one of the nearest ubiquitous commercial phone operators, pays N20, places his call, makes his request for a ransom and waltz back to his den. Who do you apprehend, the hapless and innocent Phone Operator?

Conclusion:
The registration of SIM Cards may be well-intentioned. Our gripe is that it is poorly managed and the timing is wrong. The home truth is that this concept is not a stand-alone panacea to the hydra-headed insecurity and terrorism miasma currently bedeviling Nigerians as we are meant to believe. As a matter of fact, if not well harnessed, such an exercise may just be a national disaster in the offing. Again, if we must toe such a path, we must stick to International best practices. We must not put the cart before the horse. Devoid of an authentic Identity Card, if a SIM Card subscriber registers his details as say, ‘Sani Abacha’, how will you ascertain he is not whom he claims he is? One would suffice Nigeria first of all sorts out a comprehensive database of Nigerians. Perhaps the current National Identification Number (NIN) Project should be given some bite and must not go the way of the previous exercise under the auspices of Afolabi, the then Minister of Internal affairs.

In addition to having comprehensive national crime databases accessible in real time by respective police forces in the nook and cranny of their homeland, the United States have a Social Security Number; the United Kingdom have a National Insurance Number. Most adults of working age in these countries have these numbers. When this number is fed into a database, it spews information about that person.

The national Assembly must rise up to the occasion by articulating or fine-tuning (if one already exists) a comprehensive Data Protection Act/Law to save Nigerians and indeed themselves from the impending catastrophic miasma of the hyped SIM card registration exercise. It is also incumbent on the Human Right Community and the Nigerian media (Print and Electronic) to take this battle up.

Since the various GSM Operators bankrolled the SIM card registration of their respective networks, may we humbly implore the NCC to account how they expended the N6billion earmarked for the SIM registration exercise?
Let us do away with our gung-ho knee-jerk swagger to issues of strategic national interest and come up with thoughtful lasting solutions.
I am a die-hard adherent of superior argument/reason; I beseech the NCC and proponents of this SIM Registration phenomenon to assuage the cogent concerns of some discerning and patriotic Nigerians who have the temerity to fend against bandwagon effect.

Don Okereke
(Security Analyst & Consultant)
Abuja, Nigeria
donnuait@yahoo.com
Phone: +2347080008285

The Audacity of ‘Lone Wolf’ Terrorism
By
Don Okereke

Introduction
The recent gruesome daylight murder of a 25-year-old off-duty British Army Drummer- Lee Rigby, in Woolwich, Southeast London five weeks after the Boston Marathon bombings in the United States of America, has once again brought to the fore, the growing threat of ‘Lone Wolf’ Terrorism, a new terror impetus towards unsophisticated and uncoordinated attacks that are virtually impossible to thwart. A cardinal analogy between the London and the Boston incidents is the prospect that the suspected masterminds became radicalized and may have inculcated their proficiency from extremist publications on the Internet. The potency of terrorism generally is that it alters the psyche of a society and instills fear in the minds of people.

The Shifting Face of Terrorism
Some analysts have described the London attack as a form of "open-source jihad". Recent incidents lend credence to the assertion that 'lone wolf' attacks seems to be the new corridor to terror. Lone Wolf terrorism narrows the ease with which terrorists slip between the seams of a country’s security, military/defence establishment.

To refresh our minds, terrorism refers to ‘premeditated acts that are committed with the intent to seriously intimidate a population, or unduly coerce a Government or international organization to perform or refrain from performing any act, or seriously destabilizing or destroying the fundamental political, constitutional, economic or social structures of a country or an organization’ (Council of the European Union, 2002).

According to Dr. Boaz Ganor, a counterterrorism expert at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya, Israel, terrorist attacks can be divided into two types: “personal initiative” attacks, and “organized terrorism”.

A lone wolf is an individual or small group of individuals who use regular terrorist tactics – including violence and the targeting of civilians -- towards the realization of overtly political or ideological goals, but who act devoid of membership or cooperation with an official or unofficial terrorist organization, cell or group. Lone wolf terrorists are tricky to spot and cannot be easily sniffed out by Security agencies. Lone-wolf terrorists may identify or empathize with extremist movements, but they do not form part of these movements. The boundaries of lone-wolf terrorism are often foggy juxtaposed with crimes carried out strictly for personal reasons (cf. Hewitt, 2005).

