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Archive for the month “May, 2012”

18 May 2012

Bus plunges into river killing 34 in one of Vietnam’s deadliest road accidents

Vietnam Bus Accident

Rescuers say 34 people are dead after a bus accident in the central highland province of Dak Lak, Vietnam. Picture: AP / Tuoi Tre Newspaper

OFFICIALS in central Vietnam say a bus has plunged into a river bank, killing 34 people and injuring 21 others.

The bus smashed through the rails of a bridge last night and hit the bank of the Serepok River about 18 metres below, according to local official Tran Bao Que.

The bus had been travelling from the central highland province of Dak Lak to the southern commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City, he said.

 

Vietnam Bus Accident
Rescuers search for victims in a bus accident in central highland province of Dak Lak, Vietnam. The crowded bus plunged into a river bank, killing 34 people and injuring 21 others in one of the country’s deadliest road accidents. Picture: AP / Tuoi Tre Newspaper

Y Bliu Arul, deputy director of the hospital in Dak Lak, said the bus’s two drivers were among the 32 people who died at the scene. Two other people died in hospital. Of the 21 injured, 16 were in serious condition.

Authorities are investigating the cause of the accident.

Source: The News Australia
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18 May 2012

Russian spy babe’s gadgets in new exhibition

“RUSSIAN spy babe Anna Chapman was outfitted with a $2,300 Chanel bag featuring a hidden, high-powered wi-fi device so she could secretly communicate with her Moscow-led overseers.

The bag, still in FBI custody, is expected to join a bevy of other Chapman goodies going on display as part of an exhibition about spies and their gadgets – including Chapman’s – opening Friday in New York.

“If she had been here another six months, Anna Chapman could have become the most dangerous spy in American history,” said spy-book author and former CIA operative H. Keith Melton, who is curating the exhibition.

“She could access anyone,” he said.

Melton believes Chapman was well on her way to severely compromising US business interests until she foolishly handed off her Toshiba laptop – chock full of sensitive information – to an FBI informant posing as a Russian agent.

The laptop’s hand-off came during a meeting at a Manhattan Starbucks the day before she was taken into custody in June 2010, when she complained the computer did not work properly and the “Russian” agent – who told her his name was “Roman” — offered to have it fixed at the Russian consulate.

Melton owns or gained access to most of the hundreds of pieces of spy paraphernalia on display in the exhibit – including one titled “Anna Chapman’s Laptop.”

He described the Russian as so friendly, personable and beautiful that her mission of gaining access to wealthy or influential American businessmen was a snap.

After gaining their trust, the modern-day Mata Hari would hand off information about the men to her handlers, who would then decide if their businesses were worth targeting for espionage to help boost Russia’s efforts to become a global economic powerhouse.”

Source: The News Australia
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18 May 2012
1 Comment

Man who dismembered girlfriend with circular saw gets 28 years’ jail

A MAN who claimed his live-in lover had died an accidental death before he cut up her body with a power saw has been jailed for at least 21 years for her murder.

Neal Richardson’s treatment of the body was partly an “expression of anger and hatred” towards Kiralee Grant, Justice Lucy McCullum said in the NSW Supreme Court today.

Richardson, 45, was found guilty last November of murdering Ms Grant, 41, in April 2010, at the unit they shared in Malabar in Sydney’s east.

He dismembered her body, included cutting off her hands and nipples, before he put the pieces in garbage bags and dumped them on a rural property on the NSW south coast.

Justice McCullum expressed her sympathy to the parents of Ms Grant, whose twin sister was murdered in Brisbane in 1991.

The judge found Richardson was partly motivated to cut up the body to remove evidence of injuries inflicted by him.
She noted the jury rejected his claim that Ms Grant, a prostitute who was a heavy user of drugs and alcohol, died when she hit her head on a coffee table after falling during a fight.

Ms Grant died the day before she was due to give evidence against Richardson, who had initially been refused bail after being charged with assaulting her in October 2009.

“The existence of the charge and the impending hearing is relevant to an assessment of the offender’s likely state of mind on the night he killed Ms Grant,” the judge said.

