Jerry Douglas' Blog

Where is the report of the panel that probed the 2009 insurgency in Bauchi, Yobe and Maiduguri? Also, where is former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s report on how to end the Boko Haram menace in Borno? What about the most recent one submitted by Ambassador Usman Gaji Galtimari, who chaired the Presidential committee on insecurity in the North-East? Have the recent emergency rule slammed on Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states was capable of resolving the Boko Haram crisis?   The source exclusively said that unless and until some of these reports are looked into with “all sincerity” by the government, the soldiers currently deployed to the troubled spots would only succeed in “killing some innocent Nigerians, including a few of the insurgents”, adding that the aftermath would be counter-productive.   According to the source, the “real combatants would go into hiding, striking once in a while. But once the emergency rule is over, they will come out again in full force. ...

Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere has revealed his long-term ambition is to captain both his club and country. The 21-year-old will miss England's upcoming friendlies against Republic of Ireland and Brazil because of ongoing treatment to a nagging ankle injury. But he said: "I want to captain Arsenal and I want to captain England. That definitely appeals to me. It's my ultimate dream. People say players are no longer bothered about wearing the England shirt. "But for me it's the pinnacle of my job because club rivalries go out of the window and the entire nation comes together behind you - it's the best feeling." Wilshere, who had screws inserted in his ankle back in 2011 to aid his recovery from a stress fracture, expects to be fit to play in England's friendly against Scotland at Wembley on August 14. "I'm having an operation this week to deal with the irritating scar tissue caused by the screws, but it's a minor proces...

Sir Alex Ferguson has been named the LMA's Premier League manager of the year. The outgoing Manchester United boss picked up the award at a dinner in London and admitted he was relieved the celebrations to mark his retirement were over. They culminated in his last match in charge on Sunday, a 5-5 draw at West Brom. Ferguson said: "It has been overwhelming. The club has been fantastic and congratulations to West Brom with the way they handled yesterday. "In a way I am glad it is all over now - because it has been hard work! I think (West Brom manager) Steve Clarke should get an award because anyone who scores five against United deserves it." Ferguson added that he was confident he was leaving United in good hands, with the club's emphasis on bringing through young players. United also won the inaugural Under-21 Premier League, beating Tottenham on Monday night. He said: "It has always placed a great emphasis on youth long before I came. ...

When on May 13, 2013, Olusegun Dawodu opened a bar in Lagos State, his hope was to take care of his aged mother, who sponsored his education alone. His dream was however cut short after he was killed two days later by some hoodlums during a shoot-out on University Road, Akoka, Lagos. Our correspondent, who visited the area on Monday, learnt that three others were killed while four people sustained gunshot wounds. A friend of the deceased, who craved anonymity, said the incident occurred in the early hours of Thursday. He said the deceased, who was a manager at E-Bar and Restaurant, Lekki Phase 1, usually closed late from work He said, “Around 1am, some youths wielding guns stormed University Road and were shooting indiscriminately. The area was not completely deserted because people were celebrating the outcome of the football match between Chelsea Football Club and Benfica. “Dawodu was driving home in his Toyota car and on getting to University Road, just about 100 m...

The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency on Monday deployed police officers in strategic locations within the Murtala Mohammed Airport, Lagos, in a bid to maintain law and order. This followed earlier threats by the National Union of Air Transport Employees, National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers, and the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria to shut down the nation’s airspace. Police officers were stationed at the General Aviation Terminal, Murtala Mohammed Airport Two, and NAMA headquarters. It was learnt that senior management employees of the airspace agency took over the duty posts of Air Traffic Controllers at the airport, as the latter refused to work on Monday. Our correspondent gathered that the headquarters of NAMA was locked by the unions in the evening of Sunday, but the offices were forced open by the management of the airspace agency on Monday. The unions, in a joint statement, warned the flying public against relying on ...