Sequel to the waning of Al Qaeda's leadership cum network by more than a decade of protracted war with the U.S. and its allies, analysts believe that ‘lone wolf’ terrorism will pose an enormous threat to World Peace. The audacious reassertion of irredentist, racial and religious identities is sequel to the fact that the capability to propagate violence is increasingly trickling down from State actors to Non-state actors and even to ‘Lone wolves’ or freelancers. Because of this escalating flux in the application of raw power, smaller groups and in many cases freelancers are upping the ante in the deployment of terror and acts of subversion.

There are significant and profitable insights to be gleaned from understanding the phenomenon and modus operandi ‘Lone Wolf’ terrorism.

Please if you care, kindly read the rest of the article here: [url]http://www.scribd.com/doc/145818951/The-Audacity-of-%E2%80%98Lone-Wolf%E2%80%99-Terrorism[/url]

Don Okereke
(Security Analyst & Consultant)
Abuja, Nigeria
Email: donnuait@yahoo.com
Phone: +2347080008285
Twitter: @ DonOkereke

Do’s and Don’ts of Renting an Apartment/Office Space in Nigeria (Part 2)

By
Don Okereke



Continued from (part 1)

6. Tenancy agreements and Quit notice angle. I have come across a lot of them; most of them are skewed in favour of the landlord and meant to intimidate the tenant. I came across a particular tenancy agreement which reads: ‘’…you must not come back or knock at the gate after 10pm; you must not use a gas cooker or electric cooker, ‘the tenant hereby agrees to be served a one month quit notice if the landlord wishes to take possession of the house’’. I also came across another tenancy agreement where the landlord said he can enter the tenant’s apartment ANYTIME he wishes to check the condition of the house. This is a bit too far. It’s trespassing.

I am not a legal expert but I am pretty sure that the Tenancy act/law and the Constitution supersede all these hogwash some landlords bandy as ‘tenancy agreement’ or quit notice.

Unfortunately a lot of tenants out there are oblivious of their rights and the dictates of the tenancy law. Tenants that are cannot hire a lawyer can seek help from the Public Defender Office or Citizen Mediation Centers. With the advent of the Lagos state tenancy law, the era of a landlord giving a tenant one week or 28 days quit notice has gone. The tenancy law also forbids landlords or their agents from disrupting essential amenities: electricity, water supply etc to the tenant.

7. Beware paying down payment for unfinished or uncompleted properties. This is another booby trap. This headline may interest you: ‘’Developer flees after duping 31 accommodation seekers’’-Punch Newspaper, October 31, 2012. This is a common occurrence in Nigeria but people still fall for it usually out of desperation. So if you are really in dire need of an accommodation, be cautious in paying towards the completion of an unfinished apartment. There is no guarantee it will be finished as at when due.

8. Before you rent an apartment, find out why the previous occupant(s) vacated the premises. You can glean one or two information from neighbours especially whether the landlord is troublesome, occultic etc. It may be a tell-tale sign if you find out that the previous tenant in that apartment moved out before or at the expiration of their initial rent. Ever heard of ‘Scorpion houses’? They exist! Rent such an apartment only if you are one of them or stronger than them spiritually. Whether you are superstitious or not, it’s a fact that some houses/environments are haunted, bewitched or cursed. Again, this is not a Nigerian thing. Am sure you don’t wanna pay for what you do not know. I once rented an office on a street that has a long history of business failures. Almost every business along that street is comatose. One or two spiritually discerning clients that came to that my office asked me if I prayed before renting that place or paying the Landlord. I guess you can draw an inference from such allusions. It is not unusual to see people consulting their Pastor’s, Alfa’s, Native doctor’s etc before they move into an apartment or office. They say prevention is better than cure. Prospective tenants are not alone in employing the services of pastor’s, alfa’s etc to ascertain whether an apartment is conducive or not. Many landlords also employ the services of clairvoyants etc to do a ‘background check’ on prospective tenants. My former landlady unwittingly boasted that she checked me and my wife out, I mean she consulted a Seer who Okayed us before she agreed to rent the apartment to us. Let me spare you of conspiracy theories and dreadful renting experiences in Nigeria.