On the night she died, Ms Grant borrowed a mobile phone from a neighbour to call her bank to order a new card as she had lost her purse.

“The recordings of those telephone calls are chilling,” the judge said.

“They reveal that Ms Grant was at times incoherent, angry, frustrated and distressed.

“The offender, by contrast, was calm, politely providing the information required by the bank.”

The judge was satisfied Ms Grant rang the bank under threat from Richardson and “that she was in grave fear of harm at his hands at that time”.

She found Richardson had formed the intention to kill Ms Grant and was forcing her to make the calls so he would have access to her bank account after her death.

The judge set a maximum term of 28 years.

Source: The News Australia
Posted in News, Security & Crime News and tagged , , , , , , ,
18 May 2012

Number of female CIOs dropping fast: survey

Facebook's Sheryl Sandberg ... dubbed the Justin Bieber of the tech world.Facebook‘s Sheryl Sandberg … dubbed the Justin Bieber of the tech world. Photo: AFP

By Sonia Paul

This post was originally published on Mashable.

“The number of women in senior positions at tech companies is down for the second year in a row, according to a recent survey.

The US arm of the British-based Harvey Nash Group and the data center provider TelecityGroup found that 9 per cent of current US chief information officers (CIOs) are female. Last year, that figure was 11 per cent. In 2010, it was 12 percent.

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According to a report from Reuters, 30 per cent of those polled stated there was no female representation in the management section of their IT organisation. However, only half of the respondents considered women to be underrepresented in the IT department.

The respondents included 450 American technology leaders.

Meanwhile, a White House report on the state of women’s employment in the US, released in April, found that women comprise only 25 per cent of all STEM-related (science, technology, engineering and math) careers.

That’s not to say that women haven’t reached senior levels at several top tech companies – Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of Facebook, is a notable example. Yet Facebook still has no women on its executive board.

The White House report attributed this representation to two factors: Women are studying STEM fields in college at a lower rate than men, and many women who earn STEM degrees don’t necessarily pursue STEM-related careers.

Moreover, the fact that women are currently absent from the top positions at IT departments makes it harder to attract women to these roles – thereby perpetuating the lack of female representation.

“Less and less women are attracted into that space so you wind up creating a self-fulfilling prophecy,” Anna Frazetto, senior vice president of international technology solutions at Harvey Nash USA, told Reuters. “It’s not a very welcoming arena to be in.”

Women are also still plagued by the “preconceived notion” that they are focused on other priorities, such as starting a family, according to the Reuters report.

In addition, as Mashable previously reported, female advancement in any career has much to do with self-advocacy – and women tend to not to take on the “negotiating mindset” to ask for promotion opportunities, better pay rates or flexible scheduling the way their male counterparts might.

Recent studies, however, have found that employing women in the upper echelons of companies pays off for both women and their companies. In the tech field, women-owned, venture-backed companies have 12 per cent higher revenues.

In addition, companies whose top positions are equally filled by men and women garnered 30 per cent better results from IPOs.

So where might women be able to break into these companies? In the Harvey Nash survey, the majority of respondents said their organisation is facing a skills shortage in business analysis and project management. According to Frazzetto, this is causing a paradigm shift in smaller companies, and larger companies may very well follow suit.

“The skills shortage is the biggest it’s ever been, and it’s going to cause companies to get a little more creative in shifting the culture of organisations,” said Frazetto.

What do you think women can do to promote themselves in this organisational “culture shift?” Do you have any other advice for women trying to break into technology? Let us know in the comments.

Mashable is the largest independent news source covering digital culture, social media and technology.

Source:  Sydney Morning Herald
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18 May 2012
1 Comment

Again, Police in Accidental Discharge, Kill Two, Injure Others

IGP,-Mohammed-Abubakar.jpg - IGP,-Mohammed-Abubakar.jpg

 Acting IGP, Mohammed Abubakar 

By Chiemelie Ezeobi

“Once more, the Police have killed innocent persons in circumstances that are far from crime control. Although it little shocks Nigerians anymore that the Police killed innocent persons, yet, it deepens the slur to which the image of the Police Force is often dragged each time it occurs. And many are the times indeed.