President Goodluck Jonathan pleasantly surprised many Nigerians last week when he declared a state of emergency in three North-Eastern states, namely, Borno, Yobe and Adamawa. That announcement was surprising for some reasons: One, Jonathan had refrained from taking that same action for over two years. This had attracted strong criticism to him from his supporters and opponents, who saw it as sign of weakness. Two, a few days before, the Presidency had denied a news story published by a sister publication,  Saturday PUNCH , that there was a plan to declare a state of emergency in any part of Nigeria. Three, a few weeks before, the President had inaugurated the Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Peaceful Resolution on Security Challenges in the North. Four, many people had never seen Jonathan speak with such force and in such a voice before. Five, for the first time, Jonathan called members of the Boko Haram sect “terrorists”. Even before the National Assembly had give...

Ahead of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum’s next meeting, lobbying for the chairmanship of the body has heightened. The different camps interested in who heads the 36-member forum, our correspondent learnt, were not leaving anything to chance. A source in the anti-Governor Rotimi Amaechi camp confided in our correspondent that the declaration of emergency rule in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states had altered the game plan. The source said, “The state of emergency declared by the President has altered the calculations among avowed Amaechi’s supporters. “They now know that opposing the President on this one is a risky business. “When he said he would contest, we knew that he did not realise that his options were narrowing and his support base was being depleted.” However, a source in the pro-Amaechi camp said the governor had not lost hope. He said, “We are aware that the other camp is playing a mind game. “They have been using subtle threats as well as promises to try to ...

Ahead of debates on the declaration of State of Emergency in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states by President Goodluck Jonathan today,  senators from the north under the aegis, Northern Senators Forum  were yesterday locked in a marathon meeting. Vanguard gathered that the meeting which started at 8.55pm yesterday took place at hearing Room 1,white House, Senate wing and ended at 10.30 pm. The meeting which was held behind closed door and presided over by Chairman of the forum, Senator Umar Dahiru, PDP Sokoto  south discussed among others, the declaration of State of emergency as they were said to have thrown their weights behind it as the way forward to the insurgency. Vanguard gathered that the meeting which had over twenty senators from the north in attendance, however resolved that President Jonathan must not jettison his planned amnesty programme for members of the Boko Haram sect as a way of nipping in the bud the problem in the country. The senators, a sou...

Less than a year after his wife died, the General Overseer of Revival Assembly Ministries International, Apostle Anselm Madubuko, has said he would ‘definitely’ remarry. Connie, Madubuko’s wife of 28 years, died on on 6 July, 2012, and there have been speculations that the clergyman had remarried or was planning to wed just two months after the passing of his wife and mother of their three children. But the clergyman in an interview with a daily Nigerian newspaper denied the rumours, saying “the press got me married many months ago”. “I saw it in the papers that I was getting married. I’m still on,” he told The Guardian newspaper. He added: “There was nothing like that. I just saw in the papers that Apostle is set to remarry. That was about two months after my wife died and all the blogs carried it. Definitely, I will remarry, but the story making the rounds is not true.” He said his children (a boy and two girls), are doing well. “My kids are not perfect, but they lo...

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez announced Monday that coach Jose Mourinho will leave at the end of the season after three years at the Spanish club.   "We've decided to bring our relationship to an end at the end of the current season," Perez said. "The club and manager agree the timing is right to bring our relationship to an end. On behalf of the board of directors I would like to thank Jose Mourinho for all his hard work. The team have improved in his three years, and we wish him all the best. It was the right moment." Perez said no decision about his replacement has been made. Spanish media has reported that Paris Saint-Germain coach Carlo Ancelotti is a candidate. The 50-year-old Portuguese coach is leaving having won just a single Spanish league title -- sandwiched between four Barcelona successes, including one this season -- and two domestic cups. He has two remaining matches of a season that will end at the start of next month w...

No fewer than four persons were feared dead, yesterday, while 10 others sustained various degrees of injury when two rival youth groups suspected to have come from Ogbaru Area Council of Anambra State engaged themselves in a bloody clash.   The face-off, according to the source, was over the control and ownership of a motor park known as Aba Park located in the heart of Upper Iweka in the commercial city of Onitsha, along the ever-busy Onitsha-Owerri Road. Also, property worth millions of naira, including vehicles and shops, were reportedly damaged during the clash which resulted in traders at the Ogbaru Relief Market shutting their shops to protect their lives and wares. Trouble was said to have started when one of the warring factions allegedly stormed the park early in the morning to forcefully take over its control. On arrival, the source stated, the other faction attempted to bar their rival from entering the park but in an apparent move to force themselves...