Another reason to ask neighbours about the apartment or office space prior to renting is because some places are flood-plains or the roof of the house may be leaking seriously. Am sure you know that it is easier for most of the landlords/agents to collect your money than to refund it for whatever reason. A very good time to rent an apartment is during the rainy season as you don’t necessarily have to ask people around whether the area is prone to flooding or not. You will see it by yourself. Sometimes if the rent for an apartment is too good to be true, it is a telltale sign that something is wrong somewhere.

9. Please if possible, avoid living in the same compound or building with your landlord/landlady because more often than not, there will be issues. This usually obtains with some of the unenlightened, unreasonable landlords that may not have sojourned outside their locality or those ones that inherited properties not appreciating what it takes to build a house. Most times these folks and even their kids will want you to kowtow to them. This is always an issue between some Yoruba landlords and their Igbo tenants. The Yoruba culture entails younger people bowing or prostrating to greet their seniors but not so with the Igbo’s hence they see some of us as not been respectful. You may also have issues when you live in the same compound with some of these lonely old landlords. Every little thing irritates them, they stay at home 247 and monitor your going out and coming in. They see you as one of their ‘children’ forgetting you are paying them rent. Sometimes it is akin to living with your parents. I once lived in the same compound with a Yoruba landlady who constantly reminds me and my wife that she has children our age. So what you if you have children my age, at least I am not directly one of your children. I have a business (tenancy) relationship with you so you ought to treat me with some iota of respect. Per adventure you move into a compound where the landlord/landlady also resides, never make the mistake of trying to be too close to them. Certain relationships tend to last when there is some kind of distance or space between people.

10. Availability of water, steady power (electricity) supply. Bad as constant power (electricity) supply is in Nigeria, there are still areas that enjoy upwards of sporadic 15 hours electricity every day. It does not even have to be any of the posh areas. Towns neighbouring the Kainji Dam are said to enjoy fairly constant electricity supply. I visited a friend somewhere around Alimosho (Lagos state) and I was amazed that these guys are privileged to enjoy electricity supply at least 12 hours every day, of course intermittently. I did a little research and I deduced that in some cases, that an area enjoys fairly constant electricity supply in Nigeria is directly proportional and can be a function of any or a combination of the following: senior PHCN officials, prominent politician lives in that area or there is an unholy alliance between PHCN staff and Companies around there. Imagine the money individuals and businesses located in such areas will save from not relying on generators. It is always painful when a street or locality has electricity and the next street/locality wallows in abject darkness.

11. Probable questions Landlords or Agents will ask you. When you go searching for an apartment in Nigeria, be prepared to answer all manner of questions from landlords/landlady’s and Agents. Don’t be surprised if the first question a would-be landlord asks you is, ‘’where are you from or what part of the country are you from’’? This is the most popular question. Your answer will invariably make or mar your chances of the apartment been rented to you. Tell them you are from a particular tribe and you will immediately notice from their countenance that you have lost it. The ‘Agents’ will tell you upfront that so and so landlord does not rent his house to so and so tribe. To give you an idea how popular this question is, of the ten or thereabout landlords/landlady’s and agents that I contacted prior to my moving house sometime, it was only one that did not bother to know where I was from. I later discovered that the landlord is widely travelled and has lived in different parts of Nigeria at different times. Some prospective tenants disown their origin to get what they want. Another likely question you should be careful in answering is, ‘’how many children do you have’’? It took me some split seconds to reconcile myself with the import of the question when it was jabbed at me. It is understandable if you asked one his occupation and all that perhaps to weigh his chances of meeting up with rent payments but asking a prospective tenant the number of children he has got, is to say the least ludicrous. It may be extenuating asking a tenant that wants to rent just a room how many kids he has got as some landlords are concerned larger families will easily fill their soakaways. Try as I can, I just can’t fathom the justification in asking somebody (especially a young man) that wants to rent a three-bedroom flat how many kids he has got. Another question that you should also expect is whether you are single or married. Of course this may be to know whether the person is responsible or not. Like I said earlier some of the landlords with such parochial dispositions are the un-enlightened ones that have probably not sojourned outside their abode or those arrogant one’s that inherited the property.