In a recent incident, four policemen attached to the State Anti Robbery Squad (SARS), were said to have been more than tipsy, having spent hours carousing at a Night Club, Monalido Club, Kalakuta road, off Creek Road, in the Apapa district of Lagos State.

In foggy circumstances, the Police men who were said to have escorted a certain sailor, one Captain George¸ to the club last Saturday, as they usually did in the past, had gone into the club with their loaded weapons.  The police officers are two corporals and two inspectors.

Eyewitness account said the Lagos socialite had gone to the club to unwind with his escorts; and stayed till the wee hours of the next day however, as they were about to leave, the escorts were said to have fired their guns purportedly into the sky in sheer mark of revelry, having lost full control of their emotions.

The shooting surprised the club members and many of them began to run helter skelter for shelter from the flying bullets. But two persons, one Azubuike Benedict and a lady simply identified as Joy were not as lucky as the bullets hit them on the stomach and neck respectively.  Others were inured. One of them, Darlington, received a bullet on his knee.

THISDAY further gathered that the police officers were fond of shooting sporadically into the air to celebrate while their boss sprays money on fun seekers anytime they came to the club to unwind. Observers are thus worried at the flippant excuse at which live bullets are expended by policemen. Another question raised by this incident is on why the police would go into a club with their guns when they face the danger of being inebriated?

Speaking to THISDAY Thursday in Apapa, friends of Azubuike called on the appropriate authorities to see that justice is served. Narrating the scenario, one of the deceased’s friends, Deji Nathaniel, said he was hanging out with Azubuike when another mutual friend showed up and asked them out to Monalido to unwind. It turned out to be Azubuike’s last outing ever. Azubuike hails from Kwale in Delta State.

According to Nathaniel, the 39-year-old father of Esther (6-years-old) had just come back two months ago from Italy where he resides.  Described by friends as an all round entertainer and mentor, the death has shocked all who knew him.

Nathaniel said: “We were all together that day when I stepped out. The next thing I knew, a lady rushed to me and told me that Zuby (their pet name for him) had been shot dead.  When I got to our spot, I was told he had been taken to Lagoon Hospital for treatment.

“I rushed there only to see Zuby lying in a pool of his own blood. Even though he was in pains, he was still talking. He asked me to hold his hand which I did and was assuring him that he would survive. He complained that his stomach was hurting him because he was shot in the ribs.”

Nathaniel said he held the hand of the deceased until he was rolled into the theatre for surgery and about five hours later, they got a call to announce his death.

“When we took him to the hospital, they demanded for N1million before treatment would be carried out. We quickly rallied round and raised N800, 000 before treatment commenced.

“First they gave him four pints of blood but it obviously was not enough as the hospital told us that they needed six more pints. We went around to different hospitals to get that. It is painful that despite all our efforts, Zuby still died.”

According to Nathaniel, the said Captain George had stormed the club with his ash coloured Toyota Forerunner Jeep with registration number FST950AJ while his escorts were in a white Hilux truck.

“We want the authorities to do something about this matter and not sweep it under the carpet because this has been Captain George’s modus operandi. He comes into the club with his escorts and after they have enjoyed themselves, he would throw wads of cash in the air while his escorts will also shoot into the air in joyous mood.”

One of the victims, who was identified as Darlington, who was lucky to have survived the gunshot on his knee was brought to THISDAY after treatment to narrate his account.

According to him, they were catching their fun when the stillness of the night was broken by sporadic gunshots. He said while the fun seekers quickly dispersed, he took cover but was hit all the same.

He demanded that, “the police officers who did this should be brought to book since they are known. I was lucky the bullet did not kill me.”

Also speaking to THISDAY, one of the petty-traders around the club precinct, one Gbenga, claimed the policemen were drunk and as result fired their guns even though no one threatened them or their boss.

