Revealed: Soldiers Watched As Gen. Shuwa Was Killed

General Mammam Shuwa was killed at his home in Maiduguri on November 2nd 2012

By PM News, Lagos

A relation of General Muhammed Shuwa, who was killed 2 November by gunmen believed to be members of the Boko Haram has revealed how the General died.
The story he related is different materially from the one given by Lt. Colonel Sagir Musa, spokesman of the Joint Task Force, in a statement issued on the day that the General was killed.
This is what Sagir Musa said: “At about 12 noon today at General Muhammadu Shuwa (Rtd) house in Gwange 1 area of Maiduguri metropolis, while the General was seated in his house with some guests, four men initially thought to be his visitors and guests for the Jumaat prayers entered his house and opened fire on the General and his guests. One of the guests died on the spot while the general died on the way to the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital. The JTF troops located in the area immediately cordoned off the area and search for the assailants is ongoing to apprehend the terrorists. The terrorists that carried out the killing of the late General will be brought to book. We call on the citizens to bring forward information that will assist the security agencies to apprehend the terrorists.”
On the contrary, a relation of the General, Dr. Hassan Bashir said the late General was sitting outside of his house, awaiting a person he had sent to buy a razor blade for him, when the gunmen came calling. And there were between seven to 10 soldiers on guard duty as the shooting happened. The soldiers as Bashir said did nothing to protect the Civil war veteran.

Excerpts of the interview as published by the Daily Trust newspaper:
There is controversy surrounding the killing of General Shuwa on Friday, 2nd November, 2012.
Can you tell us what actually happened on that day?
I spoke to him on Wednesday, 31st October, 2012. I told him that I have had enough here in Nigeria and I would like to go back to the US. He told me that actually he had done his best to make me settle here but it appears to be a very difficult situation and therefore said I should go back. All the time, the General will call and ask of my whereabouts and my welfare. On Friday, he went outside his house and sent for a shaving razor blade. He sent one Adam to buy it for him and he then sat on a chair outside the house, waiting for the razor blade. At that very time, some boys, our relatives were sitting together with him as he was waiting for the arrival of the razor blade. Then there was a gentleman, a passerby that saw the General sitting outside. He therefore approached him in order to offer Fatiha (a tradition in Borno whereby indigents recite some verses of the Quran in front of affluent people and get a little money in return).
As he was reciting the Fatiha, three armed men appeared and took position, two on the western side of the General and one on the eastern side, facing the soldiers that were guarding the General. They were all armed with AK 47 rifles. There was a huge tree close to where the General was sitting and a fountain of water under it. As the two armed men approached him, they began chanting “Allahu Akbar” (God is great) and started shooting. One irony is that whenever the General was going out of his house, he went with a gun. He always sat with a gun and goes everywhere with a gun. However, on that very day and hour, he did not go out with the gun. Instead, he locked the door of the room where the gun was and put the key in his pocket and went outside.
As the two men were chanting Allahu Akbar and shooting, the passerby that was reciting Fatima attempted to stand up but the gunmen shot him and he collapsed. Then the General said a word in Shuwa Arab, “Hou” roughly translated as “What?” in English language. Then one of the men looked at the General and shot him and was trying to refill the Ak47 rifle again. That was when the General stood up and put his hand inside his pocket, thinking that he will bring out his gun but instead, brought out the keys to his room. On realizing this, he attempted to grab the man that shot him. When the other gunman saw what the General was trying to do, he shot his two arms.
Whose arms?
The General’s arms and one of the bullets penetrated his ribs and hit the heart directly.