Postscript:
In addition to the tenancy law, an urgent step must be taken to rein in the activities of these so-called ‘’Estate Agents’’ in Nigeria. This ‘industry’ is now synonymous with touting, fraught with exploitation and needs to be sanitized. How can you justify a situation where a tenant pays say N150, 000 (annually) as rent for a flat and pays an agent N60,000 and N40,000 respectively as ‘Commission’ and ‘Agreement’. By the time you sum ‘Commission, ‘agreement’, ‘damages’ etc, the rent fee is doubled.

The National Assembly must beam its search light in this area. It is high time they intervened and enacts an enabling state-wide law that curbs this mess. A pragmatic and encouraging mortgage regime will tremendously help too.

Don Okereke
(Security Analyst & Consultant)
donnuait@yahoo.com
+2347080008285

Do’s and Don’ts of Renting an Apartment/Office Space in Nigeria

By
Don Okereke


Preamble
If this were to be a university course, perhaps an apt title would read, ‘’Renting 101 in Nigeria’’ or ‘’Fundamentals of Renting in Nigeria’’.

Much has been written and published online on ‘’Relocating to Nigeria’’ and all that. These essays are usually skewed towards advising Nigerians in Diaspora wishing to relocate to Nigeria but there is a dearth of information out there on the specifics, the nitty-gritty if you like, of renting an apartment or office space in Nigeria. I have come across acerbic tales of renting an apartment in Nigeria and this galvanized me to put pen to paper. I believe many people out there will glean nuggets of information from it. A lot of people have fallen prey to the caprices of the so-called ‘’Estate Agents’’ and landlords in Nigeria hence the need to bring this to the front burner.

Few days ago, a family friend lost a substantial amount to a so-called ‘’estate developer’’ that absconded with his money and that of five others. I did a quick Google research on this topic but no specific details sprang up hence I decided to coalesce my thoughts on this so other people out there can benefit from it.

If my experience in renting an accommodation in Southwest Nigeria is anything to go by, then the Unity of this country and the often bandied cliché ‘One Nigeria’ is grossly exaggerated. We surely have a long way to go! It beggars belief that a Yoruba landlady will bluntly tell a prospective Igbo tenant that it is over her dead body to rent her house to an Igbo man. I guess some Igbo landlords reciprocate the same gesture towards the Yoruba’s too. These folks are still living in the past, probably a déjà vu from the Biafran war or previous bad experiences that makes them to extrapolate. That a Yoruba landlord had issues with an Igbo tenant does not mean every prospective Igbo person will be a bad tenant and vice versa. I am not trying to hold brief for Igbo folks here. Yes, there are bad ones; same also applies to other tribes. So rather than judge everybody with the misdeeds of others, we should rather relate with people on a one-on-one basis. It follows that I am not trying to fan the embers of ethnic vituperations and jingoism here; most of what I write herein are borne out of my personal experience and those I gleaned from other folks. Moving on.

There is no gainsaying the fact that searching for and renting an apartment in Nigeria is an arduous task. A lot of people have fallen victim and still fall victim to well-orchestrated fraudulent schemes by fraudsters and the so-called ‘’Real Estate Agents’’.

Nigeria rates very high in the echelon of Nations where tenants are unwittingly constrained into living in a rented apartment for upwards of 25 years with no plans of moving out sooner than later. A next door neighbor I know has lived in a two bedroom apartment with his family for about 27 years and he does not seem to be in a hurry to move anytime soon. It’s not that these folks enjoy the attendant insult and bullshit that comes with this type of scenario, it’s just that they have no choice. Devoid of the financial muscle to pay two years or more rent in advance plus the so-called ‘deposit’, ‘commission’, ‘agreement’, ‘damages’ etc, many tenants stay put in their current abode. In some places/cases, prospective tenants are asked to pay for PHCN (electricity bill) in advance! Contrast this with what obtains in most Western or even some neighboring African countries where tenants are required to pay just one month rent in advance and probably an equivalent amount as deposit.

