NEWS
Okuama Massacre: Bodies Of 17 Slain Soldiers Arrive Abuja Cemetery
With heavy hearts, the nation paid its respects as the remains of the 17 esteemed military personnel, including four officers and 13 soldiers, arrived at the National Military Cemetery in Abuja, their final resting place.
The bodies, arriving around 2:30pm on Wednesday, were transported by the FCT Ambulance Emergency Services and other vehicles.
Recall that the 17 military personnel were gruesomely murdered by enraged youths in Okuama community, Delta State, during a peace mission on March 14, 2024.
Present at the venue of the burial ceremony were high-ranking military officers from different branches, gathered to pay their final respects to the fallen heroes.
Family members and relatives of the deceased, along with those of other military personnel, also joined to honour the fallen.
The solemn event was expected to be attended by President Bola Tinubu. As of the time of this report, the burial ceremony for the 17 military personnel was already in progress.
Profiles of the 17 Fallen Army Personnel:
1. Late Lieutenant Colonel Abdullahi Hassan Ali (N/12079):
– Birth: May 18, 1975, Kano
– Education: Kuka Special Primary School, Fagge
– Hometown: Fagge LGA, Kano State
2. Late Major Daniel Ekwo Obi (N/14395):
– Birth: December 20, 1985, Niger State
– Education: Atlas School, Lagos
– Hometown: Boki LGA, Cross River State
3. Late Major Salihu Danjuma Shafa (N/13976):
– Birth: March 27, 1985, Maiduguri
– Education: Shafa Primary School, Hawul
– Hometown: Hawul LGA, Borno State
4. Late Captain Usman Zakari (N/16348):
– Birth: May 11, 1989, Keffi
– Education: Army Children School Karshi
– Hometown: Danko Wasagu LGA, Kebbi State
5. Late Staff Sergeant Yahaya Saidu:
– Birth: October 14, 1973, Bebeji Town, Kano State
– Enlistment: July 19, 1993, 36 Regular Intake
6. Late Corporal Danbaba Yahaya:
– Birth: August 12, 1989, Toro Town, Bauchi State
– Enlistment: September 2, 2010, 65 Regular Intake
7. Late Corporal Kabiru Bashir:
– Birth: February 14, 1990, Dala, Kano State
– Enlistment: September 6, 2011, 66 Regular Intake
8. Late Lance Corporal Bulus Haruna:
– Birth: July 16, 1994, Kaduna North, Kaduna State
– Enlistment: July 4, 2016, 75 Regular Intake
9. Late Lance Corporal Sole Opeyemi:
– Birth: December 31, 1993, Odogbolu, Ogun State
– Enlistment: June 10, 2017, 76 Regular Intake
10. Late Lance Corporal Abdullahi Ibrahim:
– Birth: July 13, 1999, Saki, Oyo State
– Enlistment: April 23, 2018, 77 Regular Intake
11. Late Lance Corporal Bello Anas:
– Birth: April 17, 1999, Bodinga, Sokoto State
– Enlistment: April 23, 2019, 78 Regular Intake
12. Late Private Alhaji Isah:
– Birth: September 7, 1997, Gadaka, Yobe State
– Enlistment: June 10, 2017, 76 Regular Intake
13. Late Private Hamman Peter:
– Birth: September 13 (year not provided), Maiduguri, Taraba State
– Enlistment: April 23, 2019, 78 Regular Intake
14. Late Private Clement Francis:
– Birth: September 7, 1998, Odeda, Ogun State
– Enlistment: April 23, 2019, 78 Regular Intake
15. Late Private Abubakar Ali:
– Birth: May 25, 1999, Degubi Nagere, Yobe State
– Enlistment: April 23, 2019, 78 Regular Intake
16. Late Private Adamu Ibrahim:
– Birth: January 10, 1998, Maiduguri, Borno State
– Enlistment: April 23, 2019, 78 Regular Intake
17. Late Private Adamu Ibrahim (repeated name):
– Birth: February 1, 1998, Albasu, Kano State
– Enlistment: January 18, 2021, 80 Regular Intake
The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe was on Wednesday inducted into the Fellowship of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE).
Biztellers reports that the investiture was performed by the President/Chair-in-Council of the NSE, Engr. Margaret Aina Oguntala, FNSE at a ceremony in Abuja.