Was the General able to grab one of them?
No, he was not. He was making attempt to catch one of them when the other one shot him in the chest, precisely at the epical line where the heart lies. And when he shot the heart, the General fell and both of them continued shooting him. They pushed him with their legs and confirmed that he was dead.
They then started shouting and jubilating and entered their tricycle.
Before then, the General’s most senior wife was trying to go out of the house when she heard gunshots. As she peeped outside, she saw her husband and the passerby on ground. She wanted to go and embrace him but was prevented [by relatives]. This is when the third gunman who was across the other part of the road started shooting at her but she was very lucky, the bullets did not hit her. She later went and embraced her dead husband. Again, when one of the boys that was sitting outside found out that the General was not with his gun, he rushed into the house in order to get the gun but found out that the door of the parlour was locked and he could not get in. When you go outside this house (General Shuwa’s house) you will find out that there is an umbrella…a tent where the General normally sits and you will see the many holes created by bullets.
Were there no military guards in the house?
There were about eight or ten soldiers guarding this house (the General’s house).
But where were they when the gunmen came?
They were right there at their post in front of the house but none of them could show any resistance or stand and make any effort. There was another girl who is also our relation. She was in the General’s second house which was close by. She told me that when the shooting was going on, she had wanted to go out and grab one of the gunmen, exactly what the General’s wife also wanted to do. They wanted to at least obstruct the gunmen but they were grabbed by other relatives. Unfortunately, the soldiers outside could not do anything. If any of the soldiers had made any shooting, I think the life of the General could have been saved. And apart from the soldiers that had been stationed in the house, there were other soldiers at the cross section of the street. Again, there are many security checkpoints that the gunmen passed through before they came to this house. There was no resistance or effort to stop the gunmen. The General has always been in Maiduguri, he has always been in this vicinity thinking that he has been protected and his life was safe.
I can see that the soldiers are still guarding this house. Have they given any explanation as to why they were unable to repel the attack?
Not to my knowledge but I would like to know if there is any.
When the federal government delegation came from Abuja, did they ask you how the General was killed?
I explained to them in detail and they were very amused that the soldiers were there but no effort was made to save the life of the General, despite the fact that the purpose of stationing them here was to protect his life. Why there was no shouting, no shooting, nothing? How can something like this happen to a war hero? Someone that spent all his life to protect this country and keep it united? I would like to know why he was killed this way before me too vanishes from this world.
Are you happy that the soldiers are still stationed outside this house and do you see them as protecting the family?
Look, the family is gone! Which family are they protecting again? The head of the very family has vanished. Have they (the soldiers) not received orders from the high authorities to protect him? I don’t know… may be they have some commanders that did not give them orders to protect the General. Or maybe they don’t have weapons or their weapons are inferior to that of the gunmen, I don’t know.
How many soldiers were there when the gunmen came?
Between seven and ten and the gunmen were three in number. They did the shooting and left. The gunmen were even screaming and laughing and jubilating. It was women that were trying to protect General. The women told me that if not because they were pulled back, they would have obstructed the shooting. His wife said she was pushed to the ground. This was what happened.
Now let’s talk about his life. Who was General Mamman Shuwa?
I can say General Mamman Shuwa was born as a soldier, he lived in this world as soldier and he died as a soldier.
Now, can we believe the JTF that they have arrested the real killers of General Shuwa?

“Is it by his pure water business that he’ll be able to come and help me?” – Top 10 Quotes Of The Week

News makers have not stopped making meals for the media. Over the week, politicians, public affairs analysts and of course civil society groups spoke on diverse issues affecting the nation. Your soar-away DailyPost painstakingly selected some of the quotes that trended heavily in the media last week.
Below are some of meals. Enjoy
“I want to thank former Governor Shekarau for what happened to him in Kano. What he did not know, which he may want to know today, is that he won that election with a very narrow margin, and if I had yielded to pressure, that narrow margin would have been changed. He didn’t know that somebody wanted me to talk to the electoral body, but I refused to do so.” — Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo confessing in his usual controversial manner that he was almost forced to rig the election that brought Governor Ibrahim Shekarau of Kano into power in 2003.
“But let me just warn you that crossing the bar or becoming 80 sometimes means you are getting nearer the departure lounge.“I will get into the car park with you, but I won’t go into thedeparture lounge with you.”— Ex president Olusegun Obasanjo addressing former Vice-President Alex Ekwueme in the most humorous manner on his 80th birthday. The retired Military General had spoken on the inevitability of death on the occasion, and the need for the former vice President to take as priority all his family matters instead of spending time politicking.
“She’s playing Anambra state politics with her job and reputation. She is assuming to be god; but she’s not god!”— The Managing Director of Capital Oil and Gas, Patrick Ifeanyi Uba accusing the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of using her job and reputation to play ‘Anambra State politics’.
“Is it by his pure water business that he’ll be able to come and help me. Everything the (Maduka) said about that story is false.”— The Managing Director of Capital Oil and gas, Ifeanyi Uba refuting claims by the Chief Executive Officer of Cosharis group, Cosmos Maduka that he offered him (Mr Uba) a lifeline when his business was at the edge of collapse.
“It is sad that with Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s exposure and experience in government, he could describe the callous destruction of the innocent citizens and their property as a mark of strong leadership. Whatever Obasanjo says on an issue, we expect him to think it over, before making public statements.” —Coalition of Northern Patriots (CNP) lambasting former president Olusegun Obasanjo for berating the Goodluck/Sambo administration over security challenges currently facing the country, particularly the incessant attacks from the Boko Haram extremists.
“I am not inciting the public against the church and the mosque, but the congregation must demand explanation from their leaders. They must demand to know where they are getting the money. If it is not from the church offering, then it is from Abuja. All General Overseers must go to prison. If the revolution does not begin in the church, it cannot spread; if it does not begin in the mosque, it will not spread, because they control the population.” — Convener of Save Nigeria Group (SNG) and founder of Later Rain Assembly, Pastor Tunde Bakare condemning some imminent men of God for acquiring private jets and exploiting their members.
“The truth of the matter is that PDP is terrified of the outcome of the merger talks. From the commencement of these talks, PDP has been having nightmares. However the truth of the matter is that these talks have the blessing of a significant chunk of the leadership of the PDP who, for the time being, cannot come out publicly.”— The National Publicity Secretary, the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) Alhaji Lai Mohammed lampooning the leadership of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over its recent comment that the merger talks between ACN and CPC would hit the rocks, stressing that PDP is suffering from deep paranoia.
“This is the blunt truth. Abiola, a Yoruba southern Muslim, would have united the Northern and Southern Muslims that form the bulk of Nigerian electorate, which would have given the Muslims a clear majority always. Had the case been the reverse in favor of the Christians, no Muslim would ever smell Aso Rock as the president. -– Renowned Islamic cleric, Sheik Ahmad Abubakar Gumi describing the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election as a great tragedy, adding that the move cost Muslims from the Northern and Southern parts of Nigeria the opportunity to build an alliance that can transform Nigeria.
“That tells you the level to which government at federal, states and local governments levels have degenerated, as they were unable to lift a finger to right a wrong in our national life.” -– The national Secretary of the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), Chief Peter Ameh, to Dr Madukwe Ukaegbu, recently calling on the need to rescue Nigeria from the leadership of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, stressing that the security situation in the country is getting worse and the economy, wobbling.
“In Nigeria, corruption has become the 37th state of the federation, growing in leaps and bounds and drawing its weekly and monthly allowances from the Federation Account. If the death penalty will address it, it’s okay because we have not reached the level the advanced countries have reached where they convert the death penalty to life imprisonment.” -– Lagos-based lawyer, Fred Agbaje supporting the recent call by the Arewa Consultative Forum that anybody found guilt of corruption should be killed, adding that if we feel that death penalty will put an end to or reduce corruption in our society, so be it.
DailyPost