It is common practice to see/hear people testifying in church, singing praises just because they managed ‘by fire by force’ to move or rent a new apartment.

This ‘accommodation wahala’ as it is popularly called in Nigerian parlance, is sequel to the fact that there is a dearth of a viable National Housing or Mortgage Policy. So there is a plethora of tenants chasing few apartments in Nigeria. People are left to fend for themselves. Again contrast this scenario with what prevails in most Western countries where Councils or developers build apartments and citizens can access sometimes upwards of 100% mortgage from Banks or Building Societies. Remember Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Northern Rock etc.

Due to the global recession and depression, Banks and Building Societies in the West seldom give 100% mortgage but as long as you have a steady job or source of income, accessing and servicing a mortgage contract in any typical Western nation is almost seamless. Depending on one’s credit history and other factors, a mortgagee can be asked to make 10% deposit payment for the apartment whereas the balance is spread say over a 25-30 year period. With the 10% down payment, the mortgagee now becomes a landlord/landlady and will make monthly remittances to the appropriate Bank or Building Society usually through direct debit payments.

I recall the days of Federal Low Cost Housing Estates. How many people-civil servants with 18,000 minimum wages can afford the so-called low-cost housing estates that some State governments or real estate developers bandy about these days? Imagine where say Lagos State government or a Big-time developer replicates equivalents of the 1004 Block of flats in Victoria Island in all the local governments in Lagos state.

The Lagos state government took a bold step by enacting a ‘Tenancy law’ which has generated a lot of debate. This is definitely a step in the right direction. However the ‘tenancy law’ is almost tantamount to a paper tiger. For now, there is a dearth of information on favorable test cases to this effect. Again, a lot of tenants are ignorant of the dictates of the law; those that are in the know may be desperate for an accommodation and will not fight for their right.

It’s a big jungle out here, like they say in Nigerian parlance: shine your eye well well!

Now to the nitty-gritty:
1. Please ensure you are issued a receipt when you pay for an apartment even if the apartment belongs to a family friend. Don’t leave anything to chance because people can be funny over here. The same applies when you renew your rent; ensure your payment is receipted. It follows that if your payment is not receipted, there is no prove of your payment should things metamorphose into a legal issue. Never assume because you lived there amicably the first year therefore it will continue to be like that. Many of these so-called landlords/landladies will be nice to you the first year but will like to frustrate you subsequently so they can rent the apartment/shop to a new tenant that will pay them another round of ‘agreement’, ‘commission’ ‘deposit’, ‘NEPA’ etc.

2. Ensure there is good access road and probably proximity to a bus stop. There are areas you live in and you have to be changing your car tyres often, not forgetting the time you spend on traffic to and fro. Proximity to a bus stop is also important especially if you don’t drive otherwise you need to take a bike to the nearest bus stop before you then board a bus to your destination. By the time you add your rent and what you spend on ‘Okada’ (bike) to and fro your nearest bus stop, it will be substantial.

3. It is highly recommended that you have a pre-paid electricity meter in your apartment. I guess this applies mainly to those living in flats etc not in a typical ‘face me, I slap you’ where occupants share a single electricity meter. A lot of houses in Nigeria lack an electricity meter so they are at the mercy of the PHCN that unilaterally estimate and allocate amounts to be paid as electricity bill. It is highly probable to see a three-storey rented apartment in Nigeria that has just a single electricity meter. Many of the landlords, especially those ones that live in the same premises with their tenants, seldom show tenants the electricity bill. They will tell you the amount to be paid each month and God bless you; you want to argue with them.
Also ensure that you do not inherit outstanding enormous bills (PHCN, LAWMA, Water) etc from the previous tenants.