He said: “Captain George is a very popular face at the Monalido Club and so that day, he had come as usual to the club and as they were leaving, his police escorts shot sporadically into the air. The bullets killed two people instantly and injured so many people.”

When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Joseph Jaiyeoba, a superintendent of police, had confirmed the incident but said he could not say if the policemen were drunk as alleged.

He said: “The incident happened quite alright but we do not know if the policemen were drunk. From what I deduced from the information reaching me, the shots were accidental.

“The police officer in question tried to shoot his gun up in the air but his gun jammed and hit his hand thereby bringing the gun down. It was in the process that two people were killed.”

Jaiyeoba said investigations are going to ascertain what truly happened as well as secure the arrest of the two fleeing officers.

The two arrested officers have since been handed over to the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Mr. Muhammed Muazu, of Apapa Police Division.

It would be recalled that on assumption of office, the acting IGP, Mohammed Abubakar, as part of his reformatory agenda for the police, had ordered the withdrawal of all approved police escorts from private individuals and corporate bodies across the country.”

Source: Thisday Newspapers

Posted in Security & Crime News and tagged , , , , , , ,
18 May 2012

Govt Officials Spend N300b Annually on Aircraft Charter

0905F02.Namadi-Sambo.jpg - 0905F02.Namadi-Sambo.jpg

Vice President Namadi Sambo

By Chinedu Eze

“It has been revealed that top government officials at the Federal and state levels, including Ministers, President’s aides, governors, Senate and House committees, Speakers of State Houses of Assembly and others expend over N300 billion annually on aircraft charter.

A confirmed insider told THISDAY on Monday that charter operations in Nigeria is a multibillion Naira business that effectively competes with that of scheduled commercial operation and   involves largely foreign registered aircraft with foreign registered crew, although most of the aircraft are owned by Nigerians.

With average of about $6,500.00 (N1, 01400) for one hour charter, the charter operators rake in huge amounts of revenue every month from mainly government officials and some Nigerian businessmen and women.

It was also revealed that although this subsector of air operation in Nigeria generates billions of Naira annually, many of them do not pay the stipulated charges, Value Added Tax (VAT) and corporate tax to the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority and government.

THISDAY learnt that according to regulations, before an aircraft is allowed to operate commercial charter in Nigeria,  it must be under an airline that has Audit Maintenance Organisation Certificate (AMO) and Air Operators Certificate (AOC).

AMO would ensure that the airline has the competence to maintain the aircraft it is flying, while the AOC would ensure that the aircraft is competently managed, but indications show that most of the aircraft that operate as charter in the country were acquired as privately owned and therefore do not pay the necessary charges, VAT and corporate tax to government.

For the aircraft to operate charter services in the country it must be deregistered of its foreign number and then be registered in Nigeria and the cockpit crew must hold valid Nigeria licence,  and the aircraft must be under a commercial operator, but many of these aircraft owners do not abide by these conditions.

A source said that if these aircraft are managed by an airline that meets the aforementioned conditions, “the commercial operator ensures that tax, VAT and other charges are paid when they are due. Currently government is losing so much money on VAT, corporate tax and 5 per cent charge to NCAA, which are lost from those privately owned aircraft that are used for commercial charter services.”

But the spokesman of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Sam Adurogboye, told THISDAY on Wednesday that all aircraft operating in Nigeria meet the conditions set out by the regulatory body, adding that “every airline has a licence that specifies  its type of operations and are guided accordingly.”

He also said that private operators pay appropriate navigational charges like landing, parking etc. and that owners of private jets are not allowed to run commercial services, adding that    doing so would be regarded    as an aberration if detected.

“Owner of private jets are required to put their jets under an AOC holder for management, i.e., maintenance, insurance and crew, and accordingly held responsible for any violation in the process of its operations.”

But the source also told THISDAY, “Nigerians will travel overseas, buy aircraft, register it overseas, bring it to Nigeria in the pretext that it is leased and use it to operate commercial services without paying anything to government.”

The source also adds, “Crew members must correspond with the country of registry; however, these aircraft were not financed by any foreign financial institutions, they were bought by Nigerians, so most of them ought to be registered in Nigeria.”