“Nigeria is now home and I’m here to make music” – Prezzo

We’ve been caught up in the on and off romance between Goldie and Prezzo, to the extent we have completely forgotten that the Kenyan, is actually a rapper. And the former Big Brother Africa housemate, who met with American superstar, Jay Z, on a recent trip to New York, confirmed he is relocating to Nigeria to continue work on his music career.
“My purpose of visiting Nigeria is to broaden my musical career and work with a couple of producers here,” he said in an interview on Channels TV.
Prezzo also discussed other important issues when he was guest at the TV station, which includes venturing into Nollywood.
 DailyPost

How Arik plane almost killed mad man who wandered onto Lagos Airport runway

Arik Air flight nearly crushed a man in ragged clothes and dishevelled hair who stood few metres away from the touch down area at the domestic runway of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, known as Runway 18L about 4:30 pm last Tuesday.
THISDAY learnt that another Arik Air flight bound for Uyo was waiting at the threshold of the runway, known as holding point for the arriving aircraft to land so that it would take off, but as the aircraft was to touch down the passengers and the cockpit crew of the waiting aircraft saw a man walking about near the landing point of the aircraft and escaped being crushed by the tyres and the wing of the aircraft.
When the man identified as mad because of his slovenly, ragged appearance was spared by the aircraft that landed, he walked to the threshold where the Uyo bound flight was waiting and began to knock at the aircraft door, requesting that door be opened for him.
Eye witness account disclosed that the pilot of the aircraft was afraid that the man might walk farther towards the engine of the aircraft and he would be sucked in and roasted, so he quickly switched off the engine of the plane, sustaining the system of the aircraft, including the air conditioning with auxiliary power unit (APU).
At that point the situation had become an emergency so he quickly called the Control Tower and Aviation Security, informing them about the man walking about in the most restricted area of the airport.
The pilot who nearly landed his aircraft on the man was said to have also called the Control Tower immediately he landed and the incident was recorded on the log book by the Air Traffic Controllers who were on duty at the time the incident happened.
“The pilot said that he feared for the man’s life when he came knocking on the aircraft door because few steps would have taken him into the engine of the aircraft that would have roasted him and that was why he quickly switched off the engine. That would have been catastrophic and tragic had it happened that way,” the source explained to THISDAY.
It took 20 minutes before two aviation security vehicles coming from the opposite sides, one from the international side of the runway and the other from the General Aviation Terminal (GAT)and converged before the mad man.
Aviation Security officials jumped out, held him and forced him into one of the vans and whisked him away and it was then that the controllers allowed the aircraft lined up at the holding point to begin to take off.
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) explained that the man probably scaled the perimeter fencing to gain entry to the runway.
This incident reinforces the fact that the in spite of the efforts made by the agency, the airport is still porous.
About two weeks ago a stowaway was found dead at the wheel well of Arik Air aircraft and that was the third time a stowaway would be found dead in the wheel well of aircraft at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
Few years ago Air France flight nearly hit heads of cattle at the runway of the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa.
Runway incursion has been a regular occurrence at the nation’s airports and this is attributed to lack of perimeter fencing at most of these airports and that is why the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) has not certified any of these airports because they have not met accepted safety standards for their certification.
THISDAY learnt from FAAN source that perimeter fencing at the Lagos airport “is not what it should be”; that it is broken down here and there, especially at the Shasha area, adding, “We do carry out regular patrol but when you leave an area for about 30 minutes, somebody who has been watching you will use the opportunity to go in.”
Reacting to this incident, industry operators who spoke to THISDAY said that FAAN should consider it as top priority to complete the perimeter fencing project that is going on in some of the nation’s airports.
One of the operators urged the agency to intensify the regular patrol of the runways and the perimeter area of the airport to ensure that runway incursion such as the above incident, did not happen again.
 DailyPost

