Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau State has raised an alarm that the security agencies in the country have been infiltrated by fifth columnists, including people who are agents of criminals unleashing mayhem on Plateau and other parts of the country. 

The governor made this claim Wednesday on Trust TV’s Daybreak Show while responding to questions on the response of security agencies after violent attacks in the state and other parts of the country. 

Plateau State recently suffered coordinated attacks on 23 villages in Bokkos and Barkin Ladi local government areas, which left over 150 dead and many others injured. 

After the attacks, there had been outrage across the country on how such coordinated attacks could have taken place despite the presence of the military’s Operation Safe Haven in the state, in addition to other security agencies. 

There was also the revelation that despite several distress calls by the communities, the assailants carried out the attacks for hours and left before the security agencies arrived. 

Recall that shortly after the sporadic attacks on Plateau villages between December 23 and 24, 2023, Governor Mutfwang said the military received 36 distress calls. 

“I was made to understand by the GOC that on Saturday (the eve of the attacks) alone, they had distress calls from 36 points almost simultaneously. 

“That will tell you that that is a logistic issue right there…,” the governor stated.

‘Many loopholes in security architecture’ 

Responding to a question during his interview with Trust TV on where the problem lies, the governor said the work of these fifth columnists within the security agencies makes it difficult for prompt response by the security agencies. 

He said, in many instances, several lives of security personnel have been lost after being ambushed due to information leaked by the fifth columnists. 

He said, “…Let me also say this; fifth columnists have infiltrated the security agencies. This is a fact we must confront as a nation. 

There are many people who should not be there; they are agents of these criminals, and sometimes they even compromise their colleagues. And that is why you have a lot of ambushes sometimes when these security agencies are going on operations.”

The governor added that President Bola Tinubu must give a very firm directive to the security agencies that in the ongoing recruitment processes, diligence must be taken. 

“Diligence must be observed to ensure that wrong elements are not recruited into the armed forces and the security agencies. But there must also be a mechanism to be able to fish out these bad eggs within the security services. 

“It is only when we do that, that there will be professionalism and discipline, and also some bit of empathy to the victims of these attacks,” he said. He said while the government continues to conscientise and mobilise the communities to be able to defend themselves, the overzealousness of some security officers on the ground makes the process difficult and renders the government’s efforts to be counter-productive.

Self-defence is necessary 

Governor Mutfwang said communities in Plateau were being advised to be vigilant.

“I will continue to ensure that the communities are sufficiently conscientious to look out for one another. And so, that also gives the security agencies the opportunity to come in as their response time will be greatly reduced. 

“There are areas where we can improve, certainly, but beyond that, we are also trying to ensure that the communities themselves are sufficiently conscientised and mobilised to be able to defend themselves, because the security forces can only come in and go, the people still remain in their localities, and they form borders at the last line of defence. 

“We must be able to balance. We cannot just leave people to possess guns without control and accountability. And so, my own is that even if we are armed in communities, there must be a registration process. 

“You should be able to boost the morale of those who stand up to defend their communities and not arrest them. We have had a few excesses, which we have reported to the authorities. 

“We have witnessed a lot of overzealousness by some of the security agencies’ operatives on the ground, who instead of cooperating with locals, when they find them sometimes with ordinary machetes, they confiscate them and we have engaged their commanders to say no, this is not right,” he said. 

The governor also said he is an advocate of state police and balanced gun control. 

“I am a firm believer in state police. Sincerely, I have heard so many arguments about it: the tendency of governors to misuse their powers, and so on and so forth. 

We cannot continue to live in fear and refuse to face realities. Globally, security is a local issue. And unless we can bring it down to the level of the communities, we may not achieve much success,” he said. 

We’ve our shortcomings 

Governor Caleb also admitted that since governors are human beings, the tendency to misuse or abuse of power cannot be ruled out. 

He said examples of countries like the United States of America can be used to counter this fear, arguing that where there is noticeable evidence of abuse of state police by any governor, the federal police, as is the case in the USA, can be called in to restore order. 

“So, I think for effectiveness, we cannot run away from the issue of state police. We must look at it critically; all the talks about community policing by the Nigeria Police Force. I do not think it is effective, because the time span for dissemination of information and decision making is very critical. When you have a situation where there is an attack in the community and the police will (only) be able to mobilise to counter it at three, four hours away. 