Depending on sitting capacity and aircraft type, an aircraft could be chartered for average of $6,500 for one hour in addition to waiting charge, which includes return flight.”

Source:Thisday Newspaper

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18 May 2012

Iran Attack Decision Nears, Israeli Elite Locks Down

170512N.Benjamin-Netanyahu.jpg - 170512N.Benjamin-Netanyahu.jpg

 Israel‘s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reviews the guard of honour during a welcoming ceremony at Czech government headquarters in Prague

REUTERS

A private door opens from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office in central Jerusalem directly into a long, modestly furnished, half-panelled room decorated with modern paintings by Israeli artists and a copy of Israel’s 1948 declaration of independence. It contains little more than a long wooden table, brown leather chairs and a single old-fashioned white projector screen.

This inner sanctum at the end of a corridor between Netanyahu’s private room and the office of his top military adviser, is where one of the decade’s most momentous military decisions could soon be taken: to launch an Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear programme, reports Reuters.

Time for that decision is fast running out and the mood in Jerusalem is hardening.

Iran continues to enrich uranium in defiance of international pressure, saying it needs the fuel for its civilian nuclear programme. The West is convinced that Tehran’s real objective is to build an atomic bomb – something which the Jewish state will never accept because its leaders consider a nuclear armed-Iran a threat to its very existence.

Adding to the international pressure, U.S. ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro said this week American military plans to strike Iran were “ready” and the option was “fully available”.

The central role Iran plays in Netanyahu’s deliberations is reflected in the huge map of the Middle East hanging by the door of his office. Israel lies on one edge, with Iran taking pride of place in the centre.

Experts say that within a few months, much of Iran’s nuclear programme will have been moved deep underground beneath the Fordow mountain, making a successful military strike much more difficult.

As the deadline for a decision draws nearer, the public pronouncements of Israel’s top officials and military have changed. After hawkish warnings about a possible strike earlier this year, their language of late has been more guarded and clues to their intentions more difficult to discern.

“The top of the government has gone into lockdown,” one official said. “Nobody is saying anything publicly. That in itself tells you a lot about where things stand.”

Last week Netanyahu pulled off a spectacular political surprise, creating a coalition of national unity and delaying elections which everyone believed were inevitable. The manoeuvre also led to speculation that the Israeli leader wanted a broad, strong government to lead a military campaign.

The inclusion of the Iranian-born former Israeli chief of staff and veteran soldier, Gen. Shaul Mofaz, in the coalition, fuelled that speculation – even though both Mofaz and Netanyahu deny that Iran was mentioned in the coalition negotiations.

“I think they have made a decision to attack,” said one senior Israeli figure with close ties to the leadership. “It is going to happen. The window of opportunity is before the U.S. presidential election in November. This way they will bounce the Americans into supporting them.”

Those close to Netanyahu are more cautious, saying no assumptions should be made about an attack on Iran – an attack with such potentially devastating consequences across the volatile Middle East that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas even went so far as to predict in an interview with Reuters last week that it would be “the end of the world”.

Source: Thisday Newspaper

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16 May 2012
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U.N. vehicles hit by explosion in Syria

An image grab from Youtube on May 15, 2012 allegedly shows a UN observers convoy after a roadside bomb exploded.
An image grab from Youtube on May 15, 2012 allegedly shows a UN observers convoy after a roadside bomb exploded.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • NEW: Government forces fire on a funeral procession, opposition groups say
  • NEW: 63 people are reportedly killed Tuesday
  • Syria says “scores” of people are killed or hurt by a terrorist bomb in Banyas
  • The government touts the “widest turnout” for parliamentary elections

By the CNN Wire Staff

(CNN) — A four-vehicle U.N. convoy was struck by a blast from an explosive device Tuesday in Syria, the United Nations said.

No U.N. personnel were injured, but three vehicles were damaged, said Ahmad Fawzi, spokesman for Kofi Annan, special envoy to Syria for both the United Nations and the Arab League.