“I stopped my wife from having more babies, now she is denying me of my conjugal rights” – Man tells court

Although court rooms are filled with despicable deeds and sleazy acts, certain cases no doubt serve as a comic relief to some regular court room audience.
Such was the case when one Mr. Musibau Awinle and his 27-year-old wife, Mrs. Morufat Awinle stormed an lgando Customary Court sitting in Lagos.
Musibau had informed the court that he had never enjoyed his 11 years old marriage to Morufat.
According to him, the wife denies him sex often. ” Though l was the one that stopped her from having more children, it pained me whenever she denied me of sex”, he said.
The petitioner added that despite the fact that they had lived together as husband and wife for over a decade, his wife did not give him peace of mind and the respect that he duly deserved.
He alleged that his wife also destroys his hard-earned property at will and often disrespect members of his family .
Musibau urged the court to dissolve the marriage and grant him custody of the children.
The shameful family episode, took another dimension when Morufat was asked by the juror to give her own account of the story. The mother of three lamented that after her husband stopped her from having more children, he insisted on having sex with her everyday.
She also informed the court that whenever she refused him on bed, he would beat the hell out of her.
Morufat claimed that her husband does not care for her and their children, adding that this has forced her to relocate to her parents home. ”It was my mother that has been responsible for the payment of the children’s school fees and other things”, she said.
In an emotion laden voice, adding that her husband sent their first born to his elder brother to avoid being responsibility for his growth, saying the brother could not take care of the child alongside his own children. However, she pleaded that the court should not dissolve the marriage, because she still in love with her husband.
After listening to both parties, the court president, Mr. Tajudeen Adewale, adjourned the case for further hearing.
DailyPost

At Least Four Dead In Religious Induced Crisis In Central Nigeria

Local officials have been quoted as saying at least four persons have been killed in riots that erupted in central Nigeria after a man was killed at an illegal check point.
Isiaku Adamu, local government chairman said rioters torched houses and shops Sunday in Ibi, about 140 miles (230 kilometers) from the Taraba state capital of Jalingo.
Adamu said Christian worshippers had put up the checkpoint to stop radical Islamist sect, Boko Haram from nearing their church during the Sunday service as a response to church attacks in other parts of the country by the terrorist group.

“She is fetish and adulterous” – Husband exposes wife who is a prophetess

The 20-year old union between Samuel Fayose and his wife, Adetutu, a prophetess is at the verge of hitting the rocks.
The 60-year old man stormed the Grade A Customary Court, Agege, Lagos seeking for the dissolution of their marriage on the grounds that his wife who doubles as a prophetess was fetish, disrespectful and does not seem to care for him and the children.
Giving his evidence, the man claimed his doubts about his wife’s entanglement with juju powers were substantiated when he started seeing strange objects around his home.
“My daughter,Oluwafunmilayo, was sweeping one day when I saw one substance among the dirt on the floor. I picked it up and discovered it was a snail shell tied with black and white thread.
Inside it was my hair because I am the only one in the house with grey hair”.
The petitioner also said that he saw one of his trousers with mud and black thread. “As an elderly man, I knew it was a bad omen”.
Topping it all, he also alleged that his wife was fond of late night outings which often lead to promiscuous behaviour.
However, the court President Emmanuel Shokunle advised the couple to consider their children, who might suffer if their marriage crashed. ”Marriage is full of ups and downs, no man on earth is perfect, and no one is an Angel. So, I implore you to go back home, and bring some members of your family for chamber discussion, “Shokunle advised.
He also assured the troubled wife, Adetutu, that Samuel will be a loving husband and responsible father to their children after they have settled the matter.
The president therefore adjourned the suit for further hearing.
DailyPost