4. Avoid very notorious and crime/crises-prone areas. Security and safety of lives and properties cannot be guaranteed anywhere in Nigeria but there are areas that have a semblance or iota of Security and Safety. Yes everybody cannot live in Lekki, VGC, and Banana Island etc. Beware of notorious hot-spots that have a history of high crime rate and are riot-prone. This hot spot issue is not just a Nigerian thing, it exists everywhere. For instance in England, Moss Side in Manchester is noted for drive-by shootings, drug dealing etc. In Lagos, Mushin is synonymous with high rates of thuggery and criminality. Apart from the inherent danger, kids risk imbibing some of the negative tendencies in their environment.

5. If you are using the services of the so-called ‘Agents’, never, I repeat, never give them the total amount for rent until you satisfy yourself that the apartment is truly vacant and have not been paid for by another prospective tenant. During negotiations with the ‘Agent’, subtly suggest you will like to speak with the landlord. His countenance will tell you whether there is something fishy. It’s preferable if you can rent directly from the landlord, some of them, especially the enlightened ones will not insist you pay them ‘commission’, ‘agreement’ etc. I unwittingly invoked the wrath of a particular landlord when I suggested to him that I was not expecting to pay ‘commission’ and ‘agreement’ since I got the apartment directly from him and not through an Agent. It’s safer for you to remit the rent fee to the landlord’s bank account at least your teller serves as prove of payment.

Please See Part 2 https://www.nairaland.com/1309100/don-ts-renting-apartment-officeof the article

Cheers


Don Okereke
(Security Analyst & Consultant)
donnuait@yahoo.com
+2347080008285

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
NIGERIANS UNITE AGAINST INSECURITY AND TERRORISM (NUAIT)
ABUJA, NIGERIA. 15/05/2013

President Jonathan’s Declaration of a State of Emergency in Some States

For the avoidance of doubt, it is imperative we point out before we delve into the nitty gritty of this Press Release that ‘Nigerians Unite Against Insecurity and Terrorism (NUAIT)’ is a non-partisan, non-religious and non-tribal affiliation of Patriotic and Passionate Nigerians disenchanted with the unprecedented insecurity challenges bedeviling Nigeria and Nigerians.

On this premise, we assert that President Jonathan’s declaration of a ‘State of emergency’ in some troubled parts of the country is long overdue and a good riddance. We advocated this option in one of our prior Press Releases given that a ‘wait and see’ or a ‘siddon look’ approach has failed. Every Patriotic Nigerian should commend the courage of Mr. President if this is what will bring peace to the troubled parts of Nigeria. Our Politicians must desist from sacrificing National Security at the altar of Political brinkmanship.

The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria expressly empowers the President to take the action he has just taken hence it is not anomalous. Characteristic of his ever meticulous leadership style, it appears the President fell short of going the whole hog by allowing the Political Gladiators who may be covertly sympathetic to these Insurgents and Terrorists to remain in office. This may be a clog on the wheel. Politically though, it will assuage the feelings and sentiments of some schools of thought who will postulate that there is an ulterior political permutation or motive if President Jonathan had gone the Obasanjo way.

The declaration of a ‘State of emergency’ is not a license for our Security Agents to run amok and start harassing, intimidating and torturing innocent Nigerians. They must stick to best practices and rules of engagement. We urge them to be very vigilant, more surgical and less pugnacious in discharging their duties so as to win the hearts and minds of the citizenry. They must also channel more resources to the ‘human element’ of security and intelligence gathering in other to nip insecurity in the bud.

With the declaration of a state of emergency and its attendant gung-ho military approach, the so-called ‘amnesty/negotiation committee’ will have an uphill task convincing BH members to lay down their weapons and embrace peace. This Nigerian variant of ‘carrot and stick’ approach invariably creates a lot of confusion and depicts inconsistency.

Again, we once more call on Aso Rock and the Nigerian Defence/Military establishment to come up with a ‘Coherent Terrorism/Counterterrorism Policy’ rather than our penchant for fire brigade approach and seeming Policy Summersaults.
We enjoin all Nigerians to be their brothers’ keepers irrespective of their tribe and religious affiliations. Let all Nigerians Unite Against Insecurity and Terrorism. See it, hear it, say it, stop it!!!
God bless Nigeria and Nigerians!

Signed
Don Okereke
Nigerians Unite Against Insecurity and Terrorism (NUAIT)
donnuait@yahoo.com
+2347080008285