“It doesn’t make sense. So, we must be able to bring them closer to the theatre of conflict,” he said.

While debunking the reports that the Plateau State government was operating a militia in the form of Operation Rambo, the governor said his take on community defending themselves informed the government’s effort to conscientise and mobilise the communities to be able to stand up against attackers in their own controlled way before the security agencies are able to mobilise to the areas.

We’ll study the allegations 

When contacted yesterday, the spokesman for the Nigerian Army, Onyema Nwachukwu explained that he would not be able to respond accordingly until the statements made by the governor were properly studied.

Nwachukwu, a Major-General, added that the army, and of course the entire military are professional and regimented organisations that cannot hurriedly respond to issues. 

He said the comments needed to be examined after which he would get in touch with appropriate authorities before responding accordingly, if there is a need to do so. 

“Let me first see the statement. The army is a professional organisation. I’m not speaking for myself but for the army. I will have to first study the governor’s comment after which we will respond accordingly, if there is a need for it,” he said. 

In the same vein, the Director, Defence Information, Tukur Gusau, a Brigadier-General, also said he would like to see the clip or the statement before giving any response. 

“I’m just hearing this from you. I will like to see the video clip or the statement, so that I will know how to reply,” the senior military officer told one of our correspondents in a telephone interview. 

Daily Trust recalled that a few days after the incidents on the Plateau, some locals protested and called for total withdrawal of the military from the crises-prone areas, saying they preferred to have the police and other security operatives. 

But the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja, during a visit to the state, denied the allegation that troops of the Nigerian Army deployed to Plateau State were biased in their operations. 

Lagbaja said it was incorrect to accuse the Nigerian Army personnel, who he said have been tirelessly working to restore peace in the state, of being biased in their operations, adding that the organisation is impartial in its operations. 

The army chief emphasised that the Nigerian Army is composed of individuals from diverse tribes and religions. Hence, it should not be regarded as personal property that can be manipulated by any single individual. 

He stated this while responding to allegations by some members of the communities regarding impartiality in army operations, during a visit to NTV, one of the affected communities in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of the state.

 [DailyTrust]

A Federal High Court in Abuja has declared as null and void the provisions of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code authorizing the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to impose fines on broadcast stations who allegedly breach the Code.

Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia, quashed the said code on the grounds that the NBC as an administrative and regulatory bodies could not exercise judicial powers.

She made the declaration on Wednesday while delivering judgment in the suit filed by the Media Rights Agenda (MRA) against the NBC.

The suit was sequel to the Commission’s imposition of fines of N5 million each on a television station and three pay TV platforms in 2022 for allegedly undermining Nigeria’s national security through their broadcasting of documentaries on banditry in Nigeria.

The plaintiff’s in the suit filed on their behalf by their lawyer, Uche Amulu, asked the court to hold, among others, that the NBC’s action of imposing a fine on each of the media platforms and the station for broadcasting a documentary about the state of banditry and security in Zamfara State is unlawful and unconstitutional and has a chilling effect on the freedom of media to impart information and ideas. 

The plaintiff further submitted that the action of the NBC would deter the platforms and station from reporting the true state of affairs regarding the security situation in the country, and thereby violating the rights of MRA, its members, and other citizens of Nigeria to freedom of expression, particularly their rights to receive ideas and information without interference, as guaranteed by the Constitution and the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights.

Subsequently, the plaintiff urged the court to declare that the procedure adopted by the NBC in imposing the fines is a flagrant violation of the rules of natural justice and the right to fair hearing under Section 36 of the Constitution and Article 7 of the African Charter as the Commission is the drafter of the Code, which provides for the alleged offences for which the media platforms and the station were punished, and which empowers the NBC to receive complaints, investigate and adjudicate on the complaints, impose fines and collect fines.

MRA contended that the NBC, not being a court of law and not having been constituted in manner as to secure its independence and impartiality, has no power or competence to impose fines on broadcast stations as punishment or penalties for the commission of an offence as the competence to establish that an offence has been committed and to impose criminal sanctions or penalties belongs to the courts.