Oguntala congratulated the 63 new inductees and urged them to uphold the values of their new position in their field of engineering. She highlighted that engineers have been at the forefront of driving progress and development across various sectors of the economy, notably in the oil and gas industry.
She particularly lauded the ES of NCDMB for his excellent leadership and expertise through the strategic development of local content and in-country value retention, which is a testament to his brilliance in the field of engineering.
Oguntala also applauded the strategic partnership between the NSE, the NCDMB and other stakeholders in the oil and gas industry.
Similarly, the chairman Board of Fellows/College of Fellows, Engr. Kamila Maliki, FNSE, commended the new inductees for their resilience, dedication, and contribution to the field of engineering.
He added that it was not a small feat to be chosen for the investiture due to the rigorous and thorough nature of the selection process.
The ES later was joined by the Managing Director of Setraco Nigeria Limited, Engr. Ziad Mouannes and Senator Patrick Ndubueze for the unveiling of the very first edition of the 2024 NSE Quarterly Magazine.
Some senior officials of the Board who accompanied the ES to the event included the Director, Monitoring and Evaluation, Abdulmalik Halilu, Director, Project Certification and Authorization, Engr. Abayomi Bamidele, and the General Manager, Corporate Communications and Zonal Coordination, Esueme Dan Kikile, Esq.
Before he was appointed the ES of NCDMB, Engr. Ogbe had nearly 30 years top-level career in the field of engineering in the employment of Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL), before retiring voluntarily to set up his private firm.
His last position at Chevron Nigeria was Construction Services Group Superintendent, and he oversaw 200 personnel, including Nigerian nationals and expatriates.
Other notable positions he held at the company included Offshore Projects Manager, Construction Manager (Lagos, Escravos -Warri), Construction Engineer (San Ramon) in California, United States of America.
On Saturday evening, armed soldiers shut down the popular Banex Plaza in the Wuse 2 district of Abuja after a clash between traders and three soldiers over a phone sale dispute.
According to eyewitness Okechukwu Daniel, the incident began on Saturday afternoon when a young military man returned to a phone shop, claiming a phone he bought about a month ago was faulty.
Daniel, also a trader at Banex Plaza, stated that the seller refused to accept the phone back due to the lengthy period that had passed since the sale.
He said “When the phone seller refused to collect the phone back, the young guy threatened him that he will shut down his shop for refusing to collect the phone, and the seller told him to do his worse.
“That was when he got angry and went to one of the barracks close by and brought two soldiers to come and harass the phone seller for him to collect the phone back.
“When the two soldiers got to the phone shop to threaten the seller, he still refused to collect the phone. The soldiers got angry and wanted to use force on him, that was when other traders came to the rescue of the phone seller and beat up the two soldiers.”
Daniel added that after the soldiers were assaulted, they went back to the barracks to gather reinforcements.
When they returned to Banex Plaza to confront the phone seller and other traders, the traders had already fled from their shops.
He added “When over 50 soldiers who were visibly angry got to the plaza, they could not find the traders that beat up their colleagues, so they decided to shut down the plaza by asking everyone to leave. Anyone found around the plaza was asked to do frog jump and other punishment,”
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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has confirmed the transfer of $22,000, recovered from a convicted internet fraudster, Hakeem Olanrewaju, to the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI).
Dele Oyewale, the commission’s spokesperson disclosed on Saturday that the handover took place in Lagos State on Friday.
Acting Director of EFCC Lagos Zonal Command, Michael Wetkas, expressed appreciation for the collaboration and assured of EFCC’s continued efforts in combating financial crimes.
During the event, FBI’s Legal Attaché Charles Smith praised the EFCC for its action.
He said “The EFCC and FBI work collaboratively together, and it is thanks to the EFCC that we can recover funds of this nature, especially from Business email Compromise, BEC.
“This type of crime cripples businesses in the US, and for them to recover the money within one to two years gives hope to the affected companies and brings some level of justice, even if not all subjects have been identified.
“We hope our relationship continues and fosters a more cohesive partnership between the two agencies. If there’s anything the FBI can do to support this investigation, we will do so. We appreciate this on behalf of the FBI and thank the EFCC.”
On August 15, 2023, Justice Nicholas Oweibo of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, mandated that the funds retrieved from Olanrewaju, serving a two-year prison term for identity theft and impersonation, be returned to his victim in the US.
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