The attack on the vehicles happened around the same time government forces opened fire on a nearby funeral procession, according to opposition groups.

Twenty-three people were killed and 100 were injured in that attack, Avaaz, one of the groups, said.

Another opposition group, the Local Coordination Committees of Syria, described dozens of people falling to the ground after government forces fired on them using heavy machine guns.

Map shows area of most recent clashesMap shows area of most recent clashes

 

Shoes are strewn about on the street and people can be seen gathering near the stopped vehicles.

Suddenly, there is a loud bang and plumes of smoke drift up into the sky. The camera flashes to what looks to be the front of the U.N. convoy, showing one of the vehicles with its hood now popped open. After a few seconds, the vehicles drive away.

“The Assad army is shelling the observers’ vehicles in Khan Cheikhoun!” someone yells.

A second video allegedly shows the attack on the funeral procession. A voice taunts what appears to be security forces.

“Are you going to shoot us, or what? You dogs, shoot!” the man shouts.

Seconds later, the forces open fire and people scatter, fleeing the area.

Idlib was the site of some of the heaviest violence Tuesday, according to the opposition Local Coordination Committees of Syria.

At least 63 people were killed, including 33 in Idlib, eight in Homs, seven in Deir Ezzor, five in Hama, four in Banyas, four in Damascus suburbs, one in Hasakeh and one in Daraa, the group said.

SANA, the state-run news agency, said terrorists were preparing a bomb in Banyas when it exploded, leaving “scores” of people dead or wounded. A 3-year-old child died in the collapse of the building, SANA said.

Two law enforcement personnel were killed — one in Daraa and one in Homs, the agency reported.

Throughout the uprising against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, Syria has blamed the violence on “armed terrorist groups.”

The jihadist Al Nusra Front has denied a claim that it was behind dual suicide bombings that killed 55 and wounded hundreds in the Syrian capital last week.

A video purportedly from Al Nusra Front released Saturday said that government buildings in Damascus were targeted “because the regime continues to shell residential civilians.”

Syrian forces carried out a siege Tuesday at Raqa University in northern Syria after a massive demonstration and fired live ammunition at a college student demonstration in Aleppo, the Local Coordination Committees said.

Some rebels say they have had to sell their cows, cars or their wives’ jewelry to buy guns and bullets to fight.

The al-Assad family has ruled Syria for 42 years.

International pressure against al-Assad’s government ratcheted up this week, with European Union foreign ministers imposing new sanctions against the regime Monday.

The EU ministers froze the assets of two firms and imposed a travel ban and asset freeze on three people believed to be providing funding for the regime, the European Council announced.

It was the 15th time the European Union has imposed restrictions on Syria since the popular uprising began there.

“The continuing violence is appalling,” EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said Monday, stressing that the sanctions are aimed at the regime and not the civilian population. “As long as the repression continues, we will continue to put pressure on those responsible for it.”

Just 300 yards from the Syrian border, hundreds of Syrians have found safety at a Turkish refugee camp. Though they have fled the fighting, many are haunted by memories of the 14-month-long bloodshed.

Abu Mohammed recalled how two of his sons had been fatally shot by security forces while demonstrating in Syria about a year ago. Another son is missing, believed to be arrested and possibly killed without ever having met his 7-month-old son.

Mohammed said he cannot justify the Syrian security forces’ actions. He knows why his sons spoke up and why many are still fighting.

“We had young men that cried out and shouted, ‘Freedom!’ — and they were killed for that?” he asked rhetorically. “We just want freedom. What’s wrong with asking for freedom?”

But the Syrian government Tuesday touted “the widest turnout of voters for Syrian parliamentary elections,” which took place May 7.

“The citizens exercised their full rights, and they had total freedom in choosing their representatives,” Judge Khalaf al-Azzawi, chairman of Higher Committee for Elections, said on state TV.

The United Nations estimates that at least 9,000 people have died in the 14-month crisis, while opposition groups put the death toll at more than 11,000.

CNN cannot independently verify reports of deaths and violence because the Syrian government has severely restricted access by international media.