Besides, it claimed, the NBC, not being the Nigerian Police or a law enforcement agency, has no power to conduct a criminal investigation or an investigation that could lead to criminal charges against the affected media platforms and stations or the imposition of criminal penalties and accordingly, that the investigation purportedly conducted by the Commission, leading to the fines imposed on the media platforms and station for alleged offences under the Nigeria Broadcasting Code is ultra vires, null and void.

MRA also urged the Court to declare that the Nigeria Broadcasting Code issued by the NBC, being a subsidiary legislation that empowers it as a regulatory and administrative body to enforce the provisions of the Code, cannot confer judicial powers or jurisdiction in criminal matters on the Commission to impose criminal sanctions or penalties such as fines, particularly as the Code was made by the NBC itself.

It urged the Court to declare the fines unconstitutional, ultra vires, null and void, set them aside and issue an order of perpetual injunction restraining the NBC, its servants, agents, privies, representatives or anyone acting for or on its behalf, from further imposing any fine on any of the media platforms or station, or any other broadcast station in Nigeria for any alleged offence committed under the Nigeria Broadcasting Code.

Delivering judgment Wednesday in suit, Ofili-Ajumogobia agreed with the plaintiff that the NBC not being a court of law, acted above its powers by imposing such fines against the alleged offenders.

She subsequently made an order of perpetual injunction restraining the Commission or anyone acting on its behalf from further imposing any fine on any media platform or broadcast station in Nigeria for any alleged offence committed under the Nigeria Broadcasting Code.

The court then went ahead to set aside the fines imposed by the NBC on August 3, 2022 on Multichoice Nigeria Limited, owners of DSTV; TelCom Satellite Limited (TSTV); Trust-TV Network Limited; and NTA Startimes Limited for broadcasting a documentary about the state of banditry and security in Zamfara State, saying the regulator’s action was wrong and unjustifiable in a democratic society.

The judge however, refused to grant the plaintiff’s claim for N700,000 being costs of the suit.

Ofili-Ajumogobia in addition declined another claim for N2 million as general damages for NBC’s infringement on its rights as well as a request for N1 million as punitive damages for the Commission’s “outrageous conduct in abusing its powers and arbitrarily imposing fines on broadcasting stations.”

Findings have shown that about $18 billion representing 90 percent of the estimated $20 billion Nigeria’s diaspora remittances in 2023 did not end up in the country, Taiwo Oyedele, Chairman, Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, has said.

Recall that the World Bank had estimated that diaspora remittances to Nigeria in 2023 was $20 billion.

However, speaking in a panel discussion at the 2024 Economic Outlook and Budget Analysis organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Oyedele estimated that more than 90 percent of the remittances were externalized.

His words: “In our interactions with multinationals, rating agencies and other stakeholders, many of them said to us that exchange rate difficulty is more than 50 percent of all the challenges in Nigeria combined, as far as they are concerned. So, this is a major issue that we have to address.

“And we thought it is going to be an area where we can easily demonstrate how the monetary and fiscal policies can work together. So, to that extent, we have done a sensible amount of work on the fiscal side. And we have been speaking to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The ultimate objective being that, first and foremost, we think that the biggest problem we have is the fact that we have divergence in exchange rates.”

“The World Bank said for 2023, our diaspora remittance was about $20 billion. We estimate that more than 90 percent of that did not get to Nigeria, they are being externalized. We have spoken to loads of Nigerians almost everywhere, in the US, UK, etc. They told us how they send remittance. They use Apps, and we have tried some of those Apps, they use parallel market rates. So, you take $1,000 in New York, and tap on your phone that you are sending $1,000 to someone, a Fintech, they pay the Naira equivalent in Nigeria without bringing the dollars, unless of course if the source of the money is illicit.”

Earlier in his welcome address, LCCI President, Mr Gabriel Idahosa, said policy reforms by the government, especially the removal of fuel subsidies and floating of the exchange rate, are expected to boost fiscal revenue and contribute moderately to the improvement of the country’s growth this year.

Also speaking at the event, Director General, Budget Office, Ben Akabueze, said one of the challenges facing the nation is that of low public revenue against a growing population, adding that Nigeria has had over three decades of deficit budget.