CNN’s Saad Abedine, Ivan Watson, Anderson Cooper and Holly Yan contributed to this report.”

Source: CNN News

 

Posted in News, Security & Crime News and tagged , , , , , , ,
16 May 2012

FG to recruit 280,000 policemen

 

Minister of Police Affairs, Navy Capt Caleb Olubolade (retd.)Minister of Police Affairs, Navy Capt Caleb Olubolade (retd.)
| credits: File copy

By Adelani Adepegba

“THE government is to recruit 280,000 police officers, Minister of Police Affairs, Capt. Caleb Olubolade (retd.), has said.

Speaking in Abuja on Tuesday, Olubolade, who put the number of the country’s serving police officers at 370,000, said there were plans to increase it to 650,000.

He said while 90 per cent of the policemen would be trained in modern policing tactics and weapons handling.

According to the minister, the move is aimed at reforming the police and making it more responsive to meet the security challenges facing the country.

He said modern digital trunking communication network and equipment for tracking kidnappers and other criminals had been acquired for the police.

Olubolade said about 1110 policemen had been trained in counter-terrorism and rapid response programme, basic intelligence course, patrol duties and operation course.

Others are traffic management course, train-the-trainer, intelligence lead surveillance course  curriculum development and effective leadership in public protection, intervention, mobilisation and sensitisation training.

According to him, the government has provided about nine Bell helicopters for the police as well as some quantity of arms and ammunitions including various types of Amoured Personnel carriers and body protection armour (Bullet proof vests).

The minister stated that the police received fund from the Education Trust Fund for implementation of various projects at the Police Academy, Kano to the tune of N580m.

Olubolade stated that in 2011, the police recorded 879 robbery cases and 366 kidnappings while 1,609 suspects were arrested and 766 firearms and 31, 175 ammunition recovered from the suspects.

He said, “Boko Haram insurgence is predominant in the northern states of the country; 118 Boko Haram attacks were reported in Bauchi, Borno, Kaduna, Niger, Yobe, Plateau States and the FCT where 308 victims lost their lives and 33 suspects arrested.”

Source: The Punch Newspapers

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16 May 2012

Police arrest five over ThisDay, Sun bombing

 

Bombed sectionn of ThisDay office in Abuja
By Adelani Adepegba

KADUNA  State Police Command has arrested five suspects in connection with the bombing of the Kaduna offices of ThisDay and Sun newspapers.

Commissioner of Police, Kaduna State, Mohammed Abubakar, told our correspondent on the telephone on Tuesday that the suspects had been transferred to Abuja for further investigation.

Police had earlier arrested one of the bombers, Umar Mustapha, but four others were later apprehended

“Four other suspects were actually arrested later and they have been moved to Abuja along with the first suspect that was arrested on the scene of the attack and hospitalised,” the CP said.

Meanwhile, security agencies have yet to come to terms with the way a suicide bomber beat all security checks mounted at the entrance to the Federal capital Territory to attack ThisDay’s office at Jabi, Abuja on April 26, it has been learnt.

Our correspondent learnt that security operatives, including the State Security Service, the Police and the military were worried about the ease with which the hoodlums beat the security checks put in place to forestall attacks in Abuja.

Deployment of equipment and security teams at the entrances and exit of the FCT had given the illusion of security in Abuja until the devatsting attack which claimed three lives and injured 15 others.

A security source told THE PUNCH on Tuesday that security agencies could not explain how the suicide bomber driving  a green Isuzu jeep was able to beat the security agencies and attacked ThisDay’s office in the heart of the city.

The source stated that security chiefs were surprised by the failure of security equipment and assault teams to detect the suicide bomber and his deadly cargo, stressing that a lot of brainstorming was still going on over the incident which caught security agencies by surprise.

“Security agencies were confused by the Thisday attacks because we believed we had covered all the entrances and exits to Abuja. we just couldn’t explain the attack and up till now, a lot of questions and brainstorming were still going on over the incident,” the source said.”

Source: The Punch Newspapers

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